Secrets Revealed!

Last week on Facebook and Twitter I mentioned my travels for a secret mission. Today I'm thrilled to be able to share my exciting news with you!

In the lead up to Nightshade's release Penguin has something AMAZING in store for you:

You know that steamy love triangle the reviews have mentioned? Here's your chance to check out one-third of it! (Sorry Team Ren, Guardians don't do social networking ;) )

One of Nightshade's main characters, Shay Doran, has stepped out of the book's pages and into the world.

http://www.shaydoran.com/

Yes - you heard that right - Shay just moved to Vail, Colorado and he's looking for some new friends!

For the next six weeks you can spend time with him as he settles into Vail and tries to figure out what's what in his new home, Rowan Estate. Not only will you be able to read Shay's blog and Facebook updates, but he's also creating a web series so you can explore the mansion with him. As you might suspect, things aren't always what they seem at Rowan Estate and he's going to need your help. Don't let him get lonely in that enormous, empty house!

More details to come, but for now: CONTEST!

Spread the word about Shay's Facebook page and his blog - tell me where you've linked, tweeted, or posted about it in the comments below - and you'll be entered to win a signed Nightshade ARC!

http://www.facebook.com/shadowshay

I'm taking entries until Tuesday, September 7!

September is here, bringing Shay into our world...it's just the beginning.

(Re)Write!

Do you remember the childhood rhyme:

Pete and repeat are sitting in a boat
Pete falls out, who's left?
Repeat

And it begins again. Oh the joy.

I've gotten into the habit of responding to the question: How long did it take you to write Nightshade, with this - I wrote it between Thanksgiving and Christmas of 2008.

Stop. Rewind. Let's clarify and I'm accepting fault here for any misconceptions my pat answer may have created. I wrote the FIRST DRAFT of Nightshade between Thanksgiving and Christmas of 2008. I continued revising that draft on my own from January through March of 2009. With my agents from March to June of 2009 and with my editor from August through October 2009. That first ecstatic draft required a lot of refining.
A while ago I did a post for The Tenners about how not to get published. Here's a relevant excerpt about first drafts vs. revised manuscripts:

Another familiar moment in the writing life: you've done it. You've written a masterpiece! It is so beautiful and it's all yours!! In fact, you decide it's so very, absolutely perfect in that moment after typing the last sentence that you need to send it out to your dream agents NOW. Revisions are for wimps, right?

Wrong. Along with not finishing (and don't you DARE query before you've finished, and I mean really finished!!), querying too early will get you NOT published. I attended a writing conference where Jane Smiley gave a keynote. At one point she said "the first draft of what you wrote is perfect and wonderful, because you wrote it." She was being sincere and her comment encapsulated the joy that is the creative process of writing as well as the unbelievably ecstasy of accomplishment when you finish your novel. But the "perfect" is a moment for you and you alone.

You should celebrate. You did it! But you should NOT query. Think of it as a Gold Rush moment. You're alone, panning in a river and you hit it. The mother load! Wow!! That's fantastic. But no one wants your unformed lumps of golden goodness until they've been heated up and melted down and transformed into a beautiful piece of jewelry. Right? Don't send your lumps of gold out. Wait until you learn how to refine them into something everyone can appreciate.

I'm bringing this up because saying I wrote Nightshade in a frenzied four weeks is probably setting a bad example. That first four weeks was my Gold Rush moment, but months of work after that first milestone transformed my shiny lump into a finished piece.

Writing is the beginning. Rewriting brings the real payoff.
Speaking of rewriting - one of my best debut buddies, with whom I've had the joy of sharing revision chills, thrills, and spills - has a wonderful book hitting the shelves today. If you don't have Kiersten White's Paranormalcy on your radar, hunt it down in a bookstore as soon as you can.
You'll be bleepin' sorry if you don't :) It's hilarious, thrilling and glittering, sparkly fabulous. Happy Book Birthday, Kiersten!

