Well, I did it again. I had so much fun at Writers' Day that I worked myself into a post-event migraine. It was just too much fun for this writing introvert! After all that social fun, I needed some serious withdrawl time. And yes, in light of my recent migraine posts, I should say that I wore my pink-tinted glasses when I was inside the auditorium (though I couldn't quite figure out what kind of lights they were).
Anyway, the day was terrific! I got to meet up with my critique group buddies from the area (Rebecca, Lynn, Siri and Dawn--so sorry we missed Jean), and I was able to meet some fabulous industry folks (Patrick Collins from Holt, Meredith Mundy Wasinger from Sterling, and Jamie Weiss Chilton from the Andrea Brown Agency). I especially enjoyed being Meredith's "shadow" for the day. No, not as in a creepy, stalking kind of way--it was my duty as one of my region's advisors. She is absolutely delightful and was able to give an in-depth look at Sterling Publishing. I hope to have an Mini-View from Meredith in the near future, so stay tuned.
Another highlight of the day were the "Spotlight Speakers", those authors who are given ten minutes to talk about something related to their path to success. This year's speakers were Caroline Hatton (you might remember her Mini-View from August), Tim Egan (Author/Illustrator), Siri Weber Feeney (one of my critique group buddies), Dan Hanna (another Mini-View interviewee), and Andrew Smith (author).
The true HIGHlight of the day came when Dan Hanna demonstrated how to REALLY launch a book into the world... Way to go, Dan! (yes, that's an actual copy of The Pout-Pout Fish flying through the air--even though the story is not about a flying fish!). What a day!
