Barnes & Noble to welcome local authors at signing festival

Art by Rose Padios

Nebraska authors will convene on Nov. 9 for a day full of festivities, book signings and meeting readers. Barnes & Noble’s Local Author Signing Festival will bring together over 15 authors. 

The day will feature New York Times Bestseller Lynn Painter, author of “Better Than The Movies,” and Allison Bitz, author of “The Unstoppable Bridget Bloom,” among other local authors. 

Lori L. Gottula is the author of “Broken and Chained: My First Thirty Days in the Hell Called Detox.” The memoir details Gottula's experience with addiction. 

“I had written this book while I was going through it, but it took me 12 years to publish it because I didn't want to put myself out there in that way,” Gottula said. “But God just kept poking at me, so I decided to publish it.” 

Gottula lived in Falls City, Nebraska for 30 years, where she was active in the community, before recently moving near Tecumseh and Elk Creek. The events of the memoir happened in 2012, but she only recently published her story this past April. 

“If (readers) are going through something similar, they're telling me that they're finding the grit that I had to get through this process and using it to change their own lives and break their own chains,” Gottula said. “That's my goal in putting myself out there … to help people find the grit to change their own lives.” 

Gottula will be signing books from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. 

Jayme Sandberg is the author of the children’s book, “Total Solar Eclipse: A Stellar Friendship Story.” The book is illustrated by local artist Kathleen Gadeken. It’s a story of friendship and teamwork between the sun and moon.

“It's really exciting for me to get to meet and talk to the kids who are excited about the book and about the story,” Sandberg said. “They see things in the book that even I don't, which is really fun to just see through their eyes. And it's humbling now that after the eclipse, a lot of teachers and schools were able to use the book to educate their students about the total solar eclipse.”

After watching the 2017 total solar eclipse in Nebraska, Sandberg decided she wanted to publish a story about the eclipse before the next one in 2024. Educating tons of children on eclipse safety. 

“I'm very honored to get to appear with other authors. I have so much appreciation for the process of bringing a story to life in this way,” Sandberg said. “It is a hard process, no matter what way you do it, if you work with a traditional publisher or if you self publish. It’s exciting for me to get to be among this group of superheroes.”

Sandberg will be singing books from 3-5 p.m. 

Halsten S. Hutchings is the author of “Pink Moon Rising: Pieces of Jane.” The young adult book follows a young woman in the foster system who experiences motherhood and sex trafficking. 

“It was a long journey (to publish), but I learned so much about writing and the process of getting my book into the world,” Hutchings said. “It takes a lot of perseverance to do so, just don't ever give up on it.” 

Hutchings published her book when she was a senior at Malcolm High School. Currently, she’s a sophomore English major at Nebraska Wesleyan University.  

“To meet other fellow Nebraska authors is very uplifting because writing is kind of this lonely hobby that you see more introverts doing. So it’s nice to connect at events like the one at Barnes & Noble,” Hutchings said. 

Hutchings will be signing books from 3-5 p.m. 

Gretchen M. Garrison is the author of three non-fiction travel books: “Detour Nebraska: Historic Destinations & Natural Wonders,” “A History Lover's Guide to Lincoln” and “100 Things To Do in Lincoln Before You Die.” She started her documentation of Nebraska sites on a blog in 2013 with The History Press reaching out to ask her to write a book about the topic. 

“I consider it an honor to be able to be a part of people's travel and experiences and just to direct people to those hidden gems that no one knows about,” Garrison said. 

In 2016, Garrison traveled 1700 miles around Nebraska in 4 days, gathering photos and information for her book. Garrison said the highlight of writing that book was talking to people and hearing the stories behind the places she visited. 

“Barnes & Noble has been so supportive of my books through the years. I try to go there frequently to sign books, but they often have had my books on display and they've highlighted my books … that's so kind,” Garrison said. “To be able to give back a little bit to that store, I'm thrilled to be able to do that.”

Garrison will be signing books from 11 a.m.-2 p.m.  

Hannah Bradney is the author of “Dangerous Hands” and “Dangerous Ties.” The two books are part of her series, “Dangerous Love.” Her books provide action-packed suspense amid a romance plotline. 

“It was amazing for me to see (my book) on the shelf — that was unreal. Then actually getting to go do the signing and then being asked to come back again for a second one at such a big event like that, it's crazy, it's surreal,” Bradney said. 

Bradney has been a dedicated reader her entire life. She started writing during the COVID-19 pandemic after encouragement from a friend and self-published her first book in 2023. She said it was rough the first few months, but she’s since found success, allowing her to attend singing events. 

“I'm excited to go and meet other authors that are local to the area,” Bradney said. “I know some are seasoned veterans that do this all the time and have more success. It's going to be really nice to be able to pick their brains a little bit.”

Bradney will be signing books from 3-5 p.m.

The event will take place at the SouthPointe Pavilions location on Pine Lake, running from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. A full schedule of the authors’ time slots can be found on Barnes & Noble SouthPointe’s Instagram page. 

“I think it's great that (Barnes & Noble) is supporting local authors because that just shows that they want to be a part of the community, that they're not just looking for the big name authors to do signings, but to connect people in the community, with the store and with local authors,” Garrison said.

Published in the Daily Nebraskan, read here.