I talked to a Newbery Medal-winning author today – how cool is that? And a one-time instructor of mine, NYT-bestselling author CJ Lyons, has two books — Snake Skin and Blood Stained — on the Amazon 2012 Top 100 list. I had the good fortune to take a class with CJ a few years ago, and she teaches as well as she writes, which is to say she’s amazing at both!

Speaking of good fortune, maybe some of their success will rub off on me. After all, I got to rub elbows with CJ, and I guess virtual elbows with the Newbery winner. I wonder if rubbing elbows with best-selling and critically acclaimed authors brings good luck like rubbing a Buddha’s belly is supposed to?