Teaching full-time at college this term, and trying to launch and market my debut novel has meant that certain other things have had to give way. One of them has been this site. Given that my last post was titled ‘Ready to Launch’, should anyone disdain Twitter/X and be entirely reliant on this source for information about me, they might be wondering if the Hotel Hokusai came crashing back to earth faster than one of Elon Musk’s hastier test flights.
Fortunately, no it didn’t. An amazingly high number of people turned out in Hillhead Library on Feb 18th, so many that Ringwood’s manager, Sandy Jamieson, won a private bet that I hadn’t made the classic authorial mistake of overestimating my support. With all the rows filled I initially felt a bit nervous but soon relaxed into it, helped by my brilliant editor Megan Gibson asking the questions and even assisting with voice parts in the short reading.
Since the launch day, the most pleasing thing has been feedback from readers who’ve said or written that they’ve really enjoyed the book. Another highlight has been seeing a few copies appear in bookshops, to add to the chance to order it online. With a small publisher this doesn’t just happen, and in convincing bookshops to stock and display HH, the endorsements from well-established writers Iain Maloney, Callum McSorley and John Gerard Fagan have been invaluable. I’m so grateful to them and others for taking the time to read pdfs of the final manuscript, and providing these words that are so important to give the novel a better chance of swimming out there, eel-like, to jostle with the big fish in a crowded pond.
T.Y. Garner Writer 