Australian Spec Fic Events Calendar

Thanks to hosting by girliejones  over at ASif, we now have an Australian Spec Fic Events Calendar. I’ll be adding events as I run across them, but such a thing works best when folks send in details, so please do! Updates and new events welcome

The Aussiecon 4 round up

It transpired that I was so flat out for the entire six days that I didn’t get much time to update anything – Twitter, Facebook and LJ all suffered, but it was to good purpose – too busy selling books and catching up with people to social network online? I call that a win!

So now it’s a matter of trying to remember what happened when! Not easy with lack of sleep and a blurring of days happening… But I’ll give it a go.

Tickets booked!

Tickets booked for Conjecture in Adelaide June 5 - 8, 2009! Very cheaply purchased for kids and self on Tiger Airways. Now to convince mum to fly down from Brissy that weekend… And figure out accommodation!

Also booked – accommodation in Brisbane for the Aurealis Awards weekend! FV4006 is the place if anyone’s looking for accommodation - 200m from the Judith Wright centre where the awards are being held and seems nice – self contained apartments. Their website looks like they are all booked out, but actually they haven’t opened their calendar for January yet.

Don’t tell my husband…

Australian Romance Readers Convention

I would love to go to this!

In February 2009 the inaugural Australian Romance Readers Convention is being held in Melbourne.

There will be talks by Sherrilyn Kenyon, MaryJanice Davidson, Stephanie Laurens, Susan Donovan, Susan Grant and many many more.

Panels will cover all types of romance fiction from ebooks to series, erotica to the paranormal, the future of romance to where the "big" ideas come from.

Events planned include a reception and a dinner, booksignings and plenty of opportunities to meet with others who like romance just as much as you do.

Registrations for ARRC09 are open now – and until 31 October you can even get a discount. For more info go to www.australianromancereaders.com.au or email us at arrc09@gmail.com

If you aren’t able to make it to ARRC09 but you would like to help promote the event, you can request an "I wish I was going to ARRC" logo for your blog or website.

Wastelands updatery

Wastelands on Saturday was lovely. It’s small and intimate (love the twisty corridors at the Good Earth hotel!) and friendly. I went to more panels yesterday than I’ve been to in total at my last four conventions! Well, I was ON two of those panels… Hanging out with girliejones, battblush, Matty C, valeskah1, punkrocker1991and kathrynlinge, and seeing lilysea, ratfan, callistraand cheshirenoir- and me getting to enjoy it without worrying about the kids because the terribly awesome kaelajaelhad them for THE ENTIRE DAY until I picked them up at half past 11! I swear, I had no intention of staying that late, but it’s hard to leave when you’re having such good conversation. Don’t know what I can possibly do to repay kaelajaelfor her awesomeness. Will have to think about that.

Was on the Explosion in Small Press panel, and Women in Small Press panel, which was good. An interesting idea from one of the audience members regarding marketing, so I’m going to work on that. We also had the west coast launch of flinthart‘s novella Angel Rising with hot drinks and lots of cupcakes and lollies. I’m really pleased with sales of Angel at a mini-con like this one. It helps that it looks so pretty (thanks catsparx!).

So back again today, this time with kids, because I’m not committed to panels or launches. I told Matt to bring kids that matched mine, and chesh and calli’s boys are there, and Norah, and a couple of other littlies yesterday, so hopefully that goes well. Big boy will have his Nintendo to keep him occupied regardless, and I might take the laptop and some princess dvds for missy, in case I need to occupy her, but we’re not staying for more than a couple of hours because I HAVE to come home and do floors and tidyups as there’s a house inspection tomorrow. Yuck.

Oh, and I have some photos (hmmm, and some VIDEO), but can’t be bothered downloading right now. More later!

ETA: There are other people at the con too, who I haven’t managed to chat much to though, like angriest and stephen_dedman , and Nick S. and others I know. It’s a lovely little con!