123 Comments on “The Redshirts Tour: Places, Dates and Times”

1. See you in Cambridge! And if you don’t have dinner plans I’d love to take you out. I’m serious!

2. And if you’re not coming to my town? Throw myself on the floor? Kick and scream about just how unfair it is? Maybe blame Obama somehow? Drown my sorrows in cheap Canadian whiskey?

3. And later in the year John will be in the DC area: http://www.capclave.org/capclave/capclave12/

4. I see for the Houston stop you’ll be at “Brazo’s”. Do you mean the Brazos (no apostrophe) Bookstore on Bissonnet?

5. Maybe?

6. Nevermind, just checked their online calendar. It is the Brazos Bookstore:

   http://www.brazosbookstore.com

7. Hm, I missed getting my copy signed at Boskone – Might be worth getting down to Cambridge in June!

8. Why no Colorado? Just because we’re big and rectilinear?

9. Is there any chance of some Canadian dates in the future?

10. Once again, no love for Colorado. Does the TOR publicist hate the middle of the country? And Ohio is getting two visits, what’s so freaking special about Ohio? :)

    @Randall, I say we start Occupy Bradford until his publicist schedules visits in our cities.

11. As so often happens, we of the mountain states are in the vast book tour wasteland. I can’t believe you aren’t going to the Phoenix or Denver areas! Not that either are close to me, but at least I could drive to each place in one (long) day.

12. Awwwwwww!!!! No S.F.!!!

13. Yay!!!!

14. Thanks for coming to one of the oldest independent bookstores left here in Mpls instead of a Barnes and Noble!!!! See you in June.

15. Sad you’re not coming to visit us in the northwest! Maybe next time? :)

16. Bah! You should come to Denver again! It was neat when you came by for our Worldcon, but I’d like another chance to see you here. We’ve got bookstores, honest!

17. Cambridge at 7 on 6/15. Got it. See you then!

18. Cambridge! Yay! I think I’ll have to buy a hard copy in addition to the eBook just so you can sign it :-)

19. What – no visit to Powells?!?! (sniffle)

20. All I can say is this:

    Uncle Hugo’s Science Fiction Bookstore is the Nexus of Cool. You don’t have to be Nostradamus to see that I will be there!!!

21. so you don’t make it to gencon in Indy?

22. Which Barnes and Noble in Philadelphia? Rittenhouse Square or one of the suburban stores?

23. I’m assuming Rittenhouse but will update if there is something different.

24. Glad to see you’re coming to Schuler in Lansing, my local independant! It’s a great place.

25. I no longer live in Houston, but can I just say? Kudos for appearing at Brazos, it is a wonderful locally-owned bookstore that does a lot to promote local authors. I’ll be sorry to miss your visit.

26. Glad to see you’re visiting Shuler’s in Lansing. Great Local book store (full disclosure, several friends work there). Looking forward to seeing you there.

27. Oh, awesome, nearby AND on a Sunday. I can hardly wait! And yes, hardcover in addition to e-book, for sure.

28. Shit, yeah. Minneapolis. And another excuse to visit Uncle Hugo’s.

29. Not coming within an eight hour drive of here. Son, I am disappoint.

30. Yay, Vroman’s!!!!!!! I’ve already got RedShirts on pre-order.

31. I’m crossing my fingers and hoping that one of your “surprise drop-ins” will be in the Seattle area.

32. I don’t have a problem with the 2 Ohio visits. I do have a problem with where they are. The 2 stores are less than an hour apart. That is pretty unfair to the rest of the state. And what about the other states being snubbed? Do you not have any fans there? If not then you certainly wont win any with this maneuver.

33. Hmm, Houston? That’s four and a half hours away, but probably worth it. I did it for Pat Rothfuss after all. Any idea what time so I can see how feasible the trip is?

34. Nevermind! It’s at 2:00 PM. Fail for not reading their calendar sooner.

35. If people decide they are not going to enjoy my work because of a tour itinerary I have little control over, I am not going to miss them much, ed j.

36. You know Brother(Tor)… you do have fans north of Sacramento that would love a book signing/ reading from you. Come to beautiful Northern California sometime!! xoxoxoxo <3

37. As Albert Einstein used to say: Awesome-Sauce! See you in Minneapolis!

38. Excellent! So June 9th is my eleventh wedding anniversary and my wife says we should totally go to Houston. It’ll be baby’s first road trip! We’ll have Fuzzy Nation playing on the drive and I’ll have to find the baby an appropriately red shirt themed onesie. This will be epic.

