I met Laurell K Hamilton on 4/23/03 and it was AMAZING. There is NOTHING like hanging out with one of your favorite authors. It actually creeped me out, because we are a lot alike. We look similar (same hair, same body type, same complexion, same height...etc) and even wore the same outfits! It was incredibly, lovably, intense ... and felt so natural & comfortable that I almost cried. I was near the front of the line, so about 10 of us were allowed inside for about 45 min before they let the second group in. It was great to talk to other fans, though many
had only just now began picking up Laurell's books, with the April 3rd (my b-day!) release of Cerulean Sins - s'ok, though: better late than never! Heh. For those of you that are fans of LKH, she spoke about many things to me, including movie rights - she is a bit fearful of selling the rights to a prod company & is not sure that a script/cast would still allow her characters to retain their personality ... and I completely agree with her; Look at what happened to the Anne Rice films! Great as they are, but NOT when compared to the books. LKH also spoke to me about future deaths of characters. She told me that she "had made a deal in the beginning with Anita that none of the men she loved would die." Hmmmm... I told her about the fantasy book I was working on (Kismet) and how her books are a brilliant inspiration to me. My best friend commented to LKH about Laurell & her husband's set of rings - how unique they were (white gold w/ inset stones). Her husband (a handsome, very sweet guy - long hair like Richard though a darker blondish color, surprisingly enough ... ^_^) mentioned how the Official Fan Site had recently been revamped in early April and for everyone to check it out.I also thanked Laurell her for her more-or-less realistic portrayal of pagans in her books. She told me how she hates the satanic stereotype that modern witches are plagued with. I was surprisingly a bit tongue tied (I am usually very comfortable around authors) at first, but LKH & her husband's warm personalities drew me out.All in all, everyone was fantastically down to earth. I spoke to many of the bookstore staff. Shameless plug: EVERYONE SHOULD VISIT BORDERLANDS in San Francisco's Mission District (or check out their new website here). The shop is off the beaten path -- primarily horror/fantasy/sci-fi. Lots of gothic/pagan items, as well. Everyone there is disgustingly friendly -- I loved them all. Basically, it was a freaking BLAST! LKH, my best friend Jonelle, & I talked for awhile, took some pics ... Couldn't believe how alike we were...