Tuesday, April 08, 2008

A vulgar way to get book promotion opportunities.

Here's a vulgar way to get book promotion opportunities. Although I'm willing to share it, I don't advocate it either as a book publicist or as a human being. That said, here's how to get more book publicity opportunities than you can handle: get involved with O.J. Simpson, and then offer your "exclusive" perspective into the man's psyche.

That's just what "a key figure in the O.J. Simpson case" did, according to an Associated Press article that's making the rounds. The O.J. Simpson case in question, interestingly enough, isn't the O.J. Simpson case. It's the other O.J. Simpson case -- you know, the one that involves sports memorabilia, a hotel room, possible kidnapping, and (potentially) at least one gun. And the "key figure" who has something to do with the case -- it ain't O.J., and I couldn't quite get myself to commit the name of the person it was to long-term memory -- is cashing in on his, um, proud association with O.J. Simpson here in our world. He wrote a book, he had it published, and now he's promoting it.

Somewhere, I'll bet a book publicist (or book publicists) are cringing at the thought of what they've involved themselves in. I hope the publisher is cringing, too.

As for me, I'm not exactly proud of myself for adding this blog to the book promotion this "key figure" is receiving for his O.J. Simpson-related title. But I'll defend myself, partially, by reminding you that I never mentioned the name of the author's book.

I'll conclude by saying this. If you don't always get as many book promotion opportunities you deserve, at least you can be thankful that you haven't stooped to the level of some authors, who right about certain vulgar topics, to get the book promotion that you do receive. It's a trade-off, I suppose, but I'd never promote a book related to O.J. Simpson -- and I'm glad that, as an independent book promotion specialist, that choice is mine to make.