Unsolicited Manuscript: Weekly Digests

An Author's Guide to Promoting Your Book Without a Publicist

Abigail Monti — Mon, 04 May 2026 12:03:54 GMT

Welcome, May! And welcome new subscribers. Thank you for being here <3 For a refresher on who I am and what I post, please check out my About page.

This week, we’re tackling DIY publicity campaigns. Even if you have a publicist assigned to your book, there’s always more you can do on your own to maximize coverage. Steal a few ideas here:

Job Board

Marketing Associate - Berghahn Books
Senior Editor, Children’s - Blue Star Press
Business Development Manager - Open Road Integrated Media
Editorial Assistant, Nonfiction - Page Street Publishing
Senior Coordinator - Park, Fine & Brower Literary Management
Senior Project Manager, Publishing Operations - Princeton University Press
Marketing & Social Media Coordinator - Unnamed Press
Social Media & Platform Marketing Lead - Wildbound PR
College Publishing Sales Representative - W.W. Norton & Company

Unsolicited Manuscript is an independently run newsletter. All opinions are my own and do not reflect the views of my employer, company, or any other organization.

What Are Book Coaches, Why Are They Everywhere, and Do You Need One?

Abigail Monti — Mon, 27 Apr 2026 11:50:59 GMT

I’m really excited to welcome all new subscribers this week—thank you for joining the community! Please feel free to introduce yourself in the comments. Paid subscribers are also welcome to share their work in the Chat at any time.

This week featured one of my favorite (and most educational) industry interviews yet. If you’ve had questions about book coaches, has answers:

Job Board

Marketing Assistant - BenBella Books
Head of Content Strategy & Commercial Fiction - Crooked Lane Books/Alcove Press
Acquisitions Director - Echo Point Books & Media, LLC
Senior Publicity & Marketing Manager, Romantasy/Romance - Kensington Publishing
Social Media Manager - Kensington Publishing
Contracts Manager - Macmillan Publishers
Senior Children’s Scout - Maria B. Campbell Associates
College Publishing Sales Representative - W.W. Norton & Company
Senior Publicist - W.W. Norton & Company
Staff or Senior Accountant - Zando

Have a job opening to add to the list? Shoot me a DM.

Unsolicited Manuscript is an independently run newsletter. All opinions are my own and do not reflect the views of my employer, company, or any other organization.

How Publishers Decide Which Authors Go on Book Tours

Abigail Monti — Sun, 19 Apr 2026 11:32:46 GMT

This week marks the first time one of my posts really took off before I even sent it out in my weekly digest. If you haven’t yet checked out my exploration into the decision process behind book tours, make sure to read that below.

Then, if you’re still itching for more behind-the-scenes content about book tours—don’t fear! This week, I have a bonus Story Time post about my experience on tour.

Sharing stories from my life on the job never fails to make me appreciate how weird my job is and how lucky I am to have it. I hope you enjoy this one as much as I enjoyed living it.

Job Board

Acquisitions & Content Manager/Director - Crooked Lane Books/Alcove Press
Editor - Crooked Lane Books/Alcove Press
Direct & Special Sales Manager (Audiobooks) - Echo Point Books & Media, LLC
Marketing and Publicity Assistant - Fox Chapel Publishing
Children’s and EVP Sales Assistant - Hachette Book Group
Production Editor - Laurel Elite Books
Editor - Monacelli
Associate Manager, Production, Crown - Penguin Random House LLC
Contracts Associate, Penguin Publishing Group Adult - Penguin Random House LLC
Assistant/Associate Publicity Director - Phaidon and Monacelli Press
Director of Marketing - Poets & Writers, Inc
Editor, Trafalgar Square Books - Stable Book Group
Literary Travel Writer - Two Oranges Books
Publicity & Events Associate/Manager - Zibby Media

Have a job opening to add to the list? Shoot me a DM.

