Book Marketing Tips and Author Success Podcast

You do not need a free afternoon—or an exhausting new marketing plan—to make meaningful progress with your book. In this episode, Penny Sansevieri and Amy Cornell break down how authors can use just 15 focused minutes to improve the parts of their marketing that keep working long after the timer stops. They start by celebrating Penny’s new release, Think Local, Sell Global , then get straight to o...

As Penny's new book, Think Local, Sell Global , heads into pre-order, this replay felt especially timely. One of the biggest mistakes authors make is assuming that local book marketing is somehow “small.” In reality, the relationships you build in your own community can become the foundation for stronger visibility, more reader connection, better word-of-mouth, and opportunities that continue...

Holiday book sales do not start when shoppers begin panic-buying gifts in December. They start months earlier, when smart authors begin positioning their books for the gift guides, media mentions, newsletters, local segments, creator roundups, and seasonal recommendation lists that influence what readers actually buy. In this episode, Penny and Amy are talking Christmas in July — and why authors w...

Most authors overlook one of the most powerful marketing opportunities they already have: their local market. While everyone else fights for attention online, smart authors are building visibility, reader loyalty, and consistent book sales right in their own backyard — often with far less competition and far better results. In this episode, Penny Sansevieri and Amy Cornell unpack the local marketi...

You hired help so publishing would feel easier. Instead, your Amazon listing disappears, your book ends up connected to the wrong author page, and suddenly nobody can figure out who actually owns the account. Sound dramatic? We wish it were rare. In this episode, Penny Sansevieri and Amy Cornell pull back the curtain on the publishing disasters they keep seeing behind the scenes, many caused not b...

Most authors treat launch day like a verdict: the book goes live, sales come in (or don’t), and suddenly it feels like the market has spoken. Quiet numbers can trigger a brutal spiral — exhaustion, disappointment, and the sinking feeling that maybe the opportunity already passed. We disagree completely. In this episode, Penny Sansevieri and Amy Cornell break down a four-part relaunch strategy desi...

Amazon just removed one of the biggest barriers to international publishing, and authors are going to be tempted to move fast. With Amazon quietly rolling out an AI-powered translation tool inside KDP, turning your book into Spanish, German, and other languages suddenly feels almost effortless. But easy and effective are not the same thing. In this episode, Penny Sansevieri and Amy Cornell unpack...

If your book sales have you questioning everything, the problem might not be your book—it might be the benchmark you’re using. In this episode, we’re dismantling one of the biggest misconceptions in publishing: what “normal” book sales actually look like. Because once you understand how few copies most books sell—even from traditional publishers—it completely reframes the narrative around success,...

Most authors think they’re selling to readers. That’s the first mistake. Because readers and book consumers are not the same—and confusing the two is one of the biggest reasons books don’t sell. In this episode, we break down the critical difference between someone who loves to read and someone who actually buys books , and why that gap quietly derails even the most well-intentioned marketing plan...

Scam emails used to be obvious. Bad grammar, generic messaging, easy to ignore. That version is gone. Today’s scams sound like a real professional—someone who’s “read your book,” understands your audience, and has a polished, confident plan to grow your sales, land media, or build your platform. It feels legitimate because it’s designed to. AI has fundamentally changed the scam landscape, and auth...

Your Amazon book page might be costing you sales—and the worst part is, you probably can’t see it. Most authors assume that once their book is uploaded, the hard part is done. But in reality, your Amazon page is a live sales environment, and small misses can quietly kill conversions every single day. A great book isn’t enough if the page around it isn’t doing its job. In this episode, we break dow...

Publicity feels like the breakthrough moment every author is chasing—but most big interviews, features, and media hits don’t translate into book sales the way you expect. In many cases, they don’t move the needle at all. In this episode, we unpack what publicity really is—TV, radio, magazines, online media—and why it’s rarely a direct path to sales. The core problem is simple: you’re often putting...

