When It Feels Real

Today, Pretty Crooked is finally published. I am a bona fide author. It finally feels real. Well, kinda.

In the year leading up to publication there are so many firsts, so many little milestones. There’s the cover reveal, the day your ARCs arrive. The first blurb (yay!). The first negative review (boo!). With each new event you feel yourself changing, and you understand the process in new ways. And yet, the concept that a word-processing file you typed up is going to be a thing, a product other people can actually buy and read and discuss and yes, maybe even smack-talk on Goodreads, doesn’t always feel real. Maybe this is because it’s always been a dream, something you aspire to but don’t necessarily expect to happen.

For me, there were a few key (and seemingly random) moments on the timeline that brought it home, bit by bit.

July, 2011: Doing my first interview. When Jen Bigheart asked me for an interview after my cover reveal I was surprised and elated and all of a sudden aware that Pretty Crooked was now something some people (granted, at that point, only a few savvy bloggers) might actually be anticipating.

August, 2011. Attending SCBWI-LA. This was my first national conference and my first one as an Apocalypsie. Meeting some of my fellow Apocs plus other authors and librarians gave me a true sense of belonging. It was moving, and very exciting. Also, I started to pass out cards with the title of the book, literally making it my calling card. (Six months later, a librarian I happened to be sitting next to during a session blogged about the book. Magic!)

August, 2011: Attending the PAYA Festival in West Chester, PA. For the first time, someone casually introduced me as “author of Pretty Crooked.” A wave of dizziness, a flash of surprise (OMG, that's me!) and a huge first.

January, 2012. Standing in front of a shelf in Barnes & Noble and seeing six fellow Apocs’ books displayed. Realizing that each of these people had gone through the debut year and here was the fruit of their labor, suddenly touchable, in Technicolor. Awesome and tear-jerking.

February, 2012. Buying Sharpies. (Actually, standing in Staples and obsessing over the various colors and nib widths and variety packs available. Could they make it any more confusing?) A small moment, to be sure, but a new feeling of ownership. My book would be here in a month and people were going to ask me to sign it. I was going to need these things.

And now, today. There will be lots of Tweeting and Facebooking and celebration, I’m sure. There will also plenty of other firsts over the next few months to look forward to. And I guess whether or not it “feels” real is kind of beside the point now—because it most definitely is. Whoa.

Eleven Up: Interview with Scott Tracey

 A boy who can see the world’s secrets and unravel spells with just a glance.

Braden’s witch eyes give him an enormous power. A mere look causes a kaleidoscopic explosion of emotions, memories, darkness, and magic. But this rare gift is also his biggest curse.

Compelled to learn about his shadowed past and the family he never knew, Braden is drawn to the city of Belle Dam, where he is soon caught between two feuding witch dynasties. Sworn rivals Catherine Lansing and Jason Thorpe will use anything—lies, manipulation, illusion, and even murder—to seize control of Braden’s powers. To stop an ancient evil from destroying the town, Braden must master his gift, even through the shocking discovery that Jason is his father. While his feelings for an enigmatic boy named Trey grow deeper, Braden realizes a terrible truth: Trey is Catherine Lansing’s son . . . and Braden may be destined to kill him.

I'm so pleased to be hosting Scott Tracey, author of WITCH EYES on the Apocalypsies today.

1) Describe your writing routine?

Headphones.  Something to drink.  Playlist of 10 to 20 songs.    When I'm drafting, I usually give myself a daily word count that I have to meet, it keeps me motivated.  And then, when I start surpassing that goal every day, I increase the amount little by little.  Add in episodes of "No, I'm serious, THIS is the worst thing I've ever written" and "I remember when writing used to be easy" on a regular rotation.

2) Which character in Witch Eyes is the most similar to YOU?
 

Oh jeez.  I would have to say that Braden's smart mouth is probably the most similar to me, but for the most part, that's the only similarity.  Actually, Drew is pretty snarky, too, so yeah, probably one of those two. 

3) You describe Witch Eyes as a modern day Romeo and Juliet with witches -- does this mean you're going to kill off all the best characters?

Only if they mouth off too much.  Or they stop giving me their lunch money every day.

4) If I suspect someone has witch eyes, what should I do?

