What I check first on every book that comes to my desk

The Author Desk is an email I send every week or two to nonfiction authors who want their book to bring in clients. Each issue takes one thing I look at on every first call, explains why it matters, and shows you how to check it on your own book.

IN EACH ISSUE

Short enough to read between calls

1 One thing to check

A part of your book or your retail listing that most authors never look at, with a way to check it on your own book the same day.

2 Publishing news, filtered

Two or three items from sources such as the Authors Guild, Writer Beware, the Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi) and the Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), each with one line on what it means for your book.

3 One next step

Some issues end with a question you can answer by reply. Others end with an offer.

RECENT ISSUES

A look at what you will receive

ISSUE 01

Can you log into your own book?

Many authors who paid to publish cannot change their own retail page, and most of them do not find out until they need to. This issue explains the four situations an author can be in, the one that is a problem, and the three questions to send your publisher.

ISSUE 02

Pull your book up on your phone

Your description field shows you everything at once. A reader on a phone sees a shortened version and has to tap to read the rest.

ISSUE 03

Why the review site turned your book down

If a free reader site declined your business book, or accepted it and sent almost nothing back, the reason is usually who its readers are. This issue explains how review channels differ and which page to read before you submit anywhere.

Read Issue 03 in full

WHO WRITES IT

Written from the work itself

I am Elizabeth Javor, and I have worked in publishing and book marketing since 2007. The Book Marketing Source runs the listing, reviews, ads and pitching for nonfiction authors, then writes the material that turns a reader into an inquiry. Every issue of The Author Desk comes out of that work, and I write each one myself.

3 #1 Amazon rankings for client books in 2025

The Narrative Edge, Rod Berger, Psy.D.

Beyond Blind Blaming, Dr. Kevin D. St.Clergy

Reenactments, Tony Iezzi, Ph.D.

2 Kirkus Reviews “Get It” verdicts for client books in 2026

Life and Music, Idil Biret

Life and Art, Alden Mellor Heck

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The Author Desk is free. Enter your email address, then confirm it when the email arrives.

Past results do not guarantee future outcomes. Marketing results vary by topic, market, execution and third-party platforms.