Self-promotion
I've just posted this on my writing site:
Wandering around the blogiverse lately, I've been reading about self-promotion. One particular series of very useful posts called "Maggie's Pocket Guide to Promotion" at http://shadowhelm.livejournal.com/ got me thinking.
Maggie points out that book signings and tours don't generate much in the way of sales. If what I've been told is true - that the average attendance at a signing in the US is 2 people - then she's definitely right. For the A$2 or I earn per book, if I sign only 2 books over an hour (assuming the person bought it, and didn't bring it in) I only make A$4 an hour. That doesn't take into account the cost of accommodation and travel involved in a signing tour.
Of course, it's possible that the two readers who bothered to come in are going to be so chuffed that they got a signature, that their enthusiasm rubs off on someone else, who buys the books, etc. It's same sort of the word-of-mouth effect a writer hopes to get from cons, though cons are more efficient at bringing your books to the attention of readers because they bring readers together in one place - cutting down the travel and accommodation costs.
There are two advantages to book signings and/or tours that Maggie doesn't mention, however. Firstly, the bookseller hopefully will buy in some extra stock for the occasion. Extra stock means potentially more books sold. And you sign what isn't sold at the signing. According to the booksellers I met in the UK, signing a book does help to sell it. In fact, they predicted that the books I signed would be sold within days.
The second advantage is the chance to talk to the booksellers. Nobody knows better how well your books sell, and they can impart good advice on what you could do to help them sell more. I'm always amazed and grateful when I find a bookseller has gone to the effort to read my book before a signing, to put up "we recommend" notes for my books, to display them prominantly and creatively, and to enthuse about them to customers.
I'm thinking of trying a few of Maggie's other suggestions for self-promotion. I'd love to produce a pretty bookmark to give away at signings (you've got to reward those 2 people for turning up!), an e-newsletter that readers can sign up to via my site, and even podcasts of readings and interviews.
Anghara (http://anghara.livejournal.com/) also wrote about promoting books at cons recently. I like her idea of printing info sheets listing the panels and events she will appear at. It's probably overkill at Australian cons, as most are small and cosy, but it would be very useful at Worldcons.
Wandering around the blogiverse lately, I've been reading about self-promotion. One particular series of very useful posts called "Maggie's Pocket Guide to Promotion" at http://shadowhelm.livejournal.com/ got me thinking.
Maggie points out that book signings and tours don't generate much in the way of sales. If what I've been told is true - that the average attendance at a signing in the US is 2 people - then she's definitely right. For the A$2 or I earn per book, if I sign only 2 books over an hour (assuming the person bought it, and didn't bring it in) I only make A$4 an hour. That doesn't take into account the cost of accommodation and travel involved in a signing tour.
Of course, it's possible that the two readers who bothered to come in are going to be so chuffed that they got a signature, that their enthusiasm rubs off on someone else, who buys the books, etc. It's same sort of the word-of-mouth effect a writer hopes to get from cons, though cons are more efficient at bringing your books to the attention of readers because they bring readers together in one place - cutting down the travel and accommodation costs.
There are two advantages to book signings and/or tours that Maggie doesn't mention, however. Firstly, the bookseller hopefully will buy in some extra stock for the occasion. Extra stock means potentially more books sold. And you sign what isn't sold at the signing. According to the booksellers I met in the UK, signing a book does help to sell it. In fact, they predicted that the books I signed would be sold within days.
The second advantage is the chance to talk to the booksellers. Nobody knows better how well your books sell, and they can impart good advice on what you could do to help them sell more. I'm always amazed and grateful when I find a bookseller has gone to the effort to read my book before a signing, to put up "we recommend" notes for my books, to display them prominantly and creatively, and to enthuse about them to customers.
I'm thinking of trying a few of Maggie's other suggestions for self-promotion. I'd love to produce a pretty bookmark to give away at signings (you've got to reward those 2 people for turning up!), an e-newsletter that readers can sign up to via my site, and even podcasts of readings and interviews.
Anghara (http://anghara.livejournal.com/) also wrote about promoting books at cons recently. I like her idea of printing info sheets listing the panels and events she will appear at. It's probably overkill at Australian cons, as most are small and cosy, but it would be very useful at Worldcons.