Kiersten Writes

Book Recommendations: Featuring Rather Less Kissing and Rather More Pictures

2012-01-31T10:45:00.000-08:00

In today's edition of Books Kiersten Recommends, I'm actually spotlighting Books Kiersten's Kids Recommend. And, since my kids have impeccable taste (naturally!), hopefully your kids (and you) will enjoy these as well.

Nayna recommends:

The Babymouse Series

Stephanie Perkins, fine connoisseur of all things wonderful in writing, has been recommending this series of graphic novels for my seven-year-old for ages, and of course she was right. The storytelling is delightful--a central plot populated by Babymouse's hilarious flights of fancy. The writing is sleek, the pictures simple but expressive. I love sitting by Nayna as she reads (and re-reads) and letting her point out all her favorite visual gags. The world owes Jennifer and Matthew Holm's parents a debt of gratitude for not stopping at just one child.

Nayna also adores Dave Roman's ASTRONAUT ACADEMY and Ursula Vernon's DRAGONBREATH series. Both are excellent; the bonus of Babymouse is that there are already sixteen books out.

I really love these fun, funny, completely age appropriate graphic novels. They have the movement and sustained plots of longer books but with so much more visual engagement. Nayna loves reading, writing, and drawing, and these are the perfect books to feed those interests.

Dojo recommends:

FRANKENSTEIN MAKES A SANDWICH

We're big Adam Rex fans in our house. Dojo's one request for a prize on my last trip was FRANKENSTEIN MAKES A SANDWICH. It didn't disappoint. The poems are delightful and ridiculous, and the paintings are varied and charming and filled with enough humor for beginning-reader Dojo to appreciate even when he can't read all the words. I read it in the car on the way back from Phoenix and forced Shannon Messenger, my travel companion, to listen to most of the poems read aloud. They're that funny. I can't tell you how much I appreciate books for children that are also entertaining to read aloud.

I've talked about GUESS AGAIN, a collaboration between Mac Barnett and Adam Rex, on this blog before. It's in my top five picture books of all time, just for the sheer joy of watching my kids first get mad that it defied their rhyming expectations, and then laugh their heads off. (Even better was hearing them try to explain the book to other people. "But it wasn't a mouse! It was a VIKING! How could he live in the walls??")

Speaking of Barnett and Rex and brilliant combinations of brains, they have another book coming out. Here's the trailer. Tell me you don't want to read it:

I got to hang out a bit with Adam this weekend at the Changing Hands' YAllapalooza party. It's always nice when artists and authors whose work you adore turn out to be just as cool in person. Once you got past his five bodyguards, of course. He's kind of a big deal--he has a book coming out with Neil Gaiman, after all. His bodyguards were also lovely people, in case you were wondering, though I would have preferred fewer concealed weapons at a library event.

I had to wait in line five hours to get this picture. Honestly, these rockstar author-illustrators--and the paparazzi! It was insane.

(Unnecessary parenthetical: I am lying. Though that's how it OUGHT to be. And no bodyguards, though apparently his mom has mad skills with a bowie knife. But only versus dinosaurs.)

(Further shockingly necessary parenthetical: You know my kids aren't actually named Nayna and Dojo, right? Because...yeah.)

(Though of course my husband's driver's license says Hot Stuff.)

Speaking of Mac Barnett, his newest picture book EXTRA YARN with Jon Klassen is getting all sorts of starred reviews (as well as hitting the NYT Bestseller list). I'm getting it for my kids for Valentine's Day. Nothing says love like books!

So, tell me: If you have kids, what are they reading? And what are your favorite books to read aloud to them?

A Super Hot Interview

2012-01-25T07:19:00.000-08:00

(FYI, yesterday I guest vlogged a truth-or-dare on this blog. In case you missed it. Which you totally should have, don't go watch it, it's not ridiculous or embarrassing and you definitely don't want to hear poetry I wrote when I was seventeen.)

SO. A while ago I put out a call for interview questions for my husband. A "The man behind the woman behind the books behind the back of the bookshelf where they got knocked down and you won't find them until you move" sort of thing. So, people asked and Hot Stuff answered.

(Now you will understand why my life is so happy. AND I finally got it confirmed that he is being passive-aggressive when he puts dishes away where I can't reach.)

1) Mr. Hot Stuff how do you handle this lil firecracker you call your wife, lol?

Great question. You know, I'm not sure how I handle her. I do know that she could beat me up fairly easily. She likes action movies, whereas I can barely handle "The Wind in the Willows." She also knows some karate and used to own various ninja weapons.

2) Do you speak and treat her the way she talks about you?? :)

Yes. I actually treat her much, much better than she treats me.

Gonna have to slug him for that answer.

3) Has he read your books? Especially Endlessly? And what did he think?

I have read her books. I usually read them once she finishes a draft. Every once in a while I can get plot details out of her before she writes a story, but she's pretty good at being secretive. I do like her writing, and Endlessly has the best scene Kiersten has ever written in it. I don't think I'm allowed to give it away, but it made me laugh out loud. It's kind of disturbing what goes on in her head.

Whatever. He totally loves the Dark Side.

4) Mayo, or miracle whip?

Mayo. Actually, I'm kind of in a kick right now where I don't use any dressings on sandwiches or anything else. I don't know why I started doing it, but for some reason I can't stop. I like mayonnaise better though because it works the best with Romanian potato salad.

Hot Stuff's hand by a Romanian slug. Not an ingredient in Romanian potato salad.

5) What's the best part of being married to a short wife?

Being able to use my height and weight to push her around. She can't move me off the couch, or reach things I put on a high shelf. Whenever she's acting like she's too cool for school, I can just pat her on the head and tell her how adorable she is. That usually brings her back to earth. She does have a HUGE advantage in crowds though, and walking under trees.

Also advantage in Romanian Castles.

6) Does your wife sometimes call you Lend? :)

Nope. She calls me his full name: "Lenderson" . . . or was it "Lendrew" . . .

7) Does she ever ask you for your input when writing and better yet does she take your advice?

Some days she'll ask me something or tell me a plot point and ask me what I think. Then she ignores my answer. I think she figures if I understand or like something, no one else will. I was pretty happy once because I told her to change something in "Paranormalcy" and she ignored me, but then several other people told her to change the same thing so she had to follow my original advice. HA!

8) How has having a bestselling author for a wife changed your life?

Not too much actually. I still have the same job, and we still live in the same area, and I still go running every other morning, and I still am somewhat scared of coyotes. My wife is gone more on work trips, but it's not that bad since she usually buys me candy before she goes.

9) I hear an author gets $1 for every book sold, and seeing as I've gotten 2 (with 4+ more on my wish list) you've gotten at least $2 from me, what have you done with those $2 and what will you do with the other $4+?

I used your particular $2 to buy 5/8 of a California Burrito at my second favorite place in the whole world: "Mexican Fiesta." It's kind of a long wait for a burrito, but it is well worth it if you are ever in Little Italy in San Diego. I will probably spend your next $4+ on 1.2+ California Burritos from the same place. That's really the only reliable thing I spend money on.

10) Who is the hottest person in his family?

My wife, Kiersten.

This is not a photo of Hot Stuff.

11) Who is his favorite sister in law?

All of them.

12) What's it like being married to a writer?

It's kind of how one would imagine being married to a hippy female version of Captain von Trapp from "The Sound of Music." Mix that with the plot of "Blue Crush" and you pretty much have my current life.

13) Which is your favorite book of your wife's?

All of them. They are all the best books ever. "Mind Games" is extra the best, in my opinion.

From First to Final: A Journey Through Edits

2012-01-23T09:17:00.000-08:00

In conjunction with the lovely (and newly Printz honor award winning! I loved THE SCORPIO RACES, one of my favorites from last year) Maggie Stiefvater and a bunch of other authors (click on link to view a list of all the participants!), I thought I'd give you an actual glimpse into what happens between a first draft and a final. I do have some huge overhauls I've done with other books, but PARANORMALCY managed to stay fairly intact. That doesn't mean it didn't get redlined and cleaned up like crazy, though.

I've copied the very first version of the first half of the very first chapter (pulled from my email from 2009, when I sent it to Natalie Whipple under the title "A Present"), and then shown the markings for how it varies from this to the final version, along with commentary on why I did what I did. I hope it's helpful!

Chapter One: Oh, Bite Me

Like I’d never seen this one before. I might be sixteen, but trust me, I’ve seen a lot of things in my lifetime. And what I was looking at right now was so utterly unoriginal I actually yawned.

We cut this opening paragraph entirely, feeling that starting with the vampire reaction was a stronger setup. It rendered this paragraph redundant. The fact that she is yawning is enough to tell us she's not impressed by vampires. Also, I didn't start out with chapter titles, but added them pretty quickly in the first draft.

“Wait—did you—you just yawned!” The vampire’s arms, raised ~~threateningly~~ over his head in the classic ~~Nosferatu~~ Dracula pose, dropped to his sides. He pulled his exaggerated~~, gleaming~~ white fangs back behind his ~~blood red~~ lips. “What, imminent death isn’t exciting enough for you?”

Ah, Nosferatu. You'll always be my favorite, but you aren't as instantly recognizable to the masses as Dracula and were thus replaced. It's important to keep audience in mind when making cultural references. Writing for teens is not writing for my generation, and the cultural touchstones everyone recognizes are different. I also cut just a few of the descriptors--here we have exaggerated, gleaming, white, and blood red. A little much.

“Oh, stop pouting. But really—the widow’s peak? The pale skin? The black cape? Where did you even get that thing, a ~~fetish~~ costume store?”

Hee. Yeah, decided to cut the reference to a fetish store, given that this is a book for twelve-and-up. I dialed back a lot of Evie's commentary in edits. If you can say one funny thing instead of two, probably best to go for one.

He raised himself to his full height~~—just over six feet—~~and glared icily down at me. “I’m going to suck your life from your pretty white neck,” ~~he whispered.~~

We don't need to know exactly how tall he is. Glaring icily down lets us know he's taller than Evie. I also cut about 75% of my dialog tags in revisions, always. Be ruthless with dialog tags.

~~“Go ahead,” I sighed.~~ I hated the vamp jobs. ~~First of all,~~ they all think they’re so suave—it’s not enough for them to just slaughter and eat you like a zombie would. No, they want it to be all sexy, too. And trust me: vampires? Not. Sexy. I mean, sure, their glamours can be pretty hot ~~sometimes~~, but the ~~desiccated,~~ dry-as-bone corpse bodies shimmering underneath? Nothing attractive there. Not that anyone else can see them, though.

~~He lunged forward;~~ He hissed; just as he reached for my neck, I tased him.

~~What, you were expecting holy water? A cross? A stake? Please.~~ I’~~m here~~ was there to bag and tag, not to kill. Besides, if I had to carry separate weapons for every ~~single~~ paranormal I ~~take~~ took out, I’d be dragging around a full luggage set. Tasers are a one-size-fits-all paranormal butt kicking option. Mine’s pink, with rhinestones. Tasey and I have had a lot of good times together.

More cleaning, refining, taking out unnecessary words. A lot of editing Evie is pulling her back--cutting down the number of times she addresses the reader, eliminating a good bulk of her running commentary. Also, and this is weird, I have always hated that I let the copyeditors take out that comma in the middle of "Mine's pink, with rhinestones." In my head she says it with a pause. I should have fought for that comma.

~~Oh yeah, the vampire. He was twitching~~ The vamp twitched on the ground, unconscious. He ~~actually~~ looked ~~really~~ kind of pathetic now; I almost felt bad for him. Imagine your grandpa. Now imagine your grandpa minus fifty pounds. ~~Now imagine your grandpa~~ plus 200 years. That’s who ~~I just sent a whole bunch of electricity through~~ I'd just electrified.

Messy, messy. More cleaning, streamlining, tightening. I also had to be careful not to let Evie pull the reader out of the narrative too much, which is what her "Oh yeah, the vampire." thing did--reminded the reader she'd been off on a tangent and that they needed to get back to the story.

Tasey’s work done, I reholstered her and pulled out the vamp-specific ankle bracelet. Bracelet being a loose definition of a fairly complicated and bulky device. They’d been streamlined in the last few years—you should have seen the early versions. It was like the difference between that great big camera your dad used to take pictures with when he was a teenager and your sleek, slim digital camera. And still they complain.

Again, too much explaining. I took out a lot of her explanations (though I still kept her talking directly to the reader as a narrative device, just in moderation) because I needed to trust my reader to a) suspend disbelief and b) wait long enough to get answers about just who she was and what she was doing. A mistake I (and many writers) make in first drafts is not trusting the reader. You give them just enough to hook them--they'll keep reading to get answers. They don't need you to hold their hand through the first few chapters. I find my first chapters always lose the most lines out of any sections. That's okay! First chapters are when I am feeling out voice and setting up world. Sometimes I need to write things for me and then lose them later on.

I'm going to stop there; I think you have a clear enough idea of what my edits look like. It's all about tightening, refining, streamlining. Don't use four bland details when you can use two really good ones. Don't have something happen and then have your narrator think about exactly what just happened. Don't underestimate readers' ability to go along with you. These are things I have to remind myself every single book! Also worth noting is that many of these edits were my own, but several of them were also suggestions from my crit partners and my phenomenal editor, Erica Sussman. Sometimes you stop being able to see your own writing; this is where working with people smarter than you comes in handy.

Upcoming Event + Missouri Love + I Don't Actually Understand the Mechanics of the Human Body While Dancing

2012-01-20T12:29:00.000-08:00

First: If you live in or around the Phoenix area, I will be in town Saturday the 28th to do a YA writing workshop and then a GREAT BIG PARTY with Changing Hands bookstore! The party is free; the workshop is $85, but you can attend three classes group-taught by many seriously awesome and absurdly photogenic authors. (Why did they invite me then? I invited myself. Of course.) I'm teaching with Aprilynne Pike and Anna Carey on heroes and villains; we'll also answer publishing questions!

I like Phoenix, and I adore Changing Hands, and you should totally come hang out!

Second: PARANORMALCY is a nominee for a Truman Award, given by the Missouri Association of School Librarians. This makes my heart happy on a great many levels. First, I adore school librarians, and I think they do severely under-appreciated but massively important work. So any time people whose whole job is putting books in teens' hands choose my books it fills me with joy. Second, my dad is from Missouri and my grandparents (as well as aunts and uncle and cousins and even a brother-in-law and his family) still live there, so it's extra nice being recognized by a state with so many genealogical connections! (Incidentally, my mother's ancestors lived there briefly as well before they were kicked out because they were Mormon. We like to joke that my dad's ancestors kicked my mom's ancestors out. Starcrossed lovers!)

Third: It took me clear until the end of this music video when she started flying to figure out that no, it wasn't amazing that she could jump and hover in the air for that long, it was special effects.

Guys, I'm super bright.

A Night in the Life

2012-01-12T09:23:00.000-08:00

Kiersten and Hot Stuff, sitting downstairs, though more accurately collapsed on the couch and the floor, respectively.

Nayna and Dojo, upstairs, brushing their teeth.

Dojo: Screams. "Nayna brushed her teeth first! It was my turn!"

Kiersten: "It doesn't matter!"

Dojo: Yells even louder, working himself up to a fit, which often ends in puking.

Kiersten: "Fine! You can brush your teeth first the rest of the week!"

Nayna: Anguished wails and sobbing.

Kiersten: "You go up."

Hot Stuff: Wisely does not move.

Kiersten: Stomps up the stairs. "WHAT is going on?"

Nayna: Mournful wailing. "You said...I can't...brush first...ever again!"

Kiersten: "I didn't say that."

Dojo: "YES YOU DID. I ALWAYS GET TO BRUSH FIRST NOW."

Nayna: Heart clearly broken clean in two by this incredible injustice, continued sobbing.

Kiersten: "Tomorrow! He gets to brush first tomorrow!"

Dojo: "NO. EVERY DAY."

Nayna: Will never recover from the trauma.

Kiersten: "Two days! You get to brush first for two days!"

Nayna: Already desperately in need of intense therapy sessions to heal from this.

Dojo: "Nayna, I'm never playing with you again!"

Kiersten: "OH NO YOU DON'T. YOU DON'T GET TO BE MEAN OVER SOMETHING AS RIDICULOUS AS BRUSHING YOUR TEETH. THIS IS THE SILLIEST FIGHT YOU'VE EVER HAD."

Nayna: A thousand Care-Bears watch from the clouds, crying in sympathy to her tender feelings irreparably shattered.

Dojo: ''IT IS NOT SILLY! SHE WAS BEING MEAN!"

Kiersten: "Did she hurt you? Did she take something away you can never get back? Did she say something mean?"

Dojo: "No."

Kiersten: "THEN IT IS SILLY."

Dojo: "IT IS NOT SILLY. SHE TOOK MY TURN."

Kiersten: "SO YOU GET EXTRA TURNS."

Nayna: Sobs. "I just." Sobs. "You can't." Sobs. "It'll mess up the SCHEDULE!"

Kiersten: "YOU ALREADY MESSED UP THE TAKING TURNS SCHEDULE. THAT'S IT. IF YOU GUYS ARE GOING TO FIGHT OVER THIS, TOMORROW NIGHT NO ONE GETS TO BRUSH...their...teeth DANGIT I CAN'T EVEN TAKE THIS AWAY FROM YOU." Realizes that her kids have picked something to fight over that she literally cannot take away from them. Final tenuous grasp on control has officially dissolved.

Kiersten: "From now on everyone brushes their teeth at exactly the same time, no matter what, FOREVER." Realizes she has become her father, who used to make the same ridiculous statements in an effort to keep things fair. Realizes there are worse things to be, since her father is an amazing guy.

Nayna: Quietly devolves into sniffles.

Dojo: "Snuggle time!"

Kiersten: "YES. I AM FEELING ALL SORTS OF SNUGGLY RIGHT NOW."

Dojo: "Also, I dropped my toothbrush in the toilet."

Kiersten: Gives up.

Dojo: "Nayna, come for snuggle time!"

Nayna: Resolved to wallow alone. "No."

Dojo: "But Nayna! Snuggle time is filled with LOVE!"

At least we've got that going for us.

(If that wasn't enough Kiersten for your day [and really probably it was too much], the longest interview I've ever given is up over at VOYA's website, and oddly enough also includes an anecdote about brushing teeth. Only this time the story is about me, and the time I accidentally brushed my teeth with...well, you can read it.)

A Little Bit More

2012-01-10T09:57:00.000-08:00

A lot of people are posting about New Year's Resolutions, goals, what they are going to do this year to introduce broad, sweeping change into their lives.

Mine's not quite that dramatic. My goal is this: Do a little bit more.

Nothing set in stone. No requirements, no quotas, no charts. Just...do a little bit more. In everything. Spend a few minutes more cleaning my house every day. Spend a few minutes more planning and making meals. Spend a few minutes more exercising. Be a little bit more aware of what I'm putting into my body. Be a little bit kinder and more willing to reach out to those around me. Be a little bit better when it comes to documenting my kids' milestones. Spend a little bit more time outside, a little bit more time away from the internet and this worn-out keyboard. Spend a little bit more in quiet, reflective silence that doesn't involve music or screens. Slip a little bit more tongue in when kissing my husband.

HA HA YOU DIDN'T SEE THAT ONE COMING, DID YOU, INTERNETS?

Ahem. Maybe also be a little bit more mature.

But only a little bit. Because a little bit here and there isn't so very hard to succeed at, and doesn't give me anything to beat myself up over if I don't quite manage it today. Because there's always room for a little bit more tomorrow, too.

Yes, Do This, No, Don't Do That

2011-12-29T17:26:00.000-08:00

I've been getting a lot of requests for writing advice lately. I have several posts on it, but I thought I'd gather my thoughts in a new post here, in a Yes, Do This and No, Don't Do This format. This is meant to inform, not to embarrass. Please be assured that I have made every mistake possible, and that I am not thinking of any one person when I list things you shouldn't do. (No one out there should think I am talking about them, because I'm not. No embarrassment allowed. This means you.)

Yes: Follow your favorite authors on Facebook and twitter and their blogs. Feel free to respond to the things they post. Enjoy interacting if said author is responsive.

No: Please don't use authors responding to your messages as a jumping board for asking for personal favors. We have a lot of followers. We have a lot of responsibilities. I will never read something for someone I don't know, and I'm sure 99% of published authors are the same way. It's not personal, and it's not because I don't want to help. It's because a) I don't ever want to be liable should someone unpublished decide to claim I stole ideas/content/etc, and b) I simply don't have time. Once you begin saying yes, where do you draw the line and say no? It's easier for me to have a firm no policy to begin with. I try to find other ways to give back to the writing community, and I know most authors do as well.

If you are unpublished, do not try to make published authors your critique partners. I know it seems like all of my friends are published, but when I started not a single one of my crit partners had a book deal. We went through it together, and we are all better for it. To emphasize: I was not friends or crit partners with a single published author when I got my book deal. No one recommended me to my agent. I was slush all the way. Do connections hurt? Absolutely not. But please pursue them out of a desire to connect with someone rather than use them as a connection. No one likes to be used, it's very easy to tell when that's what's happening, and it rarely turns out well.

Also, please do not ever take a non-response from an author as an insult or a rejection. Every author manages their time differently, and everyone has different levels of responsiveness. It is never personal.

Kiersten Rookie Mistake: I totally asked an author with a book deal to read my query for my first book. And she said yes, and she was amazing, and I will always be grateful. So...guess I am a bad example here. Sometimes you might luck out. But it's definitely the exception, and you're better off not counting on connecting with an established author to help you navigate the murky waters of querying. (The query she helped me with wasn't even for the book that got me my agent.)

