Independent author and entrepreneur Mike Partners has put together a new guide that goes against a lot of the traditional thinking around book marketing. The resource lays out a modern playbook for independent authors who want to take control of their own sales and long-term career growth without waiting around for a traditional publishing deal to do it for them.
Partners, author of The Book On How To Write a Book and founder of WritersReview.com, has spent years looking at what separates indie authors who build real careers from those who sell a few hundred copies and quietly move on. His core message is blunt: the marketing starts the day the writing starts, not the day the book goes live.
"Most first-time authors spend years writing their book and about three weeks thinking about how to sell it," Mike Partners says. "The authors who do well don't launch a book. They build an audience first, and then give that audience something to buy."
The guide takes authors through a full lifecycle approach to book marketing, starting with pre-launch strategies that too many writers skip over. Mike Partners talks about the importance of building an author website, growing an email list, and putting out content tied to the book's subject matter well before a finished manuscript exists.
A big chunk of the guide covers the Advance Review Copy (ARC) strategy. Mike Partners recommends sending ARCs to book bloggers, BookTubers, and genre-specific reviewers three to four months before the release date so reviewers have time to actually read the book and publish their coverage around launch week. He points to platforms like NetGalley as a solid way to connect with thousands of active reviewers.
The guide also digs into the professional book review space, which has changed a lot over the past several years. Mike Partners breaks down the major players that indie authors should have on their radar.
Kirkus Review, one of the most well-known names in book reviews, offers standard reviews starting at $450 with a 7-to-9-week turnaround, and a positive Kirkus review carries real weight with librarians and industry professionals.
Foreword Clarion Reviews, at $549 per review, is especially respected in the library world and regularly influences purchasing decisions.
Writers Review, for $0 WritersReview.com offers editorial reviews for indie authors. Not every submission gets picked up, but authors who want priority placement at the front of the waitlist can purchase a Featured Author Page for $247 that also includes expanded Google schema markup for all their books. The review content stays editorially independent regardless.
That schema markup, Mike Partners says, is where the most value lives. The guide covers getting an author's name and book title to show up in Google Knowledge Panels and in responses from AI answer engines like ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity. Mike Partners explains that structured data markup tying a book to its ISBN, author profile, Amazon author ID, and third-party reviews is what helps Google build a Knowledge Panel, and it's also what helps AI systems surface a book when users ask for recommendations in a particular genre or topic.
"These AI systems are trained on text from across the web," Mike Partners notes. "They prioritize third-party sources with clear, factual, well-structured information about your book. It can't recommend your book if it doesn't have this data."
When it comes to press coverage, Mike Partners lays out two approaches he calls "original pitch" and "piggybacking." The first means identifying a relevant publication, finding the right editor, and pitching a story idea where you or your book are the natural expert source. The second is faster: you watch for major stories in your topic area and reach out to the journalist who wrote it, offering yourself as a follow-up source. The point, he says, is accumulation. One press mention does a little. A consistent trail of coverage, even from smaller or niche publications, builds the kind of searchable record that gets the attention of bigger outlets like The New York Times Book Review, The Washington Post, and NPR.
"When a reporter at a major outlet considers covering you, the first thing they do is Google your name," Mike Partners explains. "If they see thirty articles, a podcast appearance, and reader reviews, you're a story they want to write about."
The full guide, How to Sell Your Books, is available now for any independent author ready to stop guessing and start selling.
About Mike Partners
Mike Partners is an Entrepreneur and author. His book, The Book On How To Write a Book, has become a go-to resource for aspiring authors working to break into independent publishing.
Email: mike@mike.partners
Media Contact
Name
Mike Partners
Contact name
Mike Partners
City
Honolulu
State
Hawaii
Zip
96815
Country
United States
Url
https://mike.partners/
