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I survived!
I did not have a stroke, heart attack, or kidney failure from actually reading my work, even though there were moments where I thought for sure any one or all of the above were about to happen. So, let's talk about the event!
July 2nd. The Prep.
I took a half-day from work so to meet up with the other HRB authors attending. Everyone from out of town was arriving at different times through the day, with the first, Jude-Marie Green ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
saycestsay, arriving at approximately 1pm, then Mary Ellen Martin mehub around 2pm, Camille Alexa littlebirdblueat around 3pm, and Floyd Edwards (F. V. "Ed" Edwards) at 3:30. My plan was go home, change from the work duds to jeans, then head back into town around 3 to start meeting up with everyone.
saycestsay, arriving at approximately 1pm, then Mary Ellen Martin mehub around 2pm, Camille Alexa littlebirdblueat around 3pm, and Floyd Edwards (F. V. "Ed" Edwards) at 3:30. My plan was go home, change from the work duds to jeans, then head back into town around 3 to start meeting up with everyone. That was the plan. However, I got antsy.
A bit after 2 I took off back downtown. I figured that I would park it, then walk and meet everyone as they got in. We had a central meeting place arranged, the Reno Arch, so I wasn't worried about not recognizing anyone. And since I was early I decided to toss in an errand and send off a package to my sister at the downtown post office -- the same building they used in the filming of Sister Act as the police station. When this was done, the interesting things began to pop up.
Cell phones. I admit, I am NOT a cell user, and although I am very technical, this little bugger had me thinking about tossing it into the Truckee River. If you don't have a nice semi-rigid case for these things, carrying in a pocket can, and often does, push buttons for you. Sometimes these things bring up interesting effects, such as locking the keypad -- as was my case. 6 times I played with this trying to follow simple "do-this-to-unlock" directions, slowly building up a decently high level of frustration with my wife's toy. Finally, moving into the shade of a tree next to the post office, I was able to see past the sun's glare on the small screen to what those directions were pointing me to…
We had all shared our contact numbers, and Kelly had called when she arrived. So now I call her back -- and it's her voice mail. I start walking to where I had told her a good place would be to hang (Art Town began this week, a cool on-going summer event with free music, events, and river activities) hoping I could connect. Getting to the river walk, I grab that cell -- and see that she had tried to call. Have I mentioned I have a problem with cell phones? Now I see that it is on vibrate, and I am wearing carpenter jeans, meaning loose and not-in-contact-with-body pocket areas. And this is how the thing remained, until I tossed it back at my wife at the end of the event, still on vibrate, with like a half-dozen missed calls because the changer for the ring was just as hidden as the unlock had been.
Finally we connect and with phone stuck to a sweaty (did I mention it was 95 degress out and muggy from smoke blown in from the California fires?) ear I talk directions with Kelly until we meet up. On the way, walking along the river, I see three young, teenage-ish ladies in bikinis on an inner tube floating along the Truckee. Since where I saw them was some distance from the event areas, I had to wonder at what city miles away they might end up at…
The plan was, as I mentioned, meet at the arch. From there we were to go to the El Dorado Casino's buffet to have an early dinner before the event and to visit -- I had gotten together with Kelly and Floyd in April for the Spring Creek signing, but the others I hadn't met. By now it was 3ish and we -- Kelly and I -- visited a bit by the river before we had to move on to the arch.
First meeting us at the arch was Mary Ellen and her husband, Jim. I kinda knew who to look for from browsing their website, and seeing a photo linked up there. Also, their phone worked, and I was able to finally contact them. Not long after awesomely talented Camille came by, cool blue hair and all, and shortly after we went and set up at the buffet. Floyd, unfortunately, was held up some and didn't make it until a bit after we had gotten the table. Still, he did make it in time to eat and meet before we were to be at the event.
Dinner went well. I was a bit bummed that my wife couldn't make it, but she's been working long hours the last week or two. Besides, I rather thought she wouldn't. With this event local, and her being not at all interested in this part of my life, I figured that she'd be home instead of meeting with us. Besides, she'd be bored out of her gourd with the writer talk at the dinner. It was also at dinner that we nominated and seconded the only present non-author spouse, Jim Martin, as our cameraman.
Oh, and I can really recommend the seafood lasagna and baked calamari, if anyone is in town at the El Dorado buffet for Wednesday night. Yumm.
And at 5:15 or thereabouts we set off for Sundance.
