Now which books were whose?

Had a wonderful time at Witney Waterstones today with fellow authors, Mary Hoffman and Joanna Kenrick. We signed books together from 10am until noon, when the two lovely ladies retired from the fray and left me to do my thing for the rest of the day. It was great to see so many familiar faces today. Old friends, RAF work colleagues and fans who have consistently turned out to signing events there for book after book all made the day a most encouraging experience.

Congratulations must go to Mary Hoffman today on the news of her fantastic new historical fiction book, The Falconer’s Knot, being shortlisted for the Guardian Prize. It’s a wonderful and well-earned recognition of her writing skills. (I feel most honoured that she has taken a copy of Imperial Spy home with her to read - I hope she enjoys it!) I very much look forward to reading my copy, along with the Stravaganza Fantasy series, of which I also picked up a couple today. I shall have to add her into my links page as soon as I get around to reading them.

People from Oxfordshire might have been amused to listen to my radio interview with BBC Radio Oxford during the signing. It was hilarious really. I gave the interview from the in store telephone. Aside from he buzz in the store (which was very busy) there was a Scottish drum and pipe band playing in the street just outside the store. It must have sounded like merry mayhem on the radio! The presenter seemed to take it all in good spirit, however, and the interview certainly brought a few extra customers into the store during the morning.

I’ve no idea how many books we sold between us, (it was a lot!) but the store were delighted with the steady stream of sales that we made through the day. We’ve all been invited back again, which is always a good sign. I hope those who can make future events will take the time to drop in and say hello. The list of venues is on the news page of my main website.