Tags
american romance author, book on the shelves, book release, christian author, clean author, harlequin author, inspirational author, love inspired author, sweet author
Being a real, flesh and blood author is incredibly awkward. Being an online author–chatting, posting pictures, that sort of thing–is much easier. In real life, I just tend to get awkward.
Yesterday, I decided to go find my book in an actual store. It’s very exciting, but I feel a bit shy when I go out on a mission to find my book. So I slip into stores trying not to be noticed, and I’m SURE plain clothes security guards have their spidy senses tingling at the sight of me. I’m a lurker. I sidle up to the Harlequin shelf, looking for mine…
The first store didn’t have any of mine left–yay!! So I had to go to a different store across town, where I found my book on the shelf, snapped a photo, then slipped away.
Because what would I say to someone? “Hey, I wrote this!” And then they say…. What, exactly? “Good for you!” or “That’s great.” And I say…. ??
I don’t know the response for that.
You see? Very uncomfortable. Kind of weird. I have no idea how that conversation would go. So I lurk. I sidle. I snap selfies. I run away.
If YOU’D like to lurk in a store and sidle up to my book on a bookshelf, now is your chance to do it! It’s in the stores–and you won’t look as weird as I do, because you’d just buy it all naturally, looking all normal and unruffled.
If anyone asked you about it, you could just say, “Yeah, I’m buying this,” and they’d say, “Do you want a bag with that?”
See? Normal. Not awkward at all. Don’t take that for granted! 😉
You and that book look like a perfect team!
LOL! Thanks!
That conversation with a bookseller would really go:
You: “I wrote this book.”
Bookseller: “Cool. Would you like to sign our copies? I’ve got a sharpie…”
You: “Yeah, that’d be great.”
Bookseller: “I’ll get the signed by author stickers and face these out when you’re done.”
You sign the books, thank them, and leave. Easy peasy, and your books are signed, faced out, and will likely sell faster. 😀 Well, depending on the store they may not have room in the Harlequin series section to face out your book, but signed books always sell faster and don’t affect return status, so it’s a win for the bookstore – and you – for you to sign them. Some places will ask to see ID before they let you sign though (we had someone – before my time – come in and sign books they didn’t write).
Can you imagine if someone who didn’t write the book came in and started signing with a Sharpie? LOL! Well, next time, maybe I should mention that I wrote it and see what happens!