Zen and the Art of Book Tour

We are 10 days past publication and on another countdown of sorts.

The book tour launch sequence has begun and “there’s no stoppin’ us now!” Since our first official event, a party and book signing for about 150 Monday night, we have been prepping for departure. Being away from home for two weeks and in a different city (with widely varying mean temperatures) every day of those two weeks not only calls for state of the art packing skills it requires us to summon up BOOK TOUR mindset—the one we put away when the last tour is over and have only thought of since as an occasional anecdotal episode. “Remember when we were stranded in Sacramento airport and…” “Which airport were we in where the waitress invited us to her house?” “What was the name of the hotel where my bed collapsed?” (Most of these, “remember the time,” stories involve airports or hotels.) But now we have to find that "come what may" attitude again and strap it on tight.

Book tour is, in many ways, like preparing for any kind of marathon event. Training, mind over matter and playing hurt are key to making the journey a success. We must stop thinking of things like sleep and regular meals as requirements, and see them as luxuries we are thrilled to have when they occur. We must remember not to be wary of strangers—most of the folks who cross our path are readers, and we have found readers to be warm, funny, interesting people we have enjoyed greatly. We must use our best scouting skills when navigating the path to our required destinations. As opposed to the good old days, when we had officially sanctioned and trained author escorts, most of us still lucky enough to have a publisher sponsored tour, have more responsibility for finding our way to the bookstore, library, radio station, etc. once we are in the city of the day. And although we are given detailed instructions and directions on how to reach a particular location, (including estimated times from one point to another by various means of transportation) there are always glitches. We must be Zen about weather and flights. We must learn to be at home at or near departure gates--listening to announcements while having conversations/emails/texts with our publicist, travel agent, editor and/or agent. Oh yeah, and our family and friends. Paraphrasing the oath we took as Girl Scouts many many years ago –We must do our best at all times to be friendly and helpful, considerate and caring, courageous and strong.

And of course we must remember to be grateful for the opportunity to meet and spend a little time with those who make it possible for us to do what we do.

California Book Club Summit

Next month we will be participating in the very first EVER, California Book Club Summit (http://thecaliforniabookclubsummit.com) and we are totally jazzed and excited. The Summit organizers do a great job of keeping us tantalized about the conference events with regular updates via their Summit Newsletter. However the latest edition focuses on the bookseller, the legendary Marcus Books and we wanted to share it with you--so with permission we are happy to post the following and we hope you take the message to heart and into supporting local business in your communities--wherever they may be!

Dear Summit Participants, As we get closer to the Summit dates, so many people are sharing with me their feelings about supporting our authors and bookstores. In these challenging economic times with many African American businesses hard pressed to stay afloat, it is more important than ever to support them whenever and wherever we can. There are very few African American owned bookstores left in this country. Far too many black readers have been seduced away from our independent bookstores by the mega stores like Borders, Barnes & Nobel and the internet giants like Amazon. Articles have been circulating on the internet lately that publishing giant and black household favorites Ebony and Jet may be folding. Wouldn't it be a shame if our children and grandchildren grew up without knowing the pride of reading about "our people" in books and magazines written by our people? Support for the African American owned independent bookstores is crucial if this rich heritage is to go into the future with us as black people in some of the most politically significant times in the history of the planet. Black pride means black support on all levels. The California Book Club Summit is proud to have Marcus Bookstore, the nation's oldest African American independently owned and operated bookstore, as its host bookstore for this inaugural event in September. Marcus Books will celebrate its 50th birthday in 2010. Their booth will be available throughout the Summit weekend for your purchasing needs and owner Blanche Richardson will speak at the Summit on the importance of collecting first edition autographed books and creating a personal library. Read the rich and colorful history of the store below. Order your books directly from them now and be sure to stop by and meet them at the Summit. Keep our authors writing and selling their books with the help of stores like Marcus Bookstore. See you at the Summit!!

