The Media Interview

In her blog posting, The High Cost of a Six-Figure Book Advance, Sallie Goetsch makes the following points, which apply to anyone trying to get the word out about their product, not just authors:

Getting into the public eye

To get visible enough fast enough, you probably need a publicist, which means shelling out several thousand dollars. In order for media attention to do you any good, you have to look good and sound good every time you appear. That means getting professional media coaching before you start lining up interviews to make up for not being a celebrity. You need to arm yourself with a repertoire of sound bites for all occasions and rehearse until you can spout them in your sleep.

That doesn’t just take money, it takes time. It takes work. And no one can do it for you, either, because you, as the author, have to be the one in the limelight.

I can’t stress Sallie’s last point enough - media coaching costs money, yes, but what it really takes is time; the time to practice the skills you learn and to keep revisiting them even when you’re experienced at interviews.

As with anything, a coach doesn’t do the work for you; they help you understand what to do and how to do it. Your time with a media coach is just the beginning of a lot of practice.