There is something mythic about the date of publication, and you actually come to believe that on this one particular morning you will wake up to the phone ringing off the hook and your publisher will be so excited that they will have hired the Blue Angels precision flying team to buzz your squalid little hovel, which you will be moving out of as soon as sales of the book really take off.
Anne Lamott,
Bird by Bird
With Ms. Lamott, as well as a number of published acquaintances, to disabuse me of wild notions, I didn't have overamped expectations for today. So far, though, it's been a pleasant time. Had a nice note from editor Will Atkins, some e-mails from friends and relatives, and, best of all, the first sighting ("in the wild" as he put it) of Shock and Awe.
Eagle-eyed Tim Stretton spotted it--two copies--in a Waterstones in Chichester. (He says there may have been a third, as there was a gap between me and John Irving.)
I've never been to Chichester. My travels to the UK have encompassed London and Oxford and London and Salisbury and London and London and London and London--sort of like the Monty Python Spam menu. But I'm now convinced that Chichester is a vastly civilized place, with cultivated tastes. (Plus, glancing through Wikipedia, I see that one of the Chichester city fathers was the first man to be killed by being hit by a locomotive. Now there's glory for you.)
If any of you spot my book on the shelves in the bookstores you haunt, let me know. Of necessity I'm living vicariously here.
Ooops, gotta run! I think the Blue Angels are flying over...
6 comments:
So I can finally buy your stupid book! Well, being enough of the shameless type to take the Path of Least Resistance, I went to amazon.com and I see this little bit:
"Availability: Usually ships within 4 to 6 weeks. Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available."
4 to 6 weeks? Blasphemy. It's the 21st century and I'm an American (worse, a Californian). I want instant gratification, and - and - I want it now!
So where do you recommend we order this thing from? Should I suck it up and order it from Amazon? Or is there a more direct source for us impatient (and spoiled) non-Brits?
(Note: This is not a subtle hint to send me a free copy, because I believe in supporting lost causes - er *COUGH* - important causes, yes. No, seriously, I want to Buy it, so my copy possesses the mystical aura of a Bought thing.)
Jake-ola, me beamish boy! Long time no viddy, droog. (That's a Clockwork Orange reference--for those of you as young as Jake. Which means, well probably, none of you.)
Amazon UK is probably your best bet. (But look at my next post before you order...!)
But don't order yet. As it turns out, Pamela and I will be in Berkeley next week--if you're willing to skip the fetishisn of the Bought Object (chech your e-mail, dude).
I got the Clockwork Orange reference, and the other reference as well, my dear Jabberwock.
Amazon UK? I was talking about Amazon... er, US. How precisely would one order from Amazon UK? Wouldn't that necessitate possession of the alien currency generally referenced as the pound?
I expected you to get the Carroll, but I thought you might be too young for Clockwork.
Amazon UK will happily convert pounds to dollars at the prevailing rate and charge your credit card. I think they'll even take your Amazon US account. They are cheerfully willing to take money in any form.
Chichester is also disputed as the place the Romans first come to England, and it has a rather good open-air museum. Belated happy pub day. I'll check out some of the bookshops on Oxford Street at lunch.
Thanks, Neil! Say hi to my books if you see any!
And Chichester is now officially one of my favorite places.
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