Welcome back! This week Angela and Sarah chat with Pacific and Court publicist Kourtney Jason about what goes on behind the scenes in the months leading up to a book's release. What is the job of a publicist? Do authors need one? What expectations should authors have when partnering with a publicist? Kourtney dives into these questions and more as she sheds light on what it takes to create a successful book campaign and how to choose a publicist that's a good fit for you.

Kourtney Jason is the president and co-founder of Pacific & Court. With more than 14 years experience as a publicist, she has worked with and represented celebrities, world-renowned chefs, and bestselling authors. She led the in-house publicity departments at Ulysses Press and Time Inc. Books, and further honed her strategic communications skills at Bread & Butter and Smith Publicity agencies. Since its launch in 2021, P&C’s publisher clients have included Ulysses Press, Interlink Publishing, VeloPress, 80/20 Publishing, KeyPress Publishing, Jesse B. Creative, The Collective Book Studio, Rocky Nook, Dzanc Books, and more. She’s secured coverage for clients in top-tier national media that includes the TODAY show, Associated Press, People magazine, NPR, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, CNN, Oprah Daily, Salon, Reader’s Digest, and much more. Her past work includes high-profile authors such as country music icon Martina McBride, actress Valerie Bertinelli, chef Todd Richards, TODAY’s Siri Daly, New York Times bestselling authors Syd and Shea McGee (of Studio McGee) among others. She is the author of five non-fiction books, including Lights Camera Booze: Drinking Games for Your Favorite Movies, which was included in the Academy Awards swag bags. She lives in Brooklyn, NY.

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Angela recently attended the Books, Authors, and Publishers Fair in Nashville where she hosted a workshop on how to build a relationship with a bookseller. In this week's epsiode we dive into why this is vitally important, not just building a relationship, but a healthy one and what that looks like. Angela and Sarah discuss shifting the focus of books toward readers and the Reading Rock Books mission to "champion local stories and authors."

A good, working relationship is one built on respect. Authors, what have been your experiences with booksellers? We want to know! Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and Threads or send us an email at: thewaywewordpodcast@gmail.com

Welcome back to another episode! This week Angela and Sarah talk with Melissa Collings, author of The False Flat. Melissa is an incredible human with a keen insight into the written word. Exploring themes in multiple genres, Angela, Sarah, and Melissa discuss the power of connectivity in the written word, growth and happiness through dark times, and how fiction can make us more aware of the world around us.

Melissa's novel The False Flat has been described as having "the best meet-cute between two friends." In this episode she openly discusses her journey as a biracial woman and how that has informed the biracial characters she writes in her books. Melissa is truly a joy and we hope you'll gain as much from this discussion as we did.

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