Great Event Last Friday Night

My first public reading was this past Friday night, at To Be Continued Book Boutique in Metuchen, and it can only be described as a resounding success. Somewhat to my own surprise, I wasn't nervous while I spoke about the when, where, why and how of the writing and publishing process for Heartless Cruelty. I read the prologue, and a bit from Chapter Ten, at the end of Part One, when Bachman finds Jason near death in the school parking lot. I have to say that it all... felt... pretty great.

Best of all was the crowd. Lots of old friends came from far and wide for support, and lots of new friends and readers came, too. One lady named Jeannie thanked me for writing the book. She said that it had gotten her through some hard times she was having: when things got too stressful, she said, she was able to escape into the world of Mr. Bachman. Woo-hoo, let's hear it for escapism!

People came and went all evening. Some couldn't stay for the reading, but bought the book (and got it autographed) anyway. Sales were brisk, and a great time was had by all. I had an "opening act": Jazzmyn "Jazzy" Perez, an eighth grader at the middle school in Metuchen, sang a couple of show tunes before the reading began. For a 14-year-old, she has a mature voice and a real stage presence.

Now that I have gotten the first event under my belt, I am REALLY looking forward to the future ones. I hope you can come to one of them. Friday evening, October 19, from 6:30-8:00, I'll be reading and signing at Well Read Books, 425 Lafayette Avenue in Hawthorne. Note to colleagues and ex-students: that's 3 1/2 miles from dear old John F. Kennedy Educational Complex.

Two weeks after that, on Friday evening, November 2, at Sparta Books in Sparta, I'll be reading especially for all you Sussex County friends. I'm hoping for a surprise musical guest that night.

If you haven't bought Heartless Cruelty and you plan on attending one of my events, please buy it at the store. Independent bookstores need all of our support, just as we independent authors do. If you can't make it to one of the stores that is currently carrying Heartless Cruelty, either at an event or any other time, you can go to my e-store via this link: www.createspace.com/3948859. If you want to download it for Kindle, go to http://www.amazon.com/Heartless-Cruelty-Bachman-Mystery-ebook/dp/B008ZRLUJA/ref=sr_1_1?

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