After you\u2019ve identified your local media outlets, read\/watch\/listen to them so you can identify the publicity opportunities.<\/p>\n What kinds of articles do the daily and weekly newspapers use? Do the radio stations have talk shows with guests? Do the TV stations have early morning or noon news casts that feature in-studio interviews with community residents?<\/p>\n Studying how each media outlet handles news and information helps you figure out where you fit in at each.<\/p>\n For example, you might discover that anything related to your book\u2019s topic is too \u201csoft\u201d for TV evening newscasts focused on hard news. But you might see that the local noon news broadcast often has a sit-down interview with a news anchor and someone in the community who\u2019s doing something interesting \u2013 you.<\/p>\n And you\u2019ll probably see that weekly newspapers cover just about everything. Honestly, they\u2019re a gift to local authors because of that. They\u2019re also widely read because they\u2019re hyper-local.<\/p>\n Once you understand where you might fit in to the programming, determine who to contact at each. (Learn how to do that in my article, \u201cHow to build a killer book publicity media list<\/a>.\u201d Tip #3 is especially relevant.)<\/p>\n A journalist needs a good reason to interview you. What can you talk about that will interest a diverse audience?<\/p>\n [novashare_tweet tweet=”A journalist needs a good reason to interview you. What can you talk about that will interest a diverse audience?” hide_hashtags=”true”]<\/p>\n If you\u2019ve written a book about composting, for example, you might pitch the newspaper on an article about local businesses providing composting bins in office kitchens, or about how to compost at home.<\/p>\n A romance novelist might pitch an article on how to add romance to your staycation this summer. (Get more fiction news hook ideas in \u201cFinding the hidden news hooks in your fiction<\/a>.\u201d)<\/p>\n Ideas like this can work for radio and TV talk shows, too.<\/p>\n For a community blogger or weekly paper, \u201clocal author writes book about X\u201d or \u201clocal author sets new thriller in (your community\u2019s name)\u201d is often enough. That sometimes works for local TV talk shows, too. It depends on the size and sophistication of your market.<\/p>\n It\u2019s rarely enough for a daily newspaper, though. (And bookstores pay attention to dailies, so if leveraging publicity to get store distribution is your goal, you want publicity in your daily paper.)<\/p>\n We call this a \u201cpitch.\u201d You\u2019re pitching your article or segment idea or topic<\/a>.<\/p>\n You do this via email. Here are a few things to keep in mind:<\/p>\n When I was a guest on \u201cHome & Family\u201d talking about how to get a good holiday gift from the man in your life, I brought the winning entries from my \u201cWorst Gift from a Man\u201d contest.<\/p>\n![\"local](\"https:\/\/buildbookbuzz.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/magnifying-glass.jpg\")
<\/a>In most areas, these include some or all of these:<\/p>\n\n
2. Determine where you fit in.<\/strong><\/h3>\n
3. Get contact information for the section or segment that makes the most sense.<\/strong><\/h3>\n
4. Figure out your \u201cnews hook\u201d \u2013 your angle.<\/strong><\/h3>\n
<\/a>Your \u201chook\u201d is what makes you or your topic newsworthy or interesting.<\/p>\n5. Propose your idea.<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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<\/a>Need a little help? I can give you shortcuts that save you time! There are templates and examples for media pitch letters and sample questions (and many other book publicity tools) in my Build Book Buzz Publicity Forms & Templates<\/a><\/strong>. Get your copy now.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\nYou can do this!<\/h2>\n