So, here it is...one of the most surreal, wonderful moments of my life! Diana Gabaldon was absolutely beautiful, warm, friendly, and gracious while I was a bundle of nerves! I didn't know that the event would be so small and intimate, so I had not prepared anything intelligent (ha!) to say to her personally as I never thought that I would have that opportunity! I would have been happy just to see her from afar and stand in line to get my book signed. But Barbara Peters, the owner of the Poisoned Pen bookstore whom I had met earlier in the day, was kind enough to walk over to Diana and point me out. Barbara said, "This young lady flew in from New Orleans to meet you," and she motioned for me to come over! I almost passed out right then and there!! So I walked over and introduced myself and shook her hand and I THINK I said it was an honor to meet her and that I loved her books....I say I THINK because I swear I had a brain freeze and felt my IQ reduced to zero! Shortly after, book-blogging buddy Julie came in and received her introduction, and Diana very graciously posed for several pictures and laughed with us as I stood there hyperventilating! What an extraordinary experience!
Chatting with Lauren Willig as she signed Blood Lily
Later that night, I had the opportunity to sit and chat with the wonderful Lauren Willig as she signed my copy of The Betrayal of the Blood Lily. I cannot begin to tell you how sweet and charming Lauren was all weekend! I first met her at the Georgette Heyer Tea and talked a little about our shared interest in the Heyer books. At a later event, she and Stephanie Barron spoke about topics related to historical research for their books, and afterwards Julie and I had a long talk with her. We discussed our favorite books and authors, of course, and tried to get her to tell us a little about her future books. She was absolutely adorable and friendly and now I love her books even more now that I've had the chance to meet the person behind the stories. She's a walking encyclopedia of history and literature and I could talk to her all day! I can't wait until the fall release of The Mischief of the Mistletoe (Jane Austen fans will love this one, set in Bath during the Christmas season of 1803).With Stephanie Barron while she signed my book
Stephanie Barron, author of A Flaw in the Blood and the Jane Austen mystery series, was another amazing author that I had the opportunity to meet. She was an incredibly interesting speaker, very knowledgeable about the Regency period, and was there promoting one of her latest historical fiction releases, The White Garden: A Novel of Virginia Woolf. It is a fictional account of what happened to Virginia Woolf in the weeks between her disappearance and the day her body was found -- part mystery and suspense, rich in historical detail, with beautiful prose. On a funny note, after we left the Tea, Stephanie Barron needed a ride back to the hotel, so she hopped in the car with us and of course, we talked and laughed about books, books, and more books! I kept telling myself, "This is so surreal -- here I am sitting in the back seat chatting with Stephanie Barron!"Alas, all good things must come to an end, so it's back home to normal.....you know, normal like hurricanes and oil spills and all the rest of those things that keep life crazy! Thanks, Julie and Cathy, for meeting up with me and sharing these wonderful experiences!
