It seems that the sales seem to be driven by word-of-mouth recomendations.
before i read the post at
www.silklantern.com describing how good the book was, i had no idea it even existed. Â besides Card's statement, there was very little else to set it apart for the bookstore browser.
it would be best to capitalize on the word-of-mouth crowd, and start encouraging the fans to post reccomendations on the blogs, forums, book clubs, and whatever else they are a part of.
And as long as you're doing personal appearances, poke your head in the local university doors: Â set up a date with a few English/Literature professors to do a short seminar.
there's no audience like an audience that has to listen to you for two hours or get marked down for it.
in the higher level courses (where there is a better chance that they like to write, and not just want an easy major) you should set up the seminars to something like "Your Voice Heard: How to get your books published" that should get them to attend.
if you bring a stack of books with you, and offer to sell them discount (and signed!) after the seminar, you'll undoubtedly get more fans. Â the important part is not that you get a room full of college kids buying your book, it's that you get a room full of sci-fi/fantasy fans telling all their online friends about your book. Â as far as the seminars are concerned, you're not selling books: Â you're winning converts.
