BEA

Readers have emailed me to ask about BEA in New York last week, wondering why I haven’t posted a blog about that when I’ve added some photos from the trip. The truth is, I haven’t blogged about BEA because it was so dang cool I can’t really believe all that good will was focused on Odd Mom Out and me.

Grand Central Publishing (Warner Books new name) did an incredible job promoting Odd Mom Out. They gave away 1,500 copies during the weekend and I did booth signings and a table signing on Saturday. Sure I got kicked out of the booth when the big names like Nicholas Sparks or James Patterson did their signing, but I can’t complain. I needed to move or I would have been trampled by the hundreds of fans lining up to get a free autographed book. And that’s part of the charm of BEA. Free books. Hundreds of free books. Maybe thousands. And the booksellers and librarians come through and grab them up, packing as much into their bags and suitcases as they can manage.

At the Grand Central Party Thursday night held at Grand Central Station, I met Amy Sedaris and Nicholas Sparks and nearly touched Stephen Colbert. The next day at the BEA booth I signed a copy of Odd Mom Out for Jodi Picoult and beamed at her until she moved away. I had dinner with UK chick lit/women’s fiction author Carole Matthews, Stacey Ballis, and Sarah M. Chatted with folks from the Today show, USA Today paper, St. Petersburg Times, B&N.com, and subright buyers from all over the world.

And as interesting as all these outside folks were, it was the Hachette/Grand Central Publishing team that made me feel the most valuable. The corporate brass were terrific. They made sure I knew I was wanted and that they were so pleased with Flirting with Forty’s success, and looked forward to the release of Odd Mom Out. Everyone from David Young, HSBC’s new CEO, to Emi Battaglia and Les Pockell, the Associate Publishers, to Jennifer Romanello, the Directory of Publicity to Mike Heuer in Sales took time to say we’re glad you’re here, we’re glad you’re with us, and we’re behind you.

And for a writer that spends much of her life at a desk on the West coast, far from the wheels of publishing, this was so very reassuring.

I write for a great house. I work with great people. And most importantly, I think I finally realized that I’m not alone in this publishing venture. Yes, I write the books, and yes, I worry about them, but so do dozens of other people, people who are equally passionate about giving readers great books.

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