In Episode 62, Morgan Hoit (Associate Marketing Manager at Avid Reader Press & @nycbookgirl) and I go behind-the-scenes of book marketing…including read-alikes, celebrity book clubs, author blurbs, and cover art. Morgan also shares some of her favorite memoirs, a genre she’s been loving lately.

This post contains affiliate links, through which I make a small commission when you make a purchase (at no cost to you!).

Highlights

• How Morgan made the jump from #bookstagrammer to working for a publisher.
• The most surprising thing she learned when she began working for a publisher.
• Who the “quarterback” is for a book.
• How the process of coming up with a book’s marketing plan works (including how much the author is involved).
• How Avid tracks #bookstagrammers’ reading taste.
• Morgan’s take on posting negative reviews online.
• How coronavirus has changed book marketing (and the changes Morgan thinks might live on post-coronavirus).
• The “holy grail” of celebrity book clubs.
• How those read-alikes are chosen.
• How publishers get author blurbs for their books.
• How publishers choose cover art.

Morgan’s Book Recommendations [32:52]

Two OLD Books She Loves

• The Opposite of Loneliness by Marina Keegan | Buy from Amazon [33:03]
• Places I Stopped on the Way Home by Meg Fee | Buy from Amazon [35:19]

Two NEW Books She Loves

• Uncanny Valley by Anna Wiener (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [37:54]
• Stray by Stephanie Danler (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [39:59]

Two Books She DIDN’T Like

• American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis | Buy from Amazon [42:51]
• I Am Charlotte Simmons by Tom Wolfe | Buy from Amazon [42:51]

One NEW RELEASE She’s Excited About

• A Burning by Megha Majumdar (Release Date: June 2, 2020) | Buy from Amazon [47:04]

Rate It Game [49:15] Other Books Mentioned

• The Only Plane in the Sky: An Oral History of 9/11 by Garrett M. Graff (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [12:45] 
• Three Womenby Lisa Taddeo (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [20:42]
• Perfect Tunes by Emily Gould (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [20:42] 
• An American Marriage by Tayari Jones (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [21:37] 
• All Adults Here by Emma Straub | Buy from Amazon [21:52] 
• The Secret History by Donna Tartt | Buy from Amazon [25:09]
• The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [25:09] 
• Educated by Tara Westover (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [25:09] 
• Small Fry by Lisa Brennan-Jobs (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [29:24] 
• The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch | Buy from Amazon [34:56] 
• Sweetbitter by Stephanie Danler (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [40:07]
• My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [43:49]
• Bright Lights, Big City by Jay McInerney | Buy from Amazon [45:09] 
• Bonfire of the Vanities by Tom Wolfe | Buy from Amazon [46:25] 
• A Man in Full by Tom Wolfe | Buy from Amazon [46:39] 
• The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [47:26]
• The Gunners by Rebecca Kauffman (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [47:26]
• The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [48:45]

Other Links

• Avid Reader Press
• Bonus Episode: Favorite Books by Black Authors

About Morgan

Blog | Instagram | Twitter

Prior to joining Avid Reader Press, Morgan worked as an Associate at Jill Furman Productions for two and a half years, where she assisted in the producing of new plays and musicals for Broadway and the NYC theater industry. At Avid Reader Press, Morgan is the voice of the imprint on social media and also manages title marketing campaigns, working closely with authors on their digital presence and social media strategy. In her free time, Morgan is also the content creator and book worm behind nycbookgirl – a blog dedicated to book recommendations, guides to NYC, and more.  She was born in NYC and raised in New Jersey, and she graduated from Duke University magna cum laude with degrees in English and Theater Studies.

Next Episode

There will not be a new episode next week since the podcast is on its bi-weekly summer schedule.

The following week, there will be a full length episode featuring Helena Dea Bala, author of Craigslist Confessional (airing July 8).

Support the Podcast

• Support on Patreon – When you support the podcast on Patreon for $5/month, get bonus podcast episodes and other goodies!
• ShareIf you like the podcast, I’d love for you to share it with your reader friends…in real life and on social media (there’s easy share buttons at the bottom of this post!).
• Subscribe …wherever you listen to podcasts, so new episodes will appear in your feed as soon as they’re released.
• Rate and ReviewSearch for “Sarah’s Bookshelves” in Apple Podcasts…or wherever you listen to podcasts!