Yes: If you have an author or agent you admire, see if they keep a blog. Search their blog for advice about writing and publishing--most blogs have a search box that lets you plug in specific terms. If you are overwhelmed with how much information is out there (there is a LOT), start with Nathan Bransford's site. On his side bar under "Publishing Essentials" are links to the things you need to know to get started. He's clear, he's concise, and he's infinitely more helpful than I'll ever be.

No: Don't ask authors or agents for personal advice on how to get published. It's pretty much the same for everyone, and you can find that information very easily without taking up someone's personal time to tell you everything. Most authors and agents will simply direct you to a blog post or FAQ page you can find just as quickly on your own.

Fact of the matter is, they won't tell you anything new even if they do respond to your requests for personalized information. Don't use all of your time and creative energy trying to figure out the secret to getting published. The secret isn't a secret. The secret is: Write a good book. Edit it. Query. While you are querying, WRITE ANOTHER BOOK. You can't skip any of those steps. You may have to repeat those steps a couple (or more than a couple) times. But in the end there is no secret font, no secret formatting tricks, no secret handshakes that will get you a book deal. It doesn't matter who you know. It doesn't matter. The writing is always, always, always what it comes down to in the end.

Kiersten Rookie Mistake: I spent hours and hours (and hours and hours and hours) scouring writing websites and agent blogs trying to find an answer. The question I wanted answered was: How can I get published RIGHT NOW? And the answer (which I didn't find anywhere because I didn't know how to see it) was: YOU CAN'T RIGHT NOW, KIERSTEN. KEEP WRITING. I wish I could have those hours back to spend on actual writing instead of obsessing about publishing.

Yes: Make publishing a goal if it is important to you.

No: Don't let being published determine your worth as a writer. Always, always, always keep the love of writing first and foremost. If you let the pursuit of publication kill your love of writing, not even a book deal with salvage it. We write because we love to, because we need to. We pursue publication with this firmly in mind, knowing that even if it never happens our writing still has value.

Kiersten Rookie Mistake: I know it seems easy for me to say these things from the position I'm in now, but I have four books--completed books--that will never be published. And one of those is from after I got my first book deal. I have at least a dozen other started-but-stalled-out stories. Being published does not magically solve everything. Sometimes books and stories just don't work. I'm still glad I wrote all of them. Did realizing I'd failed at a book suck hardcore at the time? YES OH MY GOSH YES. Did I let myself get sad and frustrated? Absolutely. Deservedly so. Did I let it keep me from writing other books and telling myself that my writing was worthwhile? Nope. I kept going. I still keep going.

Ultimate Kiersten Rookie Mistakes: Thinking that being published was something I was entitled to simply because I finished writing a book. (I...started researching publishing the day I wrote the first page of my first novel. Yup. The gun? It was jumped.) Thinking that I was good enough with a first draft. Thinking that I wouldn't have to work and edit and learn and truly dedicate myself to writing as a craft if I really wanted to make a career out of it. Thinking that a rejection (at any level) meant it would never happen. Thinking that if it didn't happen with THIS BOOK it would never happen. Thinking that other people being successful before me (or being more successful than me) somehow stole my potential to also succeed.

Ultimate Kiersten Redemption: Not giving up and being willing to learn. Also I make really good cookies, which has nothing to do with writing but certainly helps with almost everything else in life.

I hope this was helpful. I hope it was encouraging. I love writing, and I love writers, and I think creating stories and worlds and characters is one of the most challenging and rewarding things we can do as creative people. I wish you the absolute best of luck in your writing, wherever you are in the process. Also I wish you a cookie. A really good one.

In Which I Keep Tradition Alive

2011-12-26T13:37:00.000-08:00

Condition to the Universe/Wolfson Literary Tradition* = FULFILLED. Happy Holidays!

*Way back in the day, Tawna Fenske and I made a deal that if we got book deals, we'd dye a strip of our hair a funky color. Somehow this got extended to all of Michelle's clients, and even Michelle herself. Who am I to break a tradition I inadvertently started?

And the Winner Is...

2011-12-19T08:47:00.000-08:00

EVERYONE YOU BOUGHT GIFTS FOR.

I mean, obviously.

But the winner of my trilogy is:

Amanda @ Stuck in YA Books! Amanda, please email me your mailing information!

But seriously, everyone, thank you so much for participating. I read every single comment, and it was so fun to see what everyone was giving book-wise for gifts. You all have excellent taste, and your friends and loved ones should feel very privileged to be on your shopping lists!

More tomorrow. Sorry if you didn't win. If it makes you feel any better, I didn't, either. And now I have to go to the Post Office...

The ENDLESSLY ARC Contest

2011-12-11T20:28:00.001-08:00

***CONTEST CLOSED***

Well, that wasn't a very clever title, but it got the job done.

You guys, I got a box of ARCs. Of ENDLESSLY ARCs. And, as Editor Erica put it, "Yay! And kind of sad!" It IS both yay and kind of sad. I love Evie! And...this is the last book. But seriously so amazing. Because look! It's my trilogy!

Paranormalcy: Supernaturally's posing again.

Endlessly: Ungh, I know, she never stops.

Paranormalcy: Still, you have to admire the design aesthetic when we are all lined up like this.

Endlessly: Also, our hair is amazing.

Supernaturally: HUSH. WE ARE POSING.

You might be thinking, "Why so early, Kiersten? You don't usually get ARCs until April!" Which is very true, but since ENDLESSLY is coming out in July I got Christmas in December this year!

Wait. Christmas actually is in December. Dangit, that phrase is so much less effective than "Christmas in [month other than December]."

So, I won't be giving away any ENDLESSLY ARCs for a few months.

EXCEPT.

Since it actually IS December, and I happen to be a very big fan of December, how about just one giveaway?

Not only does my heroine have a spine, my books have them, too.

AND THEY ARE PRETTY.

And how about, in honor of a trilogy, I give away all three books--including the very first ARC of ENDLESSLY--signed and personalized?

THIS COULD BE YOUR CHRISTMAS TREE.

Unless you don't celebrate Christmas, in which case, that's weird that you have a Christmas tree in your front room, probably you should take it down and figure out who put it there in the first place.

But seriously. Even if you don't celebrate Christmas, you like presents, right?

NO? WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?

Oh, you said "right." Okay. Good. I was worried.

Also, I'm a little creeped out that the Christmas tree that could be yours has ornaments my kids made.

Ahem. The rules!

TO ENTER:

1. Buy a book for someone for Christmas/Hanukkah/Solstice/Kwanzaa/just because you like them. Any book! It doesn't have to be one of mine. Though if it is, you are demonstrating excellent taste and will instantly be a hero to whoever receives the gift. (If you already purchased books for your holiday gift-giving, that counts. Though buying another is also a good idea.)

2. Comment ON THIS POST ON MY BLOG (not on Goodreads, I never see those comments, and not on another post, and not on twitter, or facebook, or spray-painted on my front porch because: scary) telling me what book you bought and who you bought it for.

3. Deadline: SUNDAY, DECEMBER 18th.

That's it. Open internationally. Only one entry per person, though if you are buying books for more than one person on your list, you are my favorite.

DISCLAIMER: I cannot guarantee the books will get to you before Christmas if that is the particular holiday you are celebrating. (If you are international and you win, there's no way they'll get there by Christmas.) Still, that is the glory of books: they are awesome whenever you get them! Plus this is the only ENDLESSLY giveaway I will do until at least April.

So, GO TO IT. BUY BOOKS. GIVE BOOKS. Be entered to win great big booky goodness, but be a winner regardless because everyone who knows you will love you for your rocking gift-giving skills!

***CONTEST CLOSED***

Transformers: Snark of the Moon

2011-12-06T23:28:00.001-08:00

Don't have three hours to watch the mind-numbing mind numbingness that is Transformers: Dark of the Moon? No worries! I've got the whole movie covered for you right here.

Giant Robots That Have Incredibly Advanced Technology They Can't Think of Anything Better to Do With Than Hang Out as Big Rigs and SUVs and Fire Trucks:

We are putting these metallic phallic-imagery devices all over the world to change it into Rusted Metal World. Physics need not apply, because we are above physics. We can change into cars, which clearly makes us the most advanced species in the universe. Anything that can change into cars can violate all laws of physics. But we still need a variety of stupid accents.

Good Giant Robots That Get Their Metal Butts Kicked Until the End of the Movie When Suddenly They Remember They Can Punch the Heads Off of the Robots Previously Winning:

No. There are only eight of us, but we will fight these hundreds of our Robot brothers to protect humans. Because...because...because...

Tiny Pervy Robots Who Hate Women:

COMEDIC RELIEF DISTRACTION!

Skeezy Guy Who Is Serving the Robots Taking Over the World and Killing Humanity Because That Always Works Out So Well, but Who Still Has a Soft Spot for the Victoria's Secret Model Doing Ads Through the Whole Movie:

They are putting those metallic phallic-imagery devices all over the world to change it into their world. Right there, where I am pointing. That's the MOST IMPORTANT PLACE. And they can change into cars, which clearly makes them the most advanced species in the world. But I hook them up, so they're not going to disintegrate me. Stick with me. Also stand still because the camera is going to do a long, panning shot of your body.

Victoria's Secret Model:

*ACTS*

Good Guys Who Can't Do Anything but Run and Hide in the Face of Giant Robot Attacks Except at the End of the Movie when Suddenly They Are Very Effective Fighters:

They are putting those metallic phallic-imagery devices all over the world to change it into their world. They can change into cars, which clearly makes them the most advanced species ever and we are totally screwed. Except for that kid from Even Stevens. He can probably fix all this.

Victoria's Secret Model:

Are we underestimating our audience's intelligence level by repeating every key "plot" point at least three times?

Michael Bay:

Who let the body talk?

Victoria's Secret Model:

Nevermind. I can see we are perfectly estimating our audience. Has anyone mentioned that they are putting those metallic phallic-imagery devices all over the world to change it into their world?

Even Stevens:

Guys! Everyone is questioning what the point is involving me in all of these Very Big Things! And they are right, I really have no purpose! But I'm going to run a lot and be flung through the air constantly to prove my worth! Can someone please fling me through the air now? I do my best acting when I'm being flung through the air!

Victoria's Secret Model:

I'll just stand here for my camera shots while everyone repeats the plan several times, in case the audience forgets that there, the tower, the one with light shooting up out of it, that is the target. The tower. With the light. And the phallic-imagery devices. In the tower. With the light. The one we need to blow up. And...POSE.

All of the Guys:

We will be given weapons and BLOW STUFF UP.

Victoria's Secret Model:

I will be given no weapons, but I will run. And scream. And be put in peril.

All of the Guys:

We will BLOW STUFF UP. And do some punching! WITH WEAPONS.

Boring Semi-Truck Robot:

I have lost my arm, which will trigger nightmares in parents everywhere, who understand just what a pain in the butt I am to put back together when my limbs pop off and their children start crying.

Victoria's Secret Model:

I will contribute by emasculating the Decrepit Robot who has a Piston Envy Complex, because girls can only fight back by using our sexuality to manipulate. It even works on Robots.

Michael Bay:

I am not a misogynist.

Audience:

Just shut up and blow everything up so the movie will be over already.

EVERYTHING BLOWS UP. A tattered flag waves, because nothing says PATRIOTISM like giant, all-powerful merchandising.

I mean robots.

The end.

In Which I Have Lost My Way

2011-12-01T09:15:00.001-08:00

I'll be honest. I did not spend the last month pondering my blog and the direction thereof. I did not spend it dreaming up new posts, thinking of fun features I could do. I did not spend it thinking about the blog much at all.

I spent it traveling, and with family. I spent it dealing with yet another personal loss. I spent it editing MIND GAMES and reading ENDLESSLY for what will probably be the last time to catch any last typos or words I want to change. I spent it losing myself in another imaginary world that may or may not ever be a book, and I don't care, because the point is the losing.

This blog has evolved over the years, and frankly I'm not sure what the next evolution should be. I always tried to leave off too many personal things, but lately it seems like everything I am thinking about or want to write about is too personal for an audience of thousands without the filter of a Main Character other than myself.

I used to talk about my struggles with infertility, but three-and-a-half years and four lost pregnancies later, I am too tired to even think about putting it out there in an effort to deal with it myself and maybe help other women deal. I remember the last time I did and someone emailed me actually questioning how I could claim to be infertile, implying I had no right. (I lost another pregnancy a week after that email. I have tried to forgive that person, remembering how much pain we all carry around with ourselves.)

I used to talk about what I was writing and working on, but I feel like I can't anymore. And not because I think people will steal my ideas (I could tell you my exact idea and you would write a completely different book--I know enough about writing now to know that). Because people get excited and attached to ideas, and then maybe that idea will never be published. Maybe I'll quit fifty pages in. Maybe it won't be right for publishing. Maybe it WILL be right for publishing, but I'll need to stay quiet about it because there are some parts of the process you don't talk about while they are happening.

I used to talk about writing in general. Advice, thoughts, that sort of thing. I've read enough on the internet to know that pretty much any topic I think to talk about has already been talked about--extensively--at great length--frequently more eloquent and thoughtful than I could ever manage. And I talked about those things because they were the questions I had, but I don't have those general questions anymore. Frankly, I know how publishing works. I understand the process and the ins-and-outs. I know how my own writing works. And I know now that the way my writing works is not the way your writing works nor should it be. The only questions I have now apply so specifically to myself and my own writing that there's no point in putting them here.

(I don't know who Frankly is, but I am addressing much of this post to him. I hope he doesn't mind.)

I worry about whining. I have so freaking much good fortune that I never, ever want to come across as ungrateful in any way, shape, or form. I worry about what other people take of my words and do with them. (I've had whole blog posts written about an "anonymous" author who was obviously me, that left me utterly shocked and bemused that someone could take my words and make me into a snide, sarcastic, unfeeling, evil monster. I am nothing if not feeling! The others, well.)

I worry about bragging. Again, please see "I have so freaking much good fortune." Sometimes I worry that I am bludgeoning the internets with all of the Good Things, because I choose to leave the Bad Things off.

I wonder at this strange, nebulous line between public and private. The more people pay attention to what I say and do, the more I want to retreat into myself and keep the private things even more private, and limit the public things even more. And it's not because people are mean. They aren't! People are awesome. It's because...I don't know how to put it. It's very, very weird to know that there are people out there who feel like they have a relationship with and know you, when you know nothing about them and never will. Obviously I have courted this to some extent, but it doesn't mean it doesn't bother me on a fundamental level. Not on my end--on the other person's. I'm sorry that I can't be for them the friend that they think I am/should be/could be.

I wish I could give more of myself to other people, but I feel the need to circle the wagons (and, apparently, I feel the need to use Old West metaphors). This blog has been a journey, and while I don't feel like I've reached a particular destination, I do feel like the course of the journey has been shifted and I no longer know exactly which gear to put the car in (we have moved on from Old West to manual car transmissions--which is a bad sign, because the only time I drove a stick I totaled it).

I've gone from hopeful aspiring writer, to frequently rejected and failed writer, to newbie author, to...now. I don't know what now is. And that's okay. I'm not giving up on the blog. I'm just not sure what it's going to evolve into. Nothing bothers me more than stagnation in my writing, and the blog is no exception. So, as always, thank you for reading. Thank you for caring. And thank you for your patience as I try to figure out just what the crap I am doing.

(It's been twenty-eight years so far. Still haven't figured it out. Let me know if you do.)

In Which I Tender my (Temporary) Resignation

2011-11-06T08:52:00.000-08:00

First of all, thank you so much for sharing my cover excitement! I love love love ENDLESSLY's cover, and it makes everything so much more fun when you do, too! But obviously that is not what this post is about. Unless I have begun assigning random, nonsensical titles. (Which I wouldn't put past myself, really.)

The other night I sat on the couch next to my husband, laptop in my lap as usual.

"Is there a pattern?" Hot Stuff asked.

"Hmm?"

"Is there a pattern? You keep clicking through the same pages. I was just wondering if you go in a specific pattern."

And...yeah. He was right. Click, click, click, click, click, click, start over. It makes no sense. It accomplishes nothing. It used to be that blogging and tweeting and reading and finding things online fed me creatively. They spurred me on, encouraged me, challenged me.

Lately? I'm spinning in circles, clicking clicking clicking without ever changing anything. It's not that the internets have changed (oh, internets, you never do change, do you?); it's that I have. Or maybe that I haven't. Whatever it is, I'm a bit stuck right now. I'm not finding inspiration here, but I just keep looking and looking and looking anyway.

So, I'm declaring this NoNoNetMo. November No Net Month. Aside from checking email a couple of times a day for professional things, I'm going to take a big step back. A huge step back. A scary step back. I used to find so much joy and entertainment in blogging. I hope to get there again. But in the meantime I'm going to look elsewhere. I'm going to watch movies and listen to music and read boatloads of books and do things to feed myself creatively. I'm going to stop doing the things I know are draining me.

I used to think, "If I don't post anything, no one will care!" But I'll admit it's kind of a relief to realize that no one will care if I don't post anything. I won't lose any readers; people won't forget I exist. I'll take my month, you'll get along just fine, and think of how refreshed we'll all be when we meet back up again!

As always, thank you for being here. Thank you for reading my blog, and enjoying my writing, and supporting my career. I'm so incredibly grateful for all of you. And I'm going to take this month to refocus and wallow in gratitude for the freaking amazing life I have.

Until then, all best,

Kiersten

Well, Hello, You ENDLESSLY Gorgeous Cover, You!

2011-11-03T12:41:00.000-07:00

I'm going to write stuff here that you are going to completely ignore as you frantically scroll down to see what the cover looks like.

I would do the same thing. So...

...

Fine, fine. Here it is:

You guys, I love it. I love it I love it I love it. I love that Evie looks like she is about to smile, and that the clouds above her are lighter than the ones around her (you should see the back image!). I love her dress (OH MY GOSH HER DRESSES THEY CONTINUE TO KILL ME), and her awesome-and-oh-so-Evie shade of lipstick. I love her hair (AGAIN OH MY GOSH HER HAIR), and the flowers in the foreground, and the color of the lettering. I love the purple!! THE PURPLE. I'll get to add purple pens to my pink and red stash! Oh, HarperTeen, you make my color-coordinating heart so happy.

I will admit I have had this cover lined up with the covers for PARANORMALCY and SUPERNATURALLY on my computer screen, and I've just been...staring. Three covers. My trilogy. Evie's story, complete, all dressed up and ready to go. It makes me happy and it makes me sad but mostly it just makes me wonder how the crap I got this lucky. Both for being three-for-three on jaw-droppingly gorgeous covers (HARPERTEEN MARRY ME I LOOOOOOOOOVE YOU), and for the fact that my name is on these books, that it's really happened, that this incredible, unexpected, phenomenal journey continues to exceed my expectations.

I love Evie. I love this book. It's maybe my favorite of the three (SHH DON'T TELL THE OTHER TWO OR THEY WILL FEEL BAD), and I am so excited for you to find out how everything comes together for the end(lessly) on July 24th. Which feels very far, but it will pass quickly and at least we have the cover while we wait!

Oh, go ahead and scroll back up to stare. You know you want to.

A Monster Calls (and You Should Answer)

2011-11-02T08:22:00.000-07:00

This is one of those books that renders me stupid with awe. I bought it on the twitter recommendation of Holly Black (whose taste in books I nearly always agree with, because she is brilliant), thinking it would make a good Halloween read. The illustrations reminded me of those old Scary Stories books I used to read in elementary school that scared the crap out of me.

Then I made the mistake of reading it while spending Sunday afternoon at my in-laws'. And folks, this is not a Scary Story book.

This is one of the most affecting, beautifully written, powerful books I have ever read. I had to keep putting it down because it was hitting me so hard. And then I had to leave the room in a very big hurry so that everyone wouldn't see me burst into tears. (Making me cry is pretty much the biggest badge of honor a book can earn. I have such a hard time losing myself in books to begin with that to be able to be affected so much I cry is pretty much a once-every-few-years occurrence. In fact, the last book I remember making me cry was THE BOOK THIEF, by Markus Zusak, another one of my permanent recommendations.)

A MONSTER CALLS is about a boy dealing with his very sick mother, absent father, schoolyard bullies, and, oh yeah, the giant yew tree that comes alive every night like a thing of nightmares and wants something from him he's too terrified to even think about. I'm not going to tell you more than that. I want you to discover it for yourself.

This is a book written for young teens that manages to somehow be accessible and appropriate for them as well as deeply meaningful for adults. I would hate Patrick Ness for being so amazing, but I just love this book so much I can't bring myself to be anything but grateful that people like him exist and have the talent and skill with words and story to create something like this.

It's made my very short list of favorites and permanent recommendations. You should read it.

Now.

The Auction Is Live!

2011-10-31T09:43:00.000-07:00

A note to let you know that the auction to benefit Nathan Fillion's Kids Need to Read charity is live! Bid on your name as a character in a book! One of MY books, specifically, though you are welcome to bid on the others as well.

Just bid more on mine. What? I can't handle Shannon Hale trash-talking me. I know she seems like the sweetest and nicest person in publishing, but the truth of the matter is she actually is.

Wait.

Whatever. You can see all of the disclaimers on the official auction page, but I promise it'll be a character with actual lines and a role in the plot. And it'll be awesome. Buy it for yourself or buy it for someone else. If you're really nice, maybe I'll even give you a violent death! Because Shannon isn't the only sweetheart in publishing, after all.

