Part Two - How to Have a Successful Book Launch

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to help with a book launch. This was not just a plain launch, but a BOOK LAUNCH that pales all the book launches I've ever heard of. Two days long!

The birth of each book deserves to be celebrated, whether it's headed for a small circulation of family and friends or destined to be a New York Times Best Seller, which this one probably is.

The first step in any book launch is to write a wonderful book. Of course, it helps if it is the much-anticipated newest in a wildly successful series - in this case, the sixteenth book of Jan Karon's Mitford series, My Beloved. 

A few years ago, when Jan Karon thought she was finished writing about her main character, Father Tim, and his life in the fictional North Carolina town of Mitford, she decided to create a museum, or as she calls it, "a book without covers." She returned to her roots in the small town of Hudson in the western part of the state where she gained much of the inspiration for characters in the series. She talked with authorities there about possibilities. She found in those authorities a deep desire to preserve the community school building which had been closed for several years.  

Jan Karon is a visionary who sees what can be as much as she sees what is. She saw a way to pay tribute to what made her who she is today, to the value system she drew upon when, several decades ago, she first penned a story about an Episcopalian priest in a small town in the mountains of western North Carolina. She envisioned people searching for "home" and finding it not only in her books, but in a physical spot she would call The Mitford Museum. Nestled in the far back hall of a transformed school building is the location where as a six year old, she began her road to publishing in Mrs. Downs' first-grade classroom. That room is now gallery one, the family room, where visitors are introduced to small-town life in the 1940s. Beside it, through a connecting doorway, is gallery two, the book room, my favorite. It is all about the life of a writer who brought the influences from what is exhibited in gallery one into a faith-based set of books revolving around a minister and his flock. Across the hall in yet another classroom is the Happy Endings Bookstore, based on the very bookstore in the series.

I have been fortunate to be a docent in the museum since the day it opened four years ago. I thought the Grand Opening that October day was a big deal, but this two-day book launch far surpassed that event. Neither came at the snap of a finger. A book launch of this magnitude doesn't just happen. It takes months of planning and coordinating and frustration, and then things falling into place. 

So, back to How to Have a Successful Book Launch: 

After a book has a publication date, detailed planning can begin. Location first, and in this case, where else but at the museum. While the museum is a large part of the Arts Center called the HUB (Hudson Uptown Building in the now repurposed school), there are other businesses and activities there. In addition to the large auditorium, there is a smaller, multipurpose room available. This is where I had my latest book launch in August that I talked about in part one of How to Have a Successful Book Launch. In this case, that same room was used to sell one thing only - My Beloved. 

The hype comes next. Anticipation. Advertisements. Newsletter announcements. Docents wore shirts showcasing the cover. My Ohio friend Inez volunteers at Mitford for special events, and here we were wearing the book cover shirt at the bookstore back in May. Yes, the interest level started building months before.

Be present ahead of time, and even if you can't be physically present, then offer photo opportunities for guests by having a life-sized cardboard cutout. I took this picture in the hall outside the entrance to the bookstore. People walking down the hall often mistake it for the real deal and get excited that they lucked out for her to be here. She is always here, in spirit, for sure.

Enlist the town to help with crowd control and security. The event staff erected a tent on the front lawn for the evening meal on Saturday night. Note the blue sky. One thing a book launch planning team can't control is the weather. One year ago, this was a hurricane disaster area. This year made up for it!

Create bling beyond a T-shirt. Earrings were a good seller. Limited edition plaques. And this wrist band that served as a ticket for the evening meal and served as my keepsake. 

Invite press. The CBS Sunday Morning crew interviewed Jan, several attendees from across the country, and one of our docents. Look for the feature some Sunday morning when you least expect it! Of course, local media covered it before, during, and after. Photographers were everywhere. I took this picture in the balcony of one of them taking a picture of the crowd below.

I was curious, so after he moved on, I investigated. He had spotted a reader with the book open. My version might not be as professional, but it gets the point across. These devout readers couldn't wait to dig into the book. It was a sight seen on campus all day! Which brings up another suggestion for a successful book launch, provide plenty of seating for people to read in silence or to interact with each other about the book.

