Booking Events, and Booking, and Booking, and Booking

OK, our event bay is pretty much full. Last year we were usually able to get all the event order on the bay, but this year we have to use overstock.

Some not-so-interesting observations:

1. Last year we had four football events; this year we have none. It's not like they didn't work; one was a bomb, one was disappointing, and two were actually quite successful. And both of our baseball events this spring were quite respectable. Go figure.

2. No crazy out-of-the-box stuff like Manette Ansay's book and concert this June, but we are just about to announce Neal Pollack's yoga class at Invivo. It will be at 5:30, before his 7 PM talk.

3. Folks are always asking me the best day of the week to book an event. It's my thought that the better the day, the more competition there is. And for lots of direct competition, I don't know what's going on until shortly before the date, and for tours, I almost never get a choice of days.

4. A friend of mine at another bookstore avoids booking events in August because everyone is out of town. Maybe so, but since nobody's doing anything, it's easier to get attention for the books.

5. Though I obviously can't do every author's event in town, we do more than our share of small press and even smaller-than-small press. The author just has to understand that the ball's in their court to get a crowd, and sometimes I have to make a judgment call that whatever we do and whatever they do, nobody's going to come. Some take to the challenge and not surprisingly, some don't. And yes, we've had our share of nobody shows up by the author fiascoes, as does just about every store. But whether it's a big or small crowd at their event, I find it really sweet when they pose for a picture in front of their author window.

Anyway, Stacie's out of town so I'm making the signs. It's only because I was making the signs that I realized that our joint event for Jean Reynolds Page and Isabel Sharpe on Sunday, September 19th has more in common that they are Wisconsin writers (Page newly so) published by Avon. It turns out both books are set in North Carolina. What's up with that? Must be investigated.