My book signing is 8 1/2 days away and I'm collecting as much information as I can so that I can get through it, no, ENJOY it.
My surface emotion on the book signing is elation, joy, and I may have jumped up and down (literally) when I got the confirmation email. But then it kicked in...book signing...interacting with people...the unknown...eep!
I get very anxious in these kinds of situations. So anxious that I often just avoid them completely. Whether it is something big and life-changing like an interview for a coveted job, or I just dropped my car off at a new mechanic for an oil change, I panic. I didn't even realize that the phrase "panic attack" was actually what I was feeling, is felt by other people, and there are things I can do to fix/help it.
Of course, going to the doctor also makes me anxious, so I haven't done that and now it's too late for the signing, so here is my game-plan for how to thoroughly enjoy my author signing!
1) Ample time to get the jitters out. - My current plan is to get there 1 hour before my scheduled time so that I have plenty of time to prepare my table, walk around the building, and get all of the jitters/anxiety out before people start coming in.
2) Having some friendly faces - Just like the advice to have a friend in the audience when performing, I have a few friends who are going to stop by to say hi during this. It will help ground me and remind me that I am very social once I stop being shy.
3) Practice questions in my head - While I don't know what questions people will ask, I can make a list of one's I can anticipate and have answers. That way I won't feel quite so "deer caught in the headlights"
Things I am going to include on my table are : My rack cards (with my picture, my bio, then book info about The Lady of Steinbrekka), my bookmarks (which are awesome, thanks to the wonderful design of Elizabeth Sharp over at Sharp Images), my business cards (from VistaPrint), and a bowl of candy.
(Oh, a tip to those who may be reading this prior to doing their own signing. Ask if it's okay to bring in candy, and make sure it is individually wrapped. I asked the event coordinator if candy was okay and she said she was extremely grateful that I asked about bringing food into a library instead of just assuming it would be fine.)
Do you have any tips? What would you like to see at an author signing?
No comments:
Post a Comment