For me, convention season is half-finished. On July 21, I participated as a vendor at a quickly organized pop-up event at Missing Falls Brewery, in Akron, Ohio, called “Books & Beer.” The event was originally slated to feature 10 indie authors, but there were only five who actually participated. The event was interesting when compared to previous engagements this year:
- There were only a handful of vendors rather than dozens.
- Attendance was extremely light—just a trickle of potential customers.
- Sales, although not robust, were encouraging.
One of the other vendors commented that the “curated audience” for this event made it successful. MSB’s event promotion attracted an audience, however small, of people interested in books and who were prepared to buy. Some of those people also bought paintings.
This contrasts to my experience at Art on the Hill in Mantua, Ohio. This is a well-regarded arts and crafts festival with a generally affluent audience. Perhaps it was the hot, muggy weather, but returning vendors claimed event attendance did not meet expectations established in prior years. I thought the festival was well-attended, but sales were disappointing. My conclusion: Art on the Hill is terrific if you’re an attendee, not so much if you’re a vendor seeking to cover costs or even make a profit.
I’ve noted before that oftentimes the small towns and villages have the best festivals. I generally do quite well at two small town events: the Clifton Gorge Arts & Music Festival and the Tipp City Mum Festival. This year I’m trying the Sunflower Festival in the tiny burg of Frankfort, Ohio. It’s a two-day event, so I’ll be spending the entire weekend working. Then I have a break from events until the Mid-Ohio Indies Book Expo on August 10.
If you want to find out where I’ll be, check the Events page of this website. Books offered this year at each event are:
- Focus
- Russian Revival
- Double Cut
- Single Stroke
- Knight of the Twin Moons
- Champion of the Twin Moons
- The Bounty: Jones.
For those unfamiliar with my books, five of the above titles are part of three series: the Triune Alliance Brides series, the Twin Moons Saga, and the Russian Love series. Don’t be disuaded by that. Each book in any of my series is a complete story in itself, a standalone novel. In short, I don’t do cliffhangers. I loathe cliffhangers and won’t inflict them upon my readers.
So take a gander at my events schedule and, if you’re in the area, stop by. Even if you don’t buy anything, it will be a pleasure to meet you.
