Rachel Simon's Blog

The morning of Valentine’s Day, when I got to the Denver Airport for my flight to City #2 on my tour, Chicago, I realized: Wait! Airports are full of bookstores! Why not see if copies of the brand-new release of the paperback is on display – and then see if I could sign them?

And wonder of wonders, the very first store I passed on my way to Security – Hudson Books – had The Story of Beautiful Girl front and center! I went up to the bookseller staffing the counter, introduced myself, and asked if I could sign all 15 copies on display. He burst into a huge smile and said he’d be thrilled! He then told me that all the other bookstores in the airport were run by the Hudson Group. He explained where each was located, and said the booksellers at each would be just as delighted to see me as he was. Then he took some photos.

And I ran.

I ran because I hadn’t planned to stop off at four bookstores (the one outside Security, and the others inside) before my flight. But how could I pass up this opportunity? Especially once I learned that airport bookstores go through a high volume of books, airport customers usually prefer paperbacks, signed books (not all that common in airport bookstores) are very attractive to readers on the run – and my book was their featured title for the month! That meant it would remain in one of the most prominent spots, and if, at the end of the month, it was selling well, it would stay there. (Yes, publishers arrange for this, but rarely, I learned, for paperbacks.)

So I ran to the stores in Terminal A, B, and C. I met the booksellers, I signed, I ran. They said, “When authors come through on book tour, the people bringing them rarely include airport bookstores when they sign stock.” The booksellers all beamed when I said I was an author. Some of them even took photos of me with their iPhone!

I got to my gate in the nick of time, and collapsed into my seat, sweating from my run.

When I landed in Chicago, I decided to be a little more methodical. I found my way to a bookstore, and learned that all the bookstores in O’Hare are run by Hudson Books, but in a relationship with a local independent, Barbara’s Books. So they’re all named Barbara’s Books, and they all have a friendly, independent bookstore feel. I asked the bookseller at that first store if there was an efficient way for me to sign the books throughout the airport. Smiling away, he gave me the number of the manager, Shannon.

Shannon was delighted – though not able to break free from what she was doing. Could I return to the airport in the evening? (It was about 3:30 PM when I called her.) I said, “How can I get back through Security?” She said, “Just call me, and I’ll come and let you in the employee entrance.”

Readers of The House On Teacher’s Lane know how much I like airports. (The banner photo for this blog was taken in Detroit International.) So what could be better than having the chance to learn more about the hidden corridors and inner workings of one of the largest airports in the country?

I took the shuttle to my hotel, dumped my stuff, and then returned to the airport at the appointed time. Shannon met me outside one of the terminals. Then she said, “Follow me,” and led me down an obscure, narrow corridor to a back door. I still had to pass through Security, but with no bags, and no line, it was over in the blink of an eye.

We emerged into a well-traveled section of the airport where I’ve been hundreds of times. It was like emerging from a secret panel into a familiar drawing room, except it was full of people, none of whom noticed that we’d just appeared.

Shannon then led me to several stores in the airport. Despite having spent a great deal of time in O’Hare over the years, it felt new as I followed my guide. She told me about dining in “that restaurant right over there” with Madeleine Albright, when she’d come to sign books. She told me about doing an unadvertised book signing with Jane Lynch of Glee, who signed a few hundred books. She told me, “You can see everything in an airport.” At that very moment, a Hasidic man ran by with his suitcase, and she said, “You can see a Hasidic man run by with a suitcase.”

We finished up in what she said was the highest volume airport bookstore in the country. I signed the books, then posed for this photo with Josh, one of the booksellers.

Then Shannon and Josh walked me outside the airport, but in a way that eliminated the usual exits. I was inside, and suddenly I was out. They pointed to a down escalator, and told me how to make my way back to the hotel shuttle. I said goodbye reluctantly. Then I followed their instructions, and soon I was climbing aboard the shuttle to the Hyatt.

Tomorrow would be another media escort, and another event. But as I rode back to the hotel, I smiled with a deep satisfaction. My book tour will be keeping me in front of the public. Yet it’s also giving me the chance to step behind the scenes and walk through back passageways and see so much that I’d never even noticed before.

