ATTENTION YA FANS: BIG ANNOUNCEMENT FORTHCOMING!

I've got big news, guys.  Big.  Huge.  Enormous.  It's especially great news for all of my YA fans.  It's such great news, in fact, that I'm going to need your help spreading the word.

So...before I get into the nitty-gritty of what this news is, specifically, I need you to get on my mailing list.  Seriously.  You need to click here and sign up, so you'll be sure to get the 4-1-1 on this incredible, incredible turn of events.  So you'll be able to be part of this fantastic announcement.  And believe me, you do not want to miss out.  Click that link.  Sign up.

Big news is coming.

YA SAVES VLOG INTERVIEW

A new vlog interview's just gone live for this month's YA Saves!  Hosted by both Patricia's Particularity and The Busy Bibliophile, the series has featured authors and books that tackle the tough topic of mental health / mental illness.  My own interview recently went live; be sure to head on over to The Busy Bibliophile to enter to win a signed copy of A BLUE SO DARK!

ME THIS WEEK

One of my junior high friends was over at the house one day when ROMANCING THE STONE came on cable.  You remember how it starts, right?  With Kathleen Turner wrapping up her latest novel, bawling over her own lines as she types?  My friend started laughing; she elbowed me and said, "That's going to be you someday!"

Truer words have never been spoken.  This is what I've looked like this week, as I hammered out my latest book:

FOLLOW FRIDAY: MY PERFECT VACATION SPOT

I love this week's Follow Friday question!  At which vacation spot would I most like to catch up on all my reading?  The Lake of the Woods fishing resort, of course!  (After all, I invented the resort; it's the fictional location where Chelsea meets her love interest, Clint, in my second book, PLAYING HURT.  If I came up with it, it must be my dream vacation spot, right?)

If you're a new follower, be sure to leave a comment so I can check out your blog!

ON TUMBLR!

I wasn’t really sure what to make of Tumblr, at first…But after starting my own blog on Tumblr last week, I’ve quickly become obsessed with the site.  While I still absolutely love getting a chance to share longer posts here at my author blog, there's just something so incredibly challenging about keeping it short and sweet on sites like Tumblr (cutting out all the fat can be a real struggle for anyone who's a novelist at heart)!  There’s also something fascinating about how such quick, blurb-like posts have a way (over time) of painting a picture of the blogger.  One of my favorite features of Tumblr, though, is the way Q & A with another blogger can become a post in and of itself (as opposed to being a stream of comments at the end of a post):

How about you?  What’s the best—most fun or most useful—social networking site you’ve taken part in lately?

WHEN I'M NOT WRITING (YEP, THAT ACTUALLY HAPPENS)

Full-time writing is not a leisurely occupation.  It's in no way a job that allows a person to simply wait around for inspiration to float by, so they can casually scrawl a few lines on a page, toss it their agent's way and instantly start racking up royalties.  Writing is the toughest gig out there—and once you begin, you’d better be prepared to work more weekly hours than a cardiologist. 

           

That having been said, any workaholic still has to have some sort of downtime.  One of the things I’m doing now in my off-hours is helping my brother, John, who has taken the full-time plunge into working for himself, selling antiques, collectibles and other vintage goodies online as Wisdom Lane Antiques. 

It’s a joy to accompany him on buying trips (he’s been my own personal photog these past few years, attending all my author events to take pics or video, and it's nice to be able to help him out a bit).  In addition to offering my brother a second set of eyes while shopping, I also get a chance to change up my own writing scenery: I put my NEO in the car (like any good workaholic) and always manage to score a cool new writing spot—under big trees at farm auctions or in the front yards of estate sales. 

I've long had my own love of anything vintage—and have a fairly sprawling collection of antique costume jewelry to show for it.  For years, I've been deconstructing out-of-fashion necklaces, bracelets, etc. (nothing signed or valuable, don't worry), and rearranging the antique pieces in a more contemporary way.  I’ve been wearing my own reinvented necklaces and bracelets for years, and have a few for sale now, at my brother’s Etsy shop:

Click to view on John's Etsy Shop

Click to view on John's Etsy Shop

You can even now buy the necklace I’m wearing in my author photo here at the blog:

Click to view on John's Etsy Shop

Head on over and check them out.  You can also follow my brother on Twitter: @Wisdom_Lane.  Tell him I sent you!

