Publicity Hound Paul Furiga tipped me off to a Wall Street Journal article about C. Ben Bosah, an environmental engineer from Ohio who was convinced that a non-fiction book about women’s health, written by his wife, a gynecologist, would be a best-seller.

The couple self-published the book. But because they weren’t familiar with the publishing industry, here’s what they did wrong:

—They chose a title for the book that limited potential readership.  Many readers associated “Letters to My Sisters: Plain Truths and Straightforward Advice from a Gynecologist” solely with black women.

—They failed to line up a distributor before publication.

—They neglected to send galleys of the book several months before publication to the key magazines that do early reviews.

 —The couple refused to go with a print-on-demand company and instead ordered 15,398 books.  Today, 4½ pallets of books clutter the three-car garage at the Bosahs’ home.

—The book was unavailable at local bookstores when the Columbus Dispatch reviewed it on Oct. 19 last year.  People wanting to read the book had to borrow it from local libraries.

You can read the rest of the story here  at  but do it today.  The Wall Street Journal might remove the article from its website.

After I wrote about this in last week’s newsletter under the headline “Another Publishing Disaster,” Ben emailed me and took exception to the headline I used. His response is below in the comments section.  

If you’re thinking of writing a book, don’t fall into the traps above.  Join me for a complimentary 90-minute teleseminar at 9 p. m. Eastern Time on Monday, December 3.

My special guest is Adam Wittey, who will explain “How To Write and Publish a Book, Quicker and Easier Than You Ever Imagined.”  More than 500 Publicity Hounds listened in several weeks ago when Adam and Tom Antion delivered a content-rich teleseminar on how to sell books online.  I was inundated with emails from happy Hounds who loved their tips.  And this call will be equally valuable. 

Sign up here.

In the meantime, authors who want to park in their garages can learn “How to Revive a Dying Book Marketing Campaign.” Book publicist Lissa Warren has a bag of tricks designed to boost sales for even the most lethargic titles.  They include:

—Writing letters to the editor commenting on articles that tie into the topic of your book.

—Taking another look at your marketing materials and pitches. While they might have gotten a passing grade when you created them, you might have better ideas this time around.

—Tie your pitches to hot topics in the news.

Far too many authors give up far too soon.

Posted In: Authors & Publishers, Magazine Publicity, Newspaper Publicity
posted On: 11/27/2007: 12:31 pm: By Joan
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