"Be bold, and mighty forces will come to your aid." David Payne kept
these words from Goethe at the forefront of his mind as he logged
thousands of miles across the country this past summer visiting
bookstores to increase awareness for his most recent novel,
Back to
Wando Passo (Morrow), which was published in May.
Payne, who lives in Hillsboro, N.C., embarked on two whirlwind
expeditions, first to New England and then to the West Coast and the
Midwest. "It was sort of a post-tour tour," said Payne, the author of
four previous novels, who undertook the visits at his own expense. "It
was a chance to meet great independent booksellers." Ultimately, Payne
was looking to enhance the success
Back to Wando Passo has enjoyed in
the Southeast by bringing it to the attention of booksellers in other
parts of the country.
Payne's unconventional and ambitious trips came about in part because
of Carl Lennertz, HarperCollins' v-p of independent retailing. Wanting
to go beyond the traditional practice of having an author visit stores
simply to sign stock, sometimes a disappointing experience if only
several copies of a book are on hand, "it occurred to me to try a more
positive, long-term experiment, with David's willing participation,"
said Lennertz. "I suggested a 'just go in, make nice and bring some
cookies or coffee to the booksellers' tour, with reading copies in
hand."
Coined the "Muffin Tour" by Payne, there were several essential factors
that made the initial New England tour a viable promotional effort.
"David's passion and willingness to put in some serious miles, and his
buying lots of food out of his own pocket," according to Lennertz, were
central to its effectiveness. Payne also took reading copies to each
store he visited. Perhaps most crucial, though, said Lennertz, was "the
platform the book already had--a SIBA bestseller ranking, a Book Sense
pick and a few key bookseller supporters outside the Southeast."
Payne recently returned from the second part of his tours, an excursion to the
West Coast and the Midwest. With Lennertz's aid, Payne plotted a path
from San Francisco to Portland to Seattle and then to Chicago,
Milwaukee and Cincinnati. "My best hope of support and advocacy lies
with booksellers," said Payne. "My ambition was to meet as many people
as I could," he added, "and hope that some of them would take the book
home and read it."
For the West Coast and Midwest stores, Payne and Lennertz opted for a
more structured approach, calling and e-mailing ahead of time rather
than making impromptu visits. One bookseller who received a call was
Harry W. Schwartz senior buyer Daniel Goldin, who spent the day
introducing Payne to staff at all five Schwartz locations in and around
Milwaukee, Wis. "
Back to Wando Passo can appeal to different sorts of
readers," noted Goldin. He worked to match the book with colleagues at
each location who might enjoy the read, including those who like
Southern fiction, novels with historical components and even the works
of John Irving, with whom reviewers have compared Payne.
In Cincinnati, Payne was welcomed by Jen Reynolds, director of
publisher relations and events at Joseph-Beth Booksellers. Along with
HarperCollins sales representative Kate McCune, Reynolds set up a
luncheon for Payne with several Joseph-Beth staffers. "We always feel
it is successful when our booksellers are able to sit down one-on-one
with an author," commented Reynolds. "Without fail, almost every time
this has happened, people feel more invested and take it on as a cause
they want to champion. It's like you have a personal connection at that
point with the author."
Although it's too soon to tell what impact Payne's visits will have on
hardcover sales of
Back to Wando Passo, the consensus is that his
efforts have seeded the marketplace for the paperback publication next
year. "It has had the effect of increasing the handselling of his book
in hardcover," said Lennertz, "and, maybe more important, setting
things up for the paperback." This opinion is seconded by Goldin and
Reynolds, and also by Barbara Morrow, co-owner of the Northshire
Bookstore in Manchester Center, Vt.
It was Morrow's invitation to Payne (who resided in Vermont and New
York City prior to returning to his home state of North Carolina) to do
a reading at Northshire that led to the author's New England
sojourn. Morrow has supported all of Payne's books and is confident
that her store will sell
Back to Wando Passo "tremendously well in
paperback." Morrow believes the book will appeal to a broad range of
readers no matter where they reside. "It's a wonderful story," she
said. Echoing the publisher's and especially the author's wishes, she
added, "I hope it does well everywhere."--
Shannon McKenna
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