Last week I held my first book signings, one at the Tempe Public Library, and one at the Latter Day Cottage in Mesa.
The first was a speaking event as part of the library’s “Totally Tempe” summer reading series. I had a good audience (approximately 25), many of whom had read The Wham Curse. I gave a twenty minute presentation on my books, writing, and publishing which was accompanied by a slideshow, then spent a half-hour with questions and answers. Afterward I visited with guests while signing books. I sold and signed ten books and signed several more that had been purchased earlier online. It was nice to note that three quarters of those attending had previously read The Wham Curse, and were back for more. It was also nice that others were there due to the library event, and had not heard of my writing before- so new readers. Both of my books are now included in the Adult Summer Reading Program and one of the prizes for the winner rewards will be a signed copy of Saints & Sinners.
There may have been some miscommunication about the signing at Latter Day Cottage – some readers told me the e-mail from the store had the wrong date. At any rate, I was one of two authors there; the other was an award winning fantasy author, which normally draws rather well. It turned out to be a slower than usual day; only five customers even came in. We did manage to each sell one book. I quite enjoyed visiting with the other author, Donna Cook, and was rewarded by her explaining the benefits of the exclusive e-book agreement my publisher has with Kindle. I now feel more comfortable with that arrangement.
I’m planning a book tour in Eastern Arizona, have a discussion with the Shalimar Book Review Club on June 25, and a signing at the Phoenix Metro Center Barnes & Noble on June 28. I expect a review of Saints & Sinners in the Arizona Silver Belt newspaper this week or next, and an interview to be published in the Eastern Arizona Courier in two weeks. In July I will be attending the Public Service Writers Association in Las Vegas, and will be a panelist four other authors discussing writing a series.
I REALLY enjoy writing and interfacing with readers. Unfortunately in order to get rewarded for that effort, I have to market my book and build readership, which takes a huge amount of time and effort, and takes me away from the two things I enjoy the most (re: the first sentence in this paragraph). If you read my story and like it please do two things: Go to Amazon and/or Barnes & Noble and write a review, and share your review with your Facebook friends. Those two things would help a lot, and I thank you in advance for doing it. If I could get up in the range of 10,000 readers I could afford to hire an expert to do the promotion and I could spend time writing and discussing with readers; what a dream… Thanks for visiting my page, and happy reading!