Spirit Alley 2026 Author Appearance

During the first weekend of May, I had the pleasure of making my first appearance as an author at the Menagerie Market‘s 2026 Spirit Alley in the Winchester Mystery House gardens.

This event marked my first time bringing my book out into the world in person. It was so exciting presenting “In the Secret Spider Garden” to a whole crowd of strangers who had no reason to even pay me any mind. All-in-all, I did my best to fill my cup full of optimism! Regardless of the minor bumps I’ll mention later, this felt like an overwhelmingly great experience.

Author Appearance Expectations for Spirit Alley 2026

I went into this event keeping in mind that this was the first time the Menagerie Market was attempting a Halfway-to-Halloween market with Winchester Mystery House. Here in California’s Northern Bay Area, Halloween and Halfway-to-Halloween events are still not quite a thing like one might expect to find in Southern California. In fact, this has only been the second year Winchester has ever attempted a Halfway-to-Halloween event. Considering how that went last year, I assumed the crowds might be on the more underwhelming side and not like the Menagerie’s Yuletide markets turnout. Halfway-to-Halloween is just not a thing in my area. Yet.

At the conclusion of the weekend, it turns out my prediction was pretty accurate. When preparing for the market, I set my sales goals low to avoid feeling discouraged.

• Sales Goal: Sell at least one book sold and be happy a stranger went home with it. If more than one sold, the goal would be to sell 15 books to break even on the booth fee. Should I feel more ambitious or reach 15 sales, my goal would change to selling one full box of books (around 22-28 books depending on the box).
• Marketing Goal: Get one email list sign up for every book sale.

After all was said and done, I sold 18 books and gained 19 email sign-ups. In addition, something I got asked more than I thought I would was if I do school visits or talk about my process. To which I replied with an enthusiastic YES! These visitors usually signed up for my email list or took my bookmark to bring to their school to share with their administrator. This was an additional networking goal I wasn’t expecting to happen at this particular event.

Was Spirit Alley 2026 a positive choice to kick off an author appearance with? That is all based on perspective. To me, those final results felt very successful.

What to Adjust for Future Author Appearances

Obviously, no experience is perfect. As such, I learned a lot over the weekend that I will consider for future events. So let’s talk about all things both good and bad. I’m kicking off my notes with what I found I need to change A.S.A.P.!

🕸️ Merch is fun to have, but not necessary🕸️

I had some art prints and stickers available in addition to my book. And honestly? These didn’t really sell. I sold two “Make Life Sweeter” stickers and not a single print. I thought it would be a good option to have for adults who would shy away from the idea that I was selling a children’s book, but it turned out not to be one.

My arachnid astrology prints did attract some people to my booth, but it ended with intrigued window-shoppers and uncommitted buyers. I’m not sure if it was the display I chose or just not enough people interested in owning a spider art print. In the end, I think I spent a little too much money trying to have additional options and it ended up being a distraction from my book.

🕸️ Match my booth to my aesthetic, not the event theme 🕸️

This is more of an after-thought. The event organizers were strongly encouraging vendors to theme their booths with Halloween vibes and I went all in. The candy corn colors I embraced pair well with my Candy Corn Crew. Since no book features them yet, some displays won’t work with other kinds of events or appearance.

As such, I face the reality of needing a new tablecloth in addition to remaking all of my signage for when I’m not attending Halloween events. These things aren’t extremely costly, but they did take up precious time designing, printing and assembling.

On an opposite note, I would say, don’t be afraid to be colorful. In a sea of black tablecloths, I definitely stood out with my sunshine yellow tablecloth and orange rug and rotating display. For myself as a shopper, two other booths still stand out in my mind with a white tablecloth and the other with a velvet green one. You don’t have to be a rainbow, but think about what might catch the eye of shoppers and gives a clue into the vibe of your books.

What Worked at Spirit Alley 2026

🕸️ Making a space for my intended audience🕸️

My booth was in the carriage house, aka the garage in an L formation. The event coordinator selected this space especially for doing book readings. This was such a great thing to have and I am so thankful for their thoughtfulness! My setup included a large circle area rug with trays. These were filled with activity sheets, coloring tools and stickers. With nearly every family who came into the carriage house, children naturally gravitated towards this area. I let adults know their children could help themselves to the sheets while they looked around at my fellow vendors’ booths.

🕸️ Doing reading sessions of my book🕸️

When shoppers were present, I did a reading of my book at the top of every hour. Although this didn’t actually happen every hour (if there was no one there, I felt a bit silly reading without an audience), it looped in interested people. They would have their little ones tune in to the story. Then, even if I couldn’t engage their child, the adult usually purchased a copy. I think this could be put into practice with any kind of book, not just a children’s book. To top it off, the readings paired very well with the activity trays.

🕸️ Showing off my process🕸️

In this age of AI, a lot of visitors loved that I had a presentation folder to flip through. I documented my illustrator process with my original art pieces, storyboards, and research. And let me tell you. I definitely had a couple people come by with comments asking if I really did do it myself. It’s getting harder to tell what is genuine these days. Showing off your process also becomes a great way to start a conversation about your work.

🕸️ Having a tablet for email sign-ups🕸️

I saw someone do this at the Celtic festival we attended back in March and I thought it was genius. No guessing handwriting. No chance of misplacing papers. Most subscribers were confirming their subscription right on the spot. I set a page on my website just for this and it would refresh the page when the sign-up was successful. If you don’t have a tablet with a reliable battery, you can always have a QR code for sign-ups too. At least this time, I noticed that more people liked being able to sign up right then and there instead of scanning a code to enter information later.

Interacting with Other Venders

As mentioned previously, this was not my first time peddling my wares. Thankfully, compared to the past, it was a positive experience. Everyone in the garage was so supportive of each other and even though it was a small turn-out of shoppers, we were all checking in on each other with food, breaks, music and good conversation. Each of us took time in the quiet moments to talk to each other about our wares. It was just…really awesome. It really felt like a vender family and made the weekend feel like even more of a success despite the lack of crowds.

On that note, I want to shout-out my fellow carriage house vendors. There was a delightful balance of offerings among our space and I look forward to shopping with everyone at future events.

• The Creative Coven
  • Goth/Witchy jewelry pieces
• Fanciful Findings
  • Creative and unique knitted gifts
• Franken-Frau
  • Hand-sewn upcycled witch hats, bags and horror-themed patches
• Goddess Noir Cakes
  • Delicious cakes, cake pops and sweets
• Lady Danse Macabre
  • Home decor shadow frames of bones, florals, and crystals

On the note of vendors, I wish I knew who was mentioning I was around. There were several visitors who came by stating, “Oh! Here’s the children’s author!”. I can only assume a fellow vendor was talking about my books and I am so thankful for your mention!

Final Thoughts on my Spirit Alley 2026 Author Appearance

As a growing author/illustrator, I want to be honest and open about every step of this journey. Consider this post the first of many to come. I want to talk about everything I’ve learned as an author AND as an illustrator. This is to encourage others feeling the call of the page to answer and feel more confident in doing so. I don’t feel like I had many, if any, negative points on this experience. In truth, I am looking forward to future appearances!

Do you have an event you think I should attend as an author? I would love to hear where you think I should apply for next. There are already two events I have on my radar, but I would love to hear your suggestions too.