Greetings from… wait, where the hell am I today?

Oh yes. It’s Thursday, so I must be in Kansas City, sitting in my hotel room before going to my event this evening where I will be talking with the wonderful Vivien Jennings from Rainy Day Books. Vivien is one of my very favorite people and has been very supportive of me and my books and I’m very much looking forward to talking to her about SETTING FREE THE KITES.

Tuesday night saw the official launch of the book at Barnes & Noble in Columbia. We had a fabulous crowd of people, and I’m very grateful to everyone who was kind enough to show up to help me wave the book off into the big wide world. My only regret was that bookseller extraordinaire Lisa Loporto, who has done so much for so many writers in our community, was too sick to attend. She was much missed. Cathy Salter did a lovely job introducing me at short notice – thank you, Cathy!

I did my usual schtick about the book, and people were very kind and laughed in all the right places. Then they were even kinder and bought copies of the book and then waited patiently in line to get them signed.  Musical entertainment was provided by my son, Hallam, who performed all his own songs, and very nicely, too. Here are some photos, courtesy of my brilliant friends Stacie Pottinger and Shane Epping.

The frankly amazing crowd. At least, some of ’em.

Look, you would be grinning, too.

Defacing private property.

He’s available for weddings, funerals, and bar mitzvahs.

The following day, which would be, wait, yesterday, I drove five hours to Wichita.  I spoke with the brilliant Newbery Award winning author Clare Vanderpool at the wonderful Watermark Books and Cafe, and then signed a bunch of books (SFTK will be part of the shop’s signed first edition series, which is very cool.)

Blackboard goodness.

This morning I woke up at 5.00 and drove back to Kansas City in time to appear on two (count ’em! Two!) morning TV shows (CBS and NBC) here in KC to promote tonight’s event. All of this, I might add, was fueled by nothing more than one cup of mediocre hotel coffee. Those of you who know me will appreciate what a mammoth achievement this is for me, craven slave to the coffee bean that I am.

Tomorrow I fly to San Francisco for three events in and around the city, then it’s on to Seattle. More soon.