I did a reading of Lillian in Love and of some of my flash fiction at a life-long learning center for seniors, about a 40 minute drive from my home. There are many of these in the Boston area: some are connected to universities; some of them specialize (such as the wonderful Rainbow Lifelong Learning Institute for LGBT seniors). Often Brown Bag lectures or events are scheduled for the lunch break, in between their course classes. That’s when I’m usually booked to do a reading.
I had about 30 folks in attendance who were mostly from middle and upper-middle-class communities with a large Jewish component. My reception was lovely. They laughed, they sighed, and most gratifying, they got all my jokes. They were attentive and complementary, even though they were eating their lunch, and they asked questions eagerly. It felt great.
I wrapped up about 10 minutes before they were to return to their classes. An author always leaves time at the end for the selling and signing of books. That is the point, of course. That is the reason one schleps to the outer suburbs or the next town with a heavy bag of volumes: to sell books. I brought plenty of copies of Lillian’s Last Affair ($10) – my short stories – as well as the novel Lillian in Love ($13).
I ended with an admonition that people support the writers and artists in their community, and sat down with pen in hand, ready for the crowd. Two people eventually wandered up to buy Lillian’s Last Affair. And that was that.
Later the very nice paid administrator also bought a copy, after having been subjected to my aggrieved grumbles.
Can you explain this to me? A mediocre event outcome might be that I only sell 5 or 6 books. At a good one I’d sell 15 or 20 to a crowd of this size. What just happened?
What just happened, Katz, is the book version of streaming that happens with music all the time. We have learned to think that our "entertainment" ought to cost nothing. Not, mind you, that it does. People are paying cable fees, but still ...
Posted by: Dr Susan Corso | 08 November 2017 at 17:22
Even seniors? Elders? I fear you may be right - but other similar audiences have been great buyers. (Shaking my head.)
Posted by: Sue Katz | 08 November 2017 at 18:52
People don't like to admonished over lunch. I have discovered a truly marvellous demonstration of this proposition that this margin is too narrow to contain
Posted by: Mike Evans | 08 November 2017 at 18:53
Not sure what you're saying, Mike. Their institute is structured around lectures etc during lunch. All such lifelong institutes are structured that way - it's like a freebie for the students. They could've eaten elsewhere. They were into it.
Posted by: Sue Katz | 08 November 2017 at 18:55
From selling pottery at various events I have come to the conclusion that you just can't call it. Some will be good and others not. What does seem true though is that people buy from people. Someone who, in my assessment, had no intention of buying gets into conversation with me. In talking with me they then make a decision to buy something. People buy from people they like - maybe admonishing them is not a way to encourage them to like. The second sentence of my original comment is a quote.
Posted by: Mike Evans | 09 November 2017 at 03:36
Hey, with your charm Mike, you could sell stale pretzels. Blowing kisses to you!
Posted by: Sue Katz | 09 November 2017 at 08:24
Yep, when you said you admonished them to support writers, I felt like you changed the situation from friendly support for your writing to an obligation of support for your writing. You took their power to award you away from them.
Posted by: Patricia Hilliard | 10 November 2017 at 14:28
Many good points already made that I won't repeat. Bottom line: You never fucking know...
Posted by: Charles Coe | 10 November 2017 at 17:22