Janet fisher

Artists and Authors celebrated the beginning of spring last weekend at a gala in historic Oakland, Oregon, at the wonderful 1905 Oakland Ice House, hosted by Conni Westford Riley. I so enjoyed being a part of this event and sharing my books there.

The room with its old brick walls and antique furnishings offered a lovely setting for the event and our host Conni Riley added many special touches.

Here’s Conni in the photo below next to my table where I sold and signed books, A Place of Her Own and The Shifting Winds, my Oregon pioneer stories. Also on the table is a book of photos, including pictures of Ireland, setting for my next book. Conni did the beautiful display above the table, adding my “Author” sign to her decor, a sign I have used since I received it from the Oaklanders who made it for me at an event they sponsored some years ago. I especially loved the violin. Nice touch.

Conni offers this space at the old Oakland Ice House for fundraisers for non-profits, community dinners, movies, including chick flicks, and other group shows. This was the first spring event for artists and authors and hopefully she’ll do it again next year.

Carolyn’s book displays 50 of these characters in full color with enchanting stories for each one. She has made each character by hand (in fact she was working some wool during the event to show the process). I’m not good at estimating sizes but I would guess they’re about two feet tall. The books are available on Amazon.

And for a wide look at the room here’s Elaesa Jones, below, a young author with unbounded energy and enthusiasm, with a collection of her books, There Once Was a Rabbit, Tales by the Fire, and many more. She loves magic and delving into fantastical realms for her stories. I found her online by going directly to “elaesa jones books.”

This is just a sample of the artists and authors. Visitors included longtime friends and new folks I thoroughly enjoyed chatting with as well. An excellent event all around.