This is a recap episode for WINGTORN! It includes SPOILERS for seasons (books) one and two – Arrival and Allegiance. Once you listen to this episode, you’ll be equipped to skip ahead to chapter one of ARREST, releasing July 8, 2021.

YAY!!

Wingtorn 3 returns July 2021! Learn more in this new update interlude episode!
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Wingtorn Returns July 2021: Update Interlude Episode!

Talking Points:

• I’ve shifted from weekly format to a seasonal format – so that means that instead of creating the podcast week after week, it’s more like a TV show, where there’s a break and then new episodes are released at a certain time of year.
• Wingtorn Book 3 will return on July 2021. Put it on your calendars!
• New theme music is pretty by Cloud Road Music! Additional music by Irene Chan!
• You can download the text version of Arrival (Book 1) here.
• Follow me on Instagram!

Fingal pressed his lips together in a contemptuous smile as he held up his bandaged hand. “Off to a roaring start.”
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Chapter 15 – Epilogue

FINGAL

Present Day

Fingal shot up like a drowning man finally breaching the surface.

The fae militia had attacked him…

He died. Didn’t he?

Ambushed on the road. Stumbled back to Ashdown…or some place like it.

The Donmagh house, a pile of black rubble.

Then, another ambush. Arms had hooked him—deep voices had chided him, looted him? He patted himself down unsteadily—yes. His weapon was gone, his belt, his cloak.

His pain brought the room into focus….

He inhaled sharply and pursed her lips—her eyes suddenly wide as she stared right at him. “I tried…and I wasn’t fast enough…”
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Chapter 14

CONNOR

Riona steered Connor and Ollivan away from the river, deeper into the forest, to an intimidatingly cramped clearing. There, the trees were thinner and more tightly packed, but at least the ground was level. Tall grass reached Connor’s midriff and under Riona’s quiet instruction, they scythed it from the ground. A difficult, dangerous task in the dark; necessary to create a small fire. Ollivan made a feeble attempt to find kindling. With every footfall, every time Ollivan swore at nothing, or rustled the surrounding greenery, or picked up a twig, Connor became more tense. More bandits—or anyone else—could be hiding, waiting for them to let down their guard. He swung his knife cautiously. Deliberately.

Riona bumped into him constantly as she misjudged her movements in the darkness. He found and took her arm to steady her. She stiffened.

“Sorry,” he said and released her.

“No,” she replied. “It’s just—”

“If I abandon her, I’m abandoning myself.”
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Chapter 13

FINGAL
Fifteen Years Ago

Fingal couldn’t stop shaking his head. “She’s not a fae.”

He turned to help Riona, whose thunderous crash to the floor surely would have alerted anyone in the kitchen. She was a crumpled heap of violet wings, torn dark fabric, and hair, but her pointed lavender face emerged, seemingly unscathed. She glanced between Fingal and Brendan, lips pursed in question.

As Fingal helped Riona to her feet and sorted out her dress and cloak, Brendan prowled the room with an unstable gait. “The fae don’t look like that. They don’t look like that.” He kept repeating this over and over to himself, as if each iteration made it more true.

Riona’s wings fluttered and curled around her comparatively small body. “Mama says I’m special.”

“So you do have a family,” Brendan said. There was a hint of relief in his voice as he sunk to his knees. “Where are they? Why aren’t you with them?” Then, aggressively, to Fingal: “Did you take her from her family?”

“How could you accuse me of that?” Fingal retorted….

Fingal glanced at the destroyed scaffolding. “Is this an interrogation, Captain?”
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Chapter 12

FINGAL
Fifteen Years Ago

Fingal lay in the crumpled sheets of the bed in the guest room, eyes fixated on the ceiling as the sun peeked through the window. The ray of sunlight grew larger and stronger, grounding Fingal’s body. His mind hummed and turned with anxious thoughts that gripped him so tightly he couldn’t move if he wanted to.

He could take off with the girl. Leave his friends in this middle-of-nowhere hamlet. At least until he figured out what to do with Riona.

But if he left without warning, his friends would search for him. That was just who they were. Good people….

She reached out a hand as one of the red embers grazed her cheek and faded into her skin.
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Chapter 11

CONNOR

Connor had read about great battles. He had often laid awake at night wondering what he’d do in exactly this kind of scenario. He’d blast his enemies with his thoroughly under-control magic. He’d rescue his friends in distress. He was—would be—the hero.

Now, in the clearing, his flare spell flew wildly out of his grasp, replicating in the sky without his consent. The magic had escaped Connor like a horde of butterflies trapped in a jar, bursting into the night and inciting chaos for friend and foe alike. He hadn’t meant for his magic to come out this way. When had he meant for his magic to do anything he wanted? The more he panicked, the more he apologized. This wasn’t how he’d imagined his first real encounter with bandits.

Connor felt Riona pull the magic gracefully and effortlessly from the ground, like a cool, icy breath. It wrapped around her body, cold and threatening—until she released it. The blast rippled throughout the clearing, sending everyone flying. Connor was knocked backward onto the grass. Beside him, Ollivan groaned as he too landed on his side.

Their eyes met briefly: in them, Connor noted Ollivan’s fear of Riona’s power….

“I was trying to fly,” she replied, wriggling out of his grip with an unsatisfied pout.
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Chapter 10

FINGAL

Fifteen Years Ago

Fingal was overcome with the chaos of dozens of people stampeding for the kitchen door.

The Fae Queen. Had she come to collect her daughter?

Had she arrived just to punish Fingal?

Riona. He had to protect her….

“You have to leave,” Riona said again to Connor, ignoring the bandit that hoisted her to her feet.
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Chapter 9

RIONA

Riona had learned many lessons growing up on the run with Fingal. The first, and the most important being, trust no one. The second? Know your local plants in the deepest woods, and the bootsteps of friend or foe, so you are never caught unaware.

But somewhere on that list was, don’t let the Scavs catch you. Especially if you’re trespassing on their territory. Their being a subjective word, as ownership granted by the capital or the royal family was not always recognized by the notorious, greedy bandits….

For the uninitiated, the Butterdome Craft show is largely considered by many professional artists to be THE Christmas craft show—at least, if you live in Western Canada, it is.

Why is it called the Butterdome? Well, because it’s held in the Butterdome building at the University of Alberta in Edmonton—which literally looks like a bright yellow butter dish.

All of the crafters I’d spoken to at Festival of Crafts unanimously said, keep applying to the Butterdome, eventually you’ll get in, and you’ll see just how amazing it will be.
Suffice it to say, I had very high expectations for this show.

I applied twice–in 2018 and in 2019. In late May 2019, I received the email: I’d been accepted for the Christmas 2019 show.

I literally had chills.

Those chills became a panic when I realized: How am I going to get all of my stuff UP to Edmonton?

Special note:

The Butterdome Craft sale happened WAY BACK in November/December 2019 – I’m only getting around to posting this now, in the middle of the COVID19 pandemic. I’ve been really busy getting The Midnight Tablet in order!

This post talks about me getting sick with a cold and trudging on with my work because I am a trooper. Obviously, don’t work or go outside if you’re sick, especially now.

For this show and for the Winnipeg show I did after this, I had a whole Cold Wellness Station that included hand sanitizer that I applied liberally after touching people and money, vitamin C chewables, tissues, water, breath mints, and fish oil. (The fish oil was also in chewable gummy format and was there to keep my hair pretty!)

In any case, I took every precaution I could to keep myself sanitized when I was at these shows.

Stay inside if you can, have a rest, practice social distancing – be safe!

Loyal readers will remember that a) I live in Calgary and b) I have a driving anxiety, and to be honest, driving around to these shows adds a whole other layer of exhaustion. Especially when you’re doing it all yourself. I also don’t own a van or a truck. (You’ll know I’ve become a real Albertan when I get one).

All I knew was, I was going to figure out a way to get all of my inventory, my display items, and myself up to Edmonton to participate.

This is the second to last show I did in 2019 and the show I was most worried about. So many moving parts came together to make this work for me.

Don’t know how to do it? LEARN

The amount of product I would need to ship ahead to this kind of show was substantial. Not to mention, the show doesn’t inherently provide vendors with tables or chairs. You can rent them at the venue (or ahead of time) or you bring them with you.

So I had to figure out how I was going to transport ~450LBs of books and tables to a place in Edmonton I had never been…and then back to Calgary.

Signatures recommended a few shipping companies they routinely work with. Loyal readers will remember my Ottawa incident where I incorrectly shipped to the wrong venue, so I was very nervous at the idea of shipping a small fortune of books, and having them arrive at the correct destination.

Nevertheless, this was the only feasible way to get my items there. Even if I were up to it, renting a big enough vehicle for several days would have been around the same price, especially when you take parking into consideration.

Before contacting a shipping company, I had to sort the inventory I thought I was going to take, stack it, measure it, and estimate the weight. My book boxes have weight printed on them, so I used that as a guide. I measured the pallet (Fortunately, I have my own pallets…because that’s how the printer ships books to me!), I measured the tables, the display items, and my tall chair, and made a preliminary stack in the basement of what I would need to send ahead of time. Which was a lot.

Then I went on YouTube and learned how to pack a pallet. Turns out, you need pallet wrap: handy, heavy-duty plastic wrap that you wrap around the entire shipment to keep everything secure! It doesn’t look like it would be very sturdy or protective but…it is. So I bought some on Amazon (I think it was around $20). I also brought it with me to the show—because remember, I’d have to do this again on the way back.

(Pinecone, get off the pallet! I don’t want to send you away!!)

I communicated with the shipping company, which was straightforward—I requested a quote and signed off on the pick-up day from my garage, which was about two weeks before the Butterdome show. The total cost about $300 each way, including a show discount and tax.

I had to carefully consider what I was sending, since I was doing this even before I went to Moncton for the Turner’s show, which was a week before the Butterdome. So even though I sent most of my supplies, product, and display up to Edmonton, I was still dragging suitcases around because there were display items I wanted to use in Moncton as well.

I wrapped the pallet and a large truck backed into our alley to take it away. Straightforward. Easy.

I was pretty pleased about all of this. If you don’t know how you’re going to do something, you figure it out. You learn. And then you do it.

Some readers might find these logistics exhausting, but they’re SUPER IMPORTANT! They are the glue that holds your operations together. I had to figure this out MONTHS in advance.

Next level problems, right?

I arrived back in Alberta from the East Coast on Monday November 25 in the evening. I had the full day on Tuesday to do laundry, re-pack, and catch up on work.

That evening, I felt cold symptoms coming on. Sometimes I get mild cold symptoms after I eat, or just in the course of a month, but it’s pretty rare I become full-on sick.

However, with all of the stress of flying across the country, my grandmother’s death, and two large shows remaining in my schedule, I didn’t want to take any chances. I packed vitamin C and tissues. I keep hand sanitizer and breath mints in my convention kit anyway.

Dave dropped me at the Red Arrow early Wednesday morning with all of my suitcases and thus, my long, long day of set-up began.

The ride to Edmonton was uneventful, but it was bitterly cold in November. I caught an Uber from the station office to the Butterdome—and hit my first snag. Once the Uber driver unloaded all of my bags in the middle of this downtown street, I had no idea how to get from the street, into the building—with no less than three full suitcases and my duct-taped banners. The sidewalks were simultaneously icy and gritty, but I managed to slide everything towards an entrance. It was a little confusing as some entrances are exit only.

Fortunately, two university students saw me struggling and offered to help me wheel my many suitcases inside the building, down the hall to the event space. Thank you, two mannies!!

Once there, I checked in and inquired nervously about my pallet. Had it arrived? Did I just come here for nothing?

…

I went to my space, and low and behold, there it was. Sitting right there, waiting to be unloaded!

What service!

WHAT A RELIEF!

Honestly, that could be the end of the story, it felt like such a victory. But no, the show hadn’t even started yet, and I was so very tired, and emotionally exhausted.

So, I trudged on.

On set-up days like this, I have to look at it as a game just to get through the day. One thing at a time, one problem at a time. I rely heavily on my strategic skills to puzzle out just how I’m going survive. Do I need a coffee? How am I going to get it? Where is the nearest take-out place that has gluten-free food? Should I eat now, and unpack later?

How much do I feel comfortable leaving in this somewhat spot while I seek out food?

I had been intermittent fasting for about two months at that point. Intermittent fasting is when you eat your meals within a specific time window—mine was 12pm-8pm.

There is some research and anecdotal accounts online about the benefits, but it hasn’t been thoroughly studied. Even so, I had decided to take it up, mostly because I was tired of cooking every meal (hard to have fast things when you can’t eat gluten) and I was interested in the mental benefits, which I also experienced.

All this is to say, I wasn’t eating in the morning away—and so I was basically only eating at the shows, since they went from 10am to 9pm half the time.

So I sourced some food and coffee at one of the university cafeterias (a bit of a confusing journey to figure out what was open and where) and ate some of my packed snacks, and set to work.

Display

It took me five-six hours to complete the set-up by myself. The most difficult parts were the horizontal banner (I can never get it centered!) and moving the heavy boxes around in such a small space. It was physically exhausting. I brought nearly $10,000 worth of stock with me on that pallet. In my suitcase, I had a contingency box of books—not enough, obviously, but a little something just in case I had another Ottawa experience.

Finally…it was done ENOUGH. Sometimes you just have to call it.

After that, I had the privilege of eating a home-cooked meal, as I stayed with family in Edmonton. Huge thank you to cousins Gordon & Kathleen for letting me stay at their place!

And thus began four long days of hauling myself to and from the Butterdome. It was -20C on most days. I walked to the venue in the morning (don’t worry, I have a long wool coat with a fur hood—I was prepared!), stopping at Starbucks my coffee in the middle of my journey. In the evenings, I’d Uber back since it was after 10pm.

On Saturday night, I pretty much accepted that this was not just the sniffles – I was full-on sick. I took the recommended maximum Vitamin C each day, dosed myself with cold medication and lathered myself in hand sanitizer just to get myself through. It had been an exhausting several weeks and I wasn’t out of the woods yet.

Misplaced Concern

More than a few shoppers approached my booth with questions like, “This market seems expensive, is it worth it for you to be here?” and “I don’t know, books seem like a hard sell, are you doing okay here?”

Imagine someone coming into your office at work and saying those things to you!

Just to clear the air, YES, it was a very worthwhile experience, financially, for me!

Yes, the booth is expensive—the most I’ve ever paid for a spot. And yes, at first glance, it seems strange that me, an author-publisher, would want to vend at a high-end craft market. Yet, if you’ll stay with me here, maybe I can shed some light to help you understand my point of view.

First, I perceive a difference between the questions, “Is it going well for you?” and “Is it worth it?” The former is gentler and can be interpreted more broadly: yes, the show is financially worth it, and yes, I am feeling well enough about the atmosphere of the show to enjoy myself while I carry out my purpose. This question I don’t mind, as it’s polite and well-meaning. The latter is an attempt to suss out my financial worth without actually coming out and asking, “So how much money are you making right now?”
The way I see it, there are two paths to profit. You have high ticket items that sell less frequently during an hour: large works of art, jewellery, clothing, and other expensive novelties. Then you have lower ticket items that sell frequently: like food or any impulse purchase. In other words, it’s high ticket items versus volume. (Do not read: quality versus volume. The volume items, like food, can still be high quality/tasty!)

Strange as it may seem, books are an impulse purchase. They are a lower ticket item ($15-$20), so I must rely on volume to make a profit. Because I’m the author, I know how to sell them, and they present well—all of these things add up to a successful show.

I think this misplaced concern partially stems from the idea that writers (and by extension, artists) don’t make money. Publishing is a tough business with thin margins. It helps that I sell direct to my readers and customers. I don’t really have many middle men to worry about. My biggest problem is keeping expenses under control, and creating and following through on a marketing plan. That’s why I constantly weed out shows that don’t perform. I’m always evaluating.

The second myth about books and publishing is that print books don’t sell anymore. Guess what? That’s completely false. Ebooks are still less than 20% of the market (in most cases, in genres like romance this percentage would be higher, as readers are especially voracious). I also know from years of experience that young readers WANT physical books. How many times has a parent looked at my prices, and said, “Oh, the eBook is cheaper, maybe we could get that?” and the teenager makes a face, holds my book tighter, and vehemently insists on a print copy? How many readers gravitate to my table, eyes wide with glee, whispering “Books!” under their breath, because they have found their place? This happens all the time. Books are not dead—some readers have changed their reading habits and consumption, but I can assure you that reading is alive and well.

Third, selling in person and direct to my reader is more than just a financial transaction. It’s an experience. That’s what the craft shows are all about—shoppers get to interact with the makers. Guess what? I’m a maker too. I create and publish and sell what I make. That’s what is so brilliant about participating. The shopper can ask me questions about the books that a regular bookseller or publisher wouldn’t be able to answer. I can inspire would-be writers. Readers can walk away with a signed copy.

Now, don’t get me wrong here. Your display and products are part of the experience. If you don’t have a high-quality product that speaks to your market, you’re finished before you even start. If you don’t know how to talk to your audience—or often in my case, the gatekeepers of your audience—it’s an uphill battle.

Is doing markets sustainable long term? I’m not certain. It’s certainly not sustainable on my body to keep going as I do. There will come a point where I’m incredibly choosy, and perhaps I’ll only do holiday shows local to my area. But I’m not quite there yet.

POST-COVID19 NOTE: I can say with certainty that people who bought from me at the Signatures craft markets have returned and bought from me online. If you are a person who has done that, THANK YOU. Again—just another reason why these markets are worthwhile, even MONTHS after doing them.

Sales

Sitting on my stool on Thursday morning as the first shoppers strolled in, I had a sudden, sinking worry: what if this show doesn’t live up to the hype? What if this is just a “regular” show for me? What if I lose money? I was so busy at the Turners show during its peak, I could have used a second person just so I wouldn’t lose that stray sale. I thought, what if one woman isn’t enough?

Well, I’m happy to announce that the Butterdome giveth—I had a record-breaking show across all fronts. I had a record setting daily total (previously held by Turners 2018), record-setting daily average, and record weekend sales overall. It blew all my other sales totals out of the water.

It’s not just number of sales—it’s the volume each customer was purchasing that made the difference. People saw the value of buying more now rather than buying one and waiting to buy more later. Only about a third of my purchases were with cash, as most opted for credit or debit.

For single books sold, Gear and Sea was the winner. For bundle deals, The Violet Fox Series took the cake. My 2-for-30 continues to be extremely lucrative, with Stars In Her Eyes being the most popular book in that deal.

Interactions

There were some really choice ones this time around.

A friendly young woman inquired about my books and we had a great chat. At the end, she casually asked, “Do you ever wonder if you’re a witch telling your ancestors’ stories?”

I was so taken aback by the question that I laughed. “What?”

“Okay, have a nice day,” she said, and left.

That one is my new favourite, hands-down.

Two older women slow-walked by my booth, checking it out. They took in my banner, and said, “Faery…like the figurines?” And just as I was about to correct them, they noticed I did not have any figurines, or dolls, laughed, and moved on.

An older man who I mistakenly believed to be interested in my books made a sexist comment to me and THEN asked, “Oh, not selling much here are you?”

UM, I RESTOCK THE TABLE ALL THE TIME. SO MY DISPLAY LOOKS NICE. AHHHH.

I also had a visit from a group of librarians who insisted I attend and vend at the Alberta Library Conference. I had looked into doing this multiple times—the main reason I haven’t lugged myself up to Jasper for it is because it’s the same weekend as Calgary Expo.

I also spent time during the late evening reading and inserting edits for a speech my sister read on behalf of the two of us at my grandmother’s funeral, held while I was in Edmonton. My mom also called me late one evening to fill me in on the funeral, so that was also appreciated. At that point, it had only been a week or less since she’d died, so everything was still raw.

Will I Go Back?

My original paragraph for this section was “OF COURSE” but now that we are in Pandemic Times, it will depend on if the Butterdome happens at all, or if it’s feasible to go, given predicted attendance.

It was about 3-4 hours of teardown and packing up my pallet for transport back to Calgary after the show ended on Sunday. Now, I could have shipped this to Winnipeg for the show the following weekend but then I would have had to also coordinate shipping BACK to Calgary. I had already shipped out books anyway, so it would have been another $600 of expenses that I did not want to deal with.

In the Uber to the Red Arrow, all I could think was, wow. Edmonton is so pretty today. I have accomplished something great.
And how the next morning, I’d be two provinces over, doing it all again…

Stay tuned for Part III of my Christmas Post-Mortems – the Winnipeg edition – as well as a 2019 show wrap-up (and a little bit about what I’m doing in the pandemic, as large shows have been cancelled).

 

This is the first in a three-weekend cross-country marathon of Christmas shows. And I’m telling you, writing this in January 2020, the only FREE MOMENT I’ve had since November 2019 to even recount this all to you—sigh—it was a dramatic whirlwind.

So let’s get started.

I arrived home to Nova Scotia extremely late on Tuesday, after being delayed in both Calgary and Ottawa for several hours because of a snow storm. For the Moncton show, I fly into Halifax and spend time with my family and either Mom or my sister Jessie will usually drive up to Moncton with me. On Wednesday, after sleeping in, I prepared my inventory and display items to pack in the car.

Nanny wasn’t doing well. She’d had an infection and wasn’t bouncing back, and was thus bedridden. She had declined in the last few years though she was always kind and eager to converse with the other residents, visitors, and staff in the Harbour View Lodge. I went to visit her with Mom on Wednesday and I noticed the difference five months had made on her. Although bedridden, she wanted to be part of the conversation around her, despite her extreme deafness. I told her (again) that I was getting married in the summer and she got very excited and said, “We’ll all go.”

I had a conversation with Joe, the showrunner, before making the trip up to Moncton about the possibility of renting tables. I was surprised to hear that yes, the supply company would be onsite to handle rentals, and it wasn’t something I had to book ahead of time. What a relief! I’m used to having to order everything months in advance.

This really helped, as I was scared we’d have to go buy more fold-out tables.

On Thursday morning, Mom got a call that Nanny was not doing better, and she decided not to go with me to Moncton. Dad would accompany me instead. This also complicated our other plans—on Sunday night, the plan was to stay in Truro, so that Mom, Jessie, and I could attend a wedding dress shopping appointment I’d made. When you only have one functioning car and you live in a rural area, changing your plans to make everything work can be difficult and stressful. But that’s probably why I’m so good at making and juggling plans. The solution is, you just make it work.

The new plan became: Dad and I would go to Moncton to do my show extremely early Friday morning, Mom would drag their Mazda convertible out of winter storage, and Jessie would come home for the weekend. We packed the car and I spent the evening making meals for Dad and I to take with us.

No one slept well on Thursday night. I was awake at 2:30am, and despite trying, couldn’t quite fall back asleep before having to get up at 5:30am.

It’s a three to three and a half hour drive to Moncton. I got in the driver’s seat, and felt very little anxiety, only a thick haze of responsibility. Dutiful readers will remember that I have a driving anxiety. Dad and I kept each other awake and when we finally got onto the highway, he helped me through the anxious parts. Eventually, the haze became extreme fatigue, and we stopped in Amherst for coffee and a Big Breakfast at McDonalds.

Dad used to do the Sunday flea markets and craft markets when I was little (he’s a carpenter) and sometimes, I’d get up early and go with him to help. We would always go to McDonalds to get a Big Breakfast meal. Sometimes Mom and I would make fudge the day before and I’d take some to sell. I was only in elementary school at the time, but I saw how rewarding it was at an early age to make and sell your own products.

He drove the remaining forty-five minutes, but still, I was quite pleased that I had done the majority of the trip.

As soon as we arrived, the red-vested volunteers came and helped us unload. The caffeine was starting to kick in and my show brain was taking over. I collected the badges and found our spot.

I went and found the supplier, and rented two tables. I got one free with the space, so I had a total of three surfaces. I lucked out with the third table, as the legs were adjustable. It was the perfect counter space! Dad and I set up in due course and I had enough time to do my hair and makeup. A woman in the bathroom said that I must sell makeup with the amount I had scattered over my corner of the counter (and the artistry with which I was applying it? lol).

Mentally though, I was already “done.” And yet this was the beginning. Not just of the weekend, but of three weekends of intense holiday retailing.

Display

I really regret not bringing my horizontal banner! Or having the patience to hang the lights I bought. I needed something against the black, because it feels a bit yard-saley without some kind of backdrop. Next time!

I love my wings! It is hard to get them to stand out against a dark background – and it takes a lot of planning to use them effectively. My sister made them and uses them for the Eastern shows–maybe this is the year I bring it back out West? (it is SO HUGE and kinda fragile, I am wary shipping it. Maybe it’ll fit on a pallet?).

This was my first-ever corner booth, by myself. I have a lot of room for improvement here. People didn’t really understand that they could COME IN to my booth, because of the way the smaller counter was positioned, and how I stood in front of it. I moved it on the Sunday to face the aisle, and this was an improvement, but it was still awkward when people came into the booth and they were just standing behind me. Next time, I’ll create a similar set up as my Signatures shows, and maybe find a way to create a smaller counter space.

Sales

Overall, sales were strong—stronger than my Calgary holiday show, Festival of Crafts. I beat last year’s sales. I was pleased with my numbers, although as always, I want more!

My $30 bundle deal continues to dominate! Gear and Sea did well as a stand-alone sale—the banner really helps! The Violet Fox outsold Stars In Her Eyes, which surprised me, as usually the cover art performs well at holiday shows. But what can I say? Fantasy is popular.

Saturday was busy, and surprisingly so was Friday, and I could have used an extra sales person! I couldn’t help but feel I was losing people, especially with my awkward set-up.

Interactions

People were surprised I’d flown all the way out east just to exhibit at this show. Yeah, the flight is costly, but the space is half the cost of the craft shows out west. And, I am a Maritimer, despite living in Calgary now—that counts for something. Also, a LOT of people told me I was a “smart girl” for writing, publishing, and selling my own stuff.

Dad stayed with me for the three days, and he made friends with my neighbours. One of them noted my busy booth and said to him, “She’s got the touch, doesn’t she.” Everyone was so friendly and helpful, thank you so much!

I also finally got the chance to meet the showrunner, Joe, who I’ve been otherwise communicating with for the last several years through email or phone. He said that he’d been meaning to introduce himself to me, but every time he came by, my booth was always so busy!

I had a pleasant interaction with a woman who, after walking away, came back for my card. She then said, “I do readings. And just now, I got chills. Something big is coming for you.”

Sweet! Something…good I hope?

One couple was shopping for their grandson. They gravitated to my science fiction series, but upon seeing the titles (Stars In Her Eyes, Dreams In Her Head), the woman announced that her grandson doesn’t like reading about girls, and told me that I should “write something with a ‘him’ in the title” and then she’d buy.

Wow, what a punch in the gut. Sometimes people will say anything to a stranger. I’ll get right on that….not. My books aren’t for everyone, and that’s OKAY. Just move on politely. Ughhh!

Nanny & Life Lessons

We knew it was coming. We just didn’t know when.

Early Saturday morning, we got the call from Mom: Nanny had passed away earlier that morning. She would have been 99 in February.

This was really hard, even though I had already said goodbye. On one hand, I could have left the show and gone back home. I could have forfeited my spot, my sales, and my profits to be a support.

But I also knew, in my heart, that I would have regretted that decision.

When you work for yourself, you have to make hard decisions and more importantly, you have to be strong enough to live with the consequences. I chose to stay and emotionally swallow everything in the name of marching on. My mom was okay with me not being there—she had amazing support and help on that day, for which I’m very grateful. I was very lucky to grow up with and have a relationship with all of my grandparents. In my mind, the time spent with them alive is the most important.

That morning, all I thought was, what do I do when someone asks how I am? How do you tell someone, “Well, my grandmother just died, but I’m here, how are you today?” Or, “Your problem of finding the right gift is rough, but I have no emotional space to deal with you right now?”

There is no right answer to this. When there’s nothing else for you to do, you have to get up and do your job and survive until the end, because this is the promise and commitment I have made to my audience. And that became my mindset through this three-weekend ordeal. Just get through this day, and the next day. I can do this, because

I know I have a deep well of strength I can draw upon when things get tough. In the short-term, I can get through. But there’s also a cost to this mentality. It is not for a long-term haul.

Instead, I lent a hand on Saturday evening by editing the (long) obituary on my phone, trying to cut out as much as I could. It was really hard. For nearly her entire life, she lived in a rural community–the same community I grew up in–and she was very active in the school board, the church, community organizations, the hospital board, and she even worked as a bookkeeper! She also loved Scottish and Irish music and would chord on the piano at the local dances, and was a big supporter of our musical endeavors.

If you knew her, you knew she was a tenacious force and the embodiment of kindness and community goodwill.

***

On Sunday, we packed everything up and loaded the car. I directed Dad out of Moncton with Google Maps. We had a good chat about a potential Christmas book I could sell during my holiday shows—something I’d been cooking in the back of my mind. I think the show turned out to be a welcome distraction for us both. Dad was also getting excited by the idea of me shipping a pallet to the venue, and all around the country.

You can tell he’s my dad because we get excited by the same things. He was an entrepreneur for most of his life too. He reads all of my post-mortems! I really enjoyed having him around during the weekend – in fact, without him, I probably wouldn’t be doing shows at all!

Once we hit Amherst, it was pouring rain. My dad’s night vision isn’t great, especially in precipitating weather, so I took the wheel and drove the rest of the way to our house in Truro. The visibility was so poor, even the trucks were going less than 70km/h. With everything that had happened over the past two days, I didn’t have emotional space to be anxious about driving in terrible weather at night, passing long, slow trucks on the highway. It was just another thing that had to be done, so that I could finally get to the place where I could rest.

Well. Kind of.

I had a wedding dress appointment in Truro on Monday morning that Mom insisted on keeping, even after Nanny’s passing. Because in our family, if you want to do multiple things, it’s best to pile them all in at one time so that they get done! It was also a happy distraction for everyone, I think.

So Dad dropped me off at the Truro house on Sunday night, where my sister Jessie was staying. Jessie and I got to unwind with some wine and get some much-needed visiting time in. Dad drove the rest of the way back home to the Eastern Shore with my show stuff and unloaded it so Mom could drive back up to Truro for the dress shopping.

On Monday morning, we (Mom, my sister, my aunt, and I) went to a little wedding boutique in downtown Truro. There were many good dresses, and I had narrowed it down to two. As I deliberated buying one, we had lunch, and Mom and Aunt Kerry finalized the funeral arrangements.

Me: I am QUEEN OF THE DRESSES

Also me: I am getting on a plane in five hours.

After deciding not to spend $2500 on a wedding dress and veil/crown (sigh), I ran errands with Mom and spent some quality time decompressing before she deposited me and my things at the airport. I really didn’t want to leave.

This was the second hard decision – not cancelling follow-up shows to stay for my grandmother’s funeral.

I wrestled with this. Turners was a good show. But the Butterdome in Edmonton was the following weekend, the holy grail of Canadian holiday craft shows. I’d already invested heavily just to do it. I couldn’t walk away.

On the plane ride back to Calgary, I outlined a short speech for Jessie to read on our behalf at the funeral. I wrote out all the life lessons Nanny had imparted to us over the years, and I thought I’d share a few here.

• If you order a milkshake, it’s your drink and your dessert!
• If you do a little bit of cleaning every day, then you never have to spend a full day doing chores. If you do it now, it will be done.
• Always look your best, no matter where you go. Especially if you can get a deal on a fashionable suit from Frenchies. If you are wearing something new, it is acceptable to ask, “Do you like my new suit?” Confidence is everything.
• If you sit on the bench at the mall, strike up a conversation with the person next to you. Inevitably, you will discover a geographical or familial connection with them, and you will see that the world is not so large or scary after all.

At this point, I was looking forward to everything being over, because on December 12, my parents would come to Calgary, and we would spend Christmas together. That was the thing I kept my sights on, to get me through.

Stay tuned for the next two post-mortems, where I:

• Attend the Edmonton and Winnipeg holiday shows, one weekend after another;
• Get horribly sick;
• Question everything about myself and my business.

Will I Go Back?

I think so, yes! Turners has a loyal crowd, and it’s worth it for me to go. And it’s a nice excuse to go home and visit family.

One moment, the Donmagh residence held its breath as the babes slept upstairs…
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Chapter 8

FINGAL

Fifteen Years Ago

One moment, the Donmagh residence held its breath as the babes slept upstairs.

The next, it was the center of activity, for guests would be arriving any moment.

Donlorgan, Donnoch’s father, and Maghlae hurried in and out of the house as they compensated their workers with bread and coin, received updates on the construction, issued new instructions for the project, and invited their workers to stay for the party. Despite this invitation, the workers seemed content to remain outside, even in the somewhat chilly air. Fingal did not complain, as he had no interest in acquainting himself with more strangers, especially in the face of meeting dozens of people in a few short hours. Brendan, unable to contain his excitement for the party, had been instructed to run to the market to retrieve whatever produce the farmers had left. He dutifully bounded down the road with his never-ending reserve of energy….

It’s that time of year again! By that I mean – CHRISTMAS!

HOW IS IT ALREADY NOVEMBER AHHH! And oh dear, it’s almost the end of the decade too. Where are the years going??

Darkness In Her Reach is FINALLY OUT! It arrived several weeks ago, along with some reprints. Don’t have your copy? Get it here.

Show Prep

This is my third time doing the Festival of Crafts. Last year, I did an extraordinary amount of show prep that made this year easier. I already knew what my space would look like. I completed my fireproofing, much harder this year when you have two kitties who want to know what you’re doing in the bathroom with tasty chemicals. I made my meals for four days and did a grocery shop for snacks.

I felt fairly blasé about rolling in and setting up. The first year, I was so nervous. The second year, I was proud and excited about my improvements. This year, I was overly optimistic about my potential sales and dreading the beginning of the aggressive Christmas schedule I’ve created for myself.

Thank you to Dave who endures and accommodates the many boxies and helps out with my set up and take down.

Display

This is essentially the same display as last year, except more filled out because of my two new titles. I also rolled out my Sparkstone Saga banner, finally! I bought an extra box set from Michaels for more shelf impact, and a light up whiteboard as a fun prop. The booth looked very well appointed, if I do say so myself – if not TOO busy! There really is a lot going on.

I also had a display board printed advertising my podcast – it turned out quite well! Though it was quite large. I like the idea of doing this for some of my more permanent informational displays, as they seem somewhat more durable than my plastic stands.

I rolled my fabrics after fireproofing and drying as an exhibitor last year recommended, but I still have wrinkles! I think maybe ironing them with a towel might be the answer? Do I even own an iron…? I’m tellin’ ya, this fabric maintenance is my least favourite part of selling at craft shows, sigh.

One piece of my display that still needs improvement is lighting! I got lucky this time – I was under a light. I know, I should really just pull the trigger on some clamp lights I’ve been eying. Especially since I have three more big Christmas shows to go!

Newsletter!

I’ve been quietly working on my newsletter strategy and for the first time I’m using my laptop-tablet to capture email addresses. In the past, I’d put out a paper sheet, but at the end of the show, the list was so daunting and often illegible that I often never ended up inserting the interested parties into my system. Yikes!

For this, I just created an excel spreadsheet for people to enter their names and emails. Then, after the show, I exported the list and inserted it into the system. Easy!

I even created an opt-in – an eBook version of book one of Wingtorn, my fantasy serial podcast. But I don’t think I even needed this. People who put themselves on my list at a show are already warm to me from having a conversation.

But if you would like this eBook, you are more than welcome. ” />

Sales

I did well – this show is great, the shoppers are great, and my readers are incredibly loyal and amazing. But I didn’t reach my sales goals, and I was actually down slightly from last year—despite having TWO new titles.

Here’s why I think that is:

• Remembrance Day Weekend. This year, November 11 fell on a Monday. International readers may not realize that Remembrance Day is a somber holiday that recognizes the sacrifices of veterans in past wars as well as people currently in service. It’s oddly placed in the Canadian mental calendar in that we’re just getting over Halloween, and suddenly Christmas music is blaring and decorations are for sale, but going all out on Christmas before Remembrance Day is generally considered disrespectful and tactless, from a retail point of view. In fact, many shoppers weren’t even thinking about their Christmas shopping when I spoke with them – they were browsing booths for themselves. Considering that this is technically a holiday show, and we as vendors are expecting/hoping customers are thinking about buying gifts, this impacts sales greatly.
• Competition with other markets. Calgary has a bajillion holiday markets! Again, people have lots of time before Christmas (so we all think!) to shop around. I had more than one person ask me if I had any other local markets on my schedule.
• Sunday snow. Saturday evening and Sunday morning, we had a dump of snow. Not as much as they were forecasting (10-20 cm) but enough that it deterred morning shoppers. Although, as one of my booth neighbours pointed out, people may be at church on Sunday morning. It did pick up after noon, so perhaps both factors contributed! Doing shows during the winter is always a risk – but one worth taking.
• Expectations. I had wildly high expectations for this show, and set aggressive goals accordingly. So when I don’t meet them, I feel disappointed.

Many customers paid via credit or debit, not cash – that’s usually a sign that they aren’t necessarily on a budget, so that was not a contributing factor in my mind.
This is just further proof that more books do not equal more sales—at least not in a one-to-one correlation. This is only my third year doing the show, and I’m still getting new customers who have never seen my booth before.

Title-wise, Stars In Her Eyes made a strong showing at this show! Gear and Sea did well too, since it’s an easy sell and impulse buy, but Stars In Her Eyes really took the cake here. According to my past data, book one of whatever series I launch a new book in has a spike in sales for the year—so naturally, as Darkness In Her Reach is FINALLY OUT, Stars In Her Eyes is currently seeing that bump. I sold a fair number of The Violet Fox bundles and my two for thirty deal continues to be the driving force behind my sales.

This show, so far, is my highest grossing of the year. I did well! It just didn’t meet my (very high) expectations. It’ll be interesting to see how I do at Turner’s in two weeks, as last year, these two shows were neck-in-neck for me.

Interactions!

I had many funny and strange interactions at this show.

On the first day, an older man entered my booth and we were chatting about books, and he said, “My granddaughter is into writing, but there’s no money in it.”

“I beg to differ,” I replied, gesturing to the space I paid several hundred dollars for, knowing that I can (fairly confidently, at the very least, baring terrible weather or outside influence) triple my investment.

While I tried to explain, as much as I can in my limited time with any one customer, my perspective, he continued to believe that while his granddaughter could write, perhaps it was not the best choice of career.

Yes, this is a difficult business with thin margins (especially traditional publishing)—but saying there’s no money in it is not only wrong, it creates a mindset that makes it acceptable to make no money. Which makes it easier for others to take advantage of you, or for you to undervalue yourself.

A book is a product like any other. If you price it right, build your audience, and sell smart – you can make money. And like anything else, it takes hard work and time to grow it into a sustainable business, should you choose to do so.

I had far more people ask me this year if I self-publish, or if I publish other people. Some are trying to test my knowledge or sneakily inquire about my sales or evaluate my worth by listening to how I got into publishing. Others are just impressed that I’m “so young” to have nine books! One woman thought I was in my late teens! For the record, at the time of writing, I am thirty-one.

–

A woman approached my booth, and without preamble, asked, “How are your sales going?”

“Oh, good,” I replied, a little blindsided—as other shoppers tend to be far more tactful in their wording of this question.

She proceeded, “Are you renowned?”

Now I was even more stunned. How often to you hear that word spoken aloud? I had to repeat the question to ensure I’d heard correctly. I rattled off a very noncommittal answer about how building an audience is a process but my progression has been favourable.

Then, the final nail in the coffin: “Are you a witch?”

Oh, I thought, okay, this is our destination. It’s not the first time the name or look of the brand has given the mistaken impression that I have New Age products on offer. I gave a polite answer and explained that I sell teen fantasy and science fiction novels. This successfully curtailed further questions.

–

A young girl approached my booth and excitedly interacted with all my books. She immediately wanted Stars In Her Eyes, and informed her mother. She gave the typical winking response (“Well, Christmas is coming…”). When her mother told her it was time to go, the girl said, very seriously, “This is heaven. I don’t want to leave.”

It took some convincing! But let’s just say, the mother ended up returning, and that girl is going to have a happy surprise on Christmas morning. ” />

Good People!

I was beside Like Grampa, a company that sells beard oil and other shaving balms, and across from Hot Dame, a clothing line run by two sisters. It was great to be among other entrepreneurs who are around my age, who are pursuing their passions. Chatting with them, it’s like I can see my path. All I have to do is X, then Y, then Z, and then, I will be even more successful. It’s like I’m staring at a formula on a chalkboard, and it all magically makes sense. This feeling doesn’t last long outside the show—keeping that inspiration to move forward after marinating, that’s the tricky part.

On a non-business note, we went out with some friends for ramen over the weekend for Dave’s birthday celebration, and ended up playing the TIME Stories board game (my favourite!) and sipping Chinese whiskey. It was delightful to spend time after work (ah!) doing something normal with friends.

Thank you to all my friends who stopped by to say hi at the booth!!

Hal-Con Mini Post-Mortem

A couple of weekends ago, my sister did Hal-Con in Halifax for me! This is what, the seventh year Faery Ink Press has done the show? (LOOK AT THOSE WINGS!)
Unfortunately, it was a record bad year for sales. Why? They placed the authors outside the main vendor hall, along with the artist guests. Traffic was apparently extremely low in that area, compared to the main hall. Maybe people didn’t know there were artists outside the hall?

I love Hal-Con, and they are one of the best-run shows in the country – but that’s why I’m giving them tough love here.

There are a lot of cons for putting all of the authors together in one row—I’m personally not a fan. It’s tough to get people to browse an all-book aisle (unless they LOVE books – but then it’s immediately a competition for the reader’s dollar). The artist guests, as talented and great as they are, will not drive traffic to the area either. I’ve seen Hal-Con use this logic before with similar results. Remember, guests can come and go as they please, and often, they don’t have impactful displays. They are not necessarily there to sell (though it depends on the guest), and if they’re not there making an impact, the attendee is probably not going to meander down that row, unless they know that artist’s work. For this reason, being across from the artist guests can be a blessing or a curse.

Remember the year I was an artist guest, and they put us in the weirdest spot, and my readers had to go all over the building just to find me? Remember the year when they put all the artist guests and half the artists in a separate room on a different floor?

I feel like they have less of an excuse now for strange placement choices, with the new, hopefully less confusing building? (I have not actually been inside yet).

Will Faery Ink Press return to Hal-Con? I don’t know. It’s clear to me that I require a large booth, and shoving nine titles into a 6 or 8ft table is no longer feasible. So if I do return, I will spring for the vendor booth to ensure visibility – and maybe it’s time I yet again make a personal appearance.

Will I Go Back?

If they’ll have me, I’ll be back at the Festival of Crafts! Since I live here, I can maximize the show easily.

As I hinted at the beginning, I have an aggressive Christmas/holiday show schedule. I’ll be at Turner’s in Moncton from Nov 22-24, then the Butterdome (ee!) in Edmonton from Nov 28-December 1, and finally the Signatures Show in Winnipeg from December 5-8.

I’m literally cross-crossing the country. THIS IS FINE. See you there!

So…I did a thing.

This year, 2019, is a major self-development year for me. I have invested and reflected and strategized and planned, and I know that because of this year, the new decade will be my biggest and best.

Part of this development? I participated in Marie Forleo’s B-School earlier this year, which is a whole separate post I’ll write at some point, but what tipped the scales on joining was a free ticket to this event, The Entrepreneur Experience with Amy Porterfield: a three-day digital marketing conference in Coronado, San Diego, California, hosted by none other than the guru herself, Amy Porterfield. Her podcast, Online Marketing Made Easy, is amazing, and her paid material is just as good, if not better.

As soon as I saw the event advertised back in February, a voice inside said, “You should go.”

When that voice speaks, I listen.

I had never been to San Diego, or California – I don’t think I’ve been to the United States by myself.

Now, for the new readers joining me here – welcome. My name is Clare! I’m an author-publisher, aka, I write young adult science fiction and fantasy novels and I travel around Canada selling them. I also, somewhat notoriously, as much as one can be notorious for doing so, write about my book selling experiences here, on this blog.

I’ve been doing so since 2013, and if you’d like, you can go back and see how I used to be, and follow me to where I am now.

I live in Calgary, Alberta, a place that has already had two snowstorms, and it’s already October. So, yes, I thought, I am definitely going to a place of seemingly eternal summer to learn about business.

And since I’ve travelled all over Canada, lugging and selling product, my first thought about travelling to San Diego with comparatively fewer logistics (aka, not lugging 4 suitcases around) was, “I can make this work.”

Fortunately, I did have a companion with me for the weekend. Sherry Peters is an author/writing coach in Winnipeg, and a friend of mine from the writing community. Sometime in March, I did a Facebook post related to B-School, and Sherry messaged me about it, and as it turned out, is also a fan of Amy Porterfield and did one of her online courses. We agreed to go to share a room at the event and generally be a support to one another!

This write-up isn’t like my usual post-mortems, since I didn’t go to California to sell or promote my business. I went to this conference as a business owner seeking to improve my online marketing knowledge. I came away refreshed and refined in my vision.

In the weeks leading up to the event, I was nervous. Travelling by myself is fine, though now that I’m settled in our house, it takes a lot more effort to leave. I was also nervous about travelling on business, even though I wasn’t selling or even promoting anything. There was no schedule sent out beforehand – only basic times for the three days. I was worried my many make-up products would be confiscated at the border, as I wasn’t checking a bag. I was worried about the political climate – what if something happened while I was there, and I couldn’t get home? I was also afraid that my anxiety would prevent me from having fun – isn’t it great when your fear of fear gets in the way?

Pavlova was like, “I come too?”

The actual getting there was straightforward. The event was from Thursday to Saturday, so I flew in on Wednesday and out on Sunday. The last time I flew into the States was with my family, when we did a Europe trip in 2009. I had no idea how long customs was going to take, so I went early just in case. I passed through with no issues, with all of my make-up organized and presented appropriately during US security, settling into the US side of the Vancouver airport with the biggest helping of Pad Thai I’ve seen in some time.

When I got off the plane in San Diego…wow. Palm trees. That was my first thought. I knew I was going from winter to summer, but seeing real palm trees reminded me that I’m really in another country now. Finally, my fears about the trip had subsided, and I felt…excited. I was in another country on a business trip to improve my business.

And also, PALM TREES AND TWENTY-THREE DEGREE CELSIUS WEATHER.

(that’s a picture at the resort – for lunch every day, I had poolside tacos with the palm trees)

Once I stowed my winter jacket in my luggage, I bravely figured out Uber (which I use frequently, but never at the airport, since pickup locations can be confusing, and certainly never in a different country!). The driver noted my excitement and told me the location of the event was an extremely nice place. This wasn’t the first time a stranger had commented on my destination. My seatmates on the plane mentioned Coronado was basically a resort town, located on an innsmouth, across a bridge from San Diego proper.

And, they were right. Driving into it, it was SO CUTE and the houses were large, or at the very least, beachy. Million-dollar homes, no doubt. We drove through Coronado, then along a beachside highway, and arrived at the destination: Loews Coronado Bay Resort.

I knew from the pictures it was swanky. I was already overwhelmed. A bellhop opened the door for the Uber, and the driver got my (one, small) piece of luggage. Behind the glass doors to the main building, Sherry was there, waving at me. I felt I could barely process it all.

She had been there for a few hours, as her flights were earlier than mine, and she’d already checked in to the room and registered. Good thing, as she artfully guided me to registration, where I was met with smiles from Amy Porterfield’s team. I got my badge, with my B-School flair, dropped everything off at the room, and the two of us celebrated our arrival on the busy veranda with tacos and desert (crème brulee, obviously).

The Sessions

The event itself consisted of multiple general sessions that were about 90 minutes each in a main auditorium (a giant ballroom), with 20-30 minute networking breaks and of course, breaks for lunch and supper. Just one session for everyone – no separate sessions based on expertise or business type. We got a schedule at check-in, but we were not told before hand who would be speaking when, or what each session block would be about. My sense was they didn’t want people to cherry-pick speakers or topics, which I can understand.

There were four main speakers, besides Amy Porterfield: Rachel Hollis, Stu McLaren, Gina Gomez, and Jasmine Star. Going in, I’d heard of Rachel Hollis, I knew Stu by name and business, and I’d researched Jasmine Star, Instagram guru.

The two major themes of the weekend were:

• You are a big deal: you deserve to take up space, you are worthy, and you are going to achieve your goals.
• Stop playing small in your business/it’s time to play a bigger game: Don’t let fear get in the way of going after your goals. Make the leap. Don’t use busy work as an excuse for not working on your big dream.

Writing them down like that is belittling, and it’s hard to communicate how deep these two ideas resonated with me, especially the second. I already know that I’m here to make a difference—that I am going to achieve my goals. But I have to work on playing big. It’s not something that you decide once in a different country by the palm trees.

You decide it every day with your actions when you show up in your business.

Amy Porterfield, as expected, was brilliant in her sessions. She gave practical marketing strategies that I’m excited to try out in the next several months! Even though her focus is course-based business, almost every strategy she teaches can be applied to product-based businesses. Her sessions also included mini activities where we’d write down goals or thoughts, and she gave people the opportunity to share. This was annoying at times, as people can run long, but also inspiring. Most of the people there were women. I don’t think I’ve ever been around so many entrepreneurial women before, expressing their honest fears and joys at running a business.

(me and Amy Porterfield – I AM SO SHINY AND FRIZZY AHH). Amy is perfect, as usual.

Jasmine Star was an amazing speaker—extremely brilliant, present, and genuine. You really felt like she was there to help. She critiqued submitted Instagram feeds from entrepreneurs who attended the event, and then answered questions at the microphones—and brooked no long-winded stories! She made social media more approachable for me, and I know that’s an area where I’ve struggled.

Stu McLaren is a membership & subscription business expert. And a fellow Canadian! Like I said, even though this isn’t my business model, it didn’t mean that I didn’t have something to take away from his session on pre-launch content and showing up in a genuine way.

Gina Gomez is a business coach and she talked about one-to-one client work. While some of what she said was applicable for my creator-customer relationships, I’m trying to move away from my one-to-one client work, so this was a bit moot for me.

Rachel Hollis was a speaker I was unsure about. I read Girl, Stop Apologizing on the ride down, and was disappointed in the content. I wanted more. One of her concepts—her ten, ten, one system, which is part of her motivation/goal-setting journal that we all received—I latched onto, and have already incorporated into my daily routine since returning from the conference. More on my takeaway from Rachel Hollis’s talk below.

The three days were packed with motivational speeches and practical strategy. I’d say it was about 50-50, which I’m happy about. I’ve come to appreciate this year the value of the right mindset, and I can contribute that to B-School, Amy Porterfield’s content, and all of the books I’ve picked up since going on this journey this year.
Could the sessions have been improved? Definitely! I would have appreciated a choice of session on at least one of the days and a dedicated “quiet” room for reflection and journaling between sessions. We were encouraged not to return to our hotel rooms—totally understandable, they want us to mingle—but by Day 2, my head was spinning with ideas, and all I wanted was to leave and make a plan right there and then to implement everything I was learning.

Again, I’m so glad I had Sherry there with me. We dissected each session in the evenings, discussing our opinions, and how we were going to implement when we returned home.

Because that’s the hard part—the conference can be great, but if you don’t go home and make a plan and then implement that plan…well, what’s the point? That’s the other reason I had to do a post-mortem. So I could remember all the good that came from my trip, so I can continue to show up in the best way possible.

Overall, people were extremely polite and eager to make connections, during and in between sessions. Just talking with my fellow entrepreneurs in the flesh was like finding those who not only speak the same language, but your dialect too. I met so many people at multiple stages of their business journey, yet we all have the same problems: marketing, technology, and getting “stuck” in mindsets that don’t serve us.

About half the people I talked with had a standing weekly call with accountability partners across the country. The other half? They were looking for that connection, that business BFF, if you will. I realized, I already have an accountability partner–it’s Sam. We talk every day about everything under the sun but we keep each other going, creating, and I appreciate our special friendship all the more because of this experience.

Interactions: “So, what’s your business?”

This year, I completely changed how I answer this question. At the conference, this is how I responded:

“I write and publish books and I travel around the country selling them.”

It has taken me a long time to even FEEL COMFORTABLE describing my business in this way. Or calling Faery Ink Press “a business.”

Even in 2018, when book customers at my trade shows would ask if Faery Ink Press was my full-time gig, I’d proceed to vomit all over myself: “Oh, this? These books are just this…thing…I do on the weekends. I’m also a freelance editor, book designer, website manager….you know. Everything to do with publishing.”

Even though I spend countless hours writing, producing, and travelling for Faery Ink Press?

Even though book sales accounted for half my income in 2018?

“Oh, it’s just this…thing…I do on the weekends, whatever, you know.”

I was downplaying myself, making myself smaller to avoid dealing with the inevitable follow-up questions—which the other entrepreneurs at this conference dealt in spades.
So when I told them, “I write and publish books and I travel around the country selling them,” I got the following replies, pretty much every time:

• “Oh, I’ve always wanted to write a book…” If I had a nickel! Write your book, what are you waiting for? DO IT NOW.
• “My [insert relative here] is writing a book, can I have your card?” Sure, but I don’t publish other people—right now, or possibly ever, we’ll see—but you’re welcome to read my blog for writing and publishing and marketing information!
• “Wow, I’ve never met an author before!” I am always in shock when people say this to me. You probably have met an author, you just don’t know it! ” />
• “So, okay. I need to know literally every single thing you do as an author and a publisher because it sounds fascinating.” Thank you! It is fascinating because I enjoy doing it, and I also enjoy figuring out ways to be better at it. This usually devolves into a long monopolizing conversation—which I only indulge if the conversational partner is truly interested.

Writing and publishing enjoy a strange, elevated place in the landscape—books are wonderful, magical objects that make us feel. Yet often people can’t imagine that they too can create wonderful, magical objects. You don’t need to wait for permission or an authority to tell you to do so. You don’t need a magical power or inspiration. You just have to schedule time and doing it. Because the truth is, writing a book is only just the beginning. Getting the word out there about a thing you create? That’s the real challenge.

(that’s the balcony of the sole restaurant on the resort. The sun is setting and the water is still, and palm trees poke their heads at the grey and pink sky.  Sherry and I ate our last meal there after spending time at the beach.)

Takeaways:

Finally, here are my key takeaways from the weekend.

1. I am climbing a mountain.

I have always had a long-term outlook on my business. After all, I’m a writer, and you do that until you die. Yet when I experience a setback, or when I become anxious, it is difficult to see the path forward. In Rachel Hollis’s talk, she described the entrepreneurial journey—or any large business decision/undertaking—as deciding to climb a mountain. As she has a religious background, she puts it in the following (paraphrased) context:

When you make that decision to play a bigger game, and climb the mountain, God says, “Hmm, okay. I see you.” He proceeds to throw obstacles in your way. These obstacles might be more difficult than the ones you’re used to. If you give up, God says, “Hey, what’s going on? I thought you wanted to climb this mountain?” The obstacles are there to make you strong enough, tough enough, to survive the climb.

After we spilled out of the general session room, everyone was pumped up from her motivational speech, excitedly chattering away on the balcony in the sunshine, and all I could feel was this overwhelming, depressing heaviness. All I wanted was to go back to the hotel room and be alone. I stared out at the water, trying to figure out why I felt so affected, and slowly, it unravelled.

Religious context and convenient synchronicity aside, her words revealed the theme of the weekend in a new light: the time for playing small is over.

It is easy for me to tell other people that this business is hard. That being a creative entrepreneur is tough. I have been selling books for a long time now, people read these post-mortems, and I have proven I have something worthy to teach my community. When I turn this blinding power on myself, I see how my anxiety shapes my decisions and how it keeps me small.

In a lot of ways, I am starting at the bottom once more, as I shed the old and unwanted parts of my work and take my business to the next level. While I don’t shy away from a challenge, I often agonize over all the angles and worst-case scenarios—which takes up a lot of mental space. What I took away from that hour of Rachel Hollis was not that I’m climbing a mountain, but to trust in the climb and my ability to deal with the obstacles as they occur.

2. I’ve been upside down this whole time.

When most of you see me, I’m well put together. I make an effort on my appearance, I tailor my table display, my books are arranged prettily for you to browse. Likely, I’m wearing a nice dress and I’m probably feeling confident, even if I don’t have the homefield advantage.

All of this requires a lot of forethought. I don’t just “show up” to my shows and dump books on the table, especially if I have to travel to another city. I book or arrange accommodation, travel, and investigate my food options. I gauge trends from previous years so I can make sales predictions and prepare inventory accordingly. I ship product ahead and plan contingencies. I sort my display items and decide my set up. Sometimes I order new or replace old display pieces, which increase my value proposition for the reader.

All this happens before you even see me at a show.

Of course, this all made sense to me. I have to do these things. If I don’t, I don’t have a successful show.

And then it dawned on me.

>>If I approach MARKETING like I approach trade show logistics & prep, I could take my game to the next level.<<

I publish a book a year (two in 2019!), which is a fast turnaround for market standards. But by the time I get to “the part” where I “have” to market my books, I’m burnt out. I don’t even want to look at the book. I’m so nervous and blind to its imperfections, and yet weirdly at the same time, hyperaware of everything that could be wrong with it.

Even though I worked so hard, I’m afraid of putting it out there so fresh and raw.

The problem of course, is I put all my energy into creation up front – instead of marketing.

I’ve been thinking about marketing as this nebulous, untouchable THING that I have to perform at least once to say “well I tried” before hunkering down on the next project.

That’s why a lot of authors (including me) get stuck. They see marketing as a one-time, somewhat unattainable necessity, or as an opportunity to bark from the social-media rooftops for a week or two before returning to the creation cave.

Instead, I need to be thinking and planning my online marketing before I even write the book. Or at the very least, before the book goes into production.

This is a very bland takeaway, in one sense. Like, duh, of course marketing has to be planned. If I don’t plan it, it doesn’t happen. That’s Amy Porterfield 101, people. But I’ve been strategic about my trade shows and not my marketing as a whole, and that’s why one has been successful, and the other hasn’t.

We were also challenged to make a big decision about our business during the conference.

I will not tell you what that decision is here. It is more than just winding down my freelance work or creating a major marketing campaign or becoming a traditional publisher. It is about the Big Picture I’ve been fumbling towards, now crystallized clearly like a winding path, blazing up a steep, Banff-worthy mountain. It’s about changing the mindset of an entire industry. Instead of getting angry or frustrated at what my industry is, I have to take a deep breath, and embrace my path, and maybe others will follow.

Will I return?

I don’t know if I’d return to this specific event – as insightful and fun as it was! It’s a long way to go from Alberta, and travel, accommodation and food isn’t cheap! However, it helped me realize the importance of attending a conference for the purpose of learning and becoming re-invigorated in the why of my business. I certainly needed that. We all work alone, and for all of us to come together and talk about our process, even though we are in totally different industries, is VITAL to growth and resilience.

Perhaps I need an event that’s just for me and my self-development each year. I already know of at least one other in the US I’d love to attend, and there are probably a dozen more I could sink my teeth into.

Maybe I’ll return in a couple of years and see how much the event grows–I much I grow.

Thanks Team Porterfield for putting on such a great event!

See you next week at the Festival of Crafts, in Calgary, Alberta!

“You don’t know what it’s like for me. So until you do, don’t ever tell me what to do.”
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Chapter 7

CONNOR
This was not how Connor’s life was supposed to unfold.

He had seen so clearly, months ago, his future: walking into his dormitory at the Tower. They provided sparse, shared living for students who wished to study magic. He imagined bunks stacked ten beds high. He sketched out the faces he’d meet, their personalities and backstories. Together they fought bullies and learned spells and stayed up late reading forbidden texts—except they weren’t really forbidden anymore, as it was the Tower, and they were esteemed students.

He saw the years go by, and the friendships deepen, and the heartache and sorrow that come with first love. Then, he and his friends stood together, on the fateful day they were proclaimed official wielders by the Chief Magistrate, and Connor closed his eyes, feeling fulfilled and warm.

This fantasy shielded him, a kind of numbing escape from the increasingly dark forest, the roar of the river he found himself sitting by, and the rough, rocky grass beneath him. The trees stood sentry immediately behind and across the narrow river, another comfort he wasn’t ready to abandon. The events of the past day were catching up with him. All he wanted was to lie by the rushing comfort of the water and let sleep take him. If he deserved it, the magic of the Spirit Mother, also in slumber, would protect him.

If not, well, he deserved whatever he got….

“I am very real,” she said definitively.
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Chapter 6

RIONA

The dairbvali tree grew in thickly forested areas of the continent. Long and spindly, like a brown snake, its wood was bendy and fibrous, perfect for crafting. Every frequent traveler in the woods knew how to coax the wood into submission, a skill not easily learned but wisely mastered by the desperate and the cunning. Riona did not have to venture far from Ollivan’s unconscious form to spot a patch of dairbvali, spiraling upward to the shaded sky above. Three thin trunks grew like vines, nearly as tall as Riona herself. Using Ollivan’s sword, she hacked them down unceremoniously, ever vigilant for enemies in the shadows. This was not the first time she had crafted dairbvali rope. Fingal had shown her years ago, and he must have learned during the war. She deftly sliced the thin dairbvali trunks in two and tested their meddle over her knee. They bent easily and did not crack. At each end, she slit the bark further, to twine the pieces together. The earthy smell of the tree wafted into her nose and reminded her of Fingal, and although she wished he was here, to guide them, Riona felt strong enough—ready—to handle this problem on her own.

She collected her supplies and trudged back to Ollivan, still slumped where they’d left him. Riona sighed. Connor was not here to help her tie up his friend—although his cooperation was not assured. She sensed him nearby, though where, she couldn’t pinpoint. To be more precise would require expending her magic, and that would leave them vulnerable to the fae militia, who may be scouting these woods for them. Connor would be fine for a few minutes. The shock of everything had only just settled upon him….

General Impressions

The day after Saskatoon, Sam and I rented a car, drove back to Calgary, and dropped it off that night and celebrated with Village ice cream. We holed up at my home in Calgary for the rest of the week to work on our respective client work and prepare for the Edmonton show. The week passed fairly uneventfully, and soon, it was Friday morning – the day of the con.

We got up early and Dave dropped us at the car rental in Crowfoot before going to work. We had costed it out, and it made the most sense to rent a car for the day to drive us and our many, many things up to Edmonton. She had many boxes and a large suitcase, and I’m at a point where I’m burgeoning with inventory. Sam very graciously drove us up – thank you Sam!

Load in was fairly simple – Sam snagged a large dolly so we loaded it up in one trip. My set up takes a little over an hour, and I still had about two hours until the show opened for the advanced pass holders. So I lugged my makeup and suitcase to the bathroom, did my face, and stuffed myself with snacks to survive the 2pm-9pm Friday shift.

Display

Such a difference, going from eight feet the previous week to six this week!

I put everything on the table – you can barely see me (or the banners!). But it does give the table a more weighty presence.

I believe I mentioned this in my Calgary write-up, but I’m basically at my limit for six-foot tables. Everything is so smooshed! It’s tough to know when to jump to the next level, because you’re basically doubling your booth expenses. I’m at a good place with my Edmonton expenses and I don’t relish the idea of adding to it without seeing a little more growth.

Sales

I did really well! I had a 7% increase in sales from 2018, which means I set a new record for Edmonton sales. Not too bad! I surpassed my minimum sales goal but I didn’t quite hit my ideal goal (match my Calgary sales).

People were feeling the brand power! I was a little worried on Friday, as it was slower than expected, and Sunday morning also lagged, but once 11am hit on Saturday AND Sunday, sales rolled in one after another, basically non-stop. Especially on Saturday. I could barely keep up! Until 3pm, I was essentially slammed.

