How Diary of a Wimpy Kid author Jeff Kinney became the king of COVID-19 book tours Hannah Yasharoff, USA TODAY
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Silver Spring, Md. Katy Perry’s “California Gurls” is blaring on everyone s car radio. It’s 40-some degrees, but water balloons are being tossed, and a lifeguard is blowing her whistle at guests. “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” author Jeff Kinney is on standby with a 7-foot pool net.
The coronavirus pandemic has prompted an unusual ask of the book industry: how do you go on tour to promote your work when meeting groups isn’t safe? Some big-name authors, like Barack Obama, whose presidential memoir, A Promised Land, came out a month ago, stuck just to giving interviews. Others have done Zoom events on their own, partnering with other authors or with local bookstores.