THE BOOK LAUNCH ROADMAP
Book Marketing Strategy for Authors
You’ve spent months (likely even years) writing the book. Its launch deserves the same level of care.
A custom book marketing strategy for authors who don’t have a full marketing team building the plan for them, whether you’re self-publishing or working with a publisher.
Know who your readers are, where to reach them, what to say and where your time and marketing dollars are actually worth putting before, during and after publication.
What does a book marketing strategy actually mean?
Book marketing is one of the murkiest parts of publishing. It’s hard to know what matters, what’s nice-to-have, and what’s just noise.
Should you put budget behind Meta or Amazon ads? Spend that energy on a social media book tour instead? Focus on bookstores, reader communities, email, events, partnerships, or preorder?
What should happen now and what can wait? That's strategy.
It's deciding who you're trying to reach, what will make them care, where you're most likely to reach them, what deserves your resources, and how the pieces work together.
PUBLICITY
Earned media coverage
Interviews and podcast appearances
Book reviews and features
Press outreach
Third-party visibility
MARKETING
Reader audience strategy
Positioning and messaging
Content and social strategy
Paid advertising
Partnerships and promotions
Budget and channel decisions
Hi, I’m Elaine. I’m the strategist behind your Roadmap.
Before founding The McKnight Element, I spent several years at Penguin Random House, working across audience strategy, paid media, creative strategy, integrated campaigns, and multi-million-dollar advertising investments.
My job was often to answer the same kinds of questions we're answering for your book: Who are we trying to reach? What will make them care? Where should we spend? What should the message be? And what is actually working?
My publishing work included leading the advertising strategy for The Reader Lounge, which added more than 17,000 panelists (more than 16,000 directly through advertising) while acquisition costs came in 40% below benchmark.
I also initiated a Dr. Seuss Spanish and Bilingual campaign designed to reach Hispanic and Latino families more authentically.
Now I bring that publishing-side marketing experience directly to authors.
Your Roadmap:
Approximately 40 pages of custom research, strategy, and recommendations developed specifically around your book, readers, publishing path, and goals.
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Go beyond "adults ages 18–45 who like fantasy" and understand the distinct readers most likely to connect with your book, and why.
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See the authors, titles, audiences, and market patterns that can help us make better decisions about your book.
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Know which themes, hooks, and angles give different readers a reason to care, so you're not repeating "my book is coming out" for six months.
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Know what deserves your attention before launch: audience building, content, partnerships, visibility, preorder, paid media, events, or other opportunities that make sense for your book.
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Know what matters around release, and how to continue creating opportunities for discovery once launch week ends.
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See what should happen, when it should happen, what matters most, and how the pieces work together.
And yes, you get the real thing.
You'll receive your Roadmap digitally and as a professionally printed and bound copy.
Highlight it. Tab it. Write in it. Bring it to meetings. Keep it beside you throughout your launch.
This is your book's marketing playbook.
Is this for you?
The Book Launch Roadmap is built for authors carrying a big share (or even the entire thing) of the responsibility for reaching their readers.
You might be:
Self-publishing and investing professionally in your book
Working with an independent, hybrid, or small press
Published by a mid-sized or Big Five publisher but receiving limited book-specific marketing support
Building readership around a series or a longer-term author career
Preparing for your first launch and wanting an actual strategy from the beginning
Looking at your next book and knowing you want to do things differently this time
This is for authors who want to be intentional about how their book finds its readers.
You do not need a huge following or a marketing background.
You do need a well-developed book, a realistic path toward publication, and the willingness to execute the strategy one it’s built.
I know this isn’t just a book. And I know you’ve already invested a lot in getting it here.
Maybe you've been writing it for years. Maybe you built an entire world from scratch. Maybe it's deeply personal. Maybe it's your first book, your tenth, or the one you really want to get right.
And by now? You've probably already paid an editor. A proofreader. A cover designer. A formatter. Maybe you've paid for printing, events, ads, or a dozen other things no one really warns you about when you decide to write a book.
All while, for many authors, also working a day job, raising a family, writing the next book, or just...living a life. I know you're already carrying a lot.
So when I recommend something, I'm very aware that I'm asking you to spend one of three things: your time, your money, or your energy. Sometimes all three.
That's why I'm not going to hand you a Roadmap filled with every marketing tactic an author could possibly do.
We're going to figure out what actually makes sense for your book, what deserves your attention, and where your resources are worth putting.
From an author who’s been here
“Working with The McKnight Element exceeded every expectation I had. Elaine's marketing strategy was comprehensive, creative, and thoughtful, covering far more ground than I would have imagined on my own. She took the time to understand my goals, offered actionable ideas tailored to my situation, and provided a clear roadmap that made the entire process feel manageable. If you're looking for someone who combines expertise, creativity, and genuine investment in your success, I highly recommend The McKnight Element.”
-Erica Sage, Author of Dead Things | Photo by Kerra Tibeau
More runway gives your book more options.
The earlier we build your strategy, the more options we have.
If you’re working toward a publisher-set release date, starting earlier gives us more time to build audience, messaging, relationships, visibility and preorder strategy.
Indie publishing moves differently. If you’re self-publishing and working with a shorter or more flexible timeline, don’t assume you’re too late. More time just gives us more options. Less time means we prioritize more aggressively.
Tell me where you are. I’ll help you determine whether there’s enough runway to make The Book Launch Roadmap valuable.
From another author
“I booked one hour with the McKnight Element not sure what to expect, and left feeling like I'd had a full check-up for my business. She quickly identified what wasn't working and why, offered a clear and doable plan, and gave me genuine confidence about what to do next. She's like a marketing doctor — diagnosis, treatment, and cure! I felt so much better after the appointment. I'll definitely be back when I need a boost. Highly recommended.”
