Landing a Book Signing

We've shared with you tips on formatting, self-publishing, and marketing your book. Next week we'll talk about cover art and design as well as help you expand your social networks so that you have a support system in place when your book launches, but that hardly covers everything.

Earlier this month we reached out to indie author and returning guest blogger Brenda Perlin (@BrooklynAndBo) for her suggestions on how to set up a book signing event. Here's what she had to say:

Book Soup in Hollywood was at the top of my list. I’d been going there for years. But how would I get through their doors as an indie author? I’m nowhere near what anyone would call famous. They’ve hosted celebrities like Jewel and Grace Jones. Still, I had to give it a shot. You shouldn’t be afraid to do the same with your own book.

Do you believe in your work? Do you have good cover art? Has it been professionally edited and formatted? Would you be proud to read an excerpt in person? These are all things you must consider. Then, once you’ve researched bookstores in your area, like Book Soup in L.A. for me, consider some of the following authors’ suggestions.

(And don’t forget, if you’re in the Los Angeles area, come by Book Soup this Friday at 7:00 p.m. where I’ll be signing copies and reading excerpts from LA Punk Rocker. Look for a follow-up blog piece next month in which I’ll tell you how it went!)

Before I share part of the email to Book Soup, just know that I might have laid the flattery on a bit thick, but I was on a mission and did not want to be turned down. I wasn’t ready to take no for an answer.

“My name is Brenda. I am interested in doing something with you at Book Soup in the way of a book launch or book signing. The paperback should be on Amazon shortly and the e-book just came out. There has been a bit of a buzz after Billy Idol bought the book and responded to me on Twitter…

“L.A. Punk Rocker has just been released. It’s an anthology based on eighties punk… I wanted to take the reader back in time. Back to when I was a teenager and felt misunderstood and alienated. A time when nothing was better than the music and being on the streets of Hollywood in clubs or hanging out at our local dive, Oki Dog. When I felt connected to something for the first time… my very first taste of freedom....”

I then shared the official blurb/description of the book, thanked the reader for their time, and closed with, “Thank you for your time and consideration. It would be a complete pleasure to be invited to your store. I love Book Soup!”

What I said worked because they contacted me back shortly thereafter and scheduled my signing for the end of October. I’ve been counting down the days ever since. Only two more now!

Success.

This approach might not work for everyone, though, so I recently contacted a few of my fellow author friends to see what they did to pull it off. How do they prep for a book signing?

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Stay tuned for the full article, fully-loaded with insights from indie authors Martin Crosbie, Lorraine Devon Wilke, and others, later today on The Official Prose. Blog at: blog.theprose.com.