Are You There God? It's Me, Amy.

I love going to book events. Book launches, author talks - that's my jam. I saw two legends in the flesh recently: Judy Blume and David Sedaris.

Judy Blume 

I took Liv to see Judy Blume in conversation with Zibby Owens at The Temple Emanu-El Streicker Center. Liv had read Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret., so I decided to bring her as my date and make a night of it in NYC. We had a blast. Blume was so warm and open. She shared advice and anecdotes. Some key takeaways (paraphrased by me):

--It's never too late to do better, as a parent.
--You're always the kid you were, inside.
--If you're an aspiring writer: do not give up! Determination might be as important as talent. Keep going, despite rejections and bad reviews.
--Keep reading; that's how you learn to write.
--There is no writer's block. There's just a problem, and it's solvable. Unstick your mind. Go for a walk.
--Parents: don't be judgmental about what your kids are reading. The greatest gift Blume's parents ever gave her was the freedom to choose her own books to read.

It was such a fun, inspiring chat. Next time we'll bring Mia along, too. She's into the Fudge books now.

David Sedaris

I saw David Sedaris in my neck of the woods recently. He was at the Westport Country Playhouse performing a reading, doing a Q&A and signing books. I went with a girlfriend and had a lovely time. Sedaris is totally ridiculous, hysterically funny and, of course, uber talented. He read multiple essays; one had just been bought by The New Yorker. He made edits as he read. He was super amiable while signing books and scribbled some cute little drawings in my paperbacks.

Next up: Annabel Monaghan! And I swung by a Nantucket Looms author talk at the New Canaan Library this week. What joy, what fun :)

AES