“The Hurry’der I go…..
The Behinder I Get….” Isn’t that the old saying? Boy, that’s my theme song this week. Sorry I’ve been so silent this week. Actually, I think I’m just tired tonight and making excuses because this week has been a little bit laid back in between flurries.
Sunday afternoon, September 28, 2008, was my Book Launch Party at my friend, Fawn’s house. She’s been my mentor throughout the whole writing and publishing process (www.fawngermer.com) and she hosted a do, so that I could introduce my beauty (the book, of course, not me) to our friends. It was good fun and lots of books went home with the guests.
So, now the big responsibility of getting my publicity out while the whole thing is HOT. In spite of the fact that the economy may be having a meltdown and all news eyes will be firmly fixed upon that and not upon people’s new books, I, optimistically sent out 36 press releases to the local media offering my interesting self for interviews. Next, the big packets containing complementary books for the shows like Oprah’s, must be prepared.
Just as I was in our little Dunedin, Florida, post office boxcar (Yep, a tiny post office is housed in a large green train boxcar set up permanently beside the Pinellas Country trail, which runs right by my house a mile or so away)…just as I was mailing all these press releases, I met such an interesting team of two guys from England and Australia, who were a BBC wildlife show’s photographers. We had a great talk. They had been filming some nearby alligators!!! I never see those creatures, but they had found some in a lake. I also got filmed holding one of them (the guy..not the alligators) around the waist while we posed for the cameraman, holding up my new book. They said they’d email it to me. If they do, I’ll post it here.
This book makes friends easily. Remember, I told you about attending Obama’s rally last week? I had gone wearing my big old backpack containing a few of the books, just in case someone wanted one after I offered them my business card….yessss, I was crassly going to take advantage of a gathering crowd….and I was told by one of the rally workers that all backpacks were not to be allowed into the stadium…so, I thought I should explain to her why I had the silly thing on in the first place. Wow! She loved the sound of the book as she is a natural traveler too, so I gave her my card and went off to store the pack in the library.
From just that slim introduction, she emailed me the other day to see if I could come to downtown Clearwater and sell her a book while she treated me to a Starbucks. Well, sure! So, we met at noon yesterday, had a great visit, and she set off to read my book. She’s a quick study and by early today, she had emailed me a most astounding review, saying some of the nicest things that I think anyone in the universe has ever had said in a book review. In fact, she even emailed that review to Oprah, recommending that she have me on her show. Oh yeah!!!….I had that in mind too. But, this is better, if a fan has the great idea.
Now, if I hadn’t come up with the really dumb idea to wear this heavily-laden pack to the rally, I would never have had occasion to talk to Angie, would I? See how things work? Plus, I didn’t tell you when I wrote that last post about the Obama rally, that the reason I fell off my bike in the first place was because I had tried to ride it with this enormous backpack sticking way down below my butt. You can see a picture of it doing just that – but you have to buy the book as it’s on the back cover. Try swinging yourself up on a bike seat like that. The whole shebang swung me right down to the ground and my knee is still quite damaged. It didn’t help that I walked under that pack all the way to the stadium and then for miles in the line to get in, after I shed the encumbrance.
But, hey, I wouldn’t have made a new friend and the book wouldn’t have earned a stellar review…which I may just quote here next time. Stay tuned.
Tags: , 1, a boxcar p.o., BBC photogs shoot me, don't ride a bike with a backpack, Obama rally, serendipities, stellar book reviews, Tag Index
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