WHEN I DON'T MAKE A DIME ON MY BOOKS

You might expect me to cringe at the idea of my books hitting a used bookstore.  When copies move from the shelves of second-hand stores, I won’t see a dime, after all.  You might even expect me to cringe a bit at the idea of my books being housed in a library, where a single copy can be checked out and read until the book falls apart completely.  Again, all those reads, and the only money I’ll see comes from the purchase of one copy.

 

But in all honesty, I love knowing that my books are being sold second-hand.  And librarians—sure, I appreciated librarians before my books released.  Now?  Librarians have a special place in my heart.  (Especially my own local librarian, Sarah of GreenBeanTeenQueen.) 

Here’s the deal: times are hard.  And I mean, hard.  (Newscasters can tell me all they want that the recession is over, or improving.  When I look out my window, at Southwest Missouri, I just don’t see much—if any—evidence of that.)  And novels aren’t exactly the cheapest things in the world—especially when you’re an absolute book junkie, and the written word is your drug of choice.  Think about it: buy one hardback ($20) book a week, and you’ve spent over a thousand dollars in a year.  And most readers I know consume far more than one book a week. 

Readers have to be choosy about what they actually purchase.  And a new or emerging author is usually not going to make the cut. 

Enter second-hand stores and libraries, which provide a cheap (or free) opportunity for readers to become acquainted with my work.  Enter booksellers and librarians, who have fallen in love with my books and recommended them to readers, who have in turn picked up copies and become fans as well.

I’ve actually heard from fans who discovered my books in their local libraries—and then wound up loving my work enough to blog about it.  Some who discovered my books in libraries later ordered copies of their own for their personal bookcases or to give to friends.  A few readers have used my books for English assignments, and have given my books to teachers, who then made their own recommendations.  I've even heard from bloggers who stumbled upon my books, then purchased copies so that they could host giveaways on their blogs.  Now, that is incredible.  All of that word-of-mouth activity, and to a great extent, it originates with someone picking my book up off the shelf of a library or a second-hand store. 

As writers, that's ultimately what we're out to establish—a readership who already knows us, who recommends us to friends and followers, wants to invest in us when our latest books release.  And that’s what second-hand stores and libraries provide—a way to establish our readership.

FRIENDS OF THE LIBRARY RECORD-BREAKER

I’m a regular at the bi-annual Friends of the Library Book Sale…I usually go more than once during the week-long event, as the books that fill an entire warehouse of tables are constantly changing (volunteers actually continue to unload eighteen wheelers of books as the week progresses).  I always make it a point, too, to visit bag day, which I think is safe to say is everyone’s favorite day of the sale.  For a buck (or five, if you’re in the better books section, which I usually am), you can grab up an entire paper grocery bag of reads.  

 

I can’t tell you how many authors I’ve discovered at these sales.  And I’m not the only one.  On bag day, the line starts forming at least an hour before the doors open.  And when shoppers are finally let inside?  It’s a bit like Black Friday, actually.

This year, I was in the throngs when the doors opened on bag day, and the children’s books had disappeared completely by the time I actually got inside.  As had the vast majority of the antique volumes.  I’m not exaggerating—just in the time it took me to walk inside, those sections were all but cleaned out.  And while this sale does present an opportunity to grab up some books that might have some value, most people really do honestly appear to be after new reads.  Most are stocking up on their entertainment of choice—a good thick book.

I wasn’t surprised to learn that this spring’s book sale had clobbered their previous record, bringing in more than $121,000. 

I can’t tell you how much I love knowing that so many people love their books as much as I do.  Reading is in no way dead—is in no way even in jeopardy, judging by this year’s FOL Book Sale.

Kudos, fellow Springfieldians—kudos!

