The marketing of his own cookbook, and beyond

[chefmd]

I am reading a library copy right now.  The writing is beautiful, I can hear Rob's voice.  The photos are "I know it when I see it" kind of food porn.  Growing up in Russia (USSR), we foraged a lot of ingredients.  Mushrooms, berries, sorrel, etc.  I was not fortunate enough to eat in Rob's restaurant but will be sure to visit his new place!

[gfron1]

I love that libraries have bought it. Someone here in St Louis told me they saw it on a display at one of the public libraries. Not sure who makes those decisions but I like them

[heidih]

My library has wish list cards to fill out - I did one for your book. They use them in the decision making process

[Smithy]

It's in our library's online catalog, but when I checked it wasn't listed as being anywhere in the system.  I put in a request, ironically just before my copy arrived at home.

 

Lest you think that being listed but not acquired is the bottom of the rung, consider this: Vivian Howard's Deep Run Roots wasn't even listed in the catalog; it is quite unknown in our library system.

[Martin Fisher]

18 hours ago, Smithy said:

Vivian Howard's Deep Run Roots wasn't even listed in the catalog; it is quite unknown in our library system.

 

Quite the opposite here, unfortunately. 

[Kerry Beal]

Mine's here!

 

 

[Anna N]

On October 24, 2016 at 9:01 PM, Kerry Beal said:

Mine's here!

 

 

 No it is not. It is here. Kerry brought it over for me to see this morning.  Very, very attractive cover and dust jacket. I shall get into the "meat" of it this weekend. I am beginning to suffer from Ia surfeit of cookbooks if that is even possible.  

[Tri2Cook]

Got mine today. It really is a beautiful book. And by coincidence, tonight is the Halloween dance at the local high school so I won't go to bed until the kid gets home. I don't know what my excuse will be when I keep reading instead of sleeping after she's home but I'm probably going to regret it in the morning.

[Anna N]

1 hour ago, Tri2Cook said:

Got mine today. It really is a beautiful book. And by coincidence, tonight is the Halloween dance at the local high school so I won't go to bed until the kid gets home. I don't know what my excuse will be when I keep reading instead of sleeping after she's home but I'm probably going to regret it in the morning.

 Perhaps we shall be able to console one another. But I might have the advantage since I do not have to get up for work.  

[Anna N]

 I am still only partway through the book. Page 75 to be exact.  But I did  want to say a few words. Although I was always rooting for Rob I secretly believed that he had been in the desert sun far too long.   A book about eating acorns and cattails (bulrushes)?   Really? Well he will never find a publisher that's for sure.  And nobody will read it even if he does.

 

Well I am still rooting for Rob and even more so having been given a chance to handle his masterpiece. I still worry about the size of his readership but if he found the right reviewer willing to point out how very approachable many of these recipes are without ever leaving the safety and comfort of one's local supermarket then I am sure it will win friends galore. 

 

I never in a million years thought that there would be recipes in here that I not only could attempt but want to attempt. No, I probably can't get my hands on javelina or boar and even rabbit can be a bit challenging although not impossible but he gives permission for the least adventurous of us to substitute with readily available chicken, duck, pork etc. without ever being in the least condescending. 

 

OK, back to the regular scheduled programming while I return to Acorns & Cattails. 

 

 

 

 

[gfron1]

Finally catching a breath to jump back in here. Where to start recounting the past month of hurricane force activity.

 

I left the last week of September driving from St Louis to New Mexico. An overnight in Tulsa led to some of the best tacos I've had in my life at El Refugio Azteca 3. The plan had always been to launch the tour in Silver City (my old hometown), but earlier in the month I was contacted by a cooking school in Santa Fe who asked to have an event before the official launch. So on Thursday, September 29th I did a cooking class and book signing at Las Cosas Kitchen Shoppe. Fun class, great food and they sold all but one  of the books they bought. Then I did the 6 hour drive to Silver City, a drive during which I learned that my pallet of books was missing! The freight company had no idea where they were and to this day still don't know where they are. That pallet was supposed to be the books I sold for the entire tour. Ultimately I hung out at the signing seeing old friends, drinks with my former staff, and signing books of people who bought it on Amazon.

