Posts for category ‘writing’

- Congratulations to Jandy Nelson, whose wonderful book The Sky Is Everywhere is out today, and I am so excited for you lucky people who get to read it for the first time. I adored this book. See Jandy’s site for a lovely little book trailer and what people are saying (scroll down). Here’s what I said: “Jandy Nelson’s story of grief somehow manages to be an enchantment, a celebration, a romance—without forsaking the rock-hard truths of loss.” And, the narrator, Lennie, plays the clarinet just like I did as a kid and teen. Bonus! It’s one of those books you want to hug to your chest when you’re finished or, like Sonya Sones said, marry.

- Congratulations also to Varian Johnson on the release of Saving Maddie, a book I’ve not yet read but am very eager to, because, hello, preacher’s kid, mysterious bad girl, reconciling faith and family. Follow Varian’s blog and go on tour with him; today he’s in the Author’s Tent with Melodye Shore.

- Debbi Michiko Florence has kicked off a new blog series—Coffee Break Tuesday—in which authors share a bit about their writing lives and paths to publication. When you’re looking for inspiration or company, check it out. The series kicks off with a few words from yours truly.

- I continue to encourage you to subscribe to Poets & Writers if you don’t already. This month, there’s a great profile of Sam Lipsyte (The Ask) and a masterful essay on the poetry of John Donne by William Giraldi. Both are only in the print edition, but you can read some of the issue’s content online. I love this quote from Lipsyte:

“One of my big revelations…was that nobody cares whether you write your novel or not. They want you to be happy. Your parents want you to have health insurance. Your friends want you to be a good friend. But everybody’s thinking about their own problems and nobody wakes up in the morning thinking, ‘Boy, I sure hope Sam finishes that chapter and gets one step closer to his dream of being a working writer.’ Nobody does that. If you want to write, it has to come from you. If you don’t want to write, that’s great. Go do something else. That was a very liberating moment for me.”

- I’m interviewed at Moonlight, Lace, and Mayhem, displaying my ignorance of all things Irish. And here’s a nice review of OWL at 60secondrecap.

- If that isn’t enough for you, I did a podcast interview with the International Reading Assocation’s ReadWriteThink blog while I was at NCTE this past fall. If the podcast is half as great as the conversation felt at the time, I think you will like. Many thanks to Jennifer Buehler for the time and care she put into this. (Teachers: I actually think there may be some potential classroom use for this and/or the video I made for Holly Cupola’s blog.)

Visual aids and purchase links—show some love to an author today by buying a book! If not one of these, something else you’ve been wanting…

Shop Indie Bookstores

Shop Indie Bookstores

Shop Indie Bookstores

Me and Varian at TLA 09. Pre-bangs.

This song unexpectedly came up while I was revising a book 4 scene today.

Man. I can’t believe Otis is only 25 or 26 here. If he had lived longer…

It’s about to get bananas up in here, y’all. Forgive me if I become scarce for the next couple of months or take longer than usual to deal with my various in-boxes. The Great In-Box of Life & Work calls.

Meanwhile:

- Over at Teen Fiction Cafe we are celebrating our third anniversary. To kick it off, I posted a reflection on the last three years of my career, including some Stuff I Have Learned. Today, Wendy Toliver posts, and there are going to be such posts every day between now and the 13th. Prizes, too, people. As in: free stuff.

- Good news for Once Was Lost: It’s been named to the CBCC (Cooperative Children’s Book Center) Choices list—their best of the year. Thank you, CBCC! And, a lovely five-star review from a teen reader at TeensReadToo. Thank you, Melanie.

- Wow, that was a good Olympics. So much epic drama! (If you were fascinated by the Vonn/Mancuso story arc, you will love Sara Bennett Wealer’s book Rival, coming out next year.) But man, we watched every minute of prime time coverage and it was exhausting. Back to 9:30 bed times.

- Huge thanks to Jacksonville Much Ado About Books for taking such good care of me at the Fest. Sometimes it’s hard to believe my “job” involves being served hors d’ouvres and forcing my own personal party escort (hi, Cindy!) to take pictures of me pretending to talk on the phone in a prop phone booth. It was especially great to meet the teens at the Mandarin Branch—many thanks to librarian Donald Carpenter for setting that up.

• Teen blogger Robby interviewed me over at his site, Once Upon A Book. His blog is a big “nuh-uh!” in the face of all the hand-wringing there often is about how teen boys “don’t read.” Thanks for having me, Robby, and keep up the great work!

• Jacksonville, here I come! This weekend is the big Much Ado About Books festival in Jacksonville, Florida. I will be there, giving two (two!) sessions during which I’ll talk about my books and writing YA. These sessions are a great option for those interested in being published in YA—plenty of time for Q&A during which I will reveal my PUBLISHING SECRETS. (Okay, I don’t actually have any, but I do promise to tell you anything you want to know. About publishing.) The details:

Saturday, Feb 27 – Jacksonville, FL – Much Ado about Books

Free and open to the public! At the Main Library on Laura Street. All the info here.

11 a.m. at the Teen Library of the Main Library, ground floor

11:45 – 12:30 signing

12:45 – 1:00 signing

2 p.m. – Session off-site from the festival, at the Mandarin Library Branch (I will also be happy to sign afterward)

• Panic in the industry? Please. Some book lovers simply will not be stopped. For example, Michelle Witte is gearing up to open a new book store here in Utah, specializing in children’s and YA books. When I heard about this, I got very excited. The location, just north of Salt Lake City, is perfect as there is not a lot up there serving book buyers, and told Michelle to let me know what I could do to help. Right now, Michelle/Fire Petal Books is holding an auction to raise money for the venture. I’ve contributed a manuscript critique. And there are lots more great things for readers and writers, from signed books to a phone conversation with editor Molly O’Neill. All the info is here—bid early and bid often! Auction closes March 20. (Though some of the auction items are location-specific, you do not have to live in Utah to participate.)

Saturday, February 13 @ SLC Main Library – 1 p.m. (that’s tomorrow!)

400 S / 300 E

“Young Adult Authors You’ll Love to Meet.” Yes! You will love to meet us, and we will love to meet you. It’s a panel with me, Paul Genesse and Bobbie Pyron. Whether you’re a writer yourself, an aspiring writer, or a fan, the discussion should be great. We will answer anything you ask. Within reason. There will be a signing afterward.

Friday, February 19 @ Aromas Coffeehouse, Omaha, NE – 7 p.m.

Fan meetup! This is my totally experimental/guerrilla/crapshoot thingie. I’m going to be in Omaha for the evening on this last-minute trip, and while it’s too late to line up any store events, I know authors don’t often come your way and I’d be happy to hang out. If you are in the area, come by to say hi and have a chat and a latte (and I will bring my good signing pen in case it become necessary). We’ll see how this goes…I for one am going to bring a book in case it’s just me, myself, and I.

11th and Jones in the Old Market Lofts building

1033 Jones Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68102, 402-614-7009

I will stay there until 8:30 for sure.

Now, Tomorrow, Six Months from Tuesday – The Comfort of Your Own Home

It’s the Glen Online!

Whether you’d like to improve your writing in a particular genre, or have a specific project in mind, the Glen Online offers the perfect opportunity to set reasonable creative writing goals with a mentor’s guidance, all while working at your own pace.

I’m teaching a YA fiction class—I know many of you have already contacted me saying that you wish you could do this if you had the money. If all goes well, I’ll be doing this well into the foreseeable future, so maybe it will work out for you later. If you’re not into YA, TGO also offers classes in beginning, intermediate, and advanced fiction, poetry, and memoir. All the info here.