Book Tour Virgin is Will Clarke.com

Book Club Par-tay At Karen Ehlers—Karen's The Woman Who Keeps THE WORTHY In Her Freeze 'Cause It Freaks Her Out

Krista and Caleb: Riveted By My Scintillating Presentation Today At Work

This Lady Puts My Book, THE WORTHY, In Her Freezer Because It Scares Her So Bad.

This Lady Loved THE WORTHY & Just So Happens To Sit Across From The Lady Who Keeps THE WORTHY In Her Freezer. Even Though Both Of These Ladies Have Differing Literary Opinions Concerning My Work, They Are Still Nice To Each Other.

The Pulpwood Queen's HRM Kathy Patrick Interviews Me At The Pulpwood's Toga Party In Honor of THE WORTHY

Justinian Book Club in Shreveport Throws LSU-themed Wing-ding For The Worthy

Special thanks to Renee King for setting this up. The party was a blast. It's always fun to talk about THE WORTHY with people who went to LSU or grew up in Louisiana.

The Book Report Radio Show

Meet Pat and Elisabeth, the hosts of The Book Report. This is one of my favorite radio shows and why I am at The Southern Independent Booksellers Convention. Take a listen here.

One Year After Katrina, Kiersta & Justin on NPR

If you have been following my blog closely, you arleady know what bad-asses Drs. Justin Lundgren & Kiersta Kurtze Burke are. After you click and scrolll down to  their NPR interview, be sure to check out all the other amazing first person accounts of Katrina Survivors. Also check out Justin's two amazing websites, Greetings From New Orleans & Katrina Dinner 2006

Thanks Be To Book People & Texas Monthly

Back in the day when I was toiling away alone in my apartment, trying to become a novelist, I would day dream about having a signing at Book People and being interviewed by Texas Monthly. Last night, I got to do both. Thanks to everyone who gave up their Wednesday night to come see me. And thanks to Mike Shea and Texas Monthly for the kick ass interview.

New New Orleans

It was almost a year ago to the date that I was in New Orleans signing my first book, Lord Vishnu's Love Handles. It was a long, hot, slow weekend full of good food and iced coffee. It was a magical time.

And then the mother of all storms came.

A year later, I have come back to New Orleans and the Garden District Book Shop to sign The Worthy.  Britton and his staff welcomed me with the same warm smiles that they had offered up before Katrina. And I am happy to report that the Garden District Bookshop is still alive and kicking. In fact, they have an amazing collection of signed first editions, from Anne Rice to David Sedaris. GDBS also has a ton of signed copies of my books (hint, hint) and they will ship anywhere in the US. Click here to visit them online. Or call 504-895-2266. You can support a New Orleans business AND get books that will one day be collector's items.

Anyway. After my signing, my friends took me out on the town, and I had as good a time in the Big Easy as I ever had. Hurricanes just can't seem to
blow away the city's soul. But with that said, New Orleans has changed in ways that I can't describe. Everyone has seen the CNN coverage so I won't bore you with overwrought imagery of the devastation.

What I will give you is this:

My friends, New Orleans natives, Ann and Randy Asprodites, graciously offered me their home while I was here. He's a fine aritist and she's a
professional fireball.

Randy's working on a series of new paintings. And surprisingly after all that he and Ann have been through with Katrina, the paintings aren't sad or full of debris or even anger.

They're surreal and ghostly, glimmering with hope.  Those paintings are, to me, paintings of New New Orleans. The town is ghostly compared to the old New Orleans, but it's still just as beautiful, and the people of New Orleans are still just as defiant and oddly hopeful as they have ever been.

And speaking of defiant hope, my buddy Justin Lundgren has a great idea to bring the Lost Tribes of New Orleans back together for at least a moment this August: Katrina Dinner 2006. Click here to join in.

Photo by Justin Lundgren