Deborah Heal

Book Signing At Barnes & Noble Saturday

I’ve been obsessing a little about my first actual book store book signing on Saturday. And that was before I found out some pretty shocking statistics. (Read on!)

Originally, like most new authors, I believed that once I’d done all the writing and editing and revising and proofreading and finally gotten my book published, I was all set. Then all I’d have to do was watch the books fly off the book store shelves and start planning how to spend my royalty checks.

 But when the euphoria of getting the contract wore off, I began to be aware of a few sober publishing realities I’d never thought of before. For one, I hadn’t realized how many books are published each year in the U.S. The numbers I saw online were all over the place—from 172,000 to 500,000 per year. But whichever number you choose, it’s obvious they can’t possibly all fit on the available bookstore shelf space. (And according to Google, worldwide there are a total of 130 million books ever published.)

The number of books published in the U.S. has been exploding in the last several years. That’s good because apparently we’ve got some catching up to do. According to Wikipedia, in 2001 and in 2005, Britain overtook the U.S. in the number of books published. And even now, the numbers aren’t too far apart. This shocked me when I considered the huge population disparity between us. It concerns the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) too, because it considers the number of books published per year an important index of a country’s standard of living, education, and general health.  

Put that together with our falling math and science scores and don’t you feel like throwing up? So it’s good that as a nation we’re publishing more books now. Unfortunately, for the individual author vying for shelf space, the increase in books is bad news. According to Steven Peirsanti, president of Berrett-Koehler Publishers, a book has less than a 1% chance of being stocked in an average bookstore, because for every available shelf space, there are 100 to 1,000 titles competing for it.

With all this in mind, I thank you all again for your continued support as I launch my writing career with my first novel Time and Again. As you may have heard (ha ha) it is now available on Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble.com, among other online bookstores. 

But now, I must convince the brick and mortar bookstores to stock my book. A good turn-out is the best way to show stores my book is likely to sell well and that they should put it on their limited shelf space. For those attending my Barnes & Noble book signing, Time and Again will be discounted to $12.00. Hint: it would make a great gift. For other signings please see my Event Schedule.

Connections in Historic Alton

 

I only sold a few books at my signing at The Second Reading Shop in Alton on Saturday, but the trip was well worth the effort and time. For one thing, the building at 16 East Broadway is so charming and historic. It was built in 1831 and became a stop on the Underground Railroad in 1840. What could be a better location for a signing for my novel, Time and Again, which is set in Alton during the Civil War?

That morning, just minutes before I left for Alton, I decided to take a look at the bookshop’s  website so I’d know a little more about my host for the day. That’s when I discovered that the owner, John Dunphy,  was the author of Lewis & Clark’s Illinois Volunteers, an informative little book I have been using as a resource for my sequel, Honor at Stake. So I happily brought it along and had him do a book signing for me.

John, also the author of several other books (all available at his shop), is knowledgeable about a variety of historical topics. So chatting with him was fun, and I got several leads for information I can use in Honor at Stake and the third story in the series that is brewing in my brain. In it, I plan to explore slavery in southern Illinois. (You do realize, don’t you, that the free state of Illinois, that bastion of liberty, had slavery?) When I told John I have been contemplating a white heroine who discovers she has black roots, he quickly suggested Kingsblood Royal by Sinclair Lewis and Sundown Towns by James Loewen.

I met other interesting people too, among them, a couple who came in because they had heard about Time and Again’s portrayal of Miles Station. They live just down the road from where that village used to be. Another woman bought a copy for her elderly father, who waited in the car, also eager to read about local history. And Nancy Alexander, a local historian, came by to buy my book (for which I am honored) because Cathy Bagby from the Alton Museum of History had recommended it. Nancy had lots to add to the conversation John and I were having about early Alton. She was pleased to learn that I had included her personal hero Elijah P. Lovejoy in Time and Again. She suggested I read It’s Good to Be Black by Ruby Berkley Goodwin to get a sense of the black experience in southern Illinois. The owner of a bookshop in Quincy stopped in to browse and he turned out to be history buff as well. He recommended Galvanized Yankees by Dee Brown, Undaunted Courage by Stephen Ambrose, and The Year Of Decision, 1846 by Bernard Augustine De Voto, all of which I plan to scope out.

