Because I work for one of the busiest library systems in the country, I attend a lot of author events. It's part of my job to set them up, sometimes I host them and I always learn something from every author I hear speak about their book, writing experiences and career.
I'm actually shocked when we have a popular author at one of our libraires and the crowd is "thin" -- because I think one of the best ways you can learn about writing is to attend free writing workshops and author events offered at libraries and book stores. In the Seattle area, on any given night you can find award-winning authors from any genre. I'm lucky to live in one of the "magnet cities" for book tours. Even better, we have a LOT of authors living in the Pacific Northwest.
One of my favorites is Jayne Ann Krentz, who also writes historical romance as Amanda Quick and futuristic romance as Jayne Castle. I remember the very first Amanda Quick book I picked up, Mistress. When I discovered her smart heroines and funny, engaging style, I devoured her books. Later on, as I developed my own writing, she was my model. I didn't know until I met her many years later that she was a librarian. I should have known. Librarians are the iconic masters, (or maybe I should say Mistresses) of my universe.
While many people are familiar with Jayne's writing, they probably don't know how much effort she's put into helping to make the connection between the romance genre and library staff. She speaks at library conventions like PLA (Public Library Association), has been part of panels for our library system to talk about the importance of genre fiction and makes time to present book events at libraries. As the book market shrinks along with discretionary dollars, she understands that readers will need to turn to libraries as an important resource and that programs and events at libraries will help authors find new audiences.
From the perspective of both my "day job" and my writing career -- I'm grateful that bestselling authors value their relationship with libraires. Take a page from Jayne's book, and be nice to your friendly neighborhood librarian. You never know what she's reading, they're sneaky that way. And a lot of them love to read romance.
