My next disappointment with day 3 came with a decision I had made in my planning for day 2. Since I knew that an author I really wanted to meet, AG Howard, was signing both Friday and Saturday morning at 9 am, I decided to wait till Saturday, because Becca Fitzpatrick was only there on Friday. Sounds like a good plan, right? However, because Saturday was Book Con, the book I would have been handed for free on Friday, a finished copy of Unhinged, I had to purchase. It was a discounted price, but still kind of stung to have to pay for it just for waiting 24 hours. But, I knew it was a book I'd have to buy at some point since I'd not received a physical ARC of it, so I dealt with that as well. And I got to meet AG Howard, who I have really enjoyed interacting with on social media like Facebook and Twitter, having read and loved her book series. And, it was starting my day off on plan still.
After this I headed over to where I really wish I'd saved my front of the line pass. I have never met Cassandra Clare, and really wish I could have. But I also knew that I had to see Maggie Stiefvater again, I had to share with her my photo of her and I at BEA 2012 that was in a biography of her. So while I was standing in line, getting closer to seeing Maggie, the people with me in line were saying that I should show the people in the Cassandra Clare booth my ticket to meet her, that I didn't use, and see if I could at least get a copy of the book she was signing at that time, The Shadowhunter's Codex. She actually ended up signing one more, as the ones she'd been signing had been boxed up, and even waved to me over in the line. But alas, I didn't get a picture.
Finally I got up to see Maggie Stiefvater. Of course, she recognizes me by now. I guess I kind of stand out with always asking the same kind of questions. But I had her sign the biography book, even while I was able to get an ARC of Shiver. Of course I will have to pre-order a copy of Shiver so that I can get one with the special jacket she designed. Next pay day for sure! They took lots of candid shots of her looking at the biography, but I'll just share one, and then my picture with her, with my usual dorky smile that I get when I'm really excited and don't have time to control my smile. :-)
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After Maggie Stiefvater I was in for a bunch of disappointments. I had met Jackie Morse Kessler before, and really wanted her book, but because I'd met her, I didn't want to wait in line. So, I was able to see her after the above signing, and get a picture with her, but unfortunately no copies of her new book, To Bear an Iron Key.
An author that I think had a big line earlier in the convention, had a pretty small line today. I know I'd put the book down as one to try to get, but not sure if it was for me, or for a giveaway. Anyway, I got an ARC of The Fire Artist by Daisy Whitney, and met the author as well.
There were some authors I didn't even know would be there until I saw a copy of the Book Con guide for the day. One of them was a disappointment as he ended up being cancelled when I went by to check his line, Steve Alten, and I'm a huge fan, so that was very disappointing. But another was Sophie Littlefield. I'm a fan of her zombie series, Aftertime, and also her YA book Hanging by a Thread. The book I got of hers for this, House of Glass, isn't really my type, but I did get to meet her, so that was cool!
Now I know that next I got to meet Scott Sigler, and I know that I had a picture taken with him, but I can't find it on my phone! It's possible that maybe I forgot to get it, I was in a bit of a texting argument with my sister at the time about an activity she had planned for us when I got done with BEA for the day. So while I can't show you the picture of me and Scott Sigler, I did meet him and get a copy of Pandemic.
After this I went and got in line for an author that they hadn't really started the line for yet. But he is another one that I think was only there for Book Con, but is a really great author, Matt de la Pena. His latest book, The Living, is the one I got a copy of. And actually it is my favorite of all of his books, because it is more than just a contemporary fiction, it has a bit of an adventure with a shipwreck. And I got to be 2nd in line to meet him as well!
About this time my text argument came to a full head of steam, and I was getting pretty upset. So, I ended up leaving early, because I was upset, and I missed out on getting a copy of a Jonathan Maberry book I hadn't read, which made me a bit disappointed. But then I reminded myself about how many books I actually had already, so I was okay with it I guess. I did take a picture of one author that I don't read, but I know is really popular, Sylvia Day.
I didn't try to stand in line for Alex London either, although I would have liked to have met the author of Proxy. I kind of enjoyed that book, but had trouble getting back into the sequel as an e-galley that I had, so don't know when or if I'll get to finish that story. I also was able to get a copy of the Holly Black book, The Darkest Part of the Forest, even though I was unable to meet her due to not having a ticket and the horrible lines anyway. Here is a picture of my haul from that last day. Now, I didn't include the extra stuff I got. I had planned to do a separate picture of all the bags and stuff I got, but never got around to it I guess.
As awesome as it is to have a free place to stay in such an expensive city, I kind of think if I ever go to BEA again, I'd like to stay in a hotel near the convention center and spend more time immersed in the convention and the other activities. I probably will not attend BEA next year, even though it is the last year in NYC that I would have my sister to stay with for free. You see in order to afford to go to this, I have to skip my family annual get together on Memorial Day weekend in Branson, MO. Now my sister that I stay with in NYC doesn't seem to understand why that is so important to me. It isn't necessarily that it is Branson, it is just that it is a tradition, and I love to spend that time with family. I may try to go to the ALA Midwinter conference in Chicago next year. I really wish I could go to ALA this year, in Las Vegas, but the plane ticket alone was way too expensive. And maybe, I'll take both conferences off and save money next year, because in 2016, ALA will be in Orlando, and I want to go there so bad for the Harry Potter park at Universal Studios. So that would totally be worth waiting and saving money for I think.
