I’m still reeling from the excitement of doing my first book reading at Cannon Air Force Base library! They had contacted me about a month or two beforehand saying that the copies I had donated to them were garnering some interest, and then invited me to do a reading and book signing. After dancing around my room in excitement for about 7 or 8 minutes, I composed myself and an email. I told them that, yes of course I would be interested, and that I was incredibly excited for the opportunity.

Now I just had to pick out something to read; that proved to be a bit difficult. Most of the advice that I’d heard from other authors on doing a reading tended towards “Keep it short. Unless it’s the script to the next Game of Thrones season, no one wants to be read to for a half hour.”

Next, I knew that I shouldn’t pick a chapter with spoilers (as I learned from a talk I attended at this years’ Nebula Awards), and I should probably pick one that told a story — even a brief one.

Taking all of that into consideration, I set out with a copy of my book and a stopwatch. After about ten minutes of flipping through my book, I landed on a chapter that was perfect: Chapter 23 (those familiar with my book will recognize some of the text, as it is featured in the opening of the book).

Now, all that was left was to build a skeleton of a script and to practice the reading.

After too many hours of preparation, I was ready. I showed up at the library, and what did I see? A whole table waiting, all ready for me! (Click the thumbnail to view full size)

All in all, the event was a success. The audience was fantastic, the questions were great, and I even managed to hit the high notes while reading the female Mordha’s parts. The whole experience was amazing, and I am so thankful to the Cannon AFB library for having me. (You can check them out on Facebook too if you haven’t already).

And, finally, if you want to check out the video of the reading, you’re in luck! I live streamed the entire thing on Facebook.

Check it out below!