39. Other Washington, DC folks can take note that Scalzi’s on the list for the book signing session at the Nebula Awards Weekend, Friday May 18th in Crystal City: http://www.sfwa.org/nebula-awards/nebula-weekend/events-program/book-signing/

    So we won’t get the whole Scalzi Reading Experience (TM), but we do have a chance to get our copies of Red Shirts lovingly defaced by the author.

40. Oh, I was so sad to miss you in Boskone, it’s great that you’re coming this way again!

41. Please consider tacking on Mysterious Galaxy in San Diego to the tour while you’re in San Diego for Comic-Con, because the majority of us natives have no hope of getting tickets and won’t be able to see you there.

    C’mon.

    PRATCHETT’S done Mysterious Galaxy.

    You HAVE to!

42. I am glad you will be in Lansing. Schulers is a nice store.

43. Awesome! See you in June at Uncle Hugo’s!

44. Dammit man so close. But, as no one ever seems to come to Baltimore, I wasn’t really expecting it, just hoping. But, Philly is close enough. So I’ll probably be there on the 6th. I do not know the city at all, and will try my best to not end up on an episode of Parking Wars.

45. Will you come to German again? Last time I missed you by one day! :(

46. Why does Cleveland, OH never get any love.

47. Vroman’s in Pasadena is only a few blocks fro the Huntington Library and Gardens, which I’ve wanted to visit for years. And eat real Chinese food in San Gabriel Valley. Sorely tempted.

48. Might as well forget summer. First Rush spurns Denver and now Scalzi.

49. Arrgh. No love for the upper-left corner this time. I did enjoy your stop in Seattle for Fuzzy Nation. Now Mary’s gone (as in Robinette Kowal), Cherie’s gone (as in Priest) and you’re not coming for a visit. Guess I’ll have to train some new favorite authors (I’ll still buy your books, too).

50. Hope you can make it to New Orleans one day!

51. Have a great tour! I do hope Boulder Bookstore (Boulder, CO) or the Tattered Cover (Denver, CO) end up on one of your next itineraries… After reading the preview in iBooks, I kept trying to find the “buy this book” link to get the rest. Then I realized I have to wait until June. Drat!

52. No Utah stop this time. Bummer. Was the turn-out for Fuzzy Nation not good enough? Well, maybe next time. (By the way, I’d love to see you advertise The Spank Chronicles in Utah. Too bad that won’t be the real name.)

53. john, so glad to see you will be at Uncle Hugo’s. I’ll see you there, and you too MNmom, Robin Raianiemi, and danbaileynet. I’ll be wearing my Redshirts t-shirt, will you?

54. Looking forward to Redshirts in a big way! Really enjoyed your signing at Powell’s last spring for “Fuzzy Nation”, and when I pick up the new book from them, I’ll remember that very fun preview you gave for the then upcoming book.

55. For some reason, publishers seem to ignore Northern California. I know LA is grand, but so is the SF Bay Area. So is Sacramento, believe it or not (At least, for fandom!). Ah well. I’ll still be reading the book while relaxing in my backyard, trying not to think about the fact I want to finish my own work before school starts again.

56. Commendations to your tour organizer. LOTS of independent book stores and a few libraries. Sweet. Though, man, I do not want your itinerary. Ow. You’re going to have oatmeal between your ears by the time you finally get home. Thanks for doing this to your body and brain on our behalf even though I probably can’t get to any of the stops. :-(

57. It was great to see you in Columbus last year… maybe next time. Can’t wait for the book.

58. I will try to see you (again) at Vroman’s. I have to say, though, that the itinerary looks daunting. An evening gig in Burbank, followed by (I assume) a cross-country red-eye flight, followed by an evening gig in Brooklyn? And that’s smack in the middle of the tour!

    Eat well and get what sleep you can. You will be needing your health, I’m thinking.

59. Yay! Cambridge! Doesn’t get much closer to me than that! Looking forward to it!

60. @Kevin M. I can’t say I’m motivated enough to be involved in an Occupy movement, to be honest. Job, kid, etc., etc. Besides, why would any writer want to come to Seattle? High percentage of readers among citizenry, great coffee, amazing seafood, great summertime weather…

    Hey…what the fish?!

