LA SCBWI Recap, in which I meet my Agent, and dance the Love Shack with M.T. Anderson

Hey y'all! 

So, I'm back from the L.A. SCBWI conference, and although Sam told me to take plenty of pictures, I ended up with about 10 of Michael Bourret, and about 4 others.  

I'll get into specifics later, but here are the highlights of the trip:

- I met my agent Michael Bourret for the first time ever! 

He was a rock star at the conference, and every time he walked through the lobby, he got mobbed as if he were Keith Richards at a Stones concert. To his credit, he was kind and gracious to everyone.

 (Michael Bourret, me)

I had an hour with him, so of course I spent the first forty minutes discussing my obsession with Rafa, because that's exactly how I like to manage my time with my agent.

In my defense, I had just met a movie producer guy who hinted that he could introduce me to Rafa, and that's not a good thing to say to me as I'm heading off to meet my agent for the first time. 

It went something like this:

Michael: "Brodi, it's so good to finally meet you!"

me: "Hey! Speaking of "meeting", did you know there's a guy over there who said he could introduce me to Rafa Nadal? What can you do to make it happen faster?"

Great first impression.

-M.T. Anderson was at the conference. 

He wrote books like Feed and Octavian Nothing, so yeah, he was King. 

I went to a breakout session of his, where some random guy from the audience got to help him set up his projector. 

(M. T. Anderson and Random Guy (aka Matt Kirby) having a total fanboy moment)

Sorry, that's the only picture I got of M.T. I know it's blurry. And that's not a random guy. That's author Matt Kirby, but Matt accused me of blogging about him "all the time", especially about his "dancing", so I promised Matt I wouldn't mention his name in any of my conference blogs.

I'll blog more about M.T.'s breakout session on Friday.

- I went to the Hearts and Souls Ball. 

(Emily Wing Smith, Bree Despain, me, Sydney Salter)

I learned my lesson last year when I tried to wear shorts to the ball, and was promptly laughed off the dance floor. (btw, laughing someone off the dance floor is not as fun as it sounds. It is difficult to achieve, and painful for the target.)

This year, I wore a skirt! Unfortunately, I did not win "best costume." I think I was robbed.

- We danced!

(Me, Matt Kirby, Emily Wing Smith, Bree Despain)

Okay, so I don't have pictures of us dancing... unless you count this one.

Matt Kirby (a.k.a. "He who shall not be mentioned") claimed he couldn't (or wouldn't) be dancing, but the second the band started up with B-52's Love Shack, there was no stopping him. 

Eventually, M.T. Anderson came over to our little circle and danced with us, prompting this inscription in my book:

"To Brodi: What fun we had in the LOVE SHACK"

Which made my hubby laugh and laugh. And laugh. And I think raise an eyebrow.

- I went to a breakout session led by Michael Bourret and Jill Alexander, author of The Sweetheart of Prosper County. 

Michael and Jill killed in there. Literally, there were bodies, and limbs, and various types of bodily ooze, everywhere. They were that funny. 

After the cleanup crew bleached the place, I got a picture.

(Michael, Jennifer Hunt - editor at Little, Brown books, Emily, me)

-I got to meet up with authors!

That's the very cool thing about going to SCBWI. You get to hang out in the lobby and make friends with people who love children's books, and who are just as crazy as you.  Yes, you. I mean, me.

(Bree, me, Emily, Lindsey Leavitt -"Princess for Hire", Lisa Schroeder- "It's Raining Cupcakes")

- Did I mention I met my agent?

(me, wonderful girl whose name I don't know, Michael, Emily, Alice Pope of Team Blog fame)

Did I mention Michael accused me of blinding him with my cheap-a** camera? Did I mention I had to steal the camera cuz I don't have one of my own?

When he found out, Michael frowned and said, "We need to get you a book deal." I couldn't agree more. I'd like a deal at least large enough to buy me a camera that doesn't cause retinal damage. So, $250 should be fine. 

Okay, this post has gone on long enough. I'll have more later! I missed you all, and I would've blogged from the conference, but the hotel charged for Wi-Fi, and if I can't afford a camera, I certainly can't afford to pay for Wi-Fi, which should really be as free as air.

So, what have y'all been up to?