The Event
Floyd and Mary Ellen reached the store before us. This was to be expected. I was parked away from downtown itself, but within walking although it was with a bit of a hike. We made it ok:
Camille Alexa (littlebirdblue) and Jude-Marie Green ( saycestsay) at the Sundance parking lot.
When we came into the store right there in from of us was 3 or 4 rows of chairs. I immediately froze as I remembered that yes, it was a READING. We were to read from our work. Vocalization in front of a crowd. For me on a 10 scale, this hit intimidation level 12! Gulp. And, as the thing went on, this seating arrangement grew by another row…which I am so glad I was spaced by then and didn’t really see it happening.
Camille Alexa (
littlebirdblue) and Jude-Marie Green ( saycestsay) at the Sundance parking lot.When we came into the store right there in from of us was 3 or 4 rows of chairs. I immediately froze as I remembered that yes, it was a READING. We were to read from our work. Vocalization in front of a crowd. For me on a 10 scale, this hit intimidation level 12! Gulp. And, as the thing went on, this seating arrangement grew by another row…which I am so glad I was spaced by then and didn’t really see it happening.
Bottom (left-right): Jude-Marie Green, Camille Alexa
Top: Me, Mary Ellen MArtin (
mehub), and F. V. "Ed" Edwards.Here was when we met Lindsay and Christine, the event coordinator and the owner of the store. Before, everything had been by email – the time I tried to hook up with anyone was bad, and no one was available. Really cool people there at Sundance Bookstore, Reno’s independent bookstore!
We visited some, and then the illustrious Susan Palwick arrived. She is a professor at the University of Nevada Reno, and has a few novels and a short story collection to her credit. She is a very cool lady, and since she teaches creative writing, well, hummm…. Anyway, when she heard that my story was the closer in Ruins Metropolis she was excited; this means that it is the strongest of the book, the best! However, in this case the editor let me know when it was at proofing stage that for his books the closer is the second best. I just cared that it was considered as a “strong” story! First, last – doesn’t matter, I am just jazzed that it is considered good!
Reading table with Susan Palwick next to Floyd.
The reading came up fast – I took up Kelly’s copy of Ruins Metropolis and began to read from my Haroeris’s Favor. This, being my first reading, was deadly. I was sweating it completely, and literally – I did mention that it was in the mid-90’s outside? At this point I was thinking that that temp had moved inside the store and hit 100! I was acutely conscious of everything, and being the stage-fright afflicted fellow that I am, and focused more on the concern that I would literally drip sweat onto another author’s book! I did survive, although I just read the first two shorter scenes. We were to read about 5 minutes – I think mine went just three-ish, although it seemed an hour.
Everyone was nice, and said I did ok. Kelly did mention that she thought I was about to have a heart attack, but it was just flutters….I lived.
I was fourth reader. We went through those last two readers, and one of the winners of the SF flash contest Sundance held read his entry. Afterwards was the questions – the flash winner came to me and we talked a little on expanding a short into a novel. This didn’t go for too long, it was buying time!
I think part of an event like this is the authors buying each other’s work. I know I picked up a copy of one of Ms. Palwick’s novels. She bought a copy of Desolate Places – this one had stories from 4 of us in it -- and we all had each other autograph our stuff. \
When we closed out at 8:30 (the event started at 6:30) we went outside into a smog bank. The evening cooling had lowered the smoke from the California fires, so that it was like walking into a grillers BBQ haze, heavy burned wood scent and all.
All in all this was a really cool event. I had a great time meeting everyone, from seeing those I’d met before to meeting the new authors I had only know from a name and email before. It is something I’d do anytime and anywhere I had the means to reach. However, I dunno about the reading part of the thing. How many times will it take for me to get used to that?!
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I did a few readings in college at poetry slams. I always found it nerve-wracking while waiting to read, perhaps because these were usually competitions. Once reading, however, I usually became comfortable. I think it helped my degree was in secondary education and I had faced the toughest audience of all -- high school seniors (...still shuddering...)
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I can see it happening, though! Oh, about the 15th, 25th time, maybe...
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I did a reading with Camille a few months ago... she writes some damn clever stuff! :)
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Thanks for the write-up, Willis. You will, by the way, get more comfortable with this whole reading thing. Especially as we plan to have you read a WHOLE lot! Muwahahahahahhaha!
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Gulp!
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Nice pictures; it's good to see so many HRB authors together.
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It was good. Everyone said I did ok. I'll go with the consensus.
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