Thursday

Okay, keep in mind I fell asleep at about 5:30 AM. I'd been up since 3 AM the morning before. I like sleep - I take naps every day. So today was not my best day.

I woke at 8:30 and went to the Goody Room after a mocha latte AND a Diet Coke. I tried to get into Deloris and Mary's (chaptermates) workshop on how to write 50 books in a year but it was packed. I dragged a Noodler to the Unlikely Heroines workshop. It was more chick-litty than I liked, but I will read those books (which is I guess sort of the point of doing workshops, huh?)

I went to lunch with the group that used to be the series board on AOL, but I was so tired, when they put the chicken in front of me, I turned to my friend Chris and said, "This is too hard to eat." The cheesecake, however, was not. After Meg Cabot finished her wonderful hilarious speech, I staggered up to nap.

National is NOT a good place for this. I got THREE phone calls.

Staggered back down in my second outfit of the day to meet the WNP. We'd determined we were going to meet for CAKE, and baby, did we! The picture doesn't do it justice.

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22 of us met to go to Dailey's, and we looked really cool trailing through doantown Atlanta.

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Me and Steph Rowe.

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Noodlers

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Maureen, Rita Award Winning Author Stef Feagan, Anna De Stefano, Lorelle Marinello, Trish Milburn and Priscilla Kissinger.

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Colleen Gleason and Jennifer Smith.

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Steph Rowe, Janet Mullany and Jenna Ness

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Esri Albritten, Maureen Hardegree and Rita Award Winning Author Diane Perkins

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Merrillee Whren, Rita Award Winning Author Dianna Love Snell, Moni and Jenna.

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Terry McLaughlin, Karen Potter and Jennifer Smith.

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Afterwards, I went up to unwind, and Trish came up. We got dressed up to go to the Golden Network reception. I ran to Midnight Madness first and bought three shirts and some keychains and door hangers and bumper stickers. Got to the reception and sat up front with the WNP - about 15 of us around a table, and we were LOUD, especially when Diane came in with her National Reader's Choice Award!

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Lorelle Marinello, looking stunning!

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The Golden Network players put on a skit of, "What if Scarlett O'Hara was a Romance Writer?" Instead of suitors, she was surrounded by publishers wanting to buy her book. Colleen Gleason in pink.

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She was a rejected writer who, with God as her witness, would never be unpublished again. Terry McLaughlin in gold.

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She was a writer rejected by the publisher she wanted most and was told, "Frankly, my dear..."

26 authors from The Golden Network (the chapter for Golden Heart finalists) were booted, which means they sold their first book this year! Incredible!

We hung out a bit more, then went upstairs because our workshop was the next morning. Only later did I learn there had been karaoke in the bar that night...

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

I really wish I'd had a chance to meet up with you in Nationals! Oh well, better luck next time. But here's hoping that you get booted out of the Golden Network soon!!

Anonymous said...

Sounds like you had a blast! Fingers crossed that you get booted out this year!!! :-)

Amie Stuart said...

Hey those photos need names! LOL

Glad you had a good time hon!

KATZ said...

Thanks so much for sharing, Mary! I'm aiming for Dallas next year!

MJFredrick said...

Me, too, Michelle! I guess I should have been looking in the area of the ceiling, you had such a great conference!

thanks for the good wishes!

Kelly Boyce said...

I love seeing all the pixs - makes me almost feel like I was there!

Anonymous said...

I'm salivating over that cake :)

MJFredrick said...

You know, I didn't even try the cake. They were splitting it 3 ways. i had some kind of mousse pie, which was heavenly.

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I'm a mom, a wife, a teacher and a writer. I have five cats and a dog to keep me company. I love bookstores and libraries and Netflix - movies are my greatest weakness.
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