Conquering my inner introvert

[annathepiper]

I find myself in the strange position of having been invited to two different social events tomorrow night, a situation which makes my brain tilt dangerously, for lo, I am a raging introvert. However, a small part of me timidly suggests that it might do me good to get out and say hello to actual people, even if most of the folks at both of these parties are going to be strangers to me. And so I turn to you, my Friends list, for advice on how to resolve my dilemma!

[Poll #422430]

Comments

[poetry-lady.livejournal.com]

Make a deal with yourself. Leave the handheld in the back for the first XX minutes. Interact with people to some degree. Then, sit back and listen to people, without working on the handheld. Listening gives you wonderful ideas for dialog and such...and people LOVE listeners. Do this at each party.

(Oh, and do give yourself a time limit as a minimum that you must stay. That way, if you are having a completely miserable time, you can gracefully bow out and head home. I have to do this myself, as I get very tired sometimes, in addition to being painfully shy (REALLY--I just make myself be out there and interacting). It's a compromise position.)

Enjoy!

[mizkit.livejournal.com]

What she said!

[morgie.livejournal.com]

Er...too short of a field.

Go to both, take your handheld with you, work on Lament, and when worn out, read whichever book you have managed to load up on the handheld. ;)

[gerimaple.livejournal.com]

{mode "selfish smartaleck" = ON} the heck with Lament - Faerie Blood isn't going to edit itself either - and the switch between chapters 10 and 11 is rather jolting :) {mode "selfish smartaleck" = OFF}

and may i please have a copy of the game plan for chapter 11-15? you did mention there was one for those who might be interested in helping you adjust 11-23.

[shikyrie.livejournal.com]

or you could taunt trespassers in your domain and make them bring you a SHRUBBERY!!!!

[annathepiper]

*chortle* Will it help if I assure you that I WILL get back to editing Faerie Blood as soon as I finish Chapter 11 of Lament?

Game plan for 11-15 on the way to you in email.

[annathepiper]

If I actually drank all of the caffeine I would require to fuel my way through doing every single one of those activities, I think I'd be twitching for the rest of the year. :)

[annathepiper]

Very wise words. And really, if I wanted to think about showing up in both places, I'd NEED to set a limit on amount of time I could stay in each place. writersweekend lives over in Factoria, and pauldf in north Seattle, and since I'm in Kenmore, that's probably a good hour blown right there to get from point A to point B to point C and back to point A again, if not more.

Thanks for the advice, hon, it's much appreciated! I'm still mulling what to do. :)

[annathepiper]

Hon, the only trespasser in my domain is likely to be the cat, and she's way too little to bring me more than a mouthful of leaves. :) And at any rate, taunting the cat is solarbird's job.

[shikyrie.livejournal.com]

::chuckle:: one of mine brought me the stopper from the bathroom sink last night...

what to expect...

[pauldf.livejournal.com]

Now that I have RSVPs, I can give you some idea what to expect if you go to my fudge party. :) It's actually pretty consistent with what I expected once I realized there would be a conflict and decided not to try to reschedule.

The good news for your introvert side is I expect it to be a relatively small party, largely because there are other things going on both during the day and during the evening. I think it'll be large enough that there will often but not always be multiple conversations going on. Also, I'm close enough to having both my public areas (kitchen/dining/living room) and my bedroom cleaned, so as long as I don't get way more people than I expect, the bedroom will be a good place to go sit & futz with your handheld for a bit. I have wireless-B, but you'll have to get the WEP key from me to use it.

The bad news is I think you won't know many people there.

I suspect that it will wrap up relatively early, between people being worn out from daytime stuff and me giving loose times for the fudge early on.

Wow, the one hour drive between them is unfortunate. But if driving isn't that stressful for you, it is a convenient way to play introvert for an hour. :)

I've had this dilemma a few times. I've found that I personally enjoyed back-to-back parties a few times, then it lost its appeal. You might want to pick one to go to first, and just head out when you're ready. Then as you're driving away, make the decision whether to go to the other or just go home. That way you won't have to watch the clock at the first party.

[morgie.livejournal.com]

...isn't that how all online people are supposed to be /anyway/?

[annathepiper]

*snicker* I'm sure I'm violating some sort of Geek Tradition by doing the severe cutback on my caffeine, but hey, it's making me feel fabulous!

And perhaps this summer, I will break another Geek Tradition and attempt to get a tan. ;)

Re: what to expect...

[annathepiper]

I already RSVP'd in the negative to you, but I wanted to thank you again for taking the time to post this comment, as well as for the invite in general. :) I can handle parties with strangers better if I've got solarbird with me, or other close friends; not so much by myself.

Hopefully there will be another time, and heck, if nothing else, only a few more months until Norwescon. :)

Hope that fudge turned out yummy!

[annathepiper]

I'll have to keep her wise words in mind the next time a party-type situation comes up. Glah, stupid inner introvert. :) Yes, ladies and gentlemen, without this keyboard as a shield, I'm SHY. ;P :)

(But hey, the writing is happening tonight, so it's not all bad!)