09 Jun It’s Been One Month Since CRIP UP THE KITCHEN’s Publication and What a Month
It has been a wild month since the Canadian publication of CRIP UP THE KITCHEN. Highlights include: Front facing on Indigo shelves, a trip to Parliament Hill, selling out twice on Amazon Canada plus #1 Best Seller, and earning out on royalites.
All authors hope their book does well. Doing well for me meant selling more than the average copies sold for non-fictions books, which is 300 copies in its lifetime. Yes, that number is small. But it is what it is, and I like to keep my expectations realistic. There are more copies of CRIP UP THE KITCHEN in libraries than that number. The majority of those copies are in Canadian and American libraries, but there are also copies in university libraries around the world.
@GeekyJules Look what’s on the New Books shelf at our public library! pic.twitter.com/V0djyW6B3k
— Laura (@OakAndRedwood9) June 7, 2023
At the beginning of this week, I was also informed that I earned out on my royalties. For people who don’t know what that means, let me explain. If an author gets an advance–which is a payment or series of payments before book publication–it is a loan. The full term is, “advance on royalties.” That money has to be repaid to the publisher via book sales. It isn’t until that repayment that the author sees any more money. Most authors don’t earn out. Which makes earning out is a big deal. It was a milestone I had hoped for. Even though my advance was small, I was not expecting to earn out so quickly because my book is not like anything else in the marketplace. Doing something new is risky. The marketplace was more than ready for this, which is wonderful to see.
I was also informed that we may be going to a second print soon. YAY! Which, I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised about when the book was sold out on Amazon Canada on publication day and is again sold out as of the time of this post. If trend this continues, foreign language will be next.
Some other Amazon highlights include #1 Best Seller in Canning & Preserving for nearly a week, and #2 in Reference, ahead of Salt, Acid, Fat, Heat! WHAT?!
Crip Up the Kitchen goes to Parliament Hill
It was also very nice to see my book on Parliament Hill:
Today I presented @theJagmeetSingh with a special gift from my constituent and author, @GeekyJules – his new cookbook, “Crip up the Kitchen: Tools, Tips, and Recipes for the Disabled Cook.”
Congratulations, Jules; it’s a wonderful book, and you should be very proud! pic.twitter.com/xsXYncdxcQ
— Alistair MacGregor (@AMacGregor4CML) May 31, 2023
And front-facing at an Indigo location!
Psst. Hey @GeekyJules.
Welcome to Toronto. pic.twitter.com/2bUxCL3gg9
— Robin LeBlanc, from work (@TheThirstyWench) May 9, 2023
For those who don’t know how this all works, Coles/Chapters/Indigo locations are very selective about what titles they carry. Each stores curates its own lists. It’s a big deal to be in one of their stores, and CRIP UP THE KITCHEN is in multliple locations across the country! I was not expecting that at all. It is an even bigger deal to be shelved with the cover facing outward. Seeing this was another big, “What is going on?!” moment.
As a note: If you go into a store or library see my book, please take a picture and tweet it to me @GeekyJules.
The Ongoing Press Tour
I’m still in a press tour that has been ongoing for over a month now. It is great that there is so much interestingin this book. My publisher took a big risk on this book. There is literally nothing like, so we were testing the market with this book. As you can see, there is a lot of appetite for it (no pun intended) and I hope it will lead in a shift in the ways recipes are written so that they are more accessible to everyone.
There are lots of articles and interviews for you to read, watch and listen to. And someone made a Wikipedia page about the book! The reader reviews have also been fantastic! I even got the 1-star review I was waiting for because I discuss the intersections of colonization and food. That review made me cackle. Please leave a review wherever you purchased the book. They really help people find the books they need.
So, that’s been my month! I’m surely missing something but as you can see, it has been a lot. It has been far better than I could have ever imagined. I want to thank you all for being the reason for its success. Word-of-mouth is still the number one way books sell. Sure there has been some amazing press for this book, but press is nothing without readers sharing the things they love and are excited about. So, thank you!
Signed Copies of CRIP UP THE KITCHEN
Before I leave you, I have had a few emails asking about signed copies. You may purchase them via Volume One Bookstore. They do ship and have plenty in stock. I will be going in regulary to sign stock as it comes in.
Thank you!
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