Venezuela. Czech Republic. Peru. Mexico. Canada. Japan. Several of the United States. And those are only the ones I’ve been told about. People have sent me pictures of themselves reading my book, Over My Shoulder, from all over the world. And, I’m thankful for the opportunity to be packed in a suitcase and flown to places I’ve never been before.
Authors have gained an incredible amount of respect from me in this season of my life. I knew the writing of the book would be a lot of work, but had no idea how much time and energy would go into the launch process. The past two months since the book was released at the end of March have been so full. I’m happy to finally be home with my family, who have cheered me on while attempting to maintain a somewhat normal life while I’ve been away. I have never been away from our kids as much as I have over the past few weeks. My mom heart is so happy to be home, filling their Love Buckets.
Feedback about Over My Shoulder has been incredibly positive, which is encouraging when handing your deepest, most intimate feelings and experiences to the world. I have been told several times, “Thank you for writing this book”. I never did write it to receive a thank you, but to let the words and vulnerability offer hope to a struggling person. With two shootings happening in the last few weeks, it seems hope and belief that good can come from these tragic events is difficult to find.
I cried sloppy, happy tears the day the book arrived in print on my front porch. Four and half years of writing, sleepless nights, and several rounds of editing had finally turned into a real book. I’m excited to share some of the highlights from the book launch:
*CBS ‘Note to Self’-I was incredibly honored to be invited to participate on this very special program. I was flown to NYC to spend 6 hours in production of this show that focused on the 20th Anniversary of Columbine. Oprah, Joe Biden, Gisele Bundchen are just a few of the people who have contributed to this show in the past. What an honor. CBS did a beautiful job. Take a look on the link in blue.
*Talks at Google-Again, knowing the list of people who have contributed to a Google Talk left me feeling humbled. Google hosted my family and me at their offices in Boulder, CO. Wow! Their workplace is amazing. The final result of the taping will be on the Google Talks YouTube channel in the next few weeks.
*Book Signings-These events are so FUN! I’ve been hosted in coffee shops and book stores. I love meeting new people, sharing a few words about my book, signing copies and connecting with others as we share stories. It is still surreal for me that anyone might want my autograph, but I have more fun writing notes of encouragement to the people I meet. FYI…you wouldn’t believe the many ways you can spell names. Ha. After making the mistake of assuming the name was spelled ‘Emily’, I was taught that ‘Emmaleigh’ is appropriate as well. Now I ask how to spell ALL names!
*The Sun-I had the most wonderful conversation with a representative of this UK News Program. They provided a wonderful article https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/8879846/columbine-shooting-anniversary-survivor-relives-pain-massacre/
*Anne Trujillo with Denver7-Anne has been a part of the healing process for all of the twenty years since Columbine. I was privileged to care for her father during his battle with cancer. She has interviewed me several times, and is always classy and respectful. https://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/politics-unplugged
*I am unable to count how many interviews and presentations I have given over the last two months. Here are a few you can check out:
https://craigsilverman.podbean.com/e/the-craig-silverman-show-%E2%80%93-april-13th-2019-hr-3/
https://www.newsobserver.com/living/article229347334.html
https://www.foxnews.com/us/columbine-shooting-survivors-reflect-on-attack
Thank you to everyone for spreading the word and encouraging our family along this new journey of author life. Please, let me know if my face on the cover makes it any other new places around the world! And, if you feel so moved, I would love to read your review of Over My Shoulder here.