I don’t think I’d be able to handle not going to RWA conference. This will be my fifth year going and it’s an addictive yearly ritual.

This year I’ve been dancing double time, though less concentrating on preparing a pitch and shopping for clothes. I feel like I’m going to really be a part of the conference this year. I’m presenting in two workshops and giving away the Golden Heart award in my category. I even loved stapling and folding all the excerpt booklets for Butterfly Swords by hand for the goody tables. It feels like an amazing journey from when I stumbled through conference five years ago in Atlanta, wet behind the ears and completely at a loss.

A bit of confession. I’ve probably spent the most time preparing for the Dress for Historical Success workshop — as my YouTube video can attest. I’ve practiced Tang Dynasty-esque hair dos that I can do on my own. And yesterday….tee hee…yesterday I put on my costume to practice walking in it. I also tried out the swords and couldn’t resist playing dress up and striking a few Wing Chun poses.

I felt like a kid playing in the yard with my brother and cousin Mary, pretending I was a wuxia heroine. (I’m alone at home, btw. Hubby is thankfully away on business so he doesn’t have to be subjected to this outlandish behavior.)

When I say it’s a dream come true to publish this book, I’m not just talking about the dream of being a writer. There’s so much more behind it. The movies we watched, the games we played, the endless TVB videos my grandmother would dub late into the night (illegal by the way…shh….)

I can’t stop smiling. I’m looking forward to every moment of RWA conference this year and, I must warn, there might be just a little bit of strutting when I’m in costume.