Sarah E. Moffett

Buzz

Alexandria, Virginia

Week Four

Book tour is wonderful. I LOVE book tour.  It makes me so happy to be on book tour.

[Yes, I’ve read Ann Patchett’s book tour journal and am shamelessly following her lead.  Hopefully my experiences will not include being skunked though.]

May 2, I pulled up in front of Buzz, the latest installment in the Neighborhood Restaurant Group’s genius holdings in NOVA.  An urban eclectic coffeehouse with high ceilings, an open air feel, and a pastry chef that would’ve been the envy of Louis XIV, it is a multi-award-review-winning establishment.  It also happens to be the sister location of Rustico, my personal “Cheers.”  Seeing as it is easier to hold a book event in a coffeehouse rather than a restaurant with 250 beers, Buzz was an easy choice.

Whether it was because I owe Rustico rent or because the managers have great pity on local “budding” artists, Buzz had zealously promoted the book with considerable individual book sales over the previous six weeks.  Consequently, it was no surprise that when I arrived there were several people in the coffee shop.

So many in fact, I only needed one hand to count them on.  To be exact, there were approximately 5 people present.  Two were managers, one was me, and one was a faithful friend.  I’m fairly certain the fifth was an unsuspecting bystander.  We delayed starting in favor of consuming caffeinated beverages.  Did I mention how much I LOVE book tour?

Then I learned one of the greatest lessons of book tour.  Wait thirty minutes.  By 7:30, we were in double digits and being asked by various patrons why we had not started yet.  Apparently our delayed beginnings threw off their fashionably late entrances.  Nice.

Rocky beginnings aside, it was quite possibly the best book event to date.  Several people attended who informed me afterwards that they had marked it on their calendar weeks in advance to be present for either personal or literary reasons.  Old friends and older colleagues appeared to share in the book’s debut and make offers to pass it along to others.  Questions were asked that I had not even contemplated, and the collective feel was personal and real.  It was memorable.  It was amazing.

And afterwards, Buzz’s manager, one of the book tour bridesmaids, and I walked across the street to Rustico to close the place down with slightly less caffeinated drinks and significantly more loaded variations.  We laughed about life and talked about anything besides the book.  It was lovely.

It was a good night to be an author.

[Listening to Sinatra.]

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