Wild Adventures in NYC!

They really shouldn't let me out in public...but they did! And last week, I ran away to New York City for adventures that included ComicCon, more fancy meals than I can count, books, book signing, and JK Rowling.

YES. JK ROWLING. But that was one of the last things I did in NYC. First, there was a book signing for the wonderful anthology AFTER, which I am very lucky to have been a part of! It took place at Books of Wonder, one of my favorite bookstores (such a magical place!)

I think my mother would be most excited that I'm standing by Gregory Maguire,
author of Wicked, which is the base for one of her favorite Broadway plays. 

And then...NY ComicCon! ComicCon is basically a haven for nerds like me. It is where I am among my people.

I waited in line for nearly an hour to attend this panel!

One of my favorite events at ComicCon was Geek Geek Revolution, where Colleen Lindsey quizzed authors on their geekiness.

I tried to cheat by going to the first panel on Saturday so I'd know the answers for when I went on Sunday.

Amber Benson, Rachel Caine, Morgan Rhodes (winner!),
and Maureen Johnson, along with Colleen Lindsey

Tricksy organizers made sure that the questions were changed, however! And there was a sad lack of Sailor Moon questions. Which meant by the time it was all over...I was not the Geek Queen. *shame*

And as winner, Geek Queen Andrea Cremer won Rock'em Sock'em Robots. 

The other place I hung out at was the Penguin Booth. Yay Penguin!!

Man, I love that poster.

Ahh!! This was the line waiting for me on Saturday
for a signed ARC of Shades of Earth!

And I also moderated a panel on magic and monsters in sci fi and fantasy. I was crazy nervous about this--what if no one came? Um. Yeah. Didn't have to worry about that...

People waited an hour to come to the panel! 

We ran out of room and had to turn some people away!

 After the panel, we had a signing in the big autograph section. It was awesome to see everyone--especially the girl who told me that AtU was the first book she ever read on her own. <3 p="p">

The buck might stop at the president's office,
but the line ends at Andrea's.

But there was also a lot of nerdy fun to be had at ComicCon--including the floor, which was full of awesome people that I tried not to geek out on.

Cyanide & Happiness! (nsfw)

The Oatmeal! (also nsfw)

And the floor of ComicCon is always made more awesome by the costumes. Guys. NYCC brings cosplay to a whole new level.

Daenerys, mother of dragons.
(Click on this one for more details--this costume is crazy good.)

Adventure Time was the big cosplay winner this year.
This one had one of the best Ice Kings (and Gunter!).

This little dalek had a kid inside!

A little blurry, but I thought this lady's TARDIS outfit was charming-complete with keys and watches around her waist!

The only thing more popular than Adventure Time was gender-swapped Adventure Time. This might have been the best Fiona--I love that she also had Cake--and Marshall was so good. He even had red eye contacts!

Timey-whimey, wibbly-wobbly!
Two Doctors, a Rose, and a Statue.

This Doctor carried his TARDIS around with him. 

I thought this was so creative--Lumpy Space Princess and Turtle Princess. These girls rocked it!

Throwback! This Kim Possible had me cracking up--note the naked mole rat in her pouch.

Benders were also a popular choice for cosplay costumes. Love these two--and their pose was perfect!!

Sailor Moon was also popular! Here's a great Tuxedo Mask and Sailor Pluto with her.

A great Aang and Katara!

ComicCon was great in so many ways--I loved seeing everyone and interacting with readers and discovering new things. In the end, I think this picture sums up ComicCon better than any other...

THIS is what it's all about--a kid excited to explore the world of fiction. 

Now, I wasn't just in NYC for ComicCon--I wanted to see NYC, too! One of my first orders of business...

SHOPPING!!!

My friend Lauren--you know, this Lauren:

Lauren DeStefano!

Anyway, Lauren had been telling me how great MAC makeup is, and I needed some new foundation...and lip gloss...and eye shadow...and anyway, let's just say that I'm glad my husband didn't mind me going on a little shopping spree! 

After spending all my money between Macy's and Lush, I walked around NYC and visited some of my favorite places.

I almost don't feel as if I'm in NYC without seeing the Flat Iron Building. 

No matter where I went, I could always see the Empire State Building. It was like the Northern Star. 

Almost as fun as real shopping is window shopping, and NYC has the best! 

To give you an example of size, the Hershey's syrup is a gallon. The Nerds box is as long as my arm. 

I think this was an interior design store. I don't know. I got distracted by the pretty store front. 

I also found my way into one of the NYC Public Library branches. What can I say? I'm attracted to books. And I'm glad I wandered in--this branch had braille books, something I'd never seen before.

It was designed almost like a cassette tape. Anyone know how these work? 

There were also two things that I scheduled for NYC just for fun--on Monday, I went to see the avant garde play Sleep No More, and on Tuesday...on Tuesday I got to see JK ROWLING!

Sleep No More is...a strange play. It's loosely based on MacBeth, and instead of a stage, it takes place in a hotel. Five floors, all with something going on. You chase the actors around and try to catch the strings of the plot. I definitely recommend seeing this play--it's an experience unlike any other!

You can't take pictures inside Sleep No More--this is the candle display on the tables.
The whole set-up was like a 20s party...with MURDER.

And, for the grand finale! JK ROWLING!! 

She did one event in North America--in NYC. And tickets sold FAST. I am HUGELY grateful for the wonderful people at Hypable who were able to hook me up with tickets. 

The event was...magical. Amazing. Fascinating. Everything I'd hoped it would be. 

The stage before the event. Of course they set out water in goblets.

 During the event, Ann Patchett interviewed JK Rowling. There are so many things that I'd like to engrave into my memory--the sound of JK Rowling cursing (which was hilarious), the perfect intonations of her voice reading the story, the humble way she seemed flabbergasted by the amount of applause...

In the signing line, JK Rowling made an effort to look into each person's eyes and respond to him or her. 

Here she is signing my copy. I may have been so excited that I nearly threw up. 

Me with JK in the background! This picture was taken by the wonderful Victoria Schwab, and my only regret is that I forgot to get a group picture with her and Michelle and Lev (also in the background).

After all that awesome, I came home...to the plague. I've had a cold ever since I came back to NC! Clearly NYC is ensuring that I never leave again...

PS: For excellent coverage on The Casual Vacancy, check out Hypable's complete list here!