I'm so happy that my newest children's book is being received so lovingly! It just came out last Monday and I've already had two very successful book signings, and have many more booked and in the works! It's fun to chat with people of all ages, local people who are always excited to wish a fellow Mainer good luck, and folks visiting from out of state enjoying Vacationland and doing some shopping. I thought I'd share some photos and fun from the first two signing for
Journey!
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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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 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!
:)