Marcus Book Store - The History Marcus Book Stores has been on the fore-front of the literary business for 49 years. Printing, packaging and promoting authors across the world. The oldest independently owned black book store in the country has catered to every level of reader in the community and abroad. This bookstore has been a pillar in northern California's political, social and economic structure. Founded and deeply rooted in the service of the people has afforded this classic institution the longevity thus far. Entering the half century mark for any business in this changing climate is an accomplishment in itself; however Marcus Books has continued to be the example of steadfast self determination. Literary giants, award winning poets, music moguls, championship athletes, and entertainers from every aspect of the African-American experience and community have graced and embraced this national treasure as a sacred and hallowed sanctuary of knowledge and opportunity. Relentlessly establishing the importance of reading and critical thinking by opening the services of this entity to more than mere book or periodicals sales. Marcus Books is host, partner, affiliate or in conjunction with some of the most high profile, informative, exciting and free events in the bay area. Three generations of the Richardson family have dedicated time and energy into this establishment. Here now 49 years later, with two bay area locations (San Francisco & Oakland), Marcus Books wants to continue serving the community and continue creating opportunities where there are none. It is a legacy too strong to break yet pushed to the limits every year. If you have yet to visit either store, we invite you now. With your help and patronage this American Dream can continue to educate for another 50 years.

_____________________________________________ The Founders Founded Marcus Book Stores in 1960 and hasn't stopped shaping and molding young minds since. Raye and Rich, as they are affectionately known as, met in Alabama at Tuskegee University. Both hold doctoral degrees and have taught students and scholars alike. Raye is the former department chair of Ethnic Studies at San Francisco State University and the Julian Richardson Press Company has printed and published over 40+ titles, in particular "Stolen Legacy" by George GM James. Among Rich's literary and scholastic prowess he was an avid musician and found a perfect pitch once he and his new partner arrived in 'Harlem West'. Raye and Rich raised four children through the fragile fifties and stimulating sixties. To date, the Richardson family is vast and still continuing in the tradition set by Raye and Rich. The blessed and fruitful union of these two is the backbone to Marcus Books. The very essence of the stores is embodied in the two who founded this great and powerful business turned catalyst. This venture was named after the honorable Marcus Mosiah Garvey and Dr's. Raye and Julian Richardson have honored his memory and purpose by dedicating so much to so many. ______________________________________________________________ Let's support ourselves, our authors and our bookstores by making The California Book Club Summit a weekend of African American literary celebration. See you at the Summit!!! Sincerely, Sigrid Williams The California Book Club Summit

Candid Camera Photo of the Day #24

With friend and author Marissa Monteilh in Cincinnati at the Authors Pavilion for the NAACP Convention last July...

Our publisher, Simon & Schuster, has a brand new website!!! And we are featured there--along with several hundred (thousand) other authors. But the new author pages are quite snazzy and very different from the old static pages. . . and you can find out things you never knew about your favorite writers through the Author Revealed sections.

They asked us tricky, complex questions that were meant to evoke answers we had to really think about. It took us weeks to finish all our homework. So take a visit and drop a line to let us know what you think!
http://authors.simonandschuster.com/Virginia-DeBerry/39429354
http://authors.simonandschuster.com/Donna-Grant/39429359

And please remember you can check us out and see what we're up to every day on Twitter (http://twitter.com/deberryandgrant), FaceBook & MySpace (http://myspace.com/twomindsfull)...

LitChat.com

We don't know whether you're a follower of Litchat on Twitter or not (or even if you Tweet) but we do (http://twitter.com/deberryandgrant) and a recent discussion on what makes women's fiction “women’s fiction” got us involved—and following them. They chat about various topics on http://tweetchat.com every Mon-Wed-Fri from 4-5PM. They asked for us to host "sometime" and for a topic suggestion. We had no idea our slot would come up so quickly, but this week's topic is Beyond Black & White:Writing in Color and on Friday 3/20 4-5PM we'll host the chat--and give a way an autographed copy of What Doesn't Kill You to one lucky participant. We wanted to let you know because we hope that you can join in the discussions during the week and especially on Friday when we’re hosting!Thanks!

We've Been Nominated!!!

We are honored to have once again been nominated for an African American Literary Award Show award. We won two of these wonderful awards in 2004 for Better Than I Know Myself. Our category is "AUTHOR OF THE YEAR-FEMALE" for Gotta Keep on Tryin'. Please visit the site and vote for us!!! (keep scrolling down--we're there--REALLY we are!)
http://www.createsurvey.com/c/70819-bwXj6C/

There are probably several of your favorite authors nominated in various categories so check out the site and vote for them too!

http://www.literaryawardshow.com/voting.html

If a Picture is Worth a Thousand Words...

Then a video is worth about a billion words right? At least that’s our story and we’re sticking to it since we are being seriously lazy today and posting a video blog...

This is an interview we did with http://AALBC.com (African American Literature Book Club) in June while we were in LA at BEA (Book Expo America). Enough with the acronyms.

We’re talking about our new book, What Doesn’t Kill You, which will be out January 6.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=BCsO-OpsMAo

Thumbs Up

We arrived at the hospital in the pre-dawn hours to find a waiting room jammed full of patients whose arrival time was clearly before our 6AM call—talk about cruel. The great thing about the early arrival time was that the drive from Jersey to Manhattan at 4:30 AM is pretty much traffic free. And really, the day’s proceedings went just as smoothly.

Notes from DG in the OR as told to VDB:

How many doctors does it take to fix a thumb?
It seems that Dr. Melone, my surgeon, travels with a posse of 3 hand surgery deputies. I reiterated my medical history to two of them pre-surgery, asked a few questions. I’d already donned my attractive gown and robe—why can’t they make those things match, although that might just make them double ugly. Then there was the anesthesiologist, two surgical nurses—I had a very well attended thumb.

When I walked into the OR, one of the young scalpels was engaged in a hot conversation with an OR nurse about the prior night’s episode of the Real World. The other nurse said she was not of the MTV generation and worked on getting me strapped onto the table—not one of my favorite positions—and settled under a warm blankie.

While they prepped my hand with the betadine manicure, the conversation turned to which franchises would be the best to own. Guess it’s a sign of the times—even doctors are trying to line up their side gig. One said Subway ‘cause they had the formerly fat guy who sandwiched himself to thinness. Someone else suggested Cinnabun—guess that’s for when Jared has a relapse. I said those buns smell better than they taste. That’s when they upped my anesthesia—I don’t remember much after that until the recovery room, when I first encountered my hand strapped to its new furniture. The good news is that it really didn’t hurt too bad and I was back in civvies and out by noon.

Thanks for the prayers and well wishes and I’m working on being back in top typing form soon.

Notes from VDB in the OR Waiting Room:

I had no posse of supplicant, surgical residents, no generation spanning nurses. There was no snappy conversation about investment strategy. I had no drugs either. What I had was a room full of about to be patients and their anxious or obnoxious designated persons—or the morning traffic report on TV which was focusing on a sign that looked like it was going tumble onto the highway during rush hour. It didn’t.

So I did what any self respecting writer would do in similar circumstances—I pretended to read while actually secretly observing the folks surrounding me. Believe me a hospital waiting room is a great equalizer—random diversity at it’s best and most basic. Voices (whiny, gravelly, loud), accents (some identifiable others not so), attitudes (snarly, obliging), wardrobes (mostly What Not to Wear Anywhere), tics (a nose picker and a hair chewer), hair styles (I’m not even going there), laughs (nervous, cackling), snores (from a morbidly obese woman who went out to smoke every 20 minutes or so, then told our room monitor that she was going to check her blood sugar —duh?!) and sneezes (itty bitty cartoon like). I was making mental notes about family groupings, couples, parents, friends, those who were alone (was someone really coming for them or were they lying about “their person” showing up later?) All of this data collection was in the name of research of course—for future characters in future books (and you ask where we get ideas!) I wasn’t being nosy—well maybe just a little bit.

And I did read. I finally finished Middlesex right before I was told by a haughty hospital bureaucrat wearing purple scrubs that I would be allowed to visit Ms Grant in recovery, but for 10 minutes only. “Don’t make me have to pull you away from the bedside!” he warned.
Was he kidding? But he didn’t know how much time we spend together. My 10 minutes would be quite enough thanks. All I needed to see was that DG was fine and that they had operated on the correct appendage on the correct hand so I could make the appropriate assuring phone calls to her loved ones...which I did.

Half hour later we (thumb furniture and all) were in my car heading back to Jersey.
I did have to buckle her seatbelt for her.

The Big O...no not that...O

Well—we’re headed for yet another exciting experience tomorrow! Donna’s having an "O"PERATION--outpatient hand surgery and Virginia’s the designated driver and responsible person—which could be the beginning of a joke, but isn’t---this time

Back in November, Donna fell-tripped going up the stairs at her dermatologist’s office and smacked her left hand on the marble steps to break her fall. OUCH!!! It plumped up like a Ballpark frank. They gave her an ice pack at the skin doc’s, examined her epidermis and sent her on her way. She dosed herself with Aleve, and returned to work. After all, we had a deadline! And for the next two months she typed with nine fingers or more accurately eight fingers, one thumb, and one swollen appendage that looked more like a big fat sausage than a thumb. It didn’t work too well either.

We went on book tour, had parties, signed a heap of copies of Gotta Keep on Tryin’ and finally, two weeks ago she saw a doctor, because it still wasn’t right.

Virginia said, “It’s probably broken and now it’s healed and they’ll have to re-break it so it sets right.”

Donna said, “It was probably a bad sprain and I’ll need to go to physical therapy.”

The Doctor said, “You have damaged the tendon, it will get worse, I have to operate.”

Tomorrow (Thursday) is operation day. We’re heading for the hospital at 5AM—but right now she’s got another couple of hours before the “nothing by mouth” rule kicks in—so we think it’s time for a glass of wine.

We’ll keep you posted...

Together Again!

We survived last weekend! You probably already guessed that we would. It wasn’t easy, but we did it!! Donna’s events in Galveston with Sisters Sippin’ Tea went off without a hitch as did Virginia’s in Jacksonville.

It certainly felt odd—almost like the other one was still there, like the phantom limb feeling that amputees experience. So while talking we had to resist the urge to turn to the right (Donna) or left (Virginia) for either our “straight woman” or the punch line. But it seems we managed to be able to speak in complete sentences and be reasonably coherent—so we hear tell from those who attended our panels. We signed books in our usual spot, over our individual name on the title page—leaving room in case the reader might run into the other of us sometime in the future. It looked a little strange to us, but apparently not to anyone else!

Donna got to hang out not only with SST’s from all over the country who gathered for their annual reunion, but also with the wonderful Jewel Parker Rhodes (Yellow Moon—August 2008, Vodoo Dreams, Voodoo Season). And Virginia partied with R.L. Stine (Goosebumps series) and Jane O’Connor author of the Fancy Nancy children’s books—and yes, there were adult authors in Jacksonville too, but these two writers definitely impressed VDB..

We each kept up with our own hotel room keys (and remembered our room numbers) which are tasks that we normally share (and have built in backup for—“Turn left off the elevator—it’s room 414, not 441. That was the last hotel.”) when we’re on the road together. But we were really happy to see each other when we met up in the Atlanta airport on Sunday for our flight to Washington. Our flights landed at Hartsfield within 15 minutes of each other and in our separate arrival terminals we each whipped out our cells to text the gate location of our next flight and a convenient rendezvous spot—because we had two hours to kill. Excellent catch up time—which we did over burgers and vino. So that by the time we arrived in DC, we were back to normal—or as normal as ever are.

Our Sunday Dessert with the Authors was a tremendous success---and our signatures on Gotta Keep on Tryin’ didn’t look quite so lonely any more.

Flying Solo

This weekend we are embarking on a brand new adventure—hey what would life be without something new and different?

On Saturday we are each doing a solo appearance. That’s never happened before!! But there were two events we wanted to be a part of. After wrestling to make a choice we decided to ask each group if they were willing to host one of us. They agreed. So Donna will be in Galveston, TX for the 2008 Sisters Sippin’ Tea Annual Reunion, and Virginia will be at the 13th annual Much Ado About Books festival in Jacksonville, FL. We flipped a coin to decide who would go where.

And we can’t tell you how strange we’re anticipating this to be. Yes, we are both perfectly capable of boarding a plane, catching a cab, reading and speaking in complete sentences. But we have been making appearances together for 11 years. We make speeches, sit on panels, do TV, radio, newspaper and magazine interviews together. The same way we write. Side by side. But Saturday we will be—one-sided? Lop-sided? Half-sided? Definitely not half-hearted.

