Sometimes the author is asked by the publisher to write the jacket copy/marketing piece. Sometimes the publisher has staff to write them or they hire freelancers.

Years ago Libba Bray freelanced for publishers; her job was to read manuscripts/galleys/advance reading copies and write  jacket copy.  I remember when Editor-in-Chief at Kensington Publishing Corp. NY John Scognamiglio sent me the jacket copy that Libba had written for my novel Love Made of Heart, I cried and cried thankful tears.  Thank you, Libba!

Love Made of Heart – Twenty-seven-year-old Ruby Lin has what many women envy: a beautiful apartment in one of San Francisco’s best neighborhoods, a busy social life, and a coveted position as manager of special events for the tony St. Mark’s Hotel. But it’s Ruby’s personal life that’s become unmanageable ever since the day her mother’s emotional breakdown forced Ruby to hospitalize her, shaming the family. Now, Ruby is caught in the crossroads between two vastly different cultures—one in which she is the American girl, raised on kitschy television shows and black-and-white movies, and one in which she is known only as Daughter, the eldest, fulfiller of responsibilities.

In putting together the pieces of her mother’s life, Ruby finds herself exploring the wounds of her own past. Starting with a forbidden locked tin box and the yellowing photograph inside, Ruby embarks on a startling journey of self-discovery that takes her through a family history rife with violence, betrayal and loss that reaches back through generations, from China to America, and finally to the secret pain of a mother’s sacrifice. Like the Chinese calligraphy that adorns her walls, Ruby comes to see that “life is not a straight road,” but a language drawn with many brush strokes, where every misunderstanding must yield to the simple message of the heart.

Filled with warmth and wisdom, this luminous debut novel heralds the arrival of an exciting new voice in fiction as it explores the complex bonds between mothers and daughters, the choices that divide us, and the love that brings us home.

Libba Bray has become a beloved author of novels for young adults/teens. Her literary works include:

A Great and Terrible Beauty (Gemma Doyle, #1)
Rebel Angels (Gemma Doyle, #2)
The Sweet Far Thing (Gemma Doyle, #3)
Going Bovine
Beauty Queens

I am so happy for Libba!

I encourage everyone to write a book jacket for your manuscript.  The piece will help you answer the questions: “Is my story as enticing as the book jacket?” and “Does the jacket copy follow the plotline of my story?”

Sincerely,

Coach Teresa LeYung-Ryan

Author of Build Your Writer’s Platform & Fanbase In 22 Days: Attract Agents, Editors, Publishers, Readers, and Media Attention NOW (print edition $12.96  & eBook edition $9.81)

and the novel Love Made of Heart (inspires adult children of mentally ill parents to speak openly about the stigmas and find resources for their families)

I love helping writers identify themes and archetypes in their manuscripts and make their names synonymous with the subject matters/issues they write about to a attract agents, editors, publishers, readers, and media attention before and after publication. Reach out, not stress out, when pursuing your dreams!

Please visit my website http://writingcoachteresa.com

If you wish to email me, I’m writingcoachTeresa at gmail.com