What Running Your Own Imprint for 15 Years Teaches You about Books, Readers, and Risk with Sarah Crichton

What Running Your Own Imprint for 15 Years Teaches You about Books, Readers, and Risk with Sarah Crichton

Great books don't happen by accident. Sarah Crichton, one of publishing's most respected voices and the founder of Sarah Crichton Books at FSG, joins host Sarah Russo for an unfiltered conversation about what it takes to acquire, edit, and launch books that last. They cover everything: crashing books in secret, fighting for the right jacket design, discovering A Long Way Gone by child soldier, Ishmael Beah, the differences between being a publisher and an editor, what to understand about hiring a developmental editor, and more. Whether you're an author, aspiring editor, or publishing professional, this episode is a masterclass. For more information on Sarah Crichton’s work, visit her website: Sarah’s website or connect with her on LinkedIn Books mentioned in this episode: “Cyberwar” by Kathleen Hall Jamieson “A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier” by Ishmael Beah “What Is the What” by Dave Eggers “A Mighty Heart” by Mariane Pearl, co-written with Sarah Crichton “Portrait of a Marriage: A Memoir” by Judy Crichton and Jennifer Crichton “Fierce Attachments” by Vivian Gornick “The Odd Woman and the City” by Vivian Gornick “M Train” by Patti Smith Key Moments 00:44 — How Magazine Editors Think About Readers Sarah Crichton explains how her magazine background gave her a superpower most book editors lack: never forgetting the reader exists. 02:27 — What It Really Means to "Crash" a Book Sarah C. breaks down the secret, adrenaline-fueled process of rushing a book to publication in weeks instead of years. 05:09 — The Editor vs. Publisher Divide (And Why It's Disappearing) Hear about the traditional difference between an editor and a publisher — and why the line between them is blurring 07:22 — How She Turned a Rejected Manuscript into a National Phenomenon Sarah C. tells the story of discovering “A Long Way Gone” by Ishmael Beah — a book passed over by every publisher — and how a deliberate cover strategy and the first-ever Starbucks book pick turned it into a classroom staple. 14:58 — What Sarah Looks for in a Manuscript (and Why a Great Title Matters More Than You Think) Sarah reveals what makes her sit up when reading a submission, and the brutal reality of how critics decide what to review. 17:08 — Developmental Editors, Self-Publishing, and "Hitting the Lottery" Sarah gets candid about the economics of book doctoring, shares the story of self-publishing her late mother's memoir, and explains the role of a developmental editor.

Turn Your LinkedIn Profile into a Book Marketing Machine with Louise Brogan

What if in the age of AI generated content, the most important part of being visible online is just being a human? In this episode of The Publishing Playbook, host Sarah Russo sits down with Louise Brogan to talk about how the most powerful book marketing tool accessible to authors isn't Instagram or TikTok — it's LinkedIn. Louise is a LinkedIn expert, digital marketing strategist, author of "Raise Your Visibility Online," and host of a YouTube channel with the same name. Sarah and Louise discuss how authors can stop overlooking LinkedIn and start using it strategically. And they cover it all, from optimizing your profile and beating the algorithm to repurposing book content and building a newsletter audience. Louise also explains that as AI content grows on social media, authentic human voices matter more than ever. If you work in publishing marketing or PR — or you're an author trying to build your platform — this episode is essential listening. For more information on Louise’s work, visit her website: Louise's Website [https://louisebrogan.com/] Books mentioned in this episode: “Raise Your Visibility Online” by Louise Brogan “The Barbecue at No. 9” by Jennie Godfrey Key Moments 01:11 — How Louise Brogan Built a LinkedIn Empire 🚀 Louise shares how she accidentally became a LinkedIn expert in 2017, when she decided to niche down to the one platform nobody else wanted. 03:16 — Why Most People Are Afraid to Post on LinkedIn 😰 Louise reveals that only 3% of LinkedIn users are creators — and explains why fear of judgment is keeping the other 97% silent. 04:30 — LinkedIn Is Like Your Favorite Industry Conference 🎤 Louise breaks down her signature analogy for understanding LinkedIn: showing up, making conversation, and not leaving without talking to anyone. 07:28 — The Profile Mistakes You're Probably Making ⚠️ Louise walks through the most common LinkedIn profile errors she sees, including why burying your key information and skills is killing your visibility. 13:20 — Why a LinkedIn Newsletter Is More Powerful Than a Substack 📬 Louise explains how publishing a LinkedIn newsletter automatically notifies your entire network — and lands directly in subscribers' email inboxes. 21:16 — Your Book's Chapters Are Your Content Strategy 📖 Louise outlines her "Create Once, Publish Everywhere" methodology and explains why authors who already have a book have everything they need to show up consistently on LinkedIn. Find Louise Online: Louise Brogan's Website [https://louisebrogan.com/] Louise's YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6EDuPVWHu8OM0z0x777bMw] Find Louise on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/louisebrogan/] Louise’s book: Link [https://a.co/d/05avab8f] Follow Sarah on LinkedIn: Sarah Russo [https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahrusso/]

Are Libraries the Hidden Book Market? with Erin Cox of Words & Money

What if the most powerful tool in your book marketing strategy isn't social media — it's your local library? In the debut episode of The Publishing Playbook, host Sarah Russo of Page One Media sits down with publishing veteran Erin Cox to unpack one of the industry's most overlooked opportunities: libraries. With a career spanning publicity at Scribner and HarperCollins, agenting, and her current role as publisher of Publishing Perspectives and co-founder of Words and Money, Erin brings rare, 360-degree expertise to the conversation. Together, Sarah and Erin break down how libraries actually buy books, why they're a powerful (and underutilized) marketing channel for authors, and the misconceptions that are costing publishers real money. Whether you're a debut author, a seasoned writer, or publishing-curious, this episode will change how you think about getting your book into readers' hands. Words & Money [https://www.wordsandmoney.com/] Publishing Perspectives [https://publishingperspectives.com/] Essay by Auyon Mukharji, author of HEARTLAND MASALA [https://www.wordsandmoney.com/for-our-book-tour-we-ditched-the-social-media-we-chose-public-libraries-instead/] PageMatch [https://authors.spotify.com/blog/page-match] by Spotify Key Moments 0:00 - Libraries Are Selling Books 📚 Erin explains why libraries aren't the enemy of book sales — they are book sales. 1:56 - Meet Erin Cox 🎙️ Host Sarah Russo introduces her guest: a publishing lifer whose career spans Scribner, HarperCollins, The New Yorker, literary agenting, and beyond. 7:28 - Words and Money 💡 Erin shares the origin story of her new venture with Andrew Albanese, a digital media platform shining a spotlight on libraries' overlooked role in publishing. 8:19 - The Library Misconception 🏛️ Sarah and Erin bust the myth that libraries hurt book sales and explain why those purchases are some of the best a publisher can get. 14:24 - The Hold System Trap ⚠️ Erin reveals why encouraging fans to place library holds can actually backfire — and hurt smaller publishers in the process. 21:23 - Reasons to Be Excited 🎧 Erin shares the publishing news she's genuinely buzzing about, including Spotify's surprising new moves that are bringing print books and audio together in a whole new way. Books and authors mentioned in this episode. We encourage you to check them out at the library, buy them from your local independent bookstore or from Bookshop.org: My Antonia by Will Cather Richard Powers’s The Overstory and Playground Justin Cronin's The Ferryman Laura Ingalls Wilder Prairie Fires: The American Dreams of Laura Ingalls Wilder by Caroline Fraser Judy Bloom Anne Rice’s Interview with a Vampire (and the book I read the manuscript of at my very first job in publishing was Merrick)