Starstruck!

My little brother Tony (Newlywed!) is an aspiring musician. His producer is a member of the 80's rock band Tesla! They have been working together for several years now, but a few years ago, Brian and his wife Monique, came over to my parents house for a BBQ and swim. I remember helping my mom in the kitchen, looking out the window, and watching everyone swim. I leaned over to my mom and said, "Do you realize there is a ROCK STAR in your pool?"  It was so weird to be able to say that. I mean, really, he is just a man. But how cool, right?

I'm a huge fan of Anita Stansfield. In fact, discovering her writing/books is what lead me to believe that maybe I could write a book. I had these stories in my head, but at the time didn't think there was a market for romance without the explict..(you know "Bodice Rippers") I had no idea, at the time, there was such a thing as a LDS fiction market, and I didn't read much Young Adult (YA).

So after hunting down every book she had ever written, (literally, even out of print. I love me some EBAY) and devouring them, I became a HUGE FAN...She is my writing IDOL.

At the recent Storymakers conference I attended in April, I had a HUGE starstruck moment. I sat in on her writing panel discussion, and then followed into her class session. She was so inspiring. Everything she said resonated within me. Without knowing it, she calmed most of the fears I had going into this Crazy Writing World. Anyways, after the class ended, I stood in line to have her sign a book of hers that I had brought from home. The five minutes I stood there felt like an eternity. I was so nervous. I kept telling myself to calm down. There was so much I wanted to say, but I didn't want to scare her either! I told myself not to do the typical, "I'm your biggest fan!" line. My palms were sweating, I was shaking. I even had to concentrate on not jumping up and down and crying!  I know, crazy stalker fan, right? Well, I shook her hand, told her I enjoyed her class, and while she graciously agreed to sign my book, I said, "I'm your biggest fan. I've read all your books."
As soon as the words fell from my mouth, I was thinking, "You're such an Idiot. She's gonna think your NUTS!" But Anita thanked me, and said it meant alot to her that I enjoyed her books. For those brief couple of minutes, she treated me like I was her most important fan. I was so impressed by that!
AS soon as I walked away, I immediately sent a text to my sister and mother, "I just met Anita Stansfield!"
It was THE highlight of my trip to Utah. And though, to her, I was just another fan, just another one of the thousands of autographs she's given,  I will never forget that moment.
I can't wait to attend next year's conference!

What about you? Have you ever had a "Starstruck" moment?