Friday, April 15, 2011

Texas Library Association 2011--Highlights

My highlights, anyway.
  • Cynthia and Greg Leitich Smith -- I could not have planned this.The second day of TLA is the day when student groups attend the conference.  Publishers hand out stacks and stacks of ARCs to them.  There is NOTHING more satisfying than watching a group of teens wandering the hall with bags, bulging with books and posters.

    I ended up in a lovely, extended conversation with two teens (a guy and a girl) both AVID readers, in a publisher's booth,. They are both high school seniors, English AP students, with college plans in place.  When our conversation turned to vampire books, (because it seems like it always does) I started to talk about Cynthia Leitich Smith's series as I am reading Blessed right now.  At that VERY moment, Cynthia and Greg walked RIGHT BY THE BOOTH!  I called them over and introduced them. Cynthia told them about her series and told them how to contact her.  Then the Teen Girl asked Cynthia to inscribe her favorite quote in a memory notebook she has kept since junior high and that she happened to have with her.  Teen Guy noted that he had read Smith's books but not the new Tantalize: Kieren's Story graphic novel. After Cynthia left both kids expressed their "agog-ness" at meeting her.
  • Heard some of the best discussions on writing at the Lonestar and TAYSHAS author panels
  • Just happened to choose to walk out of a door from the exhibit hall where Teresa Schauer was sitting.  I've been a cyber-friend of hers for several years and thought I  recognized her enough to have the courage to say, "Is your name Teresa ?" So, we  finally met. Schauer is the powerhouse and make-it-happen energy behind Book Trailers For All
    Of all the exit doors I could have chosen....

This is the kind of serendipitous magic that is the TLA Conference.

Lowlights
  • Archivist extraordinaire, aka Entling no. 2, called from the exhibit hall today to report almost being obliterated at the HarperCollins booth by stampeding librarians in search of half price or free books. She said they almost capsized the booth, knocking over shelves at the booth behind it.  That brought back memories of the melé at the Little Brown booth the year Inside the Titanic (A giant Cutaway Book) was on display.  I know budgets are tight but really?

Always an adventure at TLA!

3 comments:

tanita✿davis said...

::jealous of you and Richard Peck::
I tend to stalk him at conferences but you actually got more than a smile and a wink!!!? *swoons*

And Chris Barton is way too cute.

Sounds like it was so much fun. As much as they kind of disrupt my life, I kind of like wandering around at these things, people watching. The bands of marauding librarians are kind of scary, though.

Jenni said...

Next year I need to stay closer to you-- wasn't really sure how the Friday thing worked, so after Lesesne and Chance's New Books talk, we hit the Unshelved Booth ("read irresponsibly!") and headed out. (Got some pretty cool ARCs, though-- will be reading a LOT these next few weeks!!!)
Joe said he'll only go with me again if HIS tag has a cool nickname like "Entling no. 2!" Please give her my best-- she's pretty cool! I'm glad she survived the insanity!

Entling No. 1 said...

Ah, but did your iTouch escape Angry Bird-less? Or did Entling No. 2 win the day and install the addictive puzzler?

Oh - and still amazed you got a Jack Gantos shout out from the podium!