Abilene Book & Music Festival

Hey guys,

Saturday, September 29, 2007, I attended the Abilene Book and Music Festival in Abilene, Texas.
A variety of authors and musicians were present selling their books and music. I had a great time and it was wonderful to meet other Texas authors, particularly fellow Wingies.

Above is a picture of 4 Wings ePress authors. Rita Thedford, Tempted; Alisha Paige, her Wings book will be out sometime in 2008 but Canyon Wolf Bride with The Wild Rose Press is out now; Linda LaRoque, When the Ocotillo Bloom; and Tricia Lee, A Caribbean Summer.

We've all been email friends so it was nice to meet in person.

Happy Reading and Writing!

Linda

Abilene Book and Music Festival

The Abilene Public Library is hosting their annual Book and Music Festival September 25-29. On Saturday the 29th, authors from all over Texas will be there signing their books. If you're in the neighborhood, come by the civic center, pick up some reading material, and meet some of your favorite authors.

Hope to see you there,

Linda

A Heart's Desire

Hello friends,

I'm pleased to announce my short story A Heart's Desire, set in post WWII, will be published sometime in early 2008 by Dark Eden Press. It is a time travel that is part of the The Veil series. I loved writing this story and pleased that it found a home with Dark Eden Press . I'll let you know when it's out.

Linda

New Horizons

For the last month or so I've been branching out and writing short stories. I've found that I love writing them because I can type "The End" so much faster and yet the story still has twists and turns. Both are time travels. One takes place in England during the 1940's and the other takes place in the Panhandle of Texas in 1888. Both have been submitted to editors, so here's hoping they'll want them and I'll have covers to post.

Linda

It's good to be home.

I love traveling, going to conventions, etc., but am always so ready to get home. This year's National RWA Conference in Dallas was a big success as always. I met people I've known on line for several years so it was nice to meet them face to face.

Some of the Wings epress authors got together Friday for lunch and again for dinner. The dinner group met in Antares at the top of the tower. It was a gorgeous view of Dallas.

The workshops were great. I didn't get to attend as many as I wanted, but came away with plenty of new ideas. And talk, talk, talk. If you didn't know anyone, there was always someone to start up a conversation with.

Next year's conference will be in L.A. Not sure if I'll be able to make that one, but what a great place to visit.

Regards,
Linda

RWA Nationals in Dallas

Hello fellow readers and writers,

Here it is, one day before time to leave and I'm not packed. Why do I always wait 'til the last minute and stress myself out? Oh well, I always manage to get there.

Being a Texan, I've driven in Dallas traffic many times but am glad I'm not the chauffeur. Hated the mixmaster in the '60's and you can imagine what it's like today. However, I do have to say, Dallas drivers are relatively polite. They'll let you in a jam packed lane and I don't believe I've received a rude gesture since I've been driving there.

I'm looking forward to meeting people I've only known via the Internet. It's amazing how many friends you can make in cyberspace. Several of the Wings epress authors are getting together for a chat so that will be fun and two of my critique buddies will be there.

Of course, there will be great sessions and speakers, and oodles of free books.

Hope to see some of you there.

Regards,
Linda

Convention Woes

As I prepare to attend the national Romance Writers of America conference in Dallas in July, I can't help but remember the year the convention was in Reno. What a wonderful place to visit. Not only was the conference informative but I had a wonderful time playing the slots. Luckily, I didn't lose more than $20.00. I wish I could say the trip was a complete success, but unfortunately there was a hitch.

As we prepared to leave the hotel, I put my driver's license in my pocket so I wouldn't have to search for it while in line at the airport. If you've ever been to a national conference, you know you receive loads of free books. So, we were loaded down with carry on bags, determined we wouldn't leave any behind.

When leaving the hotel, I dropped our room keys in the key box and we hailed a taxi. The line at the airport was long, so we negotiated our mountain of baggage, inch by inch, closer to the counter. When we were several customers away, I reached in my pocket for my driver's license. It wasn't there. After ten minutes of panic, I realized I'd dropped it in the key box at the hotel. Unfortunately, the desk clerks were busy and in no hurry to rush it out to the airport for me.

I explained my situation to the ticket clerk. She asked if I had another form of picture ID. I couldn't think of one but searched my wallet and came across my Sam's card. She was able to accept it with a credit card, but let me know I'd be going through extra security. No problem. As long as I got on that plane, I'd go through anything.

However, I didn't really know what extra security meant. I was pulled aside, my purse and carry on bags were searched. It was embarrassing when he pulled out all those romance books with the hot covers. A wand was swished around in my bag and then inserted into a machine to test for drugs or explosives or something. Then I was told to put my feet on the marked places on the floor. In other words, "spread 'um." A female security guard passed a wand over my body, patted me down, and I was released -- after stuffing all those novels back in my bag.

Truth be told, I'm grateful to have made my flight and feel no ill will toward the airline security people. I appreciate their efforts to keep us safe in the air, and hate that I made their job more difficult. I can assure you, I won't make the same mistake twice.

Fortunately this year we'll be driving. Hope to see you in Dallas.

Linda