My Palm Springs Book Signing

Last weekend, Palm Springs put on their annual Gay and Lesbian Pride celebration. In addition to the Freedom Day Parade, and the two day Pride celebration at a baseball field, The Q Trading Co. bookstore sponsored book signings for several authors, which included Armistead Maupin, Radcliffe, Kage Alan, myself, and others.

I had a blast. Not only did I sell ten times as many books as I did at last year's event, but a number of people I've met on FB and Twitter came up to introduce themselves. It was so much fun talking to these wonderful people in person. In addition to my online friends and people buying books, I had the opportunity to talk shop with author Kage Alan, who is one of the most charming and funniest people I know. He kept me laughing through the afternoon on both days. I also got to have a conversation with Armistead Maupin, who is as charming as he is interesting.

Also, Herman and I were invited to spend an entire week at our friend's, Jimmy and Rob, PS condo. We spent the first day playing tennis and chumming with them, and as alway, we had a wonderful time. And as always, I woke the next morning with a hangover. Not sure what it is about Jimmy and Rob, but I always managed to overdo everything, including drinking.

So here are some pics of the event:

This is a picture of the ballpark where the event was held. This was early in the day. It grew much more crowded in the afternoon. The temps were pushing 90 degrees, so people were showing lots of skin.

This is me posing with Armistead Maupin.

This is Kage Alan and me. Kage is the handsome one in the red shirt and Hollywood shades.

This is me signing a book beside Kage Alan scarfing up an ice cream.

This is me and my three books. Behind me is Ralph, Kage Alan's BF.

Dear Hewlett-Packard

Dear HP,

A few months ago I bought a MacBook Pro, which I love. As a promotional incentive, the company I purchased it from included a free HP wireless printer, which I DON’T love.

I’m writing this letter to complain, not about the printer (which sometimes works and sometimes doesn’t), but about the amount of spam your company is filling my inbox with every day.

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE STOP!

Believe me, if I had ever thought about buying any of your products, you have convinced me that that would be a major mistake. What makes you think I need to hear from you on a daily basis? Trust me, I don’t. Never is about the right interval for sending me spam.

Even at the incredibly low price of $0.00, I’m regretting taking your product. I was under the impression that nothing could be worse than the LexMark printer I had before installing your product, however, I’m finding myself wishing I had not given that piece of sh*t away. At least when it didn’t work I could figure out why and fix it.

I’m posting this letter with the hope you will take notice and do something to stop the spam from arriving in my inbox. I’ll make you a deal: you stop spamming me, and I’ll stop telling people what crap your products are.

Thanks for listening.

ARMISTEAD MAUPIN Does Reading/Signing

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 15 @ 7:30PM
ARMISTEAD MAUPIN
Mary Ann in Autumn: A Tales of the City Novel
Free and open to the public
Facebook RSVP

Armistead Maupin personally presents his latest Tales of the City novel to our community on Monday, November 15 at 7:30pm with a reading and signing of MARY ANN IN AUTUMN. This is Armistead's only scheduled appearance in the Castro.

For more information, contact -

Oscar Raymundo
Events Coordinator

A Different Light
489 Castro Street
San Francisco, CA 94114

(415) 431 0891
adlsfevents@gmail.com
adl-books.blogspot.com
twitter.com/adifferentlight

Palm Springs Book Signing

Hi Everyone,

This weekend Palm Springs, California is having their annual gay pride celebration. They are taking over a park near the center of town for two days, and will also have a parade down the main drag on Sunday morning, starting at 10 a.m.

As part of the celebration, there will be a host of gay and lesbian authors on hand, myself included, who will be signing books and chatting with readers at the park. We'll all be together at the author's village section of the park.

If you don't have a book to have your favorite author sign, no worries. The Q Trading Co. bookstore will have plenty of books on hand that you can buy at reasonable prices. If you don't want to buy a book or two, at least stop by and say hello.

So if your planning to be in the Palm Springs area over the weekend, come join the fun and support your favorite gay and lesbian authors.

I'll be there signing all three of my books: Match Maker, The Lonely War, and Island Song.

Hope to see you there.

Book Review: The Rest is Illusion by Eric Arvin

Reviewed by Alan Chin
Published by Young Offenders Media
Pages: 186

At a small college in the Midwest, a cast of characters are unwittingly moving towards a night of magic, a night where the stars align, and destinies are changed. On this night, Dashhel Yarnsbrook – a beautiful, yet, troubled gay student – prepares for death. While Dash struggles to find meaning in his life before death takes him, his three friends and one enemy struggle with their own impediments to attaining adulthood. As the story unfolds, each character must travel their own path, and face their own truth. And for some, a touch of Divine guidance helps them along their path.

I was a bit confused by this story. The simplistic plot and somewhat cliché young characters convinced me that this is a YA novel, yet the vocabulary is geared to a much more sophisticated reader. Still, flowery vocabulary aside, this is a wonderful coming of age tale, full of magic and characters stumbling towards adulthood.

The characters, although lacking depth, are likable and I couldn’t help but cheer them on. There are many touching moments, both sad and happy. I felt the blending of magic into the story worked well. It was not overdone like I’ve seen in other novels.

My one issue with this novel is that I felt it was over written. As mentioned above, the flower prose often went overboard, and when it did it pulled me out of the story and made me notice the writing, instead of being absorbed in the story. For instance, the author wrote: “She sensed what was to come before it happened, and in that second, lying outside of perceived time and place, Sarah let out a great sweeping cry of sadness and regret. It flew past all the known realms of sound, and parted the clouds in the sky.” It’s beautiful writing, yet I often found it over the top.

This is a powerful coming of age story for young adults, one I’m sure that many will be able to identify with, and perhaps help them discover that spark of magic within themselves that will help them down their own path. It is a very unique story line that is both entertaining and inspirational. This is a novel I can highly recommend.

Two Five-Star Reviews in One Day

Hi everyone,

I'm celebrating today. I woke up to find not one, but two five-star reviews sitting in my inbox. I couldn't be more thrilled that reviewers are enjoying Match Maker.

The first review at Ebook Addict Reviews said in part: absolutely wonderful characters, the politics of tennis, electric descriptions of tennis play and glimpses into the psyche of tennis players had me so engrossed in the story I didn’t want to put this novel down. For me, the best novels (TV shows and movies for that matter) entwine complementary story lines that emotionally or viscerally capture a reader’s mind and heart. “Match Maker” does both.

You can read the entire review at http://www.ebookaddictreviews.com/2010/11/03/match-maker-by-alan-chin/

The second review at Dark Divas Reviews said in part: Match Maker by Alan Chin is a powerful love story. Mr. Chin’s shocking plot twists provide all of the characters with amazing growth and development and sets the stage for the tremendously heart-warming and emotionally satisfying ending.

You can read the entire review at http://www.darkdivasreviews.com/?p=2998

Author Dan Stone Interviews Me

Hi everyone,

Dan Stone has posted an interview with me on his site. As with all of the interviews he posts, the focus is on the subject's ideas/thoughts about inspiration.

http://firstadream.com/2010/11/01/musings-on-inspiration-author-alan-chin/

Please drop by and check it out!