I received SUCH an exciting package last week. I lifted it up off the doormat and my arm ‘zinged’.
Want to see inside?
And those are just SOME of what was in the envelope!
It was all the original illustrations from Chris Riddell’s role in my launch for Little Quakes Every Day last month – every single one. There were lots. And every single one is a gem. Currently trying to decide which ones to frame – I think I might have to rotate them around so I get to display them all at some point.
Some of the drawings were of the guest readers and my wonderful host, and I had a lovely treat seeing the gang share the contents of their own envelopes yesterday on Twitter and Instagram. It felt like Christmas!
The launch went a million times better than I ever imagined it would. Even though it’s not my first book, it was my first proper launch, as I’m such a wuss and generally hate being at the centre of things like this. But with thanks to my excellent guest readers – Jo Brandon and Russell Jones, live illustration from Chris Riddell, and warm and experienced hosting by Sarah Davy and the Northern Writers Studio, it went perfectly and I loved it! I always imagined that the audience of my first book launch would include one man (probably my husband) and possibly a dog. But far from it – all the tickets were sold and the turn out to the actual event included over sixty people. Thank you everyone who came and asked a question!
If you didn’t make it to the event and want to either hear some poems or see Chris in action, you can view the recording here or by clicking the video above. Sit back with a cup of tea and enjoy.
And on that note, I have a small request! If you’ve purchased Little Quakes Every Day and have enjoyed it, please do consider leaving a review on Goodreads or Amazon. It’s still early days, but each and every review makes a huge difference to indie publishers and authors.
Here’s some quick links to help!
And that’s it from me for this week. It’s gone from being a quieter week wherein I was planning on doing lots of knitting, working slowly on a commission of eco-poems, and putting up the Christmas decorations to being a busy fortnight of going through Composite Creatures page proofs for the final time (terrifying yet exciting!) and thinking about an online event Medusa Collective are hosting on Facebook Live next week around the work we did on bringing Folk Tales to life during Lockdown. Find more about that here!
Speak soon,
C.x
P.S. If you’re still considering picking up the book, find out more about it here on the Valley Press website.
Caroline Hardaker Author 