Spring Retreat Signing

It was a definite thrill to be able to attend the Pre-Retreat Mega-Booksigning at TTP on Friday, April 27, 2001. Was it because of Nora? Well, to be truthful, been there, done that. ;-) Was it because of the BB/Ns who would be there? Well, to be truthful, been there, done that. ;-)

Okay, okay. I'll cut to the chase. Linda Howard. How thrilling to meet one of the top talents in the romance genre! And to make it even more special, Linda is as down-to-earth as one could hope. In fact, she's very much a "broad's broad."

Four years ago, my buddy Wym introduced me to Linda's writing by giving me Dream Man to read. Soon afterwards, I read the rest of Linda's backlist. I was HOOKED. In fact, it was easy to decide which two books to take for Linda to sign (I purposefully limited myself because I knew that TTP would be crowded). Dream Man, my first Howard read -- and a very beat-up paperback (has been read more than once ;-), and Mr. Perfect, my last -- a first edition hardcover.

As I stood there babbling, there were two snapshot moments for me regarding Linda. First, she was indignant that anyone would think of her as being "petite." She said to me, "I'm NOT petite, I'm five feet, five inches tall!" (Uh, so am I ... and I'm not petite either :-(

The second one came when I was telling Linda how easy it was to hand-sell Mr. Perfect (btw, it's out in paperback NOW) -- especially when we'd tease everyone about the "kitchen scene." (Think HOT, HOT, HOT!) Linda had a mischevious look on her face and a twinkle in her eye as she confidentially whispered to me (as the eaves-droppers and those who hadn't read the story tried not to listen ;-), "Yeah, and she was alone!"

Oh my. The looks on everyone's faces. Yup, Linda's definitely a broad's broad. What made me a fan of the woman and a bigger fan of the writer is this: like Nora, Linda is down-to-earth. She's funny and gracious; she patiently answered questions, and like Nora, I think she might've stayed there all day making sure everything brought to be signed was signed.

Of course, it is also thrilling to go to the Pre-Retreat signing because you know you're going to meet a lot of authors. There was Donna Kauffman (loved your new story, Donna, Walk on the Wild Side!); MK (aka Mary Kay McComas) was in charge of the drawings. And then there were authors I hadn't met before. I tried to e-mail each of them to get their impression about the signing and the retreat; as I receive their responses, I'll post them here ... so check back often ...

• Catherine Asaro
• Carole Bellacera

  This was Carole's third time signing at TTP; she related this little tidbit to me: The thing I remember about this last one was Catherine Asaro coming late, and of course, she was in the corner, so all of us--Kathleen Kirkwood, Anne-Marie Winston, Mary Alice Monroe, and I, had to get out from behind the table and manuever around to let Catherine in. I felt like one of those squares in that puzzle where you have to move things around to make sense of it.

• Heidi Betts
• Lourdes Carvajal
• Robin Lee Hatcher

  This was Robin Lee's first Retreat and first signing at TTP; she shared this memory: I'm not sure about special, but certainly the most memorable was making a fool of myself during Romance Jeopardy. I missed the Wicked Witch of the West question -- and since I am an unabashed Wizard of Oz fan and have been performing that particular scene ("What a world! What a world!") for innocent bystanders for decades, my humiliation was complete the instant I blew it.

• Kathleen Kirkwood
• Karen Lee
• Mary Alice Monroe
• Hope Tarr
• Anne Marie Winston

  Was this your first retreat? omg, no! It was my 12th. I was the chairman of the whole shebang in '91 AND '92. (What can I say--some of us learn slower than others how to say NO)

  Was this your first signing at TTP? Any special moments? I finally got to meet a fan with whom I'd corresponded who calls herself the president of the Bobby Sherman fan club. She was wearing her Bobby t-shirt, so I guess she wasn't kidding. THAT was memorable! She also sent me some lovely pix. (I have one of Linda and me that she took that's terrific. Let me know if you want any and I'll scan and send 'em.)

  (This time) at one point Anita (Gordon who writes as Kathleen Kirkwood) said she felt faint--it got pretty toasty in there, remember? Years ago at Hilltop House she slipped on ice and hit her head and all I could think about was that her family would never trust her to come to WV again if she passed out and hit her head!

  At Anne Marie's website, I noticed her in a picture with Nora, Gaff, and MK, and I asked her about the "dangerous company she keeps" -- Yes. Well, what can I say? I chose my pals when I was young and innocent (and possibly too dumb to know any better)! LOLOL! Kidding. Those three are dear to me--have been great since well before I was published. I don't often come out of my self-imposed lair, but when I do, I always enjoy getting together with them and the rest of our close buds.

   

When I attend these signings, I am pretty much on a limited budget, so I don't hesitate to let each author know that I'll buy one of their titles -- to recommend the one that will knock my socks off. To their credit, most of the authors asked me questions about my reading tastes, likes and dislikes, before handing me their choice. All but three did this -- and they were debut novelists -- Lourdes, Karen, and Hope.

Now, I've been bad. I had planned on reading these ladies books so that I could give feedback here, but other books just keep jumping to the top of my TBR. Finally, though, I garnered some discipline, and I've started Karen's delightful, Meredith's Wish. It is a romantic fantasy -- think about a genie. Now think about a genie that's residing in your cell phone. LOL -- add to the mix the job descriptions of being a genie, and you have a page-turning hoot!

Other favorite memories of this TTP event was Edith giving me this digital camera to "play with." I'm still playing. :-) I also discovered that Nora has brand new wheels. It's a sky-blue (well, check out the pictures for the shade ;-) Mercedes Benz HARD TOP convertible. I asked Nora if she was going to give us rides like she did in her Beemer, and she laughed. <g>

But beyond the authors and beyond the toys and beyond even the books, are the ladies who come to help celebrate these events. It's always a joy to meet the BB/Ns, and this event was no exception.