Today let's very briefly go over some common components of the author (or book) media kit - in other words, what you should include. While most of these will work for a hard copy media kit / press kit, let's focus on online author media kits (those in newsroom formats on your website or downloadable .pdf files).
Author Media Kit Components - Essential
- An author bio
- A published book list (titles, cover images, brief summary, publisher, ISBN, etc.)
- Media contact info (who journalists should contact with questions or interview requests)
- An author photo (high resolution)
- Past press mentions, interview credits, etc.
- Endorsements / testimonials from people the media will care about
- Latest press release (maybe a news release for your latest book launch, an upcoming speaking engagement, etc. - these are better suited for newsroom format, as you can include the full archive linked that way and it's always up-to-date)
Author Media Kit Components - Optional (but good to have)
- More detailed book info (especially if you have a new release)
- Suggested interview questions (not all journalists that want to interview you will read all of your books or fully understand everything you were hoping to convey - include example questions they could ask you during an author interview, which they can tailor to their own use)
- Frequently asked questions (if you're asked the same questions constantly, include them, and your answers, in the media kit to save everyone time)
- An excerpt from one or more of your books, or a longer synopsis
- Sales figures (especially for past books)
- Info on your target market / readers (who reads your books? who buys your books? why? This info helps a journalist know if you appeal to their own target audience.)
I’m not certain what the difference is between a media kit and a website.
I seem to have most of the things you talk about included in my web. Have I done this wrong? Should I have made the information as a seperate issue?
Thanks for the blog post.
Anthony
A media kit is specifically for members of the media. It will often contain more detailed information than basic “about” content on a website. You should also have more thorough contact information (email address and phone as a bare minimum – authors might want to setup a free online number that can be forwarded to their home or mobile line if they don’t work in an office, so they don’t have to give out those numbers directly).
The media kit should give the media what they’ll need – FAQs so they don’t have to contact you to ask basic things, high resolution photos they have permission to use if they publish a story about your or your book, etc. Their needs are a little bit different than those of the general public. Even if you already have most of this information on-site, it’s a good idea to setup a press page linking to all of it from one location to make their lives easier. 🙂
Thank you for this information! I’m in the beginning stages of book marketing, and have plans to set up an author website. You’re certainly pointing me in the right direction, and I appreciate that! 🙂
Great information. I just published a short story collection and was asked if I had a media kit. Unfortunately, I haven’t put one together as I wasn’t too sure what to include, but now I do. Thanks for the advice. 🙂