It Was a Dark and Rainy Day…

The rain yesterday didn’t dampen the enthusiasm of writers and readers who flocked to the library for the second annual Northwest Arkansas Author’s Fair. There were three rooms full of authors  displaying books on many subjects, from cookbooks to fantasy.  I set up my table with copies of Grave Shift, business cards, and a paper plate of small, wrapped candy. Meeting other writers and comparing notes on publishers, books, and why we write what we write was fun and educational. Some friends I see at no other time than at a gathering such as this.

Writers are many faceted and talking with them opens new vistas in my mind. Who knows? I might have gleaned background material to include in a new cozy mystery (name and place changed to protect the innocent, of course.) On one side of me was a person who writes a blog then he and his co-author gather the blogs into a book. He self-publishes. On the other side were two veterans of Viet Nam, one, a Green Beret. Their personal experiences, turned into books, were mesmerizing.  And one was a Civil War researcher, an engrossing field of study.  Another writer who usually writes only non-fiction has branched out into writing cozy mysteries. And, I met a writer from Tahlequah. Amazing that we never knew each other in Tahlequah yet met at a Springdale library.

Matt, Sara and Nathan dropped in, which is enough to bring sunshine into any room. Sara found two books to buy. One of them was a mystery. (Do I detect her Mem’s influence there?)

Rain slid down the library windows and the people who came through, looking for books, carried with them the chill breath of fall. But coffee and laughter flowed freely and it was a fun way to spend two hours of a chilly Saturday afternoon.