BEA 2011 Day 3 + Book Blogger Con!

Day 3 at BEA was a bit more on the chill side. There weren't as many people around and that seemed to make everything a little more relaxed. In the morning rush (which was not as rushy unless you were getting squished to death in the Harper booth), I finally managed to snag a copy of The Revisionists by Thomas Mullen. I had heard ARCs would be available on Wednesday afternoon, but for all my lurking I didn't see any. Anybody who has listened to me go on and on (and on and on...) about Mullen's last book, The Many Deaths of the Firefly Brothers, must know that Mullen's new book would be a must have for me. When I finally spotted it on Thursday morning I snapped up a copy with glee (but don't worry, no one was harmed in my pursuit of this book - though I did hear some horror stories about bad behavior that wasn't mine).



The more relaxed atmosphere allowed me more time to wander the show floor at leisure. I got to talk with some people at the Europa booth. During my time blogging, Europa has worked its way into my heart as one of my favorite small presses. I love the look and feel of their books, along with, of course, their content, so I was happy to come away with two books, one of which is the first release of their new imprint, Tonga, You Deserve Nothing by Alexander Maksik.

I also waited in another one of those long lines that prompts the continual asking of the "Who are you in LINE for?" for Melissa Marr. By the time we got to the front of the line, the friendly librarian behind me in line and I agreed that we could be very rich if only we had charged a quarter everytime we said, "Melissa Marr."

By then, I'd run out of room in my shipping box, and did not wish to ship another, so I slipped away to mail my box and then hiked to lunch with a bunch of bloggers - Kim from Sophisticated Dorkiness, Heather from Age 30+ ...A Lifetime of Books, Jenny from Jenny's Books, Ash from English Major's Junk Food, Teresa from Shelf Love, Rebecca from Rebecca Reads, Memory from Stella Matutina, and Anastasia from Birdbrain(ed) Book Blog. And I've probably forgotten someone. If so, please forgive me (and remind me)! The walk was long, but the company and the food were both great, plus Ash and I discovered that red shirts with white polka dots are not as distinctive a wardrobe choice as we might have imagined.



Me and Ash in our polka dots
(Thanks again to Heather for the photo!)

Following was the Book Blogger Con reception where I met a bunch of bloggers, many of them new to me, but ultimately ended up with a pair of Colleens - one from Books in the City and the other from Col Reads. Books in the City Collen was going to take me on my first city bus ride to an Atria event at Simon and Schuster, but at the last minute, we hopped the shuttle bus with Kathy from Bermuda Onion, Julie from Booking Mama, and Candace from Beth Fish Reads.

The Atria blogger happy hour event was fantastic, with Mexican inspired cuisine catered by Aaron Sanchez that included some of the most incredibly delicious guacamole ever. It was wonderful (if a bit surreal) to be able to sit down and relax and chat and eat while meeting authors and publicists who actually circulated around to us. It was a nice way to wrap up a few very busy days at BEA.

But wait, the story doesn't end there. Once "my" Colleens left, I took up with Florinda and Jill from Rhapsody in Books to devour some delicious baked goods from Magnolia Bakery in bustling Rockefeller Center. The red velvet cupcake was to die for, seriously. But I still needed more sugar, so I hiked up to Serendipity 3 where Heather had signed me up to be her +1 at a get-together arranged by JKS Communications. I finally got to sip on a Frozen Hot Chocolate that I'd been meaning to try for so long among a few bloggers and a pair of authors. It was a great time, and I enjoyed hearing about the reasons the other bloggers at my table started blogging as well as hearing from the two authors, Joe Luniecvicz and Chitoka Webb, about their books. Another great event!


Me and the last of the frozen hot chocolate
(Again, I'd be lost without Heather and her camera.)

Evening. Morning. Next day. Book Blogger Con.

I won't say much here, really. I was about to head to Boston, so I could only attend the first half of the day at Book Blogger Con. I would be lying if I said that I wasn't totally beat and so didn't get nearly as much out of it as I could have. Just the same, Sarah Wendell of Smart Bitches, Trashy Books gave a great, entertaining keynote speech that not only kept me awake but engaged despite my dilapidated state after a few packed full days.

After that I sat in on the Ask a Publisher or Publicist panel, the first portion of which was composed of representatives of some of the major publishing houses, the second of publicists and representatives of smaller publishers. Here I learned that honesty is encouraged even if that means a (respectful) negative review because it has the potential to generate conversation, publishers *do* like to hear about your reviews of their titles that aren't brand new, many are eager to arrange to provide you some blog content if you're in need of a guest post or something, and that Michael Reynolds of Europa Editions would dance naked in Times Square to get some attention for Europa titles. No, really! He said that! Unless I was delirious by then...

Thus ends my BEA recap, but I'm sure you haven't heard the last of it. I'm looking forward to spotlighting some of the many books I gathered during my time at BEA. Until then - happy reading!

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