Secret Plans: Vol. III by Tami Knight - Book Tour - Guest Post -

Secret Plans: Vol. III
by Tami Knight

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GENRE:  Cartoons / Humor

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BOOK BLURB:

Tami Knight started drawing cartoons about climbers when the glaciers were a lot larger. C'mon in and enjoy Knight's rats and humans as they get up to mountains of mischief! This book may even help you re-work yer primal scream!

And, dang, Jon Krakauer wrote the forward.

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EXCERPT TWO:

Tami Knight began drawing cartoons when she was four years old. In addition to being a gifted artist, she was a brilliant young gymnast. As an eighteen-year-old student at the University of British Columbia studying to become a veterinarian, Knight won the Western Canadian University Gymnastic Championships.

Spoiler alert: Knight never became a veterinarian, and shortly after her Championships victory an automobile accident brought her gymnastics career to a screeching halt.

In the aftermath, friends taught Knight to rock climb at Squamish—the vast, breathtaking granite escarpment sixty minutes north of her home. She was a natural, and she instantly became infatuated with her new pastime. Before long, Knight was one of the top female climbers in Canada.

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GUEST POST:

Five Ways to Deal with Rejection as a Writer

  My book is a forty plus year compendium of cartoons about climbing so I’ll tell of a major rejection that happened forty years ago but that which put me on the path I’m on today. 

The fall of 1984, after I’d been drawing cartoons about climbers for a couple of years, I decided to have a go at drawing mainstream cartoons. My big influence at the time was Gary Larson’s The Far Side, so I decided to draw single panels including characters like talking jellyfish, grapes with legs, alien invasions, you know… silly stuff. Stuff that wasn’t really me but I thought I’d try. 

I drew about thirty of these cartoons and, using more money than I’d ever hoped to spend, photocopied several dozen sets of the toons, bought envelopes and stamps and sent them to weekly-type newspapers all over North America. 

I heard back from three. Three! Ugh! To make matters worse, each of these three papers bought one or two cartoons and paid me about 20 bucks (or less) per ‘toon. I screamed into my pillow. So much work for so little return! 

But then the universe opened up, angels appeared and sang glorious. I received a letter from the Washington Post Writers Group asking about my work. Oh. My. Goodness! 

Somebody from there must have seen one of the 20-dollar specials! I danced a little jig and turned a few cartwheels! I was gonna be famous! Rich! I’d be a full -time cartoonist! I put together another bundle of these cartoons and, though my memory of the event has dimmed with time, probably included a letter of gratitude, thank you so much, thank you thank you very much, here’s where you can send my cheques. 

And I waited for the response. 

And I waited. And life slipped along, a few weeks then months and, yeah……years.

<crickets churr and dog howls in the background>

Sigh. 

I realized then and there that I really ought to just continue with the cartoons I knew best. My jellyfish, grapes and aliens were, well, yeah… forgetaboutit. And I also decided that I wouldn’t try make money with the work, I’d get a day job to pay my bills and I’d draw cartoons because they bubbled up inside of me and I needed put them on paper lest they fizz the top of my head off. 

It occurred to me that authenticity and truth in my work was the best way to go. I’d leave behind the idea of making oodles of cash. I’d work on publishing in the outdoor community by talking to people and, if I was published, by making relationships with these ambassadors of my work.

And it worked. Yes, I’ve had more rejections but they pass through me like water though a sieve. Not everyone will like my work, some editors are just dull as old denim and that’s just the way things are. Hah. I’m not here to change hearts and minds but to hopefully give some folks a laugh. 

Thank you for reading!!! 

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AUTHOR BIO:

Tami Knight has been drawing cartoons and illustrations about climbing since 1981. Her work is a regular feature in Alpinist Magazine but has appeared in climbing media all over the world. She was the 2003 recipient of the American Alpine Club literary award. Knight lives in Vancouver, Canada.

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CONNECT WITH TAMI:

Website:

https://tamiknight.com

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/tamiknightcartoons

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BOOK BUY LINKS:

Amazon US:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/177962266X

Amazon CA:

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/177962266X

Barnes and Noble:

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/secret-plans-tami-knight/1146482273?ean=9781779622662

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GIVEAWAY:

Tami will award a $15 Amazon OR Barnes and Noble Gift Card (Winner's Choice!!!) to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter during the tour.

a Rafflecopter giveaway