The Farmers’ Market was already bustling with activity when my fellow author Carolyn Williams and I arrived. Vendors that included Four Sisters Farms, jewelry, fresh fruits and vegetables, and bath soaps gathered to sell their wares. As we set up our table, our light spring jackets keeping off the morning chill, we prepared ourselves to sell our books to the early morning shoppers. The booth to our left drew a crowd with the owner’s beautiful German Shepard dog and The Four Sisters were really sisters.
My friend’s husband is her best book promoter. He is from this town and knew a great many people we saw that day. He was constantly greeting someone he knew and bringing them over to hear about our books and hopefully buy a copy. We met so many people in just that one day as they walked up and down the aisle, some coming to hear our sales pitch and others staying in the center to avoid any sales pitch. There were men and women, couples and singles, young and old.
As the morning passed I pulled out my tan, cotton, ball cap to shade my eyes and cast off my jacket that was so needed in the morning. The cool breeze combined with the rising sun did wonders for my mood. My daughter, who lives in another state, says she knows what the weather is like from the sound of my voice.
We spent the time talking to customers about our books, sometimes taking turns pitching our own book or each pitching the other’s book. We also talked about future plans with our books and other activities we share. We talked with former acquaintances and made some new ones.
As the time drew to an end the vendors began to pack up and leave. My friend and I vowed to take turns the next trip and walk around to check out other vendors’ products and meet more people. Between us that day my friend and I sold twenty-five books, not bad for three and half hours in a market designed to sell fresh fruits and vegetables.
Moral of the story: You never know where you might sell your product, be it animal, mineral or vegetable. Just go where the people congregate to buy and sell and you are bound to sell something.
For those not able to visit our local book signings in Ohio you can buy my book, Home Should Be Safe: Hope and Help for Domestic Violence Victims, from my website and Caroline’s book, Mystery in the Pines, which is available in hardback, paperback or Kindle.
Mina's Minutes 