by hatfield13

Twas the Night Before Book Launch…

Tomorrow is release day for THE BRILLIANT FALL OF GIANNA Z.   One of the bloggers who interviewed me this week asked about my plans for the big day…September first.  My mind raced…

I’m supposed to have plans for the release date?  Well…I guess I’ll probably get up and have coffee.  Wait…are we out of creamer? I think we’re out of creamer. Need creamer. Let’s see…what else…? I did get my new sneakers, finally, so I’ll probably go running.  And hey…September first is a Tuesday, right? I’ll need to get J to cross country practice, and I have to get groceries because we were away over the weekend and there’s not much in the fridge…even if we do have creamer, which I doubt.

Finally, I had the sense to talk about my upcoming launch party at Flying Pig Books, how we’ll have the Great Tree Identification Challenge for kids and Nonna’s famous funeral cookies.  But that’s not until Saturday, September 5th – five days after the fact.

Here’s a secret about launch day.  That magical day your book is released into the world.  That day you’ve been waiting for forever and ever, or at least it feels that way.

Not a whole lot happens.

The witty   illustrated this in what I thought was a particularly witty account of the release day for his YA  novel BUG BOY.

It reminds me a little of my tenth birthday. I remember getting out of bed, knowing that everything was different, and yet I felt just the same.  How could that be possible?  I was ten!  TEN!  I was a decade, all by myself!  Shouldn’t there have been fireworks or marching bands or something? 

Despite the lack of a parade, it was a great birthday, and I went to bed that night with the knowledge that I’d crossed a milestone. Double digits.  I’d never be just nine again, and just the quiet knowing was enough.

I expect that’s sort of what tomorrow will be like.  The party will come later — and we’ll do some fun stuff here online, too, including a big contest and giveaway for book clubs — but tomorrow will be that quieter milestone.  What will I be doing on release day?  Maybe that morning run. Definitely the groceries.  And then a little hiking – because the leaves are just starting to turn, and a mountaintop in the Adirondacks seems like as good a place as any to celebrate a book about fall.

51 Replies on “Twas the Night Before Book Launch…”

  2. i stalked amazon rankings and
    ran all over the internet half naked
    screaming LOOK AT ME! i think i said
    so after dinner.

    it was very frenetic and very draining.
    and i never left the house or changed
    from my pajamas. ha!

  4. Congratulations! It must be a special thrill when your book is launched into the world.

    Do you buy yourself a keepsake like a special pair of earrings or necklace and look back on the day? I started that for special landmarks and I’m glad I did.

  6. Happy release day! At least raise a glass of something-or-other in acknowledgment of the day.

    I think the actual day of release is sort of this strange mix of exciting and scary and trying to get it to sink in that the book is really out even though everything is the same.

    I got up in the dark and flew to Vermont on my release day for Bones. Sort of gave it a subdued sense of adventure that seemed quite fitting. 🙂

  9. Happy pub day! Though I do NOT remember anything special about the day my picture book launched…it was 15 years ago – which was practically pre-Internet. It was definitely pre-blog, pre-Twitter and other social media. So you can be sure that your online buddies will be cheering for you and GIANNA, wherever we may be. And we’ll also buy the book.

  12. Congratulations!

    Wow, the big day is here for you and Gianna Z! Enjoy the hike, indeed seeing fall leaves is JUST the thing to do today. I’ll be thinking about you and Gianna Z—all best wishes! And do buy something special to remember the day or perhaps pick up a special leaf, press it and frame it to remember this super special day.

  13. Have a WONDERFUL day, Kate. And I think you will find that you will hold that quiet, special feeling of (I’m 10!) inside again.It’s the perfect way to describe it. It’s a personal kind of magic and feeling of accomplishment, I think. Only you know how hard you truly worked to reach this moment. Enjoy every second!

    xoxo

  14. Thank you so much, Melodye! When I first joined, LJ a few years ago, you were one of the very first people who friended me, so seeing your name here made me smile. (And I do love the Tinkerbell twirling!)

  28. Kate, I feel like I already know so much about your book–can’t wait to read it. Which means you’ve been doing a fantastic job launching it already. Treat yourself somehow today, maybe even just sit for 10 minutes of quiet and realize what you’ve accomplished. Congrats!

  34. I’m so thrilled that your book is finally here (officially) — I just enjoy it so much, and I can’t wait until tons of kids get to enjoy it too!!

  35. Happy Birthday, Gianna !

    I’m so excited for you today that the blog comments make me want to cry.(with joy) and I’m so happy to know you enjoyed your tenth birthday. What kind of cake did we have ? Love, Mom

  49. Many happy returns of the day, Kate! (Why shouldn’t book launches be like birthdays?)

    Funny, I had the same kind of 10th birthday. I wonder how common that is?

  50. I think maybe it’s that TEN just feels so huge and looms so large during your single digit years. How can that one day possibly live up to it?

    (In fairness, both my tenth birthday and my book launch day ended up being pretty special. I just celebrated over cupcakes with two writer friends!)

    Thanks for the good wishes!