Expert Writing Tip: Perfecting the Cliffhanger

2011-10-26T06:56:00.000-07:00

In general I try to avoid giving specific writing tips. What works for me might not work for you, nor should it. It's the same reason I don't worry about people stealing my ideas. I could have told another author that I was writing a book about a girl working for the International Paranormal Containment Agency, and I guarantee you our books would have looked nothing alike.

Come to think of it, someday I want to try that--start from the exact same prompt with another author and write a book and see what we come up with. I'm thinking something involving androids, class warfare, and Pop Rocks.

Because why not.

Today, though, I am going to be bold. I am going to say I know a groundbreaking trick to writing that, when used correctly, will make your book unputdownable. If you've read the Paranormalcy series you've probably noticed I have a fondness (and, dare I say, flair) for cliffhanger chapter endings. Those horrible/awesome last few sentences that end you swinging up into the next chapter rather than quietly setting you down from the current one. I like doing it. I think that, for this series at least, they are very effective and fun.

However.

HOWEVER.

I have been doing it wrong. Entirely. From start to finish, WRONG. Because all this time I've been wasting my good you absolutely must turn the page now material on the end of chapters, when really it belongs at the beginning. Observe the genius that is my daughter:

Chapter 3

The cool plants. On Saturday night, Jo Jo and Lena went to a movey...called the cool plants. Find out what will happen. What will happen? Something will be cool in this chapter!

HOW DID I NOT THINK OF THIS? All that time I wasted on clever chapter titles, when really I should have just been saying: Look, guys? This chapter? SOMETHING COOL WILL HAPPEN! How could you possibly put down a chapter with a promise like that? But of course it doesn't stop there. Because if you've already had cool, you have to shake things up a bit.

Capter 5.
Something crazy just happened. Read this chapter. Something even crazier will happen!

Not only did she employ a cliffhanger chapter ending, she employed a cliffhanger chapter title, too! Look at that forward momentum! You thought the last chapter was crazy?? YOU HAVEN'T SEEN CHAPTER FIVE YET. This book is like crack! Or some other illegal addictive substance I've never tried but still make stupid metaphors about that are even more inappropriate considering the material in question was written by my seven-year-old. Regardless, again, she demonstrates a mind-blowing mastery of pacing and foreshadowing, all on the chapter title page.

I think we've learned something here. Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got to go edit Endlessly's chapter titles. Starting with Chapter One: Crazy things happened in the first two books. Now some EVEN CRAZIER things are about to happen in THIS book! Read it!! and continuing on to chapters like Chapter Five: That last chapter was funny. But Reth comes in this one, and he's scary funny! What will happen? Something will be awesome in this chapter!

With the level of success I anticipate from my new writing technique, pretty much they should just dedicate an entire section of the NYT bestseller list to me right now. What will happen if you write like this? IT WILL BE THE BEST. And you'll be almost as adorable as my daughter.

Almost.

NATHAN FILLION

2011-10-25T09:16:00.000-07:00

For the first time ever, I am posting a video of a celebrity on my blog FOR A REASON. A totally good reason. First, though: NATHAN FILLION!

So, A) You love him, don't you? B) You love children, don't you? C) You love books, don't you? And D) If you are reading this blog, you are at least moderately fond of me in some fashion.

Which is why I hope you will be happy to hear that, starting this weekend, I will be part of an auction* on eBay to raise money for KNTR! Along with several other authors, I'll be auctioning off a character name. Details here. And, unlike my last character name auction, this will not be a name drop unconnected to anything else. It will be an actual character. And I have four books coming out between 2013 and 2014, so that's a lot of options right there. I will post a link to the auction when it goes live. Until then, perhaps you should be hinting VERY STRONGLY to everyone who loves you what you would like for Christmas: Immortality!** Or, you know, money with which to bid on said literary immortality.

*I was invited to participate in this auction by the lovely and incredible Shannon Hale. I laughed when she got to the kindly asking me to do it part, because when Shannon Hale emails you on behalf of Nathan Fillion's charity, WHAT THE CRAP ARE YOU GOING TO DO EXCEPT SAY YES??
**In the written word. No actual immortality promised. I cannot change you into a sparkling vampire. Except fictionally. Except not even then because my vampires do not sparkle. And also none of my four upcoming books have vampires. But they are all bursting to the brim with awesome. At least the two that I have written. Hopefully the two that I haven't written yet, also, but one never knows. Maybe they will be bursting to the brim with meh-ness. Maybe I will have to add sparkly vampires just to try and salvage them. YOU NEVER KNOW. But one thing you will know: if you win the auction, you will be in a book that I will try my darndest to make awesomer than a vampire who sparkles in the sun.

Confession

2011-10-24T10:20:00.000-07:00

I didn't mean to take all last week off. I had very good intentions about blogging and telling you about the rest of my tour stops, funny stories from tour, etc*. But somehow those blog posts never happened. I...cleaned my house. And my room. It was all very weird and out-of-character. Usually I use blogging as a way to avoid being responsible, not the other way around. Here is the confessional part:

I hate talking about myself.

I KNOW. WHO WOULD HAVE GUESSED? I mean, obviously in a way I love talking about myself, because we have years of blogging and tweeting as evidence. But I get bored out of my mind when the blog turns into, "And then I did THIS! And please go read THIS! And look at THIS! And support me by voting for THIS!" I feel like I am following you around, tugging on the hem of your shirt, begging for your attention.

And I hate it.

This blog was never about self-promotion. It was and always has been about one thing and one thing only: Entertaining myself.

Yup. I'm just self-absorbed like that. I don't want to talk about myself and the things I did and already wrote, because I'm not entertained by it. And if I'm not entertained by it, how can I possibly expect my readers to be?

There is no point to this post. Just something I've been thinking about. I hope hope hope to return this blog to its regularly scheduled silliness as soon as possible. Book promotion is by far the hardest thing for me as an author, and the hardest balance to find. Because I want you to know about the things that are going on, and the interviews I've done, and the guest posts I've written, and I hope that if you like my writing you'll care, but at the same time...

GAH I JUST GET SO BORED GUYS. I better go write a new book. Or clean my closet.

Book it is.

*For example, The Tattered Cover in Highland's Ranch? OH MY GOSH I WANT TO LIVE IN THAT STORE. It's gorgeous, guys! And the signing was so fun. I got to meet Jocelyn Davies, who is adorable [and I envy her hair something fierce], and Brenna Yovanoff and Sarah Ockler came, and I got to meet Stephanie Perkins' awesome agent Kate Testerman. And it was a phenomenal audience, with several long time blog/twitter friends in attendance, which is always super fun. Then the next morning my dinner and my stomach had a violent confrontation [of which I was an innocent bystander caught in the crossfire], which was not awesome, but I still made it to the Boulder signing, and I was so glad because it, too, was awesome. Then another quick flight to Chicago, and the last signing of the tour: ANDERSON'S. ANDERSON'S gets ALL CAPS because I LOVE THAT STORE SO MUCH, GUYS. This might have been the most awesome of all of the incredibly awesome stops. Several people drove hours to be there, and that bookstore just freaking rocks my socks off, and I got fan art and baked goods and best of all the opportunity to meet so many of you that I wouldn't get to otherwise.

SO. IT WAS AWESOME. This is where I would put pictures if I had them but I never do. But I have something even better! Bloggers who filmed and chronicled the stops! And one of them might have me reading from a certain book that hasn't come out yet...

Also, favorite moment of tour: Driving in the car with Claudia Gray in a suburb of Chicago, I said, "I know they are scary and mean, but I love geese." Claudia: "What??" Me: "They're so pretty!" Claudia: "You think geeks are scary and mean?" Me: "GEESE. GEESE." Though geeks are also scary and mean but pretty.

Overwhelmed with Awesome

2011-10-17T09:31:00.000-07:00

I'm home. Tour was fast, furious, and ridiculously fun. More on it tomorrow.

Today I wanted to let you know about two incredible things that happened in the last few days.

The first: on Saturday, I won the Utah Book Award for Paranormalcy! (Found out via tweet from fellow-finalist-and-all-around-super-cool-lady Jessica Day George.) I'm incredibly honored and grateful. I'm not sure whether or not they read my acceptance paragraph (one of these days I'll win an award that I can actually attend the awards ceremony for!), but here it is:

I miss the mountains. Blasphemous for someone living in San Diego, but there it is. I miss knowing the contours of my horizon and filling it with my dreams. I miss being cradled against a history I can claim. I miss driving for a few minutes to wander canyon paths beneath aspen trees and be alone. There is not a lot of alone to be had in Southern California. Utah nourished me both as a person and a storyteller; I carry it as home with me everywhere. I wouldn’t be here without the mountains and the soul and the people of Utah. Thank you so much.

(DON'T TELL SAN DIEGO I WAS DISSING IT. SAN DIEGO IS ALSO AWESOME. I don't want to get banned from carne asada french fries or something.)

And then, as if the Utah Book Award wasn't enough awesome to be attached to all of the other awesome already attached to Paranormalcy, THIS happened:

OH MY GOSH! Thank you SO MUCH to all of my amazing teen readers who voted for Paranormalcy and made it a YALSA Teen Top Ten book! I'm still floored. I love, love, love this award, because unlike most awards, the books are selected and then voted on by teens--the audience I actually wrote the book for. I can't quite believe I'm on this list with so many authors whose work I love.

I'm happy and floaty and incredibly humbled and grateful today, from both of these amazing awards and from everyone who made it to the Dark Days tour stops. I have the best. freaking. job. EVER.

Signed Books and Broken Hearts

2011-10-14T05:32:00.000-07:00

First and foremost, thanks to everyone who came to the Seattle and Huntington Beach events! They were wonderful. It was so much fun to see people I've known online, or met before, or didn't know before but certainly should have because they were so awesome of course they needed to exist in my world! The scariest moment for an author is walking out to see whether or not anyone showed for a signing. Thank you. Thank you. THANK YOU.

And! Tonight we will be in Highland Ranch, Colorado, at the fabulous indie The Tattered Cover. If you can't come, did you know you can order signed books through them? If you get the order in today before we show up, you can specify to have it personalized! If you don't get the order in on time, you can still get a signed copy, which is also awesome.

(Also, any bookstore that, when pulling author photos for an event, chooses to use not my official pretty one but rather the one of me drinking a Slurpee? WINS FOREVER.)

I thought I'd show you a few photo highlights of the tour so far:

They talked long into the night, about life and love and the relative shininess of scales. But alas, theirs was a star-crossed fate.

When he found out that the goldfish could not come in the carry-on bag, I couldn't even get him to leave the bed he was so depressed. Ah, thwarted dreams.

Also things happened on the tour that had nothing to do with my horned lizard puppet or the goldfish. Like, cool authors!

Anna Carey (EVE), some creeper, Amy Garvey (COLD KISS), and Claudia Gray (FATEFUL). Looking forward to meeting Jocelyn Davies (A BEAUTIFUL DARK) tomorrow!

I love the next picture because a) YES I AM SIGNING SOMEONE'S ARM, AND NO I AM NOT A ROCKSTAR BUT WE CAN PRETEND (also how cute is she?? SO CUTE) and b) poor Anthony in the background who didn't even know he'd make the photo. Anthony was one of the very first people to start reading this blog, way way way back when I had no idea what I was doing. Which is very similar to how things are now, only there are a few more readers to notice I have no idea what I'm doing.

Also aren't her glasses cute?

Then, hanging out in the Seattle airport (which is a totally hip and happening place, in case you were wondering), I picked up a copy of Entertainment Weekly, which has an ad for the tour and our books! So fun to get to see that while I was with the other authors. PLUS PLUS PLUS the issue also includes a Princess Bride movie reunion photo (as you wish!), AND info on new Arrested Development episodes, AND a review of Laini Taylor's DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE which is one of my favorite books of the year. How much awesome? SO MUCH.

Did my wallet need to be shoved under my arm? Yes, it did. Claudia kept trying to steal it. Just look at those big innocent blue eyes. DON'T LET THEM FOOL YOU.

And then, in the realm of Awesome Things I Have No Pictures Of, tonight's signing was capped by the lovely Ava-of-the-Amazing-Hair bringing me a Hogwarts acceptance letter, complete with wax seal, King's Cross ticket, and a supplies list.

I am not even kidding.

The only thing I'm worried about is how my fellow tour authors will react now that I am no longer a muggle and they still are. I'll probably have to use a confundus charm so they don't remember; otherwise they'll feel too bad.

Briefly

2011-10-12T16:06:00.000-07:00

I am in Seattle! Please come see me tonight at the Lynwood Barnes and Noble at 7 PM.

Nobody told me the flight today was the Retired Couples Returning from Cruises flight. There were twenty-three (TWENTY-THREE) wheelchairs on the jetway when we landed. It was the most peaceful flight ever.

At one point there were clouds and blue sky above us and a solid layer of clouds beneath us as we cut through the sky and I marveled what a genuine miracle flight is.

Then I had to turn off my iPod and it was less miraculous and more let's-just-land-this-dang-thing-already.

BUT. BUT. I am pretty sure I am staying in the cutest hotel room in the history of hotel rooms. Evidence?

THERE IS A GOLDFISH IN MY ROOM, GUYS. A REAL ONE. Also I suck at fishy faces, apparently. But my fish doesn't. HE MAKES THE BEST FISHY FACES EVER.

Ahem. While I am away, Hot Stuff is home with the kids. I think he's getting bored, because he's been telling me lots of ideas for YA books that he is going to write.

"How about Death stops being Death and decides to go to high school? So one girl is like, 'My boyfriend's a vampire!' and then the other girl says, 'Oh, that's nice. My boyfriend's DEATH.' The ultimate bad boy! Everyone would love it, right?"

Yes. Yes they would. Gosh I miss him. Good thing I have the fish for company.

More later. Come see me if you can. I promise not to make fishy faces if you do.

Tour Announcements

2011-10-10T06:24:00.000-07:00

My suitcase is sitting on the floor, unmoved from where I hauled it up the stairs post-Orlando. It's mocking me. It's saying, "Unpack me, Kiersten! Go on! Unpack me! AND THEN TURN RIGHT AROUND AND PACK ME AGAIN!"

It's a very belligerent suitcase. I knew I shouldn't have gotten the one with hot pink accents. Its attitude reminds me a bit of Laptop.

Don't drag me into this.

Laptop! Where have you been?

Sitting. Gathering dust. Obsolescing. Don't pretend like you've missed me. But don't think I haven't noticed that your precious MacBook never makes contributions to the blog. For all its sleek, flawless running, it has no soul.

Umm, Apple is a bit of a sensitive subject right now, Laptop.

I'm not dissing Steve Jobs. I respected him. Despite my distaste for his products, anyone who frequently calls out those around him for being idiots is my kind of man. I call people idiots all the time.

I don't think it's the same thing.

Whatever. Didn't this blog post have a purpose?

It did!

Then for the love of DOS get back to it and leave me in peace.

SO. Right. Tour. I leave Wednesday morning. It's going to be awesome. And a lot of airplanes. Which are less awesome. I wanted to let you know what books I am willing/able to sign. (As far as whether you can bring books from home, a general rule of thumb is that it is okay to bring books from home as long as you also purchase books from the bookstore. The bookstores that host these events are wonderful and deserve your support; that's what makes the events possible and guarantees future events!)

I will sign:

Paranormalcy (hardcover! paperback! Scholastic book order edition!)
Supernaturally (the book I am touring for! I might also read from it! And MAYBE I'll read from Endlessly!)
Corsets and Clockwork (which contains my short story "Tick Tick Boom")
Dear Bully (which contains my essay "Never Shut Up")
Anna and the French Kiss (which I did not write, but will draw hearts and sign my name in the acknowledgments)
Lola and the Boy Next Door (which I also did not write, but again will draw hearts and sign the acknowledgments) (In case you were wondering, Stephanie Perkins and I will always sign each other's books. Because we share a deep and abiding love of a) each other, b) good writing, c) stuffed animals, and d) HBMs.)
Notebooks
Kindle cases
iPad cases
Human flesh in easy-to-access-and-legal-slash-non-creepy areas
Bookmarks

Tour stops are listed in the "Appearances" tab. And don't forget to check out the amazing authors I'll be touring with, all of whose books you will no doubt want to read, buy, have signed, daydream about, have tattooed on your lower back, etc.

Now, back to working.

She means watching Netflix.

Go back to obsolescing, Laptop.

Join me. It's peaceful there. And you're well on your way.

Now that's just depressing.

Oh Orlando!

2011-10-06T04:28:00.000-07:00

Other than being totally wrong about what time it's supposed to be, Orlando is pretty awesome. Since I don't have any public signings while I'm here and I have no idea when I'll be in Florida again, I thought I'd do a low-key, informal meeting.

At Downtown Disney, because really--where else?? If you're in the area, I'll be at Ghiradelli's (again, where else??) today (Thursday) at 7 PM. Bring any books you want me to sign, or just come to hang out and marvel at how much sugar I can consume in a single sitting!

If you can't come, check me out LIVE on Livestream today at 4 PM Eastern! And if you can't do that, here, watch a video about touring:

And the Winner Is + Links

2011-10-04T09:45:00.000-07:00

The Winner of Lola and the Daughter of Smoke and Books Next Door contest is...

Katy! Who bought both, and so also gets a signed copy of Anna and the French Kiss in addition to Daughter of Smoke and Bone, Lola and the Boy Next Door, Paranormalcy, and Supernaturally!

That is going to be a heavy package...

Congratulations, Katy! And congratulations to EVERYONE who entered, because by buying one or both books you are already a freaking awesome winner. Thank you so much for supporting books and authors. I love being able to share my favorite books with you, and it makes me so happy when awesome people love the same awesome books I do!

I wanted to also make sure everyone remembers about the Livestream chat event on Thursday. I'll be chatting from 4-4:15 Eastern; you can come ask questions and see me answer them live! I'll be followed by Amy Garvey, Jocelyn Davies, Anna Carey, and Claudia Gray! Bonus, I talk SO FREAKING FAST I'll be able to pack in twice as many answers as a normal person. And if it turns out well and enough people are interested, maybe I'll look in to doing monthly Livestream chats or something.

Also, a few more IPCA files have been leaked. Have you learned about gnomes, faeries, and dryads yet?

And now I'm off to pack, and look forward to my all-night flight to Orlando. SO. MUCH. FUN?

Am I Coming to a Town Near YOU?

2011-09-30T10:12:00.000-07:00

Things are a bit nuts around here. I'm doing copyedits for Endlessly (apparently I use the word ground where I should use the word floor about forty million times--I hope my copyeditors fall to the ground in agony and frustration), and getting ready for Much Traveling. First up I have a trip to Orlando for the FAME conference. Unfortunately their signings are not open to the public; you have to be an attending member. So, aside from hanging out with Florida's ROCKINGLY COOL librarians, I'll probably just be wandering aimlessly around Downtown Disney.

BUT. While I am there, you can talk to me--live! In preparation for the Dark Days Tour, I'll be chatting along with Claudia Gray, Amy Garvey, Anna Carey, and Jocelyn Davies! Details here. You can see my twitchy, fast-talking self in real time answering questions!

And then, TOUR! I'm going to post the dates and cities here, but they are also available in my "Appearances" tab. (You might also want to "like" Pitch Dark on facebook, because they post a lot of giveaways, info, and bonus content!) I hope hope hope to see some of you! And if you do make it to one of the events, tell me who you are (by twitter handle, or blogger ID). I like to connect my online friends with real life people!

Wednesday, October 12th
7:00 PM
Barnes & Noble
19401 Alderwood Mall Parkway
*Lynnwood, WA*

Thursday, October 13th
7:00 PM
Barnes & Noble
7881 Edinger Avenue
*Huntington Beach, CA*

Friday, October 14th
7:00 PM
Tattered Cover
9315 Dorchester Street
*Highlands Ranch, CO*

Saturday, October 15th
1:00 PM
Barnes & Noble
2999 Pearl Street
*Boulder, CO*

Sunday, October 16th
2:00 PM
Anderson’s
123 West Jefferson
*Naperville, IL*

So, I hope to see those of you I can in real life, and see the rest of you on Livestream!

Lola and the Daughter of Smoke and Books Next Door Contest!

2011-09-27T08:24:00.000-07:00

That title made no sense.

I don't especially care.

Because this week? Two of my favorite books of the year are out! (I am going to tell you right now that both of them are a higher maturity level than my books, plain and simple, do with that what you will, parents.)

Laini Taylor's DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE is exquisite, and funny, and just plain magic. You can read my blurb on the Amazon page (where, coincidentally, you can also order it!). Hands down the best fantasy (book with fantasy elements?) of the year. (And yes, I just read THE NIGHT CIRCUS, and I will say that I loved both but loved Laini's more.)

Stephanie Perkins' LOLA AND THE BOY NEXT DOOR is...I don't even know, guys. I'm almost sad that it's going out into the world, because it's felt like a secret I shared with only a few people for so long. I read this book in many draft forms, and I have loved it in every single one. The charm and wit and undeniable heart that was so obvious in ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS is back in full-force, but. But. Dare I say I...might love Cricket more than St. Clair? (JUST READ IT AND YOU WILL UNDERSTAND.) Aside from the Boy, who is so much more than just next door, I love Lola. I hope you will, too.

This is a lot of love from me. And I am a pickypickypicky reader.

