Party in Pittsburgh!

The 2019 GCLS conference is officially in the books, and what a week it was! I was excited to get home so I could share the news here on my blog, but I was greeted instead with a marked up manuscript of my upcoming book, The Lucky Ones. And a very short deadline for turning it around and getting it to the formatters. I worked on it all last week, and now Jenny’s going through it with the ferocity of a copy editor on steroids. One more pass and it’s out of here.

You may have heard my big news by now: A Proper Cuppa Tea won the Ann Bannon Popular Choice Award. I can’t possibly put into words how much it means to me that the GCLS membership found this book worthy of such a prestigious honor. With so many terrific authors out there telling the stories of our lives, I like to think we make each other better. I promise I’ll always strive to bring you the very best books I can.

Moments after I collected that lovely (and heavy!) piece of hardware, Jenny was honored with the Director’s Award for her work on the Independent Review Committee, which overhauled the process for judging the Goldie Awards. I couldn’t have been more proud. I watched her put hundreds of hours into that project, attacking it with the same gusto she did as VP for research at a major newspaper company. She sends a shout-out to the scores of writers, editors and readers who helped her by filling out surveys, submitting comments, and working on committees.

I’m sure if I thought about it, I could tell you more about the conference. The Saturday night awards left such an imprint on my heart that much of the rest is a blur of smiles, hugs, and meeting as many newbies as I could find. Whoever thought to give them lavender nametags — genius! One thing I remember with absolute certainly: It. Was. Cold. Personally, I think that was a ploy to sell more hoodies from the hotel gift shop. They were everywhere!

Finally, I’d like to extend a heartfelt thanks to all those who helped make the GCLS con the wonderful event it always is. The tireless board of directors, the army of volunteers, the media crew, the sponsors, the vendors, the judges, everyone who donated or bid on something for auction, and all the members who attend. We talk about GCLS being a community for books about women loving women. I think it’s more than that — it’s a co-op in which everyone has a contribution to make, a role to play. If you aren’t already a member of this fabulous organization, why not? Visit them at their brilliant new website: www.goldencrown.org.

See you next summer in Albuquerque!