Lessons from the Job Hunt
I had fifty applicants and only one job to offer. Who would win it—and why? And what the heck does this have to do with book promotion?
This month I hired a part-time assistant. And in the process of looking for the perfect candidate, I realized that looking for a job has a lot in common with book promotion. Let me tell you what I learned.
I started by posting the following note on a local entrepreneurial list I frequent:
“Does anyone have a suggestion for an administrative/secretarial/virtual assistant? I’m looking for someone who:
* Will work from his/her own home
* Is interested in working for the next few years (i.e., not students or other ‘temporary’ people–once I’ve trained someone I’d like to keep them for a while)
* Is *meticulous* about details and double-checking things
“The businesses are http://www.Expertizing.com and http://www.PublishingGame.com, and we do everything from books and workshops (on publishing, book promotion, and getting media attention) to consulting, audio kits and gift baskets for writers, with new products and projects appearing on a near-daily basis. Pays $35/hour.”
Because of the current job climate, the flexible hours, and the high salary, I was overwhelmed with applicants. Here’s how I decided whom to hire—and hears how it’s relevant to your your book promotion efforts, whether you’re seeking a literary agent and publisher, or are trying to get publicity from review journals and the media:
* Several of the candidates didn’t write to me directly. (I received resumes and recommendations from colleagues, former employers, and husbands.) The people who wrote to me directly and *also* were recommended by others got extra points; those who never wrote to me themselves I eliminated. (The job requires enough proactivity that I felt anyone who wasn’t enthusiastic enough to pop me a brief email probably wouldn’t do well with the job.)
Have you done the same thing in promoting your book? My strongest candidates both wrote to me and were recommended by others. Consider this point when you try for reviews, talk to journalists, or inquire at bookstores. Make your own overture—don’t rely on others to do it for you. But if possible, get someone else to chime in with support for your book. Someone’s much more likely to take a chance on you if they’re hearing from both you and another, disinterested party.
* Several candidates sent me a two-line email expressing interest in the job, but without conveying any sense of who they were. (They suggested I call or email them for more information.) Had I received fewer responses this might have been ok, but in an applicant pool of over 50, this just meant I eliminated them because they hadn’t supplied enough info and I had enough other people from whom to choose.
Think about your cover letters. Do you say, “Here’s my book, and let me know if you need more information”? Or do you really convey a sense of what you—and your book—are about? It’s easier to disregard people we don’t know; much harder once we have a sense of who they are. So get personal.
* Several candidates sent me their multi-paged life stories. While these were fascinating to read (and I did follow up with at least two of these, because they were so interesting) it’s probably not a good strategy in job hunting. Also, mentioning your paranoid schizophrenia, your bipolar disorder, your chronic anxiety, your extensive time from work for disabilities, and your chronic disorganization might not be such a good idea in a first inquiry.
This is the p.s. to the previous point. Yes, give people a sense of who you are—but give them just a taste, don’t bore them to tears. And don’t include inappropriate or overly-personal information. Ever.
* Many candidates who wrote to me made spelling and grammatical mistakes in their correspondence. Since this was billed as a writing job with meticulous attention to detail as a chief requirement, I eliminated those.
Never, ever send out anything that you haven’t spell- and grammar-checked several times. You’re a writer, and a professional—and you want to look like one.
* There were three candidates who might have gotten as far as an interview but their cover letters contained something along the lines of: “I’m the best possible candidate for this job and you’d have to be a jerk not to hire me.” You may be the best possible candidate for a job—but the employer needs to figure that out on his own.
This is especially important to remember. No one—the reviewer, the literary agent, the publisher, the journalist—wants to be told what to think, and no one wants to hear your hyperbole about your own book. Sometimes, understatement can be much more effective. (They also don’t need to hear what your friends and relatives think of your book. They’ll come to their own conclusions.)
* There were several people who sounded ok, but they clearly had not bothered to look at my websites and figure out what it is that I do.
Before you send a letter to anyone, do a little research. Find out who they are—and understand clearly what you want from them. That will make your letter much, much stronger.
* There were a few applicants who clearly stated that they were taking a break and needed something to do in the interim. (I was looking for someone who would be around for a while—and I said so in the job description.)
Sound like you’re in this for the long haul. Trot out your writing credentials and your previous successes, and demonstrate that you’re a true professional, who’s been around and can be relied upon.
* There were a few people (and this I feel very badly about) who were seriously, incredibly overqualified. This was a scut-work, assistant position, and some of the applicants were MBAs, ex-CEOs of large companies or non-profits. I hated to turn people away because they were too qualified, but ultimately, someone who’s used to running his own 200-person company is not going to be happy doing fact-checking for me.
Don’t overdo. If you sound too successful or too famous, you’re actually less likely to attract attention—because agents, publishers, reviewers and journalists like to discover new talent and new ideas, not rehash the same-old, same-old.
So the next time you’re sending out a letter, think about job-hunting. And then go nail that job.
Fern Reiss is the author of The Publishing Game: Bestseller in 30 Days (book promotion), The Publishing Game: Find an Agent in 30 Days (traditional publishing), and The Publishing Game: Publish a Book in 30 Days (self-publishing). To consult with her on your book project ($300/hour), contact her at Fern@PublishingGame.com. If you like her articles, and would like to find out more on how to be quoted by the national media, be sure to sign up for her complimentary PublishingGame/Expertizing email newsletter at http://www.PublishingGame.com.
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