Is your light green?

Keynote Luncheon – J.A. Jance, Carolina Garcia-Aguilera, and Valerie Wilson Wesley moderated by Liane Hansen

I blogged this in the official blog as well, but this version includes my snarky comments.

This is the large luncheon in which I have to stand up and be embarrassed because ACRL gave me some money.

The Patriot Act is mentioned and there is much groaning from the audience and then the troops are rallied. America University has a wonderful presentation as they are presented an award for their marketing program. (I was wondering at first why the luncheon was from 12:30-2:30, but I know now that this is one of the few times they will have everyone in the same room, they are offering free food after all, and everyone has to speak and get their business on the table.)

The food is great: mushroom chicken, vegetables, and the best wild rice and mushrooms I have ever had. It looks like an Opera or The View set on stage, all comfy armchairs and a short coffee table covered with a tablecloth

I am not a big fan of mysteries as a genre but I enjoyed the discussion between the women on the stage. I love listening to writers talk because they often tell the best stories. There is much laughter in this room as the three women share themselves, their experiences, and their lives. There is much hilarity as Liane tries to fix the microphones of the writers. Some have trouble determining if their green light is on. All of the women agree that genre writers do no get much respect as writers of literary fiction. J.A. Jance then makes my favorite comment of the session when she says, “Literary fiction is where not much happens to people you don’t like very much.” I immediately thought of all that horrible women’s fiction in which a middle aged woman becomes discontented and proceeds to screw over her husband, children, and family due to poor choices they made in their youth. The novels often end with no resolution, broken families, and selfish unlikable women. Mystery, the women on stage agree, is a great genre because there is always a sense of justice in them.

I am fast approaching that point in time where I have sat still and listened to other people talk for long enough. Maybe I like the sound of my own voice too much or maybe it is simply the over stimulation of the rusty brain cell, but I need some advil and a drink. The kind with alcohol.

–Jane, goes of in search of both