Archive for September, 2009

Word on the Street — Vancouver — September 27, 2009

Friday, September 25th, 2009

I've mentioned this here before, but I've got a little more information about Word on the Street, coming up this Sunday in and around Vancouver's Library Square.

I'll have two appearances Sunday afternoon:

3:30 pm — Sony Reader Lounge — I've been invited by the good folks at Sony Canada to play around with the latest Sony eReaders in their lounge, which is in the Bravo Club of The Centre for the Performing Arts on Homer, across from Library Square.  I'm a little worried about this one, to be perfectly honest.  It's not just that I know that it's going to take about 30 seconds of handling one of these babies before the coveting goes off the charts — that's a foregone conclusion, and I'm prepared for it.  No, I'm worried that I'm going to end up drooling into the Reader I'm playing with, which would be both embarrassing AND expensive.  (Seriously — sexy tech makes me drool.  And the idea of having a "book" that I can take on the road with me, packed to brimming with HUNDREDS of books… I'm getting a little tingly just thinking about it.)

4 pm — Authors Tent — Assuming I recover from my techgasm, I'll be reading from The World More Full of Weeping.  Well, mostly talking, actually, with a little bit of reading to round things off.  And not, technically, from TWMFoW itself — I think I'll be reading from Places and Names, the essay that accompanies the novella.  "An essay, Rob?!?!?!?  What the hell are you thinking?"  No, no, trust me: it works.  And it's interesting.  I have it on the authority of the audience who heard it at the launch on Monday night.

It should be noted that, as far as I know, this is my only reading in Vancouver this year, so don't miss it.

I'll also be wandering around the Square for most of the afternoon, nipping into the library occasionally to be interviewed or grab libations.  If you see me, say hello.  I'll be the one with Xander, which should make me easy to pick out of a crowd.

Posted in Book tour, Uncategorized, World More Full of Weeping | 1 Comment »

Launch Day!

Monday, September 21st, 2009

Well, The World More Full of Weeping has been in stores for a couple of days now, and tonight we'll make it official:

If you're in Victoria (or find yourself in possession of large quantities of frequent flyer miles and nothing better to do with them), I hope you'll come out to Bolen Books in Hillside Centre at 7 tonight for the official launch of the book. I plan on talking for a bit, reading for a bit, and signing some books. All going well, there will actually be other people present while I'm doing those things, or they'll all look faintly ridiculous.

And if you're curious about the book, I'll be on CBC Radio's All Points West with Jo-Ann Roberts at about 3:45 today.  That's FM 90.5 in Victoria, and you can track down your local frequency at www.cbc.ca.

Posted in Book tour, CZP, Uncategorized, World More Full of Weeping, novella to be named later | 2 Comments »

DB Day (and a little something closer to home)

Tuesday, September 15th, 2009

So, unless you've been living under a rock (or you have no interest whatsoever in these things), you probably know that today is D.B. Day, the day that bookstores around the world started selling the first clutches of what will likely end up being a kajillion copies of The Lost Symbol, Dan Brown's LONG-awaited follow-up to The DaVinci Code.

If you're not in the trade, you can't imagine the impact of this single book.  It's… well, it's a little terrifying, actually.  The moment the book was announced, six months or so ago now, the industry shifted to make way for it.  The most significant way?  Other publishers got the hell out of the way.  Publication dates were changed to allow the Brown behemoth (which looks vaguely scatalogical now that I read it back) easy passage (okay, that makes it worse), and to avoid other books getting mired (hmm…) in the backwaters of the hype.  Penguin in the UK, for example, shifted publication of the new Nick Hornby well away from September 15, one of many publishers to do so.  Nobody with the slightest bit of common sense wanted their books coming out anywhere near The Lost Symbol – why fight a losing battle?  The DaVinci Code sold 80 million copies; people have been waiting for the sequel for years. 

Nobody with the slightest bit of common sense…

Which brings me, well, to me.

A couple of months ago, Brett (my publisher) and I were talking about dates and events — launches, publicity, etc.  We settled on September 21 for a good launch date (at Bolen Books), and we knew we wanted to get the books positioned in stores in advance of that.

"So, like, mid-September?" I recall Brett saying.

"How about September 15," says I.

You would think that someone as immersed in the book trade as I am would have twigged, that I would have made the most obvious connection.  You would think…

But no.  I really am THAT scattered.

Which is a long way of saying: hurrah!  Today's the publication day of The World More Full of Weeping.  I love it — I hope y'all like it.

Mostly, though, I hope you don't get trampled by the Dan Brown-maniacs racing through your local bookstore. 

 

(Edited to get my codes and symbols right.  I should really avoid blogging before I nap.)

Posted in CZP, Pop culture detritus, Uncategorized, World More Full of Weeping, novella to be named later | No Comments »

Sometimes things just come to you

Saturday, September 12th, 2009

The thing with being a writer is that, at some level, you're ALWAYS writing. You never know, consciously, when a scrap of conversation, or an image, will later appear in a story. You never know what casual words will spark an idea.

Sometimes, it just happens.

Today, an hour ago, was one of those times.

I can't even recall what we were talking about, but all of a sudden I had an idea pop into my head practically fully formed. Oh, and it's a good one. It's a maniacal-laugh inducing good one. Is it a novel? A film? Both, possibly.

Now I just have to clear the decks so I can get to it.

Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

Technical difficulties

Friday, September 11th, 2009

Just wanted to post a quick note by way of an explanation and apology: we here at Wiersema World Headquarters have been experiencing some difficulties with our email system. It's really too complex for me to try to explain to a layperson, but a team has been called in, and we expect the situation rectified shortly.

(Actually, truth be told, the problem is strictly a wetware issue, involving a new computer and a forgotten email password… oops. But steps ARE being taken!)

My apologies if I've missed an email that you've sent via this site — I'm assuming it'll still be there when the crisis is averted.

Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

Upcoming appearances

Monday, September 7th, 2009

I'm emerging momentarily from my self-imposed revision sequester to mention, with a feigned casualness, two upcoming events for yours truly.

First off, Monday September 21 at 7 pm (that's two weeks from RIGHT NOW), I'll be launching The World More Full of Weeping at Bolen Books in Hillside Centre. It promises to be a good time…

The following Sunday, September 27, I'll be appearing at Word on the Street in Vancouver at the library. I'll be reading the Authors Tent at 4 pm that day, and I'll also be appearing at the Sony Reader Lounge. I'll post the time when I've got it.

Okay, I'm back to work. I'll check in again shortly, though, with a post about a big block of marble and ways to deal with it.

Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments »