It’s been hard to settle down after such an exciting weekend~ I went to an Indie book event last weekend and met a ton of new friends. A lot of these friends are ones I’ve been talking to through writing groups on facebook, so I felt I already knew so many of them. It was great to finally meet in Real Life.
Did you know Tosha is a book blogger now? She is! She’s part of the panel of The Indie Bookshelf. You should check it out. They get the skinny on all the new books coming out~ definitely a blog to bookmark. Plus, Tosha looks really pretty in the cover picture. π
So…Tosh and I set out on the road~ she was just as I excited as I was to meet some of the bloggers she’s been working with, not to mention all the great authors. And you know, anytime we get together, there will be fun and hilarity non-stop. Whether we mean for there to be or not…
I’m so happy we’re doing this together, my sisterfriend…
Bright and early…
The trees were in outstanding colorful display…
The weather was perfect. Downtown Chicago was stunning. I’ve been there several times, but have never seen this side of Chicago. Gorgeous. I wish I’d had more time to really explore (and see some dear friends who live there), but it was jam-packed every minute.
This is one of the prettiest skies I’ve ever seen in my life…took my breath away.
Tarryn Fisher, author of The Opportunist, and Rebecca Donovan, author of The Breathing Series
The foursome of the weekend:
Tarryn, Trish, Moi and Tosha~ otherwise known as The Three T’s and Me
A most delicious burger~ with a buttered bun…I want one of these right about now.
Or this would also suffice…
Oh my goodness, it was delicious.
These two were a hoot together.
And of course, me and my girl. I do love her so.
Meeting some of my posse: Maggi Myers (her book will be out soon!), Andrea Randall, author of Ten Days of Perfect, and Melissa Brown, author of Bouquet Toss
And more wonderful people~ Nina, Jamie and Andrea~ everybody scrunch and smile!
And I’ve long wanted to meet Fred, a former lawyer and now librarian and book blogger of Still Seeking Allies…
Fred was just as delightful and charming as I imagined. He has this way of making everyone feel like they’re his most favorite person in all the world. Long live Fred’s Baker’s Dozen!
I live to make her laugh…see below.
Okay, let’s try this again…
Melissa helped organize this event, along with Sarah Hansen from Okay Creations, and Colleen Hoover, author of Slammed and Point of Retreat
I’m wishing I had pictures of Sarah and Colleen…sniff. This is right before the chaos.
Melissa is a dolly.
And so is Maggi.
I can’t wait for Dirty Red to be out~ Dec. 28th. Mark your calendars.
Tarryn received some sweet gifts from the people who love her book~ look at this cupcake with The Opportunist cover! I love it! I did want to eat it really, really bad, but managed to refrain.
And then there was this gift, which shall remain nameless, but gave us a very good laugh…
Discussing Dave Newell’s Book~ Red Lory, due out Nov. 2nd.
And Tracey Garvis-Graves~ I had the privilege of meeting her briefly in Minneapolis at E.L. James’ signing two weeks ago and then, for this event, I helped with Tarryn’s table and Tracey was next to us. She is the nicest person ever. Her book, On the Island, is SO good. MGM has optioned the book for a movie~ can’t wait for that!
Tarryn, showing off my jewelry…uh, I mean, Colleen Hoover’s autograph.
My flash gave out the night before, so an entire night of pictures has a halo of light taking over the entire picture. So sad. But that would have made for an even longer post. ha!
Saying good-bye is hard to do.
That’s Happy in the front, on the right…love that girl.
Awww. I don’t like good-byes.
An unforgettable time. Thanks, everyone, for making it so special. Can’t wait to see you all again.
*Extra love notes…
I didn’t get pictures of everyone, but every single person I met was so great. Some authors I LOVE who were also there:
S.C. Stephens, author of Thoughtless and Effortless and many more… (sweetest person and creator of Kellan Kyle, oh my word!)
C.J. Roberts, author of Captive in the Dark and Seduced in the Dark (I love this woman.)
Michelle Mankin, author of Love Evolution and the upcoming, Love Revolution (Dreamy kind and lovely person~so glad we were able to hang out, Michelle!)
Abbi Glines, author of The Vincent Brothers and many more… (Sweet lady! I have to read her books still! Very fun to talk to)
J. Sterling, author of Chance Encounters and more… (Oh this girl. She’s a hoot. Looking forward to the next time.)
Jillian Dodd, author of That Boy and many more…(She’s one of the few I didn’t meet~ we were on opposite sides of the building and the throngs of people divided us. Sigh.)
Next time, I shall meet all the rest that I didn’t even mention here. XOXO, lovely people!