The Luckiest Man I Know

I just got back from the first book signing for Queen of Oblivion, which was held at The Tattered Cover in Highlands Ranch. These signings are my favorite things to do. A book signing is, truly, a moment when I get to live the dreams of my sixteen-year-old self, a boy who wanted to make heroes come to life and share them with the world.

Tonight, I got to blather on about my heart's passion, and everyone listened. They asked questions. They delved into my joy with me, and made it that much greater. The signing was outstanding. The venue was outstanding. The Tattered Cover staff was outstanding. And can I just say:

I have the best group of friends in the world.

There were over forty people there, and while I was very happy to see a half a dozen new faces (yay! Word-of-mouth and marketing works!), the bulk of the group was my friends and my family. These are the people who listened to me shamelessly regale them with my adolescent novels back in college, and who have cheered me on ever since then, down through the intervening years. These are the people who went to Giles' and my first signing in 2006, and to every signing thereafter. These are the people who rush out to buy the new books as soon as they can, even if they don't read anything else in the fantasy genre. These are the people who walk up to the signing desk with 2, 5, even a dozen copies that they intend to push on their friends.

In short, they are the the people who make me a writing success, and it was heartwarming -and humbling- to have them cheering me on.

Of course, it's every author's dream to fly to any city in the country and have hundreds of avid fans waiting to greet him. I have not reached that place yet, but I am willing to bet that the only way to get there is to have a core group of friends, like I do, who believes in me and has from the start. A group that takes my writing and loves it and champions it in the world.

Tonight, I am the luckiest man I know. I got to stand up in front of the people I love and respect the most, and I got to share with them my childhood dream.

Thanks to those who came and supported me tonight, and more thanks to that precious group that has been supporting me for years. Here's hoping I will someday prove your faith is well-placed.