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On Saturday, I was in Philadelphia with one of my clients for a book signing. My mom came with me, and we were able to squeeze in a quick catch-up with my journalism professor from college, who is likely reading this (hi!!).
I don’t see her often anymore, but whenever I do, it gets me thinking about if and how I use my journalism minor in everyday life.
By nature, I’m a curious person and, in most circumstances, am unafraid of initiating conversations. I think you have to have a little natural curiosity and fearlessness to be interested in journalism in the first place.
That said, I believe journalism techniques should be studied by everyone. We should all learn active listening, the art of a respectful approach, and, more importantly, how to stay curious.
And like journalism, reading also teaches a lot of overlooked skills, including empathy, imagination, and even embodiment.
If you approach your day open as a reader, and curious like a journalist, I think you start to move through the world a little differently.
You may notice the person sitting next to you on the train, wonder why someone chose the words they did, or ask the follow-up question instead of assuming you have all the information. Simply put: you become interested in the things that might otherwise pass you by.
And I think that approach has become unexpectedly useful in how I work.
Authors are constantly being told to find their readers, understand their audience, create content, build relationships. But I wonder if we sometimes start too far down the road?
Before you can build a relationship with a reader, you have to be interested in people. You have to be willing to listen to what they are saying, pay attention to what they care about, and stay curious about the things you don’t understand yet.
That doesn’t mean turning every conversation into market research or every observation into a content idea. In fact, I think doing that would be counterproductive.
It means be present.
You’ll notice I start most of my Substack content with a story, often stemming from a conversation with someone in my life who has absolutely nothing to do with publishing, but still happens to make something click.
If you only talk about your books to people you already know are readers, you’re missing a lot of the world around you. You’re also missing the chance to find the unexpected connection: the reader who loves your genre but has never heard of you, the business whose community overlaps with your book, or the person who becomes an advocate simply because they want to see you succeed.
Let’s give it a try.
I encourage you to spend one week being curious on purpose. Pay attention to the conversations you’re having, the questions people ask you, the things you keep seeing, hearing, or reading about, and the ideas that linger as you fall asleep.
What you’re doing is opening up your world to new opportunities, whether they make sense right now or come in handy down the line.
When you’re present and paying attention, you may notice that the person you always see at the dog park has a book in their bag — one that’s the same genre you write. Maybe you strike up a conversation and find yourself with a new Instagram follower.
Or, you may notice all of the people running and draw a parallel to one of your characters, who is also a runner. This could spark your creativity, and lead you down a new path of collaborating with running clubs, stores, and brands.
Maybe you take a chance on calling a small business unrelated to the publishing world to host a book signing. It turns out the owner is also an author in your genre and would love to not only host and promote you, but be in conversation with you.
Fun fact: that third example is exactly what happened with my clients, and why we were in Philadelphia in the first place!
The Art of Embodiment
You can even take this a little further by embodying one of your characters for a day.
For example, if they’re the type of person who would strike up a conversation with the barista, ask them if they enjoy reading. If they would order something completely different from what you normally choose, give it a try! Immerse yourself in the process: notice how it feels to order it, how it tastes, and even how you carry yourself as that character, with that beverage in hand.
By doing this, you might uncover a completely new way into your book, one that only came to light after a bout of curiosity and a shift in perspective. And yes, it’ll also make for a great post, because interesting moments from life typically lead to the most memorable pieces of content, and most interesting conversations.
More on how to adopt an immersive marketing mindset here:
The more you pay attention to the world around you, the more opportunities you’ll notice to share your story.
Life Between the Lines: What I’m enjoying this week
What have you been noticing lately that you might be able to tie back to your book? I’d love to hear about it in the comments.
xx
Jessica Sorentino is an author brand strategist with over a decade of experience, including time at both Simon & Schuster and Macmillan Publishers. She believes nothing promotes a book better than a passionate reader, and works with authors to position their books as the next recommendation on every reader’s list.
Thank you for sharing the reminder about noticing the details - I think this is important for life in general as well as a rich source of book content!
Great reminders to slow down and notice. That is where the real stories are for sure. 🤎