blueprints

Finishing Tools for the Event Itself | 249
think that the chance to have their names on your event is sufficient return
for their investments. If this is the case, feature their names prominently on
your marketing materials, and don’t ever pass up a chance to thank them
publicly.
Don’t be stingy. The better partners’ experiences with you are, the more
likely they will be to work with you again—and even to be flexible in what
kinds of poets and events they will consider for potential partnerships. If
you can, offer partners the chance to spend less formal time with your poets
in addition to putting their names on your events or holding their own.
Make space for them at dinners and receptions.
Both developing and presenting proposals with many partners can be a
delicate business. A poet may wish to negotiate a package that has many
parts, all of which are essential to the whole. Be prepared to explain which
events are connected to significant percentages of the fee you offer. If the
package absolutely depends on all its elements remaining intact, make sure
the poet knows that.
Until the deal is complete, make sure your partners know that it is a
work in progress and may be subject to further tweaks and revisions, even
to the extent of leaving entire events, and therefore partners, out. But stick
as much as you can to those pieces of the package that are most appealing
to the partners, and don’t make changes capriciously. Let partners know
you’ll advocate as hard as you can for their events and participation; then
follow through on the promise, working to keep the things they care most
about in any final package.
We’ve already suggested you set the dates for your keynote or cornerstone
poets first. Another good reason to do this is it will help you keep to
your budget. Once you know what your big names will cost in honoraria
and travel, you can make adjustments in the rest of your schedule in order
to meet your budget. You may sometimes find you can add a reading; more
likely, you’ll have to cut back somewhere.
Checklist: Book the talent
A. Decide which poets you want to invite.
1. Locate poets.
a. Consult with experts at your local colleges and universities
as well as your state and local arts agencies if you
aren’t sure how to find poets.