Have the grand finale in a large auditorium with ample seating and great acoustics. No one wants to miss a word of what the author says to her readers. The auditorium of the school is now a huge multipurpose room, perfect for plays, concerts, and book launch speeches.

I sat in the balcony with the rest of the docents and volunteers and photographers. In her speech, Jan referenced an experience she had in the balcony as a fifth grader back in the day, and pointed up to us. We all laughed with her because we could relate. In fact, that's the beauty of the Mitford series. We are them. We see ourselves and our neighbors on the pages. They have trials and challenges. We cry at their tragedies. We rejoice with happy endings.

We hung on every word she spoke at the actual launch. She opened by thanking all of us, those who came by jet plane from the other side of the US, and those who walked here from home. Her publishing team was there all day, and she introduced them, although we had met them as the days went along. She introduced her family seated in the front section of the audience, had them stand. 

My final takeaway from this book launch - be gracious like her. Show the readers they matter and they are appreciated. Jan autographed books ahead, so she was not burdened by that distraction. I should mention that all the books for sale in Happy Endings Bookstore are personally autographed. I've seen her do it on her marathon signing days. 

At the end of her speech, she directed those who wanted to shake her hand to form a line at the side of the auditorium. She said she didn't care how long it took; she would greet everyone. She wanted to look them in the eyes and say thank you. And she meant it.

That is the bottom line of a book launch. It's the time to let the readers tell you how much you mean to them. 

It's not all about selling the book. 

Catch of the day,

Gretchen

Mountain Strong

I'm an avid reader. I practically inhale books. That being said, I'm not a big magazine reader, never have been. Yet I do subscribe to one magazine that I devour rather than inhale. It's the Our State Magazine, and unfailingly it has the most fantastic articles relating to North Carolina. I enjoy reading about places I've been. I also get ideas for new places to go and things to do. The day it arrives in the mail, I hurry through it, flipping to see what is new and exciting and enticing enough to bring me back for a long read over a cup of hot tea.

When October's issue arrived last week, I began the usual page flipping. I soon found that this issue was different. At the top of the cover is the statement, "Special Issue: Healing After Helene" and below the subtitle, "Celebrating North Carolina," in large bold print, are the words MOUNTAIN STRONG. This photo taken by my friend and co-adventurer, Sara, and reinforces how much being strong meant to recovery.

I didn't make it far into the pages before I began mentally dog-earing pages to return to and read later, but when I got to page 174, I stopped dead in my tracks. Sara's photograph was taken at the same place as the location of an article in the magazine. The title drew me in first, "River Reclaimed," and then I saw the pictures. We had been on the very same river back in July and I even blogged about it a few weeks ago. If you didn't get a chance to read it, click on the link and check it out before you read any further so you'll see why I'm so excited to share with you now.

This mountain-strong story featured one of the characters (chapter 39) in my newest book, Southern Fly Tyers. Her name is Kelly McCoy, aka Rivergirl. In my book, she wrote her own biography, and it is dripping with love of river and fly fishing and all things nature. In the magazine article, author Katie Reynolds interviewed her and masterfully captured Kelly's love of river and fly fishing and all things nature. 

Back in July my friend Sara and I went tubing on the New River through Rivergirl Fishing Company, Kelly's company. Sara took this picture of the Rivergirl main building.

See the canoe on the front porch? There's a story behind that canoe as recorded in the article. Here, look at it more closely:

This is a page from the magazine with the canoe's picture taken by staff photographer, David Uttley. I took the other picture of the front of the business the day we were there.

See the heart on the canoe? Kelly painted it there after Hurricane Helene, after she rescued the canoe from the tree that caught it in the flood. It's a reminder that's visible to her every day. Stay strong. Stay safe. You can overcome.

Just like our state!

Catch of the day,

Gretchen

Picture This

An author drives down a country lane and delights in finding a connection to one of her books. That would be me, one day not long ago, on State Road #268, Happy Valley, North Carolina. I was passing by the campus and just had to stop and take a photograph of this sign.  

