Two Author Signing Events Upcoming

I have two author signing activities in the near future. The first is a multi-author event sponsored by the Kansas City, Kansas, Public Library. That will be Saturday, Feb. 27 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the West Wyandotte Library, 1737 N 82nd Ave in KCK. Details here. They have also arranged for authors to read briefly from their works and I'll be reading from the intro of Crazy About You. Public reading and speaking has become a real challenge for me. I get extremely nervous in front of a group, but I've managed to pull it off in the past. My time slot to read is 10:10 a.m., shortly after the event opens.

My fiction is a smorgasbord of various genres from literary to comedy to mystery to thriller to science fiction. It's been difficult for me to find my brand but recently a reviewer wrote the following which I much appreciated:

Each book by Attwood has shared one common thread--his gift for creating a cast of diverse and interesting characters, and then weaving their lives together in a plausible, realistic series of events toward the most unpredictable and so often amazing outcomes.

The second event will be setting up my book display at Behind the Vintage Door March 4,5 for First Friday weekend activities at 1222 West 12th, KCMO, in what is known in these parts as the West Bottoms. I had a great time there last month and the foot traffic was excellent. I meet a lot of great people and sold books to diverse readers. The area is sprinkled with antique shops and flea markets and First Friday brings out the crowds and is a destination stop for gal-pal outings. There are plenty of food trucks for snacks and lunch. I'll be there by 10 a.m. both that Friday and Saturday.

I always like to publicly thank KC photographer Roy Inman for the black and white photo he took of me in my writing space. I've gotten a lot of use from it as you've seen above.

February 14 and Love is in the Air

How's this for a quick way to send a gift to your valentine? Go to Amazon and you'll see how easy it is to send an ebook. All you need is your valentine's email address. Among the buying options near the bottom you'll see a bar that reads "Give as a Gift." All under $5.

Here are those among my offerings that depend on a love story in their plots.

First the novels:

Heart Chants: Former foreign newspaper correspondent Phil McGuire has love drop into his lap in the most unexpected of ways. But will he be able keep her when her country, China, beckons her home?

From Heart Chants: 

Those special moments with a woman: the first kiss, the first caress, the first penetration. Each an individual cherished sweetness.

Crazy About You: Brad is a junior in high school when hormones get mixed with compassion and empathy overcomes reason. 

From Crazy About You:

Where were the definitions and axioms and corollaries that would order the geometry of my feelings into some sort of a figure I could look at and understand and accept? Where was the E=MC squared of my life? Freud tried to come close with his id, ego, and superego. But he never came up with a formula. I think he made it too difficult. I think it all has to do with sex, fear, and love. Love of sex and fear of sex. Love of love and fear of love. Fear of fear and love of fear. Love of success and fear of success. Fear of failure and love of failure. Sex as a sign of success. Sex as a sign of love. Sex as a way of overcoming fear. Heck, Einstein had had it easy.

Then and Now: The Harmony of the Instantaneous All: Stan Nelson is trapped in the 1960s and the girl he lost then during the tumultuous spring of 1970 on the campus of The University of Kansas.

From Then and Now: 

"And when did you fall in love with me?" she leaned back in my arms after the kiss and asked.

"I woke up with it the morning after I met you."

Novella:

One More Victim: The whole story revolves around a childhood love lost and then recovered.

From One More Victim: 

Her face at that moment is still the sweetest vision I have ever seen. It was full of yearning, yet already satisfied. Her complexion mirrored the innocence of her heart, untouched yet by the cruelty of the world and the far greater cruelty of our expectations for ourselves in that world. She opened her eyes and leaned her forehead to rest against my lips. I whispered her name as though it were magic. We were in another world.