Racing across America, Almonte pursues three record milestones at once—21 states completed so far—while documenting the unseen grind behind the tour.
NEW ORLEANS , LA, UNITED STATES, February 8, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — Throughout history, authors, poets, and writers have chased immortality through the written word—some by creating timeless stories, others by redefining what’s possible outside the page. In the modern era, where audiences connect in real time and every mile can be documented, one question is resurfacing in a new way: how far can an author truly go to meet readers face-to-face?
Today, author R.M. Almonte is answering that question with a campaign that reads like a feat of endurance as much as a literary achievement—an all-out, fully documented, nationwide signing mission designed to pursue three record-level milestones at the same time:
1. Most Unique Barnes & Noble Locations Visited for an In-Store Book Signing of a Single Title
2. Most Unique Corporate Locations of a Single Retail Chain Visited for a Book Signing of a Single Title Within One Year
3. A 50-State Book Signing Tour — a signing event in every U.S. state for a single title
As of February 7, 2026, Almonte has already completed 21 states and counting—a pace that is not just ambitious, but historically rare for any author, in any era. For perspective: Mark Twain’s legendary lecture-era reach is widely cited at roughly 15 states, Stephen King’s major U.S. tour footprints are commonly referenced around a dozen states, and even J.K. Rowling’s U.S. appearances—massive as they were—focused on select major markets rather than a continuous 50-state circuit. Almonte has now surpassed those traditional touring footprints while still only at the halfway mark of a fully documented national mission.
And unlike a typical “book tour,” this is not a string of a few high-profile stops. This is a grind—constant travel, coordination, logistics, long days, late nights, and the discipline to walk into a new community again and again and deliver the moment readers came for: an in-person meeting, a signature, a story, a memory.
Reflecting on the scale of what he’s undertaking, Almonte put it simply:
“I thought this was the norm that everyone did a 50-state book tour.”
It isn’t.
In reality, no author has ever completed a coordinated, verified signing tour in all 50 states within a single year—and doing it while simultaneously pursuing multiple record categories pushes the campaign into a league of its own. It’s not just about visiting places. It’s about sustaining momentum, building documentation, keeping schedules intact, and showing up—repeatedly—under conditions most people would never choose.
Behind the scenes, Almonte and his team are building a growing archive of footage for a documentary that aims to show what almost no one—signed or unsigned—ever sees in real time: the constant stream of “no’s,” the pressure of shrinking calendars, and the reality of trying to secure opportunities in a landscape where businesses are stretched thin and increasingly cautious in an AI-driven era. While the public sees a photo at a signing table, the documentary captures the unseen work—late-night planning sessions, rapid pivots, and the relentless effort of preparing future tour legs, including the high-stakes Midwest run in November and December, where earlier refusals from stores only forced new routes, new outreach, and new strategy.
It also documents the grind of outreach that rarely gets talked about: thousands of messages sent to book reviewers and gatekeepers, often met with silence—until one person sees the vision, makes an introduction, helps secure one more store, one more event, and gives the team the fuel to record another update and keep pushing forward. Many of these events aren’t booked months in advance from an office—they’re booked from the road, inside a hotel room, between travel windows, or in the middle of a meal, with the next stop already on the horizon.
For Almonte, the goal is larger than breaking records. Just as Stephen King and J.K. Rowling became household names in their genres, Almonte’s mission is to become the next household name in metaphysical sci-fi—a category Coast to Coast AM has described him as a “rising star” within—built not only through the stories on the page, but through an undeniable, documented campaign of endurance, belief, and forward motion.
Samuel Hamodey
R.M. Almonte Publishing
+1 928-716-7212
email us here
Visit us on social media:
LinkedIn
Instagram
Facebook
YouTube
TikTok
X
Other
Legal Disclaimer:
EIN Presswire provides this news content “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability
for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this
article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