HEATED CONVERSATIONS WITH WATER FOUNTAINS

Throughout May, we're celebrating mothers (and parental figures in general) at both of my group author blogs: YA Outside the Lines and Smack Dab in the Middle...So, in honor of all things Mother’s Day, I’ve decided to share the mother of all plans.  Yes, oh, yes, I had it all worked out.  I was twelve, and it was the summer before junior high, and this was it—this was going to be the moment in which I won Mom over, got her to see things from my (admittedly, completely blurry) point of view.

First, a bit of backstory:

I was nine years old when the worst, most tragic event of all time came crashing down upon my slender little third-grader shoulders.

I could no longer read the chalkboard.

It happened suddenly, actually—I came back from spring break to find that my desk had been moved by well-meaning floor-sweeping janitors from the front row to the back.  And the daily handwriting assignment, which our teacher put up on the board for us to copy each morning, was a complete and total blur.  I couldn’t see.  Period.

My first glasses were fairly strong (for 20/200 vision).  And—I hated them.  Talking hate here.  Hate.  The fact that it was 1986 didn’t help, either.  Remember glasses of the ‘80’s?  The enormity!  The hideousness!  Uuuugh!

And it officially began: the battle with my mom for contacts. 

I didn’t just want contacts.  I lusted after them, especially as my eyes grew progressively worse.  By the time I was headed for junior high, my prescription was creeping up toward a -5.00 (20/500 vision), and there was no way I could just take my glasses off at that point and navigate the majority of my days without them, haul them out of a backpack pocket to read the board once I got to class.  Not if I didn’t want to start having long, heated conversations with hallway water fountains, anyway.

So, the summer before seventh grade, I came up with my infinitely brilliant plan:  I would get the ugliest pair of 1980’s glasses I could find.  I mean, ugly.  Proof:

 

I just knew what would happen: when we picked up the glasses, and Mom saw how awful I looked, her eyes would widen in sheer horror.  She’d insist we exchange the glasses for contacts, immediately, if not sooner.

 

Yeah.  Didn’t work.  As my seventh grade picture up there reveals.

Sure, I did get my contacts—the summer before high school, actually.  And I wore them until I gleefully pitched the lenses and all the unending vials of cleaning solution in the trash shortly after my thirtieth birthday.  In the end, the things that are important to us as teens are never the things that are important to us as adults.  This Mother’s Day, as my own mom and I laugh at this—and other—horribly failed grand schemes, I’ll also be remembering that my teen characters should always have plans of their own that are obviously doomed, that provide a bit of comic relief, and that show them stumbling and learning and laughing all along their life’s journey.

THIS JUST SUMS IT ALL UP...

"My dog + coffee + my WIP  = Bliss."  Now, there's a math problem I can solve...

HE-WHOS AND INTERNAL GRATIFICATION

Shortly after inking my very first book deal, I began to meet them: the dreaded He-Whos (enter demonic, minor-sounding organ chords here).

Yes, the He-Whos. What, exactly, is a He-Who, you might ask? Not to be confused with a yahoo or a nincompoop (although, according to some sources, the definitions overlap somewhat), a He-Who is a very sneaky creature whose natural habitat is a would-be author’s personal life. In most cases, said He-Who has been in a struggling author’s life for quite some time—years, some of them—playing the role of Supportive Confidant. Upon the announcement of an author’s long-awaited book deal, the face of said Supportive Confidant melts into a giant fiery pile of slime, exposing the dreaded, nasty, much-feared He-Who underneath.

A He-Who takes many different forms. The He-Whos I’ve encountered fall into three basic categories:

1). He who shows some initial interest when you announce your book sale, but when you disclose that it’s a YA or MG, he raises his lip off his teeth, lets out an, “Ew,” and explains, “I only read high-quality, serious works of literature. I do not read children’s books.” This statement is expressed rather emphatically, while rolling the “r”s, puffing on an antique scrimshaw pipe, and gesturing wildly to flash the professorly suede elbow patches on his coat. (This He-Who also has the same reaction to any other subcategory of genre fiction: romance, sci-fi, mystery, etc.)

