I LOOOOVE signings - that's no secret!
And my favorite evolution of the signing is the Author Event. These aren't just signings. These are weekend-long meetings of the minds, and truly are EVENTS.
This is my third year being blessed to attend WWITC & Nicole & Rebecca & their bevy of volunteers do SUCH an amazing job putting this together.
Friday night there were author panels, meet & greets, vendors, and an all out dance party going on.
Saturday is the actual signing - a room full of authors, readers, bloggers, all coming together to share in the love of reading, and the love of romance and yes, the love of S E X. Remember that George Michaels song? "Sex is natural, sex is fun..." LOL Well, sometimes it's fun to read & write about, too! But the thing that gets overlooked, and sometimes gets the romance industry shamed, is that is't not ALL about the sex. It's about connections, and love, and how sex plays into that. (I mean, there are absolutely books that ARE all about the sex, but they aren't the ENTIRETY of the industry, and still deserve respect!)
So, off my little soap box now... LOL
Due to my anxiety, sometimes these are hard for me, but this one has been blessed from the beginning, and while I've had moments of anxiety, they haven't taken over. When I arrived, I was greeted by friends at the door, waiting for a book shipment to arrive. We chatted & hung out for a bit, and they introduced me to two new friends. Anne & Ginger very kindly let me hang out w/ them most of the afternoon, and Anne even shared her snacks!! : ) I ALSO finally got to meet Chashiree Mixon in person & give her a hug! She was on the phone, so we didn't get to chat, but I was so happy to see her in the flesh!! :D
The first panels were Authors That Write Together and Rom Coms & Tear Jerkers. Rochelle & Elle were on the first (along w/ Michelle, Elisabeth, HQ & M) and Anne was on the second (along w/ Penny, Sara, Lesley, TK, & Kandi). Ginger & I made sure to cheer for Anne the loudest. *grin* ALSO, she shares my soap box about romance & respect. *beam*
The second panels were Dark, Dirty & Forbidden and then the Wild & Windy anthology authors. This is another amazing brainchild of this event - the authors are given a theme (in this case, taking place in Chicago) & then they write a short (shoooort) story or preview to a longer story & run w/ it. Then we get to have them sign it while we're all here. It's AWESOME!
There were all kinds of vendors - candles, LuLaRoe (did I spell that correctly?), book sleeves, artwork... SO MUCH talent! I'd wanted to buy a thing or two, but w/ my upcoming job uncertainty & the fact that I know there are several books I didn't pre-order that I need to pick up, I had to resist this time. Hopefully in 2020 when they do the next event, I'll be able to buy all the things! ;)
The Meet & Greets are another AMAZING thing that I love about this particular event. Several authors get together in the conference rooms & mingle w/ everyone. It's informal & there are picture opportunities & just time to HANG OUT. I saw my friend Amber out of the corner of my eye as I was headed somewhere & discovered she was waiting for the Kristen Ashley room to open, so I hung out w/ her & her hubs for a bit. Love love! We got to chat w/ KA & take some pictures & I love that Amber got to meet her Unicorn Author. : )
The amazing Kristen Ashley.
She is tall! And she was wearing these cute strappy heels w/ a thiiiin heel that I would immediately fall over wearing, so her balance is awesome. : )
Then I went on to pop in to Rochelle & Elle's room & they had a BlackJack table set up, so I played a few hands (badly) & had some help from a gal who OMH had a split like 5 ways & it was so much fun to watch!! Oh!! And the gals that were sitting next to us at the panels earlier were there, too, which was cool. One had asked if she could take a picture of my shirt (Susan Stoker's SEAL shirt that is one of my favorite shirts!!) because she loved the quote on the back & her son is in the Navy. Then she & her group looked up Susan's books & I hope they get hooked bc they're soooooo goood! <3
Next up I decompressed a bit & then went on to some of the other rooms. Got to talk w/ my friend Aimee for a bit & then went to see Anne, Ginger, Michelle, Colton, Lisa, Michelle W & Mr Michelle & Olive & SC & Abbi & T... I didn't know all of them, but it was nice to meet them & I ALWAYS make my Michelles & Lisa & Teresa a priority. It was so cool that Anne & Ginger were in there, too!!!
After all the partying, it was time to get back to the room & decompress again & drink my Starbucks (did I mention - this hotel has a STARBUCKS!) & sleeeeep.
Yes, Mr Bear travels with me.
Now Saturday, I got to hang out w/ Aimee again before getting my coffee, picking up my anthology, grabbing my Skip the Line pass (I won it on the event page - blessed!!!), and then I was able to help Lisa, Michelle & Teresa carry some stuff into the signing room so they didn't have to wait for extra hands. It feels so good to be able to offer help!!! : )
The signing was HOPPIN'! So many ppl! But, praise Jesus, my anxiety stayed away for the most part. I took breaks when needed, and got to see & talk to lots of peeps! AND! OMH! My "unicorn author moment" - I was in line for Amy Daws, and somehow I heard the name Harloe Rae & asked the gal in front of me (Lauren), "Is that THE Harloe Rae???" AND IT WAS!!!
She is SUCH a sweetheart! And it was her birthday! And I got to meet her & hang out w/ her for a few minutes & I tried really hard not to fangirl, but ... well, this is the smile of someone failing at the not-fangirling part:
(I got to chat w/ her & Lauren a bit on Sunday morning, too, which was great again! And I wish I would've taken a picture w/ Lauren, too, because her hair was GORGEOUS!)
I made some collages so I wouldn't have to post 1500 pictures, because my goal for this signing was to TAKE PICTURES. Mission Accomplished. Now, hopefully the collages will upload correctly...
Anne & Ginger - new friends for LIFE! They surprised me w/ a bag full of books!
We went to dinner at this cute bar restaurant called Rams, along w/ Melissa (who is an AMAZING cover designer!) & two gals whose names I did not catch, so I need to ask Anne or Ginger! They were fun, too, and the food was yummy bar food! : )
Melanie Harlow writes really great stories & she's always so nice!!
Whew!
I don't even know what else to say!
It was an AMAZING weekend & I'm so blessed to have gone.
If you have a chance to go to a signing or author event, GO!
They're so worth the money you might spend! ; )
TTFN!
: )
There were all kinds of vendors - candles, LuLaRoe (did I spell that correctly?), book sleeves, artwork... SO MUCH talent! I'd wanted to buy a thing or two, but w/ my upcoming job uncertainty & the fact that I know there are several books I didn't pre-order that I need to pick up, I had to resist this time. Hopefully in 2020 when they do the next event, I'll be able to buy all the things! ;)
The Meet & Greets are another AMAZING thing that I love about this particular event. Several authors get together in the conference rooms & mingle w/ everyone. It's informal & there are picture opportunities & just time to HANG OUT. I saw my friend Amber out of the corner of my eye as I was headed somewhere & discovered she was waiting for the Kristen Ashley room to open, so I hung out w/ her & her hubs for a bit. Love love! We got to chat w/ KA & take some pictures & I love that Amber got to meet her Unicorn Author. : )
She is tall! And she was wearing these cute strappy heels w/ a thiiiin heel that I would immediately fall over wearing, so her balance is awesome. : )
Then I went on to pop in to Rochelle & Elle's room & they had a BlackJack table set up, so I played a few hands (badly) & had some help from a gal who OMH had a split like 5 ways & it was so much fun to watch!! Oh!! And the gals that were sitting next to us at the panels earlier were there, too, which was cool. One had asked if she could take a picture of my shirt (Susan Stoker's SEAL shirt that is one of my favorite shirts!!) because she loved the quote on the back & her son is in the Navy. Then she & her group looked up Susan's books & I hope they get hooked bc they're soooooo goood! <3
Next up I decompressed a bit & then went on to some of the other rooms. Got to talk w/ my friend Aimee for a bit & then went to see Anne, Ginger, Michelle, Colton, Lisa, Michelle W & Mr Michelle & Olive & SC & Abbi & T... I didn't know all of them, but it was nice to meet them & I ALWAYS make my Michelles & Lisa & Teresa a priority. It was so cool that Anne & Ginger were in there, too!!!
After all the partying, it was time to get back to the room & decompress again & drink my Starbucks (did I mention - this hotel has a STARBUCKS!) & sleeeeep.
Yes, Mr Bear travels with me.
Now Saturday, I got to hang out w/ Aimee again before getting my coffee, picking up my anthology, grabbing my Skip the Line pass (I won it on the event page - blessed!!!), and then I was able to help Lisa, Michelle & Teresa carry some stuff into the signing room so they didn't have to wait for extra hands. It feels so good to be able to offer help!!! : )
The signing was HOPPIN'! So many ppl! But, praise Jesus, my anxiety stayed away for the most part. I took breaks when needed, and got to see & talk to lots of peeps! AND! OMH! My "unicorn author moment" - I was in line for Amy Daws, and somehow I heard the name Harloe Rae & asked the gal in front of me (Lauren), "Is that THE Harloe Rae???" AND IT WAS!!!
She is SUCH a sweetheart! And it was her birthday! And I got to meet her & hang out w/ her for a few minutes & I tried really hard not to fangirl, but ... well, this is the smile of someone failing at the not-fangirling part:
(I got to chat w/ her & Lauren a bit on Sunday morning, too, which was great again! And I wish I would've taken a picture w/ Lauren, too, because her hair was GORGEOUS!)
I made some collages so I wouldn't have to post 1500 pictures, because my goal for this signing was to TAKE PICTURES. Mission Accomplished. Now, hopefully the collages will upload correctly...
Meghan Quinn!!! Her Instagram stories are FABULOUS, too!
(And I love her blouse!!!)
Colton is SUPER tall (like, my brother is 6'5" & he seemed that or maybe a little taller)! Michelle Mankin = Wonderful Rock Chick! And her hugs are also wonderful! AND she & Lisa introduced me to Anne & Ginger. Yay!!!
KI Lynn put out a call for the Lavender Balm that we had in our hotel rooms & since I wasn't going to use mine, I brought it down for her. I also gave her another little package I'd gotten from another hotel. Hope she enjoys!!
Amber Nation!!! I was soooo happy to get to see & chat w/ her a couple times this weekend!! : )
I wasn't able to get the Wild & Windy anthology signed by everyone, but it's still a neat concept! (The anthology's authors are given a theme - this year, the setting of Chicago - & then they're all at the signing so you can get the book signed. And you know how I love multi-signed things. D'oh!!)
Liv Morris - She was super nice & her hair is so pretty! (Actually, that goes for LB, Beth & Marni, too - this is the GREAT HAIR collage! Mr Beth gets a pass bc of his ball cap! LOL)
LB Dunbar's Midlife Crisis is one of my favorite books in the series. Hank... Swoonworthy goodness right there!!
Beth Ehemann is another on my "super nice & sweet person who I want to be friends with" list. Heh. And her husband is fun, too - even if the pictures are blurry! ;) I'm pretty sure these two could have their own comedy-reality show/routine if they wanted!! LOVE!!!
Marni is BFF's w/ one of my favorite authors (K Street) & K had put in her reader group that if any of us went to WWITC we should stop by Marni's table & say hello. So, I did, and she was sweet! I wasn't sure about her books, but she explained them so well that I wanted to read them, so I'm going to check them out. : )
Jana Aston - she took about 6 selfies, and she looked good in ALL of them! I, however, am usually a goofy blur. In general, not in the other pictures of us! LOL
AMY DAWS!!!! If you aren't following her on Instagram, you really should be.
Tireman - A fan made this for Amy based on her writing cave (Tires Tires Tires) while writing Wait With Me. That fan is 100% creative!!
Lacey Black - OMH, I get to see her at various signings & she's just so bubbly, I wish I could've chatted w/ her longer.
Michelle Warren - She & her hubs are some of my favorite ppl to see at WWITC events. I make him sign my book every year, too (I don't really MAKE him - I ask politely!). ; )
Also, idk if you can tell, but Michelle's earrings are so cute!!
Rochelle Paige - I love everything she writes, and I just love her! She's one of the first ppl I actually traveled to a signing to see (Indiana, birthday weekend 2013, I think...)
Teagan Hunter is a newfound favorite.
Kristen Ashley, Queen of Indie Romance!
Karla Sorensen, one of the SWEETEST ppl I've ever met. She makes me smile!!
Elle Christensen - the other half of Fiona Davenport (w/ Rochelle), she's always fabulous to chat w/ & I would love to get to chat w/ her longer when I see her, because she's just one of those ppl you want to talk with. She also makes me smile.
: )
My Rochelle & Fiona haul.
Mr David R, cover model & Survivor contestant, pre-signed Fortuity & Serenity!
Wooooot!!! : )
Two of my favorite Elle books!!
<3
We went to dinner at this cute bar restaurant called Rams, along w/ Melissa (who is an AMAZING cover designer!) & two gals whose names I did not catch, so I need to ask Anne or Ginger! They were fun, too, and the food was yummy bar food! : )
Melanie Harlow writes really great stories & she's always so nice!!
Whew!
I don't even know what else to say!
It was an AMAZING weekend & I'm so blessed to have gone.
If you have a chance to go to a signing or author event, GO!
They're so worth the money you might spend! ; )
TTFN!
: )