SO! I say this calls for a contest! But I didn't want it to be just any contest. First, the prize:

One ARC (advance reader copy, rather rare) of DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE--signed by Laini!
One hardcover copy of LOLA AND THE BOY NEXT DOOR--not signed by the author, but if you want I can sign the acknowledgments page! Or if you don't want, I can not. (Incidentally, if you ever go to a Steph signing, she'll sign my books, too. Because we like each other like that. And heaven knows we are on nearly every page of each other's books anyway.) PLUS an ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS bookmark!
And! One paperback copy of PARANORMALCY and one hardcover copy of SUPERNATURALLY, both signed by the author (I know her, she hooks me up). PLUS two signed bookmarks that you can usually only get by going to one of my signings in person!

To be entered to win these four books, it's simple. Either buy Lola or Daughter, and then tell me in the comments that you bought one of them. Pre-orders count. I don't need photos or receipts; I trust you. Just support one (OR BOTH) of these amazing books, come tell me that you did, and you're entered!

BONUS: If you buy both books, be sure to mention that, and if you win I'll throw in a signed copy of ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS, too!

(Someone asked why bother trying to win a book you've already bought. A) These ones are signed, with the exception of Lola, and signed books are special! and B) You will be SET for a Christmas gift for your favorite friend! You can be all, "Hey I got you this awesome book!!" and your friend never needs to know you're keeping the even awesomer signed ones for yourself.)

Rules: Open internationally. Contest closes in one week (on Tuesday, October 4th). Only one entry per person (though again, if you buy both you could win bonus). You do not need to tell me which book you bought, merely that you bought one of them. You are more than welcome (highly encouraged, in fact) to blog and tweet and facebook about this contest. The world needs more book love in it!

Go forth! Buy good books! Enter the contest! And eat some chocolate. Because no day is complete without that, right? Right.

Three Years Later PSA

2011-09-25T22:38:00.000-07:00

This is a post that I do every year, because it is something that is, for obvious reasons, very important to me to educate and inform people about. Since posting about my experience with an ectopic pregnancy and talking about it, I have had two women who told me that knowing the symptoms was what got them to the hospital in time. Please read it. Please tell other women about it.

First and foremost, I'm glad I'm not dead.

Seriously. I'm really, really glad I'm not dead. That would have sucked. And, thanks to the fact that I recognized warning symptoms and had some emergency surgery three years ago today, I get to be alive to appreciate being alive. I'm a big fan.

So in honor of my not-dying anniversary, I'm doing a PSA about ectopic pregnancy. Even if you never plan on having children, these are important symptoms to know because you could very well save the life of someone you love. Or your own. (Unless you are a guy, in which case your risk of ectopic pregnancy = non-existent. Still, you like women, right?)

An ectopic pregnancy is a pregnancy in which a fertilized egg implants somewhere other than the uterus. This is a bad thing. Usually the egg implants in the fallopian tube; occasionally it implants other places. 2% of all pregnancies are ectopic. That's 1 in 50. Certain factors increase your risks--tubal scarring, abdominal surgery, endometriosis, fertility treatments, IUDs--but it can happen to anyone. I had no real risk factors.

An even scarier statistic than the one-in-fifty? Ectopic pregnancies are the number one cause of pregnancy-related death. Part of the problem is that many women with ectopic pregnancies don't even know they're pregnant. Because your body doesn't produce as many hormones, you might continue having periods like normal, ignore the sudden pain, go to bed because you're feeling tired and dizzy, and never wake up.

I know that sounds terrible and scary. It is. It happens. So even if you don't think you're pregnant, or if you think you are just having a standard miscarriage (which was what I thought), always, ALWAYS call the doctor if you have any of the following symptoms:

Sharp pain on one side of your lower abdomen. When you press down on it, it will be a stabbing pain that you will feel reflected in the other side, but one side will be more tender. Once your tube actually bursts the pain will lessen considerably--DO NOT IGNORE THAT. All it means is that you are now bleeding internally.
Feeling dizzy and lightheaded when you aren't lying down. This would be because of the internal bleeding. Also, difficulty and discomfort breathing.
And finally, the key symptom: when you lie down, you have a sharp, stabbing pain in your shoulder. This is called referred pain, and is caused by the blood filling up your abdomen and pushing on your lungs. (This is also a symptom of a burst appendix and often happens after abdominal surgery, in case you were interested.) If you EVER have abdominal pain that is reflected in your shoulder when you lie down, go to the hospital immediately. And have someone else drive you.

Like I said, you may not think you are pregnant, but if there is any chance whatsoever you could be and you have these symptoms, have someone drive you to the hospital immediately or call 911. If I had ignored my symptoms and let my husband go to work that day, I probably would have fallen asleep on the couch and never woken up again. I was in surgery within two or three hours of the pain starting, and at that point I had lost so much blood I nearly needed a transfusion.

But, because I am obsessive and had researched every pregnancy-related topic under the sun, I knew something was wrong. And I'm not dead. And that's a good thing.

Here's hoping you never have to recognize the symptoms of an ectopic pregnancy. But now you can, and that's the important thing.

On Beauty

2011-09-22T06:52:00.000-07:00

I didn't want to be unhappy with my body when I was a teenager. I wanted to like it. I wanted to be positive, and not care about what other people thought of me. I wanted to think I was beautiful.

But.

I was short. Short legs. Short torso. Short everything.

And my thighs always seemed too thick.

And even though I was a size zero, my stomach wasn't perfectly flat. And my arms weren't as slender as I thought they should be.

AND MY THIGHS. MY STUPID THIGHS. The way they spread out when I sat down!

Then there was my face. My nose was just a little bit bigger than my ideal image of what a girl's nose should be. My lips a little bit smaller. My eyes a little bit too close together. My ears too low. (My ears too low?? Yes. My ears too low. I decided my ears were too low.) My neck not long enough.

My hands and my eye color I was happy with. Those could remain as is.

So in my head I developed this elaborate fantasy. I didn't want to want to change the way I looked, but in this fantasy some sort of magic person (misguided! maybe a bit evil!) decided they were in love with me and, without my permission, magically changed my looks to perfect every little flaw. I was horrified! How terrible!

But...I was perfect. So when I got away from the crazed and misguided magical plastic surgeon, darnit, I had to take all that perfection with me.

Fast forward several years. Hot Stuff and I, fairly newly married, are watching a reality TV program called The Swan. The premise was that "ugly" women were taken, given extensive plastic surgery and intense personal training, and were then revealed to their families and loved ones as New and Improved! Which, from the get-go, is kind of a twisted concept.

But I remember one woman, the oldest contestant (in her mid-forties), getting ready to go under the knife. She had a distinctive nose with a rather large bump in the middle that they were going to shave off to give her idealized, "perfected" features.

She said no. The reason she said no? Because her two teenage daughters had her same nose. And when she looked at them, she saw beauty and perfection, and she could see the same in herself using them as her mirrors. So she kept her nose, and she lost the competition aspect of the program.

But she kept herself, both for herself and for her daughters.

My grandmother was a beautiful woman. Elegant--always wearing jewel-toned suits, her hair well-set, her makeup in place as she played the piano better than anyone I knew. I loved her and she held an important part in my life. She died when I was seventeen, and for months afterward I'd dream of her and wake up crying. My mother got some of my grandmother's things, including a picture.

I still can't walk by it without doing a double-take, thinking it's a photo of me.

That's the face--the history--the me I would have wished away. The me my parents loved and raised. The me my future husband would fall in love with. The me that would cradle my own children and feel their tiny hands on my face.

I don't wish it away anymore. I'm happy with the quirks and details of my face, with the way I can see my grandmothers and my parents in me, the way that I can see tiny details of myself in my children (who, as it happens, look exactly like my husband's side of the family, except maybe in the set of their eyes--the same set of their eyes I wanted to change in myself but now find utterly and completely lovely).

Being generically perfect isn't beautiful. Thighs and necks and skin and (heaven forbid) ears have nothing to do with beauty. Beauty is in the stories of our faces, the people who have loved us, the people we have loved and do love and will love. Beauty is what we have survived and what we will create. Beauty is stamped into the way our eyes shift when we smile, the things our hands do, the kindness that comes out of our mouths. Beauty is not how the world sees us, but what we take of ourselves and give to the world.

Today when you look in the mirror, don't wish yourself away. Trace the lines of your face, the you that you are. Because you are beautiful.

Questions?

2011-09-21T06:39:00.000-07:00

UPDATE: AND DONE. No more questions. Thanks!

I'm taking a page from my dear friend Natalie Whipple and opening the comments section to questions today. I'll answer any and all. (But please, the person last time who asked like forty, that might be pushing it...) They can be about writing and publishing, but they certainly don't have to be.

First question: Kiersten, are you signing tomorrow, Thursday the 22nd of September, at 7 PM at Mysterious Galaxy in San Diego with two other cool authors, Stacey Jay and Nancy Holder?

Why yes, yes I am! Thank you for reminding my readers. This is my last scheduled San Diego area signing for the known future, so be there or...don't. You know. Those are kind of the only two options.

Second question: Kiersten, isn't today the last day to get in a bid on the charity auction to have you put my name in MIND GAMES?

Yes. Yes it is. It closes at 10 PM Eastern. Good cause, cool prize!

Third question: Are you just going to sit here and keep asking yourself questions, or are you going to stop so we can get to the comments section and ask our questions?

You can be so demanding sometimes.

Linky Dinks

2011-09-19T09:10:00.000-07:00

(Do you remember Shrinky Dinks? Where you cut out the plastic whatever, in my childhood's case usually a unicorn or something, and then you put it in the oven and it gets...smaller? WHAT WAS THE POINT OF THAT?)

Ahem.

The next IPCA dossier has been leaked! Visit Pure Imagination to find out more about those loose-lipped watery menaces, fossegrims. (Have you guessed the artist yet? Judging by my last post, you are probably safe in assuming it was not me.)

In charitable news, Read for Relief is auctioning items to benefit the Red Cross with an emphasis on storm relief. (Come on Irene, oh, you know you've been mean...) I donated an item which is up for bid today through Wednesday. I should mention that I only auction something like this once every year or two...so if you thought, "Hmmm, Mind Games sounds like an awesome book and how cool would it be for my name to show up in it?" Well, you might be in luck.

In non-charitable news, it's Monday. Did you notice? I did. I just image searched "sad pictures" trying to find something appropriate to convey my mood, but the sad sad pictures and the sad sad poetry made me laugh. I guess Monday and I can be friends, after all, since it appears we both revel in others misery?

Oh, The Internet

2011-09-16T13:27:00.000-07:00

The internet does funny things to us sometimes. Well, fine, we do funny things to ourselves by spending too much time on the internet. One of the greatest things about the internet is that it can make the world feel like a much smaller place. But this also happens to be one of the worst things about it. As much as it can lead us to broaden our horizons and connect with others in ways we couldn't otherwise, it can also narrow our focus and feed our tendencies toward obsession in very negative ways.

(Oh, internet. Remember back in the day when you were nothing but AOL chatrooms filled with pre-teens giving each other @--8 and pretending like they sort of kind of looked like roses?)

I've been thinking lately about my online activity and how it impacts me. I went ahead and illustrated my worst tendencies for you, because I'm honest like that.

THE ENVIES

Why did that person get that deal/attention/publicity/article/praise/baby/agent/blurb?

I WANT THAT. I SHOULD HAVE SOMETHING LIKE THAT. I HATE THEM. I DON'T KNOW THEM, BUT I HATE THEM. WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT!

Usually followed by:

EMBARRASSMENT

Oh. I guess I'm doing just fine, actually. In fact, I'd bet a lot of people would do pretty much anything to get what I have. Wow. I'm kind of a jerk.

Next, we have:

PRIDE

HA HA HA! LOOK AT THIS! THE INTERNET LOVES MY NEWEST BLOG POST/WITTY TWEET! I AM SO POPULAR! I AM SMART AND FUNNY AND WONDERFUL AND THE WHOLE INTERNET WANTS TO BE MY FRIEND!

Followed quickly by:

PANIC AND STRESS

But how do I top that? Now they have such high expectations! I haven't posted ANYTHING funny this week! They're all going to stop following me! THE INTERNET IS GOING TO ABANDON ME I HAVE TO DO SOMETHING I HAVE TO WIN THEM BACK INTERNET DON'T LEAVE ME PLEASE I NEED YOU!

Then there is the one I'm most ashamed of:

INDIGNANT RAGE

I don't know these people, and this issue has never impacted me personally, and is probably a misunderstanding/miscommunication/thoughtless mistake BUT I AM SO OUTRAGED! WE CAN ALL BE OUTRAGED TOGETHER! THE WHOLE INTERNET SHOULD BE OUTRAGED WITH ME! ATTACK!!!

Always followed by:

Umm, Whoops

Maybe I should have gotten the whole story. But the whole story doesn't even matter, because it never does anyone any good to put more negativity into the world. Besides which, who's to say that the poor idiot who wrote the wrong thing won't be me someday? CRAP CRAP CRAP please let that never be me that my little corner of the internet turns on, I'm sorry, I'll never indignantly rage again! IT IS ALL SPARKLES FROM NOW ON.

So, I guess where I hope to be (and I trip up a lot, but I'm working on it) is past the thing I do where I am constantly

WORRYING ABOUT THINGS

and to the part where I am actively

CARING ABOUT PEOPLE

Because in the end, that's the best thing we can do with the internet. (Besides Bejeweled Blitz, of course.) So, my goal is this:

HAPPINESS AND COMPASSION

Oh, hi there, internet! I remember that you are all people behind your icons and computer screens, and I'll try my best to make your life a little happier if I can. And I'll definitely remember that the world doesn't start and end on this dumb screen, and that you don't actually need me for anything other than the occasional smile. So here. Have a unicorn!

Dark Days and Trolls

2011-09-16T10:03:00.000-07:00

A legitimate post coming soon (unlike this post, whose parentage I still have yet to determine), but I wanted to let you know that the next leaked IPCA file is on Stiletto Storytime now, all about trolls. (Have you guessed who the special guest artist is yet?) And I also have a guest post over at Girls in the Stacks (I have a t-shirt of theirs; you can guess what types of jokes my sisters make when I wear it, and you can also guess that I wear it anyway) about Dark Days in literature to celebrate my upcoming group tour.

Speaking of which, Natalie Whipple may or may not have gotten a panicked message today that read something along the lines of "I DON'T KNOW HOW TO DRESS MYSELF." My friends are so lucky.

Someone's Going to Get Tased for This

2011-09-13T09:30:00.000-07:00

The International Paranormal Containment Agency (IPCA) has a leak--someone's released top secret information on paranormal creatures. Ever wondered what vampires' weaknesses really are? (Hint: no glitter involved.) Wonder no more! With special artist rendering of what Evie sees under glamours.

Click here for the first stop on the TOP SECRET INFORMATION tour!

Just don't tell them I told you about it. Getting tased would totally ruin my day.

NEW! BOOKS! Or, Writing Is Never a Waste

2011-09-12T09:34:00.000-07:00

(First, thank you. Thank you so very very much for being excited with me! It means the world to me that you are here, reading, and that you'll keep reading. You rock.)

So. Umm. Yeah.

The books.

It's weird, because in Isadora's case I've spent so long NOT telling anyone what it's about. And in MIND GAME'S case, well, it hasn't been around for very long.

(Yeah, this is the funny part of the deal: I sold the book I've spent the most time working on [eighteen months? Two years? Four different times of throwing out 50 or 100 pages and starting over] and the book I've spent the least amount of time working on. Because yes, for those who have been asking, MIND GAMES is my nine-day novel. But that's totally misleading, and I'll tell you why. As soon as I can get out of this parenthetical statement.)

(I GOT OUT!)

(Wait.)

(Moving on.)

Those of you who have been around for a while might be thinking--a book using Egyptian mythology, and a book using psychics and mind-readers? Those sound just like KEEPING KING TUT (the first novel I ever wrote) and FLASH (the second novel I ever wrote, the first YA I ever wrote, and the book that got me Marvelous Michelle). (Also similar to the third novel I ever wrote, which was a companion to FLASH, which I abandoned when FLASH didn't sell.)

To which I would respond: Well, yes. And no. Because here is where I am going to tell you that no book is ever a waste. MIND GAMES and FLOOD AND STONE are not those early books. But they wouldn't exist without them.

I spent a ton of time researching Egyptian mythology and history for my disastrously boring middle grade novel. So when I needed something new to write and my friend Natalie suggested I do something with Egyptian mythology since I had already put in all of that time, Isadora was born.

It was a very long, painful, gruesome birth. The kind of birth story that makes you not want to have kids, ever. (I mean, makes you not want to write books, ever.) I got to 100 pages and realized something was not working. I set it aside. Usually this is the kiss of death for books, but Isadora's voice wouldn't leave me alone. I started again. It still wasn't working. I set it aside.

Rinse. Repeat.

But in the end, Isadora, the teenage daughter of Ancient Egyptian gods, knew she wanted her story told, and also knew how she wanted it told. When I finally gave up trying to make it what I thought it should be, lo and behold it became exactly what it needed to be. It's about family. It's about that terrible time when, as a young teenager, you realize your parents aren't perfect. (Made even worse when your imperfect mother is the freaking goddess of motherhood.) It's about being too stubborn to accept love when it is given if it isn't given in the exact way you think you need it.

Also museums and slushies and first kisses and carne asada french fries and scarab beetles and blue eyes and interior design and snakes and skeezy relatives.

MIND GAMES was a bit different. Because yes, I wrote the book as it is now in nine days. And it wasn't a rewrite of those other books. It has different characters, an entirely new setting, an entirely different plot. But. But. It is the brainchild of two complete manuscripts and ten years (no, seriously, TEN YEARS) of daydreaming and worldbuilding and imagining and trying to figure out how to tell a story with these elements that I found so fascinating.

So yes. A nine day draft, informed by two complete manuscripts and ten years of dreaming. And, honestly, if it weren't for those two failed books, and for every book that has happened since, I wouldn't have been able to write MIND GAMES. I took the kernels of the ideas that I loved, and happily I am finally to a place in my writing where I was able to capture the type of story that I wanted to tell with those ideas. It's dark. It's a bit disturbing. It's a complicated format (non-linear, two POVs). It's about two sisters, and love, and impossible choices. It's about trying to do the right thing when everything around you is always wrong.

Oh, yeah, and it's about people who can read minds and see the future and hang out with devastatingly handsome (and probably very bad for you) boys.

In the end, these are two entirely new books. But they are two entirely new books that would be impossible without all of the books that came before them. So if you are a writer, and you're sad that you might have to leave an early manuscript behind, please know that it's never a waste. You learned. You grew as a writer. You wrote what you could when you could, and what you write in the future will always, always benefit from what you wrote in the past.

(See, if you were a psychic you'd already know this.)

(You'd probably also be in my book. And that would be a bad thing. So be glad you aren't a psychic, and instead have to learn these things through trial and error. Or reading my blog. Which hopefully is neither a trial nor an error.)

In Which I Am Exploding With News and Happiness

2011-09-10T12:25:00.000-07:00

When I sold Paranormalcy as a trilogy, I didn't sleep for a week. It felt like all the things inside of me were buzzing, like I couldn't contain myself, like I was going to vibrate right out of my skin to reveal new Author Me. It was going to happen. I was going to be an author.

The fear set in later.

Because once you're in this industry, once you are friends with other authors and you see behind the scenes, you realize that selling one book or one series or even being a bestseller does not guarantee you will have a career as an author. Sometimes things don't work out. Sometimes future books don't sell. Sometimes things crash and burn, and sometimes they just fizzle. Sometimes sometimes sometimes.

Sometimes.

Sometimes is a scary thing. Because as much as I love the Paranormalcy trilogy, my love of writing extends beyond that one storyline. I wanted to have those books published, yes, but more than that I wanted a career as an author. I wanted to be able to write and make books forever.

I'm going to cry. (Or, as my sister put it when I called her with the news, "So THAT'S why you're giggling all creepy." It's either crying or creepy giggling. No middle ground.)

My first book deal was all giddy disbelief and joy. This new book deal? Pure happiness, tempered with a healthy dose of relief and an overwhelming sense of gratitude. Gratitude to my readers--for buying my books, for reading them, for telling others about them, for setting the foundation that the rest of my career will build on. Thank you. Gratitude to those who help me in my writing life--for putting up with my crazy (husband), for helping me (crit partners), for encouraging me (family and friends both real-world and online), for selling my books (Michelle Wolfson, I'm looking at you, you tiny spitfire agent of awesome). And especially gratitude to HarperTeen--for continuing to believe in me and my writing, for giving my books such an incredible home, for giving me Erica Sussman, and for buying my next four books.

MIND GAMES will come out winter of 2013

FLOOD AND STONE will come out fall of 2013

MIND GAMES 2 will come out winter of 2014

An unnamed standalone will come out fall of 2014

And that's the part I still can't quite believe, either. Because in another massive, incredible show of support, HarperTeen is going to publish two books a year from me.

Okay, remember how I was all calm and grateful and thoughtful about this book deal?

JUST KIDDING I AM TOTALLY FREAKING OUT AGAIN.

I WAS GOING TO BE CALM IN THIS PARAGRAPH BUT I CAN'T TURN OFF CAPS LOCK BECAUSE I AM STILL TOTALLY FREAKING OUT. TWO A YEAR!

Ahem. Sometimes I worry that I am bludgeoning people with my constant good news. Please know that I recognize how fortunate I am. Lucky, even. Yes, I work very hard, but a lot of people work very hard and never get the success they deserve. I know professionally I'm fortunate beyond what I very realistically hoped for, and I'm so, so grateful that I have all of you to share this with.

