Greetings from the other side of my book launch!

Begun in a paper notebook in 2005, CONFESSIONS OF A CANDY SNATCHER (CoaCS) arrived with a whoop of well-wishes at a dance party in its honor on August 15, 2023. Friends and family joined to listen to an excerpt of the novel, participate in a Q&A, and dance in celebration to the beats of DJ Univers-AL (Alison Brill: hire her! Socially conscious DJ, dj.univers.al.beats@gmail.com).

One guest remarked, “Why isn’t every book launch a dance party?”

Why, indeed. 💃🏾

Here are some highlights from the rest of Launch Season::

• September
  • Featured blog post, name pronunciation guide, and reading excerpt on Teaching Books – Sept 4
  • Author chat on YA and Kids Books Central website
  • Nerdy Book Club blog post
• October
  • The audiobook version of CoaCS, read by narrator Ruffin Prentiss, launched on Recorded Books
  • Massachusetts Independent Comics Expo (MICE) workshop “1 Question + 8 Pages = 1 Mini-Zine” – Oct 1
  • Watertown Zine Fest “30 Days of Mini-Zines” – Oct 14
  • Author Talk at Silver Unicorn Books with Erin Dionne, author of Shiver by the Sea, a spooky new chapter book series – Oct 17
  • Story Behind the Book article, published in the Boston Globe newspaper, featuring me (!) – Oct 22
  • Official Launch at Porter Square Books – Oct 25
• November
  • Black Creator Series Podcast with Dr. Sonja Cherry-Paul – Nov 9
  • Author appearance with Raúl the Third at Papercuts Bookshop in JP on Small Business Saturday – Nov 25
• December
  • Sleep, sleep, sleep

Official Launch Event

On the evening of Wednesday, October 25, 2023, I debuted CoaCS to a packed house at Porter Square Books in Cambridge, MA. My friend, artist-illustrator-author Raúl the Third, interviewed me, asking questions about the novel, my creative process, and my favorite scary movie (none; too frightened). I’m deeply grateful to Raúl for being so giving of his time and for helping me create the best in-person event I could have imagined!

As well, I thank everyone who attended IRL or via Zoom, with a special shout out to Diane Martin and her young friend, who helped set up and managed the most / least favorite candy game, and also Anna Borges, local musician and Creative / Art Director at Sounds of Brazil Anna Borges Productions, who took the amazing photos you’ll see below.