Herding Cats

I am trying to organise a 'Book Bash'. This is an idea I had to get local writers together reading their work in a pub with a judging panel of the local bookstore manager, the pub manager and the editor of the local press. There would be a 'Chief Sneak' to lead the booing if an author goes over their allotted ten minutes or uses bad language. I hoped that this would excite some media interest in local authors with a long term view of wider publicity for our books.

It was all going well. The bookstore manager, the pub manager and the authors could all see the merit in this and were excited by it, they said. I was about to engage local media outlets and make the final arrangements but the awkward question of money came to prominence.

The bookstore manager needs to run sales through her tills to justify their involvement and I feel we need their sponsorship to make the event look professional. The authors, however, see it otherwise. They want to 'maximise' profit by selling direct, even though they acknowledge that more than a few sales on the night are very unlikely.

One author has gone off in a huff, another seems to be convinced he can get his wife to flog his books (poor woman), and I am left feeling like I am trying to herd together a gang of feral cats; all hissing and jumping about in anger.

I suppose what I am actually doing is managing ego, trying to accommodate everyone's interests and realise their expectations. In reality, the only person guaranteed to profit from the evening is the pub manager who will sell more beer than he would expect on a quiet Monday night.

Maybe I should do that instead.