Geek-Out Time!!!

Ok, so the most amazing thing ever happened.

Yesterday I went to a writer’s conference, that may not have changed my life, but definitely added about a gallon of gasoline to the burning desire I have to be a published novelist.

I got to meet an amazing author, one of my favorites that I have the utmost respect for. His name is Sonny Brewer, see I had already read the book assigned to us before class started so I was a step ahead of everyone else thank God for that too because I can’t imagine how upset I would have been to have not appreciated him being at the conference and then later read his amazing work.  I spoke to, personally aiieee!!! Excitement! I totally geeked out turn red and grinned like a fool, everything I was afraid of. BUT I kept some composure and  had a conversation with him. He told me and a few other students that if we had any questions to ask our teacher for HIS EMAIL ADDRESS.

Now for those of you unfamiliar with Mr.Brewer, he is published by Random House (Ballantine Books). His most famous works include A Sound Like Thunder, Poet of Tolstoy Park and most recently, Cormac.  If you want to learn more about him his link is www.sonnybrewer.com.

Anyways, I got him to sign a first edition of A Sound Like Thunder. He signed “For Lauren- Bless your heart and thanks for reading this book! All my best…Sonny”  I still get “goofy grin” by reading it. While he was signing it I told him that I hoped to get to speak with him during lunch and I wanted to sit at his table because I wanted to talk to him about writing because I am a writer too. His reply “Good! I hope you do sit with me, I’ll tell you everything I know in three minutes.”

Well, I didn’t get to sit with him, his table filled up right as I was walking up to it…I blame Lance for being a slow walker… He smiled and said “I guess we’ll have to yell.” I am happy to report that on the two occasions he left his table one was to talk  with my teacher and one was to talk to me (I am assuming the first was to talk to my teacher because when he came up to me he told me and Mark that he was planning to conference call my class when we talk about his book or he may come back and visit).

Sonny is friends with Rick Bragg, a Pulitzer prize winning novelist that lives near my boyfriend and another friend of his is friends with Harper Lee. That’s right THE Harper Lee.

I feel so inspired, so excited to be a writer right now. I want to become published so bad I can taste it! And now I know that it tastes like chicken parmigiana with egg noodles and badly seasoned green beans.

It felt amazing to be among that crowd, to be around fellow writers that have been where I am. To be in a place where I am not made fun of or thought of as “weird” or “strange” because I am a writer. For once I was among people where if one is a nerd for NOT writing. I was around people that would laugh at my stories of eating, sleeping and living at a computer because they understand. ::Sigh:: It was a wonderful, wonderful day.