 

The next morning I got up and drove the 5 hours back to Albuquerque where I did a collaborative book signing with an old friend at Pasion Latin Fusion. I assumed our foods would go well together and they really did - in fact, so well that I've incorporated some of our creations into my regular menu already. That sold out dinner was finished with me saying - "I'll be mailing your books to you." Grrrr....

 

The next morning i was off to Dallas. The publicist couldn't get anything lined up in Dallas and so it turned into a rest stop on my way to New Orleans. I did my undergrad in New Orleans but hadn't been back since 1991 (pre-Katrina, pre-casinos). I spent three days there foraging the swamp and eating great food (Shaya, Elizabeth, Clancy's, Cochon, Willa Jeans). I had a book signing at Maple Street Bookshop which was my first bookstore event. I had been warned that often these events have little or no turnout, so don't be discouraged. This event was great - an almost full room, and again the shop sold almost all of their books.

 

The next day I was up and on the road early to get to Orlando. My publisher had arranged to send another pallet of books to Orlando for me to finish the trip with. Since New Orleans was a bookstore event they had their own books, but the rest of the trip were my dinners where I needed my own books. Let's just say things didn't go as planned...

[gfron1]

While in New Orleans I watched the weather unfold as Hurricane Matthew changed its course and schedule. Two days before my event we knew we had to cancel the dinner but I still needed to get my books and I had also ordered a mobile deep fryer that was waiting for me. Despite my spouse's pleas I raced along the coast hoping to beat the hurricane, grab my stuff and get up to Atlanta for my next event. Matthew had other plans and instead of the predictions of a morning landfall in the Orlando area, it arrived the night before. I was racing down I-75, the road almost completely to myself. The northbound road was bumper to bumper for hours, but on my side...just me...and electric company cherry picker trees and the occasional Red Cross relief van. Maybe this wasn't the best life choice, but I had already had so many issues on this trip that I really needed to re-set and get back on track. 

 

I arrived at my friend's house in wave after wave of solid sheets of rain. We enjoyed a few drinks and kept our fingers crossed that FedEx would get my pallet to me in the morning. Nope. No such luck. The hurricane passed with only minor damage, and I waited until the last minute before I had to drive to Atlanta to keep my schedule. FedEx tracking just showed "On truck for delivery. delays may exist because of inclement weather." Off to Atlanta, with my fryer, without my books. At this point the publisher is in a tizzy and I've resigned to just have a fun trip and make the most of it.

 

By Atlanta the weather had cleared and I was enjoying a beautiful fall day. I held a book signing at a small independent shop but no one showed - compared to the previous 10 days I wasn't bothered.

 

Atlanta's dinner was spectacular. The crowd response I enjoy. No major glitches. Got to speak only Spanish with my helper (hired by the host) all day. That fryer that I had to get in Orlando...well, it required a special plug that wouldn't work. Why did I go to Orlando again? But like i said, the dinner was great. The next morning I was up and off to Norfolk for a pitstop. I tried to take as many non-major highways as I could but as the trip wore on I was increasingly wanting to just "get there." A quick sleep then up to Wilmington DE for my next dinner.

 

Delaware was a lot of fun. Great meal. Great crowd. Lunch at Talula's Table. Numerous visits to electric supply stores hoping to miracle-solution the fryer...never happened. I gotta be honest, the northeast scares me. So many people, all in a hurry, I just wanted to not be killed in my car! But GoogleMaps talked me through things and it wasn't nearly as scary as I expected. I found a few cool foodie gems on the roadside to boot!

 

Now it was time to turn back west...

[gfron1]

Up early again and off to Cleveland. First off, what's with these tolls?! One road charged me around $40! That was nuts and the roads weren't even well maintained. Pfft!

