Donna Brennan Interviews
CCWC & GPCWC
Faculty Members
Suzanne & Shawn Kuhn
Part 1
To be successful authors in today’s publishing world, we need to learn ways to promote our books. Understanding more about how bookstores operate could also be mighty helpful. But where can we go to find this information in a usable and helpful format?
One good source for this knowledge is Suzanne Kuhn, owner of SuzyQ, a full-service author promotion and retail development firm. Together with her husband, Shawn, Suzanne works with authors, publishers, and retailers, helping to coordinate events, train staff and authors in reader engagement, and develop promotions for increased sales and reader/customer loyalty.
Both Suzanne and Shawn will be available at the Colorado Christian Writers Conference May 15-18 and at the Greater Philadelphia Christian Writers Conference July 31 – August 3. Suzanne will be teaching three sessions on various ways to promote your books and yourself, including running successful in-person events as well as connecting through social media outlets.
I got in touch with Suzanne and Shawn to ask a few questions about SuzyQ and the sessions they’ll be teaching.
It’s obvious why self-published authors may need help in promoting their books. But do authors going through the traditional publishing process also need to do this? Isn’t promoting our books the job of the publishing house?
In today’s industry, every author must promote their own book. For a traditionally published author, it is more like a partnership with their publisher, each is doing their part to actively promote the book.
Your workshops and your company, SuzyQ, focus on promotion. Is that the same thing as publicity?
Promotion is definitely different from publicity or public relations for that matter. We focus on connecting our authors with their specific target audience. The best way to describe author promotion is to say if there is a two-lane road, one lane publicity and the other PR, we (SuzyQ) have created our own lane and are driving up the double yellow line. We may do some things that cross over into what you would think of when you think of traditional publicity or PR, but for us the focus is much more on virtual or live engagement, whether it be with readers or influencers. [Join Suzanne in her workshop to get her definition of who your influencers are. You may be surprised at who she defines as your influencers.]
Do you show up and participate at events for your clients?
Yes, we do. Actually, when Suzanne first founded SuzyQ that was the vision for the company, to assist authors with live events. However, as SuzyQ has expanded, so have our services. At this point, Suzanne’s focus is still on live events with authors and retailers, while Shawn focuses on social media and other support.
What’s the benefit of having SuzyQ at a live event?
We coach our authors for live events, so authors are well prepared to make the most of any situation. However, when one of our team is on location, we add value to those interactions. WE are the ones promoting the author, making conversation and guiding the experience. We are the authors’ gatekeepers, we control line flow, take pictures, deal with any “difficult” fans, help to channel excited fans, and we create our own buzz.
Will either of you be available for individual appointments at the conference? What types of help can authors expect to get out of these appointments?
We will both be available for appointments, meals, and after hour chats. We can talk about any aspect of an author’s book promotion plans, branding, social media, events and connecting with bookstores, or anything else promotion related. We love these appointments. We get to spend 15 minutes with an author, catching their vision then helping them to come up with ideas that are authentic to them as an individual.
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Thanks Donna, Suzanne, and Shawn. Be watching for part 2 of the interview that focuses on social media and engaging events. And take advantage of Suzanne and Shawn’s expertise by requesting an appointment with them at the conference.
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