Camille Booker’s Book Launch in Coledale
Written by Camille Booker
Earlier this year, when my publisher, Hawkeye Books, set my debut novel’s launch date for October, I instantly started daydreaming about the launch party. All of my friends and family would be there, smiling at me while I got to talk about my favourite things to talk about - reading, writing and, of course, my book. There would be photos for my children to look back on and maybe even feel a bit proud of me for.
Then the Delta outbreak spread throughout Sydney and Gladys Berejiklian announced NSW would go into a two-week lockdown that lasted close to 3 months, which meant no gatherings and definitely no book launch. I postponed the date and watched the vaccination rates climb steadily higher, willing us to reach that 80% goal as my dream of having an in-person event became more of a reality.
Then on a rainy Sunday afternoon in November, microphone in hand, the Coledale Community Hall full of attentive faces smiling up at me, I got to thank everyone for coming to my launch.
During my welcome speech, I expressed just how grateful I felt that we could indeed gather to celebrate the launch of What If You Fly?, which might not seem like much, but to me it took six years, three homes (one overseas), two babies, a Creative Writing Degree and a whole lot of cups of coffee to get to this point, so it was definitely worth having at least one glass of champagne to celebrate.
I read an excerpt from my story that my sister helped me choose, and then our MC, Andrew, led the Q&A by inviting questions from the audience. Our discussion sprung from topics like the French Resistance and the Parisian catacombs, to how a mother of two young kids and a husband completing his PhD finds time to write a novel (answer: I don’t cook wonderful meals, I don’t socialise regularly, and I’m 100% fine about giving our four-year-old a little extra screen time if it means I get some writing in).
We popped some bubbly, cut the cake, and then I set up at the signing table where friends old and new came to buy their copies and chat to me about writing, about war, and about the book. I appreciated every single person and you could not wipe the smile from my face.
Coledale Community Hall was the perfect venue for the book launch. It provided everything I needed, including chairs for the audience, tables for the signing, the books, and the refreshments. And the lovely people at the South Coast Writers Centre were so warm and helpful throughout the whole process.
My debut novel has been described as a gripping, fast-paced action-packed love story set amidst WWII with a true female heroine at the helm. Truly a dream come true.
Hire Coledale Community Hall for your Book Launch
The South Coast Writers Centre works under and manages the bookings of Coledale Community Hall, and offers discounted hire rates to SCWC Members.