It can be disappointing for us publicists, when one of the books we’ve been promoting gets a bad review. We harrass and push and chase editors in the hope of getting the book reviewed at all, rejoice when we hear it has indeed been selected for coverage, and then get a big slap in the face when we see that the results of our efforts have backfired.

I note little sympathy. Ok, granted, it can be a little more disheartening for the actual authors… They who have endured months of hard work; who have cried and sweated with every page; who have forsaken meals, forsaken sleep, missed birthdays, wrecked marriages, forgotten to pick up their kids at school (this is all a gross generalisation AND misrepresentation of authors of course, nobody sue me) all for the love of the book. Which then gets a poor review.

There are those who prefer not to read bad reviews. And there are those who just dismiss them. Then there are those who face them head on… and turn them into something marvellous.  Such is the case of bestselling author Brad Meltzer (published by Grand Central Publishing) who got his family together and used a string of poor reviews he had received for his previous books to create an ingenious book trailer to promote his new release Book of Lies.

A lesson that proves that, if you work it right, There Is No Such Thing As Bad Publicity.  It is also a lesson in What Makes A Good Book Trailer.  But that’s a whole other blog…

Chiara Priorelli. Publicity Manager