Coming at you from RT 2011!

Hey there, Fierce Romancers. Well, it's here! The Romantic Times Booklovers Convention! So far, it's been a really great time. We started off Tuesday night with a side trip to The Viper Room on Sunset Strip, had a wonderful time at the Ellora's Cave Bollywood party on Wednesday night (complete with a performance by an Indian dance troop), and rounded out the trip so far with the Masquerade Faery Ball last night. In between, I've been attending some informative workshops, luncheons and just schmoozing in general. Today is going to be a busy one for me -- but I'll tell you more about that later (Oh, the suspense!). In the meantime, here's a few of the pictures I've taken so far...

At the Ellora's Cave Bollywood Party.

At last night's Masquerade Faery Ball.

Unmasked, and with the lovely Mari Freeman.

That's all from LA for now. Have a great weekend!

Where will you be this year?

Happy New Year! I'm so excited to get rockin' and rollin' on a killer 2011! 2010 was difficult for me in a lot of ways, and I wasn't the least bit sad to see it go. Believe me, I'm ready to start off fresh.

I'm not one to make resolutions because, quite frankly, I typically fail to keep them. But, I do have some goals for this year. One is to write. Write, write, write. I took most of 2010 off, and I really missed that creative outlet. I've found I need it. It's like dark chocolate to my soul. So, this week I've spent a lot of time putting fingers to keyboard, banging out the words. I love being back in the saddle. I just hope everything stays on an even keel so I don't get knocked off.

My second goal is to attend a few conferences this year. I'm looking at three or four, in hopes I can do at least two. RT and RWA Nationals are iffy, while Ellora's Cave RomantiCon is a given. I can't give up those Cavemen! Another I'm looking at is Lori Foster's 7th Annual Reader and Author Get Together. I've heard nothing but great things about this conference, so I think I'll give it a go.

Any other great conferences you've heard of or are attending? I'd love to hear where everyone will be this year!

Kristin
www.kristindaniels.com
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Adventures in Conferencing I

Today I’d like to blog about the greatest adventure of all...

Life.

To do that, of course, I have to blog about death. If you’re wondering how I came to this morbid topic, blame the Romance Writers of America. If not for their conference in Orlando, I wouldn’t have gotten on a plane to join the fun in happiest--and also the most humid and hottest--place on earth.

By the time you read this, I will have been in Orlando, lost among the palm trees, topless Europeans, and throngs of cheerful Disney characters (it is a small world, after all), for two days. Despite my concerns about the plane making it off the runway, I arrived at the Romance Writers of America conference intact. It’s my first RWA conference ever, and I’m enjoying the sights, sounds, and smells of hundreds of writers, editors, agents, and publishers as they mingle, network, carouse, connect, interact, pitch, consult, and attend workshops and receptions.

I’m also getting a perverse thrill from watching the spouses of said industry folk come stumbling in after a day at Disney World (or is it Disney Land? Disney Planet?) with a sleeping kid swathed in all the trappings of a fairy princess draped over one shoulder, another wearing Mickey Mouse ears, a Goofy T-shirt, Donald Duck shorts, and Dora the Explorer sneakers dangling from his arm, and a third seemingly hyper-caffeinated child—there’s one in every family—chirping hello to everyone she sees and skipping ahead to open the doors for zombie dad, who is planning a hundred ways to exact payment for his good deed, if he can just make it back to the hotel room.

Aaaaaah, life!

Speaking of which, let’s get back to death. I always think about death when traveling. What if the plane crashes? What if the car crashes? What if the bus crashes? What if the boat sinks? Hopping the jet to Florida proved to be no different an experience, given we had chosen to go the cheapest way possible on Screamin’ Bebe Airlines. The only thing louder than the screaming babies was the mysterious thumping and screeching coming from under the plane, or possibly the cockpit. It was hard to tell. Before you pass judgment on me here for being too cynical, I’d venture to guess you’d think about the Great Beyond yourself if you’d been in my seat (and for the cost of a rental car to get me home, you can have it on the return flight). Heh heh heh.

It was quite an adventure, my little airplane trip (You can experience turbulence while sitting on the runway? Really?), and actually gave me a brilliant idea. As I clutched Hubby’s hand and tried to ignore the shaking, rattling and rolling of the aircraft, I pondered what my obituary would read like. What details would be included? Should I “come out” as an erotica writer after I’m dead via my obit? Would my husband remember all my family details, or, given his terrible memory for names, would I end up being the offspring of Goofy and Belle from Beauty and the Beast born in Neverland?

The ancient Greeks believed you never truly knew if a person had lived a good life until he/she died. What would the details of my obituary reveal about me? Maybe they’d reveal that I really should have an o-BITCH-uary instead, because of all my naughty behavior, or possibly someone reading it might believe me to be a saint, a wonderful person whose life on earth was to be cherished and whose presence would be missed. This person would also probably believe in a one-eyed, one-horned, flying purple people-eater.

Saints and purple people-eaters aside, I firmly believe that if you want something done, you’ve got to do it yourself. So I decided to write my own obituary if I survived the plane trip. I’d just gotten started when conference chatter and some exchanges with other writers steered me in another direction.

Why not write an obituary for my characters?

We write character sketches about our characters' lives, but what better way to examine who they are than to write about them as if they’ve passed away? I think the ancient Greeks had something going for them in their philosophy, and now I’m going to write obituaries for the characters in my current WIPs. Well, except for the immortal ones, of course. There’s always a hitch in every giddy up, isn't there?

