Hello Readers!

I’m one of the new interns here at Beaufort and I will be writing under the name Violet BEAUdelaire, after my favourite (note that spelling – yes, I am Canadian and no, I will not be giving up my Canuck roots while I’m here in NYC) character from Lemony Snicket’s  A Series of Unfortunate Events. As a kid, Violet was a huge inspiration to me; in times of hardship, she was strong, smart, and resourceful. The Unfortunate Events books are all about being able to make the best out of a bad situation and the lessons those books taught me have carried through my whole life.

My alter ego in her usual state of distress…

While this is my first week in the Beaufort office, I actually started my internship last Tuesday. That’s right, folks, they threw me right into the raging fire commonly known as Book Expo America. Over the course of 72 hours, I left the small prairie city where I grew up, moved into my residence in New York City, and found myself right in the centre of the biggest publishing event in North America. BEA is amazing and exhilarating, but it’s also overwhelming, confusing, and terrifying – especially if your entire life has just been uprooted. This is where my Violet Baudelaire skillset came into play.

In the books, Violet is represented as a talented and passionate inventor. She takes what is available and makes it into something better, something useful. She sees what looks like nothing and creates something amazing. When I arrived at BEA, I felt like I didn’t belong. I was new to Beaufort and new to the publishing world at large. I didn’t know anyone and I didn’t quite know what my role was at the expo. For the first couple of hours, I wandered aimlessly, unsure if I was allowed to talk to people or check out the piles of free merch.

What I looked like at BEA probably

Finally, I decided to channel Violet; the difference was that instead of making a welding torch out of a fireplace poker or a stapler out of a tap shoe, I invented a new, confident persona for myself. I talked to people. I talked about Beaufort’s books like I had been working here for months instead of just a few hours. Suddenly, I wasn’t out of place at all.

That, I think, is why so many people are captivated by the written word. Reading allows you to reinvent yourself in a way that no other medium really can. When I’m reading, I’m not myself, I’m living in some between space where I can feel the experiences of another person. That sensation is absolutely singular and the amount of passion one sees at events like BEA proves how intensely it can affect people. Whether we’re moving countries, starting a new job, or simply opening a book, to reinvent ourselves is what being human is all about.

I’m still spelling “colour” with a U, though.

Best wishes,

Violet BEAUdelaire