Excuse me would you like to buy my book?

Since the launch I have been adjusting to my life as a published author, which isn’t much different from my life before, except there is more work and an ever present sense that there must be something else I should be doing to get the word out. In this day and age, the life of an author is part writer and part pusher, so I find myself spending a portion of every day contacting libraries, organizations, and media outlets pitching them my book (and the value of supporting it.)

While I am an outgoing person, like most folks, I have a level of discomfort, feeling like I am talking about myself (or my book) all the time, so I’m trying to find the right approach, one that gets results without me feeling like I’m trying to get you hooked on dope.

The universal experience I have had when speaking to people is how nice and supportive they are. In spite of all the different ways you can connect to readers, the most effective way is still word of mouth. This is when you are grateful to have friends with big mouths! In addition to reading the book, many of you have recommended it, lots of you have sent me pictures of the book from bookstores, and a few of you have checked your library card catalogs to make sure they are stocking it. (It gives me a thrill to see multiple copies checked out or on hold in library catalogs!) Thank you for all the promotion you have done on my behalf!

By far though, the best experience I have had on my own, was walking up to a woman in a Barnes & Noble in Bayshore, Long Island. She was holding my book and trying to decide whether or not to buy it. I said, "that book is really good you should buy it."

She said, "did you read it?"

I said, "No, I wrote it." She and her friend each bought a copy and I signed it.