Speed Dating?

Today we turn our attention to author Robin Brande. Ms. Brande, who won my love recently by sending me a delicious assortment of truffles (she hosts a contest on her site where you can win them) also happens to have a website/bloggy thing of sorts that I like to check from time to time. Recently I was particularly amused when Ms. Brande began discussing the fact that her new book, "Evolution, Me, and Other Freaks of Nature", was going to get some special attention from its publisher, Random House. Here's the deal:

So as part of that, they invited me to come to New York this week to talk at their pre-sales conference, which I did today. I gave a little, “Here’s my story,” kind of speech–maybe ten minutes long–to a roomful of a hundred or so of their sales, marketing, and publicity people. And I don’t know about them, but I had a great time. It’s pretty daunting to be up there in uncomfortable shoes trying to explain yourself in ten minutes, but I think it went all right.

Then after that, I was invited to a luncheon for about forty-five of the sales people to the big accounts–Barnes & Noble, Borders, Target, etc.–where I got to do this kind of speed-dating thing, moving from table to table in 10-minute intervals, meeting the sellers and hearing a little bit about what they do and what they like about their work, and they got to ask me some follow-up questions to the weird but true story I told them in my speech.

Beep beep beep. Back right on up there, buddy. Speed dating, eh? I find this fascinating. Authors must, if I hear her correctly, sell themselves in 10 minutes to all the big name sales reps. Holy guacamole, that's steller. If I were an author I'd write pages and pages of info about each 10-minute stop. Was the Target rep pushy or smiling way too hard? Howzabout the gal from Barnes & Noble? Were there horns? Could you see them? Is this a common thing amongst authors to sell yourself in 10 minutes or less? Please excuse me while I sit here, mesmerized by the idea.