Sunday, April 9, 2017

Day 39 & 40 - Authorpalooza

Ok blogger world, I know I missed you yesterday, but I promise I have a good reason. Yesterday was the annual Authorpalooza book show. This was the second year the show was put on and it was greatly improved from the previous show. It is all about learning which both the people that put the show together and I as an author were able to do.

For the show it was a tremendous growth from the first year. When I attended the Vegas Valley book Festival in October of 2015 there was a gentleman that came around inquiring about interest for a summer show in Mesquite Nevada. I said I was interested and gave him my card but was truly shocked when I received an email saying the show was moving forward. When I looked at the details I noticed it was being held in a room that turned out to be part of the dining area for the buffet of a small casino in Mesquite. They were holding the event from noon to five on a Wednesday near the end of June.

It was understandably slow. This year, after much discussion, it was moved to earlier in the year to have more of the seasonal residents still in town and set for a banquet room at the resort. The time was the same, running from noon to five, however it was held on a Saturday allowing once again for more people to come. The turn out was more than double. There was also a huge advertising push made by the casino and resort to get people to come. Once they arrived there were raffle prizes to win but they had to purchase a book in order to get a raffle ticket. That was helpful to encourage people to buy books and support the authors.

When I arrived last year with my boxes of books and my small table decorations I was thrilled. I felt like I was fully prepared to go in, set up and be right on pace with the other authors there. I was wrong. I looked around at the banners, signs, newsletter advertisements and table setups. I was woefully behind. This year I had a better display, I now have a sign and banner that are branded like my business cards. I have launched my website and have learned to be more social with the readers as they browse. I sold books both years and managed to improve this year significantly. I am already looking for more shows to continue honing my skills while also planning for next year at one of my favorite events, Authorpalooza!

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