My gig as a guest author

I’m waiting for the Bolt Bus to arrive at 34th and 8th to take me to Philadelphia. I am guest author this evening for a chicklit book club and need to commute from NYC. It’s raining and I’m afraid my hair will frizz even though I got a Kerotine treatment that’s supposed to take care of that. It shouldn’t matter what I look like – it’s not a date or anything – but I assume all eyes will be on me and don’t want anyone to say “great book but the author has really bad hair!” Better, I suppose than “lousy book and the author has really bad hair!”

I’m on the bus now and out of the rain. Getting on the bus was not without issue though. In true Meri fashion, I fought with another girl. I thought she was cutting the line and have no tolerance for people with a sense of entitlement. That being said, she wasn’t cutting the line. My bad!

My friend Sharon, who I met years ago through my own chicklit book club in NYC, started her own club in Philly and asked if I would be a guest author tonight. Hello? Exposure? Probable sales? Not to mention that I am a huge fan of book clubs in general. No brainer! That’s not to say I’m not nervous. I am. I’m afraid the book will not be well received. I’m afraid the attendees will be thinking, “who the hell is Meredith Schorr and why are we reading her book? My sister’s best friend’s cousin knows a girl whose step father’s uncle is related to Nora Robert’s hair dresser. Why can’t she come instead?” I’m afraid they will be nice to my face but later confess to hating the book at the June meeting. I’m being paranoid which is not all uncommon for me. Most people have really liked my book and there is no reason to suspect that the members of the Philly group will be different, but they are valid, human concerns nonetheless, right? I didn’t write a speech or anything and hope it will be more of a Q&A. I can’t imagine anyone asking a question I haven’t heard before like, “Is the book autobiographical? How long did it take to write? Was it difficult to get published? But you never know.

I’m off to take a nap now but I’ll continue this after the book club. Wish me luck!

I am now on the Bolt Bus waiting to go back to NYC. This time there was no confrontation with another passenger! I also arrived early and the driver let me take an earlier bus. I am digging Philadelphia! I know what you’re all wondering though- how was the book club?

It was great!

Sharon and I met up early to catch up over dinner and a beer. I needed the latter to calm my nerves! At 7 we climbed the stairs to the 2nd floor of the Triumph Brewery where the book club met. There were tables strewn across the room but Sharon and I pushed two large tables together to make one that would accommodate about 11 of us. Although 20 or so people rsvped “yes”, Sharon said several bailed at the last minute. As the organizer of my own book club, I am used to last minute cancellations and did not take it personally. Besides, I am more comfortable in smaller groups anyway. In total I think there were 12 of us and with the exception of 2, I think everyone actually read the book. They all claimed to have really enjoyed it and since two of them gave it 5 stars on Goodreads, I am tucking away my paranoia that they are just being nice. They all said it was difficult to put down towards the end and I agree, I really hit my stride in the last 100 pages or so. There was some mixed answers as to whether they predicted a major twist – most didn’t but a few did. And then there were the questions. Do I work from an outline? Once I finished the book, what were my next steps? Was Stephanie loosely based on me which, after hearing my ‘”yes” answer lead to questions about how many of the other characters were inspired by my life. There was some serious blushing by me when we discussed the sex scenes and questions were asked about my soon-to-be published book Planet Of The Flakes. And much to my surprise, there were, indeed, questions I hadn’t heard before. For instance, how did I come up with the names of my characters? The answer was that, with a few exceptions, I didn’t put much thought into it at all and whatever name came to me while introducing a new character was the name I chose. Another question was whether I believed it was possible to make a living writing. The answer was that, for a select and lucky few, it was possible. For now and for the foreseeable future, I was not one of those people.

All of the women were so kind and seemed genuinely interested and they were all pretty funny too-like the women in my own book club in New York. As with most casual book clubs, the discussion segued to other topics like movies, other books, reality television and Zac Efron. I think I was the one to bring up Zac. I’m a wee bit infatuated…

 

I had brought customized JFWB bookmarks and as the evening drew to a close, the women asked me to autograph them which was super cool. They had all downloaded an e-version of the book so there were no physical books to sign. I know there is a way to autograph a Kindle download but I think that’s kind of lame and so I haven’t looked into it.

The girls all thanked me for coming and one asked if she could send me pages of a WIP if she decided to start writing and of course I said, “yes.” I love when people ask for advice or guidance. It’s a way to pay it forward.

Sharon’s friend Jen let us stay at her apartment that night and on the drive back, she teasingly referred to me as “the talent.” I could get used to that!

All in all – successful and fun night! Book clubs are such a great way to make new friends and I know if I ever left NYC to live somewhere else, joining or starting a book club would be one of the first things I did!

 

 

9 Comments

  1. Aly ~ Cooking In Stilettos on May 3, 2012 at 2:24 pm

    I have to say – I heard about the book club last night along with rave reviews of JFWB from a friend and had to get the book today 🙂 Many congrats!

    • Meredith on May 3, 2012 at 2:28 pm

      Aly – thanks so much for your comment, your kind words and for buying the book! And please thank your friend for me too 🙂

  2. Tracie on May 3, 2012 at 4:59 pm

    Aw, I’m so glad that things went well, Meredith! Sounds like a great time was had by all. And how fun that you got to be a “celebrity” for the night. I’m sure that you’ve got a lot of new fans in Philly who will be snapping up your second book when it’s released.

    P.S. Love the bookmarks!

    • Meredith on May 3, 2012 at 5:51 pm

      It was definitely fun Tracie! Glad you liked the bookmark – my dear friend Megan had them made for me when the book first came out.

  3. Natalie Aaron on May 3, 2012 at 5:07 pm

    What a fun night! (I want to hear how the woman you accused of cutting responded, though)

    I was definitely surprised by the twist – which was great. You should start making regular book club appearances.

    No comment on Efron. Love the bookmark as well!

    • Meredith on May 3, 2012 at 5:52 pm

      Natalie – the bus driver told her to stop bullying me even though I was the one who started it. I actually confessed but she still took my side. I guess I looked nicer 🙂

      No love for Zac, huh? More of those biceps for me then!

  4. Michelle on May 3, 2012 at 5:37 pm

    How very cool for you! And I’m proud of you for bringing up the Efron love and leading a discussion on it.

    Now when are you taking the book tour on the road??

    • Meredith on May 3, 2012 at 5:54 pm

      I always find a way to include Zac in a conversation!

      Doubt the book tour for JFWB will hit the real road anytime soon. Maybe book number 47 though!

  5. Tiffany N. York on May 10, 2012 at 1:48 pm

    I don’t care that Zac Efron is young enough to be my son, I think he’s a hottie, too!

    It was fun reading about your experience!

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