Thursday, July 14, 2011

Supernatural Friends Make the Best Friends

You may have heard some of the online chatter about an action-packed, fun-filled, craaazy week in New York City, also known as the 2011 Romance Writers of America conference. It was five full days of mingling, meetings, workshops, sightseeing, eating, drinking and general overall socializing, as well as talking business, business, business.  One of my favorite aspects of the conference was that I got to spend some quality time with many of my fellow authors from right here in the Supernatural Underground, from dinners, publishing meetings, book signings, and cocktail parties, so I thought that today, I'd share a few pics of those highlights with you!

 
The very first night kicked off with a bang, as I joined eight of my fellow HarperCollins authors and blogmates for a wonderful Italian dinner.  While there there were lots of pictures taken on lots of different cellphones, I particularly like this one with Colleen Gleason and Vicki Pettersson.  (A blonde, a brunette, and a redhead who write books that go bump in the night... what more can I say?)  We had a great time sharing our "The first time I read one of your books" moments - yes, we're all fan girls of each other! There with us during dinner were Pamela Palmer, Juliana Stone, Karina Cooper, Amanda Arista, Amanda Alvarez and Amanda Vynes (a/k/a the Three Amandas).

The next morning I joined about 40 of my fellow HarperCollins authors at a "Digital Day" presentation led by Carolyn Pittis, Senior VP of Global Marketing and Operations.  We were fed great food and fabulous information regarding recent, sweeping changes within the publishing industry, and what HarperCollins is doing to keep up with them.  It was all very interesting and innovative, so much so that if I told you, I'd have to kill you, so I'll just keep those industry secrets to myself!  :)  Yes, dear readers, in the building behind me is where the magic happens - all those books you know and love, written by the authors of this particular blog, are edited, copyedited, and turned from dreams into reality.  It was pretty cool!

After that came sightseeing, and then a quiet meeting with my fabulous editor, Erika Tsang, during which we chatted about life and future story ideas.  Erika also edits the fabulous Jeaniene Frost, so if you're a Cat and Bones fan, you need to send her a virtual high five!  Here she is on the right with Jeaniene at the Avon Open House book signing.


That night, we all took part in a giant Literacy for Life signing with over 400 authors  and hundreds upon hundreds of book lovers at the Marriott Marquis - it was a total mob scene, and tons of fun!  Afterward, for a late dinner, I went back to the Italian place (What can I say? I like Italian!) with frabjulous New York Times bestsellers Jeaniene Frost and Pamela Palmer, where we solved the publishing world's problems over pasta and conversation.


On Wednesday, the day was a blur, and before I knew it, it was time to run off and get ready for the Avon Cocktail Party at the Central Park Boathouse.  It was a beautiful venue in the heart of Central Park, complete with great food, champagne, and great company.

 
Here I am giggling away on the outside patio with authors Colleen Gleason and Kerrelyn Sparks, along with bookseller extraordinaire, Maureen Downey, who had us in stitches!  I met so many people that night that I couldn't begin to list them, but want to say a special thank you to Pam Spengler-Jaffee for organizing such a great evening!


Here's Kerrelyn Sparks, Pam Palmer and Colleen Gleason posing for the camera - check out Colleen's shoes!  :)

One of the hits of the party were these giant size cover cutouts, where you could stick your head in and become a part of history... check out Pam Palmer as the virgin in Kerrelyn's Vampire and the Virgin cover!  :)
The next morning, we were up bright and early for 8:30am workshop on Light vs. Dark Paranormal fiction with fellow authors Karina Cooper, Pam Palmer and Kerry Sparks, where we talked for over an hour about plot, characterization, tone, and setting to a surprisingly large group of aspiring paranormal authors. 

We barely had time to put down the microphones before darting down two floors to take part in the Avon Open House signing, where we chatted and signed, then signed some more!  More mingling, lunch, lots of books and lots of laughing.

