Robert Bailey's Blog, page 11

Music City Sellout!

It was an honor to sign books with Nashville author, Tom Wood

This past Saturday, the Professor book tour made a fantastic stop in Nashville, Tennessee at the fabulous East Side Story bookstore.  We came with two boxes of books, and left with none, selling a total of 43 copies of The Professor!  Another sold out day for the tour!

It was my honor to share the day with Nashville author Tom Wood, whose fictional true crime novel Vendetta Stone is a unique and thrilling story set in the streets of East Nashville.  In fact, several key scenes in Tom’s book occurred just steps from where the signing took place.  It was great talking books with Tom both before and after the signing, and Tom had a great day as well, selling numerous copies of Vendetta Stone.  If you haven’t picked up your copy of Tom’s book, be sure to make it your next purchase–you won’t be disappointed!

Me and Tom discussing The Professor and Vendetta Stone.

This was my first trip to East Nashville, and the Five Points area where East Side Story is located is unique and wonderful.  Lots of shops and local restaurants dot this area, and the foot traffic on this absolutely perfect day was heavy and constant.  Chuck Beard, owner of East Side Story, hosted the event, and I can’t say enough good things about Chuck or his wonderful store. Eclectic, original and awesome are adjectives that come to mind when describing both Chuck and East Side Story.

We had several special visitors for this event, including my Aunt Margie, who lives in the area.  So great to see her again!  Also, my old friend, Tom Castelli, a college running mate of Will Powell’s (the inspiration for “Powell Conrad”) dropped by with his lovely wife, Kristen.  Dixie’s friend, Kim Dedmon, also came and stayed for almost the entire event, helping us take pictures and enjoying the beautiful day.  Dixie’s college friend, Jason Holleman, came by with his kids and we also ran into Jenkins Hardin, whose brother Wesley is a friend of our’s in Huntsville.  Another surprise visitor was my brother, Bo, and his wife Amy, who came up for the day to take in the sights and sounds of Nashville.  Amy runs the on-line fashion magazine, My Scoop, which has locations in Nashville, Birmingham and Jackson, Mississippi, and I appreciate her and My Scoop’s promotion of the event on social media.

Me and my old friend, Tom Castelli.

Me and my brother, Bo

Dixie and her friend, Kim Dedmon.

Also stopping by were Paige Crutcher, southern correspondent for Publisher’s Weekly.  I actually signed my first advanced copy of The Professor for Paige back in New Orleans in September at the SIBA convention, and it was an honor to sign a copy for her husband Marcus, who is a digital design and marketing guru in Nashville.  In addition, it was fun talking books with Michael Turner from the Nashville Writers Meetup blog, who helped us promote the event as well.

Finally, Dana Schroering with HTV was present for the event, shooting some live film for the segment on me coming up soon from HTV, which will air in over forty hospitals throughout the southeast.  Dana interviewed me on Friday at Cummins Station, and I cannot wait to see the segment!

Me with my rock star publicist, Julie Schoerke

Additionally, special thanks to Roy Burkhead, publisher of the 2nd and Church literary magazine, for doing a promotional feature in the week prior to the event.  In that regard, thanks always to Julie Schoerke and my fantastic publicity team at JKS Communications.  Julie and her colleague, Grace Wright, were present for the entire event, working the crowd for the duration.

It was a beautiful day for a signing!

So fun to meet new people excited about The Professor.

Signing another copy!

After the sold out event, Julie took us all to a celebration dinner at the Lockeland Table restaurant just down the street from East Side Story, where Dixie and I enjoyed a fantastic meal with Chuck Beard and his wife Emily, Marcus and Paige Crutcher, Roy Burkhead and his wife, Leslie, and Julie and her friend Brent Miller.

All in all, it was a fantastic and memorable trip to the Music City.

Me and Dixie at dinner after the event.

The dinner celebration afterwards was so much fun!

The dinner gang!

Me with the owner of East Side Story, Chuck Beard, after dinner. What a magnificent day!

The Professor is “a must read novel…”

Here is a great review of the Professor from A TiffyFit’s Reading Corner, which includes this fantastic blurb:

“This is a must-read novel for me. One that I would recommend whole-heartedly to anyone who knows how to read. Yeah, that’s right. Not just the genre junkies, but anyone. If I were teaching still, I’d probably make this a required reading of my high school students for the strength of character the professor has alone.”

via A_TiffyFit\\\’s Reading Corner: {Blog Tour} The Professor by Robert Bailey — with review.

Sold Out Signing in Fairhope!

