How do authors promote their books effectively? During my thirty years of teaching, I had the privilege of hosting incredible authors in my classroom and school. I believe the ideas I’ve documented from their visits will help us as we plan our own author visits. 

First, pray. Sharing stories with children brings challenges. Some authors thrive in connecting with people but deal with time constraints. Other authors struggle with the idea of making sales. Still, others feel overwhelmed by a whole day in a different setting. Whatever the circumstances, pray as you start this process. Remember the purpose of your book. Celebrate that your message will touch the hearts of many people

6-12 Months Ahead

Book promotion and sales begin early in the process of scheduling school visits. Although Michael Shoulders’ author visit came in the spring, he began communicating with our school one year earlier. 

Incidentally, many of our author visits coincided with a state young writers’ conference held close by. When our principal discovered authors for subsequent years, she brilliantly contacted them to see if a school presentation could occur alongside their planned trip to our state. (Note: If you have author events planned, consider reaching out to local schools to offer author visits for their students, too.) 

2-6 Months Ahead

In 2012, Michael gave schools a 25% discount for purchasing books early through his website. Alternatively, schools could arrange for families to purchase through a local bookstore. He asked schools to make their purchase two months prior to his visit so classes could begin reading them. At that time, he recommended displaying his books in the library, during parent/teacher conferences, and during PTA/PTO meetings. He also wanted to inform parents of his upcoming visit through the school newsletter and calendar. 

I was blessed to meet author Taryn Souders recently at a conference. She provided copies of her novels as a part of her presentation fee. What a great idea to ensure that her books get into the hands of teachers and students prior to her visit! On her website, note her creative presentation options. Scour other author websites for their school visit information.

1 Month Ahead

Michael sent a family letter explaining the author visit and a book order form (giving the school discount.) He also invited parents to attend the presentation. Receiving these purchases enabled him to pre-sign books and ensured accurate numbers of books. It also provided more time for him to interact with children. Further, he requested invitations be sent to other librarians, district personnel, reading specialists, media, and the community. 

Just think: With this schedule, everyone was fully aware of his visit and psyched about the upcoming day. (Refer to “Build Hype” from my first blog post.) Consider how this process helped him estimate finances and have enough books during the visit. 

Additional Tips For Your Book Sales

• Pre-plan a catchy slogan which matches the content of your book. Whether you autograph books early or during the visit, use this slogan alongside the children’s names. Some memorable ones we’ve received: 
  • “To two great dragon tamers!” -Carmen Agra Deedy, The Library Dragon
  • “Wishing you magical discoveries… near one cattail!” -Anthony D. Fredericks, Near One Cattail
  • “Write on!” -Helen Lester, Author: A True Story 
  • “This is for you!” -Barbara Robinson, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. The slogan matched a saying traditionally used when giving presents. 

• Show an autographed book. Regardless of the work you’ve done prior to this visit, children will still want your book that day. Before you end your whole-school session, show a book you’ve autographed. Open the book to the title page. Read the inscription. Tell students the book will be in their school library, waiting for them.

• Point out the designated book-signing area from the stage. Ensure the autographing area is easily-accessible to students, teachers, and parents. 

• If you created kid-friendly business cards or bookmarks (see this post), remind children that if they don’t have money that day, they can easily find you later. The last thing you want is to make children cry. To end on a happy note, reiterate the wonderful day you’ve shared, the insightful things you’ve learned from them, and your hope to visit again in the future.

During the Book Signing

• Pre-enlist an adult volunteer to write the children’s (correctly-spelled) names on post-it notes. 

• Enjoy connecting with each child, if only for a moment to smile and a photograph. They may eventually recall this day as one of their most significant childhood memories. (My children and I vividly remember our autographing sessions with children’s authors—and they are in their 30’s!) 

• Plan for the book-signing portion to coincide with dismissal so parents can easily visit after school. Opportunities to engage with parents could be productive and profitable. You might also gather memorable quotes from these special moments.

• Have a plan if you run out of books. Some people use bookplates. Autograph the bookplates as children request, take payments, and arrange for the books to be delivered immediately with signed bookplates inside. 

What tips do you have for book-signing events?

For more: Once your books are sold, check this post to see how W2I’s guest blogger, Melissa Henderson, discovers books everywhere. 

Jennifer Mills Barnes invested her life in children, teaching mostly kindergartners and first graders for three decades. She was blessed to coach 41 student-teachers and welcomed over 2000 visitors into her inquiry-based classroom. Jennifer had the privilege of speaking at more than 20 conferences and served as an adjunct professor for two semesters at the University of South Carolina. She garnered national and state awards while maintaining National Board certification. But, Jennifer’s passion was authentically teaching little kids. 

These days, she feels called to write stories for children. As a retired teacher, she also captures her most powerful teaching moments to share with a new generation of children through helping their parents, grandparents, and teachers. The rest of the time, you can find her road-tripping with her husband, delighting in her garden, or hanging with her adult children and grandson, Tucker. Connect with her on Pinterest, Twitter, or her website, jennifermbarnes.com. Plus, check out the podcast “KidTalk” that was created with her first graders.