95% of books are sold through word of mouth—but most authors are still chasing reach instead of building relationships. That’s a problem, especially in a market where social media visibility is unpredictable and ad costs continue to climb. In this episode, we break down the one marketing engine that consistently works: a small, engaged group of readers who genuinely want to see your book succeed....

“I’d love to come on your show and talk about my new book” is one of the fastest ways to get ignored. In Part 2 of this series, we move from mindset to execution—breaking down exactly how to pitch podcasts in a way that gets attention, earns replies, and leads to bookings. Because podcast hosts aren’t looking for guests who want promotion—they’re looking for conversations their audience will care...

Most authors want podcast interviews to sell books—and that’s exactly why so many pitches get ignored. In this first episode of a two-part series, we break down the simple shift that changes everything: pitch value first. Your book is the credential—it proves you belong—but it’s not the content. What matters is what the audience walks away with after they listen. We unpack what podcast hosts and p...

Books aren’t “news” on their own anymore—and repeating “buy my book” is one of the fastest ways to burn out (and lose your audience’s attention). In this episode, we break down a smarter, more sustainable approach: borrowed buzz —anchoring your marketing to moments people are already paying attention to. Think holidays, awareness months, seasonal shifts, and even quirky observances that give you a...

Goodreads recently rolled out changes that have authors and readers debating everything from review bombing to pre-publication ratings. In this episode, we break down what actually changed, what it means for authors, and how to respond without getting pulled into online panic. We start with review bombing—coordinated waves of ratings from people who often haven’t read the book—and how this behavio...

“Make you a bestseller.” It’s the loudest promise in book marketing—and often the least meaningful. In this episode, we break down how to distinguish real strategy from fear-based selling, AI-polished outreach, and high-pressure tactics designed to close a sale rather than build a career. From alarming emails about “missing metadata” to vague guarantees and unusual payment demands, we explain what...

Amazon reviews are the currency of credibility—and one misstep can cost you both visibility and account standing. In this episode, we break down exactly how to earn more reviews, keep the ones you get, and build a system that works long term—without crossing Amazon’s invisible lines. We start with what actually moves the needle. Why the first five reviews matter more than most authors realize. Why...

The market doesn’t reward originality alone. It rewards clarity. Readers make buying decisions in seconds—and those seconds depend on signals: cover cues, category alignment, keyword precision, and a description that instantly communicates who the book is for. In this episode, we break down why following a proven framework isn’t creative compromise—it’s strategic positioning. A formula is not a bo...

Most authors don’t have an ad problem. They have a patience problem. If you’ve ever stared at your Amazon dashboard 48 hours after launch and declared your campaign a disaster, this episode is for you. We’re breaking down the 7-Day Amazon Ads Sanity Check — a structured, data-driven framework that keeps you from sabotaging campaigns before the algorithm has time to work. You’ll learn what the lear...

Getting book reviews shouldn’t feel exhausting, awkward, or ethically murky. Yet many authors are stuck chasing influencers, sending endless cold emails, or quietly wondering why all that effort isn’t translating into real momentum. In this episode, we break down a smarter, sustainable system for landing reviews that actually matter —the kind that build trust with readers, strengthen your Amazon p...

Want more readers who buy, finish, and recommend your books? It starts with one thing most authors underestimate: keeping the promise your brand makes. In this episode, we break down the real driver of sustainable author growth— reader trust —and why clear genre signals, accurate positioning, and consistent delivery outperform hype every time. We begin with expectation alignment: how your cover, s...

A brand that doesn’t line up is a silent sales killer. We dig into why readers make snap judgments in under a second, how confusion and inconsistency create friction, and the small, practical moves that turn browsers into buyers. Think of branding as a trust filter: the clearer your patterns, the faster the “yes.” We start with the highest leverage fix—your bio. Using a simple four-line framework,...

Feeling like every promo is uphill? We unpack why marketing stalls when a book is presented to the wrong readers — and how smart positioning turns traffic into sales. Penny and Amy break down the signals that shape buying decisions in under five seconds: category choices, keywords that actually guide Amazon, cover conventions that telegraph sub-genre, and hooks that speak to what readers want righ...