    I’d also feel guilty taking part in anything that could result in making a dude do more work and spend more time away from home. I’ve gotten soft in my old age, apparently. Let our cities be snubbed in the name of sacrifice to Scalziness.

61. So close to Canada–I don’t expect you to come to my actual town, but I could make it to Toronto or London (or even Buffalo) to see you…. I just can’t quite make it to Lansing or Chicago in the time available.

    Ah, well. Some other time.

    John — remember, if you’ve heard the name, it’s not really me

62. Yayy!!! Burbank Public Library where my Librarian Friend works! I believe the Friends of the Library will have copies of Redshirts for us to buy for signing. I think I may just take the day off work just so I can adequately prepare for the awesomeness – and also, so my dog can get her evening walk without my coming all the way home from the Valley, walking the dog super-quick and then hauling back into the Valley.

63. Sadly, I won’t able to make your Cambridge, MA appearance. Foo. :-(

64. Oh goody! I hope to see you in Minneapolis!

    The only signed books I have so far were written by Garrison Keillor, Tom Wolfe, and Bill Nye the Science Guy. I think I need more.

65. Milwaukee or Lake Forest? Hmmm….

66. You’re going to be one tire road warrior when the tour is over. Good luck!

67. I had to look up the Boswell Book Company in Milwaukee because I never heard of it during my seven years of living in Milwaukee. It is located in the old Harry W. Schwartz bookstore in the neighborhood where I used to live while attending UWM. Schwartz Books on Downer was the most awesome bookstore in the world. I hope that Boswell Books is keeping up the tradition. Ah, the happy memories. Try to visit the Oriental Theater nearby, it’s a beautiful old movie theater.

    I’ll try to catch you in Cincinnati.

68. No Atlanta, no Dragon*Con. Your southern fans may be forced to hire mercenaries to *encourage* your publicity people to make some proper schedules. Just sayin’

69. Why do you hate Ann Arbor? Ohio, yes. Lansing, yes. But not Ann Arbor.

70. You would think a UC grad would know better than to label something in Wheeling as “Chicago”… It’s just sad that as a resident of Hyde Park, and former resident of Minneapolis, I actually have a better chance of seeing you at Hugo’s than I do at the official so-called “Chicago” stop.

    Nathan: As for “I’ll have to find the baby an appropriately red shirt themed onesie”, there is really only one choice: http://www.thinkgeek.com/geek-kids/newborn-infant/c754/

71. Sorry, should have said this before:
    mattw – Note that the reading is only *sponsored* by the Lake Forest Bookstore; it’s actually at the Indian Trails library, which is in Wheeling. I don’t know how that affects your decision to go there or to Milwaukee, though it’s not as far north as Lake Forest.

72. You are going to be at the Indian Trails Library!!! Like four blocks from my house. Squeeeeee *BOOM*

73. Well that tears it! If your coming to Uncle Hugos I’ll never buy another one of your books!

    Did you ever dream, when you dreamed of being a published author that tour dates would be your big headache? 8-{D

    I’ll be the cranky old guy with your grammer mistakes highlighted in red!

74. Uncle Hugo’s? Oh, my.

75. I’ll be there at Uncle Hugo’s!

76. Ditto to the “Why no love for NorCal?” We have In-n-Out Burgers here too!
    (On another note, when in Houston you have to go to James Coney Island for their chili dogs. It’s a Houston institution. Don’t bother with the hamburgers there, just the hot dogs with chili.)

77. For those asking about the Philadelphia location, it is the Rittenhouse B&N:
    http://store-locator.barnesandnoble.com/event/76631

    (Nice photo, John)

78. For anyone coming into Philadelphia: Don’t plan to park on the street near Rittenhouse Square; it’s probably the area of the city where street spots are scarcest compared to demand, and they do ticket aggressively. Instead, pay for a garage or pay-lot nearby (it won’t be cheap), or leave time to walk from a more distant parking spot.

    Better yet, if you can manage it, don’t drive at all. 30th Street Station is a 20-minute walk or a short cab ride from Rittenhouse Square, and you’ll be able to read or otherwise relax on the train or bus coming in.

