Three authors from three states. Three books with very different settings—published by three different imprints. Yet a single, two-week tour, which kicked off in suburban Washington, D.C., and wrapped up in Coral Gables, Fla. And, from all reports, it was a sure success.
For the first time, Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing last month sent a trio of authors on the road together. Since all penned spring middle-grade novels, the company branded the venture the "Tween Tour." There were other firsts: none of the authors had previously embarked on a full-fledged tour—nor had the trio met one another prior to departing. But now, D. Anne Love (The Puppeteer's Apprentice, McElderry), Rachel Cohn (The Steps, S&S) and Frances O'Roark Dowell (Where I'd Like to Be, Atheneum) have bonded on a rewarding road trip. While the tour was in full swing, PW checked in with the travelers, plus those involved in the planning and the hosting of the appearances, to hear the results of this publicity experiment.
Explaining the genesis of the tour, Tracy van Straaten, director of publicity for S&S Children's Publishing, said, "We'd been toying around with the idea of sending a couple of authors on tour together, but the right combination of books and authors just hadn't come along. And then, as we began looking at the books we had coming out this spring, we agreed that we really loved these three novels, which all have strong girl characters. And the authors are all great. We realized that, though we could successfully tour these authors individually, together they became a much stronger force."
Van Straaten credits the tour planner, publicist Cathleen Schmidt, for pulling off what she terms "an incredible feat of coordination." "With any tour you have to coordinate the planes, trains and autos," said van Stratten. "But when you have to make three schedules merge smoothly, it is all the more complicated. Cathleen did a superb job fitting it all together."
Schmidt noted that the authors as well as the booksellers made her task easier than it might have been. "It really helped that the authors were easygoing and great about everything," she said. "Rachel decided she'd like to rent a car and to drive the others around for part of the tour, which made the transportation logistics easier. And all the booksellers are such professionals and know what they're doing, so the appearances have generally gone smoothly."
Cohn and Love, whom PW spoke with before Dowell joined up with them, had ample praise for Schmidt's efforts, booksellers' hospitality—and each other. "We are very different personally and our books are very different, but it's cool to see how we're able to cross-pollinate at the appearances," said Cohn, a New York City resident whose previous novel is Gingerbread. "Dorothy [Love] was an educator for years and I have a lot to learn from her. She is very good at getting the kids going right away. It's very useful for me to step back and observe how she deals with kids." Love, who lives in Austin, Tex., and has written six earlier novels, noted that "though Rachel and I are very different—for one thing she's much younger than I—our styles in terms of speaking to kids and our motivation for working with kids are similar. She is a very good traveling companion!"
Mother of an infant son, Dowell joined the others midway through the tour, when they reached her home state of North Carolina. A Durham resident who won an Edgar for Dovey Coe, Dowell commented that she "really likes the idea of the camaraderie" that touring with others provides. On the eve of her debut bookstore signing with the others, she quipped, "I know that they have already set up a dog and pony show and I'm eager to jump in the back of the cart and do whatever they tell me to."
The authors, who visited independent stores, chain outlets and schools, reported that they had no written-in-stone plan for their presentations, yet at virtually all stops they followed the same format: taking turns reading excerpts from their novels, answering questions from their audience and then signing books.
Bookseller reaction to the Tween Tour was uniformly positive. "I think having three authors appear together made it a very interesting program," said Carol Moyer, manager of children's books at Quail Ridge Books and Music in Raleigh. "When they appeared at our store, several parents who came with their daughters made it a point to thank me and to say how much they enjoyed it." Pat Patrick, field national events specialist for Borders, agreed that an event featuring three writers has extra appeal. The fact that the three were visiting a Borders store in Atlanta together, he reported, "gave me a special angle when I promoted the event to schools and media. The concept of touring three authors—and especially three YA authors, since that's a hard audience to reach—is wonderful."
And multiple authors apparently translates into multiple sales. Both Moyer and Patrick noted that many of the attendees at the signings at their stores bought copies of more than one author's novels. "This is absolutely a chance to increase sales," said Patrick. "We found that people bought not only the new books by these authors, but their backlist titles as well. Though we have occasionally put together a panel of authors, this was very different. By touring together, these authors definitely developed a certain rapport. I think the interaction and chemistry among them made their books all the more appealing to kids."
Despite the complex hotel and flight bookings and busy appearance schedule, so far, Schmidt reported (with understandable relief), there were no major snags on the Tween Tour. And the authors, when PW spoke with them, seemed to be holding up very well. When asked about her fatigue level, Cohn answered cheerfully: "I am not tired at all. I feel a bit like the Energizer bunny—I could keep going, going, going. Of course when I get home I'll sleep for a week, but right now I'm very happy meeting all these booksellers and kids."
Love echoed this sentiment, noting, "I find it very energizing to meet booksellers who have been so supportive of my novel. It inspires me to go home and write more books." After which, she confided, "I would absolutely do this again. The booksellers certainly seem to like having more than one author appear at a time, and I feel it's important for authors to support one another. For me, this has been a plus all around."
