Maggie Bishop, North Carolina writer of mystery and romance novels, was a presenter at the Blue Ridge Writers Conference in Georgia on March 27-28. She has given permission for her top ten tips for things you should not do for book signings to be listed here. Maggie says she is available for teaching workshops.
Top Ten Don'ts for Book Signings10. Arrive late and show disrespect for the staff’s efforts. Show up without confirming the signing at least the day before. That way, if your signing has been overlooked, the staff has time to be prepared.
9. Limp handshake. Be proud of your writing and show it through a firm handshake.
8. Forget own supplies such as a pen, name tag and water. Demand free coffee or food as your reward for showing up.
7. Chatting on cell phone or talking with friend when a customer approaches. Don’t become that store clerk you complain about. Give the reader the respect they deserve.
6. Grab a customer by the arm and demand they "buy my book," put down other authors and books, use a guilt trip "I need the money to feed my kids," or steal another author’s customer when at a group signing. These are ways to make a reader avoid you and the store in the future.
5. Eat onions, garlic or tuna before a signing or chewing gum during a signing. You want customers to cry over your prose and not your breath.
4. Sit behind the table, do crossword puzzles or read, and ignore customers. Get over being shy and develop an outgoing persona for your moment before readers.
3. Wear revealing clothing, shorts, old shoes. Dress as you would for an interview–one level higher than the customer. You want to invite people into your space through your appearance.
2. Ignore or be rude to the help or, worse yet, blame the staff for low sales; if asked to sign stock, sign more than requested. The store needs to make money in order for you to get paid. The staff will chat about you after you leave so make sure they feel good about your visit.
1. Attitude that you are doing the store a favor, signing only because the publisher demands it, or that the reader is lucky that you appear in person. The reader is royalty, not you.
Contact Maggie at these links below.
Website http://maggiebishop1.tripod.com/
Blog http://damesofdialogue.wordpress.com/
Speaker http://www.blogger.com/
Excellent advice. I hope I will have my own book signing someday and I'm saving this great article. Thanks Maggie.
ReplyDeleteSam Hoffer
Thank you, Sam. I hope you sell all copies of your books at your first book signing.
ReplyDeleteMaggie
Glenda, This is one of the best articles ever for someone who has a book to market. I'm passing the info on to Ruth Grubbs, a Tennessee Poet who was in my class last week. She has a collection of poems to be published next week.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this entire article, Glenda. Thanks for listing my poetry blog. I know my blog is not for everyone, but it is 100% for practicing poets. Thanks.
Glad you all left your comments and that you read the post. Thanks,
ReplyDeleteHi Maggie, this is a really great top ten list. I can only hope that one day I become a published writer with fans who would want me to sign their book. 'm working on a childrens book series, and I do appreciate your advice. You can post this to our site http://www.toptentopten.com/ and then link back to your site. We are looking for top ten lists and our users can track back to your site. The coolest feature is you can let other people vote on the rankings of your list.
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