Thoughts on a Book Festival

This past weekend I attended the SC Book Festival in Columbia, SC, and wanted to share my thoughts on this event.

Pluses:

Held at the Convention Center, the event is very well done. It’s professional, clean, and well staffed. There were always people roaming the aisle. Situated on the first row by the entrance was a big plus - more traffic than the other aisles. They had an artist’s corner and an upstairs area with events for kids. Some of the vendors kept to themselves, but many were friendly and nice. Met some great people this weekend.

Minuses:

According to previous attendees, attendance was way down, and so were sales. (Most stated they only sold 30-50% of what they sold last year.) A lot of this had to do with timing - the festival is usually held in February. Mid-May meant more outdoor activities, nicer weather, and college was already out for the year. I think the great rise in eBooks had a lot to do with it, too. Fewer people are buying physical books.

The rest is the usual that one sees at any book event. People who walk through so fast, you wonder why they even came if they weren’t planning to actually stop and look. Half of the crowd was senior citizens, and they made a beeline for the Carolina history stuff. A few obnoxious authors. There’s the mass of writers who attend just to pump authors and publishers for information without buying any books. (Gotta love those people!) And two days standing (because you don’t dare sit - you have to engage passerbys and hand out bookmarks) is really draining. It also reminded me my why I normally don’t pay to attend events - it’s just not worth it. I felt bad for the self-published authors sitting there with one or two books - they lost big time.

Will I attend the SC Book Festival again? No. The EBook trend means even less attendees next year. The event was almost too formal, too. And of course, there’s the cost. That’s why I love the Book ‘Em events. More casual, a friendly environment, and no cost to authors or publishers.
And if you missed my announcement on Monday about the first ever NC Book ‘Em, click HERE.

What’s everyone else’s feeling about book festivals? Do you attend ones that require several hundred dollars for a booth? If you go as a reader, do you actually BUY books?

OFF TOPIC: When to step in...

The other day I was sitting outside of a restaurant in front of Target when I heard a child crying and screaming. I looked up to see a mother and child half a parking lot away. The young child was probably about 2 years old and sitting in a shopping cart, throwing a fit. Perhaps she had just been woken up from her nap, after arriving by minivan to their destination. As I looked up, I saw the young mother standing in front of the cart, one hand on the cart while the other held her head. My senses went on alert, as I sensed a mother who had about reached her limit. I decided I wasn't going to take my eyes off this pair until I knew that the mother could get a hold of herself. Suddenly she grabbed up the little girl and swung her back into the minivan and raised up her hand and swung, twice striking the little girl, the little girl screaming even louder. The mother then slammed the door of the van shut while she calmly went to grab the shopping cart that had rolled away. I continued to watch, on edge, wondering at what point do I get involved? I don't like the fact that parents hit their children, but there is no law against it. Parents are permitted to discipline their children in whatever way they see fit, as long as they don't leave marks on the child. How can you tell from a half a parking lot away whether or not a parent may be leaving marks? Is it the height of the hand? Does it matter that her hand was raised up over her head as she swung at the small girl? Is it the virulent anger in which it is done? When do you step in?

It all ended a couple of minutes later, when the mother got the little girl back out of the minivan, now quiet and no longer screaming, and put her back into the shopping cart to now take her into the store.

So where is the line? The line between a parent's right to discipline their child, and the child's right of protection? How do you know when someone has crossed it, and it is time to step in and defend a child? Not having any children myself, I'm especially perplexed by this line. Is child abuse like obscenity, and you just "know it when you see it"?

Startling statistics regarding books and reading...

Here are some statistics aggregated on Erma Bombeck's website. I'm not sure how accurate they are, especially those from the Jenkins Group, as some of them seem pretty hard to believe...

1/3 of high school graduates never read another book for the rest of their lives.

42 percent of college graduates never read another book after college.

80 percent of U.S. families did not buy or read a book last year.

70 percent of U.S. adults have not been in a bookstore in the last five years.

57 percent of new books are not read to completion.

(Source: Jerold Jenkins, www.JenkinsGroupInc.com)

53 percent read fiction, 43 percent read nonfiction. The favorite fiction category is mystery and suspence, at 19 percent.

55 percent of fiction is bought by women, 45 percent by men.

