Romance Writers of America National Conference 2012

When you read this, I’m likely to be either on my way to Anaheim, California, or already at the RWA National Conference which is being held there this year.  It’s sort of my backyard since I live in L.A.  I’m used to traveling across the country for this annual event so this is kind of fun.

That also means I’m not sure when I’ll be able to respond to your comments.  I’m bringing a laptop but don’t know when I’ll have time to sit down with it.  Nope, no smart phone yet. 

I have a lot of events and meetings scheduled there in addition to the usual workshops and conference lunches.  Parties, too.  Those kinds of things are what really make this conference special to a long-time writer like me.  I get to chat with a lot of people I haven’t seen for a long time, including my Harlequin editor and my agent. 

I’ll be at the Literacy Autographing tonight at 5 PM, at table 607.  This is the first year that authors won’t be seated alphabetically, so I’ll get to meet new people whose last names don’t begin with J.  I’ll be signing both UNDERCOVER SOLDIER, my first Harlequin Romantic Suspense novel that is a new release this month, and HOUNDS ABOUND, my latest Pet Rescue Mystery for Berkley Prime Crime.  The public is welcome--and is in fact encouraged to come.  The publishers donated the books, and attendees who purchase them can get them autographed by the many authors who’ll be there.  All proceeds go to benefit literacy programs.

Then there’s the panel that I’m on and moderating: Sell a Series You’re Passionate About.  Four authors, including me, and my agent will be talking about writing and selling one or more series on themes that are particularly appealing to the writer.  It’s on Friday afternoon at 2 PM.

I’m also participating in the Berkley signing, where I’ll be giving away, and autographing, copies of HOUNDS ABOUND for conference attendees.

I’ll miss my dogs but my husband--whom I’ll also miss--will remain at their bark and call while I’m gone.  He’s been organizing some areas in our house that we haven’t touched for a while, and one of the things he found is the collar and nametag worn by Panda, our first Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.  We put it temporarily on a table in our living room, and our two current Cavaliers Lexie and Mystie glommed onto its scent right away, barking to meet their distant relation.  It was hard to tell them that was impossible.

My writing gets put on hold at conferences like this, although I’m bringing a printed copy of a very rough draft of the beginning of the story I’m working on now--another Harlequin Nocturne about Alpha Force, my covert military force of shapeshifters.  Will I have time to work on it?  Doubtful.

If you’re at the conference, be sure to say hi to me at the Literacy Autographing, my panel, or anywhere else you run into me!  I’m sure I’ll have a nametag around my neck.

Will you be there?  What’s your favorite kind of conference?

Literacy

I usually describe myself as semi-literate when it comes to computers. For example, I was writing this blog directly on the New Post screen when my computer announced it was shutting down, and I had no idea why or how to prevent what I had already written from disappearing. I have a very computer-literate husband who cannot make me understand how to do many things on my laptop. I took a course for beginners but it taught me how to do a few things I never want to do and none of the things I do want to do. Some day I will take another course or two -- or I will wait until a good friend finishes learning to be a computer tech, and let her show me.

On the other hand, I don't remember learning to read. I do remember first grade and Dick, Jane and Sally -- but I already knew most of the words. I remember mastering t-h-o-u-g-h, a "big" word whose pronunciation did not match the spelling. English is a peculiar language.

I remember my mother taking me to the library and the thrill I felt when I saw all those books. And they were FREE!! I couldn't get over how wonderful a library was. I still think it's a wonderful bargain.

I have been a life-long bibliophile. There have always been books wherever I lived. My husband is one, too. The first change we made to our co-op after moving in was to have floor-to-ceiling bookshelves installed. The shelves are filled and there are supplementary bookshelves now.

But now comes this new electronic way of reading. Hundreds of books can be put into a device smaller, thinner, and lighter than a hardcover. I don't own one, but I probably will someday.

The idea is not as new as you might think. At a science-fiction convention I went to more than twenty years ago, a speaker told of the possibility of an electronic reader, starting a very big discussion of the ramifications, and whether or not it would overtake books like books had overtaken scrolls. Sci-fi people are at least as much bibliophiles as mystery fans, but they are by and large young and very open to advances in science and technology. Yet most of them were against the idea, because they love not only reading, but the books themselves, the feel, the ease of handling them, the lack of need for electricity. But one person stood up and said one word: Moving. The young often change residences after they first leave home. And bibliophiles quickly learn that books are heavy, and they don't fold up small. Suddenly an electronic reader seemed like a marvelous idea.

I wonder if the device is going to make it harder for the countries that prefer their women uneducated, even illiterate. Surely there will be programs for the e-book device that teach the owner to read. And one slim device is much easier to hide than even one thick, heavy book. And with more and more of the world's books available, it will be harder than ever to keep women -- and men, for that matter, ignorant.

I have seen the future and it is e-readers.