Daily Archives: November 12, 2026

Participating in the 2026 Tustin OC Book Fair

I’m so excited for this Saturday because I’m participating in my first Tustin OC Book Fair located in Tustin, CA. Our OCRW group has secured two booths and there are six of us who will be there standing next to our display to share our books with whomever walks by.

Since this is where my mind is this week, I thought I’d share my planning ideas with you all.

How to Prepare for a Book Fair

There’s several things that have to be in place before the week of the OC Book fair.

1. Does the city require a license (must do in advance)?

2. Do you have enough books on hand?

3. Do you need to order any type of merchandise such as bookmarks or a table runner.

I had to look into all of these.

This was my first time setting up a license with any city, so there was a learning curve with filling out the paperwork and a cost to complete it. Plan ahead. We have to keep the mailed license on us during the book fair.

Bookmarks and stickers I plan to sell or give with purchase had to be ordered. I waited to capture a promotion to get best pricing, but also planned ahead knowing what I needed for this event.

The table layout had to be figured out. Since I’m only using half a table, I decided to buy a crate to store my books in and give me height on the table. The test run I did on my dining room table came out great. I took a picture, so I could remember what I did.

This also allowed me to count books and figure out what pieces I plan to bring for decorations that day. When I took it down, I packed it in a box ready to go.

One thing I realized I needed was a table runner to drape in front with my name on it. I’ve been wanting to make a table runner, so I decided to order one. First the design had to be figured out. I went with a plain white with a version of my schoolhouse logo. This way it could work on any colored tablecloth in the future.

I haven’t received it yet, but I’m excited to finally have one of these.

My novelette is free digitally, but I wanted to print several copies to offer a gift with bundle purchase. Some istorical romance readers don’t like reading digitally, so I’m hoping this would be a great enticement.

When setting up my table test run, I counted all the books I have on hand and determined how many I was going to bring, creating a beginning inventory count. I’ll count everything at the end of the day to confirm what I have sold.

Because I’m selling stickers, I ordered a holder to display them in from Amazon. I’m hoping that having smaller priced items would encourage overall sales, making participating worthwhile.

The day of the Tustin OC book fair

Figuring out what to wear for the Tustin OC Book Fair is a challenge. All of my book signings so far, I’ve dressed up. For this event I’ve picked out jeans and one of these shirts. This way I can be recognizable to what’s on my table, comfortable for loading and unloading and if it rains (which it might).

One is my logo, and one is my rooster Bert, whom everyone loves. Anyone have an opinion on which one?

I hope to be loaded the night before with tables and all the other things I’m bringing. We set up starting at 8am. The event starts at 10. I’m looking forward to sharing how it goes next month!

I’ll be posting on my social media that day, so take a peek at how it’s going.

Denise loves to share about her writing journey (see all her posts here), including her word of the year (this year it is BALANCE), her debut novel When Plans Go Awry, and all the things in between. You can visit her at her website and blog at www.denisemcolby.com or on her facebook or instagram. Please note: some links include Amazon Associate links where Denise can earn from qualifying purchases.