Rewriting the Masters

A happy (belated) birthday to An Na!

Today I'm giving my Vermont College MFA summer residency lecture, "Rewriting the Masters: Retellings & Reinventions of Classic Stories in Modern Young Adult Literature."

Novels highlighted: A Bad Boy Can Be Good for a Girl by Tanya Lee Stone (Wendy Lamb/Random House, 2006)(PDF excerpt)(author interview); Beast by Donna Jo Napoli (Simon Pulse, 2002); Carolina Autumn by Carol Lynch Williams (Delacorte, 2000); The Da Vinci Cod by Chris Riddell (Candlewick, 2006); A Door Near Here by Heather Quarles (Laurel Leaf, 2000)(excerpt); Fairest by Gail Carson Levine (HarperCollins, 2006)(author interview); Good Girls by Laura Ruby (HarperCollins, 2006)(author interview); and Romiette and Julio by Sharon M. Draper (Atheneum, 1999)(Simon Pulse, 2006)(excerpt); and Tantalize by Cynthia Leitich Smith (Candlewick, 2007).

Related Resources

Attorney Interview: Aimée Bissonette on Law and Publishing from Cynsations.

Retelling Stories, Framing Culture : Traditional Story and Metanarratives in Children's Literature by John Stephens (Garland, 1998). Note: pricey at $135; perhaps hit the library rather than bookstore.

See also: The Children's Literature Network; The Author's Guild.

Dark Chocolate Is My Friend

Just a quick update! I had the honor today of speaking about critical writing with Marion Dane Bauer, and one of my last-semester students gave me as a thank-you gift two iced cream themed notepads (which are adorable, though in this heat I wouldn't have minded real iced cream) and Ghirardelli Chocolate Squares--dark chocolate with white mint filling. I also had my first workshop with Jane Kurtz, and we have a lively group of students! I can't wait until our next meeting.

I'm Never Washing That Hand

Last night I met Katherine Paterson, heard her read from her own work, and shook her hand. I even made her laugh once in the faculty lounge.

It was my first time to meet the two-time Newbery winner. She's gracious, humble, and funny. She wore a beige sleeveless blouse and a black floral shirt. She was losing her voice, but it came back as she continued reading. She's great at doing character voices.

I'm sensitive, too sensitive really. But when I'm with someone like that, someone who has stretched my world view, it's really all I can do not to cry or babble or otherwise make a goof of myself. But maybe that's okay. After all, it's always a little overwhelming living in such a magical world.

Arrival in Montpelier

Greeting from the computer lab at the VC campus in Montpelier!

I'd like to begin by saying HOWDY to all of the MFA students reading this blog, and let those who're trying to figure out which faculty members to pref that they should check out the following links: Kathi Appelt (author interview); An Na (author interview); Marion Dane Bauer (author interview); David Gifaldi; Margaret Bechard (author interview); Uma Krishnaswami (author interview)(blog); faculty chair Sharon Darrow (author interview); Brent Hartinger (author interview)(blog); Cynthia Leitich Smith (bio, writing life, essays and articles); Jane Kurtz (author interview); Rita Williams-Garcia; Leda Schubert (author interview); Tim Wynne-Jones (author interview); Julie Larios; Jacqueline Woodson; and Deborah Wiles.

I'm thrilled to be in such great company. This residency marks the first time I've met DG or JL, and though I've corresponded with BH online for years, it's my debut viewing of him in person (and quite dashing he is!).

I'm also wowed that Katherine Paterson is our visiting writer today. I've been in the business now ten years, and I've had the honor of meeting (and, for that matter, teaching with) some of the finest wordsmiths around. But there is always something extra special about meeting someone whose books I especially treasured as a young reader. Terabithia anyone?

I also was reminded of a few wonderfully inspiring titles she authored on writing, which I read when I was a beginner in the late '90s: A Sense of Wonder: On Reading and Writing Books for Children (Plume, 1995); The Spying Heart: Reading and Writing Books for Children (Puffin, 1990); and Gates of Excellence: On Reading and Writing Books for Children (Puffin, 1988). I need to remember to add these to my inspiration bibliography when I get back home. It doesn't look like they're all in print, but they can be found used and via libraries.

As for the trip, it was pleasantly uneventful--smooth flights in good weather. I flew Jet Blue for the first time and was most impressed! Loved the leather seats and the TVs in the backs of the chairs. On the way to JFK, which was where I had my layover, I sat next to a young girl in a handmade-looking blue checked dress with a white scarf bobbypinned over her blond hair. She told me her family did church work in Africa, but she was visiting them in Pittsburgh.

I ran into RWG at JFK airport. We were on the same flight to Burlington and shared a cab into Montpelier, stopping once at a grocery store for cookies and shampoo and then again at a drug store for an alarm clock that neither of us could figure out how to set (the directions didn't work, we swear!).

Last night we had the faculty dinner, catered by Le Petit Gourmet, which for me meant spinach-stuffed chicken and almond green beans (along with some peanuts and Triscuits on the side) and red wine. LS's husband and TW-J's wife were among guests in attendance.

Spooky Links

Quiz--What Teen Angst Novel Are You? from E. Lockhart, author of The Boyfriend List (Delacorte, 2005)(author interview). Note: I'm Boy Proof by Cecil Castellucci (Candlewick, 2005)(author interview). Sounds right to me!

New England Bound

Let's see, in the past few days, I've prepared for the VC summer residency.

This included: compiling notes to explain third-semester requirements at orientation; creating an Intro to Crit Writing handout for a talk I'm doing with MDB (author interview); writing-practicing my lecture on reinventions, retellings, and I.P. considerations; putting together a support handout; checking the two previous with GLS for legal accuracy and clarity; keying up a new student reference sheet with my individual policies; making note of my fall schedule so I can establish packet due dates; selecting-practicing a reading from Tantalize (Candlewick, 07)--skipping the prologue for 20 minutes up to page 29; critiquing the workshop booklet, printing a bibliography of my recommended reading and craft resources for workshop participants; and identifying a pb to use as a model for one of the manuscripts.

Beyond that I also worked with the lovely LF of Hit Those Keys on a special site to promote Santa Knows (Dutton, 2006)(I'll let you know when it goes live) and finished my second pass pages on Tantalize.

The last read through of T made me a bit misty. I've been wanting to write a gothic fantasy novel since I first considered dedicating myself to fiction. Really, on a certain level, it's been ten years in the making. I didn't find much when I scoured through that last time. A missing close quotation mark that the copyeditor would've caught anyway. But wow.

Last night my crit group met at TC's log house in the Hill Country. It was a perfect way to say adios to Texas for a couple of weeks. He served beef and chicken fajitas and chicken enchiladas (whole wheat and flour tortillas) with rice, beans, and fruit for desert. We talked publishing and books and read manuscripts and watched the blazing red sun set behind Lake Travis.

Thanks, TC! Congratulations to AB (author interview) on finishing the draft of FG; can't wait to read it! And on a more personal note, bon voyage to SP! We'll look forward to seeing you again in the fall.

I still have to go to the post office (please don't snail me anything until early August!) to stop my mail and drop off a few letters. Then I'll come home and pack. GLS has promised to take me to Musashino for dinner. Must run!

But really quickly, my plane books are of the light-bite variety: A Bite to Remember by Lynsay Sands (Avon, 2006); Vamps in the City by Kerrelyn Sparks (Avon, 2006); and California Demon: The Secret Life of a Demon-Hunting Soccer Mom by Julie Kenner (Berkley, 2006). I'm planning to relax, enjoy, and for the first time check out Jet Blue.