Having never been on a book tour before, I wasn’t sure what to expect. But now that Day 1 is behind me, I have a better sense of how it works.

When my publisher was setting up the tour, they arranged for me to work with media escorts in the cities I’ll be visiting. These escorts are professionals who shuttle authors to their various commitments, including bookstore events, informal signing of bookstore stock, interviews, and, occasionally, the airport.

In Denver, my media escort was Lisa Maxson, who owns her own media escort company. For twenty years, she and her staff have squired visiting authors around the city and nearby suburbs. In their spotless cars, where they keep bottled water and soda in a cooler for the authors, always do a practice run before an author comes to town, never chew gum or smoke, and make sure even the trunk is entirely clean, they have tended to the authors’ needs.

Lisa met me at my hotel at noon, as we’d previously arranged, so I could sign stock. (Actually, she was there 20 minutes early. She’s always early.) She then drove me to three bookstores, all of which happened to be Barnes & Nobles – the same bookseller for whom I ran events years ago. It was fun riding around with Lisa, learning about what she does and trading stories about authors we’d both worked with. (We were particularly impressed by the late Dominick Dunne and Joyce Carol Oates.)

Lisa had called ahead to each bookstore, so my books were all waiting for me at the front counter. I signed away, chatting briefly with the staff. At one bookstore, a customer was so interested in what we were doing that she bought a book right on the spot.

Lisa was especially interested in having me meet a bookseller named Bianca, who’d read an advanced reader’s copy of The Story of Beautiful Girl and loved, loved, loved it. Bianca had then hand-sold the hardback to many customers. I couldn’t wait to meet Bianca. Here’s a photo of us in her store.

Then Lisa brought me to a Whole Foods so I could get my dinner. I returned to my hotel for the rest of the afternoon, answering emails, writing a blog, talking to my sister Beth – and, finally, talking to my husband.

I also struggled with a headache, which was almost certainly caused by the altitude in Denver. Later I learned that some authors have so much trouble with the altitude that they can’t tour in the city. My headache got so bad the night before that I went to bed as soon as I could. It had eased up somewhat by the time I drove around with Lisa.

At 7 PM Lisa picked me up and drove me to Tattered Cover, where my event began at 7:30. There are several locations for Tattered Cover; I was in the Historic LoDo store, which is well over a hundred years old, and has huge wooden beams on the high ceiling, a wooden floor, and an atmosphere you could read in for hours.

Charles, my tall, smiling host for the evening, greeted me at the door and brought me to the event space, a large room on the second floor, with a raised stage that had a podium and plush chairs. Beside it was a huge old wooden desk at which authors do their signing. The audience was modest in size, so I didn’t feel right being on the stage. I stood at the level of the audience’s chairs. Charles introduced me, and I read the opening of the book. Then I talked for awhile and answered questions.

It turned out that several of the people knew me. A contingent of disability activitists, which included two people I’d met on Friday evening, came from Boulder. A couple who’d moved to Denver from Delaware – in fact, from a block away from my house in Delaware – came as well, urged by one of my neighbors.

And a beautiful young woman and her husband, who sat smiling throughout my reading, identified herself during my Q&A. Heather had met me in the 1990s, when I worked for Barnes & Noble in Princeton, NJ, and became friends with her parents, Jimmy and Sharon. Jimmy, who struggled with health problems, attended events almost every night, so I got to know him well. He was a charming, fun man with a mystical side, and when he asked if he could do my astrological chart, I said yes. To my surprise, he told me that I would do something very important and become famous. He also said I would fall in love. Within a few years, I’d written Riding The Bus With My Sister and knew it would be adapted for a movie. I’d also gotten married. But at the same time, Jimmy had gotten sicker. Just before Riding The Bus came out, he died. I went to his funeral, and at the viewing I whispered to him, “You were right, Jimmy.” I hadn’t seen Heather since then. I almost started crying as I told the audience this story.

After I signed books, Charles gave me a special Tattered Cover bookmark, with my name and the date engraved on one side, and with a picture of the store engraved on the other. I will treasure that bookmark forever.

