Published books include a special page for authors to sign their autographs; learn about it here.

Many years ago the head of a prestigious New York publishing house told me that publishers insert a special page in their Front Matter for author autographs called the Half Title page. This way the book’s title is automatically associated with the author’s autograph.

Authors sign in various places on their published books, often using the blank End Papers. But the proper location is the Half Title Page so there will always be a record of where the author did the signing should the autograph page become separated from the book.

Copyright 2006 by Barbara Doyen. All rights reserved.

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Author Tips: Autograph Events

What authors should know about autographing their published books at public events.

Book signings are an important part of every author’s publishing success.  Following are important suggestions for every author to remember when making appearances.

General tips for author autographing events:

—Look people in the eye and smile!

—Don’t make unnecessary requests of your host or hostess. Too many authors get a bad reputation by demanding rare beverages, hard-to-locate snacks, or items beyond their sponsor’s budget. If you have particular needs, take your own items. Believe me, hotel and event staff will remember any bad behavior and tell stories about you for years, which could become broadly distributed as your career progresses.

—Stand, don’t sit. Too many authors remain safely seated behind a table, which makes you appear unapproachable. Position yourself beside, or better yet, in front of the table, particularly when there is a lull in the autograph line.

–Ask if it is possible to have a tall table or even a podium so that you can stand as you do your autographing.

—“Press the flesh” and initiate friendly conversations with nearby patrons, even if they aren’t in line for your autograph.

—Smile often! You’d be surprised at the great number of authors who never smile at these events.

—Be interested in the people who approach you. By focusing on your readers, you are less focused on yourself and your own discomfort will lessen.

—Bring along a favorite pen and at least one more for backup. Choose one that you can hold comfortably, performs the way you like, has your preferred ink color, ink flow, nib thickness, etc.

—Look each recipient in the eye and smile as they approach you.

—Say thanks and smile again as you hand your autographed book to the recipient. Remember that these people are your book-buying public, the ones who make your writing career a success.

—Don’t autograph someone else’s book, even if asked. (Strangely, this happens more often than you might think. I don’t know the thinking behind this request.)

—Smile and remain courteous, even if you feel someone has behaved inappropriately towards you.

—Relax and enjoy the event. Making this appearance means that you have achieved your dream—a book publishing career.

—Say thank you to your event sponsors, your publisher’s PR person and anyone else who helped with your author appearance. An attitude of gratitude goes a long ways towards furthering your career, believe me.

Connecting with others through your writing was the reason you wanted to become a published author in the first place. Keep these simple tips in mind, and you and your public will have an enjoyable experience as you further your readership though book signings.

Copyright 2006 by Barbara Doyen. All rights reserved.

See also:

Do you know where to autograph your book?

What happens to sales when a nonfiction book’s contents are revealed in the media before the book is published?

Two new books contain unique information that is of high interest to the public, and therefore, of high interest to the media-at-large:

• Tough Choices by ousted Hewlett-Packard head Carly Fiorina

• State of Denial by Washington Post journalist Bob Woodward

Newspaper journalists were able to obtain copies of these books prematurely, and published big articles revealing the contents of these books.

How do such news leaks affect sales?

If the book contains other information that has not been scooped, or if the topic is so hot that the public cannot get enough about it, the sales could increase despite other negative ramifications. A premature revelation may serve to whet the public’s appetite for the main course even as it costs in other profits.

Apparently this is the case with Tough Choices, because the publisher upped the first print run from 150,000 copies to 175,000 copies released. The book’s publisher is holding bookstores to their planned release date of Oct. 9, and will remove the books from any bookstore that sells copies earlier.

Update, Sept 2009: Ted Kennedy’s embargoed autobiography, “True Compass,” was scooped 11 days prior to the official store sell date. We’ve heard that Hachette, the publisher, has hired a private detective to find out who leaked the copies early. A lot is at stake with a reported 1.5 million copies in print.

Copyright 2006 by Barbara Doyen. All rights reserved.

Related:

Scooped! Press Leaks Book Contents

Stolen Thunder, Stolen Profits

An author’s behavior at a public event should not go over the top even if your reader’s behavior does.

People in the public eye–like movie stars, pop musicians, and yes, even authors–sometimes have to deal with over-exuberant fans whose behavior goes over the top.

True example:

A book author goes into a restroom stall only to have an eager fan pass a book under the door, requesting an autograph.