 

Cleveland was a book signing, not dinner, but it went fabulous. I met a number of eGullet and Facebook friends. I also had the opportunity to meet one of my foraging heroes - Jeremy Umansky who is preparing to open a Jewish deli with foraging influence. He and I foraged a bit for mitake mushrooms, but really just enjoyed sharing knowledge and stories. I also got to enjoy amazing cocktails with EdselL at The Spotted Owl and pizza at Vero's. He's been a good friend over the years and it was great to see him in person. 

 

Up the next morning and off to my final city - Indianapolis. One last great meal - very rousing crowd who brought some amazing wine (much nicer than I'm able to drink). I had a few good meals there including Milktooth for breakfast. The publicist dropped the ball on the signing at a local bookstore, so I loaded up and headed home to St Louis. It was nice to be home after 6500 miles of driving over three weeks.

 

Now a few random thoughts.

1. While my publicist did a good job setting things up, future authors need to know that they should do this work themselves. Setting up signings, media, travel...it's best to just keep it under your own control.

 

2. In the end I've had to ship all of the books that were supposed to be handed out on the tour - well over a 100 books. At media rate including the envelop it cost around $5 per book. I think my final tab was around $800 and my agent is negotiating with the publisher to see if we can't recoup some of that expense. This wasn't really the publishers fault but the gesture should would help since the tour set  me back a few thousand. On top of that I've had a handful of books come back damaged which is additional expense to replace and re-mail. My suggestion to others - don't self distribute. Tri2Cook told me that Alinea came to the same conclusion with their book. So - take heed!

 

3. Finally, eating well while driving is difficult. I solved that problem with modern technology. I navigated with GoogleMaps the entire way. With that running I would open Yelp and depending on if I wanted to sit down or grab-n-go I would sort by 1) Open Now, 2) Restaurant or Coffee/Tea (many have fresh made food), and 3) Distance. I would then back out on the map so I could see what I was driving toward and then scroll the highway looking for markers. A quick scan of the makers would tell me if it was a chain or an independent. In three weeks, excessively over eating like I do, I only at at a chain one day - that was because the hurricane closed everything else. Great way to travel eat!

[Shelby]

I'm exhausted just reading about it, Rob!  

[kayb]

Well, checking back in after an absence from this thread. I have failed to order, and, suffering from early onset of I'm-damn-well-old, I can't remember where to do so. So, for those of us who have been around a while, would you repeat where we can order (and hopefully have an autographed copy!), and, are you scheduled to hit either Little Rock or Memphis any time?

[gfron1]

@kayb Of course you can order from Amazon, but for an autographed copy that would happen through My Site.

 

And I would love to do something in the Little Rock or Memphis area - close enough that I wouldn't need to endure a 3 week hurricane-laden ordeal! Maybe others will chime in from the area to let me know that there's interest.

[IowaDee]

I would like to suggest Prairie Lights Book Store in Iowa City. It is a fantastic place.  They have been doing author readings for years.  Being a college town, they attract a wide selection of buyers.  From what I know, it seems right up your alley.  I think you would be a natural fit there.

[chefmd]

I have noticed that Amazon kindle price for Acorns and Cattails dropped to 13.48.  Just curious @gfron1 if Amazon is in full control of the pricing or if they need your permission to change it.

[Alex]

3 hours ago, chefmd said:

I have noticed that Amazon kindle price for Acorns and Cattails dropped to 13.48.  Just curious @gfron1 if Amazon is in full control of the pricing or if they need your permission to change it.

 

Amazon? Asking permission??

 

But seriously, folks, here are a few articles about that:

one   two   three

[gfron1]

@chefmd I have zero control. Even if someone did have control it would be the distributor of the publisher, not the lowly author. I'm glad to see them doing a little price cut. It had a good run on Amazon, but we are at the one year point so it would make sense that they would try and move the inventory.