BYOB

December 8th, 2004 · 2 Comments
by Jill Monroe

Nothing like irritating a whole bunch of people by not finishing a story. Many apologies. The husband’s new iPod came yesterday and the computer was hijacked. I long for the day when we have two.

Booksigning Nightmares Part 2 (or is it 3?)

Nervously I call the bookstore manager and explain how there may be quite a few people showing. I say this in a very small voice because really, I have no idea. Lots of calls were made, lots of e-mails sent, but who really knows?

There’s a long pause.

Then the manager explains the situation with quite a few apologies. (Gena is officially off the hook for telling me.) Now really, do I look like the kind of person to get mad? Throw a fit? Why get angry over a box not being delivered by the distributor? We decide I’ll just hang out around my books for the hour I was supposed to do my signing.

Off to begin the agonization* process over clothes, shower, hair…

Since they canceled the official signing, there was no table. The manager improvises and begins moving books from a display table in the back of the store. The very back. I look around. I think I’m in the Family section. Or maybe Spirituality. I can’t tell – except at the table there’s Dr. Phil, Joel Osteen and then NEVER NAUGHTY ENOUGH by me!

My mom shows up. I order her to stand guard at the front looking for people who may be expecting me in some other section of the bookstore. This way she’ll also be distracted from looking at my shoes. The first place she looked after verifying I put on make-up was the nails.

The good news is I sold out. Those two books flew off the shelves. But then other people started coming in. My aunt wanted 15. Another woman wanted to give them as gifts – she wanted 4. Then another wanted 3 for gifts. I have a discussion with the store manager.

Earlier my husband had suggested I bring my author copies. The whole box. He’d placed them in my car. Since my husband had already gone back to the car because I’d forgotten the camera, I pull out my cell phone and dial his number (and can you believe at one point I actually thought it ridiculous we be a two cell family?). “Hey, where are you?

“Almost back to the mall.”

“You mind getting the box of books – they’re going to sell and replace.”

Again, I experience another long pause. “Sure,” my husband says. He’s got the “I just saved the day” tone in his voice (and I’m sure the “I’m getting lucky tonight” expression). As a rule, husbands like to look good in front of their wives (there’s a brilliant observation from someone who writes romance). Okay, probably not a rule, but that’s been my life experience based on the one marriage to the one man.

So, all in all – it was a really good day. I sold out, and actually sold more than the bookstore originally ordered from the distributor.

Booksquare’s husband suggested I title this blog BYOB – Bring Your Own Book. Yea to the husbands this weekend – they both had good ideas.

* made the word up – I do that ALL the time – sure beats thinking.

File Under: Jill's First Blog

2 responses so far ↓

  • Susan Gable // Dec 8, 2004 at 4:21 pm

    BYOB was a great way to solve the problem, Jill. I recently had to BYOB, too, because the books didn’t come in. That reminds me, I have to go pick up my “payback” books. (G)

    I’m glad your story had a happy ending!

  • daniel olivas // Dec 8, 2004 at 7:56 pm

    well, great ending! this almost happened to me at my signing the same day. i had set the book signing a month earlier and then the store gets a new manager…who orders 20 copies of my book…the one published last year. so when i called her a week before the signing to see if she got “devil talk,” she says, “oh, i thought i made a mistake.” so, she had me bring my owon copies as back up if ingrams couldn’t get the book in on time. well, they came and it all went well. so, jill, you and i had a rather nice day, right? congrats on a great signing!