Shameless Self Promotion

Hi, how have you been? I realized it’s been awhile since I posted anything, but I have a good excuse. (Don’t I always?) So, far October has been a crazy month and this week will be no exception. Things started off with a bang with the awesome and amazing Collingswood Book Festival, where I had a great time hanging out with my fellow KidLit Authors Club Members. The following day I fought my way through Iron Man traffic to get to the library volunteer luncheon. Though, as someone pointed out, they should have considered renaming this particular race the Tin Man, since the triathlon became a biathlon thanks to the Delaware River being too high. After that I was off to State College, PA for the PA Library Association annual conference. In addition to...

It has been a crazy, busy week here in Alissaland, and it’s not quite over. Tomorrow, I’m excited to head up to Warwick, NY for the Warwick Children’s Book Festival. I’ll be there signing copies of Popular. If you can make it this promises to be a really fun event with a great lineup of children’s and young adult authors. So, stop by and say hi and pick up your own “I am Popular” pin or a bookmark, just don’t expect me to be completely awake and coherent! (Note to self: drink lots of caffeine tomorrow...

Okay, so later on this week I am headed up to Maine because one of my cousins is getting married. Ever the cheapskate, I decided to try and combine the trip with some book promotion type things, though bookstore bankruptcies and technology issues have made that a bit of a challenge. Anyway, I am going to be doing a book signing at Tatnuck Booksellers in Westborough, MA on Thursday evening from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Problem is that because for reasons neither of us understand my emails were never reaching the store’s wonderful events manager. Here’s where you come in. I need all the help I can in spreading the word about this. If you live anywhere near Westborough, Massachusetts or know anyone who does can you help spread the word about this event. The term...

As I write this there is a big ole hurricane headed for the East Coast of the U.S. I feel for all those people in coastal areas who right about now are probably sitting in their cars on traffic-clogged roads as they make their evacuation. Lucky for me, I do not live in a coastal area, and despite the insane behavior I observed by folks in local stores yesterday around these parts Hurricane Irene will probably only deliver some extra rain and a little bit stronger than average wind. Good thing our camping trip wasn’t scheduled for this weekend! Anyway, it is going to be an especially rainy weekend and you just may be looking for a fun indoor activity and something to do to while away the hours of cabin fever, especially if your cable or internet goes out, and...

I used to work for a newspaper publisher that among other things published the newsletters put out by some of the private communities in the area for distribution to their residents. More than one of those communities had names that referenced Native Americans though this being Northeastern Pennsylvania other than lending some of their words to place names, there was no longer any trace of the earliest residents. Of course, generating a small amount of confusion around the office was the fact that two of the communities had chosen to name their newsletter Smoke Signals (note: it’s unlikely that any of the American Indians that had lived in that part of the country ever used smoke signals to communicate, but modern Americans are not troubled by such...

There was a break in the rain this weekend, and I took advantage of it to head downtown and check out the front window of the Clinton Bookshop. Of course, I always enjoy looking at bookstore windows, but this window was particularly appealing to me since my own book was on display. In case you can’t read the writing on that poster in the window, the Clinton Bookshop will be hosting my book launch on Friday, May 13 at 7 p.m. Of course, I am super excited, and I would LOVE to see you there. Oh, and if you do plan on coming please call the store at 908-735-8811 to order a copy. The store is located at 12 East Main Street in beautiful Clinton,...