We fought early morning traffic in Ottawa to get to the train station in time for our trip to Toronto.  This time, fortunately, the air-conditioning worked in the train, and Brian and I each had room to spread out and work on our laptops.  I edited four HELLHOLE chapters during the ride, so that I had nearly caught up with my typist, who had e-mailed me more files the night before.

Directly after we disembarked in Toronto, we caught a cab and went straight to a booksellers’ and librarians’ event for the Indigo bookstore chain and HB Fenn book distributors.  We arrived while Cory Doctorow was on stage giving a talk, and we immediately followed him, speaking to a large auditorium filled with booksellers, sales reps, and librarians.  Once we finished the talk, we joined Cory for a bustling signing, then caught another cab that took us to our hotel.  We had less than two hours to rest and change before we met our friend Jonathan Flamm, one of our most dedicated fans who has helped greatly on the websites and social networking pages, designing animations for us.  Brian and I took Jonathan to dinner.

The night’s event was held at the Toronto public library in their Merrill Science Fiction Collection, one of the largest SF collections in the world.  Arriving half an hour before our talk, we received a full tour of the SF collection, which included many obscure manuscripts, pulp magazines, graphic novels, a fine first edition of Bram Stoker’s DRACULA.  And a first hardcover edition of DUNE.

Once again, we had arrived in the city during a heat wave, and the library’s air conditioner labored against the sweltering temperature.  By the time we were finished with the tour and got ready for the talk, a large crowd had gathered in the reception area.

Brian and I gave our talk, the last one of the tour (though we each have individual events set up after we get home), then signed books until well after the library closed.  Jonathan took photos throughout, so I’ll let the images speak for themselves.

Brian left immediately after the signing, carrying his suitcases, and rushed off to the train station to catch a 10 PM train from Toronto to go home (a five-day trip across Canada).  Two of my students from the Writers of the Future contest, Stephen Kotowych and Tony Pi, came to the signing and  we went out for a beer afterward to discuss writing.

Next day, I had time to work out in the hotel’s fitness center before packing up and heading to the airport for my flight home.  I arrived in the middle of the afternoon, very glad to be back with Rebecca, and the cats, and normal life again.