Book 'Em

When we go to comiccons and book festivals, we often talk about cosplayers, the event itself, actors we met, etc. But this time, I'd like to talk about the unsung heroes of these events--our fellow authors.

This past weekend, we were fortunate enough to attend a Book 'Em event. It started out on Friday night with a very nice author reception. I actually flat-ironed my hair for the first time in weeks. LOL! If you haven't seen my Instagram, let me catch you up--Erin and the longer hair situation.

Anyhoo, here is me and my sexy stud as we headed out to the reception.

At the author dinner, we met several super cool people like Hector Miray, who combines two fascinating topics in his book Faith and Fandom: Finding God In Sci-Fi, Superheroes, & Video Games. 

We also met the extremely lovely and kind Wendy Fields, author of It Was God and It Too Was God. She looks so much like one of my aunts that I had to do a double take every time she walked by!

We had a great time at the dinner, talking to the coordinators and learning about other authors and their books.

The next day, we headed out to set up our booth and discovered our boothmates (the people you sit next to in your booth). Boothmates can make or break an event, and we've always been fortunate to have really cool ones.

This time, we had Suzanne Adair to our left. She's the author of a historical fiction series about mysteries in the American Revolution. With the 250th anniversary on the horizon, she's busy doing all sorts of events related to her work! From sitting beside her, we discovered she raised two sons nearly on her own, lived in England, and loves speculative fiction.

Check out Suzanne's books: Mysteries of the American Revolution

To our right, we had retired military man R. Lee Linebarger and his sweet wife, Julie. Both Deek's dad and my dad served in the military, so we were excited to have a former soldier as a boothmate. He is a poet and has written poems about being a soldier. From sitting beside him, we learned about his children, met a military friend of his, and learned Lee doesn't like to smile for pictures! I actually found this endearing because my PaPa didn't smile for pictures either; he used to do his classic thumbs-up in place of a smile.

Check out Lee's poems: Thoughts of an Old Soldier

And last but certainly not least, we also shared space with Jordon Greene. Now, we've been boothmates with Jordon before, and we just love his energy. He's always ready with a quick smile! We admired his beautiful table set up and learned that his latest cover was made by an artist he met at a comiccon! This cover is *gorgeous*!!

If you don't already follow Jordon on social media, you so should!

Instagram

Facebook

Twitter

Website

Check out Jordon's vast array of books from horror to YA: Jordan Greene

I love meeting fans, readers, nerds, and cosplayers, but I also love meeting my fellow authors. We're in this thing together, supporting one another in a hard industry. And I'm so very thankful we got to sit with these three amazing people for this event and meet or catch up with countless others throughout the day!

And a final thought...

What a hottie!

I am so, so, so fortunate that I get to do this thing I love with this man I love. I watch him interact with people--and I see how much they enjoy his company (who wouldn't--he's the best)--and I'm so very proud to be his wife and his partner! I love you, Deek Rhew! #Always

Exciting Times Ahead!

Thanks to Facebook's "On This Day," Deek realized he'd been working on The Extractor for a year now.

Our process is creatively dumping the story in about three to four months and then spending a good six to nine self-editing. When Deek finished self-editing, he sent it over to me, and I performed a content edit. Now he's almost done with his revisions based on my notes, and then he'll send it Anya Kagan at Touchstone Editing for her review. Once he's implemented her changes, he'll send it back to me for line edits. Whew! Sounds exhausting? It can be, but we love the process!!

And after all that...he'll be ready to submit to agents!

via GIPHY

I personally think this story is unique and intriguing enough to warrant agent attention. And that's not just a proud wife talking (though I am that); it's an editor who has seen a lot of submissions and worked on a lot projects.

It's geeky and sci-fi--yes, plenty of that goodness--but it raises interesting questions about who we are and what makes us, well, us.

via GIPHY

And I am SO thrilled to announce that Deek's publisher, Tenacious Books Publishing, will be releasing an audio book of Birth of An American Gigolo on May 15! Y'all, they picked an AMAZING voice actor who totally captured the essence of Lindsey and the rest of the crew. A big thank you and shout out to Crystal at Femme Vocale! 

For those who love Sam Bradford and the 122 Rules saga, don't worry, Book 2 is in the works and should be out in 2019! There may even be a new cover for Book 1, from none other than the supremely talent Anita Carroll! Although, I do like what she did with the first cover, she and Deek have some smashing ideas for a revamp!

122 Rules Original cover

As for me, I've got my sci-fi, The Transhuman Project, out with some agents and am waiting to hear back. Y'all, the writing world is a serious test of patience. I'm not a good waiter, but I'm trying to be. I also got some awesome feedback from a stellar agent about Restore To Me. I'm working on implementing those changes, and hopefully something will come of that in the near future. 

The Transhuman Project's inspiration photo

Right now, I'm also working on an editing project through the Rhewbix Cube deal. If you haven't heard of it, take a gander here. You'll have the chance to work with Anya, Anita, and me, and we'll make sure you have a book ready to be published, formatting and all, by the end of the process.

Take advantage of the Rhewbix Cube deal!