Stay tuned--I'm be blogging next from Montpelier!

"Monk," "Psych," Second Pass Pages, and Revving for the Residency

With the VC MFA residency coming up, it made sense to rest and spend some quality down time with GLS last weekend.

After the Friday night season premier of "Monk," we watched the series premier of "Psych." It's about a fake psychic detective. The show was amusing and not a bad way to spend a post-"Monk" hour, but there's not much depth there (at least not yet).

The "Monk" premier had focused on an actor finding the heart of Monk's story, how the unsolved murder of our hero's wife had inspired him to solve other crimes, though it was never "enough" to begin really healing him. The heart of "Psych" in contrast seemed to be wanting to impress a disapproving cop father, which isn't uncompelling, but maybe suffers by comparison.

Beyond that, we mostly relaxed around the house. We picked up season one of "Fraiser" on DVD and watched a marathon of episodes on Saturday and Sunday. I'd forgotten how good it is. The writing is hysterical, and all of the characters shine, especially David Hyde Pierce's Niles and John Mahoney's Martin.

On Sunday morning, I wrapped graduation gifts and put together my recommended list of craft and reading resources for my VC workshop with JK (author interview). Monday and Tuesday morning were spent working on the lecture and handout, which I'll revisit again today.

Tuesday afternoon I reviewed my second pass pages on Tantalize (Candlewick, 2007). I'll go back over those one more time on Thursday before writing my editor.

Because my VC lecture wasn't finished and I'm leaving Saturday, I'll admit a few moments of panic when GLS mentioned that the package had arrived. But then everything came together in that magical way that it does when you have no choice but to focus like Batman.

This is the second-time through post production of the ARCs. It was a treat to read without the dreaded plague of ellipses! The new interior art element looks fabulous, and the minor logic glitch is fixed! It's reading smooth, too.

Over 50,000+ words, and I've so far noted the following--words to cut: "more;" "black and white;" words to add: "northern;" "our;" "the;" "on;" words to change: "redheads" to "brunettes;" "not so much" to "I hadn't bothered;" "the front doors" to "of the school;" "daring" to "eager." Punctuation notes: cut a stray close quote; change question mark to period; add exclamation point and period; lower case "it."

Basically, what happens is that any time there are even tiny text changes, they have ripple effects, especially in terms of repeated words or phrases moving to too close of proximity.

Also, I had envisioned my protagonist Quincie as a freckled blonde, though it's never mentioned one way or another in the book. The final cover art shows a freckled redhead, and suddenly, I realized there were three red-haired women working at Sanguini's, which, statistically speaking, is an awful lot for near south Austin. Consequently, minor characters Mercedes and Simone are getting an editorial dye job.

Spooky Links

Read the blogs of "Monk" characters--latest entries from Natalie, Dr. Kroger, and Captain Stottlemeyer.

The Eight Characters of Comedy by Greg Leitich Smith from GregLSBlog.

Superman is Not from Iowa

It has come to my attention that The Washington Post incorrectly stated that Superman is from Iowa. Don't get me wrong, I love Iowa. It's charming!

However, Superman is from KANSAS.

Well, originally Krypton, but then Kansas.

Smallville, Kansas.

And then Metropolis.

Clearly Sophie Brookover, Liz Burns, and Melissa Rabey should be in charge of the world. Or at least The Washington Post.

Laughing Gas

Yesterday I noticed that my filling had come loose, and the last thing I wanted was a dental emergency in Vermont, so I called my amazing dentist who let me come in over the lunch hour. I'm a big fluffy chicken when it comes to such things, but it wasn't tragic.

Before the Novacaine shot, I had a nice dose of laughing gas, which my dentist referred to as "sort of a margarita on the side." It didn't seem to compromise my ability to understand, though.

Not the best way to spend an hour, but again, the timing could've been worse, and definitely, every effort was made to soothe my inner squawker. I also got a good-patient sticker, which I wore proudly all day.

Route 66

The highlight of my Fourth of July with GLS was seeing "Cars." We missed the showing at Alamo Drafthouse and so ended up at Barton Springs mall instead. It had been a while since we'd visited a normal movie theater and really felt it in the leg room.

The movie itself was a lot like "Doc Hollywood" (1991). L.A.-bound hotshot (in this case, racing car) finds himself stranded in small town U.S.A. and comes to appreciate the charm, the locals, a lawyer lady (who fled from "the rat race"), and, after some rivalry, is taken under wing by the doc.

The car-related details--bugs that were actually VW Beetles with wings, etc.--were thoughtful and amusing.

What worked best, though, were the references to famous Route 66 (AKA The Mother Road) and a pre-Interstate world less concerned with "making good time" and more inclined toward enjoying the ride.

Dinner was hot dogs on whole wheat buns (resulting in much discussion with my native Chicagoan husband over the fact that I'd dare to put cheese on a dog), corn on the cob, and fries.

I'm...game?

Wanna meet some people serious about taxidermy?

Head to your local Cabela's. We're talking mounted deer heads, full deer bodies--cough--musk ox, polar bear, artic fox, moose, otter, beaver, a full flock of geese suspended on wire from the ceiling!?

You name it, they've killed it. Surreal. The average natural history museum doesn't have a rival collection.

GLS and I zipped down I-35 South to Buda today to pick up a target for my archery practice. I shoot targets, not animals. Don't get me wrong. I'm a non-hypocrite carnivore with hunting uncles/cousins. I'm not judging. I'm just completely freaked out.

In more important news, I've found the best breakfast in town: Huevos Borrachos Con Queso--two eggs scrambled Mexican style with tomatoes, onions, and serranos. Finished with queso Amarillo, hold the refried beans. Go to Maudies' Tex-Mex, 2608 W. 7th; don't miss the rotating multicolor wall light display.

Dinner tonight was wild boar chops with mushroom sauce over whole wheat couscous and broccoli, courtesy of chef GLS. Who says I can't be a girl of the wild frontier?

The Blanton Museum of Art

This weekend, GLS and I visited the new Blanton Museum of Art at The University of Texas for the first time.

The main attraction is the Latin American collection, the largest and most comprehensive in the United States. According to the brochure, "More than 600 artists from Mexico, South and Central America, and the Caribbean are represented in the collection, which features over 1,800 works and reflects the enormous diversity of artistic traditions in the region."

I also enjoyed the American and European paintings. I loved the bright colors, swirls, and geometric quality of the contemporary exhibits as well as the 3-D (except "blue woman in a black chair," which I'm still convinced is a real, frozen person--eek!). Much of the experimental/apocalypse stuff baffled me. I don't know if I'm not sophisticated enough or just too much of an optimist.

On the writing front, I took the printout of F&M from my office to my night stand night before last to verify that it had some merit and I wasn't wrong to have dropped it into the FedEx box last week. I flipped it open to a page with three sentences in a row with the exact same construction. They looked annoying. Bah, I thought, and went to sleep. Yesterday, my amazing agent had read it--on the holiday weekend--and responded via email with much praise. There was even a smiley face involved--hooray! Whew.

In other news, my alpha feline Mercury (a nineteen-pound gray tabby and native Chicagoan) has been contacted by an author interested in featuring him in her upcoming cat book. He was quite honored. Consequently, I decided that he needed a new head shot and subjected him to an hour-long photo shoot. He loved the attention more than the flash. More on that to come!

