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I realized after my last post that I included plenty of beach photos from my weekend, but none from the bookstore event!

Sadly, that’s because I didn’t take any. I only had my camera phone – which doesn’t take great photos indoors – but I was also caught up in the whirl of events!

But my fellow debut author Sarah Quigley did, and was kind enough to share them with me.



Left to right: Sarah Quigley (author of TMI), C. Lee McKenzie (author of SLIDING ON THE EDGE), me, and Cheryl Renee Herbsman (author of BREATHING).

I had such a great time at Not Your Mother’s Book Club, and again, THANKS to everyone who came out for the event!

seaheidi gave me an Advance Reader Copy of SEA, her beautiful YA novel, which is scheduled for release in June 2010. I feel like I've been waiting forever to read this book, and I gobbled it up in two sittings. Ohh ... so good. Full of love and loss and hope and heat and heart. Most of the story takes place in post-tsunami Indonesia, and Heidi creates such a vivid setting that it leaps off the page. When Sienna (the main character) meets Deni (a 17-year-old tsunami survivor) ... well. That scene is unforgettable. I'll post a more thorough review when it's closer to release date. But put this one on your to-be-read list!

Here’s a roundup of recent interviews:

Sarah Ockler invites Blake to have a party – what food and entertainment will he have? Check it out.

Kristin Walker wants to know what one piece of writing advice I would give myself, if I could go back in time.

Jenny Moss asks me to reveal my favorite book character.

I confessed to Deva Fagan my least favorite fairy tale.

Jennifer Jabaley asks several probing questions, including one about my writing routine.

Saundra Mitchell invites me to answer 9 important questions, like “Legs or pudding?”

San Francisco traffic: shudder.

I did arrive early and only a little harried. I saw my dear literaticat first – she was busy getting the most critical part of the evening in order: the cookies and mini-cupcakes! Alas, I never did partake of their desserty goodness – once things got underway, I was too busy.

We had a little time before the event started, so I said hi to Sara Zarr, met Allen Zadoff and Barry Lyga … then met some of the other MG/YA authors in the crowd who had come out to support us: Sarah Quigley, Cheryl Renee Herbsman, C. Lee McKenzie, Heidi Kling, Courtney Sheinmel, and Daisy Whitney! Three Debs, two Tenners, and lovely Courtney, in a class by herself. (I've met Cheryl and Lee before, but it was so good to see them again.) Thanks so much for coming out, you guys!

I also got to meet some new agent-sisters: Ilene Wong and Whitney Miller. Stay tuned … I’ll bet it’s not long before we’re hearing that their books have sold.

And of course the evening would have been tragically lacking without the amazing Martha Flynn in attendance! She needs to come visit me in Portland. I also met Debbie Duncan, aspiring novelist and busy reviewer.

I met lots of other people, including some young book bloggers … forgive me for not listing everyone. I’m supposed to check out of my hotel room in ten minutes (literally!) so I’m rushing.

Andrew Smith was the fifth YA author on our panel, but I didn’t actually meet him until the event was over. His book is called IN THE PATH OF FALLING OBJECTS, and sounds sooo chilling. Can’t wait to read it.

Barry spoke first, and read an excerpt from GOTH GIRL RISING (about boobs). Then Sara talked about the inspiration behind ONCE WAS LOST, and read an excerpt. Then Andrew got up to talk, and I said to Allen, “Let’s do boy-girl-boy-girl. I’ll go next.”

When it was my turn, I talked a little bit about FLASH BURNOUT, read an excerpt, and talked briefly about next year’s book – THE MERMAID’S MIRROR. On Twitter, Heidi had mentioned that she hoped I would read a teaser from the mermaid book … so I did! (The prologue, nice and short.)

Then it was Allen’s turn, and he read an excerpt from his debut YA novel – FOOD, GIRLS, AND OTHER THINGS I CAN’T HAVE. Within minutes we were all laughing so hard we were crying. I can’t wait to read the whole book! And selfishly … I’m really glad I didn’t have to follow him. Can you imagine?

We answered some questions, signed some books, and then the Third Annual Fall Book Bash at Not Your Mother’s Book Club was over! Sob.

I got to spend time chatting with Heidi about writing and parenthood and contemporary realistic fiction versus fantasy, and all kinds of deep topics. She’s awesome – and she gave me an ARC of her upcoming YA: SEA. Squee!!

I got back to my hotel around midnight, but I don’t think I fell asleep until around two. I was just so buzzed from the event. Thanks so much, Jenn, for making it happen. <3

I woke up this morning, poured some coffee down my throat, and went for a walk on the beach.

Even though Half Moon Bay is only 30 miles from the crowded metropolis of San Francisco, the beach was empty, except for one fisherman and two surfers in the distance. I love being on a deserted beach. It was more than an hour before any other people appeared.

(Again, camera-phone quality photos.)




The surf was high this morning, and loud.

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The wonderful secret about the northern California coast is that sometimes the best weather is in the fall.

Please excuse the quality of the camera-phone photos … but I think they capture the gorgeousness of this day.



