On-line sites – sure.
Blogging friends – thank God.
Bookstores – don’t hold your breath.
Emailing updates to everyone you have ever met – but how many people have you ever met?

No, I do believe that for all of us writers out there with books to sell — and yes, probably even for those famous enough to have their pictures hanging off the sides of buses and on Tube and Subway posters — the best way, the only sure-fire way to sell books is by public appearances.  Let’s face it. We writers are the new rock stars, only without the drugs, and the sex, and the groupies – though we do occasionally get some cheap red wine in a plastic cup. In the way rock stars do concerts in order to sell records (I know I’m showing my technological age here), writers do appearances to sell books.  Actually, that’s being a bit too cheeky. It’s not that one is solely for the purpose of the other. I actually love doing readings and signings and workshops and book talks. I have even come to the realization that if I was the sort of Emily Dickenson-type writer who sat in her house and wrote all day but never met her readers, I probably wouldn’t be a publishing writer at all.  The two feed each other for me.

But it is true that when I am out in the public, I sell books. When I stay at home, I don’t (or at least not nearly as many). The equation is quite simple, really, and I do believe it is true for most of us. But that also means that it is not enough for a writer “just” to write these days. Today’s writer must also be a Project Manager.  I have written about how to plan a book tour here. But I think it’s worth reiterating and looking at in another way. The administrative tasks associated with the planning of events is one thing. There are also other crucial steps that need to be considered as well. Once you have the event date set — whether it is a public reading, a private book discussion group, a bookshop signing, a launch (and this goes for fiction and poetry and non-poetry alike) there is still more to be done:
    You are the Publicist: contact all the local newspapers, magazines, radio and tv stations you can to get local publicity
     You are the Party Planner: make sure the books are there to be sold, there is a cash float so you can make change, order the drinks and get the cups and if there’s also food, get that plus napkins, plates etc. Get there early enough to set up the chairs and tables.
    You are the Technology Consultant: arrange for and be there to set up and test whatever equipment you need, ie microphone, overhead projector and screen, video or audio equipment
    You are the Performer: Take time out a few hours before the event to make sure you know what you are going to say and how. Practice it several times, whether you have done your talk a dozen times before or not. Decide what you are going to wear — yes, this matters. It doesn’t mean you have to be dressed up, just appropriate and professional. And do whatever pre-performance rituals you need to do.  Don’t kid yourself. Any public appearance IS a performance, whether we like it or not. You can’t engage an audience if they can’t hear you. If they don’t think you know what you are doing on stage (or behind a table or in a chair in front of them), they are less likely to believe that you know what you’re doing on the page.
    You are the Secretary: after the event, go through your lists and note any new people you have met, update your contacts. Sometimes you will also need to write thank you’s and follow-ups.
   and finally – You are the Writer: amid all this, don’t forget to keep making progress on your next book.
    So why am I talking about all this now? For several reasons. First, it is a topic of conversation that has come up over and over lately. Based on these talks with people in the industry, this all really seems to be true for all publishing writers, whether you are being published by your best friend’s mother next door, or by a multi-national global corporation. From what I have been told by booksellers and pr people around the world, it is often (though thankfully not always) the case that the bigger the publisher, the less promotion they do. Again, it all falls into the lap of the writer. By all means, get whatever help you can with any of this, but ultimately we must all know that it is really our own responsibility and no one else’s. In some ways, that is very good news for writers. Our destinies are much more in our own hands. But, man — it’s a lot of work.
    Second, as a writer and someone who better understands what she’s thinking when it’s written down, I needed to step back for a minute and think this all through. As many of you know, I am in the amazing position of having two books to promote at once, while writing my third novel at the same time. Is this what I really want to be doing with my life? All jobs carry stress, I know. But is this the sort of stress I want my little shoulders to carry? Happily, yes. I love what I do. I love creating worlds in my head and trying to express them with this incredible English language of ours. Plus, I love meeting people, sharing ideas, spreading the creativity. I wouldn’t have it any other way — which is a good thing since I am presently trying to promote my work on three continents.
    And third, because tomorrow I’m appearing at another event in London, reading from both my novel, A Clash of Innocents, and my poetry collection, Her Life Collected. If you’re free and in the area, do come by. There will be cheap wine in plastic cups. And there will be books to buy!
     Friday Night Writers Series
    Swiss Cottage Library, 88 Avenue Road ( 2 minute walk from Swiss Cottage Tube)
    6 pm – 8 pm
    Admission free.  There will also be an Open Mic, so if you are a writer, you can bring something to read. Or if not, just come and listen.