Gear & Sea performed extremely well, as is the course for being an attractive new book with a prominent display and banner. The Violet Fox and Stars In Her Eyes were neck-in-neck. I only sold a handful of series bundles, with most people preferring my 2 for $30 deal. Since my series bundles are creeping up there in price, I think this is a trend that will continue, unless I introduce another bundle pricing tier.

Unfortunately I didn’t have Darkness In Her Reach available – the printer notified it shipped on Thursday the 19th! However, I took several pre-orders! I’m sitting here writing this post-mortem in my front room, waiting for the books to arrive. As soon as they do, I’ll sort, package, and ship!

**At the time of this post-mortem’s publication, the books arrived on Thursday the 26th, I packaged on Friday, and shipped on Monday! Thank you everyone!**

Once again, many people were reporting a decrease in sales. Attendees are on budgets. More and more, customers are paying with cash to limit their spending. The convention had four large guest cancellations right before the event, which could’ve also hurt attendance. That’s not in our control and sometimes we have to roll with it.

The downturns are trials for our businesses – if we can survive and thrive during them, we will be prepared to grow and thrive during the upswings. Listening to your customers and delivering what they want is a major component of staying alive. They can tell you with their words what they want, but they will also tell you with their money, too—including what they won’t spend money on.

So Many Questions!

More than usual, I had attendees stopping at the table to ask me many questions about writing and publishing! I absolutely LOVE talking about what I do so I’m always happy to answer questions, so long as it doesn’t stop me from making sales. Most of the questions came during down times anyway so it was all good!

I had one particularly curious university student ask me some extremely detailed questions about how much I make! Hey, that’s so personal!

But he also asked, “Are you happy?”

SUCH A HEAVY QUESTION!

I mean, yeah. I have the means and the know-how to create and run a creative business. I’ve paid off my student loans, I live in a house with my fiancé, I have two kitties, and I am, for the most part, free to pursue the projects that create joy and wealth. But this came with sacrifice, hard work, and discipline. I still have a lot to learn about being an entrepreneur and although I see the path ahead, the shape of it isn’t always clear.

It’s more obvious than ever that I need to create a couple of in-depth FAQs about writing and publishing that I can just refer people to, since I’m usually repeating myself with my advice.

Fun People!

After 9pm, I was starving, having survived largely on gluten-free pretzels, discount raspberries, and gluten-free crackers. We drove literally down the street to check into our AirBnB – a newly opened, restored historical building in the Highlands. There was a café, a cute gift store, a bookstore, and a restaurant – The Fox Burger – which was alive and well that evening – on street level, while the units were on floors two to four.

We unloaded and dragged our things into the building and shuffled into a suspiciously slow manual lift, which fortunately caused us no problems, only mild anxiety at the thought of becoming stuck.

Check-in was easy. Since Sam wasn’t hungry, she went to drop the car, and I set about finding some food. The delivery options for me at that hour were fairly abysmal, so I decided to chance it at the Fox Burger below.

It occurred to me as I descended the stairs and entered the restaurant that I’ve only eaten alone at a restaurant once before. It was busy but not packed. Most of the patrons seemed to be about my age, perhaps other attendees of the con and neighbourhood folk.

I spotted an empty two-person table next to a man, who was eating by himself and on his phone. I thought that was a relatively safe spot to sit. And so, I treated myself to a salted caramel apple milkshake and a lettuce-wrapped burger, and also took out my phone to text with Sam and Dave.

At the end of my meal, Sam arrived to join me. I was just settling up with the waitress and we were talking about the Expo when I noticed the man next to me also raised his head, intrigued about our conversation.

I looked over, and our eyes met, and what do you know? It was my neighbour from Calgary, Wayne, who runs Stitched Pixels! As it turns out, Wayne and I think similarly. Not only did we decide to come to the same restaurant at the same time, but we ALSO booked the same AirBnB – we were right across the hall from one another!

It was so nice to run into him again! Also, he deserves a huge shout-out for helping me load OUT my things, saving me from calling an Uber at the end of the convention.

THANKS WAYNE!

Industry Thoughts

On Saturday evening, I attended the Happy Harbour after-hours party, hosted by the new owners and attended largely by other vendors and my friends in the industry.

I had some illuminating chats about the trials that publishers face in this country. Loyal readers know I’d like to make Faery Ink Press into a traditional publisher at some point in the future…or at least, that is what I’ve been working towards. It requires enormous investment upfront – and yet, I keep asking myself, “Is it worth it?”

It is far easier to market the works of one author than many. People don’t say, “I’m waiting for the next HarperCollins book.” They’re looking for their favourite authors’ titles. The biggest problem I see with the single-author press model is scaleability. You can sell off film and audio rights or produce ancillary merchandise and spin-off products, but at the end of the day, you’re one person with multiple series and you only have so many hours in the day to create. When you die, you’re done.

This problem disappears somewhat with the traditional model. You have multiple authors, with multiple product lines – though as is the case in business, 20% of your activities will account for 80% of your results. The top authors are probably generating the most revenue, which helps fund new acquisitions from unknowns. That is…if you’re seeing any success at all.

In Canada, traditional publishers have access to a variety of government grants, which have strict criteria and annual deadlines. They are integral to Canadian publishing. Grants only come into play as a publisher after you have a certain number of eligible titles (of which, less than 25% must be by the principal owners), and even so, the grants are not guaranteed – and many Canadian publishers rely on them to keep their doors open. It’s great they exist, and they are a necessary part of encouraging projects that might not happen otherwise, but scary that a grant could make or break your business. Publishers invest heavily up front on creating product, and don’t get paid by booksellers/distributors until months later. Distributors pay the shipping of product from warehouse to bookstores, but this is part of the (usually) 60% they charge publishers for their services: warehousing, shipping, and logistics. That percentage (which varies, but 50%-60% isn’t unusual) eats into precious profit. Grants can help bridge this gap or alleviate the financial stress of operations.

This is just “how it is” when you are a traditional publisher. The laborious cycle of production and distribution requires a lot of cash injection to keep the business flowing. The cycle of production-distribution-returns was built in an era without the internet, and while the creation of eBooks and print-on-demand technology has disrupted the industry somewhat, the cost to create and distribute thousands of books (and by extension, hundreds of titles) remains expensive and for many, untenable without aid, or at the very least, careful risk management.

So what’s my point in all this? To illustrate that becoming a traditional publisher is a huge undertaking. Financially and emotionally. I’m not going to wake up one day and decide, today is the day I open for submissions! I can see myself working within the system, finding distribution and applying for grants and taking on authors, yet I also see the burdens of the system, and I’m not about to put myself in a position where I’m “growing” my business “just because” that’s the only way forward.
I enjoy the smallness of my press and the intimacy I can provide–an intimacy that I feel is missing from the traditional system. I want to believe that there’s a more sustainable way forward in publishing that doesn’t require so many hands in the already small pie, yet when I bring it up, I’m aware of how naive I sound.
There is no right or wrong path forward. I just have to continue optimizing my business and listening to my customers.

It was nice on Sunday morning–I walked to the expo–and I took this picture, and felt optimistic about my future.

Will I return?

I’ve already paid for next year’s spot, so I’m all set! The real question will be…will my books fit on the table, or do I have to upgrade? :O

More and more, doing these shows, I feel like I’ve built something real. It’s incredibly validating for people to invest in my work – thank you so much to all my readers!
My next show is the Festival of Crafts in Calgary – is it really almost Christmas once again?! See you there!

Brendan had plans and dreams, and children sometimes complicated such things.
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Chapter 5

FINGAL

Fifteen Years Ago

“I’m not tired,” Riona said, climbing hurriedly to her feet. “I want to go outside with that lady and see the workers.”

Fingal smiled. “Maybe later. Nap time.”

“Oh yes,” Nora quickly agreed, appraising Riona. “Your pretty eyes need a rest. I want you awake tonight so everyone can meet you then. You want to attend the party, right?”

Riona bunched her lips in protest. “I don’t like parties.”

“Oh,” Nora said, in mock offence, grinning widely, the spat with Donnoch and his family put to rest—for now.

“All right.” Fingal swooped in before the girl could raise any more suspicion. Personally, he agreed with Riona. Large gatherings in small spaces made him uncomfortable. He wasn’t looking forward to spending copious amounts of time with Captain Stovel and his men, either.

“Iris. You are definitely sleepy.” He gave her a look. He wasn’t sure if she could understand sarcasm, or non-verbal cues. Her gaze narrowed in confusion as he scooped her off the floor and carried her up the stairs….

General Impressions

Two months without doing a show at all…and it was kind of nice! Not that I wasn’t busy. I finished and produced my 9^th book, Darkness In Her Reach! Which should arrive from the printer…any day now?? I had hoped to have it before Edmonton Expo, but I’m not sure if that will be in the cards.

I ubered to the airport at around noon for my flight and met Sam at the airport. Her flight path was Winnipeg – Calgary – Saskatoon, because a good way to get where you’re going is to do a loop.

Once we touched down in sunny, warm Saskatoon, we jumped in a taxi with all our luggage and drove to Prarielands, the convention centre, to collect the rest of our product and do set up. Big thanks to showrunner Chris for being a great host, AND for accepting our packages and transporting them to the venue!

After setup, we walked to our Airbnb. That’s right, we walked, just down the road from the convention centre. From the pictures, we were expecting a two-bedroom basement apartment – but what it actually was, was a two-bedroom tiny house! The pictures don’t do it justice BECAUSE it’s so small, it’s hard to photograph and capture the light. It was perfect for the two of us to escape after long days of being around people.

Friday evening we watched the Dark Crystal movie, which I had never seen, and then we went to bed at like 10pm to wake at 7am to get ready for our two-day con.

Display

I’m always thrown off my the 8ft table, in a good way. So used to cramming all my titles into 6ft. Eight gives me more room to play with. It’s cleaner but it also feels far emptier!

Gear & Sea continues to get some prominence on the table and the banner does a lot to attract people to the title. Many people recognize Justin’s artwork on the cover and/or have seen it before.

Sales

Gear & Sea continues to lead the charge for single sales, as it’s my newest title. I sold about the same number of Violet Fox Series and Sparkstone Saga bundles, and even my 2 for $30 was on the level with my series sales.
I admit, I was a little disappointed with my sales this year. I didn’t meet my desired goal and I was down from last year. Not by much, but it was noticeable. I didn’t lose money. Here’s why I think I was down.

• People were on cash budgets. I only had a handful of card transactions and my upsells weren’t sticking.
• My mindset. I haven’t done a show in two months. There were times I could have went harder on the sale, or softer, or gone for the upsell instead of letting the sale be.
• Gear & Sea, is $15, not $20. Normally, my newest book is chonky enough to sell for $18-$20. Those couple of dollars can add up when you’re selling a pile of them.
• Competition for attention, see below.

Competition and Sales Tactics

I was directly across from another author at this show. Normally, this isn’t really a problem. I’ve written multiple times about vending at a book con, or being in the same row as other authors, and the pros and cons of being next to your direct competition.

I hesitate to even use the word competition in this context. Readers can read more than one book, after all. Usually, the more books there are, the more excited they become.

We’re competing for attention, immediate sales, and the consumption of cash in the wallet more than the actual value of our titles. I see other authors at conventions as my colleagues, not necessarily the competition. We are all fishing in the same boat.

Books are an active sell. When a bunch of authors are actively, aggressively going for a sale, this can create a lot of tension for the customer, and not always in a positive way.

This section is about analyzing these situations and how we can all show up in the best way possible. I also recognize that I have a LOT of experience selling books at trade shows at this point – usually more than my fellow authors. Everything I say here is what I’ve learned from years of standing behind tables, hawking my wares, and refining my own tactics.

The young woman across from me, also selling her title, engaged in some aggressive sales tactics. By aggressive, I mean she was more often than not calling out to cold, unengaged potential customers. To her credit – this did result in some sales. She was doing a lot better than if she’d just sat there and did nothing. She was friendly and excited about the book and her family was also there, supporting her. Reaching out and engaging with people does generate interest.

However, you have to be extremely careful how to handle your potential customers, especially around other vendors with similar products to you – and I think this is where many authors can become trapped.

Why?

In a row of book sellers, one misstep or bad experience from the vendor can turn the customer off from exploring the aisle further. To the customer, we’re just a bunch of authors or booksellers, and at first glance, we are all the same. One author can represent us all in this context. I have to show up even more when I’m next to another author: I have to be more vigilant, more sensitive to the customer’s needs, and extra sensitive to how they react to my neighbours. Was that reader interested in my neighbour’s books, more or less than mine? How much of their behaviour in this row is politeness and how much is genuine interest? Are they a fan of my neighbour? How can I direct their taste in a respectful way to my table? Were they caught off guard by my neighbour, and do I have a chance at all?

People have barriers up when they’re walking around a vendor floor. Most don’t want to speak to you and they certainly don’t want to part with their precious money. As a vendor, I have to respect that, because I would feel the same in their position. I don’t want to have a sales conversation. I don’t want to be trapped into buying – or feel pressured to buy. No one does!

You have to meet people where they’re at. If they’re warm, you are warm. If they are quiet, you are quiet. If they are boisterous, so are you. This is not about acting false or disingenuous. Everyone has the potential to be all of the above qualities. This is about being sensitive to the customer and creating a comfortable environment for them to browse, pressure-free.

So when I’m with a customer – one that I’ve engaged, or one that has come naturally to the table – my focus is determining where they’re at. How interested are they in the product? Are they here because they’re a bibliophile? Are they a shy, young teen? Are they looking for writing/publishing advice?

Determining their type and delivering what they want (books, silence or bubbly conversation about books, and free information respectively) results in a positive interaction with the brand, which often leads to a sale.

But none of this happens if you’re engaging cold customers with zero interest in your product.

I’m not looking to engage absolutely everyone who goes by. You have to be selective with your power. You want to select your audience from the crowd and invite them over to see your product. If you invite and entertain those who aren’t your audience, then you’re just wasting their time and yours. They’ll walk away thinking, “That person was aggressive. I didn’t want their book.”

What happens when you sell to a cold customer who has a lukewarm initial reaction to your brand? They’ll take that book home, put it on the self, and every time they look at it, they’ll remember the awkwardness of the interaction they had to buy it, and they’ll never read it.

How do I know? Because I’ve been on the receiving end of those kinds of interactions. Where you say “yes” to a sale but you really mean, “I don’t want to, but you’ve backed me into a corner.”

“But Clare,” you’re thinking, “I want that sale. I want that $15 or $17 or $20 for my book.”

You might earn $15 today from that one customer if you push hard enough—but you could lose a lifetime of loyalty.

And that’s the power of branding. Branding is the relationship your customer has with you—your company. It’s a feeling. If the feeling is “yikes” then…that customer will never spend money with you again.

That’s the real risky game we play. You can push, but you don’t want to push so hard that they never shop with you–or any other independent author–again. I want people to walk away excited, even if they only take my card.

As a publisher, my whole business is built to create repeat customers. I want readers coming back to me again and again for my newest work. Most of my work is upfront – creating the book, sure, but also creating that first impression. Ensuring the banners are attractive. Making the display accessible and pleasing. Creating signs to easily display relevant information. Everything I create and the way I act during our interaction must be considered so that the customer feels safe and comfortable enough to decide to exchange their hard-earned cash for my product, then and there.

No matter which bookseller catches the customer’s attention first, or invites them over first, that FIRST interaction drives the customer’s mood of the other bookseller going forward. A positive interaction can result in a sale and/or a willingness to engage with another author. A negative or lukewarm one drives them away completely. Both can also exhaust the customer.

We have to be respectful and mindful of the customer and our neighbours when we’re selling, because long-term, that’s what creates loyalty and sales.

Fun Times

I was excited to be next to my friend Abram again this year! He had a giant Ninja Turtle canvas that really caught the eye and sparked a lot of table-side conversations with customers.

On Saturday night, as is usually the custom, Sam and I went out to eat with Gregory, Justin, and Drake. Had a really tasty lamb biryani, which I think is my new favourite Indian dish. I mean, besides butter chicken, which is a standard. And you gotta have a mango lassi, c’mon.

At the end of Saturday, I was so incredibly tired, I could barely think straight, but at least I was full of tasty food.

Notable Interactions

Thank you to everyone who came back to purchase new books or sequels! You are awesome!

On Saturday, I had a pleasant conversation with a man about writing and publishing. He proceeded to Abram’s table, looked back at me, and asked if I liked the Avengers.

I said, sure, I like them.

He bought one of Abram’s postcard prints of the Avengers and wrote me a very sweet note on the back about how inspirational and beautiful I am!

Now, I can already hear you wondering. Is this creepy?

Creepiness in these situations is defined by the receiving party. He was a respectful man, who bought me a gift that held no obligation, wrote me a complimentary note thanking me for the conversation, expecting nothing in return – and then he went about his life.

Could this have been creepy, in differing circumstances? Certainly. Inquiring parties, note the “no obligation” part. Creepers give with the expectation of reciprocation, and when nothing is reciprocated, things can turn ugly or awkward.

But as this was tastefully done, it really made my day! ^^

Will I Go Back?

Unfortunately, Ottawa Comiccon has switched its 2020 dates from May to September – the very same weekend as Saskatoon. As I’m already committed to Ottawa, I won’t be in Saskatoon for 2020.

But would I go back for the following year?

Possibly. I’m in the process of re-evaluating all my shows. I’m really tired of my stop-start cycle. I’m usually just getting used to being home and back in a routine – when suddenly I have to pack up and fly somewhere else for an intense three or four days of sales. It’s really hard on the body and the mind, and increasingly so, now that I’m more settled in my house with my fiancé and my two kitties.

Ideally, I’d like to fit the majority of my shows into September to December and go full throttle. Is this harder on the body? Perhaps. But it also gives me more creating time. I mean, I can write books between shows, but your mind is always half in the booth, so to speak.

So I can’t really speak for me two years in the future, as a lot can happen between now and then.

Saskatoon is a great show in a pleasant city, with kind people. If you are local to Edmonton, Calgary, Saskatoon, or Winnipeg, it’s a well-run show that cares about its vendors and the attendees.

See you in Edmonton!

Fingal didn’t have a place here. And neither did Riona.
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Chapter 4

FINGAL
Fifteen Years Ago

Fingal entered the Donmagh residence in Ashdown, immediately aware of his dusty boots on the freshly laid wooden floor. The kitchen was before him, equally new: the long wooden table with four chairs, the cabinets and counters, clean and sparkling, and the staircase leading to a landing upstairs. Another hallway beneath the stairs led elsewhere in the house, perhaps to the outside, towards the second structure.

The heat from the wood stove burrowed deep within him. He hadn’t realized how cold it had been outside, until now. Riona’s gaze widened at the stove and her face broke out in a delighted grin. Weeks of small campfires had taught the previously privileged child to appreciate a proper source of heat.

The smell and comfort of home was undoubtably present in this house, which filled Fingal with equal parts regret and fear. Anything that felt like home could be snatched from him at any time.

But perhaps, not at this moment. Not only had Fingal walked into a stranger’s home, he’d stumbled upon Nora and Donnoch’s reunion with their child….

Riona was unmoved. “He almost killed me.”
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Chapter 3

CONNOR

Riona rose up from the bushes, grabbed Connor, and hooked her arm around his neck. This had been her ploy in Ashdown so they could escape together, unharmed. She pulled magic from the Spirit Mother, gathering an icy force in her palm. The faint scent of roses filled his nostrils and he stiffened—not just because he believed she would really hurt him. That was always a possibility. It was because if Riklar’s senses were acute, perhaps he would sense their presence, and he would come to face Connor. The possibility terrified and excited Connor, as he desperately sought revenge.

Ollivan hesitated at Riona’s show of force. “Let him be.”

“It’s all right,” Connor said, trying to remain neutral.

“It’s not though,” Ollivan said, unconvinced. He gestured to the bush and then pointed his sword at Riona. “You seem cozy with him, now that I’m here.”

“I see you have new armour. A new weapon.” Riona’s voice was slippery and cool in Connor’s ear. The flesh on his arm pimpled at the sound. “A reward for cooperating with the Imperial Guard, I take it?”

“An incentive. A leg up on a path I was already walking.” Ollivan took a step closer, but Riona matched him, awkwardly dragging Connor backwards. She seemed eager to keep a generous distance between them. The scent of her magic grew stronger. His nose was in a rose garden.

“You wouldn’t kill him,” Ollivan said snidely. He shifted his gaze to Connor. “She wouldn’t, right? She would’ve done so already, if that were her intention. Am I right? Why would she keep you alive, I wonder?”

“Go home, Ollivan,” Connor choked out as Riona tightened her grip on his neck.

“I’m not leaving without you,” Ollivan said, though his tone was cold.

He felt Riona weighing their options. Ollivan took a step closer and she didn’t budge. Her magic hummed around him. Connor saw the hair on Ollivan’s arm rise. As non-magical as his friend was, his body knew when a powerful wielder was in touch with the Spirit Mother.

Finally, Ollivan sighed. He didn’t lower his weapon, but he spoke directly to Connor. “You’re being controlled. You have more sense than running off with some fae you just met. So I’m here to rescue you.”

“No. Go home,” Connor repeated, less forcefully this time. The word was painful in his mouth, and his throat tightened not from Riona’s grip, but from an unreleased sob.

Thinking he was getting through to poor Connor’s addled mind, Ollivan broke his steely manner and lowered his weapon, ever so slightly. “I won’t leave you. We won’t let your parents’ deaths be in vain.”

That was all it took. Connor drew a shaky breath and the sobs overtook him. Riona couldn’t hold him any longer. She recoiled as she released him. Connor fell hard onto the rocky, uneven forest floor, tears rolling off him like hard rain. Forehead pressed into the ground, he relived the heat of the fire and the conversation he’d had with his mother just hours before. She had lied to him. She’d told him she had no intention of hurting Riona. That they wanted to help her. But for some reason he didn’t understand, she had lied and then died in a fire that could have been prevented if that half-fae had never showed up, if only his parents hadn’t ever met Fingal, he wouldn’t be here, crying in front of his friend…

Then, Ollivan was above him, and the weight of his hand came upon his back. “I know. I’m here to help you.”

Ollivan’s voice faded into a swirl of fear. Connor was already in so much pain. Deciphering the difference between truth and lies seemed impossible. His special power—to discern between the two with a mere touch—was useless in his moment of pure despair.

Riona did nothing to help him. She was near impossible to read. She probably thought him weak for breaking down in front of her. After all, she didn’t care about his feelings.

That much was clear already. She wanted him to be a warrior-wielder, a protector, a replacement Fingal.

“Stop,” Connor said, bleary-eyed, still lost in his thoughts. He rose to his knees and Ollivan’s hand fell off his back, but Connor retrieved it, holding it with strength and purpose. He had to know. He couldn’t wallow like this forever. “I want to go home. But tell me. Truthfully. What will happen to me if I return? And to…uh…R—Iris?” He fumbled with Riona’s fake name.

Ollivan didn’t think it strange that Connor held his hand. In fact, he tightened his grip, encouraged by the sign of friendship. “I won’t let anything happen to you. We know the fae has control of your mind. That’s what they do.” He cast a weary glance in Riona’s direction. Even Connor could feel her icy glare, but she didn’t interfere with their interaction. “Powerful magic killed your parents. Her magic. That’s clear, even to me. And my father knows that. We’ll take you in. I know you wanted to go to the Tower…but…we all need time to grieve. We can protect you.”

Everything Ollivan said, he believed to be true. And yet…Connor sensed something deeper beyond his friend’s conviction. A motivation that he wasn’t sharing, and was attempting to hide from the both of them.

Ollivan lowered his voice and continued. “My father is personally helping his men go through the rubble. The rest are out here looking for you and the fae. If you would both just come back with me, I can prove to my father that there’s still hope for you.”

If you would both just come back with me…

There it was, in those words, the doorway to the lie. “I’ll come back with you. But the fae isn’t what you think. Let her continue on.”

Frustrated, Ollivan let go of Connor’s hand and shook his shoulders, as if trying to wake him from a vivid dream. “No! She has to come back with me!”

“I’m not going anywhere with you,” Riona replied, crossing her arms and leaning against the nearest tree.

“Yes, you are!” Ollivan said, more forcefully this time.

“No, I’m–”

“What will you do to her if she goes back with you?” Connor interrupted, pressing his hand against his friend’s once more.

“She’s committed multiple crimes. So I’ll turn her over to my father and he will decide her punishment,” Ollivan said. He seemed confused by the question.
Connor bristled. There was the lie, bald-faced and plain. Ollivan had no intention of turning Riona over to Galen Stovel, captain in the Imperial Guard. There was a bigger picture here. Connor thought quickly. “Has your father told anyone about her presence in Ashdown?”

Behind him, Riona’s weight shifted.

Now Ollivan looked nervous. “Look, just come with me, both of you, and it’ll be easier on everyone.”

If Captain Galen Stovel had spread a warning beyond Ashdown about an unusual fae, there would be Imperial Guards looking for them in Drohoven and in every town between here and the capital. Worse, if Ollivan wasn’t planning on turning Riona over to his father—who was he really working for? Someone with a higher rank than captain? Those people were few and far between, as far as Connor knew, yet certainly they wielded considerable influence. If they got their hands on Riona…or found out about his own truth-discerning power…

Ollivan wore the uniform of an Imperial Guard now. He had gotten what he’d always wanted. No doubt he’d receive a handsome reward for capturing the strange fae and secret daughter of a former tyrant. His concern for Connor seemed genuine enough, but he knew his friend well enough to know that advancement in the Imperial Guard was his true desire.

It was best to stay away from all of that. Get to the capital. Learn magic. Kill Riklar Dheediannil to avenge his parents’ deaths. That was Connor’s plan, and everything else was a distraction.

Slowly, Connor patted Ollivan on the shoulder. In that brief moment, he felt his best friend’s fear—and his resolve—and despite the pain Riona had wrought, Connor couldn’t allow Ollivan to carry out his mission. Not before Connor completed his. And for that, whether Connor liked it or not, he needed Riona alive and present with him. “I think we’re going to stay here.”

Riona must have sensed Ollivan’s duplicity as well—how could she not, she was far more powerful than he was—and her hand lit up in red and orange flames.
The situation was out of his control. It happened all too fast. Riona launched herself from the tree, her hands blazing with fire, ready to consume Ollivan—her new enemy. Connor recoiled. The sight of it, the smokey smell, it sent him back to just hours ago, when everything he had loved had perished.
He couldn’t lose Ollivan too. No matter his intentions.

“Don’t!” Connor shouted.

At the sound of his voice, Riona hesitated. That split second was the advantage Ollivan needed. He raised his sword, readying his swing as he lunged at Riona. She backstepped to avoid him but not far enough—a tree was behind her, constricting her movement. Connor rushed forward, raising his hands, closing his eyes, pulling magic without restraint or purpose from the ground. In that moment, he had one goal: keep everyone alive.

The intensity of his magic mirrored his emotions. All of the anger and the fear he felt poured into a steady stream of icy smoke that streamed from his fingers, at both Riona and Ollivan. Riona gasped and dove nimbly behind the bush. Yet Ollivan turned to face Connor, a mix of horror and surprise on his face, and became caught up in the force of Connor’s magic. Like a smokey gale, the magic shoved Ollivan backward, slamming his body into a thick tree. Groaning, Ollivan slid down the tree and came to a standstill, his head heavy against his shoulder. His sword tumbled to the ground with a thud.

For a long moment, neither Riona nor Connor moved. Connor’s shallow breath deepened as he realized what he had done.

He’d used magic against his best friend.

He’d called out to the Spirit Mother, and she had responded—aggressively. With a power that he couldn’t control.

Connor trembled. Ollivan wasn’t moving.

He’d killed him. His parents were dead and now his oldest friend lay cold in the middle of the forest.

Riona moved swiftly to Ollivan’s side and pressed her pale lavender fingers against his neck. She evaluated him as Connor waited, numb and unable to speak.

“He’s alive,” she said, bunching her dress and lifting herself up. She appraised Connor now, her gaze searching him from the curls upon his head to his shaking knees. “We have to keep moving. Maybe we can reach Drohoven before Captain Stovel’s men. If he got this far, then so have others.”
Her words were icy. Using a neighbouring tree to brace himself, he thought through his options. “I’m not leaving him here.”

Riona was unmoved. “He almost killed me.”

“My parents are dead. He was trying to…help.” But Ollivan didn’t know Riona like Connor did. If Connor just had a moment to explain everything to his friend, then he’d understand why they were on the run. Why his parents had hidden Riona—despite their misgivings. Why Connor needed her alive to help him. Ollivan’s intentions were good. Just misplaced. “Ollivan is my friend.”

“Not anymore.” She started to move away, further up the steep hill.

“I’m not leaving him here for bandits to find!” Connor said.

“It’s more likely that the Imperial Guards will find him and take him back to Ashdown.”

“You don’t know that.” Connor didn’t budge from his friend’s side. “Like you said. Riklar and the fae militia could be in these very woods, using magic to mask their scents.”

“That’s not how it works.” Though she sounded uncertain.

“I don’t care how it works. I care about Ollivan’s well being.” And yet his friend was on the forest floor, unconscious, by his hand. Because he had tried to hurt Riona. She was right. Ollivan nearly killed her, with no thought. To him, she was just a powerful fae wielder. Not a person. He ran his hands through his hair. Riona was right about another thing too: he needed training. He couldn’t control himself. He was a danger to everyone. Especially his friend. “I’m going to clear my head. Ollivan had better be here when I get back.”

Riona started after him. “Connor. You can’t go off alone!”

He hesitated, and then averted his gaze to the mess of trees. “I’m already alone.”

“Strange family name,” Captain Stovel noted. “Where are you from originally?”
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Chapter 2

FINGAL

Fifteen Years Ago

“This…is Ashdown?” Brendan Dorr turned up his nose and gave Fingal Morpleth a wide-eyed look as the five travellers – including two-year-old Riona – surveyed their rural surroundings.

They had just passed through the Ashdown market. To say it was lackluster would be generous: a collection of patchy tents selling scrap metal, bits of food, and supplies for travellers like themselves. Now that they had ventured beyond the market, further down the road, there was nothing but brown fields, ravaged by time and rain. It looked like someone had begun planting a line of trees on either side of the dirt road, as if to hide the plain fields beyond, yet the work was unfinished and the planter had given up a quarter of a celim back. The road stretched on before them, presumably to houses and other nearby towns, though why anyone would choose to live in the middle of empty plains was beyond Fingal. He had grown up in the slums of the capital, and was used to the close quarters of rundown buildings and the safety that numbers provided.

“What are you going on about now, Brendan?” Nora grumbled, glancing over her shoulder at him. Like her brother Brendan, Nora had a tanned complexion, dark eyes, and dark curly hair that clung to her head. Nora and her husband Donnoch walked side-by-side in front of Fingal, Riona, and Brendan, occasionally whispering and giggling to one another, as lovers often did.

The road to Ashdown hadn’t been perilous – just long. No one had slept well during their trek over the last fortnight, from outside Cantlyn, through Azara Forest, down the southern part of the continent to the small village of Ashdown. Fingal had slept the least. He thought that with each passing day, it would become easier to keep the secret of the girl he held in his arms. And yet, his fear intensified with each sunrise, for this could be the day that Riona’s cloak slipped and revealed her wings to his closest friends, and then they would know he had lied to them – that he harboured not only a healthy half-fae, but the daughter of their greatest enemy.

All of this was far from his friends’ minds, of course. Brendan, Nora, and Donnoch trudged along the dirt road, happily oblivious as they neared their destination: the famed Donmagh residence.

“Didn’t Donnoch say that Ashdown was…you know…booming?” Brendan asked.

“I didn’t make any promises,” Donnoch said, throwing his hands up in the air innocently. “I didn’t choose to buy land here. My parents did.”

His parents owned multiple properties on the Drahticht Isle, and had for generations. Years ago, Donnoch’s family had bought land on the continent, here in Ashdown, presumably for a business venture, though neither Brendan nor Fingal could puzzle out what could be so appealing about empty fields and a barely-there town that hadn’t recovered from a devastating fire decades ago.

“I’m grateful we’re here,” Nora said, smiling at Donnoch and taking his hand. “It doesn’t matter where we are. As long as we’re all together.”

She looked at each of them in turn, and Fingal felt the now-familiar stab of guilt.

Nora’s gaze lingered on Riona, the two-year-old girl in Fingal’s arms. The girl’s eyelids fluttered sleepily, though Fingal suspected that was just for show. The fae slept far less than the humans, and Fingal noticed that when Nora turned her motherly gaze on Riona, the secret half-fae feigned a yawn and had mastered the art of pretending to sleep.

“You’re going to like it here,” Nora said to Riona, gesturing to the stretch of empty fields and the dirt. “Look at this. You can run around and play. I’m sure there must be a few other children your age too.”

Riona said nothing, as she usually did when Nora tried to engage her. She only spoke to Fingal, and occasionally to Brendan, especially when Nora and Donnoch weren’t around. She was a bright child and Fingal was relieved that this hadn’t gotten them into trouble – yet. Did Riona whisper in Fingal’s ear when bandits were near? Yes. Did this raise his companions’ suspicions? Yes – though such things were easily dismissed, as it was better to wipe the enemy’s blood from your sword than the blood of a friend. From what Fingal had gleaned, all fae had the potential for magic, far more than humans, and Riona as a half-fae seemed to have inherited some of her mother’s magical abilities.

How much of her mother’s magical abilities she had inherited remained to be seen.

Squinting, the girl shielded her eyes with a tiny hand and then pointed further down the road. “What’s that?”

Ahead, walking steadily towards them, was a stalky man. He wore formal Imperial Guard dress, which confused and undermined Fingal’s sense of the occasion. Was he supposed to wear his finest? Citizen’s Brigade members didn’t have an organized uniform like the Imperial Guard. They had what they had, and they’d made good use of it. Even during the desperate moment when the king had declared the Citizen’s Brigade members temporary, unofficial foot soldiers of the Imperial Guard, they had received no extra rations, uniforms, or weapons—despite what some Citizen’s Brigade members and Imperial Guards had boasted.

Nora’s face lit up with a grin. “Captain!”

She ran for him like an old friend, which troubled Fingal. He himself had a troubled relationship with the Imperial Guards, as they had done nothing for him as a boy on the streets of the capital. Donnoch followed Nora dutifully down the road towards the man. Brendan and Fingal exchanged a shrug – apparently Brendan knew this stranger as well as Fingal did.

Fingal side-eyed Riona to see if she had any insight, but she just chewed on her finger warily.

As Brendan and Fingal approached, Nora, Donnoch, and the Imperial Guard were already exchanging pleasantries. Fingal readjusted Riona in his arms. The girl was light, possibly due to her fae blood, but carrying her around – and having her this close to a captain of the Imperial Guard – made him uncomfortable.

The man smiled and held out a hand to Fingal. He was at least a decade older than Fingal, and he had small, pouty lips, partially hidden by a freshly trimmed beard. “I’m Captain Galen Stovel.”

“Fingal Morpleth,” Fingal said stiffly, meeting the Imperial Guard’s hand with equal vigor. Fingal escaped the handshake a moment too soon, which Galen noted with a slight squint. Fingal didn’t want to interact with the Imperial Guards longer than he had to, no matter how friendly this one might seem.

“Strange family name,” Captain Stovel noted. “Where are you from originally?”

“The capital,” Fingal replied.

“Ah.” This satisfied the captain, at least on the surface, though Fingal’s grip on Riona tightened. At least Halismarth was diverse enough to plausibly hide or erase his bloodline.

“Fingal grew up in the orphanage with us,” Nora explained pleasantly.

“You’re lucky to have a family name, then,” Captain Stovel said.

Fingal dignified that with a polite smile. He wasn’t about to tell an Imperial Guard about his past, even though Fingal had fought alongside them just weeks ago. Just because he was human, didn’t mean he could be trusted. The uniform affronted Fingal’s senses, bringing up painful memories of his mother that he couldn’t think of – not now, not when he had Riona to worry about.

The conversation had moved on. “I wasn’t expecting you here. The capital too large for you, Captain, or did your wife miss you so much that the king bowed to her demands?” Donnoch asked, good-naturedly. He clasped the large man on the shoulder. Donnoch had the height advantage on the captain, though the Imperial Guard held his own.

A hearty laugh escaped him, though it was for show. Fingal could see the sensitivity of the question in the captain’s uncomfortable gaze. “Adaline is strong-willed enough to bend the good king’s ear, I’ll give you that. The war is over, and the rebuilding has begun. There is work for me in the capital. I am home, briefly. I had to meet my son.”

Nora’s eyes immediately teared. She tugged harder on Donnoch as her ability to be patient waned. “Excuse me, Captain. You’ll forgive me, then, for I have to see mine.”

“Oh.” His face softened. “Yes, don’t let me keep you. I have to admit, I met the young fellow the other day, he is fine and healthy.”

“Thank you, Captain. Stop by later.” She pulled Donnoch from their conversation, and hand-in-hand, they ran together further down the road. Brendan, caught up in the excitement, followed his sister.

Captain Stovel gave Fingal a brisk nod. “You are staying at the house with the Donmaghs as well, Morpleth?”

“I am,” Fingal said, though he wished in that moment he weren’t.

“Then I’ll see you later. Perhaps I’ll bring my son ‘round. Give your daughter someone to play with.”

Captain Stovel was already off towards the market, before Fingal could salute or give him an official farewell – or tell the captain that Riona wasn’t really his daughter. It was just as well. Fingal picked up the pace. His friends were specks on the road as was their final destination, a coveted prize to all but Fingal, who only desired a fresh bed and a sleep free of worry.

The Donmagh residence was a two-storey, beautiful blue house with fresh white shutters and a brand-new door. If this house had been in the capital, it would be the envy of elite merchants and nobles. Out here, surrounded by fields and a nearby creeping forest, it seemed oddly placed, as if waiting for civilization to spring up around it. Moreover, its magnificence was dimmed by the half-complete adjoining structure. The frame suggested that, when complete, it would be just as large as the current house. Fingal couldn’t imagine why they would attach an identical house to an already existing home, especially when there was plenty of land for the structures to exist independently.
Fingal counted five men working on the building. Two were sitting on a pile of lumber, resting, while the other three were hammering, holding wood in place, and taking measurements.

In his arms, Riona seemed equally intrigued. “Can I go see?”

He readjusted her cloak so it was snug around her tiny body. He didn’t want her running around a potentially accident-prone construction site, nor did he want to expose her to anyone who might ask too many questions. “Maybe later.”

Riona seemed to sense his reluctance and pouted her lips in distaste. “I will go when you’re asleep.”

“No,” Fingal said in a low whisper as they approached the front door of the house. He tried to keep his composure. He didn’t want to appear as if he were scolding this suspiciously precocious two-year-old. “Stay close to me here. If there’s a captain stationed here in this town of nothing, who knows how many other Imperial Guards might be lurking. I can’t risk them seeing you.”

“They won’t see me,” Riona grumbled, though her tone suggested she would defer to his judgement – for now.

“Captain Stovel said he’d be coming by later. He’ll probably want to see you, especially if he has a child of his own. Perhaps you can show everyone how good you are at sleeping and you and I can hide away somewhere. All right?”

“You will hide with me?” Riona asked.

Fingal sighed and used a free hand to open the front door to the Donmagh residence. “You don’t miss anything, do you?”

Everyone he’d ever known hated him. Except for Riona. A girl he’d only just met.
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Chapter 1

CONNOR

They hadn’t found his parents’ bodies.

These six words had become a mantra to Connor Donmagh over the past several hours as he struggled to put one heavy foot in front of the other on the steep incline. He had already fallen three times, and his knees and shins would be scraped and bruised for days, yet he barely felt the pain. Every step he made was physical space between himself and the small village of Ashdown, where all that remained was a community that believed him a traitor, and the ashy remnants of his childhood home.

The forest outside of Ashdown stretched for at least five celim and ended near Drohoven, one of the small communities of humans on the continent. They were many, many days from the capital—their final destination—and they had no horses, no airgid, no food, and no allies.

Material concerns were far from Connor’s mind. He hadn’t said goodbye to his mother. Not a real goodbye. He had gone to the market to buy dresses for Riona—a convenient excuse to get Connor out of the house so his mother, Nora, could presumably exact revenge on the half-fae for murdering her brother. The last time he saw his father, Donnoch Donmagh, he had been disappointed in Connor for losing control of his untrained magic. Connor felt that disappointment strongly, as though he had inherited it. It was all he had left of his father and he grasped it desperately.

Ahead of him, Riona kept a steady pace. She bunched her loose-fitting dress, which was covered in a thick cloak, in her fists and skillfully navigated the rocky, rooted hill. She had more practice travelling through the rough woods. She had grown up on the run. If she hadn’t arrived with Fingal, her mysterious human guardian, the previous evening, his parents might’ve still been alive. Connor’s head spun. More had happened to him in this one day than in his entire short life.

His parents and his uncle had fought in the human-fae war nearly two decades ago, alongside Fingal. Sometime after the war, a rift had developed between them, involving Riona, perhaps due to her involvement in his uncle’s death. While Connor had grown up in relative safety in the small community of Ashdown with his parents, Fingal and Riona had been on the run for years from the revived fae militia, who, according to Riona at least, wished to restart the human-fae war. The fae militia also sought Riona as she was secretly the fugitive, impossible daughter of Evil Queen Caetriona—the tyrant who had started the human-fae war. Headed by a fae named Riklar Dheediannil, the militia had tracked her to Ashdown and had torched Connor’s childhood home—with Connor’s parents inside. Whether an accident or a deliberate message to Riona, it didn’t matter now. Connor’s parents were dead because their unresolved past had knocked on their door, and it had cost them their lives.

He was bound to the half-fae fugitive—for now. He feared her, coveted her connection to the Spirit Mother…yet he was also intrigued by her. He had taken her hand and saw the truth within her, for that was his secret power. She was not her mother’s daughter, as far as he could see. All she wanted was to protect him. And he, despite all that had happened, felt a certain obligation towards her as well, for she knew more about his parents’ past than he ever would. He would keep her safe—somehow. Though he was woefully underqualified, having little to no control over his own power.

To distract himself from the fae, the ache in his body from their brisk pace, and the painful weight of his grief, he concentrated on perfecting a light spell in the palm of his right hand. A transparent ball of red-orange light flickered, swirled around his fingers, and dissipated. It had no heat. He didn’t think he could bring himself to cast a fire spell again, as the smell of the burning library was permanently lodged in his nose.

His frustration mounted with each attempt. He could only manage red or orange. Expert magic wielders could conjure a solid rainbow and weave it about their bodies. A waste of magic, perhaps, but a beautiful one. The books he’d read on light conjuring said it was sometimes used as signals or flares in dangerous situations. It was also a spell he had to master for the Tower entrance exam—the only place to legally learn magic and acquire a coveted magic license.

Despite the events of the last day—the death of his parents, the arrival of the fugitive daughter of the former Evil Queen Caetriona, and the betrayal of his community—he still desperately wanted to attend the Tower and become a magic wielder.

And he hated himself for it.

His power. The stream of ice flying from his hands–from Riona’s hands too–saving the day too late.
Magical fire wasn’t like regular fire. His parents had faced terrible foes in the war. Sure, he didn’t know specifics, but he’d pieced together stories of their heroics late at night, listening to their whispers in the kitchen from his bedroom. Perhaps they realized the fae militia were coming and escaped before the fire licked up everything they owned. Fae were a more cunning foe than fire.

Ahead, Riona stopped to catch her breath, one slight hand gripping a thick birch tree for balance on the incline. They’d been climbing for most of the day and only twice did the forest level out. Connor had been too angry and too numb to request a break. No, better for her to think him strong, just in case he had to overtake her and…

And what? There was nothing left for him back in Ashdown but…ash.

Unless his parents were waiting for him in the ruins, unseen by the Imperial Guard and the fae militia. What if they had seen them coming and escaped? He imagined them fighting the fae, armored and fierce and bloody, as he imagined them being in the war.

It wasn’t out of the realm of possibility that they’d escaped.

What if they thought he was dead?

What if they were waiting for him…back in Ashdown?

Riona rubbed her back where her hidden wings curled around her body, tucked away from the world. “The ground levels off a celim ahead. We should pick up the pace to make it there to make camp before it gets too dark.”

Connor’s lips trembled. He looked away before his emotions could run away with him. She was so calm. His parents were dead. How could she be so…heartless?

“Connor?” Tiny rocks cascaded down the incline as she carefully moved toward him. Her flawless face was marred with concern and curiosity.

It wasn’t real concern, he told himself. She didn’t know what it was like to have two parents who loved her. The only parents she had were an evil queen of legend and perhaps…Fingal.

“Tell me everything you know about Riklar Dheediannil,” he said, mustering his courage.

The question surprised her. Her eyebrows knitted into worry and her paranoid violet gaze flitted around the mess of trees, bushes, and canopies. “Be careful of what you say. There are ears everywhere.”

Connor didn’t care. He wanted Riklar and the fae militia to ambush him, so he could throw every untrained bit of magic their way. A crude, suicidal wish, perhaps. At least he would die fighting the man responsible for his parents’ death.

Seeing his resolve, Riona relented. “He was one of my mother’s trusted advisors. He lived in the castle. He was probably one of her lovers.” Although the word lovers evoked scandal in Connor’s mind, Riona said it dispassionately, as if it were a commonplace practice, like how to make tea or tie a knot. “He was—is—ruthless. Decisive. Power-hungry. But also—careful. Strategic. Clever. He often carried out secret missions for my mother, during the war. I don’t know what. She kept me out of that.”

Although Riona was only two-years-old when the war between humans and the fae ended, the fae had perfect memories. Riona was half-fae, and she seemed to have inherited this useful, yet terrifying trait.

“Do you think he knows we’re in this forest right now?” Connor asked.

Riona considered it. “He knows my magical scent as I know his. He would have known we tried to put out the fire, yet he didn’t attack us there. Perhaps he had already left, or he didn’t want to involve the Imperial Guard. So it’s possible he’s tracking us. I don’t sense him nearby, but he has alluded me before.”

Useless, then. Riklar and his fae militia could be anywhere. “If he wants to restart the war, or retake the capital, or—whatever his political aim—why waste time coming after the daughter of a supposedly dead queen? Yes. You have power. Yes, you’re a half-breed. But why not just storm the capital with the forces he has now?”

“All very good questions, ones Fingal and I have discussed until we found ourselves thinking in circles,” Riona replied.

“Does he think you have a claim to the throne in Halsimarth?”

She seemed taken aback by the suggestion. “Me?”

“You’re Queen Caetriona’s daughter. She was a tyrant, yes, but still a queen.”

A queen who Riona also claimed to be alive, which would have terrified Connor more if the threat of Riklar Dheediannil wasn’t more real and present.

“My mother’s time as queen means nothing to me.” One of her wings beneath the cloak twitched and she looked away. He felt her magic simmering beneath the earth, ready for her to use in a heartbeat. “I have no more claim to any throne, no more than you do. Nor would I want to rule. All I want is for us to be safe. Good…and safe.”

Connor was safe in Ashdown, before she came. He glanced down the incline, through the tall, stalky trees. The setting sun lit the way back to Ashdown, long hidden by the forest. “I should go back.”

An exasperated sigh escaped her. “I know it’s hard. But you have to put your feelings aside. If we don’t put distance between us and the Imperial Guard and the–”

“Put my feelings aside?” She was heartless. He knew it. He could barely keep the pain from his voice as he struggled to climb the incline towards the half-fae. “I just watched the only place I’ve ever lived burn. And what could we do about it? Nothing. What did my friends and community, the people I have known forever, do? Nothing. In fact, we made them believe that we’re the enemy.” Scrubbing his face with his hands, Connor’s guilt flooded him. “I’m weak.”

Everyone he’d ever known hated him.

Except for Riona. A girl he’d only just met.

She was his only link to his parents now—and to the man who had struck the match on the fire that had ravaged his home.

Her gaze flitted to the orangey skyline and then returned to him. “If we had stayed, they would have brought you in for questioning too. They’d imprison you for harbouring a fugitive fae. As for your parents”–she steeled her gaze–“I’m sorry. You can grieve for them after we finish our business in the capital.”

“Just like that, you want me to reschedule my grief for a more convenient hour?” He sneered as a cold wind whipped through the trees, chilling him to the bone. She was right about one thing, and one thing only: they’d have to camp soon. “Maybe Fingal can shut off his feelings when times are tough, but not me.”

She looked hurt at the mention of her protector. “Fingal can use his feelings to power his actions. He used them against our enemies.”

“I’m not a hardened warrior. That’s not the kind of protector–the kind of person–I want to be.”

Turning away from Connor, she drove a foot into the side of the incline forcefully. “I’m not asking you to be anyone. I’m asking you to be alert. If you let your grief cloud your judgment, with your magical abilities as raw as they are–”

“I see. You’re worried I’ll set the whole forest on fire if I’m upset? I’m untrained, not volatile!”

“Yes, and you nearly burned down the library. So forgive me if I’m a little on edge.”

Connor felt like she’d punched him in the gut. “First you call me untrained. Then you…” He couldn’t put it into words. Was she blaming him now for starting the fire that killed his parents? He couldn’t help but jump to that conclusion, for anger and guilt and fear were warm and easily accessible. It had just been a small explosion, a misuse of a magical tome. Yet it had been hours before the other magical fire had started.

What if somehow…it had been his fault?

He leaned against the nearest tree, the bark scraping his soft hands. He just wanted to go home. Or better yet, to wake from this nightmare. He whispered to the Spirit

Mother, promising he would never pick up a piece of adventurous fiction again, for every time he had, he had wished for a life of adventure and strife, for it had been better than the nothingness life he’d had in Ashdown.

Riona’s boots crunched on the rocks and the bits of grass poking through the otherwise rocky slope. She was coming closer. He felt her gaze on him, as it was filled with magic, and he couldn’t resist—he met it. There, he found no pity. Only fear.

“Someone’s coming,” she whispered.

The trees provided adequate cover, yet they did nothing for their loud arguing. Riona gestured to a bush up ahead; despite himself, Connor followed her, kicking up rocks and dirt as he scrambled for the relative safety of the bush. He might not trust Riona, but he did trust her magic. They huddled behind the thick, green bush. Her shoulder brushed his and he tried to ignore her closeness. While tall and imposing on the incline, she curled now into the fetal position: confident and still, not like a frightened mouse, but the cat that lies in wait for its dinner.

“Connor? I heard your voice.”

Out of the soaring firs stepped a familiar face, one Connor thought he’d never see again. Even though that same friend had thrust the knife into his hands and told him to kill

Riona, Connor felt a wash of grief anew for his friend. He had never steered Connor wrong. He had always been there for Connor, and as far as Connor could see, his friend was alone now.

And here he was, calling Connor’s name. A symbol of all he had lost.

Before Riona could stop him—before Connor could control his base impulses—he shot up out of the bushes. “Ollivan.”

The red and gold banner of the Imperial Guard draped over Ollivan’s chest blazed like an ugly wound. He raised his weapon—a long, thin sword with a decorated hilt, reserved for honoured officers only. His large, handsome face showed surprise at Connor’s sudden appearance, but he quickly steeled as he remembered his place as a would-be recruit to the Imperial Guard. “You’re both coming back to Ashdown with me.”

This episode is a little different! I talk a little bit about who I am, how I wrote Wingtorn, behind the scenes stuff, and I give some writing advice as well!
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Meet the Author!

This episode is a little different! I talk a little bit about who I am, how I wrote Wingtorn, behind the scenes stuff, and I give some writing advice as well!
Beginnings of Wingtorn

• I wrote the first draft when I was in university
• It was really short – basically the first couple of chapters and the last couple of chapters. I hadn’t built out the world at all.
• And then as you do when you are a writer, you put it away and forget about it for a while, but it was still at the back of my mind.
• A couple of years ago, for the other podcast I was doing, Business BFFs, dug it out again and rewrote it in 3 days, expanding on the lore and the story.
• I was also watching a lot of Once Upon A Time at the time, and I enjoyed the story structure – present day story with the fairy tale characters, related to a past story conflict, and usually thematically, the stories were closely related.
• So I rewrote it and then…put it away for about another year. After that I went through it once more and that’s pretty much the version you’ve been listening to. I record it all and produce it here in my home office!
• I’ve envisioned it as having multiple books, at least 6 novellas in the story arc, though perhaps more as the world is pretty big!

Writing Advice

• Nothing can force you to write – you just have to figure out a system that gets your butt in the chair
• My system – I trick my brain (Just open the document, then read what you’ve written, okay now write 20 words, now 50, now 100…)
• Trade show post-mortems

Anyway, I hope you’ve enjoyed this little interlude episode – I’ll be back soon with Book 2 of Wingtorn, where Riona and Connor’s adventure continues and we get a lot more of young Fingal, Nora, and Donnoch’s journey as well. Until then, happy listening!

In Chapter 15 (Epilogue), Fingal is ambushed by the enemy in the present day.
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Chapter 15 – Epilogue

FINGAL
Present Day

The girl was safe, but not for long.

Fingal pulled the black cloth over his nose and mouth to protect himself from the cool night air as he rode. The wind nipped at an old wound on his arm, but he itched it away. He leaned back in his carriage seat and listened to the horses’ hooves against the gritty road, and the crunching of the wheels beneath him. The road was full of potholes, but fortunately he didn’t have to worry about jostling anyone in the empty carriage.

It had been a long three days, tracking down the bandits, extracting information and airgid, but it had been worth it. He’d been able to secure entrance to the capital. Passage papers had been the recent bureaucratic annoyance instated by King Ansgarid. They were required for anyone entering the capital. They had to be signed by the Chief Magistrate too, and Fingal knew there was no chance of that happening. Fortunately the bandits were cooperative, after some violent persuasion, and he’d secured suitable noble papers for him and the girl. They even listed Riona as his sister. A far better charade than father and daughter, or gods forbid, husband and wife. No doubt it wouldn’t be the last hurdle they’d face. At least this time, he’d thought ahead and handled this particular annoyance before entering the capital….

In Chapter 14, Connor gets what he wants – with a terrible price. Riona restarts an ancient order. And the two set out on an adventure that will alter their lives forever.

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Chapter 14

RIONA

“Wait. You’re telling me the Evil Queen Caetriona, the murderous queen of the fae, is still alive?” Connor looked incredulous. “And she’s your mother?”

“Yes.” Riona leaned against a thick birch tree. Now he knew the whole story, or as much as he needed. “That’s why I have to fight her. And those who once supported her. To prevent her from rising again and taking control of the fae militia and destroying everyone in the realm.”

“Wait. She’s not…in control of the fae militia?”

“We don’t know how much control she exerts on them. Riklar was in the castle when I was young. He was one of her trusted advisors, but we don’t know if he’s acting with his own agenda or as part of hers. I like to think she’s not giving the fae militia orders. I…I don’t think she wants me dead.”

“How do you know?” Connor demanded. “How do I know you’re not secretly working for her, under her control?”

In Chapter 13, In the past, Fingal receives an unusual visitor. No one listens to Riona. Fingal learns a devastating truth.
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Chapter 13

FINGAL
Fifteen Years Ago

Fingal was back in the palace. It was Freedom Day, the evening they’d stormed the castle in the capital. Mist swirled at his feet. That wasn’t there before. He looked around the empty stone corridor for the sciacath he’d knocked unconscious. The mist had nearly hidden the floor. His weapons were gone, and he wasn’t wearing the fae uniform: he was in his fighter clothes, the clothes he’d worn when he was travelling within Azara Forest to Cantlyn, with the children they’d rescued. That was only a day or two ago at most.

Wait, that didn’t make sense, wasn’t he in the palace to rescue the children…?

“Fingal Morpleth.”

Her voice—the fae queen’s voice—gripped him as it had before, kept him in place as she buzzed around him, circling like a bee to the flower. She hovered in front of him, grinning with her sharp dagger teeth, her eyes wide and terrifying….

Ah Montreal!

I spent the past week in Nova Scotia, mainly on the Eastern Shore, working and location scouting for my wedding. Because…that’s a thing people do, right?

You can feel the slower pace in your body, in the best way. You don’t have anywhere to be so you don’t go there. It’s a different country than Calgary.

But, I could only stay for a week, and then it was time to get ready for Montreal.

General Impressions

Last year, Jessie and I drove to Montreal from Nova Scotia. This year, Mom and I flew! I coordinated the travel, the AirBnB, and all the baggage…sigh. So many bags. Well, two each, which is a lot when it’s full of books.

On Thursday, Dad dropped us at the airport and it was extremely busy. They took one look at my taped-together banners and were like…yeah we’re going to search that. They were searching everyone thoroughly and after I got through, I had to line up to retrieve items marked for manual examination. Which was…half of everyone’s baggage in line.
My banners are securely shoved in their thin, fabric cases. The only way to remove them is to remove all the duct tape. Duct tape I had spent time securely weaving around the cases so it looked neat and professional. I think the security guard regretted his job that day. He couldn’t just stink the swab wand in, no, he had to remove all the duct tape, and take out the banners and their various accouterments, just for ONE swab. Everything came back fine, and then that left the task of putting everything BACK in the fabric case, and taping it all back together.

Sigh. It was fine in the end, but so annoying. Worth it to have my banners with me.

Once in Montreal, getting settled in was straightforward. We got a taxi to downtown Montreal to the convention centre. While we waited for our accommodations to be ready,

I set up my table. Thank you to Nancy and her partner, who helped us navigate the convention centre! The elevators were unavailable, so we had to wheel my many, many suitcases off the street, up an escalator, and into the convention hall.

Lugging product around is half my life.

We stayed in a similar place to last year, right across from the convention centre. So convenient. Sometimes it’s worth springing for a place close to the venue just so you don’t have to think about coordinating travel within the city.

Display

Pretty standard stuff! Unlike last year, I couldn’t bring my wings! They’ll be back when my sister does the Hal-Con show and for my show at Turner’s.

I was really kicking myself for not bringing my white, sparkling curtains I used at Festival of Crafts! I actually had them in the suitcase…and then I took them out, because I was afraid I’d be overweight. Oh well!

One problem I’m finding, with more books comes less space for signage. You’ll notice I’m trying to create separation between my Sparkstone Saga and Gear & Sea – hard to do when I have to put the sign in Gear & Sea’s real estate!

Also, because I’m lugging around two banners right now, the only way to fit both in the small space is to angle them. This lessens my display power, in my opinion.
I had JUST ENOUGH stock to do this show, flying in from Nova Scotia. I can use last year’s numbers to give me a picture of how much to bring, but you can never know for sure what is going to catch the buyer’s eye.

Sales

A lot of people complained that Montreal was down this year. I can definitely feel why that’s the consensus. Montreal was busy. Crowded. And yet, people weren’t really buying. It reminded me of Fan Expo Canada last year, people swarming into the Artist Alley rows just to get to The Next Thing. Crowded rows don’t bring sales. They bring anxious, frustrated attendees who only want to get by.

I also noticed more people paying in cash this year than before. This is an observation I made in Ottawa as well. My table neighbour, Boum, who has been doing Montreal Comiccon since 2011, remarked that she’s seen the quality of artists at this show rise over the years, as well as the size of the show itself. But with that comes a larger venue. It was SO HARD for people to find me. I had one customer tell me he searched for my table for half an hour! Every table has a number, but the aisles weren’t clearly marked. It’s easy to get lost in there.

Compared to last year, I did slightly better. But remember that I also raised my prices and I have a new book. I only had ONE copy of The Violet Fox left at the end! This year my fantasy series sold more than my science fiction series, and Gear & Sea performed well as an impulse buy for those who like Iron Giant and post-apocalyptic fiction.

Parler Francais & Translations

Last year, I had trouble pushing through and speaking English even when people spoke French to me. I was worried I’d bother them or seem rude if I only spoke to them in English. This year, I was better at that. I have some French comprehension – I can get by and understand – but I am definitely not comfortable selling a book in French, when I might have trouble understanding my customer! I felt the language pouring into me, though – a few more days there, and I may have mustered up the courage to speak more in French, regardless of whether I’m good at it or not! Next time?

I had quite a few people ask me if I’d ever consider translating Faery Ink Press books. I’d like to, someday! The question is how I’d go about a translation. Selling foreign language rights can be lucrative, and that’s the easiest way to go. Problem is, most indies don’t have the luxury of having agents or foreign publishers knocking at your door, demanding that. You have to hustle to make that happen.

The other way to go about translation is to hire a translator and create and package that myself. The benefit is I get complete control over the process. The drawback, other than me not being fluent in French? I don’t have a French following. Sure, I could get any of my books translated, create a pretty product, put it out into the world. But my audience is mostly English speaking. I’d have to create a whole new audience. That’s a big, long-term project. Doable? Yes. Do I want to take that on, and take attention away from my core audience? I just don’t know. Definitely not right now.

That’s why I’d kind of rather sell my foreign language rights, when the time comes. I’d rather stick with what I’m good at and let the pros handle what they are good at!

Out on the Town!

The best part of attending Montreal is seeing the sights! Or at least, going out to eat!

Unlike last year, I wasn’t too adventurous – we mostly stuck in the downtown area. But walking around, it’s like being in Europe. The buildings are old, the language is familiar but distant, and it’s mostly tourists. It felt safe.

On Thursday, after setting up and settling in to the AirBnB, Mom and I walked up to Venice, a small California-Asian restaurant. I had a tuna poke bowl. Perfect food for the heat.

Then on Sunday, after the show, Mom felt like pizza so we found a nearby fancy Italian place that also did gluten free pizza, Mangiafoco. It was really good! It was nice to relax and have a gluten-free beer (or a glass of wine, in my mom’s case) after a busy, intense weekend.

Make-Up Looks

I had fun experimenting with my make-up in Montreal! Still enjoying my Violet Voss palette, but I also have this glitter palette I’ve been a little afraid to experiment with – but I’m glad I brought it anyway! I also blew my hair dry each day, which straightens it. Otherwise my hair is SO wavy and gets so frizzy, especially in the extreme heat of Montreal.

I know, I need to do more shadowing in the crease part of my lid and build that out a bit. And oof, my pores! Taking these pictures helps me see where I need to up my game. It’s really fun to create looks that complement my books!

It’s actually first time I can remember where I did a show wearing my glasses! Normally I wear contacts for special events, but I ran out and only had enough for two days. I’ve worn glasses since I was eight. I’m terribly near-sighted. I cannot function without something in my eyeballs. The world is a cozy, deep blur.

Con Thoughts

This is me taking the temperature for my feelings on the business.

In the extreme heat of Montreal, my thoughts wandered during show time.

I kept thinking, “What am I doing here? This is really my life right now?”

I fly all over the country without really thinking about it anymore, which scares me. Regular people don’t live like this. Not that I want to have a regular life – that’s not what I’m here for.

There’s this futility that comes with being a convention artist. You’re standing for hours, scanning the crowd, hoping to catch the eye of an interested patron. And then when you have them before you, you treat them as well as you can, hoping that your product is the one for them. You make the sale or you don’t. Money comes in and money goes out. You get better at making the sale, moving the product from one side of the country to the other.

Years go by. People come and go. You stick around long enough and you make friends. They understand you because they live like you. They understand the game. They’re creative but they’re also trying to wrap their head around the business side.

Conventions come and go too. You have good years and bad years.

I’ve written some about the convention bubble – whether it exists, whether it’s going to burst. I’ve also recently written about how I feel like I’m living in a fishbowl. Maybe this is my intuition or it’s that voice inside that says, “Keep moving, the next thing is about to happen, be ready.” I feel it in my bones, that my life is changing, that something is happening that hasn’t surfaced yet and I’m still trying to figure out what it is.

I feel like I’m forging a path through a thick snowstorm. I know where I want to go, but I can’t always see the way, I can’t follow in someone’s footsteps because I am first in line. My brain is foggy with it and it colours my experience. I have to cobble together a vision of what I want my business to be because there’s no one guiding or competing with me, at my level. I have to look outside my industry to find models and companies trying interesting strategies and implement them inside an industry where the margins are tight, the readers are discerning, and the rules are constantly shifting.

