So i did my first bookstore reading/signing the other night and it was… what’s the word i’m looking for… oh yeah. TERRIFYING.

there were a lot of people there. not because i’m a famous author – actually, i’m the opposite – but because my wife cathy knows everyone in this town and she basically ordered them all to show up.

Here’s kind of what it looked like:

so i get up there, and my mouth is super dry. sandpaper dry. i look around for water. i can’t find any. i take a deep breath. and then i begin reading FROM A BOOK I WROTE.

very surreal.

but people smiled, and laughed in the right places, and i found some water. soon enough, my condition was upgraded from terrified to considerably frightened.

there were a ton of kids there. here are some of them, pretending to pay attention but really just thinking about going and getting ice cream sundaes:

it all ended up really great. i signed a ton of books. afterwards my mom took a bunch of us, including my agent michele, my editor nan and my audiobook publisher tim, out for pina coladas. and on tuesday night, i get to be terrified all over again, this time at the big kahuna – books of wonder, in NYC.

join us at 6pm, and you too can get your book signed by a non-famous, hopefully only slightly terrified author.

-tg