RT Booklovers Convention Roundup - Part Two

After a good night's sleep, I was up early and enjoyed a chocolate croissant in my room.  It was part of my shopping spree in the market while quietly stalking Jill Shalvis.  Best breakfast ever.

Today was the first real day of the convention.  There was a workshop for RT virgins.  Yes, I was one.  It was a great way to see that I wasn't alone in my feeling alone and get some tips from authors who have been in my shoes and now are veterans to the whole thing.  After that we had a big welcome breakfast where they were making and serving fresh crepes.  I was still full and happy from my croissant so I skipped it.

The first workshop I did after that was Big Fun in a Small Town which has an incredible panel of authors - Nancy Naigle, Sylvia Dohl, Brenda Novak, Sheila Roberts and Molly O'Keefe.  Lots of fun and they each gave away copies of their books to everyone who attended!  Score!

The next panel I went to was...well, I almost had to be shot with a tranquilizer dart.  It was a contemporary romance panel with Sylvia Day, Jill Shalvis, Julie Ann Walker, and Jennifer Probst.  It was a total Q&A session and at the end, everyone got to just walk up to them and take pictures, get books signed and just talk to them.

I was like...WHAAAAT???  Seriously?  Like, I can just go up there and say hello and talk to them like it's completely normal and okay?  I was waiting for someone to smack my hand - or tazer me.  But amazingly enough...I got to go up there.  Met Jill Shalvis and got an autograph.  I wanted a picture but she had to get to another workshop and so I missed my chance.  But she shook my hand and all was right with the world.

And I didn't pee myself so...winning!

Then I got to meet the LOVELY Jennifer Probst who is quite possibly the friendliest human being alive.  If you haven't read anything of hers before, you should.  And if you ever have the chance to go anyplace where she is, you should go because she was so friendly and so gracious and just...she made my day.

By this point I was like "I can go home right now and be completely happy!"  But I stayed and decided to see what else was going on.

There was a rodeo that night.  So after dinner with a new blogger friend, I decided to check it out.  Originally I thought I would try the mechanical bull, but I chickened out once I got there.  The thought of falling on my butt with such a huge audience was not something I really wanted to include in my RT conference experience.

By the time I got back to my room, I was exhausted.  The amount of free books and swag was slowly overtaking every extra inch of space in the room and I was trying to figure out how to get it all packed up and home with me but decided to not think about it until it was actually time to pack.

RT Booklovers Convention Roundup - Part One

Alright, it took a week for me to do it, but I'm finally back in the groove of life.  Hard to believe that a week away can mess with you so much!  Sheesh!

So, RT Booklovers Convention was AMAZING!  This was my first one and I'm pretty sure it won't be my last.  I met so many amazing people - fans, bloggers, authors - I was completely blown away.  I'd never been to Texas before so that was pretty exciting for me too. 

I arrived at the Hyatt Regency Dallas mid-afternoon.  That place is HUGE!  I checked in, went to my room, did a little happy dance and then went back down to the lobby level to explore a bit.  Everyone who registered for the convention got a free goody bag/tote.  Inside were books, post cards, swag...tons of stuff.  The entire lobby area was decorated with giant posters of some of the biggest names in romance - everywhere you looked, there were pictures of books!

I was fortunate enough to meet up with some great ladies at that point from the Fresh Fiction Blog and Book Partners in Crime.  Such an awesome group of ladies and throughout the week they were incredibly gracious to me and helped me because I was a bit overwhelmed. 

After hanging out with them for a little while, I went back to exploring the hotel - like I said, it was massive.  My room was on the 17th floor overlooking the atrium and bar/restaurant area.  At one point I met up with author Sara Humphreys (who is super cool!) and talked with her for a bit.  Then I was wandering around and was coming up the escalator from the lower level and who do I see hanging out in the little food/snack market? 

Jill Shalvis.

I gasped and the people behind me were like, "Oh my god!  Are you okay?"

Um...yes.  Just having a major fan-girl moment.  Don't mind me. 

Did I go over and say hello?  No.  Instead I was going for cool.  Calm.  Collected. 

I left the market with $22 in candy and soda. 

Go ahead, you can say it.  LOSER!!!

And to keep the loser vibe going, I ate dinner by myself and then locked myself in my room because I was completely overwhelmed.  It was nice having the whole room and king size bed all to myself.  The view outside the room wasn't all that great.  Who knew there was so much construction going on in Dallas or that all of the roads were torn up?  So I kept my curtains closed most of the time. 

But still...deluxe room to myself.  Room service.  No cooking for a week, meeting all of my writing idols and the TV remote all to myself.Not a bad way to travel...

Serious fan-girl moment coming...

Okay, imagine if you will how you would feel if you had the opportunity to meet someone who seriously influenced you in your life.  Not a family member.  Not a co-worker.  Not a friend.

Are you with me so far?

I started reading romance books in the 7th grade.  Harlequin.  My lab partner used to read them all the time and she got me hooked on them.  As I got older, I continued to read and I enjoyed them but it wasn't until I picked up a Sandra Brown book (back when she was writing romances) that I took a step beyond hooked.  Her stories transported me, mesmerized me and made me want to be a writer. 

Well, fast-forward to current day and I have found out that my idol, the woman who
inspired me to really want to write, is going to be at the same convention as me in May.  I KID YOU NOT.  I seriously almost hyperventilated when I saw her name on the roster and in the promotions.  Me.  In the same building - possibly the same room - as Sandra Brown!

What the WHAT???

So when I just ran around the house yelling that to my husband, he was like "You're looking at this the wrong way.  Sandra Brown is going to be in the same building as YOU". 

God I love that man!

So I may have to let my editor know that there is a very real possibility of her having to shoot me with a tranquilizer dart at some point during the convention.  If she's at the book signing and it's any kind of alphabetical order...well...let's just say that B and C are NOT that far apart. 

Can you just imagine how giddy I'm going to be?  Practically bouncing in my seat!! 

And don't even get me started on the fact that Jill Shalvis will be there too.  Love, love, LOVE her too!!  I go through her books super fast because I can't put them down!  I've lost many a night's sleep because I had "one more chapter" syndrome.  But she's an S and I'm a C so I won't be anywhere near her at the signing.  Dang it. 

I may spend a bulk of the time breathing into a paper bag. 

In case I didn't mention it, I'm talking about the RT Book Lovers Convention in Dallas, Texas!  If there is any way you can get there, you totally should.  I have never gone before - this will be my first year.  I've heard it is amazing and now that I see who is going to be there, I will be having my own little countdown calendar in my office crossing off the days until I can be there! 

Such a fan-girl opportunity.

And did I also forget to mention (or remind) that RT Book Reviews has me as their cover story for their March issue?  "Return to You" - the newest in my Montgomery Brothers series - is the feature story.  Well, they talk to me too, but primarily the article is about the book and the characters but I get some time in there too.    I do believe that I'm crushing on them too.  I may need therapy by the time the convention is over.  

If you're coming, bring your camera.  You can document it.  :)