I participated in my first book festival last year. It was a fledgling festival called UntitledTown and took place in Green Bay, about 30 minutes east of where I’m living. I figured I had just as much of a chance as any other author of being accepted into the festival, as organizers were hoping to get dozens of authors and publishers to talk not only to reader but aspiring writers, as well. I got in. It was just a writer’s workshop on that Sunday and participating in a book fair the day before, but it was a chance to get out there and publicize my work.

 

When I got an email from organizers in September that they were starting to solicit pitches for the 2018 UntitledTown, I figured I should go for the gold again, and I wound up overshooting and going platinum. At this year’s festival, I have a solo presentation, I’m doing a panel with the Shawano Area Writers, and I was invited to take part in two other panels.

 

The UntitledTown organizers announced their full lineup this week, which includes acclaimed authors R.L. Stein, Roxanne Gay and Michael Perry. The last one was of particular interest to my sweetheart, Todd, but when he found out that Perry’s presentation is at the same time as mine, it created an awkward moment when he had to choose between the author he admired and the man he loved.

Who do you think won?

Anyhow, here’s when folks can see me at UntitledTown, which runs April 19-22:

• The Shawano Area Writers will be presenting a panel at 6 p.m. April 20 at the Brown County Library, 515 Pine St., Green Bay. I’ll be joining my colleagues, John Mutter, Irma Timmons-Arndt, Dennis Vickers and Terry Misfeldt as we discuss the different paths we’ve taken to become published authors. Between all of us, we’ve written autobiographies, inspirational books, novels and more. We’re all able to call ourselves published authors today, but we didn’t walk the same road to get there, so we’ll be talking about unique experiences in the hopes of encouraging others to get their work published.
• Right after the Writers’ workshop, I’ll be part of a panel that talks about breaking into freelance writing for newspapers and magazines. The panel begins at 7:30 p.m. at the library. Most of the writers on the panel are freelance writers, but I’ve also got some insights, being a newspaper editor, on what you should and shouldn’t do when trying to approach editors about writing pieces for their publications.
• The next panel I’ll be joining will address self-publishing. The panel begins at 2 p.m. April 21, with the venue still to be determined. Until the last few years, most authors only found their audience by convincing a publishing company that their stories are bestsellers. Now, with Amazon and other self-publishing companies, it has become low cost and low hassle to publish your work, but does it yield high profit? There’s only one way to find out.
• My individual presentation comes at 10 a.m. April 22, with the venue to be determined. I’ll be talking about the importance of gay protagonists in books. Growing up, I read stories about valiant princes rescuing princesses or men and women falling in love, but there weren’t too many stories that described someone like me—someone who finds men attractive. As an author, I’ve focused on having main characters who are gay, and I’ll explain why it’s important for gay people to be represented in literature.
• There will also be a book fair running from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on April 21-22, and I’m planning to get a table for at least one of the days, if not both. It works out great because my latest mystery, A Murder Shatters Peaceful Valley, debuts in early April, so I can have fresh material to sell at the festival. Not that the rest of my books aren’t good, mind you.

 

It’s going to be quite a busy time for me, and it shows I’ve come a long way from when I organized my first author event a decade ago—and only two people showed up. I’m eager to make the most of this opportunity at UntitledTown, and I hope folks join me.

 

Of course, if you decide to go see Michael Perry instead, please let Todd know how he was. I’m sure he’ll appreciate it.