Back home

After an eleven hour drive, Reno seems far, far away. It's good to be home, but now I have piles of laundry to wash when the only thing I want to do is sit at my computer or Alphasmart and write. Attending an RWA convention is overwhelming and exhausting, but it's also inspiring. I'm fired-up to finish to finish my proposal for Harlequin! I'm excited about new projects. And I'm ecstatic to be able to get back to writing the way I was (or was trying to be) before my youngest got ill (she's doing much better now!)

Oh, and I turned on the comments button on the blog as a trial so please feel free to comment.

A little conference recap from Saturday...

When I was riding the elevator, I bumped into the author sitting to my left at the literacy booksigning on Wednesday night and she told me people had stopped by to see me. She told them I was off chasing some hot, young actor (which she said most understood completely), but I also ran into people who wanted my book and I guess I didn't leave enough copies before I left. So if you are one of these people, I'm very sorry and please contact me via the contact button on my website menu. Be sure you type in your email address, too, or I won't be able to reply. Thanks!

One of the best (and most entertaining) workshops I attended was called "He Said, She Said, They Wrote: Collaborating with the Opposite Sex" put on by Jennifer Cruise and Bob Mayer who wrote a book together that will be published by St. Martin's Press. The two authors played off each other so well as they discussed how they wrote the book using email (they've only met face-to-face four times though the way they interacted you'd almost think they were married), the pros and cons they faced, the compromised, the differences between men and women and how all this effected their writing process. I figured this workshop would come in handy if some hot, young actor ever wanted to collaborate with me on say, a screenplay;)

The covers for Harlequin/Silhouette's NEXT! are gorgeous. The new line is being published in two forms--mass market paperback and a taller version (same width). The tall version adds more white space and is easier to read. I picked up several recent releases and can't wait to read them. The line is acquiring many new authors so if you have a story featuring a heroine over the age of 35 be sure to check the guidelines at eharlequin.com.

The Secrets of the Best-selling Sisterhood featuring Susan Elizabeth Phillips and Jayne Ann Krentz was a lot of fun, too. And Susan was also Saturday's luncheon speaker. She's always fun to listen to and isn't afraid to speak her mind or share her embarrassing moments. Which is probably why she doesn't allow her sessions to be recorded.

I love Christopher Vogler's THE WRITER'S JOURNEY so I attended Kathryn Smith's workshop titled THE LOVER'S JOURNEY on Saturday morning. She adapted the structure of the writer's journey to fit romance novels. It was worth getting up for the 8:30 am start time!

The Borders/Waldenbooks booksellers' panel provided so much information. Not much, however, applied to series romance, which is what I write, but someday when I spread my wings and write something longer I'll need to know it. Since I have made the Waldenbooks Bestselling list for series romance, I was interested to hear the numbers it takes to make the list. And I also learned that to schedule a booksigning at most of the stores you must guarantee a certain amount of sales. That was a new one for me.

The awards ceremony lasted over three hours. My critique partner didn't win her RITA category, but other friends did including Shelley Bates for Best Inspirational Romance. YAY, Shelley! I kissed the top of her statue hoping it will bring me luck next year:) Following the awards show, we were treated to yet another dessert buffet (mainly chocolate, guess they know what romance writers like). We also received a foil covered RITA-shaped chocolate.

What I took home with me from the Reno Conference:
- Every book I write should be the book of my heart
- Write what has meaning to me
- Don't compare myself to anyone else; we each have our own careers, processes and lives
- It was great to see friends I hadn't seen since 2002, but I need to keep in better touch with them
- It was great to make new friends, and I need to make sure I keep in touch with them
- I'm very fortunate to be a member of RWA

And now it's back into the cave...