No Matter Where I Go Book Launch Party
When I first signed the contract to write a children’s book for B&H, I thought to myself, “I am going to have an awesome book launch party for this book.” The only other time I truly celebrated a book launch was when I self-published An Overwhelming Hope. It felt fitting to celebrate with friends and family after a hard season of grief and loss. But I am learning that we don’t need to feel like celebrating to celebrate. Some things need to be celebrated to commemorate them and recognize their importance, regardless of whether we think it is deserved or worthy.
It felt a little vulnerable to ask my friends and family to celebrate with and for me, but I began to think of it as an opportunity to express my gratitude to everyone who had supported me along the way. I have been writing for my whole life and self-publishing for about 8 years now, but the traditional publishing journey felt like a “big girl” step and was a huge accomplishment (that I can’t take any credit for). I wanted to celebrate in a special way with all of those whom I love and hold dear.
In the months before my book release day, I Googled “How to throw a book launch party,” and the blog post I read said right out of the gate, “Ask for help.” So that’s what I did. My sister from another mister, Malia, had been asking me for a while what I wanted to do for my birthday. I ended up taking the simple route there and went out to dinner with my book club gals, which was absolutely perfect. But with the craziness of May-cember and a book launch thrown in the midst of an already busy month, I wanted help to plan the book launch party of my dreams.
There were three things I wanted for this event (other than all of my friends and family present): charcuterie, fresh flowers, and a custom cake. My sweet friend Maryanne introduced me to a wonderfully talented woman named Kim who just so happens to also do charcuterie boards for big events. Malia has a friend who makes incredible balloon arch designs. A staff member of our church/mutual friend is a photographer, and my friend Megan is an interior design/creative extraordinaire, so she handled the flower arrangements and decorations using materials from our church women’s ministry closet and her own home. Another mutual friend introduced me to Melissa, who created the amazingly beautiful and delicious custom cake (gluten, dairy, and dye-free yet DELICIOUS!). It all came together perfectly.
The week before the event, it was so wonderful to simply shoot a couple of texts to my friends who were helping me and then rest and get ready for the big day. On Saturday morning, Kim dropped of the beautiful charcuterie boards. I loaded them up along with the drinks I bought from Costco and headed to the church. I told Megan and Malia to surprise me with the decorations, and boy was I surprised! Everything absolutely exceeded my expectations.
As people started to arrive, my heart was so full. Not only did I get to see so many people I love in one room, but I got to thank them for being a source of encouragement in my life. There were also friends and family who couldn’t make it who sent me their well wishes and sweet messages through the day, and it was honestly emotionally overwhelming!
We mingled and chatted for a while, and then Rory said some very sweet things about me, the book, and my publishing journey. A representative from Waymark Foster was also there to help raise awareness for how people can be involved locally in caring for the vulnerable in our community. After a book reading, we cut the cake, kept mingling, and then took photos.
I am an extrovert through and through, so after a couple of hours of talking with my favorite people, eating delicious food, and celebrating God’s faithfulness to lead me to this publishing opportunity, my emotional tank was overflowing! When we came home that afternoon, Rory’s family visited with us for a bit and ate dinner with us. After they left and we got the kids into bed, I walked the dog and then worked on my cross-stitching before heading to bed. The supplements I take help me fall asleep quickly, but when I woke up to go to the bathroom a few hours later, I was still feeling like the Energizer bunny. I just could not calm down! Eventually, I went downstairs and prayed, read my Bible, and finally began feeling tired around 6 am. By that time, the kids were going to be up soon, so I just stayed awake. I went to church feeling like a sloth and then came home and napped for 2.5 hours. I say all that to say–the extrovert in me absolutely loved the day, and I couldn’t have imagined anything more perfect.
Lord willing, there will be many more book launch parties to enjoy and many more projects to share with the world. I will keep writing until He tells me to stop because He’s given me a story to share and I don’t want to keep it to myself. 🤍
These are the people who made this day happen:
Kim Campbell: charcuterie board
Megan Roginsky: flower arrangements and decorations
Malia Stamey: party planning
Alaina Johnson: photography
Melissa Vanderstelt of Sugar and Thread: custom cake
And to my friends and family who were a part of making this dream come true, thank you doesn’t seem to be enough for the ways you have supported and come alongside me. I love you!