Endorsements

Helena is one of the most thoughtful people I have ever met. Her attention to detail and her passion were apparent from our very first phone call; these qualities carried through in every interaction during our months of working together. The knowledge and connections she has gained from her years of experience in the field are priceless. She was able to set up unique and quality events and interviews for me that left lasting impressions on my audiences and helped me build my support base.

Working with Helena Brantley was a dream experience I hope to repeat on future books. Her passionate and thorough approach to publicity made her a vital partner in building long lasting interest in the book that we worked on together, which went on to be a New York Times bestseller. Her care and understanding of the larger context of her work, and how it affects and contributes to our society, only amplifies the success of her projects.

Helena was the first time anyone in the industry truly understood what I was trying to convey as a Black queer trans thinker, and was able to translate that vision into a solid marketing campaign that felt authentic and real. Built, designed and based on connections with natural conversation partners all connected by the intricate web of this incredible person’s relationships she has made over years in the industry. That’s the most stunning thing, she builds a sacred relationship with a client first, and that informs her work. If you are Black, queer, and you can get Helena to fall in love with your work, why would you even go anywhere else? Because your work and its message has found a home.

Working with Helena as a first time author was an excellent decision. She helped me communicate the big idea of my book to multiple audiences while ensuring that all events and promotional efforts were engaging and consistent with my identity as a writer. I only wish I’d begun working with Helena sooner!

I cannot begin to express what an asset Helena Brantley has been on the publicity campaigns that she’s so ably handled for us. Her industry knowledge and drive have led to terrific media opportunities. Her gracious spirit allowed her to become a trusted and esteemed member of the team.

Helena Brantley was our not-so-secret weapon in the publication of Matthew Vines’s God and the Gay Christian. As a person, she’s tireless, thoughtful, creative, passionate, upbeat and a great communicator—seeing her name in your inbox never fails to brighten your day. Her ability to plant seeds that blossom at the perfect moment in a book’s life never ceases to amaze.

From the get-go, Helena Brantley was an absolute pleasure to work with. Coming to the table with a very rare combination of professionalism, efficiency, social etiquette and grace, Helena guided our team through the maze of contemporary American publicity and marketing, ensuring the widest and most effective media coverage for our book.

In my twenty-five years as an author, I have found Helena Brantley to be the most efficient, productive and successful publicist I have ever worked with. The two books I published while she was at HarperCollins made The New York Times best-seller list, in no small measure because of her considerable efforts, as she secured significant appearances for me in a range of media: important print (Washington Post, Time, Newsweek, The Wall Street Journal), radio (“Diane Rehm Show,” “Fresh Air” with Terry Gross), and television (“CBS Sunday Morning,” “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart,” “The Colbert Report”). Helena Brantley is everything one can hope for in a publicist: determined, creative, insightful and well-connected.

Helena is much more than a publicist—she is a first-rate media coach. Her dedication, expertise, and tremendous personal commitment to my book was critical to its success. Not only did she pitch and guide numerous high-profile pieces about the book, she also helped me to build lasting personal relationships with many reporters, editors, and producers along the way. Part of what makes Helena so effective—and so enjoyable to work with—is that she has great respect both for her authors and for those in the media. I am so grateful to have had Helena as a mentor, coach, strategist, and publicist, and I can’t recommend her highly enough to anyone who has an important message to spread.

Helena is a publicist who cares. She will read your book and situate it among current events and with the audience who needs to know about it. She harnesses her long-time relationships in the media to place your book in the best hands for reviews and press. More importantly, Helena cares about her authors. She creatively plans events that fit the author’s personality, strengths and needs. She was my strongest advocate. She will be yours too.

I had the good fortune to work with Helena during her tenure at HarperCollins, and can say without reservation that she is one of finest publicists I have ever known. Having been a publicist myself for five years prior to becoming an editor, she never ceased to impress me and others with the passion and professionalism that she brought to every project we worked on together. Plus, she is a delight to be around.

Creative and purposeful, Helena was quick to understand the complex issues with which our department had to deal. She was collaborative in coming up with tactics and strategies. Our relationship leads felt completely confident in sharing their contacts with her–a rare compliment.

We engaged her to handle the publicity and book tour of Exodus from Hunger, by David Beckmann, World Food Prize laureate. The sales and the publicity about the book, published by Westminster John Knox, exceeded our expectations. Helena pitches very well and has excellent relations with many editors, religion writers and reviewers. I highly recommend her.

Quite simply, it was a complete pleasure to work with this inspired person. Not only is Helena a savvy marketing pro with a deep background in media relations, her knowledge of the fast-changing world of internet marketing made her a truly valuable colleague.

Helena is not only one of the most intelligent, prepared people to work with; she is one of the nicest. Collaborating with her on events was rewarding and enlightening. When you work with her, you are working with greatness.

Helena Brantley is simply the best possible publicist to promote a religion-focused book…a wonderful, responsive, creative, motivated person with a proven track record at making good books into best-sellers.

We always feel like our authors are in good hands when Helena is working on a campaign with us. Our authors find her responsive and collaborative. In short she is an absolute joy to work with.