Becky Hearne  is a former bookshop Events Coordinator, and has run book launches, talks, school events  and unusual book-related fun, such as literary speed dating. She now does freelance editorial and PR work for various publishers and authors, including Carnegie-longlisted author Nicola Morgan. She’s on Twitter: @bookshop_becky. 

1. I’ll start with the obvious: being nice matters.

Events are a lot of work for booksellers, and much of that time will be unpaid. Often, the bookseller will have  liaised with some of (or all of) the following: your publicist, your agent, your publishers’ rep, a wholesaler, librarians, teachers, head teachers, parents, the venue staff, and local newspapers/media. And, of course, you. Bookshops make money from events, but not that much when you consider the time put in. If booksellers like you, they will hand-sell your book; if they don’t, it’ll go in the returns box the morning after.