When I returned to the hotel, my head still hurt, but my spirits felt good. I packed for my flight to Chicago the next day.

Today, Feb. 13, 2012, is the publication date of the paperback of The Story of Beautiful Girl – and the day my book tour officially begins! My first event will be tonight at the famous Tattered Cover, at the Historic LoDo location in Denver.

But I’ve already been in Colorado for a few days. As you might have seen in my last blog post, I arrived on Feb. 9 and went to Boulder, where I did a talk the next day for the stellar organization, Via – Mobility for Life. On 2/11, I returned to Denver to prepare for another talk – for Jewish Disabilities Awareness Day.

Although the event itself was on Sun., 2/12, it began for me the night before. After I dropped my bags at my hotel, two key people on the Committee for the event, Sheryl Goodman and Pam Valvano, picked me up for dinner at a Chinese restaurant. Over vegetarian dumplings and crispy tofu, they shared their life stories with me, and at times tears were shed. We also discussed the event the next day. The schedule called for me to do a 20-minute keynote about the Jewish values inherent in having a family member with a disability, then a 45-minute breakout session about The Story of Beautiful Girl. This meant that only a handful of people would be able to see the Powerpoint I’d put together for that talk – a handful wouldn’t include Sheryl or Pam.

So when we finished eating, I suggested we go back to my hotel so I could show them the talk. I just wanted to be sure they had the chance to see it. They sat on my hotel bed, I pulled up the Powerpoint, we turned off the hotel lights, and I gave my talk to an audience of two.

Sheryl and Pam were very taken by the talk. They left lamenting that the set-up for the next day wouldn’t allow me to give the talk as my keynote.

The next morning, Sheryl called. To my surprise and delight, she’d convinced the powers that be to rearrange the day so I could do that talk for my keynote! Certainly, I was prepared to do the other talk, but I knew the one about The Story of Beautiful Girl would be just right for that audience.

I’m happy to report that the crowd of about 200, which included families, people with disabilities, and professionals, was just as caught up in my talk as Sheryl and Pam had been. Fortunately, I was allowed a little extra time, so I didn’t have to compress it too much. People smiled as I spoke, and they wiped their eyes. Ten emails were waiting for me by the time I returned to my hotel.

But before then, I turned my break-out session into a Q&A, as there were many attendees who wanted advice, or had questions about my books. I also hugged many people while I signed their copies of The Story of Beautiful Girl and Riding The Bus With My Sister. A friendly, efficient bookseller from Tattered Cover was on hand, and she was a terrific companion through the afternoon. (So was a staff person, John, who was assigned to be my buddy.) We actually sold all but two copies of the paperback books she brought – and then she bought two copies of the hardback herself.

After the event was over, I visited with a bright young woman, Naomi, who I first met years ago. That time, in 2003 or 2004, her father got in touch during one of my Denver trips for Riding The Bus With My Sister. He told me Naomi, who has a sister like my sister, was an aspiring writer. We spoke for only a few minutes in that long-ago visit. Now Naomi is in college, and her father contacted me again. Would I meet with her a second time? Yes. I had time in my schedule, and a place in my heart. We went over to the nearby Whole Foods, had tea, and talked for a good while.

Now I’m getting ready for my first bookstore appearance on the tour – at Tattered Cover. I’ll post about that tomorrow.

For now I’ll just share some of the Jewish values I didn’t get the opportunity to talk about yesterday. (A list of Jewish values that tie in specifically with The Story of Beautiful Girl can be found in the Discussion Guide for Jewish Disability Awareness Month. You can see a pdf of the guide by clicking here.)

Of course, I think of this as a human, rather than just Jewish, list. Wouldn’t the world be a better place if everyone lived according to these values?

Having a family member with a disability has taught me:
- Love thy neighbor as thyself.
- Do good deeds.
- Maintain justice and do what is right.
- Have benevolence and compassion for the suffering, be kind to the needy, be honest and ethical. Kindness is what life requires of you.
- Make the world a better place to live.
- Save one life and you save the world.

