Do I dare let Maxie go to a Writers Conference?

Maxie wants to go to the La Jolla Writers Conference.
with me this weekend. This would be fine, except that Maxie's a character in my book, not a real person.

I've been to several sessions of the La Jolla Writers Conference. I'm going to the latest conference this weekend. What do they have to offer besides a splendid resort location in San Diego? Contact with other authors, workshops to help you improve your writing, 5-minute pitches to an agent or publisher, and enough information on how to improve your writing to make your head ache.

At the moment, I'm working on Maxie Book 1: Murder in Malibu. That's what I call it since every time I get warmed up on the writing, Maxie takes over and goes some way I never anticipated. Like the time she chased Charlie onto a boat and out into the boat channel, then had to rescue him because the boat was sinking. To put it mildly, I have an out-of-control character.

To be truthful, it's kind of fun watching the words fly on my computer while Maxie does the thinking. It's much more fun than thinking it all up by myself.

The question comes up: Does Maxie live in my head somewhere, somehow? Probably. Who wrote this post anyway?

Marilynne