Are my feet touching the ground? Not hardly! I was lucky enough to draw a panel assignment with my friend Tj O'Connor and my writing idol Charlaine Harris. We were talking about paranormal mysteries at Malice Domestic today.
Holy Cow. I'm still grinning like a crazy woman. First, let me say that Charlaine is the Most Gracious, Most Charming, and Most Personable person in the world. It was hard not to be tongue-tied sitting beside her. But I took one for the team because due to the small size of our panel being in the middle often means that the moderator, in our case the capable Eileen Watkins, starts at one end or the other of the panel. Having that buffer of time helps me to collect my thoughts or sneak a peek at my notes so that I don't babble and ramble.
Before I ever thought I'd write paranormal mysteries, I read in the genre, and Charlaine's books were my favorites, especially her Sookie Stackhouse series. So I did my best to sound coherent, to look like I was paying attention to everyone, and to try not to let my fan girl crush on Charlaine turn me into a blithering idiot.
We had a lively time because the topic and the panelists were all so fun, and the attendees seemed to really hang on our every word, even mine. It was a MOMENT for me, an honest to goodness life moment. I'm still saying to myself: I was on a panel with Charlaine Harris. I sat next to her. She knows my name. She kindly posed for pictures before and after the program. I got to talk shop with her. She laughed (in a good way) at the humor In
Bubba Done It I used as an illustration to answer a panel question.
Thank you, Malice Domestic, for making my dream come true.
Maggie Toussaint
http://www.maggietoussaint.com
Sounds like a fun time for you, Maggie! I do miss going to conferences and meeting other authors, some that are quite well-known. However, I can't justify the expense on my retirement budget. Especially, since I don't make a lot of money with my writing.
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