Publisher: St. Martin’s Press (Macmillan)
Genre: Children’s nonfiction/photography
Formats: $35 hardcover | $16.99 ebook | $10.99 audiobook
Released: May 23, 2023
Regis and Kahran Bethencourt are a husband-and-wife photography team and founders of CreativeSoul Photography, a company on a mission to empower kids of color through stunning photography that showcases their beauty, uniqueness, and creativity. As world-renowned child photographers, they have achieved major success, winning the prestigious Coretta Scott King Book Awards John Steptoe Award for New Talent Illustrator for their children’s book The Me I Choose to Be. Their one-of-a-kind photos have also been featured on shows like the Steve Harvey Show, CNN, BBC News, CBS, and more. Crowned is their third book and second New York Times bestseller.
In Crowned, the Bethencourts use lush photography to revisit beloved classic fairy tales (such as “The Little Mermaid,” “Sleeping Beauty,” and “The Poisoned Apple”) as well as new favorites created especially for the collection, including “Anansi and the Three Trials,” “Aku the Sun Maker,” “How the Zebra Got Its Stripes,” and more. Beyond the stories, the book is a joyous celebration of Black beauty, determination, and imagination and is a must-have for children and parents everywhere.
When asked what contributed to their book landing on the New York Times bestseller list, Kahran said: “The inclusion of black youth as the main characters filled a significant gap in the market, resonating with readers who longed for more diverse and inclusive literature,” Kahran said. In addition, the book’s striking visuals also helped it stand out. “As photographers, we strive to make sure the photography in the book captures the essence of the stories we are trying to tell and appeals to both children and adults alike.”
But also important to Crowned reaching its bestseller status was promotion, including community engagement across social media; events; and collaborations to build community around the book, foster word of mouth, and inspire positive reviews. The strategy for the book’s marketing included targeted promotions, collaborations with influencers, and the use of the author’s existing networks. In one of the most effective tactics, they leveraged the book’s featured models and their parents to spread the word about the book. In support of this, the publisher sent out keepsake boxes to each family with the book to help with promotion. Kahran also noted they went above and beyond for the book’s launch party by featuring a fashion show with some of the book’s models and amplifying it across social media. Content from the event earned over 1.5 million views on Instagram and over 1 million views on Facebook.
Further, the authors collaborated with influencers on TikTok to create a series of “get ready with me” videos where they created styles inspired by the fairy tale photography of the book. (Some influencer posts note this was a paid partnership.)
Beyond the launch, the Bethencourts take a mission-focused approach to promotion, which allows them to sustain a regular cadence of media engagements even between releases, such as placement in Elle, featuring photography celebrating the beauty of textured hair.
Emily Wenstrom is a freelance writer and platforming expert and writes award-winning speculative fiction for teens and adults as E. J. Wenstrom.
E. J. Wenstrom believes in complicated heroes, horrifying monsters, purple hair dye and standing to the right on escalators so the left side can walk. She writes dark speculative fiction for adults and teens, including her new release, a young adult dystopian novel titled Departures (August 10, 2021). When she isn’t writing fiction, E. J. Wenstrom is a regular contributor to DIY MFA and BookRiot, and co-hosts the Fantasy+Girl Podcast. Learn more at her website.
