Peerless Book Store

Saturday, after we left Michele and Jeff for their trip to the mountains, we did a little shopping in an antique mall in Decatur, then headed over to Peerless Book Store for my signing. Carole met up with an old friend who had moved there and they also headed up to the mountains to visit a winery. So I settled in to my space for the singing event and waited for the customers.

Peerless Book Store is a brand new store. I arrived just in time for the first week mark. In fact, the shop is not even 100% set up, but was neat and clean and functional for my arrival. Best of all, they already have a good customer base, with many seemingly already loyal readers popping in to say hello and buy some books all during my time there.

I mainly do signings at the big box stores. And of course those are being reduced by the anemic economy and the results of years of competition between mass retailers. While I enjoy signing at all shops, I especially like to do events at smaller, independent shops like Peerless Book Store. I find the staff to be especially helpful and friendly, and eager to work hard to make a book sell better. Peerless Books was just such a place.

Sign at the entrance of the store.

The storefront of Peerless Book Store.

Am I famous yet?

I'm not? Those are copies of THE FLOCK in that window!!!

Some of the friendly folk at Peerless.

The author rests at the signature table.

The great publicity folk at Tor Books sent Peerless this cool foam board standee.

Carole's friend Michele who moved from the Charlotte area to the Atlanta area. She was kind enough to buy an autographed copy of the novel.

I hadn't seen my niece Leslie in many, many years. So she came to the signing and brought her aptly named son Chase and her sweet daughter Megan to the shop.

After the signing event we drove toward Kennesaw where Leslie lives and hooked up with them to eat dinner at Carabba's. I got to meet her husband, Mark Harris, whom I'd never met. Everyone was great!

Atlanta Signing, Atlanta Family

Carole and I headed off Friday morning to Atlanta. We had arranged to stay at the home of my niece Michele and her husband Jeff (and their dog, Petunia). Carole and I spent the first part of the day visiting my old neighborhood of Oakhurst and walking around downtown Decatur. But then we headed over to see Michele and Jeff. We also made plans to have dinner so that all of us could link up with Michele's older brother Shane (named after the title character of the film version of SHANE).

I had not seen Michele in decades, and had never met her husband. Michele has grown into a sweet and beautiful woman and her husband Jeff is a very nice fellow. They both work for the Federal government in downtown Atlanta. And for you WALKING DEAD fans, some of the scenes were filmed behind the building where Michele works!

They have a very nice house in Tucker in a neighborhood with many great trees. One thing that I had forgotten about living in the Atlanta area is that it is home to vast numbers of grand old trees. Someone needs to write a book or pamphlet on the groves and individual great trees of the Atlanta area.

Where Michele and Jeff live. Nice big house!

We all link up and head over to The Farmstead in downtown Decatur!

Shane, Jeff, and Michele standing for a quick photo. Well, Shane was squatting down--he's really tall.

My niece Michele, me, Carole, and my nephew Shane.

The Farmstead is in a converted train depot. Very cool place! Good food, too!

And the next day, off to Peerless Book Store to work to make sure I can do this gig long-term. More on that tomorrow.