I’ve been lucky. I’ve been strategic. I’ve been slow, but steady. I’ve built something and it’s real to people now. It’s too real to stop doing it (not that I want to stop). Real people want to read my real books and they look up to me and that’s…a little scary.

I like to think that at some point, you’ll be where I am too, feeling these feelings, so this is just as much to validate me as it is to comfort you.

Will I Go Back?

I suspect this is a show I’d have to do four or five times to make a dent in the Montreal consciousness. Partially because of size, but also because of the language barrier. I could do it. I could return and make a little bit more until I’ve built that solid 40% customer repeat business I’ve started to see from Calgary, Edmonton, and Halifax.

But I also don’t want to. Yes, I’m getting married next summer (if we can pull together our plans) and I don’t want to schedule any summer events before I have the wedding plans cemented. But the thought of coordinating another Montreal trip just makes me tired. I could spend the money and make it back just fine. Or I could write more books and do Montreal another year.

And you know, I’m okay with that.

My next show is Saskatoon Expo! I’m not returning to Fan Expo Canada this year, as I’m taking August to work on my books (and enjoy the summer!). I have a busy Christmas season that requires some mental and logistical gymnastics to complete and I feel a lot better knowing I have two months until my next show instead of…four weeks.

Until then!

 

The hand securing him wrapped around his neck. Connor concentrated on the place where his skin touched hers. Pain swirled within his gut: she was lying.
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Chapter 12

CONNOR

The hand securing him wrapped around his neck. Connor concentrated on the place where his skin touched hers. Pain swirled within his gut: she was lying.

“Evil fae,” Galen muttered. “You’d harm an innocent boy? He’s of no use to you.”

“You’re still talking,” Ree said menacingly. “Drop them.”

The men looked to Ollivan’s father. He was the highest ranking Imperial Guard for several celim. His grip on his sword tightened. “Charge.”

Powerful wielders could disappear in a swirl of smoke. Clearly she was not that skilled. Or, she chose not to display that kind of power. Instead she closed her eyes and with the wave of her hand, she summoned the smoke from the sky and created a wall with it on the ground, obscuring them once more.

“Run,” Ree said urgently.

She took his arm and together they sprinted across the field. The Imperials nipped at their heels. The treeline was close. Beyond that it was a mess of forests for about five celim, where it cleared around Drohoven. If they were lucky, they could easily lose the Imperial Guards in there.

Unless Connor left a trail….

In Chapter 11, a deep betrayal is revealed. Riona makes a desperate choice. Connor smells the true culprit.
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Chapter 11

CONNOR

By the time Ollivan’s cart arrived at the Donmagh library and residence, the joint buildings were ashy skeletons in the grass, enveloped in angry red-orange flames.
Connor leapt from the back of the cart and ran for the wreckage. “Mother! Da!”

Three Imperial guards threw buckets of water on the rapidly deteriorating structure, yet it did nothing to calm the flames. The familiar scent of magic hit him then. Magical fire was not dimmed by regular water. It could burn in the harshest of conditions. Only magic could subdue magic.

This was not one of his accidents.

Someone had done this deliberately….

I’ve been keeping an eye on FanQuest since its inception – and when Dan, the founder, invited me to be a guest, I accepted! Being a guest at this show meant my airfare was paid and I had a free table.

Winnipeg was having some sunny weather during my visit – in stark contrast to Calgary, which is in its rainy season. I went to the airport with my fashionable sun hat, tank top, and shorts. It was like I was going on vacation!

And going to Winnipeg meant I got to stay and hang out with BFF Sam! WOO! Thanks for PUTTIN ME UP SAM!

I went a day early to co-work and also to hang out with my other Winnipeg friends, Chadwick and Wendy and Sherry! I also chatted with Scott Henderson and Nyco Rudolph.

I feel so lucky to have so many creative friends.

General Impressions

FanQuest was held on the first floor of Red River College in downtown Winnipeg. Sam and I packed up the car with all my stuff and lugged it down to the college. Dan welcomed us at the door and showed us to my spot.

Since it’s downtown and not a convention centre, street parking was the only option, so that was a bit awkward. We also noticed a man, potentially a street person, try to talk his way into the event BEFORE it started – yikes. Fortunately there were many dollies available and we managed to find one for many suitcases and many boxes. Sam had loaded in the previous evening – otherwise we probably would have been overloaded with stuff.

Display

This set up is similar to how I’ve been setting up the past couple of times this year. But since I had more room, I placed the banners on either side of the table to catch people walking down the corridor some distance away.

Convention layout is an art and a science, and as the show was in the college, it’s not a typical convention set up. I liked how the tables ran along the hallway and into the atrium, which was bright and sunny. I was in a different area, across from the coffee canteen and the gaming room.

In one sense, your location doesn’t really matter at this show, since those who were there would walk through the event multiple times, but I think the better spot is the sunnier room, and it would be interesting to see a layout where the tables lead you into a bigger room, where there would be games and more artist tables.

Sales

As I was brought in as a guest, I wasn’t at FanQuest to focus on sales. I didn’t have a minimum sales goal to meet and I didn’t have to worry about losing money. I knew that even if I didn’t make the cost of shipping my product out to Winnipeg, it wasn’t a loss, as I’m doing the Signatures Winnipeg show at Christmas – any stock that didn’t sell would just remain with Sam until December.

So I just showed up with my books and set up shop!

The traffic was lighter than I expected, but for the size of the con, I didn’t do too badly. People bought a smattering of my other titles, but Gear and Sea was the stand-out seller. People came to me to ask for it by name!

Book Launch!

The second part of my coming was me participating in a book launch for Gear and Sea!

This isn’t my first McNally book launch/reading. I had one for The Violet Fox wayyy back in 2013.

I was excited for this one though, as I have more of an audience now, coupled with the launch of this collaboration with Gregory and Justin, who are based in Winnipeg.

They got up to talk about the inception of their Silent Guardians Universe, where Gear and Sea is set. Then they asked me to come up, and I said a few personal words, and did a reading from the first chapter. I feel like my Wingtorn experience has made me a better reader, and someone in the audience commented that they liked that I did different voices for all the characters! ^_^

Thank you to everyone who came!

Small Show Thoughts

Those who have been following my post-mortems know that I stopped doing small shows at the beginning of 2018. I replaced most of the smaller shows with larger ones – there’s always a bigger fish. This resulted in more sales for more or less the same effort.

Therefore, this was the first small show I’ve done since instituting this rule!

On one hand – the experience was relaxing. I wasn’t “on” for twelve hours, babmintoning with my potential customers and readers. There were stretches where there were no customers, where I could sit and strategize. I had nowhere else to be. I practiced my speech for my book launch, made notes about what I was going to read, and turned my thoughts to near-future and far-future strategies.

And yes, I had this comfort because I was brought there as a guest, for which I’m thankful.

These days, I welcome blocks of time where I have nothing scheduled except waiting. Waiting time is a time for reflection, strategizing, and daydreaming. So yes, while the days can be long at small shows with lower volume traffic, I am never at a loss for things to do, even if from the outside it looks like I’m doing nothing.

My third commitment, besides showing up with books and doing the book launch, was doing a panel with Gregory and Justin. We did an informal chat about being creators and the writing process – perhaps eleven people showed up? And I think years ago, I would have been nervous about this. All I could think on that day was, how lucky am I to sit for an hour with my friends and talk about what I love to do the most? How lucky am I to have friends who can actually speak for the full hour with me, on this subject, without feeling like we’re filling time? How lucky am I to have this knowledge so I can provide value to the people who were there, to speak directly to their fears and desires?

Doing this show reminded me that progress isn’t immediate. The show itself is in its third year. Attendance is fairly small but the staff is committed and friendly. I was regularly tended to and checked on. If they focus on growing the show and emphasize what makes FanQuest different from the rest of the shows out there – I think they have a chance. It’s like I’ve said before. You have to keep showing up with new stuff, better than before, and that’s how people take notice of you. This is true for the artists of all mediums reading this, and it’s true for conventions too.

Since the announcement of C4’s demise, hopes have been high that one existing show would rise to replace it. Is FanQuest up to the task?
I suspect that Informa or another company may take a stab at organizing a bigger show. If they don’t or they fail to get that support, perhaps in a few years fans will seek out other options, and perhaps FanQuest may benefit from that.

With any smaller iteration of a larger-scale thing, you should look to a small or medium-sized version, not the big versions, for direction and inspiration. So FanQuest might look to Hal-Con and Saskatoon Expo (~15K attendance each) for inspiration – not Fan Expo Canada or Calgary Expo. The danger of desperately wanting to grow and expand is that you spread yourself too thin and attract a smattering of people who aren’t really your ideal customer. You really have to ask yourself: why am I holding this event? Who do I want to attend? Families with children? Talented cosplayers? Gamers? Sci-fi fans? Robot enthusiasts? And sure, the answer might be “all of the above, duh Clare”…the answer is actually, Choose one, and others will follow naturally.

Case in point: my ideal potential customer is likely a mother of teens or pre-teens (or aunt/guardian to a pre-teen), who is VERY into YA fiction – and loves to fill her shelves with books, even if she never reads them. Does that mean she’s my only customer? NO! A lot of men buy my books – they are attracted by my covers and my stories too! Choose one person, build your brand to attract them, and you’ll attract others too.

With smaller events (and craft shows too), you have an opportunity to connect personally with the attendee (which I saw Dan do, on multiple occasions throughout the weekend). With FanQuest’s brand, it could easily forge an entirely new path – encouraging workshops and more hands-on experiences. Throughout the weekend there were spontaneous performances from dancers and geek choirs. That was kind of neat! Though I think that could be regulated a little, as a choir in front of your table isn’t exactly welcoming to a potential customer.

I think that FanQuest has all the makings to become a larger show – provided they commit to going deep on their target attendee and tending to their desires, attracting bigger talent that appeals to their target attendee, and integrating themselves into the Winnipeg geek/nerd/spec-fic community. That takes money and time.

The Glass Ceiling?

At one point during these many years of travelling and selling, I wondered where the ceiling was for conventions – do I have a limit to how much I can sell? This weekend, I realized, maybe the ceiling isn’t necessarily my sales.

The ceiling is the fishbowl I’m ramming my head against.

The more time you spend in a community, the more you learn its structure, and what everyone is ultimately striving for. In the artist alley community, the goal seems to be, for an artist (in the most traditional definition of the word) to make lots of money off their art – sometimes this is fan art, or fan art is a gateway to original art, or art is a gateway to developing books with your art in them. The other part of this overall goal is usually to get into bigger shows, catch the eye of larger companies that would hire you, and eventually, become a full time artist.

I’m in a unique position here – I’m not an artist, in the strict definition of the word. I don’t worry about prints versus books, I don’t have to worry about fan art versus original pieces. My customers come for me and my work, and that’s it. The reality is, conventions aren’t the only place to get my things out there, but I’ve made it a large part of my business because they allow me to easily access a portion of my audience.

What I’m getting at here is, I’m a fish in this fishbowl, but I could never figure its shape. I am also a content fish in the bowl because I have all of my fish friends and we’ve formed a travelling school. But now that I’ve swam around the bowl several times, now that I’m no longer a small fish, I have a sense of what my life cycle is and, well, what the endgame looks like for the big fish in this contained glass fishbowl of ours.

The “endgame” for a seasoned convention artist seems to be this:

• You are extremely good at knowing what your audience likes OR you have a specific audience that likes specific fandoms/art that you can cater to;
• You have a regular printer and have min/maxed your production;
• You are a regular at all the big shows;
• You have considerable financial success – perhaps this IS 100% your income;
• You have other, large companies approaching you with work and/or collaborations.

Now, all of this is fantastic.

But the reality of that is, you spend your weekends going to shows, lugging your product around the continent for your audience. That’s a HUGE time commitment, besides being a financial one. And if you stop? Well, there’s always someone willing to take your place.

If you don’t have that client work to fall back on, or online sales to make up for fewer or no conventions…you kind of become reliant on the convention lifestyle.

I’m not saying that conventions are bad – far from it, they are an amazing way to connect with your audience and you really can make money there, if you’re smart about it.

What I am saying is, yet again, that conventions aren’t the only way to success, and even if you feel they are, there is a ceiling and a maintenance cost. If you’re willing to stick it out and play the game, that’s great. But like anything else, it takes lots of time, and lots of investing to make this lifestyle – and yes, it’s a lifestyle – to make it worth it.

I contemplate this not to criticize, but to remind myself that there is a bigger vision I’m working toward – a bigger fish bowl. For me, the endgame isn’t “make tens of thousands of dollars at a show.” The endgame is, “Build something that will outlast you.”

Ultimately? Faery Ink Press has to, at some future point, run without me. To have it run without me, the business HAS to be scalable. If my business model is heavily reliant on conventions, then I am not scalable, not one bit.

The more I think about that deeper “why” – the more I return to my initial goal of turning Faery Ink Press into a traditional press, and the more I realize just how possible it is. How being an author is just great, and it’s what I’ve always wanted – but…besides having bigger contracts, more sales….you see, there’s a ceiling there too. And it doesn’t completely satisfy this deeper desire to make the biggest impact I can.

There are children’s book publishers who also do teen fiction, and larger publishers with teen imprints, and Can-lit publishers with spec-fic arms. But there are no independent teen speculative fiction publishers in Canada.

I could be that.

To me, it doesn’t seem like there’s a ceiling there. No glass bowls. Just…a lot of thick, rainy clouds, covering up a sparkly sky.

Will I Go Back?

Since I’d have to come in from Calgary, probably not. Given the expenses and the size of the show, I don’t think I’d make back my investment with the show as-is.

If I were local to Winnipeg? This is a good show to cut your teeth on. It’s only two days and the hours are reasonable. And remember –  no matter how many people show up, you serve THEM – not the people who didn’t bother.

See you at my next show – Montreal Comiccon!!

 

In Chapter 10, Riona cannot, will not give in. A dressmaker makes an unreasonable request. Ollivan arrives in a hurry with terrible, life-altering news.
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Chapter 10

RIONA

As they entered the town of Ashdown and Riona pretended to browse the various market tents and stalls, she kept a careful eye on Connor Donmagh. There would never be a right moment to tell him the truth: that Nora had locked her in the spare room and she’d made a rope from bedsheets to climb out the window. And the worst of it all: after she’d escaped the house, she’d used magic to shut the window again. She had to prevent unwelcome guests from flying inside or climbing up the bedsheet rope, into the spare room. Big displays of magic would attract the fae militia, but small ones—small ones she could risk for Nora and Donnoch’s safety. She hoped it was small enough.

“It’s just up here,” Connor said, pointing. Market stalls and tents lined both sides of the road now, as the trees had on the way into town. Beyond the market were more permeant structures and houses. “Most of these vendors are only here three days a week. They travel between Drohoven and Mudvale and here—both of those towns are west and east of here, respectively…”

He rambled on about the market and the local geography: Riona was familiar in passing with the layout of the land, but she was more interested in his sudden apprehension. This was different than this morning, when they’d run an errand together. He’d been acting strangely since she’d lied to him on the road. What had Nora told him? Maybe he knew Nora had imprisoned Riona, that she’d tied the bedsheets together and climbed out the window, and this was all a test….

In Chapter 9, in the past, Fingal faces the consequences. Nora becomes attached. And Young Riona puts her foot down.
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Chapter 9

FINGAL

Fifteen Years Ago

Fingal’s resistance cell had identified four rescued children from the palace who needed escorting to Cantlyn. Them, plus Riona, made five. Other resistance members took charge of other children, promising them safe passages to their communities. Unclaimed children who were too young to speak were briskly rounded up by the Imperials: Fingal wondered, briefly, if they’d be taken to Zeplyne’s in the capital or rehomed to Imperial soldier families. He tried not to dwell on it, for worrying about one child was enough.

They’d broken camp in the late morning, groggy but determined. Mostly it was Fingal who was determined. Brendan was still making merry when Fingal woke. He didn’t get much sleep either. Riona had slept against Fingal all night. Once, her cloak almost slipped off. The poor thing seemed susceptible to cold so it didn’t take much convincing for her to keep it on at all times.

Nora, Donnoch, and Brendan trudged along the road with Fingal and Riona and the children towards Cantlyn. Normally he’d be ecstatic to have his friends on an adventure. But between Nora’s obsessive mothering of the children, Donnoch dotting on Riona’s every move, and Brendan casting bluster on this or that future project, Fingal was starting to look forward to some peace and quiet.

“Fingal,” Riona said, tugging at his trouser leg. “How much further?”

In Chapter 8, Nora orders some new clothes. Connor and his mother have a heart-to-heart—revealing disturbing new information. Riona’s past is cast in a new light.
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Chapter 8

RIONA

“All right, Iris. You’ll stay here until Fingal returns.”

Nora gestured for Riona to enter the spare room, where Riona had spent mere hours lying awake the previous night. It was modestly appointed. A single bed by the heavily curtained window. Only a sliver of the afternoon sun shone through. The floor was dusty and showed her footprints from earlier. Besides her, no one had slept in this room for a long time.

Riona stepped inside. Nora stood at the entrance. No matter that she was a head and a half shorter than Riona. She was a formidable guard.

“It doesn’t have to be like this,” Nora said, more to herself than to Riona. “I don’t want to be this person. You have forced my hand.”

In Chapter 7, in the past, Nora, Donnach, and Brendan celebrate their victory. Fingal struggles to hide the truth about his new charge. Riona gets a new name.
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Chapter 7

FINGAL

Fifteen Years Ago

With the capital retaken, and the Evil Queen slain, the day was won.

Citizen’s Brigade fighters and Imperial Guards alike were joined in song and celebration around the campfires in Azara Forest, sharing ales, swapping stories, making future plans. The happy soldiers and liberated slaves were beacons of joy in this long night.
Fingal wished he could share in the jubilation….

In Chapter 6, Riona shows her scars. Connor takes the blame. Someone is watching.
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Chapter 6

RIONA

The floorboards creaked underneath her as she ventured down the corridor into the Donmagh Printing House and Library, which was attached to the Donmagh residence. It had been a while since she’d been here, and never in this corridor, and never when it was this quiet. She pressed a palm against the cool stone, appreciating the moment alone and the stillness of the house at this hour. Even in this quiet town of human veterans and a strong hatred for half the blood pumping through her veins, the presence of the Spirit Mother sleeping beneath the earth rose through the floor, warming her skin….

In Chapter 5, An important piece of the past is revealed. Fingal is caught infiltrating the castle during the liberation. An evil queen makes a surprising request. A young girl’s fate is changed forever.
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Chapter 5

FINGAL

Fifteen Years Ago

“What are you doing in this passage, chos? Speak!”

Caught already. It had only been five minutes. That had to be the worst record ever.

Time to see if the intel was good.

Fingal spun on his boot heel—polished to a fault, thanks to Nora’s diligence—and faced the fae solider. He held the rank of sciacath, judging from the dashes on his right arm. A soldier of note. Fingal bowed—as he was pretending to be a chos, a foot soldier in the fae militia, he was the lowest of the low. Especially since he was a human. “Apologies, sir. I was sent by Scialeir Dylik to check on the prisoners, to count them and take them for processing.”…

In Chapter 4, Ree has a close call. Connor uses his magic to save the day. A charming friend asks too many questions.
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Chapter 4

CONNOR

The Donmagh Printing House and Library, which was consequently attached to Connor’s home, was a ten-minute walk from the center of Ashdown. The well-travelled dirt road ran from Crogdan’s Hold on the southern end of the continent and connected all the small villages, including Ashdown. It eventually joined with the king’s road, running East-West, and ended in Halsimarth—the capital.

Connor and Ree strode along the dirt road. The sun had already reached its zenith. By the time Connor had stuffed his mouth full of bread and oxenberry jam and chosen an appropriate outfit worthy of the printer’s son, well, he only had himself to blame for their slow departure. Ree appeared to have no other clothes than what she’d arrived in, including her heavy cloak, which remained firmly around her, now thankfully dry after a night hanging over the stove. A shame, given the heat. Trees, neatly planted decades ago, lined the road and gave some relief to the sun–but not enough…

Another weekend, another con! This time, I return to Ottawa, the capital, to do a business – for the third time!

General Impressions

I was tired and overworked leading up to this show. Today, Monday writing this after the Ottawa show, I haven’t had a weekend in weeks. Managing Faery Ink Press and juggling multiple clients is really becoming untenable. I’m seriously considering getting an assistant (very, very part-time, just a handful of hours a week).

I flew into Ottawa on Thursday, which takes all day, and my cousin Kathleen picked me up from the airport. We went immediately to the EY Centre to set up…after like 45 minutes of waiting for my bags. Sorry Kathleen!

Display

My display was more or less the same as Calgary Expo! I brought my display boxies in my suitcases and I ended up bringing two banners on the plane with me. I taped them together with duct tape. So professional.

I brought my horizontal banner but since the space is six feet, not eight, hooking it on the pipe and drape was not an attractive option, so back into the suitcase it went.

Compared to Ottawa last year, my display is an improvement, since last year I didn’t have my table runner or the new banners I made.

I also remembered to put batteries in my little lights! I’ve also started displaying face-out books on my boxie shelves–thanks to Kate’s suggestion at Calgary Expo!

Sales

Ottawa Comiccon is a strong sales convention, especially for books. To prevent selling out of book one in either series, I shipped twice as many copies. This really helped! I didn’t end up selling out of anything, though Dreams In Her Head was close: I only had two copies left by the end of the show.

Gear and Sea was a standout seller, since it’s my newest book, but The Violet Fox and Stars In Her Eyes weren’t far behind. The Sparkstone Saga sold quite a bit more than The Violet Fox Series. I’m selling slightly fewer series bundles, probably due to my increased prices, but I am selling a lot of 2 for $30 deals. I think this pricing works for now, at least until September when I have new books to add to the mix.

I am noticing an increase in Sparkstone Saga sales—I’m wondering if the addition of Gear and Sea, and the similarity of appeal in the art style, as well as the genre similarity, is contributing to this. I’m excited to see if this remains a trend for the year, especially with the release of book fours in both the Sparkstone Saga and The Violet Fox Series.
Remember that the new book doesn’t just add more potential revenue to the table. It also adds an extra choice for the customer for my 2 for $30 deal, which lends more variety, which makes the deal all the more attractive.

I feel people resisted my upsells in Ottawa as well, though not as much as in Calgary. More people did pay cash than I expected. Perhaps now that I’m more cognizant of just how much bundles and deals accounted for my 2018 book sales, I’m pushing them more, which means I’m getting more rejections.
I beat last years’ sales, but I was just shy of my ideal sales goal. I’m not disappointed though!

Room for improvement:

I think I have enough bundles and deals to constitute a pricing policy. I am not sure where I would put this on the booth, since I have enough going on already, but I have run into a couple of rare pricing stumbling blocks, which are:

• Make clear that when buying three books that aren’t part of a series or bundle, the lowest priced books are counted in the two for thirty, whereas the highest price book is full price. Example: individually priced, the books are $16, $15, and $19. The $16 and $15 are counted as two for thirty, and the $19 book is full price, making the total $49.
• Clarify that series bundles trump a two for thirty deal. When buying four books, and three of them belong to a series, the total would be the series bundle price + the full price for the individual book. Example: if you buy a Sparkstone Saga (3 books) for $50 plus a $19 copy of The Violet Fox, your total is $69.
• Clarify that four individual books that aren’t part a defined bundle set defaults to two 2 for $30s, making the total $60. Example: buying The Violet Fox, The Silver Spear, Within, and Gear and Sea immediately defaults to $60.

I think these are fair and not an uncommon retail practice. When add up the totals verbally and tell them what they owe, no one argues with me, as I am transparent with my bundles and deals. In the odd situation where someone might argue a price, however, having a policy is beneficial. Displaying it so it’s not distracting and writing it up so it’s clear is a whole other issue that I will need consider!

Weird Interactions

Jennifer and I were walking down in the exhibitor area before the venue opened to the public. I had gone down to see if Justin (Chasing Artwork) was around, but he hadn’t gotten in yet, so we were wandering back towards Artist Alley. The show was slated to open in five minutes. We were walking down one of the aisles and we happened upon a clothing booth. They had a tall dress rack facing the aisle.

I took a closer look at the fabric, fanned out the dress, and was searching for a booth name and number when a Ottawa Comiccon staff member approached us and asked,

“Hey, is this your booth?”

“No,” I replied, believing he was searching for the booth owner.

He then proceeded to “explain” to us that we shouldn’t be “in” the booth, touching another vendor’s things when they weren’t there. He tried to frame this as a “courtesy rule” that I should “know” as a vendor and surely *I* wouldn’t like it if someone were to touch MY product if I weren’t there?

This really put me off kilter and while I tried to stumble through a reply and leave to go start my day, I felt disrespected and unfairly targeted.

First of all, I get it. There’s a rash of thievery happening all across the continent at major cons. But this situation could have been handled WAY differently. If he thought we were potential thieves, he could have hung around and assessed our behaviour before jumping in. The only shopping time I get is BEFORE an event opens, because I don’t leave my booth for extended periods. We had barely been there for ten seconds—in fact, I was ready to move on and get back to my table, because again, the event was about to start. An effective method of preventing theft is interaction with would-be thieves. He could have chatted with us first or had some kind of regular human interaction instead of lording over us with guilt and “rules.”

Second, we were not in the booth. We were in the aisle, next to the rack. I hadn’t taken the dress off the rack and I was only interested in the feel of the fabric and the brand, since you know I’m always in the market for a new dress—and I was trying to determine if the dress was handmade. In fact, the owner could have been there and I wouldn’t have known, since the rack was tall and blocked access to the booth itself from our side of the aisle, and everything was uncovered.

Third, I cover my things when I go for the night, so it’s unlikely that someone would flip through my books in the morning before I get there. But even if they did stop to look when the display is up and I’m not present? A book needs to be flipped through before you buy, so as long as you are respectful of it as a piece of art, go ahead. Start reading.

Fourth, Jennifer and I couldn’t shake the feeling that this man was taking his staff “power” a little too seriously. Did he really think we were potential thieves, or was he having a bad morning and decided to take it out on us? Perhaps both? All I could think in the moment was, what if this situation escalates? What if I’m reported or blacklisted because of this man’s word, regardless of its accuracy or basis in factual events? What I’m really trying to say here is, it didn’t make me feel good to have a man try to assert condescending authority over me in a situation that didn’t warrant it.

Regardless of what he thought or what I say about it, it put a bad taste in our mouths on 9am Saturday morning. When you’re made to feel guilty for something that you weren’t even doing in the first place, it makes you feel pretty gross for the day. And I don’t want to feel gross. I want to do the job that I’ve paid money to be there to do.

The only other weird interaction I had during the weekend was a customer who picked up one of the books and remarked, “Oh, Faery Ink Press. Is that your company?”

I gave the standard rundown: yes, it’s my imprint, I’ve been publishing my own books since 2011, etc.

He then asks, “So what was your revenue in 2018?”

I get asked a LOT of questions during the weekend, but that really threw me! I politely told him that I do not disclose my revenue (and why the hell would I tell a random stranger?), but I told him that I doubled my book sales from 2017 and my business overall had a very strong growth in 2018.

Mr. CRA then asked for a business card and I gave him my standard postcard. Unless you can prove to me that you are a business or person relevant to writing and publishing, you don’t get a business card—that’s the rule—and he offered nothing in return. My conspiracy mind, of course, wonders what kind of “your-revenue-must-be-this-high” opportunity I’m missing out on because I gave a non-answer. My best guess? He’s a curious author looking for a large-ish Canadian publisher to rep his work.

Writing and Publishing

A young writer asked me this weekend, “What’s your favourite part about writing?” And I had to pause, because the answer on my tongue was, “Publishing and selling what I want.”

But publishing and selling aren’t part of the writing process.

These last two weeks, I’ve come to realize how much I enjoy the business part of creation—I’ve always known that I love where creativity and business intersect. This plays into the future of the business as well. Way back when, I was teetering on whether or not I should even make Faery Ink Press a traditional press. It’s expensive, it’s time consuming, you have to deal with other authors and their expectations and potential drama…all reasons to not do it.

But now, in 2019, I think I’m back on the other side of it again. It all comes back to WHY I started publishing in the first place. I want to create a legacy—to leave something behind for when I’m no longer here. And if you’re running your business as a single-author press, it’s likely that your business will die with you. I don’t want my business—this brand—to die. There is something deeper I’m working towards that I don’t have words for right now, but the more I publish, the more I travel around the country, the more I learn, the more I want to become a leader and represent all that is good and possible in the speculative fiction, cultural landscape. The more I improve and learn, the more confident I feel, the closer I feel to my ideal self.

Being a traditional press isn’t the immediate future for Faery Ink Press, but it’s back to being a far-future milestone…for now.

The beginning writers I speak to are so concerned about publishing, getting published, making it a career. These are good concerns to have, but many of them haven’t even finished their first novel or story. Finish writing first. Worry about everything else later.

Good People

One of the best parts of going to Ottawa is hanging out with my cousins! This is the THIRD year that Kathleen and Jennifer and Rita and Bruce have hosted me! Without their help and support I do not know what I would do. THANK YOU! We went out for food, dished on Game of Thrones, WATCHED Game of Thrones, and had a Game of Thrones debrief about what we believed was going to happen in the final episode! ^_^

I also got to see cousins on my mom’s side of the family too! I visited with Kevin and Andrea and little Violet, who is really not that little at one and a half! Thank you for having me over

Thanks to all my friends who stopped by the booth! And EXTRA thank you to all the people who came back to my booth to tell me how much they LOVED my books. I really appreciate that!

Will I Go Back?

When I set out for Ottawa this weekend, I knew this would be the deciding year. I’ve done Ottawa three times now (though really, this is my second NORMAL Ottawa Comiccon!). Three times is enough data to determine if I have grown the show year after year. And I’m happy to report that yes, my sales were up 30% this year with little to no increase in expenses. Having a new book, implementing display improvements, and continuing to show up WORKS! I rebooked my table.

I talked briefly with the showrunners during my renewal transaction, and it was interesting to hear their perspective. They said they are hearing more and more from people who are taking a year off to “focus on their online sales” and weren’t going to do any more shows, anywhere. They mirrored my thoughts exactly: conventions, as long as you have a strong brand and appropriate products for the venue, can drive traffic and exposure to your business in a way that online marketing alone can’t. The two work together to grow your business, even if conventions alone aren’t as scalable.

Next year though will be interesting. I’ll have many more new books, but the same physical space. I’m going to have to get creative if I want to remain at one artist alley table. Yes, I could double my space, but I’m hesitant to do so for a show that’s not local. Next year will be telling for whether or not my revenue will increase enough to justify the extra cost.

I leave you now with a picture of a Dalek family that toured the entire hall! (Their human selves came to talk to me later, they are part of the Doctor Who Society of Canada!)

My next convention is FanQuest in Winnipeg, where I’m a guest! Can’t wait to return to Winnipeg again, visit with my friends, and talk about writing and publishing. See you all there!

 

His mother scoffed. “The king will not believe you, Ree.”
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Chapter 3

CONNOR

“The forces from the South,” Connor said, intrigued. “Riklar Dheediannil. That’s the name you said last night. But there’s no more war—”

“No more war that you can see,” she corrected him. “A horrible fae named Riklar Dheediannil has created, or some might say resurrected, a twisted version of the fae militia. They have been quietly gathering resources for the last decade and now they are making moves within the capital and other large human cities. We believe Riklar wants to restart the war. So we have to convince King Ansgarid that Riklar is a threat, before Riklar mounts an attack.”

His mother scoffed. “The king will not believe you, Ree.”

It was the first time they had called her by name, and even Connor knew that the lack of syllables used was meant as an insult. In fae culture, nobles and individuals who had achieved great renown extended their names. Some became unpronounceable, especially for humans. Was ‘Ree’ her full name, or a convenient moniker, Connor wondered.

“He may believe Fingal,” Ree replied calmly, unphased by Mother’s sleight. “If we can see the human king and convince him to raise his levies for the first time in fifteen years, we could save lives and prevent another war. We don’t want to create more veterans.”

At that, Nora and Donnoch Donmagh were silent, and Connor knew they agreed with her on that at least.

“We have to do something,” Connor said, his eyes wide with determination. “Right? If Riklar’s militia is after you, then maybe the Imperial Guard—”

“No one can know I’m here,” she interrupted him. “We can’t trust the Imperial Guard directly. Riklar has people everywhere, fae and human.”

“Then how do you know you can trust the king?” Mother asked, folding her arms. “Or us, for that matter.”

Ree looked hurt. “Fingal trusts you. That is enough for me. And as for the king…as far as we know, Riklar has not infiltrated the court. Though our intel may be old. All the more reason for us to get to the capital as quickly as possible, as soon as Fingal returns from meeting his contact, so we can attempt to plead our case privately.”

So Ree and Fingal were going to the capital. Connor knew an opportunity when he saw one. “This is why you need to let me train at the tower. If I can improve my magic, I can help—”

“Absolutely not,” Mother cut in. “I won’t let you go through what we did.”

“Your mother is right. It’s too dangerous to leave right now,” Da added. “In a year, we’ll re-evaluate.”

“But there is a threat out there, now!” Connor didn’t understand. His parents fought and sacrificed for the realm when they were around his age. Didn’t he have the right to do the same?

“It isn’t your fight, son,” Da said, putting a comforting hand on Connor’s shoulder. “The Imperial Guards, the official wielders…let them do their jobs. Your job is working with us, here. Spreading stories. Keeping records.”

“And going to the supplier to get paper,” Mother added tersely.

“I didn’t say I wouldn’t also do those things,” Connor muttered.

“We can talk about your future…later.” After Ree was gone, was what his mother didn’t say.

“Let me help,” Ree said.

“What are you going to do, fly the rolls here from the shop?” Mother said. “Because that would be helpful.”

“You know I can’t fly,” Ree replied, failing to hide her anger behind her cool exterior. “I could hide in the library. Or I could hide in plain sight. As Fingal raised me to do.”

“The last time you tried that—”

She scowled. “The last time I tried that was days ago. I’ve been doing this my entire life. Ever since I’ve been with Fingal.”

Da cleared away the tea cups and pot. “Nora and I take care of the library and the printing. These volumes have to be ready for tomorrow,” he said to his son. “You and the girl can get the paper. Do it quickly.” Mother began to protest, but Da shook his head. “We let him handle this, we can discuss the Tower exam. Trust goes both ways.”

With an indignant sigh, Mother threw up her hands. She refused to look Ree in the eye as she disappeared down the hallway under the stairs, towards the library.

“Mother—” Connor said. “Why is she like this? I’ve never…”

Donnoch gripped his son. “I know. Having Fingal here has brought up a lot of memories. She’ll be fine. Leave her be. For now, do as you’re told, and then…we can talk about the Tower.”

Connor leaned into his father for support, and after a brisk clap on the back, Da followed Mother down the corridor.

Then he was alone…with Ree.

He ran his fingers along the counter, unsure of what to do with his hands. They felt warm; not sweaty, but the kind of warmth that comes with magic. Ree appeared equally awkward at his presence. She was probably embarrassed for him. His parents wouldn’t let him go to the Tower, the very place he needed to be to learn how to control his magic. She probably knew all of the third level spells by now, if not fourth level. He didn’t want her pity. He just wanted to be useful. To show her that he too could make a difference.

That he was brave enough to have the kind of life she seemed to lead. A life on the run. Just like in all of the stories he’d read.

“Connor,” she began. “I want to apologize—”

He didn’t want her to. He just wanted to get on with it. “So. Ree, is it?” He could tell she didn’t like the name, but she didn’t offer an alternative. He sized her up. “Can you lift a twenty pound roll of paper by yourself?”

“I’m stronger than I look.”

“Great,” he said stiffly. He took a long drink from his tea and then set it on the counter. “We leave as soon as I’ve eaten breakfast.”

Wow, so much has happened since my last post mortem!

Major life updates: I went home to Nova Scotia for Christmas with my family. I usually do this in November so I can do shows like Turner’s, and then I just stay for the month. Well, Dave decided to surprise me just before Christmas and flew down to spend the holidays with me and my family. Everyone knew EXCEPT me!!

And well besides that, while he was there, he gave me a very special present. We got engaged!

We’ve been together for nearly nine years now so it’s not like this is completely out of the blue, but it was very special nonetheless. No concrete plans or dates yet, as we are so busy with our careers!

Now that we have a house, it is only right that we fill it with kitties. Meet Pinecone and Pavlova, the two street urchins who have joined our family. They are sisters and Perfect Kitties in every way! They are five months now, they’ve grown so much since we brought them home! They are the best and also they love each other.

Three years ago, I committed to doing 10+ shows a year. Enacting this commitment and improving how I show up with the brand has taken my business to another level. Now, I’m making a different kind of commitment: improving my online presence. This will be rolled out in stages (as there are so many aspects) and I’m going to blog about it as well. For now though, some new things that I’ve done since my last post-mortem:

• New website design! I’ve been slowly working on it for over a year but I prioritized it and got it out just before Calgary Expo.
• Weekly fantasy serial! Wingtorn is a fantasy story, in text and audio (podcast) formats. A new chapter will be released every week on Thursday. I’ve already got the first book written (about 12-13 chapters) and I’m currently batching the recording and editing sessions (so it’s not a mad dash each week to get up new content).
• No More New Clients! I made a rule at the end of 2018. No more new freelance clients. (I edit and lay out books, do website design/development, and podcast editing). But I’m hoping to shift away from freelance work within the next 1-2 years. Or sooner? In 2018, my revenue from book sales and freelancing was a near 50-50 split. In 2017, it was 70% freelance and 30% book sales. I had a 30% growth in revenue in 2018. Remember though, book publishing is an expensive business. I reprinted my entire catalogue in 2018 because of my growth, and levelled up the inventory minimum I keep on hand (500-1000 instead of 250-400). My newest goal is increase book revenue from non-convention sources, aka, grow the website revenue.

So, that’s the recap of the “in-between” time from November to now.

General Impressions

April is one of my busiest months, historically. So not only was I busy putting together Wingtorn for launch, launching a new website design, but I was balancing my client work AND getting ready for the show AND preparing for Best Friend Sam’s arrival! She stayed with me for a week and it was a grand time.
Load-in was really easy. My table was by the loading dock so once I tracked down the check-in desk (not labeled, had to ask around as usual), it was straight forward.

Display

The biggest difference between last year and this year is table size. Informa bought Calgary Expo and Edmonton Expo a few years ago and now they’ve fazed out the previous table/booth options. Before, I had a “small press” space: an 8ft table with pipe and drape, which cost about $450 CAD for the weekend. That’s gone now and it’s only 6ft artist alley tables with no pipe and drape (~$375 CAD) or end caps and booths ($850+ CAD).

So I downgraded to an artist alley table and lost 2ft of space and my pipe and drape. I enjoy having the drape—it adds an air of credibility and it’s also something I can hang a banner on. But, you make do with what you have.

It’s VERY obvious that this is the last year I can get away with 6ft of space. I mean, I can do it, but I can only build so high before I disappear behind the stacks!

When I look at last year’s display, I am so embarrassed. The table runner and multiple banners bring everything together in a much more cohesive way. Several weeks before the show, I ordered two new banners: the Gear and Sea banner and my Sparkstone Saga banner. I brought all banners with me, hoping I’d find a creative way to find them all in, to no avail. It was just too cramped.

Not only that, but there was basically no room in behind the banners to get in and out. I had to walk through my neighbour’s display to get out. Gone are the days of me crawling beneath my table—because I have SO MANY BOXIES packed there, full and empty!

With a new book comes a new challenge: how do I display this in a way that makes sense to my audience? For now I’m happy to devote a decent portion of the table to it, since it can be read as a stand-alone that’s part of a bigger world. With the banner backing it up, it REALLY attracted sales.

So if you’re wondering, should I get a banner? The answer is definitely yes, do it. I use Eprintfast.com for mine, they’re around $130 each plus shipping (but watch for sales!), and they’re printed/made in Canada. They’re sturdy and easy to set up and take down—I can do it on my own in about a minute, and I’m not that tall!

Sales

Many vendors I talked to had a down year. There was something in the air this year, that’s for sure.

Thursday was fine. Friday was fine. Saturday was great.

And then Saturday evening, there was a BLIZZARD!

People cleared out on Saturday at 5pm when the snow got really bad. Just walking from the Big Four Building to the train, which is a three minute walk at best, we were drenched with wet snow. Visibility was zero.

Fortunately, the next morning, the snow had stopped but it had stayed. The roads were awful. We didn’t have our winter tires on (did anyone?) so driving to the train station was pretty terrifying. Roads in Calgary are rarely plowed.

Sunday was still busy—people came out, despite the weather, and the snow began to melt. It wasn’t quite as busy as expected. Would I have done better if there hadn’t been a blizzard? Perhaps. But like I said earlier—you make do with what you have.

Many people were on cash budgets. AND people resisted my upsells! Most of the time, when I mention there’s a 2 for $30 deal at checkout and they’re only buying one book, they’ll opt to buy two for $30 instead. Not so this time! I felt like I only converted half of my customers from individual books to one of my bundles.
I also felt a little rusty at times and unsure of myself. Could I have pushed a little harder with that person? That person looked interested, but I didn’t pursue them. I think they would have bought if I had only done XYZ. It’s futile and frustrating, really, and I shouldn’t rent space in my brain to these thoughts, especially when I’m in the middle of selling to people who really do want my things!

I had a LOT of return customers this year. This is my fifth Calgary Expo and my readers showed up in a big way! THANK YOU!

I had a reasonable ideal goal for this convention that I didn’t meet, but I did beat last year’s sales…by about $18. Essentially, I held the line. This was due to my return customers, buying sequels and new books—and I also played with my pricing structure, so individual books and certain bundles were $1 to $5 more. Every dollar goes a long way. And since I paid less for my spot this year, I actually made more of a profit, so that’s always nice.

My bestseller this weekend was Gear and Sea by far. At $15, it’s hard to beat. Stars In Her Eyes was a surprising second in terms of individual book sales. The Violet Fox sales were still strong, but usually it is #1 or on even ground. This might have to do with my price re-jigging. I also sold a ton of 2 for $30 deals.

Oh, and one more thing. It’s worth mentioning that in addition to my catalogue postcards (which continue to be an important part of my sales strategy), I made Wingtorn postcards as well. I made it a point to tell everyone who stopped by about my new serial and handed them the postcard. And you know what? I discovered that Wingtorn solves for an important problem my potential customers have: “I don’t have any money right now.” No money, no problem. Listen to Wingtorn for free forever.
I can already hear your questions. But Clare, why are you giving this away for free? Short answer is, I’m employing a particular strategy here that I hope to talk about in the future. And when the book has run its course, it will be available as a paid eBook for download on Amazon, etc. Also, it’s been really fun to make!

Remember, it’s not the customer’s fault if they aren’t buying. You have to show up in a way that speaks to your audience to earn their trust and their hard-earned dollars. “Down” years are a test for your brand. Can you hold up in environments where you don’t control all the factors?

Gear and Sea – A Mini Post-Mortem of the Creative Progress

Introducing my newest book: GEAR AND SEA!

I know, I’ve been quiet and somewhat mysterious about this title. This title was published by Good Machine, a publishing brand created by my friends Justin Currie (Chasing Artwork) and Gregory Chomichuk (GMB Chomichuk). Gear and Sea is a contribution to their Silent Guardians world – the same universe where their children’s books/graphic novels Cassie and Tonk and Rust and Water exist. They approached me at Edmonton Expo 2017 initially with a collaboration proposal: write a book set in their universe for the YA market. We were already friends and they knew I had an audience. They also knew I could market and sell the book at conventions, as they were doing with their book and art projects.

In truth, I’m hesitant when presented with new work. In my ten years as a freelance publishing professional, projects don’t become real to me until a contract is issued or money has exchanged hands. More often than not, ideas die when the conversation about them dries up. So, I expressed interest and waited to see if they would make any further moves to pursue the idea.

Fortunately, the idea of me doing a book for them didn’t die – it continued throughout Winter 2017. We had some preliminary discussions about plot and characters and how they wanted the story to fit in their future book plans. At Calgary Expo 2018, I signed a contract to write a then-untitled 50K-ish word young adult novel set in Silent Guardians universe.

Between then and me sitting down to write, I had a few conversations with Justin, where I pitched him different versions of the book. Ultimately, he didn’t want any characters from Cassie and Tonk to be in my book – perhaps they will meet up in the future? He also sent me a brief of the world, including plot outlines for future Cassie and Tonk novels, and overall themes of the universe. One of the recurring themes in the universe is the idea of robot evolution: bots who evolve to do more than what they were initially programmed to do (blue robots) and red robots (rends), who fail to evolve and become trapped by their baser desires (eat and destroy). This intrigued me greatly as an idea as I saw the parallels in a coming of age story: the protagonist evolves and finds their greater purpose in their world while fear and destruction (internal or personified as the antagonist) stands in the way of their goal. It also speaks to the spectrum of “good” and “evil” that I enjoy exploring in Faery Ink Press titles.

Armed with the base themes, I watched and re-watched some of the movies in the kid-befriends-robot genre. Iron Giant, Big Hero 6, Next Gen, etc. All of these stories are the same. Kid meets robot. Kid hides robot. Robot learns about humanity and makes a sacrifice to prove he has a soul. I started thinking, what can I do that adds to this genre – that sets it apart from this storyline?

From there, I wrote character outlines. I knew it would be about two best friends and their relationship would be central to the story. I met with Justin in Toronto at Fan Expo Canada and he loved the idea of two girls, one who befriends the robot and has a piece of a blue heart – and another, who has a piece of a red heart, and becomes progressively angrier and dangerous throughout the story. These two girls would become Ty and Raleigh respectively.

I’ve explored angry/jealous girls to death in past books – Ellie in Within, Misty in the Sparkstone Saga, and Kiera in The Violet Fox Series is an angry girl too. I feel I’m accessing something from my childhood here. I grew up around girls who were constrained by strict rules or the limits of their surroundings, girls that believed strength came from yelling at their friends and bullying their enemies and running into the woods for a forbidden smoke. While I was a well-behaved kid, I have that anger too—the anger of limitations placed on me by nature of where I grew up, which limited access to education and resources. (For the record, very proud to be from rural Nova Scotia, but it’s like living in another country compared to bustling Calgary).

Anyway. All of this is to say that I wrote the book to thoughtfully explore the arc of a kid-meets-robot story from the point of view of a girl trying to manage a crew of orphans, while trying to understand why her best friend is so angry, so she can learn that anger itself isn’t bad, change is inevitable and scary, and the deep bonds of friendship can be transformative, whether they be with humans or robots.

I wrote the book, start to finish, in the span of two months. I worked closely with my best friend Sam, who was Gregory and Justin’s studio manager. I approached this book differently than my regular projects. I wrote each chapter in order and sent it to Sam as it was completed so she could perform all editorial duties and make suggestions. This kept my head in the game. I also came up with the title, keeping with prior title conventions in the universe.

It’s a good one-off story that could be expanded into a series within the universe, and I think it packs a lot of punch. When Gregory read the first chapter freshly in from Sam’s inbox, he reportedly said that it made him excited as a reader. Justin apparently said the ending made him cry.

When the manuscript was completed, Justin created the cover art in an intense overnight session. Sam placed the typography and together we made adjustments for maximum impact. She also put together the back-cover copy, the book layout, and the cover flat for production, and I created the eBook.
And then it went to print!

It was very exciting when my copies arrived. I bought into the 2,000 copy print run and received my 500 copies just before Calgary Expo – the slated release for the book! The kittens were very curious about these new, heavy boxies and their contents.

Since Gregory and Justin (and their book publishing imprint, Good Machine) don’t have traditional distribution, the three of us are instrumental in promoting and selling the book on our respective convention tables. This means explaining the book to the customer—Gregory reported many people asking why a book I wrote was on his table. The two of them sold a decent number without a lot of accompanying visual branding for Good Machine, and readers sought me out afterwards to get it signed! Which was very cool. And yes, I get a royalty for all copies they sell!

This project was an experiment as much for me as it was for them. They are artists who have created and sold only their own work, and until now, they’ve branded as Chasing Artwork and GMB Chomichuk, separately. This is the first time they’ve brought someone into their joint sandbox, the brand Good Machine. They’ve had success selling their own titles in the past, but it will be interesting to see how they continue to sell my book without me present. They’re still developing their publishing arm, so my educated guess is their book sales will improve as they strengthen that aspect of their business, in terms of branding and adding additional products set in their Silent Guardians world. After all, nothing sells a book like neighbouring book—coupled with strong visual language that speaks to the target audience.

There will be a launch at McNally Robinson when I am in Winnipeg as a FanQuest author guest. The three of us together did a book signing at Chapters Chinook that went really well – Gear and Sea attracts the eye, especially with the banner present.

Will I do another book with them? The idea has been floated and there are stories to tell in the world. At the time of writing, no deals have been formally made, and sales will be the ultimate factor.

I will likely sell my batch of 500 by the end of the year if not by next April. I have three big Christmas shows this year and I know that audience will be hungry for this title. So if an Iron Giant meets Peter Pan story sounds awesome to you, or if you’ve been inspired by this journey, get your copy now.

Game Face!

Guys, thank you for all the compliments on my make-up this weekend!

The reason I’ve taken a deep dive into the make-up game is, after years of staring at pictures of myself in these post-mortems, I noticed how washed-out and bland my face looked under the bad convention lighting. Hey, I know I’m a looker—makeup is about accentuating what I’ve got going on. Facially speaking, of course.

So last fall, I went from having only Clinique make-up my mom gifted to me over multiple Christmases to over $250 worth of eyeshadow pallets, foundation, primer, lipsticks, and setting spray. My focus is on bold, full-coverage makeup that will last for twelve or more hours under less-than-ideal lighting. Everything I’ve learned so far about make-up I picked up from watching YouTube videos, jotting down recommended drugstore and Sephora products, and paying attention to how the product was applied.

I know it seems silly, and Teen Clare would have rolled her eyes, but doing my make-up for a show feels like I’m putting my best face forward in a way that best represents me and my brand. And it’s SO MUCH FUN! To wind down in the evening, I would think about what colour combinations I wanted to do, in relation to the books I wanted to promote.

For the record, the eyeshadow I played with for the weekend was the Violet Voss Rainbow Pallet. You can get it at Sephora! It’s my favourite right now, very blendable and versatile for the kind of environment I frequent.

Interactions

I had many return customers this year – THANK YOU!

• Thank you to the fifteen-year-old who told me that my books had a big impact on her childhood (upon which I realized, I’ve been publishing for eight years, so such a statement CAN exist!).
• Thank you to all the families who searched for me on the convention floor and gathered around to speak to me – I am so humbled and excited to be part of your expo experience!
• Thank you to all the people who told me that they devoured my books like no other books before, to one person who made a SONG based on the Sparkstone Saga, and other niceties that my brain is always stunned and humbled to hear.
• Also, big thanks to my cosplayer, who returned for a third time! She dressed her daughter in the finished Violet Fox outfit, and it looked SO GOOD AHH!

And a final thank you to all my friends who stopped by to say hi!

I am humbled by your praise and attention. There’s part of me that doesn’t believe any of this is happening but goes along for the ride anyway.

Weird Interactions

There’s always something.

A woman and presumably her daughter walk into my aisle. The girl looks to be about twelve. She’s holding hands with her mother. The girl looks to my books and starts coming towards them, interested. She says, “Books! Books!”

I greet her and start to hold out The Violet Fox.

The mother turns, frowns at my products, and pulls her daughter away, saying, “Oh, I don’t think that’s your thing.”

‘Kay.

And then the WEIRDEST by far: an elderly man comes to the table. With no preamble or introduction, he holds out his phone and asks me, “Have you ever seen a cat with two faces?”

Believing this is the beginning of a joke and simultaneously fearing I’m about to look at something sad and terrible, I reply, “No, I haven’t.”

He brings up a picture on his phone. It’s a black cat, lying down, and on its back are white fur patches that sort of resemble a face.

He proceeded to explain to me that in utero, a kitten might push its face into another kitten’s back. It might leave an imprint of its face on the other kitten or it might somehow transfer its face onto the other kitten, and this magical second back-face can also meow and see (sometimes).

“Okay,” I said, fairly certain that the image he had shown me was just a black cat with white spots.

After this explanation he wished me a good day and left—but he made the rounds to other young women as well, including Sam. She called him out on it, saying, “Oh, you mean a Janus cat?”

He did not know what that meant, became flustered, and left.

Will I Go Back?

A lot of vendors I talked to said they were on the fence about returning. On one hand, I get it: conventions are only getting more expensive and as an artist, you have to make new things each year for your customers. On the other hand, for me, this is a local show and I can maximize my profits here. I’ve put in to upgrade my artist alley table to an end cap or double my space. Double the money, yes, but (potentially) increased visibility. It’s worth trying, especially since I may have 11 (eep!) books by April 2020.

On top of that, there’s the looming question of the inherent sustainability of convention culture. Remember: Game of Thrones is ending. Avengers has reached its peak. As far as nerd culture goes, I think we’ve maxed the saturation—it can’t get any more mainstream. So I think we might see a regression, where meetups and conventions get smaller (but still concentrated with dedicated fans). With smaller events come fewer celebrity draws, which means fewer people coming out.

Like I’ve mentioned a few times in these post mortems, putting all of your eggs in the convention basket isn’t a good strategy—but conventions are useful for meeting your audience in person, getting real-time feedback you can use in your business, and getting paid for doing your creative work (so long as enough people are buying). I’m still slated for 10 shows this year, though after doing 3 years of 10+ shows, I feel like I’m nearing the “I’m as good as I’m ever going to be at this” line. There’s still revenue potential as I move into bigger spaces and bigger, better shows (there’s only so many of those though!) and add new products on the table, but as I improve my online presence and strengthen my sales strategy as a whole, the more conventions will become one branch on the Faery Ink Press revenue tree.

Anyway, that’s all for now! I’m in the middle of preparing for Ottawa Comiccon, which happens in just a few days. See you there! Until then!

She smiled at him strangely, and he felt an internal tug of magic—as if a look was all it took for her to know everything about him.
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Chapter 2

CONNOR

Connor barely slept that night.

Upon seeing Connor at the top of the landing, gawking at the mysterious young woman and the large stranger, Mother had dashed up the stairs and chased him into his bedroom. As if he were a child. He covered his face with his hands just thinking about it. He probably looked like a child, running away from his short but fierce mother, back to the safety of his bedroom.

He lay awake listening. In hushed tones, they shooed Fingal out of the house. Connor peeked out the window, watching Fingal’s dark shape trudge into the rain and head south. Where was he going? He’d climbed back into bed and stiffened as there was more activity on the stairs. Mother spoke in harsh whispers to the mysterious half fae, who barely said a word as the guest bedroom door across from his room creaked open and then shut again.

Then, his parents headed back to their bedroom, down the hallway—and Connor’s drowsy mind swam through a torrent of questions. He dreamt he’d entered his parents’ bedroom to demand answers, but it wasn’t their bedroom, it was an endless sea of darkness, and the smell of fresh roses was all around him, so sickeningly strong that his nose hairs twitched and he nearly gagged.

He woke just after sunrise, as the long orange rays permeated the window pane. He sat up wearily. Across the hall, he heard the guest room door open, and the soft padding of bare feet on the wooden floor. She was awake. He listened to her descend the stairs, and then threw himself out of bed, determined.

If he could catch her alone, without his parents interfering, maybe he could get some answers. Like why she’s a fugitive. Why he’d never heard of Fingal before. Why she only had half a wing…..

Chapter 1

CONNOR

A noise in the kitchen below lifted Connor Donmagh from his studies.

The candlelight on his desk flickered as he stood, listening again for the noise. There it was. Creaking floorboards and the muffled murmurers of two voices—Mother and Da—as they crossed the kitchen. To Connor’s knowledge, they were not expecting a midnight delivery. The paper never came this hour, neither did the ink supplier, nor the poets—not even the most eccentric poets would disturb a printer so late. At least, that was the reputation his parents had established in their many years of operation.

Perhaps they were restless. Or they’d forgotten to dim the lanterns in the library…

 

Since 2013, I’ve been attending conventions to sell my books. But in 2016, I doubled down on this strategy, and I’ve spent the last three years doing constant conventions, festivals, and craft markets. “Constant” is a word here that means, 10+ shows a year. That’s nearly a show a month for three years, averaged, but usually shows clump together in the spring and fall months, with a break in the winter. I also give myself a month in the summer where I don’t do shows. I do have to write at some point, you know!

There are other artists who do 30-40 shows a year – and that’s awesome. I’d love to be able to do that many, though it’s hard on the body, and you have to leave time to produce new work! I write and sell books, I’ve been lugging them around the country for several years now, and I’ve kept a fairly detailed account of my progress in my post-mortems.

I started writing the post-mortems for my future self – to remind Future Clare, when she gets excited about commerce, to slow her roll and remember gritty details before jumping in with both feet into something she can’t easily escape. Memory is a fickle thing—even eight months later, shows that I was lukewarm on, I want to try again. So I have to ensure I don’t get overexcited about something that ultimately is bad for my business.

I’m writing this post to give you a more intensive breakdown of things I’ve learned and also the benefits of doing all of these shows…all across the country. This is not a Conventions 101 post – that’s another article altogether! This particular post is for the aspiring convention or market artist who wants to Do A Business, has done some business, but is looking for general advice in executing a long-term convention strategy.

Couple of things to note:

• I sell YA (teen) fantasy and science fiction books! Putting that here in case…for some reason this is the first thing you’ve ever read by me. So…hi!

• I handsell everything, whether that’s at a show, or on my website. I have no traditional distribution team.

• I also have no marketing team. Conventions are part of my marketing strategy, putting product in front of faces. It’s just me, Doing It All.

• I’m talking about print books here. I sell eBooks on Amazon, etc – this is an area that I haven’t put a lot of focus on, so the sales ranking you see there affects that. I’ve put my focus on print books because that’s where the YA market is. If you sell romance or science fiction, the eBook market is definitely one to consider! But for me, up to this point, one sales channel at a time.

Here are my top 7 pieces of advice for artists & authors (in particular) who want to use trade shows/comic conventions/craft shows to sell their art.

 

Planning is Everything

I already see you scrolling by this one. BYE!

But…you shouldn’t.

In 2014 and 2015, I had a handful of titles and not much of a plan. I’d just successfully crowdfunded The Silver Spear. My freelance business was limping along, but I wasn’t getting the kind of work I craved, and I wasn’t making the kind of money I needed to sustain myself. Dave had just finished his teacher’s degree in BC and we were settling in Calgary for the second time to continue saving for our shared dream – house ownership.

To get where I wanted to be, to see the numbers I wanted, I couldn’t just throw books on the table anymore. You’ll see in those post-mortems, I talk about having a “publisher” table versus an “author” table: I wanted to present the brand in a way that would leave a lasting impression. That was the glimmer of insight I had – the difference between throwing all your resources and strategy at an event to create an impact versus throwing books on a table and sitting there.

I’d renewed my spot for Calgary Expo, and Kate and I talked months in advance about a new strategy. I was going to be in a row of ALL BOOKS – in one of the busiest conventions in the country. We both smelled an opportunity. I made a list of things I needed to make more of an impactful display. There is something empowering about planning ahead for a show. It’s like being on a covert mission.

I ordered the new tablecloths in advance and the new banner as well. Days before the event, we went shopping. Flowers for the table, table prop items, and any thrift store finds the two of us could scrounge up for both of our displays.

And that Calgary Expo was the first time I’d seen real money from my book sales. Yes, I’d made profits before…but this was a month’s worth of income for me (at the time), over four days. The small investment of time and money into my display carries on to this day.

You reap what you sow.

I did this again in 2018, with the Festival of Crafts show. Having done it once, I knew Signatures ran a serious show with large booths with seasoned artisans, showing their wares. I drew a sketch, I made a plan, I made some purchases, and again I benefited from foresight and planning.

You can’t just show up to show after show, put books on a table, and “hope” that it will work out. I’ve grown because I not only made goals, but I developed a strategy to help me achieve my goals – and trade shows are part of a bigger strategy.

 

Once is Not Enough

I’ve probably beaten this point to death in my previous posts, but it bears repeating. You can’t just do a show once and declare it “bad.”

Why? Because it’s hard to draw a conclusion from one data point.

Granted, some shows are just too small or badly run to be effective. That’s why I opted to only do larger, more established shows in 2018, which paid off immensely. If I perform badly or under expectations at a show, I’m likely to leave it alone for a few years before giving it another try.

A theory me and my artist friends have is that it takes at least three years to establish yourself in an unknown city and/or at a new-to-you show. You can’t do a show once and think, “Hmm, didn’t work.”

You have to think, “Hmm…didn’t work – what can I do differently next time?”

You take the data you’ve gathered, and you show up in a different way, and you gather more data. Then if it’s worth your time, you decide if you want to keep showing up at all.

Any time you arrive in a new city, you’re starting from scratch. Unless you’re extremely established, social media won’t really help you. You have to pound the pavement. You have to develop a relationship with the citizens of that city, prove to them that you’re worth their time, and then maybe they’ll grace you with their dollars. And if you show up enough times, that’s when you start reaping the rewards.

Going outside your sphere is the MOST successful if you already have a good product. And here’s where you really can’t delude yourself. If you aren’t seeing local interest, it’s unlikely you’ll see interest from away.

Don’t put all your eggs in one basket, hoping you’re going to make thousands of dollars at your first-ever show. It’s an experiment. Pay attention to how people react to you. Do they even SEE you in the visual noise? Then: when they see you, what does their face say? Do they slow down? Do they hover at a distance, evaluating? Do they approach of their own volition? Is your pitch short enough that you’re not boring?

If people aren’t naturally interested – or you can’t convince them to be interested – then you need to take a hard look at what isn’t working. The covers, the brand, or perhaps you’re at the wrong show.

It’s never their fault if they’re not buying. You, and only you, are responsible for your own success.

Show Up Better Than Before

 

This is a picture from my first show, Keycon 30.

 

 

And these are from my most recent shows.

 

 

 

The fact is, at comic cons especially, people get overstimulated. It is a visually noisy place and you have to be able to compete. If you can’t compete, people won’t find you, even if they walk right by you, and you will miss those valuable sales.

Just because you build it, doesn’t mean they will come. You have to attempt to be the loudest, the best, and/or the nicest display in your row.

To have a successful display, you must have (in no particular order):

Height. I absolutely hate book displays that primarily lay flat on the table. What is this, a yard sale? No. Your book is beautiful and needs to be placed in a beautiful spot. Create stacks and bring the product higher so it is more visible to the customer.

Support and decorative items. Shelves and boxes fall into this category, but what can you add to the display that creates an atmosphere around the product? That’s a bit of an airy sentence, I know. Decorative items might include lights, flowers, and small props. Don’t go too overboard with this. A big item might draw passersby but ultimately you want them to be intrigued about the product – not the prop.

Banners & Signage. You can never have enough of this, in my opinion. I have a horizontal banner, a table runner, a stand-up banner (two or three of these may be needed, depending on space), and my plastic signs with reviews, prices, etc. All of these are branded. All of them tell the customer immediately what genres I publish.

Honestly, since getting a table runner that says YOUNG ADULT FICTION PUBLISHER, I’ve had way less questions about what kind of publisher I am. And I’ve had that information on my banners for YEARS.

Table & Booth Dressing. Invest in a couple of nice tablecloths that match your brand. Black and white tablecloths are easily obtainable from stores like Walmart, but if you want a custom colour, Amazon will help you out. Make sure they are machine washable and wrinkle resistant!

You’ll notice most of my displays to this point are front-facing. I’ve done a few walk-in displays, but because I have less than ten unique products, it doesn’t make a ton of sense to spread it out so thinly. Also: many readers are introverts, or they often don’t want to “come in,” or be sold to. The front-facing display gives everyone permission to approach and interact with my product without pressure.

