Tell us how you learned about this festival?
I learned
of Beachfront Authorfest in Lake Geneva from a friend at the library. I find
festivals by following the libraries in my area on their websites and Facebook
pages. Now I am on their email list for upcoming events.
Pre-pandemic, I went in to local bookstores and libraries and donated copies of my books, and asked if I might make presentations and signings. I’ve done several.
What’s
your strategy for talking to festival attendees?
Always
have large stacks of books and have a copy upside down so they can read the
back. I say “hi” but try not to be pushy with a hard sell. I suggest having a
short “elevator speech” prepared. Mine is “The book is about my friend’s dog
who was lost in Yellowstone for 44 days.” If they respond, I tell them a little
more. Otherwise, if they move on I wish them a nice day.
I also believe in props. I have a life-sized stuffed “Jadette” who draws considerable attention. At one event, Cookies with Santa, a toddler dog-napped Jade’s body double. We all had quite the chuckle…and I did sell all of the books I brought.
What is
your favorite aspect of participating in Authorfest?
Where to begin? I love the location, with beautiful Geneva Lake in view. There’s lots of foot traffic, and people are there to have fun and usually in a good mood. Meeting other authors and fans is great…as long as they don’t dog-nap Jadette.
The Friends of the Lake Geneva Library and Breadloaf Books invite area authors to Beachside Authorfest 2021!
Saturday,
July 10, 2021
10:00 AM –
4:00 PM
Surrounding
the Lake Geneva Public Library
918 W Main
Street, Lake Geneva, WI
RAIN OR
SHINE!
After years in the software industry, my husband Paul and I abandoned our successful careers and
bought a converted 1906 Dutch barge, Imagine. We established a boat charter business, Barge and Breakfast, and cruised the European waterways for ten adventure-filled years. I wrote and indie published Just Imagine: A New Life on an Old Boat, the true story of our first-year adventures—and misadventures—as we journeyed from Holland to Burgundy, France.
I’ve written two of my three-novel Dairyland Series. I recently completed Sconnie, which was a finalist in the RWA SWFL Joyce Henderson contest in the Romantic Suspense category.
Bring Jade Home: The True Story of a Dog Lost in Yellowstone, published by Farcountry Press, was my first narrative non-fiction book. My picture book, Jade—Lost in Yellowstone, received the Creative Child Magazine 2020 Book of the Year Award and is the recipient of The Dog Writer’s Association First Place Award for Children’s Early Reader 2020. I recently completed a young reader chapter book for the 8-12-year-old reading level in the series.
I am a member of RWA, the Wisconsin Writer’s Association, former attendee of the Writer’s Institute of the UW, and take part annually in Lake Geneva Library’s Authorfest by the Beach.
My husband Paul and I currently live in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. When not on the water, I enjoy reading and am addicted to knitting. Both of us love to cook, especially French food.
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