More to come Monday, including details about the books. (For those of you who have been around a while, FLOOD AND STONE is the title of Isadora's book. And MIND GAMES...well, we won't mention which book that is.) But for now, AWKWARD HUGS AND CREEPY GIGGLING FOR EVERYONE.

Blackout

2011-09-09T07:45:00.000-07:00

So, I know I was supposed to be posting old favorites this week.

BUT THE POWER WENT OUT, GUYS!

And I know that the power was only out from yesterday afternoon until late last night/early this morning, but didn't you know that blackouts are retroactive? Absolutely.

In other news, finally figured out what that bulky gray box that came with my wireless modem is. A battery generator! Thus enabling me to tweet even though the phones were down. And, in a stunning show of questionable journalism, my tweet was picked up for the nationally-released California Blackout Reuters Article. Though, again, it was a TWEET, not news. And makes me look like a bit of a jerk when I'm all, Just makes me glad I don't have air conditioning to begin with...nothing to miss! And then the article is all, Senior Citizens were hospitalized from the heat.

LOOK, I LOVE SENIOR CITIZENS, OKAY? THIS IS WHY TWEETS ARE NOT NEWS. I WAS JUST JOKING ABOUT NEVER HAVING AC.

But at least I finally have a claim to fame! So the next time someone is like, "Did you read that article about the blackout in Southern California with that girl who doesn't care about the safety of senior citizens?" You can be like, "OH MY GOSH I KNEW HER BEFORE SHE BECAME FAMOUS BACK WHEN SHE WAS JUST ANOTHER BESTSELLING AUTHOR!"

Anyhow. Sorry I didn't post favorites. You are always welcome to browse the archives. And, as promised, I'll be back in a big way on Monday.

(UPDATE: Yeah, looks like they shortened the article to cut out the community reactions section. Alas. I am no longer flippantly dismissing the lack of AC.)

High ATE US!

2011-09-02T08:59:00.000-07:00

Feeling a bit burned out lately. I'm still writing bonus content for other people's blogs, which means by the time I get to my own my thoughts consist of:

Yeah. Exactly. So, I'm gonna take a week or so off by reposting old favorites. I mean, three-plus years of blogging consistently has to get me out of something, right? Right. Promise I'll be back in a big way soon...

In Which I Recommend The Books

2011-08-31T16:30:00.000-07:00

DISCLAIMER CLAIMING TO DIS CLAIM THESE THINGS: I did not write these books. I did not read them as a teenager. My mind is not a tender young thing. I read (and enjoy) books with content that I avoid writing. Please do not get mad at me for talking about books that I love but that might be a different maturity level than the ones I have written (so far). Please do not immediately go out and buy books that I talk about for all of the twelve-year-olds you know. Please research them yourself before giving them to teens to determine whether the teen in question (whatever age) has the necessary maturity level to appreciate and understand the content.

Are we officially disclaimed? Excellent! Time to talk about Books Kiersten Enjoyed!

ANNA WITH INTERESTING TASTE IN CLOTHING, by Kendare Blake

In case the title and eerie cover do not make it obvious, this book is YA horror. It's gory. It's funny. It's scary. It's interesting. Who'd have thought I'd be rooting for the girl dripping in blood ripping people in half? Well done, Ms Blake!

THE RACES THAT ACTUALLY HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THE HOROSCOPE AND EVERYTHING TO DO WITH CARNIVOROUS HORSES (NO, REALLY, BUT TRUST ME, IT'S AWESOME), by Maggie Stiefvater

I'm a big fan of standalone books lately. Series exhaust me. (I KNOW. I WRITE THEM. I AM A HYPOCRITE.) So I picked this one up not knowing anything about it, and was so, so delighted and impressed. Stiefvater's writing is brilliantly showcased; everything from the characters to the setting to the subtle weaving of legend into reality was spot-on. I loved this book. Look for it in October.

HOW TO WRITE AN INCREDIBLE BOOK, by Sara Zarr

I think Zarr is one of the most talented, thoughtful writers in YA. She tackles such difficult issues with such quiet, hopeful grace. I never finish one of her books without feeling more thoughtful for it. This book is told from dual POVs, a girl who has lost her father and is scared she's losing her mother, and a girl who has never had anything of her own to lose--until she gets pregnant. Look for it in October.

DAUGHTER OF MAKING EVERY OTHER AUTHOR IN THE WORLD FEEL LIKE A HACK BUT IN A GOOD WAY BECAUSE OH MY GOSH, by Laini Taylor

If you think you don't like third person, you do. If you think you don't like fantasy, you do. If you think you don't like girls with naturally blue hair, what is wrong with you?? Laini Taylor is the new Neil Gaiman. Except Neil is still around. So she's an additional Neil Gaiman. Minus the graphic novels and the musician wife. Plus pink hair and the cutest toddler on the planet. Plus aMAZing kissing scenes and incredible descriptions. Minus the British accent. Plus Karou and her world, which I have no doubt Neil would agree are both incredible. Coming September.

LOLA AND THE ONLY MALE MODEL KIERSTEN KNOWS IN THE WHOLE WORLD, by Stephanie Perkins

This book. This book. You guys? I love this book. I honestly can't even say how many times I've read it, and still every time I pass it on my counter my fingers itch to pick it up. Perkins' signature wit soaked in charm is in abundance, but with a depth that makes her romantic comedies a cut above the usual fare. I love Lola, odd and bright and wonderful Lola. I love her boy, with his hair and his pants and his gentle, fidgety hands. (The fictional boy, not the cover model, because that would be awkward since he dated my sister-in-law.) I love this book. The end. Coming September.

So, there you have it. Some books. What have you read lately that you're still thinking about?

I Like This Street

2011-08-30T10:38:00.000-07:00

...is in my ears and in my eyes, there beneath the blue suburban skies...

New Clothes!

2011-08-29T06:20:00.000-07:00

For my blog, at least. I am wearing my usual. Come to think of it, I probably need new clothes more than my blog did.

Whatever. Notice the book spine! And my signature! And that--dare I say--impish twinkle in my eyes! (I AM WATCHING YOU. So do something exciting, please. I get bored easily.) It's all so pretty. I should get new blog clothes more often. Special thanks to EBSI Websites for making my blog look good.

Do you think they'll also design a new wardrobe for me? Hmmm.

Friends

2011-08-26T07:00:00.000-07:00

I can't be your friend.

I'm sorry.

I wish I could be friends with everyone that wants to be friends with me. I wish I could email you back and forth, wish we could have inside jokes, wish I could respond to every comment here, and on twitter, and on facebook, and every other way to contact me.

I wish I could read all of your blogs, and comment, and know what is going on in your lives.

I wish I could help every aspiring author who wants my help, give them personalized advice, do what I could to comfort and inspire and help along.

But frankly? There are a lot of you. And there is one of me. And outside of the internet I have this whole life thing, with a husband and kids and friends and happiness and heartache. There is an entire world you are not part of or privy to. Because in the end, I don't know you, and you don't know me.

That's okay.

I'm sorry that we don't know each other, and I'm sorry that I don't have the time or energy (emotionally and physically) to build more relationships. I hope this blog is enough. I hope you enjoy it, and that it makes you smile. I wish I could do more. But I hope you understand why I (and so many other authors) can't. I hope you view our shortcomings with compassion and kindness. I hope you don't take offense where offense is never, ever intended. We're doing the best we can. Some of us are more accessible than others. But we all try to give back in the ways that we can, and we all appreciate the reading and writing community in ways you'll never know.

So, I lied. I can be your friend. I am. You're mine, too. It's just a weird kind of friendship, but we're okay with that, right? Weird is wonderful.

Shameful Internet Confessions

2011-08-25T10:00:00.000-07:00

The kids are back in school. This is both happy and sad. I remember one summer at the end, my mom telling us how sad she was every time school started again. At the time I didn't quite believe her--with five kids, of COURSE she would be happy to have the house to herself! But now I understand. I'm glad for the structure and that my kids are happy there, but dangitall I miss the whiny little bums.

Speaking of whiny little bums, I'm in a bit of an internet slump myself. I've had to do so many extra things for other people that when it comes to my own blog I feel tapped out. So I thought I'd introduce Shameful Internet Confessions today.

I'll go first. My Shameful Internet Confession?

I don't like animal videos.

Any of them.

I try not to admit this in polite company. I mean, who doesn't like animal videos? With the kitty! And the tube! And the...no. Can't do it. Why on earth would I want to watch some stranger's pet doing whatever it is they are doing, whether it's jumping into boxes, or flying supersonic jets, or falling into the toilet? I don't care. I really don't. I love animals, they're great, someday I'll get a dog and I'm sure I'll be all goofy in love and motherly to it, but watching pets on YouTube? YAWN.

Also, lolcats? YOU CAN HAZ A SPELLCHECK, THAT'S WHAT YOU CAN HAZ.

Your turn. Shameful Internet Confessions in the comments. I promise not to tell.

Embarrassing Stories

2011-08-23T09:13:00.000-07:00

I was seventeen, in my last few months as a senior in high school, feeling very old and ready to move on to the next stage of my adult life.

One of my classes was released-time so I could go to the elementary school (for students ages six to twelve) and do reading recovery with a young boy who had recently been adopted from Russia. It was a great program that my mom had established in schools across Utah County, and thanks to her they had all the books and supplies needed to give struggling readers personalized, focused attention and help get them up to grade level. I was happy to be a small part of it.

The day was in April, but bright, clear, and bitterly cold in that cruel way spring in Utah tends tends to throw at you. The wind, ever present in my hometown, had teeth that day, and even walking from the parking lot to the entrance of the school had me shivering. So it was with relief that I made my way down the empty main hall toward the library, thinking about what I would do with my reading buddy that day. Also maybe thinking about boys. Because that's what seventeen-year-old Kiersten did.

I didn't even notice the man standing in the middle of the hall until he put his arm out to block my way.

"You need to go outside for recess," he said.

Needless to say, Very Nearly Adult Me was mortified. And I did not go outside for recess.

HAPPY/SAD

2011-08-18T08:35:00.000-07:00

This is making me HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY:

Knowing they'll release their next album in the UK before the US is making me sad, sad, sad. Come on, Snow Patrol. How many acknowledgments do I have to put you in before you'll quit making me sad??

In other news, last night I was like, "Time to sleep!" And my brain was like, "What did she say? Time to do intra-cranial cartwheels? OKAY!"

So, happy, sad, and tired. You?

Also, if you aren't already following WriteOnCon, a free online writing conference featuring editors, agents, and authors, you should be. You can even start here, with a post I wrote on respect!

Best. Editorial Comment. EVER.

2011-08-17T06:04:00.000-07:00

From the margins of ENDLESSLY, in Editor Erica's cheerful purple pen:

And...I still don't know what 'goosed' means. I'm going to ask my husband...

Oh. Now I get it.

HA HA HA HA HA. File under: Editor, Incredibly adorable things from my

The Basics of Plot in YA

2011-08-16T07:06:00.000-07:00

(FYI, Supernaturally and Paranormalcy are both 50% off on Amazon! Also, if you're a teen and you go here and vote for Paranormalcy, I'll love you forever.)

Following our Rules of Genre in YA post, I wanted to give you a primer for plots. If you have a story you want to write, consider taking one of these formats and plugging in your variables. Works every time!

The Roadtrip
Applicable across genre, whether it's a roadtrip to California to memorialize your dead best friend, to the East Coast to chase after the one that got away, or across a barren wasteland that used to be the United States to avoid being devoured by flesh-eating zombies, it's pretty much the same--the physical journey mirrors the emotional one. Hijinks. Running out of gas/money. Dashboard confessionals (of the non-emo-band variety). The necessity of chainsaws and flamethrowers. Classic, flexible, and when in doubt with plotting, pop a tire in the middle of nowhere. Preferably with hillbilly cannibals.

The Big Dance
Nothing says drama like bad music, uncomfortable and unflattering formal wear, and strapping dying flowers to your wrist. If Big Dances are the pinnacle of teen experience, no wonder we're all so eager to get the bleep into our twenties. I mean, umm: Romance! Drama! A Night That Changes Everything! (You can also substitute Graduation, The Big Party, or The Last Night Before The Dystopian Government Kills Us All. All you need is a sense that this is a last chance of some sort + hope mixed with desperation + a boy who looks good in a tux.) (We should give the boy in the tux a flamethrower. Just, you know, to liven things up.) (Because really: Prom is boring.) (I mean, PROM IS AWESOME WE SHOULD WRITE MORE BOOKS ABOUT IT.) (Sorry, Evie.)

The Best Friend Romance
He's always been around. She's never noticed. But suddenly, something happens--whether a plague that wipes out the rest of their town, or an alien invasion that forces all of the teenagers to set out on their own (now we are roadtripping again, dangit, and they forgot the chainsaws), or the removal of braces and the restyling of the hair--and he is all she wants. But now he's taken. Or maybe she is. You know they'll get together in the end; it's the getting there that's fun. Or at least it would be, if that horrible girl who's been making fun of our heroine since second grade weren't sticking her tongue down the best friend's throat! Too bad this isn't a Best Friend Romance/Murder Mystery, otherwise someone could take a lead pipe to Horrible Girl. Just hope it isn't a dystopian. You can't win in a dystopian. Otherwise they'd have to change it to Blisstopian.

The World Is Ending and I Will Probably Die, BUT WE MUST MAKE OUT
He's a fallen angel/government rebel/wrong side of towner/half-android half-zombie. She's a girl who just can't resist his broodingly dark angsty muscles even if it kills her. If they get together, THE WORLD WILL END. But if they don't, THE WORLD WILL END. What is a girl to do? Why, stare a lot, and muse on the nature of his musculature, and bemoan the details of the plot obstacles thrown in their way. And then, of course, make out. Because if the world is ending anyway, there should at least be some kissing to buffer the devastation. Also, getting together will probably magically solve whatever impossible barriers were stopping them. Because kissing? SOLVES EVERYTHING. Especially when Bunsen Burners are involved.

(Unless you are a young teenager reading this, in which case doing all of your homework, getting enough sleep, having good friends, and eating balanced meals solves everything.)

The Fish Out of Water
Recently popularized by the influx of mermaid tales. Every teenager feels like a misfit, whether it's because of secret family shame, or because he or she spouts tentacles and suckers when splashed with water. Fish out of water tales capitalize on this universal feeling by saying, "Yes! You ARE different! And if you can survive the government assassins hunting you down/the anti-kraken movement/the zombie plague/high school, you'll realize that being different is what makes you strong. Or, you know, being a werewolf is what makes you strong, but being different is what makes you you. And you are awesome." Also, kissing. Because really.

The Horrible Things Happen and Everything Ends In Bittersweet Loss

Congratulations! Printz Award Winner.

So, those are just the basic plot lines you can work with. There are, of course, infinite combinations and varieties of these. And if you ever get stuck writing within one of these plot lines, just remember: Add kissing, or add explosions.

Or blow people up while they are kissing. Everybody wins!

The Rules of Genre

2011-08-15T15:06:00.000-07:00

I often have people ask me for writing advice. What should they use to write? (Their fingers. Also their brain. But mostly just their fingers.) How should they write? (Probably in their native language, though an entire novel in pig Latin could be interesting.) How do they finish a manuscript? (Just write as much as you can and then tack THE END after a period. Taa daa! DONE.)

One thing people don't ask me much is what defines genre. So I thought I'd give you a handy guide! These are just guidelines, really, as there is wiggle room within any genre.

Kiersten's Guide to Genre Within YA (with special thanks to Natalie Whipple for key contributions)

Contemporary: Teen characters should have conversations indicative of years of self-examination on a therapist's couch despite their age. Also, sidekick characters must have bizarre nicknames, usually revolving around food or funnily inaccurate physical descriptors.

Dystopian: Must have a main character with the letter X or Z in their name. If you have no characters with Xs or Zs, you are doing it wrong and you have not written a dystopian.

Historical Fantasy: Much like Steampunk, but without airships or goggles. Pants must be referred to as "breeches" and underclothes as "shifts." Very Brave Horses and taverns should also feature prominently. Bad guys must be described as smelling "ripe," but good guys will not smell terrible even after weeks on the road with Very Brave Horses and tavern stops.

Historical Fiction: BIG DRESSES. Nothing else really matters.

Horror: Many side characters who can encounter horribly violent deaths. Wise-cracking best friend capable of making jokes in the midst of a bloodbath. Also, the odd absence of cell-phones and proper lighting.

Issue Contemporary: Same teen characters, but with Very Big Problems that will get you banned in certain communities and give you total street cred among authors.

Paranormal Romance: Must describe the love interest boy as well-muscled at least once per chapter. Also the words "brooding" "mysterious" and "agony" have to feature prominently. Type of creature that the boy is does not matter, so long as he mysteriously broods in well-muscled agony.

Sci-Fi: As we learn from Spongebob, in the future everything is chrome. Also things that really have no reason to fly/hover will fly/hover. Technology is super advanced (probably you should have at least one thing implanted in your main characters [I would like a Dr Pepper fountain machine implanted into my pinky finger, just fyi], whether voluntarily or against their will) except for when your characters are on the run, in which case in spite of incredibly advanced tech the bad guys are inexplicably unable to track them. (Other than the trail of Dr Pepper left suspiciously in their wake.) X and Z names encouraged but not essential.

Steampunk: The inclusion of goggles and airships in any story of any time period automatically qualifies it as Steampunk. Corsets don't hurt, either. Crossdressing is also a common theme, so if you have a corset-wearing boy with goggles driving an airship, YOU HAVE CREATED THE ULTIMATE STEAMPUNK!

Urban Fantasy: Much like paranormal romance, but with more profanity. And still the muscles.

All Genres: An excess of orphans/woefully underinvolved parents. Too many pairs of brilliant green eyes, and an odd number of violet eyes though no one has ever actually known anyone with violet eyes. Teens wittier than anyone you know in real life. References/plot mirrors to books that teens do not want to read, but authors think they should (mostly because authors were forced to read them in school). Girl who isn't anything special but actually IS everything special. Girl who thinks she is average looking but manages to attract not one but two supernaturally good looking guys. Token minority friend. And, finally, sexually charged lab partners. Because nothing is sexier than high school labs. LIGHT MY BUNSEN, BABY!

Ahem.

There you have it! A comprehensive guide to genre. Tomorrow-ish: A Basic Plot Primer for the YA Newbie (Hint: BIG DANCES are involved).

So, This Happened:

2011-08-12T05:37:00.000-07:00

Variety broke the news that Ray Kay is attached to direct the Paranormalcy movie. Ray Kay is a music video director who works with really obscure musicians you have never heard of, like Britney and Lady Gaga and some Bieber kid, and whose music videos do okay I guess, something like a billion views altogether*.

Then Perez Hilton picked up the story. Which, whatever, I get named on the biggest gossip site in the world regularly. So, no biggie there, either.

But then? THEN? This:

THAT'S RIGHT. MR BELDING HIMSELF TWEETED ABOUT PARANORMALCY. In between Zack and the gang crashing and then fixing his new red car, ruining his Bonsai tree and then winning him a trip to Hawaii, having his wife's baby delivered in the elevator that was in the school for just that one episode that nobody likes to talk about because it was during the Tori episodes and those were dark days at Bayside High, and otherwise trying to keep that adorable, frosted-tipped menace Zack Morris in line, Mr Belding tweeted about MY BOOK('s movie).

MY CHILDHOOD IS OFFICIALLY COMPLETE. I am ONE DEGREE FROM MISTER BELDING. (And two degrees from Britney and Gaga and Bieber. BUT SERIOUSLY. MR BELDING.)

And I have the weirdest, best life ever. Bayside is the school that is cool, and you know that it's true! (KNOW THAT IT'S TRUE.)

I'm so excited! I'm so excited! I'm so...so...

Well, no. I'm just excited. Seriously? Excited.

(To pre-emptively answer your questions: No, they are not casting the movie yet, they are working on the screenplay. No, this doesn't guarantee a movie will get made because Hollywood is a tricky place, but it's looking better and better. No, I cannot get you into the movie. Yes, I have more followers than Mr Belding on Twitter, and yes, there is something wrong with the world since that is true. I mean, COME ON. How many principals let their students vote to allow oil drilling on school property until Becky the Duck gets hurt and then they realize it's just not worth it?? This is totally stressing me out. I'm gonna OD on caffeine pills, go to The Max, and get a shake. And then? I just might hit up The Attic with my fake ID!)

(Okay. No more Saved By The Bell insider jokes. I'm not sure how a post that should be all, OH MY GOSH A MOVIE AND A DIRECTOR! turned into being all about Saved By the Bell. Wait, I'm totally sure. How could it not??)

*Seriously? Aside from being the most watched videos of all time, his videos are GORGEOUS. I even listened to an entire Justin Bieber song just to watch one. Super, super excited with the direction he'll take everything in with the whole team at Reverie, and very excited to see how the screenplay takes shape! I will keep you posted. Screech is making me my own personal robot butler so I can do just that!

Taking Questions

2011-08-11T09:09:00.000-07:00

I need a vacation.

I mean, I just got home from one. Which is why I need one. My kids are keeping a daily tab of "Things That Are Better at Grandma's House in Utah." So far the list pretty much looks like this:

EVERYTHING

Between whiny kids (and, let's admit it, whiny me [MY KITCHEN EXPLODED WITH FRUIT FLIES WHILE I WAS GONE, GUYS, AND IT IS GROSS AND I AM KILLING THEM BY THE DOZENS AND THERE ARE STILL MORE AND I AM NOT HAPPY ABOUT THIS]) and the various blog posts I have promised out to events and blog tours and whatnot, I am

Oooh, look! SUGAR. I SHOULD EAT SOME SUGAR.

