 MY BAGS ARE (almost) PACKED... I'M CHECKED IN AND READY TO GO! I am nervous. I am excited. I am quite frankly, FLIPPING OUT! I've never been to Hawaii and I am so excited for this opportunity to meet and write with other authors in a place that I know will be magic. I know that I will feel so connected to the environment. For a little more insight on what I will actually be doing, here is some information on the incredible people I get to work with next week, Ying Compestine and Mark Gottlieb. Fiction Instructor Ying Compestine is an award-winning author, inspirational speaker, and former food editor for Martha Stewart's Whole Living magazine. Ying is the author of 20 books published by Simon&Schuster, Penguin, Abrams, Henry Holt and Co., including the novels Revolution is Not a Dinner Party, Secrets of the Terra-Cotta Soldier, A Banquet for Hungry Ghosts, and the forthcoming Morning Sun in Wuhan. Many of Ying’s books have won numerous awards globally and are required reading in schools around the world. A few are currently being adapted into TV shows and a feature film. She has also worked as the spokesperson for several international companies such as Nestle Maggi and Celestial Seasoning. Nonfiction Instructor Mark Gottlieb is a highly ranked literary agent at Trident Media Group both in overall deals and other individual categories. Using that same initiative and insight for identifying talented writers, he is actively building his own client list of authors. Mark is excited to work directly with authors, helping to manage and grow their careers with all of the unique resources that are available at book publishing’s leading literary agency, Trident Media Group. During his time at Trident Media Group, Mark has represented numerous New York Times bestselling authors, as well as award-winning authors, and has optioned and sold books to film and TV production companies. He previously ran the agency’s audiobook department, in addition to working in foreign rights. Mark Gottlieb is actively seeking submissions in all categories and genres and looking forward to bringing new and established authors to the curious minds of their future readers. Mahalo, y'all! I'll check back from Hawaii... 🤙🏻 Blair  
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This update is to notify customers that Island Girls will be temporarily unavailable to order on retailer websites and through ingram for the next week or two. This is a result of a misprint on the original file uploaded. Unfortunately, it was a mistake on the publishers side.
Please be patient, I'm so sorry about this. It will be back up and ready for ordering before we know it! In the meantime, if you would like to order signed copies of Island Girls through me, please fill out the order form here . Thank you for your continued support! I appreciate it so much! An ocean of gratitude, Blair It's been one heck of a crazy month. The launch of Island Girls: Free the Sea of Plastic went better than I could have ever imagined. I am not sure what I was expecting but it was crazy, in a good way! I was hopeful that I would sell about 150 books (which was incredibly optimistic) during the holidays. I was blown away by the interest and positive reviews people were giving me for the book. I had originally ordered 200 copies from the publisher to sell on my own, realizing that I might have some left over, which would have been fine. But, I found out pretty quickly that I needed to order another 200 books. And then another 200 books. And then another 200 books. I ended up selling about 750 books. 750 books! That is 750+ books that are now in the hands of our youngest activists inspiring them to help our oceans and our under-the-sea friends. A lot of people have asked me how it feels to have such a successful book? I honestly can only answer that question with a huge sense of relief for the turtles and our under-the-sea friends and motivation that we are doing something to spread awareness about plastic in our oceans. I had plenty of moments in my career as a scuba diving instructor where I would look into the eyes of the turtles, the rays, the barracuda, and the sharks and really feel them talking to me. I told them I would help them and this is my little way of creating awareness about what is happening underneath the sea. I am very proud to have kept my pact with my under-the-sea friends. I am going to share with you all below some of my moments, so that you can understand some perspective... and maybe even a deep calling to help and protect them, too. Seriously, when a turtle or another under-the-sea friend looks you in the eye, it's very powerful. I know they are all rejoicing underwater and THANKING YOU for the support, for teaching our children the importance of caring for our environment and all the love for this book. I do believe that it WILL make a difference! So, anyway, I am just so happy with how this has all gone. I'm blown away and very humbled. Thank you. The launch of Island Girls has been so much fun and I'm really looking forward to everything that is coming up in the future. I cannot thank everyone enough for their support. Below are some photos of all that transpired over the past 6 weeks. I am thrilled the book sales have hit 800 and counting. I am looking forward to:
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