On
July 4th, 2012 we set out on a trip to Nashville, TN. Our
destination: the 1St (yes the 1st) annual UtopYA convention.
It’s a convention unlike any other because it’s geared toward both the female
authors and fans of the ever-so-wonderful paranormal genre. Ready to embark on
this adventure, we packed the Ford Edge to the brim with our stuff, and could
barely fit in another author’s (Raine Thomas) things. We had known Raine prior
to this excursion, but after the trip we all came to the agreement that our
friendship was completely and utterly solidified! We had such a fun road trip
even through the intense heat, crazy windstorms (almost tornado-like), and
meeting some wonderfully “interesting” people along the way. We even stopped by
Crossville, TN for an INCREDIBLY FUN author meet and greet at the local
library. We met so many great people there including the two hosts for the
event, Heather “SupaGurl” (an absolutely fabulous person and book blogger) and
Margot (one of the sweetest women alive!).
When
we first heard of the UtopYA convention back in December, we were told that it
was an event for authors and fans of the paranormal to meet and learn from each
other. We also found out that its focus was on female authors, and there was no
mention of any male ones. Now, y’all know that we’re an author duo, and the
reason why Carol (the mom) started writing was because of Adam (the son). How
could Carol go to a convention without him? Well she couldn’t. So, she typed a
little email to Janet Wallace, the WONDERFUL founder of UtopYa, and Jaime
Anderson, her AMAZING ASSISTANT, and they both said Adam would be more than
welcome. In fact they wanted us on to speak on two panels: one had us talking
about the importance of book covers and the other was about how our group, THE
PARANORMAL PLUMES SOCIETY, helps one another through the use of collaborative
marketing, and how we assist each other through the many pitfalls of writing.
Once
we arrived in Nashville, we met so many authors who we only knew online
(through Twitter and Facebook), and the fun only escalated from there.
Exhausted from our trip, we fell fast asleep that night in anticipation of the
first day at our first convention. It was like waking up on Christmas morning
the following day. We’re pretty sure we broke record time that morning getting
ready because we were so excited for what the day would possibly bring.
When
we think of UtopYa con, we must first talk about the Scarritt-Bennett Center where the convention
was held. It literally looked like a building that was plucked straight out of
one of the Harry Potter films, which was way cool! Next, as we entered the
building, we were immediately greeted by Janet and her wonderful staff. We received
an ENORMOUS hug from Jaime and just felt so loved and welcomed.
So,
it’s no surprise that we sat at the LOUDEST table and were warned several times
that we better behave. Even the keynote speaker, Myra McEntire, pointed at us and
said she was worried about our table, hahaha! Well, did we behave? NO, of
course not, but they loved us anyway! Speaking of the keynote speaker, Myra McEntire
was so engaging, so funny, and so inspiring. Her dry subtle humor was worthy of
a stand-up night at the comedy club, she was that funny. She even had a video to
show us that several of her other author friends helped her make. It was a
video of them all giving us encouragement as fellow authors to the theme of YOU
CAN DO IT!!!! It was truly wonderful.
The
next two days passed in a blur. A really AWESOME and fun blur though, hahaha! As
we attended numerous informative panels and hung out with some TOTALLY AWESOME
people, we found ourselves not wanting the convention to end. We won’t mention specific
names of people since we know we’ll probably forget someone (and we don’t want
to do that), but let us just say that it was an honor to be a part of such an
EPIC weekend. And since it was the first annual, it will be remembered as a
very special time for all who attended.
Oh,
and there was also a wonderful awards ceremony that had all the flair of a big
award show. There was the ever-so-lovely celebrity MC, Katie Cook, and a TRULY AWESOME
author/singer/songwriter, Amanda Havard, who sang one of her original songs
beautifully while playing the piano. Such a lovely night!
Annnnd
let’s not forget about the morning raffle events with some incredible gifts
from the authors, bloggers, and the convention itself. We could easily go on
and on about how AMAZING this convention was. But guess what? There’s another
one next year! Yes, that’s right folks! Mark your calendars for June, 28-30th
2013, and we look forward to seeing all of you there!
Cheers,
C.A.
Kunz
(Carol
and Adam Kunz)
*If you're interested in UtopYa Con 2013 here's the link to buy tickets of your very own :D
