Fandom Fest 2013 Report

Today is the first of the month, so I have a new Hot Flash for you.

I’m also participating in a Writing Exercise Blog Hop, so I’ve posted my favorite one at the end of this report.

Okay. This is the third Fandom Fest we’ve been to.

Here is the report on the first one. No, really, that stuff really happened! Really!

Here is the report on the second one. A little less dramatic.

So we come to this year.

Last year, the price of parking changed every time one asked, so this year, we got a room and had an extremely kind friend drive us over and help us lug everything up there. It would be so nice to be close to the exhibition hall!

Ha. Ha. The exhibition hall was on the far end of the Convention Center. One could either walk two blocks outside, pushing a cart loaded with books and display stands across two intersections and pavement, or one could walk half a mile through a pedway. Then, when one got to the Convention Center, one had to thread the maze to find one’s way to the exhibit hall.

We got lots of exercise this weekend. Lots and lots and lots and lots of exercise.

We set up with the other Hydra authors at the Hydra book booth. Here is a picture of the awesomesauce Tony Acree, author of Hand of God. Hand of God is a paranormal thriller, set in the Louisville Metro area. It’s about a bounty hunter whose brother sells his soul to the devil and the devil gives the bounty hunter 24 hours to find a certain girl before his brother goes south. Why, yes, I did hear Tony say that about a hunnert million times, why do you ask? Tony snapped and posted many, many pictures of attendees.

We all memorized each others’ spiels so we could cover for each other while we did panels or walked around.

Here was my favorite attendee. I chased her down the aisle, shouting, “Abs! Abs! Abs! Abs! Abs!” No, she isn’t the actress who plays Abby, but I don’t know that I like that actress because I don’t know anything about her, but I love Abby and this was Abby. Do you understand me? This lady did.

Here is the second-best Mohawk EVER! The best was our #4 daughter’s, the one that earned her the nickname Spike. I suspect his is like this for the same reason #4 Daughter’s was: If he doesn’t have it sticky-up, it covers all the short bits and looks like a conventional haircut.

The magnificent K. A. DaVur was also with us and has posted a buncha pictures, including two of her incarnations. Yes, she sported a different costume every day! She’s the author of HUNTER THE HORRIBLE, about a bunch of kids who are convinced their teacher is a real, live vampire.

I didn’t get to hang out with any of the stars, alas, because it never occurred to me to try. I did run across Stan Lee in the hall one morning, though, and wished him good morning. He nodded as if he would take it under advisement. I think #4 Daughter wants to have my eyeballs bronzed because they saw him in person. Maybe I’ll leave them to her in my will.

My very most favorite thing of all was Graham Cracker, the cutest mouse inna world. She was running around on an artist’s table, and she let me pick her up after she sniffed my hands a little.

And here are a couple other pictures I loved.

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“Guess what? We’re not really Japanese.”

I understand there were some logistical problems with the festival, and the Fest organizers saw that the Literary Track was hidden with a zeal equalled only to Area 51, but we still had a blast. Stephen Zimmer, the guy in charge of the Literary Track itself, is unparalleled in capability, kindness, efficiency, resourcefulness, and flexibility, and he kept everything together and everybody in Literary in good spirits. We loves him, we does.

If we go again next year, we will NOT stay at The Galt House. Parking = $12/night. Wi-Fi = $5.97/night for up to two devices; if more than 2 devices access from the room OR you access after midnight, the charge doubles. We had black mold in our bathroom, no plastic bags in the trash cans, and one partial roll of toilet paper was provided for three middle-aged women. Not pretty. Not nice. A real coffee pot, which was nice, but no microwave. A “refrigerator” which they must have turned on when we checked in, because it was barely cool when we put our food in, but everything was frozen solid by Sunday morning.

Still, now that it’s over, we’re glad we went. We sold many books, met many nice people, and had many laughs.

For another take, read about Carol Preflatish’s experience, and also the story SHE tells about how she got tossed out of The Galt House when she was a teenager.

MY FAVORITE WRITING PROMPT/EXERCISE: Write down ten things you know about a character you want to write or have written about. Now ask ten questions you don’t know the answers to and let the character answer in their own voice.

MA