Angie’s Thoughts:
I really hate to start off a review on a negative note but I have to say this first. My experience, as well as some of my friends, started out on a bad note. I felt like I was not important and was pushed to the side when asking questions but I didn’t let that get me down.
When I checked in on Friday to pre-register the girls at the desk were extremely nice and helpful. We got to pick what color bracelet we wanted to wear and I really loved this instead of the paper ones. The only downside was that they didn’t have the author tables map when we checked in. I was told it was online but when you’re in a hotel with hundreds of other people it’s really inconvenient to find a printer to print it off.
My friends went to the meet and greet on Friday so I’m going to use their experience for this part of the review. The meet and greet was split up into two dinners (8pm and 9pm). You didn’t know which dinner you had until you were at the restaurant. They both were in the 8pm. They said the food was really good. They also said they felt rushed and they didn’t get to talk much to any of the other authors or people who were there. As at the 9pm one, it seemed more relaxed and people took their time and mingled. After dinner was done I joined them for drinks at the bar. We all had a great time there. Lol.
On the day of the event, we got there a little after 9. We weren’t sure where to get our bags at but the extremely nice women at registration helped us and even got mine for me. Where we had carts we stood at the elevators until the event opened.
The elevators opened right into the ticketed authors section and I thought I was at a Justin Bieber concert. It was so congested. Women pushing women. Some saying excuse me while others were aggravated and barreling through with their carts and determination on their faces.
I had to take a step back and admire it for a moment despite the chaotic scene. This wasn’t a Justin Bieber concert but a testament to what a true fangirl and fanboy look like. All these book nerds were here for their love of books and these wonderful authors who took their time and money just so we could see them, hug them, cry or even just stare. We didn’t care if it took us hours to get through the lines. We made friends as we waited. We had the chance to gawk from afar before seeing our favorite authors up close. We had the chance to think about what we wanted to say. We were in pure awe!
The ticketed author section was really cramped and not ideal for the amount of fans that came to see them. I mean when you have Alessandra Torre, Jasinda and Jack Wilder, Abbi Glines, Mia Sheridan, Tara Sivec, and Tiffany Reisz in one area then it’s going to be crazy. After all, we are crazy book lovers and stalkers.
I loved how they had bracelets for each author and how they were color coded. I also liked how they had a volunteer at the end of each line to help maintain the chaos and make sure no one was jumping line. They had TV’s everywhere displaying what ticket number (in 10’s) each author was on, just in case you didn’t hear Kiki’s voice.
The rest of the day went smoothly. I went, I saw and I conquered. I may not have gotten my beautiful book signed by everyone that my co-blogger, Liezel, designed for me but that’s ok. I met who I wanted to meet. Despite the bad start, it ended on a great note and I made lifetime memories with some great friends and authors. I might’ve cried when I seen Michelle Leighton, stared awkwardly at Alessandra Torre, got my words twisted with Willow Aster, sang Happy Birthday to Tara Sivec, and kissed Mia Sheridan on the head but those were one of the best times of my life!
Couldn’t make it to the event? We have something for you!
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