Anne Hagan and iReadIndies went to the 2024 GCLS Conference in St. Paul, Minnesota and it was glorious!
Well, except for the hotel elevators…
The Golden Crown Literary Society (GCLS) held their annual conference in Saint Paul, Minnesota from July 10th, through the 14th at the Intercontinental Saint Paul Riverfront. It was Anne’s first time back to a live convention since the Pittsburgh con in 2019. She had to miss Albuquerque and Denver due to the adoptions of her kiddos.
It was hot in Saint Paul! Muggy even, being that the host hotel was steps from the mighty Mississippi River. And Anne thought it got humid in Ohio! The temperature didn’t deter con goers much, though. Elevators? That’s another story.
The Intercontinental, for an older downtown high-rise hotel, has plenty of room for conventions. Multiple conventions. And have them the week GCLS was on site, they did. While GCLS seemed the largest with 350+ in attendance, there was also another con (science related) in the early part of the week and then a convention of Baptists who were staying at the hotel but meeting elsewhere in the latter part of the week. Having so much going on put some stress on the hotel’s two (of only three) working elevators. Anne took the stairs down from the 19th floor a few times and many others who were able did too. Up was typically a wait. A long wait.
Conference Events
The meeting spaces GCLS used were well situated for the purposes of the con. Most events took place on the lower level which had an area that opened out at the bottom of the escalators down from the lobby where registration set up and where all the vendors set up. That’s where you could find iReadIndies.
iReadIndies distributed autographed copies of ‘Romance Springs Eternal,’ the anthology that benefits the organization, advertised for ‘Sapphic Screams‘ which benefits GCLS, allowed authors, and an editor to do giveaways at the table, and hosted authors at the table giving away or selling their books.
Readers got to meet Anne, romance author Carol Anne Douglas, eclectic author Ocean (best known for her Doll Island horror books), and Andra Palmer who writes mystery/suspense novels with a side of legal thriller as Alexi Venice.
Anne was on an AI Panel, on Thursday the 11th, moderated by editor Dor Howard who came all the way from South Africa for the con. Titled, AI the Beginning or the End of Creativity, the panel also featured authors Iris Eliot, Stacy Lynn Miller, Rita Potter, Nance Sparks, and author and technology industry veteran Aoibh Wood. Lots of interesting commentary from the panelist and from the audience in a crowded room.
On Friday, Anne was on the panel, The Rise of the Ice Queen, with moderator Kelsey Dye, editor Ruth Sternglantz, and authors Ana K. Wren, Jane Walsh, Melissa Brayden, and Milena McKay (whom Anne learned pronounces her name differently than her American English ears expected to hear it said!). The room was packed to standing room only. The GCLS crowd loves ice queens!
That’s Anne, seated between Melissa Brayden – now known as ‘Sheriff Mel’ – and Milena McKay. Not bad company to be in when you’re talking about ice queens!
Other 2024 GCLS Con Stuff
There were so many great readings, panels, presentations, and a few master classes. GCLS always has a good mix of daytime ‘con stuff’ and after hours events. Anne went to several things. Highlights for her included:
- The panel Neurodiversity 2.0: Managing Multiple Identities
- The AI master class presented by author and self described geek, Rachel Gold, ‘Writing in the Age of AI: Ethics, Tools and Transformation
- The panel Scissor Me Timbers! Pirates, Assassins, and Gangsters, Oh My!
- Inclusion in the Sapphic Lit World: Experiences from the Trans and Nonbinary Community
- The presentation Accelerating Your Digital Work Flow: Leveraging AI for Social Media, Newsletters, and Websites given by the amazing Robbie Adair
- The keynote address by Saint Paul city council member and accomplished poet and author, Andrea Jenkins
- The awards ceremony on Saturday evening
GCLS 2025 will be in Albany, New York from July 16th through the 20th, 2025. Anne and iReadIndies both hope to see you there!
