The Writer and Her Book Tour

I named it the Great Pacific Northwest Book Tour and I’ve been on the road just over a week, driving from home in San Diego north on the Interstate first to Oakland for an overnight with my daughter, Amy, before I headed north again for Ashland, Oregon where I had my first book event at Bloomsbury’s Books, and where I got to hang out with my friend Midge Raymond. Midge just shared the good news that her novel, My Last Continent, has been picked up by Scribner! Hooray for Midge. (Midge and her husband, John Yunker run Ashland Creek Press, a small press that publishes gorgeous books with an ecological sensibility.)

JR & Midge @ Bloomsbury's

The event at Bloomsbury’s was terrific fun with a lively audience in a great setting. I was thrilled to discover that on a shelf just behind the podium in the upstairs loft at the bookstore, a copy of A Writer’s Book of Days, almost like it had my back and I read from Wild Women, Wild Voices and talked about writing from our Authentic Wildness, and we all did a couple of writing explorations from the book.

I’m writing this blog at the second stop on the GPNWBT, Portland, where I’m staying with my friend Dian Greenwood who’s also got a book in the works. Tuesday evening, May 12, the Wild Women, Wild Voices and I will be at Annie Bloom’s Books and I’m so looking forward to seeing some Portland friends and writers there, including Laura Stanfill who’s such a great supporter. Laura also runs a small press, Forest Avenue Press. More gorgeous books: “page-turning literary fiction.”

After Portland, I’m headed to Seattle where I’ll be at Third Place Books in Lake Forest Park, just north of the city. Another Indie bookstore that supports writers and readers and that keeps the lights burning for people like us. I am so grateful to all the men and women who keep the light burning and who are keeping the faith in neighborhood bookstores. Support them, folks. They’re on our side.

I’ll be back home in San Diego mid-May, then come July, I’ll head out again. This time for the East Coast for another branch of the tour.

So why does a writer go on a book tour? Well, to make noise about her newest book, and to sell a few, she hopes. But for me, it’s more than that. I love to meet and interact with readers and writers from different parts of the country, and to discover their worlds. We writers sit in our rooms, or at a cafe, or maybe the library, alone with our words, our notebooks or laptops, our imaginations and characters and stories. We do our work and we send it out to— we don’t always know where. What we want to know is: Did it connect with anyone? Did anyone hear my voice? care about my story, my characters? what I believe in and want to say? For me, one of the most basic of human needs is this connection with another and for writers going on the road is often the only way to find it.

wild women @ WarwicksThat’s why I packed way too many clothes (and not the right ones for cool and rainy Portland), why I’m driving up and down the west coast of the US: to connect with others, to say Hi, I’m Judy Reeves. I care about writing and stories. Who are you and what do you care about?

10 thoughts on “The Writer and Her Book Tour

  1. Judy,
    It looks like you are enjoying your book tour a lot. I hope you meet a lot of grateful people and sell a lot of books. Like you say, you are “connecting” with like-minded people…..safe travels.

    • Thanks Judy. I’m interested. I care about what you are doing. Celebrate you at every turn. I am doing Book Arts at SDCC with an awesome teacher, Andrea Singer.,yes, Lucky Me! And, doing an Intervenyion. Not working much. Just enough not to get rusty. Be careful on the road. You are so precious to so many of us. Jessica

      • Thank you so much for your comment, Jessica. I care about what you’re doing, too. Love love love Book Arts and have tried to take that class with Andrea at SDCC for a couple of years, but the timing has never been quite right. Yes, lucky you and I know you’ll make something beautiful.Love being on the road! I’ve been a road trip girl for many years. Remember the time you and I drove up the 1 thru Big Sur to a Progoff workshop? Am I remembering right?
        Have fun. Tell Andrea hello for me. She may remember me from some Friday nite meetings a while ago.

    • Thank so much for the comment, Arlene. I am enjoying the book tour. Another great nite at another fine Indie bookstore last nite (Annie Bloom’s Books) with another bunch of wild, Wild Women. Glad you could join us via the blog post.
      best,
      Judy

    • Hi Tyrean,
      Love to see you in Seattle. I’ll be there tomorrow nite and am really looking forward to meeting all the Seattle Wild Women and discovering a new Indie Bookstore.

  2. Beautiful, Judy. I could have used this beautiful tome years ago when I first set eyes on Days which got me started writing fluently. And soulfully thanks to you. Tons of work over the ensuing years and then blessings and rewards as Wild Women, Wild Voices showed me that I was on the right track.

    So um Judy? When are you starting the next one?

      • Thanks for the mention of the library. I hope WW,WV finds its way to libraries all over. Where ever Wild Women can be found (which is, you know, pretty much everywhere!)

    • Hi Linda, Thanks for this. Yes we sure have been writing together for a while, haven’t we. So glad WW,WV is serving your writing. And, um, Linda… I’m back at the novel. Will keep you posted.
      Best,
      Judy

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