Just this week, someone asked if they could pick my brain about appearing at book clubs. She sent a list of questions for me, and I realized this was going to be a piece on telling debut authors how to latch ahold of book clubs to launch their books. In a nutshell, here’s a bulleted list of the myths and realities with which I responded.

• There is no list of book clubs. Reality is most book clubs want to remain anonymous. They want to carefully choose their members, their books, and their guest authors. To post somewhere who they are would mean being inundated with queries that they don’t want.
• Book clubs normally want guest authors who have proven themselves, not debut authors. Unless the author is local and fairly known, or the topic of the book is very appropriate to the area, book clubs aren’t necessarily going to want debut authors until they have proven themselves.
• Book clubs are noted for selecting books that have been on bestseller lists.
• Presenting at a book club is not like presenting at a library or conference. You are exposed and open to questions and criticism at book clubs, so be prepared to be under the spotlight.
• Being invited means your book is either in the news or on a list somewhere, or your platform is big enough to make you a known entity.
• It usually takes knowing someone in the book club to get invited.
• Yes, you can connect with a book club and enlighten them about who you are. Make it short and leave a link. There are millions of books out there. They will decide if yours fits their mold.

Book clubs are my favorite entity when it comes to presentations. But they are not easy to find, and they don’t necessarily want to be pitched. Just know that ahead of time. These groups have unspoken etiquette and rules you just won’t be aware of.