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Stark Reflections on Writing and Publishing

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  2. EP 483 - Author Branding with Jessica Sorentino

EP 483 - Author Branding with Jessica Sorentino

Jul 16, 2026

Mark interviews Jessica Sorentino, an author brand strategist with more than a decade of experience helping writers and thought leaders connect with their audiences in meaningful, lasting ways.

Prior to the main content, Mark shares comments from recent episodes, a personal update, and a word about this episode's sponsor.

This episode is sponsored by an affiliate link to Manuscript Report. Use code MARK10 at checkout and save 10% off your own personalized report.

In the interview, Mark and Jessica talk about:

  • What an author's brand is and how to determine what that brand is
  • A technique of visualizing a coffee/lunch date with a dream reader/follower and writing down what you spoke about
  • Stripping back the sales and marketing and finding that common ground
  • The importance of authors having a handy in and having control of marketing their books even when a book is published by a major publisher
  • Work done with Macmillan on their first business-to-consumer product
  • How authors can sometimes feel being "dumped" by their publisher after the initial launch period
  • That it's not really the buzz that makes for solid sales, but it's passionate readers
  • How much of "comps" (ie "comp authors" and "comp titles") are a part of author branding
  • The comradery of authors lifting one another up
  • Jessica's "Turning Pages" private consulting for authors and the triangle of the author/book/reader connection
  • Pulling out themes from a book that can help build out that conversation
  • The value of an author brand during the query/the pitch process to an agent, editor, or publisher
  • How the publishing industry is really about businesses making a bet on what they're investing in
  • Jessica's "Open Book" Substack and how authors can get access to it for free
  • The relationship between platform, brand, and marketing
  • The book club podcast that Jessica co-hosts called "Third Glass"
  • The question of how a book is a want not a need, so how do you make a reader want your book
  • A reminder of the number of times a person needs to see something before it really sticks, which is 12
  • If you only show up when you have something to promote instead of showing up regularly
  • Prioritizing engagement and conversations versus followers and likes
  • And more...

After the interview Mark reflects on a number of things Jessica mentioned.

Links of Interest:

 

Jessica Sorentino is an author brand strategist with more than a decade of experience helping writers and thought leaders connect with their audiences in meaningful, lasting ways. She has worked with top publishing houses, including Simon & Schuster and Macmillan Publishers, where she developed deep expertise in positioning authors for commercial success and authentic reader engagement.

Jessica is the voice behind Open Book: Where Storytelling Meets Strategy on Substack and co-host of the Third Glass: Reading Between the Wines podcast, where she explores the intersection of storytelling, publishing, and personal brand. Her insights have also been featured on many industry podcasts.

A sought-after speaker and respected industry voice, Jessica has repeatedly moderated at the Digital Marketing World Forum. She speaks on the importance of personal branding for authors, sharing best practices for using content and storytelling to build engaged communities as well as strategies for maintaining sustainable content creation.

Based in Connecticut with her partner and dog, Jessica spends her mornings reading, her weekends baking and gardening, and her workdays helping authors build story-driven brands that connect them with the readers who will love their work most.

 

The introductory, end, and bumper music for this podcast (“Laser Groove”) was composed and produced by Kevin MacLeod of www.incompetech.com and is Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0