You Heard It Here: Happiness Is…
This month, happiness is attending a great conference! This past weekend, I was at the SoCalRWA Writers’ Conference 2013. What a wonderful two days! I met some awesome people and had a great time!
The highlight was probably getting to moderate Barbara Vey’s workshop on Building Reader Loyalty. Or wait, I think the highlight was having coffee with Barbara after the workshop. No, wait. The highlight was being interviewed by Barbara DURING coffee for her Publisher’s Weekly Beyond Her Book Blog. (She wanted to know about my experience narrating my books.) Hold the horses, wait a second. I know the highlight! It was when she asked me if I’d like to attend her reader luncheon in Milwaukee next year in April. The answer was a resounding, YES, PLEASE!! Count me in!
Here’s a shot of Barbara and me after her workshop at SoCalRWA 2013.
Honestly, there were lots of highlights to the conference. Hearing from authors who pitched their books after attending my Itching to Pitch workshop is always great. Sitting on a panel (about writing action scenes) with fellow Carina Press authors, HelenKay Dimon, Zoe Archer and Nico Rosso was awesome too. Yammering in the bar with chaptermates from LARA (Los Angeles Romance Authors) and making new friends has to be on the list. You’d never know this was a first year conference. I kind of kept waiting for something to go wrong and it just didn’t happen. I look forward to the next SoCalRWA. There’s nothing like being inspired to write!
I have one more “happiness is” since I may as well be grateful for ALL the good things happening… As I mentioned on the home page, Dangerously Close is a finalist in the 2013 Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence!! March has been a great month!
What about you? What was your happiness this month?
Wow – you are bursting at the seems with happiness – and for a good reason – or should I say for good reasons. Wonderful to hear all of this.
I’m keeping my fingers crossed that my orthopedic boot will come off next week and that my broken bone has healed completely. I will be very, very happy about that.
One other thing – kind of “you heard it first here” I agreed to write another continuity for Harlequin Mills and &Boon Medical Romance and that marks my 20th contract with Harelquin. A nice March Milestone, for sure.
Hi Lynne,
Thanks! And CONGRATS to you!! That’s awesome news! So thrilled you’ve hit that 20 milestone! I’ll be keeping good thoughts that the bone is healed and the boot is history. You’ve got a good list of “happiness is” too. Yay!
Woo-hoo! How happy and exciting for you although I always get a buzz when my friends get good news too.
Hi Maria,
Thank you! And I feel the same way. I love hearing/sharing good news with friends. Especially in such a tough business. I’m lucky to have awesome friends and super support system. Nothing beats that!
I love your happinesses Dee J and Lynne. : )
Good things going on everywhere. My happy, happy, is I just signed off on galleys of Book #3 this morning. Whew! My next happy is reading through the submission requests from SoCalRWA before crossing fingers and sending them on their way. Busy, busy. ; )
Hi Robena,
Congrats on signing off on book #3!! Great news! I feel your relief. LOL. I’m doing the same thing with prepping submissions from conference. Yep, very busy! When does it slow down?
So sorry I missed the conference. From all reports, it was fabulous, and yes, you have many reasons to be bubbling over with happiness!
I’m very happy to be closing in on my favorite words – The End – on the third book in my baseball series. Even though I know I’ve got a lot of revising to do, it’s good to know I’ve told the complete story.
Oh yeah, and opening day for the Yankees is just around the corner! Life is good!
Hi Roz, Yankees…baseball, right? LOL. Kidding. Enjoy your season!
It was a GREAT conference! Maybe you can come to the next one. (2015, I think. Sounds a long way off!) Ah… the end! Two of my favorite words. LOL. Congrats on that! Each one is a milestone.
Happy news was the complete and utter success of the conference and book signing. I’ve been sleeping for the last three days. I didn’t realize just how much stress I’d put on myself for the conference.
I got my car back but think it is at the end of its life span. Sigh.
I cannot wait to start writing again. Yippee!
Hi Maria,
You deserve all that sleep. It was an absolute success! You and the committee should be uber proud of the job you did! So sorry to hear about your car though. Bummer! I know the feeling! Enjoy writing again! That should be a welcome relief after all your stress/work. Let it flow!!
First off, big CONGRATULATIONS on the BV interview and the invite to her reader conference. Soon all her followers will know what we in LARA have known for awhile…you’re AWESOME!! And CONGRATS on being a Gayle Wilson Award finalist!
Happiness this month was hanging with my chicks at the SoCalRWA conference. 😉
Hi Sam,
Thank you! I really am geeking out about BV’s interview and luncheon. And the GWAoE is a lovely surprise! No complaints from me. I agree with you… Happiness was totally hanging with the gals at the conference. Now I have to crack open your book! I can’t wait to read it!
See, she was interested in the audio book experience LOL! It all sounds like so much fun, well I’ll get to the conference next year, I HOPE. I’m happy you’re happy, which I know has been said before today but all those good vibes are catching!
Hi Veronica,
I thought of you when she mentioned the topic of the interview! The exact words in my head: Veronica is right! LOL. Glad the good vibes are contagious. That’s my hope.