Thursday, April 18, 2013

London Book Fair 2013...an author's point of view

The Emirates Airline Literary Festival Team
This morning I am relaxing, just a little. The past two days I have been enjoying the madness that is London Book Fair. On Monday I was there just to soak up the atmosphere...but of course I immediately bumped into friends.
Immogen Howsen and Lynne Connolly at the Samhain stand

I wandered around bumping into friends and I was lucky enough to catch Patrick Brown of Goodreads talking in the AuthorLounge his presentation is here. There is so much to learn. While in the author lounge I bumped into Sue Fortin and Linn B Halton.
Carole Blake ready for the second day of London Book Fair to begin

Day two had a plan. I was meeting spending the morning meeting my editors from Germany, Holland, Portugal and Norway. I was given a table just behind my agent Carole Blake to share with Peter James (yes, esteemed company except that Pater ending up holding his meeting in the The Ivy Club!)
Pater James and Carole Blake
It was fabulous to met my editors and find out how the sales are going and if there was anything I could do to help sales. It's very frustrating to not be able to help...However the good news was that The Cornish House aka Sterne Uber Cornwall, A Casa Dos Sonhos, Sterren Boven Cornwall and Stjerner over Cornwall is doing very well!

Meetings over I set out into the fair and bumped into two agents...Jane Judd and Broo Doherty then caught up with Julia Williams and her twin sister Virginia and a relaxed lunch before braving the fair again.

Saying farewell to them I found the Choc Lit stand and shared a chocolate with Sue Moorcroft and Pia Christina Courtenay. Then the amazing Victoria Lamb appeared...she had left her coat in The Ivy Club so while collecting it with her we had a glass of champagne...


While exploring the Orion stand I bumped into Kate Mosse and the Emirates Airlines Literary Festival Team plus Rose Prince...just love name dropping...then fortunately I saw Annabel Kantaria from Dubai who won the Montegrappa First Fiction competition at the Emirates Airlines Literary Festival. I tagged along and found myself in The Ivy Club again...

Isobel Abulhoul, Luigi Bonomi, Annabel Kantaria and Yvette Judge
And who did we find in The Ivy Club...
Luigi Bonomi, Peter James, Isobel Abulhoul and Liz Fenwick
After catching up it was a mad dash to attend the launch of the campaign to save bookstores BOOKS ARE MY BAG. Lord Saatchi opened the launch...
Lord Saatchi
The simplicity of the campaign was explained...Everyone can carry the poster BOOKS ARE MY BAG...the campaign officially begins on September 14th but the bags were the most coveted item of the London Book Fair...

I have mine but I also have a spare...so leave a comment here by May 2nd and I'll send you the BOOKS ARE MY BAG bag and a signed copy of The Cornish House to go into it.... Do any of my writer friends want to add there book to the bag for the winner?

NOTE: The bag now contains more books... A Clash of Innocents by Sue Guinney and Home for Christmas by Cally Taylor

Finally here's the link to my radio chat about books on Sunday the 15th of April with Geordie Bird on Dubai 92 here. The book discussion begins about four minutes in...I discuss the charts and what in my to be read pile...

52 comments:

Bookish Dubai said...

Choose Me .. Me !! Pweaseee *_* @BookishDubai xD

Jan Jones said...

Looks a great couple of days, Liz!

Unknown said...

Bookish your names goes into the hat! And so does yours Jan & it was wonderful...exhausting but bliss at the same time!
lx

Liz Harris said...

I was so sorry to miss the Book Fair this year. I'd planned to come on the Tuesday, meeting up with Henriette Gyland, but circumstances prevented me. So depressing. It looks to have been good fun.

Liz X

Unknown said...

Hi Liz, I thought you were supposed to be there and thought I'd just missed you...

Hope all is ok
lx

Alison Morton said...

Sorry to have missed you, Liz, on Tueday (I was there Tues and Wed) but I love the photos you took!

It *is* a powerful and buzzing event and I thoroughly enjoyed by two days on my publisher's stand.

Lovely also to have pinched a couple of chocolates while talking to Christina Courtenay, Sue Moorcroft and Henri Gylland. And as for Victorai Lamb, am highly disappointed she preferred to slurp champagne with you to having a cuppa with me ;-)

Thank you for this lively description - see you at the RNA Conference!

Carol Warham said...

You leave me breathless, you really do have some energy. Thanks for a glimpse of the book fair, I need to put it on my list. Hope the festival goes well, good luck with your talk.

Sue Guiney said...

Hi! I haven't been to the book fair in a few years. I really should put it back on my list. I'm glad you had such a good time. You asked if any authors would like to add their books to your bag...well, count me in. I'd be happy for you to include a copy of A Clash of Innocents in your giveaway. If you'd like me to, just tell me how.

Anita Chapman said...

Sounds like you had a great couple of days Liz! And how nice to bump into so many friendly faces.

Unknown said...

Great place for finding book.
buy cristal champagne

Catherine Miller said...

I've not been to LBF before but from your account it looks like an event I should get to. Of course, at the moment in my heavily pregnant state, I shall enjoy most things by your accounts of them!

Glad you had a great time, Liz.

Catherine x

Pearl Wilson said...

Would love a book bag.. I loved the first book The Cornish house now waiting patiently for the next book in the series.. :-)

Caroline said...

Wow, looks like you had a FAB time, Liz! I love the bag - it's a great message to get through to people. Caroline x

Unknown said...

Alison - sorry to have missed you! As you say the RNA Conference!

Thank you Carol...and it takes excellent vitamins!

Excellent Sue...so the winner will have two books, The Cornish House and A Clash of Innocents to fill their Books Are My Bag bag!

