Fleeting Thoughts

My trip to BEA had an unexpected bonus - it was also Fleet Week in New York City.

Being a child of the '80s I was a devotee of Top Gun and Air Wolf; therefore, I go giddy bonkers at the sight of fighter jets and helicopters. So when Editor Jill offered to take me to see the Intrepid, an aircraft carrier permanently docked in New York, I managed to get in a 'yes' amid giggles. We arrived at the Intrepid only to find it closed for a special event.

However, because it was Fleet Week, the active aircraft carrier - Iwo Jima - was in port and open to the public. Instead of checking out a tourist attraction we were able to see the real deal and chat with very nice Marines and Navy men.
Though it seems obvious I was still amazed at how giant the ship was. And yes, I did want to hum "Danger Zone" the entire time.
My favorite were the helicopters.
But a part of me was always waiting for them to transform...you can take the girl out of the '80s but -
My grandfather was in the Navy during World War II. The ship he was on was torpedoed in the North Sea and he was in a life raft for three days. He shared his memories of war time with our family later in his life - some stories were filled with hilarity, others with pain.

My grandfather passed away last summer. Somehow visiting the aircraft carrier and hearing about soldiers' lives at sea made him feel close again. And this post seemed a good fit for Memorial Day.

BEA: Day 3

Day 3 was really full and will take up a few posts.

But let's start with the morning. I snapped a few pictures of my favorite BEA objects

the Penguin mini

the giant Abrams typewriter

and the Vlad Tod steps!

Then it was on to the signing. Thanks to Editor Jill and Publicist Sarah for shuttling me around and getting everything set

Thanks to Agent Richard for cheering me on and letting me get him to pose with giant Nightshade. I am officially obsessed with giant Nightshade.
And a HUGE thanks to all the lovely BEA goers who came to say hello!

Signing was fun

I signed 150 books in 50 minutes - there was a line! Amazing!

But my hand didn't cramp up
And it was pretty much a hoot and a half :) Thanks, Jill Bailey, for the fabulous purple Sharpie - the perfect Nightshade signing implement!

I'll be posting more about BEA after I've had a chance to catch my breath. Also coming soon: I visit an aircraft carrier (yes for real) and do trapeze without dying (also for real).

BEA: Day 2

Wow! BEA is a whirlwind. I was so busy I haven't taken all the pictures I want, but promise more tomorrow. For now I'm happy to report that the Paranormal Panel was awesome. I met a bunch of book bloggers - yay!!! - thanks so much for coming to the panel guys :) I'm waiting for group photos to be emailed to me and then I'll post them.

Update - hooray: Agent Charlie posted a pic on his web site!

I think I even managed some coherent thoughts beyond "OMG I can't believe I'm on stage with Richelle Mead and Holly Black!"

And the Penguin Booth has a giant Nightshade!!! So of course I had to get pics of that.This is me and Don Weisberg - who I love - he's the President of Penguin Young Readers.

And here's Team Nightshade (or at least three key pack members) Editor Jill, me, and Agent Charlie. Agent Richard came to the panel too (thanks Richard!!!) but he'd ducked out before pics. Sneaky.

More to come - and remember, if you're around BEA on Thursday I'm signing ARCs in the Penguin Booth from 10 - 11 a.m.

BEA: Day 1

Arrived in New York this afternoon and apparently made a good impression on the hotel desk staff (the note says: Congratulations! Have fun! Enjoy! Go get 'em!)
Had a fabulous time at the ABC Not-a-Dinner and (Mostly Silent Auction), where Heather Brewer, me, and Ally Condie had a red carpet moment

And I got to hang out with my amazing editor Jill

and awesome publicist SaraTomorrow: to the Javits Center!

Not About Lost

The blog/tweetosphere is run amok with reactions to the Lost series finale.
Me? Ummmm....I stopped watching Lost after the second season.
Gasp!

It's not that I didn't enjoy it, but I just didn't quite fall in love the way I need to if I'm going to remain loyal to a show.
For example, if you want to hear my theory about what happened at the season finale of Supernatural I'd be happy to share :)

Now that TV business is taken care of, this post has a two-fold purpose.

One to share a GIGANTIC thank you to my wonderful hosts and dinner companions of last week. I had a wonderful time and though it hardly seemed possible am even more excited about October now than I was before.

My last stop was Chicago - one of my favorite cities.
I love the river
and the architecture.
I even had the joy of being caught out in a thunderstorm. That's not sarcasm - I love being caught out in the rain; it imparts a pure ecstasy of life in the moment ;)

I'd like to thank in particular my teen blogger/readers who came to dinner. My soul sistah Zoe!I know - we really could be sisters?! Right? :)

Hallie - who told me she hid Nightshade under her pillow so she could sneak reads when she was supposed to be doing her homework! And Kristen whose blog I'm so excited to read :) Thanks so much for your enthusiasm and kind words about the series!!

The second purpose of this post is to ask a favor. I'm heading to New York tomorrow for BEA. It's my first book convention and I'm sure there will be tons to report, but I'd like to know what you would like to hear about? What BEA buzz should my blog posts send back yonder?

One last item of note: The Frenetic Reader is giving away an ARC of Nightshade! Hurry over for your chance to win :)

Onward

Last day of the pre-pub tour and I'm headed for Chicago.

Milwaukee was a blast. I had such a great time meeting wonderful book sellers and librarians while enjoying a lovely view of the art museum. I only wish I was here long enough to visit the collection!

While I've been traveling, some fantastic reviews of Nightshade have popped up. Check out what Addicted 2 Books and Super Reader Girl have to say about the story!!

Happy weekend :) Here's my fave song of the moment - Broken Bells, The Ghost Inside:

Climbing into Bed

It doesn't take much to entertain me, so I was giddy and giggly at this
it's my bed at the hotel I'm staying at in Milwaukee. It has stairs.

The hotel is lovely. The bed is gigantic - the mattress hits at my waist and I'm 5'5", meaning either the stairs or a running start are indeed necessary to make it up there. I find this endlessly hilarious for some reason.

So I've made it back to the central time zone after a brilliant evening in San Francisco, where I visited Union Square.
And had gorgeous weather.

Then it was on to Denver. Where I had a blast, but not enough time to take pictures. Except of this watchful fellow in the Denver airport, which struck me as quite Nightshade appropriate.

Now I've returned to my home territory. Even though I'm from Wisconsin this is my first visit to Milwaukee. I have already learned that the world's largest bell resides here. Apparently it is larger than Big Ben. Go Sconnies! We have a big bell.

Yes I've been traveling for four days...I may or may not be a bit looped at this point.