Monday, April 30, 2012

A to Z - Zany

  1. a man who is a stupid incompetent fool
  2. a buffoon in one of the old comedies; imitates others for ludicrous effect
  3. like a clown; "a buffoonish walk"; "a clownish face"; "a zany sense of humor"
  4. pungent adjectives of disesteem; "gave me a cockamamie reason for not going"; "wore a goofy hat"; "a silly idea"; "some wacky plan for selling more books"
  5. A merry-andrew; a buffoon.
  6. To mimic.
Okay. That's one I've never heard before. A merry-andrew?

Definition of merry-andrew: clown: a person who amuses others by ridiculous behavior.

Well, folks. We survived. We completed A to Z. Phew.

And Woot! (that means We Owned the Other Team, btw.)


Now, I'm taking a rest and heading to the Storymakers conference this Friday and Saturday. I'm also doing something called Publication Primer. I hear my drill sergeant (though this isn't bootcamp) is brutal but brilliant. I hope to have lots to report next week, especially since I'm taking all master classes this year.

When I went last year I knew almost no one. What a difference a year makes! I became a member of the wonderful Authors Incognito group (you have to have attended a Storymakers conference to join), and I've found an incredible and supportive community of writers and authors. They provide online training, the most recent was a two-week long series on pitches. The first week was on writing and preparing to present it. The second week was on going beyond the pitch, presenting yourself. And this was all before the conference!

Seriously. Am I lucky or what?

And the fabulous Sarah Eden is going to be the Master of Ceremonies again. Sarah writes regency romance and has a delightful sense of humor. I read her books to my hubby, and he likes them. Did I mentioned that I love Love LOVE her books?

Storymakers also has something called the Whitney Awards. These are to recognize LDS authors. I'm a sucker for speculative fiction, so here are the finalists (a complete list of the finalists can be found here):
  • The Alloy of Law: A Mistborn Novel by Brandon Sanderson
  • I Don't Want to Kill You by Dan Wells
  • The Lost Gate by Orson Scott Card
  • A Night of Blacker Darkness by Dan Wells
  • No Angel by Theresa Sneed

I've read four of the five, and I'm embarrassed to admit it's Scott Card's book I haven't gotten to yet. I didn't go to the awards banquet last year. I'm so going this year.

Have you ever attended a writing conference that changed your life?


P.S.

I was hoping to hit the 600 follower mark with A to Z, but while I've followed a ton of new people few of them have followed me back. And I really, really wanted to hit that nice round number of 600. I sent out a plea to a new group I've joined of clean romance writers and within 10 minutes I had 9 new followers. Thank you, ladies!

30 comments:

  1. Congrats on finishing the challenge and your followers aim.
    Most enjoyable post as always.

    Yvonne.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Congratulations on making it to the end - well done! I have to say, I never heard of a 'merry-andrew' before, that's a new one.

    Enjoy the conference!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Congrats on finishing this and reaching over 600 followers.

    Enjoy your conferences. They sound awesome.

    ReplyDelete
  4. now you have 602, it's not a round number any more. Zany the cat can be, as he is quite the fool.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Well done for completing. Hope you have a wonderful conference and I'll be interested to read your report about it... and well done for hitting the 600 mark ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Congrats on finishing the A to Z!

    Feels like an accomplishment, doesn't It.

    Have a great time at your conference too. Be sure to report back to all of us.

    ReplyDelete
  7. A fabulous finish to the A to Z! Congratulations!

    Enjoy the conference.

    Lucy

    ReplyDelete
  8. Yay for 600! I've read 3 of the 5 books there, but I'm working on the other two :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. Donna, you've been amazing. I've loved your A-Z posts. And have sooooo much fun at Storymakers! I wish I was going!!!! :(

    ReplyDelete
  10. Great post! I love the word merry-andrew, it's been one of favs for a long time.

    I'm going to Storymakers this week too, so I'll see you there! It's going to be awesome!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Congrats and I can't wait to hear all about the Storymakers conference.

    ReplyDelete
  12. You have over six hundred followers now! (And several others have mentioned people not following back, so it's not just you.)
    Several others have posted about Storymakers so I bet you'll know lots of people this year.
    You made it through the Challenge - congratulations!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Wow, look at you! over 600 followers! I just went over 400 myself. I, too, followed many new blogs with out reciprocal action. The challenge was a bit disappointing in that way. But I did have fun.

    As for the conference, I hope you have a blast and learn a lot. The Publication Primer is perfect for you since I know you will be published very soon! I will attending my first one in October and cannot wait. Enjoy your rest!

    ReplyDelete
  14. I see you beat the 600...congrats for sure!!

    I had hope to make 100 but fell short. Not complaining, just hope some of the 60 new folks will still read after A-Z. LOL!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Now, I *know* I've followed your blog for a number of months but I didn't appear in GFC, so I added myself. Sorry!

    Congrats on making it to the end of A-Z! I've never heard the phrase "merry-andrew" either!

    ReplyDelete
  16. I haven't gone to a writer's conference yet but I hear a lot of people are going to Storymakers. Enjoy!

    ReplyDelete
  17. ha... glad to see you could endure the challenge--I would have given up.


    I love Brandon Sanderson and Orson Scott Card.

    ReplyDelete
  18. How about a nice, round 605? ;) I'm so going to use "merry Andrew" in conversation - just to see the looks I get. Have fun at the conference & congrats on completing A to Z.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Congrats on going beyond 600 followers. :D

    I know someone else who is going to the conference. Are you going to pitch to an agent?

    ReplyDelete
  20. Congratulations on 600 followers, Donna! That's amazing. :D

    Have fun at Storymakers!

    ReplyDelete
  21. 600 - that's awesome!!! I'm not even close to that! But you're amazing, so it doesn't surprise me. I can't wait to see you at Storymakers! This is my first year for that conference and I am looking forward to it! See you soon!

    ReplyDelete
  22. Just me DL & DS. 600 is a nice round number, I made 200, but I didn't visit as many people as I would have liked. Found the same thing a lot who did NOT follow back, oh well, I have trouble keeping up with the 200 or should I say the 20 who come around to comment regularly.

    Jealous about Storymakers. You had better TELL ALL.

    Still'dancing' over the other news. You better keep me posted.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Card's book was so far my favorite, although I enjoyed No Angel. I am an avid Card fan and have read most of what he's written. I even have signed books from him. I'm so so jealous that you get to go to Storymakers. I'm there in spirit. I'll be that ookie breeze that keeps reminding you that you wish you'd taken a coat...rofl

    ReplyDelete
  24. As for the 600 followers, CONGRATS!!! Someday...

    And I have heard of a Merry Andrew, but infrequently, of course.

    Have fun at the conference!

    ReplyDelete
  25. Can't wait to see you at the con! Congrats on finishing the A-Z challenge.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Congrats on 600 followers (WOW!) and on making it through the A-Z challenge!!! :D

    ReplyDelete
  27. Great job as always on the A-Z. And thanks for clearing up the WOOT. Always wondered what that meant, but never bothered to look it up. I just thought someone got lazy with Woo Hoo or something :)

    Melanie

    ReplyDelete
  28. Hello.
    Visiting from the Post A-Z Road Trip.

    Congratulations on completing the challenge and making it past 600 followers! Your rap kitties are awesome...they really do look like they have the right moves! LOL
    Thanks for sharing.

    Thoughts Of Beauty In The Stillness Of Dawn...

    ReplyDelete

Comments brighten my day.

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...