Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a book publicist and the owner of Paula Margulies Communications, a public relations firm for authors and artists. I’ve received numerous awards for my essays and books, including my new nonfiction handbook, The Tao of Book Publicity, my historical novel, Favorite Daughter, Part One, my debut novel, Coyote Heart, and my short story collection, Face Value: Collected Stories. I’ve been awarded artist residencies at Caldera, Red Cinder Artist Colony, the Vermont Studio Center, and Centrum. I live in San Diego, California. For more information, please visit my website at paulamargulies.com.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is called The Tao of Book Publicity: A Beginner’s Guide to Book Promotion. It’s a book I had been meaning to write for a number of years, and I finally was able to complete the first draft of it in November (kind of my own NaNoWriMo).
I wrote it primarily as a way of answering the common questions I get from prospective clients who contact me about publicity for their books. It’s designed to help new authors, but it can also be useful to experienced writers who have questions about book promotion.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I work as a publicist and teach marketing and PR classes at a community college, so I’m pretty busy during the week. I usually write on Saturdays and Sundays, or whenever I can catch a moment here or there.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
I’m a huge fan of the Southern Gothic, so for my fiction, I’ve been inspired by authors like William Faulkner and Flannery O’Connor. I also enjoy historical fiction, women’s fiction, mysteries, and short stories, so authors like Sherman Alexie, Ha Jin, Barbara Kingsolver, Elizabeth Berg, Louise Penny, Jane Smiley, and Louise Erdrich are a few of my favorites.
What are you working on now?
I’m working on Part Two of Favorite Daughter, my historical series about the life of Pocahontas.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I really like Twitter for promoting just about anything, including my publicity business and my books.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
The most important thing for new authors to focus on is writing the best book they possibly can. That means taking the time to really develop the content if it’s nonfiction, or the characters, themes, and plot if it’s fiction. I also recommend workshopping the book in a writer’s group and taking the comments from the group to heart. Finally, it’s important that the book be packaged professionally – the cover should be designed by a graphic artist and the text should be edited by a professional (paid) editor.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Less is more.
What are you reading now?
I just finished Elizabeth Gilbert’s wonderful book about creativity called Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear.
What’s next for you as a writer?
After I complete Favorite Daughter, Part Two, I have plans to begin a new historical novel set in Hawaii.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
The Tao Te Ching, Walden, ee cummings’ Collected Poems, Leaves of Grass
Author Websites and Profiles
Paula Margulies Website
Paula Margulies Amazon Profile
Paula Margulies’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account