Fathom Five should be back from the printers in a couple of weeks. The publication date is April 30th, which I hadn’t realized until now only specifies the scheduled date that copies are available to be sent out from Dundurn’s warehouses to the bookstores, rather than the date that the book is considered officially released. Dundurn usually waits about a month before starting its rush of publicity, to give the books a chance to get onto bookshelves. Last year, the release date for The Unwritten Girl was near the end of May, but the publication date was officially April 1st. But I received copies about a week before that, so I’m looking forward to having copies of Fathom Five in hand any time now.
With this in mind, I am excited to announce the venues for two out of three planned launch parties to help promote Fathom Five. On Saturday, May 26, everybody in the vicinity of Waterloo Region, Guelph or Stratford is invited to come to the Waterloo Public Library at 2 p.m. for the official launch of Fathom Five. Then, next week, I’ll be back at Books on Beechwood in Ottawa (where The Unwritten Girl was launched last year to the day), to introduce Fathom Five at 3 p.m. to all my friends and other interested parties in the National Capital Region.
Snacks, juice and coffee will be served at both events, and both events will be followed by a trip to a nearby pub for celebratory drinks and dinner (everybody pays for their own) and a mini local blogstravaganza, likely at the Red Lion Inn at the Huether Hotel in Waterloo and the Duke of Edinburgh pub in Ottawa.
I’ll be by myself in Ottawa, but I may be sharing the stage at Waterloo, as my wife Erin Noteboom unveils her third book, entitled The Mongoose Diaries, a literary journal of Erin’s pregnancy and the first year of Vivian’s life. You can read about that book, including posted samples, on Erin’s blog. I’ve read the book, and it’s at times funny, at times intense, and well worth your attention.
The third event I’m working on is tentatively set for Toronto, although the date is as yet unconfirmed (likely Saturday, June 30 at 2 p.m., but this could change). It looks like I’ll be returning to Nicholas Hoare Booksellers in the St. Lawrence Market area — a wonderful venue. And I won’t be alone. Bob Tarantino and I have resolved to share this launch event to promote my book, and his newly released legal trivia book (also from Dundurn) entitled Under Arrest: Canadian Laws You Won’t Believe). The event will feature snacks, drinks and coffee and, afterward, we hope to retire to the Flatiron and Firkin for drinks, food and another, bigger, blogstravaganza.
I’m looking forward to this mini-tour, to the excitement of seeing my book launched, and especially to getting a chance to meet all of you on the road. Last year’s launch events for The Unwritten Girl were a lot of fun and helped give the book a good buzz and I hope we can do the same for Fathom Five this year.