Packing my Author Talk Bag

I've been busy this week thinking about what I need for my Author Talk travel bag. Not that I'm traveling very far - four miles exactly to the England Run Branch Library, but I still need to tend to the details to make my presentation, whether there are three people or thirty, carefully thought out. 

I packed books, of course. Not a lot, but enough, and I will have more in the trunk of my car . . . just in case. I have a money bag with change, a zip lock bag with several pens, a small bottled water, and a stack of business cards. I am in the process of running off my handout, though I am only making ten copies.

I packed a lined pad in case I have more takers than handouts so that I can send the PDF of the handout via email to those who weren't able to get a paper copy.  

I will pop in a holder for a copy of my book and print out the price. 

Writers are always reminded to show, don't tell, and so I will have several props to use during my talk. Those are still downstairs where I practice my presentation. And each time I practice it I think of more things to share with my audience. Sigh. I'm only given an hour! And by that time those in attendance will want more of the Friends of the LIbrary's delicious refreshments. I need to stop adding!!

The last page of my handout is my writing toolbox. I certainly have used many more books than is listed here, but these are the special ones I keep close. 

My goal for the afternoon is to encourage everyone to write their story. If I can do it so can they. I hope I'm successful. 

My Writing Toolbox

George, Elizabeth, Write Away. Harper Collins, New York, NY, 2004.

King, Stephen, On Writing; A memoir of the Craft. Scribner, New York, 2000.

Lamott, Anne, Bird by Bird. Anchor Books, New York, 1994.

Mills, Elizabeth Shown, Evidence Explained; Citing history sources form artifacts to cyberspace. Genealogical Publishing Company, Baltimore, MD, 2009.

Provost, Gary, Make Your Words Work. Writers Digest Books, Cincinnati, Ohio, 1990.

Roberts, Gillian, You Can Write a Mystery. Writers Digest Books, Cincinnati, Ohio, 1999.

Stone, Todd A., Novelist’s Boot Camp; 101 Ways to take your book from Boring to Bestseller. Writer’s Digest Books, Cincinnati, Ohio, 2006.

The Chicago Manual of Style, The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL. 14^th Edition, 1993.

Writer’s Digest – Subscribe to get all the latest information on writing process, finding agents, best websites, and unlimited how-to’s for writing.  [http://subscriptions.writersdigest.com/Writers-Digest/Magazine]

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