I’ve heard stories like this from several authors and I’ve even witnessed it, myself. It happens more often than you might think. The person requesting the autograph probably likes your work and means well. They are not trying to be difficult or offensive; most likely they are excited about seeing you and in their eagerness, they say the wrong thing.

How should an author handle this?

You could smile and say something like, “Sorry, I’m busy.”  Or even just one word, “Sorry,” would suffice.

Perhaps you have a quick sense of humor and could come up with something funny, yet non-offensive to your fan, indicating that now is not a good time.

How not to handle this

But by all means never, ever give in to the temptation to retort with a nasty put-down or criticism of the person.  Any public interaction with a fan can be handled firmly and politely; it is not necessary to go for the jugular. (And yes, behavior in a crowded restroom is indeed a public interaction.)

I’m sharing a real-life story of bad author behavior at a public event, as well as the possible career ramifications as a result, in my article, Author Autograph: A Case Study.

Copyright 2006 by Barbara Doyen. All rights reserved.

A 2006 survey found that book readers were visiting publisher and author websites; half have purchased books as gifts.

18% of readers have visited a publisher’s website.

23% of readers have been to an author’s website.

These statistics were based on a survey of 813 by advertising firm Spier New York, as reported in Publisher’s Weekly. This data is likely significantly higher now.

More encouraging data from the survey:

50% had purchased a book as a gift in the past year; 86% of these bought 2 books.

Where did readers buy gift books?

According to the 2006 Spier report, 28% had bought a gift book online; 89% bought a gift book from a retailer. (Unfortunately, the survey did not ask readers if their online purchases came from publisher or author websites.)

What can writers and publishers take away from this survey?

• Books are still popular gifts.

• Authors and publishers websites are becoming an increasingly important vehicle to connect with readers, especially younger readers.

We recommend that all of our authors have their own websites, in addition to their publisher’s website.

If you would like someone to help you get your website going, I highly recommend that you check out MonarchCottages.com for any level of assistance you might need. You’ll find the prices reasonable and the creativity high from a responsive consultant who wants to please her customers.

Learn from this true story of an author autograph event.

My favorite up-and-coming novelist was scheduled to do a book signing at a large event I attended many years ago.

She’d had 2 books published and I enjoyed her first so much that I ordered her second as soon as it was in print.

The first encounter

I joined the line, eager to get my copies of her books autographed. There were many in the queue ahead of me.  We all had plenty of time to observe the author, who sat behind a table, rarely looking up from the tabletop and never smiling. She looked unhappy about being there with us.

It was almost my turn when the author glanced at her watch, announced “Time is up!” and promptly left. There were a few groans from people who had been waiting 45 minutes for nothing.

The second encounter

After lunch I found myself in another line, this time waiting my turn to go into the ladies’ room. This line was even longer than the author-signing line. While chatting with the women ahead of me, I learned that many of them were in attendance to buy books for bookstores or libraries.

That’s when it happened.  My favorite up-and-coming author got in line right behind me! It seemed like a lucky coincidence.

Should I ask for her autograph? I hesitated, remembering that she hadn’t seemed happy to autograph her books that morning. Still, the line was not moving and there was plenty of time.  Plus, I just happened to have her books in the crook of my arm. I probably wouldn’t get another opportunity.  I’d explain how much I enjoyed her writing and how disappointed I was to stand in line without getting her autograph—would she mind autographing her books while we waited? The worst that could happen would be that she’d say no, right?

Wrong!

The author didn’t just say no. She launched into a nasty tirade about how this wasn’t the time or place to be bothering her and why would I even think about asking for an autograph in the ladies room?

For the record, we were not in the ladies room. We were in the hallway outside the ladies room, along with dozens of others waiting our turn. Many overheard the author’s unpleasant response.

Not only did I not receive her autograph, I never again purchased or read her books. Her outburst may have influenced the book buyers in line ahead of me, as well.

What can we learn from this?

Too many authors regard autographing events as dreaded chores instead of opportunities to further your readership, which is exactly what they are.

In today’s competitive environment, no author can afford to alienate the people who can help them build their career.

Postscript

This author—who has remained nameless for obvious reasons—went on to publish a couple more books, but she never achieved much of a following. She has now dropped out of sight. Assuming that her attitude carried over to other author events, could her bad behavior have ruined her potential success?  Share your thoughts in our Discussion area.

Copyright 2006 by Barbara Doyen. All rights reserved.