I had a release party for Blooming Greed last night at a local watering hole. That might not describe this very successful local restaurant and bar. Callahan’s Pub is a place you want to be on St. Patrick’s Day if you want loud music, beer, and crowds. They have more beers on tap than I have ever seen and don’t recognize most of them. But on a regular Saturday night I had reserved a table for 15 (come and go) and bought appetizers. It was a fun time. They have great food and service. I got to see old friends, even though we still had snow on the ground and a pandemic in the air.
I always forget to take pictures. One friend and my daughter took some and as always, I was pumped. Showing off my book to some of the best people in the world, will do that to me. 
The friends were people from my working days and my writing club. I have a book signing at Putnam 6, a local bookstore in my hometown, on the 24th also. Maybe a different group of people will come by my table. Chloe, the owner is always gracious.
I’ve had two books release in the last six months. It never seems to fail that they come out in bunches. But I am always working on another (or two). I need to decide which one to finish next.
Support your local artists and buy their wares in this time of pandemic. We are all in this together.
What are you reading this week? Expect the unexpected!
I’m so ready for spring. I live in the mid-west, and it doesn’t get as cold here as in some parts of the world, but I’m ready for warmer weather.
It happens this week! Blooming Greed, the second in the Keystone Lake Series, releases for sale on Wednesday, January 26, 2022. I love this story and I love the setting. It takes place once more on Keystone Lake in eastern Oklahoma.
It snowed yesterday in Oklahoma. Only the second one of the season. We might have gotten an inch if you stretched it some, and it was bitterly cold. In years gone by, I would have put on my Yaktrax and gone to work, my lunch packed, in dress pants and a heavy coat, prepared to come out and clear a windshield when the day was done. Then I would drive the treacherous roads back home to a warm house. At least I hoped it was warm.
In 2020 I published my first children’s book, Ian’s Magic. It released in the middle of the pandemic (yes, the same one we’re still dealing with). But I was unable to have a book signing or release party. It was a soft opening. But the little book has done well. I promoted it through social media and today I am still working on getting it into schools, libraries, etc.
Merry Christmas! I hope yours was great—mine was. It was smaller than usual, but the food and company were wonderful. 
Last week we discussed the book and craft expo at the Enid Public Library. I saw lots of old friends and talked to the public who attended. But the best part of the book signing was the little book that was gifted to me. 
The Public Library of Enid and Garfield County hosted a Friends of the Library Book, Bake, & Craft Expo yesterday. There were 20 authors, a baker and some crafts made from books. Lovely! I attended and met up with some old friends. 
Some seemed surprised when they just walked in the door to return a book and found the entire downstairs filled with books for sale. 
(Did I fall asleep talking to Sheldon Russell?) With the pandemic, there have been fewer get togethers than the past. I hope we can continue to do such things. I sold some books and bought some books (I always do) and talked literature with like minds. I’d love to do it again soon.
It’s Christmas and what better time to give the gift of books. If you have a child on your Christmas list, give them the gift of living a life outside themselves. Books can transport you to places you might never go.
Peggy Chambers "Views from the Hammock" site 