Cap Wiese was the headmaster at the Patterson School for a number of years in the mid-twentieth century. As a disciplinarian, he used fly fishing as a method of calming hyperactive boys and in the process changing their lives. In his honor, a room has been designated as the Cap Wiese Flyfishing Center. 

I first heard of him when I was compiling information with Ron Beane for our Fly Fishermen of Caldwell County: Life Stories that came out in 2015. Cap's daughter wrote his chapter and titled it "Dean of Fly Fishermen." Much has happened since that book came out, including the creation of this center at Patterson School. He appears again in my newest book, this one with Alen Baker, Southern Fly Tyers: Life Stories of Those Who Tie Flies. He's in Chapter 4 and also in the appendix, page 211.

I took this photograph at the Red Awning Gallery in Hudson where my books are surrounded by the beautiful art of local artisans. This newest book is about art of its own kind. Designing a fly to fool a fish is a skill that should be celebrated. It will be. 

Alen and I are presenting a program about the history of fly tying to the Caldwell County Historical Society on November 6, open to the public. If you think you'll pass on this because you couldn't care less about tying flies, please reconsider. These flies are painstakingly created using everything under the sun, from a rooster feather to the underbelly fur from a dead possum on the side of the road or to styrofoam packaging beads. Talk about creativity! Alen will display containers showing replicas of ancient flies the Cherokee once used here in our Appalachians. 

I have never fly fished in my life. The very idea does not appeal to me at all because these fishers have told me one too many horror stories of being surrounded by forest critters - think bears - or stepping into knee-deep water filled with snakes. I've been a part of five books about fly fishing now, and I've become a true sideline enthusiast, which is where I'll remain for now. I have met the most wonderful group of men and women who care as deeply for the environment as they do the sport. Our world needs them to tell their stories. Join us to hear their stories on that November Thursday evening at the Caldwell Heritage Museum in Lenoir. See you then!

Catch of the day,

Gretchen

Travelogue

In response to my many Facebook posts of places I've been lately, a friend of mine asked if I were writing a travelogue. Short answer - no. But...sounds like something I should do. Actually it's something I've been doing all year, going somewhere and then writing about it. I'm always eager to share places and available experiences from here in my neck of the woods.

In the midst of one such experience, I hollered "What were we thinking?" at my co-adventurer. This one was beyond my usual sitting in an easy chair at a local winery, even beyond the tame hikes to mountain peaks. Indeed, what was I thinking!

This time, the adventure was tubing. Rivergirl tubing, to be exact, on the New River, Todd, North Carolina. What a kick in the butt that was! Wait, that sounds negative and this was positive, all three downstream miles of it. The energy kick was from the cold water tickling my low-hanging butt! What a way to spend a hot July day!

Because I was paranoid about dropping my precious cell phone into the murky waters and floating away from it, never to see it again, I purchased a waterproof disposable camera. So did my friend Sara. 

It's a little blurry, our photography skills lacked a lot, but I still wanted to share this image of us preparing to launch. My kind of launch is usually a calm event being surrounded by books and refreshments and well-wishers, not an actual get-in-the-water-and-launch-this-baby-off launch. 

What a delightful, relaxing way to cool off, although it took me a while to get the hang of things. The two of us tried linking together with the hooks they provided, but we found it much smoother to go our own ways and enjoy the moment without dragging each other down...literally.

Two and a half hours later, we docked, if you call it a dock. It was more a slippery slope of mud, sliding two steps down for every one up. But once we both found our land legs, we laughed our way to the top and ventured on to the nearest winery.

Exploring in western North Carolina is so much fun. Give it a try someday.

Catch of the day,

Gretchen

How to Have a Successful Book Launch

It's a done deal, this new book of mine. We launched it last Friday and now it's into the world. The online link to purchase will be coming soon, so hang tight. Or drop by the Red Awning Gallery in Hudson. Speaking of which, that's number one on my list of "How to Have a Successful Book Launch," pick a spot. 

This book is about tying the flies that attract fish, an art of its own, and the stories we've included prove it. So if that's true, what better place to hold a launch than an art gallery! Imagine that!

