Sandy Lender Meets Duran Duran in Orlando
Or...The Dragon wonders what this hit of meeting-the-muse will do

Last time I met John Taylor, I drove back from Atlanta, sat down at the computer, and, two weeks later, had a 70,000+ word paranormal Christmas romance novel. I've played with it since then to up the word count and my publisher wants to wait to release it until the Choices fantasy trilogy is all out, but, just thinking about that writing binge makes me go...hmmm...what's gonna happen this time?

You see, I met the whole band Sunday night in Orlando before they took the stage for their Red Carpet Massacre show. (They rocked the house, by the way. My lungs still ache from all the screaming and singing along.) Jennine flew down from Kansas City to "gift" this experience for my early birthday present. I drove up to meet her in Orlando and we stood in line to get our VIP tickets. No big deal. We weren't expecting to win the randomly selected Meet-n-Greet opp. Good Lord, what are the chances? Well, turns out chances were pretty good.

So we recover from THAT news, call multiple friends to alert them that the earth is about to shift on its axis, and proceed to meet our destiny.

Let me just tell you, the members of Duran Duran operate on what we fans call "Duran Time," which is time minus half an hour or so. This means we weren't surprised to wait...and wait...and wait. It just made the eventual meet-n-greet that much more exciting. I made Jennine practice what she'd say to Simon because, well, let's just say we've been fans for a LONG time and this would prove nerve-wracking. What I found refreshing is that the folks in line around us were just as bubbly and excited as we were and didn't find it at all "odd" that we were practicing our lines. Of course, when one finds oneself in front of Simon LeBon, one does forget one's practiced lines. I nudged her. It was fine.

I spoke to John Taylor intelligently. Thanked him for the gift in our VIP package (a red leather journal) because it's the perfect gift for a writer. He actually seemed intrigued that I was a writer, for a brief flickering moment, and then the moment was over and he had to move on down the line to the next fan. Sigh. I finally got to meet Roger Taylor, who has lovely eyes and a fantastic voice.

When it came time for our photo opp, my brain snapped. Jennine zeroed in on Simon (good girl), and since I couldn't stand "within" John Taylor, I didn't know quite what to do. He and Nick were so close to each other that I didn't think I could squeeze between them politely, so I aimed for the end of the row, which would NOT be next to my idol (supreme sadness). John stopped me (supreme joy). He teased, "we don't allow any girls on the end." So he motioned me in between him and Nick (which, by the way, just in case anyone had any doubt, is a FABULOUS place to be) and I boldly wrapped my arm around his shoulders. When the fan club gets the pictures to us, I'll post it here. I'm sure I look like a start-struck moron, but, hey, I'll look deliriously happy.

I was.

So Jennine had to fly back home to K.C., where I'll see her at ConQuesT39 next weekend, actually, and I had to drive back to Naples. Sigh. We met some really neat folks in line and I hope they check in here at the blog so we don't lose touch. It was great to share the experience with you guys, and I'm glad you got to meet the band, too!

And, in case there was any doubt on this point, John was adorable. I am inspired. I think I'll write a paranormal romance novel...
Bwuahahahahaha.
"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Tags: Duran Duran, Choices trilogy, John Taylor, Sandy Lender, dragon