It’s always a whirlwind when I come to New York and BEA is no exception. While it’s mostly for buyers and sellers to get together, I found myself immediately absorbed into the frenzy.
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The first day, Dan Blank of We Grow Media, (and my buddy) acted as tour guide. He showed me around and explained so much I didn’t understand. I’m so visual that I’m easily attracted to all the sparklies and sometimes miss the plain but important stuff. It was really fun to walk around the huge convention center and run into so many people I knew. We lunched with aspiring authors who are taking Dan’s class and I was thrilled to know that we follow each other on Twitter (another perk of social media). You can find them here, @Porter_Anderson, @friendgrief, @virtualDavis . Can’t wait till they’re published so I can say I knew them when.
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While waiting in line to get a book signed by actress Julianne Moore, I found author Michelle Willingham waiting in front of me. We took each other’s picture with Julianne. She’s teeney, tiny and lovely in person. Then I was off to catch Tyra Banks and managed to stick my head behind her because her line was way too long to stand in.
Tyra Banks and Barbara Vey
Barbara Vey and Julianne Moore
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Harlequin author signing
There were lines everywhere for book signings and I wandered in to the Harlequin set up where they had shifts of different authors signing at once. Lots of happy readers came away with many free books. While I didn’t take any books, I did manage to get a Dork t-shirt for my granddaughter and some Marvel stuff for my grandson.
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Since I love audiobooks, I stopped by the Brilliance Audio booth and they showed me a QR app you can put on your phone, then when you are at a book store or a library and notice an audio book you are interested in, if it has a QR icon on it you just put your phone in front of it and it down loads an excerpt of the book. That way you can tell if you like the reader. I know that the reader can make or break an audio book, so I can’t wait to use my app when I get home.
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Marie Bostwick Linda Winstead Jones at Kensington Party
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Kensington Publishing had a fun party with their authors and staff. It’s always nice to get together in an informal relaxed atmosphere and find out the latest news. Of course, the drinks and food is a nice perk. It’s going to be hard to go back home to frozen dinners.
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Day two I had a 10 a.m. meeting with Leah Hultenschmidt at Sourcebooks. It’s really more of a fun chat session, but if I would have know that Jimmy Fallon was signing at that same time, I may have changed it. He’s so adorable. Then I found out that I also just missed Michael Moore. Boy, my timing was really off.
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Barbara Vey and Harlan Coben
But I did catch up with Harlan Coben who was signing his audio cds and ran into several authors while just walking around like Leanna Renee Hieber, Eloisa James, Julia Quinn, Nancy Naigle, KT Grant and I’m sure I’m forgetting some. Just let me know and I’ll add your name here.
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I also checked out the Autography booth. It’s a brand new company that offers an opportunity for authors to sign e-books. The author can do it in person or be in another location. It’s done on an iPad and gets transferred to your e-book. If you are seeing the author in person, there is the option of getting your picture taken with the author and then attached to the signature page. You really have to see it done to understand it. I’m still not sure I do, but it does look pretty cool. Right now you have to buy the book at the same time the author is signing, but they are working on a way to get the books signed that you may already own. Stay tuned.
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Reader’s Digest was giving away Toy Story 3 books and I loved the movie so it was the only book I ended up taking, but I’ve got to tell you that a big selling point was the magnetic Woody. It comes with a cloth Woody that you can attach to whatever page you are reading. I can’t wait to try it out. (Feel free to insert Woody joke here.)
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Kevin Sorbo and Barbara Vey
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Ok, here the part you’ve been waiting for, one of my adventures moments. As I’m walking around I notice this good looking guy and find myself yelling, “Hey Kevin!” Face to face with Hercules himself, Kevin Sorbo offered a hug and picture with me. As I posted on Twitter, “Just call me Xena!” A definite sigh moment.
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Dee Davis and Kathleen O'Reilly
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Next it was off to High Tea at the St. Regis with authors Kathleen O’Reilly and Dee Davis. We did this several years ago and I’m glad we had a chance to do it again. It’s so fancy, but I went with coffee. They serve a plate of finger sandwiches. There was cucumber, salmon, duck, egg salad and more. Almost too pretty to eat. Then comes the dessert tower with the most decadent teasers like lemon tarts and a variety of chocolate concoctions. A real treat.
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PW owner George Slowik Jr. and Margaret Atwood
I caught up with Anne Elizabeth and helped her celebrate her 3 book deal with Sourcebooks by dining at The Harvard Club. Really folks, I seriously need some new clothes. This place was straight out of a movie. A fish out of water, think Pretty Woman without thinking of me as a prostitute. I knew better than to order shell fish because we all know what happens. But being with fun people really makes all the difference.
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The Harlequin party was held on the roof top of the Kimberly Hotel and served as a prelude to their amazing RWA party. There were sparkling lights hanging all over that made it all seem magical. While it all was wonderful, the high point for me was meeting the amazing author, Margaret Atwood. I got goosebumps. I had to tell her that I read A Handmaid’s Tale years ago and it still haunts me. If you haven’t read it, give it a try. It’s so relevant, especially today. I also caught up with Heather Graham, Carla Neggers, Rick Mofina, Sophie Littlefield, and Brenda Novak (don’t forget about her charity auction ending soon).
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Bottom Line: Yes, I’m pooped, but in a good way and I can’t believe I was too tired to go across the street to see Kiefer Sutherland…maybe tonight.
