Up Close, Personal, and More Profitable

    As I have watched my online royalties slip from $100 a quarter to $10 with no sales showing for my most popular series due to the Tiktok scammers who read a book, then return it, cheating the author of any royalty (I mean would they put in four or more months of work and then be okay with not being paid),I am trying to be grateful for the return of book fairs and other events that let me sell my books in person. Selling my titles that I get wholesale at a modest increase, I can make two or three dollars a book versus the one dollar in royalties I earn online. My softcovers are often cheaper than at online publishers, so nice for both seller and buyer. The words I love to hear most as I sit in my tent hawking my wares is "I bought one from you last year and loved it. Which should I read next?"  You never get that kind of feedback from online sales.

     Not that everyone who browses buys. Some are just looking for freebies or jot down a title to order as a cheaper e-book. I save them the trouble by giving out a book card with all the ordering information and a synopsis on the back plus a listing of my other titles. I even keep a short stack of the three of my books that are available on audio for those who say they only listen to books and don't read. As for free stuff, my books cost me ten to twelve dollars and I sell them for fifteen. I can't afford giveaways. Long ago, I stopped giving swag. At one time, I had posters of hunky guys and foam footballs that I gave out. I doubt they ever resulted in a sale, but they did cost money, a dollar for foam footballs and seven for a poster. Now, I only give them out with sales as I found a small amount of both when I was doing inventory of my books in storage.

     I offered a foam football to anyone buying my sports romances, The Sinners series. One woman with two sons pondered Heart of a Sinner for some time, reading the back blurb, paging through it, while her sons begged for a football.  I told her I'd give her two with a sale.  Instead she snapped at her sons, "Why don't you pay for the book then," and stalked off. I image she went home and used the Tictok scam to get it for free. On the other hand, others were tickled to get a sexy guy poster with a sale.

     Some non-sales are still interesting. One asked me if I had any books in French. Nope. I can make myself understood in Spanish and German, but am far from fluent. I suggested she try the book store in town. Turned out she was the teacher for the French immersion students in town and had come here from Paris. We had a pleasant conversation about travels in Europe which I have done during a lull in business.

     At one point, a lovely swallowtail butterfly came to visit my tent and drew a lot of attention. While that butterfly didn't sell any books, one person bought a mini-painting of a monarch and another purchased a floral painting that she said reminded her of her mother's garden. Yes, I do paint but am a much better writer. Still, a sale is a sale.

     A lot of writers are introverts who hate meeting the public. Not me. I am energized by meeting fans and future fans and even total strangers in person. I enjoy public speaking and have several topics I can speak about. A book club whether large or small, I will attend if I don't have to drive too far. My mother used to say I had the gift of gab, now shut up. And so I shall.