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Stephen Starring Grant is a graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop with degrees in creative writing and poetry. An award-winning independent filmmaker who later spent two decades in marketing, he never stopped writing. He lives with his wife and two daughters in Blacksburg, Virginia.
In Mailman, Steve Grant is laid off in March 2020. As a 50-year-old with cancer, he needs health insurance, fast. Which is how he finds himself a rural letter carrier in Appalachia, back in his old hometown. Suddenly, he is the guy with the goods, delivering dog food and respirators and lube and heirloom tomato seeds and Lord of the Rings replica swords. He transports chicken feed to grandmothers living alone in the mountains and fords a creek with a refrigerator on his back. But while he carries the mail, he also carries a family legacy of rage and the anxiety of having lost his identity along with his corporate job.
When asked what contributed to the book landing on the New York Times bestseller list, Grant said: “Mailman took 10 months to get to bestseller territory.” He credits partnerships with three key audiences. First, he said, “Book clubs are slow-burn rocket fuel” that drive sales through word of mouth, including online comments and shares. “Being generous with them is important.” He found few authors take the time to join book club meetings and discuss with them, but the connection builds loyal fans.
Indie booksellers were also crucial. “If you can help them sell books, they will help you.” Grant advised taking time to build trust. “When they buy your book and it doesn’t sell, they lose money. So don’t expect them to buy a case from the start!” He even suggested committing to buy back any copies the bookstore doesn’t sell. For Mailman, Grant had the advantage of partnering with a bookstore in his hometown where the memoir was set. “Over 10 months, I signed (for free) every copy of Mailman they sold in-store and on their website. I did a lot of free promotion for the shop on my socials.”
The third key partnership was with libraries, which often have dedicated followings. Grant sought win-wins by making himself available for library fundraisers. “Don’t make it about other people helping you sell books. Look for ways to team up with organizations where you can help each other.”
Grant worked with fans to arrange mini-tours where he traveled to a community and connected across all of these categories. “I genuinely believe that everything you do for your book eventually contributes to more and more people reading it. Effort counts, and it compounds,” Grant said.
