Fan Girl Moment with J. R. Ward

RT Con Anyone?
So, I'm here.  I don't think I posted that I was going but I have mentioned it on the Alpha Heroes Facebook page.

Overall, I'm having a good time.  It's been pretty intense, with about 12 events going on in any of the 4 main timeslots, and of course I have usually been wanting to go to 3 at a time on average.  Most of the daytime events in the various tracks did not have lines to get in.  If they did, the lines formed about 10 minutes before the event started.  However...

NO HOLDS BARRED...
With Jessica Anderson and J. R. Ward, was the name of the event on the program.   I went to get in line 30 minutes before this one, and it was already stretched out far enough that I thought I wasn't going to get in.

Magically though, the event coordinators got everyone to fit and I wasn't even in the back-most row.  I had a seat and everything.  See that picture?  I was RIGHT THERE! 

The session was by far the most dynamic and fun reader session I went to.  Ward appears to travel with an entourage; she had a bodyguard, several very efficient handlers, a microphone when many of the other speakers did not, and she is frankly just an amazing speaker.  She enjoys the audience as much as we enjoyed her, or at least gives a damn good imitation of it.

Swear Jar
Who knew that JR Ward is as potty-mouthed in real life as any of her macho vampires?  She makes a pretty sincere effort to keep her forums "PG-13" rated, but in a roomful of adults it was indeed, no holds barred.  So she put a dollar in a swear jar every time she let one fly and I'm pretty sure there was about $40 at the end of an hour.  Hilarious!

A Few Tidbits
I'm sure most of these have been put up on the web already, but here's what I heard:

Q: Is there a connection between Michael (from Story of Son) and Murhder*?
JR: Keeeeeeeeeeeep Reading!

Q: What's the deal about the wolven and the dog biscuits and maybe Murhder*?
JR: wide-eyed innocently:  I don't know WHAT you're talking about!

Q: Is it fair to say that there is a blood connection between two characters with ice-white eyes with dark blue rims?
JR: looks down.  I believe my ass is in a crack right now. puts a dollar in the swear jar, pauses for assorted wisecracks, and attempts to skirt the question. OK, fine.  It would not be INCORRECT to say that ice white eyes with dark blue rims are from a limited genetic pool. 

Q: We haven't seen much of Butch and V lately--
JR: interrupts They've been seeing plenty of each other!
Q: -- will we ever see any of that on the page?
JR: No.. [paraphrased]... I will give hints about it and talk about it verbally, but it won't be on the page... because too many people would hate it.  sotto voce Butch is getting it regularly.

Q: Will the Band of Bastards ever join the BDB?
A: shocked One of them just shot Wrath in the motherfucking chest!  NO they're not going to be united on ANYTHING any time soon!!  pays the swearjar.  But, 'the enemy of my enemy is my friend', so they could be aligned against the lessers at some point.  Down the road.

Last BDB tidbit:  Ward says that one of the very best visions she's had is of Layla turning her and Qhinn's newborn child over to Blay in the birthing room, because she really wants to see Blay as a father.  Initially her wording implied Layla would be giving up the baby, but as Ward went on it sounded possible that they would do some co-parenting. 

Last last tidbit: you might check the #peegate hashtag on Twitter.  Pretty funny stuff.
____
*I sure hope I put the H in the right place there