Does that sound like the title of a good book? I sure hope you said yes because THIS finally happened last month:

And believe me, it didn’t happen overnight, so when I say “last month” what I really mean is, well, maybe I shouldn’t actually admit to how long this has been in the works. Maybe I should just be proud that I finally released this 196 page book out into the published universe and hope that you, my readers, will understand and appreciate that books don’t just happen overnight.

So for the inquiring minds that want to know what this is all about – THANK YOU, and please read on!

Here is the shortened version of Meetings Mayhem! coming to life:

• STEP 1: realize that your TRUE stories of the chaos that sometimes takes place while you are “just performing your job” as a professional meeting planner are amusing to anyone that hears you talk of such tales, and indeed interesting enough to be book-worthy
• STEP 2: figure out the best format for presenting some of those stories, aka “book outline”
• STEP 3: start writing!

While you and I both know there was a lot more to it than my simplified three step process, the important part is that I did it. Meetings Mayhem! finally crossed the finish line after revisions, editing, chapter positioning, formatting (and then even more “proper” formatting), and a whole bunch more things (NOTE: this is the part where the word Pandemic enters the scene, but I’ll just leave that thought there with you) before I could see that the end was near.

Yes, it was a busy time during the creation of this book, and as with all great projects it doesn’t happen alone. I’m happy to say this was a collaboration among other planner friends that were willing to share their tell-all stories along with the wisdom they gained when met with those challenges. So I am eternally grateful to each of them for sharing and believing in this project!

And here’s where the fun part starts. You know how you see those great advertisements in news adds and magazines about “watch for this book coming soon!” And then there’s a tiny little blurb to tease you about what the book is and what you will find inside when you read it? Well, to be clear, those things only happen when your name is something like Danielle Steel, Michael Connelly, or Stephen King, which mine is clearly not. So that’s the main reason you’ve not heard of this book “coming soon to a bookstore near you!” until just now.

But on the plus side, it’s done! It really, really is done and now available for your reading amusement! And as the cover blurb indicates, it’s a collection of fun and entertaining stories – all true – of situations that have happened not only to myself but plenty of my meeting planning friends around the country during the course of the planning and execution of any number of meetings and events that have been held here, there, and everywhere. Early reader reviews have also included the word “educational” which really makes me proud because, well, we all have a little bit of teacher in us, right?

Plus, who doesn’t love a good behind-the-scenes story about expensive party props that cause fire alarms to go off in ballrooms, celebrity snafus, deadly diseases showing up at hotels (pinky promise, NOT COVID!), and strippers that show up on stage?

Oh, and I don’t even know how to describe Chapter 2 without blushing, but let’s just say “Incentive Perks” will definitely make you laugh out loud.

So this is the part where I provide links making it easy to purchase it in either paperback or epub formats on locations like Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Target and others just like those.

And I’m thanking you in advance for doing same because a book is only half finished when the writer has written it. A book is only fully complete when it has been read.