Actually, my book tour starts in Denver tomorrow, 2/13/12. But when my fabulous publisher, Grand Central, told me a few months ago that they would be sending me on a book tour for the paperback release of The Story of Beautiful Girl, I got in touch with the wonderful folks at Special Transit, in Boulder, CO, and asked if they’d be interested in having me fit in a presentation for them.

This wasn’t a random call. I’d done a number of speaking engagements for Special Transit on two separate occasions, and had stayed in touch with the Executive Director, Lenna Kottke, whose house I’d stayed at on both trips.In fact, if you’ve ever watched this clip of me speaking about Riding The Bus With My Sister, you’ve seen me at Special Transit’s 25th Anniversary Gala Dinner. I just love the mission of this non-profit organization, which is to provide customers with transportation and mobility options that enable them to live more self-sufficient and independent lives. I also love the people who work there; they’re warm, committed, and enormously skilled at running events.

They were thrilled when they learned I’d be coming to their general area, and asked me to be part of a unique program. As it turns out, after a major capital campaign, they recently opened an elegant new facility full of sustainable features and located in one of the most picturesque areas in Boulder. This fresh start prompted them to rename themselves, as they’d learned that many in the disability community no longer embrace the word “special.”

For several months, they’d been wondering how to do a big event to launch their new name and new logo. Upon learning that I could fit in a detour to Boulder, they set the date of their event for Feb. 10, and asked if I’d do a talk.

My time with them began on Thurs., Feb. 9, when I landed in Denver. But as I was picking up my suitcase from Baggage Claim, I got a call from my publisher. That very evening, the PBS News Hour would be airing an interview I’d taped with Judy Woodruff two days before. The show would broadcast only an hour later on the East Coast, so lovely Diana, the staff person who drove me to Boulder, had to listen to me calling friends and family in haste. Fortunately, the show wouldn’t air for another few hours in Boulder. So I began my visit to Boulder by running into Special Transit’s amazing facility, hugging my old friends, emailing friends around the country, and then going home with Lenna. There, she, her husband Jon, and I hunkered down in front of their TV set, and we got to watch the interview together.

I was relieved it went so well. I’d had too much tea before I went on the air and was jittery. I was also asked, at the last minute, to sit on a high cushion so I wouldn’t look as small as I really am. Unfortunately, this led my feet to dangle far from the floor – a problem I’ve encountered often enough for my husband Hal to give it a name: the Edith Ann Effect. Somehow I came off well, despite these concerns. You can watch that video by clicking here.

Then Lenna, Jon, and I went out to a delicious vegan dinner, and caught up.

The next day was the event. The invitations had indicated that attendees would learn the new name of Special Transit, but they had no idea what it would be. So the air was filled with anticipation.

Guests began arriving at 4:30 PM. Some were people I’d met at previous events, others were new to me. We were ushered into the clean, warm, beautiful bus garage.

Then Lenna got up on a stand and announced the new name: Via! With that, the garage doors opened. The Special Transit bus that had been inside the garage was driven out, and a three new vehicles, with the Via logo, pulled in. Everyone clapped and beamed.

It was a thrilling unveiling of an exciting new time in this organization’s life. I felt very lucky to be a part of it.

Then we went upstairs to their event space. Food was set out for the guests. I got up on a stand and talked about how people like the characters in The Story of Beautiful Girl need Via’s mission, as it is critical to ensuring that all people can remain living in their communities.

At the end of my talk, I talked with several people in the audience. Some were so moved by memories that were sparked by things I’d said that they welled up with tears. I hugged many people that night.

I didn’t leave when the guests did. Among the friends I made at Special Transit was a wonderful person who now works elsewhere in Boulder. She’d attended my talk, then stayed late with me to catch up. We feel a great connection, and have given each other many helpful life tips over the last several years. I am so happy that I know her.

I was scheduled to leave the next afternoon to go to Denver, but I was able to work in one more visit with an old friend.

