Successful first author event

I had my first author event this evening at the public library in Harrisburg for The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, and I didn’t pass out from fright or plummeting blood pressure. That’s a successful event in my book! There were smiling faces in the audience, which helped put me at ease. I probably talked too fast. Suddenly, it was over. People seemed to enjoy watching the slide show of my mountain pictures and some took time to look at the postcards I had on display. I’m not sure anyone took any of the word find puzzles I designed to go with the book, but that’s okay. I was only interrupted once by a freight train passing through. A thunderstorm came out of nowhere at the end and it poured rain. On the way home in the dark, we almost hit a cow that was walking in the road. (Reminded us of an evening drive on the Isle of Skye in Scotland!) We got stopped just in time to miss the cow and then crept along for the next half mile as the cow’s owner guided it home. Traffic backed up as the cow meandered from one side of the road to the other, but the cow didn’t get hurt and nobody got hurt. It was a tense situation that could have had a much different ending if we had been traveling any faster.

It was an eventful several hours.

Words of encouragement from another author

It was nice to hear from A.J. Mayhew yesterday. A.J. is the author of The Dry Grass of August, a wonderful historical novel set in the segregated South of the mid-20th century. If you haven’t read it, you need to buy a copy. There are characters and scenes from the book that will continue to haunt you long after you finish reading it.

A.J. wrote to congratulate me upon having a book published. She gave me some words of wisdom and encouragement. One thing that she and I share is that we weren’t young when our first books were published. Learning the ins and outs of the ever-changing publishing business at this stage in our lives is a bit challenging. I have learned a lot from A.J. and I value the moral support she gives me.

A.J. is writing her second novel. I will let you know when it is available.

An e-Book!

I guess I have truly arrived. Today I discovered that my book, The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, is available as an e-book for Kindle. I bought it and was delighted at the ease with which I could navigate through the book. Every website reference is clickable, as is every page referenced in the index. The postcards are sharp and crisp. I like it!

Grateful

I am grateful to the sales and marketing staff of Arcadia Publishing for getting my book, The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, on the shelves of a good number and variety of stores in the mountains last week. As I write thank you letters to the store owners to express my appreciation for their agreeing to sell the book, I am reminded of just how many people it takes to get a book from an author’s hands and into the hands of the reader.

Where you can purchase my book

The sales and marketing people at Arcadia Publishing have been hard at work getting my book, The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, on store shelves. The book is available at the following locations in the North Carolina mountains:

Smoky Mountain Host Visitors Center in Franklin

Books Unlimited in Franklin

Blue Ridge Books in Waynesville

The Gilded Lily by Patra in Blowing Rock

Village Pharmacy in Blowing Rock

University Bookstore at Appalachian State University in Boone

Boone Drug – King Street and New Market in Boone

Lake Junaluska Assembly at Lake Junaluska

Walgreens on Merrimon Avenue in Asheville

Walgreens on S. Tunnel Road in Asheville

Malaprop’s Books and Cafe in Asheville

Asheville Chamber of Commerce

Battery Park Book Exchange and Champagne Bar in Asheville

Christa’s Country Corner in Newland

Mystery Hill in Blowing Rock

Town Hardware and General Store in Black Mountain

I am thrilled to know my book is being sold at all those locations in the North Carolina mountains! Soon it will be available at Second Look Books in Harrisburg, NC.

Another author event scheduled

I’m scheduled to talk about The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina to the Presbyterians who are residents of Aldersgate in Charlotte on October 20 and have a book signing. I look forward to seeing some friends and making new ones that day.

Another door prize has arrived for my Book Launch Party! I received two complimentary adult tickets for Chimney Rock State Park, valued at $30. I have six door prizes for the event. Perhaps more will come before September 21.

I placed copies of my book on consignment yesterday at White Owl Antique Mall and Design Center in Concord, North Carolina. When in Concord, drop by and support this local business.

In my “spare time,” I have put Christmas items on my online craft shop on Etsy.com. Look for Hickory Ridge Crafts on that site to see the things that my sister and I have made.

We are also continuing to organize the history room/church library in the new building at Rocky River Presbyterian Church. The official opening is next weekend.

There’s never a dull moment around here!

My book gets placed in bookstores!

My book, The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, started appearing on bookstore shelves in the mountains today! Malaprop’s Bookstore and Cafe in Asheville welcomed the book this morning, as well as several Walgreens in Asheville. Blue Ridge Books in Waynesville put the book on their shelves today, too.

I’m waiting to hear how the book was received at the bookstore at Lake Junaluska this afternoon.

Book release & newspaper interview

What an exciting day! The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina was released today by Arcadia Publishing and I had my first newspaper interview about the book!

Jesse Campbell of The Mountain Times in Boone interviewed me for an article to be published on August 28 in that weekly newspaper that covers Ashe, Avery and Watauga Counties. You can’t beat free publicity like that!

This morning I participated in the filming of a pilot for a TV series about single pastors. The interim pastor of Rocky River Presbyterian Church is the Rev. Eleanor Norman. She was chosen as one of several single pastors in the US for inclusion in the pilot. Some of us gathered this morning in the sanctuary to give Eleanor an audience for a Scripture reading, sermon, and other remarks as directed by the producer. It’s fun to do something out of the ordinary. My only other TV experience was being an extra in a funeral scene the first season of the TV series “Homeland.” The pilot filmed this morning will never air. It will only be used to try to sell the idea to a network.

I’m going to the monthly meeting of Rocky River Readers Book Club tonight at Rocky River Presbyterian Church for a discussion of I Am Malala, by Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani teen who was shot in the face just for wanting an education. Attending the book club meeting will be the perfect way to end what has been quite a day.

Door prizes for my Book Launch

Another door prize arrived in the mail today for my September 21, 2014 book launch for The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. Add two adult passes to Chimney Rock to the list!

Other door prizes I’ve secured so far are as follows: two adult VIP passes for a two-day Hop On/Hop Off Historic Tour by Gray Line Asheville, two $25 gift cards from Bogart’s Restaurant and Tavern in Waynesville, a complimentary pass for a family of four to Linville Caverns, and two tickets for a 2015 performance of Horn in the West and admission to Hickory Ridge Museum in Boone.

The public is invited to my book launch and book signing at 3:00 on Sunday afternoon, September 21, 2014 in the new fellowship hall at Rocky River Presbyterian Church, 7940 Rocky River Road, Concord, NC.

Be sure and come at 3:00 and plan to stay for the hour as door prize drawings will be held every few minutes. My book will be available for $20.

Second author event scheduled

The Concord Friends of the Library will host an author event/book signing for me in the auditorium at Concord Library on Saturday, October 11th at 1:00 p.m. I appreciate the work that all Friends of the Library organizations do, and I am thrilled that the Concord Friends have scheduled this event for me.

I look forward to telling a Concord audience about my book, The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina!