Back from the Nebulas

I had grand plans about staying on top of blogging while I was out of town, but in a rare move for me, I was barely in my room during waking hours. I only made it back to my room to drop stuff off or pick stuff up, then to change clothes, and then to sleep. Otherwise, I was out being reasonably social or going to events. I managed to tweet and Facebook a few things from my phone, but more detailed writing didn't happen.

It's hard to tell so soon just what kind of benefit I'll have received from this conference, but I'm glad I went. I learned a lot, got a lot of great ideas, made a few good contacts, and had fun. I don't know if I raised my profile at all, which was one of my hopes. I felt fairly invisible a lot of the time, and this may have been the first genre-fiction-related event I've been to in about a decade in which nobody I wasn't already friends with seemed to have the slightest idea who I was. One person mentioned having read my books. Otherwise, no one seemed to have heard of anything I'd written, and only a few people even asked me what I'd written. I was trying to ask others about their work or mention having read their work, but that tended to spur monologues about their work without any reciprocity. There were people I've been on convention panels with in the past who acted like they had no idea who I was.

But I was mostly there to learn and meet people, and I did meet some new people, so maybe at the next event it will be easier. I did have some pre-existing friends there with whom I had a really good time. The workshop sessions were pretty good. I have a notebook full of notes and ideas for things I might be able to try in my career, and I have a long to-do list of things I need to implement.

I did get in a bit of fangirling, as I ended up seated next to Naomi Novik at the awards banquet, and not only am I a fan of her books, but her husband was one of the writers involved with the series Haven, so I fangirled all over him (I think I shocked him at even recognizing who he was). They were lovely people and a lot of fun to talk to, and she won for best novel, which means that every time I've gone to the Nebula Awards, someone sitting at my table has won best novel. I should hire myself out as a lucky charm next year.

And since I went on at great length about the outfit I was making, here it is. I just made the bodice. I already had the skirt. You can see that I fit pretty well in the style of the hotel, as we see from the portrait of Bertha Palmer above the ornate fireplace. I had a lace capelet I'd knitted as a wrap, but I didn't get photos taken in it.