Books / Novelist
High-speed signing with CL Taylor
Despite the drudgery of a grey April morning, there was a buzz of excitement on board one of the new Intercity Express Trains to London. Passengers travelling to London from Bristol on the morning of Tuesday, April 10 were treated to a visit by Bristol-based Sunday Times bestselling author CL Taylor, who was on board signing copies of her latest novel The Fear.
This interesting slant on the more traditional form-an-orderly-queue-at-the-bookshop style of promotion was conceived as a fun twist on Taylor’s regular journey between Bristol and London and it certainly proved a hit with travellers. Taylor was accompanied by booksellers from WH Smith and a book blogger who’d won a competition to share the journey with the writer, courtesy of Great Western Railway.
Although there were almost more promotional team members than passengers in the first class carriage, that soon changed thanks to some on-board announcements and the WH Smith team making their way up the train to promote the event. Within minutes of the train pulling out of Bristol Parkway, passengers were making their way through the train to purchase books and get them signed, delighted by the out-of-the-ordinary nature of the event and by the time the train arrived at Swindon, the booksellers had already sold a number of books, with a few passengers returning to make more than one purchase.
is needed now More than ever
Author CL Taylor on board the train from Bristol to London, signing books at high speed
This is only the second such event (the first being a promotion for the aptly-named Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins) that the booksellers have been involved in in this part of the country, and it certainly piqued the interest of a number of travellers.
Some lingered in the comfort of the carriage, creating a convivial atmosphere as Taylor happily sat for a chat with fans or posed for photos with fellow passengers. Despite the disruption to the calmness of the carriage, travellers were happy to take part in the event, taking advantage of their proximity to the author to engage in longer conversations. “It’s nice to have something a bit different,” said passenger Andrew Hardy as he bought a copy of the novel for the manager he was on his way to London to meet.
On arrival in Paddington, more excited fans were waiting in the First Class Lounge to meet the writer, who stayed for a chat before having to rush off to a Facebook live session at her publishers’ offices.
Find out more about CL Taylor by visiting www.cltaylorauthor.com
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