Book Festival Perks, Challenges, and Tips

Last weekend I [wo]manned a booth with four other She Writes Press authors at the L.A. Times Festival of Books. Having been super COVID cautious over the past two years, I was apprehensive about the prospect of being among crowds, as well as occupying close quarters with four other people, some of whom had been out and about for weeks, maybe months. Still, I knew it was time to step outside my comfort zone. I figured I’d mask up, keep my distance from others as much as possible, and hope for the best. But when I arrived, no one was masked, and oddly, I didn’t feel the need to don one. It was as if I’d returned to the world, and everything was normal again. It felt amazing to connect with people in-person. Saturday morning, a woman sprayed saliva while speaking, and instead of worrying about catching COVID, I saw the humor in it: me with my health anxieties, uber COVID cautious for over two years, coming face-to-face with a sialoquent within my first hour out. It was comical to me; I laughed. But I digress.

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Have you ever considered selling books at a festival? Want to know what it’s like? This post may shed light on the ins and outs, but hold everything you read lightly, because the perks also came with challenges, and the challenges also came with perks. Let’s begin.
 
 
Perks

1. Connect with Readers. It’s cool to see who’s interested in your book and why. Selling directly to readers helps you understand your ideal reader (market). No book is for everyone. The more you understand your readers—who they are, what they want and need—the better able you are to serve and reach them. This goes for your online efforts, too. But selling in-person directly to readers gives you a sense of who your reader is. You come face-to face with a real human being who might like your book—or whom your book might help, entertain, or inspire. This is a great way to feel the impact you’re making in the world (however large or small) and awaken marketing insights that may help you grow your author platform. 
   
   
2. Make Friends/Nurture Your Community. You’ll likely feel a connection, or kinship, with people attracted to your book. The fact that it resonates with them means there’s a possibility that they, as people, might resonate with you, too. You might have similar interests, which could be the basis for a friendship or community gathering of some kind. I came away from the festival with contact information for people I’d like to get to know better. One woman invited me to Laguna Beach for lunch. A bookstore owner invited me to hold an event at his store, and I’ll likely meet up with a couple of my favorite boothmates, as well.
   
   
3. Learn How to Talk About Your Book. If you’re an author, you’re probably familiar with the “elevator pitch,” but for those who don’t know this term, it’s a short verbal description of your book (no more than a couple sentences) that lets another person (your ideal reader) want to read it—or want to know more. Ideally, it’s an enticing nugget that will be quickly grasped. It’s called an elevator pitch because the whole thing takes place within the time it takes to ride in an elevator. It was instructive to see when a potential buyer’s eyes glazed over while an author (sometimes me) talked about her book. The question “What’s your book about?” is a golden opportunity, a make-or-break moment, which many authors fumble due to lack of foresight. Pros have their pitch down pat. Their answer is succinct and packs a punch. Amateurs ramble on about plot lines, wandering into no-man’s land, losing their listener. Sometimes it’s easier to see this while watching another author. It’s great if you can see it in yourself. Awareness is the first step in any transformative growth process. 
   
   
4. Sell Books. I sold forty-five books, which my publisher said was a good number to sell at a festival. I had no idea. Going into the weekend there was talk of selling a hundred books each, so I made sure I had plenty of stock on hand, just in case, though I thought that number sounded high. It was helpful that I didn’t stress over how many books I’d sell. I knew there would be other benefits, as I’ve mentioned above, and, for me, there was another important perk. See #5 below.
   
   
5. Bonus: Grow Your Writing Business. If you’re an author/entrepreneur whose business is connected to your writing, you will connect with people who might one day become customers. Countless passersby pocketed my business card, and many others, whom I engaged in conversation, seemed interested in my writing circles and coaching. 

 
Challenges

1. Hard Work.  Not that there’s anything wrong with hard work, but this endeavor involves a fair amount of schlepping: boxes of books, tables, chairs, snacks, water, and more. I had two dollies and my husband’s help, which was indispensable. It would have been a major effort without Jim’s help—and impossible without the dollies. It was physically exhausting to set up and tear down our booth, be on-call all day, and to interact with potential readers, as well as my boothmates (see below).
   
   
2. Close Quarters. Our booth occupied a ten- by ten-foot space, shared among five dynamic and powerful women, each with our own personalities, agendas, expectations, and ways of doing things. We did a good job navigating this terrain (mostly), each contributing something valuable, but we had a few tense moments. Once, during a lull in business (Sunday was slower than Saturday), all five of us jumped up to talk to a poor, unsuspecting reader who likely wanted to browse without being attacked by a gang of overeager authors. But we chilled, and ultimately found our collective groove.
   
   
3. Book Sales. If you’re only in it for the book sales, you might be disappointed. According to UNESCO, more than one million books are published every year in the United States. That’s a staggering number of books! It may be harder than you think to sell books. We were fortunate one of our boothmate’s husbands was a professional festival event planner and a gifted carnival barker who attracted customers and sales! Most authors today are at least partially responsible for book sales. But don’t attach your happiness, your identify, your worth, or any other inner state to the number of books you sell.  Think of it as a game and have fun playing!

 
Tips

1. Read. If you share a booth with multiple authors, take the time to read their books. Your enthusiasm will make a difference if you’re willing to share with potential customers what you loved about someone else’s book. Be generous. Share from your heart. And maybe others will show you that same love.
   
   
2. Bundles. We sold our books for $15.00 each (regularly $16.95), but we offered to bundle all our books—5 for $50.00.  Twenty customers purchased bundles, which was more takers than I thought we’d have. Each time we sold a bundle, we’d cheer and shake a tambourine, which created excitement that perhaps drew more people to our booth. This definitely revved our engines.
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3. Open Space. Rather than closing off your booth, create an open area where you can invite people to sit inside. Weary, sun-soaked shoppers, as well as supportive, visiting friends, will be happy to have a place to rest, cool off, and chat.
   
   
4. Free Stuff. One of our authors brought individually wrapped candy and spread it over our book table. I was surprised how many people appreciated that. Folks also enjoyed collecting bookmarks, business cards, and one-sheets from our booth.
   
   
5. Water. Have plenty on hand, especially when it’s hot outside.

 
In the car going home Sunday night, my husband asked, “Would you do it again?” Not anytime soon, I thought, but my response was, “I don’t know.” Now that I’ve had a couple days to rest and reflect, I’d say yes. Definitely. It was fun. But I couldn’t have done it alone. The booth rental was $1,250.00, which we split five ways, and although the booth was cramped, we made it work. Each author contributed to our overall success. One woman took care of festival business and booth administration, another handled the bulk of our bundle sales, another presented great ideas at our planning meeting. I provided an additional table and chairs and hosted the planning meeting. Another provided candy and kindness. Five felt like the right number. Four could work, but each person would have to be willing to take on more expenses and responsibilities.
 
Reflecting on my experience at the festival, my advice to authors considering hosting a booth would be: Don’t be attached to the outcome. Go in with an open mind. Have fun. Connect with people. Have conversations. Be authentic—and most of all, enjoy yourself!