Books & Brews in the Land of Love.

Last fall, Lisa and I discovered this cute little pub in Loveland that is set back off a public parking lot and an old school alleyway called the Sky Bear Brewery & Pub.

Lunch at the Sky Bear Pub – The Wise Novelist

It was perfect for me because it served non-alcoholic beverages and vegetarian burgers. It was an especially cool experience for me because I hadn’t actually found a fake beer that made me feel – by its taste -like I was having the real thing.

However, SB’s home-brewed blond IPA changed all that.

So back in December, Lisa noticed on one the SB’s table cards, that they dedicate certain nights to certain events – like trivia night and comedy night – and that one of those nights was for the SB Book Club. So, I enquired about it at the bar and when I got to the point in the conversation where I mentioned I was local writer the hostess, Abigail, said that they had a local writer appear at one of their book club meetups in the past and would I be interested in doing the same.

She booked me in for February the following year – in fact it’s tonight.

The good news is that this will all about their book club – the members bring in books they want to talk about and donate to the SB library – and I will just be a guest writer who can play meet and greet if anyone is interested. I don’t have to sell books, but I will answer any questions about my books that any of the attendees have and will inscribe any of my books put in front of me. I’ll have a copy of TWA with me just in case someone wants me to read.

No pressure.

I really hate selling my own books. Always have. It’s actually better for me if my readers buy it from Amazon. I would much rather talk with people who already have read my books and share the process and back story. Like when I met Jasper in LA.

Thank You LA – And Jasper! – The Wise Novelist

The best thing about the upcoming event is that I will be in a room full of people – mostly women because men don’t read – who like to read books and also like to drink. As anyone who knows me will tell you, I love “interacting” with women. Tonight, I will be the domesticated fox in the hen house.

Now, of course, there is no guaranty anyone is going to show up tonight beyond the regulars that want to be left alone to have a private drink in their local. I’ll respect that. I’ll have my alcohol-free blond IPA and a veggie burger and call it an early night. But I know that even if the book club members have not read any of my books and come by just to rubberneck, I’ll take it as a personal challenge to make them crave The Claire Saga before they leave.

Now, I had to make sure that tonight’s 6 pm start off time didn’t put me at a disadvantage given my East Coast sleeping patterns, so last night I forced myself to stay up late – 9:30ish – and watch a cool Netflix documentary about a group of artists in Rhode Island that built a secret apartment in a huge Shopping Mall. Then, this morning, when I woke at 2ish,

I went out with the Beagle Brothers and got some grounding & tree hugging in and then forced myself back to bed and tried to get some more sleep. I finally climbed out of bed around 5:30, knowing that I did slip in and out of some dreams during the added 3 hours. Should get me through tonight.

Well, enough about tonight, we – my fine, five readers – have another Tuesday to get through, but thank God, Monday is again in your rearview mirrors. Bang out that office work. Contribute to the public good. Take solace in the fact that the weekend is now one day closer.

I need to make my rounds. Then go through my books to make sure I remember what’s in them.

And no matter what else we get up to, let us make today a great one.