ALA Annual Conference 2017

We stood anxiously waiting on the corner.  The valet had left to retrieve our vehicle twenty minutes ago.  I was scheduled to do a book signing at the American Library Association Annual Conference in Chicago, Illinois at 9:30 a.m.  According to my watch, it was already 9:15 a.m. Finally, our car arrived.  We hurriedly threw our bags into the trunk and left the unhappy valet tipless.

My husband channeled Mario Andretti as we raced to the venue.  Soon, the McCormick Convention Center towered before us.  Sun struck the glass building sending light cascading in all directions.  We found the parking garage and continued driving until we reached floor five.

Stepping inside, we were amazed at how spacious the facility was.  We raced up the escalator and made a mad dash for the registration table.  Once we had obtained our badges, we were on the run once again to fin the Independent Book Publishers Association booth.  Much to my dismay, we arrived at 9:40 a.m. and someone else was sitting in my seat happily signing copies of her book.

I was completely heartbroken.  I introduced myself to Lee, one of the IBPA staff members.  He immediately calmed my nerves by instructing me to take several deep breathes.  I explained the situation and Lee was quick to re-schedule my book signing at 3:00 p.m. that same day.  I was beyond grateful for his patience, understanding and most importantly, his help.  After telling me to take a few more deep breathes, Lee told me to enjoy the conference and he would see me at 2:45 p.m.

Standing next to my book on display at the IBPA booth!

My husband and I did not even know where to start.  Booths lined the entire interior of the conference center.  Fellow conference attendees raced from one side to the other, most carrying backpacks.  I soon found out why.

Many of the booths were giving away advanced reader copies of books that will be released this fall.  In a mere fifteen minutes, we already had five books in hand.  Thankfully, several of the publishing companies were also giving away free tote bags.

I did my best to take it all in.  My brain was definitely on overload.  Big name publishing houses such as Disney, Scholastic, Penguin and Harper Collins had massive displays.  Lines quickly formed wherever an author signing was being held.

In the back of the convention center was Artist's Row.  Wizards of the Coast was present representing the importance of gaming via their Magic the Gathering card game.  I was beyond honored to meet Andy Runton, the creator of Owly, an enchanting series of both picture and comic style books.  He was so down to earth and we quickly bonded over our love of rescue animals.

Me with Andy Runton, creator of Owly!

Check out the amazing sketch Andy made!

This batty sketch is too adorable!

We then dined at the convention center food court located upstairs.  It was truly amazing to look out over the balcony and view the sea of people wandering throughout.  I also enjoyed getting to listen to librarians from across the country discussing important issues regarding children's literacy initiatives.

Feeling re-energized after lunch, we jumped right back into the fray.  We were about to pass a small booth on the left when something caught my eye.  There was a copy of one of my favorite children's books of all time:  Skippyjon Jones!  That is when I noticed the sign stating that Judy Schachner was going to be signing books that day at 3:00 p.m.

Uh-oh.  My book signing was at 3:00 p.m.  What could I do?  I did not want to miss out on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.  My wonderful, fabulous husband had a solution.  He would wait in line and get her autograph while I attended my book signing.

Her publishing representatives could not have been nicer.  Matt was going to be the first person in line.  They asked us if we really thought Judy would attract that much attention and I answered with a resounding, "OH, YES!"  These amazing ladies even offered us the option of leaving our cart (filled with copies of my children's book, Priceless Penny) at their booth as a place holder in line so that we did not have to keep lugging it around!

Matt refused to leave his post.  He knew how important getting Judy's autograph was to me.  I decided to poke around the conference a bit more before signing time.  As luck would have it, I unknowingly joined the line for one of my favorite authors/illustrators, Ashley Spires!  She is such a sweet and caring person.  We talked about our fur babies and I discovered that she actually fosters kittens!

I could have talked to Ashley for hours, but the time of my book signing was rapidly approaching.  I hurriedly dropped off my new books with Matt, grabbed the cart and trundled my way to the IBPA booth.  Things went much smoother this time.  While waiting for the author before me to finish, some children walked up and began talking to me about my book.  I loved getting to share Penny's story with them.

The book signing experience was surreal!  I looked up to see that a line of people had actually formed for my book.  I met so many wonderful librarians and their children.  It was truly one of the greatest moments of my life.

