Last week I traveled to Nashville to meet my publishing team at Thomas Nelson.  These are the people who make it all happen!  They are an incredible group, and I am thrilled to be a part of their family. 

I had the privilege to speak to the entire Thomas Nelson sales force - about 100 folks.  There was another author who spoke before me.  I didn't get to hear him speak, but when he was done we bumped into each other and chatted for about twenty minutes.  Honestly, I didn't catch his last name, but I kept thinking that he looked familiar.  Great guy!  I did most of the talking.  I was nervous.  He mentioned that the room I'd be speaking in looked similar to the United Nations setup and that I'd be front and center.  But he started asking me about my books and the allure of Amish fiction, and my stomach stopped flipping so much.

Now, here's the thing.  I actually asked him, "Is this your first book?"  He smiled, but was very modest.  "No.  It's my first book with Thomas Nelson, but I've had a few books made into movies."  Jokingly, I said, "Wow.  So, you're like famous?"  He laughed again. 

Anyway, when it was my turn, I took the stage.  Immediately,  Allen Arnold,  Senior VP and Publisher at Thomas Nelson, made me feel comfortable, asking me questions about Plain Perfect and the books to follow in the series.  As it turns out, I'm not such a bad speaker.  They probably should have set a time limit for me.  I like to talk, and I particularly like to talk about my passion for writing about the Amish.  It was great fun!

When I got home, I decided to check out the author who spoke before me.  And, had I known the resume of the person I was speaking after, I would have probably darted out of the building prior to my turn.  His name is Andrew Klavan.  I knew right away who he was when I pulled up his Web site and saw pictures of people like Clint Eastwood and Michael Douglas on the covers of his books!  And, here's little old me promoting her first novel and telling him all about the Amish.  I'm shaking my head and chuckling as I write this.  But what a nice guy to let me just ramble on, as I tried to calm my nerves before my turn to speak.  Here's the link to his Web site.  You'll see what I mean.   http://www.andrewklavan.com/books.php.  

And here is my fabulous publishing team!  From left - Ami McConnell, Natalie Hanemann (my editor), me, Becky Monds, Jennifer Deshler, Allen Arnold, Jocelyn Bailey, Amanda Bostic, Lisa Young, Mark Ross, and Mica.