An evening with Giovanna Fletcher
The thing that is providing me with the most joy this week is watching the new series of I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here every evening. I've always enjoyed this show but even more so this year since Giovanna Fletcher is one of the campmates!
I've followed her books and various social media platforms for a while now and she is a brilliant author and a very lovely lady. Hand on heart, she is as lovely and bubbly and funny as she is on screen. I'm rooting for her to do well on I'm a Celeb.
So, keeping it topical, I thought I'd share the moment I met Giovanna at her book event in 2017; very nearly 3 years ago. It was one of the most exciting things to have happened to me- especially at that time because she inspired me to start writing and explore other areas of creativity. To this day, she remains to be someone I look up to.
Without further ado, It is my pleasure to share the excitable waffle I wrote the day after I met her...
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In late November in 2017, I met the wonderful Giovanna Fletcher at an event to promote her new book Some Kind of Wonderful. Ahhhh it actually happened!
I travelled to the event with my sister to a huge Waterstones we hadn't been to before. We walked into the book shop and wandered around trying to figure out if we were in the right place. In total honesty, we weren't sure what would happen at the book event- whether it was a signing or just a Q&A. I made sure not to get my hopes up for a signing and was extremely excited at the prospect of seeing Giovanna and hearing about the book. Finally, we spoke to a lady who works in the shop and asked about what would happen:
Book Shop Lady: 'She’s going to do a Q&A where you can ask questions, and at the end, she will do a signing…….' at which point I did a little gasp. Both mine and my sisters' jaws dropped '..........and you can talk to her and take pictures'.
We were so giddy with excitement.
We had a little wait before being allowed back into the shop so we took this chance to do some shopping in the nearby stores. There was no way in the slightest that I was going to be able to go into shopping with full focus on what was in front of me. I felt the nerves believe me. My mind was going through what I would say- totally overthinking it. I was also shaking a little bit.
The hour was nearly up and we would be allowed in the shop soon so we stood in the (at this moment in time) short queue outside the bookstore. At this point, the excited nerves were at a whole new high. And then…...and then Giovanna herself walked by, waving at all of us in the queue with her usual smiley happy expression, and entered the book shop. I turned still with shock and froze with a smile on my face; pure disbelief.
She's taller than I thought.
We entered the shop with a blue stamped 'book' on the back of our hands and made our way through the rows of chairs, to the second row from the front.
Waiting for a little bit longer meant that the excited-nerves only increased.
Now we've got to the moment where the book chat was starting. Someone behind me said they could see her vlogging from the back of the shop. She walked out from behind the tall signs and sat in the two chairs facing the crowd of roughly 100. I could not believe it.
The Q&A started to go ahead and she was as bubbly, lovely and funny as she is on her YouTube channel. I was sat slanting my head to the left a little because there was a head blocking my view but I felt so nervous that I quite liked the fact that I could hide myself a bit.
I commend someone who's able to talk about a book without giving away any spoilers. We learnt about the story and inspiration behind it. As well as the non-fiction book Happy Mum Happy Baby and Giovanna's journey to becoming a mum. She also spoke about The Christmasaurus theatre show which she's about to go into rehearsals for and her recent trek.
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| Some Kind of Wonderful blurb |
As questions were welcomed from the audience, my sister leant towards me to say that I should ask her a question about my writing. I refused as public speaking is absolutely not my thing and I couldn't possibly speak in front of the room full of people; mostly behind me. Then what I wasn’t expecting was my sister asking a question on my behalf and gesturing to me:
A hand rose beside me and she said: 'Hiya, my sisters going to kill me for saying this but……..' Giovanna peered round to me and said hi in a bubbly voice '........she has such a writing talent and I was wondering how she could get published'.
The people in front of me turn to look at ‘the sister’ and I looked at Giovanna whilst she was telling me her answer. I probably remember more of what she said than I think I do but I was in such a bubble. I felt like I wasn’t sat there. I left my body for a minute or so.
When she had finished answering the question I went to say ‘thank you’ when no words came out. Not a sound. This is not an exaggeration- no words at all, not a peep, nothing, left my mouth. The attention turned to the next question and I smiled at my sister. Apparently, I didn't go red but you know when people just tell you that despite the feeling of fire on your face? Yeah, that.
In the line for the signing, I was yet again so excitedly nervous and panicking about what I could say. The lady working with Giovanna started talking to us, and when I told her I was nervous, she said it was 'really sweet'.
Finally, it was my turn to meet Giovanna Fletcher. I had waited to watch my sister meet someone we shared a common interest in and now it was my turn. I walked up to the table, put my book down and said:
'Hello, it’s so nice to meet you. I’m so sorry about earlier. I completely lost my words'
Giovanna replied 'Are you ok now, though? The words are back?' (see, absolutely lovely)
I replied ‘yeah’ and proceeded with a word vomit of how I like her books and videos and how she inspired me to start writing. I then placed the card on the desk and slid it toward the small collection of others- to which she said ‘thanks’ motioning to the card. She asked me what I write and I said about my current project and the different stories, how I start one then get another idea and start the next. Giovanna told me to write a synopsis for each one, pick one and focus on that.
We took the photo and I looked at the two books in my hand (Billy and Me and Some Kind of Wonderful) and said how Billy and Me was the first-ever book to make me cry, then I added ‘in a good way’. I said how I loved it all the while she looked at me with a genuine thankful smile on her face. Saying goodbye she told me to keep writing.
I cannot believe that in my lifetime I have met Giovanna Fletcher! The lady who inspired me to start writing. I discovered walking out of the shop that she had written "Keep Writing!!!!" in Billy and Me which made my heart so happy.
Life is crazy!
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