Event Recap: Books of Wonder Signing (9/22/13)

This is long overdue, but here's a quick recap of the Books of Wonder signing that I went to in September. It was my 2nd book signing ever and my first as a blogger. Needless to say, I was beyond excited.

So the author's present were Alex London, Robin Wasserman, Patrick Ness, and Gene Luen Yang.

Robin was running a bit late so it started about 15 minutes after it was supposed to. Robin explained how she had just flown back to NYC and how she had been up since 5:00 in the morning. The others, especially Patrick, teased her about it. They started by introducing themselves and explaining how they each got the idea for their books. Robin explained how she was freaking out over the fact that Patrick was there but also about how she had grown up reading a lot of horror. Alex talked about how the MC in Proxy just came out and how he never really intended to write a gay character. Gene talked about his Asian American roots, which I definitely relate to. Patrick talked about how he had always wanted to write something like More Than This but that it had never been the right time.

Then they answered some questions. I didn't write anything down and didn't have enough space on my iPod to record them, so I don't have that. (I am very sorry about this. I remember quite a bit of it, but I don't remember exact words or questions.) But they did talk about their writing habits and about writing advice. Robin talked about the word "influence," and how one of her professors had prohibited them from using the word. Patrick joked around a LOT. He's extremely entertaining and funny, and if you ever get the chance to see him, GO! Alex and Robin joked around about how Robin usually NEEDS a brownie at 2:00, but she wasn't able to get one because of her flight and then the signing, and Alex was eating a cookie. Gene was pretty quiet, but he's really nice (well, all of them are). All in all, there were just a lot of jokes, including some about Twilight and about how even though a lot of people don't see it that way, Stephanie Meyer wrote the book that she wanted to write (they were talking about advice and how you should write what you want to write about, not what others want you to write about). 

Really, it was just really fun, and they're all funny, kind, enjoyable authors. And of course, there was the signing itself. Patrick's line was HUGE, but I really excited to meet Robin. I also felt really bad because I didn't buy Proxy. :(

Anyway, here's some pictures from that.

(I was kind of hyperventilating b/c Robin is made of awesome. Also, I worked up the courage to tell her that I loved her picture with Zelda (on Maureen Johnson's twitter), but I was so nervous and excited to talk to her that I couldn't form a sentence very well. Also, I was really excited and nervous to meet her because I just learned that she had really bad scoliosis when she was younger, and as someone who has scoliosis, it's always nice to find someone that understands. (Which reminds me of a funny story Patrick told, but if you want to know about it, you'll have to ask me either in the comments or on Twitter.))

(Gene Luen Yang--He's an amazing drawer, and I got a signed poster too! Also, we talked a bit about being Asian American, which was cool.)

(Patrick Ness)

(Alex London (and Robin)--I still feel bad for not getting Proxy.)

I was originally going to take pictures of the signed books, but I haven't gotten around to it.

But here's a list of the books that I got:

The Waking Dark by Robin Wasserman

The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness

More Than This by Patrick Ness

Boxers&Saints by Gene Luen Yang

American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang

Invisibility by David Levithan and Andrea Cremer (both of whom were supposed to be there but weren't able to make it; the book was signed though)

The Eternal Ones by Kirsten Miller (free)

Sadly, I do not have a giveaway. Apologies!