I Believe A Man Can Fly

Last night, GLS and I saw "Superman Returns" at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema on South Lamar, which is the best place on earth to see a movie. Among other things, they offer dining service during the film. I had shrimp quesadillas and buttered popcorn, and we split a bottle of Woop Woop Shiraz.

We arrived an hour early, so we had decent seats in the middle of the theater (as opposed to neck-craning in row one, like last time).

"Superman Returns" was framed as a sequel to "Superman II," which was the Christopher Reeve 1980 film production.

To be honest, I didn't have really high hopes for "Superman Returns," though there was no way I wasn't going on opening weekend. It's because I knew that it was drawn from the above mentioned foundation, and I've always disliked the depiction of Clark Kent as over-the-top "bumbling" or "mild-manned." It's hard to believe that Clark could succeed as a front-page, investigative reporter on "a great metropolitan newspaper" like The Daily Planet.

I much preferred Dean Cain as Clark in "Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman." He was charming in the role, indicating that it was Superman, not Clark who was the disguise (which made sense) and also made it far more plausible that Lois, if she's a woman of substance, would fall for the real man rather than the icon. This is the route that the comics ultimately took.

But in "Superman Returns,'" Clark is more awkward than bumbling. It works a lot better. The film also advances the cannon in interesting ways. I won't give away what happens, but both the internal and external stakes are fresh and sky high. Kate Bosworth is now my favorite Lois Lane.

Brandon Routh isn't bad at all, but so far, none of the Superman actors seem to really own the role (the way that Hugh Jackman did as Wolverine, for example, or Jack Nicholson as The Joker).

With the traditional nod to Gene Hackman as Luthor, I'd call Michael Rosenbaum of "Smallville" the hands-down best Lex. That said, I think Lex as a character, though classic, is overdone. We need to move on to a new adversary. And not Zod.

Maybe because I was largely raised in Kansas (where I graduated with a news/ed degree from journalism school), I've always felt a connection to Superman, especially his Clark Kent side. Though I love my anti-heroes as much as the next person, there's something optimistic and heartening about Superman. The heartland kid who's the "ultimate immigrant." Being on the inside and the outside. Really, who doesn't feel like that sometimes?

For those who might be wondering, I've been reading superhero comics since I was about five years old. Once a week, on Sunday afternoons, my dad would take me with him to the nearest convenience store where he'd buy gun magazines (his only targets were paper on account of my mama and "Bambi") and I'd pick up comics.

Back then, comic book shops were strictly guy territory, and in some places that's still true, though I've always felt perfectly at home in Austin at Dragon's Lair. I find it odd that graphic novels are now trendy, especially because if my high school queen bees had known about my related reading habit, it would have been my social undoing (not that I was Miss Popularity anyway). But in any case, my fave of the new stuff for younger kids is JH and MH's Babymouse series--cute and funny!

As a side note, the "Spider-Man 3" trailer looked fantastic. I'm jazzed about Venom.

Comic of the Week: Batman#654; runner up: Blue Beetle #4. What I loved most about Batman #654 was the closing scene between Bruce/Batman and Tim/Robin III. It's beautifully underscored by Alfred's traditional role as the mirror of Bruce's humanity.

Kisses to Spookcyn Readers

Thanks ever so much for the enthusiastic response to my Tantalize cover.

More specifically, thanks to Tanya Lee Stone (author interview) for blogging about it! Thanks also to Cynsations LJ readers jennyhan, mary_ohhh, lstolarz, cynthialord, crcook for their cheers, Spookycyn LJ readers jenlibrarian, d_michiko_f, beverlyjean, lizzb, moniquemadigan, cawriter, halseanderson, brandie_writer, azang, cynthea, and slwhitman for their cheers as well as everyone who wrote me directly. Most appreciated!

All of the credit of course goes to the geniuses at Candlewick Press, who--by the way--are absolute gems to work with.

For those who don't read Cynsations, sensual monster queen Annette Curtis Klause was kind offer to offer the following blurb on the novel:

"Full of unexpected, delicious delights that kept me guessing and turning the pages, Tantalize creates a froth of excitement, danger, suspense, and wit. This original book tantalizes the senses indeed, as it explores the border between attraction and disgust, and makes us question our perceptions. Who are you--predator or prey?"

Annette's latest is Freaks: Alive on the Inside! (Simon & Schuster, 2006)(excerpt). Having read and enjoyed the ARC, I picked up the hardcover Wednesday night at BookPeople along with Dead as a Doornail by Charlaine Harris (Ace, 2005) from the Southern Vampire Series, A Princess of Roumania by Paul Park (Tor, 2005), which was a New York Public Library Best Book for the Teen Age 2006, and Carpe Demon: Adventures of a Demon-Hunting Soccer Mom by Julie Kenner (Berkley, 2005). I'm completely entranced by Carpe Demon at the moment. Highly entertaining holiday-weekend read.

GLS and I made a night of our shopping expedition. After a light dinner of sliced samon with salmon cream cheese on Wheat Thins and sliced cucumbers with spinach-and-artichoke hummus, we stopped off at The Shoal Creek Saloon for a cup of shrimp gumbo and half order of fries respectively, and later we swung by Amy's Ice Creams (small "just vanilla" with chocolate syrup and pecans in a cup; hey, it's a classic!).

Another highlight of my week was lunch on Friday with HH (author interview) at Guero's Taco Bar (shrimp fajitas) on South Congress. If you haven't heard of her yet, you will soon.

Spooky News & Links

ChickenDance.Org: Austinites, on July 4th help break a Guinness World Record for the World’s Largest Chicken Dance! Yes, seriously!

June is Adopt-A-Shelter-Cat Month. Three of my four cats--Mercury, Blizzard, and Galileo--were shelter cats, and Bashi was found in a bush.

Tantalize Cover Art Sneak Peek

I've received my final cover art for Tantalize (Candlewick, March 2007), and I'm so jazzed that I'm posting it here tonight.

Luscious, don't you think?

It's odd. I'm incredibly nervous.

I have been all day.

I guess it's because the art makes it all seem more real somehow. I'm obsessing over early ARC reads (bless all who've sent cheers/blurbs), whether people will use it as kindling because they hate some part of the text that won't make the final book anyway. You know, the usual.

Plus, I sent F&M to my agent on Monday--yay! yikes!--which means I'm in dreaded wait mode and, worse, I've returned to reality from my latest fictional world. No distractions, nothing to hold the fear at bay.

Highly overrated, reality. No wonder fiction is my life.

But you know, that girl on the cover? She's Quincie. My hero. It's such a thrill to finally see her face.

Spooky Notes

I'm not sure how/whether the art will reproduce for the LJ syndication, so I invite those readers to check it out on Blogger. Comments are welcome, and because I'm feeling especially candid about my emotional needs, allow me to clarify. I want praise. Rejoicing. Confetti.

Undead and Unpopular

Swung by BookPeople today to snag the latest vampire novels for grown-ups. I found Danse Macabre by Laurell K. Hamilton (excerpt), Undead and Unpopular by Mary Janice Davidson, and Tall, Dark & Dead by Tate Hallaway (excerpt)(blog). All commercial/popular fiction, Berkley, 2006. I think the latter two are gothic fantasy romances. The first two are series books, and I've enjoyed the previous titles in each. I'm tempted to leave them for plane reading next month, but we'll see.

Spooky News & Links

Thanks to my fellow Green Lantern, LJ reader, alison23, for her recent comments! I'm thrilled to know that DC Comics (and then Marvel) stamps are forthcoming. Could be a major budget issue. Cheers also to LJ reader d_michiko_f; sorry about your cheese allergy!

