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But the day arrived. I took a deep breath, and with pen in hand, I entered Barnes & Noble, ready for how the world intended to greet my latest literary effort. The staff at Barnes & Nobel is wonderful. We talked a little; catching up on things from when I was there last. Then I fielded a question or two from customers. “What isle are the cookbooks in?” “Do you have Dan Brown’s new book?” All this greeted with a smile as I stand proudly by a large sign stating, “Meet Mystery Writer R. Michael Phillips.” An announcement, directing customers to my presence, comes over the PA system and interest starts to swell around the table. The conversation turns to mysteries. My fears subside as I sign my first book of the day. People clustered around a table will always attract others, so the inquisitive nature of the public takes over. One last check to make sure I’m not having a wardrobe malfunction and it’s time to sign some books.
For me, I can’t tell you how much I enjoy meeting new people and talking about writing, mysteries, authors we both enjoy, etc. But the most exciting part is how an event like this affords you the opportunity to reconnect with old friends. I’ll expound on this further by saying a great deal of the success of the event and excitement of reconnecting is made possible by the advent of Social Networks. This is especially true for those of us who have not yet made it to the NY Times Best Sellers List.
This event was particularly exciting for me as I was surprised by the attendance of a couple high school friends; two cute girls back then who are now beautiful, successful women whom I haven’t seen in years. And more years than I care to remember or we’ll ever admit to I might add. They looked great, and brought with them the same spirit and enjoyment of life that made them standout as special so many years ago. We caught up on life, and quickly closed the gap between then and now.
So, you may ask, “Was the event a success?” I signed a lot of books, so from a retail point of view I would say it probably was. But to me success goes beyond the monetary element of the event. I’ll borrow a page from that credit card campaign and restate there are some things money still can’t buy. “One mystery novel- $14.99. Reconnecting will old friends- Priceless!”
Good show, Michael!
ReplyDeleteThanks, George. I hope all is well with you.
ReplyDeleteMichael,
ReplyDeleteWhat a great day....sunny and 84 degrees. Spent the afternoon with my Golden's outside. They laid under the shade of the tree and I began reading your new book. I can feel it again....nothing is going to get done around here until I finish reading your last page. It is pretty cool to tell people about your book and that I went to school with the author!!! Hope you are planing to add another one to the series!! Rody
Hi Rody. Great to hear from you. That does sound like a perfect day. I can't tell you how delighted I am that you like the books. And yes, I'm busy working on the third in the series. Enjoy, and please let me know what you think of this latest mystery. Talk to you soon.
ReplyDeleteMike
I can relate to the nerves and I enjoyed your blog.
ReplyDeleteLove your new blog site, Mike. Good luck with the 3rd book in your series.
ReplyDeleteThanks Victoria and Cheryl. Connecting like this makes it all worth while. I'm looking forward to your next books.
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