Exciting times are ahead for the Rhews! We're cranking out books just as fast as we can while keeping quality in mind. But sure to stay tuned...and hang on for the ride! ;) 

Random notation: I've noticed that the longer I've been with Deek, the bigger my smile gets. I think in the beginning, I was still trying to figure out if a man could *actually* be as awesome, thoughtful, and wonderful as he seemed. But now, I know he really and truly is that amazing and more. Just a fun observation I had of late. Man, do I love me some Deek Rhew. I'm the luckiest girl in the world! 

If I smile any bigger, I'm going to break my face.

This man makes me happier than I ever dreamed I could be!

Crystal Coast Con 2017

This year, we headed down to the Crystal Coast to participate in our second year of Crystal Coast Con!! We love everything about this con--the people who run it, the people who attend it, the unique venue, and the beach! Over the last year, we've been to a lot of cons, and we always compare them to Crystal Coast Con! ;)

Come see what we love so much...

On the way there, we stopped for a little beach time.

Hubba hubba...that driver! ;) 

Deek and I were thrilled to put our toes in the sand!

Gorgeous sunset!

This is the face you make when you're supposed to be eating paleo, but the Dunkin Donuts next door touts Maple Bacon Sandwiches...

Deek got to set up his new banner! WOOT! Awesome job, Anita!

Let's talk about fantasy!!

Team Tenacious right here! 

Two Tenacious Books Publishing authors together again!

Deek Rhew and Chrissy Lessey

Y'all, we met Denise Crosby. For those of you who are Trekkies, you'll recognize this beauty as Tasha Yar!! Let me tell you, she's classy, kind, and very personable. I'm so thankful to have met her!

I love how much Deek loves comic cons. He's like a kid in a candy store! LOL!

This guy's ready for a fight!

The force is strong in this one.

Babylon 5!

Storm Troopers in da house!

Can you get over this costume!??!

I have always loved trolls...

A female Maui workin' it! 

Aren't our book bundles purty?

Cons are FUN but tiring, so Deek and I were so grateful that MacDaddy's provided us with our very own carafe of coffee!! I think that's my third cup...

Getting close to the end of the day. We're tired, but we're having a blast!

The lady who keeps our pup while we're at cons texted a picture of him on his walk.

<squeezey heart>

End of con Snapchat shenanigans...

Since the con is only one day, we got to enjoy the beach again before we headed home!

This is THE beach where Deek proposed, so we reenacted the "after proposal" kiss.

Hey, I'll take any reason to smooch with my handsome hubby!!

A hurricane was a long way off shore, but it made the water do crazy things!

I love the beach! One day, Deek and I *will* live there...

This man, y'all. This man.

I am stoked and blessed beyond belief to get to do life with this wonderful, funny, talented, loving, amazing man! 

We hope to see you at Crystal Coast Con 2018 next year!! Cool guests, the beach, and a fun venue...what more could you ask for?

Until then, geek on!

Cape Fear Comic Con

Since moving back to the South, Deek and I have been getting involved in the comiccon circuits, and we're having a total blast. We've met some really amazing people and had a great time interacting with fellow sci-fi/fantasy nerds!

To round out this year's series, you can find us at:

Crystal Coast Con

September 23, 2017

 (Tasha Yar from Star Trek will be there--SQUEAL!)

Jacksonville Comic Con

November 4, 2017

**We may be in one more in October, but we're still working out the details.**

For 2018, we're already signed up to participate in IllogiCon again! Can't wait!

January 12-14, 2018

But this past weekend, we had the pleasure of attending Cape Fear Comic Con! We met two of the coordinators-- Papa Stro and Dave Atwell -- at last year's Crystal Coast Con, and we were stoked when they invited us to Cape Fear Comic Con!

We had a long drive, but we arrived early and got all set up.

Note Deek's new banner! Awesome, huh? (#AnitaisAmazing)

Lawd, my hubby is a hottie!

We were a little tired but ready to have fun!

Nothing a little coffee couldn't help! ;)

Thanks to Java Dog Coffee House for the great coffee and adorbs sticker!

Some pre-festivities Snapchatting

Eastern Exotics Wildlife Foundation had the booth behind us.

Have I mentioned I'm terrified of snakes?

Gus, who came with us, watched the huge snake with fear and trembling (as did his Mama).

We saw some awesome cosplay costumes!

This lovely lady was "the final frontier." She had lights and the Enterprise in her hair! 

TOO COOL!

Riddle me this / Riddle me that / Who's afraid / Of the big, black bat?

Obviously, Batman Forever is my favorite because...lifelong crush on Val Kilmer. ;)

George Farmer sat beside us, and he kindly drew Deek and me as Khal Drogo and Khalessi from Game of Thrones. I could *not* have been more pleased with the result!!

If you're in the area, we'd love to see you at the next comiccon! We love going to them and meeting so many fun, wonderful people!!

 Until next time, geek on!

I leave you with...more Snapchat pics. ;) 

PS. If you're a writer and need some help with your first chapter (or first couple of chapters), contact me! I'm a professional editor, and I'm on the acquisitions team at two presses. The first five people to sign up get a special deal! ;) http://www.erinrhewbooks.com/editing-and-design.html