On July 26 - one month from today - Wolfsbane will be on sale! I can't wait to share Calla's next set of adventures with you.
I have some big news related to Wolfsbane's release date.
I'm having a party! And not just one, but two parties!!!!
July 26 is not only Wolfsbane's release date, it is also the release day of the fabulous Kiersten White's Supernaturally. Since Kiersten and I are friendly-like and we've decided Calla and Evie would get along smashingly, we're throwing a big party in San Diego. And guess what?? The amazing Stephanie Perkins - author of Anna and the French Kiss and the upcoming Lola and the Boy Next Door - will be signing with us too! Given how zany and unpredictable the three of us are, it is sure to be a riotous, laugh-filled evening. Or the universe may implode. Either way, exciting times to be had!
The best things in life are often unexpected. 2010 will go down as my favorite Halloween weekend on record because I was surrounded by family and friends at the Nightshade release party. I'll do full-party blogging soon (I'm waiting on all the pictures to come in), but I wanted to do a Halloween post about joyful surprises.
I was shocked by the number of people who drove long distances to come to party. Dear, dear friends came to surprise me including my high school English teacher, Mrs. Heisler, who always encouraged my writing dreams.
One of the best surprises of this entire experience, however, have been the new and wonderful friendships I've made through Nightshade. My awesome teams at InkWell and Penguin - the amazing YA authors I've met at conferences. And then there's Shay. Actually he's Will Browning - the actor who brought Shay to life in the Shadow Days webisodes. Getting to know Will has been awesome because not only is he incredibly talented, he's also one of the loveliest people I've ever met.
I was honored that he came all the way from Florida to attend the Nightshade party. And (bonus!) he spent the weekend hanging out with my family and friends.
We took a tour of Minneapolis and St. Paul highlights and he took lots of pictures.
We carved pumpkins and named them Bateman and Sebastian. And he stayed up until 3 a.m. with me watching Labyrinth. As an author, I thought there could be nothing better than having a talented actor portray one of my characters. I was wrong. What's even better is meeting a kindred spirit and making a friend for life.
Thanks for everything, Will!
Wishing all of you a Happy Halloween full of more treats than tricks!
And a huge thanks to DJ for sending me a picture of his pumpkin! Yay!!!
So Nightshade has been in stores for about a week and for five days of that week I was at home with the flu. I'm finally making my way back into the world and getting to see and hear fun book buzz.
I've been getting wonderful emails from readers - thank you so much for sending them. And I just learned that a Nightshade fan site is being created!!!
Check it out: http://nightshadenexus.com/
I've also had the chance to do some stock signings so if you're around Minneapolis you can find signed copies of Nightshade at Bookcase of Wayzata, the Borders at Rosedale, and Barnes and Noble at the Mall of America. I'll be signing stock at Borders Woodbury tomorrow.
Remember you have two days left to send me photos of Nightshade in the wild to be entered in the Mister Wolf prize pack contest.
Some folks who are most definitely ready are the lovely ladies at the Red Balloon Bookstore in St. Paul, MN, where on October 29 we're having my official book party. I can't wait!!!
Time for a contest!
Your mission, should you choose to accept it:
The week of October 19, hunt down Nightshade in your local bookstore and show me when you've captured the book! Share your picture of Nightshade in the wild in the comments here, on Twitter, Facebook or your own blog. Contest is open until Wednesday, October 27.
The winner will receive this extra special Nightshade prize pack, which includes:
Mister Wolf the puppet (recognize him from the photo above?) Allegro Coffee's Vail Blend Calla's favorite book, Watership Down A journal in which to record your own stories Three CDs that were oft played in the writing of Nightshade (TV on the Radio, Bat for Lashes, and Radiohead) And 5 signed bookplates to share with your friends (or hoard, if you'd like)
Please note: While sometimes you can find books prior to their official publication date, Nightshade has a strict on-sale date of October 19 so don't go hunting until next Tuesday. The contest will be open from Tuesday October 19 to Wednesday October 27.
It all leads up to the Nightshade release party on October 29. I can't begin to tell you how excited I am that we're having the party Halloween weekend. Halloween is my favorite holidayand has incredible significance to Nightshade's plot. The party is at the Red Balloon Bookshop in St. Paul and of course you're all invited. We'll have cake and libations AND a literary costume contest.
Plus, there's a special guest of honor: Shay! That's right. If you haven't heard yet. Shay Doran has stepped out of Nightshade's pages and is spending some time with us in the real world. And he's coming to my party. Hooray!
Shay's trying to adjust to life in his new home, Rowan Estate, and it's not going very well. Too many things that go bump in the night aren't letting him get settled in. He's going to need your help figuring out how to deal with the weirdness. And if you help him, you have a chance to become part of Nightshade's world. Shay's adventures over the next six weeks will become part of the official Nightshade prequel I'm writing: Shadow Days. Stay tuned for more details and be sure to keep Shay company!
Welcome again to my new followers, thanks for being here - exciting times ahead!
