Case o’ the Big Head

Still. And loving every second of it.

Let’s see. Getting to Phoenix wasn’t that bad. I had two great flights with an talkative man in the seat next to me. That makes time fly by. However, while outside waiting for the Super Shuttle, I got something in my eye which then led to a lot of problems. Luckily, one of the other volunteers is also an EMT and worked with me to get it fixed. We tried 3 different eye drops until we got the right one. After a night of not blinking and rubbing it, it was much better. Patty was afraid I’d cut it and we’d need to go get it taken care of. It got all gummy that day but the eye drops worked wonders.

This con was so relaxed and calming. The hotel was HUGE in terms of horizontal space but was only 5 stories tall at the highest. I made it to a lot of workshops but I also skipped a lot and hung out with people instead. I got to meet a lot of new folk and get reacquainted with a bunch more.

I went to almost all of the Coffee Chat things. They were excellent!

Saturday morning they auctioned off some cutie pie authors (which means I was NOT one of them). Nell Stark, Georgia Beers, Karin Kallmaker, Lynn Ames, KG McGregor. I think that was all of them. The auction was for the first dance after the awards ceremony. Nell went first and went for “only” $110 but her willingness to act up set the tone for the rest. I can’t remember all the amounts, but Lynn Ames went for $300 and Karin Kallmaker went for $600!

Now, here’s where I get all soft and mushy. The night before, a bunch of us went out to dinner and CL said she was going to bid on Lynn Ames. But Lynn said CL would have to get permission first (wimp). CL got out the cell phone and after some texting back and forth, she got her permission. Then Saturday morning, I see the CL is bidding on Lynn but as the price goes up, people keep handing her money so she can be the top bid. Finally, CL wins and I lean over (I’m across the room) and grin at her. She then says “Happy Birthday”.

Yes, Saturday was my birthday. And yes, friends paid $300 for me to dance with Lynn Ames. I about had a heart attack. One, to think that people like me enough to spend that much money as a group. And two, a dance with LYNN AMES. She and I later discussed it and we decided she’d ride on my lap in the chair. Lynn is a sweetheart and was thrilled to be gifted to me for one dance. It was fun. It was embarrassing. And I’d do it again.

Then at the awards, I was getting nervous. CL made me write up a speech so that I’d not make a fool of myself if I actually won. So I did and stuffed it in my shirt pocket. Regal Crest racked up the awards! Six of ’em, not including the Director’s Award to Nann Dunn. K E Lane won three awards for her book, And Playing the Role of Herself (Romance category, Debut Author, and Popular Choice). Jane Vollbrecht (my editor for BGCFA) won an award for In Broad Daylight in the Dramatic General Fiction category. Brenda Adcock won in the Mystery category for her Redress of Grievances. And then there was mine in the Debut Author category.

In each category, three people announced the finalists (split between them) then each one announced one winner each. In the Debut Author category, that was Katherine V Forrest, Karin Kallmaker, and….crap, someone else. You know, I haven’t a clue who won the third Debut Author award nor who announced it! Isn’t that awful?! Shit.

Anyway, Katherine V Forrest goes first and announces K E Lane. Katherine is K E’s idol so that was just wonderful for her. Karin Kallmaker announced the second one. She steps up, puts the award on the podium, and opens the envelope. Then she picks the award back up, kisses it, and announces the winner. When she picked it up, I knew it was me.

The rest is a blur. They tell me I raced up the ramp so fast they thought I was going to go airborne. I am soooo glad CL made me write it down, else I’d not known what to say. Later I’ll put my words here to share with everyone.

Thought I’d share the highlights. More on the various individual workshops tomorrow.