Little did I know, my husband was just a few feet away recording the event.  I am so blessed to be married to such a wonderful man!  He even took some photos so that I could share them on my social media sites.

My book signing at the IBPA booth was a success!

Matt got the autograph!  I love the inscription and cat sketch!

When my signing time came to an end, we decided to make one more lap around the conference before heading home.  I am so very glad that we did!  We ended up getting in line to meet even more authors and also got to re-connect with Ashley Spires!  This time she was giving away copies of her books Edie's Ensembles and Over-Scheduled Andrew.  I cannot wait to read them!

I gave Ashley a copy of Priceless Penny and she wrote this truly humbling inscription!

I loved talking to Ashley about even more of our fur babies!

Even though the conference officially ended today, the hubs and I had to head back home since we both had to be at work.  We accumulated a total of 37 new books with over half being autographed.  Attending the ALA Conference was such a wonderful experience that we will definitely be going back next year!

Check out all of the new children's books I snagged!

This is a collection of young reader and middle grade titles I scooped up.

I love the sketch of Pig in a boat that David drew!

Brendan's cat sketch makes me smile!

A super personal inscription from Ashley Spires!

I love that Ashley signed each of her books in a different colored pen!

To learn more about the ALA Conference, please visit:  www.ala.org.

Priceless Penny Book Signing at ALA Conference 2017

A New Tale for a Rescued Kitten

Bruce’s tale very nearly didn’t start at all. A year and a half ago the bedraggled one-day old kitten was alone on a footpath in the rain.

                

Luckily he was spotted by a woman who was walking home from work. She took him home and fed him around the clock to keep him alive.

The kitten was named after that other famous orphan, Bruce Wayne.

The tiny kitten’s story went viral. He now has over 32,600 Facebook fans from all over the world who hang on his every photo and exploit – including getting to know his “big sister” Jager (also a rescue cat), and changing colour from grey to black.

(This video explains how Bruce changed colour: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwDe8n9WgMk)

Along with climbing trees and frolicking in the garden, Bruce now dedicates himself to raising awareness of other cats and kittens in need. Bruce has helped other cats like DeeDee find forever homes.

Kathryn van Beek (Bruce’s human) has now written and illustrated a children’s picture book called Bruce Finds a Home. 

The book, which is based on the story of how Bruce was found, encourages children to care for and be kind to animals.

The book supports The Animal Rescue Network, a charitable trust dedicated to helping stray and abandoned cats and kittens.

Bruce is currently running a Kickstarter campaign which allows people to pre-order copies of the book. There’s a range of rewards for those who pledge, including custom illustrations and even Bruce’s pawtograph! You can find Bruce’s Kickstarter page here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/kathrynvanbeek/bruce-finds-a-home

The book is already 87% funded with two weeks of the four-week Kickstarter campaign still to run. We feel sure that Bruce will achieve his goal of releasing his book, supporting The Animal Rescue Network and encouraging children to be kind to animals.

(This video documents Bruce’s life so far: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTlHIEyjeuw&t=28s) 

Entangling Entrepreneurs

I never thought that I would run my own business.  I have always had a passion for writing and creating but it never crossed my mind that I could turn that passion into a living.  My husband encouraged me to write a children’s book about our amazing three-legged dog, Penny.  I began doing lots (and lots) of research about independent publishing.

In March of 2015, I created Theuerkauf’s Tails, LLC.  The purpose of my company is to self-publish children’s books about the various animals that my husband and I have rescued over the years.  Each has a story of redemption and love that is all its own.

With the company established, I began to book numerous events as a vendor.  Tears filled my eyes every time that I saw the name “Theuerkauf’s Tails, LLC” hanging above my vendor space.  All of my hard work, determination and dedication was finally allowing me to achieve my dreams.

I love getting to connect with readers of all ages.  Penny loves getting belly rubs from her fans.  I also enjoy networking with other likeminded entrepreneurs.  Learning about other people’s passions and dreams is very inspiring to me.  I am eager to share my story and trade business cards with creative souls.

I would like to think that I have graduated from novice to advanced networker.  My elevator pitch flows from lips with ease because it comes directly from the passion that I feel in my soul.  In honing my networking skills, I have come across another type of entrepreneur:  The Glomerpreneur.