"Getting to Know Meredith Gentry and Anita Blake" by Laurell K. Hamilton from Random House.

Favorite Snacks

A student group doing an author presentation on me emailed today to ask my favorite snacks. Apparently, their teachers likes food in the classroom, so they thought they'd do something thematic to my preferences. I wrote back...

I love (not necessarily simultaneously):
dark chocolate
strawberries
blueberries
pecans
popcorn (with real butter)
guacamole
salsa
whole wheat tortillas
gouda cheese (most cheese actually)
hummus
sushi
Sun Chips

Speaker Weekend

On Friday night, GLS gave a keynote address on multicultural humor at the Texas State Reading Association, and B&N Westlake sponsored a quite successful signing. I'd guess we sold 40ish books to an audience of 50 teachers (regional directors from throughout the state).

The event was held at the new Hilton at the Austin airport, which is quite nice with Texas-themed decor (think big stars and bluebonnet murals). Apparently, it was one of the buildings from the old Air Force base, totally rehabbed.

The conference chicken dinner (with salad, wild rice, Hollandaise, and tiramisu) was on the dry side, but the sauce helped. Very friendly, welcoming crowd!

The next day, we did a joint breakout session at Writers' League of Texas' 2006 Agents & Editors Conference downtown at the Austin Hyatt. Highlights of the event included a Q&A panel featuring authors KA (author interview), CB, and AB (author interview), which was moderated by author-illustrator MGM (author interview). Sightings also included Blooming Tree publisher MH, one of the exhibitors.

I spotted but didn't get a chance to talk to the one children's agent there, AT, but word in the hallways was that those emphasizing the story did a lot better than those pitching the message, which only makes sense.

It was fascinating-horrifying to talk to the writers pitching their manuscripts to agents at 15 minute meetings. I'm SO glad I'm happily agented and never had to do that.

The conference chicken lunch (with salad, gravy, mashed potatoes, green beans, and cake) was moist and delicious. We skipped out on the speaker though in part because KA had to grab some party bronze shoes for me.

Beyond that, GLS and I are watching "Lois & Clark: Season 3," at which point Lois knows Clark is Superman and they're discussing marriage. Today we read aloud F&M in a copyediting effort. Late last night I finished and am still poundering--in a seriously impressed way--The Rules of Survival by Nancy Werlin (Dial, 2006)(author interview)(excerpt)(look for more on that coming soon to Cynsations).

I Have A Power Ring

Okay, it's plastic and not the most powerful weapon in the universe. Actually, it's a promotional giveaway for Green Lantern Corps #1, and I received it from a lovely woman at Dragon's Lair, not a little blue guy. But nevertheless I'm wearing it proudly.

My main to-dos at the moment are to prep for my VC talks, but first I have a couple of events this weekend and some writing of my own to bring to a pausing point.

South Texas

GLS and I hoofed it to Kingsville, Texas on Friday to do some research for his WIP. Did you know that ranchers prefer red cattle and horses because they're less likely to sunburn (I didn't!)? Also, don't open the car window around lots of cattle--too many flies!

Because the local B&B never returned our call, we stayed at the Best Western, which is the best hotel in town. It wasn't bad, but the room took all night to cool down (and as we'd recently bought a whole new air conditioning system for our first floor, this seemed a relatively cruel blow).

Despite recent restoration and economic development efforts, the historic downtown had been hit hard by the outlying mall and Wal-Mart. But I did enjoy a first-class and bargain grilled chicken sandwich on whole wheat with mayo and guacamole at Harrel's Soda Fountain & Pharmacy. We also had fun shopping at the King Ranch Saddle Shop (though the fetching sleeveless brown silk Day of the Dead shirt was out of my budget at $322).

We were told that the best Mexican restaurant had burned down a while ago, and the best barbecue was another fifteen-to-twenty minutes on the highway headed back north, so I'm vaguely embarrassed to admit that we ended up eating twice at Chili's, which was the highest end chain there. I'm sure if we'd had more time, we would've been able to score local cuisine better than that.

I liked Kingsville. It's a majority Mexican American (about 70%) community and one of the friendliest places I've ever visited. I did keep an eye open for rattlesnakes and gators, though. I didn't see any of those--just lots of cattle, horses, wild turkeys, and deer.

We boogied back north on Saturday afternoon to Corpus Christi (think Gulf Coast, palm trees, T-shirts that read: "It's a Shore Thing." The water was an aquamarine green, the sun shining, and the wind gusty.

Next time we'll also try to make it to the U.S.S. Lexington Aircraft Carrier Museum, but for this trip we just had time to go to the Texas State Aquarium. Highlights included a turtle tank "in memory of Selena--her music opened a window into beauty." My fave animals were the sleeping prehensile-tailed porcupine and the playful otters. I also observed that pelicans are quite large, especially when they're flying right over your head.

We stayed at the lovely Omni Hotel on the ocean, where sights included a pink-purple-dyed poodle. We had dinner that night at the Republic of Texas Bar & Grill (crab fondue, New England clam chowder, and lobster with rice pilaf).

Heading back on I-35 south on Sunday morning, we stopped at the Gruene River Grill in Gruene, Texas. Maybe because of the too-boisterous Father's Day crowd, the stuffed mushrooms were tepid, though my tortilla soup was quite good.

Spooky Notes

Thanks to Vanessa Joy Ziff for cheering Austin, which no doubt misses her too.

Righteous Revision

Only one more VC packet to go! Then I'm going to take a bit of a break and wait until July to do prep for the next res.

Amidst a million other things, I had a chance to go through the scribbled comments on F&M from last night's crit group and apply them to the master copy. Some highlights: "love the parallel to T's life; D is so cunning;" "great turn of events, high drama;" "funny--great movie scene;" "love her formal language; she's doing well;" "M&B seem sufficiently humbled;" "remind me of personal connection;" "go, girl;" "nice D;" "how did he get here? oh, she moved to another room;" "jealous?" "aha, great page-turner;" "I love the letter; it really helps to see it;" "D is a nice addition, helps to see this character. I also like having T and D together earlier. It works!" "great end;" "what does he find?" "does D wonder if T is watching?" "good explanation;" "love this."

Perhaps needless to say this is a much-polished rewrite of a scene they'd read earlier, and in this case I revised to mostly SP's suggestions.

("a million other things:" email, write student evaluation, work out on treadmill (45 minutes), drop off dry cleaning, check P.O. Box, pick up misc. groceries (eggs, pecans, dental floss), mail packet, etc. etc.)

By the way, have I mentioned lately how much I love working with my webdesigner/master LF? She is amazing. If you're on the fence about hiring a pro, trust me, it's worth it and she's the best. I just sent May updates from Cynsations and otherwise, and boom! there they are--quick like a bunny.

Cooling Off

Gothic fantasy goddess ACK (author interview) has turned in a glowing blurb for Tantalize (Candlewick, March 2007). I'm filled with the happy!

Today, our critique group went to the UT Club for happy hour and manuscript feedback. The service was tacos and margaritas. The queso was excellent. I brought a re-written, expanded and moved-up scene of F&M. The story is told in alternating POV and one of SP's suggestions was to move that scene up so that it occured after the two protagonists had met. He also thought it would be good to actually show (rather than cut away from) the scary part and perhaps also use it as a catalyst to D's internal journey. Genius! The dynamic trio of SP, AB (author interview), and TC offered great polish suggestions. [I also brought an interior design element because, you know, I live for those.]

