In just about an hour or so, I’m taking off for the official How to Save a Life tour. In the coming week, I will be in Omaha, Lincoln/Seward, St. Louis, and Louisville. Not too long after that, I’m doing some other stuff. My full schedule with details is here.

If you can’t come see me in person, I’ve been on a blog tour this past week, and I’ll be making a few more blog appearances when I get home. The stops so far:

Book Notes playlist at Largehearted Boy

Interview at Forever Young Adult

(See the Forever Young Adult review here)

Interview at Hooked to Books

Also, don’t forget that your book club (personal, school, library) can win a set of How to Save a Life and my presence (via video chat) at your book club by entering the sweepstakes sponsored by my lovely publisher, Little, Brown.

If you’re in a place I’m not going but would like a signed (even personalized) copy of How to Save a Life, you can get one through the King’s English signed-copy program. Simply contact them and tell them what you want and we’ll make it happen!

Finally, follow all the touring fun, blog tour links, and what I’m eating and seeing via twitter, and/or by “liking” my author page on Facebook. I will try to post as many pictures and updates as I can while on the road! I may even try doing something with video, though it will be the first time I’ve tried that with my iPad, so we shall see.

Thanks for all your support of How to Save a Life so far. It’s been an exciting time. See you back here the first week of November, if not in person this coming week.

Today is the official release day of How to Save a Life, my fourth novel.

May I say: A lot has happened in the two years since my third book, Once Was Lost, came out.

A. Real. Effing. Lot.

Some amazingly wonderful stuff. Some excruciatingly painful stuff. Some stuff that just pissed me off. Some stuff I didn’t understand. Some stuff I wish I could undo. Stuff that scared me, moved me, surprised me, knocked me down, and pulled me up. Lots of stuff I couldn’t control. AKA STUFF. That brought me through more practical and emotional changes than I can begin to wrap my mind around. There were times I thought:

I can’t do it.

Writing. Being a human. Living life.

Not in a despairing “I wanna make an exit” kind of way, but more like: I can’t do it in a way I’m proud of. Like: I wanna melt all the way down and yell and pull up the drawbridge and never come out, and never let anyone in. In some ways, I sort of vacated my life for awhile there. I mean, I did what needed to be done. I met my responsibilities to others, if not many of my responsibilities to myself. I functioned. I struggled through. There were some extraordinarily good days and beautiful moments in the midst of it all. But I wasn’t totally here.

Very recently, finally, I feel like I’m showing back up. Like I’ve stepped back into my life and am somewhat startled to see that it’s a bright place, and it’s filled with good things and people who care about me and challenge me, and I’ve got a new book out that I’m really and truly proud of, and even newer projects in the works, a husband whose support and love I can take for granted in the best way, family I couldn’t love more, not to mention food, clothing, and shelter and pretty good health.

I am thankful to arrive at this day and be thankful. And excited, and happy, and hopeful. I know every single day won’t feel like this. And I know that death and burial are necessary precursors to resurrection. I know because I learn it over and over! I’m even thankful for that.

Okay. Thank you all for the part you play in brightening this room. I offer you How to Save a Life in the spirit of hope for new life and birth, for all of us, wherever it is we need it.

Yes, this is going to be the primary subject of my blog for the next few weeks – thanks for listening!

- Would you like your very own, free copy of the How to Save a Life hardcover? Of course you would! Kristen Pelfrey is doing a giveaway on her blog, and at the same time supporting Eighth Day Books. Thank you, Kristen!

- The first trade review is in, from Kirkus, and it’s a goodie with a star. Among the quotable quotes: “Woven together from two simple threads, the resulting tapestry is as beautiful as it is real. A story that will resonate beyond its final page.” That makes me happy.

- What makes me even happier? The review over at Forever YA. I think I would love a review from them even if they didn’t like the book, because they are just so sassy. Fortunately, they do like the book. Perhaps my favorite line: “And then there’s Mandy. The best way I can describe Mandy is that she’s like an alien pretending to be a teenage girl.” Oh, Mandy.

Events! Tour!

On the Internets:

- October 17-25 and maybe beyond, I will be blog touring. If you follow me on Twitter, or at my Facebook author page, you will get all the links.

