Greetings All, On the heels of last week's mini tornado, and in the midst of preparation for The Salt God's Daughter, this week has brought some nice developments. While reviews are not the be-all-end-all, and reviewers are under no obligation to either care about the work or to craft reviews that take care with language, I will tell you that a beautifully written review is a lovely thing. Receiving a review like this from a notoriously tough reviewer gave me license to celebrate—just a little before pub date. It was nice to share this with friends, to kick back and enjoy the moment. Onward into my last week before book launch—September 4^th.

As I head into this final week, I'm thinking about the team of people working tirelessly to make this book a success. There is something quite wonderful that happens when your book becomes part of a group effort with a shared goal. In the best of circumstances one has the feeling of being a member of an orchestra—simultaneously aware of one's own part and also of the music as a whole. My publicist, Julia, and marketing director, Liz, have both been great to work with from the get-go. I asked Julia to weigh in on the way she and Liz work together. She was kind enough to write this for me:

Working in marketing and publicity in any capacity can be a bit of a rollercoaster ride, but when it comes to books, the ride can be exceptionally tricky. Knowing that there is every kind of competition, and that coverage isn't guaranteed, it’s particularly important for Liz and I to work closely together to develop a campaign that reaches as many eyes as possible, wherever they may be: in print, in a bookstore, or via social media. The hope is that our efforts will build on one another.

            Roughly 6 months prior to launch date, Liz and I sit down with our authors to discuss their campaigns. A large part of this meeting comes down to this: How much is this author willing to promote the book? Do they want to tour? Do they feel comfortable blogging, tweeting, and facebooking? Will they write op-eds? Will they wake up at 4 am to be on a morning show across the country? Who do they know and who will they ask to help? Who said no, and was it a hard no, or more of a maybe no? All of these things go into consideration as we move forward.

            At any given time, Liz and I are working on no fewer than 8 books at once, all in various stages of publication. It takes an incredible amount of focus, discipline, and mutual support to give each book the attention it deserves. 

          The Salt God’s Daughter has been on Liz’s radar for over a year now. It’s been on mine since the beginning of the year. Over the span of a few months, little ideas turn into big plans, which turn into grand schemes, which in turn, we hope, flourish into a great campaign for a fantastic book.

            On that note: Cheers to all of us on a great launch!

Warmly, Ilie

 
Ilie Ruby is the author of The Salt God's Daughter (forthcoming from Counterpoint/Soft Skull 8-21-12) and The Language of Trees (HarperCollins 2010). She has written for the New York Times and CNN and teaches writing in Boston. You can connect with Ilie on Facebook and Twitter, or on her website: www.ilieruby.com.