In other important news, our new upstairs air conditioner was installed, and I'm no longer melting. It's almost awe-inspiring. I'm surprised that when air conditioning was first introduced in Texas that it didn't spark a new religion. Repeat after me: "Oooo, cool."

Chisholm Trail

It's a hot and happenin' weekend here. The hot is literal. Our upstairs air conditioner is on strike, so we've slept the last two nights on a futon mattress in the sunroom. The second repairman is coming this morning. When I expressed surprise that we could get someone on a Sunday, GLS's reply was that in Texas there was no higher calling. It's already a triple-digit summer here.

On Friday, we spoke to a TSU graduate seminar class of writing teachers in Round Rock. It was a friendly, enthusiastic group. We mostly told the stories behind our stories and made a few observations about the industry as a whole. Then we enjoyed a potluck lunch, which consisted of dishes like fried chicken, tuna salad, and hamburger-and-cheese filled biscuits.

On Saturday morning, we drove out to Lockhart for the Chisholm Trial Roundup. We have friends who own a grand old home on the parade route, so we sat out front in a row of folks with lawn chairs and soaked in the small-town charm. Watermelon and strawberry queens, church groups, monster trucks, bands, cheerleaders, girl scouts, cowboys on horseback. It was a boisterous event with a supportive crowd. It struck me, as someone travels a lot, that the participants and audience were about 1/3 black, 1/3 Mexican American, and 1/3 white. Music and dress styles reflected this diversity at times, didn't at others. Unlike many American history celebrations, there was nothing that made my inner Indian cringe. In any case, it's easy to imagine living in a small town with such a strong sense of energy and pride, but I'm afraid I'm a city girl. I like having my grocery store and hospital close by.

Multitasking

I've been grading VC packets and writing end-of-semester evaluations, coordinating upcoming events with planners, getting organized to promote Santa Knows (Dutton, 2006), and corresponding with my editor about copyediting questions on Tantalize (Candlewick, 2007).

I'm especially jazzed this week on the latter because one of my interior formatting suggestions seems to be a go (I had to write some new text and fiddle to make the line breaks work). Also, I'm starting to hear some raves from folks who've managed to snag the rare ARC. The next step will be reviewing second pass pages with (hopefully) all the corrections.

Miraculously, I'm also making time to continue writing. I've fulfilled my last set of revision goals on F&M, and I intend to continue tinkering on the new scenes in preparation for next week's critique group meeting. Because July will be so busy, I probably won't see them again until August, so I want to get some initial feedback on the more sweeping changes.

Republic of Texas Biker Rally

This past weekend was the Republic of Texas Biker Rally in Austin. Think 4,000+ bikes converging on downtown for three roaring days.

Rumor has it that the event is the biggest income-earner of its kind for the city. Leather goods?

In any case, the streets are literally lined and swarming with bikes, bikers, and biker chicks. Sixth and Congress were closed off Friday evening for the parade, making it impossible for non-bike driving. On our way home from San Antonio, we had to get back on I-35 north and go to the other side of the Cap building before we could successfully cut back over to the west side. In East Austin, people were lined up on the streets, cheering the bikers on.

I don't notice the noise here at the house like I did when we had the apartment on Congress. Back then, I just resigned myself to a couple of days without sleep.

Next weekend is the Texas Pride Festival, celebrating the GLBTQ community, in Waterloo Park.

I love this town!

Ooo La La

GLS and I cruised down to San Antonio Friday evening for dinner with JFH and her husband at Paesono's. I gobble so much grand calamari that I hardly had any room left for my chicken marsala. Must climb back on treadmill ASAP.

Saturday morning we went to a bring-your-own-lunch, Austin area writer-illustrator get together at MD's house on the lake. I brought some spicy-tuna-and-avocado brown rice sushi from Whole Foods.

Attendees included CB, BXD, FH, LG (author interview), TC, AL (author interview), JL (author interview), JP, SP, MS and BY. Great publications on display included BXD's story in "Spider" and LG's latest release.

The fabulous AL brought me a powder blue University of Paris T-shirt. I am filled with the happy. My previous one has literally worn out since I bought it in, well, 1991. I did study abroad in Paris, focussing on European Community law and the French legal system. Ooo La La. Well, not the law part, but the Paris part.

That afternoon, I keyed in line edits and notes for revision on my master copy of F&M.

Last night, GLS and I watched "The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement," which had a wonderful supporting cast but was too much a repeat than a reinvention. That said, it's worth watching for Julie Andrews, Hector Elizondo, and John Rhys-Davies. Joel McCray is great, too.

Game Plan

Excellent progress. I've gone through the three critique letters and the three marked copies of the manuscript to pull together revision notes on my master copy.

Here's what I have to do for this round:

a handful of clarifications, in particular one related to motivation ("call to adventure");

move up some of the fantasy worlds' exposition (a challenge with two competing worlds);

insert two documents (love this as a device--one letter and one newspaper article);

expand and then move a scene so co-protagonists can meet earlier;

write four new scenes.

That should keep me busy for a while.

Eerie, Indiana

Last weekend, GLS and I enjoyed watching what appears to be the only three episodes of a 1991 series, "Eerie, Indianna." It's cute and creepy in more of a suburban than small town riff way, as the title suggests. Worth seeing for the premier episode alone. Too bad the network didn't give it more of a chance. A cult following would've quickly developed and spread.

Today, I'm in Randall's, looking for a b-day card for my mom, and what greets me but a mega end cap with Sarah Dessen paperbacks and information on a contest to "win a phone call" with the author as well as a 2GB iPod Nano and a signed collection of her books. So long as the authors' royalties aren't reduced, I'm all in favor of books in grocery stores. Not everyone goes into bookstores (awk!), but everyone except possibly Bush Sr., goes into grocery stores. So, we can reach more readers that way. As a fellow author, it occured to me that the prize is a good one in part because SD is so witty and charming (exhibit her LJ). OTOH, I--who occasionally fall into idiot babble mode--might not be as good of a pick for such a promotion.

"Feed Me, Seymour"

Feedback! There's something wonderfully inspiring, overwhelming, and heartening about getting thoughtful brainstorms, observations, criticisms, and questions from trusted early readers who care and are rooting for you.

I'm the lucky soul who received long letters and marked mss from my critique group this week (along with shrimp, cheese, crackers, strawberries, and iced cream--we don't believe in being "starving artists").

What I'm doing with them is reading slowly through each, transferring notes to a master print-out so that I can have it all in one containable version. So far, everything's clicking. You know, in the world of critique, there are comments that immobilize and comments that launch. I'm soaring! More on that later.

F&M is still fairly new and needing much love before sending to my editor, but I'm increasingly confident that if I apply myself I can get it in shape to send by December/January.

The big opponent is time. I have a busy summer ahead, and an even busier fall with the release of Santa Knows (Dutton, 2006)--short, intense window for promoting holiday books--and taking on six VC students. Basically, my psychology will have to be that working on the mss is my baseline, and I'm taking breaks to do other things.

For those wondering about the title of this post, it's a quote from "Little Shop of Horrors," which is not surprisingly one of my fave musicals.

X-Men: The Last Stand

"X-Men: The Last Stand" exceeded my expectations tonight at the Alamo Drafthouse on South Lamar. I'd (falsely) heard it was preachier than the last two, which was daunting to consider. Marvel always tends to the preachy anyway. But nope, not so. I was impressed that the franchise moved the storyline forward in ways that made thematic sense, and the casting of Kelsey Grammer as Dr. Hank McCoy/Beast was flat-out brilliant. Needless to say, I had popcorn--with real butter--for dinner.