If you go back through my catalogue – you’ll see that I didn’t just innovate once. After 2016, my sister and I decided I needed a better shelf solution. I’d been wrapping empty boxes in tablecloths to create height. No, no, she said. Let me design you some shelves. Then: maybe I need a better banner, one that doesn’t fall on people. Then: my white tablecloth isn’t a table runner, like I want it to be. Let’s do a table runner.

Just to drive home this point some more, here’s 4 years of Edmonton show pictures for you.

2015:

 

 

2016:

 

 

2017:

 

2018:

 

 

For the first three years, I was in the same row, and for 2016 and 2017, I was basically in the same spot. Talk about testing ONE variable for three years. Also for the first three years, the “small press row” had 8ft tables. In 2018, I was in “regular” artist alley, with a 6ft table – that’s why you notice a difference in product placement and why things look extra crowded.

As you can see, innovation and nice displays don’t always happen all at once, and sometimes the innovation is small. As you do more shows, you learn what works for you and what you need – and then you make that happen next time (also, you get better phones that take better pictures!)

The more thought you put into your display, the more people will believe you care about the brand. If you don’t care, why should anyone else?

 

Branding Is More Than Pretty Colours (and nice book covers)

 

 

So you’ve got a cohesive look. That’s great! Pretty, appropriate for the genre book covers? Also great.

Does that mean you’re branded?

Well…sort of.

What is branding, exactly? You might think it’s a well-constructed, cohesive look. But branding is actually the relationship the customer has with the company. In my case…with me.

Your “look” is part of that relationship. I ensure that everything looks appropriate and appealing to make a good first, second, third, etc, impression. But that extends to everything you say and do. I wear my best clothes and (more recently) make-up because I have deep feelings about putting my best foot forward. I want to be as approachable as possible and communicate without words that I am someone you can trust.

That’s really important because…

 

Books are an Active Sell

 

There are two things that sell your books.

Other books by you.

And you.

Buttons don’t sell books. Stickers don’t sell books. Ancillary items and merch do not sell books. Readings…don’t really sell books, unless you are already capitalizing on prior fame, and/or you’re a big name. Movie and TV deals sell books, sure. But chances are, you’re not there – and it’s not something you can rely on.

Word of mouth helps you sell books. If you’re just starting, chances are you don’t have that. Word of mouth comes from continuing to show up in the best way possible.

With my artist friends, it’s different. The customer knows as soon as they look at a piece of art whether or not they like it. All that’s left for the customer is price and feasibility of transport.

With books, the customer might be attracted to my covers, but what about the story? Now they have to approach the table, read the back, and/or have a conversation with me. Is this appropriate for my kid? What is this about? What are the themes? This book looks short – oh wait, the print is small, that’s a good or bad thing, depending on preference.

I’ve seen authors and publishers alike sit at their tables sourly, watching their potential customers go by, and it’s like throwing shredded money into the bin. And, I get it. Convention hours are long. Craft show hours are longer. You have to be on. Always. I say hello to everyone I can, meeting their gaze at eye-level, because in a visually noisy setting, everything is vying for their attention.

And when you’re more popular, it doesn’t get easier. At Turner’s, it was one customer after another for hours. It’s like playing ping-pong, except you have to recite the same information over and over again while you swat the ball, with the same enthusiasm on the one-hundreth play as the first. And then occasionally there’s third and fourth players who try to join in, and you’re like, can I get some clones up in this match or what?

People care that it’s the author selling the books. They love talking to the author about their books, about writing and publishing, or the books they’re reading currently. I am a factor just as much as the display, because I’m part of their buying experience.

I’ll let you in on a secret – remember what I said about branding above? If the customer doesn’t have a positive, meaningful, or genuine interaction with me, that lessens the chance they’re going to buy.

On my side – I love selling things I’ve made. So the positive part, that’s not hard for me. In general, I’m a happy-spirited person. I love talking to people about my stuff.

So let’s explore meaningful and genuine.

People have a sixth sense for deceit. If you are just going through the motions with your customers, they’ll know. If you only care about the money in their wallets, they’ll know, and worse, if you treat them like cash cows – yikes. They’ll know, and they’ll avoid you. They might forgive it once. But for repeat business? No.

When you’re talking with a customer (and yes, you have to talk to people if you’re going to sell books, they’re not going to fly off the table themselves), don’t focus on the sale. Focus on them. What is their body language telling you? What are they saying? You often only have a few seconds to determine what kind of person they are.

• If they’re shy – give them space, give them permission to browse. This is so important with shy bookworms. They will ask you questions when they’re ready!

• If they want conversation, give them that. Sell them on stuff they are interested in, but otherwise, focus on their happiness. Answer their questions and be as generous as you can with your time and information.

• Hand them the product, even if they’re unsure. A physical interaction makes the buying experience more real.

• Be polite, or at the very least, tactful. Some people just want someone to talk to. Some don’t take social cues and you have to be direct. Others are actual problems and you’ll have to resolve them quickly.

• Make appropriate challenges to their assumptions, in all things big and small. The more you do this, the more you’ll learn what to say and how. I’ve built up some stock answers to questions, from “Is this for girls or boys?” to “Is your goal to be in Chapters/Indigo?” and “Is publishing easy or hard?” People have deep-rooted assumptions about all kinds of things, political and not, and more than likely, you saying something witty isn’t going to change their opinions. But it can help them decide if your brand is for them, even if they don’t agree with you. Just say what you believe, as you are, in a way that the customer can digest quickly (how I would respond to the gender question would be worded differently for grandparents and parents, for example). Those who are intrigued are your potential customers. Those who aren’t, aren’t.

• It’s okay if you mess up. In five seconds, someone new will come along, and the conversation resets.

If your book isn’t for them – don’t sweat it. I’d rather not sell to someone who is lukewarm on my pitch – because that creates a lukewarm buying experience, which leads to lukewarm reviews and lukewarm word-of-mouth. I want excited, passionate fans, not pity sales. The excited customers are the ones you can turn into loyal fans who will buy everything that’s new. Because they’re not just buying the product. They’re buying into the brand – the ever-evolving story of your progress – that they are part of.

 

Find Help and Seek Community

When I first attended Humber College for publishing, I was convinced that I could run a publishing business myself. It took four months of the intensive program, and a project where we had to create a publishing company, where I realized just how much work and energy it takes, and that maybe I can’t Do It All.

The truth is that you can’t do it 100% by yourself. Sure, I have a lot of knowledge and I do a lot of the heavy lifting. But I wouldn’t have come as far as I have if I didn’t have friends and family willing to support me – putting me up in the various cities I visit, helping me bring things to and fro, feeding and consoling me – and that’s just the physical support. It’s important to find your community, to surround yourself with not just like-minded people, but with people who are achieving and want to achieve as you do. I’m very lucky to have found that community.

 

 

I am so grateful to everyone. Mom, Dad, Jessie, Marie, Joe, Sam, Greg, Justin, Kate, Leif, Finn, Chadwick, Jessica, Kathleen, Jennifer, Brianne, Jake. And Dave, of course <3

 

The Rewards

So I’ve thrown a lot of advice at you, so I thought I’d do a quick then-and-now breakdown from the beginning of 2016 and now.

Since committing to 10+ shows a year…

My freelance business exploded. I mentioned at the top, in 2015 I was doing…okay. Now I’m drowning in work and I’ve been turning away clients to focus on Faery Ink Press. How do I know that my conventions have contributed to this work? Easy.

a) People see me at shows and say, “Wow, I want to do what you do” and they hire me as their editor, as their graphic design person, as their website person, etc etc.

b) People see my pictures and post-mortems and think, wow Clare looks like she’s doing really well, she seems like the right person to hire for my project.

c) The more shows I do, the more post-mortems I write, which generates website traffic and interest, which perpetuated the idea (and what becomes more true each and every time) that I am successful at what I do.

Website sales. Yeah. So…this is a recent explosion in 2018. Before that I’d get a few orders at Christmas, and maybe one or two throughout the year. In 2018, I made a small convention’s worth of sales, with consistent orders from fans and relatives of fans each month. This is a huge potential growth area for me, one that I wasn’t sure was possible (and was told, “Maybe don’t?)

But I can attribute the difference between consistent orders and a smattering of sales on the site to one thing: me telling the customer, “You can buy the sequel from me, on my website. Yes, you can order it into Indigo. But if you buy it from me, I can ship it out faster, it’ll probably be cheaper, and I’ll sign it.”

I mean…that’s checking a lot of boxes for people. Faster, cheaper, and signed. And they don’t have to go to a store.

Are there things I can improve to lower the barrier to entry even further to get people to order from me directly? Absolutely. That’s part of my plan over the next two years. Innovate the website as I have innovated my convention tables. We are lucky, to live in this particular patch of retail history, because probably 75% of the people I talk to about website ordering ask me, “How can I order that best supports YOU as the artist?”

Opportunities. This one is a little more general because opportunities arise when you prove to the world you’re willing to show up consistently. So here are some noteworthy things that have happened just because I continued to show up:

a) Guest status. Because I showed up at Hal-Con several times, a con that’s kinda out of my way travel-wise at this point since I now live in Calgary, I made some connections, and I was asked to be a guest. Hal-Con is a great convention, a shining example of an independent show that is organized, well-run, and always improving.

b) Book projects. I’m doing a book project with Greg Chomichuk and Justin Currie (Chasing Artwork), look for it April 2019. This collaboration will expose me to new readers and increase my distro power immensely.

More than that, just meeting people in-person leads to relationships and connections you wouldn’t have had if you only use social media at home to promote your works.

c) Speaking engagements. Every talk I’ve done is because I showed up physically somewhere, someone saw me doing my thing, and they presented me with an opportunity to speak. Sometimes they follow through, sometimes they don’t, but I wouldn’t happen at all if I were only sitting at home.

d) Travel. I don’t think I would have seen as much of the country if I hadn’t decided that all of Canada is within my reach. Like, I wouldn’t have known that Saskatoon is really pretty, and Ottawa is super clean, and Montreal is kind of intimidating but in a way that makes you want to be better.

 

It’s a Process

If you only take away one thing from this article, it should be this:

When you show up consistently, with new product, in an improved way, people take notice.

When you are inconsistent, with the same product, in the same way, people tune out.

In a nut-shell, that’s how you see progress – by doing new things. You have to go outside your personal sphere, and sometimes, your comfort zone. At times, that means going to cities where you know no one. You have to be willing to be uncomfortable and afraid and wrong. If you only do what you are comfortable with – staying in your own town, promoting your books on social media, spending cheaply – well, in my experience, like I said previously, you reap what you sow.

And you can’t just do it once. You have to do it again, and again, and again, each time with improved knowledge from the previous iteration. The more shows you do, the more people will take notice, and the more impact you’ll make.

In-person marketing and presence is still EXTREMELY IMPACTFUL. What are you going to remember more – a random tweet in the void about someone’s book, or an in-person conversation you had? Both of these work together to help promote your business, but an in-person conversation allows more opportunities to meet your customer, see what they need, and deliver.

It’s not about the short-term sales of one convention in one city. It’s about building a sustainable business that will support you for years.

After all, I’m in this for the long con.

 

Last show of the year! PHEW! Time to “relax”…I mean, create more books for next year. Everything is fine!

General Impressions

I flew into Halifax on the Wednesday and Mom and I drove up to Moncton early Friday morning. We heard iffy things about the weather. Blowing snow on the Cobequid Pass. A woman from the show actually called me TWICE to ensure I was still coming! The roads were fine, though, so nothing to worry about for us.

Check-in was upstairs in an office overlooking the coliseum floor. The woman said, “Cutting it close, aren’t you?”

Was I? We arrived at 11:30am; load-in was from 8am to 12pm on the Friday. The show started at 2pm. Actual load-in might take twenty minutes or less, but then set up is about an hour or so – plenty of time before the show opens.

Again, I had been called twice – and both times I told them where I was on the road, and assured them I was coming. Why was I being chastised for being within the load-in window?

After check-in, when Mom and I were walking out to start load-in, one of the volunteers guarding a large dolly called to me, “Where are you parked?”

A little startled, I said, “Up on the hill there.”

He said, “Well I’m not going up there. Come down here, bring your car down.”

Uhh…I didn’t ask for your help, buddy – why do you assume I want it?

They were persistent, though. Bring your car down, park in front of the doors, unload.

It later became clear that these volunteers are at the entrance to HELP with load-in (not just stand there with dollies and give directions). This is a service the show provides. Drive up, and they’ll load stuff onto their large dollies and drive it to your booth. A good idea for a service, yes! BUT this was not clear to me in any way in the little documentation I had (there were no emails to vendors before the event), so how am I supposed to know this? I bring a dolly when I can, or I roll things in in suitcases, because I’m usually just one person. Also if you get volunteers involved, who is liable if they hurt themselves handling my product? Especially if they’ve forced their help upon me?

This is a thirty-year-old show. Many of the volunteers (and many of the vendors too) seem to be old-timers who have been there since the beginning. So I think the procedures might be clear to people who do this show year in and year out, but I only did this show once two years ago. I’m used to a very hands-off (comic conventions) or extremely strict (Festival of Crafts) load-in and set-up procedure – one that is communicated in advance.

Other than this off-putting behaviour and unclear communication, the rest of the show was fine.

Display

I wish I had a second table (and a third…) to replicate my Festival of Crafts set-up, but as I didn’t have time to coordinate that, I went with a front-facing display. My East Coast banner has a lot of impact. I also brought my horizontal banner and my table runner with me – critical pieces of a complete display!

And because I’m in the East, I have access to my wings!

With any display element, I find it takes several shows to figure out its full potential. The wings work best when you can see them. I think I need another box set that’s level, so I can place them on top, giving them maximum impact. Here you can see they just disappear behind my shelves and stacks.

Sales

Moncton – you showed up in a BIG WAY for me this year!!! Sales from Turner’s was just $35 shy of beating my Festival of Crafts sales. Imagine – a three-day show in a Maritime city competing with my big four-day craft show in Calgary, where I pay twice the price for the same space.

I did this show two years ago, but I’ve grown a lot since then so I wasn’t sure what to expect. Would people remember me? Would I get the return customers, even though I skipped a year?

Well, people did remember me! I had people return to get The Emerald Cloth and Hunger In Her Bones. I think I would have had more return customers if I hadn’t skipped a year – but oh well!

My price adjustments seem to be working out well. I sold many, many individual copies of The Violet Fox. I sold about equal amounts of The Violet Fox Series and the Sparkstone Saga. My 2 for 30 deal continues to perform well. I sold out of Within and I was pretty close to running out of The Silver Spear and The Emerald Cloth as well.
It was about a sixty-forty split between cash and card. Many people seemed to be on a cash budget. Because I took insert-debit (and not just tap), I made a couple of sales I wouldn’t have otherwise. I had no issues with my Moneris reader.

I guess there was a radio and/or TV interview about a girl who self-publishes in Moncton (or New Brunswick, at least) – but because of that, I had a lot of people ask me if I was that person. Nope! No one seemed to be able to remember their name. Regardless, though, this interview primed them to be interested in my offerings.

A lot of grandmothers (or older women, be they grandmothers or great aunts or guardians) did not know what would be the best purchase and relied on me to tell them what would be suitable. Not just in content appropriateness, but in what their younger relative would like based on their age and their interests. Usually I’d ask what their relative was reading. The issue here is they either didn’t know, or they couldn’t remember. This leads to them leaving without completing the sale (but still very interested) or debating for a long time, which makes them a more expensive customer. I’m wondering if some of this can be alleviated by introducing a gift card option. I think I’ve gathered enough brand awareness – or at least, brand goodwill – to give this a shot. There are some logistics to implementing it well but I think it’s a consideration for 2019.

Interactions

My mom was with me for this show! She noted that when she tried to engage people, they were polite, but they mostly wanted to talk to me, especially when they realized I was the author.

A consistent trend at this show was people’s attitude shift upon realizing I wrote everything on the table. It was like I was an instant celebrity. And the fact that I sign everything I sell – that was a big bonus. On Sunday, passersby would stop to watch me sign and I could hear them whispering, “Oh wow, she’s signing it, she’s the author…”
I think out west, authors doing shows is a more common – there are more of us doing it out there! So there’s a novelty to me being there, promoting and selling my books myself.

On top of that, every single person wanted to know if I was local – or at least, if I was from the Maritimes. To be a Maritimer, born and raised, even though I don’t live there anymore – that was really important to them. They liked knowing that one of their own had succeeded at following their dreams. It’s a big reason I succeed at these shows.
New Brunswick is a bilingual province (and the only official bilingual province at that)! Maybe half the attendees were French, but they spoke English with me. A few who only spoke French spoke to me in French and I was able to get by with “Oui, les livres sont en anglais!” and “No, c’est l’anglais” and “Oui, j’ai écrit!” Again, this just makes me want to get bilingual and facilitate some translations! I understand far more than I can speak, so I know that the French people who didn’t want to buy an English book were impressed with the covers and the branding.

Other interactions:

• A woman teared up when I offered to sign her book.
• Someone said, “Oh, if you’re published you must be good!” If only that’s how it worked.
• A LOT of people wanted to know how old I was. “I thought you were 15!” “I thought you were 21!” was a common refrain. I am a thirty-year-old BABY BIRD with some good Maritime genes.

A young woman who bought The Violet Fox returned the next day to say she was enjoying the book. She also told me about her aspirations to be a published writer, and the difficult time she’s had attracting a publisher. She asked me if I considered publishing other people. I told her what I’ve told others: not at this time, as I have no traditional distribution. I don’t want to be on the hook for selling another person’s book when I’m just one person travelling around the country with my wares. She then asked if I could publish her book, and then she would do the trade shows to help sell it.

I mention this for those who may have the same question (because this isn’t the first time someone has asked me this). The answer is always going to be no.

If you want to get into publishing books the way I have, it’s a hustle. You have to invest time (YEARS) and money (LOTS) in building an audience. It’s never one thing that grows an audience – it’s many things, done over time. Like any traditional publisher, I’m not going to invest in something unless I can see it making me money, and I’m going to choose the least risky investment. The least risky investment is always the author who has already done some of the groundwork (aka, they have a build-in audience). That’s not to say I wouldn’t ever publish a new author – but that’s not where I’d start, if/when the time comes for me to make that leap.

Will I Go Back?

I’d really like to! I think this is a situation where I can potentially work my way out East if I can line my shows up neatly.

It seems like from the renewal papers I got, Turner’s is stepping up their game in the future. They’re putting in a new section that allows for vendor lighting and they’re rearranging the vendors so things are less crowded (honestly, I thought it was fine?). I think this is a good sign. I am happy to attend and I hope to establish a regular appearance there year after year.

2018 Wrap Up!

As with the last two years, I’m including in this, the last show of the year, a wrap-up of the entire year.

Here are the shows I did in 2018, ranked from highest sales to lowest:

1. Festival of Crafts
2. Turner’s Christmas at the Coliseum
3. Calgary Expo
4. Fan Expo Canada
5. Edmonton Expo
6. Anime North
7. Ottawa
8. Animethon
9. Montreal
10. Hal-Con
11. Saskatoon
12. Christmas at the Forum
13. Make It Calgary Spring

And here’s the rank by per-day average sales, highest to lowest:

1. Turner’s Christmas at the Coliseum
2. Festival of Crafts
3. Edmonton
4. Saskatoon
5. Calgary
6. Anime North
7. Ottawa
8. Fan Expo Canada
9. Animethon
10. Montreal
11. Hal-Con
12. Christmas at the Forum
13. Make It Spring

The second list is important for determining which shows I book for the following year, as it evens the playing field between two-, three-, and four-day shows.

Between all of these shows, I met an ambitious sales goal for this year. I doubled my sales from 2017!

Notes about the list:

1. I made a rule at the end of last year: no more small shows. The two “small” comic cons I still did were Hal-Con and Saskatoon. As you can see, this reflects in the total sales list – bigger show (for the most part) means bigger sales. The exception to the rule would be Christmas craft shows.
2. I increased my average sales per-day number by 63% since 2017. This number is influenced by the product I have on the table (which increases each year) as well as sales at the show – helped by the fact I only did large shows.
3. Saskatoon was a two-day show. I set a per-day record sales figure here, only to be broken by Edmonton and Festival of Crafts and then Turner’s.
4. Make It Spring Calgary was a big outlier on both lists. We had a really cold winter this year that lasted nearly until the end of April. Because Make It Spring Calgary was the beginning of April, in -20 C weather, I feel like people just weren’t in the spring mood. I’d like to give it another try some other year.
5. I ended up trying a lot of new markets this year! I nixed half of last year’s markets in favour of larger, more established shows. I think Montreal, while low on the total sales list, has a lot of potential – don’t forget, a lot of the attendees there are French! Fan Expo Canada is a staple con that I’m willing to try one or two more times as well before passing any kind of final judgment on it.
6. I also had way more website sales this year than any other – from all across the country. The year isn’t up yet, but so far, my website sales in 2018 are the equivalent of my sales at Fan Expo Regina 2017.
7. Growing pains – I had a lot of expenses this year. I had to reprint pretty much my entire catalogue! My print runs were pretty modest (300 or 400 at a time) because I lived in a small basement, among the books. Those runs don’t stand a chance against the frequency at which I’m doing larger shows. Now, I have a real house and proper storage, so when I reprinted I went for larger runs (500 or 1,000 depending on the title). I also had the printer send a percentage of the run out east so I have to ship less across the country when I’m doing Eastern shows. Printing more now costs more, but it saves me from shelling out each year for each title, and brings down my unit cost significantly.
8. My sister proxied Hal-Con and Christmas at the Forum. Hal-Con I’m keeping for the foreseeable future as it’s my window into the Nova Scotia audiences, but I’ll give Christmas at the Forum a pass until I can do it myself to assess its viability.

Going Forward:
• I have to produce more/faster. I keep saying this, I know – but next year I’ll actually have an opportunity to test that out. I’ll have a minimum of two new books FOR SURE!
• I’m continuing to test the craft show and Christmas markets. There is no shortage of them, that’s for sure! It’s just a matter of getting in and holding on to the biggest and best ones.
• While small shows are out, I think it might be worthwhile to test local, sustained markets – weekly craft or farmers markets.
• Create and improve my eBook strategy. If you look me up on Amazon, you’ll notice my sales there are squat. That’s because I haven’t turned my eye to it. Yet.
• Improve in-person to online sales conversions. With the organic growth of my website sales, I want to ensure I’m making it easy and convenient to order from me directly after meeting me or seeing me at a show. Thank you to everyone who orders from me directly – you are directly contributing to my growth!

I’m working hard on Darkness In Her Reach, The Midnight Tablet and another book project I’m doing with Greg and Justin! It’s going to be a busy winter but I’m excited for my 2019 shows.

I heard somewhere once that it takes 10 years to make an overnight success. I’ve been publishing as Faery Ink Press since 2011. I feel like every couple of years I’ve doubled down or made a major change that has boosted the brand and the business. A momentum is building – I feel it – so I just have to keep on keepin’ on with what works and ditch what doesn’t!

See you all next year, Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year!

Phew – most important show of the year, done and dusted. Christmas already? Yeah, I know. It’s not even Remembrance Day yet. At least they didn’t play Christmas music all weekend – that would have been intolerable.

I’m happy to say that following last year’s trend, this was my best show of the year!

 

General Impressions

My application for this show was successful, and I’m so happy that they allowed me to come back. Signatures has a variety of shows across the West – Spring and Fall – and I’m determined to do more of them.

My lead up to the show was pretty busy as I did a lot of prep for the show itself, as well as squaring away all the client work I’d be missing out on during the four days. Fortunately all of my reprints arrived in time (phew!). Won’t need to do any of those for a while (I mean…unless I do extremely well next year!).

Part of the show prep was making meals. I took a page from Brianne’s book and made myself lunches for each of the four days. Rice, chickpeas, avocado, and tofu, mixed with some oil and cumin. Nom!

Display

After last year’s performance, and remembering the tough time I had in a 10×10 at Calgary Expo 2017, I went back to the drawing table with my display. Craft shows aren’t comic cons. You can’t just put stuff on a table. That’s the case regardless. But you really can’t throw product on a table and expect the customers to be interested at a show with Festival of Crafts’ calibre. The typical customer at a craft show is a grandparent or parent looking for a gift – not a nerd/geek searching for something different to read or their favourite merch. That unique, crafty touch is expected. I had to bring my A-game.

About two months before the show, I sketched the ideal layout. My space was 10×10 – the typical space you can get. There are smaller spots available (5×5) but boy, are they tiny.

Here’s my sketch:

Then I made a list of items I need to fill out the space. In their rules, Festival of Crafts says you have to have a floor if you have a walk-in space. Now, this rule didn’t seem to be enforced at the show, but it is a nice touch. Last year, my experienced craft-show veteran neighbour recommended I drape some fabric over the provided drape. At the time, I thought that would be “too much” – but upon sketching it out, I realized it might be worth a try.

Pro tip: take advice from the pros.

I challenged myself to spend $100 on display improvements for the show. So here’s what I ended up buying.

Curtain drapes – Got these on Amazon – ~$28. Two panels. I specifically wanted curtains with large rings that could be S-hooked to the top of existing pipe and drape. I had a lot of fun shopping for the “right” curtain. Something not too patterned and not too bold. The drape should enhance the existing product and not distract the customer.

Cheap rug – IKEA – ~$18. Dave and I had already been shopping for house things for the past few months, and I remembered that IKEA had a low-pile, grey, small-ish, cheap rug that would do the trick.

Carpet tape – Amazon – ~$18. So, at trade shows, you can’t just put down a floor. It has to adhere to the existing floor. You don’t want people tripping inside your booth. So I bought the highest rated non-stick tape.

Fold up stool chair – IKEA – ~$49. This craft show doesn’t provide tables or chairs. You have to bring your own. But besides that, getting my own TALL chair has been on my list for a while. My displays have been getting taller and taller and I need to give my poor feet a break from constantly standing. The Franklin chair was the perfect choice.

Extra fold-up table – Canadian tire – $48 (on sale – normally ~$68). This 5ft table happened to be on sale when I was looking, so I scooped it up. I already have one just like it. Now I have two. Yay me.

Yes, the above totals more than $100. But all of those items I can use for future shows (especially the chair!!) as I grow from a six to eight foot artist alley space to something bigger.

I even practiced the set up in our basement to ensure that everything fit in the prescribed space before taking it to the BMO.

The result?

BAM!

Yes, the curtains are wrinkly. After I fireproofed the curtains and hung them out to dry, I thought, this is great. Then I folded them up and put them in my boxies for transport. Annnnd when we hung them up….they were wrinkly. So, so wrinkly. They were fine, but now I know next time to ROLL the curtains, don’t fold them, and that will help.

The carpet tape worked great. It went down easily and it came up easily – exactly as promised. The carpet fit perfectly in the space and the colours went well.

I was worried that one stand-up banner wouldn’t be enough, but it worked out fine, especially with the curtains.

So you see, all of the above items I listed and bought on their own seem banal, but when paired, they work in harmony to enhance the space.

Improvements for next time – lighting. I was right under a ceiling light this year, which was fine. But the BMO lighting is very cold. Nearly everyone had clamp lights and/or little bead lights integrated into their display, creating a very warm, cozy effect.

Sales

This show broke all previous sales records – both for per day sales and total show sales. I can attribute this to these factors:

• Improved display. As stated above, I put a lot of thought into how I was going to show up this year, made a plan, and followed through.
• Raised Prices. I devised a new pricing strategy for my later shows this year. Not a huge increase – a couple of my bundles are now $5 more. So far this has not deterred any customers. In fact, people keep telling me my books are cheap!
• Second Year. Many people either remembered me from last year and returned to buy sequels, or had repeated interaction with the brand previously and bought on this go-round.
• More Books. Last year, I took Within off the table because I felt it didn’t jive with the rest of my stuff. I put it back this year because people kept asking for it. So, I went from five books last year to seven, increasing selection.
• Bundle buying. People bought individual books, yes. But most people bought a series bundle, or went for my 2 for 30 deal.
• Ahead of the pack. This show is usually the first week of December. This year it was the first week in November, ahead of all the other Christmas shows and Black Friday. People still haven’t done their shopping and they have a little more disposable income.

This is a four-day show, so it’s a marathon. Thursday’s hours were extremely long (10am-9pm) and there were a lot of dead periods, but I performed about as expected.

Friday, though – it was an outlier for me. I had my best sales day EVER. I sold many, many bundles that day. It was still a long (10am-9pm). Saturday was good (10am-6pm) and Sunday was fine (10am-5pm).

As for what sold: The Violet Fox bundle sold slightly more than the Sparkstone Saga bundle – though people kept asking me what was more popular, so of course I’d tell them The Violet Fox, so that’s what they’d buy. So…yeah. I also had a lot of people returning for The Emerald Cloth – yay! Within quietly sold a handful of copies, as expected, but it filled out the table and caught the eye of many a passerby. I sold slightly more individual copies of The Violet Fox than Stars In Her Eyes, but people mostly bought bundles or I upsold them to a two for $30 deal.

Most people paid with credit or debit. I had some trouble with my Moneris. I got a new, better phone, but it kept unpairing with the machine. I’m even more worried that the

Moneris machine itself is getting old. If it stops working, they’ll send me a new one since I pay monthly for the service, but my biggest fear was it failing during THIS crucial show.

Ultimately, I met and passed my ideal sales goal, but fell short of my ambitious, pie-in-the-sky sales goal….which is fine, obviously! There’s always next year for that.

FIREPROOFING

My friend Sam makes fun of me for obsessing over this, but my biggest fear is a fire marshal coming to my display, torch in hand, and lighting all of my items on fire—books included.

Only your display needs to be fireproofed. Not the actual product. Yes, I know. My product is a bonfire waiting to happen. If there is a fire, I can rest easy knowing that the LEAST VALUABLE items in the booth have been protected.

Yes, yes, and that I did my part in preventing the fire from spreading.

I had fireproofing spray from my last fireproofing spree, but now that I had new drapes, and my new table runner, and new wooden boxies, I knew I didn’t have enough spray to cover it all. And have you ever tried buying fireproofing spray in this city? It’s basically impossible. You have to really look for it. And then go on an adventure to buy it.
In the packet, they provided a recipe for homemade fireproofing solution, which sounds like a chemical meltdown waiting to happen. It’s easier, however, to make the solution and soak everything in it rather than me standing over the tablecloths inhaling toxic fumes.

The primary ingredients in the recipe were borax and boric acid. The borax was easy enough. You can get that at any grocery store. The boric acid though? No, no. No. That is apparently dangerous enough that it must be special-ordered into the pharmacy. I felt awkward asking for it, worrying they’d think I’m Walter White. But it was fine, it came the next day, and I picked it up.

I paid about $15 for a couple hundred grams. It’s a white powder, just like the borax. I brought it back to the house, followed the recipe, and voila, homemade fireproofing. I soaked the fabrics and the carpet and hung them out to dry. Then I sprayed my wood boxies with the can. I even documented the process as proof.

I dunno. To my understanding, this has to be done YEARLY, or at the very least, before this show in particular. It’s not something you can really lie easily about either – one quick burn test settles that. It’s so much work, either to track down the spray or track down the ingredients to make the solution. Is there an easier way? I spent a WHOLE DAY on this, when I could have been making stuff or selling my time to the highest bidder.

People Interactions

As stated, this isn’t a comic convention, so I’m running into the general public shopping for their relative who is into science fiction and fantasy.

“Is this for girls or boys?” This came up so. Many. Times. Mostly it was the concerned grandparent, worried they’d “accidentally” buy a “girl book” for their thirteen-year-old grandson. Oh no, what a shame it would be to expose a boy to strong female characters, castle intrigue and hijinks, and superheroes fighting aliens. Yes, that would be no good at all.

In any case, one cannot answer the customer sarcastically – this is a legit question for them. So I would say that the protagonists are female, but I have had people of all ages and genders buy my work and enjoy it. They would promptly say, “No, better not chance it” and thank me for my time.

Yes, those are the words they used. Better not chance it.

Eventually, later on, when a woman I judged to be a good candidate for the conversation came along, I laid it on her honestly. I said, I don’t know if a boy would like this, because rarely if at all does a parent or a grandparent buy the book as a gift and report back to me. And even if they did report back that their boy didn’t like it, I can’t say for certain whether or not your boy would like my work. But I don’t see why they wouldn’t want to read it, assuming the book itself appealed to them.

Also, as a young girl, I read books with boy protagonists all the time. Why wouldn’t you allow your boy to do the same with girl protagonists?

My sister, who did two shows for me back to back in Halifax in the last few weeks, reported she saw an older man with (presumably) his grandson at Hal-Con. The grandson saw the Faery Ink Press table, and was immediately interested. He started walking towards it. The grandfather noticed, and pulled his grandson away. Jessie couldn’t really hear the exchange, but it seemed to her that he was pulling him away from a sparkly, purple table because he believed that wouldn’t suit him.

Oh, but best interaction happened the last day. An elderly man walked past the booth, taking in all of my display. I said hello. He said hello. Then he looked at my banner, and back to me, and declared, “I’ve never read fiction, and I never will.”

Ummm…okay, whatever you say! But like…

…never?

Thank you to all my friends who came by and said hello!!!!

Hal-Con and Christmas at the Forum

My sister did TWO SHOWS for me this year out east in Halifax, and I am very grateful to have her! THANK YOU JESSIE!!

Jessie reported record sales for Hal-Con (now six years in a row doing that show). Once again, Hal-Con separated artists and exhibitors, putting them on different floors – a practice I dislike. Despite this, people sought out the brand and Jessie drummed up a lot of business because she is good at selling!

Christmas at the Forum was a bit of a risk, and a first time show for Faery Ink Press. While there was foot traffic and lots of interest, we didn’t quite perform as highly as I had expected. The hours were really long, I think the venue is really big (four buildings!), and it’s difficult to find parking, so we’ll have to think about a strategy for this show in the future. Jessie noticed that the Maritime books were doing well, so if I had a more Maritime-oriented series/book (I have a few cooking), it would be a better fit. Perhaps I’ll have to go myself to this show to properly judge it if I’m out this way during the first weekend of November.

Will I Go Back Next Year?

With a successful application, yes! I’d love to do more of their events.

Also, I’ve been experimenting with makeup and went on a little shopping spree. HERE IS THE RESULT?! I am a doll now.

Just one more show in 2018 – I’m returning to Turner’s Christmas at the Coliseum — and then I’m DONE until next year! I plan on doing a separate wrap-up post about the year and the past couple of years in general, so watch for that!

Phew, where has September gone? Just a few more days and I move into my new house—and new office!!

General Impressions

With the Greyhound putting the brakes on its service in the West, I chose the Red Arrow to take me up to Edmonton. On Friday morning—the day of the show—I arrived downtown at 7:30am to catch the 8am bus. Everything went smoothly! It’s almost like going on a plane. Comfy seats, in-bus movie, and there was even free drinks (hot and cold!) and snacks. Glad to know that the Red Arrow is an option for me.

I ubered from the Red Arrow to the Expo grounds. It was a little tough getting to the right entrance, but eventually with some help from someone named Storm, we got my four suitcases inside and I got settled in. The boxes I’d put on the pallet were also at my table (thanks Sam!). I’ve got my set-up down to about 45 minutes now—I finished just in time for the earlybird show opening!

Display

Same set up as the previous two shows! Except the tables are 6ft here, not 8ft like in Saskatoon, so things were a little crowded. Still working on that second banner. I’m also looking into branded bags, clear and solid – this is an area I desperately need to improve. Don’t get me wrong, the bags from Crystal Clear Bags are just fine, as are the purple & blue ones I bought from Amazon. I think it completes the customer experience to hand them their signed books in a branded bag. A cherry on top! Hopefully I can get those in time for my Christmas shows.

My table runner continues to attract attention and inform people exactly what kind of author-publisher I am! The only problem is keeping it CLEAN – since it’s mostly white!

Sales

I had the best Edmonton Expo yet! As I had predicted (and hoped), my fourth year at the show brought me to a new level. I’m an established presence now—people recognize me and regulars return for sequels and new product.

Many of my fellow artist alley vendors noticed a decline in their sales this year. That’s why I’m going to go into detail here about why I think mine went way up, and how you, the artist alley vendor, can weather the tumultuous storms of low or uninterested traffic.

Why My Sales Were Strong:

This is my fourth year doing the show. I firmly believe you have to do a show at least three times to grow your audience in a particular city. This is the case for book vendors/authors. The first year, you establish a base line and you connect with the audience. The second year, you get a few return customers, but your sales will still be mostly to new people. Third year, you’ll see more return customers. Fourth—at least for me—that’s where you get a strong 30-40% repeat customer base who are buying your new product or your sequels. If you don’t have anything new—or if you don’t have enough new product—the model stagnates.

This of course, doesn’t take into account changes from the show itself or changes in city climate, politically, economically, or otherwise. It also assumes that you have a product people want to buy.

I have built a repeat customer base. You can do a show multiple times and not see return customers. If that’s the case—if people aren’t returning for Book 2 and Book 3, then maybe your product isn’t converting and you need to re-evaluate your display, your look, and/or your selling strategy. In a convention setting, you’re fighting visual noise. You have to have an eye-catching, memorable look, or no-one will notice you. What changes are you willing to make to your display to make it more eye-catching?

Good location. I got really lucky this year. I was in a high-trafficked area. Many attendees stuck to the outer rims of the artist alley – and only some went into the aisles. This tracks with a trend I noticed in Toronto, at Fan Expo Canada. Sam, who secured a space with Greg at his endcap, noted attendees saying they refused to go down the aisles because it was too busy or too cramped.

But even if I wasn’t in that spot—I feel I still would have done last year’s sales numbers, if not slightly more. Location is important at a show, yes. As you get bigger, as your brand evolves, you can weather a bad location better—assuming the show itself is large enough. Sometimes you have to work with what you’re given.

New, in-demand product. People came specifically to buy The Emerald Cloth! Yay! I even had people asking for Darkness In Her Reach….soon, soon!

Appropriate content. Nowadays, going to the local comic expo is a family affair. If your product is family-friendly, great – I think you’ll do well. Appropriate in this instance also means accessible. Does your product require a lot of explanation? Is it clear what you’re selling? If not—how can you clarify it, and bridge the gap between you and the customer?

****

It’s easy to blame the show if you don’t reach your goals. And yes—Informa doesn’t have the best reputation when it comes to organization and execution. The panel rooms were too small to accommodate the audience for David Tennant and the lines were too close to the artists, obscuring view and traffic. That was on them, for sure.

Otherwise, you sell to the traffic you DO have. You hustle assertively, confidently, and with respect. Not everyone wants to read your books, or buy your art. Not everyone has the money or the time or the interest. But someone does. And where there is one, there is another, and another and another. And if there’s enough of your target audience in one place, you can make money.

Maybe you think that’s easy for me to say, because I did well. But I was small once too, I was in bad locations, less-than-stellar shows, I sold books even though I didn’t have any, and I’ve had people look at my booth, wrinkle their nose, and keep going. I’ve even had a woman say to my face they prefer another author’s books (who was at the show). And that’s okay. I’m there for the people who like my stuff and for the future customers who are yet to discover me.

It’s not the audience’s fault if they don’t buy, and the show itself is often only one factor of many in why you didn’t reach your goals. As long as I can diagnose the problem and fix it, I continue on. If you’re asking me whether you should do the show again—only you can answer that. It’s your business, your dollar, your responsibility. You ultimately know the answer – you have to do what’s best for you.

Onto my actual sales statistics! I had a 42% increase in sales this year. Since The Emerald Cloth is my new book, I brought far more of the Violet Fox Series, and “just enough” of the Sparkstone Saga. Well, just enough was barely enough! I sold out of Stars In Her Eyes on Sunday afternoon, and had three copies of Dreams In Her Head and Hunger In Her Bones left. The Stars In Her Eyes reprints will arrive within the next two weeks—just in time for Hal-Con and my Christmas shows! I think people already have The Violet Fox and The Silver Spear as well, which is why I didn’t see my expected numbers for those titles. I’ve also altered my pitch a bit for the Sparkstone Saga—and as soon as I mention it’s set in Alberta, and they read the punchy backcover copy—they’re basically sold.

That’s all that was left of the Sparkstone Saga stock by early Sunday afternoon.

Edmonton now sits at third for overall sales for the year and first in average per-day sales.

The Cosplayer Returns!

At Animethon, I had my very first cosplayer! She returned here to show me the progress on her Violet Fox costume!

So exciting!!!!!!! I can’t wait to see the finished cloak! ^_^

Good People

I stayed in an Airbnb once again with my friends! It was cramped quarters, but we made it work. I love staying with my friends!

On Saturday evening, we went out to The Moth Café, a vegetarian/vegan restaurant with tons of gluten-free options. I had a purple risotto—very fitting—with caramelized mushrooms. I don’t even like mushrooms, but I liked these! Finished it off with a slice of raw GF vegan blueberry cheesecake—which was like eating creamed blueberries. I saved it for my breakfast on Sunday morning.

One of my neighbours was Infinitea – three friends who make geek/nerd-inspired herbal teas! They were consistently busy the whole weekend, and boy was it great to be next to some nice smells. I loved their branding and their positive attitude. They only sell at conventions right now but they could easily scale it. I bought some of their teas and their reusable teabags. Allons-y!

Thanks to everyone who stopped by the table for a chat! ^_^

The Weird

Everyone kept complaining about the “stick guy” – the person going around artist alley with an 8 ft pole, telling artists to lower their displays.

This isn’t a problem I have because my display is less than 8 ft tall, but Informa has been cracking down on all artists this year in Toronto and now in Edmonton (and probably their other shows too?), forcing the artists to lower their display heights. For the uninitiated: it’s common for artists to build tall print walls at shows. A print wall is a gridded display of all the artist’s prints for sale. This looks great and allows the customer choose what they like. Artists usually use photography backdrop frames and lots of tape to make this work. So when they are told to lower this display, they have to spend more time adjusting the height of the frame—an already finicky process!

I was talking to one of my friends at their table when the stick guy came over and requested the display be lowered to conform with the regulations. I looked, and the display was maybe an inch too high. There was no leeway. Is this a fire safety issue? No one seemed to have a clear answer. Someone overheard that it’s this one staff member who wants artist alley to “look cleaner” – even though vendor booths can build as high as they want.

Sam was a creator guest at the con, and she put her 7 ft banner up on a chair, effectively making it at least 9 ft tall. Did the stick guy enforce the rules with her? Nope!

So yeah. That’s just one peek into the wonderful world of selling your art. Conforming to and breaking seemingly arbitrary rules is part of the business. But break those rules at your own risk.

Will I Go Back?

I’ve already renewed! Edmonton is one of my staple shows now, so I’ll do it for as long as conventions remain part of my distro/marketing strategy.

Justin was saying he made the transition from contract work to full-time artwork when he realized he could make more by doing a few extra pieces for each show that he could in turn sell at every show, instead of creating art for someone else for a flat fee that he couldn’t resell. I ruminate on that now, knowing that the time is coming when I’ll have to make the jump too. Not yet, though.

Jessie will be doing Hal-Con for me this year again (end of October), so the next show I’ll personally be running is the Festival of Crafts. I’m already stressed out and excited to make some display improvements for that show.

Until next time! WINK

Ahhh Saskatoon! At the beginning of the year, I was fairly convinced I wouldn’t return to Sask Expo. Not because it became independent once more after Informa bought out the Calgary and Edmonton shows—because of personal superstitions.

General Impressions

In 2016, the day before I left for Saskatoon Expo, I fell and rolled my ankle pretty badly. I went to the con on the bus anyway but it took a while for me to heal.

In 2017, the day before Saskatoon Expo, I sprained my hand. There was no way I’d be able to handle travel, luggage, and set-up by myself, so I had to cancel the whole trip—forfeiting hundreds of dollars in table and travel costs.

I thought, maybe I’m cursed? Maybe I’m not “meant” to do this show? Superstitions and “signs” have a way of burrowing deep in the mind, creating irrational fears.

In January 2018, Chris Bernhard, the showrunner, emailed and offered me a discounted table rate.

I thought about it and said yes—wondering if this was me flying in the face of a Warning from the Universe.

But I’m happy to report that the third time’s the charm and I was not injured before, during, or after (knock on wood!) the show. It helped that, despite my busy schedule, I didn’t rush and gave myself lots of breaks in the week leading up to the event – so I wasn’t too tired or stressed! So yes, by being cognizant of my body and my limits, I “broke” a “curse.” How about that?

When I got off the plane, I noticed a woman with a Saskatoon Expo sign—definitely there to pick up some creator guests. I felt emboldened—they’re probably going to the convention center. I could probably get a ride.

Once I grabbed my bags from the carousel, I approached the woman and asked if it would be possible for me to hitch a ride—even though I’m a vendor, not a guest. She looked at my many bags and said, “We might be able to make room.”

We went outside, and turns out, they had two SUVs—room for me, my things, as well as the other guests. So thank you Crystal for accommodating me and driving me to the convention center! It saved me a $30 cab ride. You have to be willing to brave the “no” to get to the “yes!”

Once there, I dropped off my bags, started set up, and sorted out the pallet situation. Many vendors use the travelling pallet, so the cargo was spread out over many booths, so once I tracked down my two boxies, I was like, wow, this is a service I could get used to!! Next week, I’ll have an idea of what this service cost me, since I sent more boxies on to Edmonton Expo!

Display

The display here is identical to my Fan Expo Canada set-up. The batteries ran out of juice for my little fairy lights and I didn’t realize until I got there – aww! Those batteries only lasted for seven show days (one three-day show, one four-day show).

I also had a great location – I was right by the entrance! I may have requested this, but honestly, it was 9 months ago, so…I don’t remember!

My table runner was a good investment. People actually read it – and it gives them an idea of what I do without me having to TELL them what kind of books are on the table! Hurray! I got it from Vistaprint for around $100.

I need a second banner now more than ever! Since the small press booth type has disappeared from both the Calgary and the Edmonton shows (aka, I’m buying artist alley table space, which is cheap but generally doesn’t include pipe and drape), I desperately need a better backdrop to hide the adjoining row of artist’s displays.

But comparing my display to two years ago?

You can see where I’ve refined and unified the look of the brand. The look will always be evolving with the number of titles I have.

Upping the Game

I’ve done a few things in the past month to improve the display, not including the new banner and table runner!

First – new eBook sign! I realized some time last year that the eBook bundles actually sell when there is a sign blatantly stating “EBOOKS AVAILABLE.” But my sign wasn’t good enough – it was confusing. People thought only the books pictured had eBook versions or the ordering I’d pictured them in was the ordering of the series. If it’s one thing I’ve learned about making signs, it’s you have to make them extremely clear – and even then, people don’t often read them!

In any case, it’s one thing to have a sign, but then figuring out where to place it is another game. I’ve put it on the second shelf and that seems to be a good spot for now, at least until I have more books. Once people see it, and ask about it – I’ve pretty much made the sale.

Second – custom name badge! Yet another thing I’ve wanted to do for a while. Inspired by my friends Justin Currie and Greg Chomichuk, I wanted to create a custom branded badge that I could wear to every convention. Note that this doesn’t replace actual badges – you still need those to enter the show (one hopes that security checks them). But it’s a cool touch and looks super official! Dave printed it off for me and got it laminated. Thanks boys for the idea, and also thanks Greg for giving me a lanyard big enough for my ol’ tiger face.

But remember – fancy banners, pretty name tags, custom shelves…it all means nothing if the product isn’t strong enough to keep the customer’s interest. Or, if you aren’t pitching it right. Or, if you’re pitching it in the wrong place. Fussing over your display can be fun, but it’s only part of what’s going to give you success.

Sales

It’s been two years since I’ve done Saskatoon – I was worried I’d be starting from scratch with momentum. But no! I had more people than expected return for sequels. Hurray!

Saskatoon is one of the smallest conventions on the docket for this year. Despite this, Saskatoon showed up for me this year in a way I didn’t expect. People told me they drove hours from small, surrounding villages to attend. Big crowds during the busy times—quiet but steady when it wasn’t as crowded, especially on the Sunday! Saskatoon Expo currently holds first place for highest average per-day sales for this year for me—helped because it’s only a two-day show. I surpassed my sales target handily.

Stars In Her Eyes and the Sparkstone Saga were the winners for this show. I’ve altered my pitch slightly for the Sparkstone Saga and I think that’s starting to pay off. Which is great, considering Darkness In Her Reach is coming next year! Saskatoon is a city hungry for original content – and they really want to support you, especially if you’re from Saskatchewan, which is an attitude reminiscent of the Maritimes.

I’m actually getting low on copies of The Violet Fox…I thought I’d be able to save reprinting until next year, but since I did Fan Expo Canada, and taking into account the Christmas shows I have coming up, I may have to spring for a run this year. I only printed them last November—granted, it wasn’t the biggest run! Since November 2017, I’ve reprinted Within, The Silver Spear, Dreams In Her Head, and Hunger In Her Bones. I did a first run of The Emerald Cloth. Right now, I’m waiting on reprints of Stars In Her Eyes – 1,000 copies, my biggest run yet. To put this into perspective, a small to medium-sized publisher would print around 1500-2000 of a new book for a newer/mid-list author, and that’s a conservative estimate. Good thing we have a new house to put all these books in…

I’ve been extremely conservative with my growth until now, printing only what I think I can sell. Bigger runs means lower unit cost, but it also means I don’t have to reprint as often, which is definitely a drain on the ol’ profits. Hopefully this is the last year where I have to reprint EVERY book?

It’s fine, though. This is the stage where my unit cost starts being low enough that traditional distribution makes some sense – which is the ultimate goal.

Good People

Once again, I stayed with my friends in an AirBnB – Sam, Justin, Greg, and Drake. This time, in perhaps the BEST HOUSE IN THE CITY?

I don’t want to post too many pictures because this is someone’s home – but this was truly the coolest house. Expensive speakers in each room, which you could stream music to from your phone. Expensive strobe light wired to respond to the music. A hard liquor collection and a wine fridge…which we could buy into if we asked first. A long table for eating with friends – and for creative business meetings! A sauna in the basement, and exercise bikes (which we were not allowed to use). Strange buttons above Justin’s bed…that innocently change the bulb colour! And apparently, a SECRET ROOM THAT THEY DISCOVERED AFTER I LEFT. Ahh!

It’s not just about the house, though. Staying with my creative friends brings the con experience to the next level. We can talk business or we can just hang out. It’s like we’re assembling the Avengers, except instead of destroying cities and saving lives, we’re building each other’s success and enriching ourselves. I feel like I’m part of something bigger and more powerful than myself.

THANK YOU to everyone who came to visit the table, who said they enjoyed the podcast and the post-mortems!

Will I Go Back?

I feel like the “curse” has been lifted, so YES I would love to return to Saskatoon Expo—especially since it’s only a week apart from Edmonton Expo…which is where I’ll be in mere hours of finishing this post mortem. I think next year I’ll try to find a drive and not necessarily fly to reduce costs and maximize those dollars. Thanks to Chris and the team of volunteers for organizing this great convention!!

My biggest show of the year, done! But was it worth it? Mostly I’m itching to work on Darkness In Her Reach, but this is the first of three shows in September, so it’s show time.

General Impressions

The logistics of this show are a bit of a nightmare, unhelped by the fact that downtown Toronto and the convention centre itself is a maze! Thanks to the woman whose name I don’t know if I got, who saw me struggling to get three suitcases through the front doors, ran up to me, and not only showed me where to go but helped me roll my bags right to my table. Turns out – she’s a Nova Scotian too! Makes sense, we’re always rushing in to help those in need.

Also I met my friends Brianne and Jake, and they helped me load in the stock I’d shipped ahead. It was nice to visit, even if briefly! THANK YOU so much for your help!!
Once me and my things were in the convention centre, and I’d grabbed my badges, set-up was a breeze.

Display

I got my new table runner the day before I left for Toronto! It looks great, and so much lighter than the white tablecloth. My logo will either print too red or too blue—it depends on the printer—but it’s fine, still purple. My eBook sign, prominently displayed, helped me sell a bunch of eBook bundles, though it hasn’t fared well with all the frequent travel. I need to make a new one.

My new banner ALSO arrived! I’d lost it at Anime North. Now I’ve remade it. Now the tiger is MORE POWERFUL than EVER BEFORE. Scott Henderson made me a map of Marlenia, which I’ve put into the reprints of The Silver Spear and The Emerald Cloth – you can see that within the tiger itself. I’m going to make another banner for the Sparkstone Saga so I have a better “backdrop.”

With the way I arranged the stacks, I think it was a little clearer to people what book belonged to what series, and their ordering.

I like how Sam and Greg had little cards sticking out of display copies that showed price and gave a description of the product. I think going forward, I need to make little laminated signs for each book that describe book order and series, and colour code them by series.

Sales

I went in with high expectations, thinking I was going to burst through all my sales goals. But as far as shows this year…this one was just fine. Not terrible–I was really close to making Calgary Expo numbers–but not really the sales I was expecting for a show with 120,000 people. Just goes to show that the biggest shows aren’t necessarily better—and that if you let your hopes and dreams get in the way with hard facts, you’re going to get unexpected, potentially disappointing results.

I have a predictable sales pattern for three and four-day shows. Fifteen to twenty percent of my sales on the Thursday/Friday, about forty percent on the Saturday, and the remaining twenty-five percent on the Sunday. Those numbers can fluctuate – sometimes forty percent of my sales are on the Sunday instead. But generally speaking, that’s the curve.

For Fan Expo Canada this year, I had twenty-five percent on each day. A flat line. Not only that, I had large windows of time with no sales. People would buy immediately in the morning, and then trickles throughout the day, and then a big chunk at the end. Now, I’m used to the afternoon lull, that’s to be expected. But a lull from 11am to 3pm?

Not that I’m getting no people. On the contrary. I’m chatting up potential customers, people are taking my cards, people are interested.

Here’s why I think people weren’t buying:
1. Herd mentality. Especially on Saturday, you could barely move. People were shuffling by, looking, taking cards, but they didn’t want to stop. They just wanted to get through.
2. Overstimulation. There’s two buildings, so many artists, many large displays. I can compete with that, but I can’t compete with a headache.
3. Engagement on their terms. They didn’t want to have a conversation. They just wanted to get on ABC place to get XYZ item, and I’m an unexpected attraction. They’d take my card and look me up later.
4. Low Return. Many customers I was positive would return, didn’t. I have a pretty high return rate. This is because people want my product, but they don’t want to carry it around the show with them. I feel people didn’t return because they couldn’t physically get through the crowds on Saturday and Sunday. My customers on Thursday and Friday returned as normal, because it was less busy.

As for the actual sales! The Violet Fox Series wins, as usual. Sold nearly double as many sets as the Sparkstone Saga bundle, although I sold more single Stars In Her Eyes than single copies of The Violet Fox. Again, I think this is a pricing thing. I make it convenient for people to buy two books with The Violet Fox pricing, where it’s not as convenient with the Stars In Her Eyes pricing. I might re-jig some of my bundle prices to move more Sparkstone Sagas.

Another reason I sell more Violet Foxies is because when given the choice between fantasy and science fiction, most leaned towards fantasy. I ended up altering my pitch for the Sparkstone Saga as it’s a superpowered teens vs invading aliens story anyway. So I’ll lead with that in the future instead of just saying it’s straight-up science fiction.

I shipped a ton of boxes ahead of the show and sold through most of them and took remainders home in suitcases. I availed myself of Greg and Justin’s travelling pallet and put some boxes there—they will meet me in Saskatoon. This is something I’ll look into doing in the future. I have seven books now, and I need to bring at least a box of each to a show—two boxes when it comes to the Violet Fox Series. Having travelling stock that I can keep track of will save me so much stress, time, and money.
I have six more confirmed shows—still waiting to hear back about a few Christmas spots—and I’ve already surpassed my 2017 con sales numbers.

Thieves! Part II

If you remember from my Montreal post, thieves have been hitting the Quebec and Ontario conventions. Apparently a handful of large artist booths were hit at this convention as well. No one seems certain if these are the same thieves as in Montreal, but it’s unsettling all the same. I may have to upgrade my cash box to a fanny pack, as unappealing and unfashionable as they are.

The first two days of the convention, security was lax. On Wednesday evening, during vendor set-up, anyone could walk in there with confidence and snag unattended valuables. Literally anyone. There was a bag-check line for vendors each day…but Sam and I were able to waltz by without being detected. It was only on Saturday, after several artists had been hit by thieves, Informa beefed up its security, blocked entrances, enforced lines, and had volunteers at multiple checkpoints who would engage with you. A band-aid solution for an already gushing wound.

Loss prevention is hard, I get it. But taking action only after something becomes a problem…is a problem itself.

Good People

This is the first of three shows I’m doing with my group of friends! Sam, Greg, Drake, and Greg’s helper Jess and I rented a luxe condo for the long weekend (oh but shh, DO NOT TELL ANYONE ITS AN AIRBNB and DO NOT MAKE CONTACT WITH THE CONCIERGE was a huge theme of the weekend!). It was right around the corner from the convention centre—perfect location and great views! It’s generally worth it to pay a little extra to stay a little closer. Then you don’t have to worry about commuting or the cost of commuting. All of us were zonked after each day. We had a lot of low-key hangs to accompany the high-stress show, just what we all needed. We’re also going to be staying together at Saskatoon and Edmonton.

I also got to see Andrew, my Montreal neighbour, and Dustin from Jailbird Comics (Ottawa neighbour) once again! And I met Danny Zabbal at Saturday dinner. A wonderful storyteller, very funny, very down-to-earth.

Thanks to everyone who came to see me at the table!

The Weird

As always, I seem to attract the odd ones.

One man asked me where I was from. I told him.

“Calgary? Wait so that’s like, an hour’s drive from here?”

“Uh…it’s a four-hour flight.”

This did not compute. “So you took a bus? A train?”

“I flew. On a plane.”

He left after that.

Then I got a shy one who claimed he could read my aura. Apparently it is pleasant and business-like. Oh, and turns out I’m “quite beautiful” too. Do people think that I don’t know this? When has this line worked? C’mon.

A man on Sunday asked who I was cosplaying because I looked “amazing.” Okay, that’s not really weird, but it came out of left field after a string of other unrelated questions, and I was just wearing my purple dress. Sigh.

Hey guys, I own a mirror. I know what I’m about. There’s a difference between a compliment and a compliment hooked on a rod and string, and believe me, we know when you’re fishing.

Several people asked me for directions, or what table number I was. Not everyone got a map, I guess, and Informa only writes the table numbers on the floor. Sigh.

Will I Do It Again?

I’m not sure. I think I could do it cheaper. Expenses are high. And I do honestly believe that you have to do a show three times to build in that customer base. Doing Anime North helped. I had a little recognition. I’d have to do this show two more times to know for sure. Next year, it’s the weekend before Labour Day, so maybe that will make a difference in attendance numbers? Hard to say.

Two weeks of work, then it’s off to Saskatoon, then Edmonton, and then it’s NEW HOUSE TIME!!!

Here’s me and BFF SAM havin’ a GRAND time.

I decided not to do WWC this year – and did this convention instead. I don’t regret this choice. WWC was one of my lowest performing conventions, sales-wise (granted, it’s not really a selling con), and while I enjoy hanging out with my fellow creatives, I promised myself this year I’d only do larger, sales-driven conventions. Looks like everyone who went had a lot of fun!
The day we drove up to Edmonton, my reprints arrived! On a large FedEx truck. On a skid. In the walkway up to the front. This is my life now.

It’s fine – in Big Life News, Dave and I just bought a HOUSE, so in a month’s time, FedEx can deliver things right into my basement storage. YEAH!! I can’t tell you how excited I am to finally have a REAL OFFICE and REAL STORAGE and not live AMONG THE STORAGE.
So along the THREE SHOWS I have coming up within the next month, we are also moving house. Oh and you know – doing work and writing books!

General Impressions

I had the smoothest load-in ever for a convention at Animethon. We drove into the loading dock, and GES staff were there with their own dollies, and asked if we needed help. I hesitantly said yes, fearing I’d get a bill from GES later for “handling” as they stacked my many boxes on their oversized dolly and wheeled it down to my table. He told us to return the dolly whenever we were done. But no bill, just kind service! Yeah! Normally load-in takes a few trips, but this worked out great!

Display

Similar to what I’ve done throughout the year! However, I FINALLY got batteries for these lights I bought two years ago and strung them around my boxes. I think it was a subtle, little thing that added a little more oomph to the display!
I’ll say though: I think having the three Violet Foxies in a row with my logo bookends REALLY helps the customer. It’s shorthand for “this is a series, and this is the order.” I might need more bookends to do that for the Sparkstone Saga as well.

My new banner arrived the day after Animethon, so it will debut at my next show. No pipe and drape in artist alley. I can see the benefit of a single-coloured backing with my books, however, though I am hesitant to invest in and lug around photographer backing. I also need a table runner – I’ve been using my poor white table cloth in that role long enough. Time to invest.

Even when you’ve been doing shows for a while, there are always things you can improve upon!

Sales

As with Otafest last year, Friday was a long slog. Sales were fine, but the day felt excruciating. Edmonton was buried in heat and post-apocalyptic smoke from BC wildfires—I didn’t believe the patrons when they said that it smelled like smoke outside. It was Silent Hill, except populated. Saturday was better—far more crowds and the rain finally came. Sunday was like Friday, but cooler, though the hours were shorter and I made essentially Saturday sales, even with the thinner crowds.
I sold far more individual copies of Stars In Her Eyes than The Violet Fox, but The Violet Fox continues to win the battle of the bundles. Almost everyone wanted the three books in the series so far instead of just one. My pricing strategy continues to work perfectly, at least for the Violet Fox Series!
I also didn’t sell as many Sparkstone Saga bundles as expected – I think this continues the trend of anime fans preferring fantasy over science fiction. The Sparkstone Saga is a soft sci-fi – it has fantastical elements – so I should probably play that up at future anime conventions to move more of those units. A lot of people admired the art, however, and I did have fans ask if Darkness In Her Reach was available yet. Aghhhhhh next year?? I know, it needs to be now!
My 2-for-$30 deal continues to work well, an easy upsell that has singlehandedly generated record numbers for me this year. This kind of deal will become a cornerstone of my strategy going forward, especially as I generate more content.
I’m about halfway through my shows for the year. Looking at my averages, Animethon was very middle of the road, not bad, and not stellar. This isn’t a bad thing. I’ll take an average show that lines up with my expectations. I was a little short of my target goal, but I can’t complain. Less than Ottawa, but slightly more than Montreal Comiccon. Considering that Animethon has around 10,000 attendees and Montreal has around 60,000, this is pretty impressive – and one of the reasons I enjoy doing anime shows. Remember that I have a (fairly) established brand at this point, my books show well, and I have enough product to give the buyer some choice. That’s really the only reason I can make conventions work for me in the first place!

