A day in the life of Senior Publicist, Tessa Robinson

What is your role, and how long have you worked at Penguin Random House (PRH)?

I’m a senior publicist, and I’ve worked at PRH for about two and a half years.

You've been busy lately! Tell us a bit about what you’ve been up to.

I certainly have!

There have been several writers' festivals throughout Australia over the past few months. I had a couple of big international authors in town for events, including Bonnie Garmus and Paul Murray, so I've been travelling interstate with them. Busy days, but lots of fun!

What does a day in your life look like while on tour?

On the road, I play many different roles to make sure authors feel supported.

Being a publicist entails being a timekeeper, crisis manager, cheerleader, tour guide, confidante, coffee fetcher, security guard – anything it takes to make an author feel comfortable before going on stage and speaking to audiences.

The most important part of the job is managing the schedule and ensuring everything runs smoothly.

A typical day might look like a flight in the morning, going straight to a radio or TV interview upon arrival, grabbing lunch, checking in to the hotel and then heading off to an evening event.

At the events, I get to relax and watch the author talk. Afterwards, I help manage the signing queue, which can be pretty enormous at times.

Is there anything people would be surprised to hear is a part of your job?

When I explain what I do to friends and family there is often a bit of confusion about what I actually do.

Many think that publicity is part of marketing but they’re quite different. Marketing typically handles paid promotions, while publicity strives for organic and earned coverage and events.

These might be radio or TV interviews, reviews in the newspaper, extracts in magazines, appearances at writers' festivals and more.

It's also very amusing when I tell friends and family about upcoming coverage that I've secured and am proud of . . . then, my grandma ends up quite disappointed when she doesn't see me during that interview on ABC 7.30.

It’s been hard to explain that I work behind the scenes to help make these opportunities happen for authors, rather than being on stage myself.

Being a publicist requires a lot of planning: coordinating travel schedules, liaising with media and planning itineraries. How do you stay organised?

That’s a good question because I wouldn’t describe myself as an organised person in my personal life, so it’s quite funny that my role requires a huge amount of organisation.

I use a lot of live Excel sheets and itineraries that I share with my authors, so we’re always on the same page.

Being able to access these documents on my phone when I’m on the go makes it really simple.

Accountability is also an important factor. So many people rely on the schedule to run smoothly – from the author to the event organisers and the audiences themselves – so as a people pleaser, I try to be on top of things in order to not disappoint anyone.

What do you love about your role?

I’ve always been an avid reader, so it was such a dream to get a role in publishing. I love being a part of the book world!

One of the main things I love about my job is the variety. I get restless with too much repetition, so having the opportunity to work on campaigns for such a diverse list of books is exciting.

Reading is such an incredible and transformative experience, so I feel lucky to play a role in connecting audiences with stories.

What’s your favourite book?

I can’t pick one!

My favourites are Slaughterhouse 5 by Kurt Vonnegut (no one can write dark comedy like that man), One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez (the most beautiful writing I have read by the master of magical realism – my fave genre) and anything by Anna Funder, as her non-fiction writing is so unique and compelling.

Being a publicist requires a lot of socialising. What’s your #1 small-talk tip?

It’s hard to get me to stop talking, so I slide into this aspect of the role easily.

My tip: I don’t know, the weather?

Despite how boring we all say it is, every single person loves to talk about the weather. Prove me wrong.