Yes, air brakes, as in the huge delivery truck announcing its presence yesterday, and with its arrival the shipment of Dreamland, the fantastic new short story collection from John Floyd. On a personal note, it’s so stressful to watch a palette of books be removed from a truck. My nightmare, as I’ve said before, is that one of those shrink-wrapped groups of cartons — which literally weigh almost a ton — is going to tip over and crash. Then I would crash. But I digress …
The good news is that Dreamland is here safe and sound, and I can promise you that it will be worth the wait, whether you join us at the official launch at Lemuria Books in Jackson, Mississippi, on Monday, October 10, or purchase your signed copy elsewhere.
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| The opposite of all dressed up with no place to go. This man’s signing calendar gets busier every day, seems like! |
John just attended Bouchercon, the annual world mystery convention. It was held in New Orleans, so it wasn’t a lengthy drive. But it was a memorable one, as he was presented with the pair of Derringer Awards he earned in 2015. Pictured here is John receiving the first of those awards (for Best Long Story, “Dentonville,” from Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine). The second was for Best Novelette (“Driver” from The Strand Magazine). Both stories are in … wait for it … Dreamland.
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| Congratulations, John! Photo taken by Hank Phillippi Ryan |
We had a really nice time at the second annual Mississippi Book Festival, which was held in Jackson on Saturday, August 20. John and Randy Pierce were both on author panels inside the state capitol building, which they thoroughly enjoyed, and we again met a whole lot of nice people and even braved a thunderstorm right after lunch before the weather cleared off again. Estimates by those in charge of the event put the attendance at over 6,000, which means the Mississippi Book Festival almost doubled in size based on the sheer numbers of folks who stopped by. There were many more authors and vendors this year, too! We already look forward to MBF 2017.
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| Putting the finishing touches on preparations just before the gates opened |
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| Randy autographing a book right after his author panel |
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| Author Michael Kardos and John
Let me brag on Valerie Winn. Forsaking Mimosa is five years old now, and Valerie talks up her book and is just as eager to visit book clubs and take part in events like the Mississippi Book Festival as she was in 2012 and Mimosa was brand new. If you’re dreaming of the big time with your own book, pay special attention to what Valerie’s doing — she never stops trying to open new doors and reach new readers, and it’s something that I, as her publisher, deeply appreciate. And with all of that said, her sequel to Mimosa is almost finished!
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