You Never Know Who Is Reading Your Book

I was in the bank on Friday, not one of the first places you would think of to talk about writing. I was chatting with a personal banker and the topic of my being a writer came up. I mentioned that I’d written Hollywood and Catholic Women to which the banker responded that she thought her niece had read the book and even better, really liked it.

I didn’t initially believe the banker (her name was Consuelo) simply because Hollywood and Catholic Women is more of a textbook targeted toward women’s studies programs than a book for leisure reading. But Consuelo proved me wrong when she began naming films from the book, then explained he niece had gotten the book from a teacher.

Naturally, I was thrilled and told Consuelo that if her niece still had the copy, I’d be happy to autograph it for her. So a 10-minute conversation taught me a lot. First, you never know who you’ll talk to that has read your book or as in this case, knows of your work through a family member or friend. Second, because number one often comes as a surprise, always be polite and courteous. And third, show your appreciation when someone admires your work.

For my part, I’ll be sure and follow through on my promise to Consuelo’s niece. If that gives her two copies of the book she can keep the personally autographed one for herself and pass the other on to someone else who just might enjoy it as much as she did.