Tonight was the dessert reception before my first SCBWI conference tomorrow in Fredrick, MD. I have been to a few other conferences, but not any specifically for children book writers, or even ones just for writers. So, I had a little bit of an idea of what to expect, but I was still walking into the unknown.
I was able to meet quite a few wonderful writers and illustrators and I am completely excited to see what tomorrow brings. Something I learned about myself, or relearned rather: I am a terrible schmoozer. I feel like I am telling the same stories again and again. But I suppose they are new to each person I talk with, still I definitely feel a bit like a broken record at times. What I need to work on is maybe some different questions to make me more memorable. There's the standard: Hi, where are you from, do you write or illustrate, how long have you been doing this, are you published... Before my next conference (I know there is no hope of me coming up with something by tomorrow morning...) I want to make a list of questions, even just one or two, that are a bit outside the box but still pertinent to the profession. Any ideas??
Another way I am bad at schmoozing: I forget that I made these nice business cards to hand out to everyone I meet. I keep forgetting or the conversation shifts and it becomes SUPER awkward. Hopefully, I will be better at this tomorrow. Maybe I should put my cards in a place other then my purse. Or I can ask them if they have a card. Now that's a good idea, wish I had thought of that before RIGHT NOW.
All of tomorrow's presenters were there tonight and were nice enough to strike up conversations with any of us brave enough to say hello. The only ear I was able to snag was T.A. Barron's and he was so wonderful to talk with. It is so easy to forget that they had to start at the beginning too. Their beginning was awhile back and their success has been great, but they are still incredibly relatable and a joy to talk with. So, thank you Mr. Barron for listening to this preggo's ramblings at the end of the evening. You made my night.
Can't wait until tomorrow!! Looking forward to learning much and hopefully getting a little better at my schmoozing!
