thank you to Mary Kay of Out and About in Paris for this photo…

Last spring I hosted an author reading in our home and wrote about it here, telling the world about my dream to host a literary salon. Usually, dreams don’t just come true, you’ve got to make them happen. When I heard that author Juliette Sobanet was coming to Paris, it was the perfect opportunity to take things one step further.

SO I reached out to my friend and blogger par excellence, Ella Coquine and asked her to co-host a reading with me. Not only did she agree, but she came up with the greatest name… Words&Wine.

Ella came early to help me set the scene, adding tea lights and flowered table cloths for an ambiance that was clearly inspired by our author’s romantic novels. Nearly 30 avid readers and writers showed up, each one bringing a snack or drink to share. The table was over flowing with goodness; a Kiwi onion dip, Swiss-American tapenade, Reine Claude plums, automnal dahlias, a wine from the Jura that made a Frenchman nearly swoon, seasonal salads, and a scrumptous cake flavored with fleur d’oranger.

After an hour of eating, meeting and greeting, we were ready for some reading… Juliette took center stage her latest novel, Dancing with Paris firm in hand. She was seated on a velvet divan that Ella had known would be the ideal setting for a reading that involved, murder, intrigue and a dashing stranger. Juliette left us on a cliff hanger and I know for a fact that Amazon did a brisk business that evening, from women wanting to know how it ended…

After the reading, Juliette opened up the floor for discussion, candidly answering questions about her life and her journey to becoming a successful author. She told us that when she was 15 she just knew she had to come to France, master French and become a French professor. I saw heads bob in agreement, at least half a dozen other women identifying with that feeling of being a young girl, in the middle of nowhere and for no logical reason what so ever, falling head over heels in love with this foreign land.

It was an inspirational evening. One that made a few dreams come true.

Merci to EllaCoquine, Juliette Sobanet and everyone who joined us last night!!

For photos of the event, visit Out and About in Paris’ album

If you’d like to be invited to future Words&Wine events, don’t be shy! Contact me at sabesphoto (au) yahoo (you know the symbol) com.