Pleasantly Persistent PR Blog
New Year, New You:
How to Pitch a Nonfiction Book for
the New Year
How to Pitch a Nonfiction Book for
the New Year
January 19 2021
The New Year is a time when many people reflect on their lives and realign behaviors with short and long term goals. People are often more open minded to changes in personal habits.
For nonfiction writers on topics related to personal improvement, like healthier living, finances and relationship health, this is a great opportunity to pitch your book to a receptive audience.
Check out my tips on how to pitch a nonfiction book for the new year.
For nonfiction writers on topics related to personal improvement, like healthier living, finances and relationship health, this is a great opportunity to pitch your book to a receptive audience.
Check out my tips on how to pitch a nonfiction book for the new year.
Topics of Interest
We are all familiar with the most popular New Year's resolutions: losing weight, exercising more and eating better. While these remain tried and true favorites, New Year's resolutions run the gamut of what could generally be described as healthier habits.
Maybe you are unsure if your area of subject expertise can be couched as a healthy habit worthy of a New Year's resolution? Quite simply, if you are offering a solution to a problem related to a way of living, then you absolutely can make a New Year's nonfiction book pitch of it.
Here are some categories and subcategories of potential New Year's resolutions to consider:
Maybe you are unsure if your area of subject expertise can be couched as a healthy habit worthy of a New Year's resolution? Quite simply, if you are offering a solution to a problem related to a way of living, then you absolutely can make a New Year's nonfiction book pitch of it.
Here are some categories and subcategories of potential New Year's resolutions to consider:
Physical Health
Mental Health
Personal Improvement
- Improve sleep habits
- Eat foods to boost energy and immunity
- Drink more water
- Dry January challenge
Mental Health
- Journaling
- Spending more time with friends and family
- Reducing time on your device or in front of the TV
- Practice mediation
Personal Improvement
- Learn a new language
- Read more books
- Learn a new skill (cooking, painting, etc)
- Volunteer more
Finances
Organization
Relationships
- Get out of debt
- Create an annual household budget
- Save money
- Start a business
Organization
- KonMari your home
- Research organization apps
- Purchase an appliance that makes chores easier
- Create schedules for important, but negelected tasks
Relationships
- Be more present for your family
- Be an active listener
- Be more romantic
- Let go of resentment for someone you love
Get Creative with Your Value-Add
Now that you've thought of categories of personal improvement that could make for a New Year's resolution media pitch, focus on how you can provide a value-add that is different from your competitors. Sure, it's all well and good to be a diet guru pitching a book for the new year, but what makes you stand out from the pack of dieticians and nutritionists doing the same?
You will need to find your angle and get creative to differentiate yourself.
For example, I have worked with David Getoff, a nutritionist, traditional naturopath, and author of Abundant Health in a Toxic World. For a New Year's pitch, I would highlight his differentiators as a naturopath and his focus on healthy living amid toxicity. And then I would include in the pitch the big thing that the media is looking for: tips, tricks, advice, myth busters and/or stats. (The media in particular love myth busters and stats.)
While personal goals have a natural tie in with New Year's resolutions, business goals can also work well.
My client Curtis J. Morley has written a book called The Entrepreneur's Paradox, which is about how entrepreneurs can elevate their businesses. The New Year's push for this book appeals to budding entrepreneurs or business people who made it a goal to improve their businesses in 2021.
While personal goals have a natural tie in with New Year's resolutions, business goals can also work well.
My client Curtis J. Morley has written a book called The Entrepreneur's Paradox, which is about how entrepreneurs can elevate their businesses. The New Year's push for this book appeals to budding entrepreneurs or business people who made it a goal to improve their businesses in 2021.
Pro Nonfiction Marketing Tip: Learn all about how to create a killer marketing hook here.
When to Pitch Nonfiction Books for New Year's Features
New Year's can be a PR goldmine for nonfiction authors. Get featured on the right media outlet, like this Good Morning America New Year New Start site, and you and your book will be blessed with national exposure across just about every demographic.
Here's the thing: the articles on this site were pitched months ago, before the fall. Likely, this major media outlet was fielding pitches for New Year's content back in July. As such, it's wise to think of New Year's resolution pitching as early as the summer.
For smaller publications, you can pitch your New Year's angle in September or October. That will give publishers enough time to consider whether to include your expertise in a New Year's themed article like this one on Lifehack.
Now take note of how beneficial the Lifehack New Year's content is for the featured nonfiction writers. Do you see the hyperlinks to the author within the article? This is the motherload of exposure for their brand.
This is yet another example why New Year's pitching is so important. If you can catch the swelling interest at this time of year around personal improvement, you can do wonders in promoting your book.
Here's the thing: the articles on this site were pitched months ago, before the fall. Likely, this major media outlet was fielding pitches for New Year's content back in July. As such, it's wise to think of New Year's resolution pitching as early as the summer.
For smaller publications, you can pitch your New Year's angle in September or October. That will give publishers enough time to consider whether to include your expertise in a New Year's themed article like this one on Lifehack.
Now take note of how beneficial the Lifehack New Year's content is for the featured nonfiction writers. Do you see the hyperlinks to the author within the article? This is the motherload of exposure for their brand.
This is yet another example why New Year's pitching is so important. If you can catch the swelling interest at this time of year around personal improvement, you can do wonders in promoting your book.
Pro Nonfiction Marketing Tip: You're pitching strategy - who you are pitching to and what's the angle - needs to be planned at least 4 months in advance.
Still not sure how to find an angle and how to pitch a nonfiction book for the new year - or any other time of year for that matter? Reach out to me today to find out how I can put my decades of nonfiction book publicity to work for you.
Feel free to contact me
Julia Brown
Book publicist
Phone: +1 619-888-7956
E-mail: Julia@pleasantlypersistentpr.com
E-mail: Julia@pleasantlypersistentpr.com
