Just Had My Very First Book Signing Event!

Image of Breyanna I.L. Evans's book, Bound, open to the map page with a pen on it.

Happy weekend, everyone! I still have one more post to write about what I learned in the process of writing, editing, and publishing Bound, and this is somewhat related, but I wanted to take this weekend's post to tell you about the experience I had at my first ever book signing! To anyone dying to know the rest of what I learned putting Bound out into the world, stay tuned next weekend. I promise I haven't forgotten!

​Let's get into this experience, shall we?

It all started a couple of months ago, when I finally worked up the courage to make a phone call. I'd attended several book signings at Barnes and Noble - both incidentally and with purpose - and I'd learned through the authors I interacted with that Barnes and Noble is very supportive of local authors. When I spoke with one of the cashiers on my regular B&N outing (yes, I go to the bookstore regularly), she said the first thing I'd need to do is call and speak with a manager. So I took a deep breath, and I called. I started at my favorite location; the Orem B&N, where I visit so frequently that I know where everything is even when they move things around. 

And this is what happened: The manager provided me with an email address, to which I was to send my official event request. Thanks to My Book Launch Planner (Linked) by Mandi Lynn, and my previous event requests at other bookstores and libraries, I already had a template for what I wanted to say.

This time, however, I wanted to make it more mine. So I adjusted my request and included a picture of the book cover. Within 24 hours, the manager got back to me and scheduled me for January 11th, and even asked if I would like to sell books on consignment in the store in the meantime. Um... yes please! On release day, I brought in five copies, which were on the shelves when I went back that following Friday. My dream of selling my book on the shelves of Barnes and Noble was finally a reality after publishing my eighth book!

That first experience was so positive that I decided to call around to other locations in my area. I was able to schedule a couple more book signings before that January 11th event, and my first one was scheduled for October 26th at the Barnes and Noble in American Fork.

​So, how did it go?

You guys, I couldn't have asked for a better first experience. The manager, Jordan, and I had been in contact for the last couple of months, and she was incredible about answering all of my many questions leading up to the event. 

When I got there, I was all jittery, equal parts nervous and excited, but I had my husband and my little man with me, and a couple of my siblings came up and stayed around for the entire event, with my sister relenting to sit with me at the table and talk with me during the lulls. 

As I worked to get the table set up, the manager brought over the five copies of Bound that she had ordered to their location and noticed the extra copies I'd brought in just in case. She let me know that the books they had ordered needed to sell before I could put any of my copies up for consignment.

Well, within the first 45 minutes, all five copies had sold. I had so many wonderful colleagues, family members and friends show up to lend their support and congratulations, and I got to practice my elevator pitch. I got to talk about the book and some of the cool features and designs I got to create for the book, and had a bunch of people sign up for my email list. 

In the full two hour event, I signed twelve books - sold nine, three were brought into the store after being ordered online - and I talked with so many awesome people. There were several people I knew who couldn't attend the event but sent their congratulations and wished me good luck. I totally felt it! 

I didn't get as many strangers coming to the table as I would have liked. I think they might have been intimidated by all the conversations I was having with those who came, but I was having a blast anyway!

I have another signing coming up on November 23rd at the Murray location, and I'm psyched to go. In my future signings, I'm going to work on being more approachable and offering more free stuff to strangers. I brought a bunch of bookmarks, stickers, and book art to the signing, which I will do again, but I'm going to work on asking people if they'd like to come grab some free stuff. 

Overall, this experience was incredible. The American Fork Barnes and Noble is seriously gorgeous inside, and I had a wonderful time talking with everyone. I can't wait for the next one! 

Thanks for reading, and thank you to everyone who was able to make it to this event. If you weren't able to make this one, I'll be at the new Murray Utah Barnes and Noble location on Saturday, November 23rd from 12:00 - 3:00 PM. Have a wonderful rest of your weekend, and I'll write again next week!