How to Think About Author Events
Book events can be incredibly rewarding. While much has shifted since the pandemic, a bookstore event remains a fantastic opportunity to connect with readers—as long as it’s done thoughtfully and with the right preparation. In-person events offer a chance to:
Connect with your readers on a personal level
Discuss the finer points of your book
Create local news coverage and take photos you and your publisher can use to promote elsewhere
Garner attention from local booksellers, which can prompt them to hand-sell (recommend your book to store patrons.) This can be a HUGE driver of sales.
Support your local bookshop! Both you and your community want them around for a long, long time to come.
Celebrate all of your hard work!
Still, many authors feel anxious when they consider hosting one: everyone has heard horror stories (or seen the grim images on social media) of authors showing up to a store full of empty folding chairs.
At Press Shop, we advise authors to think of book events like birthday parties: the bookstore provides the venue, but it's up to you to fill the room!
When a publicist or author reaches out to a bookstore to propose an event, the bookstore’s answer hinges on whether or not they’re confident it will attract an audience. If you can guarantee that a decent number of people will show up, they’ll be much more inclined to have you.
Being able to guarantee a turnout means that a large portion of your audience must come from your networks – so invite your friends, family, colleagues, and all your local connections. We bet that many of them will be happy to come out and celebrate with you.
What does this mean for that rite of passage for published authors, the book tour?
The necessity to BYOA (bring your own audience) is a big reason why setting up a large number of events may make less sense for authors today. The great book tours of yore were, essentially, promotional road trips with stops along a proverbial “Route 66” of indie bookstores. It was hard work, but it paid off. Nowadays, the success of applying this strategy across the board is waning: publishers are more selective about who they send on tour, bookstores are more selective about who they invite, and audiences are more selective about what's worth leaving the house for.
So while we definitely recommend a launch event in your hometown, you’ll need to put in some legwork before considering a pit stop at every bookstore on either coast.
If you want to take on the trip or host an event in an area where you don’t have a ready-made audience, here are some strategies we use for our authors at Press Shop PR:
Invite a local author with their own following to be “in conversation” with you
Find local organizations aligned with your book to partner with — this is a great way to cross-promote and tap into an already-interested network.
Deputize anyone local you know to bring a handful of their own friends
With all this in mind, go forth and celebrate your book!