Anita - each year I meet more and more people and the industry begins to feel manageable...

Catherine...your time will come when the bundles of joy are older but until then feet up while you can!

Pearl - thank you...not long to wait now. A Cornish Affair is out in just over a month.

Caroline - I just think the bag is so simple and so right!

lx

Edith said...

Thanks Liz for this visit-by-proxy to the fair! Looks like fun! Some day....... xxx

Unknown said...

Edith - it was an exhausting but brilliant time! Thank goodness it's only once a year!
lx

Daydream Living said...

Hi Liz! I already am a happy owner of a signed book of you, so will keep my eye out for book two! Great that you are doing so well. Are you giving another meet and greet soon? When we met I just arrived in Dubai. Now, 8 months further and I'm loving it! All the best!
Oh, and I would love to win the bag, pretty cool slogan.
Take care,
Maureen xx

Unknown said...

Hi Maureen. How lovely to hear from you. I'm so pleased you are enjoying Dubai life. I am launching A Cornish Affair in Dubai on the 6th of June at Bookworld (Kinokuniya) Dubai Mall... not sure of the time yet but about 18:30ish...please come along.

lx

janenorthcote said...

Hi Liz , what a wonderful campaign and great slogan ! - I love books and bookshops and reusable bags and would love a signed copy of your book to share with my book club :) . Please can you add me to your lucky draw .

What fun being at the Book Fair and seeing Isobel and Yvette .

Best wishes

Jane Northcote

Daydream Living said...

Great! Will see you there the 6th!
Maureen

Unknown said...

Hi Jane - how lovely to 'see' you here!
Lx

Unknown said...

Maureen - I'll confirm timings shortly!
lx

CL Taylor said...

Wow! I've never been to the LBF but, having read your account and Mel Sherratt's I definitely want to go in the future! Would be happy to add a signed copy of Home for Christmas to your bag giveaway. Just drop me a line with the winner's address when you know it, x

Unknown said...

Hi Cally - that's wonderful...Home for Christmas goes into the bag! It's worth going just to see in so many ways....
lx

Karen said...

Sounds like a really interesting visit, and the bag looks great!

Unknown said...

Karen -It was a worthwhile visit!

lx

Jane Smith said...

It looks like you had a fun and productive time at the LBF, Liz. The BOOKS ARE MY BAG initiative is a good one, and I'd love to win one for myself. My fingers are all tightly crossed now, so sorry for any typos!

Matthias Mueller said...

Great campaign, great books and a great author :-) Please put my name into the hat!
@hombre_mediocre

Unknown said...

Jane and Matthais - you're names are in the 'hat'

lx

Anonymous said...

It looks as though you had a great time at the book fair - love the bag! @karendennise

Unknown said...

hi Karen...your name is in the 'hat'!
lx

Heather Musk said...

Hi Liz, it looks like you had a great time at the Book Fair. One day I'll be there I hope. I'll keep working on it.

Plus, the bags look great x

Admin said...

Great post as usual. Please add my name to the bag Liz.

Unknown said...

Heather - it was great if exhausting! Your name is in!

Francine - consider it done!

lx

Deb's Pen Pot said...

As my bookshelves are looking a little anaemic (with only 40-odd unread titles, you understand!), I need to keep the book-blood up, so please add me into the book bag competition...and then the choice for what to read next will be made! Best wishes, Deb x

Unknown said...

Hi Deb - you're name is in the hat!

lx

Tracey Edges said...

Loving the unashamed name-dropping! So pleased for you, Liz. You sound like you are having such a great time x

Unknown said...

Tracey...who me name drop???? But of course!

lx

Anonymous said...

Your descriptions are so vivid I almost feel I was at the LBF... and at the Ivy Club...

Please add my name to the draw for the bag and for the chance of the books - what a great prize!

Very best wishes
Caroline Praed

Unknown said...

With pleasure Caroline!

lx

Janice said...

Hi Liz - I love reading about your glamourous writerly antics and I love it even more when you name drop - lol! What an exciting event the LBF looked and with champagne too. I'd love to be in the draw for the bag and books.
Love, Janice xx

Unknown said...

Hi Janice! Thanks...and your name is in the hat!
lx

Jo Skehan said...

I envy readers located in UK who can get to meet their favourite authors and get signed copies of their latest books....Here in Oz, only a few authors travel to see us, and then of course it's difficult getting a booking to the lunch or whatever, especially when they are usually held in the capital cities. I hope one day to get to one of these book fairs in London to live the dream. xx

Unknown said...

Jo - my fingers are crossed for you...

lx

Landslide said...

I'm not sure if the giveaway is international (I live in Portugal) but if it is, please count me in. The bag is lovely (and it's message is, oh, so true!) and to be able to receive it filled with books would be just perfect!

Thank you for the giveaway.

Unknown said...

Hi Landslide...as I spend most of my time in Dubai...the giveaway is international!

Your name is in the hat!

lx

Georgina Troy said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Georgina Troy said...

I've never been to LBF, but it sounds amazing. Thanks for telling us about your time there and for posting all these pictures.

Please put my name in the hat, too. Thank you.

Unknown said...

Hi Georgina...your name is in the hat!

lx

Ross Mountney said...

Wow! Can't ever imagine getting this far Liz. Amazing - and congratulations! I know what it takes to Just Keep On Writing! x

ftsouthwark said...

Please add me to your comp. that bag of books will be so handy for my hols in July :-)
Diane xx

Unknown said...

Well, A little bit delayed on pulling names from the hat but it's done! And the winner is Janice Horton! Congrats Janice! Email me with your address please!

lx
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