This convention orientation is designed for all first-time RT attendees. We’ll give you the “quickie” seminar experience. Trust us: if this is your first-ever RT Booklovers Convention, this could be the most important 60 minutes of your week! After you head to registration, get your bag of goodies and experience the initial shock and awe, you’re going to have questions. That’s where we come in. Come join us for an hour that, for some, has been a life-altering experience. We understand what it’s like — your virgin year at RT! Here is where you get your questions answered, meet other first-timers and become part of a special group like no other during convention week.

Steampunk is often set in Victorian London, or the Wild West, but the time period happened everywhere, and readers are hungry for other locales. Where can steampunk go to now, and what can different cultures and characters offer the genre?

Join romantic suspense authors in a murder mystery set in Sin City. Everyone is a suspect and anything can happen. Remember if things get wild, what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas. Come dressed to kill and be ready to win prizes throughout the hour! Goody bags for the first 100 attendees.

Join award-winning authors as we share how we keep the action fast and furious in our books then slow it down for moments that stay with you. We’ll address common pacing problems like the slow start and the abrupt ending, plus everything in between.

Romantic suspense is filled with super-hot alphas and kick-ass heroines, but how to craft those three-dimensional characters so readers will cheer for them until the very last page? These best-selling authors will discuss the building blocks of fan-favorite characters, the role of the heroine in romantic suspense, breaking characters stereotypes, balancing character and plot, crossing genres and more!

From treasure hunts in the Caribbean, to the jungles of Central America, from New Orleans society and cemeteries to Key West intrigue: how to incorporate memorable themes and settings into romantic suspense.

Attention starship crew! Charge your blasters and get ready to repel the invasion of the dastardly alien space ducks as we drink, snack and indulge in sci-fi silliness at RT’s only sci-fi party. Win prizes! The first 200 crew members to report for duty get goody bags loaded with swag. Brought to you by Captain Linnea Sinclair and her trusty space commando authors!