In 2008 I released Journal. It was written while on my second venture to Europe, and subsequent return this time as a model, it was my fall from grace, my realization of who I am and who I'm not willing to be. It was great heartache, coming home to nothing with my tail between my legs, breaking every promise set before me and never knowing what was in store for me.
The final copy is a highly stylized and edited version of events, names were erased to protect. I also chopped out a lot of filler, corrected spelling mistakes with photoshop.(I released the unedited version on Steemit last month before HF 19 and netted 78¢)
I thought about releasing this one five pages at a time, but it's a nice book to curl up to.
My original binding, I bought a 80 page photo album, had the poems printed as digital photos and stuffed them in the sleeves. My wife (then girlfriend) took it to India with her and had it printed in a book shop in Dharmasala. I got 100 copies made. Do I suggest vanity presses? No. Years later I still had copies.
I had to top the launch of Romantic, so I rented out the back of the famous Clinton's in Toronto.
Photo by blog.to Hector Vasquez
I asked a friends improv troupe 'Out of Line' to preform, they obliged me. I asked 
Luckily between an improv troupe, a band and the few people who came out it was almost a full house, I bought beer for everyone because I needed to clear $800 at the bar to have the venue free. Only 15 books had arrived with Tashi, the rest were due in the mail, and showed up the next day.
When I took the stage I was well...inebriated, I'd glued pennies to the original photo prints hoping it would make them heavy enough to launch.
The doubles of those photos I'd glued to a huge 3'x4' canvas and got permission to hang at the coffee shop Tashi (my wife) worked at to drum up interest.
Without further ado, here is the launch:
Questions? Comments? Always welcome.