After I said goodbye to John I took the opportunity to admire several of the other old buildings in downtown Alton, and like my character Abby, I wished I could set up her computer and do a little time- surfing. Oh, the stories some of these buildings could tell! I stopped at the remains of Alton Prison just off Broadway, ignoring the eyesore that squats nearby on the river. (And don’t look for the Alton Belle to appear in Honor at Stake either!) I visited State Street Market, once known as Franklin House, one of the largest and finest hotels in Alton. Lincoln was headquartered there in October of 1858 when he was in town for the last of the seven debates with Stephen Douglas.

I topped off the day by indulging in a piece of ‘Peanut Butter Lustre’ pie at My Just Desserts across the street from John’s bookshop in the Ryder Building on Broadway. Holy cow! I’ve never had a better piece of pie in my life! It was even sweeter knowing Lincoln had often visited the same building when it was used as a courthouse. In 1840, Lincoln delivered a political speech there, and I wondered if it was the same one he gave on July 4^th of the same year in Woodburn, my home "town."

 

This, like everything else that had happened on Saturday, illustrates how connected everyone and everything is. Definitely a good day.

Brighton Library

Librarian Karen Sinks made me feel so welcome when I arrived for my book signing at Brighton Library Sat. Jan. 7th. And what a nice surprise to find Bob and Robin Bishop,  my old
neighbors from Miles Station Road days, waiting to greet me! And then there was a small but steady stream of friends wishing me well and Brighton-area residents intrigued because of the book's local setting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Before my book signing, I had never been to Brigton Public Library --except in my imagination.  In Time and Again, Abby and Merrideth visit the library several times searching for information about the town of Miles Station that Mrs. Arnold insists still exists and the mysterious girl they see on their computer looking out of their house when it was new. Could it really be Charlotte Miles? They find an ancient history book at the library which gives them some of the answers to their questions. And in it is this drawing:

I am happy to say that reality is meeting up with fiction very nicely. Just a few months ago someone did in fact donate to Brighton Public Library a copy of the old history book I refer to Time and Again. So stop by and ask Mrs. Sinks to show it to you.

Hayner Library Book Signing

Thanks for coming to my book signing at Hayner Library. 

I enjoyed seeing old friends and meeting new ones. You’re such an encouragement to me! Thanks for buying my book. I hope you like it. But thanks even more for your encouragement as I launch my “literary child” into the world. Here are some other ways you can help:

Way #1 When you finish reading Time and Again, email me (Debbie@deborahheal.com) to let me know what you think. Your feedback will be invaluable on the Testimonial page on my website, or maybe even on the back cover of my next book! (And even if your comments are not entirely positive, I want to hear them because I know they will help me grow as a writer.)

Way #2 Visit my website at http://www.deborahheal.com and take a look around. And feel free to leave comments after any of the posted topics. This website is all about reading and writing good books, so please encourage any “bookish” people you know to stop by. The more traffic I get here and at book signings—the more splash I make—the more likely it is that bookstores will carry my book when it is officially released Jan. 24.  

Way #3 While you’re at my website, please click on the blue “subscribe” button at the very top. That way, you’ll be informed when I post new material on the blog.

Way #3 If you know of anyone who wanted to come to the book signing but couldn’t make it, could you please mention that I’ll be signing books at other locations? You can find the details by clicking Event Schedule on my website.  You can also get additional signed copies from my Book Store.

Thanks again for your friendship and support.

 

Sincerely,

 

Debbie

A Night in the Museum

My idea of a good time on a Friday night: hanging out at the Alton Museum of History and Art talking with other history buffs about the historical connections in my book Time and Again. 

The Alton Museum of History & Art is housed in Loomis Hall, part of the former Shurtleff College, founded by John M. Peck in 1827, and known as the oldest college “in the west.”  When Brian Combs graciously invited to come speak at their monthly evening at the museum event there was no way I could refuse.

In my presentation I explained that the ideas for the story came from my longstanding love of history in general and Lincoln lore in particular.  As a girl I had been fascinated by the history of the village where I lived. Abraham Lincoln was reputed to have visited Woodburn several times via the stage coach that passed through our town from Springfield on its way to Alton.

Much like Elvis sightings in later years, stories of Lincoln’s numerous visits may have been exaggerated, because to hear the residents tell it, Lincoln slept in every house in Woodburn at one time or another. I knew he slept in my house. Until my history teacher pointed out Lincoln would have had to be reincarnated and made a trip back to Woodburn for old time’s sake to sleep in my house. My house, having built been built in 1974, although very old, wasn’t quite old enough. Dang it.

