Rainbow Con Day 1 - Registration and Set up

Good morning, everyone. I wanted to post last night but I was so exhausted by the time I got back to the room I changed clothes and crashed into bed.

Day 1 was a great day! Got to meet some of my favorite authors and friends I talk to on Facebook all the time! We registered for the con and received our program as well as our badges and name plaques for the table discussions, signings, and readings. Everyone has been so nice and accommodating. K Piet spent the morning running around like a chicken without a head and I feel bad for her, especially since we added to her stress. We ended up upgrading to a full table in the dealers room so we had somewhere to put the dozens of swag we brought with us. I think the table came out really nice. It was rather quiet in regards to people traipsing through the Dealers room yesterday, but I think Friday and Saturday will see a change in that.

After we set everything up, the first panels began. We attended Marketing 101 and learned some great ways to get our name and brand out there as well as received the offer of assistance from some of the authors on the panel.  While Sui ran back up to the room to drop some stuff off, I attended the Beginner's Guide to Con Going and it was really informative! I learned people sometimes end up not eating or sleeping or showering at these things. So they gave tips of six hours of sleep, two meals, and one shower a day. So far I've been meeting those tips, LOL, but I love my sleep and my food and being clean so I don't see that being an issue.

At 3pm, instead of attending another panel, we decided to take a break and just relax for an hour before attending the Author Q&A set up for us and three others. That was really nerve wracking for me! I am not a public speaker so being made to answer questions (AND they made me go first no less) and be the center of attention was pretty uncomfortable for me, but I survived! Even got a woohoo when I told them Thayne's story was coming out later this year. :)

After the signing, we took a few minutes to run up to the room to relax and then headed down to join Nicole Dennis during her Q&A panel before heading out to dinner with Nicole Dennis, Sara York, and Rory Ni Coileain. Ironically we ended up going BACK to the restaurant we went to the previous night. I had a chicken pot pie that was to die for. Sui and I held back from splurging like the previous evening so we wouldn't be too full to enjoy the strippers later on in the evening.

Arriving back at the hotel, we went into the grand ballroom and got our welcome bags along with Sui winning a $10 Amazon gift card. Go Sui! There were some door prizes being given away and music playing while everyone anxiously awaited the two sexy men dying to take their clothes off for us. :P  And boy were they hot!

Brenda Cothern with Zolt (right) and Logan (left)

I will share more of what I have once I get back to South Florida, but I have to be careful what I share since some of it is really racy and some of the authors do not wish to have their pictures shared. I have video!!!! So keep looking out for that one, haha. Above is Brenda Cothern with Zolt and Logan from Florida Thunder, an entertainment service. Zolt was really good looking and really sweet. I am big on personal space and don't like to be crowded by people I don't know. It makes me very uncomfortable. He came up to me afterward and offered out the business card and asked me if he could give me a hug. I of course accepted, lol. There was a very embarrassing session with Logan who got up on the chair in front of me and acted like he was fucking my face.... NOT my favorite moment of the evening. I was very embarrassed and uncomfortable. It may work for some, but not me. :-/

Sui had another panel she was speaking on called Welcome to the Pornodome: Romance vs Erotica vs Porn. Very interesting to hear the different definitions people have of the difference between the three. I met Andrew Grey for the first time and he is a very kind man. Very open and definitely like to talk, LOL. He kept the panel lively and funny. Looks awesome in a white jacket tuxedo too!

Once the Pornodome had ended and a winner declared, Sui went back to the room while I ended up outside with Vicktor Alexander, TN Tarrant, Brenda Cothern, and Jackson Cordd. The conversation started with the "Publisher Who Shall Not Be Named". I was pretty much expecting that to happen this weekend since it's still fresh, but I do find it pretty funny that everyone is treating the name Silver like it's talking about Voldemort from Harry Potter. The conversation shifted to transgenders and how people react to and treat them. I had no idea Vicktor was actually transgender. It doesn't make a damn bit of difference to me, but I really couldn't tell in the times I've seen him or spoken to him, not until someone else mentioned it.

Finally at around five to ten minutes after midnight, I went up to the room, changed, and crashed into bed. I usually have trouble sleeping in a hotel, at least the first couple of nights because of the unfamiliar surroundings and no dog! But surprisingly I have crashed every night since Tuesday with NO issues. I don't know if it was from being super exhausted each night or if it is because of how comfortable the beds actually are! Holy cow, the beds and pillows are so soft!

That's it for Day 1 at Rainbow Con. :)  Today we shall see where the winds take us.


< 3  Kisses,
JR