…to the top twelve scorers in the Prize Quiz elsewhere on the site. We’ve sent you all e-mails requesting your real-world addresses, and signed copies of City of Glory will be arriving very soon.
And while we’re in celebratory mood…
I got a lot of congratulatory e-mails from friends, family, and fans on the ninth January, which was the official launch day for City of Glory. And that’s the only way the occasion was marked. It wasn’t even the book’s best day thus far on Amazon. (Simply one account among all the others from the publisher’s pov, but the only “store” where authors can know instantly how they’re doing – at least in the sense that copies are being sold. What mysterious logarithms govern the movement that hourly tracks the change from 22,000 to 14,232 to 734 and back to 57,062 is a close kept secret.)
Launch parties given by publishers are a thing of the distant past. Everyone has finally conceded that it’s a foolish way to spend limited promotion money. As for walking around the bookstores to see the book on the shelves, that’s enormous fun the first few times it happens. After a while you realize that what you should be doing on these visits is introducing yourself to the store’s manager, and offering to sign copies of your book. In other words, working. Because as an author, promoting your book is definitely part of your job. Stores love to have “signed by the author” copies available – they keep special stickers to slam on the front of any book so signed -and the staff who help you through the process by bringing stacks of books to whatever corner they’ve found for you will remember you if you make an effort to be appreciative. (As indeed you should be; you’re making extra work for them however nice about it they may be.) What you really want to achieve from this exercise is to encourage what’s called hand-selling, the real magic in the marketing grab bag. “Oh, do you know there’s a new Beverly Swerling…” you want them to tell their customers. That’s worth a lot more than any number of popped champagne corks, I assure you. And if you have the special pleasure of seeing that the major chains have put your book on a table at the front of the store, these visits are particularly gratifying. (I’ve been fortunate to get that treatment for City of Glory and I know how much it means. In fact, it’s the result of a long dance the publishers’ reps do with the book buyers starting well before the book comes out. The competition is fierce – even though publishers have to pay for this placement – and you should kiss the feet of the reps who achieve these miracles for you.)
But all that said, the real secret of marketing books these days is the Internet. On which I’ll have more to say later. Meanwhile thank you to all who took part in the quiz. We’ll think of a new one pretty soon and get another contest going. And for all who noted the launch date, I deeply appreciate it.
PS
All this talk about marketing and I forgot to mention two gigs coming up in the next ten days or so!
I’ll be at Borders in Springfield PA at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday the 18th. Giving a talk and reading a bit from the book, and of course signing copies. All I know is that it’s the one with the 1001 Baltimore Pike address. I’ll get the name of the mall and post it here later today.
And on Wednesday the 24th I’ll be at the Barnes & Noble in Astor Place in NYC. Same time – 7:00 p.m. – reading, talking, signing, all as usual.
Please come! And if you learned about it here at the site, do be sure and tell me.