Unsolicited Manuscript is an independently run newsletter. All opinions are my own and do not reflect the views of my employer, company, or any other organization.

Weekly Digest: Hear from a Romance Publishing Insider + A Day in My Life at PRH

Abigail Monti — Mon, 13 Apr 2026 12:25:42 GMT

This week, I had the wonderful privilege of collaborating with , who works in marketing at a romance publisher, on a guest article swap. Mallory shared a week in her life on my newsletter, and I shared a day in my life on her’s.

Catch both of our posts below:

🪶Writer Stack

A Day in the Life of a Book Publicist at Penguin Random House

Today, I’m so excited to dive deeper into the publishing industry with Abigail Monti, author of Unsolicited Manuscript. In this post, she’ll be sharing what a day in her life looks like as a book publicist at Penguin Random House. To read the other half of this exchange (i.e. a publishing week in my life), head on over to…

a month ago · 53 likes · 5 comments · Mallory Stock and Abigail Monti

Job Board

Marketing & Publicity Manager - C&T Publishing
Associate Agent & Agency Coordinator - Europa Content
Editor, Harlequin - HarperCollins Publishers
Director, Divisional Sales - HarperCollins Publishers
Manager, International Sales - HarperCollins Publishers
Publicist - Yale University Press
Bookkeeper - Sanford J. Greenburger Associates
Director of Finance and Operations - University of Washington Press
Financial Analyst - Zando

Have a job opening to add to the list? Shoot me a DM.

Unsolicited Manuscript is an independently run newsletter. All opinions are my own and do not reflect the views of my employer, company, or any other organization.

Weekly Digest: The Books We're Definitely Judging by Cover, Plus New Jobs in Publishing

Abigail Monti — Mon, 06 Apr 2026 15:24:56 GMT

I’ve a long week of work travels ahead, so we’re jumping straight in this morning. Here’s what you missed last week:

Job Board

Director, Licensed Publishing - Chronicle Books
Sales and Distribution Manager, Publishing - Church Publishing Incorporated (CPI)
Associate Production Design and Pre-Press Manager - Galison
Business Development Specialist - Lakeside Book Company
Purchasing Sales Associate - Master Wings Publishing
Production Manager - Penguin Random House LLC
Office Manager / Director of Operations - Trellis Literary Management

Have a job opening to add to the list? Shoot me a DM.

Unsolicited Manuscript is an independently run newsletter. All opinions are my own and do not reflect the views of my employer, company, or any other organization.

Weekly Digest: Do Publishers Care if You’re on Substack? Plus, Newly Open Jobs

Abigail Monti — Mon, 30 Mar 2026 11:54:40 GMT

As you’ll find out below, this week’s post was inspired by comments left by my subscribers. Which, in my opinion, is the best of both worlds: you get your questions answered, and I get insight into the topics that matter to my readers.

This week, I’d love to invite free and paid subscribers to drop their most pressing questions on publishing in the comments. I can’t guarantee I’ll answer all of them in upcoming posts, but I will certainly try.

Thank you, always, to everyone who engages with my content.

Now, let’s get on to what you missed this week:

Job Board

Marketing & Publicity Assistant - Apollo Publishers
Project Coordinator - Brockman, Inc
Production Intern - Crooked Lane Books
Marketing Director, Basic Books Group - Hachette Book Group
Senior Designer, Adult, UNSQ - Hachette Book Group
Literary Agent - Heirloom Literary & Media
Executive Editor, Fiction - Kevin Anderson & Associates
Coordinator - Park, Fine & Brower Literary Management
Associate Production Editor - Penguin Random House
Director of Marketing, The Dial Press - Penguin Random House
Literary Agent - Stonesong
Associate Agent/Editor - Tanenbaum International Literary Agency
Marketing Manager - The Future of Agency LLC
Social Media & Content Manager - Wildbound PR
College Publishing Sales Rep - W.W. Norton & Company

Have a job opening to add to the list? Shoot me a DM.

