ECWC and first book signings!

Last week was a blast! I’m only barely recovered, but here are the highlights.

I finally made it out to the Emerald City Writer’s Conference. My good friend, author MG Braden, has been urging me to go for years now. It’s the largest RWA conference on the west coast and I can’t recommend it enough. Well-organized, great speakers, and a raffle extravaganza that whips everyone into a shopping frenzy–and it’s all for a good cause too!

MG Braden and me at lunch

I didn’t have a workshop at this conference, so it was nice to be able to enjoy the workshops and the signing. It was my very first signing and I may have done a little dance when I first came up to my table and saw the books stacked and ready.

I whip out the official chop for my first autograph

It went very well! I got to chat with a lot of people — several who had judged Butterfly Swords and remembered it from contests over two years ago.

The conference food was pretty good, though not so photogenic, so I didn’t get any great food pics a la Cindy Pon’s blog. However, I did snap one of the official ECWC drink: The Bodice Ripper.

The Bodice Ripper is posing besides the conference’s true star drink, the Lemon Drop. Best Lemon Drop Ever. It was later responsible for a short bout of karaoke that evening. You have to understand, I’d had my first book signing. Butterfly Swords had sold out. The Lemon Drops at the Bellevue Hilton use freshly squeezed lemon juice with the perfect balance of sugar and vodka. After two of them, I felt on “Top of the World” — Which is the song I proceeded to try to sing on stage.

Jeannie Lin and MG Braden live and unrehearsed

Note the skeptical look that the DJ is casting us. These new experiences keep me humble…

After the conference, I flew to Northern California to visit my sister. Where apparently I said hello to Little Sis and her husband, and proceeded to direct the rest of my attention to their cat. I hadn’t seen Ollie in months and he’d gotten skinny. Apparently they finally allowed him outdoors and it’s amazing how much a little exercise will do for an oversized tabby.

All my pictures of the Norcal trip consisted of cat and cupcakes. I’m firing myself as a photographer.

I returned home at the end of the week for my first local signing at Rose’s Bookshop. Another wonderfully supportive crowd!

Amanda Berry, Maggie Mae Gallagher, Sunita from DA, and myself

And did I mention the cake?

I think Wendy from Rose’s purposefully found the biggest knife possible to put beside the cake

That evening, Dear Author hosted a book chat about Butterfly Swords. I attended the first part for a Q&A with readers. I was nervous at first, but it was an absolute dream. All I ever wanted was for people to read and discuss my book. *sniffle* I bugged out for the second half so everyone could continue to kibitz without me. I haven’t checked out the rest of the transcript, but you can replay the Dear Author book chat if you missed it.

I’m giving myself a little rest before I check out the last part. According to a few little birdies, there was some discussion about how Butterfly Swords should have ended. Beware spoilers!

And there was one special little birdy waiting for me when I got home:

Hubby got a hold of one of my bookmarks and did a bit of arts and crafts to show me I had a fan at home. Life is very, very good.

I’ve uploaded my ECWC pics to Facebook. You can also check out the Rose’s Bookhouse signing album.

Next booksigning is at the MORWA October meeting where I’ll be signing beside Jim and Shannon Butcher. Yes, THE Jim and Shannon Butcher. Full disclosure: I intend to Photoshop their long line of fans onto my table in post-production. I got skillz and I’m going to use them. (The photos included in this post have not been retouched in any way.)

First Signing, Giveaway Drawings & Kung Fu Action

Launch Celebration: The October 1 drawing was delayed because I was traveling to Seattle! I sincerely apologize. I will randomly draw the winners tonight and post them tomorrow. Thank you everyone for your support!

Review Round Up: Amber of Buried By Books reviewed Butterfly Swords with a C+/B- grade. Another review by Goodreads reviewer Jean Marie Ward, who I believe won the Goodreads giveaway, and one more from book blogger Mala on Bad Necklace. Hope I didn’t miss anybody.

The Pink Heart Society has selected Butterfly Swords for their October Book Club . Come back there October 26 to discuss the book. Speaking of book chats, I’m gearing up for the book chat on Dear Author next Saturday from 7pm to 9pm EST. I’ll definitely be there and will post details about joining the chat as I get them.

***

Some people are surprised and probably wonder why I re-tweet and post less than stellar reviews. Two authors I respect, Stacia Kane and Joanna Bourne, link and acknowledge every review good or bad. And, frankly, I don’t think they’re awful reviews and I just like that people are reading and talking.

I’m still at the ECWC conference. I’m having a fabulous time. I got to attend Kristina McMorris’ “Selling the Hard Sell” workshop and scribbled notes furiously. Wonderful info on marketing. I hope we get a chance to merge our two talks together at RWA 2011.

My first book signing was AWESOME! I got to chat with many new faces and I was overwhelmed that so many people wanted to buy multiple copies to do giveaways on their blogs. Butterfly Swords sold out early, but that meant I could get up and speak with some authors. 🙂

I got a chance to pick up The Iron Duke by Meljean Brook as well as Kris Kennedy’s The Conqueror and The Irish Warrior. I’ve been waiting to get my hands on hers for a while now.  I also grabbed Rose Lerner’s In for a Penny which looks fabulous.

And here’s a bit of fun. Kung-fu Action Theatre posted a audio reading of the opening of Butterfly Swords. I believe there’s a podcast as well. I had to do a lot of takes and I’ve decided I don’t have a great voice for radio. Next time, I must find a narrator with a sexy voice…preferably with an English accent.