First up, here's a link to some of my talk in Nijmegen, Netherlands. It starts off with the same old autobiographical stuff and then goes to the Q&A.
For those who complained about the Podcast, as John said in the comments last time, I do that same talk a lot and then I get to a Q&A, which is different each time. The upcoming podcasts will not be endless variations on my autobiography! In fact, sometimes when I'm taping a talk I don't even start recording till I get to the Q&A.
Odd thing is that when I don't do some autobiographical stuff people kinda get mad. I do a talk and open it up to Q&A and the very first question is an annoyed person going, "Who the hell are you?" (and not as a koan, either!)
ANYWAY, I'm in Japan. The annual Dogen Sangha retreat in Tokei-in temple starts tomorrow. Actually there are now a few Dogen Sangha retreats. So I can't even say "the annual DS retreat" anymore. It's the annual one that I lead, anyway.
What Mysterion said about setting up talks in the comments section last time bears repeating here. So this is it:
Anonymous Anonymous said...
"I'm in Champaign and I would definitely go if you made an appearance here, but I really don't know anything about setting up something like this."
1) go to a few web pages & print them out:
a) hardcore zen
b) sit down and shut up
c) zen, wrapped in karma
2) visit book stores big and small - remember the 'mom & pop' or young progressive types and tell them Brad is driving thru so it's a fee free event - see if they want a "reading and book signing" event.
3) Expect 6 to 8 'no way' answers for every nibble. 1 in 4 nibbles might result in a booked event. But these comments are a prophylaxis against setting your expectations too high. You never know until AFTER the fact.
4) coordinate a schedule with Brad - he has no publicist or booking agent.
The idea is that the store can sell some books and attract some interest - perhaps selling other books too. Authors make a lot more if they sell books but most stores frown on this. However, if they only stock 6 books and 12 people want to buy a signed book, then both store and author make a buck.
The economics are thus: the author gets -at most- $1 (from the publisher) for every book sold. If you are Dan Brown and sell 73 million books, it all works out.
For fringe press, the publisher might front you $20,00 or even $30,000 for a book but then you get NOTHING until 30,000 or 45,000 books are sold. In addition, the publisher might give you two gross (2 x 144 = 288) books to sell on your own or that many at 1/2 price to sell on your own. If you are LUCKY, the publisher will do that on a floating basis - e.g. sell you 288 books periodically at 1/2 the MSRP.
All in all, if you think you can make more than $3000 a year selling your own books, think again. The average is FAR less than that (even when you count in the Dan Browns of the biz).
And by all means, if you have the time - and tenacity - go for it!
Thanks Mysterion!
I'll also add some material for SEX, SIN AND ZEN soon. But the truth is even I don't know how to set these things up. Yet somehow I seem to do it. Most of my gigs come about from fans of my work who find some way of making them happen. Most have never done it before.
Also, bookstores aren't always the best places. There are tons of other venues.
And, sadly, the economics of which he speaks are pretty much how it goes. I gotta figure out how Dan Brown does it!