Then, that evening, the conference culminated in the glittering RITA and Golden Heart Award dinner and ceremony.  (I don't normally post pictures of my husband, but he looked so handsome that night that I can't resist!)  :)  Some of my dearest friends were up for Golden Heart necklaces and golden RITA statues, so many that I found it hard to know who to cheer for, as some of them were competing with each other in the same categories!  Our emcee for the evening was NYT best-selling author of The Princess Diaries, Meg Cabot, who was an absolute riot, and quite glamorous besides!

All in all, it was exhausting, fun, fabulous and already seems too long ago.  I can hardly wait for next year's conference in Anaheim, California to do it all again!

And best of all, guess what I came home with?  Tons and tons of books!  While doing a random check of all my goodies, I discovered a FULL set of the lovely and talented Vicki Pettersson's ZODIAC series (books 3 and 5 are signed), and thought I'd give them away in celebration of the great time I had being with my friends in NY.


How do you get them?  Simple - leave me a comment telling me about one of your bffs, and why they're your friend, and you'll be entered in a drawing to win!  Winner will be chosen next Friday, July 22nd, by Randomizer.org.  Good luck!

33 comments:

SandyG265 said...

My best friend and I went to high school together. We don't see each other that often but when we get together we can always pick up right where we left off.

Joni G. said...

I have several good friends! And we all share a love of reading! It is so nice to have others to discuss books with. This particular series has been on my to-read list for quite some time!

Paris said...

My best friend is a huge geek like me. We go to Comic Con together, we read the same books and this Saturday, I am officiating at her wedding. Vicki's series is one of my all time favorites. I already own them all, but I would love to win so that I can give them to my best friend as a wedding present since the series is also one of her favorites. Thanks for the chance to win something so awesome!

Rain Maiden said...

I've been bestfriends with D for 26 years now. Were total oppisites so don't ask me how it works :). Were both addicted to Starbucks so we get together a lot. I'm glas shes got my back.

Sydnie H said...

My bestfriend has been there my whole life, we grew up together. She is crazy, fun, and a little nerdy. We don't agree on much but we get along great :). She's always been there when I needed her and I couldn't ask for anyone better.

Sara M said...

I met my best friend (and girlfriend), Christen, when we were moving into the dorms at the start of our sophomore year of college. I heard someone on the hall had a guinea pig, and I had to see it. George, the guinea pig, belonged to Christen and her roommate. We ended up having a lot in common besides our interest in guinea pigs. And what really drew us together was music. We enjoyed a lot of the same bands and introduced each others to new ones. Our friendship soon turned into a relationship, and we've been together for over 4.5 years.

And what continues to draw us together now is our love for paranormal novels. I tend to enjoy Urban Fantasy and Paranormal YA more, and she enjoyed Paranormal Romance more. But our collection of books has reached a size of epic proportions. Many people refer to it as out library.

Sara M
sara_UFblog [at] yahoo [dot] com

Na said...

Wow I am loving all these RWA recaps. Even though it is dwindling down I am still in RWA mode and hope I can attend the liteary signing on day. Book heaven!

I have a best friend who I have knew since the first year of high school. I confide in her, trust and enjoy her company. In some ways we are alike and in other parts we are different sides of a coin. It is a very nice balance to our friendship. Our lives have taken us on different paths and although the frequency of communication has lessened, the quality has not. It may even be better. Every time we get together it's like old times and there is no awkward moments and we just enjoy each other's company. It's the sort of friend I want in the long-run. Quietly growing and settling.

Cambonified[at]yahoo[dot]com

CrystalGB said...

My best friend is my cousin. She shares my love of romance books and we love having girls days out book shopping. She is funny, kind and loyal. I couldn't ask for a better best friend.

Jessica @ a GREAT read said...

I have 3 really good BFFs. One I FINALLY got hooked into reading urban fantasy with me, so now I'm not alone in my reading habits!

Another gal pal and I share a lot of the same taste in movies. We've even had "sick" days at school so we could go see Harry Potter. I mean come on, what's more important, high school or Harry Potter? Answer's pretty easy!

Another of my BFFs always teased and still does! about my reading habits. She calls me "vampire girl" because I was always reading a "vampire" book, which then got me into a long-winded and heated rant that my books do not always contain vampires!

