C is for...

Conferences and Cats and some other things that don't really start with C!

As a writer, I like to go to places where other lap top loving loners tend to gather in one place.  And no, I'm not talking Starbucks.  (Too expensive!) So where do I go?  I attend writing conferences.  Writing is a lonely business people, so it's nice to go and hang around other pasty-faced people who stare at blank pages and obsess over tense issues.  Oh, that sounds mean.  I'm sorry.  Writers are very social creatures.  Ha!  Well, some of them are.  Hello Kristen Lamb!

So, what conferences will I be attending this year?  Well my friends, I am going to the DFW Writers' Conference that is coming up in exactly one month from tomorrow.  It's in my lovely neck of the woods and it will be my third year to attend.  Three times is a charm, right?  Will I convince an agent that they really need to get to know me?  Uh, no.  This year I'm not pitching my book.  I'm just going to chill and learn and eat lots of cookies.  That's my plan and I'm sticking to it.

In July, I will be attending the Mayborn, which is also in my neck of the woods, but that's not why I'm going.  The Mayborn is all nonfiction all the time and not making shit up is how I prefer to roll.  One of my essays is going to be printed in their journal this year, so I get the added benefit of getting to sign the journal for people who buy it.  What can I say?  I'm a fame whore.  Actually, I'm not.  I'm Very shy.  Very reclusive.  Kind of hermit-like.  But, I'm gonna go because they have a fantastic line up of speakers and a cash bar to lubricate the masses.

Okay, now onto cats.  I love me some cats.  If you're a regular reader of this blog, you may have heard a few stories about my cats, but if not, just trust me on this.  One of my favorite finds during this challenge has been The Tex Files blog.  She took cats and grammar and blended it all together for a very entertaining and informative read.  Trust me on this.  You need to read this blog.

So, yesterday, I hinted that I was going to a writer event and Sarah Holmes, a fellow blogger in this challenge was smart and daring enough to guess that it was Anne Lamott.  And she got to pick my "G" topic because she took a chance.

So, Anne Lamott.  Oh, Anne Lamott.  Her book, "Bird by Bird" is my favorite book about writing that I've read and I've read a few.  At the event, I was sitting alone flipping through my dog-eared copy of the book and I noticed on her author bio that she went to Goucher college.  I was like, wow!  We have something in common.  I went to Goucher to get my MFA in Creative Nonfiction.  So, as I'm getting my book signed, my sister-in-law says, "Pam went to Goucher too."  Anne looks up and says, "Really?  I loved Goucher, but I left after two years to become a writer."  I walked away thinking, yeah, I went to Goucher for two years also, but unlike Anne Lamott, I went there to become a writer.  And that's probably why she's waaaaay more successful as a writer.  I'm like the Tinman in the Wizard of Oz.  I need a diploma to validate my crazy professional choices.

Okay, I'm rambling.  Today I plan to sit my butt in the chair and actually do some writing.  Not that this isn't writing, but if you're a writer, you know what I mean.

Peace out.