Comments on: How Can I Get My Book on Oprah?

By: Pretty Little

Pretty Little — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 03:45:58 +0000

Hi, superb post.

By: cindyratzlaff

cindyratzlaff — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 13:00:42 +0000

Charles, I would send it to both her book club person on the television show and to her magazine book person. She chose to recommend Ken Follett’s Pillars of the Earth which is historical fiction. The challenge is that hundreds, maybe thousands of books are sent to her team for review and without the weight of a mainstream publisher and their relationship to members of her team, your book will have a steeper uphill battle to be seen and read. That said, it can never be considered if you don’t send it. My recommendation is to send it with a nice note telling her team a little about the book and then let it go in your mind. If they want to use it, they’ll let you know. The only other reason to contact them about it again is if something happens that will bring the book into the limelight such as movie rights being sold. Then contact them again as an FYI. Good luck.

By: Charles David Eyer

Charles David Eyer — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 04:36:53 +0000

I just published my first novel in April and I would love to have it receive international exposure to boost sales. However, I don’t think my book is a fit with Oprah. It is a historical novel set in the Roman Empire. I don’t think it would make it on Oprah’s show. However, I wonder if Oprah might put it in her magazine as a recommended read. It seems she includes all types of genres in her magazine. That is my dilemna now: whether to try her magazine. I am self published so I am on my own for marketing and many folks won’t give self published writers a chance.
Charles

By: cindyratzlaff

cindyratzlaff — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 22:55:47 +0000

Thanks for your comments and observations, John. It’s true. One of the many reasons her audience loves her is that she genuinely feels an obligation to deliver real value to her viewers. Authors like you, who have something important to say, just need that “magic moment” that helps her find a way to share your information with her audience. I believe yours will come. I love your work!

By: John La Puma, M.D.

John La Puma, M.D. — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 22:29:24 +0000

This is smart, sound advice: though I have only been in the audience on Oprah!, my terrific and inspiring RealAge partner Michael Roizen, MD has been on many times, some with our RealAge books.

Ms. Winfrey seems like an amazingly gifted and generous person, who wants to share what she has read only if it is truly valuable and new. And there is a lot that has already been said in books in the self-empowerment aisle.

I’ve spoken with several of her producers recently about my most recent book, and it’s clear that the subject (food that works like medicine and is incredibly delicious) is a good fit, but the right TV idea–the equivalent of the human heart Dr. Oz so brilliantly offered–just hasn’t come along. But it will.

That’s the only point I’d add: if your idea is right for her audience, find a new way to present it, and keep trying.

Best
John La Puma, MD
http://www.drjohnlapuma.com
http://www.ChefMD.com