by David Brookover, author of Mortal Eclipse, The Ancient Breed, and Demon Key
There’s nothing better for an author than to meet avid readers who are equally interested in meeting them and hearing about their books. Book signings will generate that kind of genuine excitement!
But it’s not as easy as it sounds. Attempts to contact bookstore promotions managers are hit and miss – mostly miss. They have a habit of ignoring their voice mail messages, so I had to exercise patience (I tried my best, anyway) and persistence. Finally, I made contact with the manager and not his recorded voice! During our conversations, I had to sell myself as an author and speaker as well as the sales potential of my novel before we got around to selecting a firm date and time for the book signing (having a stimulating, custom designed cover certainly helped with my book’s sales potential argument). I then arranged to have copies of my book shipped to the bookstore two-to-three weeks before the event, so that he could prominently display my book both outside and inside the bookstore entrance, along with my name, the date and the time.
The promotion manager also mailed postcard announcements to the bookstore club members, my friends and acquaintances, and included a promotional blurb in the bookstore newsletter. He also arranged for a newspaper announcement and my appearance on local radio and television
programs. These efforts ensured a substantial turnout for the signing.
It is imperative that we authors make our event presentation humorous, not humdrum. Our writing processes are old news to us, but of great interest to the audience. It also helps to toss in a few amusing anecdotes to humanize ourselves. And don’t forget, we can use this opportunity to plug our next book, too! For instance, I have two books in the can (one in the Nick Bellamy series and one in the new Teddi “Demon Key” McCoy series).
My book signing was a resounding success in sales and goodwill. I’m certain that I turned many curious book buyers into loyal readers.
Listen to Mr. Brookover’s comments about publishing by clicking here.
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Book Signing Photographs
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Interested in publishing? Click here to learn more about Outskirts Press.