5 Ways to (Authentically) Market Your Poetry Book
5 Ways to (Authentically) Market Your Book
Congrats! You have a book coming out. You have a stunning cover, exciting blurbs, the pub date, the preorder link… now what?
If you are anything like me, after my first book was accepted, I danced around the room, thinking my dreamy thoughts ( I’m finally publishing a book, all that hard work has paid off, my dreams are coming true).
Then panic set in. Dread clouded my mind. What if no one reads my book? What if no one buys it? What if I did all this for nothing? Of course, it’s never for nothing. I love to write and would do it even if publishing didn’t exist. However, I think it is safe to say if you publish a book, you probably want people to read it.
As someone who has taught workshops for a long time, my inbox is usually littered with good news. Students often write to share that their first book has been accepted. YES! Virtual high five! Nothing makes me happier. However, later in the email I can usually sense the “now what” creeping into their tone.
“Do you have any pointers on how I should market?” they often ask. “I’m not very good at self promotion.”
Many of the numbers I have researched state that the average poetry book sells anywhere between 25-40 copies. Now after 25 minutes of Googling, I can’t say this number is 100% accurate, but it sure is motivation. I also read that even mid-level poets, many who have been in the most prestigious journals and Best American Poetry only sell somewhere between 2,000-3,000.
While I always thought self-promotion was a yucky word, when my book Boat Burned (YesYes Books) came out in 2020, I had to come to peace with it. I was determined to make the most of this opportunity. I sent out newsletters, taught workshops, set up readings, asked press for reviews, interviews, you name it.
I’m proud to say that Boat Burned has sold over 750 copies, including the ones that I have sold at readings and events. This number feels great according to the average 25-40, but it is important to add that those numbers were heavily influenced by the amount of outreach and promotion I did.
The most important thing I learned is self-promotion doesn’t feel icky if you do it authentically and in a way that gives back to the poetry community.
If you are looking for some ways to authentically market your book here’s where I would start:
1. Read and Promote Other Poets
I once heard Kaveh Akhar in an interview quote Richard Howard. Howard says, “Being the most famous poet is like being the most famous mushroom.” In other words, poetry is a market so small and specific, that it is usually only poets reading poets.
In short: you must support other mushrooms. Contribute to the club, if it is mainly poets who read (and promote) other poets, ask yourself: How am I contributing? Join the conversation. Make sure you are not only asking: How can I promote my own work, but how can I join the conversation of supporting poetry in general?
What was the last incredible poet book you read? How can you give them a shout out? Love a poem posted on social media? Why not share it and tag the poet? I have learned about so many poets, from other poets sharing their work on social media.
Shift your mindset from “me” to “we” and marketing feels more celebratory!
2. Create an Email List and Newsletter
Gather the emails of those you know, who care about you and want to support your work. Reach out to them and ask them if they are okay with receiving an occasional email about your poetry news! Chances are most friends and loved ones will be happy to cheer you on. And if they’re not, well then too bad for them. Don’t take it personal and move on.
Your newsletter can have all the bells and whistles: gifs and videos or be a simple Hi! How are you? Would you mind checking out my book, or maybe sharing the news?
There are many programs who will help you with templates, Mailchimp, Constant Contact, or you can just send a regular old email.
Pro tip: For me the best emails/newsletters go beyond self-promotion and offer something that entertains, educates or offers a gift. Maybe you share your favorite poem or a cute gif of otters holding hands. Just think, how can I add to this person’s day? How can I make them smile? It doesn’t have to be perfect if it just has to be you.
3. Organize Events
Being a literary citizen and a contributing member of a poetic community means so much more than writing. It means giving your friends feedback on their work, reading other poets, attending but most of all organizing events. Event organizers deserve a lobster dinner for all the hours, sweat and love they give.
One of the best ways to help promote your work and contribute to the poetry community is by organizing events. Love your friends' work? Organize readings that feature them. Love a poet's work? Invite them to teach a paid workshop to you and your friends.
Your book launch is the perfect place to feature other poet’s whose work you respect and admire. And now with the invitation of Canva and Zoom, creating events is no longer limited by flyers or book locations, you can do it all from the comfort of your home.
4. Contact Journals
Journals and their editors are some of the first champions of your work. They believed in your writing enough to publish and promote it. So make sure you share the good news!
When Boat Burned was coming out I reached out to every journal that had published a piece of mine with the subject line: Good News from a Former Contributor. Who doesn’t like an email that contains good news? I wrote asking if they were interested in doing a review or interviewing me to help promote my book. Out of the 20 or so I reached out to 17 responded positively and I believe I did about 15 interviews. This was awesome because not only did I get to talk about writing (usually over email or Zoom) with another poet, but it also gave them content for their website.
5. Use Social Media
Social media is a mirror, or the fancy people call it an algorithm. Meaning it feeds you what you feed it. Many people are quick to tell you all the ways that social media is hurting society. And sure. Maybe. However, social media is a tool. Like fire. You can use it to cook something yummy or burn the place down.
Personally, most of my social media is focused on poetry, I’m part of poetry Facebook groups, Poetry Twitter and follow poets whose work I admire on Instagram. I’m thrilled when I open up an app and see a brand new poem from one of my favorite poets. I feed the algorithm poetry and it feeds it right back.
My advice would be to post about your book, let people know it is coming out, use popular poetry hashtags, but also post about puppies and other people's books.
Are you sensing a theme here?
I know the world of self-promotion can seem daunting, but also as long as you honor yourself, your style and make sure you share the love, I promise the love will find you!
Want to learn more about marketing your work? My course From Brainstorm to Book Deal (starts Feb 1) is a 30-day course that covers everything from how to structure, edit and promote your book to transforms your craft and career.
Have a great marketing tip? Share in the comments below!
KELLY GRACE THOMAS is a poet, educator, and an ocean-obsessed Aries from Jersey. Her first full-length collection, Boat Burned, was released with YesYes Books in 2020. She is the winner of the 2020 Jane Underwood Poetry Prize and the 2017 Neil Postman Award for Metaphor. Kelly’s poems have appeared in: Best New Poets, 32 Poems, Los Angeles Review, Muzzle, Sixth Finch, and more. Kelly has received fellowships from the Martha’s Vineyard Institute of Creative Writing and Kenyon Review Young Writers’ Workshop. Kelly the author of Voices in Verse: Poetry, Identity and Ethnic Studies; Stanzas of America: Celebrating BIPOC Poetry; and Words Ignite: Explore, Write and Perform Classic and Spoken Word Poetry (Literary Riot) all currently taught in the Los Angeles Unified School District. Kelly is currently a Blackburn Fellow in the Randolph College MFA program. She lives in Benicia, California with her husband, daughter, and sister where she teaches online poetry workshops. www.kellygracethomas.com