First up was a perfect Friday evening at Motifs in Portland. It had been a hot hot week, but last Friday (July 20th) was cool, breezy, and sunny. I was just happy to be sitting outside for this one! I set up shop outisde the entrance of Motifs on Commercial Street, which is right on the bustling waterfront strip of the Old Port, near the boat warfs and lots of amazing food and shopping.
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| My book, nestled in so nicely with other sea glass themed items! |
Motifs carries a beautiful mix of clothing, accessories, jewelry, home accents, and books and cards. Visitors will find lots of nautical and Maine-themed items, while locals enjoy the variety of clothing, shoes, and unique pieces on a regular basis. They also have a great little section of quality gifts for
kids and perfect selection of classic and new children's books (above, bottom right)!
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| Even the mannequins were dressed in their best sea glass inspired attire! |
I was visited by several fabulous friends and family, and also met lots of wonderful people while chatting and signing books. I'm always particularly honored to receive great feedback from teachers and librarians--because they really know their stuff! I met quite a few preschool and early education teachers that day, who all said how much they like wordless picture books for that age, since the kids are too young to read, but enjoy creating their own stories. I hope their classes have fun with this one!
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| Me and my amazingly supportive big sis, Dani. She and Jen hardly ever miss a signing! |
Overall, it was a really enjoyable and successful first signing, especially since the book had only hit stores just days before the event. We sold lots of copies of the book and got the word out, enjoyed the Maine summer weather, and hopefully made some new friends and fans, too!
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| Like my sea glass earrings? A sweet gift from Kate at Shoreside Chic. (www.shoresidechic.com) |
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Next, I headed to Belfast!
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| Yup. We're in Maine! (This must be a beautiful drive in the fall, leaf peepers take note!) |
The weekend of July 27, 28 & 29 is the "Belfast Bound Book Festival"! It's an amazing festival in which over 20 area shops and bookstores participate and host guest speakers (authors, illustrators, publishers), demonstrations, book signings, informational sessions and Q&A, readings, and more for both adults and children.
I was honored to be asked to join the festivities this year, and signed books from 2-4 on Friday (27th) at a wonderful store called, Beyond the Sea (creator of the book festival event!). They had lots of copies of both Journey of the Sea Glass and my second book, Down East in the Ocean, on hand, and I got to signing before I even had sat down and unpacked! That's always a good start!
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| Great sea glass collection of books and handmade local art! |
My time slot was shared with some fabulous ladies. It was great meeting the very friendly and wonderful Nancy Griffin, author of Making Whoopies: The Official Whoopie Pie Book. There were also yummy locally made mini whoopie pies to taste!
We were also joined by author Katie Clark, author of the children's book, Grandma Drove the Lobster Boat, and the rest of the "Grandma Drove" series, which are so entertaining and funny, and have lively and beautiful illustrations by Amy Huntington.
We were also visited by well known Maine author of dozens of cherished children's books, Lynn Plourde. She was just a few doors down at The Purple Baboon signing Lost Trail, (illustrated by Ben Bishop) the recent graphic novel adapted from the true story, Lost on a Mountain in Maine.
The weather was just warm, which was a nice surprise, I was preparing myself for a raining day, but we lucked out. The store is so great; I bought myself a new good book to read, a card, and some caramels (I can't resist a good caramel!). I had to stop myself there, I would've bought up the whole store if I could! Perfect mix of a bookstore along with gifts, jewelry, pottery, sea glass arts, and more. I'll definitely be making another trip to Belfast, there were so many wonderful shops and galleries that I just didn't have time to stick around and explore that day. (Fall season-Christmas shopping, anyone?)
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| Tile coasters and pottery at Beyond the Sea. |
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| Loved this linocut in a gallery window! Love it, want it. |
It was a great day, and I was thrilled to be invited to be a guest at such a grand celebration of books!
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| A huge thank you to Nanette (above) for having me, and for dreaming up such a lovely event for book fans! |
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| Photo credit: Thanks to Lynn Plourde's husband, Paul Knowles! |
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For upcoming events and signings of all three books, visit me on Facebook and keep checking this blog! And for Journey of the Sea Glass events, check out the new website for the book!
Thank you to eveyone who came to these events, it always means a lot
to hear your kind words and feedback and meet you all in person!
Happy reading!
:)
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