I went to a boarding school, Solebury School, at a hard time in my family’s life. (I have written about how I ended up there in Riding The Bus With My Sister.) Joel Rosenblum, who lives in Boulder, was in my class, and I hadn’t seen him since we graduated in 1977. We hadn’t even been in touch, until he contacted me on Facebook a year or so ago.

He picked me up at Jon and Lenna’s, and we went out for coffee. The two hours I had for our visit weren’t nearly enough time, as we had thirty-five years to cover. So we both spoke quickly, telling each other the story of what happened since we received our diplomas. For those of you who don’t know, Solebury School was, and is, an unusual place. It’s a very small, co-ed boarding and day school which is dedicated to the development of each individual student. We had extraordinary teachers who taught such classes as Post-Modern Literature (David Leshan), Anthropology (Michael Brady), and European History (Mariella Sundstrum). Art classes were required as well. And students called teachers by their first names. It was a great pleasure to talk with Joel about the effect this gem of a school had on both of us.

I raced back to Lenna and Jon’s, where Patti, who is on the staff of Special Transit – no, Via! – picked me up and drove me to Denver. Since she has a family member with disabilities, we had a lot to talk about in the car. Two hours wouldn’t have been enough for us, either. But our conversation was only about forty-five minutes – way too brief.

Moments after Patti dropped me off at my hotel in Denver, I met up with my host for the next event, which I’ll be doing immediately after finishing this post. I’ll be speaking at the Denver JCC for Jewish Family Services. Sheryl and her friend Pam took me to dinner at a Chinese restaurant. We shared our lives and ate great food. Late in the meal, another customer came up to us and asked if I was Rachel Simon! When I recovered from the shock and said yes, she said she’d seen me on the News Hour on Thursday, and had debated approaching me for her entire meal.

Throughout the time in Boulder, I kept trying to connect with my sister Beth. She called a number of times, but over and over I wasn’t free to speak. So this morning – Sunday, 2/12 – I went out for a walk in snowy Denver. I walked beside a beautiful stream, and even though I was cold, I was happy, because I was finally able to call my sister and talk with her for a good long while.

On Sundays the buses don’t run in her city. But sisters don’t stop on Sundays. They don’t even stop for book tours.

Could there be a better way to kick off the release of the paperback of The Story of Beautiful Girl than to get interviewed by Judy Woodruff on the PBS News Hour?

Yesterday I flew to Colorado. I’m currently in Boulder, getting ready for a talk tonight. After another talk on Sunday, I begin my book tour on Monday. (To see where I’ll be going, check out my Appearance page on my website.) I’ll blog whenever I get the time.

But earlier this week, on Tuesday, I went to Washington, DC and taped the interview. It was an honor to meet Judy Woodruff, not only because she’s a legendary journalist who I’ve admired for years, but because she has a personal connection to disability.

The interview aired last night, Feb. 9, 2012. To watch it, click on this link. Enjoy!

Photo collage generated with Smilebox

A few months ago, I blogged about how publishers almost never send authors on book tour anymore. I added that, although I travel a lot, it’s for professional speaking engagements. I’ve never been on a book tour.

But in February, 2012, that will change. I’ll be on my first book tour!

Grand Central Publishing will be releasing the paperback of The Story of Beautiful Girl on February 13, 2012 – the day my book tour will begin. All appearances will be in independent bookstores, taking the form of a reading, brief talk, and Q&A, followed by a book signing. All appearances will also be free and open to the public. (One bookstore, in Mystic, CT, is requiring a ticket, which is the purchase of a book.) The cities are Denver; Chicago; Wichita; Austin; Miami; Atlanta (2 places); Charlotte, NC; Mystic, CT; and Madison, CT. I give the details below.

I’ll still continue doing my usual speaking engagements. Right now my confirmed talks, which run through the spring, are in Wilmington, DE; Indianapolis, IN; Columbia, MO; Philadelphia, PA; Wooster, MA; Westmoreland, PA; Appleton, WI; Columbus, OH; and Lake George, NY, with more to come as soon as arrangements have been finalized. You can learn more about these, including whether they are public or private, by going to the Appearance page on my website (updated regularly). Please click here to see this page. The book tour is also included on my Appearance page.

