Author Topic: Book Signings anyone?  (Read 19649 times)

JRob

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Book Signings anyone?
« on: September 08, 2019, 02:17:47 pm »
I know that as a reader, I love going to signings of authors that I like. A signed book is a treasure that stays forever in my book collection.

I saw Hank Phillippi Ryan a couple weeks back on the second event of her tour for "The Murder List". She's always a thrill to see and she even mentioned me and the reviewing I do for Mystery Scene as an example to illustrate a point she was making in her talk. (There's video of it, so I have proof! LOL)

I just got back from a book signing at a library two towns over from where I live. The author is Jack Matthews and the mystery he was promoting was his debut novel "Arte Perdida". He put on an engaging talk about the process of researching and writing the story and I picked up a copy of the book and had it signed.

This week, I'm headed to see Brad Meltzer on his tour for his kid books, but I'm going to have him sign a couple of his thrillers and a comic trade paperback he wrote after I buy the kid book as a Christmas gift for my nephew. (I checked with the store and they said he'll sign any of his work at the event.)

I've also got plans to see William Kent Krueger and Kyle Mills when they hit stores within driving distance for me.

So does anyone else here have any book signing events in their future? Do you like to go to these events? And for those who are writing the books, how much input do you have on going out on tour to promote?

JRob

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Re: Book Signings anyone?
« Reply #1 on: September 25, 2019, 04:26:43 pm »
I kind of feel like I'm talking to myself on the board as of late but I ended up having to miss the William Kent Krueger  signing I mentioned in the first post.

I'm trying to do a double signing on Saturday September 28th. Author Peter Colt has a new detective series that saw the first book 'The Off-Islander' published recently. He's doing a signing at Titcomb's Bookshop on Saturday afternoon.

After I go to that, I've got to then head up to the New England Mobile Book Fair store where Hank Phillippi Ryan and Steven Cooper are doing a tandem event for their respective new books The Murder List and Valley of Shadows.

Dinobar

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Re: Book Signings anyone?
« Reply #2 on: October 22, 2019, 04:38:45 am »
Love book signings. Although I only went to a few in my life though, sadly. The most memorable was Brandon Sanderson's book signing. Love that guy.

JRob

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Re: Book Signings anyone?
« Reply #3 on: October 22, 2019, 03:31:08 pm »
Love book signings. Although I only went to a few in my life though, sadly. The most memorable was Brandon Sanderson's book signing. Love that guy.

He's the fantasy author, right? He's got his own stuff plus finished Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series?

JRob

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Re: Book Signings anyone?
« Reply #4 on: October 23, 2019, 04:31:55 pm »
My local library's mystery book club (of which I'm a member) hosted author Edith Maxwell on October 10th as we discussed her book 'Delivering The Truth', the first book in her Quaker Midwife Mysteries series.

It was a pretty good time, especially since I'm a big fan of her work.

kmckee

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Re: Book Signings anyone?
« Reply #5 on: October 26, 2019, 08:37:36 pm »
I used to go to book signings when we had a number of mystery book stores here in San Diego.  Sadly, we're down to one quasi-mystery book store (Mysterious Galaxy - very nice people, but more sci fi than mystery) that I know of (if there are any I'm missing, please let me know) and I've pretty much given up on them.  So, I'm looking forward to the Left Coast Crime event in March!

JRob

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Re: Book Signings anyone?
« Reply #6 on: October 27, 2019, 06:25:26 am »
I used to go to book signings when we had a number of mystery book stores here in San Diego.  Sadly, we're down to one quasi-mystery book store (Mysterious Galaxy - very nice people, but more sci fi than mystery) that I know of (if there are any I'm missing, please let me know) and I've pretty much given up on them.  So, I'm looking forward to the Left Coast Crime event in March!

I don't have any mystery-centric bookstores near me. All of the events that I have gone to are either at libraries or "regular" bookstores. I've never been able to go to a book conference type event so I'm a little envious that you will be going to Left Coast Crime.

I know Bouchercon is this coming week and I wish they'd bring it to Boston so that I could actually attend. New England Crimebake is in a couple weeks but I'm missing that too. However, I am going to try to attend it next year as it is reasonably affordable and close enough for me to travel to.

JRob

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Re: Book Signings anyone?
« Reply #7 on: November 17, 2019, 05:12:24 am »
I went to another signing yesterday. This time it was for debut author Nicole Asselin and her book Murder at First Pitch. I read an advance copy that she sent me and loved the book. So when I was finally able to make it to one of the events she's been doing around the area, I not only had her sign my advance copy but picked up an "official" copy and had that signed as well.

Combining murder and sports (in this case, baseball) made for quite the entertaining read and I'm looking forward to her 2nd book.

Becke Davis

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Re: Book Signings anyone?
« Reply #8 on: December 06, 2019, 11:23:38 pm »
I know that as a reader, I love going to signings of authors that I like. A signed book is a treasure that stays forever in my book collection.

