What a party it was! I heard someone ask, “Why isn’t the Boston Globe here?  This is an EVENT.”

On Thursday, July 1 2010 we launched Cape Cod Surprise. The weather was perfect; sunny but not too hot, and not a speck of humidity (by Boston standards at least).  The Sail Loft generously provided their delicious chowder and appetizers.  And so many writers and sailors bought books and helped us celebrate, I lost count. Thanks to everyone who came to launch CCS into the world, especially to USSailing President (and blurb writer) Gary Jobson.  He has probably figured out by now that Boston is NOT on the way from Newport to New Jersey.

Of all the decisions we made while planning the event, the best one by far was to make it a benefit for Piers Park Sailing Center.  MC Maureen McKinnon-Tucker made everyone feel welcome, even when I was occupied signing books.  The blue-shirted staff created a very friendly atmosphere (especially while hawking raffle tickets to people who’d just stumbled into the Sail Loft for a drink or two). And volunteer Steve Jewett played raffle host, inspiring the purchase of more tickets with his listing of the great prizes available. Lots of nice folks won some great stuff and went home happy. And even those that didn’t win supported a great cause.

When I first thought of combining the launch party with a fundraiser for Piers Park, I didn’t realize how much we had in common.  Now everyone will know, thanks to the video short “Where Books Meet Olympic Spirit: Learning Life Skills through Sailing.” Produced by Paul Cronin of WhiteCap Video, the five minute piece talks about the common goal shared by PPSC and my books. Thanks to Paul for creating a legacy piece, and thanks to Maureen for her patience with the extra takes.  It shines through that we had fun putting it together, and I look forward to more joint projects in the future.

The day after the party passed in a glow of nice emails and tweets from those who had been there and others who’d heard secondhand about the successful event.  The best compliment I received was via fellow author Nicole Bernier. Thursday had been a very special day for Nicole too; her book sold to Random House.  But she still found time amidst her own celebrations to send the following:

“What a stellar night. You were beaming. My kids were fighting over their copy of the book, and I had to break out one of the others I bought for friends.”

Thanks to everyone, and if you didn’t catch it Thursday night, check out the video to relive some of the great inspiration.

This post first appeared as a guest blog on Paula Margulies’ “Helpful Tips for Book Promotion.”

Last fall I got a long-awaited email from writer Roberta Gately: “I sold my book!”  Her novel “Lipstick in Afghanistan” (which I’d edited, early on) will be published in October 2010.

We exchanged squeals of glee, and then she asked if she should hire her own publicist.

“Absolutely,” I replied. In this brave new world of publishing, authors are expected to help with marketing—not just retreat to their book-lined study.  I specifically recommended Paula Margulies,  who’d done a great job scheduling signings and drumming up press for the second edition of Oliver’s Surprise.

But I couldn’t answer the rest of Roberta’s questions.  And she couldn’t answer mine—questions too vague for an agent, too basic for a publicist, too business-oriented for a writer’s group.  Finally, one of us dreamed out loud: Wouldn’t it be great to bounce ideas around with other authors struggling to make their books stand out?

A few days later, Roberta invited me to join her for coffee with Randy Susan Meyers, another debut author. I made the hour and a half drive to Boston and we met at a coffee shop near Randy’s house, planning to chat for an hour or so.  All of us had braced for disappointment, like a three-way blind date.

There must’ve been something in the air that day (or an extra shot in our lattes).  Two and a half hours later, Roberta looked at her watch and jumped up… she was late for an afternoon meeting, and we hadn’t yet solved all the problems of the publishing world!  We agreed to meet again, as soon as possible.

That was the spark; within weeks Randy had fanned it into a blazing group of nine authors I’ve since nicknamed the Literary Guerillas.  Three have been recently published, four will be published later in 2010, and two are agented and soon to be sold to a publisher.   All of us have already “succeeded” by typical writer’s group standards; the focus of our meetings is book promotion.

We haven’t set too many rules, but the next author to “come out” has priority.  In January we met five days before Randy’s very successful launch party for The Murderer’s Daughters. We critiqued the chapter she planned to read aloud, since that was her biggest concern.  And we discussed which of several outfits she should wear.  (I swear, our “token male” started it.)  She later told us it was a great comfort to her at a very stressful time.

In March, Holly Lecraw takes center stage; her book The Swimming Pool, is due out April 6.  Holly claims she’s much less prepared than Randy, but she’s already received some great reviews.  I’m sure her coming out party will also be a success.

And with additional publishing debuts in May and October (and my sequel coming out in July), the LG’s will have plenty of things to talk about this year.

Best of all, when any one of us has a question, we know right where to go.

Are you involved in a writers’ group focused on publicity/promotion?  If so, how is it structured?