On Publicity

Publicity is a funny thing. Although the distinction between publicity and marketing is, on the surface, pretty clear, I do sometimes struggle with whom to contact on certain issues. What I do know about publicity, though, is that it has a tendency to come out of the blue. Like Christmas time when my PR Hilary Knight put out a fairly straightforward press release about the local-boy-made-good author, and I'm getting phone calls telling me I'm doing an interview with the Belfast Telegraph in half an hour, or guess what, you're live on the radio this afternoon.

Such was the way of it yesterday when I made a stray comment on broadcaster and journalist Malachi O'Doherty's Facebook wall (he was asking about ghosts in contemporary fiction). Next thing I know, I've an interview lined up for a segment on Sunday Sequence on BBC Radio Ulster (a link to the iPlayer version will appear after it airs). Then that interview turns into a double header with another journalist writing for The Observer. Oh, and then a photo shoot which I knew was coming some time, but was hastily arranged to tie in with the visit to Belfast to do the other stuff.

And that's the other thing about publicity: it snowballs. One media outlet gets hold of a story, then another follows, and then another. The trick seems to be getting their attention in the first place. I have some excellent people working away on this as I type, namely the aforementioned Hilary, and Claire Jackson and Kate Bland at Random House, and Justin Hargett at Soho Press.

But it's all good. Even if I hate getting my picture taken, which I had to do today in a public place. A quite busy public place. It was my own fault, seeing as I suggested the venue (the Palm House in Botanic Gardens, where a scene in THE TWELVE is set). Justin the photographer was a consumate professional, I must say. He seemed to have a knack for finding good backdrops, and even foregrounds, and he made me feel about as relaxed as is possible for someone as camera shy as me. I don't know what will appear where, but you may see some shots of me staring wistfully into the distance from behind a greenhouse door in the not too distant future. During the lunch with Malachi, he took this snap, which reveals my horrendous double chin:



I share this because it reveals that, even though I'm as photogenic as a donkey's arse, I'm still quite vain; I put on my glasses as soon as the camera came out because I've got a nice little eye infection, and I thought they might distract from it. And if I look like I'm deep in philosophical discussion, that's probably deceptive; I might well have been debating who was going to get the last chocolate mint on the table.

Malachi made a post over on his blog, which I think is supposed to have audio from the interview, but it's currently not working. Check back, and you might get to hear my dulcet tones as I ramble incoherently about ghosts in modern fiction.

And lastly, still on the topic of publicity, it's looking like I'll be having a little trip through the US of A this October to pimp THE GHOSTS OF BELFAST. Locations currently planned are NYC, Indianapolis (for Bouchercon), Scottsdale AZ, Houston TX, San Mateo CA, then Denver CO for a few days at a convention and a little R&R, and possibly Boston to finish up. It's still to be absolutely and definitely confirmed (i.e. the tickets aren't bought yet), but it's looking hopeful.