I’m leaving in a week to attend the Romance Writers of America (RWA) Annual Conference, which is meeting in Anaheim, California this year. This will be my third conference and my second RWA National. So, why am I nervous?
Oh yeah… I’m giving a workshop this time around. By myself.
How did that happen?
If you remember from my post talking about what makes us feel legitimate, I was supposed to do this workshop with my friend Rachel Graves. Since that post, life exploded and Rachel not only isn’t able to join me for the workshop, but she’s also not able to come to the RWA conference at all. *sad face*
She’s the one who came up with the idea for the workshop, so this change in plans bums me out in more ways than one. But as they say, the show must go on, so I’ll be presenting the workshop by myself.
If you’re going to the RWA conference, let me know so we can meet up. And if you’re interested in my Develop a Free Author Website in 60 Minutes (or Less!) workshop, I’ll be presenting it on Friday, July 27th, at 9:45am in the Platinum 7 room at the Anaheim Marriott. Here’s the blurb:
Develop a Free Author Website in 60 Minutes (or Less!) (CAREER)
Speaker: Jami Gold
Got an hour? Get a website! In this workshop—presented by a social media ninja—learn how to create an author website using WordPress and other free Internet resources.
*blinks* Yep, that’s still my name up there, all by its lonesome. So now in addition to my usual stress over packing for a conference and prepping for a pitch appointment, I’m also getting ready for my workshop. It’s a good thing I have my handy-dandy ultimate packing list from the last time I went to RWA National.
The Ultimate RWA Conference Packing List
- Clothes (casual business most of the time, dressier business for pitches or editor/agent meetings, dressy for Awards Ceremony)
- Comfortable shoes & gel inserts
- Snacks for between workshops when you can’t stop for lunch
- Medications (no hangovers allowed) & prescriptions
- Your schedule
- Laptop/cellphone/camera (& chargers/power cords)
- Paper/pen/highlighter
- Business cards
- Small toiletry case for purse or bag
- Some way to ship back or carry your goodies
- Some way to personalize your RWA tote bag to make it easier to find among the 2000 identical bags
- Small sewing kit for wardrobe malfunctions
- Bandaids for blisters
- Mints/candies to suck on for energy and fresh breath
- Swimsuit/coverup/workout clothes (for all that *ahem* unscheduled time you don’t have)
- Cardigan for chilly conference rooms
- Dress purse for Awards Dinner
- Earplugs, white noise app on phone
- Umbrella (shouldn’t need this for California this year)
- Cash for tips, Literacy Booksigning, dining with friends, vending machines
- Extension cord for hotel room (2-4 women, 1 sink—do the math)
- Extra hangers for hanging all your nice clothes in the closet
- Pins for lanyard (PRO, chapter, etc.)
- Sharpie marker, tape
- Hand sanitizer, wet wipes, stain stick or wipes, moisturizer
Other things to prepare and do:
- Print out of hotel reservation, and email all important documents to yourself to ensure you have copies
- Attach business card to phone/camera in case it gets misplaced
- Make sure you drink plenty of water
*whew* All right, what am I forgetting? *smile*
Do you have anything else to add to this list? Are you going to the RWA conference? How do you prepare for big trips (are you as much of a over-achieving perfectionist as I am, or do you go with the flow)? Have you given workshops or presentations before? What advice do you have for me?
P.S. If you’d like to attend my workshop but aren’t going to RWA, stay tuned, as I’ll be offering it through other venues soon.
P.P.S. If you live in the Anaheim area, the Literacy Autographing event is open to the public:
The 2012 “Readers for Life” Literacy Autographing will be held at the Anaheim Convention Center at Wednesday, July 25, 2012, from 5–8 p.m. in the Ballroom (third floor). There is no admittance fee. Please note: All books to be signed must be purchased at this event. Proceeds from book sales go to ProLiteracy Worldwide, Read Orange County, and Literacy Volunteers—Huntington Valley.
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