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So Your Publisher Emailed Me Today

 

This morning I got an email from a PR team at one of the publishing houses here in the US. It was an ordinary pitch email that I didn’t delete only because I recognized the author’s name and thought it was strange that she didn’t email me directly. The pitch was a very standard one, talked about the book, why she wrote the book and all the accolades she’s received online. It’s the pitch most bloggers would send out when their book is published but it’s weird.

This is someone who I’ve met. Why wouldn’t she email me? Why wouldn’t the email start with The Author asked me to reach out to you because …. [insert sloppy kissing up here]. It just doesn’t make sense to me.

I hate to belabor bad pitching because my personal belief is that bloggers are much more atrocious at execution than publicists could ever be at blogging. This isn’t even bad pitching, this is just “off”.

When Marsha Collier’s books come out the publisher sends them but there’s always a handwritten note inside. In fact, Marsha’s the one who sends the email asking for my address, not her publisher. I understand that most people can’t work the way Marsha does. I know I can’t keep up with her.

There’s something missing. Other bloggers are the closest thing I have to co-workers so an impersonal pitch from an almost-coworker sends a message. The message is, “You aren’t someone I’d ever help back.”

 

 

Photo Credit Lolly Knit on Flickr via creative commons.