Katie's Book

Want to see the best gift I gave this year?

I have to share, because I really can't even take credit for it; over 3,300 of you readers helped me create it:

Ta DAAA!

This, my friends, is a 552 page book comprised of all of your encouraging comments to Katie the Star Wars girl. Pretty cool, right?

The cover art is by comic artist Jack Lawrence, who was inspired to create it after first reading about Katie:


Fortunately he was delighted to grant me permission to use it for the cover. (Thanks again, Jack!)

I also have to give a shout-out and big thank you to readers Deirdre Popp and Jennifer Reid, who helped me format the 700+ page document down into a more manageable 550-ish pages, a feat which took many more hours than I had to spare!

Here's the dedication page:

It reads,

To Katie, from the readers of Epbot.com.

Whenever you're feeling down, or lonely, or pressured to be someone you're not, we hope you'll flip through these pages and remember that there are thousands and thousands of us out here, cheering you on.

(The bottom line credits Jack, Deirdre, and Jennifer.)

Following the dedication page is Carrie's original article, and then my own blurb from here on Epbot.

Here's a sample page spread from the inside:

I have to tell you guys: I never dreamed this book would look this nice. I was positively *giddy* when it arrived in the mail. It's such a tangible expression of geeky solidarity - I didn't want to put it down!

Which reminds me: I have to give another shout-out to Lulu, the self-publishing site I used to order Katie's book. Getting all the formatting ducks in a row was kind of a pain - it's very much a DIY site - but in the end the total cost for this huge hardcover was less than $30. Seriously. And it looks a-MAZ-ing. So, consider this my ringing endorsement for Lulu. Great stuff.

Thanks again to everyone here who contributed to Katie's book, and of course to Katie's mom Carrie, who started us all off on this wild and wonderful journey. And, Katie? We hope you love your book, and will cherish it and the memories it represents for many, many years to come. MTFBWY!


UPDATE: I've already had several of you ask if you can order your own copy of Katie's book. Turns out, you can! I've adjusted the settings on Lulu, so all you need is this direct link to order a copy. (I'm not making any money on this: you'll pay the same amount that I did.) I hope it helps encourage lots of other Geek Girls (and boys!) out there!