Chris and I are in Washington, DC, attending the Association of Writers & Writing Programs (AWP)’s annual conference, along with 15,000 other writers. It is absolutely mind-boggling to see so many aspiring authors all together in one venue. The conference, itself, is being held at the Washington Convention Center, but various activities take place off-site, at hotels and restaurants in the DC area.
Like tonight’s reading…
Fairfield University’s MFA Program and New Rivers Press sponsored a reception/reading for their recently-published authors at the Mandu, an upscale Korean restaurant on K Street NW. The food was delicious and the company was wonderful. I finally got to meet Nayt from New Rivers Press, the very patient man who oversaw the editing of Frozen Voices. And he was just as nice as I thought he would be, too!
I did a brief reading from Frozen Voices and then about a half-dozen other authors read from their newly-published books, too: Matt Winkler, Elizabeth Searle, and others. Really good stuff! Although it was a bit noisy in the restaurant, everyone in the loft listened attentively and applauded enthusiastically. A lot of fun!
The AWP Conference was amazing: thousands of writers attending hundreds of seminars. Chris and I spent much of our time at the Bookfair, the huge room with all of the tables/stalls for all of the schools, publishers, and other organizations that wanted to distribute information and sell books. I spent a few hours signing copies of Frozen Voices at both the Fairfield University MFA booth and the New Rivers Press booth. I really enjoyed talking to people about their own writing projects, too…so many innovative story concepts!
Al Davis and me at the New Rivers Press Booth, AWP Conference, Washington DC, 2017
While in DC, Chris and I went out with some good friends to celebrate my birthday at a Cuban restaurant. The meal was delicious and then I got to blow out a candle stuck into some yummy rice pudding. How do you beat that?