Highlights from Duarte

I love the Duarte Author Festival and will always attend, as long as there is nothing pressing scheduled, and I mean pressing as in major surgery, not pressing as in Girls' Road Trip. I want to give a great big shout-out to Pat De Rose who sends out endless emails and puts together forms and puts up with authors who forget to reserve their table and have a zillion questions and want to move their tables around because there's too much sun and it disturbs their chi.

Thank you, Pat, for what must be a thankless job.

Although this festival seemed a little less populated this year, in terms of tables and patrons, it was a lot of fun. Of course, there were those friends who I missed. Pam and her niece, Alyssa, will be back next year, I hope. Jeff Sherratt will not. I missed his presence, missed looking over and seeing him standing and talking to someone, always talking to someone. He was one gregarious guy.

Teresa Burrell was at my table, though, and we had a good time discussing publishing and writing and families and more. We sat on a panel together and got to tell a good crowd all about our books and ourselves. I think we each sold enough books to cover the cost of the table, and gave out a lot of bookmarks to people who have ebooks.

I may need an app, so I can sell them on the spot.

Apart from an encounter with an interestingly prim older woman who described in great detail her attendance at a bondage seminar and subsequent homework, my highlight was actually being interviewed by a couple of Duarte High School students who were filming for the local cable-TV station as part of their ROP program. Isaiah was my actual interviewer, a junior who wants to be a writer. And a director and an actor.

Watch out, Matt Damon.

We kept having to start the interview over because people kept walking in between us and the camera, but it was so darn much fun, I didn't care. As they were setting up for the third (or was it the fourth?) take, he said, "I have to say, you're my most fun interview today."

That's who I am: the fun one.

Next weekend, I'll be at the Placentia Heritage Festival in Tri-City Park. First of all, I'm going to be in the parade as a Library Trustee. Maybe someday, I'll be in the parade as Famous Local Author. (Readers of Hit or Missus might think I already have.)

The Duarte Author Festival was supported heavily by Ray Bradbury, and part of my fondness for it stems from meeting him there. It only seems fitting to include a video of him, talking about his passions.


Reading, writing, and libraries. What's not to love?