How I Organized a Library Tour

Author Sue Harrison shares the behind-the-scenes of organizing her own library tour across Michigan. From crafting programs to mailing pitches, her story is packed with practical tips for authors looking to connect locally.

Getting the Idea

I wish I could claim the idea of a library tour as my own brilliant promotional concept. The brilliant one is my publisher, Victor Volkman of Modern History Press. Shortly after the publication of Rescuing Crash, the Good Dog, a middle-grade chapter book set in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (U.P.), Victor contacted me with an offer to build awareness by sending complimentary paperback copies to libraries and schools across the U. P. and the northern Lower Peninsula. That generous proposal prompted the idea of a summer library book tour.

Building a Mailing List

Here’s how I put it together. I knew that our local library in Pickford (population 1,623) is a member of the Superiorland Library Cooperative. I used the Member Library Directory available on the Cooperative’s website, www.superiorlandlibrary.org, to produce my mailing list. I sent a letter to each library with a brief description of the book. I also offered to come to the library to do a presentation. I included my email address for replies.

Planning the Programs

Meanwhile, I prepared four programs for adults and one for children:

• An interactive readers’ workshop: “A writer’s choices and challenges.”
• An interactive writer’s workshop: “Compelling Plots Require Compelling Characters.”
• A general audience presentation followed by a Q & A period: “One Writer’s Journey.”
• A Q & A session for book reading groups: “Sharing the Magic of Stories and Words.”   
• For children, ages 3-10: A reading from Rescuing Crash the Good Dog and a craft: “Let’s Make a Paperbag Dog.”

The Response

I sent 49 letters and within a few weeks had 17 requests for a free book. Shortly after Modern History Press sent the books, inquiries about programs began popping up in my email. At this point, nine libraries have booked programs. One library requested a double program–an adult presentation and a reading for children. Two libraries requested signings. The signings are sponsored by local mom and pop bookstores, a win-win situation for everyone.

Costs and Contacts

My investment was the cost of stamps. Very budget-friendly. My publisher’s investment was 17 paperback books.

Check out my Summer Library Tour schedule by clicking on the “Events” tab at www.sueharrison.com. Libraries and schools in Upper and Northern Michigan interested in booking a program or signing are welcome to contact me via email at sue@sueharrison.com.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sue Harrison was raised in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and lives in Pickford with her husband Neil, a retired high school principal. They have two daughters, a son, a daughter-in-law, two grandchildren, and a spoiled schnauzer.

A graduate of Pickford High School and Lake Superior State University, Harrison was named an LSSU Distinguished Alumna and served eight years on the University’s Board of Regents.

Harrison has written six critically acclaimed and bestselling novels set in ancient Alaska. The first, Mother Earth Father Sky, is a “Publishers Weekly” national bestseller, an Amazon number one bestseller, and was selected as an American Library Association 1991 Best Book for Young Adults. Her other Alaska novels include My Sister the Moon, Brother Wind, Song of the River, Cry of the Wind and Call Down the Stars. She has also written Sisu, a National Advanced Readers Book, and The Midwife’s Touch, which was selected as a semi-finalist in the Society of Midland Authors’ 2023 national literary awards adult fiction competition. It was also an Amazon top ten bestseller and named a 2024 Upper Peninsula Notable Book.

Harrison’s novels have sold more than two million copies and have been published in more than twenty-five countries and in thirteen languages. They have achieved bestseller status in the United States, Germany, Scandinavia, Spain, and Japan.

Her work has been anthologized by Wayne State University Press, Michigan State University Press, and Northwest Books. In 2023, she was inducted into the Upper Peninsula Literary Hall of Fame.

Harrison’s middle-readers chapter book, Rescuing Crash, the Good Dog, was released by Modern History Press in February 2025.

CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR!

WEBSITE: https://sueharrison.com/
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/SueHarrisonAuthor/
X: http://twitter.com/SueHarrison1