Book Tours

Community
1

Neal Giaman is on a book tour, and he was going to be appearing in my area at some point.

When I looked at the event details, there was a $35 entrance fee (for a seat and a copy of the book).

I’ve never been to a book tour event, but I was always under the assumption they were free and were intended to promote the book. I had a mild interest in attending since I’ve enjoyed some of his past works, but there’s no way I’m putting down cash for this.

Has anyone ever heard of an admission/ticket fee for a book tour appearance? It seems really odd to charge for something like this.

2

Strikes me as odd, too. I’ve been to a couple of book events and they were both free. They offered a chance to meet the author and buy an autographed copy of his/her book, if you wanted to stand in line. Have never heard of charging a fee up front. Times change, I guess.

3

Is it happening in a shop or in another place like a theatre, or a public/private hall?

4

Likewise, I’ve not seen that before. Rather than saying to his audience:

Hey, let me tell you about the book and, if you like the sound of it, buy a signed copy …

he’s really saying

I’m not going to bother talking to you unless I know you’ve bought a copy …

Seems odd to me … but, I guess if it works, then good luck to him.

5

It’s happening at a city center / event hall.

The major bookstore in the area (Borders) went out of business. That’s where author signings were typically held in the past.

6

Never heard of this. The ones I’ve known where held in a book store and were free.