I promised to post a recap of my recent book tour with the fabulous Julia Quinn, Rachel Gibson, and Elizabeth Boyle. I also promised to take pictures and didn’t…again. I’m not sure what it is about pictures, but I always forget to take them! Fortunately, others took  them, so I still have them to post.

The tour started out a little shaky, or maybe I should say a little stormy. Huge, nasty thunderstorms and tornado warnings in the DC area Friday night, and me with a 9:40 pm flight to Tulsa. I knew it was unlikely the flight would take off, but I had to go to the airport anyway, just in case.

Anderson's Bookstore Tea

They kept telling us the flight would be on time, then just delayed. The aircraft was there, they were simply waiting for the crew. But at 11:00 pm they cancelled the flight and told us to head to the United Service Center line to be rebooked. When I hit that line, there were easily seventy people in front of me. They’d been canceling flights all night. At 2:00 am, I finally got through the line with a seat on a 6:00 am flight out of a different DC airport. Thank goodness I hadn’t checked my luggage. I ran home, showered and changed to my Saturday book signing clothes, then left for the airport at 4:00 am.

Tulsa Library panel: JQ, me, Rachel Gibson, Elizabeth Boyle

No make-up. I figured I could do that later (and did, in the Houston airport restroom hours later.) That flight was on time, but by the time I reached Tulsa, via Houston, there was no time to run by the hotel and drop off my suitcase. I took a cab straight to the signing, luggage and all. At 1:00 am that morning, I’d heard people saying all the morning flights were completely booked, so I was afraid I was going to miss my first event. But I made it!

The Tulsa Library put on a fabulous event, inviting local news anchor Karen Larsen to moderate our panel. She was wonderful. More than eighty people attended as we read excerpts from our latest releases, answered questions, then signed books.

Rachel Gibson and me at Anderson's

Afterward, we had a lovely dinner with our hosts, then headed back to the hotel. I was exhausted, running on no sleep, but some days aren’t meant to be easy. When I pulled out my toiletries baggie, my shampoo bottle had come open and spilled completely. None left and it was all over everything else. Uhn. While I was cleaning up that mess, I got a call from the front desk that my business credit card hadn’t gone through. I started laughing. None of it was that big of a deal, but all I wanted was to crawl into bed, which I finally did.

Me, Elizabeth, Sarah, Rachel, Julia

The next morning, the four of us met in the lobby at 6:00 am for an early flight to Chicago where Sarah MacLean joined us. Fortunately, that plane was on time and we had a chance to settle into our hotel and change before our 2:00pm event at Anderson’s Bookstore in Naperville. The crowd was even bigger here, over a hundred, and a fun group!

Early the next morning, Sarah MacLean and I were picked up and taken downtown Chicago for an appearance on WCIU-TV’s You and Me This Morning. They mic’d us up and we went on the air shortly after their rescue dog segment. The pup roamed the set freely after his introduction, so you’ll see him in the clip. I’ve included the link for our short segment, below.

Anderson's panel: Rachel, me, JQ, Sarah, Elizabeth

That evening we had one more event at the Frankfort Public Library, another great crowd. All three venues hosted really nice events with refreshments for the guests and speakers. The Frankfort Library thrilled us with cake pops! We got a late dinner at what appeared from the outside to be a Scottish pub and turned out to be a Scottish Hooters sports bar. Ha! I think we were the only women in the place other than the hostesses and waitresses. The next morning, Tuesday, we headed home, though for Elizabeth and I, it was only temporary.

Kerrelyn Sparks, Diane Kelly, Vicki Pettersson, Lorraine Heath

A few days later, Saturday morning, I boarded another flight, this time for Dallas, heading to Fresh Fiction’s Boas & Tiaras Tea in Plano, Texas where I joined Elizabeth Boyle, Kerrelyn Sparks, Vicki Pettersson, Lorraine Heath, Diane Kelly, Candace Havens, and Deborah Coonts. So much fun! Yes, I brought a boa and a tiara, though I only wore the boa for a handful of minutes. Texas in June is a bit warm for feathers. I had a great table and thoroughly enjoyed chatting with them about books while we enjoyed the goodies and tea. Afterward, the other authors and I signed books. That evening, my sister-in-law and brother-in-law (who live nearby) picked me up and took me out to dinner. Then Sunday I flew home again.

My traveling might not be over for the summer, but the book tour is. Now it’s time to write!