A Glimpse Of The Future?

This is comedian Chelsea Handler who was very busy signing books at the Philadelphia Free Library Book Festival on Sunday. The line was incredibly long--she probably sold 150 books to those in the line alone--and she was very nice, genuine and grateful to those to bought her book.

Now Chelsea Handler is not one of my favorite authors or comedians but she is on my daughter's radar screen and since it was her birthday last weekend I was happy to accompany her on the Chelsea Handler mission. It was actually eye opening on a few levels.

First, there were many booths occupied by authors who were promoting their own books. A little sad to be sure--they looked pretty lonely trying to be upbeat while surrounded by posters of their book's cover--but at some point it occurred to me that next year it could be me sitting in the cold, hawking copies of Lick Your Plate! I certainly hope not because the general idea is that the chefs in the book sell it, not the author and photographer who simply portrayed their stories.

Last weeks Inquirer had an entire article about the role that local book fairs (as well as Facebook) are playing in the promotion of books and it is all a bit daunting. "Authors today have to face another major paradigm shift: They have to stop being authors and reinvent themselves as celebrities," it reads in part.

Since our book is about celebrities to begin with, we are hoping they are going to be used to hawking themselves. Although I will confess we have already received an invite to appear on Martha Stewart's Sirius radio show with her holistic vet, I am more interested in making sure the book has interesting content, than making ourselves the star attraction.

However, as they say, stay tuned. And if I have to stand shivering in an outdoor tent, you had better believe I will let you know about it!