What do book clubs want from a guest author??

I enjoy author talks both at our small local BookClub and at book shops. Good ones usually start with information about themselves, can include jobs they've done, whether they wrote as a child, and their path to getting published, and invited to book clubs!
A tantalising reading from their latest or next book usually makes me decide whether I want to read it. Maybe something about their research or experience of the subject of the book. I was especially impressed by a young woman who writes fiction about Anglo Saxon times. She came to the local BookClub twice, about 18 months apart. The second talk was different, she passed around AS artefacts and talked about the language.
A lot of people, as I'm sure you've found, have a question they really want to ask you.
I'm guessing you give good talks and I'd love to hear one. Enjoy them, and the wine!!

Wine! Never sure about a group reading myself - I think everyone reads differently in their heads and it's never as I would read it if that makes sense?
Something interesting/funny about you personally is always good especially if it links to why you got into writing/your subject matter. I.e. if you write crime how much time you spent researching decomposing bodies and then worried about the internet police arriving on your doorstep. How you dealt with rejection letters (if you had any!) Think Elrel's experience is excellent - what a lovely, unusual way to engage people.

Petitpois - I'll tell the author you said that. I heard she gave a talk to another group who argued with her as they thought they knew more about AS times than she did. I think she'd appreciate a boost!

Thanks, petitpois and Elrel, much appreciated. A reading from the next book and something about my research into money laundering/nuns/illegal logging in Peru (also not good for the Internet search history!) are all possible. I'll take a show-and-tell object or two as well. Maybe the original letters that started the whole thing off. Feeling better about this now.

We have had a couple of author's at are book club lately all they seem to talk about was how they got there book published but to be honest I found that a bit boring what I I really wanted to now how they came to write it and more about the book

We went to a book reading at a bookshop in a city near us one night last week,
And have done this several times, it's enjoyable ( and you have tea/coffee at the same time.) There were three authors speaking, they all did a very brief intro about themselves, then read either one of their short stories or a single chapter of their book. Then questions from the floor were invited, and a sort of general discussion led on from that.Good luck. Try and make lots of eye contact and engage with the audience, they have not come to give you a hard time.Enjoy the glass of wine afterwards, and hope to sell a few books there!??

We had a local author at our book club as one of the members knew her. Her book was one we were discussing. Everyone hated it.

I'm currently going round talking to various groups and at libraries about my book. I wasn't sure at all what to do when I started but seem to have found a structure that seems to go quite well.
I talk a bit about my background, how the book got to publication, then the background to the book and really encourage people to chip in with their experience of the subject and I always have a main aim of everyone having a laugh! I offer a choice of readings depending on what people want. I then usually do 2 short ones. This all typically takes about 45mins-1hour.
There's quite often tea/baking/wine/nibbles etc so opportunity for chatting to the people who were too shy to speak out in the group. One library I'm speaking at next month provides a fish supper first!
I think you have to be flexible and 'read' your audience (if possible!)

Apologies to all you authors- big respect- it just made for an awkward meeting- discussing her book. ( it actually wasn't very good and was only chosen as she was a friend of one of the members- not the best reason for a book choice) .

Why don't you visit some of the literary festivals, such as Hay or Warwick Words, and watch how the experienced authors tackle this, but in a bigger way?

Apart from being great fun it would really give you an insight into what different audiences want.

Good luck with your new book .

Suzied don't worry about not liking that book. Tastes vary so much. These days there's so much choice of reading material around that there really is something for everyone. That book was just not for your group.

Anyone else at Oxford Literary Festival? So much going on, I loved my first visit.

I'm not sure how much my contribution will help, but I do have second hand experience of many literary presentations which are aimed at children.

My son is a children's author and regularly appears at Hay, Edinburgh, Cheltenham Festivals etc., so has over the last 10 years honed his skills.

If you were asking him now he would say get your audience involved as much as possible. I like the idea of passing artefacts round and discussing. He gets the children reading some of the parts and this goes down well.

He tries to make them laugh by using a water pistol instead of a gun, which would not be appropriate at school presentations.

He always makes sure when he does a signing that he gets the child's name correct to put in the book and let's them take selfies with him.

If any of you do write for children I am more than happy to give any assistance, as I have witnessed first hand the highs and lows of a full time author.

Best of luck all you authors out there.