In the Salt Lake area:

- October 19 (Wed): I’ll be on a panel with Emily Wing Smith and Bree Despain, at the West Valley City Library, 7 p.m., as part of the Utah Humanities Book Festival and Teen Read Week

- October 20 (Thurs): Official book launch! I’ll be reading and talking and signing at The King’s English, 7 p.m. Please come! It’s going to be a good time.

- October 22 (Sat): I’ll be signing at the Costco on 300 W (around 1800 S). It’s my first Costco signing. I’m scared, and scared of being lonely. So if you have some shopping errands to do, do them on Saturday and get a signed copy of How to Save a Life while yer at it. 1 p.m.

In the Midwest!

I told you I’d be back with YET MORE LINKS TO STUFF. And here I am!

- Little, Brown Books for Young Readers is running a sweepstakes and the prize is ME. And free books! More specifically: you can enter your book club (including school and library clubs) for a chance to win a set of How to Save a Life for your club, and a visitation by me, via satellite link. Actually video chat. But “satellite link” sounds much cooler. This is open through the end of December! So I’ll be reminding you here and there.

- I’m teaching YA fiction at the Glen Workshop again next summer, but this time in beautiful Santa Fe. We (me, my class) had a great time this past summer and did some good work together. I’d love to have you join us, and the rest of the amazing faculty. (Brett Lott, Barry Moser, Scott Cairns, oh my!) There are scholarships possible, and if you have any questions at all please let me know. Registration is open now – a small deposit holds your spot if you’re not sure.

- It pleased me to no end to learn this week that one of the National Book Foundations “5 under 35″ writers for 2011 is YA author John Corey Whaley. I haven’t read his book yet, but man it’s good to see some representation. Thank you Oscar Hijuelos for understanding that young adult authors are not the J.V. team of literature.

That’s all I got. Have a good weekend, and see you back here next week!

Take kindly the counsel of the years,

gracefully surrendering the things of youth.

That’s from Max Ehrmann’s “Desiderata,” an amazing document/poem/manifesto/philosophy. And that’s what I’m trying to do now that I am in my forties and not merely hovering very nearby. What “the things of youth” are exactly, for me, is something to think about. It certainly doesn’t mean “anything fun.” There’s not enough of that, and what I do have I am not surrendering. They will have to pry fun from my cold, dead hands! But, pondering.

Speaking of fun – I’m back from the Smart Chicks Kick It 2.0 tour, and I want to say a grateful thanks to Melissa Marr, Kelley Armstrong, and Jennifer Lynn Barnes for inviting me along and showing me a good time. (All the other ladies, too, but these are the masterminds.) I would also like to thank the fans of Melissa, Kelley, Jen, and everyone else for welcoming a writer of contemporary realism into their midst and, I hope, their hearts (even though I didn’t always know how to answer questions like what is my favorite mythical creature or which paranormal boy star I’m most in love with).

It was pretty exciting to sign those first copies of How to Save a Life and see them go home with new readers. Yay!

Some HTSAL-related stuffs:

- A review from Mindy McGinnis at Writer, Writer, Pants on Fire (Favorite pull-quote “Even my tin can of a heart was aflutter.” I also like the description of Jill’s “dark wall of sarcasm.”) (Also! Thank you Mindy, and all reviewers, for keeping your posts fee of major spoilers – I do appreciate it!) (Last also: I did a Q&A about general writing stuff with Mindy, as well, which you can find here.)

- Amazon has picked it as a Best Book for October, and it’s in good company over there.

- The Children’s Book Council featured it in its “Starting from Scratch”-themed roundup this week. Thank you, CBC!

Okay. I have other, non-HTSAL links I want to share, but in the interest of avoiding any “TLDR”s, I’ll hold off and blog again later in the week. Crazy! It’s gonna be like 2008 up in here!

Here’s a snap (courtesy Margie Stohl) of the SCKI tour from our event in Vancouver, with the wonderful folks of Chapter’s Burnaby:

(Kelley, Margie, Jen, Melissa, Beth Revis, and me. Fun fact! Beth and I share a birthday. Libras unite!)