They were comfortable and hilarious, and it meant that I never had to think about what to wear. My book tour outfits were the only thing I had going for me-thinking ahead for one of the only times in my entire life, I had two outfits made out of Leah Goren’s cover illustration, a muu muu and a jumpsuit, and I just alternated, or chose one depending on the weather. Modern Lovers came out in 2016, when he was four months old. He’s six now, and I’ve forgiven him, but hoo boy, those were some rough months. Remember when I said my first baby was easy? My second was not. I was too busy smooching my baby and passing out Vacationers sunglasses to booksellers. (It means more advertisements in the newspaper, which then means more phone calls and emails from the septuagenarians in your life.) I don’t remember thinking about how I looked or what I wore for this entire book tour. The book exceeded everyone’s expectations in terms of sales, and so for the first time, I also knew what it felt like to have the publisher suddenly more excited.

The theme was glamour, the theme was classic Hollywood, and so I wore vintage dresses from Shareen (RIP to the greatest, a vintage clothing store that you knew was open because they hung a dress out the window on their fire escape) and elaborate head-ware. At the time, I was 32, a part-time bookseller, and I’d been trying to get published for a decade. It’s okay that you haven’t read it, not very many people have. My first novel was about a starlet in the Hollywood studio system.

I do look at book tours as fashion opportunities, though, each once a chance to choose a Fashion Concept and streamline my otherwise haphazard sartorial decisions. Last year, when my friend Priyanka was visiting from Los Angeles, we met at a restaurant for lunch, and when I walked in, she exclaimed, “You look like a box of crayons!” That’s my aesthetic. I love clothes, but I wouldn’t say that I ever look put together.

However, when a book is published, suddenly one is expected to present oneself in public, looking respectable, or stylish, as if those are qualities that writers possess. One of the great perks of being a writer is that you can wear whatever you want-think of Grady Trip’s bathrobe in Wonder Boys, comfort over all.

Tor publishing tshirt