Interactions

Dave and I stayed at MacEwan University, a place that felt secure, though walking twenty minutes to the event downtown felt a little unsafe. I made the walk multiple times without incident. Usually Animethon is held at the university, but they upgraded to the new venue, and this was a point of contention for some, especially when it came to personal safety. Granted, I was there to go to a specific spot and work for eight to nine hours, so I can only speak to the safety of the specific path I took that weekend! There were multiple security guards, Animethon staff, and people with “SAFETY” vests walking around (not sure what made them different from venue security and event staff?), so once I was within the event itself, I felt perfectly safe. I also appreciated the Shaw staff standing on the landings, checking badges at multiple levels and directing people as well.
Justin Currie and I had a good chat at the water cooler (they had a whole station for FREE WATER, which is AWESOME! More conventions need to do this) about how every anime convention is kind of the same. I’ve only done three now – but I see his point. If going to conventions is going to a workplace, something like Otafest or Animethon is a normal nine-to-five office job. Fan Expos are more flashy, more crowded, and you’re not going for more than five minutes without engaging someone (in my case).
As for the attendees, I got a lot of “I don’t have any money,” which I noted at Otafest last year as well. As with Anime North, I had a number of people compulsively, anxiously explaining why they would like to buy my books, but can’t (not enough cash, already reading too many books, etc). I find this behaviour overwhelming, and I know it’s a defense mechanism for the customer, it’s just not one I enjoy being on the receiving end for.
I had a lot of interactions that I were 100% sure were going to turn into purchases – but didn’t. Usually my conversion is pretty high. The longer you speak to me – and you’re not an aspiring writer/publisher – the more likely it is you’re there to buy. Just an interesting observation that I think speaks to the demographics range of the attendees: a lot of younger folks who go to the convention with their friends to hang out.
A side note here: Dave and I have been doing a lot of furniture shopping in the past few weeks as we prepare to move into our new house, and being on the receiving end of an aggressive sales person is so overwhelming. I had no idea that this was what I was in for. It made me question my own sales experience. I hope I’ve never been so aggressive to make someone uncomfortable. I also never want to come off as desperate – because I’m not. I engage in enough conversation to see what kind of interaction you’re comfortable with – and then I leave you alone to make a decision (as much as a person trapped behind a table in a crowded, small space CAN leave you alone, that is!). With books, either you like what I’m offering, or you don’t! Although, I will say, if you’re interested in interacting and you are not annoying, I have no problem with that at all.
Interactions of note:
The young man who looked at all my books and, asked if I wrote them all, and then asked, “Can I have your autograph?”
“If you buy something, I’ll sign it,” I replied.
“You drive a hard bargain.” He did not buy.
I think me three years ago would have signed a bookmark and given it to him – but I like to think my time and signature is worth something!
Another young man fell into my cover vortex and had a hard time escaping. AKA: he could not stop staring at my books, and that’s not a euphemism. Just, literally, five minutes of staring. He said, “I don’t read, but these make me want to.” He did not buy, but I could have pushed a little harder. I treat these people delicately. I would not want to be responsible for turning them away from reading, so I guide them carefully towards things I think they might like.
Also, more people asking for advice – how do I become a writer, how do I do what you do. I should just write a blog post! But so many idealistic people do not realize the kind of commitment publishing can be, how success is really a ten- to twenty-year slog, and it’s me patiently but excitedly shoving ten years of advice into five minutes. I enjoy dispensing the advice, but I also get anxious because I don’t want people to have the wrong idea – AKA, “I can write a book and then people will buy it.” Nothing is guaranteed.
I also had my VERY FIRST COSPLAYER! Ahhhh! Yeah! A woman bought my books on the Saturday, and returned on Sunday with specific questions about the Violet Fox – what she wears, what kind of fabric do I mean on this specific page! It was very flattering but also a little intimidating! So nice to know that people love my characters that much!

Good People!

I met Sam Taylor, a chibi artist. She was behind me at Otafest as well, but this weekend we really got to know each other! Yay new friends. She drew me a Bastila chibi, because KOTOR rules. My other neighbour was Lisa. She’s so talented! I really enjoyed our chats about the business – we’re both in the same place in our career. It’s comforting when you see other people with similar obstacles!
Thank you to everyone who stopped at my table and said hi!

Birthday!

It was my 30th birthday on the 13th, and so Dave and I celebrated by upgrading to a nice hotel and shopping on the Monday. He showered me with presents – an RGB keyboard (it lights up!) and no birthday is complete without some Junji Ito collections! I think I have them all now. I also bought myself the TIME stories board game, which we’ve played sporadically with our friends and I LOVE.
2018 has flown by. A lot of life things are happening this year. My business is expanding, my drive to focus on my own art is growing stronger, we bought a house, and I travelled across the country and the continent. My twenties were my adult adolescence, and I feel “real” adulthood creeping on – I’m narrowing in on what I want to spend my time on, and less concerned about the things that won’t get me to where I want to be. I recognize I’m lucky and privileged. I’ve always known what I wanted and I’ve had the resources and support to achieve my goals. This year was one of the first where I’ve felt like I’m “finally” getting somewhere – like people are starting to recognize who I am and what I’m about.

Will I Go Back?

Unfortunately many artist tables at anime shows are by lottery. Including this one! This is a good idea for the artist tables (allows up-and-coming artists a chance to get in), though I wish that some of the tables were straight-up applications so I could establish a firm presence at this show! So yes, I’d like to return – if fortune is in my favour!
Next stop: Toronto, for Fan Expo Canada!

First time to Montreal! One of the reasons I was able to do this con without flying from Calgary to Montreal and back was to pair it with a brief visit (read: not a vacation, worked almost the entire time!) to Nova Scotia. Jessie decided she wanted to tag along and check out Montreal, so we arranged a little road trip.

I’m a little late getting this post mortem up! Since coming back to Calgary from Montreal (beginning of July), I’ve been to the mountains in BC and beared the heat of Mexico – for two different weddings! Yes, what a hard life to lead. I’m back now, feeling a lot more refreshed and ready to create more books.

General Impressions

We left on Wednesday morning. Jessie did a lot of the driving but I ALSO DID SOME TOO! Returning readers may remember that I have a driving anxiety.

The smile is a lie I was dying inside the whole time.

We had a two-hour detour to Fredericton and had a tasty GF lunch at a vegetarian/vegan-friendly cafe called Issac’s Way. It was nearly 40 degrees C outside. Heat wave!

After a night in Edmundston, we arrived in Quebec. The heat followed us. I was very concerned about the crows having a leisurely stroll across the pavement, especially once we crossed the New Brunswick-Quebec border. Why couldn’t they fly??

Jessie said, “Don’t slow down, don’t worry about that crow there, he’s just eating that dead bird!”

Otherwise, it was a real nice day! We are lucky to live in such a pretty country.

Jessie and I successfully navigated the highways and made it into downtown Montreal. We stayed across the road from the Palais de congres, in a swanky Airbnb adjacent to the hotel. We paid extra to park the car underground. FYI, it’s about $20 a day to park in downtown Montreal.

After a bite, Jessie and I pushed on and set up the display.

Display

The Banner Saga continues because I actually lost my banner at the end of Anime North. How? We think that during pack-up, I may have stupidly left it in the parking lot. I remember carrying it out of the convention centre at least. I’m more upset that I lost the carrying case, because I can always reprint the banner (even though it’s yet another expense). That hard case, I bought it from Staples as part of a set to repair my old banner, and it was almost as much as the actual new banner. SIGH EVERYTHING IS FINE.
I was a bit concerned that without a banner, my display would be lacking. I think it wasn’t terrible, especially since we had the new wings Jessie made last year!!

Little wings be like, “I’m just like my mom!”

Before we left, Jessie made some last minute repairs to my box set. I left behind the biggest box in favour of a second two-box set that we actually bought and painted from Michael’s. Jessie spray-painted the stenciled purple and white logo, so pretty!

We spent about 45 minutes rearranging the boxes and the wings to create something workable within the space. The wings are really challenging. They actually come with shelves but we forgot them (not that we REALLY needed them in this small space). It takes several shows to figure out how to use a piece successfully. So I put some books up there, some signs. We found the signs had the most impact on top of the shelves. One of my gripes with this set-up is it’s really confusing to layout books in a series. People can’t look at a row of books and tell which one is first–which makes them hesitant to pick them up. So extra nudging was required on my part. Ultimately, the wings are for showcasing and highlighting, so once I’m able to get them out here to Calgary, I’ll be able to put them to use in that way.

Late Saturday, the neighbours to my left—a Quebec Writer’s Union—ended up leaving, so I took over their space so as not to have an empty table! I’m not really satisfied with the look. If I’d had more stock (of course, I’m always at my lowest on the Sunday!) and banners, I could have rocked the double table more efficiently. Still, it was a good experience.

Sales

Honestly, expectations and reality for this convention were significantly different.

I sold a surprising number of Sparkstone Saga sets – I expected numbers more on par with Anime North, where the first books outshined the bundles, but that wasn’t the case here. The Violet Fox by itself outperformed Stars In Her Eyes significantly, and I only sold a few Violet Fox Series bundles. It was good I had Hunger In Her Bones on hand, leftover from Anime North, as I had expected to have my reprints ready by this time, but of course the stars don’t always align. Phew!
I had a lot of interest in my eBooks – they continue to be a good budget option and for those who are on the go!

Leftover stock went with Jessie for use at the Eastern shows (Hal-Con, Christmas at the Forum, and Turner’s Christmas at the Coliseum). I’ve ordered reprints for Dreams In Her Head and Hunger In Her Bones, and likely I’ll have to do the same for most of my other titles within the next six months. I’ve only done 5 shows this year and I’m close to breaking my con sales numbers for last year. Because I’m only doing large shows, I’m seeing a bigger return—and the true sales season hasn’t even begun yet.

Overall, this show was about $100 shy of my Ottawa numbers. I hadn’t realized the Montreal show was larger than the Ottawa show–but of course, Montreal is a city of nearly 2 million! I could have done better–my lack of good French being a chief obstacle.

Je Ne Parle Pas Francais or Do I?

Growing up, I didn’t take French Immersion, because that wasn’t even an option in school. We had “Extended Core” from grade 7 to grade 12 – aka, French class, and Social Studies in French…and that’s it. I went to a couple of French retreats across the province to round it out, sponsored by the Canadian Parents for French, and even participated in concours d’art oratoire (French public speaking competitions). When I compare my musical performing experiences—including the time we performed for nearly 8,000 people—none are quite so scary as the time I recited a mostly memorized speech about Joan of Arc in French and then answered questions from judges, in front of other high school students from schools with better French programs.

So if you ask me if I speak French: I can understand it okay, but responding is hard.

Friday was nerve-wracking for me. I thought my French wasn’t up to snuff, so when I’d say hello to the passersby, and I got a “bonjour” – I treated it like a wall. “Oh, this person is French – I guess I can’t sell to them.”

After a somewhat disappointing Friday (it was not great), I realized that I was going to have to step up my game, French or ne french pas. Even being around the language again for the first time in a while, I felt the words, phrases, and grammar returning, and I remembered my own advice: it’s not the customer’s fault if they’re not buying. I had to be willing to at least try some French, or push through the language barrier confidently.

The next day, I approached with a new attitude. Within the first hour, I made Friday’s sales, plus some—because I pushed through. Also, right after I have coffee, I’m at my most positive, so that helped as well.

A fair number of people asked me if the novels were only in English. These were the folks that I “lost” by not having French editions. “Lost” meaning, I may not have had them anyway, even with French editions. Doing this con has made me consider a French translation–though honestly, I think I’m a little ways off from that.
I’ve always wanted to be multilingual. One of the big takeaways from my weekend in Montreal is that we do not live in an English-only country. I know, that’s obvious! But when you live in English-only areas, consume English media, and conduct business in English, it’s easy to forget there are other spheres of people who think in a different language—living a hop, skip, and a jump away! This is a good reminder to me–since I have some other Canadian-set stories I’ve yet to publish.

THIEVES!

Despite the size of the vendor area, word travels quickly through the rows.

Thieves. Three of them, working together, taking cash boxes from the artist vendors.

This wasn’t just a grab-and-run. While one or two pretended to be interested in a product, a third would crawl underneath the booth, rummage through boxes, and take the cashbox.

At least four booths were affected. My friend, Peter Chiykowski, was one of these victims. He reportedly had at least $1,000 cash taken—essentially, his Friday cash earnings.

The story was picked up by CBC not long after the event–there was an initial article, and then a follow-up. I remember reading the initial article and seeing a comment: “They should have paid closer attention.” So it’s Peter’s fault that he got stolen from? Considering that he builds a literal tower of prints and t-shirts on all sides of his booth, and there were three people manning a small space, on the surface level it seems impossible that anything could get by them. But they did. If people want something badly enough, they’ll figure out a way.

Yes, we all have to be vigilant in the face of thievery. Yes, we have to step up our game. But I’m reminded of the Jean-Luc Picard quote: “We can do everything right and still lose.”

If you’re reading this and you’ve been struck with indifference, don’t assume that all convention artists are rolling in the dough and they should be punished for this success. Even if you’re selling $1,000+ a day, that doesn’t mean you’re making $1,000 a day. The cost of Peter’s booth for the weekend was near-on a grand—plus food and travel and shipping his product. And of course, the time and effort he put into creating product. We all work hard for our living, no matter if it’s in an office or a studio or on the convention floor. Sometimes an act of theft can ruin a person—you never know how close a person is living to poverty, even if it looks like they’re doing well.

The community banded together and donated over $1,000 to Peter to make up for his loss. He gave the excess to the other affected artists, and also created a t-shirt, again, donating the profits to the affected vendors. Peter is a full-time comic artist/creative entrepreneur. He is kind and selfless–qualities we could all use more of.

This story of thievery isn’t over–there is a police investigation going on and Peter has been distilling and disseminating updates via Facebook. If you are an artist/vendor and you’re interested in following the developments, I suggest you join the Artist Alley Canada Facebook group.

Good Food & Good Times

It’s not often I get to enjoy a city when I’m doing a show. But it’s Montreal, and Jessie was there, so why not?

Montreal is the city of Treat Yo’self! On Saturday night, Jessie and I went to Brasserie 701, an upscale restaurant just around the corner from where we stayed, in Old Montreal. We chose it because of its location but also because of the logo—gold lion’s gonna tell me where the light is! The food: very tasty. Jessie is on a rare beef kick and I do not pass up the opportunity for fish, so we got beef and salmon tar-tar respectively.

Then, of course, creme brulee. Yes, I still eat creme brulee, even though I nearly died that one time from too many creme brulees. Readers will be happy to know that we SHARED the dessert, and we did not overdo it! It isn’t very often that Jessie and I get to hang out together so it was great to have sister times in an intimate setting.

Our server Gavin was so nice! Jessie and I were so pleased with the whole experience that I ended up giving him an extra vendor pass I had so that he could enjoy comic con. The look on his face, he was floored! He came to visit me at my table with his young son. YAY.

Justin Currie was also in Montreal and the three of us ended up taking in the city together. We went to C’ChoColat, the most decadent dessert place I have EVER seen! Jessie and I had found it online when we were searching for things to do and obviously we had to check it out.

Then we went around the corner to a bar Justin recommended (which turned out to be completely renovated/different from a previous visit, much to his disappointment).

We sat in a cozy corner and played Giant Jenga. First the normal way, then we invented a new way.

Some of the blocks had drinking game instructions written on them, many of them rude, so we came up with some fun/silly ones instead and wrote them on the blank blocks accordingly.

Justin, it was so fun to hang out with you! This is the best part of being a creative entrepreneur – connecting with others who are likeminded.

I was neighbours with animation artist Kurt Lehner and his friend Andrew, a mask-maker. Andrew and I became fast friends and we kept each other laughing throughout the long three days, eating dried mangoes and shouting “QUATRE-VINGT!” at each other. YAY!

As always, thank you to all friends old and new who came to visit me at my booth!! AND ALSO THANKS FOR ALL YOUR HELP JESSIE!!!!!

Will I Go Back?

I haven’t decided yet. On Friday, I was convinced I wouldn’t. After a great Saturday, I wavered. The thievery does make me pause – but I could get robbed anywhere.

Theoretically, I could make it work to go back. It is a LOT of work, and I do have to pay for accommodations—and really, it’s probably THE most expensive convention for me to do. This might be a good candidate for a proxy.

Stay tuned for my next show, which will be Animethon in Edmonton–just days before my 30th birthday!!

And now, proof that I was in Mexico!!

My last of 3 shows in 30 days, complete! Now I can relax….sort of! More like, now I have a month to catch up on all the client work I’ve been juggling, plus work on my next book (Darkness In Her Reach). I finally feel like I’m returning to some kind of (relative) normal. Is this what May is going to be like for me, forever?

General Impressions

I’ve been on the waitlist for Anime North for a year and a half and I was offered a table in the merchandise section a couple of months before the convention. Now, I’d much prefer to be in artist alley, but I took the expensive booth just to get my foot in the door. I hadn’t done a Toronto show yet, and I’d like to do more Ontario shows in general, just to continue spreading the brand across the country. I’ve done well in Calgary, I’ve done well in Nova Scotia (where I’m from) and now I need to bulk up Central Canada.

But May was a crazy month. Since late March, I’ve been working non-stop, including most weekends, juggling all my client work and my Faery Ink Press work too: getting The Emerald Cloth ready for release and doing three big shows in a month with only a week and a half of “rest” (aka, work) in between, PLUS getting a cold—my body can only take so much!

This is the life I chose, though. So I worked, worked, worked, and hopped on a plane to Toronto, a place I haven’t been in eight years, since I graduated Humber College and started my publishing career.

Location

What I imagined and what the show ended up being were two very different experiences. With all the regulations and the rules, I was expecting an experience closer to my craft shows: hands-on staff, fire marshals running around, friendly creative entrepreneurs. Instead, it was closer to my larger comic con experiences (get in, set up, get that show on the road). It was also the VERY FIRST TIME I was asked to verify my identity upon check-in. So…good on you, Anime North.

I was fortunate enough to have HELP for this convention! I rolled up to the building in style with my friend Brianne and her partner, Jake. YAY. There were no table numbers on anything, nor did I receive a map, so I had to ask exactly where my spot was. Set up, otherwise, was painless and took far less time than I expected.

Because I was in the dealer’s area, I had a 10×10 space with pipe and drape. And a table that had NO space on either side to enter or exit. So, like in Edmonton, I had to CRAWL beneath my table to get in and out. I basically only brought dresses with me to this convention, so that was also fun.

Display

Nothing new here! Basically just copying what I’ve done for the past few cons.

I’ve seen people sharing my links around in response to those looking for unique ways to display their products! I will say, I’ve had this nesting wooden box set for a year now, and it’s taken quite a beating. The new shelving set my sister made has different paint that doesn’t scrape as easily, but still, you put wood in a suitcase and give it a tumble, and it will eventually break. The good thing about it is it’s relatively durable, in that it can hold the weight of my books, and they’re lightweight—when they’re empty, I can lift them easily. Remember that I put all of this in my suitcase!

We’ll be rolling out a smaller set of boxes for the next few conventions, which I think is better for book display.

Sales

I exceeded my minimum target for the con, though I was hoping to sell more! As I predicted, most of my sales were for single first books. The Violet Fox and Stars In Her Eyes were nearly neck-and-neck, but The Violet Fox beat out Stars In Her Eyes this time—in fact, it sold out! Fortunately it was within the last few hours, but still, I probably could have brought 10 more and sold them all. I even sold far more Violet Fox bundle sets. I expected more sales of the Sparkstone Saga, just for the artwork, which was admired by many, but I think the fantasy just beats out the science fiction with this crowd. The Violet Fox is really selling well, I need to remember to always bring way more than I expect so that I stop selling out!

Also, FYI, apparently DreamPayments is shutting down effective early July – that’s the news that’s been flying around the Facebook groups, in any case. Very glad I didn’t jump ship from Moneris a year ago!

“I’m out of money”

A familiar chorus that I’ve heard before—mostly, from Otafest. I haven’t done enough anime shows to know if this is a theme specific to anime, but so far, it seems that way. I had a woman at the end of the day who really wanted a copy of The Violet Fox but told me apologetically three times that she’d already exceeded her budget. I was pretty cranky for reasons I’ll get into below, so all I said was, “Okay.” My usual quip is, “I take credit and debit.” But I was really tired and very “over” anyone’s excuses. Either they want it then or they don’t. People give excuses to alleviate social anxiety, but I wasn’t interested in saying “That’s okay” a thousand times over to assuage guilt.

Neighbours

I’m usually pretty lucky with neighbours. They’re either quiet, or we become friendly with each other. And you have to in this business—you’re about to spend three or four days, sometimes 12 hours a day, with them.

After I set up, I noticed my neighbour had waifu pillowcases hanging like a backdrop behind cartons of comics. The chest areas were covered with pieces of paper. I thought, “Okay, interesting, I kind of wish that wasn’t there, but my display is pretty great and that’s all that matters.”

It wasn’t until later that I realized he didn’t just have waifu pillowcases, but erotic comics and collections, organized in white cartons—and that that was his business.

Hmm, I thought. Everything is covered, and it IS an anime show—you wouldn’t see this at a Fan Expo convention, at least not so blatantly advertised—so it shouldn’t be a problem. Sellers with adult content have a lot of rules to follow, and it seemed from our initial conversation that he was following them. After all, people who buy erotic content are generally decisive. They go there, they pick out what they want, they complete the transaction, and then they leave—usually discreetly.

During my conversation with the seller, a direct middle-aged man, he said, “We’re pretty loud. If we’re too loud, just tell us and we’ll quiet down.”

In my mind, I was thinking, we all have to talk loud just to be heard over the din, but I politely said sure, no problem.

Then the con started—and I began to hear what he meant by loud. He started carnival barking, “Step right up, get your smut!” and “We have hentai, we have yaori!” and

“Ladies, you need some men in your life!” (yeah…..that was unfortunately one of his lines) and various other things. After about five minutes of this, I looked at him and said, “Yes, that’s pretty loud.”

“I warned you,” he said, shrugging. “We have to sell.”

“Do you know what I sell?” I said, pointing to my banner that clearly read, “Young Adult Fiction Publisher.”

“Uh…romance?” he guessed.

“It’s teen fiction,” I said. “Young adult means teens. Adults buy it too, they have the buying power, but there’s going to be kids here.”

He got the idea and quieted it down after that. There was always a crowd around his table—no carnival barking necessary to sell what he’s peddling! And to be fair, whenever the teens from my table started eying his wares, he told them they needed ID and chased them away.

He also said that he would help me move if I didn’t want to be next to him. There was a vacant spot across from me, inviting me to switch. I considered it thoughtfully as I made my sales on Friday.

Ultimately though? It didn’t matter. I sold exactly what I expected on Friday—maybe even a little more—and so I decided I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of moving. My display was attractive enough. His waifu pillow cases might draw the eye and earn some giggles, but the attendees were genuinely interested in my wares too. I was in a good spot and I wouldn’t give it up.

Saturday went fine. My sales were strong (even though I wanted to sell more Sparkstone Sagas!) and I got along with the neighbours. Things were looking up. I could do this.
On Sunday though, the energy changed. No matter how much caffeine I drank, it only fogged my brain and filled my bladder. It’s not an exaggeration to say that my soul was tired. Doing these shows takes tremendous energy—energy I have in abundance. But this weekend, whether it was because of the number of shows I’ve done in the last month, or the constant sexualisation of women for capitalistic consumption, or all the client work I have to do, or all of the above, I felt defeated.

At some point, the neighbour struck up a conversation with me—he invited his customers to haggle with him, which was part of his sales strategy that I was admiring.

“Sometimes you have to challenge them a little,” he said to me.

I don’t disagree with the sentiment. “Sure,” I said.

He continued, and made a strange comparison: he likened being an aggressive salesman to dating a man who is confident and desirable versus dating a man who begs all the time and is weak.

I didn’t think this conversation was appropriate. I really didn’t know what to say. After two days of straight stimuli bombardment, I was beyond tired. “They buy or they don’t,” is all I could think of.

“Yes, but,” he said, “you prefer the guy who challenges you a little, right?”

I mulled over this, because again I was struck dumb. What did he just say to me? Why did that make me feel so weird? Only a few minutes later did my brain really decipher the words: by making an assumption about who I’m attracted to and trying to discuss it, he was crossing a professional boundary. This was not a conversation that I wanted to have. It made me feel sexualized and uncomfortable. Remember: my fellow table neighbours are my co-workers. If this were in an office space, that interaction would be inappropriate too. After all–my preferences are no one’s business, certainly not his.

Later, a cosplayer had an interaction with the neighbour—I witnessed many cringe-worthy interactions over the weekend—but this one in particular left a sour taste in the cosplayer’s mouth, for they walked away, muttering under their breath, “I would never buy my porn from that [bleeping] misogynist anyway.”

And then I was like: Holy mackerel. You are totally right. He has been inappropriate to me, to a lot of people, all weekend, and I have put up with it to be “nice” at the cost of my well-being. And you know what? Just because he was polite to me, just because we had some pleasant conversations, that doesn’t excuse his other behaviour. This isn’t the Sims. A relationship isn’t a point system in a thermometer, where good behaviour = increase and negative, inappropriate behaviour = decrease.

Things slowed down considerably towards the end. When it was time to pack up, I began my routine: piling books, readying them for the inventory process. The neighbour then struck up a conversation with me by asking, “Can you be arrested in Canada for calling someone by the wrong pronoun?”

It spiralled from there, everyone. It went from a discussion about pronouns to, well, about where you would expect, with him saying such gems as, “Well if that’s true, then I can say I’m six-five and Chinese!” and “Well looking like you do right now, of course I’m going to assume you’re a woman!”

I was really upset. All I wanted to do was leave. One thing was clear now that I couldn’t deny: he was inappropriate, and I had to report him.

He left, and I finished packing, and I steeled my nerve and marched to the vendor check-in table, which was within view of my table. I wasn’t even sure what to say when I went over there. Am I going to sound dumb? What am I complaining about exactly? Is me feeling uncomfortable “enough” to complain about?

It was enough, though. My feelings matter, because I am a human being, and that in itself has inherent value.

Despite my trepidation, the words came to me as I spoke to the staff there—one of them was a woman who placed the vendors. As soon as she said, “I completely understand. I’ve been dealing with men speaking over me all weekend,” I felt so much better. Granted, there was “nothing she could do” because the convention was over and he was gone, and “had I come earlier, maybe something could have been done” (what though? I’m not going to risk his anger when I’m in the middle of doing my job and potentially lose my own nerve), except “ensure I’m not next to him next time”—I couldn’t help but think, what about the NEXT person who finds him distasteful? Why are we dealing with band-aid solutions instead of more decisive surgery?

Speaking up about it did soothe my frustration, but writing about it again has me angry. Even waiting a week and coming back to this does nothing to ease the wound. Even a MONTH later, writing THIS sentence, editing this post, my stomach is in knots. Sam and I recorded a Calgary Expo Post Mortem a month ago and I’ve finally released it for the podcast, and going back through it, I even hear stories from my own mouth about how I was treated that make me cringe.

Since I have decided to chronicle my experiences as a creative entrepreneur selling her own works in this environment, I guess it’s inevitable that I’d end up writing an account of harassment and bigotry. But just because something is inevitable, doesn’t mean it’s ignorable. Writing about negative or traumatic experiences is tough because I didn’t want to be perceived as using them to sell books. But I’ve also come to realize that NOT writing about them is obscuring the full truth of my experience. This business of making things and handselling them is HARD, everyone. Sometimes I feel like an eroded island as ships pass in the night. This is not the first time I’ve had to deal with harassment – last year at Calgary Expo, I had to deal with an even worse harassment incident that I recently spoke about on the podcast. I decided to write about this one because it’s the first time I’ve had a bad neighbour experience on this level, but also as a reminder to my future self: This is your workplace, your feelings have value, and therefore it is okay to speak up if you feel uncomfortable.

Good Friends!

I was very lucky to be able to stay with my friend Brianne and her partner, Jake!

They were incredibly hospitable—Brianne even made me LUNCHES! I don’t think I’ve ever eaten as much as I did in Toronto. I’m very used to foraging for food, even at home, eating a little when I feel hungry, but I enjoyed so much good food when I was in Toronto! I was ready to hibernate afterward.

Also, check out this 10pm ice cream – peanut butter cups in vanilla and chocolate ice cream sprinkled with Reece’s Pieces and dark chocolate!! Now, normally I try to avoid eating after 8 or 9pm because of my weird digestion, but I could not pass up this ice cream opportunity.

The day after the convention, we strolled around downtown Toronto, went to many craft stores and even the Harry Potter store! It was nice to talk business and creativity with Brianne—she’s seriously talented, everyone. Click through and look at her paintings. And yes – those are her PAINTINGS.

I really appreciate that they not only allowed me to stay but also for all their help during the weekend!! Thank you so much!!! YAY!

Will I Go Back?

Yes, I think so. I exceeded my Ottawa numbers (just barely), though I paid for an expensive spot just for the privilege of attending (and being harassed). So next year I might see about getting a much cheaper (and more appropriate) spot. What I love about anime shows is the devoted fan base—I didn’t get to do Otafest this year, yet I had SO MANY people who’d seen me at Otafest come up to me at Calgary Expo and buy.

Time to rest up and prepare for my very first show in Montreal!

Once again, I squeezed all my client work into about ten days before departing for Ottawa. I’ve never been busier. I am really looking forward to some down time in June (if that happens – who knows!). I’m juggling a lot of balls right now. On top of that, the con crud got to me. I think I’ve been resisting it since Calgary Expo. Doing a lot of cons in close proximity really takes a toll on your health. So right now, I’m just plowing through work and organizing everything for Anime North. It never, ever stops.

General Impressions

My second time in Ottawa! And overall, a much less stressful visit, compared to last year. I got off the plane, made my way to the EY Centre, dropped off my heavy bags and picked up my badges, did a partial set-up, and then ubered to my cousin’s place. We had a nice Thai dinner and caught up, and then I settled in with my two new best friends, this sibling duo known as Gower & Bip.

Unfortunately I was not here just to see kitties, I was here to sell books, which I did very well, with my cousins’ help! YAY!

Display

Nothing ground-breaking here, but I am filling the shelves, just like I did at Calgary Expo, which creates an attractive look. Putting the eBook sign front and centre helps make those sweet, sweet bundle sales.

My new postcard catalogues arrived in Calgary the day after I arrived in Ottawa, so I wisely packed business cards for my takeaways. This worked fine—I didn’t display them, but gave them to those who asked. I’m looking forward to having my pretty postcards on the table again next week!

Sales

Friday was steady, Saturday was extremely busy, and Sunday was about double Friday.Stars In Her Eyes had more individual, one-off sales. I found that readers who spend less than 10 minutes at my table, who were just looking for a new book to read, and weren’t necessarily my target audience, chose Stars In Her Eyes as an entry point to my catalogue, just because it looked or sounded interesting enough.

I also had more people returning, asking for Darkness In Her Reach! I know, I know, I’m working on it! SOON?!

The Violet Fox sold some individually, but mostly in my Any 2 for $30 bundle. This works as a great upsell across the board—for those wishing to try both book ones, for people picking up the sequels, and for those just wishing to sample my offerings. I also had more people than usual willing to pay the All for 7 price ($105).

I employed a relaxed sales strategy—engaging those who did the double take, luring the shy onlookers in with a no-pressure invitation to browse, and conversing with the attendees with my natural friendly attitude.

Moneris reader still going strong! I’m wondering what its lifespan is—I hope it doesn’t conk out during a show, knock on wood!

Badge Scanning

So Ottawa had a new system this year. Each badge was individually barcoded, and each time you entered and exited the building, you were scanned.

Now, this system seems fine in theory—it allows them to account for vendor whereabouts in case of emergency. But in practice—it’s hard to enforce. Not every staff member was diligent about scanning me in or out during the day. One who caught me coming back in, scanned me, realized I hadn’t scanned out, just shrugged his shoulders. One person told my cousin, who’d went out for five minutes and wanted back in without previously being scanned, that “next time” she’d better hunt down a staff member if there wasn’t one near the exit if she wanted in and out.

I don’t mind cons making rules that enforce safety or improve the show. But it’s not our jump to hunt down staff members when they’re not there or not doing their jobs. We have to get back to our table so we can do our jobs. So if you have a system, it has to be enforced evenly across the board—or not at all.

Stock Prep and Selling Out

I shipped a couple of boxes ahead to my cousins (which arrived a day before the event – phew!) and then loaded up my suitcases with the rest (it’s cheaper to check 50lb bags on the airplane than it is to send 50lbs through Canada Post).

I carefully considered my stock for this show. Generally, I go back through my spreadsheet to the previous year’s show, and pack that amount, plus extra, depending on new releases and even how I did at a show two weeks to a month prior. A good rule of thumb is previous year’s stock plus 20% extra – you have to fill the table, after all.

I ended up selling out of The Violet Fox and I was down to two copies of Stars In Her Eyes. Within also sold out by Sunday, but I only brought five copies of that. Most people bought that in one of my bundle deals.

I was overly optimistic that people would buy more series bundles, so that’s why my selection was fairly balanced – instead, I should have brought far more book ones. Granted, I didn’t sell out until Sunday afternoon, so that’s not as bad as selling out on Saturday! But I probably lost out on at least $50 by not having enough copies of The Violet Fox. No joke, a woman returned to the table, ready to buy The Violet Fox, and the very last copy rested in the hands of a guy who had approached three minutes before, ready to buy right there and then. Sorry!

So, now I know for Anime North – send way more book ones!

It’s a guessing game, but you take the guessing out of it little by little by keeping track of your sales and looking for trends. Risk is the name of the game, too. Do I spend an extra $30 in shipping to send an extra box there, just in case? It might contain an extra $350 in books, but what if I don’t even make the $900 I’ve already spent making this happen? Often with shows, because you’re paying all this money up front, months in advance (sometimes weeks), you feel like you’re bleeding out. But then the shows come, and you get bandaged up and injected with adrenaline, and you feel more powerful than before. Then of course, the cycle starts again.

On top of that, there’s also your product display to consider. The more you sell, the less you have on your table, and then less appealing the display to the customer. Granted, this isn’t always the case. I was astonished at my mail-order sales in Ottawa last year. I had six books, a tablecloth, and a smile.

Then with shows like Ottawa, or anything where I’m travelling, the question is not only, how do I make a profit here, but how do I grow the show each year? As I’ve discussed with Justin Currie and Greg Chomichuk before, it takes a couple of years to gauge the show – three years, is the number we’ve settled on. Three years of data will give you enough to work with. Of course, this is assuming you have new things each year and you’re upgrading your brand and display accordingly. Three years is enough to gauge what your return customer rate is. Doing a show and thinking “that wasn’t worth my time” isn’t constructive – you have to ask yourself, “what did I do wrong, and how can I improve for next year?” That’s the only way you can get more data, discover the problem (be it your display, your products, your brand) and fix it.

I made more than I did the previous year, but the previous year I had special circumstances. So while this is the second year I’ve done it, it’s sort of like the first year. I did about what I expected to do, perhaps a little less, but only because I expected more bundle sales than single-book sales.

Going Forward

I’m starting to tangibly see the effects of continuing to show up. I had a number of people returning for sequels. I have people telling me they’ve heard of me.

Also, I’ve done three shows this year—soon to be four—and I’ve already sold 40% of what I did last year. I am due for a serious look at my numbers and a rethink on my print runs because just a month ago I was drowning in boxes, and now I’m back to just regular piles. My decision to only to big shows seems to be paying off. The bigger the risk, the bigger the reward.

Good People!

I was neighbours with Jailbird Comics, run by Dustin, who moonlights as a comic artist and has an original comic called H.E.L.L. about a jail for demons. It was so nice to chat with him during the down time!

On my other side, there was Celeste, who makes INCREDIBLE MASKS. It attracted a lot of attention over the weekend, and she even let me try on the elephant! LOOK HOW PRETTY!!

Thank you everyone who stopped and chatted with me!

Cousin Time!!

I had such a fun time hanging out with my two cousins, Jennifer and Kathleen! They helped me SO MUCH over the weekend—giving me a place to stay, kitties to cuddle, driving me to and from the event, getting me coffees and Booster Juices, and generally keeping me company! They also got to enjoy the con for three days, went to panels and Q&As, and made some very good jewellery purchases. Thank you so much for all your help!!!! ^_^

Will I Go Back?

Yes, I’m giving Ottawa a third year – then I will have three years of data to judge what to do going forward. I’d really like to continue having a presence here. Also, I like visiting my cousins! And the kitties, obviously.

See you next week at Anime North in Toronto!! Then, a month of well-earned “rest.” Aka, back to regularly scheduled freelance work and hopefully some writing.
Time to sleep with the kitties!!

Wow, another Calgary Expo, done and dusted. Just in time for the beginning of spring. It’s nice to celebrate the end of the long winter with one of my biggest shows of the year! I left feeling extremely inspired—and just a little stressed!—about the work I have to do in the next few months to get to the next level.

General Impressions

I was having one of my more stressful weeks. Not only is it tax time (yikes!) but I have a lot of work coming in to the point where I really want to invest in cloning technology. More and more, I’m having to put freelance work on hold so that I can take four to five days just to do a convention—because even if a show is three days, sometimes I have to travel to get there, and I need a day after the con to decompress so my brain and body doesn’t explode from overwork.

Overall, this was a great show, and this year, I wasn’t alone. Kate’s table was right around the corner, Sam was down the aisle, my other friends were in the building, and I easily made friends with my table neighbours. Unlike last year where I was surrounded by creators who were dissimilar to me (but still awesome!) this year, I was in close contact with my friends, which improved my disposition immensely.

Location

This year, unless you specifically bought a vendor booth (~$800+), the show placed all the artists in the Big Four building. The Big Four is traditionally seen as the less-trafficked building so this made some artists upset. Overall, though, the people I talked to seemed pleased with the change, though take that with a grain of salt—I didn’t talk to every single artist!

I downgraded my large booth from last year to a small press booth. I made slightly less in 2017 than I did in 2016 (when I was in the small press section)–not hugely significant, but enough that I realized that doubling my booth size doesn’t mean I double my sales. Once you know where you’re going to land, sales-wise, it’s best to minimize expenses as much as possible. Since I only have to pay for a table at this con (as opposed to travel and hotel!) I want to maximize my profit! Your location in the con DOES matter—but I’m starting to realize that it won’t make or break me at this stage in my business, because I’m gathering a strong band of returning customers who will seek me out on the convention floor.

So I was placed in the small press section in the Big Four, in a row of books! Which if you’ve been following along, you’ll know there are pros and cons to putting all the book people together. A lot of cons, mostly—you really have to bring your A-game if you want to compete.

Display

I’d forgotten that I hadn’t had my boxies for Calgary Expo yet! I’m finally getting the hang of how to use them properly. Still have to figure out how to affix lights to them, maybe. People really responded to the full bookshelves—and as usual, I put everything on the table. I resorted to wrapping cardboard boxes again to add height for my third box—I think this helped boost sales later for the Sparkstone Saga.

Because I was on the corner, I placed my good banner on the side to capture side traffic. I can’t really say if this made any kind of difference in sales, but it did make more room behind me, and the tiger always draws people’s eye.

I haven’t created new postcards for 2018 yet, so I was giving out business cards instead. Which was fine, but not as good as my postcard catalogues. I’ll have to finish my new ones and get them printed before I go to Ottawa.

I did, however, remember to order bags before this event! Purple and blue, woohoo. I’m glad, because it rained on Sunday and I didn’t want people to get their books wet.

Sales

I had my best Calgary Expo yet! Not by much, but by enough that it was exciting. I made just under my sales at the Festival of Crafts. I think this is due to a number of factors:
a) Nicer display
b) The Emerald Cloth is finally here!
c) I was surrounded by my friends, which made me happy, which makes me sell more
d) General build-up from previous customers and fans.

The Violet Fox Series far out-performed the Sparkstone Saga this year! Not only did I sell many, many single copies of The Emerald Cloth, I sold lots of single Violet Foxes and three-book bundles of the series. As I look back to last year, I see it was the opposite: I sold tons of single copies of Stars In Her Eyes. I’m thinking this is because a) I have a new book out in The Violet Fox Series; b) people expressing more of an interest in fantasy in general and c) my display for the series was perhaps more appealing on the outset.

I even sold out on Saturday of The Emerald Cloth! Clearly I didn’t bring enough with me for the four days. I brought more for Sunday, but I was really surprised the rate people were buying into the series. I only had seven copies of The Violet Fox left!

I had more people than ever returning to my table! This was extremely exciting for me. They had specific requests for what they wanted. This wasn’t just for The Emerald Cloth, either. I had people requesting for Dreams In Her Head and Hunger In Her Bones, and even people wondering when Darkness In Her Reach (Sparkstone Saga #4) would be out. I had been hoping last year to have it out for this convention, but that was probably wishful thinking. It will either be late this year (in time for Christmas shows) or by Calgary Expo 2019. I even had people return to see if I had anything similar to Within!

I employed a relaxed strategy, since my display did a lot of the heavy lifting. You have to wait for that moment when the customer does the long stare at your stuff—then you can engage. Otherwise, I was content to be a smiling face.

A little more than half of my customers opted to pay cash, which was surprising! I had no issues with my Moneris reader, except when one customer accidentally pressed the reset button on the side!

I’ve been looking into getting an iPad and accompanying POS system. That’s the next step! Managing inventory and keeping track of sales is becoming more of a chore not only the more books I publish, but the more I have to reprint—and the more I have to send books away for shows where I’m not physically present. I think I’m a little ways from taking the leap and doubling my monthly cost (~$21), but I’m happy with the Moneris system and I want to continue using it in this aspect of my business. Maybe by this time next year? Right now, I’m cheaping out and letting my sister use Square for the Eastern shows she does without me, but it’s nice to consolidate it all so all the sales info is in one place!

One more thing—a couple of well-meaning guys said to me, “I hope you at least made back your table?” Which came off as patronizing (I don’t think they would have said it that way if I were a man). If I only made back what I spent on my table at this point, something would be seriously wrong, and I wouldn’t be doing this.

Publishing Advice

More people than ever came to my table for advice about writing and publishing. They either wanted to talk about the craft specifically, or they wanted to talk about the business, and how they could do what I do—or they had a friend who was struggling with “what to do next.” And I was happy to share advice and my personal experience!

People only see the end result of publishing—and while you can conceptualize the work it takes to write a book, it’s harder to explain the time and the commitment of continuing to show up. Many of the people in my row had two or three books. Really, that’s just the beginning of the journey. They’re just starting to have enough stock to make conventions worth the investment.

There’s no secret to doing well at these things. You have to continue to show up each year with new product, better than before. That’s it in a nutshell. If you don’t have anything new—or especially, if you don’t have the new product that your audience WANTS—say goodbye to those sweet, sweet fan dollars. If you didn’t show up—okay, well, you’re missing out on that crucial exposure people need to know who you are. And if you show up, but you’re not doing anything to combat apathy or you haven’t broken down that Barrier to Buy, then you’re not going to see the sales dollars you expect.

That last point is especially important for people starting out. Remember: it’s not their fault that they’re not buying. It’s usually not the con’s fault either. More often than not, it’s you. Your covers aren’t appealing, your brand is not cohesive, your display isn’t powerful enough, or maybe you yourself aren’t showing up appropriately. Sure—location is extremely important. But if you don’t check all those other boxes first, you’re not even going to see a baseline of sales.

To discern what you need to improve, you have to have more data. Meaning, you have to do more shows. Your location is always going to be different—hell, every CITY has a slightly different vibe! But people’s reactions to you should always be the same or similar—unless you make a significant change in your product and how you show up with it.

Also, I need to point out: I’ve been publishing since 2011, doing cons since 2013. What you see in these pictures is eight years of work, but two and a half years of reflection, change, and serious commitment. You’re not going to roll out of bed one day with the sales numbers I have, especially if you only have 1-3 books and the beginnings of a brand. Just like I’m not going to roll out of bed with the sales numbers of someone with double my brand power and three times as many books.

Having three times as many books comes with its own set of logistics and problems. Even right now, I’m in a weird stage of growth where I don’t physically have enough storage space for my product, but I need to be printing probably double what I am currently to match the rate I’m going through runs. Not to mention, I’m paying thousands of dollars upfront for printing. It’s kind of fun to look back at a few years ago, when I was doing print on demand only, ordering 20-30 at a time, and now I’m ordering a minimum of 300 from Canadian printers and hoping that will get me through.

Each year I’ve sold more books than the previous year, made a bit more money overall—but I am approaching a point where I need to evaluate my con strategy. Doing them has grown my business SO MUCH. Not just Faery Ink Press, but my freelance work has exploded as a result. Which also means I’m squeezing all my client work in between travelling and con time (thank you clients for being so patient with me). Probably by the end of the year, I’ll have to reflect where I want my business to go, and adjust course accordingly—but all course changes require calculated leaps.

And yes, yes, I should do panelling, I’ll do it next year!

Good People

Spent time with my artist friends at the Pin Bar on 17th (thanks Panel One for throwing a party!) and met some new people as well! My table neighbours were Low Five Productions, a collection of comic artists & writers. Thanks Jazz, Jose, Ethan, James, and probably other guys whose names I can’t think of at the top of my head for being great neighbours!!

Also, got to chatting with Stephen, aka S. K. Aetherphoxx – another author in the row. His books are real pretty! Looking forward to reading his first one.

Also thanks to all my friends who came and visited my table! ^_^

SECRET BOOK DEAL?!

Also, I can FINALLY announce….that I have a secret book deal. That’s all I can say at the time of writing, an official announcement will come later, but I’m very excited and signed the official contract over the weekend. It’s gonna be so great! And nice to be “just” the author on this project.

And no, this has nothing to do with Faery Ink Press—this is a separate book project that I will be writing for a publisher. But still, this wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t gone to conventions and developed a brand with pretty looking books.

Next Year!

Of course I’ll continue to do Calgary Expo, it’s one of my biggest shows. Next year, I’ll have an artist alley table (as opposed to a small press table, as the expo is phasing that table type out), but I’ll probably be in a similar spot. I’m getting to the point where I may need two tables, or a larger space, but I think as long as I’m building vertically, I can maximize one table for at least another year.

See you all in two weeks at Ottawa Comiccon!

This is my first show of 2018. It’s supposed to be spring, but no, it’s still winter here in Calgary. We had a snowstorm over the weekend so it was miserably cold. I’ve been busy with parent visiting, getting the Emerald Cloth ready, and juggling client work that it’s hard to believe it’s April already. Today, the day I’m publishing this post, is probably the first “normal” work day I’ve had in at least two weeks.

Also, the Emerald Cloth IS HERE! I wasn’t sure if it would come this early, in time for this show—but I’m glad it did…at 8:45am on Thursday. Yes, yes, Mr. Fedex, it is not a mistake, I DID order 24 boxes to a residential address. Don’t mind me, my still-wet shower hair is just freezing from having to go outside to help unload. Looks so pretty though! YAY.

General Impressions

Make It is a new-ish craft show company with spring and holiday shows in Calgary, Edmonton, and Vancouver. I think I found out about them during my bouts of searching for shows. They have a youthful, energetic brand, so while I wasn’t 100% sure if my products would be conducive to this market, I was willing to experiment and applied. Compared to the other craft market I did at Christmas, they had fewer rules and regulations to stress about—just show up with your product, be cool, and have fun seemed to be the atmosphere.

Load-in was fairly straightforward, though I didn’t really like that vendors had a specific check-in time assigned to them according to your booth number—especially when check-in is Thursday afternoon. I came early on the train, carrying a twelve-pound box of freshly minted Emerald Cloths, just to do check-in, before meeting Dave so we could unload the car he’d taken to work, packed with my stuff. Check-in consisted of getting my button and dropping off my heavy box. I had to ask security to show me where it was in the Big Four—I didn’t realize there were so many different rooms/sections. To top it off, there were TWO other shows happening on the grounds that weekend: a baby and tot show (which helped attendance at Make It, I believe) and I kid you not, a cannabis & hemp show.

The button was my badge for the weekend, declaring my status as a Makie. The loading dock closed pretty early too (6pm), though I think they convinced the Stampede to keep it open a bit longer. Some of us have to work! And travel across the city to get to the Stampede grounds! Seriously, the logistics of packing your product, loading the car, getting to the event, and unloading is a whole separate post.

The “I’m a Makie” button that designated me a vendor was very cute, but if you didn’t have it upon arrival each day—tough luck. You’d have to wait in a line-up (or possibly outside?) with the attendees. Remember when I said it was freezing cold? Yeah. Even though I had my button on Sunday, they almost didn’t let me in the front entrance for unknown reasons (something about another entrance…but why would I walk around in the FREEZING COLD when there is a perfectly good door and I have a perfectly good button and I got in this way twice already?).

On a positive note: So. Many. Female. Entrepreneurs! It was really inspiring to be surrounded by women my age selling products THEY created! This is exactly the atmosphere I wanted to live in and I was pleased to be part of the show.

Location

I bought and paid for a 6×6 draped aisle space with storage. I was placed three aisles from the entrance. Upon looking at the map, I was like, great, this seems fine. But people didn’t quite trek the way I thought, so it was a little while before they got to me. This wasn’t a problem for this show—I was the only book vendor, so no direct competition. I also had corner visibility!

Display

In my mind, I didn’t put 6×6 and SMALL together. I was hoping to do something similar to Calgary Expo last year with a second table displaying the Sparkstone Saga. When we arrived, I saw just how small 6×6 is. So we used my 5ft table I bought at Canadian Tire and that worked just fine. Display-wise, things were a little tight—it’s better to have a little space to allow the colours to breathe—but I got everything on there! The banner was just a little too long and with my stand-up tiger banner, part of it became hidden. I can’t not have the big tiger though—that’s a big attraction!

Also, I did a small run of Withins – so that’s back on the table! I had people asking for it and when I ran the numbers, I realized that I really missed having it on the table, despite its eternal awkward placement. It quietly sells more than I think. I have to write another horror/thriller type book so it has a friend!

LOOK THERE ARE THREE VIOLET FOXIES NOW!

On the second day, I turned around my display so I had a secret shelf to store stacks, my phone, and my drinks.

It was a cozy set up. I think next time, I’ll play with the design a bit more. I find 10×10 too big for me at this time, so 6×6 is a nice baby step up from a regular artist alley sized space.

Sales

Most people paid via credit card or debit. Again, no trouble with the Moneris. I noticed most people have the new Square tap device, and many people were having tethering issues. I’ll probably get a Square tap reader as backup, but nothing is scarier than having your technology backfire during a pivotal customer interaction! I noticed some of the customers at nearby booths didn’t want to tap, or didn’t have tap-enabled cards—another reason why I really like my Moneris reader.

The Sparkstone Saga outsold The Violet Fox Series both on individual books and bundle deals. I believe this is because the audience skewed younger at this event, and since the covers for Sparkstone Saga are illustrated and the font is bigger, parents believed those books to be more suitable for their 10 to 12-year-old. In reality, both series are equally appropriate.

This was my first show with The Emerald Cloth! Now I have equally priced series bundles (3 for $45). I’ve introduced a new 2 for $30 deal, mostly to entice people to buy both book ones, which I think will go over well at Calgary Expo.

I didn’t meet my minimum target sales goal for this show. The 6×6 booth was expensive so profits were slim. Since Friday went from 11am-9pm, I had my worst dollar-per-hour ratio EVER. It really, really did not have to be that long. It was so dead. Vendercon was happening in spades. Average dollars per day, I was doing slightly better than C4 and less than Regina. This was taken on Friday at around 6:30pm:

I was hoping to create another Calgary Expo for myself, but now I’m wondering if I’ve cannibalized my sales for Calgary Expo. I’ll have to see in a few weeks! At the very least, I exposed my brand to fresh eyes—meaning they might buy at the Christmas craft shows.

Unusual Questions

With a different crowd comes different questions! I got the standard gambit—what age are these for, can I buy them in Chapters, etc. But also these:

“What’s the difference between science fiction and fantasy?” Got this at least four times. A real sign that I’m far outside my regular crowd, where that knowledge is a given.

“Do you have a writing degree?” As if that qualifies you to write and sell your work! No less than three people asked me this. The customer is just looking for social proof that the books are good—so while the question catches me off-guard at first, I try not to let it ruffle my feathers.

For the record, I have a journalism degree from King’s and a publishing certificate from Humber College, and I’ve been working freelance full-time with many independent authors, publishing companies, and other businesses for nearly a decade. This experience gives me a leg-up, for sure—but having a university degree in writing doesn’t give you the discipline to write, publish, and sell your work on a consistent basis, as well as build a strong brand that speaks to your audience. There’s no institution you can pay that can give you that kind of experience.

“Is this for girls or boys?” I dunno, does your grandson like fast-paced science fiction set in Canada with a contemplative edge? Or a tension-filled fantasy that makes the protagonist question right and wrong, good and evil, duty and love? I don’t say my books are “for” girls or boys—just because my protagonists are usually female doesn’t mean guys won’t enjoy them.

“Did you write all these books?” This isn’t an unusual question per se, but it’s increasingly common now that I have SEVEN BOOKS on the table. This question always makes me think of a story Sam told me once, about ChiZine Publications. Some people asked Brett and Sandra, the publishers, while they were selling at a convention, if they wrote all the books on their table. To which Sandra sarcastically replied, “Yes, I wrote all 40-70+ titles you see, and published them under different names.”
These people are just surprised that I have “this many” books, and usually issue congratulations, and express their awe at my imagination while simultaneously downplaying their own creativity (You must have an imagination, everyone does. Are you a robot???). This whole exchange is never not a little weird to me – and a symptom of that mystique that surrounds authors and the publishing industry. Many people believe that becoming an author is something that happens TO you, instead of you working hard at it. Maybe it’s also because I’m young? I’m creating new products a few times a year, just like any other creative entrepreneur. Yes, it’s a lot of work, for sure! I appreciate the sentiment, but I’m just doing what I’d be doing anyway. You could do it too, with the right resources, knowledge, and time!

“Do you have that book that was nominated for the Governor General’s Award?” Since I did not write that book, no.

Oh, and for those keeping track…yet again, someone came to the table, and even after I carefully explained, “this side is a science fiction series, this side is my fantasy series,” they asked, “Oh, so this isn’t tarot?”

????

“No. It is not tarot.”

“It looks like it could be!”

There are four places on the table that clearly state “YOUNG ADULT FICTION.” And also me, telling you, it is not tarot.

The Crowd

I had a new category of potential customer at this show that I’m going to call the engaged browser. This person may or may not be in my target demographic and they’ve stopped at my booth. They’ve got their hands in their pockets, and they’re just staring. For a LONG time. That’s my cue to engage. So I do. But they’re not interested in engaging directly with the product, or with me, really. They’ve stopped because they’ve either a) become engaged by the covers (“No thank you, I don’t wish to read the back, I just love the artwork, it’s great.”) or b) they are amazed and/or inspired that I have written seven books. Sometimes they don’t realize that I’m the author (I think it’s time I had an “author” pin to make that obvious).

This is a symptom of a different problem I’m having. My books are brightly coloured and engaging. When you put them together, it can be a hypnotic vortex. It’s a lot to take in when you’re a passerby taking in information. When I’m in a small space, my products are forced together—less white space means it becomes a jumble of colour and words and my smiling face also trying to get your attention. It means I attract literally everyone—which I don’t necessarily want.

It really means I need a different configuration that makes better use of white space, in addition to my other display must-haves and practices.

Oh, and because I have no other place for it:

A mother walked by with two children, one of them done up with a pink cat-ears headband, pink and black outfit, and little tutu. She stopped briefly, looked at my Sparkstone Saga books with wide eyes, and exclaimed, “TOO SCARY!”

“Come back in a few years,” I told her.

Good People

One of the best parts of doing shows is meeting your fellow vendors! I was next to The Fibre Ark, who make adorable felt creations, and Laughing Sparrow, who makes pretty jewellery! I was across from Mountain Naturals Soap, Ebony & Ivory, the Devi Arts Collective, and Munchkin & Sprouts. I really enjoyed all the business and market chats we had!

Will I go back?

I haven’t decided yet. I think doing a Make It Holiday show would be more worth my time, but they’re oddly timed for me this year and I’ve already arranged many of my October/November shows, so I’d have to see. Doing a December show seems like taking a big risk. We could have a snow storm at any time!

See you all in a couple of weeks at Calgary Comic Expo!

The Festival of Crafts is a large, four-day, juried artisan show located in the BMO in Calgary. I was lucky enough to get into the show and I’m happy to report that I ended the year on the high note – best sales of the year!

General Impressions

This is a next-level show. I’ve had my eye on it for about a year and a half. I remember last December, Sam and I sitting in my home in Nova Scotia, she was finishing edits on her book and I was pouring over the convention schedule. As soon as the application went up, I applied.

The booth was expensive (Calgary Expo prices for the same size–around $800) and there were no smaller spaces to inhabit unless I was classified as an “emerging artist” (less than five years experience in your field). With my application, I had to send high quality images of all my products (thank goodness for Dave and his fancy camera!) as well as a personal letter about my artistic process and my past achievements in my field. I had to send those in the MAIL on a CD to Ottawa with a $200 deposit on the space.

I was so thrilled when I was accepted…but then also very stressed!

They sent me multiple documents filled with regulations and rules–so much more than a comic convention–that I had to read over. I had to get exhibitor insurance, but that’s good for the year, and I’m probably at that point where it’s a responsible idea. I had to submit the names of the people working my booth so they could print them on the badges. No names, no badges. I also had a heavy workload in the days leading up to the show–after all, I was losing Thursday and Friday to the booth, not just a weekend or a Friday evening. I ended doing most of my display arranging on Thursday morning before opening.

Display

Compared to all the other vendors, my display wasn’t super great. But it also allowed me to see what it could be, and where I still have to innovate. I was looking for a kick in the butt in this department and I’m glad I got it.

I don’t have enough product to effectively use a 10 x 10 space. Honestly, I don’t need one, though as I approach 10-20 books, that will change. Plus, with books, being front-facing is extremely important to catch those introvert sales.

I will have to re-think my display for 10 x 10, and that means having more shelving, flooring, and lighting. That’s a fairly large investment – and a pain to transport and keep. Essentially I’d be building an entire mini store. If I were to do all this, I’d also like to have a stool, not a chair, so I can actually sit down at times and still be seen!

Walking around on Friday morning gave me some perspective on my own product as well. The covers are visually attractive–they draw the eye and often suck people into a vortex, even if they’re not book people. I think I can afford to have more “white space” in my display to allow the books to breathe.

So, all in all, I have a lot to think about for 2018! Which is exciting. I’m ready to take this to the next level. Display 2.0 that Jessie made for me will also play into that (as soon as we figure out how to get it here–it is HUGE!).

Sales

The traffic pattern was similar to the Expo Holiday Market: droves of people in the morning, then trickles in the afternoon. Most of the attendees were elderly women and mothers with young children. By the end of the day, be it 9pm or 6pm, it was mostly vendercon.

I had people recognize me from various conventions and events! I hit and exceeded my minimum sales goal, but I also expected more. If I’d had a middle grade series or a picture book, I probably would have made double. I’ve been thinking about doing a middle grade series for a long time now, so I may have to slot that in within the next two years. I also had a lot of people asking about Within (it’s on the eBook sign and my postcards). If I’d had that book, I probably would’ve made extra bank as well.

I sold way more individual copies of Stars In Her Eyes than The Violet Fox, however, I sold far, far more Violet Fox sets than Sparkstone Sagas. Since I have the reprints for The Violet Fox now, I’ve dropped the price, since they are non-French-Flap versions now! Still, the bundle price for The Violet Fox and The Silver Spear is $30. Next year that’ll raise to $45 when I have The Emerald Cloth out. I also have less than twenty copies of The Silver Spear print run left – so I’ll have to reprint in the new year. My storage situation is pretty limited so my print runs have been tame (around 300-500), but if I continue doing a lot of larger shows, I’ll have to increase the size of my runs. That means a bigger upfront cost, but a lower unit price.

A little more than half of my customers used credit and debit. I actually had some trouble with my Moneris at this show, but I think it was because I hadn’t restarted my phone in a while, and the bluetooth “forgot” it was connecting to the machine. Once I rebooted everything, it was fine, but it was a terrifying moment! I heard some other people having trouble with the new Square tap device–apparently you really have to make sure it’s properly tethered to your phone! All in all, I’m happy with my Moneris machine–it takes literally every form of payment (including American Express and Apple Pay)–and other than the small technical hiccups I’ve had, I’m satisfied with their service. It is still $20.95 a month, regardless if I’m doing a show. But since I only have two months (January and February) where I’m not doing shows, that’s not really a huge cost to pay for a lot of convenience the rest of the year.

Fewer than normal people returned after a sales conversation–this could be due to the fact that it’s not the kind of show you’d necessarily be spending a ton of time at, like a comic con, where you want to get your $25 worth of simply getting in the door.

Overall, this convention beat out Calgary Expo’s numbers for first place in 2017 show sales!

Long…Long…Hours

The weekday hours were extremely long: 10am – 9pm. I understand why: they want to catch the morning crowd, but allow families and working people to come in the evening. It just makes for a very long day when you’re all by yourself! Not to mention, many of these vendors are regulars, meaning they do every single Signatures Christmas show–and Festival of Crafts is the last show for many of them. Imagine being on the road for two months doing Christmas shows! Apparently one of the attendees complained to the show runner that she was tired of hearing all the vendors say how tired they were. SIGH! I can see how that would be annoying, but the days are LONG!

Good People!

As many of you regular readers know, I love talking to other creative entrepreneurs! It was so inspiring to see so many creative entrepreneurs not just selling their wares, but showing up with beautiful displays and products I’ve never seen or heard of before. Every single vendor was so nice and welcoming to little ol me!

I was across from Moose Creek, a family business that hand-makes and sells wraps and ponchos. They’ve been in business for at least twenty years, doing shows across the country, and they also do well in the wholesale market as well. I had many chats with Carol and her son Mike throughout the weekend. They’ve just finished up eight weeks of shows!

I also got to know Hayley from Zig Zag Creations, Bonnie from Rayna Dog Collars (Carrie Fisher purchased from her last year!) and Leonie from Maple & Oak Designs. Leonie had the CUTEST display, complete with dresser, clothing rack, draping, and flooring, it was like stepping into a little bedroom! Bonnie was so nice – I loved the clean look of her collars on her shelves. Hayley was really fun; there was so much to look at in her booth with her lip-chap holders, her cute little slip-on ties, and so many other useful little products for parents with elementary school children.

Thanks to all my friends who came and visited me in my booth!!!

The Funny!

Mostly from the elderly people, I got an earful of high quality Overheards.

1. An older woman and her friends were looking at my books. She said, “Oh well, I’m not a reader, I’m a TV-er! Hehe, it rhymes!” She then had to repeat her joke, louder, to her friends because they were all hard of hearing.
2. An older man did a double take on the Stars In Her Eyes cover, frowned, and said, “Hey, how do we know that she’s got stars in her eyes if she’s got her eyes closed?” I guess…that’s a good point? Dave and I laughed so hard at that later–I’ve never even thought about that before.
3. I had a lot of “kids don’t read anymore” comments from the older folks (which I promptly informed them, that’s just not true, else I would not be making a living selling my books and helping others make books). One man, however, had an entire theory on the matter that he decided I would love to hear: “Kids these days, they don’t read. They’re always on the computer. Computers should be regulated. You should have to put in your name, your country, and your city when you’re on there. Also, the service should be the same across the province, no matter where you are, it should cost the same.”

SO MUCH TO UNPACK THERE GOOD SIR.

Also, multiple people asked me if I was psychic, out of the blue. I have a complicated relationship with this question. I still don’t know how to answer it without alienating the customer. I think it’s the “faery” spelling that triggers it. It’s one thing if we’re having a conversation about the supernatural. It comes up. I’m happy to talk about spirits, ghosts, divination, and otherworldly things in a positive, accepting way–because I was raised to be a tolerant person and it’s important to keep an open mind. But I also have a healthy dose of scepticism. There are those that take advantage of desperate people and I don’t support that. Ultimately, I’m selling novels, and only novels–not wellness or new age products. I guess I need a big red sign that says “BOOKS”?

The Apple

I was hungry and by myself, but I didn’t want to leave the booth. I thought, there’s a candy apple stall around the corner, maybe I could run and get one. I had seen them during set up, and I promised myself I would get one as a treat.

So I ran and after some humming and hawing, picked one out. Only after I was paying for it did I realize it was $14! I don’t think I’ve EVER paid that much for an apple. Granted, it was good. Caramel, chocolate, Rice Krispies, and a drizzle of white chocolate. Yummmmm.

