If you are a book lover and you want to spread the love of books in your community, you should set up a book fair. Hosting a book fair is a lot of fun, and it allows you to not only spread the love of books but help newbie writers sell their work as well.Â
A book fair is also a great place for bibliophiles to meet, and form lasting relationships with one another. However, before you even think about setting up a book fair, you should have a plan first. Remember that it takes a long time and a lot of resources. If you are not careful, you might end up making a lot of logistical mistakes. Here are 7 tips for setting up your book fair.
1. Choose A Fitting Location
If you are going to hold a book fair, it is very important that you choose the right location. Remember that the book fair will usually have thousands of people at a time. So it should be as spacious as possible. Aside from being spacious, it is also important that the location should be accessible, but not too near a residential area. The area should also have ample parking space and access to the main road.
2. Contact Prominent Authors As Guest Speakers
If you want to attract as many people as possible, it is very important that you have a prominent author as a guest speaker. This might be a bit difficult to successfully invite a famous author, however, it is very much worth it. When you ask for help from prominent authors, you should remember that they are under no obligation to help you.Â
So it is best if you send out as many invitations as possible. If a prominent writer is gracious enough to accept your invitation, then you should be grateful, and thank him or her for coming to your event. When he or she arrives at the event, you should be as polite as possible, and strive to make the author’s stay comfortable.Â
3. Have The Booths Ready
When it comes to hosting a book fair, it is very important that you get as many booths as possible. Remember that you will have a large number of authors trying to sell their books, and they will need a platform where they could place their wares. It might seem simple to build a booth out of scratch. However, some of these booths look somewhat amateurish, and others might not even be as sturdy as you would want them to be.Â
Luckily, there are companies such as Aplus, that specialize in creating quality display fixtures, and they have a wide selection of 20×20 trade show booths that you can choose from. The main advantage of buying booths from experienced manufacturers is the fact that they can customize them according to your needs. They will also have uniformity when on display that will help improve the aesthetics of the overall setup.
4. Contact up-and-coming writers
Although the highlight of your book fair should be the established author, it is the up-and-coming writers that would stand to gain the most from the event. Remember that up-and-coming writers don’t have a fan base yet. So it is a good bet that if you contact them, they will come in droves.Â
First things first, you should contact the up-and-coming writers in your area. These authors are the most likely to attend the event because they live very near the area.
5. Set Up A Website
If you want people to attend the event, it is important that you set up a website. Think of the website as your main marketing platform. It will be where potential attendees get news and details of your event. When you set up the website, it is a good idea to utilize multiple social media sites. Try to utilize Facebook effectively by posting announcements through your Facebook account. You should also Tweet about the event through Twitter. You could also create anticipation for the event, by posting images and videos of the event.Â
6. Ask Various Literary Groups For Support
If you want your book fair to get as much support as possible, you should get multiple book clubs and writers groups involved. Remember that there are a lot of bibliophiles out there, and they will usually be more than ready to help you out.Â
It’s also important that you ask them for donations. Remember that hosting a book fair could be expensive, and unless you are very wealthy, there is no way you could cover all the expenses. So if you want the whole event to do well, it is important that you reach out to literary groups for financial support. Remember that you are doing a lot of work already, and if they want the event to do well, then they should help as well.
7. Have Emergency Precautions At The Ready
During any type of event, there is a chance that an emergency will occur. A fire might accidentally start, or an attendee might slip and fall. A myriad of unforeseen circumstances could occur, and if you go start the event without emergency precautions, you might even be the one held responsible.Â
So make sure that there is a medical depot in case there are any medical emergencies that occur. It is also a good idea to have security at the ready, just in case troublesome individuals attend the event. These precautions might seem like overkill, but it is better to be prepared for any eventuality.
Conclusion
If you are thinking of hosting a book fair in your community, you should be as prepared as possible. Remember that planning a book fair takes a lot of work, and it is very easy to foul things up. With these tips, you’ll be able to set up a book fair that you’ll be proud of.
