Bestselling Books Sell Other Products as Well

When a book becomes a bestseller, it also often inspires sales of other products. Of course, many of those products are licensed products based on the brand of the book. Think Dummies and Chicken Soup for the Soul, both of which have generated a lot of income from merchandising royalties.

But, in this post, I want to highlight some of the ancillary product sales inspired by bestselling novels and memoirs. Check out these product sales inspired by bestselling books:

• Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert - Women were inspired by this memoir to join Siddha yoga programs. You can attend a three-day Eat Pray Love yoga retreat in Montana for only $1,295.
• Fifty Shades of Gray by E. L. James - Has boosted the sales of vibrators and other sex toys.
• The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - Inspired the sale of many tattoos, especially dragon tattoos. You can get a dragon tattoo just like Lisbeth's for only $1,200.
• Harry Potter series - The game of Quidditch inspired the sale of lots of brooms. You can buy an official Quidditch broom for $35 on up at Alivans.com.
• The Hunger Games - Sales of bows and arrows tripled in many sports stores.

When writing and promoting your novel, look to see if there is something in your novel that would inspire such fan devotion.

Everything You Need to Know You Can Learn from Noah's Ark

I found this wise (and funny) poster via my Facebook stream: Everything I Need to Know About Life, I Learned from Noah's Ark.



I don't know the source of this great poster (the credit line is not clear). If anyone knows the source of this posted, I'd love to credit it. Please leave a comment below. Thanks.

1. Don't miss the boat.

2. Remember that we are all in the same boat.

3. Plan ahead. It wasn't raining when Noah build the Ark.

4. Stay fit. When you're 600 years old, someone may ask you to do something really big (like build an incredibly huge ark).

5. Don't listen to critics. Just get on with the job that needs to be done.

6. Build your future on high ground.

7. For safety sake, travel in pairs.

8. Speed isn't always an advantage. The snails were on board with the cheetahs.

9. When you're stressed, float awhile.

10. Remember: The Ark was built by amateurs. The Titanic was build by professionals.

11. No matter the storm, when you are with God, there's always a rainbow waiting.

New Hot Book Promotion: Cookbook Discussion Groups

While most local book clubs or reading groups have focused on fiction, the new hot movement is Cookbook Clubs. Members pick a cookbook each month, spend the next few weeks test-driving the recipes, and then come together for a potluck and discussion.

If you write or publish cookbooks, ask your local booksellers if they  are hosting any cookbook clubs. Or, better yet, start to promote cookbook clubs where your book or books are the first to be featured.

For more on how to start a Cookbook Club, read this blog post:
http://www.book-club-queen.com/cookbook-book-club.html.

For a list of five San Francisco Bay-area cookbook clubs, read here:
http://blogs.kqed.org/bayareabites/2011/01/22/five-bay-area-cookbook-clubs.