"A couple of months ago, while flipping through the Costco Connection magazine, I noticed a monthly column called Member Connection, where they profile Costco members who have interesting stories or events to tell about.
What caught my eye is that one of the three profiles on this page was of a woman who had written a book. They had a picture of her holding up her book (which was not available at Costco) along with a couple of paragraphs (one third of a page) about how she came to write it.
So, I sat down and emailed Costco Connection a brief version of my press kit, explaining that I had written a book and why it might interest Costco members. That was in August.
A couple of days ago, I got an email from a Costco Connection reporter who informed me that they liked my story and wanted to include me in the column in the February issue. We did a telephone interview yesterday, and I emailed some photos for them to choose from.
Good news all by itself, and I was thrilled. But, here's the exciting part... I decided, a few hours before the interview, to email the reporter a pdf copy of my book, "in case you might find it useful" for interview prep."
When he called to conduct the interview, he was effusive about how much he loved the book, and asked if I would mind if he passed it on to the Costco book buyer. I, of course, said I would be most grateful for that, and mailed a couple of paperback copies for him to pass on and one to keep for himself.
Now, I realize that getting your book onto a Costco table is about as easy as getting it on Oprah, and I don't hold out much hope that it will actually happen. But, I do know that someone in the book buying office will read it, and it won't end up in that roomful of 100,000 books that never got opened.
And, at the very least, Costco members nationwide, and possibly in Canada and the UK, will be exposed to a couple of paragraphs about my book. I could not have purchased that kind of press.
If you have a note, photo or story to share about Costco or Costco members, email it to connection@costco.com with "The Member Connection" in the subject line or send it to "The Member Connection," The Costco Connection, P.O. Box 34088, Seattle, WA 98124. Submissions cannot be acknowledged or returned."
Thanks to David Perkins for allowing me to share his success story with Release Your Writing blog fans.
Learn more about David and his book Dear Austin: A Letter To My Son, at http://www.davidmperkins.com and http://www.davidmperkins.com/amazon.
And as for supporting groups who support writers, I think you'll agree my SPAWN membership was worth a full year's dues for this one tip alone.
Write on,
Helen Gallagher
