12 Tips for Authors to Get Endorsements & Forewords

Dr. Judith Briles
7 min readSep 15, 2020

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Not a week goes by that I don’t get an email or a call from an author asking how to get an Endorsement for their book or how to get someone to write the Foreword.

Here’s my response …

For Forewords:

Big suggestion … pull a line or phrase from the writer of the Foreword and put it in a “blurb” format that pops on your back cover. It supports them; a shout out thank you, and it adds juice to what’s within the pages.

Forewords aren’t “fillers” … they are meant to add a credibility factor to your work AND their name has recognition to may/should expand your reading audience.

Your ‘to do’ list includes:

1. Who would be a magnet for your target audience?

2. Who would they recognize and has credibility?

3. Do you know who the “whos” are?

4. Do you know anyone who does?

5. What do you have to show them for consideration — the whole book or a few chapters?

6. Does the recipient want the entire document or a few chapters?

7. If they are open, ask what would be best — an emailed Word document, a pdf, or a snail-mailed copy?

8. Or, do they so know your work and what you are writing, they are “good to go”?

9. If you are priority mailing (yes, at least priority mail), is there a “goodie” you can include as a thank you?

10. If you are sending to an unknown, such as a celebrity, you’ve got to stand out. What is his or her connection to your theme/book — is it a cause?

11. If mailing, never underestimate the “power” of visual packing — it counts. A colorful mailing envelope will immediately put you ahead of the in the “recipient’s hands” pop out.

12. When do you need it by?

AND … please spell Foreword correctly. It is not “forward.” I get it — you are moving forward as in a march in this process, but it’s the wrong forward in asking for a Foreword. When manuscripts have come into my offices that I’m working — this is one of the most common spelling mistakes.

For getting endorsements, it’s the same thing …

Endorsements:

It’s a repeat … these are not from your family members or friends UNLESS they are truly well known and can deliver an “influence factor” that is a magnet. Otherwise … pass, please.

1. Who would be a magnet for your target audience?

2. Who would they recognize and has credibility?

3. Do you know who the “whos” are?

4. Do you know anyone who does?

5. What do you have to show them for consideration — the whole book or a few chapters?

6. Does the recipient want the entire document or a few chapters?

7. If they are open, ask what would be best — an emailed Word document or pdf or a snail-mailed copy?

8. Or, do they so know your work and what you are writing, they are “good to go”?

9. If you are priority mailing (yes, at least priority mail), is there a “goodie” you can include as a thank you?

10. If you are sending it to an unknown, such as a celebrity, you’ve got to stand out. What is his or her connection to your theme/book — is it a cause?

11. Never underestimate the “power” of visual packing” –it counts. A colorful mailing envelope will immediately put you ahead of the in the “recipient’s hands” pop out.

12. When do you need it by?

Plus … some may ask you what you want them to say. I know you are thinking, “Really … you want me to write your words. Really? Yes, yes some do. Noodle this a bit — you may want some shout outs with key phrases in them. Create someone and two liners — a page of them. Add — If time is short, here’s a variety of lines that you can use, altering them to your words.

Then, I would “rank” any endorsements that come in — who has the most clout? If you get a Foreword, is there a line that snaps, crackles, and pops? Add that to your “short” endorsements — you may want to pop it on the front or back cover.

And where do you put all these gems? On the first few pages of your book — before the Title page. Add a People Are Talking … or a Praise for (your title), etc. And on your website. When your Amazon page is “live”, copy it in an email to the creator with the link to the Amazon page and ask them to do a copy/paste for a review. Shout them out on your social media — create a “rotation” of sharing and thanking the endorser. Include your book cover for the image and certainly the link to your buy page.

When Jeff Keen, President, and CEO of American Book Fest heard what I was doing with the creation of my book, How to Create a $1,000,000 Speech, he reached out to me. “If you would like an endorsement or foreword, I would be glad to do one.” I kept his note. When I had the full manuscript — knowing that it wasn’t perfect nor even laid out — I sent an email reminding him of what he wrote and asked if he was still game to do it. “Yes, send me the full manuscript,” was the response with a deadline for when I needed it. Not only did he deliver, it was clear he had read the entire book-to-be, with 10 pages noted where he recommended a tweak. WOWSA, I was so honored with what he wrote … and my goal is to go to print before February ends.

Within a day, this was emailed to me:

BRAVA! BRAVA! What an incredible book.
My copy is tagged, noted, and circled throughout. Fantastic resources!

The “Brava” line was immediately sent to the book designer to add to the back cover.

And then three days later, the full Foreword was received.

Then, I made a list, a very short list, of individuals who I would be honored to get endorsements from. I created a Bit.ly customized shortened link of the full Amazon link for using forward in promotion and marketing.

My Bit.ly is this: http://bit.ly/1000000speech

My Amazon page link is this: https://www.amazon.com/How-Create-000-Speech/dp/1885331673/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1518633349&sr=8-1&keywords=how+to+create+a+%241%2C000%2C000

The Bit.ly is so much better. Now it ties to the title of my book, How to Create a $1,000,000 Speech.

A short email was sent out that to my list of possible endorsers that included the back cover copy, the link to the Amazon page, and the “ask” –the goal was to include any on the first two pages of the book. One took a “pass” — she wanted the complete printed book and will post a review after the publication date. The others asked for the manuscript via pdf. Happy dances in my offices!

And then, a light bulb went off” –I had left someone off my original list. I forgot to ask a “very important person” –a person that is a “guru” in professional speaking, even serving as the first woman president of the national association. I reached out on a Sunday, reconnecting, and asked, including the front cover, contents page, and a sample layout. The next day, this was in my email box:

“For decades I have watched Judith Briles build and sustain a successful speaking career while authoring more books than most people read. Once Judith started helping others write books that were worth reading, she opened a new chapter of her life which her talents are ideally suited for: how to be a successful speaker. Judith is not selling a get rich quick promise. More a logical, practical, sustainable approach. By learning from those who have mastered the skills you are looking for will save you time and resources. Learning from Judith Briles could well be your best purchase of the year.”

- Patricia Fripp, CSP, CPAE — Past President, National Speakers Association

WOWSA … I was honored … so honored, that I pulled the last line and placed it smack-dab on the top of the front cover! A huge Happy Dance from my offices.

Bottom line — it’s all about “the ask” and knows who will be a match for your audience. What do you need? Have you asked for it?

Dr. Judith Briles is a book publishing expert and author of 37 multi-award books. She’s guided over 1,000 authors in creating their books, earned in excess of $3,000,000 in speaking fees based on her books, and gathered over $2,000,000 in onsite book sales at her speaking gigs. Her book, How to Create a $1,000,000 Speech flips a difficult topic into a simple and easily comprehensible plan. If you want to get into speaking, this is the guide that will be the game-changer to success. And, if you want to know more about Judith’s life, her book of “hope” is When God Says NO-Revealing the YES When Adversity and Loss Are Present. You can get it HERE.

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©2020 Judith Briles, The Book Shepherd

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Dr. Judith Briles
Dr. Judith Briles

Written by Dr. Judith Briles

Dr. Judith Briles is a book publishing and book marketing expert. She is a recipient of 47 national book awards, author of 37 books. Known as The Book Shepherd.

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