Today I got the schedule for my author tour in support of Defending Jacob. It’s a doozy, ten appearances in ten days in nine cities. In order, they are: Boston, Kansas City, Houston, Denver, Scottsdale, Chicago, San Francisco, Seattle, Portland. Then a final stop at my childhood bookstore, the wonderful Brookline Booksmith, which still looks pretty much the way it did when I was a kid. It was called the Paperback Booksmith then. It had a funkier vibe than it does now, but the bones of the place haven’t changed. Same creaky floors, same basic layout. I used to love wandering around there. Still do. It is a fitting place to end the tour.
For someone who has never toured at all, this feels like a jump to the big leagues. I am flattered, to be honest. These are lean times in publishing (and not just in publishing). Extravagant author tours are unheard of. It is a measure of Random House’s high hopes for this book that they are willing to foot the bill for all this. And stay tuned, there is much more to come.
The full schedule is here. If you live in any of these places, come on out and say hello. I promise to be spellbinding company, even if I’m a little delirious with jet lag.
Any chance of a UK tour? Or is that stretching the budget too much? :0)
Either way, I’m looking forward to finally reading Defending Jacob – it seems like it’s been a long wait!
Actually, I think I will get to the UK sometime this spring. Stay tuned, Andrew.
No Austin? We’d love to see you in Austin…!
I’d love a trip to Austin, too. Hey, I just work here. I go where the boss tells me to go.
It’s a good tour and you are right, it is a huge sign of confidence in you, for a publisher to spend that money in this day and age. I just started reading Defending Jacob, and my brother noticed and wonders if you went to Roxbury Latin…
I did indeed. I’m a proud alum of “the famous Latin school,” class of ’81. Which is beginning to sound like a very, very long time ago. Enjoy Defending Jacob. Cheers.
He was ’85. I hope that doesn’t mean you stuffed him in a trash can! Having grown up in Newton, I am enjoying the book!
The kids who get stuffed into trash cans are the ones who become writers. The kids who do the stuffing — they become agents, I guess. Glad you’re enjoying the book.