Within a month of leaving his nine-year tenure last November as director of events for Book Soup in West Hollywood, Tyson Cornell founded Rare Bird Literary Events & Promotions, a company that includes public relations for authors, literary branding, and multimedia promotions.
While at Book Soup, Cornell had coordinated book events at L.A.’s popular Largo at the Coronet theatre and Temple Shalom for the Arts at the Saban Theatre. After leaving the bookstore he was contacted by Largo’s Mark Flanagan and the synagogue’s Rabbi David Baron and established partnerships with them to create a series of author lectures and book signings. PEN Center USA partners with Cornell at both venues. “By nature I’m very event-centric,” Cornell said, noting that he was in charge of over 1,000 book signings a year at Book Soup. “The event aspect is very nostalgic for me, because it’s where I’m rooted – but I’m also driven by the energy that performance and live events create.”
That was apparent at Cornell’s first author function in his American Voices series at the Saban Theatre in March, where guest speaker Karl Rove had to cut short his appearance after being interrupted by anti-war protestors whose vehemence ultimately made him flee from the auditorium before he could sign books after his talk. Cornell was subsequently featured on national television and the Internet after his inadvertent assist as Rove’s bodyguard was caught on tape that evening. “That was a unique and ephemeral event, the kind of spirit I’m trying to engage in Rare Bird Lit,” said Cornell. Rick Springfield and Rosanne Cash will be featured in the next American Voices events at the Saban Theatre. “Rabbi Baron and I intend to run the gamut in the series from entertainment to politics,” says Cornell.
Rare Bird has also established the Literary Vaudeville series at Largo, a co-creation with owner Flanagan that was inaugurated by a discussion between Ricky Jay and David Mamet in May. Chuck Palahniuk and his “Tell-All Tour” followed at Largo, and the most recent in the series featured Bret Easton Ellis with Jerry Stahl, Joseph Mattson, and actors Joel McHale and James Van Der Beek. James Ellroy and Barry Eisler are to appear and sign books at the theatre this fall. “The general program at Largo – comedy and music – have a bit of a circus vibe to them,” Cornell said. “It’s almost an ‘anything goes’ format, and I want to show publishers and authors that books can easily fit into that marketing atmosphere.” Largo seats 280, and Cornell’s events have consistently sold out.
He exclusively utilizes indie bookstores for book sales at Rare Bird Lit’s events. “That’s the world I come from, and I support them 100%,” he said. “So far I’ve worked with Diesel Books, Metropolis, and Book Soup, and hope to include more indies in the future as the company grows.”
Rare Bird Lit counts authors Katie Arnoldi, Karen Essex, and Joseph Mattson among its public relations clients. “My biggest selling point right now is that I team up with the authors to develop lasting relationships with them. I look at the longevity of their careers not only in the context of their talent but through the prism of digital content, multimedia, and social networking. I want to give them the tools to do these things and create a brand for themselves.” Point Dume, Arnoldi’s latest book, made the bestseller list in Los Angeles after she hired Cornell to promote it for her.
