All Things Book Marketing Smith Publicity

We sat down with Bookshop.org's Director of Bookstore Partnerships to discuss the indie bookstore landscape in recent years and how authors and readers can further engage with their local indies.

Steph Opitz (she/her) is the Director of Bookstore Partnerships at Bookshop.org. Formerly, she was the founding director of Wordplay at The Loft Literary Center in Minneapolis and a visiting instructor at the University of Minnesota. She serves on committees for the National Book Foundation, the Authors Guild, PEN America, and LitNet. She has curated literary events and festivals around the country—as the literary director of the Texas Book Festival, the fiction co-chair of the Brooklyn Book Festival, and on the programs team for the PEN World Voices Festival— and was the books reviewer for Marie Claire magazine. Learn more at bookshop.org.

Discover more about Smith Publicity at www.smithpublicity.com and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, YouTube, & LinkedIn.

In celebration of Indie Author Month, we interviewed Amy Edelman, Founder of IndieReader, on what it means to be an indie author, the struggles they face, and the benefits they reap. Tune in for publishing insights, tips, tricks, and advice!

Amy is a twice traditionally published and twice self published author whose day job for two decades was working in PR and marketing. She founded IndieReader in 2009 to help give hybrid, small press and self published authors a more level playing field and was one of the first companies to offer professional book reviews. The IR Discovery Awards were launched a year later. Today IR offers many services designed to help raise the profile and discoverability of non-traditionally published authors. Learn more at IndieReader.com and follow them on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, and X.

Discover more about Smith Publicity at www.smithpublicity.com and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, YouTube, & LinkedIn.

Speaking is becoming more and more of a priority for many authors looking to grow their professional brand, so we've invited Josh White, the Managing Director of Epic Keynotes, to explain how to begin developing your speaker brand, where your book fits in, and goals to consider.

Joshua White launched Epic Keynotes to help companies and speakers leverage the full potential of speaking engagements. Epic's business model does not quantify bookings as the measure of success; instead, Epic focuses on generating the maximum impact possible for its clients. To that end, Epic works not just with thought leaders but with leaders of thought, those rare individuals who can impart something so profound that it will stay with audiences for the rest of their lives.

Over the past decade, Joshua has been at the forefront of the professional speaking industry, working with some of the world's most renowned keynote speakers and corporate clients and charting a new direction for the sector. With Epic Keynotes, he helped pioneer a new approach to booking keynote speakers, from a transactional bureau to a consultant for both corporate clients and the keynote speakers themselves. Learn more at www.epickeynotes.com and follow both Josh and Epic Keynotes on LinkedIn.


Discover more about Smith Publicity at www.smithpublicity.com and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, YouTube, & LinkedIn.

Podcast popularity is continuing to skyrocket, allowing more and more thought leaders and authors to showcase their expertise to niche audiences and listeners. On this episode of All Things Book Marketing, Founder and Chief Evangelist Officer at Interview Valet Tom Schwab provides insights into how to give an expert interview including how to arrange your background, the equipment you'll need, and tips to talk like a pro.

Tom Schwab believes the best things in life come from conversations. It’s these powerful, sometimes awkward conversations that propel us from where we are personally and professionally to where we dream of being.

As an engineer, a Navy Veteran, and Nuclear Propulsion Plant Operator, Tom thinks differently. Tough Minded, Skeptical, sometimes even Cantankerous, but always technically competent, always thinking – “What if”, is how the head of the Nuclear Navy described it.

As a small business owner and entrepreneur, he understands the unique challenges of business owners. This led him to be an early pioneer of using inbound marketing for eCommerce and targeted podcast interviews for marketing that connects.

Tom is the author of two books: Podcast Guest Profits: Grow Your Business with a Targeted Interview Strategy, called the bible of podcast guesting and One Conversation Away: A manifesto for a rich life and a profitable business. You can learn more at interviewvalet.com/bookmarketing.

Discover more about Smith Publicity at www.smithpublicity.com and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, YouTube, & LinkedIn.

Peter Winick, Founder and CEO of Thought Leadership Leverage and host of the Leveraging Thought Leadership podcast, breaks down the hot topic of thought leadership with definitions, descriptions, and examples.

Peter Winick is the founder and CEO of Thought Leadership Leverage. For the past two decades he has helped individuals and organizations build and grow revenue streams through designing and growing their thought leadership platforms as well as acting as a guide and advisor for increasing business to business sales of thought leadership products. His clients come from a diverse set of backgrounds and specialties. They include New York Times bestselling business book authors, members of the Speakers’ Hall of Fame, recipients of the Thinkers50 award, CEOs of public and privately held companies, and academics at prestigious institutions such as Yale, Wharton, Dartmouth, and London School of Business. Peter has built his career and Thought Leadership Leverage to serve the needs of these individuals and others like them. Specifically he uses his entrepreneurial experience and spirit along with a passion for using relationships to leverage growth to help: CEOs, business owners, and internal practice leaders looking to grow revenue, revitalize marketing, and improve customer experience through applying the principles of thought leadership; Other business leaders and experts seeking to build out their ideas into a platform so they can launch content and products to create a lasting impact in various companies around the globe; and, “Traditional” thought leaders who want to build or grow their practice, increase their effectiveness in content creation and marketing as well as extend their reach into existing and new clients. Peter uses a combination of art, science, logic, focus, passion, and creativity to transform a thought leader’s great ideas into a platform and practice so they can effectively reach business leaders and executives to serve them the tools they and their organizations need. You can learn more at thoughtleadershipleverage.com and follow Peter on X, LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook, and TikTok.


Discover more about Smith Publicity at www.smithpublicity.com and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, & LinkedIn.

Book Publicist Chris Baker walks us through the basics of expert commentary as a thought leader with insights into how to frame yourself and pitch to the media.

Follow Chris on LinkedIn and learn more about his band, The Duskwhales, at www.theduskwhales.com.


Discover more about Smith Publicity and how we can potentially help you market your book at www.smithpublicity.com and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Threads & LinkedIn.