Authors After Dark 2012
I have just returned from the annual Authors After Dark Reader Convention which this year took place in New Orleans. This was my fourth AAD Convention and all I can say is WOW. At the gigantic welcome ceremony I sat awed by how much the event has grown and what a wonderful job Stella Price has done. Major kudos to her and her hard working staff.
Our hotel was right on Bourbon Street and I’m not even sure where to start when it comes to the oddities of Bourbon. The first night was interesting with neon lights, frozen daiquiris on every corner and strippers performing in doorways. But as the week progressed the nightlife got wilder until Saturday brought a lot of insanity. It was great catching up with good friends who I miss all the time.
Authors Mari Freeman, Samantha Kane and ME on Bourbon. (Cat Johnson was the photographer and Lissa Matthews is a bit camera shy.)
I arrived a day before the convention started so I got a chance to explore the french quarter and do some shopping. I mostly window shopped but I saw a lot of incredible things that would be fun to buy. Hello rockabilly dress!
The next day the convention started with a bang and the rest of the week became a whirlwind after that. I was fortunate to meet so many wonderful readers and bloggers that I couldn’t possibly name them all. I also participated in panels on topics such as BDSM, Erotica, Self Publishing and Shifters with some other amazing authors. I remember sitting on the shifter panel with Cynthia Eden and thinking “OMG It’s Cynthia Eden!” the whole time. She is one of my favorite shifter authors and listening to her speak about how she world builds fascinated me.
50 Shades of Grey was a hot topic on the BDSM panel and we authors got a chance to hear directly from readers about more of what they were looking for. Love that!
I also got the chance to conduct two field trip tours where I took readers to visit three voodoo shops, one witchcraft store and The Pirates Cafe olde absinthe house in Pirate’s Alley. Absinthe tastes like licorice and is not really for me. 
Curious if I bought anything? Of course I did. I got a Voobeanie for good health and a candle for the Spirit of Writing.
I can’t possibly go over every event or we’ll be here all day. So let me post a few of my pictures and let them give you an idea of the blast we had.
Author Ann Mayburn knows how to party. Love her!
Shopping at the French Market with LeighAnna Thomas, Cat Johnson, and Kallypso Masters (Cat Grant and Ann Mayburn in the background)
Enjoying some beignets at Cafe Beignet with Joy of Joyfully Reviewed, Cat Johnson, Kris Cook
I finally got my dragon tattoo finished! Having a tattoo artist at AAD is one of my favorite things!
If you follow me on Facebook or subscribe to my newsletter, look for more pictures to be posted soon! Now I can’t wait for Savannah in 2013.
