60 Weeks of Gratitude - Week 17
It has been a whole summer and I have not had the heart to write. I have realized that I wrote mostly for my mom. I would think of her on the day when I had something to say, opening her computer to find a new post like it was a letter addressed to her. Since she died, I haven't had any energy to put into words. It has been a struggle.
So, imagine my surprise, when I came home from an event last Saturday afternoon and had words I wanted to say. Not a lot of words, but a few. I know I have said before how grateful I am for the Hometown Writer's Association, but it really came into focus for me last weekend. I joined the 2nd Annual Sharpsburg Book Fest with many inspiring authors. On Friday night HNWA hosted a spaghetti dinner to benefit Coweta First Readers, a local organization that provides book to children from birth to pre-school with the hope of instilling a love of reading from the very beginning. What started out as a small group of writers presenting their work to local audiences has certainly grown. Mike Brown and the board have done an amazing job of transitioning the group into a tried and true organization. I sold several books and swapped a few. My to-be-read stack grew.
I didn't catch pictures of everybody, but I made an effort. I borrowed a few from Chellie Phillips who caught more of the outside event than I did. Mike Brown, Sharon Marchisella, Scott Ludwig, Tim Riordin, Donna Black, and many more of the HNWA crew were present, as well as guests from further afield. They are indeed the most supportive and encouraging of people. My daughter came along and manned our table so I could walk around and get my fill of talking with like-minded folks.
We had new faces and old faces. We had true crime, cozy mystery, memoir, mobsters, humor, mystery, suspense, war, children's, and coming of age. It was an incredible representation.
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