On Monday, I did my first-ever booksigning at the SXSW bookstore. My awesome publisher had copies shipped hot off the press to SXSW, for sale a whole month before the release date. People who picked it up at the conference officially owned it before anyone else…including me!

I’d never actually seen the final book before –I haven’t received my author copies yet, so I didn’t get to do the whole un-boxing-your-author-copies-at-home thing — the first time I saw the book, Adam Norwood tweeted that he’d seen it, so after a panel I rushed over to the bookstore to see it stacked next to Laura Dern (not a bad first impression):

I must say, I was not 100% about the book cover until I saw it in person. It looks really great, it has a matte finish, and feels real nice in your hands.

Here I am gesticulating to somebody. Loved getting to chat with all the folks that came up to by a copy. The added bonus was that everybody had their SXSW badge on, so spelling names was no problem…

After things wound down, I signed the rest of the copies:

Last I checked, there were only about ten or so left, so I’m hoping we sell out over the rest of the week.

Hope to have more pics up of the book soon. Thanks to my shutterbug wife, Meg, for all the awesome pictures. You can see a few more on Flickr.

In the meantime, be sure to get your pre-order in!

So here’s a funny story about how weird life is right now:

I get back from a long night out with pals at SXSW, and Meg is on the couch reading Texas Monthly. (We’re subscribers.)

I’m in the can, and all the sudden I hear this little squeal come from the living room.

“Your book’s in Texas Monthly!!”

And just like that, our first review. The magazine had been sitting on our coffee table for at least 3 days.

Thanks Mike Shea!

Austin Kleon at PechaKucha Night Austin 07 from PechaKucha Night Austin on Vimeo.

Above is the video for my Newspaper Blackout Pecha Kucha presentation last month in Austin.

What is Pecha Kucha?

PechaKucha Night was devised in Tokyo in February 2003 as an event for young designers to meet, network, and show their work in public. It has turned into a massive celebration, with events happening in hundreds of cities around the world, inspiring creatives worldwide. Drawing its name from the Japanese term for the sound of “chit chat”, it rests on a presentation format that is based on a simple idea: 20 images x 20 seconds. It’s a format that makes presentations concise, and keeps things moving at a rapid pace.

It was incredibly difficult to time and plan out, and it’s probably the best presentation of my work that I’ve come up with. The audience was really amazing. Thanks to everyone who came, and thanks to Carla and Herman for inviting me.

Here are all my slides in one deck.

And here’s the 20-second time-lapse video that’s in the presentation:

Why you should pre-order the book

Why you should pre-order the book

Like the poems? Here’s why you should pre-order the book

Why you should pre-order the book

Share your own blackout poems on Tumblr

Why you should pre-order the book

“Blackout Poet” on Youtube

The awesome guys at Texas Country Reporter uploaded our show from last year to YouTube — it’s a really nice piece. Those guys are a class act. Thanks Dan, Mike, Ryan, and Bob!

Here’s a photo of Ryan and I working on the “blackout” shots:

See more photos from the shoot.

Check out the Newspaper Blackout Tumblr where I’m posting advice and answering questions about making your own blackout poems.

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