2). He who does not have any interest in your book, but—OMG! He just happens to have a manuscript himself! And it’s awesome! And you should read it—and while you’re at it, rewrite it! And then give it to your publisher! Wouldn’t that rock???

3). He who is just so busy, he does not have the time to read your book—even though the book was released three years ago, and this particular He-Who has also watched every single episode of MY BIG REDNECK WEDDING, sends you emails with links to “hilarious” YouTube vids three times a day, and has repeatedly called to inform you that he has discovered the best way to mow a lawn: with manicure scissors.

Okay, all right, so I’m being a bit flip in my descriptions…But honestly, these people really do exist. These reactions—or some version of them, anyway—really do happen. I can’t say I understand it, two years after my first book hit the shelves, two years after the He-Whos started showing their faces. I might even think I was alone in the whole He-Who thing, had I not run into articles online and in print in which authors described similar experiences. Knowing this is an unfortunate part of the gig, I slowly began to develop a methodology for dealing:

Treat He-Whos the same way you treated early rejections. Okay, so a personal rejection stings worse than a professional one. But the point is, you didn’t let one professional “no”—or, if you’re like me, more than a thousand professional “no”s—derail you. You screamed at times, you shed a few tears, but then you put it away and you went back to work. You didn’t dwell on one response. You also didn’t let it convince you that your pursuits weren’t worthwhile. You didn’t let it convince you that everyone would have the same reaction to your work. You didn’t stop trying, and you didn’t stop sharing. And, most importantly, you didn’t let a few—or hundreds—of rejections dim your own internal gratification. Not the internal gratification you felt for having created a novel you loved. You were proud of yourself then, regardless of the final external response from an editor or agent. You maintained your own internal gratification while letting those rejections push you increasingly closer to your first “yes.”

There’s no predicting how people will react to anything—as authors, we spend so much time with complete control over our characters and our internal worlds, it’s a surprise when our external worlds don’t quite behave like we’d expected or hoped. But the great part is, though, that not everyone is a He-Who. And just as your rejections pushed you closer to finding the right “home” for your work, always allow the He-Whos to push you closer to those who are supportive, are truly happy for you, every step of the way. In my case, unending support and cheering wound up filtering into my life from all sorts of different corners. It came from my mom and brother, who had supported me all along the journey, and it came from some (now infinitely appreciated) old friends, from fellow authors, fantastic local librarians, from bloggers and reviewers—and eventually fans! It even came from some unexpected sources (like old classmates who sent messages through my website to congratulate me).

The ability to maintain your internal gratification is one of the most important skills for any author to master. That internal gratification—that self-pride—will get you through most anything, in your writing career. It will get you through any of the inevitable low points: rejections or less-than-glowing reviews or lower-than-expected sales numbers, etc. That internal gratification will often be your lifeblood, as an author, and is far too precious to ever, ever be handed off to some old He-Who.

FOREIGN EDITIONS OF A BLUE SO DARK

I've made this announcement on Twitter and FB, but I had to give it a shout-out here, as well:

My debut, A BLUE SO DARK, will soon be available in Brazil (through Editora Novo Conceito) and Russia (through Ripol Classic)!

It's already been a thrill to see my words in print...but to know my words will be translated and in print? Too cool...

INTERVIEW WITH MG AUTHOR AUGUSTA SCATTERGOOD

She has the coolest name of any author I've met recently, not to mention a fantastic new MG book on shelves now: Augusta Scattergood (some of you may remember her recent interview featured on Smack Dab in the Middle) has kindly dropped by my blog, as well, to discuss writing for kids, Southern storytelling, and junk poker (a game I'm bound and determined to take up myself)...

For those of you who haven't yet read the book (which features a strong young protagonist and some lovely, detailed writing), the synopsis:

As much as Gloriana June Hemphill, or Glory as everyone knows her, wants to turn twelve, there are times when Glory wishes she could turn back the clock a year. Jesslyn, her sister and former confidante, no longer has the time of day for her now that she’ll be entering high school. Then there’s her best friend, Frankie. Things have always been so easy with Frankie, and now suddenly they aren’t. Maybe it’s the new girl from the North that’s got everyone out of sorts. Or maybe it’s the debate about whether or not the town should keep the segregated public pool open.