Unsolicited Manuscript is an independently run newsletter. All opinions are my own and do not reflect the views of my employer, company, or any other organization.

Weekly Digest: How AI Finds and Recommends Books, New Jobs, and a Reintroduction

Abigail Monti — Mon, 23 Mar 2026 11:18:37 GMT

I’m so pleased to welcome a new group of subscribers to Unsolicited Manuscript this week. Thank you for being here!

To quickly reintroduce myself: I’m Abigail, an associate publicist at PRH. Unlike many other publishing insiders on Substack, I do not have 20+ years of experience, or an MFA, or an online masterclass to sell you. In this newsletter, I share my own experience as a young professional in the industry and draw on trusted names to add their insights. No, I am not an agent. Please don’t send me your book proposals.

This week we’re tackling a daunting topic: AI and book discoverability. As a publicist, these recent learnings have been especially eye-opening and have genuinely changed how I approach my job. I hope there is something you can take away from this article, too.

Let's explore how this happens, and a few ways you can reclaim the narrative around your book.","cta":"Read full story","showBylines":true,"size":"lg","isEditorNode":true,"title":"AI is Reading Your Book Reviews","publishedBylines":[{"id":323094360,"name":"Abigail Monti","bio":"Nonfiction book publicist at PRH. All opinions are my own 🧚🏼‍♀️📚","photo_url":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/117a877d-4ed7-4a10-9590-5f4c8417e707_1166x1167.jpeg","is_guest":false,"bestseller_tier":null}],"post_date":"2026-03-22T19:45:03.555Z","cover_image":"https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!j0-p!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fbc7b7950-78aa-44cb-aefc-7476336375e2_1400x1000.png","cover_image_alt":null,"canonical_url":"https://unsolicitedmanuscript.substack.com/p/ai-is-reading-your-book-reviews","section_name":"Imprint Insider","video_upload_id":null,"id":191782482,"type":"newsletter","reaction_count":1,"comment_count":0,"publication_id":4288714,"publication_name":"Unsolicited Manuscript","publication_logo_url":"https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!OPPH!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc852ea38-d4d7-4316-916e-892bb95f959b_1080x1080.png","belowTheFold":false,"youtube_url":null,"show_links":null,"feed_url":null}">

Job Board

Special Sales Senior Account Manager - C&T Publishing
Marketing Designer, Little, Brown - Hachette Book Group
Marketing Manager, Little, Brown - Hachette Book Group
Senior Editor & Literary Consultant - Kevin Anderson & Associates
Managing Editor - Lost Kite Editions
Director, Social Media - Macmillan Publishers
Publishing Sales Assistant - Master Wings Publishing
Associate Manager, Production, Crown - Penguin Random House
Senior Designer, Ten Speed - Penguin Random House
International Sales Assistant - Rizzoli
Associate Editor, Adams Media - Simon & Schuster
Marketing Manager, Scribner Books - Simon & Schuster
Senior Publicist - W.W. Norton & Company
Copywriting and Metadata Manager - Yale University Press

Have a job opening to add to the list? Shoot me a DM.

Unsolicited Manuscript is an independently run newsletter. All opinions are my own and do not reflect the views of my employer, company, or any other organization.

Weekly Digest: A Week at PRH UK, New Jobs, and an Upcoming Publishing Panel

Abigail Monti — Mon, 16 Mar 2026 12:50:47 GMT

This week, I finally sectioned out a new column in this newsletter: Story Time, which will house all blog posts about my own experience in publishing. This week’s article is a perfect new addition, and I hope you check it out.

