Author sells self-published book one copy at a time

Anyone who thinks a writer should take a passive role in marketing and promoting of his/her work to concentrate on writing needs to talk to self-published author Christopher Herz about the importance of self-promotion. Herz quit his day job in advertising to concentrate on selling his book The Last Block in Harlem to one customer at a time.

Herz is featured in this Publishers Weekly article that details his unique way of getting his book into the hands of the reading public:

Using print-on-demand, Herz printed about 1,100 copies which he and his wife carried up to their fourth-story walkup in what Herz describes as the last neighborhood in Harlem untouched by gentrification. Since its June 15 pub date, Herz has sold about 300 copies both on the street and through his Web site, www.canalpublishing.com.

The article continues:

Every day he takes 10 copies out to the streets and does not come home until he sells all of them. He has accomplished his goal in as little as an hour and as much as 10 hours. The paperback edition of The Last Block in Harlem is $10.

Writers take note: This is a guy who is out there pounding the pavement to get his book into the hands of readers. He doesn’t rely on complicated and expensive distribution channels (that would probably jack up the price of his book!), rather, he uses own belief in his work and a little savvy salesmanship.

To date he has sold 300 copies since the first printing two months ago. That’s nothing to sneeze at. Herz is on his way to easily breaking the 1000 mark and then going beyond that, which for a self-published book, is very good.

Can you imagine going up to complete strangers on the street and urge them to buy your self-published book? While it seems unorthodox to a lot of us, this is the way a lot of publications were sold back in the days before corporate globalization turned the art of bookselling into a cut-throat business.

Herz is also following in the footsteps of independent writers who produced and peddled their own chapbooks back in the 16th century. Herz gives some good reasons for selling his book the way he does:

“I’m offering a direct experience with the author,” said Herz. He attributed some of his success with being passionate about his product and the fact that the book—which he wrote everyday from 5-7 a.m. before his day job—as a “love letter to my neighborhood.”

The article also notes that he has tried selling his book in independent bookstores on consignment. However, it is interesting to note that he has not sold a book through that more ‘traditional’ method.

I’ve been interested in alternative ways of publishing and selling literature for a while now. So when I saw this PW article, I really became excited. Aside from wanting to self-publish my own ebooks (in ePub format, of course), I’m also noodling with the idea of publishing handmade chapbooks of my own poetry, drabbles and even short fiction. Ideally, I’d sell them for a dollar or two (depending on production costs), but I’d like to follow in Herz’s footsteps and sell to one reader at a time.

Don’t forget to check out Christopher Herz’s website at www.canalpublishing.com and consider buying a copy of his book (I certainly am). By doing so, you’ll help support a very independent author who is keeping an old tradition of handselling books alive. You can also visit his blog at canalpublishing.wordpress.com.

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