We had our first dusting of snow here two days ago. I can’t remember a time when we had our first snow of the season so late. Usually there’d be at least a dusting around Halloween, but the weather has been unseasonably warm. Still rainy, though, and dark. My mother had a poem for this time of year. It may have been this poem by Thomas Hood:
No sun - no moon!
No morn - no noon -
No dawn - no dusk - no proper time of dayNo warmth, no cheerfulness, no healthful ease,
No comfortable feel in any member —
No shade, no shine, no butterflies, no bees,
No fruits, no flowers, no leaves, no birds! —
November!
So, with the loss of light hitting me between the eyes, and things looking pretty dark on the political scene, this sounds about right. But let’s talk about the good things of this month, which are plenty.
First and foremost, I’d like to thank the organizers of Can*Con, the staff at the Lieutenant’s Pump, the great people behind Bakka-Phoenix Books, the also great people behind Words Worth Books and the Waterloo Public Library for bringing the excitement around the launch of my books at Ottawa, Toronto and Waterloo. You gave The Sun Runners and Tales from the Silence a great send-off. Thanks also to the contributors of Tales from the Silence who cheered us on, either at these events or online.
And thanks to my publisher and editor Edward Willett and his Creative Edge publicist Mickey Mikkelson for working so hard to get my name out there. I feel that my books have been supported like never before.
Finally, I’d like to thank in advance Paula Johanson, who has organized a social media campaign for small press books today, encouraging everyone to talk up their own books, especially eBooks, as a good gift for the holidays, and promoting the hashtag #EBookGifts.
So, if you haven’t already done it, consider making The Sun Runners and Tales from the Silence a gift for your loved ones who love to read this year. You can do it in print from better bookstores across Canada, or directly from Shadowpaw Press (see The Sun Runners and Tales from the Silence), and you can do it electronically from most eBook sellers, including Shadowpaw Press (the same links above).
And if you have a small press book to offer, talk it up in the comments below or in social media, and don’t forget the tag #EBookGifts!
And if you get these books and read them, don’t be afraid to review them, on your website, or wherever else reviews are gathered. Just knowing that my words are being received out there is one of the greatest mood-improvers one could receive this bleak midwinter season.