    John: If you haven’t already got plans afterwards, I’d be glad to take you to the dessert place nearby that a major magazine says has the best gelato on the planet. (I haven’t traveled as much as the writers for the magazine, but I’m happy to report that none of my own visits have suggested that they’re wrong.)

79. @ Ron Mitchell – Baltimore is close to Capclae. Trust me.
    @Randall – Our esteemed host is busy DragonCon weekend. He’s Toastmaster at the 70th Annual World Science Fiction Convention that weekend in Chicago.

80. Capclave … not Capae …. sigh.

81. God, now I’m gonna have to bribe my mom into driving me all the way from SF to LA.
    Do you realize what you are costing me mister!?! do you?!?

82. Ummm…. Omaha NE is the middle of the country, not Colorado! We ARE the Midwest!!!
    And by the way, John? why are you ignoring us? I’m so sad…. (checking to see if my 2001 POS will make it to Minneapolis)

83. Ugh a Tuesday night in Pasadena. Still better than the Wednesday night in Burbank. I shall attempt to attend one of those two. I shall also attempt to find some fun japanese Kit Kat for you. Be glad they don’t make a bacon flavored one.

84. Oh, you are coming to Lansing?
    SQUEEE!!!!
    That is, I’ll try to make it.
    … also, SQUEEEE!!!!

85. That is a very intense schedule. How can you keep it up? Wow

86. Oh, happy dance! See you in Louisville!

87. HOUSTON, YES! Brazos Bookstore is a local institution (trying to get a job there when I get out of school)–thank you so much for supporting it!

88. Wow, I used to stop at Indian Trails Library every so often. Nice place.

    Yay for Uncle Hugo’s! Alas, I have convention work to do that day. I shall have to send a representative.

89. Awesome! I’m joining the Houston crowd! Looking forward to your visit.

90. I’ve never been to one of these. Is there some etiquette I should know about?

91. NeuroticChihuahua: It’s a complex social situation, and I’ve never attended a Scalzi reading, so some of the details may differ. I’ll try to cover the high points, in no particular order:
    * Don’t throw up on people.
    * Don’t make the reading awkward for other people.
    * If at a bookstore and if at all possible, buy books: prove to them that bringing authors in means more money.
    * Don’t bring a hundred things to sign.
    * Recognize that not all authors thrive on this, so be tolerant of them.
    * Don’t spread disease, famine, pestilence, or war.
    * Do not be shocked at some of your fellow fans: if necessary, remind yourself that all you share is your fondness for that author and bilateral symmetry.
    * Do not use the reading as your starting point for world domination; that’s the author’s job.
    * Wear pants or, failing that, some kind of lower body garb.
    * Don’t monopolize the author’s time.
    * Don’t throw things at the publishing representative, if there is one, not even foam rubber bricks.
    * Do not emit gamma radiation–actually, don’t hulk out in general.
    * If there are multiple authors, visit all of them. I’m told it’s very lonely sitting there when everyone mobs the other guy.
    * Be tolerant if the author is diseased…some of them (Christopher Moore) are even funnier when hopped up on cold medication (though in a different way).

    Really, be cool, be nice to people, be tolerant. The author, the publisher, the bookstore–all are trying to give you as much access as feasible.

92. No return to your old stomping ground? No D.C., northern Virginia or Maryland visit? C’mon, show us some love back in the homeland.

93. what’s austin, texas, chopped liver?

94. I’d be interested in having you attend our con next April in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Who do I talk to about that?

95. Tara, there is a place at the top of this site where John provides this information, under the heading Availability for Interviews, Appearances, and Writing Work

96. No Denver…again. Pfff.

97. Hey John,

    I hope one day you can make it down North Carolina way.

98. Yay! See you in Lexington! It’ll be my first author visit ever.

99. See you at Books and Co. again. Will there be cupcakes this time too? I don’t eat cupcakes, but my mother enjoyed hers. She bought a book, too, which seemed like a fair trade for a cupcake.

100. Yay Houston! Actually, that reminds me to go to Brazos this week for something.

     @Nathan Beittenmiller: Didn’t Rothfuss read at Murder By the Book? If so, Brazos is only across Bissonnet and half a block west from where you went before. Should be a piece of cake to find.