Those who have seen us “do our thang” say we finish each other’s sentences, that one picks up where the other leaves off and that it is a seamless presentation. We don’t even think about it because it’s what we do. But what will it be like this weekend when we are each alone, without the other half of our brain and our voice? Will we leave a sentence hanging in mid-air because there’s no one there to catch and toss one back? Will one of us forget an important part of “our story” because we won’t have a prompt or cue to lead us there?

One thing for sure is that everyone who attends one of our solo Saturday events and gets their book signed will have a rare item—there are very, very few books out there signed by only one of us.

Now the good news is that this will all be over by 7PM Saturday night—whew! when we meet up in the Atlanta airport and get a flight to Washington/Dulles for our Sunday afternoon luncheon with the Lambda Kappa Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority in Herndon, VA. We’re looking forward to it—both the event and the rendezvous.

One thing for sure—it’s gonna be interesting. We’ll let you know how it goes....

A Brand New Venture!

They're Here!!!!

Get your original TiffiBag™, by DeBerry & Grant

TiffiBag—we did it just like Tiffan”I” did in Gotta Keep on Tryin'—scouting for funky-cool remnants and having totes made to accompany us everywhere— evening, church, brunch, or book club meeting! The Tiffi size we’ve started with is big enough for a book, your water, a snack—maybe for two. . . Small enough to tuck in your purse for whatever comes your way.

All the fabrics are limited editions--so when it's gone, it's gone!

Sure you’ve got bags from work, conferences and conventions but Tiffani Alexander thought you might like a bag that says a little more—about you.

A tote bag with style.
A tote bag with sophistication.
A tote bag like no other.

A bag made to go with you everywhere looking good matters.

Each Original TiffiBag measures approximately 11” x 13” and is hand crafted from an array of beautiful, limited edition, upholstery quality fabrics and each is embellished with an imported, handmade, glass beaded tassel—because you know Tiffani likes a little sparkle and flash.

AND they make great gifts!

Here’s a preview but please visit our website for prices, individual photos and descriptions!!

http://deberryandgrant.com/DGShopping.html

Interview--Gritsncheese.com

This is an audio interview we did with Monica from GritsnCheese.com. There are also interviews on her webiste with film director Bill Duke and former San Francisco Mayor, Willie Brown--along with many others!

Click here: Monica Medina w/ Virginia Deberry and Donna Grant

Book Tour Part 2: Scenes from Southern California

At Eso Won Books in LA

Tabahani Book Circle Brunch at The Grand in Long Beach

More at Eso Won

At Borders in Torrance

At Eso Won

Signing and talking after our reading at Eso Won

Answering two questions at the same time at Borders!

Making their very own Ell Crawford dolls at the Tabahani Book Circle Brunch


With the members of Tabahani Book Circle--now these women put on a GREAT event!

Showing off their Ell creations
Virginia got in the act with her own Ell (Donna took the pic)
More dollmakers!

BOOK SOUP

Happy President’s Day to all who are enjoying an extra day of rest...or shopping!

You know how you make soup from lots of good stuff that’s leftover in the refrigerator. We do. Soup is a major food group, especially when we’re writing. Well, we’ve got a bunch of juicy tidbits to share, while you have a few extras moments to check ‘em out, so here goes :

First, thanks to Connie Briscoe who has included us among her interviewees at
Connie Briscoe Presents — Page One –our Q&A is posted now.


And in honor of Black History Month, some of your favorite authors are being featured on two websites:

www.Apooo.org
“29 Days of Wit, Wisdom and Perspective”
During the month of February, join us as each day we will spotlight a different author and recognize their contribution to African American Literature.

www.EDC-Creations.com Celebrating African-American History- It's Authors, Poets, and Leaders - Welcome
SLS Black History Month Online Book Fair
“Vision Driven by Some Higher Power”
February 1-29, 2008
Event entirely ONLINE
In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.Martin Luther King
Get Started with the Book Fair by clicking this linkhttp://edc1creations.squarespace.com/how-online-book-fair-worksNightly Panel

Discussions with Featured AuthorsBlack Authors Network Internet Radiohttp://www.blogtalkradio.com/Black-Author-NetworkListener dial-in number (646) 200-0402Chat live in the BAN Black Author Network BlogTalk Chat room

And our friend Eisa’s Blog, http://eisaulen.com/blog/ features two posts about writing awards from Go On Girl! Book Club—

They are sponsoring a fiction competition for unpublished writers with a hefty $500 prize. The postmark deadline is March 15, 2008. The other award is a $500 scholarship for an aspiring writer. Application details are on the blog. Sounds like a great opportunity!

