Tomorrow is a big day for Columbia and the University of Missouri. It is the 100th Annual Homecoming. Not being from round these parts, I’m not entirely sure what homecoming means or what its purpose is. There is a parade – I know this, because my children will be in it. And, naturally, there is a big football game involved. …
Audiobook!
Over the past few years I’ve occasionally given readings of A GOOD AMERICAN while it was still a work in progress. Invariably at the Q & A part of the event, someone would put up their hand and ask, often a little tentatively, “Shouldn’t you be reading that with an American accent?” It’s a fair question. The answer is that …
Always, there was music.
… So goes the first line in A GOOD AMERICAN. And it’s true – there’s a lot of music in the book. There’s a reason why the cover has a cornet with notes spilling out of it. The story begins with a love affair ignited by the power of song, and throughout the novel, music plays a central role in …
It’s Social Media Gone Mad
Just wanted to bring you up to date on a couple of social meeja developments round these parts. First of all, with many thanks to everyone who took the time to leave comments, I have no chosen a new design for this website. It was the most popular one, as voted for by you. Click here to see what it …
Booksellers Roll! – MIBA Trip – Part 2
Continuing from my last post… After the excitement of the previous evening, I had the following morning to myself. I stayed in my room, grudgingly allowing the real world to intrude for a bit as I did some legal work and answered non-book-related emails. Later on, I went out and explored downtown a little more, and went on a small …
Booksellers Rock! – MIBA Trip – Part 1
I love booksellers. There is no feeling finer than walking out of a bookshop laden down with all sorts of books that you didn’t know you wanted or needed when you walked in. Whole new worlds lie inside those covers – and now they’re yours, all thanks to the person who helped you choose ’em. So, yay booksellers. You rock. …
New Website Design – Your Thoughts Needed!
As we approach the run-in for publication of A GOOD AMERICAN, I thought it might be a good idea to redesign this site to make it a little more user-friendly (= help people to actually buy the book.) To that end, I am presently running a design contest on the site 99 Designs. The idea is that having written a …
Blurbalicious
I hope you’ll forgive a just little bit of trumpet-blowing. Can I use the cover of the book as an excuse? Since I put up this blog post about my lovely galleys a couple of days ago, several people have written to ask me what is written half way down the page, between my name and the cornet full of …
Galleys Ahoy
On Monday morning, the nice UPS man knocked on my office door with a package from New York. In it were five galleys, or Advanced Reading Copies, or ARCs, of A GOOD AMERICAN. These are, essentially, final softcover versions of the book (it will be published in hardback) complete with (brilliant) cover art, embarrassing author photo, blurbs, and what-have-you. Penguin …
Take Cover!
I am very proud finally to be able to show you the US cover for A GOOD AMERICAN. I had discussed various possible themes with Amy soon after the text was finished, but really had no idea what to expect when this little electronic file plopped into my inbox. I was, I can admit now, a little apprehensive. But I …