Forsyth Read Together 2024: Lisa Wingate

Excited fans from Tennessee who came down to meet Lisa Wingate. 600 fans in the background.

Submitted by: Kim Ottesen

The rainy weather on Tuesday night didn't deter 607 enthusiastic fans of Lisa Wingate from attending our Forsyth Reads Together event at Forsyth Conference Center.

Those who arrived early were treated to a sneak peek of Lisa as she pre-signed a number of books for Read It Again Bookstore to sell to those who preferred to skip the book signing experience. The delight on these fans' faces was evident. Many fans came early to get a prized Group A Book Signing Ticket. This is the first year we have distributed book signing tickets, and people appreciated this method of managing the rush to be first.

Lisa Wingate started her remarks by exclaiming, "I'm a little verklemp seeing so many fans here tonight." She talked about the early years of her writing career, which was steady and earned as much as any job might have, but she was waiting for the big one. After twenty years, she wondered if she would ever hit it big, then came Before We Were Yours. She explained that the novel had a very unconventional way of getting on the New York Bestseller List. Most books hit high and slowly decline, but her novel just missed getting on the fifteen-title list and very slowly made its way up. It didn't make it on the list until 6 weeks after it launched. It stayed on that list for over two years. The popularity of Before We Were Yours is primarily due to fans and book clubs recommending it to friends. It was apparent last night that the popularity of this novel is still high.

Most authors include a reading in their presentations and Lisa did not disappoint. She surprised many in the audience by affecting an accent as she read a passage from Rill's point-of-view that described life on a shanty boat in 1939 Memphis. She took her time and read slowly, which matched the description of an idealic life on the river. 

Because we only gave out 120 Book Signing Tickets, we knew we could run the Q&A longer than initially planned. Several happy people were able to ask their questions. Lisa Wingate gave long, complete answers, which likely answered other unasked questions in the process. 

The book signing went faster than we anticipated. People happily chatted with each other in line, sharing their favorite parts of the book with their line neighbors. I took the opportunity to ask patrons in line who they would like to see at this event next year. Many pulled up their Goodreads apps to be sure to give me their favorites. By the end of the night, this list was very long!

Lisa Wingate is among the most gracious, engaging authors I have met. While some patrons actually suggested that we have her back next year, the search will begin soon for our Forsyth Reads Together 2025 author.