Well, having seen firsthand the way that Braden attracts trouble into his life, I'd say RUN.  Run fast, run far, and definitely DO NOT let this person into your life. ;)  Also don't lie to them, because they're going to know.  Always.  Even if you lie about liking pineapple on your pizza. 

5) Who would you cast as Braden & Trey in a Witch Eyes movie?
 

These are some serious business questions!  I keep changing my mind on who I'd cast as Braden and Trey, at least once a year or so.  But for right now, I'd say Callan McAuliffe (he played the nerdy best friend in I AM NUMBER FOUR) for Braden, and Drew Van Acker (Jason on Pretty Little Liars) for Trey (but only if he dies his hair blonde again).

6) What are you going to do on release day?
 

I've got lots of plans.  I'll probably wake up, eat a bagel for breakfast, maybe go sit on my back porch and enjoy the fall weather.  And then I'll spend the ENTIRE day online because I have lots of things planned for that day, like a live chat and some giveaways and special extra things.

7) What is your good luck charm?

I have two.  On my desk there's a little green monster that we call the Panic Face monster, and every time you're about to lose your cool and panic, you get Panic Face.  So the Panic Face monster wards off the panic.

The second is this awesome paperweight a friend got for me, that rests on my monitor.  It's a page from a French novel, which someone has drawn an elaborate eye in ink over, which was then pasted to the bottom of this circular piece of glass.  

You can find out more about Scott Tracey at his blog, or on Twitter -- and while you're at it, pre-order a copy of WITCH EYES. It officially comes out Thursday, September 8th.

Eleven Up: Interview with Gae Polisner

by Megan Bostic

 My interview today is with Gae Polisner.  I'm proud to say, she is also

a good friend of mine. Her novel The Pull of Gravity releases on May 10th. 

She's beautiful, smart, and talented. Gae has inspired many by balancing 

writing with work and kids.  Not only that, she is a champion for unpublished 

writers, helping them with their manuscripts and query letters.  She's also a 

marketing dynamo.

What do you like to wear when writing?

I’m actually one of those writers who likes to get fully dressed when I write. Sure there are some days when I stay in pajamas (or sweats), but most days I get up and put on jeans and boots (or whatever my summer equivalent is) and, you know, a nice clean shirt. I fix my hair. Maybe put some make up on. I like to feel like I’m at work when I’m writing.

What other works have inspired your writing, or this book in particular?

It’s probably hard to know all the works that inspire us to write. I know that as a kid I read voraciously and wanted to write way back then. I was inspired by all the then-classic, contemporary YA writers: Judy Blume, Mary Rodgers, S.E. Hinton, Paul Zindel, E.L. Konigsburg, etc. and when I set out to write The Pull of Gravity, I really wanted to create a character-driven piece of fiction of the ilk I read as a kid (only current to today, of course).

In my late teens/early twenties, I discovered William Goldman who may still, in my book, be the best character-driven storyteller there is. His early stuff – Boys and Girls Together, The Color of Light – I couldn’t put them down. I wanted to write like he could. I can’t. But I wanted to.

As for a book that particularly inspired TPoG, that would be Don’t Take Teddy, by Babbis Friis-Baastad (translated from Norwegian and winner of the 1969 Mildred L. Batchelder Award). It is the first novel I remember reading breathlessly in one sitting, my sister having finished it first and waiting anxiously to discuss the story. Indeed, there’s a particular section in The Pull of Gravity that’s a total homage to Don’t Take Teddy, so clearly, I never forgot that book.

Do you ever go oh my god I suck?  If so, how do you get past it?

Do I ever NOT?!?! Um, are there people who don’t? I don’t usually question my ability to write well in a vacuum, but I often question whether I am writing a fresh story that will hook a reader and make them care enough to turn pages. There’s really only one way to get past it: write through it. For me, too, a swim will often hydrate the muse and bring her back up to form. ;)

Do you have a favorite line from your novel?

I have a few. One favorite line is right after Nick (my MC) throws a spoon at his brother Jeremy’s head during a fight and Jeremy is waiting for him to say he’s sorry:

“You’re an idiot,” I say, which probably isn’t the apology he’s hoping for. 

Is there a word you always misspell?

Misspell. True story. Also, occasionally always trips me up. And desperate. I always want to make that second e an a.

What one book did you wish you'd written?

Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco X. Stork

If you could have dinner with any author, dead or alive, who would it be?

At the moment, John Steinbeck. I’d like to know if he approves of Nick and Jaycee. J

Do you like monkeys?

Does a bear build a cozy campfire and roast marshmallows in the woods?

Gae Polisner writes women’s and young adult fiction. She wrote The Pull of Gravity as an homage to the books she loved as a teen by the likes of Zindel, Konigsburg, Blume, and L’Engle.

When Gae is not writing, she is a practicing divorce attorney/mediator and in her spare time can be found swimming in a pool, or, better yet, in the open waters off Long Island.

The Pull of Gravity is her first novel.

Colleen Clayton: WHAT HAPPENS NEXT

BIO: Colleen Clayton writes YA fiction for older teens and teaches writing at Youngstown State University. Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, she holds a B.A. in Criminal Justice from Kent State University and an MFA from the Northeast Ohio Consortium (NEOMFA). In former lives, she has worked as a social worker in a residential treatment center for teens, as program supervisor for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Mahoning Valley, and has tended bar at way too many dive pubs to count.

These days, she lives in Youngstown with her husband, two teenagers, a Papillion who thinks she’s a cat, and a Siamese who thinks he’s a dog. When she isn’t reading, writing, or teaching, she likes to visit relatives in West Virginia...do crazy things like chainsaw trees and 4-wheel up mountainsides.

Debut: WHAT HAPPENS NEXT

The story of a tenacious 16-year-old girl named Sid, who, after a life-altering incident on a school ski trip, is afraid to get close to anyone until an unlikely slacker teaches her to trust again. Pitched as Jennifer Weiner’s GOOD IN BED meets Sara Zarr’s STORY OF A GIRL, WHAT HAPPENS NEXT is a contemporary YA novel debuting in Fall 2012 with Poppy; an imprint of Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.

Five Heartbreaking Songs for the Apocalypse:

Never is a Promise by Fiona Apple
Empty by Ray LaMontagneThe Genius Next Door by Regina Spektor
Mad World (Gary Jules version)
Save Me by Aimee Mann

A.G. Howard - SPLINTERED

As a longtime resident of the Texas Panhandle, Anita Grace is accustomed to flat plains with sparse growths of shrubbery and spindly trees—not always the best terrain for inspiration. But she’ll be the first to admit this unobstructed horizon allows for some of the most breathtaking sunsets in the southwest.

When she began writing, this appreciation for beauty in unlikely places started to seep onto the pages of her novels. She writes flawed characters, utilizing the loveliness of the most simple human conditions and raw emotions to color her stories.

Married and mother of two teens (as well as surrogate mom to two Labrador retrievers), Anita now divides her days between spending time with her family and plodding along or plotting on her next book.

When she’s not writing, Anita enjoys rollerblading, mountain-biking, snow skiing, and most of all gardening — the perfect venue to complement those spectacular Panhandle sunsets.

Be sure to drop by Anita's twitter or blog and say "Hi." She's always up for meeting new friends!



Debut: SPLINTERED (debuts with Amulet January 2013--will be listed in the fall 2012 catalogues and available for pre-order in the late fall season):

For sixteen years, Alyssa Gardner has lived with the stigma of being descended from Alice Liddell -- real life inspiration for Lewis Carroll's famed novel, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. But cruel jokes about dormice and tea parties can’t compare to the fact that Alyssa hears the whispers of bugs and flowers ... the same quirk which sent her mother to a mental institution years before.

When her mother takes a turn for the worse and the whispers grow too strong for Alyssa to bear, she seeks the origins of their family curse. A set of heirlooms and a moth tied to an eerie website lead Alyssa and her gorgeous best friend / secret crush, Jeb, down the rabbit hole into the real Wonderland, a place far darker and more twisted than Lewis Carroll ever let on.

There, creepy and violent counterparts of the original fairytale crew reveal the purpose for Alyssa’s journey, and unless she fixes the things her great-great-great grandmother Alice put wrong, Wonderland will have her head.


Book Trailer:

Official website: www.aghoward.com


5 FRIGHTENINGLY ROMANTIC BOOKS FOR THE APOCALYPSE:
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
Dracula by Bram Stoker
Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux
The Dark House by I.A.R. (Ida Alexa Ross) Wylie