We all haven't really hung out together since high school, 5 years now. But I see them each separately occasionally at least!

Helen Lowe said...

Sounds awesome, Terri--I wish I could have been there, too, especially for the digital day & to meet the other Supe authors.

Barbara E. said...

My best friend is my older sister. She's my friend because we love spending time together and have lots of things in common, especially our love of books. She doesn't have as much time as I do to check out what's new, so I always give her book recommendations so she can fill up her Kindle.

Michelle W. said...

My best friend is the best ever! It is funny because when I first moved to her grade level she wasn't happy I was there and we didn't even really talk until after Christmas. But we found we have a lot in common and have been BFFs ever since.

She is a great friend because she is there for me no matter what. If I'm not feeling well she can tell just by looking at me. She knows me as well as she knows herself. We get to see each other every day and we have a lot of fun together. Our students think we are crazy but we always laugh together.

Ivy said...

One of my bff's I didn't like @ all the first time I met her. I thought she was a complete ditz. 2 yrs. later we meet again & boom....we wound up living together before we both married. We've been friends now for 26 yrs. Sharing our ups, downs & inbetweens. I'd be lost w/out her.

Amy said...

One of my bffs is Jamie. We met back in high school and we're still good friends now in college. She came up to me during chemistry lab and started talking to me. We would always laugh about the same things, and we have similar views on things. We just get along great!

Sheree said...

I have a few bffs from high school and from college. We don't live anywhere near each other so it's emails and FB for us. Still, if I were to be near their state of residence, I try to see them.

ironss [at] gmail [dot] com

Teresa K. said...

Well, I have alot of friends but I must say my best friends I have two. But my soul sister is author Jude Stephens.
I first came across her when I was looking at different authors for the Anne Rice Vampire Ball silent auction. I help coordinate it. I was looking for different authors who write vampire novels.
I contacted her and when we started corresponding and I told her a bit about my background she insisted not to wait for her books. She sent them to me via email. I read both her books in about two in half days.
It turns out her heroine and I come from the same background and the same people. The Creator led me to her and when I read her books I knew why. I invited her to the ball which we hold in New Orleans. Her and her sister came and we met and it was like we knew each other are whole life.
There was an instant friendship and love for each other. She recently dedicated her third book to me and I now work for her as her Market Director at her new publishing company.
The only thing I hate about our friendship is we live over 1500 miles from each other. We talk and text each other all the time, but I miss her dearly. I will see her next month, but saying good bye makes me cry.
My other friend is Beccie, she writes the Newsletter for Charlaine Harris fanclub and we met at the Vampire Ball and on the fansite and instantly become friends and family. My love for books have brought me a new family and I'm so blessed.

Teresa K.
tcwgrlup41(at)yahoo(dot)com

jfort357 said...

My BFF & I went to high school together. We lost touch when she moved to New Jersey a couple years after graduation. We stayed in touch through e-mail. Several years later, she moved back to Louisiana. Now, we started where we left off, only difference is we're married & we both have kids. She's always been there for me. A shoulder to lean on even when she lived in Jersey!! We enjoy reading the same genre of books-romance. Getting together & chatting about our lasted reads at a coffee shop is always something to look forward to!!! :-)

jfort357(at)bellsouth(dot)net

Casey H said...

My BFF and I first met in high school, but we didn't really hang out then. Then in our first semester of college, we became inseparable =) I even turned her on to reading, and now we can sit together for hours and just read. Is that best friendship or what?!

c4casey(at)comcast(dot)net

Anonymous said...

Wow. What a FUN post!! Looks like tons of fun.
Gosh, my BFF...Well, she's the one who told me to "take the next step" when it came to writing. And now, I have a debut novel coming out. She's so encouraging and fun to be around, yet brutally honest when I need her to be. That's just awesome when it comes to friends. :)

Hope you have a great day!!

