Little did we know what Chicago had in store for the IWPA authors …
Saturday morning, June 7th, was Opening Day, at the Printers Row Book Fair. Opening days are always highly charged with expectations, nervous anticipation, and excitement. But this particular day had some interesting twists.
This year the Tribune had assigned a new location for the IWPA tent that placed our authors directly in the heart of the book fair action! The people and flurry of activity that surrounded the tent throughout the day provided all of us with more than ample opportunity to promote the IWPA, ourselves, and our books.
Despite Chicago living up to its reputation (No, not the gangster thing; the “Windy City” thing), our spirits remained high. Blustery winds and major storms threatened throughout the day however, the rain didn’t materialize until late in the afternoon. In light of many of the authors’ successful sales and considering that only an hour remained until closing, we all voted to "call it a day" as we stood dripping in the aftermath of a five o’clock, “mini monsoon”.
Printers Row or the “Land of Oz”?
Sunday morning at the Book Fair usually starts off a little slow, and the morning of June 8th was no exception. We were charged up and ready to go knowing that Sunday can sometimes bring a very lively crowd in the early afternoon, and those of us who were repeat participants from the day before were still buzzing from our Saturday successes.
The lively crowd did indeed show up and so did the wind. By noon the strong gusts were blowing and propelling the author's bookmarks, flyers, and posters around and out of the tent, and large trash collection boxes were sailing down the fairway, causing the determined book fair browsers to hurriedly dive for safety between the tents.
As the sky began to darken, it was because of the Chicago Tribune's security person, Bob, whose timely severe weather warning gave our authors thirty minutes to "lighten their load" if needed, for a quick exit, that we were somewhat prepared for what was to come.
And approximately twenty-five minutes after the warning, WOW!!
Authors and volunteers for the IWPA, Jane Adams, and WITASWAN were literally ducking and running for their lives. They were finding shelter in a bus stop, crouched next to book cartons, or on their hands and knees hoping that the table they were under stayed put. After 65 mph winds and driving rain, the IWPA tent collapsed and was blown about twenty feet down the fairway. Signs and posters became missiles, and the eight foot tables were tossed around like playing cards. Literature of all sorts and even clothing were blown to who knows where, maybe even the “Land of Oz”.
Although it seemed like several hours, the storm lasted for less than twenty minutes and overall the authors and volunteers fared reasonably well. Most importantly everyone emerged from the wreckage healthy, with their belongings intact, and their losses minimal.
And in the aftermath of chaos, the tenacity of our IWPA members echoed through the many uplifting emails sent expressing concern for others, humor, and positive anticipation of what next year may bring.
To quote member Michele Weldon, in a statement indicative of the spirit of the members of the Illinois Women’s Press Association “I hope everyone is OK. Goodness. Next year, we wear helmets.”
Take a look at the 2008 Printers Row Book Fair
