You can never tell who you’re talking to. If you’re an author, you need to remember that. Just the other day I was on the phone, making reservations for the ferry to Martha’s Vineyard for a summer vacation. I told the woman helping me that I needed to get back to the Cape by 4pm, since I had an appointment in Falmouth, Ma. at 4:30, and would I make it on the ferry she was suggesting?
She said, “Oh, yeah, Falmouth is 10 minutes from the ferry landing. Where’re you going?”
I told her, “The bookstore.”
“Eight Cousins?” She asks.
“Yes,” I said, “I have a new novel out, and I am doing a signing there!”
She asked me what it was about, and of course I told her, since anyone who asks me about my book gets an earful! She then tells me that both her grown children are teachers, one a reading specialist! I asked if I could send her information about my books, and so now I’ve made a connection to a teacher in a state where I had none before. All because I”m going to Martha’s Vineyard for a vacation.
Think I can write the trip off now?!
Kim Bookwriter
July 3, 2008 - 9:15 am ·Gotta love those serendipitous meetings! I had a similarly sweet experience at the Waffle House (!!!) down the street from a hotel where I stayed for an out-of-town author visit. Asked the waitress how far it was to the town where I’d be presenting. She said she’s grown up there; asked my reason for visiting the town. When I told her, she was so intrigued she pulled $20 of her tip money out of her apron and slapped it down on the table. Said she wanted to buy an autographed book for her son. How sweet! She hadn’t even read it yet!
Kim Norman