In other news I'm in the midst of grading one VC packet this weekend and planning to read, speaking of beasts, Beast by Donna Jo Napoli (Atheneum, 2000).

The Hudsons

Last night GLS and I joined KA (author interview), her husband, and his brother at Waterloo Ice House to hear The Hudsons, an amazing Austin-based band that plays there on Thursday evenings.

The music is as funny as it is smart, at a volume, as GLS said, "where you could hear it through you ears, not your teeth." The three male members of the band all were fantastic, but I'd count myself most a Phoebe fan. She's an incredible musician, singer, and entertainer.

On the restaurant, if you're a burger person, order that. Stay away from the grilled taco chicken salad. It doesn't taste bad, but it's more like shredded lettuce with a hint of chicken a dollop of guacamole and a dollop of sour cream. I'm not sure if they forgot the cheese, or it was simply too scant to be spotted.

Between sets, KA ran with me across the street to what she's calling "The Museum of Modern Food" where I picked up some brown rice sushi--spicy salmon with avocado and tempura shrimp.

It was fabulous to see KA, who gave me a big hug, which made a not-so-great day instantly better.

Update: I smothered the pork with guacamole. I can eat anything with guacamole.

With Apologies to Wilbur

Probably the biggest news is that I've agreed (after much negotiation) to eat pork tenderloin for dinner tonight. I'd given up mammals after reading GLS' Tofu and T. rex (Little Brown, 2005)(author interview) in manuscript for the billionth time in 2004.

One of the point of view characters is Freddie Murchison-Kowalski, a die-hard vegan. Though I've spent most of my life along the cattle trail (Chicago, KC, Oklahoma, Texas), much to the horror of my carnivore husband, Freddie really got to me. I haven't eaten a mammal since. Not that she'd approve of my carnage to fish and fowl, but nevertheless, one can't dismiss such a literary impact lightly.

GLS, whose fault this is, has dutifully cooked us non-mammal dinners for some time, but he began begging recently for at least a tad more variety... I'll let you know how it goes.

Quiet catch-up day otherwise. The highlight was lunch with DD, a VC graduate and former Austin SCBWI RA.

I look forward to the three-day weekend. I'll spend some of it grading and working on my summer lecture, but of course I've already bought my tickets for "X-Men: The Last Stand" at Alamo Drafthouse on South Lamar. I'm also considering seeing "Thank You for Smoking" as I enjoyed the book by Christopher Buckley.

Spooky News & Links

Thanks to Spookycyn LJ syndication subscribers Debbi of One Writer's Journey: The Bumpy Road (for her cheers about my forthcoming releases) and Beverly Jean of Never Too Old: Mema Beverly Stowe McClure Becomes a Writer (for the shout-out on my upcoming Santa Knows (Dutton, 2006)).

Bluebirds Forever

Last week I flew to KC to pick up a few momentos of my Grandma Dorothy, who died in late January. Those familiar with my short stories will remember her from "The Naked Truth," featured in In My Grandmother's House: Award-Winning Authors Tell Stories About Their Grandmothers (HarperCollins, 2003), a fine anthology, which went out of print almost instantly. See my Story Behind The Story.

I'd hoped to walk through Grandma's little house one last time, but it had sold to a minister and his wife, who'd closed on it just days before I arrived.

My grandmother was a collector of ceramic bluebirds, and I brought home a few of them, mostly those I'd given to her over the years. There were a few other items--notably including the trivet which reads "Dorothy's Kitchen"--but the bluebird symbol is the one I'll associate with her most.

I saw various family members and friends while I was in town. I also read Romiette and Julio by Sharon M. Draper (Simon Pulse, 2006)(excerpt), which is one of the books I'll be talking about at the VC MFA summer residency, and watched "Aquamarine" (2006).

My KC dining recommendation is the barbecue catfish at Jack's Stack at Union Station.

Comic of the Week: Green Arrow #62

Sneak Peeks: Santa Knows and Tantalize

My amazing web designer debuts new pages on my site for Santa Knows (Dutton, September 2006)(cover art) and Tantalize (Candlewick, March 2007). Click on the title links for flap copy, etc.

The Steve Bjorkman's illustrations for Santa Knows are incredible. I especially love the workshop scenes, which juxtapose the traditional and 21rst century in fun, busy, holiday ways.

Note that the Tantalize ARC has "teaser," not final cover art. I'll let you know when the final art is posted and keep you updated on related book news as it emerges.

See more on all of this at Cynsations.

Swamped

Swamped! That's what I was feeling as I tried to wrap my mind around doing both my talk on retellings for the upcoming VC residency and an article on YA gothic fantasy. Right now, F&M is in the hands of my crit group, but it sails back to my lap (along with three sets of feedback) on the 30th. Given the upcoming demands of my competing so-called non-writing life, it occurs to me that I actually can't do all of this happily and simultaneously.

At this point in my career, it makes more sense to focus on turning in a new gothic fantasy novel mss to my editor than a related journal article. I'll still do the article, but down the road (provided another author in the genre doesn't beat me to it, in which case--hey!--I'm available for quotes). In fact, I'll probably do a GF talk for the winter residency, in which case competing to-dos can become compatible ones. I'm so spazzy. Sometimes I need to give myself permission not to do something, at least for the now.

Thus ends my deep thoughts for the day.

Gruene River

Lovely weekend! FH joined me for lunch (bleu salads) at the South Congress Cafe Friday and then we shopped afterward at Uncommon Objects, just down the street. Then it was off to the UT Club with GLS and AB for shrimp and cheese. On Satuday, GLS and I escape to the nearby German-antiquing-honky tonk town of Gruene, brunched at the Gruene River Grill, and then stopped for a snack (won ton soup and the rare fried crab won tons) at Suzi's on North Lamar back in Austin. Yesterday was quiet. I worked out, formatted up a few interviews, and corresponded a bit with my web designer. This is my version of taking the weekend off. I may not sound like "off," but I assure you, it's an improvement.

This morning I'm rewriting a couple of long-sitting Native American picture book manuscripts as early readers. I've actually been tweaking for a few days, but now I'm armed with critique comments. Not many--a couple of suggestions to make the protagonist and/or language more active and to move one scene. The stories seem to work better this way. They're both highly illustrable, but not the sort of pow! illustrations picture books seem to require these days.

Spooky News & Links

On Spookycyn LJ syndication comments: to WriterRoss, I hope you found a deal at the Coldwater Creek sale; to MoniqueMadigan, I'll definitely let y'all know what I think of The Eyre Affair (Penguin, 2001)--it has been sitting while I finished up Archer's Quest by Linda Sue Park (Clarion, 2006)(excerpt); also waving to BeverlyJean in North Texas.

Taking It Easy

My VC packets are in the mail, and I've pulled some materials to begin thinking about an article for one of the library journals. My eye is bothering me once again, though, so I don't think I'm going to do much more than that today. I've already formatted up two interviews for Cynsations to run this week, and it's beginning to occur to me that I don't really have to work constantly. F&M is in the good hands of my crit group. I'm reading a wonderful novel, Long Gone Daddy by Helen Hemphill (Front Street, 2006). I may also call the doctor once Blizzard jumps down from my lap.

The Sky Is Falling

Well, it was. Actually, it was mostly trees and parts of trees. A series of strong storms have hit Austin, most notably Thursday and Friday nights. At one point we had 70 M.P.H. winds, which split tree trucks all over the city.

