![]() I’ll have a lot of reading to do when I get home. The lady there was old enough to know Russian, as it was required in Soviet schools, but when I’d say something in Russian she always answered in Latvian. This morning, before I set off to sell my goods, I went to the post office to send home a box of books-a transaction that I had to conduct entirely in Latvian, which I can read somewhat but which I speak very poorly. I’m not bothering with the souvenir shops that cater to the annoying German tourists, who have taught me the true essence of Lebensraum as they colonize the outdoor seating at Riga’s eateries. She was nice so was the concierge at the ultra-fancy Niebergs Hotel, which has a tiny souvenir shop. She leafed through it and graciously accepted one of my flyers, even as she expressed reservations about its price and potential audience. I had a pleasant little chat with the manager at Valters un Rapa, the biggest bookstore in Old Town, and was gratified to learn that my publisher had contacted her when the book came out. Others have been more polite if a bit circumspect. Your loss, to both you and your antiquated little museum that nobody visits! (I didn’t actually say that.) Having been rejected, I became visibly irritated, explaining to her in my poor Russian that … well, never mind. When I took out my book and offered a flyer to the woman at the front desk and gift shop at the Riga Museum of History and Navigation, she held her hand up and refused to even look. Plus, I don’t take rejection very well, even when it comes to the small stuff. ![]() Trying to persuade people of the value of things they did not ask for is not my forte. I didn’t even make it to the first lunch break. Then there’s the time I tried cold-calling, a job that required me to fudge the truth-I mean, to lie. I once spent half a summer soliciting funds for an environmental organization and got burned out quickly. Let others do the selling of my Very Important Book. My job is to travel, learn stuff, and sequester myself somewhere and write. Asking people to consider buying my product? Totally beyond me. It takes a certain kind of personality to do that, one that could not be more different from my own. ![]() So I’m literally going door-to-door - the larger bookshops, high-end hotels, museums. My publisher made a flyer for me, and I had 20 glossy copies printed. It’s a university press book and it’s expensive by local standards. Kind of disappointing, but I didn’t really expect any different. Why so much early activity? I’m trying to hawk my book, which is nowhere to be seen except the National Library. You’d never know what this building used to be. I just ordered a heavy Latvian dish in a restaurant located on the ground floor of a palace that was built for Peter the Great 300 years ago. Put away the chips and walk 20,000 steps a day and watch in amazement as your clothes get bigger. ![]() So far, I’ve hit the magic number every day but one. and I’ve nearly reached my goal of walking 10 miles a day. View more about his book The House of Hemp and Butter: A History of Old Riga here. While publishing a book can seem glamorous on the surface, author Kevin O’Connor reflects here on the hard work of marketing your own wares.
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