Here's A Quickie

...with Patricia Briggs.

Does that sound dirty? OK, I sort of meant it to, but it's just a tease. I did see Patricia Briggs, but nothing untoward happened, heh. Although the reading she did had its moments. I wanted to brag post that I got to see the author of all those fantastic Mercy Thompson books live in person last week. I have proof:

I picked up my very own copy of Bone Crossed, but I haven't started it yet. (I really MUST do something about this ridiculous TBR pile.)

You won't be surprised to hear from me that Ms. Briggs was a very charming storyteller -- likely you already knew that. Most authors are, but public speaking is a different kind of storytelling than hammering out text on a screen or notepad.

I haven't been hanging around on Brigg's message board (though I might check it out, it sounds fun) but apparently there's quite the saga about whether or not silver bullets can be cast. Verdict: yes, but it's a huge PITA, per Briggs and her husband (I wanted to ask what purity/ alloy they were using but I thought that might be a little obnoxious). Anyway, she had one of their hand-cast bullets on a necklace which she passed around -- it was gorgeous. And so appropriate for a teller of werewolf tales!

One of the audience asked if the convenience stores nicknamed "Stop & Rob" referred to the outrageous prices of things at convenience stores, or their propensity for getting robbed -- Briggs said the latter, and then told a wonderful story about a friend of hers and how chain mail really does work.

There was a little lull in the Q&A, so I asked which of her secondary characters she'd most like to have a beer with -- with no hesitation, she responded "Warren," and talked a little bit about her inspiration for the Warren and Kyle couple. Wouldn't it be cool to get a novella about those guys?

If you get a chance to see her in person, I strongly recommend it. And go early, it's such a hoot to chat with other fans (there were celebrity appearances by other local authors, making trouble in the back row, including Mark Henry and Christine Warren. Don't you wish you were me?!)

So you can definitely look for a review from me before too long-- I promise!