The Book Signing

Last Saturday was a gorgeous day for riding my Goldwing over to Books by the Bay for my book signing of Chicken Soup for the Soul: Inspiration for the Young at Heart. The sun glinted off the newly-polished bike, and the look of it hid the fact that it is a 1992 model with almost 144,000 miles on it. When I bought it in 1993, the odometer read around 2,000.

We had to do a bit of shifting around because of a large party in The Grounds Cafe, which is inside the bookstore. But that worked to our advantage as the folks who were there for the signing were able to find seats and gather around a nucleus of comfy chairs for a more cozy feel.

Judy and Karen helped get everything organized and arranged the book display in a more strategic location. Her tripod set up and camera ready, Judy began taking photos. Friend Diana introduced me, and I was off to a fine start.

There could not have been a more attentive, interested crowd. After I read my story, "Did You Ride that Thing?" the audience asked many great questions about my bike and about motorcycling. They listened and followed along in their own books as I read two humorous stories by other contributors. And, the books sold out. Bookstore owner Harold started a waiting list and ordered more copies.

It was such a gratifying and wonderful experience, reading a slice of my life that has been nationally published and having folks buy the book and want me to sign it for them.

Any of us can do this; we all have stories to tell of meaningful or weird or funny things that have happened in our lives. We just need to write them down and share them with the world. There are typically 101 stories in each volume of Chicken Soup for the Soul. Yours could be one of them, too. Go to http://www.chickensoup.com/ and see what upcoming topics one of your life stories might fit. Then get started. See you in the Table of Contents.

~ xoA