I saw Hank Phillippi Ryan a couple weeks back on the second event of her tour for "The Murder List". She's always a thrill to see and she even mentioned me and the reviewing I do for Mystery Scene as an example to illustrate a point she was making in her talk. (There's video of it, so I have proof! LOL)

I just got back from a book signing at a library two towns over from where I live. The author is Jack Matthews and the mystery he was promoting was his debut novel "Arte Perdida". He put on an engaging talk about the process of researching and writing the story and I picked up a copy of the book and had it signed.

This week, I'm headed to see Brad Meltzer on his tour for his kid books, but I'm going to have him sign a couple of his thrillers and a comic trade paperback he wrote after I buy the kid book as a Christmas gift for my nephew. (I checked with the store and they said he'll sign any of his work at the event.)

I've also got plans to see William Kent Krueger and Kyle Mills when they hit stores within driving distance for me.

So does anyone else here have any book signing events in their future? Do you like to go to these events? And for those who are writing the books, how much input do you have on going out on tour to promote?

In 2018 we uprooted the family, pets and all, and moved from Chicago to Eugene, Oregon. Most of the book signings I come across here were in Portland, which is a few hours away. The last book signings I went to in Chicago were with Libby Fischer Hellmann and, in Schaumburg, with Hank Phillippi Ryan. Surprisingly, I went to the most book signings when I lived in Cincinnati - Jamie Lee Curtis' signing for her kids' book, Lori Foster (romantic suspense), Duffy Brown (cozy) and Suzanne Brockmann (romantic suspense), to name a few.

I met William Kent Krueger at Malice Domestic, a small mystery conference where I met a surprising number of great authors.
Writers conferences are a great place to meet authors - I don't collect autographed editions, but I do love to meet authors. I was surprised to find a number of male mystery authors and the female-oriented Romantic Times conference.

While I haven't been to any book signings in Eugene, author Carola Dunn lives in the neighborhood. I'm working my way through her books now!

JRob

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Re: Book Signings anyone?
« Reply #9 on: December 07, 2019, 03:04:40 pm »
Malice Domestic is on my list of book conventions that I'd love to get to someday.

Becke Davis

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Re: Book Signings anyone?
« Reply #10 on: December 07, 2019, 03:50:43 pm »
Malice Domestic is on my list of book conventions that I'd love to get to someday.

Duh, it was in the wee hours of the morning that I posted this, which is my excuse (instead of old age...). Anyway, I met him at Magna Cum Murder, not Malice Domestic. I did meet a LOT of my favorite authors at Malice, but I didn't see this particular author there.

JRob

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Re: Book Signings anyone?
« Reply #11 on: December 08, 2019, 06:40:05 am »
Malice Domestic is on my list of book conventions that I'd love to get to someday.

Duh, it was in the wee hours of the morning that I posted this, which is my excuse (instead of old age...). Anyway, I met him at Magna Cum Murder, not Malice Domestic. I did meet a LOT of my favorite authors at Malice, but I didn't see this particular author there.

Correction noted. I'm going to another signing this coming Friday.

Kate Stine, Editor

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Re: Book Signings anyone?
« Reply #12 on: December 09, 2019, 03:12:50 pm »
If you can't get to a mystery conference or author signings, you can still get signed books from a number of mystery booksellers.

There's Poisoned Pen in Scottsdale, AZ, Murder by the Book in Houston, and Mystery Lovers Bookshop in Oakmont, PA, to name three stores that do a lot of mail order business. 

JRob

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Re: Book Signings anyone?
« Reply #13 on: December 10, 2019, 04:00:40 am »
If you can't get to a mystery conference or author signings, you can still get signed books from a number of mystery booksellers.

There's Poisoned Pen in Scottsdale, AZ, Murder by the Book in Houston, and Mystery Lovers Bookshop in Oakmont, PA, to name three stores that do a lot of mail order business.

Kate, good idea. Thanks for pointing that out. I know about the mail order signed editions but other than Poisoned Pen, I wouldn't have known any stores that actually did it. Though I do prefer to get my copies signed in person, this would be the alternative option.

JRob

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Re: Book Signings anyone?
« Reply #14 on: December 14, 2019, 11:20:02 am »
I drove up to Barrington Books Retold Friday night for the official launch of the 50th Murder, She Wrote novel 'A Time For Murder' with author Jon Land.

For anyone that doesn't know, he's one of my favorite authors with his many and varied thriller series. And he's done a wonderful job building upon the Murder, She Wrote canon with the four books he's written so far in the series.

I brought a few of his books that I hadn't yet had signed and talked with Jon for a little bit as he inscribed them. Learned some interesting news about the plans for the next couple of books in the series. I even managed to find a copy of his horror thriller 'Dark Light Dawn' on the store shelves. (It's a book I hadn't been able to get until tonight.) And I asked my traditional "Are you ever going to write another book in the Ben Kamal / Danielle Barnea series?" question.

Jon even inquired as to whether or not I was still writing for Mystery Scene. When someone else asked a question about his writing process, his answer to that question prompted him to ask me how I go about writing my reviews. I'd be lying if I said I didn't think that was kind of cool of him to do.

All in all, it was another great book signing event and once again reconfirmed why Jon is at the top of my Must-Read list.