book « Robin Writes

Well, you might say I’m getting a bit discouraged . . . just a bit. Here’s a rundown on the properties we looked at last Monday:

The first one had a house. It was cute on the outside, good layout on the inside—the bright blue walls in what would be my office would be the first thing to be changed. Hmmm. It had, not a walk-in closet, but a walk-THROUGH closet, which was interesting. A huge yard/garden space, and the rest of the acreage went up the hill and into the woods. Not too bad.

There were a couple outbuildings, but sadly too dilapidated to be functional—and that included the very old log cabin.

However. All we could hear were the baying of the hounds. The neighbors’ hounds. That would last about ten seconds for me. No, no, and no.

The second property was all woods. And vertical. Moving on . . .

The third one was awesome! Near the Black River, turn onto a private drive/electric easement; there were four property owners back this road, and only one who lived there. We met him. Super nice guy, once he stopped shooting.

Okay, I’ll explain that:

The property had two sections, one on each side of the easement road. The lower portion was about seven acres, surrounded by trees and bordered on the back side by a creek and then the county road. Electric, well, etc. Nice meadow and a grove of trees in the middle.

The upper section had a road going to the top of a hill, with a level area about halfway up and a wildlife pond. That’s when we heard the shots.

So we decided discretion was the better part of valor and we walked back down the road to the gate. That’s when we met the neighbor. Seven feet tall, I swear. He was very cordial and welcoming, told about the other property owners, talked about the area.

I still don’t know what he was shooting at . . .

Anyway, after we left there, my husband being all excited about this possibility, our agent called—there was a contract on the property. Dammit. Have to say, I’m a little annoyed by the listing agent. He knew this, but sent us out there anyway.

Then our agent called again. Remember the barn property? Word is that the current contract likely won’t go through—and we have a backup contract!

Of course, the bank is being iffy, when I can reach the guy, but there are ways . . . and we’ve signed the offer papers.

So keep your fingers crossed for us—I want to get moving on this and besides, I’m really tired of looking!

Authors often ask how to set up a book event. As a former bookstore owner and an author, I can give you some pointers:

DO your homework: location, hours, type of store, and so forth. Check the store’s website and social media pages.

DO stop by in person. Bookstore folks want to meet you.

DO browse around for a bit and get a feel for the place. Talk to whoever is working, when he has a moment, and find out who you need to talk to schedule an event.

DO buy a book. Show interest in the bookstore, outside of it being a potential venue for you to sell your own books. It’s a partnership, after all.

DO expect to bring your own books, particularly if you’re self-published; even if you have a name for your “publishing company.” Sometimes indie stores will order books from their suppliers, if they’re offered at a standard discount, are returnable, and the store believes they can sell them. Sometimes, they’re just doing you a favor and will adopt a wait-and-see attitude. Bookstores will often sell on consignment during your event, with 30-40% of the retail price going to the store. Deal with it. Sometimes they’ll even buy a couple afterwards.

DO ask about what advertising they’re going to do and what you should do. Ask about posters, fliers, bookmarks, etc. Bring what the store asks for, when they ask for it. No more, no less.

DO promote your event, online especially, but in person too.

DO call to confirm a couple days ahead of time.

DO show up 10-15 minutes before your scheduled time. You need to set up and get ready, but many indie stores are quite small and don’t need extra people in the way—they’re planning on a certain time and so should you.

You can and should do all these things at other venues too: cafés, retail shops, restaurants, bars, bowling alleys—be creative!

However, we also have the don’ts:

DON’T approach stores that don’t carry your genre or type of book. We often had authors come in with urban fiction—our customers weren’t interested. Some stores specialize in romance, some in sci-fi.

DON’T barge in and think you can call the shots. Unless you’re Stephen King. The real one, I mean. And SK, if you’re reading this, please return my Facebook message—please? Okay, maybe you don’t want to sell on consignment; that’s cool. But maybe the store won’t order your books. Either change your mind quick, or thank them and move on. Don’t argue. It won’t help.

DON’T ask if you can leave fliers or bookmarks or rack cards or anything else. Unless it’s a book. You can leave a book. ONE book. Maybe someone who works there will read it; maybe they’ll stick it on the shelf and see if it sells. But the other stuff? There’s probably no space for it. It’ll sit on the counter for a while and then go into the trash.

DON’T bring stuff either before or the day of the event unless the store has asked for it. Again, it’s a space issue. And for God’s sake, don’t decorate your table with glitter. That stuff sticks in the carpet FOREVER. Chocolate is nice. For the bookseller. And you. But maybe not for kids. Kids and sticky fingers don’t play well in a bookstore.

DON’T forget to show up! It sounds like a no-brainer, but it happens. And don’t be late. Or too early.

Unless you plan to shop.