Jason Leppig

Jason Leppig runs his own book marketing firm, where he helps small presses and independent authors get their books in front of the right readers. Before that, he spent close to twenty years at Island Press, a nonprofit environmental publisher in Washington, DC, marketing nearly 1,000 books across email, social, direct mail, and events.

He's known for campaigns that reach beyond the book. When a campaign helps people see how a science or policy book speaks to their own life, that's usually what gets someone to actually pick it up. One campaign put free climate change books in the hands of every new member of Congress and led to authors testifying on Capitol Hill. Another, a bike-and-book giveaway that ran for the better part of a decade, kept more than half its entrants coming back for books year after year.

At George Washington University, he teaches a graduate course on marketing in publishing. His central message to students is that a great book doesn't sell itself. You have to find its readers, understand what they care about, and give them a reason to pay attention.

Outside of publishing, Jason volunteers with Washington, DC Youth Rugby, a free program that uses the sport to build life skills for young people in underserved parts of the city.