Recently, a friend posted about a signing she was having and asked how to set up her table. So I should thank her for inspiring this post (thanks, Laurie!)
A table’s main purpose is to display your books, not to hide behind. I’ve heard some authors claim they NEVER sit down during signings, because they pull in more customers when standing. (I’ve not yet tried that, due to some back issues.) But whether you stand or sit down, there are few things you should have on your table.
- A table and chairs if they aren’t provided. If you’re not sure, ask.
- A tablecloth. I always take one even if the organizers claim to provide them. At an outdoor event, I ended up using my heavy tablecloth — the free ones were in danger of blowing away.
- Books! A word of great advice I received from Amy Brock McNew–make sure if you’re doing a sale at a bookstore that you have a box of books with you. At my launch, the store had ordered the books, but they hadn’t come in. So I sold the box of books that were stashed in my car’s trunk. Be prepared… for anything, even a launch where the bookstore doesn’t come through.
- A sign-up sheet for your newsletter. If you don’t have a newsletter, you still want to get the customers’ email addresses. Hopefully, these will be your repeat customers, and you’ll want to share all your bookish information with them.
A poster with your beautiful book cover because, well, just look at it! Why wouldn’t you want it in a larger format? This visual may be all that’s needed to garner another sale–because even though we shouldn’t, many do judge a book by its cover and choose to buy only on this point alone.- Swag. This can be in the form of bookmarks, postcards, pens, coasters, key chains, etc. Really anything that can have your name and book cover on it works. It’s up to you how much money you want to spend on this, because swag is free to customers, but it also can be expensive to purchase.
- An author sign, with “author” and your name. I recommend vinyl, especially if you’re planning on doing any outdoor shows.
- Cash box or another box to store money. Self-explanatory.
- Various supplies, such as tape (duct, Scotch and/or clear), bungee cords, scissors, rubber bands, paperclips, markers, etc. This is what I call the McGyver Kit — an emergency kit for anything that can and will go wrong. You can hide most of this in the bottom of the cash box.
- You might want to consider investing in a Square reader if you’re planning on doing book expos or fairs. I’ve done it and have found approximately half of my sales were through credit cards.
Plus one: Some authors include a prop of some sort, something that relates to their book. I found a statue of a black winged panther that looks exactly like Arvandus, a griffin in my book. Another author I know wrote a mermaid book and scattered shells on her table. If you have space on your table, be creative!
I’m sure I’ve forgotten a few things, because my list is always being refined and added to. For you authors, what do you usually remember to take along? Let me know in the comments!
