The whole family at ColdWater Books on May 3
The last sixty days have been a whirlwind for the The Professor. I apologize that my blog posts have not kept up with the activity, but a jury trial, a trip to the hospital with our little one (she’s ok!) and the wrap up of little league baseball has put me behind schedule. So, here is a rundown of the last sixty days.
On April 23, 2014, I spoke to the Lifelong Learning Institute at the campus of UAH. For about 90 minutes, I spoke about writing The Professor, the writing process, getting published and my favorite books to a fantastic group of students, who asked questions for thirty minutes after my talk. It was truly a joy to talk to a group so interested in the process of writing, and I was honored to be a guest author speaker. Special thanks to my friend, Dannye Drake, for allowing me this opportunity.
Sold out signing at Rotary!
On April 29, 2014, I had the great honor of speaking to the Huntsville Rotary Club at their weekly luncheon and holding a book signing afterwards. My Dad and Dixie were in attendance along with a number of work colleagues and friends.
My friend and partner, Woody Sanderson, a longtime Rotary Club member, gave me a fantastic introduction and then I spoke about the writing of The Professor, the publishing process and answered a few questions. After the luncheon, I had a book signing with books provided by Barnes & Noble. B & N brought 50 books for the event, and all 50 were sold. Another sellout for The Professor!!
Speaking to Sparkman High 9th Grade lit/novels class
On May 1, 2014, I spoke to the Sparkman High School 9th Grade Literature/Novels class at the bequest of Principal Russ Tate, a longtime friend and teammate of mine from my days at Hazel Green Elementary and Middle School.
I can’t tell you how much fun it was to talk up The Professor to a group of teenagers with their whole lives ahead of them.
Principal Russ Tate, me and Mrs. Knight
They were so attentive, and there were so many good questions. As my grandfather and namesake, R.N. Bailey, was the principal of Sparkman High School in the 1970’s, my grandmother Rene Bailey (to whom I dedicated The Professor) was a longtime math teacher at Sparkman High and my mother and father both graduated from Sparkman High, it was truly special to be able to speak at the 9th Grade School.
Another fantastic signing at ColdWater Books!
On May 3, 2014, the tour returned to ColdWater Books in Tuscumbia for a return event. After our success at the Loving Locals event in February, store manager Sandi Hendrix invited me back for a private signing. We had a great day, selling fifteen more copies of The Professor and meeting a lot of new people. ColdWater Books is one of my favorite bookstores in Alabama, and it was such an honor to have a private event at such sacred ground for me.
We had a great time at the Sandestin Seminar!
On May 17, 2014, I spoke at the Young Lawyers Section Annual Meeting in Sandestin, Florida. My topic was about publishing a legal thriller, and I took the registrants through my process of writing the story and getting published, while offering a few tips along the way. As a former President of the Young Lawyers Section, this was sort of a homecoming for me, as I saw a number of old friends from my days on the Executive Committee of the section, including Chris Waller, Brandon Hughey, Houston Nichols and many others. After my speech, I had a book signing at the event with books provided by Books-A-Million. All total, we sold seventeen more copies of The Professor. Special thanks to Chris Waller and Megan Brooks for inviting me to speak and for making the whole weekend an awesome experience.
Signing a book at Harrison Brothers
On June 5, 2014, I, along with fellow writers Wimberley Watts (Gathering Pecans) and Alexis Finley (Mississippi Whispers) were invited to do a private signing for the Old Town group at legendary Harrison Brothers hardware store in Huntsville. My friend, Penny Sumners, invited me to do this event at one of the most historic spots on the downtown square. It was a fantastic night of wine and talking books, and it was an honor to share the stage with Wimberley and Alexis.
In addition to a full event schedule, we also had some exciting news on the sales front as The Professor was an Amazon bestseller in the legal thriller category for almost a full month, at one point cracking the top ten.
Top 10 on Amazon Bestseller List!
Additionally, The Professor was named a finalist for the Indie Excellence Award for the legal thriller category.
It has been an incredible Spring for The Professor, and things are just beginning to heat up, as we enter the Summer with a television appearance on Low Country Live in Charleston, South Carolina this Thursday, June 26, 2014 and a signing at the Litchfield Movable Feast this Friday, June 27, in Pawley’s Island, South Carolina. The tour then goes to the Florida panhandle for signings at The Hidden Lantern on July 3 (10am-12 noon) in Rosemary Beach, a “Signing on the Porch” at Sundog Books in Seaside, Fla on the Fourth of July from 10am to 12 noon and a signing at the Alabama State Bar Annual Meeting at the Sandestin Hilton on July 10, 2014 from 2-5pm.
Me and the Sparkman High 9th Grade Class
Looks like a busy summer for The Professor!