The town of Henry, Texas, may be fictional, but if you live in Childress, you might recognize the neighborhood. Childress is the town behind Henry. I grew up in a house on the same road as the library, and that house is also the setting for one of the most vivid scenes in Midnight Radio.
I’ll let you read it before we discuss what that says about me.
I started writing the manuscript for Midnight Radio fourteen years ago, long after I’d moved away from Childress. Henry was taking shape on the page while the town behind it was somewhere I used to live.
Then, in 2018, after the birth of my son, I moved back. It was surreal to return to the place where I grew up while I was still writing a story set in its fictional counterpart. Now I was raising my own son there.
On November 5, I’m bringing the book home. I’ll be at the Childress Public Library from 4 to 5 p.m. to read a brief portion, visit with you, and sell and sign copies. It’s the first stop on my Texas book-signing tour, and it feels right to begin just down the road from where I grew up.
All of my royalties from books sold at my table will go to the Childress Public Library.
Encouraging children to read matters to me. A book gives a child somewhere to go, something to wonder about, and a chance to see through someone else’s eyes. That’s something they can carry with them long after they’ve closed the cover.
Summer and Sara do a wonderful job encouraging that curiosity at our library. They help children discover books and give them reasons to keep reading. I appreciate what they do, and this signing is one way I can support their work.
I’m extending the fundraiser to the website, too. From November 5 through November 7 at 11:59 p.m. Central Time, all of my royalties from signed copies sold through midnightrad.io will go to the Childress Public Library. If you can’t join us in person, you can still buy a signed copy and help our library.
As this tour takes me to other towns across Texas, I intend to keep supporting and promoting local libraries. For now, we’re starting at home.
Come by, say hello, and let me introduce you to Henry. You may already know your way around.
Keep checking midnightrad.io for upcoming Texas book-signing tour dates.