One Quick Announcement!
Join Me in NYC on October 21! I'm moderating a Women's Media Group panel, Memoir Plus: When Personal Stories Contain Multitudes, featuring Regina Brooks, Bethany Saltman, Laura Carney, and Hyeseung Song. It's at Penguin Random House in the Toni Morrison room, and two agents will be weighing in. We'll be talking about the many ways writers can expand the boundaries of memoir. I'd love to see you there! Register here for tickets.
Now to our program:
I loved chatting with Diana Daniele on her Instagram program, Musing Time, about writing, publishing, and my work in progress. With her experience as both a writer and a literary publicist, I thought she'd be an excellent guest for Freelance Writing Direct, and I'm delighted to share our conversation.
Hiring a publicist can feel like a big leap. What are you paying for? What should you expect? And what can you do yourself? Diana generously shares her perspective on how authors can prepare, ask the right questions, and make the most of that relationship. Make sure to check below for a free pdf resource Diana offers FWD listeners and viewers.
In this episode, we discuss:
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What a publicist can and can't do for your book
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What to ask for in a proposal before signing a contract
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When to begin planning publicity and building your launch team
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How essays, podcasts, and Substack can help you reach readers
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Why regular communication and activity reports matter
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Red flags to watch for, including promises of guaranteed coverage
Watch on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WELHqPB_c78
About Diana
Diana Daniele is a writer and literary publicist whose work has appeared in The New York Times, Newsweek, Business Insider, Brevity, HuffPost, and Zibby Magazine. Her book manuscript was recently longlisted in the Tall Poppy Writers Contest. She brings more than 20 years of experience in public relations to her work helping authors build visibility and connect with readers.
Links
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dianadanielepr/
Substack (Musing Time) https://musingtimewithdianadaniele.substack.com
Website: https://dianadanielepr.com
A Resource from Diana
Diana also put together a Timeline for a Successful Book Launch pdf especially for our listeners and viewers. Thank you, Diana, for sharing this helpful resource!
Download her PDF:
Visit Diana's Substack for a giveaway: https://musingtimewithdianadaniele.substack.com
Get More From Estelle Erasmus
Latest Substack post: How to Write for Electric Literature. This is a recap from my Editor-on-call event with Denne Michele Norris, in collaboration with NYU. https://estelleserasmus.substack.com/p/how-to-write-for-electric-literature
Meet Estelle at An Event
Watch
Estelle's TEDx Talk: How to Get Noticed in Your Writing and Beyond
Order My Book
Writing That Gets Noticed — named a Poets & Writers "Best Book for Writers."
Listen/Watch
Freelance Writing Direct Podcast — 2026 Signal Awards Finalist — Education; 2026 Podcast of the Year, Business (American Writing Awards)
About Estelle
Estelle Erasmus is an award-winning journalist, TEDx speaker, and author of Writing That Gets Noticed. She is the host, founder, and executive producer of Freelance Writing Direct, an adjunct professor at NYU, and the former editor-in-chief of five national magazines with a combined reach of 10 million readers.
Her work has appeared in more than 150 publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, WIRED, PBS/Next Avenue, The Independent, and AARP The Magazine.
Follow Estelle
Instagram: @EstelleSErasmus
TikTok: @EstelleSErasmus
Twitter/X: @EstelleSErasmus
Bluesky: @estelleserasmus.bsky.social
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