Will I Go Back Next Year?

I’d LOVE to! Subject to another successful application, of course. In 2018, I have a list of Christmas shows I want to hit up to get those sweet, sweet holiday dollars.

Year Wrap-Up

Another full year of conventions and events! I did thirteen shows this year (including the Banff Farmers Market days).

I didn’t quite hit my ambitious sales goal, but I’m not dissatisfied. I added some really great shows to my roaster (Ottawa and Otafest) while maintaining a strong presence at the now-regulars (Calgary, Edmonton, and Hal-Con). I experimented with non-comic-con shows with varying levels of success, but overall mostly positive!

Here are all the shows I did, ranked from highest revenue to lowest.

1. Festival of Crafts
2. Calgary Expo
3. Edmonton Expo
4. Ottawa Comiccon
5. Otafest
6. Hal-Con
7. C4
8. Expo Holiday Market
9. Fan Expo Regina
10. Banff Farmers Market
11. When Words Collide
12. Drumheller
And here’s the rank by per-day average sales, highest to lowest:
1. Festival of Crafts
2. Calgary Expo
3. Edmonton Expo
4. Otafest
5. Ottawa Comiccon
6. Expo Holiday Market
7. Hal-Con
8. Fan Expo Regina
9. C4
10. Banff Farmers Market
11. Drumheller Comic & Entertainment Expo
12. When Words Collide

Notes:
1. The per-day average sales is probably the more important and telling of the two lists, as it evens the playing field somewhat. When Words Collide was three days, but the average per-day earning was lower than my one day at Drumheller. Squeezing dollars out of hours is hard, so obviously I want to prioritize shows where my per-day dollar value is high. Ultimately I use this list to determine what shows I do in the next year.
2. I counted my three days doing the Banff Farmers Market as one event for the purpose of these lists. I had a great day, a mediocre day, and a bad day. If I had had three great days, Banff would rank higher than Hal-Con on both lists.
3. Only $2 separates Otafest and Ottawa in the per-day average list.
4. My cut-off between “good” and “mediocre/not great” lies between Hal-Con and C4 in the pure revenue list. Nearly $250 separates the two.

The biggest question I’ve had over the last year and a half was, is there a ceiling to my sales? The answer is yes–but I think it can be broken with more product, not necessarily bigger spaces and bigger shows. Otafest, despite its smaller size (around 8,000 people in 2017) was in my top five in terms of highest revenue. Granted, that show is based on a lottery system, and there’s no guarantee I can get in each year. Hal-Con is only 10,000 people and is number six, beating out larger shows by hundreds and hundreds of dollars of revenue. Again, I’m from Nova Scotia, which proves a working theory I have about selling in known communities versus unknown communities. It takes time and money to convert a new community into a regular community, however.

I learned a lot this year! In summary:

• I need to produce more, faster. Probably to the tune of 2-3 new books a year, at least, to satisfy my hungry readers and grow my sales.
• I can successfully have a proxy without seeing a significant decrease to sales.
• Fewer small shows. No more new, untested waters.
• I don’t need a huge booth to see huge sales: my covers do a lot of the heavy lifting.

I already have about five shows confirmed for next year and I can’t wait to get my new books (The Emerald Cloth and Darkness In Her Reach, especially) out into the world.

Plus SO MANY other projects that I can’t wait to share!!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all, see you in the new year!!!!!!!!!!!

General Impressions

Faery Ink Press participated in the Expo Holiday show last year, but I did not! Jessica Corra-Larter did the show for me while I did Christmas at the Coliseum.

So this was my first year doing this show in person. I went in with really high expectations, and had an okay show.

Display

For this show, I renewed my space as a vendor, even though I was considering downgrading to an artist alley spot. That meant I got a 10×10 space, which I really don’t need! However, my location within the show was closer to the entrance, and I was one of the first authors you could find.

I don’t have many Christmas decorations. The items I used at the New Brunswick show last year, I raided my parents’ storage attic for. I went through Dave’s parents’ storage room, and found a light-up Christmas tree. I think the other Christmas decorations exist in a pocket dimension, as they usually appear sometime at the beginning of December. Within the next few years, I’m sure Dave and I will accrue more Christmas bric-a-brac that I can co-opt for holiday shows.

I had limited stock for this convention. I’m currently reprinting The Violet Fox AND Dreams In Her Head, and neither of the reprints showed up in time for this show. That was fine, since they’ll be here for Festival of Crafts (hopefully!), and I figured I had just enough to do this show. With the eight-foot table, however, the display seemed a little lackluster with only “just enough” product.

I created a small book spiral/castle display, but once again I underestimated the number of books I have to feed the spiral to make it truly impressive. Also, building it isn’t easy either, as it’s slightly different each time! I also had people straighten the spiral while they were browsing, which I had to fix. The downside of book spirals is that they can be hard on the books themselves – so maybe small spirals are the way to go.

Sales

I made about $80 less than last year, but otherwise I’m not unsatisfied with my sales. It was a decent Sunday, and per-day, the sales weren’t terrible. It pretty much lined up with conservative expectations for a 2-day con. It’s hard to attribute the cause of the decrease–fellow vendors have complained about the decline in business. It could be the economy. Could be that people are tapped out. It could be that I have the same number of books as last year (removed Within, added Hunger In Her Bones). It could be a lot of things. The only way to combat that is to focus on pleasing my existing audience. At least a dozen people asked me if I had The Emerald Cloth ready yet. April, in April! Just think if I would have had that book – I probably would have met my exceedingly high sales goal. Like I said in my Edmonton Expo post – I need to ramp up my output to keep up with demand.

Every convention crowd is different. There were a lot of families, which makes sense, since it’s a Christmas market. I also had a few returning customers say they saw me first at Otafest. People told me they’ve heard of my books, that they saw a Facebook promo I did earlier this year. They stopped by, had a chat, and some of them bought! Others approached me because they recognized me from other conventions, and they were finally ready to hear about my work.

On Saturday, there was a rush at the beginning, which faded around 3pm. It was dead by 4pm. It closed at 6pm. Even during the rush of people, there was an overwhelming feeling of overstimulation and chillness. People weren’t really interested in interacting. They were worried I was going to pounce on them and sell them something they didn’t want. Which is the last thing I want to do. Also, one cannot “try” to be genuine – you either are or you aren’t. People can sense when you’ve turned them into dollar signs.
These images were taken around 4:30pm on Saturday.

I struggled here – I am naturally friendly, and the best way to sell a book to a new customer is to have a meaningful interaction. It’s really important to respect the potential customer’s wishes, and try to perceive what they need. So I tried to maintain a healthy distance, scaled back on my assertive approach, and trusted my instincts when it came to people’s gaze. If they looked, looked away, and looked back – then I could interact. If their attire suggested they might be book lovers, then I could interact. If they looked for two seconds, and continued on – then they absorbed my brand and decided it wasn’t for them, and it was okay to let them go.

That’s hard, because that begins the downward spiral of: “I should have pushed harder with her, she would have at least taken a card, maybe she would have come back.” No, no, no. If the sale didn’t happen, you have to accept that, and move on to the next opportunity. Maybe they’ll return next time. Maybe they wouldn’t have bought anyway–maybe they were caught in the orbit of the pretty white tiger. You can’t dwell on that stuff, because it’s a distraction. You can only learn and do better next time.

I sold a lot of Stars In Her Eyes. It could be because of the book spiral, but it also could be that I changed up my pitch slightly. Jessie told me at Hal-Con that people responded really well to a simplified plot explanation, one that’s less than ten seconds. The pitch I’d been using (X-Men with aliens in Northern Alberta) is good, but it’s not enough for most people. I also led with the fact that the series is set in a fictional Alberta town.

Sparkstone Saga sets and Violet Fox sets sold about the same. Most people who bought The Violet Fox also bought The Silver Spear, as usual. Nearly 70% of people opted to pay with their card, and more than half of those people paid with debit.

Good People

Greg and Justin invited me to a ramen supper on Saturday night. Dinners, suppers, and drinks are the funnest part of conventions. There were at least six of us marching from the BMO to a ramen place downtown. I get easily turned around, so I have no idea where it was. As usual I was engrossed in a conversation, this time with Justin, about our past and current convention “expansion” strategy. The ramen, though, was so, so good. I haven’t really had it that many times, but for days afterward it was all I craved.
In publishing, it’s the parties, the dinners where deals are often made–but to clarify that, it’s the after-convention stuff where relationships are made. Knowing that there are other people like me, who do what I do, who have the same problems as I do, or have solutions to my problems because they’ve been-there-done-that–it’s a comfort to my solitary, working self.

I became better acquainted with Alexander Finbow, the director at Renegade Arts. I also really enjoyed swapping stories with Shae Proulx – it was nice to hear another woman’s perspective on selling your own work.

I wished I could have gone to the James Joyce afterwards for more drinks, but I was exhausted and in a food coma, and the train ride is at least 30 minutes back from downtown.

On the way to the train, I made two new friends. Can you spot them both?

I was also next to Geeky Soaps, a husband and wife team making geeky themed soaps and bath bombs. I particularly enjoyed their pitch about the Sorting Hat bath bombs that, as it dissolves, reveals your house colour. I was also across from a woman selling Sweetlegs. Both of these booths drew a lot of browsers and helped my visibility as well.

“There sure are a lot of authors here this year!”

Yes, I noticed the up-tick in authors selling at their own tables as well. Suzy Vadori, Adam Dreece, Katie Barron, Vince Seim, and at least one other person were selling paperback novels. I had a couple of comments about the number of local authors. More authors are starting to notice that conventions are a potentially viable market for speculative fiction. And it makes sense for everyone to participate in this market – it’s Christmas, it’s Calgary, and there’s potential for serious dollars here.

With conventions becoming more expensive each year, however, who knows how long this market will remain viable for books. Like I mentioned in my Edmonton Expo write-up, the bigger brands can weather the storm. If you don’t have enough new stuff for returning customers, if you’re unbranded, if your product/brand isn’t attractive enough–that’s where you run into trouble.

The Weird

Every once and a while, I’ll get someone approach the table and emphatically let me in on their secret belief in faeries. This time it wasn’t even a customer, it was a maintenance worker at the end of the day. As far as odd interactions go, these ones are at the fun end of the spectrum. Mostly I am surprised at people’s willingness to tell me, a stranger, their faery theories!

Will I Go Back?

I think so – there’s really no reason for me NOT to do this show again, especially since I live here. The spot I had was “reasonable” for the price, but I think I’d try to downgrade to artist alley, just to reduce expenses. The show is still young, after all, even though it’s run by a reputable company with a built-in audience. I’d love to do Christmas at the Coliseum again – and next year I’m probably going to make use of my sister so we can hit as many holiday shows as possible. Aw yeah, proxy selling!
Just ONE more show for the year – then I’m done – at least, until I start up again in March 2018!

Also….I’m extending my Black Friday sale until the Canada Post cut-off date for shipping (December 11). Free shipping for orders over $45. Yay!

General Impressions

I’ve had a lukewarm relationship with C4 since I’ve started doing conventions. Wherever I go, I can predict what I’ll make, taking into account all the various factors. This convention is the exception to the rule. I can guess, but I never know for sure, because the formulas just don’t work for this one.

Sam and I arrived downtown at the RBC Convention Centre, after stuffing her 1984 Firebird full of boxes, banners, a flat screen TV, and a large portable battery. And so began the annoying part of the weekend: parking and loading.

(So sporty)

If Hell is a place, it is perpetually loading and unloading in preparation for an event that never comes.

The convention centre itself is actually two buildings: the north (older) and the south (new). They are connected by a skywalk (or as we say in Calgary, +15s [pronounced: Plus Fifteens]) There are two underground parking lots: one on the north side, and one on the south, and are they connected? No siree. Did we park in the south, knowing that that’s where we were going to be, only to be told that we HAD to load in the north side in the service elevator, even though we were just two people with a wee dolly and some boxes, and walk all the way across the hall multiple times? Yes. Yes that is what we had to do. Did we have to pay for parking in two different lots? Oh yes.

Also when we arrived, we went to where artist registration was the previous year (where it was supposed to be), only to be told to go up to the convention floor, where we would be issued our passes. Okay. We followed those directions, and “checked in.” We were told by volunteer staff that they were NOT issuing passes until Friday morning, and we could just come and go as we pleased.

So essentially, anyone who had that knowledge on Thursday could have made their way into this public building, went up the elevator, and had their pick of all the vendors’ stuff without verification. Event staff obsessively checked wristbands on every other day, except this very important one, when apparently there were no wristbands to give.

We ended up loading in, going to Wal-Mart for extra supplies, going to back to the convention centre to drop those things off, and going home for the night, leaving set up until morning, hoping our stuff was still there.

It was: everything was fine. Thank goodness.

Speaking of the wristbands: I had mixed feelings about them. Usually conventions give you lanyards or at the very least, pinned nametags. It acts as a security measure, but also identifies you as a vendor to customers. C4 issued dollar-store level sparkly wristbands, as if we were at a theme park, to vendors and customers. I heard that weekend pass customers had the SAME wristbands as vendors—very confusing. We were essentially forced to wear this wristband for three days straight (Scott Henderson had his fall off—I had the opposite problem, I could barely get it off at the end!). Even though the lanyard obscures your outfit and makes wearing necklaces problematic, at least I can be identified.

Location

Sam and I purchased an artist alley endcap back in January for $737.50, split between us. That was the early bird pricing: an artist alley endcap happens at this convention when you buy three artist alley tables together. It’s cheaper than an actual booth in the vendor section.

Our space last year had a decent location: we got some good traffic, but we wondered if we could do better. After the mixed success Chadwick and I had last year, Sam and I decided to team up with a more expensive space, reasoning that we’d have better placement.

Then, the organizers decided it would be a good idea to put all the writers together in one section. I have mixed feelings about that practice. In theory, the reasoning is sound: book people stick together! The customer gets to go right to author alley and buy all the books! However, it also creates more immediate competition between booksellers, especially those selling similar products. You have to be the best you can be in your row if you want to compete for customer dollars.

Originally, Sam and I were bringing up the rear of this double-row of authors/graphic novelists. We were not pleased with this arrangement: too much empty space, with celebrities a thousand miles away on one side and across from the photo ops (Delorian, etc). Basically you’d have 1/3 of your booth actually being effective. Getting a good location at a con is rolling the dice a lot of the time. But after paying nearly $800 upfront ten months ago, it was like being slapped in the face. We asked to be moved, but we were not accommodated.

Eventually, Sam complained on social media on a thread of other disgruntled artists, which caught the attention of Violet Paille. The two had an exchange that began in public and ended in private, resulting in us being moved to the other side of the row, which was a better spot—the end cap should have been there in the first place.

Unfortunately, this resulted in the reshuffling of our good friend Chadwick Ginther, in a move that felt vindictive (“Chadwick can be across from the Delorian. Someone has to be” were her public words on Facebook). She’s not wrong that “someone” has to be across from the Delorian, I suppose, though tables were rearranged so they faced away from it. We didn’t want Chadwick to be punished, so Sam replied via email that we didn’t have to be moved–but we were moved anyway.

I think it ended up being okay for everyone in the end (all artists reported mediocre sales/engagement), but it was unfortunate that we had to cause a stir just to be acknowledged, and we felt terrible that we put Chadwick in a bad place because we expressed our feelings publicly. He should not have been publicly punished for what could have been resolved privately between us and the con organizer.

Display

We didn’t have pipe and drape (that was not included in booth cost – it was extra – very unusual for large cons). We had three tables: one in the front, and two on the sides. And virtually no way into our space, unless we wanted to walk halfway down the aisle and through the back of everyone else’s displays, which would inevitably be impossible once everyone’s banners and chairs were set up. We didn’t want to deal with that.

So, we changed things.

We took our leftmost table and put it behind us, and set up our banners on top, and draped some boxes to create a place for Sam’s prints. This created a barrier between us and the other artists, but it was also a feature piece that headlined the whole row. We set up a shorter table to the left – you know, so we could actually get in and out without crawling under the table in our dresses. We lost a tiny bit of table real estate, but since the only thing across from us were the celebrities (a thousand zillion feet away), we maximized our corners and key traffic points, beaming content into everyone’s eyes.

I’m always a little nervous when placed by the celebrities. Regardless of the gulf between the artist tables and the celebrity signing spots, it means that my traffic is guaranteed to come in large waves. I found sales were brisk when one of the celebrities (usually John Rhys-Davis) was signing.

Sam set up her flat screen TV, powered by a portable battery (electricity was extra – not unusual at conventions), so she could do live art. The plan was to leave it running all day and play a looping slideshow promoting the both of us when she wasn’t doing art. This worked for a little while, but as we found out after the show, the kind of battery she had was more for jump-starting cars and less for powering TVs. It attracted a lot of attention, but she probably wouldn’t do it again in that way because bringing an entire TV and a battery isn’t that feasible for every single convention. She found that because she wasn’t actively selling while doing her art, people felt more comfortable engaging with her, resulting in a couple of sales.

Sam also created free colouring sheets and gave them away to all the children (and anyone else) who expressed interest. We had a corner of the booth dedicated to colouring. I wasn’t sure how this would turn out but we actually had a couple of people hang out and colour!

The two of us build mini book towers for our books, in spiral fashion (you cannot escape an Uzumaki reference Sam, we cannot, we belong to the spiral now). This works when you have a lot of stock! I think it looked all right, and I’ll play with this set up at my Christmas shows when I can put even more stock on the table. The disadvantage of this set up is the more you sell, the smaller the towers get, and perhaps the less inclined the customer is to disturb the display, to handle the project.

My poor display boxes are starting to get chipped and damaged. This is the second time they’ve been in a suitcase. Hopefully I’ll have my butterfly display for my Christmas shows.

This is probably one of the nicest displays I’ve had in a while! You know who also thought our display was great? John Rhys-Davis! He appeared before Sam while I was getting coffee, and told her that our display was lovely, and wished us a successful weekend. He was so nice!!

SAM AND I RARELY TAKE PICTURES TOGETHER BECAUSE WE ARE VERY BUSY DOING A BUSINESS!

Sales

I did okay. Better than last year, but still not up to par with what I would expect from a convention this size.

The margins in the publishing business are razor thin. Sometimes I offer discounts, but honestly, even though I’m cutting out the middle man by going direct to customer, it’s not like I’m rolling in the dough. Even when I am rolling in the dough, there are a lot of expenses that are hard to cut down on (shipping, table cost, travel cost, not to mention the cost of actually making the product).

The Violet Fox and Stars In Her Eyes were neck and neck, once again. I sold more Violet Fox bundles because of the price point. I had people return for The Silver Spear and Hunger In Her Bones, more than I expected, which was awesome. Some eBook sales, but mostly print books – I also didn’t have my eBook sign with me so I possibly would have gotten more bites if I’d had it.

Together, Sam and I were able to make some money. If I had been alone, I would not have the display power to fill the space and it wouldn’t have worked out. But when they passed around the earlybird renewal, asking for $300 minimum for an artist alley space (which would increase over the next 12 months), we noped out of that.

Cool People

When you go to a con, it’s not just about the experience behind the table, but who you meet and what you do with them. So glad that I got to hang out with all my Winnipeg friends: Chadwick Ginther, Scott Henderson, Hope Nicholson, Greg Chomichuk, Justin Currie, Nyco Rudolph, and James Gillespie especially!

On Saturday night, despite Sam’s migraine, we went out to supper with Nyco and Scott and one of Sam’s old friends, and then all of us went to a studio party at Greg and Justin’s. We couldn’t stay for super long, but I had a great time chatting with James and Andrew Wheeler (graphic novelist from Chapterhouse).

Back at the con, Sam and I were across from Chasing Artwork (Justin Currie). He always does a good business, and it was a treat to get to look at his art for three straight days! Earlier this week after the con, Sam and I returned to Justin and Greg’s studio to record their new podcast, and we also talked about Very Special Secret Business!

Also, THANK YOU to so many people who returned to buy my new books! I had way more people than expected buying book twos and book threes. I think when Winnipeg likes you, they LOVE you. Yay!

Also: there were a LOT of Adventure Zone cosplays at this convention! I counted EIGHT people! I usually see at least one or two.

“I’m just looking”

I’m used to engaging with potential customers, whether that’s saying “hello” to everyone who passes by, or with a book-related opening line, “Do you like to read?” At this convention, people were on the defensive. More than half the time, they did not want to interact with me unless they initiated the conversation. Even saying “Hello, how are you?” elicited a “I’m just looking!” defense. My instinct is to reply, “I’m just saying hello.”

My selling style is not what I would call aggressive. I am assertive in that I will acknowledge your presence and attempt an interaction purely to see what kind of person you are. If you are a book person, I might attempt to engage you with my product. If you are a shy person, I’ll let you tell me what you’re comfortable with. If you come at me with high energy, I’m going to respond on that level too. I let my customer dictate who they are. But it’s hard to tell who they are if I don’t get a taste—hence, me saying hello to you. By Sunday, I had to relax a lot of my natural friendliness and allow them to initiate the conversations just so I wouldn’t scare people away.

Because I got a lot of “I’m just looking” immediately, that tells me that there are a) a lot of people actively selling at this convention and they’re tired out b) they have a tight budget and don’t want to be pressured into a purchase. I got the sense that it’s the latter. It cost $35 per adult to go on Saturday alone, which seems pricey just to get in the door. That doesn’t include parking, any food purchases, or celebrity autographs. That’s literally just for the experience of walking around the convention centre. I saw many families there—I don’t know if there was a family pass, but I can see how a family of four on a Saturday (children under 12 got in free, but if you’re 13-17, it could cost you $26) could spend $200 in one day if they just wanted to get there, have food, and get a celebrity autograph, without engaging the vendors.

Weird Interactions

There were an inordinate amount of security guards at this event. Maybe it’s just because we were by the guests, but we had at least two security guards loitering around our table earlier in the convention, standing off to the side of our table, as if they were guarding both Chasing Artwork and us from…danger? It was a little unsettling and not good for business. I would have been more fine with this if one of them didn’t try to chat me up while he was working.

This con has its share of odd interactions. You often can’t escape because you’re stuck behind the table. It’s one thing to be engaged by someone who has a mental disability, but it’s another to be engaged by someone who knowingly takes up your time by talking about themselves and doesn’t buy anything.

Will I go back?

Nope. Unless it comes under new management – even so, I’ll have to give it a few years before I’d trust them with my money and time again.

The convention ended at 5pm on Sunday. Yet word went around that it was open until 6pm. Even though the website and the programs said 5pm, and people were already filtering out by 4:15pm. There was even an announcement near 5pm that told the vendors that it was open until 6pm. What? Five minutes later, another announcement, telling attendees to finish up their purchases. Then, another announcement saying that dollies were not allowed on the floor until 6pm. Uh, why? Sam and I looked at each other and were like, we are getting out of here, by any means necessary.

Sam retrieved the dolly from the Firebird and brought it back to the convention floor. On her back to the booth, she was told by a volunteer that dollies were not allowed on the floor.

She picked it up so the wheels weren’t dragging and continued walking.

A volunteer also came around, apparently, and told Justin Currie that his little suitcase was blocking the giant aisle with a ton of empty space. Right.

It took us probably an hour and three trips featuring extravagant balancing acts to load everything out. Everyone seemed to be using the large freight elevator. It was just very frustrating note to end on. Normally we would end C4 by going to Eastern Indian Company with all our artist friends, but almost everyone was too tired or frustrated. Sam and I got take out Indian and commiserated.

This convention is a hard nut to crack. It’s in an expensive venue downtown. I have to travel there. I have to ship books. It’s one of those things where it passes all of my litmus tests for cons: it’s been in existence for many years, it has at least 20,000 people or so, there are celebrity guests. Yet, when you go there, it doesn’t conform to my expectations, sales wise.

I gave C4 a solid two years, but there are other shows I can do at the end of October instead that won’t break the bank. If I lived in Winnipeg, I might be able to justify the cost, and spend the money to build up those return customers. But it probably would be easier and cheaper for me to just find a retailer or fellow vendor to carry a couple of copies at C4 next year.

That is, if the convention exists at all. There were signs of decay at this convention: badly photocopied programs. Bad communication. Volunteers who appeared listless—and maybe too young. There seemed to be no difference between a volunteer who was on duty and one who was off-duty, other than what was denoted on their lanyard (THEY got lanyards!). I started thinking, I hope I don’t get sexually harassed this weekend because these volunteers don’t inspire confidence or appear trained to handle that situation.

That made me extremely nervous.

It’s not just about lanyards, or untrained volunteers, or badly photocopied programs. If you can’t deliver on the promised experience, people are going to be upset and they won’t return.

I’m honestly just very over this convention – it’s an excuse for me to visit Sam and everyone else. If C4 can’t resolve its issues, if it doesn’t get bought by Fan Expo or Wizards of the Coast, there are plenty of other shows dedicated to creating a community who could fill the vacuum:

Prairie Comics Festival – organized by a committee. It’s not only free to attend, but the tables are free for the artists.
FanQuest just started last year – just met the organizer Dan the other day, and he seems dedicated to putting on a good show. I’ll be watching that show with interest.
Ai-Kon – The anime convention here apparently has a dedicated community.

Well, just TWO MORE SHOWS TO GO this year! Calgary Holiday Expo and the Festival of Crafts Show, also in Calgary.

A big name for a small event – I present to you my experience in Drumheller, Alberta.

General Impressions

This was my second trip to Drumheller since I started living in Alberta. I didn’t realize that Drumheller was as large as it is, or as quaint. We had the privilege of driving into the Badlands during a sunset and the Alberta fall colours–yellows and oranges only, hard pressed to find reds–were in full force.

It was a two-day event–Friday evening and all-day Saturday. And when I say all day, I mean, all day: 9am to 8pm. Usually you only see hours like that at Christmas markets! Unfortunately I couldn’t attend Friday, as I had no vehicle or anyone to take me. It was Saturday or nothing. So Dave agreed to take me for Saturday, and I booked us a nice B&B, the Heartwood Inn, just minutes from the event.

Like I mentioned in my podcast, I usually wait until a show is about three years old before I attend. But since Kalon Sykes, the young guy who seemingly masterminded the entire show (he had a team of volunteers as well), kept emailing me about it and eventually asked me to be a guest, I figured I’d give it a go. For such a small event, it’s hard to make that distinction between guest and regular vendor. For me, it meant I got a free table, I did two hours of paneling, and I got access to a little green room with free coffee and treats (full of gluten, unfortunately–that’s okay, Dave brought me lunch).

Location

The event was held in the Badlands Community Facility, next to the largest T-Rex in the world. Specifically, it was located within the gymnasium. Above us was a running track and an open fitness room.

Had I arrived the day before, I would have been able to choose my spot, but since I got there Friday late evening, I was given a place near the back of the gym. Unfortunately, the way the tables were arranged, I was part of a wide curve that led to a lot of open space between me and the customer. Honestly, for such a small event, it probably didn’t matter that much, but it is a barrier to overcome when you’re selling. I would have appreciated a little more signage to let the customers know who the artist guests were–otherwise, nothing distinguished me and the other guests from the vendors.

Everyone was friendly and helpful. Two young guys helped me load in my stuff. This is a small thing, and I feel my mother’s genes asserting themselves here, but I would have appreciated it if Kalon would have introduced himself to me properly right out of the gate. He did greet me when I entered the building and approached the desk, though I didn’t know until after that that was Kalon himself. Granted, he seemed quite busy each time I saw him, and he did come and talk to me later when he was handing out surveys. He seemed kind and focussed–I just expected him to be a little more assertive. I hope he wasn’t intimidated by me. If you’re in charge, and especially if it’s a small event, I appreciate a firm handshake and a hello so I know who I’m dealing with.

Display

The tables were pretty small, 6ft or so, so I adapted my display slightly. Like I talked about in my Edmonton post, I’ve come to appreciate small spaces because of the opportunity for vertical builds.

I only bring one banner for smaller shows to save on space. I’m about due to create a second vertical banner. I love my tiger banner but I need double the fire power at larger shows. I’d also like to create a foamcore sign, maybe for the table and not necessarily for the floor, that highlights a particular series.

Sales

For only being there one day, I didn’t do too badly. Sold some Violet Fox sets, a Sparkstone Saga set, and some individual book ones. I wasn’t unhappy with my sales: my sales expectations were pretty low all around.

On the event Facebook page, they mentioned that 200 people attended: from a vendor perspective, it was hard to see those numbers. When people gathered for the cosplay contest, that was the most amount of people I saw in one place during the entire event, and there were maybe less than fifty. Granted, I was not there on Friday: I don’t know what Friday looked like. I’m wondering if they counted vendors, guests, and staff in their attendance.

For most of the event, it was what I affectionately call “vendor-con” – vendors walking around, checking out each other’s stuff, discussing the event and all other event experiences. When there are just as many vendors walking around as there are attendees – well, that’s what happened in Red Deer, and they don’t exist anymore. (Though I have been told there is a small Red Deer event in the spring now?).

I met a couple of vendors who said this was their FIRST show. My table neighbours–two young guys creating an interactive video game–said that they were pleased with the fifteen-odd people they saw mingling around on Friday; they thought that was a good number. One of those two guys came out from Vancouver for this. I met other vendors who’d come from Edmonton. It makes me think of my first show – KeyCon! The things I didn’t know then that I know now!

It’s okay to be small

Late afternoon on the Saturday, one of the volunteers tried to Marco-Polo the crowd. For the uninitiated, “Marco, Polo” is the call and response used by the announcer at Calgary, Edmonton, and Saskatoon events. He does it to measure the alertness of the crowd, including the vendors. When the Drumheller volunteer attempted this, she got a very listless response.

Calgary and Edmonton Expo are large, established events in big cities. Drumheller isn’t Calgary. Trying to emulate their events–and their culture–just isn’t going to work: not if you want to distinguish yourself in the long term.

There are SO many pop culture/nerd events out there right now, even here in Canada. If Drumheller wants to continue, it needs to brand itself better and decide what it wants to be. Whether that’s focusing on creators only (be they authors, artists, cosplayers, etc), or leaning into the town’s established brand (dinosaurs), that’s something that the organizers have to sort out. And I will say: the number of detailed cosplays at this event was astounding. There was a contest during the event, but after the winners were announced at around 4pm, everyone seemed to disappear–as if they had only come for that specific part of the day. Playing into the cosplay angle might benefit Drumheller as well.

And for those thinking, “But why can’t it be a mini Calgary Expo?”

That’s kind of like asking me, “But why can’t you be a mini HarperCollins?”

HarperCollins is a multi-national company, publishing hundreds of books a year distributed to many countries, with a whole staff/roster of editors, layout designers, administrators, etc. They publish in multiple genres. They have advertising and marketing budgets. They have many fine authors with large and small platforms.

I am a sole proprietorship that publishes one book a year (maybe two next year!). I have two editors and a list I can count on one hand of people I trust to do design work for me. I publish young adult science fiction and fantasy–occasionally horror–usually with female protagonists. I have a limited budget, limited time, and the woman-power of one.

Read those descriptions again, and ask me why I’m not emulating HarperCollins.

When you’re small, you have to take advantage of the benefits of being small. That is: engaging people on a community level, direct contact with the customers, and doing ONE thing really well. Going deep, not wide, is key to remaining on the playing board when you’re my size. Simply re-sizing a larger company, a larger event, down to one person isn’t enough. It needs to find out what it wants to be, what it can be given its current limitations, and then go from there.

Vul-Con isn’t a shining example of a great event, but my one experience there was just fine, and perhaps a better model of what a small-town nerdy market looks like. Granted, Vulcan is perfectly branded for a Star Trek event and attracts fans from all over the west (last year, people told me they came from Edmonton, Saskatoon, and even from the States!). When I tried to book a hotel for Vul-Con a month in advance, everything was already full. Everything being the TWO motels in the whole town.

Even When Words Collide, with its attendance cap of about 800, is a great example of a specific event run well. It takes an entire community and many volunteer hours to put that together.

Remember when I mentioned Red Deer Expo? They also tried to Marco-Polo the crowd–they even got the same announcer. They made the same mistakes I saw here. Again: they do not exist anymore. My point: look to long-standing SMALL events in Alberta that have endured for years. Emulate them. Don’t copy and paste from the big guys and expect the same results.

Lil Getaway

Dave and I stayed at the Heartwood Inn for two nights. True, I could have just booked one night, but we’ve both had a really busy month–it felt like we didn’t even see each other on some days!

During my travels, I’ve come to appreciate certain luxuries. Booking a hotel in and of itself is a luxury–I enjoy the quiet after a busy day giving myself away to thousands of people. So when I was on the Heartwood website and saw there was a room with a giant soaker tub with jets by the frosted glass window? Yep, that pretty much sold it for me.

So relaxing!

The bed was really comfy too! Dave and I both slept well–I like a soft bed. And there were robes!! (Also a big plus!) Unfortunately I didn’t get to partake in breakfast, which I heard was awesome. Breakfast is hard when you can’t eat gluten or cheese.

In any case, it’s the kind of place people who want to own B&Bs fantasize about–aka young me! In my mind, it was always the kind of business I’d do “when I retired” – which of course, will never happen!

Cool People!

I got to hang out with Katie Barron. I’ve met her a few times, and we did have a chat in Edmonton when we were both vending there. She’s a fantasy author with two books, just starting to do the local con circuit. I was happy to get to know her better! Also had a chat with Vince Steim from H3 Trilogy. I’ve talked with him a few times now, but again, it’s much easier in this small setting to have a more in-depth conversation!

My table was next to Michael Hill (Septembryo) and Roberto Duque. They were two great guys with a very positive attitude. I appreciated that, especially given the quiet nature of the con itself. It’s easy for me to stew in my fear of failure when I’m alone. Fortunately I was able to trade con stories with the guys and that kept my spirits high.
I committed to two hours of programming because of my guest status: a panel at 2pm with Katie, Mike, and Roberto about writing, and another panel at 7pm (the last hour of the convention. So late!) with just Katie…also about writing and marketing.

Despite the quiet nature of the vendor’s room, we had about 10 people at our 2pm panel, and five people at the 7pm panel. Not bad! But we probably could have gotten away with just one panel, given the subject matter was similar. It’s tough to create programming–some events rely on the volunteers and panelists to pitch panels while others create programming and assign volunteers to carry it out. Drumheller was the latter.

Also, this was a thing that happened:

They were charging the vendor tables! It was very funny but also a little scary. Fortunately he didn’t knock anything over!

Would I do it again?

It’s getting harder to justify smaller shows–especially if I have to travel outside of Calgary. I’ve had one of my busiest years yet and each weekend event is a weekend that I don’t get to spend recuperating from my busy weekdays and/or it’s time taken away from creating. I’m also shifting away from smaller shows in general in 2018, though if it’s the right show, I wouldn’t rule anything out.

There were whispers around the event that finding the funding to do such an event again would be a struggle. Kalon mentioned that it cost around $30,000 to put the whole show on. It’s hard to see where that money goes when you’re only there for one day, but I don’t doubt that that’s the price tag.

So, I really don’t know. I hope this year was enough of an experience to allow Kalon to improve on a potential future event.

Here is me outside the Heartwood with one of many, many dinosaur friends in the town.

Just THREE MORE EVENTS this year and then I’m done!!

Where did September go? I don’t think I’ve been busier than I have this past month. It was to be expected however – now that I’m entering the last third of the year (the busiest, and the most profitable, in my case!)

General Impressions

This is my third Edmonton Expo, and I’m pleased to report it went well for me!

On Thursday, my friends Finn (half of the Crash & Burn team) and Leif (their roommate and new friend!) picked me up from my place, loaded all my stuff, and we headed up to the northern part of the city. We also picked up Finn’s girlfriend as well. I stayed overnight with them so we could get an extra early start on Friday morning.

THANK YOU LEIF FOR DRIVING US ALL! The car was jammed with stuff–between all my boxes, my banners, the yoga matt, and my display box set–PLUS Finn’s stuff and of course the snacks–there was barely room for four people. I didn’t mind, though. I was grateful. After all our car trips growing up, I’m used to being stuffed into cramped quarters.

We stayed in the Coast Edmonton Plaza in downtown Edmonton, about a ten minute drive from the convention center. It was really nice! I’m so glad Finn booked it. There’s something really special about traveling and rooming with other people who are also creating art and selling it. It meant we could have quiet time in the evening as needed, or we could chat about the day. It just kept me in the game.

Also, THERE WAS A BIDET.

Location

Something to note about the Edmonton Expo centre is that it is LONG. There is only one entrance, and it’s on the other side from where I usually am. You may recall last year I intended to spring for a larger booth to get out of the small press/economy section, which is at the end of the convention. I had a change of heart about this after Calgary Expo this year, and when the opportunity came up, I declined my upgrade. After being in a 10×10 space, I really appreciated my ability to maximize a 6 or 8ft table, as well as keep my expenses down.

I admit at first I was a little dismayed to discover I was one table over from my position last year. I was worried that my sightlines would be diminished. Fortunately, there were further improvements to my row. Instead of having the gaming area across from us, we had a row of regular exhibitor booths. While this did diminish some sightlines, it increased traffic (in my opinion) because there was MORE to see than just…gaming tables. We were also near the mini donuts and other fast food treats, as well as some kind of Minions-themed laser tag? It made a lot of annoying noise throughout the weekend–mostly I only noticed it when I was tired or when the traffic was light.

I’m still on the fence about putting all book-related people together. It benefits those who love books – and I think serving the customer’s needs is the best way to ensure a sale – though it does create more competition for the authors. Mostly. I think I worried about it more last year. This year, I have more powerful displays, more powerful banners–I don’t get lost in the noise. Usually, if I saw someone with Suzy Vadori’s book or Thea van Diepen’s book, there was a high probability that they would also buy mine as well.

I think in the long run, it’s not going to matter much for this convention whether I upgrade to a larger space. If I think about the long con (haha), Edmonton is one of my cornerstone shows. Now that I’ve done it three times, return guests expect me to be in a particular spot, and I want to optimize the space for maximum profits. At most, I think springing for the corner of my row might be enough.

Display

I really appreciated having Leif’s help here! Set-up took under an hour because we managed to tackle the horizontal banner together, and load-in was fairly simple once we separated the Crash and Burn stuff from mine.

I had my boxies as usual and they certainly cut down on set-up time. Jessie has designed me a new display (see below!) and I can’t wait to use it. I like my boxes but they need a better paint job with different paint that doesn’t scuff. I’m still learning how to optimize them. I almost need another set to properly leverage the height.

I brought just enough stock to sell and use for display. By the end of Sunday, it was slim pickings! I only had three Violet Foxes left! I am going to have to reprint before my Christmas shows. Also, I was thankful to have bags this time, because the Expo didn’t provide the large welcome bags that they usually do.

Sales

I had a 4% decrease from last year, so not super significant. I did well last year, and I’m pleased that I didn’t do significantly less given a) the other vendors mixed feelings about the show and b) my location at the end of the show. Most of my sales came around the lunch time hour as people (finally) made it to the end of the convention and grabbed food. On Saturday, I had a second rush during the last hour. Sunday was extremely brisk for most of the day, save the last two hours as people left the convention. This was a relief.

I’d say about 20-30% of my sales were from returning customers–people who bought my stuff last year and returned for something new. I would have had higher sales if I had The Emerald Cloth (cover reveal on October 13!) ready. It’s a reminder that if I’m going to continue to do both Calgary and Edmonton Expo, I need to have a spring and a fall release to capitalize on fans who attend both. Once again, during the quiet hours, I realized that my location–while important–may not matter if I continue to do the show. If I build that return customer base high enough, it may make up for any bad location. With table prices going up and up each year, I have to think long-term.

I will say that I’m glad I have two different series to promote–those who are waiting for The Emerald Cloth can read the Sparkstone Saga. I had equal sales of Stars In Her Eyes and The Violet Fox, but about twice as many bundle sales for The Violet Fox. I found that younger readers tended to prefer the Sparkstone Saga, while the adults who liked to read chose The Violet Fox. A large contribution to that decision is the snappiness of Sparkstone Saga’s back cover as well as the illustrations. Once again, the most picked-up book on the table was Hunger In Her Bones.

At this convention, I regretted my decision not to include Within on the table. I was between two other authors selling zombie/vampire apocalypse books and dystopian thrillers, so I lost some potential horror/thriller customers there. That 4% decrease? Probably would have made up for it with some copies of Within. Then again, it’s hard to have it on the table when nothing else is quite like it–at least for the time being. Sigh – maybe I should bring it back for the Christmas shows? I’ll think about it.

A lot more people than expected had cash, but it ended up being about 50/50 on the cash vs cards. Of those who used cards, slightly more than half opted for debit. This fits with the trend I noticed last year in Edmonton – everyone loves debit! So glad that I can accommodate people in that way.

Cool People!

I had a good chat with Suzy Vadori and Thea van Diepen, both of whom had booths in the rows behind me. I liked getting the chance to know Suzy better, and it was nice to see Thea back from her journey around the world–ready to create more books (yay!).

Matt from Pickering Woodworks also stopped by for a chat! For those keeping track, he was my neighbour at Calgary Expo this year. We talked shop for a while. It was really nice to see him again!

On Friday night, Greg, his friend Dave, and I went to see the new Kingsman movie. It was really fun! But I was so tired afterward. Greg and I had a nice chat. At this things, it’s hard to find the energy sometimes to have a long conversation–but we’ll have plenty of time for that when I’m in Winnipeg next month.

He also made an interesting point – that conventions like these, everyone is taking a hit because of the economy, oversaturation, etc – but if you are well branded, you can weather the storm. I think that’s true: that’s part of the reason I can make these shows worth my while. But I also believe in being flexible. I can’t do all shows every year, especially as I’m approaching ten books!

Will I go back?

I hope to, if I get in! It appears that the Expo company (Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatoon) are no longer favouring previous vendors as much as they used to. We still get earlier registration, but it’s no guarantee that we’re in anymore.

I think this is a good place to note that while conventions are a cornerstone of my distribution and marketing efforts, I know that they won’t be profitable or worthwhile forever. It’s easy to think, “I’ll do Edmonton Expo until the END OF TIME,” but it’s just not realistic. Every year, the shows get more expensive to do, celebrity guests are harder to pin down, and the fans get oversaturated with content. This show works for me now, as long as I can continue to keep my expenses down and produce enough new work for my returning customers. In this business, you always have to look to the future.

SPECIAL HAL-CON SECTION

Hal-Con 2017 was the SAME weekend as Edmonton, so instead of saying, which one should I do, I said, why not both? So I sent my sister to my regular “home” show. She did very well! Thank you to everyone who helped her out and stopped by to chat with her!

Also, she unveiled new display 2.0! Yes, she designed AND made it. Laser cutting, pew pew pew. It folds up, packs flat, and fits in a large art portfolio case. The shelves are removable. I’ll probably do without the top part because I’m shorter (gotta be able to see my pretty face!). I can also use it in conjunction with my boxes to create unique displays depending on the show and the space. It’ll look really nice on a white tablecloth too!

Yay!

General Impressions

Sam was with me all week leading up to this convention!
When the first day of the convention rolled around (Friday), I was already tired. Tired of the thought of having to participate in the local publishing scene for the fifth time. Tired of knowing that I had to spend three days just to earn what I could earn in one day at another event…or less.
It is hard not to be infected by a sense of hope when you enter the vendor’s room, when everyone is setting up for the weekend. Maybe this one will be different, I start thinking, as I arrange my books and my boxes. Maybe if I have a couple of drinks later, I shake off the nagging feeling that I could be doing a thousand other things instead of this.
From the tone I’ve struck here, you might think that this is not a good festival. You’re wrong. It’s perfectly fine…but after five years of doing the same thing over and over, I see through the cracks and I’m left feeling bitter.

Display

This year I faced the right wall, as I did in a previous year. It’s not a terrible spot – better than the back of the room. People complimented my boxes. Every time I use them, however, I see the wear and tear, because of the kind of paint she used. I can’t wait until I get my new display from Jessie, which has a non-stick paint.
Something I’ve noticed about my boxes is I can’t effectively monitor the display from behind my table. Every once and a while I have to ensure that the books are upright and not out of place, and that there are enough book ones.
The only issue with the table arrangements were the tight quarters in the back and between the tables themselves. It was pretty difficult to get in and out without rattling the display next to me, or my own display! It’s one way to get friendly with your neighbour, that’s for sure.
One of the things I like about WWC is I get to see people. I live a pretty solitary life these days, so exercising my social muscles and talking about creative projects is fun. I ended up taking quite a few meetings at my table, because many of my clients are local or visiting creative types. I was happy to have them sit with me since about 90% of the time, it was a quiet room.

Sales

A couple of people asked me if I do better at WWC than at say, Calgary Expo. The answer is absolutely not. The big expos and the Christmas shows–that’s where I make major money (as long as I keep my expenses manageable, of course). In fact, WWC is one of my lowest earning shows, especially if you look at per-day sales.
To give you some insight: I make the same amount of money each year at WWC. Generally I have a new book out, so people will buy what’s new. The newcomers to WWC buy the first books in my series. Sometimes old-timers will buy if they haven’t before. I only made slightly more money this year because I didn’t run my usual sales on the Friday.
Next to me, the Mythhawkers bookstore seemed to be doing quite well, though admittedly I’m a little concerned about the expenses of their business model (travelling to conventions and lugging all that product is expensive – add staffing, your Moneris fees, accommodation, food!) since from what I gleaned, they’re only doing the small book-related shows. If they were the only bookseller in the room, however, I wouldn’t bet against them.
I kind of wish IFWA’s shared author table and Owl’s Nest/Mythhawkers would work out a deal. Each year the shared author table sprawls ever larger as more people take to self-publishing, and now with Mythhawkers in the mix, the competition between booksellers seems more intense. If there was one bookseller present that authors could consign with (perhaps even with someone from IFWA who acted as intermediary?), no one would have to take shifts at the table, the bookseller could build vertical with their display, and the extra space could be used to admit more creators–new blood–into the dealers’ room. Extra work and logistics? Yes. Simple? No–change is never easy. It just feels like something has to give here.

We had a party!

Sam, Sherry, and I booked a suite in the hotel, and wow, it was great. A highlight of the weekend was touring the entire space. It had TWO bathrooms–and there was a JET TUB!
Also, Sam and I had liberal use of the robes in the closet.

SUCH A FLATTERING PICTURE
We set up a little sales table. The intention of the party was not to facilitate sales – it was more of a meet and greet. We got quite a few people that I’d met over the weekend, people I’d never met before, which was great. We had a couple of sales and Sherry did really well!
We actually ended up kicking people out at after midnight, which is probably just as well, but we stayed up chatting until at least 1:30am. My mind was buzzing with ideas so I helped myself to the jet tub for a while to quiet my thoughts.

It was my 29th birthday!

It was a very low-key day. I woke up in the Delta suite hotel room after about 4 hours of sleep, got dressed, and the two of us hurried down to a breakfast meeting with a client. Then Sam went off to some panels, and I opened the table for business.
Sam rejoined me later after our various panels for another quiet day of sales. As we sat together, she gave me a precious gift–her honest advice. I have often been vocal about my desire to “eventually” become a traditional publishing house. There is a voice in the back of head that responds to this each time, saying, “Well, why aren’t you doing that?” (Multiple reasons: lack of traditional distribution, cost, risk, etc). She gave voice to another subconscious concern: the two of us work hard to help realize other people’s dreams, so why would I take my Faery Ink Press, something uniquely mine, and open that up to others? Why would run myself ragged just for the hope of making a profit in an industry that has such a high cost, emotionally and financially, by burdening myself with the responsibility of other authors? Isn’t it enough to put the work in to realize my own art instead?
It’s easy to dismiss or be defensive when someone gives us advice–we all think we know best, that we’re the exception to the rule. With Sam, I don’t dismiss her advice lightly, because she speaks from experience. She managed ChiZine Publications for a while and I know how hard she worked. Neither of us are romanced by the idea of being in publishing for the love of books and reading.
My drive to form the Faery Ink Press brand came out of the desire to something that will outlast me–and I think that’s the underlying motive to becoming a future traditional publisher. There will become a time when I’ll have to fully own that Faery Ink Press will only publish my works OR commit to being a traditional publisher. I can’t walk the “maybe” line forever. For now, I will continue to innovate in my field and build my audience.

It’s not enough anymore

When I first started vending, and specifically at WWC, I wanted to fly my flag high to show the readers that I’m here to stay for life–that I’m “legitimate.”
I’m long over that insecurity–and yes, that’s what it is. I don’t have to go to a writing conference to prove I’m a writer, or a publisher, or to prove…anything. Guess what–you don’t either. Seeking external validation is not the answer. Don’t buy a table and flaunt your wares solely because you want to prove you’re a player in the market. Do it because you have something of value to offer. I know I have value and I have a lot of confidence in my products and my business. It’s that confidence that allows me to try new things, learn from failures, and let go of FOMO.
WWC is a good convention. For the most part, it’s well organized, and it attracts many creative people with ambitions and dreams. I read a lot of other write-ups about the festival from first and second-time attendees. They’re getting a lot out of the experience, and that’s awesome. In a way, I’m envious. I had to take the beginning steps of my writing journey alone–friends and writing colleagues didn’t come until later in the game. It’s taken me a long time to meet people who are similar and feel similarly to me. At first, I was happy to be surrounded by a community of writers. Then I sought out creators who made a living with their art. That intersection excited me more.
I see the potential in all the writers that attend and I see how some can do better–including myself. But that’s just it: one can’t just be better, it’s a journey to get there.
And as Marshall Goldsmith says: “What got you here won’t get you there.”
I’ve reached a saturation point. I’ve done the same convention for five years and achieved the same results each time. With the festival the way it is, I can’t get much more out of it, financially or from a knowledge perspective. I’d consider giving a presentation, but it’s hard to justify spending time on something I won’t be compensated for. I know, it’s a cringe-worthy sentence. But my time is valuable. I also don’t relish the thought of spending another birthday weekend behind the table, or giving myself away for free.
It’s time to try something else to get somewhere else. The best way to advance is to thoughtfully experiment within your field to see what works and what doesn’t.
Randy has mentioned that he has no intention to grow past 750-800 people, nor does he seem interested in changing the 100% volunteer model (I thought that the guests were paid, at least. Nope – travel, accommodations, and some food are covered though). While I understand why on a logistics level, I can’t help but feel that’s a sign that the convention isn’t going to have a real shakeup.
The lack of desire to change, grow, take risks, and experiment bothers me. Since the festival is unlikely to grow, it’s hard for me to justify participating.

Am I Going Back Next Year?

No, I don’t think so. Or, if I did, it wouldn’t be in the same capacity.
I recommend this convention wherever I go, no matter what province I’m in, because it helps facilitate a community. It’s a good place for beginning writers, for people starting to figure it out. My advice to the first and second-time attendees is:
• Think critically about the advice you receive. Be willing to accept it–but also take a hard look at who is giving it. Who are they, and what reasons might they have for saying what they do?
• Publishing a book isn’t the be-all end-all – neither is winning an award. Publishing is just one stop in the long road to building a meaningful brand that will have a positive impact on people. Be humble and willing to learn.
• If you’re going to pitch a publisher in the designated time slot, don’t make it a performance. Just be straight and honest. It will not help your chances (that’s from Sam, and yes, some people treated the pitch the publisher sessions like Dragon’s Den).
• No one is going to care more about your book than you do.

So shadowy, what am I planning?? It was a day of being in the shadows and not being seen, that’s for sure.

General Impressions

I wasn’t sure if this was going to be a good day, sales wise. The forecast was cloudy with a chance of showers in Banff. Last week felt pretty long because I was alone all day – this week I had Best Friend Sam helping me out, since she’s here for When Words Collide. HURRAY! She drove us to Banff and back. THANKS SAM.

LOOK NO HANDS

Also thanks to Rene and Raffi for helping me get set up!

Considering I didn’t get much sleep the night before, I was surprisingly coherent. Drinking water = yes.

Location

When we arrived, Rene, the organizer, told me that the Saskatoon berry vendors were not coming this week, so I could have their space. Initially, I was excited. This space is in the market proper.

After setting up, it became clear that this space wouldn’t work to my advantage for several reasons. One: we were right by the food, and a large collection of tables and chairs.

This sitting area created a barrier that separated the back wall of vendors (including the busker) and our row—creating a dead end! People would come halfway down the row, decide they weren’t hungry, and turn around—with the barest of glances on my stuff.

The second factor that impacted this day was the rotating buskers. Each hour, a new busker sanctioned by the market would perform (sound system and all, of course!) for the eating patrons. I’m all for buskers (I used to be one!). But if the quality of the busker was mediocre—bye bye potential customers. AND it meant that people would face them, and not me, meaning, not a lot of brand exposure or interest.

So next week, I’m going to try and go back on the street or on the outer periphery of the market – away from the dead-end food area – so that people can actually see me!

Display

I brought slightly less Sparkstone books this week, and more Violet Foxes. Same display as last week. Sam made me a pretty button sign – bye bye folded over piece of paper, hello piece of art!

I touched up the paint on my box displays so they looked a little better this week. I was sad – one of my plastic display windows came apart so I only had one cover display for my purple lid. Womp womp.

I also put my banner in the front of my display – this blocked me a little from the approaching side but it’s a pretty powerful draw as well. The shadow from the tent diminishes my banner’s power somewhat, but I think behind me is probably the best place for it.

Sales

Location matters! I only did about half as much in sales as last week. Still covered my expenses and made a small profit, but hopefully this isn’t the trend for the rest of the month! This was also the second week where it took a LONG time to make the first sale. Most of my interactions took place in the afternoon, after 2pm.

The Violet Fox Series continues to dominate at that $35 price point. Had some Stars In Her Eyes sales, and some individual The Violet Fox sales, but no eBook sales.
I also had a couple of people blatantly tell me that they weren’t interested in my books, they only wanted to look, and that my books weren’t “for” them. That’s fine – but I don’t really need an excuse if you’re not interested! I’m just happy you stopped by.

Best Friend Times!

I’m so grateful that my best friend can come visit me for an extended period – that both of our careers allow us to schedule time to hang out. Ultimately I wasn’t too bummed about my sales, because we got to eat delicious vegan/GF pho and talk shop. Also it’s nice to have someone who understands the industry and is in your corner NO MATTER WHAT?

Also we recorded a podcast the next day. LISTEN TO OUR PODCAST HERE. We are pretty great.

Weird Interactions

There were quite a few weird ones this week.

1. The woman who signed up for my newsletter, left, and returned asking, “You don’t sell this newsletter list, do you?” Nope, definitely don’t do that, that’s illegal?
2. The little girl chewing on her father’s elbow as they hurried past. Yep. You read that right.
3. When we were setting up, an elderly woman just wandered into the back of our space…with seemingly no regard for traffic flow…and no regard to the fact that we were trying to move a table…

I leave you with a photo of Minnie the Pig! She was walking around the market with her owner, very content and calmly taking in the many vendors and popcorn treats. It was a highlight of the day.

I’m doing WWC currently – it’s been a busy week – but stay tuned next week for more Banff adventures and my When Words Collide post mortem!

If you would have asked me a few years ago if I’d try outdoor farmers markets to sell my books, I would have said no way. Other than fear, I had some legit reasons: it’s not easy to predict which way the weather will turn, there are costs involved with setting up a tent, not all farmers markets accept books/non-handmade stuff (or their acceptance is limited).

And the biggest reason for not trying, of course, is fear of failure.

But I don’t like to let fear win. And with the success of my multiple shows last year, I researched the hell out of nearby farmers and craft markets. A market is a market as far as I’m concerned. I selected Banff Farmers Market as a test, and I’ll be exhibiting there from 10am-6pm every Wednesday in August.

This is the post-mortem for my first day, August 2. I’ve decided to write one for each day (there will be 5 in total) as markets are different from week to week and no doubt I will be learning a ton about this new way of selling!

I met so many friendly people! Special thank you to Jim, the t-shirt vendor who helped me sort out my tent problem, and Raffi, the marketing coordinator and temporary guy in charge who got me everything I needed, and Cheyenne, my neighbour, for fun talks, snacks, and company! And of course Dave, for driving me.

General Impressions

I chose the Banff Farmers Market for several reasons.

First – It’s Canada 150 and Banff National Park is free.

Second – it’s a popular tourist destination anyway, so I’m likely to reach not only the locals but lots of from-away people who have never heard of my work. Meaning, less chance of saturating the market.

Third – Banff is pretty and any excuse to go there sounds good to me. It’s easy to get around the town and isn’t a far car or bus from Calgary.

Fourth – July/August are busy tourist months for Banff, and I had confidence that I could make back my entire investment – and then some.

I was nervous the week leading up to the market because I had no idea what to expect. Unlike with the large cons I do, where there are multiple emails sent to vendors weeks and days before explaining move-in procedures, parking, and set-up, I got nothing from the organizers. I wasn’t even sure if I’d have a tent and a table when I showed up – or when I *should* show up.

Location

When we arrived there at quarter after nine, almost everyone had set up already. The market runs in one of Bear Street’s parking lots, but also spills out onto Bear Street. It didn’t seem that busy. My spot was the only one not set up. It was on the street–not in the market proper. To be honest, I wasn’t that perturbed about that. I was getting a lot of street traffic. But I can see how being in the parking lot/market-proper area would be advantageous. It’s across from the mini mall: I can see people wandering outside into the market, walking the circuit, and then not going onto the street–exiting down the alley instead.

The other thing about my spot is because the road slopes sharply towards the sidewalk, I had to be on the lookout for spontaneous books falling over. Which happened twice!

Display

My space was 10×10, covered by a tent. The nice thing about displaying for one day is I only brought what I thought would sell, plus a little extra to fill out the table. AKA, no lugging a TON of boxes and items around! The box displays worked well, but I need to paint over some scuffs – the wood is just not that durable for all the travelling I do!

Also, no matter what you do, the wind WILL try to knock everything down! I had a terrible time with my reliable banner. No matter which way I positioned it, it fell. Between the wind whipping around and the cars whizzing by behind me, it created enough force to push the banner over–sometimes onto the table itself!

Fortunately, my experienced market neighbours came to my rescue. They lent me some bungee cords to attach the banner to the tent. Fixed the issue! I’ll have to get some of my own for the future.

Sales

The sales experience at the farmers market was pretty much the same as selling at a convention, with less cosplay and more relaxed, happy locals and tourists.

The morning was so, so slow. At 1pm, I was starting to resign myself to only making back my table space. But by 2pm, more people were venturing out, it was getting warmer, and sales picked up. I surpassed my minimum sales target and nearly doubled it! Essentially: I made back the entirety of my investment so far for the five days plus some.

My neighbours on both sides commented on the slowness of the day. The BC wildfires are still raging, meaning smoke is drifting over to Alberta–sort of. We passed through a Stephen King’s The Mist-style haze when we were approaching Canmore, but came out the other side to an otherwise sunny mountain view. We speculated that potential visitors may believe that Banff is covered in smoke and not be venturing out, as the past couple weeks since the fires had been slow days as well.

Now that I know what I can make on a slow day, I can better predict what I’ll make when it’s busier.

This is my first event without Within on the table. I only had one person ask about it (it was still on my pricing sign). When people asked, “What’s the first book you ever wrote?” (Why was this a common question…?) my response, “I don’t have it on the table” was more than adequate. While I lament it brings my earning potential down slightly, I’m happy not to have to explain “This is just a stand-alone, it’s a little more mature than my other books.” It also solves my awkward display problem and makes the selling process smoother.

Stars In Her Eyes won for bestselling individual title – but The Violet Fox Series continues to win bestselling bundle. I’m curious to see how many people will return within the next month to buy the next Sparkstone Saga book. I had one (local) mother tell me she would. This is an advantage of the market: if the customer consumes my content quickly, they can come back the next week for the next installment. Of course, there’s the potential for saturation fairly quickly, but I think about half my customers were tourists, so that should stave off the saturation point. I’d be more concerned about that if I was exhibiting for the entire May-October season!

For those keeping track of my payment methods: It was about an even split between cards and cash, and a quarter of the card payers paid with debit. So, again, very on trend with what I’ve experienced so far.

Yes, Everything Is Difficult and I Should Relax?

This event saw the return of some general questions I’ve mostly gotten past at comic cons, such as: “Where do you get your inspiration?” and “Is it hard to publish a book?” I got the “is it hard?” question two or three times. This one always baffles me. Writing is hard, but it’s not as hard as production (or having the means to produce), and that in turn is not as hard as marketing and selling. This is difficult to convey in a short conversation!

In the afternoon, I began to relax. It’s hard not to appreciate the chill attitude of the locals and my fellow vendors. I even left my table to go to the bathroom–on my way back, I was running so as not to miss a potential customer, and my neighbour saw me whiz by and said, “Whoa, it’s okay, slow down!” RELAX CLARE EVERYTHING IS FINE.

People look out for each other at this market–everyone was quick to lend a hand.

While it was easy to fall into my selling routine, I had to remember that not everyone was into science fiction and fantasy–unlike selling at conventions where that is pretty much assumed! This means a softer approach: engaging only those who want to be engaged and treating my booth as a pop-up shop rather than a destination for con attendees. In general, people seemed interested in my work and excited to meet a local author.

For Next Time

Next week I’ll bring my horizontal banner and a chair. Even though I stand all day, sitting during the slow periods will really save my feet!

I leave you with a new friend I made – a magpie that hung out across from me pretty much the entire day. He was very determined to eat an abandoned cherry but he kept dropping it. He was also interested in the wood chips but again could not fathom why his beak couldn’t hold onto them for more than a few seconds.

This was my first anime convention and a risk for me. On one hand, I figured I’d try it since there’s a demographic overlap between Faery Ink Press and anime in general. Also, the Sparkstone covers are vaguely anime–another advantage. On the other hand, I know very little about anime culture and I was afraid someone would pop out of nowhere to quiz me. Fortunately, that did not happen–and nor did it matter! While the majority of the attendees were cosplaying as anime characters, many others were dressed up in Harry Potter costumes or wearing buttons with other non-anime fandoms.

General Impressions

Overall, it was a very welcoming atmosphere and my fears about “belonging” were put to rest. Especially when the sales started rolling in.

The convention was well organized; volunteers wandered the floor regularly, and there was even a dedicated person who checked in with each artist every few hours to ensure we were fine, in case we needed a bathroom break, etc. On Sunday, there was even a food delivery service! I got mochi. Tasty, tasty, mochi.

Location

I was in a pretty good location, in a row just off one of the entrances. Unfortunately, I was right under the air conditioning. This is one of those things that can’t be changed. Someone had to be stuck getting blasted all weekend, and this time it was me. You just have to roll with it. I get cold easily, which doesn’t help either. What really sucked was my sign kept blowing forward: I had to tape it down so it wouldn’t knock over my display. And this is my GOOD banner too!

Display

Remember in the Ottawa post I was talking about the branded display that my sister and I were working on? This was its inaugural convention!

It is a three-box set, Russian-doll style (the boxes fit inside each other), painted white with a purple lid. The lid has plastic panes that can fit two irregularly sized pieces of paper, and can sit on its side as a display piece itself.

I had a couple of fellow vendors compliment the box display. A good display set is like good typography: it serves up the content while not being distracting to the content its displaying. I think people appreciated the bookshelves as it allowed them to easily browse what I had.

I think it will take a couple of shows before I perfect the use of the boxes. Ideally, I need lights inside the box. The box is deep enough that it casts a shadow on the interior contents. I also would like a second set to even out the table.

The boxes stacked on top of each other also creates a blind spot for me: I’m happy to have people browse the shelves, pick up books, read the backs, but I can’t see if they’re returning the books to their rightful spots. This means I’ll have to do more clean-up and straightening.

Sales

I had an ambitious sales goal for this convention – and I exceeded it!

