Book | Birdsplaining: A Natural History
Author | Jasmine Donahaye
Publisher and Release Date | New Welsh Rarebyte, January 2023
Project Brief
Birdsplaining was the sixth book from award-winning author Jasmine Donahaye who had previously written for the Guardian and the New York Times. The brief was to promote her latest essay collection within Wales and the UK and to get her high-profile appearances on the festival circuit commensurate with her stature, as well as securing high profile endorsements, editorial coverage and reviews both in print and online, including in Welsh-language media.
Campaign
To ensure that the book rode a zeitgeist, I recommended a publication date to hook on to RSPB Big Birdwatch week, at the end of January. I worked collaboratively with the author to discuss her expectations and hopes for the book and we went on to pitch dozens of events, features and appearances.
Throughout the run-up to publication, I worked closely with the publisher and author to ensure that they were apprised of developments, while maximising the leverage of a non-fiction collection which would appeal not only to readers who love the natural world, but also those with an interest in ornithology and feminism.
Results
Festival appearances secured included Hay, Oxford, Edinburgh, Kendal Mountain Festival, Amdani Fachynlleth and the Montgomeryshire Literary Festival. With three additional bookshop events and a one-off event at the RSPB Ynyshir reserve beloved by fans of BBC Springwatch, overall I secured ten speaking engagements throughout publication year for Jasmine, ensuring a long tail to the campaign to keep the book front of mind across the UK throughout 2023.
Meanwhile, editorial coverage I secured included an extended feature by Jasmine in The London Magazine and an interview in The Western Mail within a week of publication, as well as an article in The Big Issue and on Little Toller’s online magazine, The Clearing.
Elsewhere, I secured review coverage in Caught by the River, Wales Arts Review, Nation.Cymru and the Institute of Welsh Affair’s Agenda magazine, while Jasmine spoke on BBC Radio Cymru soon after the book’s release.
