Publishing in a Pandemic
Immediately following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, I published a book, called What a Library Means to a Woman. It was my first published book and, at the time, I had been very much looking forward to the retinue of engagements–publicity events, bookstore appearances, lectures on college campuses, etc.–that tend to take place when a person like me publishes a book. After all, that’s what a book is for: it’s meant to serve as the start of a conversation, not an endpoint. Having spent years thinking about what I wanted to say in that first book, I was anxious to talk to others about it and to get that conversation going.
By the time I published my second book, Office, in November of 2020, though, I had learned to adjust my expectations. There would be plenty of conversation, but it would all take place virtually; I would visit other campuses and bookstores to talk about my writing, but I would do so via Zoom. The pandemic altered my understanding of what those conversations could look and be like, but it did not shut them down entirely. I’ve been very grateful for the chance to interact with readers who have read and reviewed my book for publications, responded to it on social media, or attended remote lectures and events in association with it. Such channels have put me in touch with readers all across the U.S.—from Portland, ME to Portland, OR (two cities in which I appeared remotely, sponsored by local bookstores)—and even abroad, in places like Ireland.
These interactions have bolstered my faith in the work of writing itself and in the conversations that spring from it, in spite of the challenges of our current era.