Nearly 60% of people used a card to pay, and about 40% of those people opted to throw the purchase on debit. No issues with Moneris, and because of the shorter convention hours, I wasn’t worried about keeping it charged for the whole day.

Friday was surprisingly good for me. Even though the traffic was slow, I managed to meet and exceed my daily target. It was a slog, though–long periods of few people walking by, and when you start seeing the same people walk by three or four times, that’s when you know there might not be much else going on.

Saturday will be better, everyone says. But Canada 150 celebrations could tip things either way. Either it would be extremely busy, or slow. It was slow. I did maybe 60-70% of what I did on Friday. I went home feeling unoptimistic. I’d already made a profit by this point, of course, but it was the first time I’d felt relatively unstimulated. Usually I am buzzing with ideas about how to improve my performance at this point. Instead, I felt more like I was going to a grueling 9-5 job each day.

Sunday was a major improvement. Not sure why, but it seemed like everyone decided to come on Sunday. From 11am-1:30pm, I was selling consistently. This is more of what I’m used to. The interactions make the time go faster, and it was one $30-$40 sale after another. After 2:30pm, the sales halted as people left, though I still got some enthusiastic interest.

For most of the convention, The Violet Fox Series was the strongest seller. On Sunday, the brisk sales changed up the dynamic and the Sparkstone Saga caught up. Stars In Her Eyes sold slightly more than The Violet Fox, but as a series The Violet Fox sold far more than the Sparkstone Saga bundle. The $35 price point continues to be the most appealing. I like the $45 price for all three Sparkstone Saga books, and people in general seemed to think that getting three books for that price was a good deal (especially considering Hunger In Her Bones’ size!). As I add on to each series and approach ten books, I may start evening out the book prices and doing simpler deals. This will also play into my longer-term, customer onboarding goals.

I’m still selling the eBook bundle for $21 – I think I can afford to knock a dollar or two off that as an experiment to see if that converts better. On the plus side, I’m seeing slightly more sales of individual eBooks. This may increase as I have more selection.

Speaking of selection, I sold out of Within – I only brought three copies. This will be the last time I have it on the table, at least for a little while. It’s getting harder to justify its place in the brand and the table itself, even though it quietly and consistently sells. I’d rather focus on my two series until I have another horror book to promote. People who bought it did not tend to buy my other books and there’s nothing worse than splitting your brand. I’ll still have it in eBook form and in the eBook bundle.

I also sold quite a few buttons. To be honest, I can’t wait to get them off the table. While they attract button lovers, they don’t really attract readers, and they take up a lot of space. Their optimal position for best sales is annoyingly at the front of the table. I may drop their price again just to move them faster. They were a good experiment, but I’m ready to try something else, and like I said above–diluting your brand is no good.

“I Don’t Have Any Money.”

Instead of the parents, I was face-to-face with my audience–teen girls. Usually I’m selling to their parents at other conventions, as they’re too shy to speak to me directly. I got that this time too.

Young girls don’t have dollars. They’re enthusiastic, often confident, and many are aspiring writers themselves…but they have a budget. And of course, many of them don’t have credit or debit cards. The cash they have is precious! So I chat with them and give them my card, hoping later they will return.

Besides the teens, who understandably have restraints on their wallets, the adults were throwing around this bomb of a statement too. It’s a powerful phrase, “I have no money.” The trouble with it is it can have multiple meanings. And because of that, you have to be ultra-sensitive to context, and have appropriate responses ready to disarm the customer. The goal is never to push or persuade. The goal is to gently lower defenses to establish a connection. Some of the true meanings include:

–“I don’t like the product; I am just interacting with you because you said hello to me.” Usually indiciated by shy, one-word responses in initial conversation. I don’t push these people. 100% of the time, if shy people like the product, you need to leave them be so they can make their purchase decisions. I don’t waste time convincing people outside my potential audience to buy. There are many fish in the sea.

–“I like the product, but I am not convinced that I should buy it from you right now.” This is a classic case of not enough social proof. Someone meets you for the first time and sees your product – why should they buy from you? Some people need more from you to get to a place where they are comfortable with the purchase. Whether that’s more conversation, bigger discount, more time—it’s different for every person.

–“Stop selling to me, you are too aggressive.” Probably the most defensive of the meanings. By bringing up money first, they are attempting to take control of the conversation. The thing is, they were always in control of the conversation: I am in control of their attention and focus. I direct them to my cards, and reinforce that they have all my book information on them if they care to take one for the future. Sometimes, however, if they continue to browse, I take the opportunity to make conversation. At the very least, it makes the time go faster. At most, an interested browser attracts another and another.

–“I don’t have any cash on me.” This is where I reinforce that I take credit and debit cards.

In all meanings, “I don’t have money” is a closing statement and needs to be treated with respect. If you’re selling, you either have to figure out how to quickly resolve the conversation in your favour (by giving the customer a business card) or finding the truth behind the statement (getting them to return later when they do have money).

Weird Interactions

I had a couple of strange interactions this weekend, but this one was the funniest.

A man approached the table and was looking at the Sparkstone Saga. I engaged him in conversation. His English wasn’t great, but eventually he came to understand that everything on the table was young adult fiction. He returned the book to its holder, saying, “Oh, I only read stuff like Triple-X.”

Me and my naïve mind thought, Oh, he likes action-adventure stuff, in the style of that Triple-X movie starring Vin Diesel. I laughed and said, no, this is not exactly like that.

He smiled and waved goodbye, telling me that if I decided to write his favourite genre, to let him know.

It was only after he left that I realized he meant X-rated.

Will I Go Back?

Otafest runs on a lottery system with its vendors. I’ll apply, but there’s no guarantee I’ll get in next year. I think adding more local anime conventions to the docket would be a smart move for me. Otafest is also over the May-long weekend in 2018 and not during the Canada Day weekend – I’m unsure if this is an improvement.

My next appearance will be at the Banff Farmers Market. Yes, you read that right! Every Wednesday in August, all day. See you there?

Ho boy. What a weekend. What a WEEK! At least I am on the mend from my cold. Just as I had gotten used to Regina, I whisked myself away to the capital of our great country: Ottawa.

I have tons of cousins in Ottawa on both sides of the family!! From the Monday after Regina until after the Ottawa Comiccon, I stayed with relatives in the Ottawa suburbs. Thank you so much to my cousins Rita and Bruce and their daughters Kathleen and Jennifer! Rita baked me many tasty treats while I worked and enjoyed the city. Kathleen took me around downtown and showed me the sights. This was just after the flooding, and the river was HIGH! She also stayed with me on the harrowing day that was Friday (she is now the Faery Ink Press morale officer!). Jennifer helped me out on Saturday and Sunday and I was so pleased that she got to take in a bunch of panels and experience the con! On Sunday evening, my cousin Kevin (other side of the family) took me out to supper with his fiancé. What a nice way to cap off a very eventful week!

Me at the parliament building at noon. The clock sang to us, how cute. It was such a nice day!

General Impressions

I arrived Friday morning at the EY Centre to set up. I had one box of books from Regina that I brought with me. I was expecting two more to show up. I was already worried because according to my tracking information, only ONE box was out for delivery that morning. The other was set to arrive Monday morning—too late for convention times!

Why two boxes, sent out at the same time from the same location were not shipped together on the same truck, I’ll never know.

I had what was left from Fan Expo Regina: a fair number of copies of books in the Sparkstone Saga, a handful of books from The Violet Fox Series, and some copies of Within.

I set those up, and we waited for the ONE BOX to be delivered. I checked the delivery bay several times. Nothing.

That was when I checked my tracking information again.

The box had gone out for delivery at 8am. At 8:10am: address incomplete. Box returning to sender.

Returning to sender. IN CALGARY.

No, no, no, no.

I called up Canada Post, and after about an hour on the phone, I got to the terrible, dark bottom of it all.

The address I’d put on the boxes? Not incomplete, per se. “Incorrect.”

When I was looking up official exhibitor shipping information on the Ottawa Comiccon site, I couldn’t really find much. I found it difficult to find an address for the EY Centre (though in retrospect, I now see it in several places on the site), but more difficult was finding reassuring information about WHERE I was supposed to send my product, and the procedures surrounding this. The EY Centre is a HUGE place. I’d never done this before. I take everything with me in my suitcases, or I ship to friends.

Which is what I SHOULD have done in this case.

The information I found in an official looking document on the site was about exhibitor services. Exhibitors could ship items c/o a third party company and they would take care of it. Mostly it seemed to be about large display items (hanging banners, etc), but at least there was a ship-to address, instructions about putting your booth number there, and be sure to put “Ottawa Comiccon” on the box! That felt right to me: it was spelled out in a clear manner, it made sense that the con would have a company handling the onerous task of turning what is essentially a warehouse into a comic-con friendly environment, including handling exhibitor arrangements. Otherwise, in the exhibitor PACKAGE document only said to ensure your package arrived Thursday or Friday, because it wouldn’t be received before or after that (in and of itself, stressful)—they had no spelled-out address or clear instructions that would ease my mind.

I even called the official Ottawa Comiccon exhibitor manager about shipping, and confirmed that as long as I put the address on there, my booth number, and “Ottawa Comiccon” on the box, that it would arrive and even be delivered to my table. So, feeling confident, I did up my boxes, and prepared them to be shipped.

But I asked the wrong questions. I didn’t notice that the address I put on the box was for this third party company itself—which was not where the convention was being held—it was a different address than the EY Centre. I did not put two and two together.

So of course the address wasn’t exactly wrong. It showed up at the “right” place, but there was no one at this address to receive the box, no unit number—so it was returned to sender. And no, there was no way to drive to a shipping warehouse to retrieve the box. It was stuck in the mailing system and I would just have to “deal with it.”

I bet another language would have a word for this, but I’ll attempt to describe. When you are positive you’re dreaming, and you want to wake up, but your brain tells you that you are firmly planted in reality? That was me for the majority of Friday.

I was so angry, mostly at myself. How could I have been so stupid? I should have double checked it before sending it away. Shoulda, woulda, coulda. And what made me more frustrated is, if I’m unhappy at all, I cannot sell efficiently. Happiness = business. Anger = lost sales. And I was already in several hundred dollars for this convention. The travel alone was nearly as much as the artist alley table. I was going to lose. Big time.

I was hurting, and I was in the middle of the country with very little product and low morale. I had to take my lemons and squeeze them for as much juice as I could, no matter what my true feelings were. This is the lonely part of entrepreneurship.

Sales

Within the first 45 minutes on Friday, I made $100. The customers were decisive! This lifted my spirits, though I knew this momentum wouldn’t last. I didn’t have enough stock to keep up the demand. One box. That was it.

I was going to sell out, that was inevitable. I had just enough to cover my expenses, maybe, if I took a couple of orders and upsold my eBook packages. There is a certain relief that comes with lowering your expectations. Instead of hitting my high minimum target goal, I told myself, as long as I make back the $450 table, it would be okay. The travel was very expensive, but at least I got to see my family. I could eat that if I had to. I had learned a lesson. This mantra relaxed me, and as Friday came to a close, I felt better.

Kathleen kept my spirits high, distracted me by asking me questions about my business, helped to keep me caffeinated, helped me focus on the positive. Selling out is not a bad thing, she said. People will understand.

That night, I was debating what to do. My stock was dwindling. I had one copy of The Violet Fox left. A handful of the others. I could sell the last six books, leave, and work on other hourly projects so at least I could make my clients happy. But my cousins encouraged me to take orders for the entire weekend. I slept on it, and decided they were right. I was already in Ottawa. I had to at least try. If I couldn’t get orders on the busiest day of the con (Saturday), then I’d just leave. I set new dollar targets for Saturday and Sunday that I would need to meet to make my time spent worthwhile.

I created a strategy: I’d operate the table like my website. If the customer spent more than $X, I would ship to them for free. Finding the right number took some consideration, but I settled on $35. This is $10 cheaper than the website, currently. I chose it because I sell the two current books in The Violet Fox Series for $35 (a deal, they’re $20 each usually). The average person drops around $25-$30 at my table anyway. So this was not a huge stretch.

I was nervous. What if no one took me seriously? I put my “SOLD OUT” sign on the table. Changed my pitch. Chatted with people. I felt better than I had the previous day. I couldn’t change the past. I just had to make lemonade.

I was expecting maybe one or two orders. But no. My impromptu mail-order business was a success. As I ran out of books, I took addresses. People could take home the books I had, and I’d ship them the ones I didn’t. That was fine. Books are heavy. Who wants to carry them around the con, even in a bag? Silver linings to everything.

I managed to exceed my initial high minimum sales target for this con – a target I made assuming I would have all of my stock—with essentially six books, my eBooks, and a smile.

I’m not sure why I didn’t put two and two together before, but this city has money, and loves supporting its own—even if you’re from away. Almost every person I talked to, when I told them that some of my books were set in Canada: “Oh wow, I LOVE that. Everything is set in New York/the US nowadays.” And guess what—that led to sales.

I also had no issues with my Moneris reader! A lot more people than expected paid cash. Thank goodness for these small things. I also found that there weren’t many sales after 4pm. Once the celebrities and main festivities in the vendor hall had cleared out, the money dried up.

Where my strategy failed was, a couple of people only wanted the first book in a series, but because I had to charge a shipping fee on top of that, it deterred them from buying at all. They didn’t want to spend $35—after all, what if they don’t like the first book, what would they do with the second one? Understandable, 100%. So I probably lost a few hundred dollars here just from single-book purchasers. This gave me valuable insight into my website. Unfortunately there’s not much I can do about shipping rates in Canada. While I can eat the shipping costs if you spend $X, shipping is at least $10, sometimes closer to $20 if I’m shipping across the country. The more I ship in a box, the cheaper it is.

This experience was affirming for me. My books are attractive, the blurbs are enticing, and I am good at interacting with people. That even when I think I can’t, I can. That I’m going to make dumb mistakes, but I also make pretty good lemonade.

Unfortunately, because of this whole debacle, I didn’t have a chance to test out my new sales strategies. I’ll have to do that next time.

So THANK YOU to everyone who ordered from me at the table! Your confidence in me is inspiring and I won’t forget it!

Display

Because I didn’t have much to work with, I was disappointed with my showing at this convention. I don’t like it when I can’t present my best. I worked with what I had. My cousins insisted that it was fine, that it still presented nicely. And I will say that people STILL slowed down to look, even though I only had six books on the table and some signage.

So instead of bemoaning my table display, I want to share some pictures of a project my sister Jessie and I are working on! She wanted to sink her teeth into a new challenge: designing lightweight, functional display items for my convention tables. And um, if you think I’m talented? Jessie is a craftsperson. Not only does she draw/paint, but she blacksmiths too. Yep. She has what our family calls “the Holman gene”: she enjoys working/making things with her hands, taking things apart, discovering how they work, putting them back together, working with minute tools with precision and in general being a creative person! She works as a jewellery designer currently for a medium-sized jewellery company in Nova Scotia, where she also designs packaging and display items.

Soo when you put the two of us to work on something, cool things happen!

These are just mock-ups, but we’re hoping they will be ready for my events in August. She’s shown me the prototypes, and once we work out some more details, I’m giving her the go-ahead to produce a couple of sets.

The boxy bookshelves:


The book ends:

Newslsetter

An update on my newsletter. I haven’t sent it out in a while, but I am collecting email addresses with each con I go to. I don’t currently offer an incentive to sign up—I just have a list on a clipboard on the table. In retrospect, I suppose I should be the one writing down the emails so I can decipher them later, as I do have trouble with that.

Good People

Everyone was so friendly and professional at the con. Even when I was running around like a chicken with its head cut off trying to figure out where my books got to. One woman who I was dealing with at the exhibitor services booth recognized me each day as I punched in: “You’re back?” Yep!

As in Regina, I had customers recognize me, even though I’ve never been to their city before. People recognized me from Hal-Con! Once again, my cross-country travels are paying off. It also occurred to me that in this year, 2017, I’ll be vending in MANY Canadian provinces! What a better way to spend Canada 150? Thank you to all who stopped and chatted with me!

I got to meet in person one of my long-term clients, Joanne Lecuyer, of Topsy Books. She came and sat at my table and we had a great chat about publishing and the future of her company. What I like about Joanne is her commitment to quality and her publishing schedule. Nothing can get her down! Someday soon you might see her at a convention near you.

I caught up with my friend Bill, who I met at Hal-Con: he was working the convention. I was so pleased to chat with Justin Currie of Chasing Artwork and Drake, another artist friend I met in Edmonton and again in Regina.

Phil LaMarr also stopped by my table! We met at Hal-Con when we were both guests. He is such a lovely man. We had a nice long chat when it wasn’t very busy. He asked after my sister too, how nice!

Will I go back?

When I arrived in Ottawa, I thought, this will probably be my only stop at this con. The expense is enormous, and I am but one person. That sentiment grew on Friday: I thought, I’m never coming back again. But, after turning things around on Saturday and Sunday, I realized that while yes, it’s expensive, I could maximize my profits here, in a place where there is true demand. So I already put a deposit on next year’s table (much to the surprise of the exhibitor services staff!). I’m not sure if I’ll go myself, so I may rope (and pay!) my cousins to run the table for me. In any case, going forward, a presence in Ottawa will be integral to my cross-country strategy!

My next convention isn’t until Canada day weekend—Otafest, in Calgary.

Two down, one to go. Why did I think doing three cons in a row was a good idea? Oh yes. Good for business is why.

I am writing this on my flight from Regina to Ottawa, sleep deprived and sniffly from my cold. I’ll be staying in Ottawa for a week until Ottawa Comic Con. I am a little sad to leave Regina – I’d just gotten used to the flat, dusty, warm climate.

General Impressions

This whole journey required me to do some mental gymnastics when it came to organization. Originally I was going to go to Prince George’s Northern Fan Con but Fan Expo Regina worked out better for my three-con hop extravaganza. Unfortunately, I didn’t find out that I had a table until a month before! That is almost no time. The communication between the vendors and the expo seemed to be extremely disorganized.

I took the Greyhound from Calgary to Regina. They only offer overnight trips, from 11:30pm to 9:30am. Dirt cheap, compared to flying and the cost of luggage. That meant I had to go on a Thursday night instead of a Friday, as getting into Regina at 9:30am Saturday would be too late for setup for this two-day con. I can sleep on a bus, I thought.

After all, who the hell wants to go to REGINA on a Thursday night?

Well, turns out, an entire bus load of people. It was jam packed, the air conditioning was on full blast, and I could barely get two hours. Not good for me and my cold. Got some nice pictures of the sunrise at 5AM though.

When I arrived, it was relatively easy to get a cab to my AirBnB—a room in a woman’s house very close to Evraz Place in the Cathedral District. I was a bit early so I dropped my bags and got some breakfast at a local fair trade/vegetarian/vegan coffee shop. It was very tasty. The Cathedral District is an older part of Regina near downtown, similar to Kensington in Calgary but smaller. I’m so glad I stayed there, it was very conveniently located, cheap, and nice overall.

So I took Friday to relax and recover for the two hectic days to come.

Display

On Saturday morning, I got up early, got a cab to the convention centre, and set up. This was straightforward. I packed my display into two suitcases, plus I had my shiny new banner. I always worry when I’m travelling about whether I bring enough. I rationed and counted out my stock this time, bringing exactly what I expected to sell plus a tad extra to pad out the display. Once I had it set up on my 6ft artist alley table, it actually didn’t look too bad.

After Calgary Expo and figuring out how to display in 10×10, I really appreciated the smaller space more this time. There is something to be said for space restrictions fuelling creativity. I returned to my U-shape: putting the Violet Fox Series on one side, and the Sparkstone Saga on the other, elevated to eye level. Within went in the middle next to the newsletter signup.

In general, I was surprised at how TALL the vendors built their displays for this con, even in artist alley. Large towers of prints everywhere you look. In the exhibitor/merchandise area, everyone seemed to have ceiling-hanging banners. In the rules, there were guidelines about height restrictions but those didn’t seem to be enforced here.

Location

I was in artist alley. I actually liked the set up of the con. It’s not a huge show, and very navigable. The artist alley was several rows long near the back of the centre but it received a lot of traffic. I was the first table off the main drag, so my tiger banner was visible and drew people in. Good ol’ tiger.

Sales

This was a two-day con. It’s sometimes hard to say which day will be the better sales day. Generally Saturday is the best. It seemed to vary from artist to artist that I talked to.
Saturday was boiling hot. Regina was having very good weather: 27, 28 degrees the entire weekend. Unfortunately, for some reason the convention centre doesn’t know how to anticipate weather and they didn’t turn on the air conditioning for Saturday. This resulted in a lot of unhappy customers and vendors. In fact, the last few hours of the con were pretty dead as a result.

Surprisingly, I had a good Saturday, but a terrible Sunday. I had a lot of interest on the Sunday, but not a lot of bites. I didn’t end up doing any promotions—no first day sales. This is the first time in a while that I’ve forgone them. But I was a) eager to recoup my costs of the trip and b) had limited stock. Maybe if I had done a sale on Sunday I would have seen a bump in sales. Even with my debit and credit options, people seemed extremely hesitant to part with their money, preferring to buy later. I had a lot of people ask me if I’m in Chapters. I need to get better distro through there.

At the end, I was left with only 2 copies of The Violet Fox left and 4 copies of The Silver Spear, so my careful packing paid off. I sold almost as many Violet Fox bundles (first and second books together) as I did single Violet Foxes, so that tells me that my pricing here is good. In the picture above, you can see how few copies I have left! I also put the Emerald Cloth picture down so I can have a proper cover reveal later

I didn’t bring so much stock that it would be a nuisance to pack up and take to Ottawa, but I didn’t take too little so I wouldn’t create a demand that would be difficult to fill later (shipping costs for single books are too high). While people seemed mostly drawn to the Violet Fox Series because of the tiger cover, I did sell a number of Stars In Her Eyes and a couple of Sparkstone Saga bundles. I was hoping to sell more Sparkstone Saga bundles – I could afford to drop the price a bit there to make that more enticing. I might do that this weekend for Ottawa.

I didn’t sell many eBooks – I also didn’t bring my sign promoting them. I made a makeshift one later on Saturday and that’s when I got some nibbles.

I also didn’t take buttons with me on this trip. They are not worth their weight.

My Moneris reader had some weird errors on Sunday, so I’m going to have to look into that. In general, I found it a bit stressful in the morning, making sure it was properly tethered to my phone. I found I had to have the Bluetooth turned on BEFORE I open the Moneris app.

Overall, I did slightly better than Saskatoon Expo, sales-wise, which was my goal. The table was twice as expensive and I had to pay for accommodations (which I didn’t have to in Saskatoon).

DUST EVERYWHERE

I did not realize how dusty Regina is. It wasn’t just the convention floors. Outside, a car would go by and kick up enough dust to get in your eyes and mouth. That was hell on the contacts. At night, the wind would howl mercilessly. That, plus the heat…is Regina secretly Tattooine? Even on my books, there was a thin layer of grit. Not unpleasant, sort of like a matte coating, but still. How?!

This didn’t help my cold. I had a whole station with tissues, hand sanitizer, cough drops, cold medication, and water to keep me going in this desert climate.

Friend Times

The whole weekend was a whirlwind so I didn’t get a lot of social time but I did end up going to see Guardians of the Galaxy with Greg. That was fun! And the movie theatre had recliner seats! Such luxury!

I had a nice chat with Nyco Rudolph, who is launching is book, When Bears Invade. Hopefully we get a chance to have a beer the next time I’m in Winnipeg or at another show.

Getting Recognized…and the Cost

While Regina is a new audience for me, I had a couple of people either a) say they’ve heard of me before b) return for more books because they saw me at Calgary Expo c) had fans/friends of fans approach and buy physical copies of eBooks they’d bought online. So that was cool! I feel my ten-show-a-year strategy is starting to pay off.

I also had a few people express interest in publishing, and doing trade shows with their books. I really enjoy talking about what I do (it’s the main reason why I write these post mortems), but a healthy reality check is required before jumping into an aggressive schedule like mine. Trade shows are expensive. Travelling is expensive. Lugging heavy product around the country is EXTREMELY expensive. Eating healthy while on the go is also tricky, especially if you have food allergies like me. And if you can’t keep your costs down, you’d better price accordingly—and have a product that you can price accordingly. Remember to take ALL of your expenses into account, not just the table cost, when choosing a show. You need an attractive product and a defined brand. For bigger shows like Calgary Expo, you can’t expect to break even by only selling $10 items (food probably being the exception). Undervaluing your art is the first step to failure. And, I think this should go without saying, but I’ll say it anyway: are you a super nerd that loves dropping hundreds of dollars on autographs and merch? Being a seller is going to be difficult for you! Turning around and spending your sales money at the con may bring you short term happiness but you may find yourself unable to grow your business.

Regina did okay by me, but I see where I can make improvements. I see now that I need to shift my mindset for smaller shows. I only blame myself when I don’t sell well—there’s no point in blaming the potential customers. You can’t blame someone for not buying. It’s not their job to like your product. It’s your job to make your product inviting, and be inviting yourself, so that the barrier to purchase is so low that they’re throwing money at you.

Will I go back?

Maybe! I made enough to consider it. I applied for guest status but I didn’t get it, but in a sense, I’m glad because they seemed to stick a lot of featured artists out in the cafeteria, away from the main vendors and artist alley. WHY? That sounds like business hell to me.

I’m not sure of the final count on attendance – but it felt slightly larger than Saskatoon. Last year’s numbers say 15,000 or so, but certainly not more than 20,000 came this year. When it was busy, it was packed.

I’m getting to the point where I’m going to have to have a vehicle to drive to these cons, if I want to lower my expenses and keep doing them. I’m also getting the sense that I don’t have to do every show each year to stay relevant, despite my go-go-go drive to do All The Things. I also hate only focussing on Western cons because I have an audience in the East that I’d love to capitalize on. Regina is close enough that I could throw it in the rotation each year, despite its apparent internal issues.

Well, time for a week of work and rest/recovery – then Ottawa Comic Con!

Phew. First con of the year, done! This convention is the first of a busy THREE WEEKEND convention travelling trip that includes Fan Expo Regina and Ottawa Comic Con. If you look closely in the picture, you’ll see a sneak preview of The Emerald Cloth cover (full cover reveal coming soon).

Also, look, I have new hair!! Bye-bye purple and blue, hello regular brown. It hasn’t been this short since I was a young teen.

General Impressions

Calgary Expo is currently one of my biggest cons on the roster. Attendance was down from 103,000 to 95,000 this year. Four-day cons are long and exhausting. Aside from some help from Kate and my editor friend Jessica, I was alone for most of the con. This made for a lonely time when it wasn’t busy, which was unfortunately more than I would have liked. Many thanks to Dave who spent hours helping me set up! <3

Display

I tried several arrangements for this con.

The difference between a 10×10 booth and a single-table space is astounding. Twenty square feet is a lot to play with, and I think I got a little blindsided by the opportunities.

On Thursday, I tried out a radically different approach, something I’d wanted to try for a long time. I used the long, 10ft table along the side of the booth, and brought an extra table to create an L-shape, inviting people into the space. I was hoping that people would walk into the space to reach the books.

That is hubris talking. Of course I think people want to walk in and touch my products because they are pretty. The reality is, a lot of book people are shy, and the idea of going into a place where they may feel pressured to buy sucks. It’s a similar problem to the one Chadwick and I encountered at C4 last year. I thought I’d eliminated the issue by standing behind the table, but ultimately, my covers have to be in people’s faces for them to notice them amongst the other visual distractions, and as a person I have to be front and center to catch people’s attention.

So on Friday, I changed gears and we re-did my table space. People still had to venture in a little, but it was a much shorter, cozier distance than going ALL the way into the back. I also had a mat on the floor to give the feet a break from the concrete! This mat became super dirty and gross by the end of the four days and I ended up throwing it away.

Once my display was settled, I quickly found the brisk sales I was accustomed to. Now that I know I’m not ready for large L-shapes, I can go back to my U-shape, which works well.

Hunger In Her Bones looks SO GOOD! This is my first convention with my newest book. It arrived two days before the con. I had several compliments on its appearance and production, and it was easily the most-picked-up book on the table.

Sales

I had ridiculously high expectations for this convention. I thought that by changing my location, I’d be doubling my sales. Not so! Instead I did about the same as last year.
I had a lot of return customers! It was so exciting to have people approach and ask when The Emerald Cloth is coming out. Equally exciting was the number of people who returned to buy Hunger In Her Bones. Not as many eBook sales – I was expecting many more eBook library sales, I think I need to drop the price to $20 instead of $21.

The Sparkstone Saga outsold The Violet Fox Series this time, and Stars In Her Eyes hands-down beat out all my other books. This is due to it a) being at the front of my display b) Hunger looking so damn good c) many people have already read The Violet Fox Series, so I’m getting them on my scifi series while they wait for The Emerald Cloth.

Thursday was not as I expected, possibly because of my display. Friday was good. Saturday was also good. Sunday was weird! Perhaps it was my lack of sleep, but people were just not interested in interacting with me, as hard as I tried to engage. It got to the point where I was starting to wonder if I had something on my face.

Within continues to quietly grab sales. I desperately need another horror/thriller book to grab those horror dollars and bridge that gap between it and the other books. Originally I had one scheduled for this year but I dropped it in favour of focussing on The Emerald Cloth.

Ultimately, to maintain and maximize my profits for this space, I would have to have far more than five or six books. In general, if I want to increase and maximize my sales, I need to have a couple of new books each year. The first time someone comes to my booth, they’re spending $35-$45 on books. Occasionally more. But then they’re coming back only for new stuff: $20, max. As I reach market saturation for this con audience, I have to increase production to maintain or exceed my previous sales.

Taking Debit!

Hurray! FINALLY! I signed up for a Moneris account, which connects to my business bank account. Signing up was fairly straight forward, and the reader arrived in the mail about a week before the convention. I pay a monthly fee for the service.

The breakdown of my customers paying habits: 58% cash. 42% card.

HALF of my card-paying customers used debit, and more than a few said things like, “Oh you take debit, I’ll buy a book!” (Note the difference between that and “I’d like to buy a book, do you take debit?”)

The only trouble I had with it was on Thursday. Turns out, I didn’t tether the machine correctly with my phone. Fortunately, all I had to do was reinitialize the connection, and it worked well for the rest of the weekend! Many people were relieved that I took debit, and others were impressed with the professional nature of the reader itself.

My booth neighbours used DreamPayments, which I found very intriguing as they don’t charge monthly fees and you outright buy the little card reader for about $100. They’re a new company so I’ll have to keep an eye on it. I’m committed to using Moneris for now.

Crash & Burn: An Update

Last year, I gave Kate some of my table space so she and her friend Finn could sell their wildly successful comic, Crash & Burn. They had their own table this year in the Big Four Building, and unsurprisingly, they sold TONS of their first-ever volume of the comic, which is a collection of the first four issues. Not only did they have media interest, the Alberta minister of culture and tourism checked them out as well. You can check it out for free on their website, but if you’re a cool bean you’ll back them on Patreon. Thanks so much to Kate who helped me throughout the weekend and made sure that I didn’t die.

Cool People!

One of my favourite parts of going to cons is seeing my fellow creative entrepreneurs. I feel such kinship with people who make money from their art. I had the privilege of eating too much crème brulée with Greg Chomichuck (slowest eater of all who live), Andrew Thomas, Gibson Quarter, Scott Henderson, Justin Currie, and many others. Less fun was going home on the train at midnight and then having trouble sleeping because of all the good food!

Scott Henderson and I had many good chats throughout the weekend. He is an extremely talented, award-nominated artist who I think doesn’t get enough praise and attention. Not only has he done artwork for Highwater Press, but he also has his own graphic novel series, The Chronicles of Era. Everything I’ve read from it so far is really good, and he has the kind of artwork you can return to and find something new with each inhalation.

I also briefly got to see Hope Nicholson again, but our busy schedules didn’t allow us much interaction time! She’s promoting her new release from Quirk Books, The Spectacular Sisterhood of Women. I hope we can chat more when I’m in Winnipeg.

Ella Beaumont, formerly the acquisitions editor at EDGE and now the operating force behind her fiance’s ambitious writing-publishing endeavor, visited my table a couple of times as well. I always enjoy my chats with her. We have a lot in common and I enjoy her enthusiasm about the business.

My booth was in between two woodcraft companies! To my right was Pickering Woodwork, and my left, Charlie Rabbit. I really admired a lot of the work that went into their art. Charlie Rabbit had an especially impressive display, they basically built a whole structure around their space! Pickering Woodwork, for their second con, seemed to be extremely organized and had brisk sales the entire weekend. Yay!

Besides all my friends and fellow creatives, thank you to everyone who came up to me and chatted about writing, publishing, and making a living with your art! I LOVE talking about what I do–and I love giving people a dose of realism about the business.

Improvements for next time:

• Better signage for the buttons. I’ve figured out how to optimize their placement, but if I’m going to have them in my wooden box, I need to have their price on the lid.
• Run a social media promotion at the table: the booth next to me had a promotion and a draw. If you liked their Facebook page, took a selfie at the booth, you could sign up for the draw to win a custom-designed piece.
• Better signage for my pre-orders. I took some pre-orders for The Emerald Cloth but I could clarify that it’s not out yet.
• Have to remember to sign up for panels! I keep forgetting, I’m so focussed on my other work.
• Branded display pieces. Shelving, bookends, that sort of thing. Some of this I’m already working on (stay tuned!).
• Buy hand sanitizer: I write this with sniffles because I picked up some con crud! Usually I’m pretty careful at cons:
  you shake a lot of hands, you handle a lot of money, but pobody’s nerfect, and sometimes your immune system breaks down and the sickness worms its way in.

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Thanks for reading, come back next week to hear about my adventures in Regina! I leave you with a still from my new sitcom, Clare & Tiger. It’s grrrrrreeat!

Since I was in Nova Scotia for Hal-Con, and I’m staying until the holidays, I figured I should do at least one Christmas market. After much research, I found this one in the middle of Moncton, New Brunswick.

Also look at these windmills! They’re at the border of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. So pretty, but at the same time, a little creepy with their sheer height. JUST WHAT I LIKE?!

General Impressions

This was my first Christmas market and I think it was a good one to get me started. The Christmas market at the Coliseum is basically an institution in Moncton—this was its 29th year. From talking to the other vendors, I gleaned it used to be much bigger.

In any case, this was a major test for me, and a major risk at that. For the most part, I’ve been exhibiting at comic cons and book festivals. This is probably the first non-speculative related event I’ve done. Fortunately, it was a good risk, as I sold lots and got to introduce my brand to the good people of Moncton and beyond.

The thing about doing Christmas markets out of province is you’re always at the mercy of the weather. The hours for this show were so long (10am to 9pm on Saturday!) that when it was slow, it sucked majorly.

Display

I had a lot of lookers—people would walk down the aisle and slow down just to take in what I had going on at the table. Which was a lot.

I was very happy to have my sister Jessie around. Her “DON’T SHOW ANY TAPE” rule may stick on me someday. She creatively used fishing line to tie back the fabric, just like she did at Hal-Con. Also she helped me make the horizontal banner appear NOT droopy! YAY. The secret to success here was also fishing line.

To continue my previous display themes, I stole some of Jessie’s furniture to create height and a little alcove area (it would have been cute to have a little Friendly Giant scene in there…oh well!). And I FINALLY GOT BOOK STANDS. No more awkward propping against flimsy books. YAY.

I took some Christmas decorations because a) obviously, it’s a Christmas market and b) there was a prize for best display (which I sadly did not win, haha). I thought more vendors would be into decorating the booth but turns out, a lot of them were selling Christmas related items anyway. I used one of grandmother’s nutcrackers and my other grandmother’s tree. We decorated the tree with pretty, sparkly ornaments from the house. It’s a light up tree, and we could have plugged it in (FREE ELECTRICITY! Seriously, cons usually charge $70 A DAY just for the privilege!) but the plugs were all taken and alas we did not have an extension chord.

We brought a second table for gift wrapping. Jessie created a little station. It took a couple of customers to get into the rhythm of gift wrapping but I think the area looked super cute.

Sales

This show had a lot of expenses. The booth was $450—there was nothing smaller than a 10×10. I also had to pay for three nights in a motel, gas, food…etc. So my minimum sales goal to break even was pretty high, as was my target goal. Fortunately, I met and exceeded it!

I was extremely close to selling out of The Violet Fox. It didn’t take long to make my first sale, and my first sale was a Violet Fox bundle—unusual for people to drop that much money on an unknown author! I did my usual discounted Friday thing, though I probably didn’t have to, because I sold almost half of my Violet Fox stock on that first day. I mean, they did warn me that sales were brisk, but I didn’t expect them to be extremely brisk. Most people were eager to pay with cash, and I only had to inconvenience one person for not having debit.

I would have completely sold out of everything had it not been for the unusually slow Sunday. I only did around $100 in sales—basically nothing compared to the previous two days. I think the storm warnings hit everyone pretty hard. Had it not been for that storm warning/heavy snow later that day, I would have met and exceeded my Calgary Expo numbers. Ah well!

One tip I got from a buyer was that it wasn’t completely clear that I was the author. True, this is a question I’m asked constantly, especially since I brand myself as a publisher more than an author. Usually at events there’s room for me to write my name and title on my badge. I ended up doing that here, though it got me thinking that having an official nametag might be beneficial, especially if I have one or two other people working with me at the event.

Surprisingly, the gift wrapping wasn’t as successful as I’d hoped. I bought a special sparkly purple gift wrapping set from Winners just for the occasion. We even did a decent job of remembering to upsell it to the customers. I think the problem was that I had to rely on Jessie to do it (because there were so many people, I couldn’t stop to wrap a present AND sell the next person on the product), but Jessie wasn’t always physically at the booth. We charged $2 for the wrapping, which Jessie did beautifully.

I considered doing it for charity. That probably would have gotten a far greater response—though it was short notice to add the gift wrapping component in the first place and I didn’t want to rush a charity partnership. Furthermore, I’m strongly against adding a charity component to any project for the sake of bolstering interest or sales. In general, people told me that gift wrapping was something they liked to do themselves as a de-stressing activity, or that my books would be a stocking stuffer and not require wrapping.
All in all, even with the extremely slow Sunday, Christmas at the Coliseum just barely knocks Edmonton Expo out of its second place slot for sales this year.

Types of Vendors

For an established Christmas market, I was expecting more established brands to monopolize most of the spaces. By that, I mean small businesses run by creative entrepreneurs like me with an established look and product(s). And there was some of that. The booth across from mine sold nightlight lightboxes with exchangeable slides. Very cute. The people to my left have been doing the Christmas markets for years and sold Faberge eggs. But there were also a lot of unbranded or less-than-branded jewelry people, people selling random Christmas or old things from their attics, and people with good-looking products but terrible displays.

To my knowledge, I was the only book vendor. Attendees told me that there was another author or two a few years ago, but they stopped coming. I’m not completely surprised. With the cost of the booth, you’d have to be local and/or have a lot of product and/or have a solid brand to make this market worthwhile as a single author.

Local From Away

My sales at this con, I think, were boosted by the sheer fact that I AM a Maritimer. Everyone wanted to buy or at least look at books by a fellow East Coaster, which really created a sense of community for me. More attendees than I expected were from Nova Scotia. About half the people in attendance were French, and many more were bilingual. A couple spoke French to me, and I could understand enough to reply in English. Yay for *some* French education in my rural area. Gotta get bilingual one of these days!! Interestingly enough, several parents bought my books for their twelve and thirteen year old children because they “should” start reading more in English. Which I’d never even considered as a purchase decision. So that was very interesting.

Overall, everyone was extremely nice, staff and attendees included. I was invited to or told about multiple other markets and festivals I should attend—including the Frye Festival. Someday that would be a great one.

Observations

• Moncton is full of pregnant ladies and young kids! It’s not often in my experience that you see so many younger people in the Maritimes. Good to see that there will be a new generation of Maritimers SOMEWHERE. Then again, I know that the Christmas market is a skewed demographic—of course families are going to want to go, and thus I saw many.
• Christmas music would play at a comfortable level on the loud speakers. This was pleasant—I enjoy background music at comic cons because it really adds to the ambiance. Yet I wished they had another CD. It was the same Christmas mix CD, for three very long days. I guess this is what working in retail is like?
• I had people recognize me from Hal-Con.
• A group of friendly women walked by my booth, and stopped to take it in. I said hello. One of the women said, “Oh my, I can tell your books are scary!” Um, because of all the sparkly purple? People judging books by their covers…sort of…
• A man said to me, “Oh, I have to get my wife to look at your table!” He got his wife’s attention and says, “Look at this woman’s table, it’s purple!” She turned, and shuttered, and hurried away. He grinned and said, “She hates purple!”

Will I go back?

It’s hard to say. Theoretically I could send someone to the show. It would drastically cut into my profit—and of course, bad weather could destroy all my business. I’m going to have to think about it in the months to come. I’d love to have a presence in Moncton, or the Maritimes in general, during the holidays.

Year Wrap Up

I did ten shows in 2016. Jessica did the Expo Holiday Show for me (thanks Jessica!) and I’m hoping to make an appearance there next year. Will I do as many in 2017? I have four shows confirmed, and about seven more that I’m applying for. Going aggressive on larger shows this year not only boosted Faery Ink Press sales, but made my freelance business even more successful. So it’s a big part of my business plan for 2017 and possibly 2018. I don’t think it’s 100% sustainable to do every year—one convention can be extremely tiring, and doing several in a row is taxing on the body and brain. It’s not the most conventional method of distribution, but it works for now, and it does spread the brand across the country in concentrated bursts.

Hal-Con, we’ve come a long way.

General Impressions

In a lot of ways, Hal-Con is my home con, because Nova Scotia is my home, even if I don’t live here anymore. This was my fourth year at Hal-Con and every year my regulars come out and support me and my books. Thank you to everyone who returned and bought books this year. Also big thank you to my sister Jessie who helped out all weekend—including set up and take down and being my wing-lady! YAY SISTERS!

As with last year, Hal-Con attendance was capped because of capacity in the convention centre. C’mon Nova Centre, hurry up and get built.

Location

The biggest downside this year was the placement of the artist guests.

Every year that I’ve been going (and probably for years before that), Hal-Con has changed up how they place their artist guests. The first year I was there, most of us were on the ground level and benefited from the free entrance (except when the fire marshal shut everything down). Second year, I was upstairs in a segregated room with the artist guests, and sales suffered. Third year, everyone was together in the big rink-area and sales were very good. This year: artists and vendors were more integrated in that same area…and artist guests were moved to their own private area. Don’t even ask me what floor it was. Some people call it the second floor. Others say the fourth. That’s how crazy the convention centre is.

I knew immediately once the vendor placements were announced that I would be losing hundreds of dollars in sales by not being with the other vendors. Yes, I was an artist guest, and there were privileges that came with that. But ultimately I cared more about a) people being able to find me and b) people buying my books. We have to make the most of the location we are given, however—just like any other con. And I’ve been wrong before about my location being terrible—sometimes a location can surprise you.

The way the artist guest “alley” was set up: a semi-circle of tables, backed with drape, leading down to the “main event” – the voice actors from Sailor Moon: Linda Ballantyne and Toby Proctor. Very cool that they were there—they’re super nice and very engaging with their fans. But it’s not like they were there all the time–the line in the picture above would form in some degree every time they made an appearance.

Behind the drape there was a hidden walkway that led down to the green room that held snacks and coffee for guests. Beyond that were special signing booths for the celebrities and bigger authors, and the Supernatural Impala.

Usual problems with being near or across from the guests: depending on the kind of guest they are, they don’t always have large displays, and/or they’re not always at their table. If a customer sees a near-empty aisle that isn’t populated with product—guess what, they’re not going to go down that aisle! So I dressed up my table, pointed my covers toward the trafficked areas, and tried my best to tractor beam in some interest.

Most of the time, the area was not highly trafficked. The only times it got crazy was when Linda and Toby were signing. Then there was a line. And there’s nothing better than talking to and selling to people with nothing else to do!

I think I maximized the use of my location, though a lot of my customers expressed confusion and frustration because I wasn’t easy to find.

Display

So, for this display I ended up stealing some of my sister’s furniture to create the look I wanted. I created two focus areas for my two series. The Violet Fox area is actually a gaming table, but we draped fabric over it to create two distinct upper and lower “shelves.” The tables themselves seemed kind of narrow and shorter than 8ft, but at least I didn’t have to crawl under the table to get in and out. We bought some fresh flowers, and although not pictured, we added some purple ones for the Saturday and Sunday.
And thanks to Sam, I now have a new whiteboard! Bye bye, dollar store whiteboard, hello sturdier, larger board. Jessie drew the pretty faery and styled the text.
This space was roughly the size of an artist alley table space, but with the added bonus of backing drape (not every artist alley space has that). The more books I get, the more tight this space becomes and the more I have to get creative. My name was above it so that was fun!

Sales

As mentioned, due to my location, I lowered my sales expectations for Hal-Con this year. Surprisingly enough, though, counting my per diem I did make quite a bit of money at this con. And since I only had to pay for my flight, my expenses were otherwise low—so Hal-Con turned out to be extremely profitable for me this year. Usually it is a break-even or slight profit con (though again, I use this con as an excuse to come home!). I think my guest status, combined with my returning regulars & friends carried me through.

Unfortunately I didn’t have Hunger In Her Bones ready, but I took pre-orders and that was successful. It made me realize that I need to be always taking pre-orders for my next books of the year. Orders for The Emerald Cloth and my new potential horror book will need to start in April at Calgary Expo—which means I need to have cover art by then. Who orders the next book without knowing what it looks like? Pretty much no one. Unless you are extremely established.

Sales were overall steady throughout, even though it did feel slow at times. Sunday seemed to be fairly robust, and even if I wasn’t actually taking someone’s money, someone was always approaching me to talk or ask a question about my books or publishing in general.

Cool People!

I kind of met Phil LaMarr by accident. Between packing and travelling and conventioning in Winnipeg, I didn’t pay much attention to who the attending guests in Halifax were. Also as discussed previously, I am also bad at faces so recognizing celebrities is not my strong suit. So when he peeked his head around the drapes, wondering what exactly was beyond the main guest signing areas, I said hello enthusiastically, noting his guest badge. My sister was there too, and the three of us chatted for a while until I had a customer. Afterwards we looked him up and I was like OH Hermes from Futurama (and many other cartoons & games that I didn’t even realize)! He is such a sweet man, so down to earth and funny. We got to chat a few times throughout the weekend. Hopefully we get a chance to meet again!

Gates MacFadden also stopped by the booth. Again, I had a moment where I was like, wait, is that Gates? No, I don’t think so, but maybe it is? It totally was. She pointed out the promo sign for Hunger In Her Bones, and then wow’d at my entire display. She said congratulations to me for authoring and publishing my books, saying that it’s much easier to do what I do today what with the technologies available. She was just generally impressed with my stuff, so very cool!

Met Maggie Stiefvater for a second time. She was hanging with other author buds. Got my copy of The Scorpio Races signed—the only book I had on hand of hers—so that was fun!

One of my favourite people moments of the con was the World Building panel. Everyone on that panel was so talented and had something to contribute. I so enjoyed talking with Kevin Hearne, Ben Templesmith, Mike Rooth, and Chris Tulach. Also met the talented Youtuber & comic artist ALB and new publisher Joel Duggan, both super nice and enthusiastic. There is something about bringing a group of creators together to talk about how they create, and encouraging others in their creation process, that makes me feel centered—like I have found others that finally speak my language.

The only thing I wish was different about the panels in general was the moderation. One panel, the “moderator” just stood up and introduced us, and then sat in the audience. Another panel was actually moderated and the guy had prepared questions. The third panel, we self-moderated. I mean, I’m used to self-moderating, and I have moderated as well. I just wish it was more consistent across the board.

Anyway. In terms of customer interactions, I had a number that stand out prominently, but none so touching as this: an older gentleman approached my table, pleased that he had finally found me. He told me that he had searched the entire vendor floor, and asked every book vendor if they carried any Clare Marshall books—and then when they said no, he told them they should! Haha. He proceeded to say that he bought Stars In Her Eyes and Dreams In Her Head the previous year, even though he wasn’t much of a reader. He read them and told me that for the first time in twenty years, he became interested in reading again, and now reads all the time. Isn’t that amazing? It’s moments like these that remind me that even though I create things that speak to me, they can also speak to others too.

And funniest interaction? A family bought The Violet Fox for the second time because, get this: a dog ate their copy. Yes. You read that right. A DOG ATE ONE OF MY BOOKS. Because it was so tasty. A ringing endorsement??

Many thanks again to all that stopped by the booth for a chat.

Being a guest!

This year’s Hal-Con was completely different because I was a guest!

I received a per diem to be a guest at the convention, and a table in the artist guest area. I told them I was happy to be on as many panels as they needed. At Hal-Con, panels are reserved for guests or knowledgeable experts known to the staff. I don’t mind doing a lot of panels as it helps position me as an expert, and it’s fun to share my knowledge about publishing!

I was branded as a local author guest, even though I’m no longer a local—I live in Calgary, but I grew up in rural Nova Scotia. I plan my trips to Nova Scotia—my home—around this convention. Once they realized that, they offered to pay for my hotel room. While not totally necessary, this ended up being extremely convenient, as it meant I could use the many inside walkways from the hotel to get to the Convention Centre. Extremely grateful for this. The weather was cold, and crossing the ferry in the morning and walking up the hilly streets of Halifax in heels would not have been fun! Or back down at night, after the soiree, again in heels. I also received a little gift bag filled with candy from the Freak Lunchbox and some other fun Hal-Con swag.

I also had a personal assistant! Courtney was very professional and always thought of any potential need I had. And of course because it’s Nova Scotia, Courtney knows one of my friends I went to school with—Lizzy! Personally, I’m not that great at delegating tasks, so the idea of having another human being fetch me coffee, or help me find my panel room, or help me brainstorm any idea felt very strange to me. But once you’re in the swing of the con, an assistant is invaluable. Especially when she tolerates and even encourages the loud singing of show tunes in Scotia Square after the soirée. YAY.

The soirée is a ticketed event mostly for guests, warp speed pass holders (a special weekend pass), Hal-Con staff, and any attendee lucky enough to score a ticket. Basically, an opportunity to socialize and have more of a one-on-one with the guests, even the celebrity guests. It was held in an event room, we got two drink tickets (basically enough to make you spend more once you ran out….hahaha…), and they even had event photographers taking awesome pictures. Look at this crazy one they took of me & my hair!

In general, all the staff at Hal-Con were extremely professional, well trained, and knew what they were doing. C4 Con, take a lesson from Hal-Con. At C4, Chadwick and I watched a clump of volunteers move around the con listlessly, as if they had nothing better to do. The volunteer staff I worked with had earpieces and radios, and were never idle. To my knowledge, they treated the guests with respect. Huge thanks to Adam Sigrist for his time, effort, and organizational skills on the guest side.

The Real Ins and Outs of Self-Publishing

I was on a panel on Sunday afternoon called the “Ins and Outs of Self-Publishing” and I want to re-iterate some of the points I made there, and clarify/change some of the advice.

I work in publishing—it’s where all of my income originates. Whether it’s editing, formatting, website work, or Faery Ink Press book sales, I wear a lot of hats. And I’ve worked really hard for the past six years to get where I am today.

The other three people on the panel, they don’t work in publishing and they have day jobs. They all self-publish, like me. They’re out there promoting it locally, and that’s commendable. They made some important points about making the time to write—that’s certainly something I have to work on. Though there were times when their advice reflected their inexperience—you don’t sue printers off the bat for making a mistake, you call them and ask them to fix it. Not paying for a professional editor? Hmm, welp, that’s not really a good idea–you always get what you pay for.

I came across pretty heavily on the panel because I take this whole business seriously—or more accurately, I treat it like a business, and I expect everyone to do the same, because it IS a business. You’re trading your hard work for someone else’s hard-earned dollar—your customer deserves not just the best product that you can make, but the best product, period.

I was the “doom and gloom” as one of the other panelists put it, which got some laughs—but you know what’s not a laughing matter? Spending all of your disposable income on a book business and then ending up with piles of product in your garage that you can’t sell. Or more accurately, that you don’t know how to sell, because you didn’t think it through. That’s not funny. That’s bad business. And I wouldn’t wish that on anyone.

Yes, anyone can make a book these days. But if you’re just anyone, the odds that you’ll successfully distribute and sell your book(s) over a long period of time is not great. You have to pound the pavement, especially if you’re selling physical books. And yeah, lots and lots of people still read physical books.

You want to make a couple of books and sell them locally, that’s fine. Just know that the amount of work you put into promoting will pay off—if you put time and energy into your brand, people take notice and treat you accordingly. I know because that’s how I’ve gotten this far. People don’t stop at my table just because I have books. They stop because everything on the table is presented in a way that appeals to my audience.

Another misconception that was thrown around is that eBook sales are great, so just “do” that, and you’ll be rolling in it. Listen. EBook sales can be good—and it’s “cheaper” to make eBooks—but some markets like romance and scifi lend themselves to eBooks because the readers whip through them. The truth is that eBooks are less than 20% of the total book market. Don’t use the eBook excuse to cheap out on print formatting if you plan to sell physical books. Don’t think that just because you’re only doing eBooks that it means you can cheap out on editing or cover design.

Just because there’s a cheaper option, doesn’t mean you should use it. There comes a point where you have to invest in your product. Sometimes that investment happens before the product goes to market, and other times it happens later on down the road. Just know that your readers know when you’re cheaping out, and no one likes feeling ripped off.

The truth is, it’s not just about eBook sales, and it’s not just about being “good” at social media. Optimizing one or both of those things will bring you a little bit closer to your sales goals. But nothing beats pounding the pavement, showing up to industry-related events, talking face to face with people at local markets, and knowing your stuff.

Especially that last part.

Will I Go Back?

Hal-Con 2017 unfortunately will not be held in the new Nova Centre, and it will be held the same weekend as Edmonton Expo, September 22-24. Much earlier than its usual dates. Since Edmonton will be geographically closer to me, and I theoretically won’t be spending Christmas at home in 2017, it makes the most sense for me to spend time in Edmonton instead of travelling to Halifax to this one event. However, I would very much like to have some kind of vendor presence at Hal-Con, so my regulars can buy my next books! Keep an eye on the events page to see if I can make that happen.

Yay Sisters!!!

These past few weeks have been extremely busy! My time in Winnipeg is never long enough. Any excuse to go to Winnipeg–so I decided to give C4 Comic Con another try after three years of avoiding it–read my first experience at C4 here.

Oh, but before I get into the post-mortem: while I was in Winnipeg, I DYED MY HAIR! Yep, in all the pictures here, it’s purple and blue. I got it done at the Sapphire Hair Lounge on Academy Road. So exciting. I’ve never done anything with my hair before, and I was so glad to have Kelly turn it into something amazing. YAY.

General Impressions

I was so excited to be back in Winnipeg! So many creative friends there, like best friend Samantha Beiko and great author pal Chadwick Ginther, both of whom I’ve written about many times in this post-mortem series.

I stayed a week in Winnipeg just to hang out and get extra things done before the con—including, of course, the all-important, very first hair dye job. Sam went out of her way to make me feel welcome, ferried me around, hung out while I went crazy with my hair, helped me with the table. I’m very lucky to have her as a friend. I wish I’d had more time to hang with Chadwick & Wendy this time around—Chad and I have at least one creative project planned for some time in the future!

I’m writing this at 6am in the airport as I journey home to Halifax, and while I’m excited to go home for the first time in about a year, I’m sad to leave this city with which I feel such kinship. I was just getting used to waking up in Sam’s spare bedroom, working with her, talking with her face-to-face instead of messaging her on Facebook about anything and everything. I was even getting used to the dog, Sophie.

Anyway. I haven’t been back to Winnipeg for C4 in about three years. I go at least once a year for other creative reasons, and I was looking forward to giving C4 another try after the last disastrous show previously. All in all, C4 still isn’t the best organized con, though it has grown considerably, and shouldn’t be ignored for the travelling creative entrepreneur.

Location

Chadwick and I shared an artist alley booth. It was cheaper than buying separate artist alley tables—about $450 split two ways, compared to at least $250 each. This was a good financial decision as it impacted our location. All of the cheap artist alley tables were in the Butt of the Con, as I like to call it. I’m learning more about the way tables are arranged at events like these. The more you pay, the better location you receive–theoretically. Better as in: closer to the entrance, on a more trafficked lane. Not always, of course, but it was true at Edmonton Expo, so I’ll continue to test this theory at other cons.

At first, I didn’t think our location was that terrible. I think we had a better location than most artist alley vendors. We were on a main throughfare, an express lane of traffic that was close to multiple entry/exit points. Unfortunately, we had a similar problem to Saskatoon Expo where the aisle was too wide, and we didn’t have much across from us. That meant we had to work twice as hard to call attention to our booth.

By the end, our feet were sore. My feet were sore at Calgary Expo, and it was pretty excruciating at Saskatoon Expo, but I don’t remember them being THIS bad. Time for some new shoes, maybe. You just can’t sit down with the kind of display we were rocking.

Display

I really departed from the norm with this setup.

Because the two of us were sharing a 9 x 9 ft space, but only were provided with one table, Chad brought an extra table. The original plan was to form some kind of U or half-U. But…that didn’t really work out.

The arrangement took a lot of brain maneuvering to make work for the booth of us. The lazy way out would have been to just have one table, and try and fit everything on…except that wouldn’t really work, since Chadwick has a LOT of various projects he’s selling. So it made sense for us to have at least two tables. The trick was arranging them so neither one of us felt shafted in the space. I think it would have been worth it—maybe—to have sprung for end space (it costs extra) so we could have done a complete U-shape. As it was, we each got table ends that faced the public, and had to build deep & vertically to maximize space, and still have standing room.

I borrowed these cute stairs from Sam and made a spiral arrangement with some of the books. The stairs and the arrangement got lots of compliments. I think it’s difficult to make this work, and I rearranged things a few times to optimize what I wanted to promote.

The problem with our display was the two of us were standing in the middle of it–essentially human walls that blocked people from coming deeper inside. If we didn’t stand, we would have attracted fewer customers. So…it was a tricky balancing act not to block our product but also be inviting.

Sales

I had a pretty high sales goal based on what my friends had done in previous years since I’d been there. But because they arranged the floor differently this year, vendors across the board were reporting a decrease in sales. Usually the artist alley is in a separate room, right off the main entrance. Many people believed that was the entire con, and so my friend did very well for themselves. This year, artists and exhibitors are on one floor, which was difficult as it’s a HUGE space, crowded with people.

I didn’t do terribly. I just expected better. There were a lot of lookers, a lot of people asking me if they could get them at Chapters or McNally Robinson. Technically you can go into McNally and order them–but dude, that’s more expensive than just buying from me, right there and then!!

I benefited from Chadwick’s home-team advantage—he has an established base here in Winnipeg of friends and fans. Usually there was no crossover in terms of interest or demographic, but sometimes his friends would buy a book from me anyway, especially if they had a younger relative with them. I tried to upsell Chad’s stuff whenever possible, especially to the older crowd. He did especially well after the Canadian Writers Panel. YAY BUSINESS.

“Don’t go into this business expecting to make money.”

This came up a few times this weekend, not because of customers at the booth, but by virtue of discussion with my creative peers.

During my publishing course at Humber, we were told that we shouldn’t be in this business expecting to make piles of money. We should be in this business because we love books. This is a simplistic and well-meaning statement, but is the wrong way of approaching being a creative entrepreneur.

True, there are other businesses where the margins are higher and you could get “richer” “quicker.” Yet it’s completely untrue to believe that if you’re in publishing, you’re resigning yourself to a life of poverty. To be clear, I’m speaking to the smaller creative entrepreneurs, those with dreams of writing and publishing their own books, artists, etc.

You CAN make money in this business. Maybe not billions and billions. You just have to know how to run a business—you have to treat your art like a business. I’ve met several successful artists here in Winnipeg that know how to hustle, know how to market themselves, and live off their art. It is possible to do it. It takes time, it takes making a lot of mistakes, it takes discipline, but it is totally possible IF you’re willing to commit your life to it. There is no dreaming about doing around here: there’s only doing. And if you ARE doing, but you’re not making money, maybe you need to revisit the product, the brand–and figure out how to make it work for your audience.

On the Canadian Writers Panel, I made this point: you can’t promote and promote and then just coast. There is no coasting. If you coast, you lose traction. You’re constantly going uphill. I think that’s something that those on the outside don’t get about creative entrepreneurship. There is no “making it”—there’s only the next thing.

And to the random guy who asked Chadwick if publishing is easy or hard—it’s hard, dude. If it was easy, everyone would be making piles of money. And if it was easy, it wouldn’t be worth doing.

Cool & Weird People

I was pleased to finally meet Hope Nicholson, who is friends with Sam, and is the publisher of Bedside Press, and editor of Margret Atwood’s Angel Catbird. Also was finally introduced to Nyco Rudoph, who publishes some seriously funny comics. Got acquainted with Jonathan Ball and James Gillepsie, writers who collaborated with Greg on their Shared World work. Shared World is a collection of stories that tell different stories in the same world. They printed a limited number of copies, and sold them at a premium. Another great idea. Greg is amazing at selling that stuff.

There seemed to be more booth barnacles than usual at this con. Was it my hair, or Greg’s display, or the fact that there are twice as many books to look at in our booth space? One particularly insistent man wanted to know if Chadwick and I were married…because we “looked” married…because we were standing next to each other? SIGH.

Will I Go Back?

I’d like to—I need to figure out how to make this con work for me. In a lot of ways, it’s a working vacation. I get to hang out with all my creative friends, but I also do a lot of business by doing so, because we all support each other.

I’d likely try a similar booth space on my own or with Sam if she was willing. She’ll have the first book in her newest series out next year and she also writes YA so that would be a good cross-promoting opportunity. We’ll see!!!

It has been a busy week! First Saskatoon Expo, now Edmonton, with barely enough time in between to do my client work. While I have a lot to do to prepare for C4 next month in Winnipeg, I’m glad that I have a month to catch up on everything else.

General Impressions

I’ve been to Edmonton three times this month–once for a wedding, once on the bus on the way to Saskatoon (I know, they took the long way), and now for the Expo. Dave came up with me this time to help me out and just generally get away for the weekend. Total attending the Expo was 40,000 – down 10,000 from last year. Even with Carrie Fisher attending, the effects of the Alberta economy can be seen at the Expo. In talking with most other vendors, the general impression seemed to be that people have less disposable income, there are more independent authors vying for attention, and lots and lots of people selling the same merchandise.

Location

I was initially angry that I had been placed in almost exactly the same place as last year–by the tabletop gaming area, at the end of the convention. Even though it’s close to an exit/entrance, people are not initially let in through that way–they enter through the other end of the convention.

However, there have been some improvements. Last year, the tabletop gaming was completely surrounded by curtains, and blocked the customers’ view of my table. No one could find me, and by the time they did, they’d run out of money. This year, there was barely any tall curtaining around the gaming area, and you could easily see my banner from afar. I was also further down the row, close to the regular booths. I believe this significantly impacted my sales.

The type of section I was in is called the Economy/Small Press section – aka, pretty much a regular booth size, but in a worse location. I should mention here that like last year, the tables and the pipe and draping were situated in such a way that I had to either CRAWL underneath the table or walk through my neighbours’ spaces and then limbo under some pipe to actually get into my booth. We mentioned it to the organizer, and they’ve promised to change that for next year – but jeez, I usually wear dresses and comfortable heels to these things. I don’t mind maneuvering, but it doesn’t leave a professional impression if I have to crawl under a pipe, one hand over my boobs, another over my butt just to get to my space. Also, what if a vendor was physically disabled, and was placed in this area? How would that be handled? It’s a massive oversight that added to my sense of frustration upon arrival.

