Back from my first conference

Barbara Phinney here.

I've never seen so many women in one place. 2,000, maybe more, all loving romance, all wanting to advance their careers, and advance on the buffet.

I loved it. It was wonderful to meet my Love Inspired sister authors. We were able to talk about such things as our line, and where it's going, but also the Love Inspired Suspense series coming out in January. I really needed to see that these women faced the same challenges I faced with it. Well, maybe not as much as a scatter-brain like me, but you get the drift.

My main complaint was all the desserts I had to eat. (Well, I had to eat them! My parents taught me to clean my plate. And the dessert sitting next to me at the empty seat, too, but that's a moot point!)

I'm not used to such rich food. By Saturday, I had a wee bit of the old heartburn, not to mention ankles swelling like sausages in a pan of water. But I needed to soldier on, to show those conference veterans that I can schmooze and confer with the best of them. I'm proud to say I did just that.

I also discovered that I have a generic face. I look like someone they all have seen before. I got that plenty of times throughout the week, although it was my first conference. Maybe that's a good thing. Maybe they'll remember Love Inspired a bit more.

I've returned to not only my son cleaning his room, and hubby making the bed so tight, you could bounce a quarter off it, but also to be told my next suspense story will be coming out in June 2010, a month after my contribution to the new continuity series due out next year.

Good news all round. And I'm glad you stopped by one this lazy summer day to visit. Please leave a comment! I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Meet Me At the Fair? . . How About A Conference?

If you live near Grand Rapids, Michigan, I'd love to meet you. I'll be doing a two-day conference at the Ramada Plaza Hotel on 28th Street. Although this conference is for writers -- who are very welcome to attend -- some of my books will be available and you will have a chance between workshops and events to meet me and purchase books.

On Friday I'll be presenting a four part workshop on Writing Christian Fiction and will be presenting a keynote address at the Award Banquet. On Saturday, I'll be teaching two workshops and keeping appointments with conferees. The bookstore is open all day and they will tell you when I'm free to meet you. If you're a writer and want to know more about the conference coming up soon, please check the link below.

http://www.xariscomhosting.com/acwgrandrapids.htm