A helper—kind and good.

There are numerous folks involved in the publishing of a book. The most obvious participants include author/illustrator, editor, graphic designer, photographer, marketing specialist, and printer. Sadly, it’s easy to overlook those who are an integral part of the process—the shipping and delivery people.

In an attempt to rectify this unintentional oversight, I want to introduce you to the faces and names of those who recently placed boxes of books—some of which were VERY heavy—either on my doorstep or into my outstretched hands.

Take a well-deserved bow, gentlemen.

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Thanks, Darrell.

Richmond, Va.

I stand on the catwalk between the parking garage and our condo building. Amazon has just sent updated tracking information for my package, and the Amazon driver should be in my neighborhood within the next several minutes. From this bird’s-eye perch, I can scan several roads and will know the exact time that the driver arrives.

Impatiently, I watch and wait. At last, . . .

He’s here! My picture books are here! I race down to the lobby and greet the driver. He smiles and places the heavy box in my hands. He even takes a few pictures of me holding a book.

The opportunity to watch my first box of paperback books being delivered—what a thrill!

Thank you, Darrell.

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Thanks, Chris.

Cape Charles, Va. It’s been one week since the paperbacks arrived. Today, I’m waiting for the hardback books. I’ve received no updates from UPS giving me an estimated delivery time. No worries. I have a pretty good idea of what time he’ll be here.
Give or take a few minutes, I’ll hear the familiar sound of the UPS truck around 2 p.m.

It’s now 2-ish, and I hear the UPS truck and look out the window. There’s no brown truck in sight—but here comes the delivery guy running down the street with a couple of packages in his hands. I met him on the front porch, and he says, "There must be something very important in these boxes."

Yes, sir. These packages represent a dream come true.

Thank you, Chris. (And thanks for buying one of the books for your wife’s kindergarten class!)

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Thanks, John.

Lenoir, NC. Our vehicle has been packed, and we’re heading to western North Carolina for our many scheduled book events. But we have a problem. A big problem. The hardback books that I ordered didn’t arrive in Richmond before we left.

There’s only one thing to try at this point. I must attempt to reroute the boxes to Lenoir. Step one: Request that the printers change the shipping destination. Step two: Contact the UPS Customer Center in Lenoir and ask them to hold the packages for pick-up in their warehouse.

Despite my concerns and my fretting, “Plan B” worked. We picked up the books from the warehouse at 10:30 a.m. and arrived at the 11:00 a.m. book signing—with 7 minutes to spare.

Thank you, John. (And a shout out to all the UPS folks in Lenoir. What an amazing team y’all are.)

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Hats off to the shipping and delivery people that make it happen—like clockwork.

To each of you, thanks for a job well done. I am most grateful.