Live, from New York...

Have I mentioned lately that the uber-fabulous Suzie Townsend rocks? Well, she does. And so does the uber-cool Melissa Frain. I spent yesterday in the city that never sleeps with my agent and editor. They both supplied me with reading material (YAY! BOOKS!) and Melissa brought me up to speed on all things Tor. I got to meet all the amazing people there and at FinePrint Literary Management and, yes, they are as awesome as they seem.

I’ll never forget the rush of sending requested manuscripts out to agents when I was agent shopping. I remember thinking that, even if no one wanted to represent it and it never sold, at least someone else will have met the characters that I love so much. I have to say, it was a little wild talking to a whole bunch of people who had read my book. And in one of those really fun “small world” experiences, it turned out that the lovely Patty Garcia, Director of Publicity at Tor, has a brother-in-law who grew up in the same tiny town in California that I currently live in. Go figure.

I knew it was going to be a great visit when New York City treated me to a flurry on Tuesday night while I was wandering and people watching. It snowed all night and left a dusting of white in the morning. Just enough so that I got my snow experience without being nasty. (though there’s supposed to be a storm tomorrow night, so “nasty” may still be in my New York experience)

And I’m headed to the Mid-Manhattan Library (the largest of the NY public libraries) tonight for a presentation called: "Spotlight: A Close-Up Look at the Artistry and Meaning of Stephenie Meyer's 'Twilight' Novels," with John Granger. The description of this event is as follows:

"Why do millions of readers love these Young Adult Vampire Romances?" By looking at the "Twilight" novels' surface artistry, their implicit morality, their archetypal allegory -- a kind of Mormon Pilgrim's Progress -- as well as their hermetic meaning " the question is answered. There's a lot more here than meets the eye; this don't-miss-it event is both for Twi-Hards and for serious readers wanting to learn how to read popular literature with appreciation.

I couldn’t miss it! I wonder if Stephenie Meyers knows all that stuff is in her books. =)

I’m here until Sunday, so I’m sure I’ll find even more fun things to do. I’ll fill you in as they happen!

Ode to 2009

All I can say about 2009 is WOW! Especially when you consider my New Year’s Revelation. (I don’t do resolutions. I don’t have the self-discipline to follow through.)

2009 started with a partial manuscript request from the first agent I ever queried on my first real novel. That scared the snot out of me, in truth, cuz only after I got the request did I realized it wasn’t nearly good enough. It was the first valuable lesson of the year and of my writing career—a rookie mistake that a lot of authors make.

But it was a harbinger of things to come. If you read my last post, you know the whirlwind of events after that. Personal Demons was conceived in February and sold in December. If I had bothered to set goals for 2009, I would have exceeded them and then some.

It makes setting goals for 2010 tricky, cuz nothing can measure up to this year.

Except—well…there’s the thing about my book maybe being published in 2010. That’s pretty cool… So, I guess my goals should include something about not giving my fabulous agent and my awesome editor ulcers. Working with Melissa and Tor is going to be great—everything that goes into getting a debut in shape to go out into the world. I’m really looking forward to diving in.

There’s also the thing about a three-book deal. So it seems another goal should be getting book two, Original Sin, in shape. (First draft is done.) So, that’s going to be fun.

Plus, there’s all the networking. Getting to know readers and other writers out there in YA land. Yay!

Okay, so even though it’s a tall order, maybe 2010 will be better than 2009. We’ll see. I’m just thrilled to have proven my New Year’s Revelation wrong!

All the people who made my 2009 a resounding success deserve a shout out. You've heard from me privately, so here the public THANKS!!!

Nathan Bransford for all his invaluable info, without which I never would have found an agent in the first place.

Jen Laughran, whose encouraging feedback spurred me to make Personal Demons the best it could be.

Eric Elfman, Graeme Stone, Marty Allen and Stephanie Sneddon (my Big Sur group) who gave me the confidence to write this book with no apologies.

Andrea Cremer, my crit partner extraordinaire, who was the first of us to prove my New Year’s Revelation wrong when her debut, Nightshade, sold in August.

Stephanie Howard for keeping me on track.

Suzie Townsend, my truly fabulous agent, for believing in me and my work, and knowing just what my mss needed to be even better.

Melissa Frain, my seriously awesome editor, for having faith enough to take me on for three books.

And most of all, my family:
My husband, who kept us all from starving to death months ago.
My daughters, who have been my inspiration from the beginning.

And thanks to all of you who take the time to visit me here! I love hearing from you all! What are your goals for 2010, and what can I do to help?