Arizona!

Hey Arizona, I'm heading your way in 2 weeks! :) I'm tagging along with my husband on a work trip and thought it would be fun to hang out with some book peeps while I'm there. This isn't an official signing, but I'll be hanging out here:

Changing Hands Bookstore
6428 S McClintock Dr, Tempe, AZ 85283  

On Tuesday, May 7th from 1-3pm. Come hang out with me and chat. 
There should be a few books available, but if you want a guaranteed copy, or can't be there but would like a signed copy of Pivot Point, please order one ahead of time by going here: 

http://www.changinghands.com/book/9780062117373. In the comments field mention you want a signed copy, and if you want it personalized, the first name of the person.

Or you can call the store and order over the phone: 480-730-0205.

Even if you already have a copy, come! Maybe I'll even bring cupcakes or something.

YAppiest Day on Earth

So this last weekend I got to spend the day at Disneyland with some pretty awesome writers, readers, and bloggers at an event called The YAppiest Day on Earth (you know, a play on The Happiest Place on Earth....get it?). It was so much fun that we're already talking about doing it again next year and making it even more epic. Stay tuned for that. But for now, pictures!!

Here's the whole author crew. Should I attempt to name them all? Okay, here I go. From left to right, back row first: Jennifer Bosworth, Chris Howard, Me, Lish McBride, Sean Beaudoin, Kevin Emerson, Elise Allen, Robin Mellom, Gretchn McNeil, Martha Brockenbrough, Rachel Cohn, Carrie Lawler Arcos, Gabrielle Zevin, Cecil Castellucci, Shannon Messenger, Cat Patrick, and Jessica Brody. Phew, that's a lot of writers. And they were all so much fun to hang out with.

Waiting in line for Indiana Jones. Gretchen cuddled with me (and I totally liked it). Favorite pic ever, complete with the Lando T-shirt/Chris Howard photo bomb in the back and Jen's awesome hat. (Thanks to Stacee for this pic)

Another awesome pic provided by Stacee (in the black shirt). This was the group I spent most of the day with. In the middle there is Lani Woodland and her daughter. On the far right, Bailey, an awesome blogger friend. 

After a fun day at Disneyland, we went across the way to a signing/party at the Anabella Hotel.

Gretchen, Kevin, and me (Harper Pals). 

Here's another pic of me and Bailey (from ibbookblogging.net)

Kevin, Me, Shannon (who was so generous to put me up for the weekend), and Chris.

I met so many other amazing people as well that I didn't get pictures with. Including a family from my home town, which was really cool. 

This was such a fun event and I can't wait to do it all again next year. Except you should all come next year too because that would make it even more fun! 

Play List!!

So, I love music. I'm not one of those who can listen to music while I write, I get too caught up in the lyrics. But music inspires me. When I hear songs they paint pictures in my mind. These are some songs that either remind me of Pivot Point or songs I listened to around the time I was writing Pivot Point. So below, when I say 'while writing Pivot Point' I just mean that the songs would get me in the mood to write. Then I would turn them off and write.

1. Little Wonders by Rob Thomas: When I heard this song for the first time, I immediately thought of Pivot Point. It talks about how life is made up of small moments and how fate can be defined and changed in an instant. It made me think of Addie (the main character) and how she needs to move past memories and let things go. I adore this song.
2. The One That Got Away by Katy Perry: Every song obviously can’t be a perfect match for a novel. But the general feel of this song made me think of the fact that in the end Addie has to let go of one of her lives and with it, one person she cares about.
3. Timing is Everything by Gerrett Hedlund: First of all, have you ever seen the movie that this song is from—Country Strong? The movie is amazing and inspires me as a writer. And this song talks about how many things in life are based on timing. Plus, Gerrett Hedlund is hot. Just sayin’.
4. Waiting for The End by Linkin Park: I love Linkin Park in general. Their songs make me want to write. But this song reminded me of Pivot Point. Just some of the lines—holding onto something invisible; waiting for the end to come; it’s out of my control—drew me right into memories of the story.
5. Over My Head by The Fray: This is another band that I adore. This song was on the playlist I played on repeat while writing Pivot Point.
6. Kiss me Slowly by Parachute: This is another song I listened to a lot while writing. This song conjures up so many feelings and images in my mind. I love it.
7. Stay by Mayday Parade: I feel like a broken record, but again, this song makes me think of Pivot Point. The opening line “I need some time just deliver the things that I need for now” takes me right to a certain place in the story. I love this song.
8. Trouble by Never Shout Never: My fourteen year old daughter, who plays guitar and has wide taste in music (from the popular to the obscure), introduced me to this band. This song was one she played a lot in the car while Pivot Point was circling in my brain. So when I hear this song, I automatically think of PP.
9. Already Gone by Kelly Clarkson: “It doesn’t matter where we take this road, someone’s gotta go.” That is basically the bottom line of Pivot Point.
10. Give Into me by Leighton Meester (ft. Garrett Hedlund): This is another song from Country Strong. And this song reminds me of one of the boys in Pivot Point.
11. Why Don’t you Love Me by Hot Chelle Rae: And this song reminds me of the other boy.
12. Half-Life by Duncan Shiek: This is another song can describe some of the elements of Pivot Point. Addie is definitely living a sort of half-life throughout the novel.
13. Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol: Yes. Love this song.
14. She’s So Mean by Matchbox Twenty: This song reminds me of Laila, Addie’s best friend in Pivot Point. It’s not that Laila is mean…well, she can be. She’s super loyal to her friends but sometimes treats boys as expendable.

