Post-Travel Musings, A Book Birthday, and What's Next!

Today is pretty special--it's my first day back home after an 11-day book tour in Saskatchewan and Alberta, and it's also the official launch date for my sequel, Children of the Bloodlands! It is now available in bookstores, Amazon and Chapters-Indigo, Barnes & Noble, and basically wherever books are sold (in both hard cover and ebook) in Canada and the U.S.

So far, the response to the book has been positive, but also overwhelming! I'm fairly proud of this book, and this series in general, and as I'm currently writing like mad to get Book 3 in shape to submit to my publisher, it's good feelings all around.

Edmonton Expo!

This was my first time in Edmonton for anything book-related, and I was blown away by the love and support I received while there. Justin Currie, GMB Chomichuk, and I did an event at Audrey's Books prior to the convention, and we had a real lovely time!

The Edmonton Expo was 3 days long, but it seemed to go by really quickly. I attribute this to the incredible people I stayed with, including Clare C. Marshall, BFF, Drake Tsui of Quirkilicious, Jake Anthony Kalbhenn, and Justin Shauf (plus the two jokers above that I drove here with :P) When you have really solid people you're sharing close quarters with, and who you can rely on before and after show days to keep you pumped up, you feel way better devoting so much time to being 'on' for long hours!

I was a Creator Guest at Edmonton Expo, so I was in Guest Alley, behind Artist's Alley. It was extremely busy in this sector, and I sold out of copies of Scion of the Fox by Sunday morning. I had brought 40 copies with me to this show alone, but obviously I need to be more mindful of quantity! I also sold out at Fan Expo Canada, even though I had a smaller display. I still consider myself incredibly new to the convention scene, even though I've been involved with them peripherally for 8 years. This year has been my first foray into having my own space/tables, and as my product list grows rapidly, I evidentially need more space as well as more units! I also need to find a good folding chair that is TALL that I can bring to shows. I had a high chair this time round because I was a Guest, but I won't always have that status.

Thank you to everyone who came to visit me at the Expo, bought stuff, asked penetrating author/writing/publishing questions, or brought stuff FROM HOME for me to sign! It is truly humbling every time that anyone would be interested in ANYTHING I do. That feeling never goes away.

Yesterday, Justin, GMB and I climbed wearily into the car and did the 13 hour quest back home. It went by quickly, again because we like each other's company!

We even stopped at an abandoned church in Saskatchewan, just off the Yellowhead Highway. We're haunted now.

What's Next!

Now that I'm home, it's time to look ahead (as always!) In October I have quite a few things coming up. Next week: the Winnipeg launch for Children of the Bloodlands at McNally Robinson. If you're local, feel free to stop in! It's free to attend, and I'll be appearing alongside Kristen Ciccarelli, my Maritime tour partner :)

You can check out my Events Page for everything upcoming, including the Maritime Tour schedule, my next convention appearance at Hal-Con, and info on my Calgary launch in November! I think after that I'm going to take November/December off from traveling. It can really take a lot out of you, though it's necessary to try and get the word out about your work. Still, I'd like to get back to a regular writing schedule!

Cheers,

S