Going to My First Book Signing
This post’s title might be a little misleading considering I have only been to one book signing. Maybe I have been unlucky since I usually find out about a visiting author after they have already come and gone. I have often wondered how people are notified of author readings and signings. I know that authors often post about it on their websites, but does that mean readers are only notified if they often visit his or her sites? I guess social media is another way. They must post about it, but I only have limited time for personal scrolling through social media, so I often miss them until it’s too late. Or, I do know about a signing, but I can’t go or they aren’t coming anywhere near me. I wish I had more opportunities to go to events and signing for my favorite authors.
However, I did manage to get lucky a couple years ago. I discovered that Patricia Briggs, the author of the Mercy Thompson series and Alpha and Omega series (along with many others), was coming to my area for a signing. At the time, I was working a job that had very wild schedules, so even though I knew about the event, I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to go. In fact, even the day of, I wasn’t sure if I was going to be up to going. The event was at seven p.m., and I left very last minute, but I made it just in time. Literally. They had locked the front doors of the bookstore it was in, and I only managed to get in because a passing employee saw me yanking on the door. The employee didn’t even seem to know about the signing happening in their own store and said they were closed. I had to show her the event flyer on my phone before she believed me and let me in.
Honestly, I didn’t know what to expect. Initially I assumed I was there to just get in line to buy a book and have it signed after a quick ‘I love your books’ moment. So, I was amazed to discover it was a full event with a reading and Q&A before the signing. I managed to swipe two of her just released books off the stack (Storm Cursed from the Mercy Thompson series) and get a seat.
Yes, I got two books that night because it was only a short month before Mother’s Day and my mom is also a huge fan of Patricia Briggs’s books. My plan was to surprise my mom with a signed copy as a gift. This made it very hard for me since all I wanted to do was excitedly tell my mom I was at the signing and getting to hear Briggs read from the book and talk to her. But, I was strong and managed to keep it to myself. It was much easier once the event started.
Hearing Briggs read from her book was a lot of fun. Though I didn’t ask any questions during the Q&A, I enjoyed hearing what other people asked and hearing the answers. Then came the actual book purchasing and signing. I got in line to purchase both books then went back to my seat to wait for the line to go down for her to sign them. It wasn’t a large crowd at the event, but there were enough that it took time to sign the books and Briggs is so nice to spend dedicated time on each person in line. I’m a patient person and felt no need to rush, so I waited patiently in my chair.
It was definitely a good thing I didn’t mind waiting since I ended up being the last person in line. Eventually, I had to abandon my chair because the staff was collecting them. So, I stood, and by 11:30 p.m. I was lucky enough to meet an author I truly admire. Reading Briggs’s books inspires me to write and hope that I can make a novel even half as good as she does. It was most definitely an honor to chat with her as she signed each book in mine and my mom’s favorite colors (green for me and purple for my mom). I was even able to get a couple pictures with her. It was worth every moment I was there.
Have you been to any book signings from an author you like? I’d love to hear about it!
