Next week is BookExpo America, the largest book conference in the United States. It’ll be my first year going. My boss at the bookstore I worked in always said next year would be my turn to go, and then next year would roll around and he would apologize and leave the store to me for a week. This year, I’ll be able to meet him up there and grab some lunch together, catch up a bit.

BEA is mostly about showcasing upcoming releases and doing business between booksellers and publishers. Some bookstore owners do their catalog ordering right there on the floor. There are authors signing copies of books and stacks of advance copies and free books to whoever wants them. I’m expecting a little chaos.

I have a couple of talks planned and interviews scheduled. Most of my time will be spent at booth #966: Bestselling Indies. I got an invite a while back from a group of the bestselling authors in the business. Even though I sell a fraction of what they do, they took pity on me and asked if I wanted to go in on the booth with them. It’s going to be a chance to hang out with my heroes and trailblazers like Bella Andre, CJ Lyons, Barbara Freethy, Stephanie Bond, and Tina Folsom. I can’t wait!