PR Portfolio: Wooden Books
MEGALITH book launch goes viral as THE Summer Solstice story of the year
Introduction
Megalith: Studies in Stone, published on summer solstice in 2018 by Wooden Books, features eight leading authors in the field and was the first global study to fully reveal the remarkable complexity of stone circles and Neolithic art.
Beautifully illustrated throughout with antiquarian engravings and plates of megalithic sites, the Megalith compendium includes a global overview of the stone circle phenomenon, shedding light on many of the mysteries surrounding them and how they correlate to the landscape, sun, moon and stars. Different authors and experts unravel the puzzles and secrets of the key megalith sites, from Stonehenge and Avebury in the UK to Callanish in The Hebrides and Carnac in France. The pioneering collection includes geometrical surveys, an artistic overview of Neolithic rock art, and celebrates megalithic society’s abilities and achievements in a new light, revealing an intellectual facet of prehistory that was employing an integrated and coherent cosmology, more than 6,000 years ago.
“Will Gethin is a total PR wizard. Conscious Frontiers propelled our MEGALITH stone circles compendium into the front line of midsummer madness. Reviews quickly appeared in a diverse spread of magazines and newspapers, including a brilliant article by The Daily Telegraph’s science editor which went viral as THE summer solstice story of the year, appearing in newspapers and on news websites all over the world, and in several different languages. We sold a third of the print run in two weeks, peaking at a 150th ranking on Amazon.co.uk, where we were outselling J K Rowling (for a day). It was a delight to watch Will at work, and we will be using Conscious Frontiers again in the future, for the huge sensitivity, professionalism and expertise they bring to your project.”
John Martineau – Publisher & Editor, Wooden Books
PR Campaign
Our PR campaign for the book centred around its launch at Stonehenge for summer solstice and included talks on the day at Avebury and Stonehenge, as two great Meccas for solstice gatherings. In addition to a press release about the book, the media were also furnished with a series of listicle articles sharing interesting facts and enticing information about stone circles and related contents of the book, which extended the column inches for Megalith.
Media highlights
The Megalith press campaign went viral!
Articles included:
- The Telegraph, Daily Mail, Daily Express
- New York Post, Fox News (USA) website, Canada Post, Vancouver Sun, India Today, Herald Sun (Melbourne)
- Plus over 50 national newspapers and news sites worldwide
The publisher sold a third of the print run in two weeks, peaking with a 150th ranking on Amazon.co.uk, and outselling JK Rowling for one day!
Publicity also included a double-page spread in the i newspaper sharing extracts from the book, and a featured listicle sharing “10 things you didn’t know about Stone Circles” marking the book’s publication.
Additional media coverage included:
- Interviews on BBC World Service, Coast to Coast Radio (USA), BBC Radio Scotland and seven UK regional BBC stations
- Features and reviews in a diverse range of magazines, including British Archaeology, Discover Britain, Resurgence & Ecologist, Yoga, Nexus, Northern Earth and the Fortean Times