PICA Member Spotlights
Q&A with independent consultants who successfully “made the leap” and created the consulting career of their dreams
Q: Why did you decide to leave a big company and start out on your own?
A: The timing was right for me in terms of creating my own brand of publicity and marketing. What I liked the best about my job in the publishing industry was working one-on-one with authors. I loved the idea that I could focus more on utilizing my special sauce, which was focusing on the interpersonal part of this business. Also, instead of working on 50 books at once, I could hand-select and really concentrate on the books that I felt passionately about.
Q: You offer book marketing and publicity consulting services to authors and publishers. That’s a very unique type of consulting. Who is your ideal client?
A: Both authors and publishers need these types of services. Maybe you're a self-published author who wants to do "everything yourself" but you need direction on how to reach your audience. Or you're an author that's working with a publisher but you’re looking for additional promotion above and beyond what your publisher is able to offer you. Maybe you're a publisher who needs extra help on a particularly tricky project that requires multiple hands. All these types of clients hire me for extra support.
Q: What's some of the more unique marketing or publicity events you have done?
A: I worked on a book called Drawn on the Way by a sketch artist named Sarah Nisbett who got her start drawing on the New York city subway. She was a former opera singer who wanted to focus on a different type of creativity, so now she does quick, live drawings out in the field and at weddings. For her book tour, we put on a class with the New York Transit Museum, which had hundreds of participants. It was such a fun project to work on.
Q: So, you've been independent about three years. You've had to make a lot of decisions and I imagine you've certainly faced some challenges. What advice would you give to yourself 3 years ago? Knowing what you know now, what would you tell yourself then?
A: I would tell myself: it’s okay to turn down work. I have a unique style and my best clients are collaborators who want to dig in with me and get creative. I was really nervous in the beginning about building something from scratch and felt like I needed to say yes to everything that came my way. But the best projects are worth waiting for—like anything in life!
Q: What have been some of the more rewarding aspects of being independent?
A: I really value the ability to make my own schedule and work from home. The time that I'm not spending commuting, I'm spending with my family. It’s also very rewarding to keep retooling and refining my specialty. Having my own business allows me to pivot when I need to and keep honing my skills.
Q: What was one of your biggest challenges getting started and launching a business in the last three years?
A: I launched my website right as the country was shutting down due to COVID in 2020. The authors I was working with were suddenly in this new landscape where book events moved online. I had to change my thinking about how to help people and how to make online promotion even more impactful. Also, at the same moment the whole world was changing, I was setting up my branding and services. Now that we’re in a different place again, I’ll need to keep retooling based on the way the world keeps shifting. The book industry is constantly adapting and evolving, which is a challenge but keeps us on our toes.
Q: How do you stay energized and optimistic?
A: I’m always inspired by the authors I work with. I love connecting with creative people and find a lot of energy in collaborating.
Q: How can somebody get in touch with you to find out more about how you may be able to help them with their own publicity efforts or just to learn more about you or your business?
A: MulfordMedia.com is my website and that has examples of some of the projects that I've worked on. They're also welcome to get in touch with me via LinkedIn.
