Tour Day 33, 34, and 35

Miles driven so far: 6887
Bookstores visited so far: 332
Books signed so far: 2872
Books hand sold so far: 178
Bookstores remaining: 168

I'm currently in Maryland, staying with writer friend Wayne Thomas Batson, author of the Door Within trilogy, a YA fantasy series that's a cross between Aragon and CS Lewis. Wayne a great guy, and we visited bookstores throughout the state yesterday.

Prior to that, I was in PA and NY hitting as many stores as I could.

So far, this tour has gone off without any major problems, and I feel as if I'm doing a lot of good. I'm finding it hard to stay connected with people, however. Sometimes I go without internet access for a few days at a stretch, and recently Outlook Express crashed on me, which caused my computer to send dozens of the same emails to the same few people, and reject many others. If you're having problems getting in touch with me, I promise that I'm not ignoring you---wifi simply hates me.

This tour is taking a bit longer than my original plan, and as a result I'm a few days behind schedule according to the dates I posted on my website. If you are planning to meet me somewhere on the road, or were planning to meet me and we missed each other, I apologize. That apology extends to the bookstores I've intended to visit---sometimes I may be late, or may even have to skip a store or two, depending on how things are rolling. Keep in mind that I'm trying my best.

Which brings me to some bad news/good news.

The bad news is that I won't be visiting California on this tour, as I'd anticipated. My lovely wife and darling children were supposed to meet me in Florida for a few days of R & R, then I'd fly to San Diego and they'd take the Rustymobile back home. That isn't going to happen. Due to booming business my wife isn't able to get away from work for a week. My deepest regrets to my friends on the West Coast.

But since I'm forced to take the Rustymobile home, I'll be adding some states to the tour. In the latter part of August I'll be visiting Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Missouri (including St. Louis.)

If anyone knows any must-visit bookstores in these states, post them on this blog and I'll do my darnedest to fit them in.

Does this mean I won't reach 500? Hardly.

I'm at 332 stores now, and today will be visiting DC. Then I'll be in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida, plus the states I mentioned above.

Florida alone has close to a hundred bookstores in it. Plus I haven't hit my hometown yet. Chicago and the suburbs have close to a hundred bookstores as well.

I will reach, and probably surpass, my original goal. The Rusty Nail 600, perhaps?

I'd like to thank everyone who has been offering encouragement and support and this tour. I've received many calls and emails from writers and fans, and they mean a lot. Really.

If you haven't read the Huffington Post lately, there's a nice article about the bookstore vs. blogosphere competition MJ Rose and I are having. If you haven't linked to MJ's vidlit yet, you need to do so. Also, buy her new book, The Venus Fix--it's a stunner.

If you're looking for signed JA Konrath books, look to these stores:

Chester County Book and Music Company West Chester PA

Borders Express Cherry Hill NJ

BN Marlton NJ

Borders Marlton NJ

BN Langhorne PA

Borders Wilmington DE

Borders Langhorne PA

Walden Bensalem PA

Borders Mt. Laurel NJ

BE Moorestown NJ

BN Wilmington DE

Borders Ft. Lee NJ

Borders Wayne NJ

Borders Livingston NJ

BN Edgewater NJ

BN Clifton NJ

BN Livingston NJ

BN Clark NJ

BN Springfield NJ

Borders Watchung NJ

BN Bridgewater NJ

Walden Trenton NJ

Borders Princeton NJ

BN Princeton NJ

BN Hackensack NJ

Borders Express Baltimore MD

Borders Timonium MD

Borders Express Glen Burnie MD

Borders Express Owings Mills MD

Borders Columbia MD

BN Baltimore MD

BN Towson MD

BN White Marsh MD

BN Ellicott City MD

Walden 200 Pratt Baltimore MD

Walden Eastpoint Mall Baltimore MD

Walden Glen Burnie MD

Walden Towson MD

And now, back to the road...