RM Marketing Services

20/03/2026

Laila's Story
NON-FICTION *PICK OF THE WEEK* IN THE AGE / SYDNEY MORNING HERALD

At the heart of this moving story is the ever-deepening relationship between Tanith, an Australian refugee advocate, and Laila, an Afghan living in Iran who is desperate to escape with her five daughters. As Tanith, her partner Sue and their team of friends and supporters work frantically to navigate the bureaucratic maze and raise money to sponsor Laila and her girls, they know that if the application fails, the family could be deported to Afghanistan and persecuted. Tanith writes candidly in honed prose and poetry of the fears and frustrations both women experience as the tension builds.

Our reviewers cast their eyes over new fiction and non-fiction releases.

17/03/2026

There’s a lot of advice out there about building an author brand — post more, be visible, stay consistent.

But that’s not the whole story.

Over time, what really shapes your author brand is how people experience working with you, seeing you speak, or hearing about you from others.

Our latest article looks at what sits behind that — and why it matters more than many authors realise.

If you’re thinking about how to build a sustainable, long-term author career, this is worth a read.

🔗 https://www.rmmarketingservices.com/blog/how-to-build-a-strong-author-brand-why-reputation-matters

09/03/2026

In 2024 we were contacted by a desperate Afghan woman stranded in the Islamic republic with her five young daughters. Could we help her reach safety in Australia? Read the full story: https://bit.ly/4udnAeX

09/03/2026

We’re pleased to share that our director Rachael McDiarmid has started working with hoopla, supporting publisher and supplier relations across Australia and New Zealand.

Rachael has worked in the publishing industry for 36 years, with more than two decades spent within the library supply chain, including managing content acquisition and publisher relationships for digital library platforms.

It’s great to welcome a new client in the publisher relations space.

hoopla is a fantastic app and experience for library patrons, providing instant access to audiobooks, ebooks, comics, film, television, magazines and music through their library.

Discover more:
https://www.hoopladigital.com.au/

05/03/2026

How Laila and her five daughters finally escaped Iran.

'Laila's Story' by Mij Tanith featured in The Australian. The book is out now, published by Spinifex Press.

Subscribers only:

When I first met Juma in 2004, he was living in Australia on a Temporary Protection Visa. A dedicated family man who had not seen his wife and children for eight years, he’d suffered a double negative, that is, his claim for refugee status had been twice rejected by the courts. Consequently, he fa...

02/03/2026

Today we're sharing some feedback from participants at a recent workshop as part of a publisher's professional development day for authors. It was the first time Rachael ran 'Ramping Up Your Author Brand' so thank you to everyone who attended for sharing your comments. Couldn't keep up with them but these are truly cherished, thank you.

02/03/2026

On the weekend our director, Rachael McDiarmid, spoke at a publisher’s professional development day for their authors.

The session, Ramping Up Your Author Brand, focused on how careers actually build in Australian children’s publishing, from reputation with booksellers and librarians to professionalism in schools and festivals.

It was the first time this particular presentation had been delivered, and the feedback was generous and thoughtful. A timely reminder that long-term positioning matters just as much as launch activity.

If you're a publisher or writing organisation looking for practical, strategic workshops on author branding, metadata, social media marketing or the wider publishing supply chain, we offer tailored sessions for professional development days and conferences.

To discuss a workshop or presentation, get in contact with us at
https://www.rmmarketingservices.com/

01/03/2026

Early Reader Submissions for Wombat Books are open tomorrow for one month. Early readers include text that is between 1000 and 7000 words and we recommend checking out some of our current books to see the style, format and concepts we love. Series are great in this age group! Writers get your ideas in this month. We are only open once per year per age group.
https://wombatrhiza.com.au/submissions/
If you want to skip the slush pile pitch to us at your favourite kid lit conference.

01/03/2026

"There are 10,700 kilometres between Adelaide and Tehran. The enormous distance didn't stop a friendship growing between
Australian creative Mij Tanith and Afghan single mum Laila. The pair first connected in 2023, when Mij agreed to help Laila and her five daughters, who had fled the Taliban and were living in a tiny basement flat in Iran, where Afghans are unable to work in white or blue-collar jobs. Laila was in a desperate situation, and Mij and a determined group of friends embarked on a year-long mission to bring her and her girls to the safety of Australia.
This is a true story of hope, hard work and human connection - peppered with poetry and prose."

Laila's Story by Mij Tanith (March 2026, Spinifex Press) is reviewed in this month's Australian Women's Weekly.

20/02/2026

An exciting new project has landed.

Our Director, Rachael McDiarmid, began her career in publisher relations with ebooks for libraries back in 2003 — yes, before Kindles existed, before Apple launched the iPad, and when “digital lending” was raising more than eyebrows across the publishing spectrum.

She’s also spent time in academic and professional content acquisition, working with ProQuest’s Ebook Central — but this looks a little different…

Think public libraries.
Think ANZ content and publisher partnerships.
Think ebooks, audiobooks, movies, TV, music and comics.
Think digital access without artificial borrowing limits.

We’ve secured a press pass 🎟️
Why? 🤔
Stay tuned… 👀

10/02/2026

On this Wednesday evening - get your free ticket now!

Special Event: Susan Hawthorne in conversation with Loretta Smith

In this online conversation, Susan Hawthorne speaks with Loretta Smith about Loretta’s memoir, Corpus in Extremis: A Memoir.

The discussion traces the life experiences that shaped the book, from Smith’s childhood in Moonee Ponds in 1960s Australia through schooling, family life, disability and mobility, and into adulthood marked by travel, work and long-term medical care. Smith speaks about living with Osteogenesis Imperfecta (brittle bone disease), including how it affected her body, education, independence and sense of self over time.

Hawthorne and Smith will explore questions of place and community, growing up with disability, the practical realities of mobility aids and medical intervention, and the experience of travelling independently and with others. The conversation also considers the influence of people and events that recur across Smith’s life, including her discovery of Alice Anderson, the subject of A Spanner in the Works, and how that work intersected with her own story.

The event will conclude with reflection on what it meant to write Corpus in Extremis, and how the book brings together memory, embodiment, travel, work and survival into a sustained personal account.

Wednesday 11 February 2026 6:00 PM - 7:00 PM
SYDNEY/MELBOURNE 6:00PM | BRISBANE 5:00PM | PERTH 3:00PM

Book your free ticket here >> https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1532263

10/02/2026

Attention Melbourne!

If you love poetry our friends at Liquid Amber Press are having a launch for 'Alight on all things precious' by Sarah Rice on Sunday 22 February, 2.00 – 3.30 pm at Library at the Dock.

Register for your ticket on their website:
https://liquidamberpress.com.au/events/