Public Speaking – Author Press Kits to Promote You & Your Book

Jun 7, 2010 by A Guest Article Writer

Neatness counts when preparing your author press kit for distribution to the media and people who may book you to speak. So, be careful. You do not want to leave the impression of just learning to use glue.

Public speakers use their author promotion and press kits as fundamental, attention grabbing tools to get media coverage and personal appearance engagements that help them to sell books and to promote themselves as experts in their fields. Also referred to as media packages, press kits, can be useful to you in a number of ways, if you know what the press kit should look like and what should go inside.

Remember, the press kit should represent your book and you as an author and a public speaker in the most professional light. However, if you do not have the budget to hire a publicist to create the press kit for you or your publisher does not provide such services or you are a self-published author, here are some simple and inexpensive guidelines for preparing your author press kit.


How to create a press kit

First, pick a press kit presentation folder from an office supply store presentation folder isle. There are many choices, from bright blinding colors to soft neutral shades to dark conservative tones. Bright blinding colors may distinguish your press kit from the rest of the press kits that land on the desk of a reporter or talent agent, but the bright blinding colors may not be as flattering to your presentation as you think.

When in doubt, lean toward the conservative colors, such as black, white, navy, beige. Within those colors, there is a variety of styles, some with glossy finishes, gold embossing, cutout display windows and plastic covers. Plastic presentation folders cost more but look cheap. I recommend a good quality paper product.

I avoid glossy presentation folders, which look great before handling when they pick up smudges and fingerprints. Also be careful with cutout display windows on presentation folders. Display windows can snag and tear when the folder is stacked with other items, leaving your press kit looking ragged. My suggestion is to avoid cutout display windows.

Create a printed image of your book cover, which you can carefully paste onto the front of the presentation folder. I printed the image of my book cover on a glossy photo paper to give the image a crisp clean look that resembles the actual book cover.

Be careful not to get glue on the front of your book cover image or any other place on the folder itself. For the most professional look, use a glue stick all the way to the edges and corners of your printed book cover image, again to avoid snagging and pulling loose. Before applying the glue to your book cover image, be sure your placement has been measured and centered properly. Burnish the image onto the folder and then set the folder aside so the glue can dry thoroughly.


What goes inside a press kit?

Include your book signing event flyer. Write a press release. Include a book summary, professional biography, event details and copies of printed news coverage. Do not forget your picture–8×10 glossy print and CD, which contains your picture, book cover image, press release and event flyer. Make sure CD formats are jpeg for pictures and images; and MS WORD for documents. Also include a business card, bookmark, stamped-self-addressed reply postcard and cover letter.

I do not ordinarily include review copies of my book to everyone who gets my press kit. Review copies cost money and should be reserved for those you believe will be able to get you news coverage or speaking engagements. Although review copies to libraries, schools and organizations may not generate news coverage, these review copies can promote you as a public speaker and place you in a position to sell books.


Article by Sunny Nash. Sunny is an award-winning writer, public speaker, photographer and independent producer, created to help writers, photographers, producers other creative artists find information and links to help them in their careers. Sunny Nash is the author of the family memoir, Bigmama Didn’t Shop At Woolworth’s and creator of Shopping For Hope, a black-and-white photographic study of storefront churches across America.