In the words of the old-school, Canadian band, Crowbar – Oh what a feeling, what a rush!
Last week I had my official (ad in the local paper and all that jazz) book launch and my first public reading of Disappearing in Plain Sight. The event was held at our local library.
I live in a rural area, so this wasn’t a book launch/reading a la downtown Toronto or New York at a Chapters or Barnes and Noble. Think of this event as small, intimate, friendly and you’ll be most of the way to getting a feel for the evening.
Think exciting and fun.
I got introduced like a real celebrity and presented with a beautiful Vancouver Island Regional Library coffee mug. My first official author swag. The librarian reminded people of my many years of residency on the North Island and my work as an educator and counsellor. She read excerpts from my Amazon reviews. Are you with me on how cool this was?
Then I did four readings from the book with the help of my husband, Bruce and my long-time friend, Cheryl. I thought it might be good to have a few voices to change things up. Next time, I’ll do the readings on my own. Not because my assistants weren’t great – they were. It’s something about the way I hear the character’s voices in my own mind and have somehow decided that’s the only way they should sound.
After the readings, I did my best to answer some outstanding questions. I am amazed at the things people get from reading Disappearing in Plain Sight. I’ve written, on this blog, about interpretation being the work of the reader. It was an eye-opening experience to see that concept play out in real time. I was asked about the symbolism and meaning of names I had chosen for characters and places in the novel. We discussed people’s favourite characters. No one had actually finished the book, though some shared that they had skipped to the last page to see how it ended. That fired up a discussion about the type of person who would consider doing such a thing and the type who would not. Someone reflected that past life and work experiences had clearly influenced my writing, so did I think that writing might affect future work in counselling or education. Whew. If I knew the answer to that question, (re: future work) I’d rest easier at night. Another person was curious about self-publishing versus going the traditional publishing route.
The time flew by. Eventually, the gathering moved to a more relaxed level as Bruce handled the selling of books and I got to drink coffee, mingle, and sign books.
The night was a thrilling experience for me. Special because I got to show off to a hometown crowd. I want to send out a big thank you to all those attended, to Laura for hosting, and to the Vancouver Island Regional Library for offering local authors such a splendid venue to showcase their books. By the way, the library has ordered three copies of my book. How cool is that?
(Sun kissed tulip – taken yesterday out on our kitchen deck as the late afternoon sun washed over the flower bed.)
disappearinginplainsight 
It’s a good book! They should have 3 copies lol Hang in there!
Thanks – looking forward to May 7th – your release day is coming soon 🙂
Tomorrow! lol yes and Tidbit Tuesday!
Wow, that sounds a lovely way to launch a book, Francis – well done! Much more personal and intimate than a formal one in a big bookstore – and a great way to support your local library too. Congratulations on your launch and best of luck from here on in!
Thanks so much, Debbie, for stopping by my blog and taking the time to offer a comment and congrats. Nothing like being among friends, for sure.
Great idea to have a few readers. It sounds like your first launch was a success. Congratulations, Francis!
Oh how I wish I could have been there! Thanks for the photo and for the detailed account of this exciting event in your life. Congratulations!
Believe me, you were there, if not in body then in spirit.
Yes, it is cool! Thank you for sharing 🙂
Congratulations! I’m so happy everything went well. 😀
I’m 50 pages from finishing and I am finding that I don’t want it to end.
You are going to love the sequel – just hit 475 pages of the first draft today.
Congratulations! I always wonder what it feels like to be the author at one of their readings, since I’ve only ever experienced the part of the audience. 😉 Sounds like yours was a very nice success!
Fun and challenging. Some of the questions really got me thinking. So much of the meaning under the surface of the writing is also stuck down sort of deep in the author. I sure had to dig a bit. Anyone got a good shovel I can borrow for the next time out?
Congrats. Readings are great fun and the perfect reward for the long hours of hard work. Wish I could have been there to hear. Dave
Thanks, Dave. I’m sure you would have loved it 🙂
Congrats on your book launch! And that’s fantastic that the library bought three copies — it’s a sign of great things to come! 🙂
Oh, I hope you are right. Thanks.
Congratulations on your book and your book launch. To me that is quite a compliment to your story that people had to skip to the end to see what happened. Very exciting. Wishing you a lot of success with it. 🙂
Thanks, Maggie and thanks for stopping by the blog 🙂
Big congratulations Francis, I know what a happy occasion that must have been. I’m only about 20 pages into it but it’s definitely a book I’m being drawn into with its easy style and growing cast of characters.
Thanks, Roy. We’re in a similar situation – I have your book on my Kindle and it is on the to-read list – I’m getting there and looking forward to it.
I can’t even imagine how it must feel to have a group of people discussing your work right in front of you, to see how they interpret and feel about your characters. Wow! Wish I could have been a part of the conversation – I’d have loved to weigh in with my thoughts. Congratulations on another important and rewarding milestone.
I would have loved to have you there, Gwen. I think you would have enjoyed the friendly atmosphere and could have weighed in on a couple of questions, for sure.
Greetings Fran, Response from the city of light. I am so pleased your book launch went off so well. Good questions too. I will talk to you about any other gatherings you might like to have from my home if you still like that idea, please get on with the sequel by the way. In the meantime we are having a wonderful holiday over in Europe. Maggie.
Sounds great, Maggie. Continue to enjoy the bright city lights 😉
Your getting my nomination for the Versatile Blogger award! http://wp.me/p36JSE-9u
Now versatile, I am. I already received a nomination for this award a few months back, but thanks for thinking of me. I’ve actually decided to have my blog be an awards free zone. I love the idea of shouting out other bloggers and will keep on doing that, but the actual awards I’ll pass on.
No problem but you are versatile you have to admit 🙂