Thank You, Book People RVA

This coming Saturday June 6 at 1 pm, my new novel Covenant City formally launches at Book People bookstore here in Richmond. I’d like to say a few things about that. First, gratitude to owners David Shuman and married couple Chris and Christy Miller. They take seriously their mission to serve our local community of readers and writers, readers of all ages, and even we writers who publish independently. For instance, back when the store was a cottage in the Fan, David welcomed my timid request to put The Coal Tower (2019), my first novel, on his local author shelf. He invited me to hold a reading and book signing there, too.

At the time, a few other bookstores were willing to stock my self-published novel. New Dominion, in Charlottesville, also hosted a well-attended reading. But when my second novel The Night Doctor of Richmond (2024) came out, only Book People agreed to sell it. Those that refused cited the hassle of consignment-style sales, the sparse real estate on their shelves, a preference not to bother with indy authors, etc. Understandable. Book People, on the other hand, invited me to hold another reading, this time in their new spacious location on Ridgefield Parkway in western Henrico, and I’ll never forget how friends and colleagues filled the store that day.

The Book People team wasn’t done with me yet, though. Chris and Christy read and championed the book. In the two years since that launch, they’ve kept it on their shelves and have sold around 150 copies. On Independent Book Store Day, they featured the book in store and on social media. David, working from home, emails requests for more whenever they run out. No scribe could ask for more.

Book People co-owners the irrepressible Chris and Christy Miller at the store (co-owner David Shuman, not shown, works from home these days).

And this coming Saturday June 6, on the exact second anniversary of The Night Doctor of Richmond launch, they’ve agreed to host an event for my new novel Covenant City. This time, we plan an interview format in early afternoon (1-3 pm), my longtime friend mystery writer Katy Munger and I chatting about our new books (hers titled Monkey See Monkey Do), which dissect autocratic bullying in quite different ways. We’ll have iced tea and cookies, maybe read a little from our novels, and sign for purchasers, while Chris and Christy work their magic, managing yet another author event (Book People’s events calendar is always full, and they truly seem to enjoy it all – check it out here).

Who knows if Covenant City will see any kind of local success? Like The Night Doctor of Richmond, it’s set here in town, though instead of imagining the old days, it peers ahead to a near-future dystopia on the James. I do know, however, that Book People’s team will do what they can to find its readers, because that’s the mission they pursue for our whole community. So I just want to say thank you to David and Chris and Christy for caring, for sharing, and for showing what it means to run a real community bookstore. Richmond’s lucky to have you.

Here, btw, is a recent tv interview (WRIR News) with Christy Miller, discussing what Book People is all about: https://www.wric.com/livestreams/buying-a-bookstore-and-making-it-your-own-on-all-about-books/