Augusta Scattergood has drawn on real-life events to create a memorable novel about family, friendship, and choices that aren’t always easy.

My conversation with Augusta Scattergood:

I love that GLORY BE is based on two kinds of history, really—the history of the Civil Rights Movement, and your own personal history. What made you decide that now was the right time for this story?

Oh, dear. I wish I could say that I decided now was the right time. Truthfully, I started writing the story in 2001, about the time I decided to leave my school library position to write full time. GLORY BE started as a short story for grownups. Then it tried to be a novel for kids titled Junk Poker. Pretty soon, fortunately, that title got tossed out the window! I submitted it way too soon. I tucked it into the proverbial bottom drawer. But I loved the story a lot, so I never gave up.

What was the most rewarding part of writing a book based, in part, on things that actually happened—both in your own life, and in history? What was the hardest?

The hardest was getting it right. I struggled with telling a story about a place I knew so well. I found details from my own life and from talking a lot to contemporaries. I researched. But then I had to turn it into something kids would actually want to read. Not just a memoir or a Moment in Time. That was also hard.

The most rewarding part? When I found a terrific agent who loved the voice, the story, the characters, I was over the moon. Then an important and highly regarded publisher and editor praised it—no loved it!—and I knew those ten years of struggling had been so worth it.

You state in the Author’s Note that you didn’t realize the importance of the events of the 60s. What was the first moment in your life when you were aware of the historical significance of what was playing out around you?

When I was Glory's age, our world in small Southern towns was very insulated. By the time I was in college and certainly right after that, a lot was being written about Mississippi, the Deep South, the entire country's involvement in the Civil Rights Movement. Word may not have traveled as fast and as far as it does today, but specific events sure made the news. So I was probably in college, in what was known as a hotbed of liberal thinkers!-- Chapel Hill, North Carolina—and I think I realized that historical significance pretty quickly.

How is the South of your youth like the South of GLORY BE? Different?

Much of the "Southerness" in the book is just like I lived it! Lazy summer days, playing at the park with friends, swimming pools, bossy big sisters like Jesslyn (oh, wait, that was ME and that's not just Southerners!). The pimento cheese and peach pie, biscuits and bacon- all part of my growing up.

The important difference is that living in a small town where everybody knew me, I didn't have the courage to speak out like Glory did.

What is it about the South that seems to grow storytellers?

In the past it may have been front porches and cool drinks. I spent a lot of time with my grandmother and her friends. I was a fill-in Canasta player for her group and oh could they talk! I was a good listener. Southern preachers, teachers, so any of them were great storytellers. I wish I knew why. I wonder if it's still happening around Sunday dinner tables and card games.

I love the “furniture” of GLORY BE—the items the family uses (Jesslyn’s makeup, etc.) that really give the piece a 60s feel. What items do you miss from your own youth?

My plaster of Paris Elvis statue that my mother "misplaced" when I left home for college. I never saw it or my Elvis scrapbook, post-high school. She claimed no credit for disposing of it. But I'm not bitter.

One of my favorite details in the book is Junk Poker. Tell me more—how did it come about? What was in your junk box?

When I first started this story, it was really about the game of Junk Poker. I consulted my younger sister for details. She had no memory of our making this game up! Isn't that how families are though? The more I described it to her, the better she remembered. Most of our junk was literally that. Mismatched earrings from our dress-ups, postcards, Crackerjacks prizes.

As I got older, secret boxes became more important. I hid my diaries in mine.

I now have a Junk Poker box, exactly like my childhood shoe box. I show it to students when I visit their schools. They are fascinated.

My niece gave me a new, tinier Elvis statue. He has cool sunglasses, a crown, a lei. In my box, I also have an old skate key, and pecans in the shell, because many kids outside the South have never seen a real pecan, right off a tree like the one that grew in Glory's backyard.

Most kids like the Elvis statue best.

Many thanks to Augusta for dropping by! Be sure to grab yourselves a copy of GLORY BE, and catch up with Augusta on her website.

WISHING YOU ALL A...