(Source: Publishers Weekly)

A successful fiction book sells 5,000 copies.

A successful nonfiction book sells 7,500 copies.

(Source: Authors Guild, www.authorsguild.org)

Each day in the U.S., people spend 4 hours watching TV, 3 hours listening to the radio and 14 minutes reading magazines.

(Source: Veronis, Suhler & Associates investment banker)

Some of these are hard to swallow. I can only think of one person that I know that doesn't read. Pretty much everyone else I think reads at least sometimes. Some read non-fiction, some read fiction, some read heavily while others read only a book or two a year. But nearly everyone I know reads at least some. I just can't imagine that 42% of college graduates "never read another book after college" and 33% of high school graduates "never read another book for the rest of their lives" after high school.  That is just really hard to swallow. If it is true, then that is pretty frightening and disheartening!

Book Giveaways in Blogworld (05-14-11 edition)

NOTE: A reminder that you are free to email me about any giveaways that you are having, if you want me to blog them, and I'll be happy to try to post them even if I am not entering them. Just include a link to the giveaway, what you are giving away, how many copies are being given away, and the deadline in order to assure being included. Email me at nfmgirl AT gmail DOT com.

Here is a list of some giveaways going on in Blogworld*. Please note that new giveaways that were added this week are indented in Blockquotes:

Misfit Salon is giving away your choice of a selection of books. Deadline is May 16. International!

SusieBookworm is giving away 2 copies of Caleb's Crossing. Deadline is May 18. US/Canada only.

Peeking Between the Pages is giving away The Sandalwood Tree. Deadline is May 21. US/Canada only.

Bookish Delights is having a Blogoversary giveaway with several different prizes! Deadline is May 22. International!

Hist-Fic Chick is giving away a copy of The Confession of Katherine Howard. Deadline is May 23. US only.

Deranged Book Lovers is having a 6-month blogoversary giveaway for the Metrozone series. Deadline is May 25. International!

Down the Rabbit Hole is giving away your choice of a book. Deadline is May 26. International!

*Courtesy Note: Please keep in mind the many, many hours of work that goes into me compiling this list each week. Please be courteous and thoughtful, and do not steal my text. Either recreate your own list, or link to this list and direct your readers here for giveaway information. Thank you so much for your consideration.

Woo-hoo! Book 'Em is Coming to NC!

Announcing the first ever Book ‘Em in North Carolina!

I’m thrilled to be attending this event and part of the committee. If you are an author, you don’t want to miss this book festival! We have a blast at Book ‘Em events.

Here’s the info from the website - and author registration is now open:

Book 'Em North Carolina is scheduled for Saturday, February 25, 2012. The event will be held at Robeson Community College in Lumberton, North Carolina

Book 'Em North Carolina is an innovative book fair that brings together dozens of authors under one roof to sell and sign their books, participate in panel discussions and talks, network and interact with fans one-on-one.

Attendance is FREE and open to the public.

The Book 'Em Foundation was founded by suspense author p.m.terrell and Waynesboro, Virginia Police Officer Mark Kearney as a partnership between authors and law enforcement. The mission of The Book 'Em Foundation is to raise public awareness of the correlation between high illiteracy rates and high crime rates.

The Book 'Em North Carolina annual event brings together at least 75 authors under one roof to speak on a variety of subjects and to sell their books. A portion of the proceeds raised from the event (a minimum of 40%) is given to the community - Robeson County and Lumberton, North Carolina - for the purpose of increasing literacy and reducing crime.

For information on how these events have helped raise funds for literacy and anti-crime efforts in various communities, visit The Book 'Em Foundation.
Please join us - it's the best time you'll ever have at a book festival.

The Weekend Sillies

While I am in South Carolina at the SC Book Festival, allow these kitties to tickle your fancy...


see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!


see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!


see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!


see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!


see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!


see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!


see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!


see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!


see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!


see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!


see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!

Win a Kindle from author Wendy Wax

Author Wendy Wax is giving away an Amazon Kindle and an e-copy of her new book Ten Beach Road! I just recently completed Ten Beach Road, and I would recommend it as a great summer read!

To enter, just go to her Facebook page and fill out the entry form.

This contest is for US residents only.