Job Board

Editorial Assistant, Children’s - Abrams
Special Markets Account Manager - Lakeside Book Company
Marketing Director, Children’s - MamaBear Books
Associate, Client Operations - Penguin Random House
Director, Business & Product Strategy, Compendium - Penguin Random House
Editor, Dial Delights - Penguin Random House
Financial Analyst, DK - Penguin Random House
Fall Internships (multiple) - Penguin Random House
Associate Publicity Director - Phaidon and Monacelli Press
Publicist - Phaidon and Monacelli Press
Editorial Project Assistant - The Quarto Group
Marketing Manager - Quirk Books
Acquisitions Manager - VIZ Media
Senior Editor, Norton Trade - W.W. Norton & Company

Have a job opening to add to the list? Shoot me a DM.

For anyone looking to learn more about a career in publishing, there’s a free remote panel coming up this month that might be of interest! Learn more here: Denver Publishing Institute (March 19).

Unsolicited Manuscript is an independently run newsletter. All opinions are my own and do not reflect the views of my employer, company, or any other organization.

Weekly Digest: Answers from a Bookseller & New Jobs in Publishing

Abigail Monti — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 12:19:21 GMT

Happy Monday, happy March, and (most importantly to me), happy Daylight Savings to everyone who moved forward their clocks this weekend. Hallelujah, 7 PM sunsets!

You may have noticed no digest hit your inbox last week. While I was away from Substack, I had the wonderful opportunity to spend a week at the PRH office in London. More stories on that experience to come!

Until then, I’m excited to introduce the latest in my industry interview series and a strong roundup of new spring job openings:

Keep reading to hear what a typical day as a bookseller looks like, how publisher marketing actually factors into buying decisions, and why Austin’s committed to personally reading about 85% of what the store carries.","cta":"Read full story","showBylines":true,"size":"lg","isEditorNode":true,"title":"On Bookselling: A Q&A with Austin Wilson, Co-owner of Moss Heart Books","publishedBylines":[{"id":323094360,"name":"Abigail Monti","bio":"Nonfiction book publicist at PRH. All opinions are my own 🧚🏼‍♀️📚","photo_url":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/117a877d-4ed7-4a10-9590-5f4c8417e707_1166x1167.jpeg","is_guest":false,"bestseller_tier":null}],"post_date":"2026-03-04T08:53:28.212Z","cover_image":"https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Tgqr!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F9726ccd4-a78d-4f39-8167-2ad55777915c_1400x1000.png","cover_image_alt":null,"canonical_url":"https://unsolicitedmanuscript.substack.com/p/on-bookselling-with-austin","section_name":"Imprint Insider","video_upload_id":null,"id":188740961,"type":"newsletter","reaction_count":11,"comment_count":0,"publication_id":4288714,"publication_name":"Unsolicited Manuscript","publication_logo_url":"https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!OPPH!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc852ea38-d4d7-4316-916e-892bb95f959b_1080x1080.png","belowTheFold":false,"youtube_url":null,"show_links":null,"feed_url":null}">

Job Board

Publicity Assistant/Associate - Crooked Lane Books
Designer - DAW Books
Editorial Assistant - Diversion Books
Marketing Assistant - Hackett Publishing Company
Senior Book Designer - Insight Editions
National Account Manager - Lakeside Book Company
Literary Agent - Lowenstein Associates
Associate Manager of Production, Crown - Penguin Random House
Director of Sales, Christian Market - Penguin Random House
Marketing Manager, Portfolio, Thesis, Optimism, & Sentinel - Penguin Random House
Marketing Associate, Audiobooks - Simon & Schuster
Acquisitions Editor - The Daily Grace Co
Administrative Assistant - Wendy Sherman Associates
College Publishing Sales Rep - W.W. Norton & Co
High School Publishing Sales Rep - W.W. Norton & Co
Media Marketing Manager, Mental Health - W.W. Norton & Co
Publicist - W.W. Norton & Co

Have a job opening to add to the list? Shoot me a DM.

Unsolicited Manuscript is an independently run newsletter. All opinions are my own and do not reflect the views of my employer, company, or any other organization.

