Last Chance To Get Samhain Books – December Appearances
It’s kinda sad to write that headline. *sniff *
I have 2 final appearances for the year that will also be your last chance to pick up my signed Samhain books before they go out of print. First up, I’ll be at the Hudson Horror Show on Saturday, December 3rd at the Empire Hills Theater in Poughkeepsie, NY. It’s also the first event where I’ll have copies of my latest, Loch Ness Revenge. Even better, my daughter the baker will have specialty homemade cupcakes for sale as well. Get a book and a cupcake and enjoy the movie marathon.
Then, on Friday, December 9th, I get my bad Santa on along with authors Robert Stava, Time Meyer and Matt Manochio with our Horror for the Holidays event at Yonkers Brewing in Yonkers, NY. The festivities begin at 7pm and end when Santa’s sacks are empty. Yonkers Brewing makes some of the best beer in NY and they have an excellent restaurant. Come and ho-ho-ho along with us.
October Appearances – Where In The World Is Hunter Shea-diego?
It goes without saying that the month of October is the busiest time of the year for horror writers. I’ll be bouncing around, spreading the gift of terror. If you want to join in the fun, here’s where you’ll find me…
Saturday, October 17th – Signing and Reading at Fleur Bookstore in Hadlyme, CT
Fleur is a brand new independent bookstore owned and operated by my friend, Wendy Vincent. I’ll be doing a candlelight reading from The Dover Demon and talking about monsters. Very cool idea. And it’s one of the very few times I’ve agreed to do a reading. This is as rare as a Bigfoot sighting!
Friday, October 30th – Signing and Discussion at Barnes and Noble, Yonkers, NY – 7pm
I’m making my annual return to my hometown B&N, this time talking about Tortures of the Damned,my ode to the destruction of Yonkers. We’ll have plenty of books on hand and the usual after party. Everyone who comes to the store is welcome! I promise this will be a great way to kick off Halloween weekend.
Thursday, October 29th – The Horror of it All! Writing and Publishing horror at the Yonkers Public Library – 7pm
I grew up going to this library, hitting that card catalogs hard back in the day. I didn’t destroy the library in Tortures of the Damned because I just couldn’t bring myself to do it. It’ll be fun to host an even where I’m going to share my road to publication, love of horror and writing and take on the first chapter of attendee’s works in progress. We’ll have lots o treats, no tricks! And there will be books on hand for purchase.
Saturday, October 24th – Chiller Theatre Convention in Parsippany, NY
I’m not going to have a booth, but I will be on the prowl with my growing posse! If you plan to attend, let me know so we can meet up for libations. The gathering at the bar grows every year. I love going to this con and have met so many of youover the years. The robot from Lost in Space will be there, so you’ll probably find me chained to it.
When Book Signings Go Bad
OK, in actuality, the book signing where we took this picture went quite well. My daughters thought it would be funny to take this pic to show what a disaster a signing can turn into if no one shows up. I’ve had a few of those in my time. I laugh about them now, but when they were happening – damn, they sucked.
Want to hear about the worst book signing ever? About 10 years ago, I self pubbed a darkly comedic suspense novel. It had mobsters, porn stars, UFO nuts, a benevolent drug dealer, old men on a quest, a dominatrix and gay fashion desingers. I still love that book and hope to give it another life, but that’s another story.
I somehow snagged a signing at a huge Barnes & Noble. At the time, I was petrified of public speaking, so when I arranged it, I expressly said it would be a signing only.
When I showed up, I saw they purchased about 40 books! Whoa. How the hell was I, an unknown with a self pubbed novel, supposed to sell 40 books? And on a Tuesday night no less?
Imagine my growing horror when the manager walked me to a podium that stood in front of 50 chairs. She said they wanted me to read from the book and talk about the writing life. I almost had a heart attack.
In those 50 chairs was my wife, her friend, and a half dozen men who didn’t look well at all. Turns out, they were a hepatitis support group. When I spoke in my trembling voice, they looked at me like I was disturbing them – which I was. Thankfully, no one other than my wife and her friend listened to me at all. I said my piece and quickly sat down.
Aaaaand, for the next 2 hours, I proceeded to sell ZERO books. The manager looked like she wanted to hang me. I wanted to crawl under the building.
To this day, I use that night as my unit of book signing success measurement. So far, everything since has been FAR, FAR BETTER. Lower those expectations, and the world is your oyster.
What are your book signing horror stories? Ever had one, or watched one go down in flames? I know I’m not the only one.
New Appearances and Signings
I know it’s still summer, but horror season is fast approaching. I just added 4 new events where you can find me either hawking my wares or talking about the paranormal. Check out the latest on the Signings & Appearances tab. And if you know of an event or location that you would like me to come to, let me know.
Big Saturday (and no Bay City Rollers)
Just a quickie this time around after hitting you all with the heavy stuff last post. This Saturday, I’ll be at the Books Without Borders event in Yonkers, NY. The weather is going to be wonderful and they’re expecting well over 1,00o attendees. I’ll be there to meet folks and sign and sell my books, of course, but you can also meet with agents, editors and publishers. Plus, there will be tons of entertainment for the kids. Really great stuff. Click here to learn more.
Also on Saturday, at 11am ET, I’ll be interviewed on A Book and a Chat radio show. Barry, the host, is one of my favorite interviewers. We had a great time last go around when Forest of Shadows came out.
So, if you can’t make it to the event (and I hope many of you do so we can meet!), you can still hear me on the radio show.
Have a bitchin’ weekend and thank you all for your support and kind words.
P.S. : For a teaser, I just went to the famed Whaley House in San Diego. Very interesting. Lots of pics to share next time!
Hunter Shea 