How to plan a book tour for a nonfiction book

Decide what the tour is for

A tour costs time and money, so give it one main job. For most nonfiction authors it is one of these:

• Meeting clients and prospects in the cities where your business already works.
• Booking talks. A tour stop is a sample of how you speak. Tofe Evans spoke at the Bank of Queensland, and his success story lists a country-wide tour: a Bank of Queensland speaking tour. One author's result, not a typical one.
• Selling books in bulk to companies, associations and schools.
• Reaching a community the book serves, such as alumni, a profession or a cause.

The job decides the cities, the venues and what you measure. A tour to win clients is judged on meetings booked, not on copies signed.

In person or virtual

Most nonfiction tours end up as a mix: a few in-person stops where your readers are dense, and online appearances everywhere else. A podcast tour can travel further than you will. Dr. Laura Brown's podcast tour for Beyond Digestion reached New Zealand, which her story lists as how far the podcast tour reached. One author's result.

Choosing cities by where readers and clients are

Pick cities from evidence, not from a map of big markets. Places to look:

1. Your own lists. Sort your clients, email subscribers and LinkedIn connections by city. A city where you know dozens of people beats a bigger one where you know nobody.
2. Print sales by area. Amazon Author Central offers BookScan sales information as a US-only feature. When Amazon added BookScan in 2010, its announcement described a "Sales by Geography" map of where print copies sold, and said digital sales are not included. Check what your account shows.
3. Your audience data. If you publish video, the Audience tab in YouTube Analytics shows who watches; YouTube notes that geography data may be limited.
4. Where your hosts are. A company with offices in four cities, an association with regional chapters, a conference you already speak at. One host can give you a route.

Then cluster: three stops within driving distance cost far less than three flights. Leave out any city where you cannot name at least one host and a few people who will come.

Venues that say yes

Each kind of venue has its own rules. The ones below are published by the venues themselves, checked October 21, 2026.

• Bookstores. Most want the book orderable from a wholesaler on returnable terms, and many ask two to three months ahead. Maria's Bookshop in Durango asks authors for a proposed tour schedule along with a publicity plan. The bookstore signing guide covers what stores require, consignment and Barnes & Noble.
• Libraries. Many host local authors for free, with conditions. Detroit Public Library lets local authors reserve a room at no cost for a signing, after staff review the book. Knox County Public Library considers readings only for books in its collection, runs them as a 15 to 20 minute reading plus questions, and lets authors sell copies afterward. The Orange County Library System generally does not host single-author signings, except for authors with bestseller status, major awards, a significant following, or those on a national book tour, and prefers talks related to the book's topic. The guide to getting into libraries covers getting the book into the collection first.
• Associations and chapters. Many professional groups hold regular meetings with a speaker. Offer a talk on one idea from the book for their members, with copies available. Ask the chapter's program chair, and ask how far ahead they plan.
• Companies. A talk inside a company, often to a team the book helps, can come with a bulk order. Ron Thurston's story records 700 store managers holding up his book at a Boot Barn keynote. One author's result. Selling books at speaking events covers building copies into a fee.
• Your own event. An office, a club or a client's space you fill with your own invitations. The launch event guide has a run of show.

Venues expect you to bring people. Detroit says authors are fully responsible for promoting their work, and Orange County expects authors to post and invite friends, family and readers.

A sample tour calendar

Illustration only. This is an invented example of how one nonfiction author might lay out a three-week tour, not a real tour or a recommended schedule. The author consults to regional banks and has clients in three nearby cities.

Notice what the example does: two driving clusters, no flights, a host at every in-person stop, and online dates in between so the tour does not go quiet. The launch planner places event and media steps in the right weeks around your own launch date.

The budget, line by line

Only the lines below have a published figure; for the rest, get a quote. Prices checked October 21, 2026.

The mileage and per diem figures are planning yardsticks, not tax advice. Ask an accountant what you can deduct. Sponsors and hosts can carry part of the cost: Ron Thurston's story lists 3 brand sponsors behind his Airstream book tour. One author's result, not a typical one. The launch budget guide covers the rest of a launch's costs.

A virtual book tour

A virtual tour is a run of online appearances, usually over a few weeks around launch. The main pieces:

• Podcasts. Usually the backbone for nonfiction. Many shows record weeks or months before an episode airs, so pitch well before launch. Podcasts and media for authors covers picking shows and pitching hosts.
• Webinars hosted by groups. An association, alumni group or company hosts you for its members. They bring the audience; you bring a talk on one idea from the book.
• Your own live sessions. A live Q and A for your email list or a LinkedIn event. The LinkedIn guide covers LinkedIn events.
• Blog and newsletter stops. Guest posts, written interviews and excerpts on sites your readers follow. Some companies sell organized blog tours, mostly for fiction; get a quote and ask which sites reach your readers before you pay.

Hadley Ott's story lists 15+ podcast interviews and 2 university talks. Monifa McKnight is taking Full Flight on tour, with Zimbabwe listed as the next stop on the Full Flight tour. Single authors' results, not typical ones.

Scribe Media, which makes this site, sells Podcast Pitching to authors whose books Scribe published: according to its service page, at least 60 shows pitched over three months for $3,000 a month, with at least 5 shows interested in booking you guaranteed. If your book was published elsewhere, the podcasts guide shows how to pitch shows yourself.

What most authors get wrong

• Choosing cities before hosts. A city with no host and no one you know is an empty room.
• Asking too late. Bookstores and associations plan months ahead. Start asking before the book is printed.
• Treating every stop as a signing. A talk with a reason to come draws more people than a table and a stack of books.
• No follow-up. Email everyone you met within a week. For a client-focused tour, that email is the point of the trip.

Scribe Media sells book publishing and marketing services; if you want a person to look at your tour and launch plan, book a free consult.