Hi all,
I haven't seen many blog posts on the subject so I thought I would offer a bit of advice.
Your author signature needs to be different to your normal one.
Why?
Because, unfortunately, although most fans will keep signed books as a keepsake, others might try to forge your signature and pretend to be you. This is why your signature needs to be different, in order to protect your identity, brand and finances.
Your signature can be whatever you want it to be, as long as it's different to your usual one. You can make it as large or small as you like, add symbols or drawings. It's entirely up to you!
Make sure you practice writing it beforehand so you can get into the habit of using it. The more you practice the quicker you'll get and the less messy it will be.
You should also have a few messages that you can write in your books. For example:
I hope you enjoy my book! (Signature)
Thank you for supporting me! (Signature)
Most authors prefer to sign their books on the title page - example of Venom and Earth
I would recommend three or four messages that you cycle through when signing to keep it fresh and ensure you're not writing the same thing in every book.
If the reader wants the message addressed to them, make sure you check the spelling with them first. Even if it's a common name, it can have loads of different spellings. The last thing you want is to spell someone's name incorrectly in their own copy of your book.
If you want inspiration check out how your favourite authors. See what they write and what their signatures look like so you can get an idea of what you would like to do.
I've signed a few books and having everything ready beforehand really helped me lessen my anxiety. It still worries me when people hand me their books to sign and I find myself writing really slowly to make sure my writing is clear and free of mistakes. My regular handwriting is hard to read so it's important that I slow down so my writing is readable.
That's it for this week, hope you enjoyed! See you next week.
