Nigel Barker

Wow! So writing the Beauty Equation was a labor of love but the actual tour was if possible even more magical, if not thoroughly exhausting! Starting out in my home in NYC, we hit the road running. The following weeks took us all over the country on 15 stops not to mention an additional 7 city stop in Europe, namely my country of birth, England with a two day stint in Amsterdam. Everywhere we were met by happy throngs of Beauty Equation readers, many of which were deep into the book by the time we caught up with them. I will never forget one young girl at the beginning of the US tour, ; who came running up giving me a big squeeze and simultaneously bursting into tears. She had a hair lip and told me that she had never felt beautiful, since reading the book she was now finding herself and had grown in confidence. Not only did she know she could be beautiful but others certainly did - Her first boyfriend waved at me sheepishly from the sidelines... at that point I knew that the book was serving it's purpose, to encourage, inspire and motivate. I truly believe we all have the power to be beautiful, we just need the humility to summon it.The tour took a nostalgic turn in England, as I visited my old high school in Blandford Forum, Dorset. I discussed the purposefulness of art and photography in the world today, illustrating my point with the ability to spot light serious world issues with imagery that can change hearts and minds. Amsterdam and Toronto were also enormously fun. They kept me on my toes by filling the long days with dozens of TV, radio and press interviews. An average day on the tour would start at 4 AM when Ali, my personal assistant, and I would head off to the local airport to catch a 6 AM flight to wherever, arriving normally at around 11ish, diving straight into press or morning TV and radio chat rooms. We would do a book talk followed by a book signing in the late afternoon, snacking when and where we could, wrapping most nights at about 10 PM, only to start the whole thing again the following morn! I lost 10 lbs on the trip which is something I am happily eating back on again...... The hardest part of course was being away from Crissy, Jack and Jasmine but they have been and continue to be my rock, stone and pebbles for which I live for.Oh and by the way the tour's not over - I am heading to Grand Rapids Michigan on the 10th of November, then we have a few events in NYC in December followed by a book signing at Page & Palette in Fairhope AL on the 23rd of December. In 2011 we could be coming to a bookstore, school or college near you. Let us know if you'd like us to come and I'll do all I can to make it happen. Oh and we are planning an Asian trip to Hong Kong, Manila, Singapore, Shanghai and Seoul late Spring...... stay tuned and keep posting your stories and questions on BE One