Pillar Point Harbor

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This is how I feel today:




And this way:


(Flowers from friends)

My book signing yesterday at Powell's was absolutely wonderful. SO MANY people showed up for me! They kept having to set up more chairs. (Don't be too impressed ... I think 95% of them already knew me.)

I gave my little speech and it went pretty well, although I got distracted when I was throwing chocolate at people, and skipped part of it. But no one noticed, so it was okay. My FAVORITE part was when our 16-year-old friend Nathan did the reading - I could NOT STOP SMILING the whole time he was reading. I got to hear Blake's voice in an actual teen boy's voice!! He did an awesome job.

My friend Suzanne Young wrote up such a perfect post about the day that I really don't think I can improve on it. Stop by her blog to read more - there are pictures! (Ours came out weird and grainy.)

I couldn't fall asleep last night because I was just lying there in the dark, smiling, remembering the day.

Thank you to everyone who showed up!

P.S. OH!!! Please go to Jama's blog and enjoy her photo-inspired post! Jama, I <3 you!

Author Milestone - First Time Seeing Book in Bookstore



(At Powells in Beaverton - New Releases Shelf)

Author Milestone: First Speech!

Okay, it was only five minutes long, but I don't usually ... or, well, ever do public speaking in my normal life, so I was a little nervous.

But the audience was BOOKSELLERS, so of course they were kind and wonderful. They laughed in all the right places, and said SUCH NICE THINGS when I got to talk to them. I am very thankful to Pacific Northwest Booksellers, for making me feel like I did a good job!

I was part of a "Celebration of Authors" at the PNBA fall trade show. Nine other authors and I - invited because our books are considered ripe for "hand-selling" - gave short speeches while the attendees ate lunch, then we signed copies of our books or ARCs. My publisher sent hardcovers early for the event!!

Here are the fabulous booksellers - they were kind enough to let me take their photo to commemorate my First Official Author Event:





It was wonderful to meet the other authors, too. Only one was a YA author - Mary Jane Beaufrand, whose book, THE RIVER comes out in February 2010. It sounds really good! We were signing at the same time, so neither one of us got a copy of the other's book (we both ran out).

Now that I've survived my first Author Speech, I hope the rest will be easier.

:-)

Before we go any further, please allow me give a shout-out to my agent-mate fabulousfrock! I’ve followed Jackie’s journey to publication on LiveJournal, and I could not be happier that her book will finally come to stay on my shelf as a hardcover in December. I’m impatient, however, and I want to read her ARC now, so I’m spreading the MAGIC UNDER GLASS love:




Coming 12/22/09 from Bloomsbury...

Nimira is a music-hall girl used to dancing for pennies. So when wealthy sorcerer Hollin Parry hires her to sing accompaniment to a mysterious piano-playing automaton, Nimira believes it will be the start of a better life. In Parry's world, long-buried secrets are about to stir. Unsettling rumors begin to swirl about ghosts, a madwoman roaming the halls, and Parry’s involvement in a group of corrupt sorcerers for whom the rules of the living and dead are meant to be broken for greater power. When Nimira discovers the spirit of a dashing fairy gentleman is trapped within the automaton, she is determined to break the curse. But even as the two fall into a love that seems hopeless, breaking the curse becomes a perilous race against time. Because it's not just the future of these star-crossed lovers that's at stake, but the fate of the entire magical world.

Want to win an ARC with original sketches from the author inside? See http://fabulousfrock.livejournal.com for details!


Where are you going?

My editorial letter for THE MERMAID’S MIRROR* arrived today, so I’m going to be offline, mostly**, until I’ve wrestled the many flailing limbs of that story into a book that beckons the reader ever deeper …


Where have you been?

-- I’ve been working on another contemporary realistic YA boy book. I’m in love with it, because the main character of this story meets Blake (the main character of FLASH BURNOUT), and the two become friends. So not only do I get the fun of writing in a new voice … but I also get the fun of hanging out with Blake again. Of course, this book is not under contract, so it may end up living in a drawer as my own personal entertainment … but you never know.

For now, however, I’ve closed that document so I can plunge back into the watery world of mermaids.

-- I’ve been reading:

SHIVER, by m_stiefvater. Loved.
ASH, by Malinda Lo. (Started and knew immediately I was going to love it, but I had to pause, because the mail brought me the ARC of …)
STRUTS AND FRETS, by Jon Skovron (and I don’t want to hold it up from the next recipient on the list of Debs who want to read it! Another great boy book, I can tell already.)


-- I’ve been enjoying the summer, full of melons and berries and peaches.

Here are a few August photos from the back yard:



Morning glories.




The flowerbed below my kitchen window, bursting with roses and hollyhocks. I blogged about those bright pink Electron roses when I first planted them, in the middle of a hot July. Back then they were little more than roots and a few sticks … so it makes me happy to see them flourishing.

So that's my story.

I'll see you in a few weeks, friends!



* Not sure this will be the final title.

