I don’t know about you, but I need some good news. So let’s look toward October when I will get to see a lot of my readers on the Magnus Chase 2: Hammer of Thor book tour!
All the dates are below. If I’m coming to a city near you, I hope you’ll get to attend!
Tuesday, October 4th
An Unlikely Story
111 South Street
Plainview, MA 02762
508-699-0244
http://www.anunlikelystory.com
Wednesday, October 5th
Books-A-Million
Brookwood Village
757 Brookwood Village
Birmingham, AL 35209
205-870-0213
*Wristbands to go on sale 10/4. For more information
www.facebook.com/booksamillion/events
Thursday, October 6th
Parnassus Books
3900 Hillsboro Pike, Suite 14
Nashville, TN 37215
615-953-2243
Event location:
6:15 PM CT
Salon@615 Special Edition
War Memorial Auditorium
301 6th Avenue North
Nashville, TN 37243
Friday, October 7th
Prairie Lights Bookstore
15 South Dubuque Street
Iowa City, IA 52240
319-337-2681
Event location:
7:00 PM CT
Englert Theatre
221 E. Washington Street
Iowa City, IA 52240
319-688-2653
Saturday, October 8th
Red Balloon Bookshop
891 Grand Avenue
St. Paul, MN 55105
651-224-8320
http://www.redballoonbookshop.com
Event location:
7:00 PM CT
The O’Shaunessy
St. Catherine’s University
2004 Randolph Avenue
St. Paul, MN 55105
Sunday, October 9th
Elliott Bay Book Company
1521 Tenth Avenue
Seattle, WA 98122
206-624-6600
* Tickets go on sale on August 26th.
Event location:
6:00 PM PT
Town Hall Seattle
1119 8th Avenue
Seattle, WA 98101
206-652-4255
Monday, October 10th
Barnes & Noble #2784
200 E. Northern Lights Blvd.
Anchorage, AK 99503
907-279-7323
Event location:
7:00 PM AKDT (one hour behind PT)
West High School
1700 Hillcrest Drive
Anchorage, AK 99517
*Wristband distribution begins on 10/4 with purchase of book. Details at facebook.com/BNAnchorageAK
Tuesday, October 11th
Vancouver Kidsbooks
2557 West Broadway
Vancouver, BC V6K 2E9
604-738-5335
Venue: TBC
Tickets go on sale: August 22nd
Wednesday, October 12th
The King’s English Bookshop
1511 South 1500 East
Salt Lake City, UT 84105
801-484-9100
books@kingsenglish.com
Event location:
7:00 PM MT
Juan Diego High School
300 11800 S
Draper, UT 84020
Below are my usual tips and disclaimers if you’re planning to come to an event. Very important to read because I don’t want anybody going away disappointed!
What to expect at the events:
We’ve been doing events differently the last few years as the crowds have gotten larger and larger. Again, check with each location for exact details, but in general, here’s what happens:
When I arrive on location, before the event, I will be signing a thousand books. These autographed copies will be available for you to buy. In some cases, they are your ticket into the event. In some cases, you can choose to get a ticket without a book, or both.
The event will be about an hour long. I’ll tell you all about how and why I wrote the books. I’ll show you behind-the-scenes cover art that was never used. I’ll make stupid jokes. I’ll give you a sneak peek at my super-secret upcoming projects. And of course I’ll answer your questions, as many as we have time for. It’s always a blast!
What NOT to expect:
We won’t be doing a signing line. There are a lot of reasons for that, but it all boils down to the size of the crowd. Several years ago, I realized that so many people were coming through the signing line that nobody was really getting a chance to meet me. We had to move so fast, just to make sure everyone got through the line, that it just wasn’t a quality experience for anybody, including me. I would either have to do a brief “Hi, how are ya?” speech and then launch straight into signing, or the store would sit me right down to sign. Kids would wait for two or three hours to get a two-second face-to-face with no chance to really interact. I couldn’t sign all your books. I couldn’t do pictures. I couldn’t personalize the books. I couldn’t answer individual questions. Well . . . it just wasn’t working.
Back in the old days, I was able to do all of that stuff, and of course everyone understandably wants a selfie with me and wants all of their books signed, but even if I only spent thirty seconds with each fan (which is way too short to do all that) if a thousand fans show up, the signing would last eight hours. You see the problem? Also, to be honest, I’m getting older, and sitting in a chair for so many hours each night was murdering my back.
Because of all this, I decided if we didn’t have time to do a quality signing line (and with a thousand folks, there really is no way) we would make it a quality evening, with tons of time for the presentation and lots of Q&A.
Don’t bring all your books from home, because I won’t be able to sign them, but I wouldn’t be able to do that even if we were doing a signing line. There are just too many people with too many copies. The good news: You’ll still get a signed copy of The Hammer of Thor. You’ll get a chance to ask your questions and really feel like you got to know me a little. And you won’t have to wait in line for hours and hours!
Hope that makes sense. I’m really excited for each of the events. Of course, every tour I wish we could go to more places, but with my writing schedule we just can’t. I know you guys want the books to come out as quickly as possible, and that means I have to spend most of my time writing.
Why am I not coming to (insert name of your country here)?
Apologies to all my international fans. I’ve been invited to so many amazing countries, and I’d like to visit them all, but sadly it just isn’t possible. We can’t even cover more than a fraction of the US in the time that we have.There’s only one of me, and I have to spend most of my time writing the next books. As I always tell people, however, the main way that I communicate with you is through my books. I may not be able to meet you in person, but the best way to get to know me is to read the books. Each one is a private conversation between me and the reader, and I love you guys! You’re all awesome. So if I get to see you on the tour, fantastic, but either way, I hope you’ll enjoy The Hammer of Thor!
