The Internet Rallies Around New York Times Bestselling Author After Failed Book Signing
Sometimes Twitter isn't so toxic.
The internet is showing up for one author after her fans failed to do so.
Suzanne Young, a New York Times Bestselling Author of several novels, including The Program Series and Girls with Sharp Sticks, recently hosted a book signing for her newest book, In Nightfall—which she describes as "The Lost Boys meets Buffy with a monster-slaying grandma in a tracksuit"—but nobody attended the event.
The novelist—and English teacher—shared a photo of the empty sea of chairs in the bookstore hosting her on Twitter, writing, "If you ever want to see a career low point, this is it," further admitting that she would be "crying [the] entire way home" after the devastating outcome.
Well, other users of the social media app weren't having it, requesting more information about the novel and quickly flooding the replies with pictures of their order confirmation numbers.
One user promised, "Pop off a tweet if you're doing an appearance in Atlanta. I'll cover one chair at least."
Another photoshopped an adoring crowd into her photo, adding, "Here's a sneak peak [sic] of your next one 😘."
Wynonna Earp star Melanie Scrofano even jumped into the mix, writing, "I’m sorry you went through this but also excited to check out your book."
Plenty of authors reached out to Young as well, sharing similarly vulnerable moments in their own careers.
"Hugs, Suzanne! Definitely been there…" Sona Charaipotra, author of the upcoming How Maya Got Fierce and former Parade.com columnist, wrote.
"Been there, several times! @JuddWinick was there to go through it with me in Seattle once," children's author Matthew Holm replied.
"Been there. Sending love and a hug. Their loss," Beverly Jenkins, USA Today Bestselling Author of the Women Who Dare series, said.
Even those in other industries piped in, with Mythbusters' Kari Byron telling her, "A version of this happens everyone."
Authors Susan Dennard, Michael Northrop, and Lija Fisher also shared their own similar stories, and Young responded personally to every one of them.
"Genuinely, I didn't know how common this was until now," she later replied directly to the original photo. "I was so ashamed to post this picture, so ashamed. But this outpouring of support has been incredible. I want to hug and show up for all of you from now on. THANK YOU. Thank you for sharing."
She also revealed that, for anyone interested, her local Barnes & Noble has signed copies available to order. To get your own, you can email crm2243@bn.com with "Suzanne Young" in the subject line and your name and phone number included in the body of your email, and the store will contact you directly to complete your purchase.
