The Book Launch; is it necessary?

Recent advice to authors is that an event to launch and to celebrate their book is no longer mandatory.  Authors are sometimes told that the launch party does little to promote the book and that scarce resources could be put to better use online, or with other promotional methods.

Before June 26th 2010, I had attended few book events,  and so I can’t claim to be an expert about whether those authors, who are on a strict budget, should go through the work, the worry, and the preparation to host an actual Book Launch,  but I can tell you about my experience, and that might help you to decide.

My book event for Arthur Collins and the Three Wishes wasn’t  glitzy; it was relaxed and fun.  I didn’t want to put on airs or put on a show;  I just wanted to share the joy of the moment, and to let the public and some of the media know that my book was alive and well.

So I gave a party–with quite a lot of  help from my friends, who know very well,  that I couldn’t have done it without them.

Before the event, Caren Swales answered “the where” and the “What shall we serve?” questions by finding Encore Catering ( http://encorecatering.net ) for me.

“Every picture tells a story” and the story of  A Day of Celebration for Arthur Collins and the Three Wishes  is in the pictures that my guests took that day, because the author, who still depends on her favorite 35 mm camera,  came to her own, carefully planned event, with just two pictures left on the roll of film.   

Thanks to my vigilant guardian angel, and to the creativity and competence of my friends, my event is recorded in their wonderful pictures.

Those pictures show castles everywhere; they had to be, because the book was published by City Castles Publishing, and castles are part of the book’s story line. 

So, from the very beginning the theme of the party was decided. There were castles of every kind, color and size, from the castle on The City Castle Greeting Card, to the wooden hobby shop castles that were meant to be colored by children. Among that abundance of castles there were  two that were extra special. 

  One castle was a loan from my friend Derek Meadows, and  is one of his favorite possessions. It is a kingdom, with a castle populated with knights, and kings. There are dozens of other characters that live in the castle, and all  are  perfectly costumed for their roles.  Will Pilkington set the castle up for the guests to marvel at, and many secretly wished for a few minutes alone, to delight in moving the knights and the kings around, and to explore the castle on their own.  

The other castle was a City Castle Cake that was modeled on, and was nearly a duplicate of  the castle shown on the City Castle Welcome Signs and in The City Castle Greeting Card,  shown in the online store at http://citycastles.com/cards.html  The cake was perfect, and delicious in every way.

The pictures show that my book’s  “low-key event” had  spectacular moments.

Pictures record Andi Pearson’s presentation, which brought clarity to the Arthurian Legend, and Caren Swales’ explanation of  City Castles effort for children’s literacy. They capture the  expert and exciting young fencers, John Luke and Alex Bucuvalas from The Denver Fencing Center ( http://www.denverfencingcenter.com ) and their fast moving demonstration.   

Some of my favorite pictures show my husband, Will, steady, and smiling as he helped me throughout the day. I dubbed him “Sir Will Pilkington, Knight with the Bravest of Hearts. 

Another picture shows Ann Christopher, smiling brightly as she dashed about, placing the flower arrangements she had just made, and rearranging the tables, in a flash, during the final few minutes before the guests arrived. 

All of my friends, and presenters, brought that same sureness, that wonderful confidence to my event.

The funny thing is that I went to my event with an unchangeable inner calm.  Part of that was because of the  excellent advice and help  from my daughter, Micah. There was support from my sisters, Marian Coen and Carol Fahey, and from every family member who had bought my book. A great deal of strength came from my friend, and encourager, Nicole Meadows, whose e-mails, cards, and calls, stood behind me, and reminded me that I was well-able to make this event a success.

When the day arrived my confidence remained strong, because  I was certain that the people, who had so generously offered to help, would, with their talent and energy, give their all for the event.  That confidence comes from years of knowing some of them, and from a strong intuition about the others.

The pictures show that:  I got to tell my story about the book and that I read some of it to begin the effort for children’s literacy, Arthur Collins and the Great American book Race!  

The pictures show that we had  fun at the event. For this I thank the guests, because the fun of any party comes from the people who attend. Fun comes from kind hearts, and from minds willing to listen, and ready to be entertained. 

And so, my answer to the question:  was it  worth it to  have an actual book launch?

The answer is: for me it was worth it.

It was worth it  because,  beyond receiving the gifts of  support,  help and kindness from my friends, and beyond the good food, and pleasant atmosphere, of  Encore Catering . And, even beyond the presentations for  my book, the day was worth it  because– some thing truly had changed. 

Basic facts had changed.

The very least thing that had been accomplished, because of the time and effort spent in pursuit of guests and the media,  was that many more people now knew about my book.

The best thing that happened on June 26, was that I saw my book in a different way.

Because:  People had cared enough to attend the event and learn, in person, about the book and about my effort on behalf of children’s literacy. 

There had been tangible results from my book launch party that hadn’t occurred before.

Due to  my efforts I had received the promise of a book review from a Denver newspaper. I had been offered opportunites to speak to other groups about my book.  And, finally, I had actually watched people buy my book, and this was different than getting orders from Amazon or from my web sites.

For a long time I had felt that my book had value. But  it meant something to watch people buy the book and show by that purchase that they agreed with me:  my book has value.