An Evening with Maine Author Tim Cotton will be held Oct. 8, from 6 - 7:30 p.m., at Rockland Public Library, in the Community Room.

 

A Rockland Public Library news release provides the following introduction to Cotton:

 

Tim Cotton retired after 34 years in law enforcement, but is better known, for some reason, as the creator of the marginally world-famous Bangor Police Department Facebook page. The page went from nine thousand followers to over three hundred fifty thousand during his tenure. He gave it up in 2022. The iconic Duck of Justice was Tim’s idea, but he simply didn’t expect it to become so popular, so he ran with it.

 

“It’s not science, after all,” says Cotton

 

Cotton’s writing, lauded by some and panned by others, has led him to author four popular books, all collections of his essays from social media and beyond. He is working on his first fiction novel, something “a bit darker, with no ducks,” he says. He is the recipient of the Erma Bombeck Award for humor writing, and has been featured by NPR Morning Edition, USA Today, People, 207, and a bunch of others whom he doesn’t recall all that well now. Cotton has been a two-time guest on Mike Rowe’s podcasts and a few others but still has not been asked to be the grand marshal in any parades—for that he’s thankful.

 

Cotton’s daily writings on Facebook and his website focus on Maine life in general, and are complimentary to his favorite place on earth, Downeast Maine. His dog Ellie, an eleven-year-old Box-a-Dor, is prominently featured in his daily musings, but she doesn’t travel with him to library talks. He is sure she doesn’t bite but sometimes questions the way she looks at people who don’t buy his books.

 

Cotton does fewer appearances at libraries, mostly because he strongly believes that he says it all, every day, on the Interwebs, but he’s agreed to show up here because he doesn’t get to Rockland all that much since the “incident.” He refuses to tell us any further details.

 

Cotton’s talks are unrehearsed, unscripted, and feature stories and anecdotal observations, and he loves question-and-answer sessions, but refuses to talk about politics or sporting events. He also believes that the word no is a complete sentence, so don’t be angry when he says it when you ask about politics or sporting events.

 

His books will be available for sale, but he urges folks to buy them from someone else because they are usually cheaper. He will sign books you have, or books you buy from him, but his penmanship is poor, and he has a difficult time discerning which spelling of “Megan” you use if your name is Meghan, so just tell him upfront.

All are welcome to attend. The Rockland Public Library is located at 80 Union St.

 

For more information, please contact Jeannie Sullivan at jsullivan@rocklandmaine.gov