That's tornado-force winds, only they were moving straight instead of in a creepy circular motion, which was meager comfort to the big-eyed kitties cowering beneath my bed.

Last I heard BY and FH still didn't have power (along with tens of thousands of others east/central).

Which is of course not to imply that our social lives were affected. GLS and I hosted LL (the George V.,Paris lobster-and-chicken dish) on Friday night and went out with AB (Suzi's North, followed by tea at her place) on Saturday.

We also actually ventured outside Central Austin to the Barton Creek Mall, where I did the ladies-shopping thing at Victoria's Secret, which has become a checkout nightmare. (Do you have our card? No. Do you want our card? No. You don't want to save $100/year? No. Can we have your home phone number? No. You don't want free coupons? No.) I mean, really. From now on, I'm ordering my undies online. I also picked up new headphones for my iPod, and GLS got a couple of pairs of khaki shorts from Foley's.

Happy Cinco de Mayo

Last night, GLS and I hit a signing at the Barnes & Noble Sunset Valley. I picked up a copy of Texas Ghost Stories: Fifty Favorites for the Telling by Tim Tingle and Doc Moore (Texas Tech University Press, 2004). TT is one of my fave Texas authors and a first-rate speaker.

In other news, I'm vexed to discover that the University of Kansas "has announced it will no longer use the Jayhawk logo on official letter head and business cards because the bird is 'too fun and informal.'" I'm a graduate in news/editorial and public relations of the William Allen White School of Journalism and Mass Communications, and I love the Jayhawk! Source: Sports Illustrated (May 8, 2006), which incidentally has a cover article on LA.

Spooky Link

Stuff on My Cat: "Stuff + Cats = Awesome." Big thanks to the heavenly LB for this one!

God on the Highway

I've been driving I-35 north and south for some twenty years, but what really struck me this past weekend is how strong of a showing that religion was making along the way these days.

The number of churches, big and small, is noticeably up, and many were under construction for expansions. So too were the number of billboards with a religious message. A very few were hostile, along the lines of "embrace Jesus or regret it forever." Yikes. But most were of the "I believe in you. -- God" variety.

I think all this is fascinating. I had passing references to church in two my previous books. Rain's family from Rain Is Not My Indian Name (HarperCollins, 2001) includes a Bible quote in the context of a memorial and church-going (the protagonist is avoiding church after the death of her best friend; she's angry and self-isolating in her grief). Likewise, Ray and his grandpa from Indian Shoes (HarperCollins, 2002) are church-going, though the references are in passing (for example, Ray refers to what he wears to a wedding as "church clothes"). I've actually fielded a lot of comments--some praise and some surprise--that these contexts exist in my books, and as a reader, I've noticed that nods to faith and/or its practice are more rare in American children's literature than our national lifestyle would suggest. I wonder why. I'm not talking about preachy-ness in books, which I agree is a huge turn-off, but rather simply the reflection in daily life. Hm.

In any case, the trip was for my cousin's wedding reception, which was lovely. Also, the catfish at the Cracker Barrel is pretty good.

Cut Ellipsis

Hooray! I just emailed my editor my first pass notes for Tantalize (Candlewick, 2007). They consist of a few style questions--"Homo sapiens" in italics? "web site" or "website?"--a few corrected key-in glitches, a few clarifications, a wee bit of normal neurotic author fiddling, and--cough--the cutting of no less than 102 (if I counted correctly) ellipses. 102!

Some are snipped to periods, others changed to dashes or commas, and a few floaters just zipped right out. And it's so funny and embarassing because I remember a note on the copy edits gently hinting something about the multitude of ellipses, and I just couldn't see it, but wow!

In the typeset version, it not only looks like overuse or an affectation but a literal swarm. They're everywhere! It's a horror novel unto itself!

I found a couple of other funny affections, one for 7 A.M. or 7 P.M. as a time reference and even more oddly, one for 2:43 P.M. (used twice to indicate different days in the space of two pages).

Coldwater Creek

Unless you wear women's clothes, this may not be the post for you. But I just thought I'd mention that the Coldwater Creek online outlet is offering 50 to 80% off everything right now. I like Coldwater Creek for a lot of reasons. One is that, so far as I can tell, they are curvy-friendly. Also, they sell a lot of acetate-spandex travel knit, which frankly, is a godsend if you're living in a hot climate like Texas or spead a lot of time on the road or, like me, both. If you spend quality time the floors of convention centers for teacher-librarian conferences, I suggest you stock up, and I also suggest you kiss goodbye your four-inch heels for those venues due to the ouch factor.

First-pages reading for Tantalize (Candlwick, 2007) is ongoing.

Sending smooches to SM! Thanks for the amazing card; I'll write back soon!

Six Feet Under RIP

I watched the series finale of "Six Feet Under" this weekend, and I was struck again by the theme that everyone, everything ends. There's such a tendency to deny mortality or to find it depressing, but I don't. If I could live forever, why would I need to focus on any particular story now? Mortality is a gift. In any case, the episode was strong, inspiring, and I'm glad I watched the entire series.

Eastside Poets

I gratefully handed off F&M to my supportive critique group last night, and I have no intention of looking at it again until I hear back from them next month. We served both deep dish (spinach and cheese) and thin crust (sausage and mushroom on whole wheat) pizza from Mangia for dinner. I had a Greek salad, which I'm sure paled by comparison.

Comments on the chapter of F&M that I read included: much laughter; a couple of suggested jokes, both of which I'll try to work in; "I like the international flavor;" "I like the traditional mixed in;" "a total riot;" and "I love T. He rocks. He rules."

Today, after I worked out this afternoon, I started reading my first pages for Tantalize (Candlewick, 2007). I'm sure this will be my primary preoccupation for the weekend. So far, I have spotted a ridiculous overuse of the ellipses.

Tonight, though, GLS and I had dinner with RK (author interview) and his wife (a retired immigration attorney; she had this fabulous turquoise thing going on) at Eastside (had the mushroom, chicken avocado soup), followed by a drink at the Driskill. They're in town from L.A. for a poetry event.

Micah by Laurell K. Hamilton

Production is ongoing for Tantalize (Candlewick, March 2007). I received my first pages on Tuesday. They look like book pages! What is it about professionally typesetting text that makes it read so much better?

In any case, this is my last chance to make major changes before it will cost the publishing company money (translation: put on the thinking cap now). I have critique group tonight and a dinner tomorrow, so it'll be a focus of this weekend.

Last night I read Micah by Laurell K. Hamilton (Jove Books, 2006), and I think it came out only in paperback because it's more like a really long short story--sort of a slice-of-life piece on the Micah-Anita relationship. The upshot is that Micah is a quality guy who's been through a lot and is devoted to Anita. It looks like Danse Macabre (Berkley Books, July 2006) will be a more traditional blockbuster. I look forward to it.

In other news, I had a lovely lunch yesterday with JW (author interview) at Enoteca Vespaio on South Congress. Try any of the salads. I have a brunch today at Magnolia on Lake Austin Boulevard.

The Sea of Monsters

GLS and I attended RR's signing at BookPeople tonight. His latest is The Sea of Monsters (Hyperion/Miramax, 2006). Great reading, great turnout. Excellent event. Had big fun chatting up some goddesses (Athena, Hera, and even Zeus, King O the Gods--really) from Matthews Elementary in Clarksville.

While at the store, I also picked up The Deluxe Transitive Vampire: The Ultimate Handbook of Grammar for the Innocent, the Eager, and the Doomed by Karen Elizabeth Gordon (Pantheon, 1993) and Micah by Laurell K. Hamilton (Jove Books, 2006). By the way, did the latter come out in hardcover and, if so, why didn't I see it earlier?

