An excellent bit of news appeared in my inbox in late January.
Long time readers know that I’m a huge fan of the Tucson Festival of Books; almost from the year it started, I’ve blocked my calendar and spent a delightful weekend soaking up the amazing experience of hearing authors speak about their latest works, often in very intimate classroom-type settings that lend themselves to thoughtful conversations with the audience. From the first time I attended as a reader, I fostered the dream of being invited to participate as an author — a dream that came true three years ago when I did my first TFOB as part of the Independent Author Experience. I loved every second of my time at the booth and feel exceptionally lucky to have scored two more invites since then.
So it was a rather giddy moment when I found out that I’d been selected as a presenting author for the 2025 edition of the Festival. I had to read the email several times just to let the notion sink in; when it did, I barely restrained myself from running out into the street, shrieking to anyone that happened to be passing by that it had finally happened. Okay, full disclosure: no one happened to be around when the email came in, so I might have hugged my dog. Repeatedly. The poor guy didn’t what hit him, honestly, but true to form, he wagged his tail and gave me a big ol’ sloppy dog kiss that told me he understood the significance of the moment.
The only downside to this is — and I’m reluctant to even characterize it in those terms — is that we’ll be discussing my Sean Colbeth book, Vengeance, a book that I wrote in 2023 and published in early 2024. I’ve written two more novels in that series since finishing work on Vengeance; while I’ve by necessity gone back and scanned relevant portions of that book while working on future ones in the series, it’s actually been a while since I’ve read the entire story front to back. Having attended these things as a reader, I know the sorts of questions that are likely to come from both the moderator and the audience, so I’ve blocked out some time to hide in a corner and re-read the novel. It’s a wonderful excuse to spend a lazy weekend on the couch enjoying a good story with a never-ending pot of coffee. (And no, I won’t cheat by listening to my podcast.)
If you happen to be in Tucson on Saturday, March 15th, please consider stopping into our session. I’m one of three Indie Mystery Authors that will be on the Meet Your Next Favorite Author panel; it starts at 1:00pm and will be in the Student Union Tucson Room (third floor). I’ll still be selling/signing copies of Vengeance prior to the session at the Indie Author Pavilion — my slot there is from 10 to 1 — though if you miss me there, I am told there will be a second signing opportunity after the panel inside the UA Campus Store tent. It’ll be a busy Saturday, but one that I am truly looking forward to.
Will you be there? Let me know!
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