Friday, October 19, 2012

RomantiCon 2012 was a blast!

Last week’s RomantiCon 2012 was a blast. I met up again with authors I hadn’t seen in a few years and met some new ones. The fun workshops make learning painless. And may I say the cavemen this year were particularly gorgeous. On Thursday night, there was a meet and greet party with my fave, karaoke. I was way out of practice but I managed not to clear the room with my singing. The cavemen danced with us as we sang.

Friday, we learned how to use hula hoops, which is a great calorie burner. Who knew? My favorite event of the whole convention was getting to pose with the male models as if it would go on a book cover. Imagine my surprise when I was lifted into the air! The camera, everyone watching, and being sandwiched between two shirtless hunks is enough to put a girl into sensory overload. That night we dressed up, celebrating Mayan Carnival. I finally got to wear the dress I’d been sewing and struggling to finish since June.

Saturday, we had a zumba lesson from the caveman who ultimately won the Alpha Caveman title. I’d heard of zumba but had never done it. I’ve never had so much fun working out. If only I could get that instruction every week. After that, we learned how to give lap dances and the volunteers had us in stitches of laughter.

That evening was apocalypse night. Since I don’t have any camo, I dressed like a vampire zombie. To my surprise, I won an award for my last book, Plucking the Pearl. It was great to meet fans. I felt like a celebrity!

Sunday, I had the best book signing ever. The four hours flew by with performances from the cavemen and Cleveland Exotic Dancers. After experiencing book signings early in my career where I sold no books or maybe one or two, this was fantastic. That night was the pizza and bingo party. We were all laughing so hard from the antics of the cavemen.

It was sad to see it end, but after four nights of partying I needed some rest. I realized I hadn’t danced or worn a fancy dress in a couple of years. Life had been too heavy and serious. This convention reminded me what FUN is and that it’s necessary. I’ll be back.

Afton Locke
www.aftonlocke.com

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