I’ve often thought about writing a piece, “A Day in the Life of A David Archuleta Blogger” but honestly, the experiences have been so vast and so wide that it would take volumes to do the subject justice (and who would be interested anyway? lol). So perhaps I’ll just pull little snippets out of my ever decreasing memory bank (before they disappear entirely) and do random posts (like this one) every now and then.
First up: Walter.
Nice convo with Walter from Bookends 6/1/10 re: David Archuleta book signing for Chords of Strength. Also starring Mom Patti, Nikki, and Maggie. Before I started rolling pixels, he had been saying how impressed he was that the David Archuleta fansites all worked together to get the word out. He is comparing David’s signing to that of Yankee Manager Joe Torre, who only stayed 1 1/2 hrs.
Writing for David fans has brought me in contact with so many amazing folks: DJ’s, TV producers, journalists, vocal coaches, video directors, songwriters, to name a few. Had I known then, what I know now, I would have kept better records of those exchanges. At the time I had no idea that fansites would be hacked and no idea how meaningful those encounters would become. I was caught up in the moment and there seemed to be an endless stream of stuff that came in daily. It took real energy to post info, answer fan questions, help with charities, seek out details for tickets, appearances, you name we did it so that fans could stay connected. It was exciting, it was fun and I wouldn’t have changed a thing.
There are a few truly shining moments in the history of the fandom. StandUp2Cancer. Rising Star Outreach. The MS Charity Drive. Peace.Love.Cupcakes.
Then there was Walter.
A few days before the Chords of Strength Book Tour started it came to our attention that Bookends, NJ would be the first stop and that they were offering signed copies for sale to fans. I called the store and talked with Walter, asking if international fans were included, getting details on the number of books he had, the cost, etc. I also asked about the signing: what time fans could line up, how long David would be there…you know, the deets so that the fans knew what was expected and could plan accordingly.
Walter was so nice, but I sensed that he might be a tad clueless. He said to me, “I’ve hosted movie stars, US presidents, sports figures. We’re prepared for anything that might happen. We’ve done it all.” I just smiled to myself when we talked, knowing that he was in for a special treat.
We exchanged a few emails and a couple of phone calls. He kept me updated on how the pre-order was going and I could hear it in his voice how impressed he was by the response of the international fans. On the day of the signing, his staff and I exchanged emails making sure that a few fans with disabilities were taken care of (they were treated to a before signing “signing”).
Later that day, Bookends, NJ posted one of the most beautiful tweets I have ever read. I no longer have the screencap. I’ve searched twitter for hours trying to find it, with no success. So from my very poor memory it went something like this…
Never have I seen fans give so much to an artist and an artist give so much back.
I sent Walter a “job well done” email after the event and linked him to my Snarky Archie posts. He responded with, “We’ve hosted movie stars, US presidents, sports figures, but nothing prepared us for this.” He was overwhelmed with the kindness and organization of the fans. I wish I had the email to share with you, but it’s long gone.
You guys did us proud that day.
PS. I just used a twitter search called Topsy and it only goes back 3,200 tweets on the B@ookendsnj timeline which shows back to June 3rd, 2010, 2 days after the tweet I’m looking for posted. What timing, lol.
I loved reading that story,DAVID you are missed. your FANS LOVE YOU SO MUCH,they want you to be proud of them,as they are so PROUD TO BE YOUR FANS. WE LOVE YOU AS DAVID ,THE SINGER, DAVID THE NICEST HUMAN BEING WE KNOW AND THE KIND OF PERSON WE ALL WANT TO BE.. Sorry I ramble on every chance I get.DAVID ARCHULETA THANK YOU FOR BEING THE SPECIAL PERSON YOU ARE!!!
PAT HUNT(Quote)
Thanks, Pat. I’m glad you enjoyed it. By the way, I have a little update. I contacted Bookends today with a really odd request. I told them (and I think I was talking to Walter) that twitter only goes back 3,200 tweets and the ones I was looking for were just beyond that. Many of their tweets in 2011 were inviting fans to book signings, more or less generic in nature. Bookends actually agreed to delete some of those tweets so that I could access the ones about David! What champs! I tried to do just that and for some reason twitter is still showing over 3,300 tweets for them. I’ll check it out again in the morning to see it it needs awhile to update.
PS. Walter also told me that Bookends got a twitter account just to make contact with David’s fans. How incredible is that?
janey(Quote)
Wow! For them to create a twitter account just to make contact with David’s fans, Bookends might have gotten the Archie bug, too! LOL!
Winnie(Quote)
I for one just want to thank Janey for ALL of the “deets” we have received over the last few years …. for those who aren’t aware the majority of time the fans had additional details about events no matter what fan site you might have seen it … it was probably @Janey79 where those details originated from.
ArchieFanDoc-AFS(Quote)
Hahahahahahaha, thanks Doc! And you’re welcome
janey(Quote)
I remember this well even though I was nowhere near NJ.
David truly does have that effect on people when they least expect it. 
Janey, have you thought of looking back on FOD? It wouldn’t surprise me if they posted a screencap of that tweet.
heartsong(Quote)
Great suggestion, and the thought did occur to me. Maybe I’ll ask pastel or joanie to check the FOD “back office” to see if they posted one.
janey(Quote)
I was looking over past AFS posts on this book signing and did not come across the tweet – but did find these gems sent to us from Walter
http://archuletafanscene.com/2010/06/02/photos-of-david-archuleta-at-new-jersey-bookends-signing-060110/
ArchieFanDoc-AFS(Quote)
I asked joanie last night to search FOD for me and somehow she found the tweets on Archuleta Singapore. She couldn’t find screencaps, but she found quoted tweets. Thanks, joanie!
janey(Quote)
Janey, I was at that book signing. We all got soaked because a thunderstorm hit about an hour before David arrived. It was so bad they let us inside. We looked like we were drowned, soaking wet. It was about ninety degrees that day so it felt good. It was a glorious time and we had so much fun.David was so nice and he stayed to autograph way after 6 o’clock. The line was all around the block. It was a real nice day and Bookends staff and Walter was great. Come to think of it any time I met David, the fans were always a lot of fun and respectful.
supergrandjudie(Quote)
I loved the book signings. Since there were no signings in Cali, I went to Utah for the SCL and Orem ones. I sent photos from Orem to the publisher while I waited in the parking lot and they were excited to see the huge turnout.
janey(Quote)