There’s something magical about connecting with readers.

I debuted with Killer Content during the pandemic. Bookstores were physically closed. Events were virtual. Thanks to the hardworking booksellers, eager readers, and flexible publishers, somehow, we made it work. Virtual events are great! There’s no travel costs to them and anyone can attend, no matter where they live around the world. No more waiting for your favorite authors to come to your particular town when anyone can log in from anywhere! But as wonderful, inexpensive, and accessible as virtual events are, they are a pale substitute for live, in-person events.

Even for me, a self-proclaimed wallflower, there is nothing quite like a face-to-face interaction with readers, other authors, and booksellers. There’s a giddy back-and-forth as you make a real connection, one-on-one. As someone who finds it easier to crawl under the table and hide than talk to a stranger, I thought I’d flop at events but it’s just the opposite, and I think I know why. Readers aren’t strangers. Even if we’ve never met. Even if they’ve never heard of my books. Even if they don’t read my genre, we instantly have something in common — the love of books.

With that in mind, I’m going to take a minute to reflect on some of the bookstores I’ve been lucky enough to visit and events I’ve been able to attend in the past few years and share with you some of my favorite moments.

 

My first ever in-person book event would have been special for that reason alone, but I really hit the jackpot when I was invited to Barnes & Noble Potomac (November 2022) along with some absolutely incredible Virginia authors, including  Elle Cosimano, Sherry Harris, Katharine Schellman, and Sarah Glenn Marsh. I probably spent more time geeking out over my fellow panelists than promoting my books, but I regret nothing!

 

The scary part of this particular book signing wasn’t the nerve racking fear that no one would show up (which is so common across authors and genres it’s almost expected that it will happen at some point!). If you’ve read Vinyl Resting Place, you know that the book kicks off with Juni Jessup and her sisters re-opening the family records shop as Sip & Spin Records. At the end of the grand opening party, a dead body falls out of the supply closet. So when Barnes & Noble White Marsh generously invited me to help celebrate their grand re-opening in July 2023, I will admit I was a teensy bit on edge. Good thing my life isn’t a cozy mystery because no dead bodies turned up – but lots of friends and readers did! Another thing that made this special is that I got to share a table with some of my favorite cozy mystery authors – Misty Simon/Gabby Allan and Mindy Quigley! I even got to meet a reader’s dog!

 

Fountain Bookstore in Richmond is one of the bookstores that was gracious enough to host one of my earlier virtual events, so stepping foot into this iconic bookstore felt a little like going home. Great booksellers and readers, plus a friend and fellow author from Richmond dropped in. So happy I got to celebrate Christin Brecher’s release day in Richmond in August 2023!

 

Barnes & Noble Chesterfield, Richmond, Aug 2023. This was a spontaneous drop-in. My dear friend and fellow author, Christin Brecher and I were doing a mini-tour together. Between two official signings, we decided to stop at a BN  for funsies, and when we got to the Mysteries section, I completely lost it when I saw Killer Content – on a table. Bookstores have a lot of latitude when it comes to how they arrange and display their books. Friends have sent me pictures of my books on endcaps before but I’ve never walked into a bookstore and seen one of my books on a table before. #AuthorGoals

  

 

Christin Brecher & completed our mini-tour at Scrawl Books in Reston, where we got to see old friends and make new ones in a wonderful indie bookstore!

 

Barnes & Noble, Annapolis, Sept 2023. I visited BN Annapolis last summer, right after A Fatal Groove was released. That visit was special for a couple of reasons. First, I got to meet Sara, my publicist, in person for the first time! I don’t live in NYC anymore, so this was the first time I got to meet anyone in my team in person. I also got to meet her lovely mom, and the three of us got brunch and then dropped into BN without warning. They had lots of copies in stock that I got to sign, and then invited me back for September for me to do a formal signing. The September signing was so much fun! They had a table set up right at the front door, and I got to meet and talk to lots of readers. I signed some books and made some new friends! One of the best moments was when a reader scanned my table and then wandered over to chat because she recognized No Memes of Escape‘s adorable cover. So much of the time, it feels like authors work in a vacuum, and it’s heartening to realize that my books actually exist outside of my own head. An eagle-eyed reader might notice that there are no copies of Killer Content on the table – that’s because we sold out!

 

In addition to formal events that I try to announce in advance, I’ve had some amazing experiences signing books at indies like One More Page Books in Virginia, East City Books in DC, and several Barnes and Noble bookstores. If you’re looking for signed books, be sure to follow me on social media (Facebook, Bluesky, Twitter, or Instagram) and I’ll try to post whenever I visit a new bookstore and leave signed stock behind for some lucky reader to take home!

 

Book Signings