I found documentation for one known visit. On July 4^th, 1840, Lincoln and other Whig party members held a political rally for his campaign for the House of Representatives in “downtown” Woodburn. The quiet, one-store  village I knew had been a bustling place at the time. The citizens were optimistic. There was talk that Woodburn might even be the new state capital one day.  A few miles away in Bunker Hill, the democratic party held a rally for their candidate on the same day. Later, ironically, Bunker Hill got a nice bronze statue of Lincoln and Woodburn only got Hopper’s Store (Not a bad thing. I loved their bologna and Orange Crush Soda.)

Anyway, Lincoln won the seat in the Legislature, although it is unknown how much the Woodburn rally contributed to his success.

During the early 1840s Lincoln also made several trips to Alton to try cases and to visit his friend Lyman Trumbull.  In 1854, Lincoln ran for the Senate and found himself in a three-way race with Trumbull and Illinois State Auditor James Shields. Lincoln disliked Shields. He had dueled with him in 1842 (on a small Mississippi River island across from Alton) over his criticism of Shield’s auditing practices. Because of that and his pro-slavery stance, Lincoln was determined that Shields wouldn’t get the Senate seat. Lincoln bowed out of the race and gave his votes to Trumbull, allowing his friend to win.

Lincoln ran for the Senate again in 1858, this time against the incumbent Stephen Douglas, another pro-slavery, states’ rights candidate. In Alton, on October 16^th, in the last of seven debates held around the state, Lincoln and Douglas “dueled” before a crowd of over 6,000 people. Lincoln lost that senate race too, but two years later went on to a greater office, the presidency.

When I was researching the lost town of Miles Station, the setting of Time and Again, I found out much to my delight, that Lincoln had visited there too. He came to confer with Jonathan Miles about his suit against the Alton and Chicago Rail Road. Miles had provided timber for the Rail Road but they had neglected to pay him. Lincoln won that and several other cases for settlers in the area.

So there I was at the Alton Museum of History last Friday night, explaining that when I sat down in 1994 to write a short story for my creative writing class at SIUE, all this history and more began to come out of my head to form what would (18 years later) become my first historical novel Time and Again: Charlotte of Miles Station.

There was a nice sense of a circle being completed as finished my talk. After all, I had picked up key pieces of information for my novel from the museum many years ago when they were still down on Broadway. But the really ironic moment came when the museum’s director Cathy Bagby told me that Lincoln had once visited Shurtleff College for a case he was trying and that I was standing right about where he would have once stood. It made me shiver. Oh, joy! Another bit of Lincoln lore. Can you ever have too much?

 

Be sure to visit the museum. They have a lot of cool exhibits, which Cathy and the others would love to tell you about. Get more information here.

A Rainy Night in Staunton

Rain didn't stop friends and  patrons of Staunton Library from coming out to my book signing on Dec. 13. I for one really enjoyed the spontaneous book discussion that erupted. Ginny and Bob Brown, my sister/brother-in-law, helped and Librarian Julie Jarman did a super job of setting up and promoting the event. Thanks everyone.

Book Signing in My Old Hometown

To all who came to my hometown book signing in Bunker Hill,

THANK YOU VERY MUCH!

Amazingly, over 50 people attended and I had a blast seeing each one of you! And a special THANK YOU to those who passed out invitations, helped set up, served refreshments, and cleaned up afterward.

 

Other Ways to Help

Way #1 When you finish reading Time and Again, email me (Debbie@deborahheal.com) to let me know what you think. Your feedback will be invaluable on the Testimonial page here on my website, or maybe even on the back cover of my next book! (And even if your comments are not entirely positive, I want to hear them because I know they will help me grow as a writer.)

Way #2 While you’re here on my website, take a look around. And feel free to leave comments after any of the posted topics. This website is all about reading and writing good books, so please encourage any “bookish” people you know to stop by. The more traffic I get here and at book signings—the more splash I make—the more likely it is that bookstores will carry my book when it is officially released Jan. 24.  

Way #3 If you know of anyone who wanted to come to the Bunker Hill signing party but couldn’t make it, could you please mention that I’ll be signing books at Bunker Hill Library Thursday, Dec. 15 from 4:00-7:00? See other locations by clicking Event Schedule.  You can also get signed copies from my Book Store.

Thanks again for your friendship and support as I launch my first “literary child” into the world.