A little over two years ago, I published Neighborhood Watch, and since then my life has never been the same.
Here's my table set up at Printers Row Lit Fest in Chicago.
It is the first novel that I can really say that I was proud of when I released it. I worked tirelessly for over two years waking up early writing just before I would head out to work or my kids would wake. Somehow, I completed graduate school in that time as well.
I don't know how I did it. There were times that I wanted to quit, especially when my editor painstakingly made me redraft this and that and even rework an entire ending! But after it was all done, it was worth it.
Positive reviews started to pour in. I remember nearly crying with joy when I read the glowing Kirkus review, which made it in their magazine publication. They called it, "Superb characters headline this chilling, slow-burn crime tale." The book currently has 4.5-star rating on Amazon with 183 reviews.
That summer of 2002 marked the beginning of my book tour. As a self-published author, I had to learn how to market on the fly. I emailed librarians at various local libraries, asking if they wanted copies or if they were interested in having a guest speaker. I reached out to local high schools saying that I grew up in the area and wanted to know if they would like a copy for their shelves. I applied for book awards and contests and joined blog tours and Goodreads Giveaways. I did my best to maintain my Facebook Fan Page and grow membership.
What was most unexpected of that summer, however, was when I got into my first bookstore. Thanks to a connection through my editor and because of the strong reviews, the now closed Forest Park's Centuries and Sleuths stocked a handful of my books. I'll never forget going there for the first time and seeing my book in their window. I had always dreamed of walking by a bookstore and seeing my book on one of the shelves, but in their window? That was pretty cool.
The store's owner, Augie, was a terrific fellow, and he loved supporting the surrounding community and his authors. It was a wonderful feeling when I got to host a signing there and meet new people who had an interest in my writing. I recall selling a copy to a teenager, the very type of person that I would teach. Seeing that girl walk out of the store with my book tucked under her arm meant the world to me.
Somehow getting into that store led to me getting into others. Not long after I was in there, Andersons in Downers Grove accepted me, where I proceeded to have yet another signing later that summer. Following that, I got into The Book Dragon in the UK! I discovered this up-and-coming indie bookstore was searching for self-published authors, and I had to fill out a form for them to be accepted. They read my credentials and reviews and bought copies of my books to fill their store in Stockton-on-Tees, England. Hopefully, one day I'll make it across the pond! Lastly, I got into Barbara's in Orland Square Mall. So, what started with dreaming to get into one, turned out to getting into four. That was something I never even imagined.
But that summer and fall was truly special. I held author talks at Chicago Ridge Library, Orland Park Library, Crete Library, Centuries and Sleuths Bookstore, Andersons Bookshop, and even Orland Park’s Burger 21. In addition, I held a virtual talk with Eastern Illinois University author alums, appeared on a couple of podcasts, and was a guest on a virtual book club. There may be more, but I can’t remember all of them!
For a writer and lover of literature, you really are in seventh heaven at these events. You get to talk about your book, meet with people who love to read, answer questions about the writing process, and network with other authors. At the Burger 21 event, there was a woman sitting there before I even set up. She clutched her copy close to her chest and said that she was my biggest fan. I hadn’t been used to having ‘fans’ or anything like that, so all of that was a new experience for me. I happily signed her copies and answered her questions. Sometimes, when people asked questions, I didn’t know how to answer them. They would bring up things I didn’t think of in my writing.
Meeting fellow authors is one of my favorite and humbling experiences of these ventures. I always try to pick their brains and see what goes into their writing processes, what they’re thinking in their works, etc. I make an effort to buy one of their works because I like to give support to my fellow writers, even if they are books outside my genre. I remember at the Andersons’ signing, I met these very creative children’s book authors. My one son loves one of the children’s stories about perseverance and never giving up. I told them I could never write those types of books because I could never fit entire story ideas in so few pages, and they said they could never write so many pages. We ended up buying each other’s books.
Fast forward two years, and I just wrapped up publishing the sequel to Neighborhood Watch, which is entitled Neighborhood Watched. The story picks up where the antagonist, Sue Ellen, has her eyes set on taking back her old beloved town of Ridgeport, but the people that put her in jail will do anything they can to make sure that doesn’t happen.
This past year hasn’t been as busy as that summer, but I still did some amazing things. I attended Printers’ Row Lit Fest, which had always been on my radar. It was like the theme park of all book fairs with several vendors, authors, and thousands of people passing through. I made some good connections there and sold a decent number of books. Being outside in the city and taking in all the literary landscape is reason enough for me to go again next year. Further, I talked to an award-winning author there for hours. We exchanged books and emails and keep in touch.
Then not long after that, a Downers Grove Library representative emailed me asking me to join their library fair. Since I have a book in their circulation, I suppose they wanted me to be part of it. I sat there for an entire Saturday and talked with a wonderful prize-winning author, who used to be an educator as well. A girl right out of college asked me for advice on making it in the writing world, and I gave her the best words of wisdom I could, “Keep at it. There is no straight path to this.”
Finally, the Printers’ Row Lit Fest opened a door for the event I am working today at Thornton Distillery Co. Someone I met there emailed me asking if I wanted to be part of the Midwest Lit Fest, and I of course said I would.
So, there you have it. This came out to be a much longer post than I thought it would, and I could have written even a much longer one. This whole run has been one wild ride. Who knows where it will end up next?