Go On Girl! Book Club was founded in 1990 and now has 30 chapters around the country. We were fortunate enough to receive their New Author of the Year award for Tryin’ to Sleep in the Bed You Made in 1998.

OK—enough for now. We don’t want to take up the whole day. Later in the week we’ll share another bowl full—more photos from book tour, and more items of interest.
By the way, thanks for all of you who have watched our video on YouTube ( http://youtube.com/watch?v=W7zB01MdqEE)—we have almost a thousand views!!! Please tell all your friends to take a peek there, on deberryandgrant.com or bookvideos.tv. If you haven’t had a chance, and you find yourself with a spare 2 minutes and 21 seconds, please give us a peek—it’s a quickie look at where we write and how.

US on YOUTUBE

Do book/author videos matter? Do they affect your decision to buy/read a particular author?

ON THE ROAD AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So...this is it! We’re about to head off on the Gotta Keep on Tryin’ tour, which means that our blog may not be the regular Monday and Thursdays it has been for the past several months. Mostly because nothing about our existence on the road will be regular. We’re veterans at this tour thing—this makes number six—but, like writing, it doesn’t get any easier. Seventeen signings, in eleven cities in eleven days—and that doesn’t count radio and/or TV interviews which pop up in between events—so you can see we’ll be pretty busy. And we usually reach a point near the end—maybe around city number eight or nine—when we wake up in a hotel and have no idea what city we’re in. We find the phone book and, “about town” guide very helpful then! Not that we’re complaining. We always have a good time traveling together, and the best fun is talking to readers we have come to know, and meeting new folks along the way.

BUT we have been asked by many of you if we’ll keep you updated with what’s happening while we are traveling. So we’re taking laptop, digital camera and BlackBerry— and we’re really gonna Keep Tryin’ to post. Our notes may be shorter than usual, but we’re sure they’ll be fun— anything and everything can happen along the way!

We hope to meet many of you as we visit some of our favorite cities and booksellers, and go to some places we’ve never been before—like Sacramento, CA and Columbia, SC! Our tour schedule is listed on our website--deberryandgrant.com and on myspace.com/twomindsfull.

Remember, Gotta Keep on Tryin’ is available now—in a variety of formats—Regular Ol’ book, e-Book, Kindle reader, audio tape, mp3, cd, audio digital download—and wherever—online retailer, national chain bookstores, independent booksellers, member warehouse retailers, as well as discount retailers—however you like to get your read on.!

We thank you. We love you. We especially appreciate you for supporting what we do!

Next post from California?!!!!!

Gotta Launch Party Photos

On January 7, 2008 we had a launch party for Gotta Keep on Tryin' and about 150 friends, family and fans of our work at Makeda Ethiopian Restaurant, in New Brunswick, NJ. We had a ball and partied until the wee hours--on a Monday no less.
P.S. The AMAZING cake was a gift from our dentist!!

Cover Girls! OK--- Cover Women...

We are thrilled to be on the January cover of the Black Expressions Book Club magazine--so we're sharing. And we know it's a little crooked, but it's the best we could do!

DEADLINE DIARRHEA

OK—so you know we’re finishing another book right? Well yesterday was our deadline. We could tell, because we both had a case of deadline diarrhea. Still don’t know how it happens. It was nothing we ate. Well there’s stress and tension and pressure and no sleep, but that doesn’t count, does it? So there we were, writing and wearing a path from the office to the bathrooms—fortunately there are two of them. There were intermittent hives too—at the moment Virginia’s got a lovely one, right between the eyes.

You really thinks it’s all under control, and damn, by the sixth book we should be used to it. Then you get that rumbling in the gut and nobody should stand in your way.

But we lived through the day—in large part because our editor doesn’t need the book until Friday. So we took several deep breaths, regrouped—even took a little nap. We’re still at the machine today but some of the hysteria has passed—at least until tomorrow.