A book sent with intention before anyone else can buy it is not a free copy. It is a handshake.
When Lois and I published Five Dollars, we did something we had never done before. We sent copies out with a letter and a five-dollar bill, asking others to pass the kindness on.
Not long after, a woman wrote to tell us she’d used her five dollars to buy lunch for a homeless man she passed every day. She said, “I realized I’ve been waiting for someone else to fix the world. But your letter reminded me I could start.”
One message. One book. One human act. It hit us harder than any royalty check ever had.
The advance review copy works the same way. Not because you include five dollars. Because you include intention. A book arriving in a padded mailer with a personal note is not a product sample. It is an act of trust between the author and the person holding it.
What an ARC Is
An advance review copy is a finished or near-finished copy of the book sent to selected recipients before publication. The purpose is simple: put the book in the hands of people positioned to talk about it before the public has access.
The recipients fall into four groups.
Bloggers and bookstagrammers who review books in your genre. They have audiences built on trust. A recommendation from a blogger their followers respect carries more weight than any advertisement.
Podcast hosts who interview authors. The ARC is the reason they say yes to the booking. A host who has read the book asks better questions. A host who hasn’t read it asks generic ones. The ARC is the difference between a good interview and a forgettable one.
Trade reviewers — Kirkus, Foreword, Publishers Weekly, Library Journal. These require submission months before publication, and we will cover them in a later campaign. But the process begins here, with understanding the ARC is the vehicle.
Community leaders, subject-matter experts, and local influencers whose endorsements connect the book to its natural audience. The pastor if the book is about faith. The veteran if the book is about service. The teacher if the book is about education. The person whose credibility in the field lends credibility to the book.
The Note Matters More Than the Book
Every ARC should include a personal note. Not a form letter. Not a press release. A note written to this person, explaining why you chose them, what the book is about, and what you are asking.
The ask is direct. “I’d be grateful for an honest review on Amazon in the first two weeks after publication. If you’re willing to mention the book to your audience, I’d appreciate it. If it’s not the right fit, no hard feelings.”
The note is the five-dollar bill. It transforms a package into a relationship. The recipient knows the author chose them specifically, not as part of a mass mailing. The personal touch is what earns the review, the mention, the recommendation. Without it, the book sits on a stack of other books waiting to be read. With it, the book moves to the front.
When to Send
ARCs go out four to six weeks before publication. Earlier for trade reviewers — Kirkus requires submission months in advance. But for bloggers, podcast hosts, and community leaders, four to six weeks gives them time to read and prepare their response for launch week.
The timing connects directly to the launch team. The launch team members receive their copies two weeks before publication. The ARC recipients receive theirs earlier because their reviews and features take longer to produce. The two groups work in sequence — ARCs building the external conversation, the launch team building the Amazon foundation.
Together, they ensure the book does not arrive in silence.
We learned with Five Dollars what every author learns when they send a book with intention: words paired with purpose, delivered personally, ripple outward in ways you will never fully see. The advance review copy is the organized version of this truth. One book. One note. One person positioned to carry the message forward.
Send it with the same care you brought to the writing. The reply may change the book’s life.
The Power of Authors by Evan and Lois Swensen explores what it means to write with purpose — and why the books reaching the most readers are the ones sent first to the right hands.
The Power of Authors is available from Amazon or your favorite bookseller: http://evanswensen.com. If you’d like an autographed copy, you can order it here: http://bit.ly/4pgmzjM.
Author Campaign Method (ACM) for Authorpreneurs
This is Publication Consultants’ motivation for constantly striving to assist authors sell and market their books. Author Campaign Method (ACM) of sales and marketing is Publication Consultants’ plan to accomplish this so that our authors’ books have a reasonable opportunity for success. We know the difference between motion and direction. ACM is direction! ACM is the process for authorpreneurs who are serious about bringing their books to market. ACM is a boon for them.
Release Party
Web Presence
Book Signings
Amazon Author Page
Facebook Profile and Facebook Page
Active Social Media Participation
Ebook Cards
The Great Alaska Book Fair: October 8, 2016
Costco Book Signings
eBook Cards
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Jim Misko Book Signing at Barnes and Noble
Cortex is for serious authors and will probably not be of interest to hobbyists. We recorded our Cortex training and information meeting. If you’re a serious author, and did not attend the meeting, and would like to review the training information, kindly let us know. Authors are required to have a Facebook author page to use Cortex.
Correction:
We take the quote by Marcella Smith, Small Press Business Manager, Barnes & Noble seriously: “The author is essential to the success of the book, giving energy behind the book to make it something that a customer will come in and ask for. That is what makes the difference in a book that sells, that develops legs, and has a life of its own. Otherwise the book goes on the shelf and stays there for three months. Then it gets returned.”
This is Publication Consultants’ motivation for constantly striving to assist authors sell and market their books. ACM is Publication Consultants’ plan to accomplish this so that our authors’ books have a reasonable opportunity for success. We know the difference between motion and direction. ACM is direction! ACM is the process for authors who are serious about bringing their books to market. ACM is a boon for serious authors, but a burden for hobbyist. We don’t recommend ACM for hobbyists.
We’re the only publisher we know of that provides authors with book signing opportunities. Book signing are appropriate for hobbyist and essential for serious authors. To schedule a book signing kindly go to our website, <
An Author Page on Amazon Author Central is a serious author ACM requirement and desirable for the hobbyist. Author Central is a free resource designed to help authors become more active participants in the promotion of their books. In Author Central you can manage an Author Page, update information about your books, and view Customer Reviews and sales information for your bibliography. If you don’t already have an Author Page on 
We hear authors complain about all the personal stuff on Facebook. Most of these complaints are because the author doesn’t understand the difference difference between a Facebook profile and a Facebook page. Simply put, a profile is for personal things for friends and family; a page is for business. If your book is just a hobby, then it’s fine to have only a Facebook profile and make your posts for friends and family; however, if you’re serious about your writing, and it’s a business with you, or you want it to be business, then you need a Facebook page as an author. It’s simple to tell if it’s a page or a profile. A profile shows how many friends and a page shows how many likes. Here’s a link <> to a straight forward description on how to set up your author Facebook page.
Active Social Media Participation
Mosquito Books has a new location in the Anchorage international airport and is available for signings with 21 days notice. Jim Misko had a signing there yesterday. His signing report included these words, “Had the best day ever at the airport . . ..”
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