When I entered the YA world in 2010, with the impending publication of Imaginary Girls (before that I didn’t feel a welcome part of it because my debut was middle-grade), I looked around at all the authors and thought there was one single kind of career to aspire to, the Best Kind, and of course … Continue reading The Surprises, the Failures, the New Chapters in This Author Life
writing
Filling the Well
I hear this advice often—I think I read it first from Julia Cameron, author of The Artist’s Way, one of the books I borrowed from my mother’s bookshelf way back when. Artists need time to “fill the well,” or replenish our creative resources, especially after we’ve completed large, all-encompassing, energy-draining projects such as novels that … Continue reading Filling the Well
AWP: The Writer (Not Author) Conference
I remember my first AWP conference. It was in the winter of 2008, before I had my first book out, and around the time I had racked up dozens upon dozens of rejections from literary agents for my second adult novel and was feeling pretty low about my publishing prospects. I still wanted to write … Continue reading AWP: The Writer (Not Author) Conference
What THE WALLS AROUND US Means to Me
My new book, The Walls Around Us, was published today! I would be so thrilled and honored if you considered buying it this week from your favorite independent bookstore or ordering it through your local library—first-week sales do help authors so much, that’s the truth. But most of all, however you may get your hands … Continue reading What THE WALLS AROUND US Means to Me
What’s Happening with THE WALLS AROUND US
I wanted to share some things. My new novel, The Walls Around Us, comes out in March, which is getting closer and closer, and if you want to get a taste of the book—and this is a good, long taste—my publisher has just released a seven-chapter extended preview of the book... and you can download it … Continue reading What’s Happening with THE WALLS AROUND US
The Obligatory Old Year / New Year Post
I came home from my writing retreat right before the New Year. I can’t spend that night apart from E. Yaddo is a secretive place. I cannot post photos or give many details, but I can say I shared some inspiring conversations, laughed and learned many things, and slept with the light on because I saw … Continue reading The Obligatory Old Year / New Year Post
Five Years After the Leap
About five years ago, I was under deadline to complete the first draft of a contracted novel and stressing the hell out over how I would finish on time while working my full-time job as a senior production editor at HarperCollins Children’s Books. I had somehow sold my novel on proposal and agreed to a deadline … Continue reading Five Years After the Leap
The Calm Before the Who-Knows-What: 110 Days to Publication
I write this to you from a quiet moment in my publishing life. It is December 5, the year 2014, and I am in the room at the rear of the café at a table beside the outlet where I can safely sit with my back against a wall. I am all alone in a … Continue reading The Calm Before the Who-Knows-What: 110 Days to Publication
The Two-Month Countdown and the One-Track Mind
Today is November 15. That means I have two months to finish* this Thing* and turn it in. *Just finish the first draft—there will be revisions! *See my previous post for why I feel safer calling it a Thing. For the TLDR lazypants who don’t feel like clicking: By Thing I mean my novel. So … Continue reading The Two-Month Countdown and the One-Track Mind
Writing a Novel and Seeking the Magic Fix
I am writing what will be my fifth published novel. Five is a number I like, so you’d think this would be a glorious experience, but nothing is ever as easy as I’d hope it to be, most of all writing. This novel I’m writing was originally slated to come out Spring 2016, a year … Continue reading Writing a Novel and Seeking the Magic Fix
