Last Friday I was sitting in a class with 41 other people, listening to Kirby Larson and working on my WIP.

I didn’t take notes. Sorry. I was too busy listening to her.

I can look over my manuscript and tell you what she had us do, but first, I must show you these pictures:

Yes, that’s Newbery Honor Award winner, Kirby Larson signing my Kindle. Someone at the conference told me there was a way to have Kindle book signed electronically, but I think my old Kindle has much more appeal now that it has Kirby Larson’s signature on the front.

Now I must gush just a tiny bit more before I tell you what we worked on in her class, because I learned as much from studying the way she approached teaching as I learned from what she taught. Before the class started, Kirby went around and shook hands with each person there, and chit-chatted for a few moments. As the day progressed she made us tell several things about our books (premise, character…). She insisted that we all participate, and she listened to each person speak. Then she interacted with what we said instead of interacting with what she wished we’d said. I was so impressed with her.

What Not to Do at a Writers Conference

I have a confession to make, now. So embarrassing, but this is how nice Kirby was. The pictures above were taken with her camera. I didn’t have a camera with me. So she wanted the picture of her signing her first Kindle, and then she said, “Oh, what am I thinking? I should be taking a picture of you.”

So she takes a picture, from her position sitting, of me standing. Then she looks at the picture and says, “I don’t want to take it looking up.”

Now, stop and think about that. Why would she care that the picture was shot from an unflattering angle? She doesn’t know me. Why should she care about trying to make me look good?

Then she says, “Oh, we should take a picture together. That would be even better.” So she hands her camera to someone and I join her behind the table, and we get the picture.

And then…this is the part I can’t believe, but I’ve posted my stupid queries and lame novel openings, so I might as well confess my conference faux pas as well…so I said to Kirby Larson, Newbery Honor Award winner, “Will you email those pictures to me?”

I can’t believe I did that. What possessed me? I had just polished off a drink, before the picture, and I’m not much of a drinker. I wasn’t drunk, but I was feeling a little friendly, I guess.

Yikes!

Kirby sweetly said, “Sure. Oh…do I have your email address?”

I said, “I’ll email you.”

“Ok,” she said. “Email me.”

It hit me as soon as I walked out of the room that asking Kirby Larson to email photos to me was bad form. So, no, I didn’t email her to give her my address and remind her to send the photos to me.

I stole them off her blog. 

How to Win Friends and Influence People

But I am pretty sure if I’d emailed her, she would have sent me the photos. Because she’s a genuinely gracious person.

Debra Mayhew agrees. She posted on her blog, saying she was tucking away what she learned from Kirby, for a time when she would be signing her own books. And I thought the very same thing. If I’m ever invited to speak, I’d like to remember that if you treat others as real and interesting people with important hopes and dreams, you will change people for the better. And if you change people, you change the world.

You’ll gain fans besides. Old women, even, will act like gushing fan-girls. It’s a win-win proposition.

And now I have no time to tell you what we discussed in Kirby’s class. I’ll try to get to that next time.

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