Wait. Sorry. I mean, I am a bit scattered.

DIE FRUIT FLIES DIE!

(Once, in high school AP Biology, we did a lab where we bred fruit flies to have specific genetic traits. Mine were black with white eyes so they could be tuxedo flies. The Fred Astaire of fruit flies, really. Classy. I think the fruit flies in my kitchen were bred to withstand a nuclear holocaust.)

(Also they have red eyes. There is no end to their creepiness. I should write a horror novel next. It would also include scenes of putting together new bikes for children only to find key pieces missing. AND THEN THE FLIES COME! My life is such a horror story, guys.)

All this to say, I am stealing a page from Natalie Whipple's playbook and taking questions in the comments. While I always read all comments, I've become the suck at responding to them. Now is your chance. Ask, and I will answer. I cannot guarantee quality (or even coherency) but for today and today only I can guarantee an answer.

I'll get us started:

What's the best way to get rid of fruit flies?

Flamethrower. Or at least it's the most satisfying.

AND DONE. No more questions. Thanks!

Remember That Time?

2011-08-05T10:38:00.000-07:00

1) Tomorrow (Saturday) at 2 PM at The King's English in SLC is my last signing in Utah for the year. I love, love, love this bookstore. You should totally come. Sparkly vampire jokes not guaranteed, but highly likely.

2) Remember that time Supernaturally came out and hit the bestseller list? Yeah, me too. That time was awesome. Thanks again for that, by the way.

3) Remember that time I went to Comic-Con? Laini Taylor posted pictures. Love.

Taken from Laini's Blog. I love these two incredibly talented authors SO FREAKING MUCH.

Also we get excellent cell phone reception.

4) Remember that time I told myself I wouldn't go to my ten-year reunion unless I was a published author? And then I got a book deal so I said I wouldn't go unless I was a bestseller? And then I said, ha ha, well, I won't be in town anyway? And then I was?

Yeah. I remember that time, too. And while I can't quite believe it's been that long, I'll admit it'll be fun to see everyone.

Hopefully.

Tell me it will be fun.

LIE TO ME IF YOU HAVE TO.

New York Times Bestseller: The Sequel

2011-08-03T15:09:00.000-07:00

I don't have much to say, other than thank you SO MUCH. Readers make bestsellers, not authors. So thank you for reading.

SO FREAKING MUCH.

Also, I have to say, the book my book kicked off of the incredibly competitive list? The Star Wars Character Encyclopedia.

That's right--SUPERNATURALLY DEFEATED STAR WARS. WHO HAS THE FORCE NOW, HUH??

(Umm umm umm did I mention I love you all, because seriously, I love you all.) (Thank you.)

(Forever.)

(Thank you.)

(Now I need to learn how to do the lightning-shooting-from-my-hands force thing.)

Bine! Bine!

2011-08-03T08:55:00.000-07:00

This is Romania:

This is Kiersten in Romania:

This is Kiersten's first book:

Guess which one of us is going to Romania next?

YAY! Corint Junior is my new, fabulous Romanian publisher. Hot Stuff and I went into every bookstore we saw while we were traveling there, and I remember thinking, "Oh, how amazing would it be if Paranormalcy sold Romanian rights so it could be here, too?" Aside from our incredible trip there last summer, my husband actually lived in Romania for two years and speaks the language fluently. It has a very special place in both our hearts, so selling rights there is a huge, HUGE thrill.

I think this means we'll have to go there again, though, don't you? The sacrifices authors make...

I Should Never Have a Webcam

2011-08-02T06:00:00.000-07:00

Business first: Thank you to everyone who came to see me at the Irving Library in Texas! I had a blast. Thanks especially to the amazing Allison and everyone there working with teens. I love teen librarians so very, very much.

Following that theme, I will be speaking and signing TODAY at the Provo Library! 6 PM. You do not have to have a library card to come. You DO have to have a ticket. Info here: http://www.provolibrary.com/authorlink/576 Last I heard there were still a few tickets available.

Can't make that one? Don't worry! I'll be signing at The King's English in SLC on Saturday at 2 PM. I love love love this wonderful independent bookstore. Can't wait!

Can't make either of those? No worries. Today I give you: More videos! All of my HarperTeen YouTube Moderator videos are officially posted. I'll embed them here for your viewing convenience. If you watch them muted, it looks like my mouth is moving in fast-forward...

The Psycho Dutch Girl: Full Story

On Books and Stats and Advice for Writers

Then I go to Utah, and cut off my hair.

Reth's Inspiration

What Is My Greatest Enemy? Also First Date Story

On Covers

Advice on Getting an Agent/Getting Published/Getting a Freeze Frame with Your Eyes Closed

And finally, Lightning Round!

Whew. I'm serious about that whole makeup thing, guys. Blogging? Way less pressure.

Not that I'm not all gussied up when I blog. In fact, I'm wearing a tiara RIGHT NOW. Yup. Totally.

Talent Versus Work

2011-08-01T12:54:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, when I read authors I really admire, like Neil Gaiman or Laini Taylor or Sara Zarr or Shannon Hale or...well, you get the idea. Authors I admire? Pretty much legion.

But when I read them, I'm a bit overwhelmed. I think, "THEY ARE SO TALENTED!"

At which point my husband's voice pops into my head (as it often does, though usually it is saying things like, "Please remember to recycle that," or, "Another Dr Pepper?" or, "I hope you understand how beautiful you are,") saying, "I hate it when people dismiss someone who is very good at something as being talented. That isn't talent you are reading or seeing or hearing. That is WORK."

And he's right.

But he's also wrong.

(Sorry, Hot Stuff. I'll explain.)

He's definitely right. When you listen to someone play an instrument like they were born with it in their hands, that is not talent. That is hours and hours and years of practice. They didn't pick up the violin and play like that naturally. They worked to get there. They sacrificed to get there. Getting there was not easy, and staying there isn't, either.

When you read a book that is truly crafted, engaging, wonderful, etc, it didn't just flow out of the writer's brain and onto the page like that. That book is a reflection of a lifetime of reading and paying attention, years of practicing their own writing skills, and odds are draft after draft after draft (after draft after draft after draft after draft) of editing and polishing.

At my launch party signing, someone was saying to Stephanie Perkins that every word in her book is perfect. I laughed and said, "Yes, that's because she agonizes over EVERY SINGLE ONE." I was looking through my downloads folder recently and saw a document titled "LOLA DRAFT 18." And giggled over the people who think writing for teens is easy. LOLA AND THE BOY NEXT DOOR? Not easy in any way for Steph to write. But when you read it, you won't see the eighteen + drafts' worth of work and sweat and tears and agony. You will only see the finished product, which is amazing.

So, in a way, there is no such thing as talent when it comes to that skill level. There is only work.

But...that's not quite accurate, is it? Because even if I put in the same amount of work and time and effort into my writing, I will never write with the startling humor and perfect wordsmithing of Neil Gaiman. Plain and simple. I will never capture the beauty and hope in pain like Sara Zarr, I will never write with the grace and charm of Shannon Hale, I will never weave magic into the simplest description like Laini Taylor, I will never write the ABSOLUTE OH MY GOSH CUTEST BOYS IN THE WHOLE WORLD like Stephanie Perkins.

No matter how hard I try.

And this is where talent comes in (although I think that might be not quite the right word). Because not everyone starts on the same level, and not everyone ends up on the same level either. And that's okay. I can't write like those authors, but you know what?

They can't write like me, either.

(Oh, gosh, wouldn't it be scary if they were like, "Actually..." and then sent me something so perfectly imitating my writing that it rendered me completely obsolete and then I'd just go down into my parent's basement and never leave again and go ahead and drink all of that Dr Pepper and not recycle the cans and get adult onset diabetes and prove my husband right and yeah, let's just stop this line of thinking immediately. Let's prove my husband right on the beautiful part, instead.)

Because while dismissing someone's work as something natural like talent is wrong, I strongly believe that a talented author or musician can bring something to their piece that no one else can. I also strongly believe that everyone has talent. It might not express in the same way as someone else, or even the way you want it to, but it's there. I've said this before and I've said it again: You have stories to bring to the world that no one else can. Maybe it's through writing. Maybe it's through something else. Regardless, it takes work to get there, and it's not easy, and oftentimes it's not fun, either, but if you have stories to tell, tell them. No one else can tell it like you can.

Except Neil Gaiman, but let's face it: if he wants to tell your story, you're going to let him.

Reason #398 I Love Stephanie Perkins

2011-07-29T14:19:00.000-07:00

At dinner, both of us so tired we are slumped against the walls of the booth, randomly looking at each other and giggling over nothing. Somehow this happened during the course of a conversation:

Steph: "An eleven-year-old? Yeah, I think an eleven-year-old could understand that. That's how old Harry Potter was."

Me: "What?"

Steph: "In the first book. He was eleven. I base all knowledge of those stages of child development on what Harry Potter could do and how he thought during the corresponding book."

Me: *crippled with laughter*

Steph: "SUPERFAN. Also I do actually think that way."

I miss you, Steph. Come back.

In Person

2011-07-28T06:47:00.000-07:00

So, I know a lot of you won't be able to see me in person this year. Maybe ever. But I am doing this whole series of vlogs for HarperTeen's YouTube channel, which is almost as good! Mostly because you can pause or mute me whenever you want. AMAZING.

Since I am visiting the awesome library patrons of Irving, Texas today, I thought I'd turn my blog over to, uh, myself to entertain you. Enjoy!

(Favorite comment? The person who thought it was so funny that my dogs were screaming in the background. Umm, that would be my children screaming. On another floor of the house, because that's as close as I'll let them get to the stun gun.)

In Which I Stand on a Chair to Talk About Unicorns

2011-07-27T09:41:00.000-07:00

You guys.

YOU GUYS.

Yesterday was awesome.

As an author, you try to keep expectations low. I knew that I was excited about the launch party, and that I had two freaking awesome authors there with me (Andrea Cremer and Stephanie Perkins). I knew that it would be fun no matter what. But I really, really hoped that there would be at least thirty people there other than direct friends and family.

Ummm.

Why is that very short woman standing on a chair while her beautiful companions laugh?

Walking out to see the entire section of the Barnes and Noble full, plus people standing in neighboring aisles, to the point where I could only see the first row? Bleeping. Amazing.

We each read a short passage, took a few questions, and gave away some chocolate. (My favorite was the bar we gave for the person who had read any of our books the most times. I don't know what I was expecting, but it definitely wasn't Racquel, who had read ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS ten times, and NIGHTSHADE and PARANORMALCY more than five times each. Holy adorable re-reader, Batman!) The crowd was incredibly awesome. And then we signed.

And signed.

For the next two-and-a-half hours.

Thank you so very, very much to everyone who came. Thank you for waiting in line. Thank you for still being excited when you got up to get your books signed and take a picture even though you had been waiting in line for so long. I hope you had fun. I know we certainly did! Favorite moments include walking in to head to the back pre-signing and having a girl go, "Oh, you're Stephanie Perkins and Kiersten White. Oh my gosh. OH MY GOSH." And then hearing her repeat "Oh my gosh," over and over again after we smiled and waved and hurried to where we were supposed to meet Andrea.

Oh, fans, you make us feel so much cooler than we really are!

I was also absolutely delighted by a teen fan who brought me a totally pink-decked out Dr Pepper, complete with an adorable hot pink list of why she loves me. I love her, too.

Modeling my Dr Pepper with the (YES OH MY GOSH I KNOW SHE IS HOT, RIGHT?) gorgeous Andrea Cremer. Special thanks to her for sharing her book birthday with mine. It made everything that much better!

And finally, to Velvet and Nieves, who drove six hours straight from Las Vegas just to attend: YOU ARE AWESOME.

I also want to thank the Oceanside Barnes and Noble staff for the event. Their store is consistently amazing, and I have always been so impressed with them. Their events ROCK.

Special, special, specialest thanks go to Steph and Andrea for being willing to stay a couple of extra days after Comic-Con to do this together. I couldn't have imagined a better signing than with two women whose writing I love and whose personalities I adore.

Speaking of impressive people, I know not everyone can attend author events. Stupid geography; it ruins everything. But I hope you've been following along the supernaturally awesome blog tour that Katie at The Mundie Moms put together. It ended yesterday, but you can still read all of the posts by going to the blogs and searching for my name. Book bloggers make such a huge difference for authors, and we appreciate that community so very, very much.

Okay. Whew. How about another Kiersten Stands on a Chair so People Can See Her shot?

Now you are thinking: Wait. Kiersten, you're on a CHAIR and you're still only a head taller than Steph?

And I'm thinking, Yeah, yeah, yeah. Thanks for bringing it up. I KNOW.

If you happen to live in Texas (which is totally a small state, right? Tiny!), I'll be at the Irving Public Library TOMORROW! This is my only trip to Texas this year, which makes me sad, because I love love love the reading community in Texas. Hope to see you there! After that I go straight to Utah, where I will also be doing a couple of events. (Info in the appearances tab, as always.)

And somewhere in there, at some point, ideally I would like to sleep.

A lot.

But this author's dreams? Happy, happy, happy. Thank you again.

In Which I Am Exceptionally Grateful

2011-07-26T14:09:00.000-07:00

Supernaturally comes out today. It is both less and more exciting than when Paranormalcy came out. Less because I was signing them all weekend at Comic-Con and that stole some of the RELEASE DAY! thunder, but more because I now understand the best part of being an author.

It's you.

Thank you for reading, so much more than these words can ever say.

Thank you.

Blink. Blink.

2011-07-25T11:33:00.000-07:00

You know how sometimes if you've been on a lot of roller coasters or on a boat, at night when you lie down to go to sleep you feel like you are still on the roller coaster/boat? Well, last night when I closed my eyes I saw a hundred thousand people milling around.

Yeah, having a bit of a Comic-Con hangover.

I met Stan Lee.

[PICTURE I DON'T HAVE HERE]

I saw Nathan Fillion.

[PICTURE I DON'T HAVE HERE]

I hung out with Laini Taylor and Stephanie Perkins and their super cool husbands (and my super cool husband).

[PICTURE I DON'T HAVE HERE]

I was on panels with other authors and graphic novelists and talked and laughed and learned with them, and got to meet so many wonderful fans and readers.

[COME ON YOU ALREADY KNOW WHAT I'M GOING TO TYPE HERE]

And I signed a whole bunch of copies of Supernaturally.

Between that and actually seeing it out on shelves at a B&N, tomorrow's release date should be feeling sort of anti-climactic. BUT fortunately I have an awesome joint launch party to look forward to! Andrea Cremer, whose sequel to Nightshade, Wolfsbane, releases tomorrow as well. And Stephanie Perkins is staying with me and joining us! (Little does she know I am keeping her forever and never letting her leave.)

Anyway. I wish I had something more coherent to put here. But between the post-Comic-Con ohmygoshiamsotiredicannotevenseestraight and the pre-SUPERNATURALLY release haze, I'm lucky I'm dressed and conscious.

More tomorrow.

I adore you all.

And yes, Nathan Fillion is just as awesome in person.

TRAILER! TOURS!

2011-07-21T14:21:00.000-07:00

Hey! You want to see the book trailer for Supernaturally? Well, good, because here it is:

CUE LIGHTNING.

Yay! I'm so excited! I can't wait for the release on Tuesday (Oceanside, CA B&N!)! And then I get to go hang out at a seriously cool library in Irving, TX on Thursday! And then I get to go to Utah, where I'll be at the Provo library on Tuesday, August 2nd, and then at the ridiculously wonderful King's English bookstore in SLC on Saturday, August 6th!

Can't make any of those? Well then it's a good thing Harper is sending me on tour! (THREE CHEERS FOR MY AMAZING PUBLISHER!) And, even better, I'll be with other super cool authors. SO MUCH AWESOME. Here is the schedule (you can also always check my "Appearances" tab for up-to-date info):

Tuesday, October 11^th

6:30 PM

University Bookstore

Mill Creek, WA

with Claudia Gray (FATEFUL), Kiersten White (SUPERNATURALLY), Amy Garvey (COLD KISS) and Anna Carey (EVE)

Wednesday, October 12^th

7:00 PM

Barnes & Noble

Lynnwood, WA

with Claudia Gray (FATEFUL), Kiersten White (SUPERNATURALLY), Amy Garvey (COLD KISS) and Anna Carey (EVE)

Thursday, October 13^th

7:00 PM

Barnes & Noble

Huntington Beach, CA

with Claudia Gray (FATEFUL), Kiersten White (SUPERNATURALLY), Amy Garvey (COLD KISS) and Anna Carey (EVE)

Friday, October 14^th

Time TK

Tattered Cover

Highland Ranch, CO

with Claudia Gray (FATEFUL), Kiersten White (SUPERNATURALLY), Amy Garvey (COLD KISS) and Jocelyn Davies (A BEAUTIFUL DARK)

Saturday, October 15^th

1:00 PM

Barnes & Noble

Boulder, CO

with Claudia Gray (FATEFUL), Kiersten White (SUPERNATURALLY), Amy Garvey (COLD KISS) and Jocelyn Davies (A BEAUTIFUL DARK)

Sunday, October 16^th

2:00 PM

Anderson’s

Naperville, IL

with Claudia Gray (FATEFUL), Kiersten White (SUPERNATURALLY), Amy Garvey (COLD KISS) and Jocelyn Davies (A BEAUTIFUL DARK)

What?

2011-07-19T06:49:00.000-07:00

You know you'd build a fort with them, too. Don't pretend you wouldn't.

One week left!

You, too, can have your own Supernaturally Awesome Fort! All you have to do is, uh, buy forty copies of the book. Or you can always just buy one. And it can be a...finger puppet fort? Which is pretty awesome, too. Just think of all the hijinks your finger puppets can get up to in their fort! And if they get bored, you could always, I dunno, read the book or something. Whatever.

Oh, HI. You Look Nice Today.

2011-07-18T10:04:00.000-07:00

So, I am trying not to run around like a chicken with its head cut off. Mostly because that is terrible imagery and I don't want to think about it. In short, today I have LOTS AND LOTS of blog posts for you! But they are all elsewhere.

Here's a Q&A with me over at Novel Novice! Here's an interview with Evie at Books Complete Me! Here's another interview with me at Mindful Musings! And here's the master list so you can see where there are reviews and giveaways!

And another ! just for good measure! How about a picture:

EEP! It is already out there in a lot of stores, guys! This picture sent to me by Tifani Alia in Georgia. ISN'T IT PRETTY??

And some other reminders. How about interspersed with pictures of pretty people? This weekend I will be at Comic-Con! Yay Comic-Con! I got invited to a party hosted by Stan Lee! Oh, also, I will be on some panels. Please see my Appearances page for details.

Comic-Con means THIS gorgeous girl is coming to visit me. YAY COMICS!

And, if you are planning on coming to my joint launch party (with me, Stephanie Perkins, and the also seriously gorgeous Andrea Cremer whose next book WOLFSBANE is releasing on Tuesday, too!) at the Oceanside Barnes and Noble on July 26th, please note that they now have wristbands available first-come-first-serve. You don't HAVE to get one early, but if you can, you won't have to wait in line as long to get things signed! (Although I have no doubt that the people who come for these books will be incredibly delightful and you will make a new best friend waiting in line. I'm serious.)

Andrea is so beautiful she literally glows.

I think that's all for now. Maybe. I don't even know. My life is crazy right now. Here, have a music video:

Book Three Title Reveal!

2011-07-14T08:42:00.000-07:00

Okay, friends, here's the deal.

I suck at keeping cats in bags. First of all, getting them in there is a pain. You feel like such a jerk, and then there's the scratching and the biting. And then once the cat is actually IN the bag, the yowling and pitiful mewing. It's just too sad. So, sometimes, on accident, I do something so that the bag no longer contains the cat.

Like, uh, when we decide not to announce Book Three's title until September or October, and then realize that we've inadvertently ALREADY PUT IT OUT THERE.

That's right. Book Three's title? On the internet. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to find it! AND, bonus, first person to find it and comment on this post with the location? Gets a prize. Hints: It ends in a Y. You'll know it when you see it. It's not on a message board or in twitter or on my blog. It's very findable, just...not as obvious as you'd think it would be.

Why are you still reading this?? GO GO GO!

UPDATE: WE HAVE A WINNER! That...did not take long! And the title is...

SQUEEEEE! No more Para3!

I'm so in love with this title, guys. It took me a long time to come up with something I was happy with, but ENDLESSLY both applies very much to the themes in book three, and also strikes me as a very funny thing to name the ending book in a series. And we all know I like to entertain myself.

So, there you have it! Paranormalcy, Supernaturally, and Endlessly.

(And if you want to read the interview in which I accidentally spilled the beans, go to Amazon's SUPERNATURALLY page. Right beneath the box that lists the Kindle and Hardcover prices is another box with an exclusive author Q&A link!)

Oh, Hey There, SNEAK PEEK

2011-07-12T16:01:00.000-07:00

What's that? You want to read the acknowledgments section everyone's talking about?

Wait. I mean, you want to read the first SEVENTY pages of Supernaturally two weeks before you can buy it? Even better!

TAA-DAA: http://browseinside.harperteen.com/index.aspx?isbn13=9780061985867

I'm so excited! And I totally haven't been hitting refresh for the last four hours watching more and more pages load so I could tell you THE VERY MINUTE it was live! Because that would be silly.

I hope you enjoy it! And, if that isn't enough Evie and Lend for you, how about this guest post Evie did on The Story Siren's blog? Or this one Lend did on ReadingTeen?

I am such a huge fan of today.

