We have been planning a poetry event since February with two formerly local poets. Many emails were exchanged to find a date that worked with both writers because of the travel involved. Finally, a date was found that worked with everyone, a Saturday night, which is not our preferred event night because so many other things compete with it, but it was the only night one of the poets could do. I was relieved as now I could start promoting the event.
\nPromoting an event is a two-month process for us. First, the event goes on our website. Then we send calendar listings to the local papers. After that we write press releases and send them to all the media outlets in the area. Elizabeth then makes a flyer for the event. Lately, she’s been doing handbills that folks can take away with them. These are much more cost-effective than a single-page color sheet. After this, Elizabeth will add the event as a teaser in the prior month’s email event blast.
\nThen six weeks before the event, we’ll place our book order. In this case we took advantage of a backlist special and perhaps ordered a few too many books.\u00a0 But we were excited about the event and wanted to have all the author’s books to create a very full in-store display. This particular event is set for the end of the month.
\nLuckily for us this particular event featured two poets. I just got an email from the poet whose schedule we accommodated that he can’t come to the event because it’s the same day as his son’s first Little League game. While I applaud this man’s parenting involvement, I can’t help being really irritated. Now, all of his books have to be returned, at my expense, because of a\u00a0 seven-year’s old baseball game. (The author doesn’t live locally, so I can’t even get stock signed.) Surely, there will be an infinite number of ball games in this child’s life, so why this one can’t be missed for the sake of being a professional is a little lost on me. I would think setting a good example of honoring commitments would be an important lesson for the child to learn. Perhaps he should have thought that there would be a strong possibility of a ball game on a Saturday in April and planned a little better.
\nSo, I find myself in the unique position of having lost money on an event before it’s begun. I think it’s safe to say that our store event meant little to this man or he wouldn’t have cancelled so blithely, two weeks before the event.
\nIt’s times like this that I remind myself, it’s just books. I’m not a heart surgeon, no one’s life is in peril, but wow, it is galling to be treated with such little regard.
\nEpilogue: I have to add this because it was heartening. After his cancellation email, the author sent a second email, volunteering to pay our freight costs back to the publisher. Of course, we will not actually ask him to cover that, but his offer meant a lot. His reason for going to the game is, of course, valid and good. Not only is he being a great dad, his son is a great kid. So, while it was a frustrating turn of events and I wish we’d had more notice, I now feel a little sheepish for my tone. (The lesson I’ve learned from this is to wait a few hours between the inciting event and writing the post.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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