I was fortunate enough to saturate the room with beautiful creations by the artist members of the Western North Carolina Society of Artisans. If you study the picture above, you'll see artwork somehow connected to fishing in the great outdoors. There's a gentle one of a fisherman on a stream by Zan Thompson. There are bold drawings of bugs, lots of bugs, by Carole Childers. Look closely and you'll even see a trout on a guitar, by Rozzy Smith.

Step two: Send out invitations. We invited the men and women who wrote their chapters. We also included invitations to men and women who were in the previous books about fly fishing. And they came! Not all, but many. And these people drove through heavy rains on Friday evening!

Step three: Advertise. I did that, thanks to the HUB staff, who not only placed ads on their various websites, but also set up the room according to our suggestions.

Step four: Speaking of room arrangement: Decorate. In addition to the artwork, we added something unique. We had planned ahead for people to bring displays of their flies, and as it turned out, that offered plenty of discussion opportunities. Thank you to those who brought a case or two, as in this case from co-compiler, Alen Baker. A friend of his from the West Coast designed this display of original flies dating back to Native American traditions through the nineteenth century. Wow!

Step five: Food. Offer food and hey, they will come! 

Step six: Nametags. When I launched the first of my fly fishing books, Fly Fishers of Caldwell County, I had this bright idea to label each fisher who contributed to the book by having them wear their name, chapter, and page number. That was so successful that I decided to do it again. That way, everyone could open their copies to the correct page to be autographed. That worked! The otherwise shy and modest people were almost forced out of their shells to participate. What fun!

 

Step seven: Speech. Yes, it's a must. You must thank them for coming and in this case for sharing their life stories in the book. 

Step eight: Enjoy the evening. Hard work deserves celebration. 

Step nine: Bask in the afterglow! And when that glow subsides, take time to recover

Step ten: Go back to what comes next. For me that's two nearly finished projects. More on that later.

This launch was accomplished with a great deal of planning and help from others. The artists who created their beautiful works. The HUB staff who had the perfect space and set up for us. Those who brought food for the bountiful table. My friend and critique group member, Sandra Warren, who snapped these photographs that evening. Members of Foothills Writers who supported me through the process of publishing and showed up at the launch. Thank you to everyone. 

Books remain for sale at the Red Awning Gallery or you can order online by clicking the title here: Southern Fly Tyers: Life Stories of Those Who Tie Flies. Or, you can purchase directly from Alen Baker or me. We humbly thank you.

Being an author can be a solitary endeavor, for sure. Sitting in front of the computer for hours. Researching. Revising. Sitting. Typing. Persevering.

But in the end, the final product is a group effort. How wonderful is that!

Catch of the day,

Gretchen

Launching a New Book!

Introducing!!! Now available for your enjoyment...

 Southern Fly Tyers: Life Stories of Those Who Tie Flies

There's a story about the cover. It was suggested by one of the tyers who appears in the book, David Anders. It shows the tying desk that is on display at the Fly Fishing Museum of the Southern Appalachians in Bryson City, North Carolina. It's on the cover twice, featured front and center, and then again, faded in the background to wrap around to the back cover. The spot a tyer chooses to work magic is almost sacred, as in don't touch my precious stuff. Maybe the chosen spot is the kitchen table, or a bench in the garage, or a desk in a room all its own. Maybe it's on a tossed-aside rickety table in a man cave or a she shed. Wherever the spot, a special place is one key to successful tying, and that's why we chose to feature the spot from the very beginning. 

And yes, that's a rooster! Read the book, and you'll get why it is on display in a fly fishing museum. 

I helped Alen Baker compile our new book. (We've done three together.) He worked for several years to collect these life stories that we present to you. As I was working on them, I was amazed, awed even. Oh, the stories I've read. Oh, the stories you've read! Tying flies is a passion. Tying flies is an art. Tying flies is scientific. The idea is to base the fly on the bug that is hatching at the moment in order to fool the fish.

