Live Through Me - Part 1

Last week, I had my first taste of a Romance Writers of America conference. I’ve never been to a conference before, but I’d heard this is one of the big ones and not to be missed. My next few posts will be dedicated to my experiences at RWA.

I arrived in New York on Tuesday and, after getting settled in the “overflow hotel” aka The Manhattan, went straight to the conference to check in. Right away, I received a bag and a handful of free books. Then, I went to the “Readers for Life” Literacy Autographing. This event was coming to an end but was still packed with people. I managed to meet up with two of my author friends who were doing signings (Erin Kellison and Virna De Paul), and I had one-on-one time with my idol, Allison Brennan. I’m embarrassed to say I didn’t recognize her at first because in her pictures she’d always had black hair and red lipstick. At the signing, her hair was much lighter, she wore glasses, and if she had lipstick on, it was a pale shade. A different look for her but I don’t think the woman could ever have a bad look. Of course, she is on a pedestal, so… Allison gave me some great advice and has brought my muse back to life. I’ll be eternally grateful.

By 8 PM, I made my way over to the “First Timers’ Orientation”. I wouldn’t say this is a necessity, but I walked away with a better understanding of what’s expected of us and what we should expect. For example, we were told that the workshop presenters won’t have a problem with people getting up and walking out in the middle of their workshop. Sometimes people have pitch appointments they have to go to, and other times, the workshop simply isn’t what you’d imagined. I never had the guts to leave and always wanted to give the presenter the benefit of the doubt. Surely, there must be something they could teach me. Maybe it’ll come closer to the end of the workshop. That never happened. In hindsight, I’m still not sure I’d walk out, but I’d definitely consider it next time.

Since I have too much to tell you about my first experience at a writers’ conference, my next few posts will be continuations from this one.

Have you attended a conference? Have you ever walked out? How did you feel?