Me and my cousin, Jim Francisco

This past Saturday, we had a fantastic signing at the Page & Palette in beautiful Fairhope, Alabama, one of the most charming small towns in the South.  The weather was a balmy 60 degrees , and there were a lot of people out and about and enjoying the beautiful conditions.  The Page & Palette is one of the most unique bookstores you will ever find, and there was a steady stream of traffic throughout my signing.  All total, we sold 37 books.  The store sold out of the 24 books that it had in stock, and we sold another thirteen that I had brought with me just in case things got crazy.  Thankfully, things did indeed get crazy, and it was fantastic to meet a lot of new people as well as see some old friends.

Special guests included my cousin Jim Francisco, who came with his fiance Stefanie.  They will be getting married in Fairhope in April, and it was great to finally meet Stefanie.  I was also excited to see some old friends from law school, including Will Gamble, Shawn and Holly Alves and Bob Smith.  Also in attendance was my good friend, Scott Sasser, his wonderful wife, Carrys, and their kids.  My wife Dixie’s college friend, Angie Barton, and her girls dropped by as well.  Finally, my old high school friend, David Hooper, also came by.

Me with law school friends, Shawn and Holly Alves

It was a great day to be at the Page & Palette!

Me with my friend, Scott Sasser

All in all, it was a fantastic day at a great store, and another sold out signing for The Professor.

It was fun meeting new people and talking up The Professor.

Me and longtime friend, David Hooper

The Professor cookies continue to be a hit!

Signing another copy.

GREAT SIGNING AT COLDWATER BOOKS!

Me and Dixie as the signing begins

We had a fantastic book signing this past Saturday at ColdWater Books in Tuscumbia!  As part of Loving Locals Winter Fest, I joined over thirty other authors for a fun afternoon of books, coffee and conversation.  All total, we sold 24 copies of The Professor and got to meet a lot of nice people.

My wife Dixie accompanied me, and passed out cookies with The Professor cover on the front of them, which were a huge hit.  Also stopping by was Will Powell, my best friend from law school and the inspiration for the character of “Powell Conrad.”

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Me with Will Powell, the inspiration for “Powell Conrad.”

One very special visitor was Mrs. Carolyn King, my eighth grade English teacher.  Mrs. King taught me how to write a paragraph, and the lessons I learned in her class have stayed with me to this day.  I was so surprised and excited to see her that I totally forgot to ask for a picture!

Other notable guests were my friends Edgar Black, Braxton Ashe, Nathan Ryan, Bob Mackenzie, Rebecca Michael and my friend Mary Lynn Bishop’s father, Buddy.

Sandi Hendrix and her staff at ColdWater Books did a fantastic job with this event, and I was honored to be a part of it.  If you are ever in the Shoals area, stop by ColdWater Books and have a cup of coffee and a blueberry muffin.  Then peruse one of the finest bookstores in the state of Alabama.  My wife, Dixie, was especially impressed with their children’s selection of books, complete with a reading cave for the little ones to enjoy.

Very cool stuff, and an all around fantastic signing!

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Check out the display with “Professor” cookies in the basket

Signing a book for Bob Mackenzie

Excited for the signing to start!

Ready to do some signing!

Dixie in the crowd

Taking in the crowd. It was a fantastic event!

Talking up The Professor

Me and my friend, Bob Mackenzie

Homer Hickam Introducing Robert Bailey & “The Professor” – YouTube

Here is Homer Hickam’s fantastic introduction of me and The Professor at our book launch last week.  It was such an honor to share the stage with one of my heroes.

via Homer Hickam Introducing Robert Bailey & \”The Professor\” – YouTube.

“Robert Bailey Takes Readers to Alabama for Memorable Legal Thriller!”

Here is a great review of The Professor from Book Reader’s Heaven, complete with excerpts from the novel.

via Robert Bailey Takes Readers to Alabama for Memorable Legal Thriller! With a small spotlight on \\\”Bear\\\” Bryant….

LAUNCHED LIKE A ROCKET!

It was such an honor to be introduced by Homer Hickam.

The book launch for The Professor took place on Thursday, January 30, 2014 at the Huntsville Museum of Art in my hometown of Huntsville, Alabama.  It was an unbelievable night, as Barnes & Noble sold out of books.  All total, 273 copies of The Professor were sold, and thirteen of those were pre-paid after there were no books left in any of the boxes.

