No, not the space shuttle–Women Up On Blocks! It may be three months post-publication, but this was the official party to celebrate the launch of my short story collection.
Signing books. There are bright red shoes you can’t see, and matching bright red shoe earrings.
The launch started at 6PM. The signature drink–The Red Stiletto–had its own table and looked great: fancy martini glasses (long stemmed, with crooked, blue glass stems), a tub of ice with pitchers of red stilettos and my postcards with the recipe on them. It’s a yummy and beautiful drink, garnished with a fresh red raspberry. Recipe here. (Scroll down the page.)
I ended up reading at about 6:30, because we wanted there to be time for desserts and signing. It turned out to be a good decision. The door prizes were well-received. At least one woman yelled “whoo hoo!” and threw her arms in the air when her number was called. 🙂
Then I read for about 20 minutes. People had to gather in, the chairs were filled, the stairs to the loft were packed with people sitting close together on them, the hearth had people sitting on it, and some were standing. Afterward, there were a number of excellent questions and comments. Desserts were lovely: cake squares, cheesecake, a lovely, fresh trifle, and a silver-tiered stand of various cookies. (I didn’t see any of this for quite a while because I was signing books and talking to people.)
Here’s the location from the outside, the beautiful, historic Roycroft Campus in East Aurora, NY. A big thanks to Christine Peters, Martha Augate, and their amazing staff for hosting such a lovely event.
It was all over so quickly, I felt like Cinderella not wanting that midnight bell to chime. Wait! Everyone’s leaving?? I’m just starting to enjoy myself!
It took a lot of work and planning, but it was worth every minute. Thanks to all those who attended. 🙂
I figured out comments! Have at it.