A glomerpreneur is a person who claims to be an entrepreneur, but then gloms off an already established entrepreneur.  This person seeks to ride the coattails of another person’s success in hopes of elevating his/her status and company.  Often times, this person will request contact lists, access to certain events, etc.

I met my first glomerpreneur at a conference.  We hit it off instantly as we are both very passionate about animals and their welfare.  We exchanged information and began planning several projects together.  I was very excited about my new connection.

We began e-mailing as soon as the conference ended.  It began with updates about our businesses and what we were planning next.  Then came the first request.

He/she complimented me on my social media savviness and wondered what my secret was.  I freely offered to provide a list of groups that I often share my content with via Facebook.  This person was very appreciative.  It felt great to be helping someone else get their business off the ground.

Later in the year, I was contacted via Twitter from a company about an exclusive event that they wanted me to attend to promote my children’s book, Priceless Penny.  I was beyond excited and honored.  Of course, I shared this information on my social media platforms.

Within minutes, I received an e-mail from my friend.  He/she congratulated me on my achievement…and then asked for the business’ contact information.  I was blown away!  This business personally contacted ME because of MY brand.  How dare this person try to worm his/her way in!  Not to mention, this will be my first time attending this event.  I am not about to push the company and say, “Hey, can my friend come too?”

This put me in a very delicate situation.  If I am honest with my friend, I will look like a diva attempting to hog the spotlight.  And I absolutely cannot stand liars.  Should I compromise my beliefs in order to not offend my nosy friend?  I struggled with this dilemma for two days.

I ultimately decided to provide limited information.  I gave my friend the name of the event and the contact’s first name only, feigning that I had not been given anything further.  It is at this point that I noticed this person had begun to become heavily involved with another conference attendee.

 

Photos and videos of them together surfaced on Facebook.  At first, it was just a few photos once a week.  Then it became daily photos of the duo.  While I was happy to see that a new friendship was forming, I was a bit worried.  Was the glomerpreneur preparing to strike again?

My fears were soon confirmed.  The “friend” was posting numerous selfies with the established entrepreneur and constantly tagging the person’s business.  He/she began to invade every single event that this person’s business was hosting.  The captions on the photos soon read “helping out at [event name here].”  I wonder if this savvy business owner has caught onto the glomerpreneur yet.

While creating my LLC only took a few months, building my brand has taken several years.  I have spent countless hours researching marketing techniques.  Days have passed where I have done nothing but scour Twitter and Instagram looking for new brands to follow.  I have spent money to attend conferences and seminars to learn how to expand my brand as well as to partake in networking opportunities.  In my “spare time,” I am constantly creating new content for my social media platforms while working on my next book project.

To me, being a true entrepreneur means that you are blazing a new trail.  Walking where others have not yet trod.  You are literally creating something that has not been seen or done before.  Attempting to attach oneself to someone else’s brand/business hoping to catch the fallout of their success is truly heinous.  The reason why people become successful is because they work tirelessly to achieve their goals.

My husband will often tell me that I need to take a break.  While I do tend to over extend myself, I am very proud of everything I have accomplished thus far.  Priceless Penny has won six literary awards and has been featured in StoryMonster Ink magazine.

I have had the extreme pleasure of meeting Seth Casteel (creator of Underwater Dogs/Cats), Brian Fanzo (branding and content specialist), and Bryan Kramer (TED Talk speaker).  I am blessed to call fellow entrepreneur Deirdre Franklin (owner of Pinups for Pitbulls) a friend.

I have discovered amazing conferences such as the Best Friends Animal Society National Conference, BarkWorld Expo and the Petfinder Adoption Option Tour.  Through these events, I have made lifelong friends and have learned how to better serve the animal community.  I get to travel and learn more about the wonderful country that I call home.

 Building a business from the ground up is hard, but very rewarding.  Watching efforts turn into successes is an exhilarating feeling.  Knowing that people care about the work that I am doing fuels my passion and creativity.  This is the true entrepreneurial spirit.

I wish everyone who is trying to achieve their dreams nothing but joy, peace and success.  Just make sure that your achievements are truly of your own making.  And guard your hard work from any lurking glomerpreneurs.

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