I guess even though RWA made me think about death, I've gotten something wonderful out of it--a new way to explore my characters. That's what conferences are for, and I think I've gotten my money's worth just for that alone. It doesn't hurt that I've met some great people and gotten to participate in some really neat activities, such as people watching, which is my favorite, and drinking fine wine, which is another favorite. And the adventure continues throughout the weekend!

It took me a bit to get set up, but now that I am I will be tweeting about the conference as time permits (cameobrown, if you're interested in following me on Twitter). Right now, I'm off to review my pitch materials (Guess what my next post will be about? lol).

Happy Reading!

The Book Signing of Shannara and Other Musings

The posts this week got me thinking about significant experiences in my life, and, not surprisingly, many of them revolve around writing and writing events, such as conferences. Some were pleasant, some bittersweet; others were odd, unmentionable, or the kind of incident you look back at and laugh, even though at the time it might have been stressful. However, all were learning experiences, and since I love to learn, I wouldn't trade any of them for the world. So, on this lovely Sunday, even though family business has kept me from posting in a timely manner and Blogspot has fought me for an hour or so, I thought I'd post a couple of memories of literary fun I've had over the years.

One of the first conferences I attended included Terry Brooks as a keynote speaker during lunch. When I discovered he'd be signing books as well, I was thrilled! He was one of my mother's favorite authors and she spent many happy hours with his books. My conference experience now took on the definite air of a pilgrimage. Immediately, I ordered a hardcover of his book on writing, Sometimes the Magic Works: Lessons from a Writing Life, and waited for the big day. Unfortunately, when I arrived at the conference, I discovered I somehow, in the rush to get to the airport, left the book at home. Undaunted, and inspired by his keynote speech that afternoon, which was very entertaining, I bought another copy of the book at the conference bookstore and took my place in line.

When my turn came, Mr. Brooks glanced at my name tag, but I'd turned it over. I asked him if he would sign the book to my mother and briefly told him why--his work had been very comforting to her in her last few years of life. He paused and looked down, but recovered quickly as I spelled her name, which is an unusual derivation of a more common spelling. He tried to pronounce it, and the last thing he said was something about it sounding like something he would have named one of his characters. I think my mother would have liked hearing that. I know I appreciated his willingness to respond to my unusual request, and as I write this, I realize how bizarre it actually sounded: Umm, can you sign this book to a dead person? However, Mr. Brooks handled it with great aplomb and showed himself to be not only a brilliant author and speaker, but a kind and compassionate human being.

What I learned from this is that if you have a favorite author, take some time, if the opportunity arises, to let him/her know how his/her work is cherished. I'm sure Mr. Brooks has heard all kinds of stories; however, even multi-published writers need to hear their work has value and impact. Also, if you are getting ready to do a book signing, keep in mind that your books may be significant to a reader for more than just literary reasons, so don't be surprised if you get some odd requests. While I would draw the line at stripping naked while inking my signature in a tome, I would still be open to other, less revealing suggestions. On a final note, the other copy of the book ended up finding a home across the US with a science fiction writer I met at another conference.

Some people say you can judge a conference by its keynote speakers. I say it's the food, but keynotes definitely play a role, as they are sometimes a huge drawing card for many authors who are fans of literature and publishing. Let me just say up front that not all authors, editors, agents, and/or publishers make good speakers. Some are actually fairly terrible at it. However, others are pleasant surprises. I think every author should consider what he/she would say if asked to address an audience at a literary event. Have you ever imagined YOU up there on the dais speaking to a hundred eager writers waiting for your words of wisdom? I have, and in some cases, that's the only reason I haven't gotten up and walked out on a terrible speaker. I know it can't be easy, although some people seem to make it seem so.

For example, at a conference years ago, Stephen J. Cannell, of A-Team fame, was a keynote. He'd added writing novels to his long list of accomplishments. I didn't know what to expect, but he was funny, inspirational, and humble. He made a point to note that he'd been taking workshops at the conference to improve his craft even though he was published, and reminded everyone that a writer can never know everything about writing.

Another of my favorite speakers, who shall remain nameless, was someone who had been the forefather of a genre and was, at the time, being pushed out. He made some rather direct, blunt comments about publishing and fiction, which sort of shocked everyone, but he was absolutely right. Inspiring? Yes, if you were mature enough as a writer to not get offended. Informative and entertaining? Yep!

If you do ever become a keynote, here's some tips that I suggest you keep in mind, and I base this on the rotten, as well as the great, speakers I've witnessed. First, realize that your audience is there to be inspired. They may care about your path to publication, but truly, every writer's path is different, so there must be something more to it than that. I've seen more than one writer get up and ramble on about how he/she broke into the business, but in many cases that can only get part of the audience to connect. I saw a famous writer at one conference who obviously got her big break because she was part of a literary dynasty. In other words, there was no way this person wasn't going to be published unless she didn't want to be. Struggling writers couldn't empathize with her, and she came off as rather out of touch.

Secondly, realize that you are there to inspire, regardless of who you are supposed to inspire. Some of the people in the audience are not writers, but perhaps part of the publishing industry, and they need a pep talk now and then as well, or even as in the above case, a little kick in the pants. Anything is better than nothing. If everything is geared toward one group of people, the others feel left out and disconnected. As with all things literary, the success of the speaker depends on how attuned to the audience he/she is.

I will have to end this on a rather abrupt note, leaving out the part about throwing my panties at Sherman Alexie, because I'm late on posting. However, I'd still like to know: Do you have a specific keynote speaker you loved or hated? Why? Is there a conference memory you'd like to share?