Raiding Target
(CONTINUED FROM PART THREE)
The tables were rearranged after this and each author in attendance (including quite a few Chicago writers who lived in the area but didn’t attend the rest of the conference) sat down. Then, like a glorious receiving line, everyone took a poster (as donated by the mucho generoso Esme Raji Codell) and worked their way down the authorial path. I got signatures from everyone in attendance, free books, gumballs, a flyer on the Class of 2K8 (veeeeery interesting stuff), bookmarks, magnets, you name it. RE: Class of 2K8… I don’t know if they’re still taking submissions, but if you’re a first-time middle grade or YA author with a book coming out in 2008, I suggest you jump on that bandwagon pronto.
And speaking of Esme Raji Codell, I must apologize to her publicly for not attending her brunch the following day. I had every intention of going but my wine-soaked, sleep deprived, gumball-addled body had other far less pleasant plans in mind. Sorry, Esme!
Cocktails came next with my cozying up to various people I’d always wanted to talk to. I even pulled out my little microphone in the hopes of capturing some goodies for my next podcast, but I’ve a distinct feeling that this plan failed magnificently. Ah well. That’s why you leave podcasting to the professionals. Dinner was tasty and at some point some of the blokes at my table (I was in Snarky Central, which is where you want to be at the end of an evening) popped over to the nearby Target to buy more wine. Prizes were given out. These consisted of huge stacks of books and t-shirts. I had won a lovely little picture book earlier in the day, so I wasn’t too disappointed not to partake of the YA novels being handed out. Then eventually I started to crash and headed on home via a cab at the EXACT moment that the Cubs game (where they were slaughtered) got out and onto the freeway. Suffice it to say, I have had shorter car rides in my day.
In all, it is rare to encouter this many people and then find that they are, in fact, the kinds of folks you enjoy hanging out with. There is none of the stereotypical social awkwardness one associates with people who work on the Internet. Even odder still is the fact that no one, to the best of my knowledge, was a jerk. It’s a relief and a bit weird, but I for one am not objecting.
If I did not mention your name on my postings, you’ll have to forgive me. There was an abundance of attendees.
Misc:
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There are a couple bloggers who have already posted about the event. As of my writing these include (and are not limited to) Just One More Book, MarkBlevis.com, Jen Robinson’s Book Page, What Adrienne Thinks About That, and soon to be many more.
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Robin Brande gives us the skinny on where next year’s conference will be.
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For pictures of the event you can look at this group shot by Just One More Book’s Mark Blevis. Woo-hoo! I warranted a white box! My own pictures will go up tomorrow.
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About Betsy Bird
Betsy Bird is currently the Collection Development Manager of the Evanston Public Library system and a former Materials Specialist for New York Public Library. She has served on Newbery, written for Kirkus, and has done other lovely little things that she'd love to tell you about but that she's sure you'd find more interesting to hear of in person. Her opinions are her own and do not reflect those of EPL, SLJ, or any of the other acronyms you might be able to name. Follow her on BlueSky at: @fuse8.bsky.social
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So I read all four parts, and you know what my final comment is? Gee, you’re tall. (I’m always a front-row girl in a group photo.)Inane? Yes, but it’s better than listening to me seethe with jealousy….
I, too, was so gratified that everyone was super-nice. Beforehand I was terrified of being an oddball because of not being a published author or public blogger at this time. But everyone was sooo friendly and sociable! I’ve gotta update my RSS reader with all these feeds now. And I’ve been inspired to actually start a public kidlit-related blog… registered a domain name yesterday and everything. Stay tuned…
Woo-hoo! Let me know what it is once you’ve gotten off the ground. And Sarah, I only appear tall because I made a decision to wear some significantly high-heeled black leather boots. Trust me when I say that tall is not my real style.
Was so very fabulous meeting (and snarking) with you. Even if Target did leave me with one giant headache yesterday morning.
Thanks for writing up the conference so thoroughly!
So much fun, so little time! You were missed on Sunday, Elizabeth…next time around! It was a pleasure to meet you in person, and thank you so much for this wonderful and thorough account.
What a great weekend! Glad to meet you!
Andrea Beaty
http://www.threesillychicks.com
Thanks for the mention!
Just to let you know, the Class of 2k8 is at capacity with 28 debut novelists, split equally between MG and YA. We do maintain a wait list. The talent here is incredible. So is the energy. We’d love to be “out there” right now, but we’re patiently waiting for the Class of 2k7 to end its splendid run before we make our official splash. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us:
authors (at) classof2k8 (dot) com.
Jody Feldman, MG president
Marissa Doyle, YA president
You clever thing. You figured out how to post a URL without making my crazy SLJ site reject it. I would have posted this info myself but I couldn’t find a working website for you guys yet. I can’t wait for your debut.
It was great meeting you at the conference, and thanks for letting everyone know about class of 2k8. It was such fun getting to see behind the (blogger) scenes, and getting to shout about the 27 other amazing 2k8 authors. Only a few short months until “our year” begins!
Jenny