Two ways to do that that come readily to mind are doing a book launch party and securing as many readings as possible in a public setting.

Book Launch

Most of the people I work with are self-publishers. As independently published authors, they are the ones who organize their own book launches. Recently, The Memoir Network held a successful book launch for the publication of Business Boy to Business Man by Robert Verreault as told to Denis Ledoux. Writing a memoir is a long haul and it is refreshing to have an event to gather friends and family and fans together to acknowledge that an end and a beginning are occurring.

Here are some ideas for what you will need to bring to a book launch:

1. A sufficient number of books to sell. It is hard to say what sufficient is. You clearly do not want to run out of books—and so abort sales. So…make a good guess about how many people might show up. I would round that number to the number in the next full box of books. That’s how many books I would bring to a book launch.
2. A layout of the books. I will display some of the copies I bring and keep others boxed beneath the sales table. I may even keep some in the car if I have someone who can go out to fetch them during the program. Whatever you don’t sell you can bring back home. I like to bring to a book launch some of my other titles to sell also. You can offer a bundle price. Always set the table with many books as this leaves the audience feeling that they are not buying one of the few books that someone closer to the author ought to be buying.
3. A cloth or two to spread over the table(s), display stand(s) to place your books against (have several displays even if you only have one title), perhaps a potted plant. I like to cover the front and sides of a table so that the possible mess beneath the table is not visible. I want people to feel comfortable about moving around the table.
4. The table is where you can create a sign with the price of the book (or your bundle) so that you are not always repeating it. This can be propped against a book on a display stand. You can print this sign out at home, and have it to bring to a book launch.
5. A supply of pens. Have plenty available to sign books and sign checks (people will walk away with pens you provide them to write checks, so bring plenty).
6. A flyer of the book for you to set on chairs. This both acquaints people with the title and gives them something to bring home to either pass on to others or to remind them to buy the book.
7. Business cards or other printed contact information (other than the flyer). You want people who did not buy to leave with contact info. You also want people to be able to contact you easily. These are easy to forget to bring to a book launch.
8. A publicity board with copies of reviews of previous books. Minimally: the press release you wrote for this book. I have used tripods to hold the boards and I have also taped or pinned the boards to a wall or curtain.
9. Sign up sheets for getting attendees’ names and emails. A clipboard and an attached pen. I like to print these out so that people are cued and can write in a straight line.
10. A box filled with appropriate paper and coin money. Since many books sell for $XX.95, it is useful to have a lot of nickels. Dollar bills come in handy, too. If your state or province has a sales tax, calculate the change that people will be requesting and have a lot of it on hand.
11. A PowerPoint presentation. Bring your own projector if the venue does not have one.
12. Consider processing credit card payments. Mobile devices are equipped to process credit cards, but you need to procure an app beforehand.
13. Be prepared for a reading of your book. Your launch ought to include a reading.`

A Public Reading

The above suggestions for a book launch apply to the reading. In addition, here are five tips for a memoir reading program that are the most useful.

1. Read for no longer than 30 minutes. Then, 15 minutes for Q & A and 15 minutes for meeting your audience personally.
2. Set your goals for the program. Why are you presenting this program? I will presume that you are viscerally interested in sharing your life otherwise you would not have written the memoir. Let’s presume on your enthusiasm and let that be taken for granted. What is your other goal(s)?
3. Is your (secondary, presuming sharing content is your primary) goal to sell the book itself? For this, you will have to demonstrate how the book can meet the needs of the audience. Ask questions such as, “Has anyone here experienced a bitter divorce? Speak briefly about your own bitter experience, then say something like “But let me read from the book. It says what I want to say more succinctly and clearly.” Then read from your memoir about your divorce.
4. Always collect email addresses. Offer a bonus for doing so. “I’ll send you a PDF of a chapter I wrote but decided not to publish. I would love it if you gave me your feedback? Ought I to include it in another edition?” Use the emails to keep in touch with the audience—especially for your second book.
5. Place your books near the exit and stand there during the last 15 minutes of your program. Bring all your titles. One may sell the other. Offer a discount or a bonus premium for buying that evening.

My best tip for a memoir reading program is really general: whatever you do, don’t just go for doing a reading. Go for a marketing opportunity so that your past writing will support your future writing.

Your best time to make a splash about your book will occur in the first 6 to 12 months. Take advantage of the opportunity.

Action Steps

Explore more options by promoting your memoir on a virtual book tour or blog tour. If you are unfamiliar with the term, think of it as a series of blog postings, using excerpts from your books. Take these action steps to build a list of blogs for your virtual tour:

• Make a list of every blogger you’ve connected with or perhaps have left a comment on their blog
• Write a template letter announcing your blog tour and ask for permission to write a post about your book on their blog
• Personalize the template for each recipient.
• Prepare an Excel spreadsheet to record data: name of person and blog, date contacted, the response date and content, notes
• Collate end matter—bio, photo, links, illustrations—into a document
• Set up a webpage as a promo for site visitors. Set up a tour itinerary on the page. List the upcoming sites and link to the new posts. The itinerary extends the life of the tour and serves as credentials for prospective hosts
• Keep everything in a binder for organization