Blog Tourin'

2011-07-11T09:27:00.000-07:00

So, guys. Fifteen days until Supernaturally comes out.

I KNOW. I AM NOT FREAKING OUT, EITHER. I AM GLAD WE ARE ALL SO CALM ABOUT THIS.

But, to tide you over in the meantime, how about a Blog Tour? That's right! The fabulous Mundie Moms organized and planned a whole tour for me. Some of the days have reviews. Some of the days have guest posts and interviews. And some of the days have contests! So, head on over to the kick-off at the Mundie Moms' blog, take a peek at the schedule, and enter the first contest!

Also, I will leave you with a funny.

Me: Is it okay if I go to this movie night at a friend's house?
Hot Stuff: You should! That will be fun. I'll just sit around, lonely, doing nothing.
Me: You always have stuff to do!
Hot Stuff: I know, but it's just not the same without someone else there...sitting on the couch...typing. It's soothing.

Yup, nobody's better company than me!

On Second Books

2011-07-08T06:51:00.000-07:00

I'm counting down the days until the 26th, until Supernaturally comes out and is out there, in the world, out of my hands and control.

I'm trying not to feel sick about it.

See, second books are a funny thing. Because you know, no matter what--no matter what--there are going to be people who loved the first book and because they loved the first book they will not love the second book for the sole reason that it isn't the first book.

It isn't.

It can't be.

It shouldn't be.

But this doesn't change the fact that because they loved the first the second (through no fault of its own) will inevitably make them angry/disappoint them/leave them melancholy. You can't help but compare it to the first book. You might like it less. You might like it better. But it's different either way.

And you know what? I'm okay with that. You're allowed to like one better than the other. (They aren't children. You are not a terrible person if you have a preference.) I'm freaking proud of this book. It's exactly what I wanted it to be. It was HARD to write, and I think because of that I love it even more than I love Paranormalcy. It was always important to me to tell Evie's story, and Supernaturally is such an integral part of it. It's fun. It's funny. It's sad. It's agonizing.

It's life. It's that middle part--where you've finished getting that thing you've chased for so long and suddenly you're faced with what to do now that you're where you always wanted to be but...it's not what you thought it would be. And maybe you aren't who you thought you would be. Because even though you've changed where you are, who you are with, what you are doing, you're still you. And you shouldn't be, should you? Shouldn't you be a new you? A better you? A perfectly happy you?

A friend and I joked a while ago as we were struggling with different things that we were both in the metaphorical middle books of our trilogies. Hers was called "JUST LET ME SUCCEED ALREADY" and mine was called "I Have an Awesome Job BUT NO FREAKING BABIES." They weren't fun books.

I promise Supernaturally is more fun than either of those books. Neither of those books had unicorns in them. SUPERNATURALLY TOTALLY DOES, GUYS.

You may have figured out by now that as much as we say we don't, authors can't help but write themselves into their books. Supernaturally is about that in-between-time, that figuring out who to become so you can be ready for everything else that is going to happen.

Plus kissing.

Plus Tasers.

And plus unicorns.

I'm so excited for you to discover the next part of Evie's adventures, for you to get to know her better, to see what she does with everything she has--and doesn't have. I love this book. I hope you do, too.

UPDATE: And! And! If you want to get a sneak peek (of sorts) into Supernaturally, Amazon now has the Supernaturally playlist up! Many of you have asked what it was. Now you can see! (Also, one of the songs, the Etta James one, is not actually from my playlist. Not sure how it got there. But I'm sure it's awesome.)

THIS

2011-07-07T09:53:00.000-07:00

Here: http://betweenfactandfiction.blogspot.com/2011/07/oo.html

Did I say I was happy yesterday? Because today? HAPPY.

Who Says Pink and Red Don't Go Together?

2011-07-06T09:19:00.000-07:00

Because Evie and I? We beg to differ. Pink and red go AWESOME together.

For some reason the "You sexy thing!" song is running through my head...

A bookstore friend gave me Paranormalcy's stand when they were done with it, so imagine my delight when I got a strangely shaped package from Christina, my fabulous marketing...hmm. Not sure what her actual title is. So I'm declaring her my fabulous Marketing Goddess. There was some shrieking, and some giddy laughing.

Tell me about it, Evie. In fact, I'd even go so far as to say it's bleeping overrated.

A lot of my publishing journey has exceeded my expectations. These gorgeous stands that will go up in bookstores? Pretty much the physical manifestation of my wildest dreams. That's why I keep them in my office. They're a reminder of how lucky I am. That, and they are PRETTY SO PRETTY.

But Editor Erica (hmmm, she's a senior editor officially, but I think she needs a new title, too. How about, Empress Editor Erica? Then we've got the whole alliteration thing going, and I always adore alliteration) had something for me, too. The paperback of Paranormalcy! And now we're singing "Paperback writer." My house is filled with song today thanks to HarperTeen.

But oh! What's that? In the back of the paperback? Why yes, yes it is:

Sneak peek! ROCK ON.

Both the paperback and Supernaturally will be on sale on the 26th. In the meantime, I'll be dancing around my house, singing songs of varying level of appropriateness for small ears, and marveling that this crazy dream of mine keeps coming true, and, best of all, so many incredible teens and adults join it by reading.

Thank you.

Life is happy.

I hope yours is, too!

Holy Guacamole

2011-07-05T08:34:00.000-07:00

Supernaturally comes out in exactly three weeks.

HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?

I mean, not the book. I understand how the book happened because I was there pretty much every step of the way. No, I mean, how did July happen? Do you remember when you were a kid and the days and weeks and months moved at the pace of those slugs your mom had you sprinkle salt on? Why is it that as you get older someone seems to give those slugs steroids instead of salt so they positively zip along?

Anyway. No more musings about the fluid and ever increasingly rapid nature of time. Instead: links!

YouTube. Still going on. I probably won't do any more shower scenes, but you never know. Ask questions, vote on your favorite, I'll make the videos, you know the drill.

Amazon and Barnes and Noble. For the first time since it went up for pre-order, Supernaturally is under ten dollars! Just, you know, in case you were wondering.

Interview. Quite possibly the strangest interview I will ever give. Whirlochre is a longtime blog friend and has a regular feature where he goes to therapy sessions with his son's sock monkey. I took one of his sessions this week, and the results were...interesting.

Music video. Because why not.

I love the song, but I JUST WANT TO PUSH HIS HAIR BACK FROM HIS FACE. GIVE ME A COMB. SOMEONE GIVE ME A COMB, PLEASE.

Ahem. That's all I've got for you today. More to come!

Surprise! I'M TAKING OVER YOUTUBE

2011-07-01T08:28:00.000-07:00

That's right. In my continued quest for Total Internet Domination, I've claimed another prime piece of real estate--the HarperTeen YouTube Channel!

(Or, well, they are awesome and gave me the channel for the month.)

My intro video is up, but the whole thing is even cooler than just a book trailer or an interview video like we had for Paranormalcy, because this time YOU get to ask me questions, which I'll then answer in a series of videos! And to make it even better, you also get to vote on which questions you most want me to answer. It's the closest we can get to me coming to everyone's city and hanging out!

So. Go to www.youtube.com/user/harperteen. Watch the intro video (it's in the upper right-hand corner). Admire the pretty, pretty red Supernaturally wallpaper. Ask your question. Then come back, vote, and watch the answers!

I'm so excited about this, guys. Imagine one of those yippy, trembly chihuahuas. Now imagine that yippy, trembly chihuahua hopped up on Dr Pepper and given her publisher's YouTube channel. Now stop imagining a chihuahua because I am way more eloquent than one of those little adorable rat dogs. Also I pant less.

Why are you still reading this. Go to YouTube. I'M WAITING.

PTSD - Post Teen Stress Disorder

2011-06-28T15:26:00.000-07:00

This post is for the teens who read my blog. Adults are welcome to read it, too, but it isn't for you.

My husband, who somehow ends up having deeply interesting conversations with strangers on a regular basis, was talking with a psychologist and mentioned that he didn't understand Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

The psychologist said, "Have you ever had that dream where you are back in college but missing a final or some variation of that?"

"All the time."

"Then you understand PTSD. There is a physical reaction to stress and your brain and body remember it, and in those dreams you're in that physical and psychological memory and your brain cannot understand that it doesn't need to be stressed out about that anymore. PTSD is that sensation compounded."

So, interesting, right? But here's the thing. I've never once had the "I signed up for a college class but haven't been attending and now it's the final and I'm dead meat" dream. Nope. But I very regularly have a dream where for whatever reason I didn't finish high school and I have to go back.

Yup. Pretty much my ultimate nightmare right there: RETURN TO HIGH SCHOOL AND NEVER GET OUT. (It was even more awesome when I'd have the dream pregnant and get asked to prom and think, "First of all I'll never find a maternity formal, second of all, it's kind of inappropriate, right?") (Which might leave you wondering why, if high school was so awful I am still suffering mild psychological trauma ten years later, I choose to write from teen perspectives. But that's not what we're here to talk about today. [Perhaps that should be discussed on a couch. To a therapist.])

Today I am here to tell you that it's going to be okay. Maybe you've screwed up. Maybe you're just worried you're going to. Maybe you feel so much pressure to be building building building for your future you wonder if you even want that future, or you can't sleep because you're convinced the future you want will never happen, or you cry when you are in the shower and no one can hear because you're doing it WRONG and it's going to ruin everything forever.

It's not.

That's the best thing about being a teenager: you can screw up. I'm not advocating making huge mistakes because you will definitely have to work harder and stress more than you would have had you not messed up, but fact of the matter is, you're probably going to at some point.

And when you hit that point, you might worry that it's over. This nebulous, hazy "future" you have sitting like those horrible little cartoon devils on your shoulder, might whisper in your ear that you've blown it.

I'm going to tell you a story that very few people know. (HELLO INTERNET. HAVE SOME OF MY SECRETS.) When I was a junior in high school I struggled with depression. I'm not sure why; unlike in most books there was no huge trigger, no big THING that made me depressed. I just was. And because I was depressed everything felt huge and overwhelming and too much for me. So I did something really stupid. I maintained every single other aspect of my life (I was a big fat faker and very good at it, too) but I stopped doing anything in my honors pre-calculus class.

Anything. At all.

I went to class. I sat there. I didn't do any of the homework. I don't remember what I did on the tests, but when that second term report card came home with a big F in the middle of my straight A's, I laughed and said that the teacher hadn't put in all of the assignments yet and it wasn't really an F. My parents trusted me because when I wasn't depressed I was an honest kid. But that depression monster made me hide things, shove them away into corners of my brain and my life, pretend like they didn't exist. Like math. If my math class didn't exist, then I could handle everything else.

This continued until almost the end of the year, when I could no longer hide everything, when the dark secret corners had seeped out into the entire room of my life.

It was over.

Everything was over.

I was living every day in fear, fear of being discovered, but even worse the fear of knowing that I had ruined everything. All of my dreams. All of my plans. They were over, and I had blown it, and it was all my fault because I was stupid and couldn't handle a dumb class and couldn't tell the truth and couldn't ask for help and couldn't sleep and couldn't even feel like I was supposed to.

To tell you the truth, I remember almost nothing from those few months. I don't remember how my parents reacted when I came clean that yes, in the middle of all my honors and AP "A" grades, I had failed two terms on math and was well on my way to failing a third. I don't remember what they said. I should, but I don't. The second half of my junior year is a gray blur of fear and failure.

One thing I do remember is this. After everything came out and we met with the teacher who agreed to let me make up all of the course work I had missed (a miracle and a very generous decision--turns out those adults we are terrified of as teenagers actually love us and want us to succeed) I was walking home from taking a makeup test, sure I had failed. Again. Even when I was trying to make everything better I was still just screwing it all up. As I went to cross the road and cars sped by I had a thought.

A brief thought.

A thought that maybe if I stepped out in the street and got hit by a car, this whole math thing wouldn't matter anymore.

Now, to be clear: I did not want to die. I was not suicidal. But I had let things get so bad and so blown out of proportion in my mind that the idea of being hit by a car seemed like a good solution. Looking back, it was such an irrational thought so as to be almost insane. Probably actually insane. But that's the thing when you are living in fear and depression and pressure: you aren't thinking rationally. You can't.

Gosh, this is getting heavy. Sorry about that. Here's where it gets better.

In the end I walked home. I did not let myself get hit by a car. Life wasn't easy, but I kept fixing what I had messed up. I worked on being honest with myself and my parents again. I worked with the very kind teacher who understood that sometimes sixteen-year-olds screw up. She let me redo the coursework from where I stopped, let me redo the tests, let me come into her class every day during her free period and essentially take the class again to make up my failed grades. I swallowed my pride at being "smart" and hired a fellow student to tutor me. I didn't get A's. I think I got three C's. But those C's buried in my other good grades were enough that my dream college didn't even notice them.

So even though I'd messed up, seriously screwed up, and temporarily derailed myself and my future, it was fixable. It wasn't easy. It was long, and it was hard, and it wasn't fun. But I had parents who loved me and wanted to help me succeed. I had teachers who cared and wanted to see me secure a good future. And I wasn't an adult yet.

You're a teenager. That's AWESOME. Maybe you're like I was and feeling like you are drowning in all of the potential futures you could have. Maybe you've already done something hugely wrong, made pretty much the biggest mistake you could. Maybe you think it's over. I am here to tell you it's not. You'll have to keep walking, keep moving forward. Yes, your life would be much easier if you hadn't done that thing you did, but the amazing thing about being you is that those futures spreading out in front of you? They're all still there. You might not have the same path to them that you thought you would, but they're still there and you can still have them.

Take a deep breath. You'll get out of this. And when you get out, things will be so much bigger and so much better than you can understand right now. All you have to do is make it through in the best way you can. Just remember how many people you have that care. It's okay to ask for help. It's okay to need help. Be brave. Make the hard choices. Do your best.

Also, for the love of Pete, have some fun while you're at it. And if you see me in your dreams dazedly wandering the halls of your high school while wearing a formal and seven-months-pregnant, just smile and pat me on the back and remind me that I made it through. Just like you're going to.

One Month!

2011-06-26T17:45:00.000-07:00

One month, one month, one month!

I will once again be doing a launch party for Supernaturally at the Oceanside, CA Barnes and Noble. But I wondered how on earth I could make it cooler than the Paranormalcy release. Then I thought, I should add a gorgeous, talented, witty redhead who also has a sequel releasing July 26th!

Then I thought, why add ONE gorgeous, talented, witty redhead when I can add TWO?

That's right, folks. July 26th at 6 PM Andrea Cremer, author of Nightshade and Wolfsbane, and Stephanie Perkins, author of Anna and the French Kiss and the upcoming Lola and the Boy Next Door, will be with me, talking books, signing things, and otherwise being awesome. (Incidentally we will also be on a panel together at Comic-Con with several other authors, this wonderful convergence of YA Delight creating the perfect storm of Redheaded awesomeness in San Diego.)

The only thing that can possibly make the evening any cooler would be you. I hope you can come.

Supernaturally Hangs Out

2011-06-24T13:49:00.000-07:00

So, I have some bad news for blog fans.

Last year, after I did this same pose with my first copy of Paranormalcy, I was at dinner with my lovely friend Daisy Whitney, and we were talking about strange author pictures. She said, "I just saw one where the author covered her whole face with her book, just looking over the top." I said, "That was me." Then we laughed.

I'm kind of busy. And by kind of I mean I am in the market for another me. Or two. Or three.

The backs of my books are freaking gorgeous. I've always loved the back cover copy they use. And the lightning! Still haven't gotten over my love of the lightning.

I've got a bunch of interviews and guest posts to do to get ready for my July blog tour. And we all know how interviews eat my brain. And then I have something very exciting but also brain-eating and time-taking in July as well leading up to Supernaturally's release. Something that I will have to actually, you know, do my hair and stuff for. (THE HORRORS.)

"Is it always like this here, Paranormalcy?"

"Yes, Supernaturally. It is. Welcome to paradise."

"We've made a lot of Kiersten's dreams come true, haven't we?"

"Oh yeah. She owes us. Big time."

"I want a higher allowance. And no bedtimes."

"That's just the beginning..."

And it's summertime, which means my kids are home. All day. Every day. And they, like, need stuff and stuff.

"And this, dear Supernaturally, is the Corner of Awesomeness. Welcome."

"It's all so pink! It's so beautiful...I think I'm going to cry."

Plus I kind of now have three books to edit, all at various stages of editing. In, uh, the next three weeks. In addition to everything else.

Release day friends! Love us! Love us all! Or don't. But if you don't, Calla turns into a wolf, Ashline has volcano powers, and I still have Tasey.

Not that we're threatening you or anything.

But we totally are.

So taking all that into account, it's a pretty safe bet that my blogging is going to suffer some. Usually I like to have two creative things going on at once, and the blog is number two. I currently have five creative things going on. Which is a bit much, even for me. This doesn't mean no blogging. But probably not four or five posts a week.

SLUMBER PARTY. They are all going to stay up late arguing over what movie to watch. And then end up just reading each other, instead.

I used to be puzzled when people would announce things like this and think, just blog when you blog and don't worry about it. But I do get concerned comments from people when I don't blog as often, so I wanted to let you know that I have not died, nor do I plan on it any time soon. I'm just busy vomiting out my brain into other projects. And I'll still be around.

And the best part about all of the bonus stuff I'm doing is that you'll get to see it all and enjoy even more of that brain vomit. Which is the most appealing description of content you've ever heard, now, isn't it?

Questions! Answers! Winner! Real Books!

2011-06-22T19:45:00.000-07:00

I haven't done a question and answer post in a while. I thought I'd do this one with some common questions that have been floating around lately. Much as those little wisp seeds float around after being blown free from a dandelion puff. Only with less weedkiller in their future.

First and foremost, Hey Kiersten, WHO WON YOUR CONTEST YOU SLACKER?

You guys, it is your fault for making these things so hard to judge. Seriously. Please try to suck a little more, okay? Make my life easier. Honorable mentions go to lora96 for using the phrase "unintentional hydrangea encroachment," Nathan Shutak for St. Clair references, and Sarah H. for second-person sci-fi ghost mermaid awesomeness. Also honorable mentions to those of you who incorporated Easton Heights or gave Tasey cameos. But the winner is Emily, who wrote:

"Everyone expected her to be special. Maybe it was the long, beautiful hair. Or the mysterious eyes. Or the way she commanded a room just by walking in. Or because she was, well...a Higgins.   Her family had it all - money, power, money, fame, money - but all Karoline ever wanted was to run away to the open fields of her grandfather's farm. And so, she did.   Like any self-respecting girl, she took the basics - couture dresses, heels, a perfect pout - and a sword. Because, she'd heard about Iowa, and it sounded like a place where you'd need a sword."

Snort snort snort. If I ever go to Iowa, I'm bringing a sword, too. Bravo, Emily! Please email me your address and I'll get these dang books in the mail. And to everyone who entered--you are all ridiculous and delightful and I had so much fun reading your entries!

How did you write a novel in nine days??

Well, it could be because:
a) I recently told myself I might not write another novel for the rest of the year, and that was okay.
b) I had two other projects that needed editing and promo stuff to do for Supernaturally and the end of the school year for my kids so I absolutely did not have time for anything else.
c) No one was expecting this book. In fact, it didn't make any sense whatsoever for me to write something like it.

So when those three things combined, what choice did I have other than to write it? As far as the insane drafting time, I got obsessive. And I let myself. I haven't been this absorbed by something I was writing since Paranormalcy, and it was a blast. It also helped that this book combined a lot of the things I've been craving lately--a darker tone, dual POVs, and a non-chronological framework. It was a challenge. A completely unnecessary challenge that I should not have written and therefore couldn't not write.

That, or it was because my mom bought me a magic opal ring:

Yup. Pretty sure it was the magic ring.

How do you have time to write so much with two small children?

OH MY GOSH WHERE ARE MY KIDS??

Just kidding. Usually it is a challenge and I have to force myself to write in the evenings when I want nothing more than to sit on the couch and zone out. But I was so invested in and absorbed by this idea that I fit in writing whenever I could. Five minutes here, ten minutes there, staying up late into the night. It's like anything else in a mother's life: if it is a priority, you make sacrifices for it.

I've said it before and I'll say it again: I have no social life. I take care of my wonderful kids, I hang out with my super cool hubby, and I write. Most other things have to fall by the wayside, and I'm okay with it. Writing means I get to do something I love and stay at home with my kids full-time, too. I'm not sacrificing anything more than any other working mom. Probably less, actually. Because my job means things like THIS get dropped on my doorstep:

IT IS A REAL BOOK. AND IT IS GORGEOUS. AND THE GOLD LETTERS ARE SHINY AND SERIOUSLY GUYS? I HAVE A SERIES.
Cue happy freakout.

I always knew it'd be a real book and I would get to hold it in all its actually-going-to-be-on-bookshelves glory, but when the book is on your step and you can take off the jacket and see the gold lettering, and you can flip through the pages and see how everything came together in such a gorgeous way? Nothing compares.

So, apologies to my friends who never see me. At least I have something gorgeous to show for it.

Helen Kiaya asked, Do you prefer shiny things or awesome things?

Please see above Magic Drafting Ring and Super Awesome And Also Shiny Book Cover. Shiny and Awesome are not mutually exclusive and are always better when combined.

Ariel Lawhon asked, Decaf or fully loaded?

In spite of what my nine-day draft might indicate, I do not drink coffee. I don't even like the smell of it. And I'm not drinking so much Dr Pepper, either. Once again, MAGIC RING.