 

The second blurb on my back cover says it best: 

Anthony Hipps, paying tribute to Jeff Wilkins: Sometimes I feel like the mad scientist in the lab trying to cook up something (the intent here is to sound like the ‘evil’ laugh in a horror movie). And to think that a fish can be duped into thinking some crazy concoction of plastic, metal, glue, fur, hair, feathers and more is something to eat is just pretty incredible when you think about it.  

Today, August 1, we're launching this book into the world with a well-deserved party. Some of these "mad scientists" will be showing flies they've created. We'll be at the HUB here in downtown Hudson, North Carolina. Starts at 5:30. This celebration is sponsored by the Western North Carolina Society of Artisans. You read that right. Artisans, as in artists, as in creative minds. As in fly tyers! How perfect is that!

The walls and halls of the society's Red Awning Gallery are covered with the beauty of members' creations. You might even spot a few fish in the pictures they've painted...a few bugs, too!  Take a book home. (Books make great presents, you know.) Take a work of art home. Or just come and be a part of a pleasant gathering.

Please join us today. 5:30 to 7:30 at the Hudson Uptown Building, 145 Cedar Valley Road, Hudson, NC 28638

We'll have plenty to celebrate. There will be FOOD involved! Do drop in.

Catch of the Day,

Gretchen

The Joys of Research

No one ever told me research was fun. I had to find that out on my own. During my academic years, any research I did involved hours and hours in the library reference section. (I predate computers, by the way.) 

Once my writing career took off, and once I learned that research involved more than diving into written words, I latched onto a whole new aspect of research - field work...and in my latest venture, literally field work.

I snapped this picture when I hiked last week at the Moses Cone Memorial Park on the Blue Ridge Parkway, with Sara, a dear friend from Florida. Most people stop at this National Heritage Park to tour the "guilded age" mansion built at the turn of the twentieth century by this textile tsar or just to stand on its front veranda and enjoy the spectacular view of the valley below. Or maybe to sit there in a rocking chair and watch horseback riders slowly wend their way along the many trails crisscrossing before them. 

Not me. I was on a mission. A research mission. I was heading to the Cone Graveyard, which, according to the sign, was a mere 0.9 mile journey. I had my walking stick. I was ready.

We went through an underpass with cars clattering on the parkway above us. We passed fields. We followed other hikers into the deep woods until we came out into the largest field of all, one with a sign pointing us to the graveyard, and pointing the others to the lookout tower another mile along the trail. 

I wasn't there to pay homage to those buried souls, although I felt as if I should, and I did. I thought about the significant contributions made by those buried on that hill so long ago. I must admit, however, I thought more about my mission. I was there to take a picture of the gravemarker before me, that of Moses Herman Cone, industrialist and benefactor of numerous worthwhile causes. 

That photograph will appear in the newest book I'm writing. I have seen the proof, and I wasn't quite satisfied with the current version of this picture, so I was there to see it for myself and make the picture more to what I needed. 

What I needed was to showcase the granite monument, and therein lies the story I'm about to tell.

Moses Cone died in 1912, and Widow Bertha wanted to honor him with the largest granite marker she could find. The granite was shipped by train to the station here in Lenoir. This was 1914, and shipping was at the mercy of what was available at the time. Ox cart. The task of how to get this multi-ton hunk of rock up the mountain to its final resting place landed on the shoulders of the grandfather of my book's co-author. He had teams of oxen. He was a teamster, after all. He could do this. He scrounged around for more oxen and ended up with twelve teams. Compute that in your mind. Twenty-four oxen. 

Imagine the issues of a line of oxen going two by two around the many hairpin curves between here and there. In the end, more than half of them were yoked to thick poles behind the wagon, pushing, with the others ahead of the wagon, pulling.

Four days it took them. Sara and I drove the same distance in twenty minutes. 

One detail I've not uncovered as yet, where was the granite quarried? My co-author has spent hours and hours on dead-end phone calls to no avail, but we're still hoping. The thing about research, all it takes is that one final number to call, or that one final person to track down, or that one final website to click on, and then boom! There it is!

Just like I felt when I stood before this monument.

Catch of the day,

Gretchen