My last early morning tour blog
Posted by Katarina Jovanovic
We had our last presentation at the Museum of Northern BC in Prince Rupert last night. What a magnificent finale! First, we travelled completely absorbed by the nature scenery between Terrace and Prince Rupert; we had a really sophisticated lunch in a small restaurant by the water; finally, the reading took place in one of the exhibition rooms with the view to the marina. We had a full house (including the local newspapers) and the audience responded brilliantly. We left Prince Rupert bursting with energy and inspiration. However, this is the end of the tour.
This morning we’ll be home again and Bryan will be driving South. Bryan has been our guide, driver (“Is he your agent?”- one of the elementary school students asked when Bryan came to pick us after the reading) and friend in the past six days and I think that he is just perfect in what he does! Thank you, Bryan.
Getting to know Bryan and my other three pal-authors and having the opportunity to travel North BC and talk to people - was the most precious experience and I will treasure it in the years to come!
We had done so many readings and talks together and heard each others so many times that we almost “knew it all by heart” (we joked one evening in the car while driving to another reading that we could easily switch around and do each other’s presentations). Writers have a reputation of being egocentric and antisocial. In some ways, we really are.We usually have an internal focus: it is what happens in our mind that matters the most. The book tour changed that.We spent days and evenings together and our little tour became a team work. Being so different and having different approaches to writing we all wanted to make those presentations successful and to reach to the people.
For me, this trip was also about nurturing an author within myself. ” I have to write”, that’s what my internal voice yells to me all the time. I perceive myself as a writer first but, like many authors, I don’t live on writing. I have a full time job and a family and my writer’s role “performs” mostly early in the morning or late at night. Being on a book tour, I have been only an author. All my other roles had been temporarily diminished.
Finally (but most importantly) the tour gave me an opportunity to meet hundreds of primary school students and to talk about my book. I can’t imagine a more powerful experience for the children’s author.