- Leslie Davenport, Author of Transforming Climate Anxiety | Photo by Patricia Kay Spinks
Strategy First. Execution where you choose.
Hiring someone to both build and execute an entire book marketing campaign can quickly become a five-figure engagement.
The Book Launch Roadmap separates those two jobs.
I do the research, strategic thinking, prioritization, and planning.
Then you decide what you'll execute yourself, what your publisher or existing team can handle, and where it makes sense to hire additional support.
You're paying for the senior-level strategy that tells you what to do, why you're doing it and where your resources are best spent, without also paying me to execute every tactic.
One book. One strategy. One price.
Custom audience research
Comparable author & market research
Messaging strategy
Pre-publication strategy
Publication & post-publication strategy
Strategic timeline & priorities
Approximately 40-page customized Roadmap
Digital copy
Professionally printed & bound copy
90-minute private Roadmap presentation
60-minute Implementation Check-in, 45-60 days after your Roadmap presentation
$2,857
Project timeline: 4-6 weeks
Frequently Asked Questions
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As early as you reasonably can.
More runway gives us more time to build audience, awareness, relationships, messaging, and visibility before publication.
But there isn't one perfect timeline for every publishing path. A traditionally or independently published author may be working toward a release date set many months in advance, while a self-published author may have significantly more control over timing.
Tell me where you are in the process. I'll help determine whether now is the right time to build your Roadmap.
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Not necessarily. Less time doesn't automatically mean The Book Launch Roadmap can't help. It means we'll need to prioritize more aggressively.
Share your expected publication date in the form and I'll give you a straightforward answer about whether there's enough runway for the engagement to be valuable.
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Yes, particularly if you're already investing intentionally in producing the book professionally and want its marketing to receive the same level of thought.
You may be coordinating your own editor, cover designer, formatter, distribution, events, and launch while also being responsible for finding readers.
The Roadmap gives the marketing side of that work a strategy.
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It depends on the marketing support you're receiving.
Some authors have substantial support from their publisher. Others (including authors at major houses) still carry significant responsibility for their own platform, reader engagement, events, content, partnerships, and visibility.
If your publisher is already providing a robust, book-specific marketing strategy, you may not need The Book Launch Roadmap.
If the strategy gap is still falling on you, that's where I come in.
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No. Part of my job is determining where your readers actually are, not automatically telling you to grow Instagram.
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No. The strategy is completely customized to your book, audience, timeline, goals, and publishing model.
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The Book Launch Roadmap is a strategy engagement, so you (your publisher, your team, or other partners you hire) will execute the recommendations.
That separation is on purpose. It gives you senior-level marketing strategy without requiring you to hire me for a full-service execution engagement.
But I don't hand you 40 pages and disappear.
Your Roadmap includes a private presentation and a 60-minute Implementation Check-In. If you need additional strategic support afterward, 1:1 consulting is available as needed.
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It might. If those tactics make strategic sense for your book, they'll be addressed in your recommendations. Execution isn't included.
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Approximately 4-6 weeks from your official project start date.
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Yes. You'll receive your finished Roadmap digitally and as a professionally printed and bound copy.
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One-time investment of $2,857. You may pay your investment in full or use a two-payment project schedule.
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Yes. I personally conduct the research, develop your strategy, build your recommendations, and present the finished Roadmap to you.
You're hiring me as your strategist, not purchasing a generic or automatically generated marketing plan.
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Yes. Once your Roadmap is complete, we'll meet for a private 60-minute presentation where I'll walk you through the research, strategy, priorities, and recommendations behind it.
The presentation can be held virtually or, when geography and scheduling allow, in-person.
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You'll have time to begin putting the strategy into action. Then we'll reconnect for a 60-minute Implementation Check-In approximately 45-60 days after your Roadmap Presentation.
We'll use that time to address questions, roadblocks, and anything that has changed as you've started implementing the strategy.
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The Roadmap is built around one specific book and launch. But your book doesn't exist in a vacuum.
When relevant, I'll consider your existing readership, author platform, future books or series, and longer-term goals so the recommendations we make now support where you're trying to go next.
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I'm transparent about where technology supports my process and where it doesn't replace me.
I may use generative or assistive AI as one input during research, organization, analysis, or idea development. I personally verify the information, make every strategic decision, determine what belongs in your Roadmap, and take responsibility for the final recommendations you receive.
I do not upload your unpublished manuscript or confidential creative material into generative AI tools.
How it works
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Complete the form below so I can understand your book, timeline, goals, and current marketing.
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If The Book Launch Roadmap looks aligned, I'll invite you to a focused conversation about your book and what you're hoping to accomplish.
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Once your project begins, I immerse myself in your book, audiences, market, comparable authors, messaging opportunities, and launch strategy.
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Approximately 4-6 weeks after your project begins, we'll meet for your private Roadmap Presentation.
You'll receive your completed strategy digitally and as a professionally printed and bound Roadmap.
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We'll reconnect 45-60 days later for your 60-minute Implementation Check-In.
By then, you'll have actually lived with the strategy, started putting it into practice, and developed better questions because of it.
My goal here is to make sure you know how to use your Roadmap, not hand it over and run away forever.
Your completed Roadmap is delivered approximately 4-6 weeks after the project begins.
You wrote the book. Now let’s give it the thoughtful introduction it deserves.
$2,857 | 4-6 weeks
Note: Submitting this form doesn't commit you to purchasing The Book Launch Roadmap. I'll review your responses and contact you with the appropriate next step.
Tell me about your book