This morning I hit up TLA with a lot of anxiety going in because traffic was a mess (all 5 living presidents were in town for the grand opening of a new library, then Obama flew down to Waco for the West memorial service), and I was stressed about being late. I had a carefully crafted schedule that was completely destroyed by said traffic and by the fact that once I got into the exhibit hall, I couldn't tear my eyes away from the glorious sights that they beheld (except for when I left to stash my bags at the bag check. I may be young and strong, but my arms were breaking only 20 minutes after walking around).
So what were these glorious sights? I'll take some pictures tomorrow, but let me describe it to you: books, as far as the eye can see, book nerds, authors. The very first thing I did this morning was slip over to Penguin Group's booth to pick up a copy of the MUCH ANTICIPATED The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey (who sadly cancelled so no autograph :( ). One of the women working the booth, Mary (ironic, right?), spoke to me for a few moments and helped find some other books for me to read & review (SARAH DESSEN!!!). Thanks, Mary! *waves*
Next, I found my way to Simon & Schuster, where I found a couple new books, including Winger by Andrew Smith. Thanks for all your help, Justin! I also chatted with the ladies at Sourcebooks about my love of Miranda Kenneally and how ridiculously excited we all are for Racing Savannah.
At this point, I realized my arms couldn't handle the weight anymore so I had to drop off a couple bags at the bag check. See, as a newbie blogger/book convention attendie, I had NO IDEA what to expect. I had a LOT of books with me for various signings, both for me and for you, dear readers. So I had to drop off the books meant for later signings and then rotate the books in the bags I carried to the bags at the check for the rest of the day. Many people showed up with suitcases, which sounds extreme and looks kinda crazy/too expectant, but by the end of the day, I realized it's a good idea!
Then I got in line for signings, which went really quickly, but there were so many that I'd scheduled today. I realized there was 0% chance of me attending any of the panels I'd planned since so many authors were here for today only. :( Definitely an overachiever. Scheduling is SO important, but it's also important to be flexible and decide what's more important at any given moment: publisher booths (arcs!), authors, or panels. I chose authors and arcs because I knew I'd hear news from the panels, but I only had this one opportunity to meet some of the people I admire greatly.
Authors I met throughout the course of the day: Melissa Marr, Kelley Armstrong, Ilsa Bick, Ally Carter (!!!!), Rachel Caine, Cynthia Leitich Smith (who came to me to sign my book when she was leaving. I almost missed her because I was stuck in Rachel's line, which was monstrous. Thanks, Cynthia!!!), Kiersten White, Marissa Meyer, David Levithan, Tera Lynn Childs, Mary Pearson, Rosemary Clement-Moore, Heather Burch, Robin LaFevers, and Andrew Smith. Bonus round: I ran into debut Disney-Hyperion authors Ashley Elston (The Rules for Disappearing) and Polly Holyoke (The Neptune Project) in line for Ally Carter. I also saw John Corey Whaley running around, and ran into A. S. King in line for Andrew Smith. I got really lucky. I only missed two authors that I'd scheduled. It was a bummer not to talk to Jennifer Ziegler and Cornelia Funke, who my mom and I both love, but I can't complain when I met so many other people.
When I got to HarperCollins' booth, I ran into editor Sarah Shumway and spoke with her for a long time. I did get some great books from HC (If I Should Die, which nearly killed me, I was so excited for it), but I think I most enjoyed speaking to Sarah about the publishing industry and editing, since that's something I've always been interested in. She had a lot of fantastic advice and was so ridiculously kind. Also, for any Forgive My Fins fans out there, Sarah is Tera Lynn Child's editor. While talking to TLC while she was signing my books, I expressed my joy and anticipation for Goddess in Time, aka Nicole's story, as well as "Pretty in Pearls," which is the short FMF story about Periwinkle and mer-Jack Sparrow aka Riatus. I asked if PiP would ever be extended. TLC waved me to Sarah. I informed her that I want it, you want it, she wants it (even if she didn't know it yet), everybody wants it. So....hopefully that will happen. :) Thanks for everything, Sarah!!
I have more stories and more awesome new books to talk about, but I can't remember them all at the present moment. I don't have all my notes on me right now! So Day 2 Part 2 will be forthcoming, with more descriptions and pictures. You guys. I cannot stress enough the awesomeness of the Texas star made up out of cowboy hats that I discovered. It's...wondrous. Breathtaking. Glorious to behold. Also, today solidified the fact that I'm going to be set with AMAZING giveaways for the rest of forever so there's that. Get excited! Mostly, you know, about the hat-star thing, but the promise of new books too. ;)
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