LynnRush (at) cox (dot) net

Unknown said...

when i was 18 .my bff was a guy and he was 6'5 and carried me evreywheres, lol though he did tried to drown me, he took me out in lake and was on his knees and i thought we was out in the deep part and i curled around him like a ancaonda snake. he promised to never play with me and water again,lol

Sharon Stogner said...

would have to be my mom :)not sure if that counts, but she is the one person I *know I can count on no.matter.what.

JenM said...

I met my BFF at work. She'd just moved to the area. We clicked immediately. I can't really explain why, but it felt like we must have been sisters in a former life or something. We've been friends for close to 20 years now, and although we live 6 hours apart, we call and text each other all the time and she knows all of my secrets.

Jen at delux dot com

Lori said...

My best friend and I have been friends since kindergarten. She was new and I got the honor of showing her around the classroom. When you are five, it is very important to know where the bathroom is.

We are an odd pair, more different than alike. She loves people and parties and adventure while I am more than content to enjoy my adventures from the safety of a book.

We have been friends for nearly 30 years. (Wow! Time flies faster than I can keep up!) She started out as the new girl in school, became my friend and has grown into my sister.

Rouchelle Robison said...

I met my best friend in 5th grade. We were always together. We went to camp together, stayed at each others houses, and as we got older, started sharing all our boy stories. I moved in 7th grade then moved back in 9th grade. In those two years we never lost touch with each other and if anything got even closer than before. We stayed good friends all throughout high school and went on midnight runs to stores and such together. We graduated together and now we are both in college. Different colleges but we still talk and meet up every so often. We have both interests in reading paranormal books and in music. Infact, we both first met in choir class. :) She is my best friend and I dont know what I would do with out her!

Gabbie said...

I met my best friend in high school. I still have no idea how it happened but we ended up best friends. We don't entirely have the same likes (books - I love 'em, she couldn't really care) but we've always just bonded and hopefully it will stay that way.

Gabbie-ethela AT hotmail DOT com

Christa C said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Llehn said...

My bff is someon I went to high school with. We've been through so much together.

lesly7ch(at)yahoo(dot)com

cheesecake.thief59 said...

My best friend and I can be fairly crazy. If we happen to be in a car, for instance, then we crank up the radio and sing as loudly (and horribly) as we can. Sometimes we even make up the lyrics.

cheesecake.thief59(at)gmail(dot)com

Jess said...

My bff and I met in high school, as often seems the case with bff. We had similar tastes in some things, different in others, but we get on really really well. We both went through the "goth" stage of only wearing black, getting Doc Martens and we both LOVE Daria! After school we both moved away, but a few years later we were both in the same town and have been ever since. We catch up regularly and at one stage even had a pact that if we were single at 40, we'd move in together. I'm married now, so we don't have to worry about that.
I'm hoping we'll still be great friends for the rest of our lives.

selwyn_jp(at)hotmail(dot)com

binabug said...

jackies my bff because we have the same tastes in everything

jeanette8042 said...

I met one of my best friends on high school and I love her because we're so similar and whenever I'm feeling down a hug from her will make me happier. She's also my partner in crime for various adventures we have!

lilazncutie1215[at]yahoo[dot]com

Carolyn Tann-Starr said...

My BFFs were born during a bout of sandbox love during kindergarten. 41 years later we're still kicking each other's a$$ in the martial arts gym, finishing each others' sentences, stealing each others' clothes and having mad fun creating road trip sleep-overs where we giggle, read books and crack wise on each other's blogs. My cabal of mischief makers throw the best Skype parties ever so it doesn't matter where we are in the word we're only a social media click away. We heart Vicki Pettersson, Kim Harrison and Jocelynn Drake. Those three are our Urban Fantasy Divas. Chasing Vicki, Kimi and Jocelynn swag is what we do. It's our favorite bloodsport (LOL). http://actvra.in/dbn ;-)

Crystal @ RBtWBC said...

Looks like you ladies had a blast!
My BFF I have known for over ten years now and even though we are far apart and don't talk regularly, whenever we get to chat or see each other on the rare occasion we pick up right where we left off and I know she will always stick by me no matter what.