Lynne Schmidt asked, What is your most beneficial trick to writing a query letter?

Don't try to avoid all spoilers. What good is not spoiling an awesome plot point if an agent never ends up requesting pages? Don't give everything away, but don't work so hard to keep the mystery that an agent has no idea what your book is about (and therefore no desire to read it).

Molly Brewer asked, What did your wedding dress look like?

It was white with short sleeves, beading detail on the upper bodice, and a three-foot train with a beaded panel going all the way down my back. It was perfect!

And finally, Adam Heine asked, What question can I ask so Laptop will answer?

For the love of DOS, why would you try to drag me out of my peaceful retirement? Do you hate me? Did you not read how Kiersten typed out fifty-thousand words in nine RAM days on her new torture victim? Why would you remind her I exist? I'm sending you a virus right now just for waking me up.

Author Crushes

2011-06-21T20:05:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I read books.

Wait. Scratch that. All the time I read books. But sometimes I read books and they are so delightful or breathtaking or pure, simple genius (or pure, really incredibly complex genius) that I sit back and think, "Oh my gosh. I want that brain. I will keep it for my own and love it and take care of it and decorate it for all major holidays."

Fortunately for everyone I allow my author crushes to keep their brains. And sometimes I even remember to tell you about which author's brains I want so you can discover them, too. (Though I still maintain that M.T. Anderson's brain would look stunning on my mantel, all decorated with Christmas twinkle lights. Just sayin'.)

First up: A Picture Perfect Book Pair

I first discovered Mac Barnett at SCBWI's annual summer conference. Then I found out he frequently works with Adam Rex (and together they made the single greatest series of book trailers ever, EVER, bar none, for Rex's YA debut FAT VAMPIRE). I've read Barnett's hilarious and charming Brixton Brother's series, but today the kids and I discovered what else Rex and Barnett can do together. Do you know what it was?

Guess again! No, wait. I mean, GUESS AGAIN! You probably guessed right the first time, since the title is right there. Unless you aren't very bright. But you're reading my blog, so clearly you are exceptional.

I don't want to say too much about this book and give away the surprise. But let's just say it was hilarious to read with my kids after giving them a rhyming-guessing-game book education for years with IS YOUR MAMA A LLAMA? and EACH PEACH PEAR PLUMB. When we turned the first page they were confused. Annoyed, even. But they quickly caught on and it's their new favorite book.

In fact, today I said, "Oh, that's funny," about something, to which my seven-year-old replied, "Yeah! Like GUESS AGAIN is funny!" (Adam Rex is very pleased that Guess Again! is now a unit of measurement for degrees of funny.)

And, in a joke you'll get once you've read it, "It's GRANDPA NED!" is my kids' new favorite catchphrase. (Replacing past favorite catchphrases of "That's kooky!" and "MUSTACHE!" which, incidentally, I think Mac Barnett would approve of as well.)

Seriously, this book is so simple in its hilarious genius I can't believe no one came up with it before. But I'm glad they didn't, because it wouldn't have that special Rex/Barnett flair.

(Their brains would get finger puppets and tinsel. And fake mustaches on special occasions. On April Fool's Day they would also show up in unexpected places, like lunch bags and under pillows.)

Second Up: Writers Everywhere, Beware

I will tell you right now: Do not, do not, DO NOT read Laini Taylor if you are drafting or editing your own writing. Unless you enjoy being plunged into the depths of despair and self-loathing, and look forward to viewing your own writing as artless, soulless, trite drivel. Which, I dunno, maybe that's your thing.

I have no funny words to put here. I am too busy remembering Karou and Akiva and wanting to read the book again.

I don't want to say too much about her upcoming book THE DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE because it's still a ways away and I will talk about it again, but if it isn't on your to-be-read-immediately-without-delay-the-day-it-comes-out-because-seriously-you-do-not-need-to-eat-or-take-care-of-your-family-or-do-anything-but-get-it-trust-me list, it needs to be. You know how a lot of blurbs about books will throw around terms like lush, sweeping, epic, romantic, masterpiece, thrilling, awe-inspiring, incredible, and you read it and think, eh, sure. Sure it's all those things. Mmm hmm.

ALL OF THOSE WORDS AND MORE APPLY. Laini Taylor is an artist, and she has an artist's attention to creation. I read her writing and I want to soak in it, to fill a bath with her words and sink down to my eyeballs and just let them envelope me. (Fully clothed, of course, because we use PG imagery on this blog, folks.) (I always bathe fully clothed.) (Don't you?)

People might describe this as an "angels and demons" book. Do not let them. Read it for yourself and understand why I say you cannot describe this book. Unless you are Laini Taylor, who can describe anything. Better than you can ever even dream of doing. And she's the sweetest person alive, to make it even worse.

(Her brain would get pink twinkle lights year round, and fresh flowers, and masquerade masks. And the occasional false mustache, too, because everyone deserves that.) (MUSTACHE! GRANDPA NED!) (Ahem.)

That's all the brain envy I have time for at the moment, since I still have a contest to judge (oh my gosh I suck I know I'm sorry). But I am pleased to report that my Amazon page now recommends fake self-adhesive mustaches. Now all I need are some mantel display brains to put them on!

So, Yeah

2011-06-20T10:50:00.000-07:00

Remember that time I wrote a book in nine days?

HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA.

Ahem. Sorry. But seriously.

HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA.

It's about sisters, and impossible choices, and guilt, and kisses like lies, and eyes and hands, and manipulation, and love.

It's a different framework than I've ever used before, alternating first person POVs between two sisters, and alternating between the present and the past that got them there. It's darker and bleaker than any of my other writing, and it's shorter, too. It doesn't have magic or creatures but it does have a girl who can see nothing but the future and a girl who has to always make the right wrong choices to protect them both.

I love it so, so much.

And I am so freaking tired.

Random Drawing Winners of SUPERNATURALLY!

2011-06-17T12:50:00.000-07:00

...are Julia Darcy and Jordanne!

Congratulations! Please email me your addresses and signing preferences. (For example, I have signed a book to My Snuggle Bear before. But that was an exception for Natalie Whipple, who is pretty much the opposite of My Snuggle Bear, as we have a firm agreement that we never, ever have to hug when we get to see each other, much as we have a mutual adoration society. So. What was I saying? I can't even remember.)

As for the Grand Prize Winner (not sure what it will be other than Supernaturally, but I'll throw a little extra something in there), I...have not had time to read all of the entries yet. I am enjoying them SO MUCH (you guys are hilarious and crazy) but there are a lot of them, and between the end of the school year and writing 33k words in five days, you know how it goes. Kinda busy.

But I will read them! And a winner will be chosen! Soon.

In the meantime, please join me with weeping, wailing, gnashing of teeth, beating of chests, and tearing of hair.

Preschool is over. Forever.

Contest Winners SOON

2011-06-16T11:16:00.000-07:00

Promise. Probably tomorrow. Life is doing that thing it does, where it demands things of me when it knows full well I have other things on my brain.

I have written 100 pages of a new project. That I started on Saturday. This was a couple of weeks after I figured I might not write another novel for the rest of the year, and I was okay with that.

Husband: "Wait, this is new?"
Me: "Yes."
Husband: "So now you're working on three things. At the same time. Editing two books and writing one?"
Me: "Yes."
Husband: "What about Isadora?"
Me: "Still a go! Just waiting to hear back on a critique. But I'm having fun with this one!"
Husband: "You didn't have fun with Isadora and Evie?"
Me: "That was different fun. I was tired of writing. There was pressure. So...I'm writing. And now I'm not tired of it."
Husband: *many thoughts I am not privy to* "Okay."

But seriously, guys. I AM HAVING FUN. You know when the writing is like that? When it's just a rush of story and voices and it's hard and it's amazing and it's fun?

Yeah. I'm going to keep chasing that.

There's Only So Much

2011-06-13T11:29:00.000-07:00

*Don't forget about the contest to win one of three Supernaturally ARCs!*

I'm not saying yes to any guest posts. I haven't answered email in months. And I'm not doing any interviews at all other than the ones set up for me by third parties.

Honestly? I'm tired. I'm editing two books and planning/doing promo for a third, I'm trying to figure out how to work and still give my kids an awesome summer vacation, I'm trying to be a wife and a friend and a person. Sometimes it's hard to be a person, you know?

You might say, "Look at all the time you spend on your blog! Or on twitter! Surely in the time it takes you to write a series of silly tweets you could have answered ten emails, or responded to an interview!"

Well, maybe. But here's my reasoning:
1. I enjoy twitter and blogging. When I post things on twitter or on my blog, anyone can see them. When I answer an email, one person can see it. Twitter and blogging are easy ways to interact with thousands of fans/readers. Email is a time-consuming way to connect with a single reader. Do I hate email? Absolutely not! I love it. I read every single email I get and I appreciate the people who take the time to write. But I will admit that it gets a little bit overwhelming, and I haven't had the energy to answer them in a while. Sometimes it's too much, knowing how many people out there feel like they're connected to me through my writing and want to extend that connection on a more personal level. I understand and appreciate it! But there are just. so. many. That's all there is to it. I will eventually answer, but...emphasis on eventually.
2. Interviews. Oh, interviews. When I was getting ready for Paranormalcy's release, I had a policy of saying yes to every interview request. Didn't matter if the blog had two or two hundred or two thousand readers. I said yes. And by the end I wanted to bash my brains out with my MacBook.

Me:

"Wow, these interviews use up a lot more creative energy than I thought they would. And they take a lot more time than I thought they would, too, even when they are limited on question number."

Me:

"Wow. Most of these interviews ask the same questions (because it's natural and people are curious about the same types of things). But if I answer them all exactly the same way, that will be boring and no one will want to read them. So I have to come up with new ways to answer everything each time."

Me:

"IF I HAVE TO ANSWER HOW I CAME UP WITH THE IDEA FOR PARANORMALCY ONE MORE TIME I SWEAR I WILL TASE MYSELF."

Me:

"OH MY GOSH THIS INTERVIEW MIGHT BE THE ONLY CHANCE I HAVE TO CONVINCE THAT ONE READER WHO WON'T KNOW ABOUT MY BOOK OTHERWISE THAT I AM FUNNY AND CHARMING AND A GOOD WRITER AND THEY SHOULD READ MY BOOK BUT OH MY GOSH I AM SO TIRED AND THE FUNNY IT IS BROKEN AND I AM GOING TO BLOW IT AND THIS INTERVIEW WILL JUST CONVINCE THEM THEY ARE RIGHT TO PASS UP MY BOOK AND READ NEIL GAIMAN AGAIN INSTEAD AND REALLY HOW CAN I ARGUE WITH THAT??"

Me:

"HA HA HA I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I JUST WROTE IN THAT INTERVIEW BECAUSE IT WAS THE FIFTEENTH ONE IN A ROW I ANSWERED TRA LA LA I WILL NEVER DO ANYTHING BUT ANSWER INTERVIEW QUESTIONS FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE."

Me:

*cries quietly in the corner*

So yeah, it wasn't my brightest idea. Trying to be clever in interviews sucked up an enormous amount of time and left me creatively drained. I didn't write a single new book in 2010. I edited a couple, but I drained myself dry doing everything else.

I won't do that again.

So this time around I am doing a blog tour with only a handful of interviews, organized for me by an incredibly lovely and gracious blogger. I didn't pick who gets the interviews. I'm not playing favorites. I just can't figure out any other way to do this whole author thing and still get to be a person. My priorities are on my family, and enjoying the writing again, and being happy, and trying to add author to all of the other things in the best way I can. So that means using my established platforms that I enjoy to be silly and connect with you all in a small way, and it also means saying no.

A lot.

I don't like saying no, but it's become a very important part of my vocabulary. (Even more important than "fustigate." Maybe even more than "chocolate." Definitely not more than "sleep," though.) Because I've realized that I give you my books and my stories, but I get to choose how much of myself to give, and in what ways, and that's okay. It's different for every author. And what works for me this year or even this month might change during the next.

I'm not apologizing. I need to take care of myself. But I am also not brushing off my readers. I am so incredibly grateful every single day that people care, and that they care as much as they do. It's amazing. I appreciate all of you more than you understand. I'll continue writing books and blogging and tweeting. But for now I've discovered that a gracious, humble, I'm-so-grateful-for-awesome-fans-but-I-just-can't-do-more-right-now "no" is my writing's best friend.

Probably my sanity's best friend, too.

Also the corner is grateful that I'm not curled up in it crying, because seriously. It was getting old.

Comic-Con! Newspapers! More Exclamation Marks!

2011-06-09T10:21:00.000-07:00

So, I've been sitting on this news for a while, but I'll be at Comic-Con International this year! Comic-Con is pretty much geek nirvana, and San Diego has been its home for years. Fortunately San Diego is also MY home, so when lovely Lauren contacted me and asked me to be on a panel I said yes.

Actually I probably said HECK YES ARE YOU KIDDING ME, but that's rather less elegant.

Even better, I'm on the panel with one of my very best friends in the whole world, Stephanie Perkins, several authors I adore: Laini Taylor (winner of my 2011 ohmygoshwhycan'tIwritelikeHER award), Andrea Cremer, and Tahereh Mafi, and with one author I get to meet and fully anticipate adoring, Amanda Hocking. And, as if all that wasn't cool enough, our Fearless Moderator is none other than Nathan Bransford, former agent, middle grade author, and blogger extraordinaire.

So.

It's cool, guys.

LIKE SERIOUSLY COOL.

Even better, I just got an email that I've been put on another panel! That one's not set yet so I'll blabber about it more when I know what's going on with it and who is officially on it. (It's about Diversity in YA, which first I thought, hmmm, hopefully I don't feel like a fraud because I'm shockingly white, guys. I know. You'd never guess. [Though there are a lot of issues with diversity that I'm interested in and think a lot about, and certainly race isn't the only form of diversity, it's just usually the first one we think of {which is interesting to think about in and of itself}, so I was excited.] But then I found out it should be subtitled Diversity in YA: We Do More than Sparkly Vampires. Which isn't the actual title, but pretty much the idea. Which I also love.)

To sum up: Comic-Con! July 21-24! Two panels! I don't have times or dates yet because they aren't set in stone, but I will let you know when I do.

(Also awesome was that a few months ago Steph and I were bemoaning the fact that we didn't have any times this year we were going to be together. Steph said, "Something will come up. I know it will." AND THEN IT TOTALLY DID. Thanks, Universe! Or, well, Thanks, Comic-Con!)

In other news, (quite literally in other news, actually) Newsday ran a feature on summer reading recommendations that included this:

I KNOW! THE KANE CHRONICLES!! Wait. No. The next one. I'm a fan of this write-up.

Anyhow. Hope you are having a lovely Thursday. And don't forget to enter the contest to win one of three Supernaturally ARCs!

OH MY GOSH LOOK A SUPERNATURALLY CONTEST

2011-06-07T23:10:00.000-07:00

(Subtlety is not one of my strong points.)

So, in honor of this being the last month before Supernaturally's release month, I'd better give away one of my advance copies. Hmmm. You know what? I'd better give away THREE of them.

It's pretty simple. You look at THIS gorgeous thing:

And write a fake synopsis for it. Example:

Flora has always resented working in her creepy, fan-obsessed aunt's flower shop. But when she starts making prom corsages, she discovers she has a supernatural gift for creating just the right arrangement to encourage--or destroy--true love. When Nolan, her best friend and the boy of her dreams, asks her archenemy Fawn to the dance, will she use her powers for good or evil? And will her aunt ever turn off the massive fan that constantly blows her hair in a dramatic way? This July 26th: Pick your flowers, pick your fate...with SUPERNATURALLY.

Rules!

Obviously it doesn't have to have anything to do with the actual book or series, though you are welcome to write a fake synopsis of what you think the book will really be like!
Enter by leaving your synopsis in the comments section of this post (on my actual blog--I never check comments on goodreads, sorry). Only one entry per person will be counted.
Please keep it to 150 words or fewer. I read everything, and this will save us both time and be a good object lesson in packing a punch with the fewest words possible!
Open internationally.
You may absolutely and are highly encouraged to post/tweet/facebook about this contest, and (after leaving it in the comments section) to post your entry + the cover elsewhere, too. (Please make sure to note that what you are writing is not what the book is actually about, lest we confuse the easily confused denizens of internetlandia and leave them bitterly disappointed when they discover that Supernaturally is not, in fact, about an amputee with a love of couture dresses.)
Deadline is Wednesday, June 15th, 11:59 PM Pacific Time, aka whenever my clock says it's 11:59.

WINNERS: One (ONE) winner will be chosen by me for being the funniest/cleverest/whatever-else-est I decide. Two (TWO) other winners will be drawn at random, meaning everyone has a shot at winning! (If you really, really don't want to, you don't even have to write a synopsis. You can just write, "Enter me for the random drawing, please!" And I will. Though I might cry a little because you were supposed to entertain me and you didn't.)

Most importantly, have fun! I can't wait to see what my book is about!

In Which My Hands Are Out of Control

2011-06-07T10:22:00.000-07:00

In case you never get a chance to see me speak in person, I thought I'd give you a little glimpse into what it looks like. Basically, my hands are OUT OF CONTROL. People always comment on how I talk really fast, or say things like, "Sorry guys, sparkle tangent..." But what they don't tell you (because it is so scary they have blocked it from their memories) is that my hands turn into creatures with minds of their own and creep and shimmy and flail while I talk.

Sometimes the gestures make sense. For example, in the following picture I am probably saying, "I know, you guys thought I would be this big, didn't you? Not quite!"

Actually I was talking about my first literary crush, Martin the Warrior. Who happened to be a mouse. Don't judge, he was totally hot.

In this next picture I am pretty sure my hands had completely taken over and I was actually asleep while my hands made threatening, scary gestures at the audience. These I can only interpret as, "YES, WE WILL LEAD THE ZOMBIE REVOLUTION. JOIN US OR DIE. ACTUALLY JOIN US AND DIE."

I have no idea what on earth I was really talking about that could have justified this hand gesture. And my dad said of the forty pictures he took, my eyes were closed in thirty-eight of them. It's a talent of mine, really.

Fortunately I'm short enough that many of my hand spasms are hidden behind the podium, but those wily little rascals always try to find new ways to pop up. In fact, while I wasn't looking (because I was too busy answering a question about whether or not Lend would be in the sequel [answer: no, because I didn't want any flirting or kissing and Supernaturally focuses entirely on Evie doing homework and studying for the SATs]) my hands actually snapped my favorite pen in half. "THAT'S WHAT YOU GET WHEN YOU TRY TO CONTAIN US, KIERSTEN," they said. Well, I mean, more or less, since they don't actually have mouths.

"Yet. You mean we don't have mouths...yet."

Still, you work with what you've got, right? Which is why if you ever do get to see me in person, I'll have my nails painted a funky color. If my hands are going to take over, they might as well take over in style.

(And for the record, many wonderful people showed up both for my speech and my signing. It was awesome, and I was super happy to meet them. Not as happy as my hands, but then again, those things are caffeinated even when I'm not.)

(Speaking of hands, thanks for letting me put a ring on yours nine years ago, Hot Stuff. So glad yours are the hands my weirdo hands get to hold for the rest of our lives.)

Sometimes It's Scary + The Utah Festival of Books

2011-06-03T09:37:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow I'll be at The Utah Festival of Books. I'm super excited. Also, I'm a little bit scared.

See, these kind of events can be slightly terrifying for authors. Because you never know. I'm speaking on the main stage from 12:30 to 1 PM. What if no one comes? What if I'm standing up there at the mic ready to entertain, to talk about writing and reading and mythology, to answer questions, and to give a sneak peek at a passage from Supernaturally, and no one is in the audience? Or, worse, the only people there are saving seats for whoever is speaking after me, so they're reading or texting or yawning or lying flat on four chairs trying to catch a nap.

(In which case I am NOT mature and I WILL shout into the microphone to scare you so you fall off onto the ground. And then I will pretend to be sorry but I won't be, not really, because you should have gone to the library where they have soft chairs in which I took many a peaceful nap during my days at BYU.)

Public speaking itself doesn't make me nervous. I enjoy it, weirdly enough. But every author (I promise--EVERY AUTHOR) has had events where no one cared enough to show up. You laugh it off, you suck it up, and you move on. It's not a big deal.

Afterward.

But during? Yeah, it's a little embarrassing. So here's hoping that if you are in Utah you can come to the Utah Festival of Books at BYU tomorrow from 10-6. Here's hoping that you get to meet some of your favorite authors and discover some new favorites. Here's hoping that you also get to listen to fun music, and see huge reptiles, and eat good food, and enjoy what is essentially a HUGE FREE PARTY with thousands of other people who love reading, just like you! Here's hoping that my speech/Q&A session at 12:30 has at least a few people. Here's hoping that the Women in Writing panel at 3 PM I'm part of has even more. And here's really hoping that I don't just sit, alone alone alone, at my signing table from 1-3 PM.

Because I am not above giving you the sad puppy dog face.

But regardless, I know I'll have an amazing time. Because here's the other thing: Whether you meet 200 fans or 2, it's always incredible and humbling and frankly indescribable to be able to interact with people who read your book and loved it. It is the absolute best part of my job. And spending the day brushing shoulders with other people who know how freaking awesome books are? Also rocks.

And I probably have to bring a Nerf gun and launch a foam dart sniper attack against James Dashner. Sure, he might be the nicest guy in YA, but dude's got it coming. Just sayin'.

The Things We Forget

2011-06-02T16:35:00.000-07:00

For example, this:

Completely forgot ever making it. I can't imagine why...