Loving the Small Things

Grandpa Lymon and June Bug
Grandpa Lymon ran a store because he loved to socialize with folks.

As you may know I have a book coming out this winter.  The Adventures of June Bug Johnson is the result of many years of hearing, collecting, and embellishing funny stories.  Writing this book was a labor of fun, the editing and other things that followed were more a labor of love.

Emotionally, I feel like this book ought to be the center of literary universe; it is almost like seeing your child do well.  Other writers may feel differently, but I have become deeply invested in these stories.  In my mind I know this book is no Gone With the Wind, Great Expectations, or That Hideous Strength but that doesn’t change the way I feel.

The problem is that as a no-name author of a collection of funny stories the well-read world of fine literature is not beating my door down asking for interviews, movie rights or book signings.  I would love to have Barnes and Noble or Books-a-Million sign me to a book tour that would guarantee large turnouts at every store.  So far, I have not been able to get past their phone tree and talk to a live person.

I am, however, booking tours, and so far there are no events scheduled at major players in the book industry.  For example, my first retail outlet event is at a gift shop/drug store in a little town in a rural county.  This county is so rural there is only one traffic light in the whole county.  This store still delivers drop orders, the pharmacist calls customers by their first name, the clerk at the cash register chats with folks about their kids, grand kids, and great grand kids.  It is the kind of place where the heart is larger than the numbers.

While I would certainly like to book an event that would sell 500 copies, I think I will enjoy a casual, easygoing afternoon in a small town, drug store more.  This is a book about stories, with one of the central characters being a storekeeper name Grandpa Lymon (pronounced Lemon) who runs a small community store.  It is about being a part of a caring community and the relationship that guide us through life. 

From chapter one about the worst Klan rally ever:

Lymon felt that the real value of a store was the friendship between the customer and the shopkeeper.  He would treat a man with a $75 order no different than a child buying a penny candy, except that he would occasionally give the candy away.    Lymon loved people and the general store was just a way to be around people.  When taking an order he would let folks talk as long as they needed; both by disposition and habit, he did not rush.  Among the shelves of canned meats, chewing tobacco, string, pistol and rifle cartridges, the one thing folks came for most was the friendship. 

I believe Grandpa Lymon would be right proud that I am launching this book tour at a store in a small community where people are what matter most.  I may end up doing a book signing at a major outlet, but the chances of making a long-term friend  are much better in a small store than in a book signing frenzy.  So, I am going to make a point of loving the small things.

If you want to schedule a book signing for you event large or small email me dirently or go to the book’s website www.JuneBugJohnson.com, look around, and drop me a note.