**It’s so, so hard to stay offline, isn’t it? I probably won’t be reading blogs, but I’ll flit in to Twitter at least once a day.

Hi all!

My critique partner, Melissa Higgins, posted an interview with me on her blog about agents - how to hunt one down in the wild, tranquilize it, and carry it home strapped to the roof of your car. A future post will discuss how to crate train them and use food as rewards.





Okay, not really. It's more about my own agent search. If you're interested in that kind of info, you can find it here.

The brilliant Ursula K. LeGuin (a Portland author – yay!) posted a response to an article about three rules of writing which are made to be broken (an article she read “cheering and arguing all the way”), originally written by John Rechy. (Thanks to Laura Manivong, who tweeted about the post).

The three rules are (everyone say them with me – if you’re a writer, you already know them):

1) Show, don’t tell.

2) Write about what you know.

3) Always have a sympathetic character for the reader to relate to.

I agree with LeGuin that those rules are best interpreted more as guidelines (to paraphrase Captain Barbossa), but I respectfully disagree with her assertion below:

Thanks to "show don’t tell," I find writers in my workshops who think exposition is wicked. They’re afraid to describe the world they’ve invented. (I make them read the first chapter of The Return of the Native, a description of a landscape, in which absolutely nothing happens until in the last paragraph a man is seen, from far away, walking along a road. If that won’t cure them nothing will.

I have to say that, as an adult reader in 2009, a first chapter in which nothing happens until the last paragraph would cause me to gently set the book down and never pick it up again. Further to my earlier thoughts about JELLICOE ROAD, I would rather be confused than bored.

Secondly, I don’t find Return of the Native to be a relevant example in a discussion of contemporary fiction. (Sorry, Mr. Hardy! I read and loved most of your books, but only because I was an English major with a special interest in Victorian lit.)

Maybe a first chapter composed entirely of a description of setting could still work for a reader in 2009 … but only if that reader is an adult.

I write for teens, whose lives in the 21st century operate at warp speed compared to just a decade ago. They communicate in short bursts of information (text messages, status updates, tweets). This is NOT to say that they don’t have the attention span for novels – which would be a nutty thing to suggest – but I believe they have less patience with long-winded passages about setting and back story. I've seen actual teens remark online that they skip passages like that to get to the dialogue.

There are a few rare authors who can get away with telling instead of showing – I think Sarah Dessen is the best example of a contemporary YA author who is successful at it. For those of us who are part of the critique group culture, we have been constantly warned away from telling … now we’re actually afraid of it. So it’s refreshing to see the device employed judiciously and effectively.

I confess that the book I’m working on now contains a short chapter (Chapter Two, in fact) in which the main character comes right out and tells the reader his history. I’ve fretted over that chapter since the day I wrote it, but no matter how many times I reread it and consider deleting it, or taking that back story and feeding it slowly in during the narrative … it just seems quicker and cleaner to leave it the way it is. My main character’s life is unusual, and I wanted the reader to understand that up front, so I could go on with the action. We’ll see what happens when my crit group gets a hold of the book. :-)

I'd love to hear what you think on this subject. Am I high? Are there books out there full of telling that WORK for you? If you're an adult, do you think those books work for teens?

It’s me again.

(It seems like every time I think I'll be absent from LJ, I start posting even more. ?!)

I’m still working on playlists, and I have a new question:

Which songs blew you away the first time you heard them?

There are lots of songs I love … but that I didn’t love immediately.

But some songs win me over instantly, for various reasons – passion, novelty, humor, some indefinable something.

Here are a few examples:

“Why”, by Annie Lennox. I first heard this song when she sang it live on “Saturday Night Live,” and that kind of raw, angry emotion, coming from a woman was still a little shocking.

“Creep,” by Radiohead. Oh the self-loathing! Oh the falsetto wailing! Oh Thom Yorke!

“Bring Me to Life,” by Evanescence. When I first heard this on the radio, I actually called the station to ask who the artist was.

“Breathe,” by Sia. Slurry singing backed by inexorable beats – just something seductive about it.

“Hot in Herre,” by Nelly. So funny! Plus, bonus: you can dance to it. I just love, “Girl, I think my butt gettin’ big!”

Okay, I could do this for hours, but I’ve got to get back to work.

Do me a solid and share songs that rocked your world from the very first.

Love,

iLisa

My ARCs are here!

The middle of any book is hard, right?

Or is it just me?

When I'm neck-deep in the featureless desert of a first draft, the desire to abandon it and start working on a new project seems way more fun.

I think a playlist would help!

Please give me suggestions for songs that evoke:

being the new kid

trying to fit in

a crush

uh ...

any songs you're especially liking!

I'm so excited!

I've been looking forward to this day for so long.

My interview is up at Fumbling with Fiction!

Oh.

And, you know, I'm pretty excited about the Inauguration. :-)

I got my editor’s permission to share the cover for FLASH BURNOUT!


I really love it, and I wanted to write a long post about how much it means to me to finally see my characters come to life… but nothing I can say will accurately capture the feeling.


I just really love it.


( Really, really love it. )