Weekly Digest: How to Be Your Own Publicist, New Jobs, and More

Abigail Monti — Mon, 23 Feb 2026 12:08:26 GMT

Thank you to everyone who voted in last week’s poll—more industry interviews and personal stories are on their way!

For now, let’s dive into one way authors without publicists can drum up some promo for their books:

Let's break down one of the ways.","cta":"Read full story","showBylines":true,"size":"lg","isEditorNode":true,"title":"How to Pitch Your Book to Local Media","publishedBylines":[{"id":323094360,"name":"Abigail Monti","bio":"Nonfiction book publicist at PRH. All opinions are my own 🧚🏼‍♀️📚","photo_url":"https://substack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com/public/images/117a877d-4ed7-4a10-9590-5f4c8417e707_1166x1167.jpeg","is_guest":false,"bestseller_tier":null}],"post_date":"2026-02-18T02:27:59.661Z","cover_image":"https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!FvNZ!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Faece232d-0eb5-4605-bd36-5f7deba44784_1400x1000.png","cover_image_alt":null,"canonical_url":"https://unsolicitedmanuscript.substack.com/p/how-to-pitch-local-media","section_name":"Imprint Insider","video_upload_id":null,"id":188330853,"type":"newsletter","reaction_count":3,"comment_count":0,"publication_id":4288714,"publication_name":"Unsolicited Manuscript","publication_logo_url":"https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!OPPH!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc852ea38-d4d7-4316-916e-892bb95f959b_1080x1080.png","belowTheFold":false,"youtube_url":null,"show_links":null,"feed_url":null}">

Job Board

Social Media & Media Relations Coordinator - Brooklyn Book Festival
Commercial Director, Teachers College Press - Columbia University
Content & Marketing Specialist, Teachers College Press - Columbia University
Executive Editor, Teachers College Press - Columbia University
Marketing Director, William Morrow - HarperCollins
US Support Specialist - Libro.fm
Sales Manager, Adult - Penguin Random House
Senior AI Solutions Engineer - Penguin Random House
Senior Marketing Manager, Random House - Penguin Random House
Intellectual Property Manager, Books - University of Chicago
Assistant to Partner & Agent - United Talent Agency

Have a job opening to add to the list? Shoot me a DM.

Unsolicited Manuscript is an independently run newsletter. All opinions are my own and do not reflect the views of my employer, company, or any other organization.

Weekly Digest: Catching a Literary Agent's Attention, New Jobs, and More

Abigail Monti — Mon, 16 Feb 2026 13:19:00 GMT

Anyone who’s been around here for a while might know that my first Substack anniversary is coming up next month (Wow! Time flies!), and if there’s anything I’ve learned over these past twelve months, it’s that reinvention is key.

Of course, reinvention without purpose helps no one. Before diving into this week’s content, I’d love to hear your thoughts on more ways to make this newsletter the best it could possibly be.

Now that that’s settled, here’s what you missed this week:

Job Board

Executive Director - Columbia University Press
Associate Editor, Art & Entertainment - Chronicle Books
Product Manager, Title Management - Firebrand Technologies
B2B Marketing Specialist, Education - Gibbs Smith
Senior Marketing Manager, Union Square - Hachette Book Group
Senior Publicist, Little, Brown - Hachette Book Group
Senior Editor - HarperCollins
Internship - Indigo River Publishing
Travelling Bookseller & Marketing Assistant - Interlink Publishing
Book Reviewer - Kirkus Reviews
Director, Marketing, Dial Press - Penguin Random House
Editorial Assistant, Porfolio Sentinel - Penguin Random House
Deputy Editor - Poets & Writers
Associate Manger, International M&P - Sourcebooks
Publicist - Yale University Press
Editorial Assistant - Zando

Have a job opening to add to the list? Shoot me a DM.

Unsolicited Manuscript is an independently run newsletter. All opinions are my own and do not reflect the views of my employer, company, or any other organization.