How Not to Pitch Your Book at a Book Festival

There were years when I attended the Los Angeles Festival of Books with the eager anticipation of an avid reader who likes nothing better than to stroll outdoors and wander into open-air bookstores. Readings by my favorite authors were also an attraction. I didn't do much people watching. One year I dressed in period costume-a Hispana in 1840's Santa Fe-and walked onto the USC campus armed with a pen to sign my first novel: The Sandoval Sisters Secret of Old Blood. The response to my book was go...