I gotta blog more!

I know it's been almost a MONTH since I wrote anything on this blog. Or my other blog, for that matter. And I think I've done stuff. It just seems like there's not a lot that's blog-worthy. I'm going to start making stuff up soon.

Well, here's a little anecdote from the writer's conference to give you a feel for how intimidated I was when I went.

I arrived the first day and stood in an incredibly long line to get to the registration desk. It snaked around the entire lower level of the Hilton Chicago hotel. As soon as I found the end of the line, a short, dark-haired man who looked like he was in his early 50s stood behind me. He was holding books in both hands and had a big black bag slung over his shoulder. He was kind of manic and kept swaying from side to side as he waited for the line to move, alternately peering over me and shuffling around to look behind him. At one point, a young girl stopped in front of us and he immediately leaned toward her and said, "Excuse me, the end of the line is way over there."

Once we were settled and the line started moving a bit, he introduced himself to me. "I'm John [I forgot his last name]" he said. "I've just published this book." He showed me the cover. "It's in the style of the noir. And it's getting some great press. Really. People have been very kind. And you are?"

I said, "My name is Lisa and I haven't published any books." He leaned back from me and rolled his eyes a bit. "I'm a non-fiction writer for magazines," I continued. "More of a journalist."

"Oh, are you covering the event?" he asked. He was interested again.

"No, I'm here as an attendee. It's been a long time since I wrote fiction, but I want to start again."

And just like that he was re-bored. A guy walked down the stairs near us and John thrust his book toward him. "Carl! Great to see you!"

"John, how are you doing? Did you get your badge?"

"No," John answered. "This line is terrible." He showed Carl his book and they chatted about it while I prayed for the line to move faster.