The Launch

Wow.

Well, my book launch was the Best Night Ever.

I have not been able to post before now,

1. because I haven't had time,
2. because I was drunk for much of Thursday and Friday
3. because around halfway through signing 100 books the synapses between my brain and fingers began to degenerate, and I lost the ability to write. In fact, I believe many of the last 30 of the books I signed bear the moniker 'Ken'.

There is much to be told about The Night. The fact that I panicked when my book launcher Mark Dapin* turned up a half hour late. The fact that I panicked when Mark Dapin did turn up, because he had threatened to just 'say the first thing that popped into' his head, and he has a background in girlie mags, and I was worried he'd just be thinking about porn. The fact that I had absolutely no idea what one writes when signing a book, and I 'may' have written inappropriate things about breasts and Simon Baker. The fact that said Simon Baker did not turn up, despite my publisher's assurances at the time of signing me to Random House that they would definitely find him for me. The fact that I met some of the most awesome bloggers and tweeps in the online world, and many of them travelled on planes and trains and even buses to be with me. The fact that the launch party progressed to a pub down the road where I proceeded to drink such copious amounts of champagne that my husband The Architect imposed a drinking curfew on me (which I proceeded to ignore once he was out of my sight). The fact that I became engrossed in a conversation about Young Talent Time and ending up leading a group of uber bloggers in a rousing chorus of 'Close your eyes and I'll kiss you'. The fact that I stumbled home with Kylie Ladd at around 1.20am after my husband The Architect gave up the ghost at around midnight, then stayed up talking till after 2am, then lay awake in bed till after 3am marvelling at the wonder of it all, then woke up as always at 6.15am despite the kids having slept at my mum's.

The fact that I am intensely grateful for the love and support that I have been shown by my family, my beautiful friends, my amazing Twitter buddies, and you, my blog readers.

The fact that whether my book sells five hundred or five thousand or fifty thousand copies, I have had the best time of my life.

*read his blog. No-one does, but the guy is a genius. Trust me.

I was showing Lana how well I had shaved under my arms.







Me and Kylie. She drank as much as me. Almost.....








This is not The Architect. He is The Publisher. Apparently the women at the launch found him attractive. I'd never noticed. (Ahem...)





Mark Dapin. I was thrilled he agreed to launch my book. And.... er.... dress up for the occasion.