Frans de Waal signing books at the University of Auckland

Book signing is the affixing of a

signature A signature (; from la, signare, "to sign") is a handwritten (and often stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. The writer of a ...

to the

title page The title page of a book, thesis or other written work is the page at or near the front which displays its title (publishing), title, subtitle, author, publisher, and edition, often artistically decorated. (A half title, by contrast, displays onl ...

or flyleaf of a

book A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physical arr ...

by its

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

. Book signings are events, usually at a

bookstore Bookselling is the commercial trading of books which is the retail and distribution end of the publishing process. People who engage in bookselling are called booksellers, bookdealers, bookpeople, bookmen, or bookwomen. The founding of librari ...

library A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a vir ...

, where an author sits and signs books for a period.

Book signing

Book signing is popular because an author's signature increases the value of books for

collectors Collector(s) may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Collector (character), a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe * ''Collector'' (2011 film), a 2011 Indian Malayalam film * ''Collector'' (2016 film), a 2016 Russian film * ''Collec ...

. The author may add a short message to the reader, called a

dedication Dedication is the act of consecrating an altar, temple, church, or other sacred building. Feast of Dedication The Feast of Dedication, today Hanukkah, once also called "Feast of the Maccabees," is a Jewish festival observed for eight days fr ...

, to each book, which may be personalized with the recipient's name upon request. A simple author's signature without a dedication is typically more valuable to collectors (exceptions include inscriptions to persons of note, e.g., from

Hemingway Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and journalist. His economical and understated style—which he termed the iceberg theory—had a strong influence on 20th-century fic ...

Fitzgerald The FitzGerald/FitzMaurice Dynasty is a noble and aristocratic dynasty of Cambro-Norman, Anglo-Norman and later Hiberno-Norman origin. They have been peers of Ireland since at least the 13th century, and are described in the Annals of the ...

, or to persons of significance in the author's life). Sometimes an author will sign additional copies for future sale. An additional advantage to authors for doing this is that once a book has been signed, it cannot be returned to the publisher for a refund. Many authors today spend a great deal of time signing their books, and sign many thousands of copies. For example,

John Green John Michael Green (born August 24, 1977) is an American author, YouTube Content creation, content creator, podcaster, and philanthropist. His books have more than 50 million copies in print worldwide, including ''The Fault in Our Stars'' ( ...

signed all 150,000 copies of the first printing of his 2012 novel ''

The Fault in Our Stars ''The Fault in Our Stars'' is a novel by John Green. It is his fourth solo novel, and sixth novel overall. It was published on January 10, 2012. The title is inspired by Act 1, Scene 2 of Shakespeare's play ''Julius Caesar'', in which the noble ...

''. The growing popularity of ebooks and ereading devices has inspired the development of software — such as Authorgraph (formerly known as Kindlegraph and renamed to reflect its expansion to include all ereading platforms), and Autography (for

iOS iOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the operating system that powers many of the company's mobile devices, including the iPhone; the term also includes ...

devices) - that allows authors to digitally personalize ebooks, by including autographs, dedications, and photographs, and to provide such personalization remotely as well as at in-person book signings. Such software benefits authors, "who are not obliged to go on long distance promotional tours in order to autograph e-books for their fans", as well as those readers who are unwilling or unable to brave crowds and longs lines at onsite book signings. Before such applications were introduced, efforts to bridge the

digital divide The digital divide is the unequal access to digital technology, including smartphones, tablets, laptops, and the internet. The digital divide creates a division and inequality around access to information and resources. In the Information Age in ...

for those who read ebooks included having authors sign the backs of their fan's ereading devices or sign ebooks via direct stylus input (e.g., on a Sony Reader Touch or Palm eReader).

Book signings

Book signings provide more than just a chance to obtain signatures. Authors and bookstores are benefited by the fact that many copies of the book being promoted are sold at these events. Signings also increase public goodwill and allow authors to connect with their fans. For fans, signings provide a chance to see and meet a favorite author and ask them questions. The development of social media platforms allows modern day authors to conduct virtual book signings. For example, The

GoodReader GoodReader is an iOS application used to primarily edit PDF documents. It was originally developed in Moscow by Good.iWare Ltd., a company started by Yuri Selukoff, a Russian developer. Yuri has subsequently relocated to the United States and ...

and Autography jointly hosted an ebook signing with author HP Mallory, during which Mallory greeted fans via

Spreecast Spreecast, Inc. was an Internet application and free social video broadcasting platform. The company was founded in 2011 by Jeff Fluhr, founder and former CEO of online ticketing marketplace StubHub, and is based in San Francisco, California . ...

, a social connectivity platform that allows users to have up to four guests on

video chat Videotelephony, also known as videoconferencing and video teleconferencing, is the two-way or multipoint reception and transmission of audio and video signals by people in different locations for real time communication.McGraw-Hill Concise Ency ...

at one time, to conduct Q&A sessions with even more participants, and to maintain a channel on the site, thereby recording and storing the Spreecast and assigning the recordings a URL for sharing at other outlets. Many authors use the book signing platform LiveSigning to host large-scale, streaming video book signings with their fans. Donald Trump hosted a book signing on this platform during his presidential campaign in December 2015. Book signings on LiveSigning typically consist of the author signing books, answering questions from fans, and making phone calls to some fans. After the event, the signed books are mailed to everyone who purchased a signed copy.

References

External links

Dedee
First PC/Mac standalone software for ebook signing.
AuthorgraphAuthorstrack.com Author Book Signings, Author Events, Author Lectures and More
Author Book Signings, Author Events
Autography.comCelebrity book signing and events
A comprehensive listing of all American book signings involving notable personalities.
FindBookSignings.com
A large list of upcoming book signing events.
BookSigningEvent.com
A listing of upcoming Book Signings at Independent Booksellers.
MyWriteapp.com
Application for signing e-books. {{Books Bookselling Marketing techniques

Book signing

Book signings

See also

References

External links