Diary #3: Book Launch Party photos

+ Summer Spotify Playlist & a Book Club Kit

Evelyn Skye

Aug 02, 2024

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Hello, Protagonists! In this post, you’ll find:

☀️ Photos from my One Year Ago in Spain book release dinner: tapas & sangria & friends!

🎶 Spotify playlist: my handpicked songs for One Year Ago in Spain

📚 Book Club Kit: One Year Ago in Spain discussion questions and a tapas-inspired recipe by

Caroline Chambers

☀️ One Year Ago in Spain book release dinner: tapas & sangria & friends!

Evelyn Skye with author Dana Elmendorf (l.) and writer/critique partner Joanna Phoenix (r.)

Please forgive me for sending you another behind-the-scenes diary so soon. My usual goal is a diary entry once per month, but since I just had a new novel published, I really really wanted to share the book launch party photos with you.

To celebrate One Year Ago in Spain, I decided to throw a small private party with my bookish best friends.

(Why do this instead of a bookstore event? I wrote about introvert book parties earlier this year. You can read that here.)

First, everyone stopped into Books Inc. (one of the independent bookstores in the Bay Area) to pick up their pre-ordered copies of One Year Ago in Spain. I autographed their books, as well as extras for the bookstore.

»If you want an autographed copy of One Year Ago in Spain or The Hundred Loves of Juliet, order from Books Inc. and write in the Order Comments that you’d like a signed copy. Or you can call them at (650) 321-0600. They will ship anywhere!

I don’t remember what we were laughing about here, but this is pretty much my life with Tom—we laugh. A lot.

Anyway, you all know I’m obsessed with good food. So for this release day celebration, I chose Telefèric Barcelona, one of my favorite tapas restaurants. We grabbed a table on the gorgeous patio so we could enjoy the summer evening sun

Of course, it’s not a summer Spanish dinner without sangria. They had non-alcoholic cocktails, too, for non-drinkers like me

“Virgin Tourist”: lychee juice, raspberries, honey, mint, and lime

Picture book author Seina Wedlick with a “Barceloneta Sangria”: sparkling wine, lemonade, prickly pear, honey, rosemary, orange, and mixed berries.

I might’ve gone a little overboard with the menu for this party… But then again, is it really possible to overdo it? I mean, it’s a party!

Here are a few food photos, but I won’t bore you with all of them. Suffice it to say, though, that I left dinner feeling very happily full.

But wait! It’s not an Evelyn Skye party without dessert, and lots of it!

My friend Seina brought giant gourmet cookies that were so deliciously big and thick, we had to slice them into wedges.

We also ordered nutella-stuffed churros in caramel sauce and some Spanish flan served in adorable coffee mugs.

The best part, though, was celebrating with my closest friends. These women have been on this writing journey with me for years and years. Most of them knew me before I had an agent, when publishing a book was still just a dream. They’ve been there for the ups as well as the downs, and I’ve been there for theirs. I adore them all.

Here’s a final photo. It’s not the best one, but on the other hand, it is the best photo, because we’re laughing. Again. You just can’t stop us from feeling the love and having a great time!

If you’d like to support my writing, I would love if you picked up a copy of One Year Ago in Spain for yourself or a reader in your life. THANK YOUUUU!

🎶 Spotify playlist: my handpicked songs for One Year Ago in Spain

Getting ready to head down to the pool or beach, with a copy of One Year Ago in Spain in your tote?

I made this playlist to loosely follow the story arc of One Year Ago in Spain, but it’s also just good summer feels! I hope these songs make you smile.

📚 Book Club Kit: One Year Ago in Spain

Here’s the official book club kit with discussion questions that my editor and I came up with!

Plus, I’m honored to have a tapas-inspired recipe by Caroline Chambers—the chef behind What to Cook When You Don’t Feel Like Cooking—included as part of this book club kit.

So what are you waiting for? Invite some friends over, put on the Spotify playlist, and enjoy some tapas and sangria while you chat about books!