Anyway. This booth type attracts the larger artists and smaller authors/publishers. So almost the entire row was filled with books by independent authors–Adam Dreece included. We were neighbours again for this convention. While it’s nice to have someone next to you that is facing the same challenges in the same industry, I disagree with this practice of putting all the book people together. It benefits the book enthusiast to find all books in one place, but it increases the competition for attention. Books are an active sell. It’s not like art, where you look at it and you know if you like it. Books sales require “at least a five minute conversation,” as Brian Hades said as we discussed the situation. You engage a person once in a conversation they don’t want, they will ignore the rest of the sellers in the row if their products are similar. It’s a delicate balance between actively engaging our audience and drawing them in passively with our display.

Next year, I’ll spring for a booth in the regular section so I’m not competing as much with similar products.

Display

I copied my display from Saskatoon Expo with some modifications. I gave about equal weight to the Sparkstone Saga and The Violet Fox Series in terms of display and placement. I like placing them like castle turrets on opposite ends of the table, as it gives me space in the middle to sign and generally stand/be visible. I put Within in the middle again, just as I did at Saskatoon. My newsletter signup sheet right next to it attracted just over 20 new subscribers.

My poor vertical banner held up well throughout the weekend, but I’m going to have to put in more grommets to my horizontal banner so that it doesn’t droop in the middle. I ended up taping it up on the last day, and that held.

I’m going to have to get at least one more stand from Staples to hold the reviews for the Sparkstone Saga, as I’ve just been propping that up on other books or taping it to the fabric. Also, because I’ve been putting some books spine-out, I should probably invest in book ends. A couple of times, Sparkstone books fell over because they were propped up by the sheer force of books facing out. Just the regular pretty display problems.

Sales

I did extremely well at Edmonton Expo – I surpassed my sales goal! It’s my second-biggest con, and I happily report it’s my second-biggest show sales-wise (first place is still Calgary Expo). While I was hoping for this, I was worried due to my location and overall vendor talk about the economy being down. I had a surprisingly awesome Friday evening, a good Saturday, and an okay Sunday. I think if I had a sale on the Sunday, I might have done better, but I was also tired, suffering from overstimulation, and people seemed to be, in general, out of funds.

More than half my sales were done with credit cards. Despite my objections to doing debit, I think Edmonton is a card-loving city, and if I want to continue making this con a regular in my schedule I’m going to have to get a debit machine. A couple of times I inconvenienced people by only doing cash or credit. What I hate about the debit thing is I have to pay the monthly fee ($15-$20) to get the machine compatible with my smart phone. So, I’ll probably not do that until April next year, at the start of the convention season – it’s real tempting to get it now, since I have four large shows left on the docket, but I don’t want to pay $20/month during the winter when I’m not using it.

The Violet Fox and Stars In Her Eyes did about equal in terms of sales, even including bundle sales. Maybe one or two more individual Violet Foxes. I had a number of people asking for The Emerald Cloth (next year!!). Even more awesome was I had people telling me they’d heard of the Sparkstone Saga, that their friends loved it and won’t stop talking about it, and that they needed to have their own copy or at least learn more about it. I wasn’t expecting to sell as many copies of both Stars In Her Eyes and Dreams In Her Head–I was down to only four copies of Dreams at the end. On Sunday, people preferred to buy my stand-alone Within, as they wanted to try me out but they didn’t want to spend $15-$20 on my series starters. I was down to two copies of Within by the show’s end.

I sold a couple of buttons, but I think having it on ground level instead of elevated may make a difference in the sales. I sold about 10 buttons at Saskatoon and more interest in them as opposed to three in Edmonton and passing interest. I’ll have to test this at the next show.

Lil eBook Woes

My eBook redeeming system seems to be no longer functioning, as I had several people tell me they were unable to redeem the codes. Whether this is due to the system itself, or it’s my handwriting with the codes, it’s clear I have to completely revamp that system for next month if I want to continue selling them. I can also take this opportunity to upgrade the look and method of their sale. I sell all the eBooks as a bundle – about 99% of people don’t buy just one eBook, they buy all of them together. So instead of multiple cards for each book, I’ll streamline it and print one card with all the eBook codes, and make it worth their while to buy the entire library.

If anyone who bought eBooks from me is having trouble redeeming their codes, email me with those codes and I will send you the files. Thank you!

UPDATE: I believe the system has been fixed – please email me if you have trouble accessing the subdomain. Thanks!

Cool People & Celebrity Spotting

On Saturday night, we hung out with Greg, Justin, and their artist friends at a house they rented in Riverdale downtown. Greg had a good idea about how to manage multiple interactions at the table and I may try to implement that at the upcoming shows. I am really in awe at their stamina – they are doing so, so many shows this year, it’s crazy. They are such good storytellers. I didn’t end up seeing their booth this time, but it looked great in Saskatoon. I’ll have more time to chat with them in Winnipeg. Had some good chats with Adam Dreece, Ella Beaumont, Thea van Diepen, and S. G. Wong (pic below by Adam)!

If you’ve been reading all these posts, you know I’ve been suffering with a kind of face-blindness when it comes to these shows. If you come to the table and I ask you, “Have you been here before?” it’s because I’m trying not to re-sell you on something you already bought. I have the same conversations for three days in a row, and everyone starts to look alike, and that makes for some awkward conversations sometimes. At this show in particular, I felt myself calling upon my Alexander Keith Brewery training to help me to connect with people and change things up a bit. If I can learn something interesting about someone, I’m more likely to remember them, and forge a deeper memory. At the brewery, I played various characters in their musical, interactive tour. It was very scripted but there were times when we had to improvise while we waited for another character to make their entrance. During this time, we’d have set questions we could ask the patrons, such as, where are you from? That was my fallback question for this con. Most people were from Edmonton but a couple came from the surrounding areas. I also chatted with a family who had immigrated from Poland, and their daughter had grown up in Canada and really liked to read – in two different languages!

Carrie Fisher and her dog passed extremely close to my booth! Apparently she bought some things from a few of the vendors. Shannon Purser (Barb from Stranger Things) passed by my booth – though I didn’t realize it was her until after I said hello with a mouth half-full of crackers. She grinned and said hello back. I also chatted with Garrett Wang briefly on Saturday and Sunday. He expressed his love for Nova Scotia–he’s going to be hosting a sci-fi night at the symphony at the end of October in Halifax.

Will I go back?

I’m hoping to! Apparently Hal-Con comes early next year, on the same weekend as Edmonton Expo. Likely I’d choose Edmonton over Hal-Con just to keep costs down, unless I thought I would win an Aurora. Or unless I was really rolling in the dough, I could do both shows at once.

And now I leave you with a picture of Dave. While he did not win me the GIANT $500 Pusheen, he did give me a tiny purse-sized Pusheen that holds all my change. They’re friends now.

This was my first time to Saskatoon, and to Saskatchewan itself. I liked the city more than I thought I would. It reminded me a bit of Edmonton and Winnipeg. Edmonton in that it had trees and quaint boulevards, and Winnipeg in its flatness. The leaves are starting to turn and that reminded me of home.

Saskatoon Expo is in its third year and saw over 15,000 people through its gates. That’s slightly less than what I was expecting (20,000 was my expectation based on previous years, and having Carrie Fisher as a headliner).

To follow my journey and read my other post mortems of conventions I’ve done across Canada, click here.

General Impressions

I’m writing this on the Greyhound bus on a twelve hour journey back to Calgary (Saskatoon to Edmonton to Calgary). I didn’t expect to take the bus. I was going to drive. But about a week before, I was obsessing and stressing over the seven hour trip—a big trip for someone who has driving anxiety, and for someone who isn’t used to driving alone. So I broke down and booked a bus. I’m losing a day anyway each way, and at least on the bus I can sleep and work. It also worked in my favour because on the Thursday night, I miscalculated some stairs and sprained my right ankle. I would not have been able to drive seven hours, as it was extremely sore the next day. Friday on the bus was a good rest for my foot, and I was able to function more or less normally on Saturday and Sunday.

Location

I don’t think my location was great, and the layout of the con in general seemed mal-spaced. We were in, as Chadwick called it, “the butt of the con.” Or, more politely, the ring-road, periphery aisle, across from the artist guests. Being in this aisle can be very good or very bad. Very good if that aisle is a main through-fare from an entrance. Very bad if it is not. It was not. It was opposite of the entrance. So people took about half an hour to reach us when they first entered. This problem was exasperated because where our aisle was very wide, the interior aisles were narrow. People struggled to get through those interior aisles, but they had to move more slowly, causing them to see more of the vendors’ merchandise. Because our aisle was wider, people moved quickly, and barely saw us. Our whole row was complaining about this.

Also, I think I’ve mentioned this before, but being across from the creator guests can be a mixed bag too. I like seeing what they do, and sometimes meeting them, but from a sales perspective, a lot of them don’t have big displays or anything for people to look at. Because of this, there’s always the possibility that people will zip by or won’t go down that aisle because it doesn’t look like they have much to sell.

In any case, I think I made the best with what I was given—and that’s what you have to do with these things, since you’re not in control over where you’re placed. Next year I think I’ll request a booth or a non-artist alley space. The artist alley was really cheap and worked for my sales targets to maximize my profit (especially since I had to shell out for the bus!) but it’s always a gamble.

Display

Here’s where it sucks to take the bus or plane. You’re limited by your luggage. I think I did a decent job of packing though, so I was able to get all my bare minimums in there. I was happy to have enough risers to put my books up at eye level, though I didn’t bring any book stands (I NEED new ones, my current ones suck). For the most part, I can prop the books up or have them stand on other own. A couple of times things fell over but nothing too major.

I was happy that I was able to FINALLY put up my horizontal banner again. I got new galaxy print duct tape, and it held nicely to my table cloth along the bottom. A disadvantage of artist alley is you don’t have any pipe and drape backing (some artists have their own), so my poor stand-up banner had to do all of the work in the back end (besides my smiling face, of course!) I’m having another one made for November, and it will be sturdier and less of a hassle to set up.

Another improvement I made this time around is that I remembered to put out a newsletter signup sheet. I didn’t really talk it up, or have any particular signage for it, I just had a shiny clipboard and a pen right out in front. I found that quite effective—I was surprised that I got almost 20 new email subscribers. Not bad for passive effort. Many people felt obligated to sign up because they’d bought something. Others were just interested and wanted to learn more and develop a relationship with me before buying. That’s all good. Now that I have that baseline, I can work on improving it at subsequent cons.

Not exactly part of my display, but I FINALLY put out money for plastic bags. They’re just transparent white and blue bags that I ordered wholesale online. They’re decent, and I ordered them in two sizes, though I miscalculated the size on the smaller ones so they are too small. Big enough for my lil ebooks but not much else. The “big” ones are perfect for a couple of books. Now I know for next time. Chad and I both used them and people were pleased to not to have to carry stacks of books around in their arms. Though I will say, the Expo did a good job at providing large branded bags, and a lot of people had those to put stuff in.

Sales

I hit my minimum sales target for this con. Basically, it’s a number that I’ve calculated based on sales from my previous cons, and how many people are supposed to attend. What really pushed me to that goal this weekend was my first-day sales strategy. I don’t do my sales on the last day. On the last day, people don’t have money anymore. People have money on the first day. So I did fairly well on the Saturday, and decent on the Sunday.

The stand-out seller was The Violet Fox, because of the discounted first day, and because of the bundle I have with The Silver Spear. People just see it, they want to touch it, and then they want it, 95% of the time. I am happy that I sold some Sparkstone Saga bundles though. Having the review sheet out really helped I think, and I also upsold it to great success (why by the first book when you can have both for just $10 more?) No pre-orders were taken for Hunger In Her Bones, but I expected that.

I had Within off to the side on the first day, but I moved it to the middle on the second day, and that helped me sell it better. I think that’s a good placement for it—I always struggle with how to display it since it’s my only stand-alone, and it’s quite different than my two series, yet people still find it interesting enough to buy when they see it! Plus, it’s the cheapest book on the table at $12. The other reason I moved it into a more prominent place was because I was seriously concerned that I would run out of Violet Foxes. I only had six left at the end of the convention. Like I said—once people touch it, they buy it!! Selling out isn’t the worst problem to have, but it does make me regret not driving. Driving means I can bring more stock.

Strangely enough, I sold a surprising number of buttons. I think it might be because the sign displaying them is more visible, and they weren’t in their usual wooden box, making them more visible to potential customers. They may have also sold because there were several people new to the brand, and while they may not have had the cash or sufficient interest in my stuff yet, they were willing to throw a buck my way to try me out. Also, button people are almost always going to buy buttons.

I’m not sure whether it was because Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy) was a guest, or if it’s just the nature of Saskatoon itself, but there was a considerable number of teen girls present. Many were in groups, others were with their parents. It was really great because that’s my target audience!

The BEST thing that happened at this con was—people ACTUALLY KNEW WHO I WAS! I expected no one to know me (besides regular vendors), but I had more than a handful of customers come up to me, and say they saw me at Calgary Expo, or Edmonton Expo, and they’re from Saskatchewan, they read my books, and they loved them! I was so excited. The same thing happened to Chad, and though he’s done a few readings in Saskatoon, he hadn’t done Sask Expo before either. It really just goes to show that everything you do adds up, and if people see you at one show and don’t buy, they might see you at the next one and give you a try!

Good People

I was extremely fortunate to be able to stay with Chadwick’s friend Mike, who is a professor of literature at the University of Saskatchewan. Mike incorporated Chadwick’s Thunder Road into his course. Very cool!! Not only did I get to have lots of hangout time with Chad, I got to know Mike as well. He was a wonderful, gracious host. Many thanks to him for making the Saskatoon experience very pleasant.

Chadwick and I were next to each other (we arranged this) and that helped to pass the time during the dead zone hours where there weren’t many buyers. I also got to see up close what he has on his table, and we excitedly discussed future cons and selling strategies. We’re sharing a booth at the upcoming C4 Con in Winnipeg.

Chadwick has a lot going on at his table—he’s very good at coming up with unique ways to supplement his trilogy of books. It all expands on his core Thunder Road universe that his readers have come to enjoy. One thing in particular that I think is neat is his flash fiction greeting cards. He commissioned some art from our friend Sam Beiko for the front, and then on the inside wrote a little 500 word vignette relating to his trilogy. He sells them for $5. I think I’d like to do that—one for The Violet Fox Series, and another for the Sparkstone Saga. That would go over really well (I hope) for the shows closer to Christmas.

It was also good to see Greg and Peter again. Peter is looking well, and I’m very proud of him for finally leaping into comics full time. Very exciting. His poster empire is looking impressive, reigning above all the rest. Greg was his usual self, and his display with Justin was of course, top notch. Looking is free, as he would say! I’ll see them both next weekend.

Something else to mention that doesn’t really fit anywhere else: there was a real lack of food vendors at the con. No doubt there’s some sort of exclusivity clause so Prairieland Park can make money at their canteen. Chadwick walked around the entire event on Sunday trying to find a fountain to fill up his water bottle, and ended up having to find a vending machine with bottled water–none of the volunteers knew where to get water. BUT on Sunday, thank goodness, the volunteers walked around handing out bottles to the vendors for free. YAY! Love it when the cons think of the vendors like that. Hal-Con is great at this–every time I’ve had a table OR a booth, they give each vendor eight to twelve bottles of water for the weekend.

The Weird

Two weird observations.

First – there was a guy dressed as Deadpool (there’s always at least five) whose onesie costume was bursting at the seams because it was so tight, and he looked like he wasn’t wearing underwear. Nothing was left to the imagination. Did I mention there were a lot of families present? Each time he passed us, it seemed like more and more of his costume was coming apart. Yikes. At least the second day he looked like he was wearing underwear.

Second – there were disconcerting numbers of young girls (pre-teen or younger) wearing sexy Harley Quinn costumes. I saw one elementary school aged girl wearing a Harley Quinn “Property of the Joker” jacket. I’m not super familiar with the Joker/Harley relationship, I know it’s complicated and intricate, that it’s not the only thing that defines her, and I haven’t seen Suicide Squad. It’s just kinda weird to see really young girls idolizing this very sexed up, subservient version of Harley, likely without understanding the implications of being someone’s “property.”

Would I go back?

I think so. I exceeded my minimum sales target, though not by much. Next year hopefully I’ll be comfortable enough to make the drive and then I can have my full display. Saskatoon is a doable drive from Calgary, fortunately. With a better location, and more returning fans from those who bought this year, I think I can really exceed my ideal target.

I came away from this con feeling confident in my brand and my ability to perform. Now, I just have to make sure I rest up for Edmonton in a few days! Eep!

This is my fourth year doing this convention. Convention isn’t really the right word for When Words Collide. It’s a festival, a celebration of (mostly Western) Canadian speculative fiction. I’ve spent the past week recovering, and writing this post-mortem. It’s long. Some of you won’t like it.

To follow my journey and read my other post mortems of conventions I’ve done across Canada, click here.

General Impressions

The previous week had been very busy for my freelance business and I was coming into the festival half burnt. On the upside, my dear friends Samantha Beiko and Chadwick Ginther came in from Winnipeg (and arrived in the middle of the night – driving from Winnipeg, maybe not such a great idea in retrospect) and I was looking forward to a fun weekend of hanging out with them, selling some books, and relaxing.

With everything going on, three days went by quickly. By Sunday, I was pretty much brain-dead. After a very busy birthday, I had a breakfast meeting and a morning presentation on websites. Not sure if it was just me, but Sunday seemed deader than usual in the merchant room – did everyone party hard after the Aurora Awards? I feel like I gave a lot of myself this weekend, and became a zombie as a result.

Display

I had a table right at the front of the room – as soon as you came in the main entrance, you could see me. While I don’t think this necessarily benefited sales, it definitely benefited my branding. It’s also the first con this year that I had 100% of my table space – Kate had a table next to mine.

I still make a profit on the table, certainly, and one could argue that having a table at WWC isn’t worth it. It’s a networking con, as I’ve said in the past. My argument for having a table is completely based on developing a brand. ChiZine has a table. Bundoran has a table. EDGE has a table. If I want to be a player in the publishing circuit, I have to display my branding and let people know that I exist. Doing programming helps this a lot, but a lot of people need that visual cue.

The downside of course is I’m behind the table for a lot of the con – when I’m not doing programming. I was on considerably less programming this year. On one hand, I didn’t mind this. It was more time to hang out with my friends behind the table. I got to know Glynn Stewart and his wife Jack – who commandeered the empty table next to mine and set up shop. Glynn is a great example of someone doing very well on Amazon. It’s great to see Canadians navigating that space, writing what they love, and making a good living out of it. I had fun chatting shop with Glynn and Jack.

Sales

I did what I expected for this con, pretty much on par with what I’ve done in previous years – maybe a little more. For this weekend, I did my first-day discount for all three days, because of my birthday. ^_^ People mostly bought The Silver Spear, since that’s my new book for this year. I had some pre-orders for Hunger In Her Bones. It’s at the point now where a lot of people attending know me, they’ve heard of my books, and they probably have one or two. It was nice to see some new faces at the event as well – WWC sells out (especially when there are large author guests attending, like last year’s Diana Gabaldon), so it’s good that newcomers are able to get in.

Credit card sales accounted for about 20% of total sales. I had only one person ask me if I took debit, and then paid with credit card.

Birthday! Birthday!

August 13 is my birthday – I turned 28 this year.

For my past two birthdays, I was completely alone for most or all of the day. It was a nice change of pace to go somewhere and be showered with birthday wishes and unexpected presents. Thank you to everyone who stopped by the table and made me feel special. I have a rule: I don’t work on my birthday, except on my writing pursuits. Faery Ink Press falls within that realm.

It was a very busy Saturday. Tabling, paneling, more tabling (the afternoon was very long). Then, to the pub for a drink and pre-dinner snack. Then, Aurora Awards, which started half an hour late. Then, finally, supper – Indian food! We’d brought a vegan gluten-free cake that I made – Sam is vegan, I’m gluten-free – and the restaurant kindly put candles in it and served us. I think we were uncomfortably full after all of that.

Then, back to the hotel for more partying and socializing. At that point, I really did not want to be around people, but made an appearance at Chadwick’s whiskey party, and the Bundoran room party. I was very happy when I finally got to go to sleep, but sad that my birthday passed so quickly! It was a good birthday though. I was glad to spend it around friends. It made me feel valued, and loved.

Apples and Oranges

Something happened on the Sunday that I want to share with everyone, because it made me feel uncomfortable, and it took me a while to come to terms with it.

A young woman came to my table. Although I don’t know her well, I happen to know that she is a big fan of a male YA author also in attendance at WWC. She had come to the table a few times to browse my books cautiously, at a distance–interested, but not completely willing to engage yet. The final time she came back, she asked me without preamble two questions that made me bristle.

“How many books have you sold?” and “How many reviews and stars do your books have?”

I’m never going to answer the first question – that’s confidential information, as far as I’m concerned. I’m happy to give general answers about my sales expectations and compare sales to last year, which are stated above. Because of her obvious love of the male author’s books, I can’t help but read this as her comparing me to him. I also happen to know that the male author sometimes gives out his sales information – and that’s fine. But that’s not something that I’m going to share. So I answered the first question in general terms.

As for the second question, that’s publicly available information that anyone can look up at any time, on Amazon or elsewhere. Why would I have that memorized? That’s not a stat that people want to know when I’m selling direct at cons – that’s not why people buy from me, why I’ve been able to scrape a living from it. Really what she was asking was, “Do you have as many reviews as the male author?” The answer is no. He has lots more reviews than I do. I have maybe ten reviews per book on Amazon? He is very good at soliciting reviews (important for sales on Amazon), where I have scaled back on that front, preferring to focus my energies elsewhere.

Again, in the context of the situation, it was easy for me to read the question as, “Are your books as good as his?”

Which, to me, can also translate as: “Prove to me that you’re good enough to be here.” And: “Prove to me that you are as good as this man.”

My knee-jerk reaction is to provide a condescending explanation: I don’t need to prove myself to you. I know what I’m about. You can decide for yourself if you like me or not. I’ve been doing this a long time. Read my writing samples online and make an informed decision, or look up the stars if that’s something that matters to you.

But I didn’t say any of those things.

There are two issues I’m exploring here.

a) the young woman was rude and should be able to form an opinion about my books without heavily resorting to external social proof.

b) the deeper consequences of her words, which triggered my feelings around being compared to a man.

What I really wanted to convey to her, and the others who have compared us (this isn’t the first time), is this: Just because he has more reviews, and is better at making time for ensuring they get done, doesn’t mean his books are better than mine. Reviews, while very important (especially on Amazon), are a drop in the sea of things that make a good book. And, most importantly: comparing the two of us serves no one.

He and I are apples and oranges. Apples and oranges are equally tasty fruit. You’re always going to have people who like apples more than they like oranges, and vice versa. We are both targeting the same kind of fruit lovers. While we are in competition for these fruit lovers’ dollars, that doesn’t mean that they can’t like both apples and oranges at the same time. Reading, like eating fruit, is a healthy life choice.

At WWC, the entire merchant room is only books. And yet, I don’t feel like I’m in competition with anyone. We are there to display our work, proud to be part of a community. We are both active in this business, and we have our strengths and our weaknesses. We have a good working relationship. I enjoy talking shop with him. This particular young woman has ranked his books above the rest – which is 100% fine. Everyone has different tastes and opinions. Yet it’s the bluntness of the questions that stays with me, and always stays with me whenever I’m compared to a man in my field.

In high school, I was always in competition with the boys in my class. Who is better at English? Who is the best at math? Who’s the best at science? Who is better in gym class? Being compared to men, being put in a setting where I must compete or justify my work alongside them, it puts me on edge. My peers decided I was the smartest girl.

There was a guy who was the smartest boy. Math and athletics came naturally to him. English came naturally to me. I think science was a toss-up between the two of us. But looking back, our genders were very much tied to our performance ranking. In a lot of ways, being Smartest Girl felt like a consolation prize. I don’t know whether I gave this prize to myself to make myself feel better, or if someone else noted it and made it a thing, but it remained prominent in my mind, even though I hated it. It felt like I was always going to be Smartest Girl, and never Smartest, period.

I recognize this is a personal feeling I have, that this has nothing to do with the male author, or any other male authors, yet it remains a remnant from my teen years where I was very insecure about myself and extremely conscious and conscientious about my performance. I’ve come a long way since then. Ninety-nine percent of the time, my self-worth is not in question. I’ve accomplished a lot of things in my life, in publishing and otherwise. Yet when I’m faced when a situation where I’m being compared to a man in the publishing community – either deliberately or not – I’m suddenly aware that I’m a woman, and the possibility that being a woman isn’t enough. It’s like I’m not only fighting to be good at publishing, I’m fighting to be good at being a human being too.

It doubly sucks when I feel I have to justify myself to another woman, who in all likelihood, has and will face similar situations.

I can hear some of you thinking, “Oh, but that’s just your FEELINGS. She didn’t MEAN to bring up your UNRESOLVED ISSUES.”

No she didn’t, but just because you didn’t intend to make a person feel a certain way, doesn’t mean that you’re not at fault for your actions. Not considering a person’s feelings or how they may react to your words before speaking is rude – especially if you don’t know them. When your actions don’t match your intent, your intent becomes essentially meaningless because it wasn’t properly conveyed. This is true in relationships, and it’s true in business.

I have opted not to reveal this author’s name or the name of the young woman who asked me this not because I want to protect them, or because I’m afraid they’ll be mad at me, but rather because it’s not about them. It’s about my feelings. It’s easy to dismiss incidents like this as “part of the job,” especially when you are a woman putting yourself out there, selling a product in sometimes hostile or ignorant environments. I have to remind myself that my feelings are valid, and not to be dismissed lightly.

I’m not angry or sad that this happened. I’m annoyed that it took me so many hours to parse these feelings, write them coherently, and edit them for civility. I also didn’t write this to elicit sympathy. If you find value in my post mortems, that’s good. I write them to remind myself of what happens at these events, so that I can do better next time. For me, next time, I’ll be able to recognize why I feel anxious, and acknowledge the feeling faster, so I can get on with my day.

I’m a competitive person, and I do what it takes to sell my books. Readers have the power to pick their fruit and eat it. I can tell you my books are great, and that these other people think I’m pretty great, just like the next author can. Stars don’t tell the whole story, comparing apples to oranges is pointless – more hurtful than productive – and ultimately, as a discerning reader, you have the power to make your own decisions about the books placed before you.

There Is More Than This

There was something about this year that was different. Of my four years doing conventions religiously, this was the first year that WWC felt more tiring than usual. Granted, I was more tired. But I came to a realization this weekend.

For a Canadian writing and publishing festival, there is a real lack of Canada represented.

I’ve always known Canada’s publishing scene to be very small in comparison to the rest of the world, and Canada’s genre scene even smaller. Yet WWC doesn’t actually represent all the spec-fic authors, all the publishers, and all the editors in Canada/United States. It’s easy to have that mindset when you’re first arriving to the scene. Writing is a solitary pursuit, and when we open our eyes to the community around us, we are overwhelmed with a feeling of camaraderie. We think that this is all that there is, and are happy for its existence.

Publishing is de-mystified for me–my views on this convention are going to be very different than someone who goes as a newbie writer. I don’t go here with hopes to get published. I go to sell books, and connect with potential clients & readers, and hang out with my friends. The panels are largely the same from year to year, writing advice in general never changes, and it’s the same faces in the dealer’s room. Fun for seeing old friends and buying new titles. But beyond that…I fear I’m seeing the beginnings of stagnation.

For a country that prides itself in multiculturalism and diversity, this Canadian writing and publishing festival does not represent it. It has done well presenting Western/Central Canada’s genre presses. It does well featuring local Alberta authors, even independent ones. Yet Alberta and Central Canada are not ALL of Canada. And the white, cis people (including myself) in this industry aren’t all there is either.

And while WWC has been predominantly genre, Will Ferguson is a guest next year. He’s won a Giller. WWC is trying to attract the CanLit community – a good thing, I think – we should celebrate all of Canada’s writing communities. So that means we need to attract Canada’s known Lit publishers too, incentivize them to come from Ontario and the East and beyond. Next year, we’ll lose some people to Worldcon 2017 in Helsinki, since it’s the same weekend, so all the more reason to get some new blood in the merchant room.

The festival has done well. Randy knows how to run a tight ship. It is a hub of celebration for Western Canadian genre authors. It is a place where I have a good time with people I only see once or twice a year. While it’s good to celebrate the successes, we can’t get caught up in a perpetual circle-jerk. It’s easy in this business to get stuck doing things one way until you die.

We can do better.

Things I’ll Do Differently Next Year

I had fun at the festival this year, and I’m always glad to go, though I think I’ll go back to doing 5-6 panels/presentations in 2017. Presentations take a lot out of me but they garner results. With the direction I’m taking my freelancing business, I may have two or three one-hour quality presentations in the can that I can give without much thought.

My display is solid – it may change as I add more books, but not too much to innovate there at the moment until later this year.

This is the end of my “small” cons for 2016. The next four are larger expos – Saskatoon, Edmonton, C4, and Hal-Con. I’m really looking forward to going to Winnipeg, and home to Nova Scotia especially – where I’ll be a guest at Hal-Con! Exciting times.

Look at that Hunger In Her Bones cover! So big and pretty, soon to be in the flesh with the other Faery Ink Press books.

Check out my other convention write-ups here:
– Red Deer Expo
– Calgary Expo 2016
– Hal-Con 2015
– Edmonton Expo 2015
– When Words Collide 2015
– Calgary Comic Expo 2015
– Hal-Con 2014
– Keycon 2014
– Hal-Con 2013
– C4 Winnipeg 2013
– When Words Collide 2013
– KeyCon 2013

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General Impressions

I’d never been to Vulcan before – I guess I really haven’t been to many places in Alberta – and Vul-Con being a small Star Trek convention, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect. I knew it would be one of my smaller, more specialized events of the year. I knew I could probably push the Sparkstone Saga successfully, since it’s a young adult science fiction series set in Alberta.

Vulcan turned out to be what I expected: a small town in Alberta surrounded by farmland. It was a pretty drive once we got off the highway! But a little scary being surrounded by nothing but open farmland. Where does it end?!

Also, I was nervous leading up to this trip because I knew I had to do some of the driving. I have some driving anxiety that stems from many different sources. Mainly, not enough practice in a heavy urban area, and irrational fears of cars crashing into me. But I did some practicing leading up to the day, and I ended up doing 50% of the driving for this trip. I’m celebrating as a success because a week before, my body would not have handled that much highway driving, lane-changing, and intersections. So this has given me more confidence to do more driving in general, which I need if I’m going to drive to Saskatoon in September. Haha – there’s no if in that, I need to drive to Saskatoon in September, else me and my many boxes/banners would miss SaskExpo 2016!

Location is Everything

If you’ve been following my post-con articles, you’ll notice that I place a lot of emphasis on my location. That’s because it matters – a lot! Especially at events like these. There’s a natural flow of traffic at cons, and if you’re not in the right place, if you’re off the beaten path, chances are your audience is going to run out of money before they get to you, or they’re not going to notice you as much as the next person.

When I first arrived and got my spot, I was disappointed. I was across from the main stage, and to the right of that was the guest signing area. This is bad, I thought. This is off the “main” through-fare.

Boy, was I wrong. I really, really lucked out with this table.

Turned out, the stage and the guests – most of the time – were the heart and centre of the con. The main presentations were there on that media stage – and most people congregated to listen. What’s more, the big name guests were signing at those tables, and that was big event for a lot of the attendees. For hours on Saturday, people lined up to get autographs from Adam Nimoy, Leonard Nimoy’s son. The line went right in front of my table, which meant my books got a lot of exposure and interest.

On Sunday, it was not as busy – the afternoon was dead! – but in the morning, people lined up for Dominic Keating (Lieutenant Malcom Reed in Enterprise) Andrew Robinson (Garack in DS9!!) and Robert Beltran (Chakotay in Voyager). Most of our sales on both days were in the morning, with a couple in the middle, and one or two last-minute purchases.

Display

Unfortunately because I was at a small, six-foot artist alley table, my eight-foot horizontal banner is too long. I’m going to have to buy some sort of retractable setup for it so I can have it behind me if I wish, no matter my table size. Also, because I’m building up my height, my display blocked the Faery Ink Press logo on my tall banner. Another reason to find a better solution for the horizontal banner. Sigh – the more stuff I get, the harder it is to lug around!!

This is the last con that I’ll be sharing the table with Kate, so next time I’ll have more room to spread out. I need to push my newsletter signups. I also need better book stands. I’ve been saying that (and Kate too!) for ages now, but it’s one of those things that slips the mind in between shows.

One vendor commented that I should have a smaller eBook sign, since it was blocking access to the buttons. Kate had the excellent idea of attaching the buttons to a ribbon and hanging them on the whiteboard, but that didn’t stop people from going through the box itself, trying to see the designs. So I think I need a better solution for that. Buttons aren’t a huge seller for me, but if I optimize their display, then I should expect a couple more sales per con. Once I sell out of them, I’m going to rethink the design of the next batch based on what sold the best.

I’ve also stopped giving away my bookmarks in favour of the postcards, which have more information and act as a catalogue substitute. People who buy got bookmarks – that seems only fair! I think another good merch option for me might be designer bookmarks – whether they’re tassled, or super sparkly, or those fancy corner ones. I’m going to think more on that, especially if I’m going to do more artist-focused shows.

Sales

My expectations were pretty low for this con. But I did really well, a lot of it thanks to my location. Almost half of my sales were made with credit cards. I had a few people ask if I take debit, but when I said no, credit or cash was fine. I made more money in Vulcan than I did in Red Deer – and there was maybe 1,000 people in attendance at Vul-Con.

I had quite a few people tell me they’d visited my website, or they’ve seen my logo before around, or say that my covers looked familiar. Yay! This previous exposure to the brand also drove a couple of sales.

I did a discount on The Violet Fox and The Silver Spear print copies on the first day, and that went over well. Stars In Her Eyes was about on par with The Violet Fox, which is what I was expecting, since it’s a Star Trek con, and the Sparkstone Saga is YA sci-fi set in Alberta. I pushed the Hunger In Her Bones pre-orders a bit harder, and was rewarded with some new customers willing to lay down some cash. I can’t wait until I have that book in my hands. I got lots of compliments on the cover.

I was surprised that Kate didn’t do better – going in, I thought this might be a strong con for Crash and Burn because a) it’s a space opera and b) Star Trek fans, generally, seem to be open-minded, accepting, knowledgeable people. Yet I think it was the older crowd that didn’t get what “queer space opera” meant. Apparently Vulcan also has a large conservative streak. Ah well. One memorable sale she made was to a proud mother and father, who intended to give it to their kid, who belongs to the LGBTQ community. Yay! We also chatted about how she could expand her display, and include more flag types – she has the rainbow flag, but intends to get the asexual and the agender pride flag, and many others. The flags are a great idea because it’s an easy visual that will attract the appropriate audience. Crash and Burn has a diverse set of characters that are still being introduced, and I’m looking forward to observing and hopefully chronicling more of the comic’s growth.

Other vendors I talked to said that they did okay, and that Saturday was the busiest it’s ever been for this con. Many said that last year was pretty dead. In any case, I think I made the most out of my very good location.

Celebrities & Cool People

I was very close to the Star Trek celebrities and got a good eyeful while they signed and chatted with the attendees. I thought about going and introducing myself to Andrew Robinson because I’m such a DS9 fan – and a fan of his character – but I also didn’t want to word vomit all over him, or exude self-importance (“Hey, I’m at that table over there, look at me and my pretties, I LOVE YOUR WORK SO GIVE ME ATTENTION?!”). There’s also some etiquette surrounding interaction with celebrity guests that I’m a little iffy on – I didn’t pay them for their time or their signature, so I respectfully keep my distance unless they approach me and express curiosity about my work. But that’s just me. Sometimes attending con authors give books to guests – I find that brave and a bit ballsy, personally. I have visions of the guests saying, “Oh thanks” and then throwing my hard work away if I were ever to try! Maybe someday I’ll work up the nerve, but I’d rather approach them as an equal with a business opportunity than as a gushing fan.

It was the Star Trek actors that drove attendees at this con, and it was their draw that helped to bring attention to my table. So I’m grateful for that.

Sally Kellerman, the woman who played Dr. Elizabeth Dehner in the Original Star Trek pilot episode “Where No Man Has Gone Before” came to my table. She was browsing the artist alley row. She looked tired. She’d been sitting at a secondary signing table all day, but there were no more people lining up for autographs. She expressed some regret at staying for the second day. I guess she was only scheduled for Saturday.

Aside from that, a couple of friends from Calgary/Edmonton came and said hi – Neil Enock (pictured) and S. G. Wong (she’s a finalist in the Whistler Independent Book Awards, for which I also received an honourable mention for The Violet Fox). It’s nice to see friendly faces!!

I also got to meet the guy who sells wood carvings and jewellry, whose products were next to me at Red Deer Expo. We had a really good chat about expo sales and the different shows we were planning on doing. While wandering around, looking at the other vendors, I also bought a pretty dress from CC’s Leggings, Etc. This dress? for business!

Next to me this time was Dale Bolt, who was a really nice artist selling his prints and canvases. There was a jewellry display next to us but we didn’t really get to know them well – but their jewellry complemented my colour scheme, and attracted many potential customers that would also look at my stuff. It’s important to consider your neighbours and build your display to complement theirs if possible!

And of course, I had some good chats and laughs with authors and fellow vendors Aviva Bel’Herold and Adam Dreece, and publisher Brian Hades.

Inappropriate/Weird Interactions

Kate and I noted more awkward/inappropriate interactions than usual at this con. Star Trek does tend to attract the Know-It-All personality, and there were a couple of conversations we fielded where the potential customer tried to unsuccessfully display their limited knowledge on one subject or another relating to publishing, or the subjects we were publishing about. Part of going to cons is learning how to field these conversations without coming off as discouraging or condescending. Some people think they know what they’re getting into when they say, “I’m going to start a publishing business!” but you really don’t know a thing until you experience it, and that’s very true with being a publisher.

On the creepy side of things, we had a man (who happened to be a con volunteer!) stop in front of the table and flex. At first, I thought he was showing off his tattoo, so I was like, okay, hello, that’s nice. He stumbled out a “Hello…guys-uh, ladies!” Oh brother. Then he said something along the lines of “I wish I had some iron to pump” so that he could “impress” us some more. He continued trying to beef himself up in our eyes. He then stroked his beard and said, “Yeah, I’m pretty good looking.” Good lord.

Fortunately he walked away after that. It was so cartoonish and awkward that I was just shocked that someone could think that would be acceptable – or like, effective. Kind of started the day off on a weird foot. It didn’t occur to me until later that I could have reported him for his behaviour. Mostly we just laughed it off.

Will I go back?

I did really well here. But Vul-Con has the potential to be bigger than it is. If Vul-Con continued to get several big-name Star Trek guests each year, it would really flourish, and be good for local business – and attract some of my target audience. Quite a few people drove down from Calgary to attend, and others came from Saskatchewan and even the US! However, I’m not sure if they’re going to hold it at the arena next year – and get the same quality guests. If they go back to a smaller venue, then I’m probably out. It was really fun, but I’m not sure if the numbers would work out for anything smaller.

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Check out my other convention write-ups here:
– Red Deer Expo
– Calgary Expo 2016
– Hal-Con 2015
– Edmonton Expo 2015
– When Words Collide 2015
– Calgary Comic Expo 2015
– Hal-Con 2014
– Keycon 2014
– Hal-Con 2013
– C4 Winnipeg 2013
– When Words Collide 2013
– KeyCon 2013

Look at that vertical action on the display. I’m wearing a pretty dress! My hair is a mess, but that’s FINE.

Check out my other convention write-ups here:
– Calgary Expo 2016
– Hal-Con 2015
– Edmonton Expo 2015
– When Words Collide 2015
– Calgary Comic Expo 2015
– Hal-Con 2014
– Keycon 2014
– Hal-Con 2013
– C4 Winnipeg 2013
– When Words Collide 2013
– KeyCon 2013

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General Impressions

Most of my impressions of the con are below in the “First Con” section, because there are a lot of them.

This was my first extended stay in Red Deer. I’ve driven through it to get to Edmonton. It’s about what I expected–as if someone chopped off a piece of MacLeod Trail and dumped it in the middle of the prairie. Sorry for the unromantic description. My Nova Scotian heart, used to oceans and lakes as natural city boundaries, doesn’t quite feel right in cookie-cuttered, constantly expanding metropolises. How does one know when the city ends? It doesn’t. It keeps on growing.

I stayed at Kate’s house on Friday night (and became integrated into her clan of kitties!!) and we drove up very early Saturday morning. We had to be ready to sell by 9:30am.

That timing worked out (just barely!) because the two of us are pretty good at organizing ourselves, which is why we work well together. But it ended up being a very long Saturday. I’m also off coffee at the moment, which made the weekend even more long and stressful. I had to rely on sugary hot chocolate and green tea to keep me going instead of potent Starbucks caffeine. Big thanks to Kate for getting me through, being my brain when my brain wouldn’t brain the details, and just generally being there!!
We stayed at the Travelodge on the cheap (thin walls, but a decent bed) on Saturday night (it was good we didn’t drive back and forth to Calgary), and we got to have a late dinner with Avery Olive, aka Madison Avery. So that was nice. Though it’s worth noting that even she didn’t know that the expo was happening, and she LIVES in Red Deer.

Display

My display was about the same as Calgary Expo, on a smaller 6×6 table. Kate occupied a piece at the end to promote Crash & Burn. Unfortunately, because the artist alley table didn’t come with backing, and because it’s too long, we couldn’t use the horizontal banner. I’m also getting to the point where 6×6 is too small for an impressive display, but that size table is an attractive price-point for me to make a tidy profit.

People really appreciated the new postcards I made – they contain all book information (including Hunger In Her Bones) so people can look them up at their leisure.

Sales

I had quite a number of people finding me, telling me they really enjoyed the Sparkstone Saga. More people than I thought had gone to Calgary Expo one year or another, saw me, and returned to buy from me at Red Deer. I even had two girls who said they saw me at Hal-Con!! That’s the benefit of going to multiple cons in a year – people see your books around, and eventually they’ll stop and talk to you if they haven’t before, or buy more if they’ve enjoyed their first taste. Everything you do is a brick that adds to your castle in your publishing empire.

I didn’t have a clear stand-out seller. The Violet Fox Series and the Sparkstone Saga sold about equally, and most people bought bundles. I did the $15 Violet Fox promotion on Saturday, and I think that encouraged some to buy that wouldn’t have. I could have pushed Hunger In Her Bones pre-orders a little harder, but I didn’t get promo materials ready in time. For Vul-Con, I’ll be ready.

Credit card sales accounted for 42% of total earned – I had a number of higher price tag transactions: people buying all the books, or multiple bundles. No one asked to pay with debit. ATM machines seemed to be readily available and most had ample cash to cover a $25 or $35 purchase.

I also sold out of Within – not a surprise, I only brought three copies. I tend not to bring as many since I’m writing mostly in the Violet Fox and the Sparkstone universes right now, and selling the first couple of books in that series is more of a priority. Yet Within continues to catch people’s attention. It’s an odd little book. I think I need to write more YA horror because the people who like it like it a lot. I usually describe Within more as a supernatural thriller, though the supernatural element is pretty light, and it’s more creepy than outright terrifying.

Also, when I didn’t have any physical copies of Within, but mentioned I had a horror/thriller book in eBook form, I’d hold up one of the lil eBooks. I keep them behind the table now. I had a few people ask if they could just “have” the little eBook – not understanding that the professionally printed little card IS the product – it’s literally a code that lets you access the eBook! So I probably won’t make a big deal of it, just mention I have it, show it briefly, and not let them touch it. Continuing the trend, barely anyone buys individual eBooks, just the bundle, which is quite profitable for me. Eventually I may offer eBook bundles per series, but I also like keeping it as simple as possible.

On Kate’s end, I think she was able to get the word out about Crash and Burn to new people (with BRAND NEW PRETTY POSTCARDS!), and she had a couple of people come back the second day who either a) brought a friend to buy their own copy or b) had people gush about the story, and the improvement of the art across the two issues. Yay! There are only two issues currently, and I think once she has three she’ll see a bump in sales.

Questions

I always have at least two or three people approaching my table and asking me for writing and publishing advice. Looks like I’ll have to bust out a blog post about that sometime soon. I like getting these questions, and I usually talk up WWC if they’re local.

But at this con I got a question that NO ONE has ever asked me before. This person read my bio on the back of The Violet Fox, looked up at me, and asked, “Huh. So…where is Nova Scotia exactly?” I can’t rag on him too much because he did end up buying! But I don’t think I met anyone who didn’t know it’s one of the easternmost provinces in Canada.

First Year Con

Red Deer is a town of about 100,000 people. Calgary is a city of over a million people, and Calgary Comic Expo draws about 100,000 patrons each year. Just from those numbers, I knew going in about what to expect, sales-wise. My first worry of the whole affair was, “Is Red Deer big enough for an expo-sized convention?”

I don’t know what the final head count was – I was told to expect 10,000, which I halved because I’m a conservative guesser. Maybe two thousand people showed up – I feel that might still be a generous estimate. Westerner Place is a HUGE convention centre, and there were two other events happening in different buildings on the grounds.

When you have a smaller event in a larger space, it magnifies the problem of “not enough people.” Although, I will say I was surprised that Red Deer had such a large convention space in the first place. It was conveniently located off the highway, and Kate and I had no problems with set-up, getting in and out, etc.

Show hours were from 10am to 7pm on Saturday, and until 5pm on Sunday. But the Concierge (special line-skipping weekend passes) holders could get in a half an hour early–meaning, we had to be open at 9:30am. This is standard practice at larger cons, but it seemed largely unnecessary here. Maybe it was because I was near the back of the large room, but I didn’t see customers until closer to 10am anyway. It just made the day much, much longer.

The busiest times were between 11am and 2pm. The aisles seemed packed with eager customers, pictured below. Also, see that window there? From time to time, random people would be up there, watching over the proceedings. I found that a little creepy, especially when it wasn’t busy.

Aside from the aforementioned times, the vendor floor was mostly dead. The same people walked around and around the vendor floor. This frustrated me. From 5-7pm on Saturday, there was NO ONE. Kate dubbed those hours, “Vendor-Con” as all of the vendors started walking around, catching out the other booths. I liked meeting my fellow vendors and chatting business with them, but I don’t like when my time is wasted. Especially when I have a lot of work waiting for me when I return to the computer. I feel I could have used those extra two hours more wisely instead of being forced to stay–because there was a penalty if you packed up early.

Lack of Vendor Vetting

I’ll start by saying that yes, it’s a first year con, so filling the tables is important. But filling the tables with curated content seems more prudent than just letting anyone show up and fill the space. It seemed like there were some comic and artist vendors, but not as many as I would have expected.

Besides what seemed like every radio station in the Red Deer area (I had no idea there were so many!), there were also a couple of independent consultants for makeup/beauty products. This surprised me. It’s not that people who attend comic conventions don’t like/wouldn’t buy beauty products. There might be some that would.

My issue is, I overheard one beauty consultant say, “Everyone needs to have healthy skin.” As in: everyone walking by should be interested in my product.

That’s just unrealistic. Your target market isn’t everyone–just because they have skin doesn’t mean they will want to buy your skin care products, just like if someone likes to read, doesn’t mean they’ll want to buy my books.

More on point: when people attend comic expos, they’re looking to buy merchandise from their favourite shows or franchises, sometimes they’re into cosplay and armor and want something handmade, and sometimes they look for original art–be that books, comics, prints, etc. It’s possible they’d be in the frame of mind to purchase something else, but a lot of people who attend bring about $50-$100 cash for their favourite items, and once that’s gone, so is their desire to try anything new. Perhaps from a exposure perspective, the advertising might be worth it. But maybe not. These brands would’ve had to buy booths–artist alley tables were only for people who created/sold their own stuff. Booths started at $349 (sale price) – $420 full price. And if my guesstimate is right, and less than two thousand people attended – that seems like a high cost-per-person ratio. And I can only imagine that the cost seemed doubly high when you’re staring down empty aisles.

I’m NOT saying that non-geek/local business vendors shouldn’t be there. What I AM saying is it seems like an unintuitive decision for businesses to spend money to advertise to people who are less likely/not in the frame of mind to buy their product.

Concession notes: The only food on site (other than Lemon Heaven, and a girl who sold GF cupcakes) was the centre’s concession stand, which was manned by seemingly inexperienced teens. Some were eager to serve, some were lethargic, but mostly there seemed to be a seven to one ratio of teens to customers at any given time. There were no alternatives on site, which sucks for someone who has food allergies (like me) or someone who really just doesn’t want to eat fast food all weekend. I wished there was a food truck or two, even if it was just for the peak meal times. Maybe Brasco didn’t want to (or couldn’t) compete with the expo centre’s concession. I brought some snacks, otherwise I would have starved/been forced to eat gluten and get sick.

It seems like I’m being negative here. But I can’t NOT be honest – that’s what these post mortems are for. They’re for future me to read to remember what to improve upon, and for other creative professionals like me looking to make cons a source of income – so they know where to go, what to do, and what to avoid.

Cool People

Met a lot of people who were friends-of-friends at this con. On my left, a guy named Jason who was selling jewellery for his friend knows my friend Lesley, who runs Pandora’s Boox in Olds. On my right, Ink’d Well Comics–Jay Paulin–I DID met him before at Hal-Con 2013. He’s friends with Peter. Very cool to get to chat and get to know him better.

This guy named Mike across from us was selling his wife’s art, and it was so pretty! Kate was helping him out during the weekend since he was by himself, so we got to chat with him quite a bit. Apparently in the October-December months, he travels from BC across Western Canada to as far as Winnipeg doing large craft shows and Christmas markets–he called it his harvest season. That switched a light on in me–of course, CHRISTMAS MARKETS. Some of them have pretty strict rules though (like, handmade art only, etc). Since I’m going to be in Nova Scotia during that time, so I think I’ll have to see what I can do about that to create a “harvest season” of my own.

Will I go back?

I’m interested. I made more profit than I thought I would. I think they’ll have to attract larger guests to get the draw they want, and re-think the vendor hours to make me excited. It’s only an hour and a half from Calgary, so the commute isn’t such that I have to sacrifice my display quality. I just hope that their equivalent expo in Vancouver won’t turn me off of the idea completely. That I’m more wary of. I really hope that Red Deer Expo itself makes enough money so that it is able to make it work next year while improving on the missteps and hiccups.

Here’s a picture of two of Kate’s kitties making me feel like part of the pack.

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Check out my other convention write-ups here:

– Calgary Expo 2016
– Hal-Con 2015
– Edmonton Expo 2015
– When Words Collide 2015
– Calgary Comic Expo 2015
– Hal-Con 2014
– Keycon 2014
– Hal-Con 2013
– C4 Winnipeg 2013
– When Words Collide 2013
– KeyCon 2013

Look at our power stances! IT’S OUR SECRET TO SELLING A ZILLION COPIES OF EVERYTHING. Photo taken by Laksa Media.

Check out my other convention write-ups here:

– Hal-Con 2015
– Edmonton Expo 2015
– When Words Collide 2015
– Calgary Comic Expo 2015
– Hal-Con 2014
– Keycon 2014
– Hal-Con 2013
– C4 Winnipeg 2013
– When Words Collide 2013
– KeyCon 2013

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General Impressions

This is the biggest con of the year, and I made the most out of it! It was a strong start to 2016 and my many, many events. My location was pretty great; excellent compared to last year. I was in the BMO, not the Big Four, and it made a huge difference on my sales. I was close to an entrance, in the row across from the guest artists. It’s a double-edged sword being across from the guest artists/media, since sometimes they have little to sell, or they’re not always there. I was a little worried on Thursday because some of them hadn’t shown up to populate their tables. Fortunately this did NOT impact sales at all! Most of them had attractive, colourful displays, especially by Friday. I bought the economy/small press table, which came with a draping–this, I think, is key to increasing presence.

Upping My Game

Knowing that I would be in a higher-trafficked area and competing with larger, overwhelming displays, I brought everything to the table for this year’s Calgary Expo.

New horizontal banner? Check. We had to put the grommets in ourselves because I was dumb and didn’t order the banner WITH them. Turns out, the banner was slightly too long for the space and drooped a bit. I had to fix it with clips throughout the con. But overall, it was extremely effective, and I got a lot of compliments. It was also funny to watch people walk by and whisper “Faery Ink Press…” as they read it, like they were doing a quiet incantation. I only set up my tall banner the last day, because there wasn’t a lot of room until Sunday when our left-side neighbour vacated his space (more below).

Display items like flowers (from Michael’s), the purple chest (Value Village find!), and the mask (Kate’s) to communicate what I’m about? Check! Everyone loved the mask. I may have to start selling masks, from the number of people who touched it and asked about it.

Brand new tablecloths? CHECK CHECK! They arrived just in time. They are exactly the colour I wanted, and I got them from Amazon.com. Bye-bye raggity purple sparkly fabric!

Elevating my display to eye-level, so that my covers can do the heavy-lifting? CHECK CHECK CHECK. Everyone loves The Violet Fox and The Silver Spear covers, so I ensured they were extremely visible to the public to reel in reluctant customers.

Better signage? Check. I created “YOUNG ADULT SCIENCE FICTION” and “YOUNG ADULT FANTASY” sheets with the cover art and pull quotes from reviews on Amazon and Goodreads so potential customers could see that actual people have read and enjoyed the work. I could’ve had better display for my buttons, but people tended to notice them anyway.

We also had candy to entice people to visit; mostly we got sneaky young children (too young to probably enjoy my stuff) taking some when they thought I wasn’t looking. By the Saturday, it was hungry con-goers who just needed a sugar boast to make it through. I don’t think having the candy necessarily boosted interest in my stuff, nor did it really afford the opportunity to open a conversation. I suppose it did keep young children busy when I was pitching to the YA-interested parents, so I may continue to do have something sweet on the table.

Everything was on point. I’ve talked before about how my display is evolving from an author display to a publisher display, and I was definitely in the publisher camp this time around. That’s GOOD – that’s how I’m branding myself. I am Faery Ink Press, but Faery Ink Press is also something separate from me; it’s the immortal part of me that will still be here when I’m gone.

Things I can still improve upon: I think I need more book-specific bookmarks and take-aways, so that people have a clear representation of a book that they can get in the future. At this point, I need to think seriously about publishing a story with faeries in it, because I had a lot of questions about that. My potential serial will probably be next on the list besides The Violet Fox Series and the Sparkstone Saga. I also had a couple of people ask about audiobooks, which I currently don’t have. I think I’m a little ways off to justifying the cost of producing them (I think I’d want to just hire someone instead of revenue-sharing to ensure quality and have more control over the finished product). I also need better book stands/shelving (and more of them). Lastly, I think I’ll consider getting a larger space for next year (especially if I share with Kate) to maximize my display and presence.

Sales

All of my work and preparation paid off; I had my best con EVER, purely from a financial standpoint. I sold a lot, and made more money than I was expecting. I’m glad I moved from the Big Four building into the BMO. Thursday was surprisingly busy; I broke even on the first day! I think that gave everyone in our row high expectations for the rest of the weekend. Everyone seemed to be expecting a larger Saturday and Sunday, sales-wise, but we didn’t see that weekend “bump” that’s common at cons (most people attend on the weekend and drop most of their money then). Part of the reason for the lack of surge in sales could be the economy; Calgary is not doing so hot right now. Attendance was only up slightly from last year (103,000 from 102,000, if I’m remembering correctly).

On Thursday, I had a 5 eBooks for $10 promo, which went over really well. Even the regular con price (5 for $15) attracted a lot of people – it’s an opportunity to try everything without breaking the bank. I also knocked down the price of The Violet Fox and The Silver Spear for the day. I think I’ll continue to do that for subsequent cons.

Overall, I think my sales technique was vastly different from previous cons. Maybe it was the confidence from my display, or the amount of coffee I drank, but gathering the courage and the energy was surprisingly easy. Once I had caught their attention and interest, offering them a copy to interact with worked 90% of the time. Once again, The Violet Fox is a winner here because of the unique binding. It’s the most expensive product (singular) on the table yet it sells the most purely because of the quality of the production. Also I get very animated when I’m talking about it, and I’ve got that pitch down. That could be it too.

The Violet Fox and The Silver Spear pairing sold lots, and it’s a very good price point for me and the customer. The lil eBook bundle, even at full price, did very well for me too. People continue to buy the bundle and not individual eBooks.

People paying with credit cards made up 12% of my total sales, so about the same as Hal-Con 2015. Adam Dreece, who was next to me, managed to get a debit machine from TD Bank – it has a ~$15 monthly cost and it looks like a really old calculator, haha! I only lost $25 in sales because I didn’t take debit, so I’m still on the fence about getting a machine. I am doing quite a few cons this year, so that’s good to know that there’s a debit solution for Canadians that doesn’t break the bank for when I’m ready to take it on.
Many people said they’d find my book in bookstores: I told them where they could find it. I usually put little stock in follow-through, but I was more vigilant this time with making sure that people took my card or my bookmark. Because you never know!

Returning Customers

It’s always awesome having people come up to you out of the blue and ask, “When is the third book coming out?” I had quite a bit of that for the Sparkstone Saga. Hunger In Her Bones doesn’t come out until later this year – date currently unknown, late summer maybe – hopefully before September. I loved hearing that people adored my little science fiction series. Even though The Violet Fox gets the most love sales-wise, there’s a large chunk of my heart in Stars In Her Eyes and Dreams In Her Head. At its core, it’s about being away from home, standing strong, finding common ground with the people around you, and losing and re-finding hope in the face of fear. Also surprisingly were the people who told me they loved Within. It’s a weird little book too that’s hard to categorize sometimes, and probably doesn’t represent my writing style now (2011 is a long time ago!) but hey, cool if you enjoy it!

Cons are Exhausting

Face-blindness kicked in pretty early on in the four-day run. It’s like part of my brain said, “Nope, too many people to process. BYE!” If you talked to me, said you were interested in buying but had to think about it, and then came back, it’s possible that I would not have realized I had talked to you earlier. Even trying to remember faces by particular characteristics (“Person with the short brown hair and glasses”) was impossible, because it seemed like at least a third of the people I talked to fit that description. Only if people said, “I’m back!” would give me a cue to NOT go into my pitch. I’d get this sometimes when I worked at Alexander Keith’s–because hundreds of people would go on that tour every day, I’d accidentally end up pitching the tour to people who I LITERALLY just sang at five minutes ago.

But Calgary Expo saw 100,000 people over four days. There were times when I’d even approach the neighbouring table persons as they walked by, as if I hadn’t seen them before. I don’t know whether this is just me and my brain having a low tolerance to face differentiation (I am already terrible at telling actors apart if they have similar hair, body weight, and roles in various TV shows/movies) or if there is scientific basis for your brain “switching off” in the face of overwhelming stimuli (seems plausible?). I’m just so in the zone at cons, that if I see someone who I KNOW but don’t see on a regular basis, I will blank on your face, name, and everything else about you until you tell me who you are. I even did this to Lizzy at Hal-Con last year, a FRIEND who I WENT TO SCHOOL WITH AND HAVE KNOWN FOR 10+ YEARS. Sorry!!

As for physical exhaustion, this con took the cake. I stood for 99% of the time for four days. Kate and I got smart and had a yoga mat, which helped A LOT, but because of the high traffic, and the height of my display, sitting down and being seen wasn’t really plausible. I’d come home sore and ready for bed…

…except that my brain wouldn’t let me sleep. My mind would be reeling, thinking of new selling strategies, thinking of ways to improve my display, thinking of what books to publish next, thinking of how I can improve my website further and oh yes, do I need more bookmarks, more business cards, more take-away items? It’s just part of being a entrepreneurial author, and I often harness this creative energy to get more done immediately after a con.

Young People, Again

Even more than last year, I noticed teens with their parents attending the Expo. Some even were exploring on their own. Man is it ever getting harder to tell what age people are, though that could be the aforementioned face-blindness. I had a lot of younger teens asking the parents to buy my books. Some had their own money, and spent it gladly at my table. I even had some parents buying for their absent children, physical or eBook – because some younger teens prefer the eBooks, and read them on tablets. Good to know!

Crash & Burn – The Queer Space Opera

My assistant/friend Kate has been a huge help to me and this year, she and her friend Finn have a brand new comic, Crash and Burn. There’s new pages on Fridays, posted for free online, but they had print copies of the first two issues done for the various cons this year. Kate asked if she could have copies on the table to sell, and I agreed. Tables are expensive at Calgary Expo, and it’s difficult to get into when you’re first starting (it took me two years of applying/being on the wait list).

All reactions fell into one of two categories:

1. “Queer Space Opera? SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY!”

2. “Space opera? What does that mean? Queer? I am confused but tell me more!”

To be clear, Crash and Burn isn’t about the LGBTQ experience, all the characters/alien races just happen to fall into one or more of those categories and they’re trying to survive being stranded on a planet after crash-landing. You can read it for free online!

Having it on my table made me doubly aware of how I interact and gender people. Lately I’ve become more aware of my language when addressing and interacting with the public, and I know that I’m still learning a lot when it comes to LGBTQ issues. One major change is how I explain who my books are for. I used to lean towards the “my books have young female protagonists, so yes, girls would probably enjoy them more” camp. But now I’m realizing that my books aren’t “for” girls–they’re for people. Your gender doesn’t make you like a certain story more than another. It’s the experiences of the protagonist and the themes of the story that speak to the individual.

The comic was on the table for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Finn came and helped me out and sold on Saturday, and it was nice to get to know them. They’re the illustrator. We bonded over our mutual love of Mass Effect and especially Garrus! On Sunday, the table to the left of us had to vacate due to a family emergency, so Kate moved the Crash and Burn stuff over to fill part of that table since the Expo staff didn’t want an empty table showing. Kate continued to sell fairly well, and Finn showed up again for support and to sign copies. At the end of the day, apparently three young persons approached the table, extremely emotional, because they had finally found a comic that represented them.

When we were cleaning up, Kate herself was almost in tears. It’s overwhelming when your sell your work to people for the first time, but to see her speak to and resonate with her community is pretty amazing. Also, did I mention that Crash and Burn is nominated for an Aurora Award? I’m really happy to have Kate on my team; she’s someone I can trust, and I’ve learned a lot from her these past few months. I’m hoping we can collaborate more in the future and it’s going to be fun watching this comic grow into something more powerful than itself.

Cool People

Kirby Krackle (Kyle) came and chatted with me about indie publishing. His booth was almost directly across from mine. I hadn’t put two and two together and realized that he’s on Peter Chiykowski‘s Borken Telephone record that I backed on Kickstarter last year. Peter and I had our usual chats during the show and after. It’s nice to see his friendly face and hear about how his projects evolve.

Greg Chomichuk was there, being his old self, of course. It was good to hang out with him, however briefly, before exhaustion overtook me. I enjoy his energy. It’s nice to be around people who have similar brains to mine; who are always thinking about the next project. DO A BUSINESS GREG. We’ll have more time to scheme at WWC this August.

Thank you to all my Calgary writer/publisher friends who came and chatted with me throughout the show. It’s nice to see a friendly face to keep morale up.

Also I met Wolf Cop, and he licked my face! CHADWICK IS JEALOUS. Also, I’m like a grandma in this picture, clutching my purse so that the big bad wolf does not steal it. Also-also, I only noticed Peter in the background later being like WHAT.

Final Thoughts

Calgary Expo is a staple con for serious independent creators, especially if you live in the west. For as long as I’m able, I’ll go.

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Check out my other con experiences here:
– Hal-Con 2015
– Edmonton Expo 2015
– When Words Collide 2015
– Calgary Comic Expo 2015
– Hal-Con 2014
– Keycon 2014
– Hal-Con 2013
– C4 Winnipeg 2013
– When Words Collide 2013
– KeyCon 2013