Finally, I can tell you all some news I’ve been wanting to share for a long time. If you’re thinking: Hmm, that copy of Empress looks a little different. More…substantial, somehow… I must congratulate you on your keen perceptive eye. … Keep reading
Category Archives: Publishing
Re-entry
Usually I try to give myself a day after retreat to adjust. That wasn’t possible this year. After I got home, I did take a walk and watch a tremendous sunset (see above) that my phone unsurprisingly failed to render … Keep reading
Looking back.
I was trying to hunt down the date for an upcoming event I’d managed not to get into my calendar, and searched my email for the name of the person organizing it. The results went back to 2005 — my … Keep reading
Margaret K. McElderry
Ten years ago, I was part of a group planning an event that I couldn’t believe was going to happen until it did: Susan Cooper’s 2001 May Hill Arbuthnot Honor Lecture at the Scottish Rite Center here in Portland. It … Keep reading
The ings before publishing part four: querying
So many people have written so well about querying agents that instead of saying “Have a wheel, I just invented it,” (h/t Nisi Shawl) I’m gonna make this one a linky post of linkness. Holly Lisle‘s How to query an … Keep reading
The ings before publishing part three: convening
(Parts one and two, in case you missed them.) Convening, considered as an ing on the way to publishing, means attending conferences & conventions for those involved with books and writing in assorted capacities. Some examples with their primary audiences … Keep reading
The ings before publishing, part two: Researching
(Here’s part one if you missed it.) Wait, you might be thinking. Doesn’t researching start way earlier, like, before finishing? Yes, if you mean research that informs your story. In this case, though, I’m talking about market research. And as … Keep reading
The ings before publishing, part one
From the mailbag: “I was wondering if you could give me a few hints on how to put myself out there to get published. I feel like I’m bumbling around in the dark trying to figure out the next step to take, and … Keep reading
This is just to say
…that if you had considered purchasing The Rules for Hearts, but were daunted by its nature as a physical object, you are totally in luck, because it is now available as an e-book! You can definitely download it for both … Keep reading
YA Trends & Audience talk at Write to Publish
Hey, thanks to all who attended my YA Trends and Audience workshop this morning at the Ooligan Press Write to Publish conference, and to the conference folks who were super helpful with the usual tech troubleshooting hassles. Special shoutouts to … Keep reading
What A Girl Wants, Write to Publish
Hey hi! Short post, lots of exclamation points! The new What A Girl Wants post is up! (And I am blushing because Colleen says very kind things about my work in the introduction.) We wrote about the books we wished … Keep reading
Shapeshifting
(Not a post about werewolves.) In the U.S., we’re fond of defining people by their occupations. It’s a sort of shorthand; a job title comes with a set of expectations (and stereotypes) that (we like to think) provide some guidance … Keep reading
Hey, I’m downloadable!
Or rather, Empress is. On audible.com, read by Lauren Davis. Cool!
Day-making
So I was at Powell’s Hawthorne to finally get a copy of Pretty Monsters, and spotted this lovely shelftalker: Best part: Dot, who made it, was there, and I got to burble thanks at her and sign the stack of … Keep reading
Publishing, or not, for teen writers
From my inbox, a question from a 17 year old: “I was wondering if you could give me advice on how to get things published.” This seems like a straightforward question, but it isn’t. So I have a bunch of … Keep reading
Writing and risk, redux
Chau asks: Is being an author financially “safe”? Does being an author carry risks that other fields do not? I suppose what I’m asking is, “What is the life of an author like”? In reverse order, again: What is the … Keep reading
Balancing, juggling, maintaining
Zoe asked me to write about how I balance my full-time job with my writing career. Here are some ways, and I’d love to hear more thoughts from those of y’all who are also balancing writing (or drawing or music … Keep reading
Three quick things
…on my lunch break: 1. You can still get tickets at the door for Rick Riordan’s talk tonight at the First Congregational Church. 2. Go read David Chelsea’s super (and rhyming!) Yard Sale comic. (Favorite bit of dialog: “Three for … Keep reading
KidLit 08 and the New Minders of Make-Believe
Had I not finished Minders of Make-Believe: idealists, entrepreneurs, and the shaping of American children’s literature mere days before attending KidLit 08: Bridging the Worlds of Books and Blogs, I would’ve experienced the conference differently. I’m sure I would’ve enjoyed … Keep reading