TLC's Dallas Top Ten

I'm usually the one taking a billion pictures and annoying the bajeezus (sp?) out of everyone by saying, "Smile!" But this conference I only took a couple, so this will be an unillustrated post. Instead, I'm just going to post my Top Ten moments of the Dallas conference (some personal, some universal). Bear with me.

1. Meeting all the Buzz Girls (except Marley--but we had already met)! It's one thing to form a bond, a sisterhood online, but when it comes to actually meeting face-to-face it's a little terrifying. There were a few moments where I was like, "Um... what do I say now?" But that disappeared quickly. It's good when instincts get proven right. =)
2. Catching up with my critique partner and very great friend Sharie and other West Houston RWAers (whom I hadn't seen in nearly a year). It made me realize how much I miss my home chapter--and how much they have meant to me and my career thus far. Which made #3 all the sweeter...
3. Telling my critique partner and very great friend Sharie and other West Houston RWAers that I will be moving back to Houston at the end of the summer. After fending off the suggestion that I run for president of the chapter (no, no, no, and no) I received the warmest welcome back a girl could ask for.
4. Seeing Buzz Girls Simone, Tina, and Steph sign their books at the literacy signing!
5. Knowing that Buzz Girls Dona, Marley, and I will be added to their ranks next year. (And Heather the year after that, but hopefully there will be Werewolf ARCs to pass around in San Francisco!)
6. Listening to keynote speaker Lisa Kleypas share the tragic story of how a flood took all her family's belongings, and how a romance novel was one of the necessities both she and her mother needed to begin to get their lives back on track. She reminded me how vital something as seemingly inconsequential as commercial fiction can truly affect the lives of readers. You never know who will be reading your book... and whether you book just might be the escape they need to make it through the day.
   
7. Getting a voicemail from my agent the instant I landed in Dallas, with some very good--but not yet official, so you have to wait a few days--good news.
   
8. Attending Buzz Girl Simone's YA workshop (along with Boy Wonder and YA superstar Shannon Greenland). The room was packed with aspiring--and published--YA authors who prove that the Young Adult genre is thriving and growing.
   
9. Seeing Barb Caridad Ferrar win the freakin' RITA!!! It felt like a coup for all the young adult authors in the audience! Her charge to make the Young Adult RITA category fly next year will hopefully urge wary authors to enter. Her win secures the genre in the heart and the history of RWA.
   
10. Saying goodbye. Because you have to say goodbye before you can say hello again... and San Francisco is only twelve months away. So much has happened for all of us in the last twelve months, I can only imagine where we'll be after the next twelve!

So those are my top ten favorite moments from this year's conference. I'm such a sap that I'm tearing up just thinking about them all. I'm proud to be a Buzz Girl. I'm proud to be an author. Attending conference every year reminds me of just how lucky I am.

Hugs,
TLC