As you might have guessed from the image above, the paperback of The Story of Beautiful Girl will have a new cover. And yes, it’s totally different from the hardback cover, which is to the right. It’s not uncommon for publishers to change covers between the hardback and paperback, and in this case they felt that the hardback design worked well for that format, and the paperback design would work well for the paperback format. I’m happy to say I love both.

The hardback will continue to be available in stores and online for a long time to come.

If you’d like to pre-order the paperback, you can find your favorite retailer by clicking on this link.

I hope you’ll share my tour itinerary with friends. They can also learn more about The Story of Beautiful Girl at my website by clicking here. At the end of this post you’ll also find a printable flyer with my book tour information, which I hope you’ll give to friends who prefer paper notifications. It’s in both jpg and pdf formats.

It would be great to see you at one of these stops!

Monday, Feb 13 7:30 pm
Tattered Cover
1628 16th St. (at Wynkoop)
Denver, CO

Wednesday, Feb 15th 7 pm
Anderson’s Books
123 W. Jefferson Ave.
Naperville, IL (near Chicago)

Thursday, Feb 16 7 pm
Watermark Books
4701 East Douglas Ave.
Wichita, Kansas

Sunday, Feb 19th 4pm
BookPeople
603 N. Lamar Blvd.
Austin, TX

Monday, Feb 20th 8 pm
Books and Books
265 Aragon Ave.
Coral Gables, FL (near Miami)

Tuesday, Feb 21st 7 pm
Eagle Eye Book Shop
2076 N. Decatur Rd.
Decatur, GA (near Atlanta)

Wednesday, Feb 22nd 7 pm
Peerless Book Store
8465 Holcomb Bridge Rd. in Rivermont Station
Alpharetta, GA (near Atlanta)

Thursday, Feb 23rd 7 pm
Park Road Books
4139 Park Road
Charlotte, NC

Friday, Feb 24th 12:00 Noon -ticketed luncheon
Bank Square Books
53 W. Main St.
Mystic, CT

Friday, Feb. 24th, 7:00 PM
RJ Julia
768 Boston Post Road
Madison, CT

Again, to pre-order the paperback of The Story of Beautiful Girl, please click on this link.

And here’s the flyer for the book tour, in jpg format. For the pdf format, click here. Rachel Simon’s book tour – pdf

It’s the weekend after Thanksgiving. While most people had large family gatherings with turkey, mashed potatoes, and pumpkin pie, I took my sister Beth to see Puss In Boots, followed by a trip to a diner for our holiday dinner. It was a nice, peaceful, private way to say thanks for a thrilling, non-stop, very public year.

In fact, the year has been so non-stop that I haven’t posted a new blog since August. It’s been so long that readers of this blog have gotten in touch, saying, “Where have you been?”

In the interest of answering that question, I’m posting a photo journey through the last four months. It won’t cover everything, but will touch on many of the important episodes and people, and will give a sense of all I have to be grateful for. (And when I mention giving talks, I’m mostly referring to talks related to my novel The Story of Beautiful Girl, though occasionally I also spoke about my memoir, Riding The Bus With My Sister.)

When I began doing appearances in connection with The Story of Beautiful Girl, the American Network of Community Options and Resources, or ANCOR, assembled an extremely helpful and easy-to-read brochure that provides additional information about the past, present, and future of the kind of institutions I wrote about in my book – and what we can do to improve that future. The brochure became so popular, ANCOR recently turned it into an electronic flipbook so people could share it online.

I hope you’ll click here to take a look at the flipbook, and then share it with others.

ANCOR also helped me connect with a number of very gifted artists who have disabilities, and who I asked to create artwork that I could use to illustrate key scenes in The Story of Beautiful Girl for my talks. The response was overwhelming, with drawings coming in from adult artists across the country who live in community settings. I chose several of these pieces for my talk (and, yes, compensated those artists for their work), and am including four of them on this blog post.

ANCOR recently created an online art gallery where they posted all the artwork that was sent in, and included biographies about each artist. You can see the art gallery at this link. I’m sure you’ll love looking at this online art show.