Join the Kate Launch Team!

When I was writing my dissertation, desperate to lock down my dream job at Duke, I almost lost my most valuable asset: my arms. An unexplained weakness in my once-dependable limbs left me unable to go about my life: no grading papers, no research manuscript, no chopping vegetables, no brushing my own teeth. I felt totally helpless but couldn’t bring myself to ask for help. I’ll never forget being stranded in someone’s bathroom for an hour because I couldn’t get my arms to turn the door handle. I felt worse than weak… I felt pathetic.

Then one day I had to move from one tiny Duke cubicle to another and I realized: I am waaaaaay out of my league. There is no way I could move my giant book collection, dorm fridge, and EZ Bake Oven (long story) from one library to another without help.

Instead of asking for help, of course, I made of backhanded comments about how these books weren’t going to move themselves and, as if by magic, about a dozen people began to lift things, pack boxes, and move things. What would have taken me all day took my lovely friends less than 30 minutes.

And to my total disbelief, no one seemed resentful. No one bemoaned the value of their time. No one reminded me that this was truly, epically boring. They simply did the work while cheering for me, even though one person was—in retrospect—yelling “GO CAKE!” not “GO KATE!” When asked, he simply said: “Oh, I thought we were all just really into cake.” My friends knew I needed help even when I was ashamed to admit a need. Their competitive smack talk was a sweet love song of friendship.

Their love had arms and legs and momentum. Their love had reach.

When I got sick, my people showed up to help in ways I couldn’t anticipate. Toban, Zach, and I about suffocated under casseroles, Starbucks gift cards neighbors “happened to have lying around,” and envelopes bursting with well wishes. Pastor friends snuck past hospital security in clerical collars just to be able to pray over me. Katherine drove overnight across the country to take me out to lunch and tell me I’m still beautiful. I walked through those hardest days holding the shoulders of my community. It didn’t matter that I didn’t know how to ask. My people showed up.

These are more joyful days and I am so lucky to be able to share my quasi-deep-wisdom-jokes in my upcoming memoir, Everything Happens for a Reason: And Other Lies I’ve Loved, with you. But it is seriously bananas how much goes in to getting a book on bookshelves.

Here’s where I hope you, my awesome peoplefriends, can come in.

Would you join the Kate Launch Team and help launch Everything Happens for a Reason: And Other Lies I’ve Loved into the world?

WHAT IS THE LAUNCH TEAM?

A launch team is a dedicated group that will be willing to help announce the release of Everything Happens for a Reason. They will help spread the word through blogs or websites, social media, and reviews on retailer sites.

WHO CAN JOIN THE LAUNCH TEAM?

• Are you excited to read Everything Happens for a Reason and tell all your friends about it?
• Are you fairly savvy at Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram?
• Do you have an active blog? Or another other place of influence (ministry director, newsletter editor, group leader, site manager, etc.)?

If YES to any of the above, then click here.

WHAT WOULD I BE REQUIRED TO DO?

Engage with your friends online by posting about the book before, during and after launch week (2/6/2018). Share about Everything Happens for a Reason your place of influence (blog, group, ministry, club, website).

We’ll give you a bunch of pics and links and goodies for this in the private Launch Team Facebook group.

Click here if you want to join the Kate Launch Team. I’m so grateful.