Reason to Smile – #1:
The 2024 Printers Row Lit Fest is set for Saturday, September 7 & Sunday, September 8, 10AM – 6PM. This FREE event takes place on the streets of South Dearborn, from Ida B Wells to Polk Street in Chicago. Come Rain or Shine!
I’ll be there, in the Chicago Writers Association tent on Sunday, September 8 from 10am – 2pm. If you’re in the Chicago area, I’d love to see you!
I’m excited about second trip to Printers Row Lit Fest having enjoyed a year like no other. Discoveries keep coming as I’ve grown more comfortable with my identity as a writer. Fully. Shedding the remnants of ‘imposter syndrome’ that I felt last year. Who, me? A writer?
One thing that’s helped more than anything else is the feedback from readers. I can’t say that enough. The gratitude. So much gratitude. Thank you for the questions, insight, input and the joy of receiving feedback that my story…Sue’s story…is helpful. Inspiring.
***If you haven’t read my book, please consider it (see link below for more information).
***If you have read “Surviving Sue” and would be so kind, please consider recommending it to a friend. Someone who might enjoy a tale of perseverance and love.
Reason to Smile – #2:
This week my dear friend Kathleen shared a fantastic story, along the lines of ‘six degrees of separation’, Sue-style. I’m still shaking my head with wonder.
Kathleen – a bestie for nearly twenty-five years cheered me on while I wrote “Surviving Sue” and she’s mentioned in the ‘Acknowledgements’. Praise well-deserved for putting up with my bouts of insecurity and whining. (Yep. I’m a whiny writer when I get stuck, but thanks to friends like my dear ones Linda and Kathleen, I kept at it. Without their support? I dunno if I could’ve finished.)
Two days ago, Kathleen told me about a friend of hers, a travel buddy. A woman who had – and this is key – no knowledge whatsoever of me, my book or the connection. She reached out to Kathleen this week to say she read a book titled, “Surviving Sue” and noticed a “Kathleen Canfield” mentioned in the Acknowledgements.
Curious she asked, “Do you know a Vicki Atkinson – a writer? There’s a ‘Kathleen Canfield’ mentioned in her book. A thank you from the author. Are you, by any chance THAT Kathleen?”
To say Kathleen was stunned would be an understatement supreme.
“Yes,” Kathleen said. “That’s me. Vicki’s my friend. But how did you get a copy of the book, I never mentioned it to you.”
Here’s the crazy part. Kathleen’s friend received a copy of “Surviving Sue“ from an acquaintance who passed it along as a ‘great read’. Kathleen doesn’t know that woman, nor do I. It seems to be a fantastic coincidence. The Universe at work, pulling threads across many miles and across four States in the U.S.
I’m still smiling about the randomness. It reminds me that continuing to ask for support and readership is more than book promotion. It’s deeper, more personal. Tied to my purpose and desire to help others.
There you have it – two reasons for my big grin today. If you’re in the Chicago area, I’d love to see you at Printers Row Lit Fest on September 8.
Vicki 😉
P.S. Do you have a ‘six degrees of separation’ story? Share!
P.P.S. Check out this link to learn more about my book, “Surviving Sue”.
Victoria Ponders 
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