Friday, October 08, 2010

Friday Fun Facts: Doing my Best to Make a Name

This past week, I was browsing in my local Borders, and I passed a table labeled "Featured Paperbacks." Imagine my total surprise and THRILL when I saw 2 of my books on the table - next to one by Jennifer Crusie! Wow wow wow...I have no idea what prompted it, but I do know the managers there. Maybe one felt like featuring a local author! Such a rush :)

I'm getting ready for my reading at Madame X's on November 1st - mark your calendars! At 7 pm I'll be joining 3 other authors, Stella Price, Sarah MacLean, and Terence Taylor for a featured reading at Lady Jane's Salon. I'm definitely nervous, but fellow author Cat Johnson, who read in September, was kind enough to share her tips. Among them: practice reading my selection OUT LOUD, bring water, and string together scenes that are engaging enough to be read but skip if I need to. It's not like anyone will be following along with the book!

And it's actually perfect timing, since Summer's Song releases the day after, November 2nd. Here's to keeping my nerves under control and making some sales! (And having some fun, since a few girlfriends are joining me for drinks and moral support)

Happy Friday!

Wednesday, October 06, 2010

Writers' Wednesday: Pop Culture

"I'll have what she's having."

One thing that's interesting about having an exchnage student are the cultural references that pop up and need explaining. And isn't it funny where they come from? The other day we were grocery shopping and in the frozen food section. I said, "What about tater tots? Should we get some?" She didn't know what they were, so I tried to explain - and then immediately thought of the movie Napoleon Dynamite, which became this weid cult-like cultural hit a few years back. I've seen it at least 10 times and still laugh.

And then yesterday I was shopping sans exchange student and texting a girlfriend - and all of a sudden a turn in the conversation both led us to think of the famous deli scene from When Harry Met Sally:



Isn't it interesting how certain movies can resonate for their silliness, for the phrases they add to our modern-day culture, even years/decades later?

Monday, October 04, 2010

Monday Mentionables: The End

"It's beautiful," I say as we watch flakes catch in the white lights strung along the tree branches outside. It's true. The first snow of the season always is.

The End.

Finished! I finally had a chance to finish the 3rd revision of my YA novel, All the Girls, over the weekend. Ahh...what a great feeling :)

It ended up at 60K words, a little longer than I had originally planned, but perfect length for YA. Sooo...my goal this week is to go through my list of agents and begin sending query letters. This will be interesting, as I haven't sent an agent query in a while. Have my letter written, but I need to go back through and refine now that the story is done.

And then, well, we'll see. YA is a tough market right now, since it's so popular. Dystopian worlds along with vampires are big, and my book is neither. But I still believe contemporary can hold its own. Let's hope, anyway.

I'll keep you posted on my journey!