librarypalooza 2012 – that author thing

Of course I had to fly to San Antonio to meet a woman who lives two blocks from me. In a house I drool over every time I walk past it. Who else would be sitting next to me on the plane?

We had the best conversation. She told me all about our neighborhood back in the day when it was primarily Italian. These three old guys would sit outside on the stoop next to hers and give her the scoop when she got home. They’d tell her that her husband just left with the kids or that her housekeeper just came back with groceries. She also told me about this team of urban archaeologists who excavated all this cool stuff from her backyard. In the mid-1800s, the people who lived in her townhouse threw their garbage out back. She now displays those kitchen utensils and toys – even a revolver – on her wall. The best part is that she invited me over to see the artifacts. And all because of LibraryPalooza.

Let me just say this: Sheryl Stoeck rules. She’s the amazing librarian who organized this event. She booked me back in 2010. That’s how organized she is. It was a super fun day of Q&A with all the authors, then break-out sessions. I was happy to see lots of friendly neighbors at my presentations:

During the part of my presentation that focuses on identifying goals, I ask everyone to write down the three things they want the most. Tanya showed me how her goals all relate to each other:

Getting a book published would lead to visiting many different places. And traveling would bring more opportunities for meeting a boyfriend. Yay connections!

Everyone was so adorable and polite. These readers were really interesting, with names like Gage and Momo. Both a Beatles bag and shirt were spotted. One extra cute girl even had a typewriter necklace:

Several girls told me that I looked like Chloe Bridges. See how polite they were?

The other authors were mad impressive. Shout-outs to Terry Trueman, Svetlana Chmakova, Ellen Schreiber, Ryan Smithson, and Varian Johnson. A special shout-out goes to my student escort, Tori. She took such good care of me all day. She even sat through my presentation three times and did not complain. Tori, you are a rock star.

Thanks to everyone who came out for this incredible event. You made the day one I will never forget!