I could not have dreamed this night any better!  There were approximately 200 people in attendance, and I was overwhelmed by the turnout and the outpouring of support for the event.  My beautiful and wonderful wife, Dixie, was the point guard for the launch, handling the flowers, tablecloths, drinks, food, etc., and she did an incredible job with assistance from some wonderful friends and family, including Amy Brooks, Bill and Melanie Fowler and my sister in law, Christi League.  We were blessed to have Maggie Clark with Barnes & Noble in attendance to sell the books, and my rock star publicist, Julie Schoerke from JKS Communications, was on hand to make sure that I spelled everyone’s name correctly and kept the lines moving.  Though not in attendance, the night could not have happened without my incredible agent, Liza Fleissig of the Liza Royce Agency, who created the invitations and was the driving force behind so much of the night’s success.  Also, we had tremendous support from Mike Underwood, Bryon Quertermous, Caroline Lambe and all the great folks at Exhibit A Books.  Additionally, my law firm, Lanier Ford Shaver & Payne, provided great support for the event, and it was nice to see so many of my partners, colleagues and staff at the launch.  Finally, it was my great privilege to partner in this event with the Madison County Volunteer Lawyers Program (“MCVLP”), and a portion of all 273 books sold will go to the MCVLP.

My wife Dixie smiles in the crowd.

In addition to my wife, Dixie, I was blessed to have much of my family in attendance, including my Mom and Dad (Beth and Randy Bailey), my sons Jimmy (9) and Bobby (8), my brother Bo, his wife Amy and daughter Marybella, my sister in law, Christi League, her husband Will and daughter Bentley, my sister in law, Denise Burroughs, her husband Jeff and daughters Libby and Kacy, my father in law Dr. Jim Davis, who makes a cameo in The Professor, along with his wife Janie, and my mother in law, Beverly Baca, and her husband, Jerry. Also, my best friend from law school, Will Powell, who was the inspiration for the character of “Powell Conrad” in The Professor, drove the 90 minutes from Florence to be there, and he was accompanied by his lovely wife Emily.

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Me and Will Powell, the inspiration for “Powell Conrad”

The night was capped off by a brilliant introduction from Huntsville’s own Homer Hickam, bestselling author of Rocket Boys (made into the movie October Sky).  Homer gave an elegant and dynamic speech, which kept the audience spell bound and was a very tough act to follow.  Homer and his fantastic wife, Linda, are two of the nicest people I have ever had the privilege of meeting, and their presence made this night unforgettable.  After Homer’s introduction, I spoke for a few minutes, concluding with a short reading of one of my favorite passages in the novel.

All in all, it was a fantastic night, and a great start to our book tour for The Professor!

Signing books while my sons Jimmy and Bobby look on.

Me and Dixie after the Launch.

We had such a great turnout!

Look at the line!

SOLD OUT!

THE PROFESSOR BOOK TOUR….

The following are confirmed dates and locations for book signings I will be doing in 2014!

Thursday, January 30, 2014 from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm at the Huntsville Museum of Art, Huntsville, AL  (Special Guest, Homer Hickam)


Saturday, February 8, 2014 from 11 am to 2 pm at Coldwater Books in Tuscumbia, AL at the Loving Locals Winter Fest Event


Saturday, February 15, 2014 from 1 pm to 3 pm at the Page & Palette in Fairhope, Alabama


Saturday, February 22, 2014 from 2 pm to 4 pm at East Side Story bookstore in Nashville, Tennessee


Saturday, March 1, 2014 from 2 pm to 4 pm at Books A Million in Cullman, Alabama


Saturday, March 8, 2014 from 11 am to 1 pm at Pablo’s bookstore in Athens, Alabama


Friday, June 27, 2014 at the Litchfield Moveable Feast at Litchfield Books in Pawley’s Island, South Carolina  (Time TBD)


Thursday, July 3, 2014 from 10 am to 12 pm at The Hidden Lantern bookstore in Rosemary Beach, Florida


Friday, July 4, 2014 from 10 am to 12 pm at Sundog Books in Seaside, Florida


Alabama State Bar Meeting, Sandestin Hilton in Destin Florida (July 9-12).  I will have a table with books available for purchase.

Tune in at 6 pm CST tonight for my interview with Big Blend radio!

I’m looking forward to being a featured guest tonight on Big Blend radio.  To tune in, just click the link below at 6 pm CST (7 pm EST)

via Football, The Professor, and The Polaris Protocol! 01/29 by Big Blend Radio | Entertainment Podcasts.

“…one of the most compelling legal thrillers I’ve read in a long time.”

Check out this fantastic book review of THE PROFESSOR by Erin Mitchell with HEW Communications

via THE PROFESSOR by Robert Bailey | HEW Communications.