I love books as a medium of communication. But publishing is pretty much based in New York and Boston. Los Angeles, on the other hand, is a media capital, and there is such a need for people like me, especially out here on the west coast, who can help expose small presses and authors to important media. Their work is not easy. Because trusting relationships between publicist and author are forged long before paper meets pen, they are compelled to give their all for them.
Strategies can take weeks, even months to devise, and actual public interest weeks after that.
Sometimes,' says Cummings, ' you have a wonderful book, and an author who hasn't done much speaking. So I try to create an environment for both the author and the book, and then bring the two together so that people are aware of his or her name. This means picking cities where the book is good for, where they'll both succeed, arranging book signings and appearances, coaching those authors that may need it, and then contacting marketing directors and getting the authors and all of their support excited. Pretty soon, the whole thing has a life of it's own. It's really a marriage,' continues Pratt, 'between author and publicist, and the same rules hold true.