Last night I attended a reading with author Ayelet Waldman. It was a fun, entertaining event. It was also something I sort of helped plan.
Months ago, Ayelet asked her Facebook friends to come up with some cities she should visit on her paperback tour for Red Hook Road (Random House, 2011). I suggested Chicago so she put me in touch with her publicist. After some fun e-mails with her publicist, the night of the event arrived and I walked in the bookstore a little early to make sure the icebreaker games and giveaways were all set.
Okay, so they weren’t ready and the staff suffered from mass confusion, but a quick e-mail to the publicist straightened everything out.
I introduced Ayelet by asking the audience questions about her background (she chimed in some risqué ones). Everyone who answered correctly, or almost so, received a gift card for Caribou Coffee courtesy of Random House and the publicist.
Some of my questions included:
1. In which state does Ayelet live?
2. In which city?
3. Which US President did she go to school with?
4. Who is she married to?
5. How many kids do they have?
For the grande finale, Ayelet pulled a name from a tote bag Random House had also sent, along with three new books they’ve published this spring. The lucky winner (the woman in the front row, second from the right) walked home with the bag and books.
Ayelet was funny, swore a bunch, spoke about the ins and outs of publishing, and kept everyone in stitches for an hour. It was a great event and I’m proud to have been a part of it.
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