101. I may just have to venture out of my comfort zone (aka South Philly) to see this.

     Oh, and everything John Mark Ockerbloom said up there about parking in Philly, especially in Center City and Rittenhouse Square, is the truth. Plan accordingly.

102. I’m going to echo the people that were sad to miss you at Boskone, but I actually live really close to the Coop. Yay. See you then.

103. Thanks, Phil!

104. Don’t forget about your Canadian readers… Especially the ones in Vancouver.

105. Spokane, Washington is lovely during the summer…just saying.

106. Try to add Powell’s City of Books (more likely at Cedar Hills Crossing, but still…) – pretty please with bacon on top. We close to Portland always try to lure unsuspecting (usually suspecting) favorite authors with a bacon maple bar from Voodoo Doughnut. If it’s a day off of work, or a day I can manage to take off, I’ll bring you one, nay three, if you so desire. Or if you don’t like maple, I’ll bring you doughnuts of your choosing.

107. Dear Mr Scarzi:
     Please add me to the flame list as your geographically challenged publicists are apparently unaware that CA has a North in it.
     Yrs, Waah

108. See you in Philly!

109. Shoot. Always makes me sad when these tours come through California but stay in the South.

110. And here I’ll have to come try to see you at a book fair in NYC when I just want to find out if we knew each other at U of C, since we were in the same year. I should have gotten an autograph then–probably wouldn’t have been any line in 1987!

111. Dissed again! No Charlotte or Atlanta. But fear not, the South IS rising…and may get a tour visit someday.

112. No Denver…or anything in Colorado for that matter.

113. Getting married on the 9th but going to do my best to make it to Dayton to see you on the 7th with two of my groomsmen. I’ve never been to one of your appearances but I would imagine it’s something akin to a Justin Bieber concert with thousands of screaming fans chasing as you make an escape to your luxurious, window-tinted RV. Except in your case, the fans would be wearing red shirts. Hope to see you then!

114. See you in Philly!!!

115. You were at BEA in NYC. I was at a work conference in AC. Sigh.

116. I’ll be back in NYC on the 14th. Come see me then!

117. see you in cambridge!

118. Oh well, you’d only get wet in Seattle but I would have found my umbrella for the chance to meet you.

119. I’ll be at the COOP. My tiny sci-fi book club is reading RedShirts for our next meeting, and I just send a copy to a friend who needs a break from middle-aged life.

120. I can’t believe I missed the Cambridge Signing. Darn My Luck. Just the way my month has been going. Loved Red Shirts. Flew through it. Creative, intelligent, geeky, funny,…I could go on and on…but I won’t. Let’s stick with Awesome.

121. I don’t know if you’ll read this, but have you ever read Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead? It’s a lot like your book. Also, someday, if I actually become a writer (I haven’t gone to college yet, and all I’ve written so far are a few poems and some ideas), and I write screenplays (or at least scripts, and I’ll probably write at least one of one of them because it seems more natural to me than trying to find a clever/non-staid way of describing imagery, which I feel was my major flaw in the like 2 short stories I wrote in Creative Writing) then I may write a screenplay version of this book. It would actually be a pretty awesome one, though I would have to cut out that first scene, with the worms and shit. Maybe. Because it just seems awkward in terms of a movie, especially with having to do the voices and shit. Unless I make like cartoonish voices that yell at each other, kinda-sorta like devils on shoulders…

     In any case, you’re awesome, Camouflage is one of my favorite novels, ciao.

122. P.S.:
     And by ” ‘Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead’… is a lot like your book” I don’t mean that it’s the same idea, as with all of those examples you listed in the first coda. I mean that it also has to do with questioning fate, identity, and what is real or not (i.e. if everyone says this one thing they saw was a unicorn, it becomes a unicorn even if it’s just a deer with an arrow in its head). If you haven’t read it, try it. It’s funny and stands up to analysis.

     Also, I just read over what I wrote and realized how “darned” young I sound. Although I suppose the abuse of parentheses and weird trailing sentences could just be attributed to my personal style, sort of like Robin McKinley’s blog.

     Do you actually have a place where I can send long diatribes that you’ll eventually stop reading but will provide an illusion of you actually giving a shit? Or should I just make a blog? Are wordpress blogs free to create and maintain?

123. Hey John, Are you doing a signing at Comic-Con? I’m really looking forward to your panels, can I wander up with my copy of Redshirts at the end?