I am currently in New York, where I am doing Fancy Secret Things I Can’t Talk About Yet (unless you ask me in person, I am a spoiler fiend in person). One thing I can talk about is a meeting with my Random House editor Mallory Loehr and my cover designer for Whisper. They are letting me have lots of say in the cover, and it’s so exciting. And Lovely Editor Mallory (L.E.M?) has lots of thoughts too. What does a modern Gothic look like? (Oh you guys are soon to hear so much about Gothics.) We go back and forth, back and forth. But it is loads of fun.
It is also strange, how your thoughts on covers change from being a first-time author (‘I don’t… know if I have a thought. Do you have a thought? What is a thought?’) to having many thoughts about covers. Thoughts, bookmarked images, favourite other people’s covers. As a reader, I didn’t notice covers all that much. As a writer, you kind of have to. Fortunately I have many clever people, at Random House and elsewhere, in my corner!
Another thing I am doing that I can–and indeed should–talk about is an event.
Events are quite stressful things to do, because a) everyone is looking at you! b) don’t disappoint them c) events should be joyful times – wait, talk about serious issues – wait, you’re terrible at that d) personal experience can work as advice – no, these people are all too smart to set their kitchen floors on fire.
But, and I know this isn’t the case for all authors, I love them. I love talking. I love books. I love the fact that people come listen to other people talk about books. So, I am very happy to say I’ll be doing an event in New York before I leave.
YA Fantasy Author Event
Saturday May 28th from 12-2pm
Books of Wonder, 18 West 18th Street, New York, NY 10011
DANIEL KIRK Elf Realm: The Road’s End (Abrams)
BIANCA TURETSKY The Time-Traveling Fashionista (LB)
GAIL CARSON LEVINE A Tale of Two Castles (HarperCollins)
MAURISSA GUIBORD Warped (Random)
SARAH REES BRENNAN The Demon’s Covenant (S&S)
I am excited! Partly because, Gail Carson Levine! I loved Ella Enchanted and Fairest and The Two Princesses of Bamarre, both for my own self and as books I read as babysitting books. (My babysitting career: full of reading aloud. Many impressions. Many skits.)
Also, she made me really happy, because she had two surnames, and so did I, and I wanted to be a writer. So. There is going to be a lot of starry-eyed staring in her direction.
Also, I love a multi-author event. I feel like ‘oh, you poor people, you should have someone brilliantly intelligent up there, and everyone knows it won’t be me.’ I learn lots from them! And from being in the audience, I know it is a good way to hear more about books you might enjoy.
Speaking of events, my thanks to everyone who was at the Boston Diversity in YA event, and the Anderson’s Lucky/Unlucky event last week! It was a pleasure to meet you, and thank you for listening to me share, uh, Unfortunate Personal Experiences/crack jokes/do skits. (I really like skits, okay.)
And if your soul craves signed copies of The Demon’s Lexicon and The Demon’s Covenant, they are now available both at Anderson’s and at the Harvard Bookshop, where they are staff recommended (hurray and thank you!) and where there are alternate covers for Lois McMaster Bujold (nothing to do with my books, I just thought that was awesome).
Or of course, you could come to Books of Wonder, where I will be signing everything in sight, including possibly also other authors’ books. And as at the other two events, I will be signing fancy bookplates you can stick into copies of The Demon’s Surrender, which will be out seventeen days later…
