A Minor Media Blitz for A Taste of Honey

by Gamal Hennessy

In the grand scheme of things, it amounts to a tempest in a very small teacup.

Over the past two weeks since I’ve released A Taste of Honey critics and other authors have weighed in with their opinions of my first novel. The feedback for the book is not only gratifying, but it’s telling me I’m on the right track.

Writer’s Alive,

The author’s at Writer’s Alive have years of creative experience, an international perspective and  a passion for the craft. After they read an advanced copy of A Taste of Honey, they invited me to sit down for an in depth conversation about both my creative process and my support of independent publishing. I didn’t join the discussion until about ten minutes into the show, but if you’d like to hear the sound of my voice, you can listen here.

The Girl in the Blue Mask

The Gal in the Blue Mask is the home of Meghan, a writer, editor and critic with a broad appetite for fiction of all types. She originally found my work when I released Smooth Operator and when I announced the release of A Taste of Honey she requested an interview for her website. You can find the interview here and you can also sign up for the contest where we plan to give away several copies of A Taste of Honey.

What the Critics Have to Say

The early reviews of A Taste of Honey show that people like what they are reading. Critics can be harsh, especially on Amazon, but so far I’m getting reviews like this:

“This could easily be made into a motion picture. Gamal has quite a talent of creating some intriguing characters and keeping you from putting the book down.”

William Masters

“Catching your breath is tough between the suspense, steam and mystery, and as the stakes got higher I was more and more impressed with Hennessy's perceptive understanding of female sensuality and what goes on in our heads.”

Chloe Halston

“Gamal is a very talented story teller, he has a unique ability to be able to throw me into the middle of the environments he creates, and the minds of his characters.”

D. Johnson

“If you enjoy a thrilling, erotic, story of desperate lovers, spies, treachery, lies and love, you will want to pick up a copy of A Taste of Honey. You won't regret it.”

E.P. Scott

A Step in the Right Direction

From an objective point of view, I can see that my work has a long way to go before I reach my marketing and publicity goals (See The Quest for Ten Thousand Fans). No, I didn’t get interviewed by Oprah or Jon Stewart. No, my book wasn’t reviewed by the New York Times or the Paris Review. But everyone has to start somewhere and few of us start at the top of our craft. This may only be a tempest in a teacup, but it is my tea so I’m going to savor the taste for as long as it lasts.

In order to celebrate all this good press, I've decided to lower the Kindle price for A Taste of Honey for one week. Read it now and find out what all the fuss is about.

Have fun.

Gamal

On Champions, Tastemakers and True Fans (The Options of Modern Marketing)

“The way I see it, in this multi-channel, micro market, infinite sub culture world that we live in, everybody is fighting for a chance to tell their story, no matter how stupid that story might be.” 

Gamal Hennessy: Afraid of the Dark 

Last week I wrote a piece on the quality of indie books vs. traditionally published books. Much of the feedback that I got about that post focused on marketing more than editing or cover design. More than a few readers held the opinion that a poorly produced book with strong marketing will be much more successful than a book that is well produced with no marketing behind it.

While I might agree with this concept, it’s not directly applicable to my situation (or to the situation of most independent publishers). I don’t have the time or the resources to launch a major ad campaign and book tour, so what are the alternatives? At this point, I’ve identified three viable options: true fans, tastemakers and champions.

True Fans is a concept developed by Kevin Kelly. Basically, a true fan is someone who will buy anything and everything you produce. As an independent publisher, I take the concept one step further. To me, a true fan is someone who will buy all your work, review it online and enthusiastically tell their friends about you. They might not be influential individually, but they love you and they are the core of any viral, word of mouth message.

Tastemakers are the people we rely on to connect us to new information. When we’re talking about books, we are talking about those people who we trust to tell us what we should be reading because they know books and because they know what we like. Malcolm Gladwell refers to this group as Mavens in his book the Tipping Point. Traditionally, influential book critics and best seller lists were the main arbiters of taste. Now, there are more tastemaker opportunities created by social media and niche markets. Anyone from a book club organizer to a blogger to a group moderator on Good Reads can be a tastemaker and they can have a wider reach than a true fan, even if their passion for any particular author might not run as deep.

Champions are highly influential individuals who make it their mission to get exposure for your book. It could be the literary agent who believes you are the next J.K. Rowling. It could be the small book store owner who pushes your book to everyone who walks through her door. Oprah is probably the ultimate example of a book champion. When she puts her sticker on your book, a million people will buy it without having any idea what it’s about. Champions often have a financial stake in your success, but that investment is often powerful motivation for them to help you.

I know that these concepts are amorphous and interrelated. I understand that defining a true fan, getting the attention of a tastemaker or finding a champion is about as easy as finding a veggie burger in a steakhouse. But I don’t think the process of reaching these people is mysterious. It boils down to perfecting my craft as a writer, producing the best product possible, engaging with my potential audience on a personal level and having more than a little luck. The tools are out there. It is up to me as an independent publisher to make the most of them.

What do you think? Are these options really viable or am I missing something? Is there another alternative that I’ve overlooked? I don’t pretend to have all the answers. If you have the keys to success, please share them. I am more than willing to steal (or at least borrow) them from you.

Have fun.

Gamal

2012 Writers Alive Interviews Gamal Hennessy

Last week I sat down with author and publisher John Byk to discuss working at Marvel Comics, the power of flawed characters and my first novella Asset Management.

You can listen to audio from the interview here.

Have fun.

Gamal