Hey! They asked me back! Er. They asked for me back. Hmm. They asked me to return. ‘They’ were the organizers of last year’s Galaxy Edge event where I was a panelist because I was local, and a writer of science fiction. (Firewatcher, Fire Race) This year, a name change for them. For me, it’s another ‘show-up-and-try-to-help’ event, hopefully with little heavy lifting. Ah, but I’m an author, so a few heavy boxes were necessary. Here are some notes from a sudden invitation to a weekend with friends – and sales!
Last year’s Galaxy Edge event evolved into the Whidbey Island Comicon. Cool. Same people. Same venue. Slightly different material. This year was broader, with more of an emphasis on writing, characters, publishing, but largely authors talking about writing. We had energy, and the host didn’t get in the way. Nicely done.
Writers’ conferences come in many variations. If you’ve never been to one, go to get at least one idea. That gives you a better idea of what you’ll like and not. This one was mostly panel discussions, a few authors sitting along a table, almost staying to one topic, and happily veering off from it when a writer in the crowd asks a non-sequitur. Every author sitting there was at one time a writer without a book title. We all have to start somewhere.
I’ve also seen conferences with lectures from lecterns, as one text called it “the sage from the stage”.
My favorite venues are the in-between times, the conversations in the hallways, across a lunch table, over by a pinball machine, wherever. The structured spaces provide the trunk and the big branches, but the fruit is frequently hanging out where fewer have gone.
Near the close of the weekend, about a half dozen of us were sitting on a collection of a couch, some cushy chairs, and a few of those chairs that get stacked up for weeks until the next event. It was the highlight for me because the conversation got past the more formal introductions and presentations from earlier in the event. We now knew each other enough to ask the right questions, insert better insights, and have fun doing it. It was also a time when we could realize how much more there was to know about each other and our work.
But, sales. Sales happen, or so we hoped. Worked for me. Thanks. Each author had a table with their work spread out, readily accessible for attendees to flip through. That may be where one of my tea books, Kettle Pot Cup, walked away with someone. Stolen? Packed in someone else’s gear? I celebrate it rather than complain about it. They thought enough about my work to steal a copy. Bold! (That one is also a fundraiser, so I’ll decide what to do about that.)
Take your pick of how you want to sell. Cash? Credit/debit? Venmo? Paypal? Whatever? Do you intend to charge MSRP, or add tax, or give a discount? If cash, have change. I make sure I have cards where I can write my address if they’re willing to send me a check. I usually round off to the nearest dollar, just to make life simple.
Autographs? They’re popular. Do you intend to use your full name, your pen name, just your initials, maybe the date and place, maybe a quip? How about addressing it to them? Mistakes mean the book is harder to sell as a return. If I’m signing a lot, I’ll revert to my initials and the date. If it is a slow day and they’re a friend, I’ll go long-form.
The books tend not to show up without effort. I lugged in two bankers boxes for books, plus another for stands, merch, business cards, etc. And take a picture of your display so you can see what you want to change. Attending a conference as a presenter means longer hours to set up and tear down, hours spent mentioning it in person and online, commuting, managing inventory and cash, and being flexible about food and naps and whatever else happens in your day. This blog post fits into that category. And this post is already inspiring other posts – that I will write later.
My drink sits beside me, mostly undrunk. It is time to clean up the post, add some graphics, edit it, publish it, and share it – and apologize for not mentioning anyone directly because I lost track of how they want to be mentioned. That’s for later.
Thanks to the folks at Whidbey Island Comicon for lots of work on little sleep, and for helping me have a good time meeting fans and new friends.
tomthewriter.com 
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