Sleep deprivation aside, the Romance Writers of Australia 2012 Conference at the Gold Coast was a fabulous time. With all the roadworks it took nearly seven hours to drive down, but all fatigue lifted at the sight of our fabulous accommodation at the Surfers Paradise Crown Towers Resort.
My daughter-in-law, Cherie (writing as Cheryse Durrant), and I were sharing with fantasy author Rowena Cory Daniells (who also writes paranormal crime for Clan Destine Press) and artist/writer Jacque Duffy. Clan Destine Press Publisher (and author), Lindy Cameron, took advantage of being in Brisbane for a few days to pop in for a visit. Apart from catching up with her CDP authors, Rowena and me, her ulterior motive was to surprise Cherie/Cheryse with a three-book contract for her fantasy Heart Hunter trilogy. This trilogy tells the story of Shahkara, half-Taloner, half-human, and all kick-arse heroine. “Demon Hunter”, book 1 in the series, will be launched in either April or May next year. As you can imagine, that led to much celebration, followed by lots of brainstorming on the best way to promote Cheryse’s forthcoming books. LJ Smith (Vampire Diaries) has read the first one and endorsed it: “SHAHKARA, the book, is unique, and Shahkara, the character, is one of the most engaging strong female role models I’ve seen in a long time. This girl can handle herself! The plot is full of ingenious twists, turns and surprises, and I look forward to reading the next book in the series.”
It was an awesome weekend, Mum. The resort was spectacular and the company was brilliant and the three-book contract from Clan Destine Press… the icing on the cake. Thanks for playing chauffeur, senior author and apartment director #FunTimesWithFellowAuthors 🙂