First Bite

GLS, as usual, was my first reader on F&M. He didn't seem to find any major structural or character issues, which at this stage is possibly as unsettling as validating. We did brainstorm on a few treatments of specific plot points, though, and I'll key in changes accordingly.

Two members of my crit group are teachers, so I'm not even going to consider tossing it their way until I get the all-clear on their schedules. But I will share one of the new scenes at group later this month.

Now, what I really need to do is let it sit, sit, sit. The next couple of weeks will be mostly devoted to writing a talk and a couple of articles. Or maybe writing a couple of articles, one of which will be a talk. Once I'm "in" a novel, not working on it is almost painful. Big drama-queen sigh.

Happy 80th, JW

Took my fabu new 'do from Bo Salon (2004 S. Congress) to JW's 80th b-day party in Buda this weekend at the Manchaca Firehouse Cafe. Luminaries in attendance included: AB (author interview), FH, BY, DHA (author interview) and TS. The family served fried fish, french fries, hushpuppies, cole slaw, and cakes decorated to look like JW's cover art. JW is the author of Earthscapes and The World According to Rock.

GLS and I passed Easter Sunday quietly, watching "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe," which seemed appropriate enough. He made shrimp creole for dinner.

I've had a sort of rough weekend. My eye was bothering me again, though it's better now. I'd also like to thank TLS (author interview), NW (author interview), LB (author interview), EB, CPK, SP, LG, FB (author interview) for their words O wisdom and LR (author interview) for that and the extra TLC. Most appreciated.

Thinking Ahead

Oh, how I love royalty checks! I'm not so organized as to know when they are coming, so from my perspective, they appear as if by magic with an untold amount of money. This time around I'm earmarking a healthy chunk of the earnings to pay for my publicist for Santa Knows (Dutton, 2006). I consider it an investment in the future.

Cornish Game Hen and Shrimp

In 2001, GLS and I took my advance from Rain Is Not My Indian Name (HarperCollins, 2001) and, after ALA-Chicago, flew to Paris. To the George V Four Seasons, to be precise. We still bask in memories of the experience.

At the hotel restaurant, we had the most divine chicken-and-lobster dish, which GLS replicated for me (using shrimp instead of lobster and Cornish game hen instead of chicken) tonight using a recipe from Chubby Hubby: One Pot Meal: Musings on Food, Wine, and Marriage.

I'm now halfway through grading VC packets and, going through the mail, found a lovely thank-you note from DCR (author interview). I had a chance to chat with NJO at KWH's signing at BookPeople yesterday, and NJO mentioned how much she loved DCR's workshop in conjunction with Austin SCBWI. I've heard great things about this event from a lot of the participants. DCR is a gem!

Gregory, Shrimp, Shrimp, Sushi, and Six Feet Under

AB (author interview) invited us to the U.T. Club for a Friday shrimp siesta.

Then on Saturday, GLS and I hit KWH's signing of Waiting for Gregory, illustrated by GS (Henry Holt, 2006) at BookPeople (author interview). We three had sushi and so forth afterward at Musashino.

We had an interesting conversation about voice, about whether it can be taught. I think it's a matter of courage, that we all have voice worth hearing within us, but sometimes it's a struggle to find the courage to let our voice (as manifested in character) be heard.

I was sorry to miss MM's talk on non-fic at Austin SCBWI today, but the schedule had already filled.

Grading is ongoing. Tonight we're also beginning to watch the final season of "Six Feet Under" on Netflix.

Dead Lines

Deadlines. Dead Lines. Lines of the Dead. Hm, beware of gothic fantasy authors on deadline and where their minds may go.

My students' packets are due this weekend, so my self-imposed deadline for finishing my second first draft of F&M was today. I'm happy to say that all (known) scenes are written. I was going to read it tonight and key in, but real life intruded. It'll have to wait until I'm done grading, and then I'll let it sit for two weeks. During that time I'll prepare a talk and hopefully write two articles.

Call it a plan!

Scrumptious Signing

Tonight GLS and I attended the first signing of debut YA fantasy author JW (author interview) at Barnes & Noble Sunset Valley. It was quite the event! JW went all out, offering chocolates, raffle prizes, and a cookie cake to her guests. It was JW's first-ever author signing, and she handled it with great grace and charm. Luminaries in the audience included VJ and JL.

This afternoon I got one scene written on F&M and then, though I had time to try another, found the well dry. The setting for the next one up is particularly impressive, so I did some online research to try to trigger my imagination. GLS suggested an alternative that may accomplish the same goals for the scene without the complication/diversion. On the theory that sometimes the least complicated solution is the most effective, I'm going to try that first.

Postal Purgatory

Did I say I had three scenes to go on this draft of F&M yesterday? Funny, I wrote a four-page scene today, and when I was done, I still had three to go. Hm. How did that happen?

Today I also had a Stephen-King-esque post office experience. It was the line that would not end, peopled by people with whom I did not want to spend eternity. One postal worker, four empty registers at the main desk. There was a cranky factor.

Forty-five minutes later, I climbed into the Olds, turned on the ignition, and looked behind me just in time to see two cars behind me crash into one another. Needless to say, my quick trip to the P.O. took longer than anticipated.

On the upside FH and BY came by tonight with lovely flowers and red wine to chat writing, reading, and life for a while.

Three To Go

GLS and I took a break last night, and I tried a cup of the shrimp gumbo at the Shoal Creek Saloon on North Lamar. It's a tad pricey at $5.25, but the shrimp are huge, fresh, and worth it.

I spent this morning formatting a couple of incoming author interviews on Cynsations and then keying in the last of of the changes from the read-through. This afternoon I wrote one of the four last scenes--three to go!

Dinner tonight at P.F. Chang's, largely because DHA stuck it in my head at her signing this past weekend. Kung Pao shrimp with peanuts on brown rice.

Spike Versus Dracula

I've finished reading through F&M, and I believe that I have four scenes (that I know of) to write. I still need to key in my notes from this time through, but I'm going to try to have the new stuff written before I receive VC packets on Friday.

By the way, I was reading over at AL's blog that her 18-year-old son thinks she's vain for hosting a website about herself. She takes it in stride, but I suggest Spookcyn readers surf over to offer some TLC (especially any of you who've ever been criticized by a teenager, whether you were one yourself at the time or not).

Also, am I the only one who thinks clocks that automatically switch to Daylight Savings Time are creepy?

Comic O the Week: a hard-fought battle. Runners-up were Batman: Legends of the Dark Knift #202 and Ultimate Spider-Man #92 (could anyone with a magnifying glass please tell me what Kitty says to Peter when they are reunited to prove she's her?); but the winner is: Spike Versus Dracula #2!

Comic Observation O the Week: any superhero whose code name ends with "lad" has a short future.

I See Imaginary People

"My life may be weird, but at least it's not boring."
--spotted on a bumper sticker at Dragon's Lair

GLS and I were crusing home from Dragon's Lair tonight after an afternoon of novel writing. I'm reading over my WIP up to this point, fact-checking and preparing to address the skipped scenes.

Anyway, we're passing the Johnson Creek Greenbelt and my mind's eye produces my first clear image of my co-protagonists. I could "see" them standing side by side in the darkness. They're that real to me now. Finally. Hooray! And whew.

Today's scribbles in the Chicago journal from ERC include a note about T's wardrobe and the weather as he and D leave her place.