Exceeding My Expectations

I will say, one thing I will never get used to is the thrill of attending yet another market. There is always the nervous jitters of "how will this go?" or "will I make a sale? And if so, how many?" or "what kind of people will I meet today?".

Though sales, for me, never is the true goal. As a indie author, they're an asset, of course. But the thing I have always loved about any market that I attend is the networking and getting the opportunities to meet many new faces and have the joy of meeting readers who are genuinely interested in my creations. Getting the opprotunity to share my story, my heart, my pride and joy that is all wrapped perfectly in a collection of poems in the form of two books. Though this weekend has only been the thrid market that I have ever attended, it is always a joy to interact with people nonetheless. Fellow creatives or poetry lovers and I would bond over the art and different topics I've written about.

This past weekend I had the absolute joy of attending the Malla Market in Edmonton, Alberta. It was a new market that I have been working with and the event coordinators have been nothing but sweet to me. Some of the other vendors attending this market that I talked to were so kind and supportive, some who I have seen and met at other previous markets, Overall, the market is just filled with positive energy and I truly did feel at home there.

Throughout the weekend, I had many people walk past my table. Some of which I sparked conversations with and we shared some stories and beautiful moments. I do have to share a little highlight from this weekend that I won't forget. Amongst meaning so many lovely people, there was two ladies in particular. They came by my table and the cover art for my book, "The Art of Beginning Again" caught their eyes. Upon us chatting, they picked up the book and began inspecting it, reading through a couple of the poems. One of the ladies began reading a couple of them out loud, and all I could do was listen to her reading my poetry, right in front of me. Something like that sounds so mundane and boring for me, right? Like it shouldn't be worth remembering. But hearing her read my poetry in a dramatic monolgue style voice forced me to step back for a minute. Literally and metaphorically. I got to listen to a complete stranger read my poems back to me. It made me appreciate not only my own work, but it allowed me to watch someone become more and more invested in my work, all in real time. Each poem she read aloud and flipped through, I could tell she began to enjoy my talents and words more and more. Conveniently, as the two ladies were flipping through, they got to one poem in particular (Tattoo from "The Art of Beginning Again") and as they were talking about it, I had the joy of sharing the personal touch that I wrote about, showing them the tattoo placed on my left arm. The tattoo that inspired that exact poem. With very minimal convincing, they supported me by purchasing my book and I got to sign it for them before they went off on their way.

Going into the day, I didn't quite know what to expect. My previous markets I have attended have been a bit smaller, so knowing this market is placed in a mall, I knew it had much more traffic that goes through it, I didn't know what to expect. So I will say, I did set my expectations low. I did that for two reasons, Firstly, if I set the sale goal too high and then if the day doesn't go how I anticipated and I make less sales than my goal, I won't be upset with myself. But secondly, I simply just didn't know what kind of foot traffic to expect. "I think I'm setting my sales goal to selling 3 books to 3 people I don't know", I told my boyfriend the day before. He was in disbelief when I said that, telling me that I will absoutely crush it on my sales goals and that I will sell much more than 3 copies. Did I increase my goal after he told me that? No, I kept it small. Not because I didn't believe him, but I just wanted to keep myself living in reality opposed to delusion. Besides, having that goal be met only within the first HOUR of the market, I knew I was going to blow past my expectations when I still had six hours left of the market.

For a little indie author, like myself, let's just say I was truly exceeding my expectations. I sold so many copies of my books that there was even a thought in my head that maybe I might sell out before the market is over. And that is such a crazy concept to think about for the first time.

I will gush for a minute as well. One thing that always fills my heart and brings me an immense amount of joy is being at my markets and having different friends and family come out to my event to support me. Good chance of the time, the people who come by already have their copies of my book so they're just coming out to support me and make an apprearance. And that speaks absoute volumes to me. Do they have to come to every event? No, that's never obligated. But just an appearance and a hug, all while admiring my table and wishing me luck means the world to me. It's the equivalent of having your partner, close friends or family go out to show support at a sporting event, or to watch a performance your invovled in. Writing is my passion. Always has been, always will be. And having the people I love and care about come out to show their support and share how proud they are of me, makes me happy. My brain sees it as, "my passions and hobbies are important enough to you for you to take time out of your day and come out to my market to support my dreams and aspirations". And whether it's a best friend or someone I don't see as often anymore, support is support. And it all speaks immense volumes when I have the support of people I care about.

Now that the weekend is over and I've genuinely surprised myself with how well this weekend went, there are many new things that are on my radar: little trinkets to sell at my table and not only just books, order more books to sell (priority number one, for sure), and work on all the little details and ways to elevate and upgrade my table visually.

I learn new tactics or get new ideas after every market I have. New ways to elevate my table. As always, the little entrepreneur that occupies a corner of my brain is always working overtime. Feeding me new ideas and driving me to be a better author and to push myself past any limitations I may have.

There is also one final heartfelt topic that I want to bring up as well. It's been rummaging through my head lately of thinking of how I am doing things that my childhood self would be so immensely proud of me for. That little girl who spent hours and hours posting fan fictions on Wattpad or the teenager who wrote gatekept short stories or novels for hours on end, dreaming of the eventual possibility of publishing my works and selling them to the world. But here I am, doing that exact thing I once dreamed of. Making little Sarah so damn proud. I am doing what most people haven't. Many people have the idea of writing a book, but never get around to it. I wrote mine. Once it's written, many people get too scared of rejection and don't follow through with the risk of throwing everything out there and publishing it for the world to read. In my early 20s, I pushed those dreams and made them reality. So as I write this, at the ripe age of 25, I can proudly say that I have published two complete books. And trust me, there are many more books to come. Poetry book number 3? Very likely. Finally releasing my gatekept romance novel? In time once the manuscript is finally done, that's the plan. These two books aren't the last of me. I'll be writing for many years to come, sharing my stories and pouring my heart onto pages for all to read and fall in love with. Making my impact on the world, one book at a time.

To end things in another positive note, I have some fantastic news I would love to share! This summer, I'm hoping, will be a big deal in my author life. With the anticipation on attending more markets (be sure to follow my social media here to keep in the loop on my whereabouts).

But I also have my very first book signing in July! On July 25th, 2026 I will be cohosting a book signing with another close poet friend of mine, Rena Joy. You and find the both of us at the St. Albert Chapters on July 25th from 12:00pm-3:00pm.

Can't wait to see you there!

Write soon,

S. Cowan