Okay, so I've always wanted to be an author. That means that I had to sit down and write a book. Done. Now what? Well, it would be good if somebody actually read that book. Okay - so I've got to publish it. Done. Now what? Well, people have to hear about it - and don't think that just by having it available on Amazon means that it will be a smash hit. Remember that scene at the end of the first Indiana Jones movie - 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' - where they took the crate containing the Ark of the Covenant and put it into storage? There were a million other crates that looked exactly the same sitting in that warehouse. You just knew when you saw that scene, that no one would ever find the Ark again. That's the challenge of having a book on Amazon. There are so many books available for sale that it's unlikely anyone will find - and buy - Dark Harvest while they wander through the pages and pages and pages of thriller books available on that site. Nope, if I wanted people to read the book, then I had to get out there and tell them about it. Getting the word out to family and friends was pretty much on the easy side so I can't take too much credit for that. The rubber meets the road when you want to get people who have never heard of you to buy the book. That's where the bookstores come in and why I have been touring around the region meeting really great people like I talked about in the last blog entry. But even that is a step removed from the actual reader - and it is the reader that I have to reach. That's where book signings come in! Yes - I was very nervous each time I approached a bookstore about carrying Dark Harvest so you may be surprised to know that I was not worried at all about doing a book signing! I was actually really excited about it. The risk of rejection just didn't seem to be the same. After all, I could hide behind the table, knowing that only those people who were actually interested in knowing more about the book would come to speak with me - very different from being the one who has to go and try to sell the book to a bookstore owner / manager. Very different. The only sad thing would be if no one came by the table to chat and I had to sit there counting my fingers for several hours. But since I have a loving and caring family as well as good friends, I was pretty sure that for the first book signing at least, I wouldn't be left all alone - and I was right! This past Saturday (November 17th) I held my very first book signing and the support from my family and friends was great. The venue was the Blue Heron book store in Uxbridge - we all met Will and his store a few blog entries back. It was really a great day with a light snow falling outside just to set the mood. Will had the coffee pot on and had put out some goodies. He also had a table set up and was ready for me to move in. My family helped me set up the assorted materials I had brought along to make the table look professional. And guess what? I actually sold some books! and I got to speak with some very nice people (including two journalists who had come to take pictures for newspapers etc. - thanks for organizing that Will!). I had a blast! I look forward to getting out there and meeting more people in more bookstores in the near future. This is really what I call living the dream!

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