Written Word Media

Written Word Media operates the largest independent book promotion network for self-published authors, running five reader brands with a combined audience of over 1.5 million readers. Founded in 2011 by Ricci Wolman and Ferol Vernon in Durham, NC, the company serves 45,000+ authors — self-published writers, major publishing houses, small presses, and publicists — through newsletter features, premium solo email blasts, list-building giveaways, managed advertising, and multi-site promo bundles.

What You Get#

• Freebooksy: Promotes free and permafree ebooks; features run $25–$245 including Series Promotions. Highest-volume product for download spikes; best ROI for series authors running a permafree book one.
• Bargain Booksy: For ebooks priced $0.99–$5.00; standard features run $20–$90. The Deal of the Day tier ($100–$240) adds highlighted placement in the Freebooksy email on top of the Bargain Booksy send — a combined audience of 501,000–1,522,000 — in Romance, Mystery/Thriller/Cozy, Fantasy/Paranormal, and Science Fiction. There is no minimum review count or star rating for either tier; Deal of the Day does require a 100+ page book that hasn't run on Bargain Booksy in the previous 30 days.
• Red Feather Romance: Dedicated to steamy contemporary romance, a genre not served by the other four brands.
• NewInBooks: Weekly new-release newsletter promoting books at full price. Book Launch packages run $299–$799 by genre — the most expensive single product WWM sells. The book must have released within the past 90 days, be 100+ pages, and be available on Amazon US (only US Amazon links are permitted).
• Audio Thicket: Targets dedicated audiobook listeners across three weekly sends: Mystery Monday (free or ≤$5.00 on non-Audible retailers), Audible Picks on Wednesdays (no discount required; listeners use Audible credits), and Weekly Deals on Thursdays (free or below $9.99 on non-Amazon retailers).
• Limelight: Premium solo dedicated email spotlighting a single author — no competing titles. Sold on three brands: Freebooksy $550 (281,000 subscribers), Bargain Booksy $500, and Red Feather Romance $500. Includes the promoted title, up to three backlist books at any price, and an author branding section. Exclusive to Gold and Platinum members.
• Promo Stacks: Pre-assembled multi-site bundles starting at $45, combining WWM's own brands with 12 partner newsletters — Hello Books, The Fussy Librarian, Bookclubs, RetireHub, Book Barbarian, Book Adrenaline, Red Roses Romance, Ereader News Today, eReaderIQ, FANGORIA, BookDoggy, and Robin Reads — scheduled in a single checkout. Price scales with the number of promos in the stack.
• Subscriber Surge Giveaways: $75/slot for a 60-day genre giveaway; readers win 20 ebooks plus a Kindle eReader in exchange for joining participating authors' lists. WWM targets at least one new subscriber per dollar spent.
• Reader Reach Ads: Full-service managed Facebook and Amazon ad campaigns, $150–$900 depending on length. WWM handles targeting and creative from their own accounts — no author ad account required. Facebook runs 5, 10, or 30 days (30-day is Gold/Platinum only); Amazon runs 5–10 days. At least 60% of the fee goes to actual ad spend.

Who It's For#

• Series authors with a permafree first book: Newsletter features deliver the highest download volumes and best read-through potential at this price point.
• Authors launching a new release: NewInBooks is the only WWM product built for full-price discovery, but at $299–$799 it prices well above the discount newsletters.
• Authors who want one checkout instead of six: Promo Stacks book WWM and partner-network promos together, and the membership discount applies to the partner promos too.
• Authors who want hands-off ad management: Reader Reach Ads require no platform setup or targeting decisions from the author.

Pricing: Newsletter features range from $20 (Bargain Booksy) to $245 (Freebooksy); Deal of the Day $100–$240; Promo Stacks from $45; Subscriber Surge $75; Limelight $500–$550 (members only); Reader Reach Ads $150–$900; NewInBooks Book Launch $299–$799. Gold membership ($125/year) and Platinum membership ($250/year) provide 10% off all promos, early booking access 14 days before general availability, and unlock 30-day Reader Reach campaigns. Membership discounts are capped at $200/year (Gold) and $500/year (Platinum), so Gold pays for itself at roughly $1,250 of annual promo spend.

Strengths#

• Portfolio breadth: Five reader brands, solo Limelight blasts, list-building giveaways, managed ads, and partner-network stacks — more product variety than any single-newsletter book promotion competitor.
• Dual placement: Bargain Booksy Deal of the Day runs simultaneously across both newsletters, delivering 501,000–1,522,000 combined reach without additional cost.
• Aggregator position: Promo Stacks resell 12 third-party newsletters, so WWM increasingly functions as the booking hub for indie promo rather than just its own lists.
• Verified author data: WWM publishes annual author surveys; the 2024 survey of 1,500+ authors rated promo newsletter sites 3.3/5 for effectiveness — near-equal to BookBub Featured Deals (3.4/5).

Limitations#

• Downloads, not lasting conversions: Newsletter promotion spikes typically subside within one to two weeks. Review conversion averages 2–3 per 1,000 downloads. Long-term ROI depends on series depth, not promotional volume alone.
• Editorial gating: Most placements require editorial approval — not every submission is accepted, and high-visibility slots like Deal of the Day, NewInBooks, and Limelight carry additional eligibility requirements.
• NewInBooks is a different price class: At $299–$799 it costs more than a full stack of discount promos, and it targets full-price discovery — the hardest conversion in book marketing.
• US-centric audience and Amazon-only links: Most downloads come from US readers, and NewInBooks accepts only Amazon US links, making it unusable for wide-only authors.
• Published prices conflict across WWM's own properties: The support knowledgebase prints Freebooksy at $30–$245, Bargain Booksy at $25–$240, and Deal of the Day at $95–$240 with 310,000–504,000 reach — all superseded by the live checkout figures above. Older bargainbooksy.com marketing pages still serve 2020-era prices and a retired "$0.99–$4.99" eligibility band. Book from the checkout at secure.writtenwordmedia.com and treat every other page as indicative only.

Alternatives#

BookBub reaches a larger subscriber base and offers self-serve CPC and CPM ads alongside editorial placements. For authors seeking cost-free list-building, StoryOrigin newsletter swaps provide a no-cost alternative focused on subscriber growth rather than immediate download volume — though its free tier gates reader-magnet delivery and swaps.