A Special Stop on the CT Authors Trail

By Liz, loving the warm weather here in New England!

I have the honor this year of being invited to speak on the Connecticut Authors Trail. The trail is a consortium of libraries in eastern Connecticut that showcases local authors. My spot is on August 13 at the Jonathan Trumbull Library in Lebanon, near where I used to live.

This is special for a couple reasons. First, being on the authors trail is kind of surreal. I participated a few years ago also, and the kick-off author was none other than the amazing Wally Lamb, who lives near my old town. I remember going to see him on the first night of the trail in Franklin, another little tiny town nearby, and telling him that I was also part of the event. It was the first time I got to speak to him one-on-one, and he was so supportive and encouraging. I remember that year feeling a bit awestruck, and of course worrying that I had to be really, really good to follow someone like Wally Lamb.

Of course, there’s no comparison – I mean, he’s Wally Lamb – and if you’ve never seen him speak, you should. Not only is he a lovely speaker, he’s one of those authors who reads his own work extremely well, which is so not a talent of mine. But I digress. The point I’m trying to make is that to be recognized like this, twice, is pretty amazing, and I’m so grateful.

The second reason it’s special is because Lebanon is one of the towns on which I modeled Frog Ledge, the town in my Pawsitively Organic Mysteries. It’s the town with the real town green where Stan’s house is. Just like in real life, the library sits at the tip of the green. And it’s the place where Shaggy and I walked so many times over the years.

And out of all those years, I’ve never actually spoken at this library. My first time on the authors trail, I participated at the library in my little town next door in South Windham. So this will be a first, and bittersweet at that – when I got the invitation, my first instinct was to ask if Shaggy could come, then I remembered.

Of course, she’ll be there in spirit.

It’s a perfect tribute to her, I think, and to so much of the time we spent together, and I’m so looking forward to it.

If you’re in Connecticut, make sure you check out the trail and support some local authors. I promise, it’s a lot of fun.

Readers, any author events you’re looking forward to this year? Leave a comment below.