Rutgers One on One/ Christine Fonseca book giveaway reminder

Today I am leaving for the Rutgers One-one-One conference in Piscataway, New Jersey. I'll be driving there with my good friend and writing-mate Dhonielle Clayton and meeting up with my other good friend and writing-mate Colleen Rowan Kozinski, both of whom are wonderful muses and exceedingly talented writers. I'm also looking forward to the BlueBoarders dinner tonight at the Radisson Hotel.

I'm excited and a bit nervous. Since I've never been to one of these events before, I don't really know what to expect. It's a much less passive experience than most conferences as you are paired with a mentor. And you have no idea whom your mentor is until you get there. Kind of like a blind date. So, I'm busy getting myself together with my usual fear that I am going to forget something crucial. Hopefully, I won't. I know one thing I am bringing which I would rather not and that's a head cold. Wouldn't you know that after not having a cold for at least a year, I came down with one. But I refuse to let it slow me down. I'm planning to resist it! Hopefully, it won't slow me down too much.

Anyway, I hope to report back on this event when I return, or if I have a moment, maybe while I am there. Have a great weekend, all!

And just a reminder: Comment on the post below this for the chance to win the new book on gifted kids by the amazing Christine Fonseca.

Conference Notes

You thought I WROTE notes? Okay.. I did.
But they weren't that interesting. The sketch above was at the beginning of the Friday writer's intensive. We were seated at tables of about eight other writers and an agent or editor. The idea was for each writer to read 500 words of their work and then get feedback from the professional at their table and the other writers. In the afternoon we switched writers and pros. At the morning session I had Michael Bourret who is a very nice, funny, and no airs guy. He gave great advice to all of us. The other writers at the table were quite insightful and accomplished in their own right (Hi Jeff! Hi Kipp!). Same goes for the afternoon. I was very pleased with the advice I received. It drove me to really assess the way I began my WIP and took me even deeper to adjust a few key plot points.

The second sketch is super agent, Rosemary Stimola. Not sure I captured her likeness very well except for her outstanding hairdo! She is one cool lady and I wished she talked longer. Sadly I cannot post the sketch of the gentleman who preceded her on the grounds it might incriminate me. I plead the fifth. Anyone who was there will know exactly what I mean.

It was a very useful weekend. Allyn Johnston, whose breakout session was on picture books, should get a prize for "most prepared". This woman put together about 250 hand-stapled dummy books so we could "turn the page" with her. Her joy and love for what she does was evident in every word.

Oh ..and how can I forget! I MET LIBBA BRAY!!! Okay. For two seconds; but I love that woman! She is very down to earth and lots of fun. And an awesome writer as some of you may already know. She is a rock star.

So all that aside, the high point for me was when me and my other two critmates (aka Team Munchkin Cudas) found a cozy corner in the Hyatt and tore the throats out of our WIPs and stitched them back together in the space of two hours. Cath and Dhonielle—you guys are AWESOME!

For my new followers, Cudas is one of my online crit groups. Kate Milford and Lindsay Eland are Cudas. Then there's my other crit group The Wordslingers, of which Heidi Ayarbe and Christine Johnson, (whose books I will be featuring in the upcoming months) are members.

Okay. That's all. Would love to hear from others who were there, too.

SCBWI conference this weekend in NYC. Who's going?

I am a NY resident, so I will be commuting. I am signed up for the Friday intensive.

Anyone else going?

Oh, in other news: I finished the second draft of my clunkazoid WIP, thanks to the Plot Whisperer. Now I have to clean up, edit and get a query going. I'm going to be getting my first 500 read on Friday, so I hope that goes well. Then it's back into the the querying jungle. Thank goodness I have this blog to distract me and I am going to LEAP into the next book without even stopping for air.

It'll be my fifth. Yeesh. It's been five full years that I've been at this writer's game. I'm so glad I love my day job! I hope something good happens this year. Either way, I'll trudge on. I have the thick scarred hide of a tyrannosaurus rex.