The Fair

Minnesotans have an eerie loyalty to our State Fair. Referred to as "The Great Minnesota Get Together" it draws us together like nothing else.On a gorgeous August Sunday I hit the fair with my husband and two dear friends.

Here's a taste of what we had. My husband and I made a pact to eat three "experimental foods," the staple of fair cuisine.

We had: Scotch eggs on a stickHot dish on a stickand mashed potatoes on a stickThe mashed potatoes on a stick were the winning dish. Really delicious!

We also saw lots of animals,some cute and cuddlysome monstrous
some came with cowgirls
some were fuzzysome recently denudedI love the history of the fair (look at that Art Deco)and its future - this is the Tesla Roadster, gorgeous!We got to say 'cheese':

And see a princess sculpted in butter
Plus there were Great Pumpkins galore.
We also rubbed elbows with a local celeb. This is me and my friend, Aeleah, with Senator Al Franken (also showing - my husband's thumb).It was a wonderful day at the fair indeed.

A Sense of Place

I'm often asked what inspired me to write Nightshade. In the case of this trilogy, the inspiration was Calla, a character whose story had to be told. But this story is something new; I wrote Nightshade between Thanksgiving and Christmas of 2008.

Love of writing is something that's been with me much, much longer.When I think about what inspires me to write I always go back to where I'm from. Recently I had the chance to take a trip to my hometown and was reminded once again why I love it.

The South Shore of Lake Superior is exquisite, but remains undiscovered in many ways.
It has a quality of wildness that lends itself to creative sparks.The landscape itself holds secrets, memories, and histories that evoke storytelling.
My writing also thrived because of the unwavering love of my wonderful family (that's my mom watching the island during our ferry ride. Hi Mom. Thanks for being you!!)
Places inspire me, but none quite as much as that very place where it all began.

What inspires you?

Cover Grrrlz

Time to announce the winners of the WOLFSBANE cover contest. Thank you so much for your entries - you are all so talented!I've selected two winners, each of whom will receive a signed NIGHTSHADE ARC.

The winning covers are:

Khelseaand Denis
Khelsea and Denis please email your mailing address to me and I'll get your ARCs sent!

It was so hard to choose the winners - all the entries were fabulous. Thank you so much to the runners up for their amazing covers:

Lorena
CrissiEmily
Adriana
Your creativity and beautiful designs made me so happy!

The official WOLFSBANE cover is under wraps for now, but your awesome ideas are great substitutes until the final image can be revealed.

A Real Book!

Two months from today Nightshade hits bookstores! I can't think of a more appropriate day for the Fed Ex guy to deliver this:
Yes!!! It's the Nightshade hardcover! My book EXISTS (it is living in warehouses until October).
There was much jumping and shrieking and happy dancing. It is so beautiful. It has rough cut edges that make it look like an aged, secret, mysterious book.
Here it is naked (gasp!)
Look at the purple!
I'm so happy :)

19

90 years ago on this day women finally gained full political access as United States citizens. That's right - today is the anniversary of the 19th amendment, which granted women the right to vote.There are two things I'd like to leave you think about on this important day:

1) It should be mind boggling that it's still less than one hundred years since women have been granted equal political rights in this country. And that's just voting. Control over their own bodies, financial independence, equal rights in the workplace - those were all still well down the road when the 19th amendment was ratified. This is a landmark occasion, but it was only a milestone on a long road that we're still walking

2) With the politics of sexual equality and civil rights for LGBT Americans at the forefront of current political debates, the 19th amendment offers a spotlight on how deeply ingrained bias against change can run. When Abigail Adams pleaded with her husband to 'remember the ladies' in the construction of the U.S. constitution, John Adams responded that to do so would be to place men under a "tyranny of petticoats." If one of the "good guys" of American history had that attitude, it doesn't take much to realize what an uphill battle the struggle for equal rights was and still is.
Thanks, ladies. And let's all keep fighting the good fight.