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Signing etiquette?


eefara

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I'm pretty excited to be able to attend a Sanderson signing, and I've got some questions I'm hoping I could get some help with:

 

1) How many books can I bring along for him to sign? I won't be bringing my entire library, of course, but it'd be neat to have both Steelheart and Firefight signed if possible.

 

2) I'm going to be attending the Georgia signing; for those who've attended in that area before, any guesses how crowded the event will be? How early I should get there?

 

3) How about taking a picture with Mr. Sanderson before/after/during the event? Is he okay with those?

 

If I think of any more, I'll be sure to post again. Thanks in advance!

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1) As many as you (reasonably) can, though he'll only personalize 3 on each go-through of the line. So if you bring 5 he'll personalize 3 and just sign his name on the other 2; or if you want you can go through the line twice, getting first 3 personalized than the last 2.

 

2) N/A

 

3) He was fine with it at the signing I was at, but it probably depends on how pressed for time everyone is and the like.

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Re: Atlanta
The signings I've been to here in the past have been in association with DragonCon (very crowded) or the Decatur Book Festival that same weekend (full but manageable). Since this one is in Newnan, not Atlanta proper, I am guessing it won't be as well attended as some others (right now it looks like I won't be able to make it). I suspect that an on-time arrival will be good enough, or 15 min early if you want to set up recordings, etc. 
EDIT: The B&N page for the event says you can buy a copy and get a wristband "as early as 9am on the 24th," so they seem to be expecting a good turnout including some early arrivals.
The signing is scheduled for 3, so... 1hr early? More? I don't know. There will probably be a thread here for the event, and other sharders will say if/when they are going. It would be fun to meet up beforehand if you find some others that will also be there.
 
Then again, the last signing I went to was for the WoK release, and his popularity has only increased since then. Also, this tour is for a YA series, so the fanbase that attend may be different. I can't be sure, but I would guess that will decrease the attendance slightly, since the nominal target audience would presumably need to get someone else to drive them the hour or more to Newnan. Has anyone noticed if the signing attendance at other locations has been affected by the featured series? (e.g. release of a WoT book vs SA vs Reckoners)

Edited by ccstat
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 It would be fun to meet up beforehand if you find some others that will also be there. 

 

 *waves at the other Atlanta/Georgia people*

 

I only got sucked into Sanderson's work in the middle of last fall, so I haven't been to any signings yet, but I'm hoping I can avoid having to work that afternoon so I can make it to this one :-)

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I, too, have benefited from lurking this thread, and I wanted to pop up and thank everyone who offered valuable insight! This will be my third event. The first one was in the middle of NYC and was an event for three authors and was fairly lightly attended. The second one was at an inaccessible mall on the outskirts of DC and there were hundreds of people; I was on line (not counting from the start of the event, i.e. the reading and the general Q&A) for a solid 3 hours, and there were over a hundred people still behind me. The nearest justification I can see is, the first was for Steelheart, and the second was for Words of Radiance, so perhaps since this is the Firefight tour I can expect less-than-overwhelming attendance.

 

Obviously it's a dichotomy. You want as many people as possible to show up and buy and be fans of the Man, but if the line goes quickly enough he'll hang out with us afterwards and talk to us and open his box of swag and say, "Have at!"

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?? Huh? It's possible you misunderstood. By "swag" I wasn't referring to any attitude on his part, I meant physical loot he brings to events in order to give to fans. The one time I stayed past the end of a signing, he showed us what he had left and let us descend like ravenous vultures.

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At Seattle he has had the benefit of someone dedicated to taking pictures and he has a pretty good process for keeping the line moving but doing pictures.

 

I was an event assistant for his Memory of Light tour in Raleigh. If someone wanted a picture they would have to give me their camera, I would count to 3 and Brandon would look up right at 3 for the picture. Then look back to whatever he was doing.

 

It was pretty amusing actually.

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The event details for the Georgia stop mentioned receiving a wristband of some sort. I guess this would be used as admission to the event? In which case, would store staff be handing them out? Or Brandon's staff?

 

I would expect that the store would be handing those out since that is not a standard practice for Brandon's signing events.

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The wristband thing might be an attempt to moderate the line. So pass by early, get a wristband, then when you go, you get to go early in the line. Or if you get a wristband later, you don't have to physically wait in line, and just wait for your number group to be called. But who knows how they're going to do it. 

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If someone happens to be hanging out specifically to do pictures, that works, but it doesn't happen very often. Often he'll suggest that while you're standing in line, you can make friends with someone behind or in front of you, and make arrangements to have them take pictures for you. In that case, the best way to do it is to hand them your phone/camera just before you get to the signing table, put your books on the table, go around and stand beside him (unless they've given other instructions on placement), let your friend figure out the composition, and then they say "1, 2, 3" and he'll look up on 3. He's got himself really well trained on that.

 

But he's always okay with getting pictures, and (as others have said) he'll sign anything he wrote that you bring. (He'll also sign anything Pat Rothfuss wrote, if you ask him.  :P )  Generally, he tends to personalize the new book for you; beyond that, it depends a lot on how long the line is and whether they're going to kick everyone out at a certain time. If there are limits, like "you need to go through the line again if you want him to sign/personalize more than 3," they will probably tell you just before the line forms. And definitely bring questions - if you don't pop out with them right away, he'll ask you if you have any.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Stupid question time! I'm attending the Houston signing tomorrow, and I was wondering if it looks bad to get him to sign a few paperback books. My copy of the Mistborn trilogy is all in paperback - it was the first of Sanderson's works that I've read, so...sentimental value.

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Brandon will sign anything his - paperbacks, hardcovers, merchandise, art, etc. If you have a tablet or an e-reader (case) you want to have signed, he will take care of those. If you carry an anthology, he will sign it (or at least his own story) as long as he is a part of it. 

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  • 2 years later...
1 hour ago, chx said:

If I only have one book (Oathbringer, obvs) is it too much to ask him to doodle a symbol... like the one of Bondsmiths? Is that too complicated? 

It is not too much, no, but he may not recall the symbol you ask him for easily. Especially since it is Isaac Steward, his art director, who designs these things. 

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