The Renfrow Story

I have be working on giving myself permission to work at a more normal pace. I confess I’m a bit disappointed that I haven’t managed to get the book into more bookstores yet, that I don’t have the ebook version ready, that I haven’t made a read-along version…. so many things that I’ve thought I should do but haven’t managed to accomplish yet. Then last week I was invited to lunch to share about the book with a couple of friends of a friend. As I was talking about all the various steps in the journey, one of them asked how long it had taken – 3 or 4 years? When I said it had all happened between last January and October, less than 10 months from draft text to print ready, I was reminded that this was truly a phenomenal pace. So maybe the intensity and blurr speed I was working at last spring really isn’t something I should expect or try to maintain.

Things really are progressing and I trust it’s at the pace they are meant to at this point. I gave a book talk at the library a couple of weeks ago for the Bucket Class. Since they ask for a 90 minute class this is probably the most extensive program I’ll do. They record each session for their YouTube channel so if you’re interested you can watch it here.

In a couple of weeks I’m doing a program at the Iowa City Public Library. And on June 1st I’ll be presenting as part of the Grinnell College Alumni Reunion weekend. Each will include varying degrees of background information and book development details. And of course I always end by doing a reading of the book. I’ve really enjoyed these events and hearing the response of the audience. Thus far they’ve all been to people who mostly already know a bit about her.

Earlier this week I got a glimpse, or perhaps just a reminder, or what it’s like to hear the story for the first time. I had a call from Sherrie Colbert, Director of the Iowa Gold Star Military Musem. She had heard about the Renfrow story and the tie to the Underground Railroad, a subject she is actively collecting stories for to use in a museum project. Prior to our conversation she had only been told that I had a story she might be interested in. As I shared the details of Miss Edith’s life and the ways the Renfrows link to so many remarkable things, her response was continual levels of awe and disbelief. It reminded me that as I have become entrenched in telling the story, I have also grown a bit numb to the power of what it’s like to hear it for the first time. It truly is a remarkable story and I’m excited to share it with more people. Now, among other things, we’re working on finding a time I can do a program at the Gold Star Museum.

I have also made a decision and plan that I think will help get it into bookstores. Working with Print Ninja on the first copies was awesome and has made selling them through the Pioneer Bookstore and getting copies to libraries easy. But to get them into bookstores around the state, in Chicago, and around the country, I need to work with a printer that has an established program for doing that. So for the last couple of weeks I’ve been working to make it available through Ingram using their IngramSparks program for self-publishing. Last night I thought I had it figured out, only to find that they can’t do the 10″ wide by 8″ high size that the book is printed in. Ugh… So it’s going to require some reformatting and other tweaking to make it work with their system. But, once that is done, it will show up in the catalog of books available to be purchased by any bookstore in the country. And once that is done, it should be a lot easier to get stores to consider stocking it. If I understand things right, they can also format it as an ebook, so that will be awesome as well.

So I guess it’s not that I haven’t been doing anything. It’s just a more normal and sustainable pace. I am extremely grateful that I have time to spend in my garden this spring, as last year that was the thing that I gave up the most (besides sleep!) in order to work on the book. So here are a few glimpses of early spring in my yard. In case you wonder where I am.