So RWA 2019 is over. :)
I’m always delighted to have it in NYC—no flying anywhere! No packing! And I hate it—heading back home on the subway and carrying things all day long!
But of course the best part of RWA is seeing the authors and readers and editors and agents and friends who fill the place. There are the usual hotel things you hate (escalators down, long elevator waits, searching for rooms!) but the Crossroads bar is great to see the people you didn’t expect.
I attended some workshops but mostly took the time to meet with authors I have worked with—and was delighted to meet with authors I’ve just started working with in the past year or two. It’s great to just sit and talk—or wave in passing—and put faces to the names on the paper, phone and Skype calls.
I was said to see the end of the Golden Heart contest—I think I’d found nearly a dozen authors over the years from that conference—and am eager to see what RWA is planning with the upcoming mentor program.
I was happy to see Allson Kelley in person and get a chance to thank her for all she’s done for RWA over the years and wish her all the best with her travel and next stages in life! The rest of the staff made things run smoothly (from my POV at least!).
Cheering on authors at the RITAs and the other contests is also affirming the best in business. And I enjoyed sitting at open seats and meeting authors who were first timers at the national conference, debut authors, bloggers and other knowledgeable authors sharing their experiences in publishing.
It’s also exhausting! :) But I’ve got a list of interesting things to do, new projects to look at, and renewed enthusiasm about the power and potential of romance.
Excelsior!
(till next year in San Francisco!)