My booksigning/reading went well on Friday night. Thanks be to the Lord for family and friends who are ready to support a writer in need. There is absolutely nothing sadder than an author at a booksigning when nobody shows up to get a book signed. Actually I haven’t done many booksignings like that. I did have one signing back years ago when my first books were out. My aunts and mother came. I can’t remember whether they bought any books. The rest of the time I just chatted with any customer who got within shouting distance. Most of them had no idea why I was sitting there behind a stack of books. The large posters you see at many booksignings are there for a reason. “See me. I wrote this book! Honest!”
I didn’t have to do that kind of shouting Friday night. Everybody was very gracious and kind and they even bought most of my books. So it was fun. I love talking to people and I like having book discussions. A reporter from the Anderson News was there. I’ve been trying to talk up a human interest article about how I used what I remembered about Lawrenceburg in the sixties for Hollyhill in my books and how I zeroed in on the importance of a community newspaper by having Jocie’s dad be the editor, but I don’t think that idea went over with the reporter. (I’ll bet Jocie would have written it up the way I wanted.) So we’ll just have to wait and see what he writes. I’m hoping I didn’t say anything too stupid. It’s amazing the stupid things a person can say when a reporter is listening. It may not sound all that bad at the time you’re saying it, but after it’s written down and and printed in the newspaper for everybody to read, the words spin around and sound way different. Any of you ever had that experience?
Next weekend I’m off to South Carolina to the Book Festival in Columbia. My daughter, Tarasa, is going along and we’re making it a several day trip to celebrate our birthdays. We both hit one of those years that have zeroes last year so we have to do something to celebrate that kind of milestone. The book festival promises to be interesting. I’m on two panels. One about Faith in Fiction and the other about the importance of place across genres. I’m trying to think wise thoughts, but maybe I’ll just listen to everybody else’s wisdom. I’m looking forward to sitting in on some of the other panel sessions and hearing what those authors have to say. If you’re in the area, come check the festival out. My panels are at 10 a.m. Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday. Then I’ll be signing my books for about an hour directly following the panels.
Also watch for my new and improved website in the near future. And let me know what you think.
Next week, I won’t be posting until Tuesday since I’ll be on the way home from S.C. on Monday. Hope all of you have a good week and that you notice all those ordinary everyday blessings that make life so good. We can even do some counting. I can count my booksigning and my friends and family being there. That’s not an everyday kind of blessing, but it’s definitely a blessing. For the everyday type, I’d say the smiles of my Christian brothers and sisters at church this morning. My pastor’s good sermon. Visiting my mom and sister. Walking with my dog, Dub, and my neighbor dogs, Roxie and Baby. They love to walk with me. Talking to my daughter on the phone. Finishing my page edits way before schedule. Watching basketball. And so many more. Tell me some of yours. And that will be a blessing too.