Time Is Precious

Fiorella and Husband are hitting the road today to attend Fio's medical appointment in San Antonio.  They've plotted out their course with MapQuest, laid in supplies, and gassed up the car.  Fio's planning to take not only her medical record and cell phone, but also promotional bookmarks, her RWA identification tag, and a copy of WHAT THE HEART WANTS because she's attending a meeting of her local chapter this evening and may not be able to make it home between times.

Your Fio's on the go.  But then, she always is.

Stroll in the Sun

Fiorella will readily admit she is geographically challenged, but staggering up and down the mean streets of San Antonio in 100+ weather on her first day at the National Romance Writers of America annual conference was scary.  She had left the conference hotel with friends, gone across the street, and turned down this way and that (Fio doesn't pay attention to where she's going when she's talking).  After they all finished eating, two of her friends walked back to the conference hotel while Fio and another woman stayed at the table.  When the other woman left to visit with friends, Fio, all on her lonesome, started her trek back to her hotel. . . and couldn't find it.

So she walked around, trying other routes. The sun was hot, and she was thirsty, and she was tired.  But still she soldiered on.  What is a little dehydration and disorientation to the mighty Fiorella?  Twice she went into RiverCenter hotel instead of RiverWalk and tried to get the elevator to take her up to her sixth floor room.  And twice a nice hotel employee told her she was in the wrong hotel. The second time around, he gently took her arm and escorted her out of RiverCenter, across the street, down the side of the river, into RiverWalk, and made sure she got on the correct elevator.

Thank you, Eleazar Garza.

RWA Conference

A-travelin' I will go

To San Antonio

No time for Alamo

But workshops every day

And evenings spent in play

See and listen and hear and look
And sell the hell outa my new book

            

Conferences

Fiorella learned four very important things at her first national RWA conference in 2008. First, she learned that she could navigate all by her lonesome within the conference, in a large hotel, and on the mean streets of San Francisco.  Second, she learned that there is no stereotypical romance writer--they come in all sizes, shapes, ages, colors--and sexes. Third, she learned that established writers (read Colleen Thompson and Terry McLaughlin) can be very kind to a newbie.  Fourth, as she learned, from the agent who stood in front of her in a Starbuck's line, a pattern of dieting for three days, then eating whatever one desires on the fourth, is an effective method of trimming down.

At the Orlando conference, she had a blinding Paul-on-the-way-to-Damascus revelation that, in order to get her work into print, she'd have to write not just as well as established authors, but strive for better.  She also learned to ignore other people's negativity.

At the New York conference, she realized that her overriding goal for the next year should be to GET AN AGENT.

At the Atlanta conference, she met face-to-face with said agent, the divine Liza, and also learned who were her true friends (read Colleen Thompson and April Sartor).

Next summer is the San Antonio conference.  More adventures to come.