Years ago I used to do a show in Dana Point, California. It was a beautiful location right by the ocean. From my booth I could see the tall ship Pilgrim. I sold pretty well at this show.

For a variety of reasons (mostly that I kept forgetting to sign up), I stopped doing this show. Well, this year I thought I should do it again. My reasoning was that my newer artwork more reflected the location. I am doing much more nautical art and I figured it would be a great fit at this show.

I got up early the morning of setup and arrived at the show location 10 minutes before the allowed setup time. I like to do this whenever possible just because it is easier to setup when you don't have to contend with your neighbors.

When I got to the check-in area, there was no one there. Not even the usual line of vendor vehicles waiting to get in. Did I get the date wrong? No, there were lots of barricades up and other pre-show stuff going on.

I found the person in charge and I was in the right place, I was just the first one there. They showed me to my space and I started setting up. About 20 minutes later a few other vendors started straggling in.

Then I noticed who the other vendors were...

There was the window replacement contractor, and the local credit union, and the made in China seller, and the made in Vietnam seller, and, well, you get the idea. When I had a chance to walk the show, I found that maybe 5 out of 50 or so vendors actually made their own stuff.

There were many other changes to this show as well. Like music that didn't fit the theme, and making visitors pay to get into all of the event except the vendor section.

Needless to say, my sales were not very good. And, I was really disappointed.

And what did I learn from this experience?

Two things: First, shows change and you've gotta know when to keep doing them and when to stop. And second, heed my own advice. Investigate a show before doing it.

If you want to avoid the mistake I made, get this book, The 35 Questions to Ask Before Applying to a Show:

Friday night I was watching a marketing webinar on how to publish and market books. I already knew most of what they were saying, so I was only half listening in case something interesting came up. While I was listening, my brain was working. All of a sudden something triggered a plethora of ideas. I started madly writing things down so I wouldn’t lose them.

It's about halfway through the Art-A-Fair Festival. This is the summer long art show in Laguna Beach, California that I have been doing for many years. Over the nine weeks of this show I talk to quite a few people.

Some are artists, some are not. If I spend enough time talking to the person, and if I think it's appropriate, I show them my latest book, The Shy Artist's Guide to Answering Questions.

What has surprised me is who ends up purchasing one of my books.

There's something a little bit scary about clicking the button. The button that says, "Okay, I'm ready to send this out into the world.

I just did that today. I clicked the button. I approved the final version of my next book.

This is a very similar feeling to completing a piece of artwork. You know ... that moment when you sign your name to the piece declaring IT IS DONE.

I just finished doing my last show for the year. Now I can breathe a sigh of relief and get back to writing the next book.

I am working on the book about how to answer those annoying questions and comments you get from customers. So, if any of you have any interesting stories to tell, please let me know.

I am looking for questions or comments that you commonly hear AND how you respond. I'd also like to hear about any strange or out of the ordinary comments.