October 2022 Newsletter 👻🎃
/Happy Halloween, dear readers!
My trip to California did not go entirely to plan. However, there were some bright spots, including an unexpected family reunion!
And I was able to keep some important plans afloat. My fabulous friend, critique partner and NYT bestselling author Pintip Dunn flew cross-country to stay with me for a few days. We are total foodies and sampled dishes from no less than five restaurants in Sawtelle Japantown, near Santa Monica. In one day. My faves were tacos from Sonorita’s and mouthwatering matcha layer cake.
We topped off our stay with a trip to - where else? - a bookshop! We found our books on the shelves at the Barnes & Noble’s Manhattan Beach store and the staff kindly let us sign some copies. Let me tell you, it was a dream come true to see Under the Milky Way in a bookstore in the US. And to have Pintip by my side for that made it even more special!
Top left: Me and Pintip at Barnes & Noble, Manhattan Beach.
Bottom right: In August I dropped in at Harry Hartog Bookseller in Marrickville (Sydney) and signed a six copies of UTMW. All of them have since been sold…
I also kept my date with destiny - aka an outdoor Duran Duran gig at the Hollywood Bowl. It’s no secret Duran Duran is my favourite band. Their songs feature in Under the Milky Way, so I sent them a copy of the book last year. They played all but one of the songs in the book. When lead singer Simon Le Bon uttered the words “under the Milky Way,” I nearly fainted. Okay, he was talking about how lovely it was to be literally under the stars, but still… I want to believe the band did read my book. 😆
Larger than life. Duran Duran at the Hollywood Bowl, September 11, 2022.
Fireworks under the Milky Way during the finale song, ‘Rio’.
Time for me to head off and prepare for Halloween (ie. buy loads of snack-size lollies). If you or someone you know is looking for a Halloween read, why not try Under the Milky Way for your fix of aliens in disguise? Paperback and e-book buy links are on my site here. Or if friendly ghosts are more your thing, This Is Your Afterlife has you covered.
Until next time, take good care of yourselves!
x Vanessa
What I’m Reading Now:
One Woman’s War by Christine Wells. This WWII historical tells the story of Victoire Bennett, the woman who inspired the Miss Moneypenny character in Ian Fleming’s James Bond universe. Brilliant writing - do go out and grab it!