Procrastination is fun.

I have so much to do! That's why I decided to make a new blog header. Yes, I'm procrastinating. But isn't it pretty?? I'm so proud of myself when I figure out things like this because I'm not very good at technology. That's why I rely on people who are smarter than me and harness the power of Google. Seriously, how did I get through high school and college without Google?? Let me tell you, there were a lot of encyclopedias involved. Back to work for me! (I think my twitter background might need some work)

Book Club!

So.....I am not a member of a book club. Don't get me wrong, I fully support them and think they are awesome. But I think I might get a little heated if someone told me that they didn't like a book I loved. And, since I want people in my town to still like me, I think it's probably for the best if I don't go spewing my book opinions in all the local book clubs. But anyway, this is a super long build up to say that I went to my mom's book club tonight because they chose Pivot Point as their pick for the month!! Suddenly I'm thinking book clubs sound like the best thing ever. It was so fun. I think I might be wrong about avoiding them. I think maybe I should spew my opinions loudly and without filters....oh wait, no I probably shouldn't go that far. But being at book club tonight reminded me that I love hanging out with other people who love books. These ladies were fun and smart and so great to talk to. So thank you, My Mom's Book Club (I don't think that's the official name of the club. Y'all need a cool name for your club. Like The Super Rads or something) for having me tonight. And thank you for obeying the one rule of not saying anything negative about my book until after I left. :)

I thought I'd share a few questions they asked me tonight with you:

*Did you know the end of Pivot Point when you started writing it?
My answer: Yes, I knew how it ended when I started writing. I knew which choice she'd have to make and why. But I wasn't quite sure how it was going to get to that point. So a lot of things I learned as I wrote.

*Did you think of the title of your book?
My answer: Sigh. No. I am apparently horrible at titles and have not titled a single book of mine. My husband thought of Pivot Point. And my agent and editor have titled my others. This is a sad truth.

*What's in store for book 2?
My answer: Book 2 focuses on some of the other abilities in the Compound. It's still Addie's story but with another POV character and some new dilemmas to figure out. The most obvious being (spoiler alert if you haven't read PP) Addie's Erased memory.

*What kind of time constraints does your publisher put on you as far as turning in drafts?
My answer: My editor is a slave driver. No, not really. I generally have six-nine months to turn in a first draft and a couple months with each new revision.

Anyway, that's just a small sampling of the questions that were asked tonight. I think sometimes being in the industry, you forget how foreign a lot of things are. But I really enjoyed explaining the details of the industry. It was a fun night!

You want *more* pictures??

Okay, so maybe you don't want more pictures, but you're getting them anyway because I don't believe I forgot to show you these from my launch party in Utah:

My awesome friend Sara Raasch (who recently sold an awesome book, by the way) made these lovely cupcakes for me. Yes, that is my MC from Pivot Point, Addie, on the cupcakes. Even cooler? She is facing one way on the chocolate/jr. mint cupcakes (that's right, my friend made me jr. mint cupcakes) and another way on the vanilla cupcakes. That was Sara's genius idea. Have I mentioned she's awesome?

Also, what party of mine wouldn't be complete without a bowl full of Junior Mints? Yum! Which reminds me of a story. I saved a box of Jr. Mints for the plane ride home. When I got on the plane, so excited to eat this treat I had resisted eating all week, I opened the box, and they were MELTED!! All of them stuck to the side of the box! It was tragic and heartbreaking. Ask Natalie Whipple, I was very upset about this occurrence (Gah! I don't know how to spell the word 'occurrence'. It took me four tries.) 

Picture Overload!!!

I'm finally home and getting back into my routine. The last week and half has been awesome! I've met so many fun people. Some of whom I've known online for a long time. So now is the time where I show you lots of pictures. All these pictures were actually taken by other people. I brought my camera but didn't take a single shot. I know, I'm weird.

So the day after my launch here in my hometown, I traveled to Utah where I signed in this really cool bookstore called The King's English. If you ever visit Salt Lake you should check out this bookstore because it's such a cute store with its different levels and stairs and seemingly hidden rooms. It's a bookstore that seems like it belongs in the pages of a book.

Photo courtesy of Jenny Weech (Thanks for taking pics, Jenny! And thanks for coming all that way to see me! You're awesome!)

This is me and my good friend, Michelle Davidson Argyle. I bought two of her books when I was in Utah and I can't wait to read them (The Breakaway and Pieces). And thanks for taking pics as well, Michelle!

Next I went down to Provo for a conference called LTUE. It was my fourth year going and I adore this conference. It has such a great mix of readers and authors and illustrators. And it just so happens that four of the thirteeners were with me (All our books coming out this year). They are some of my best friends, which always makes a conference that much more fun. From left to right Renee Collins (Relic), Jenn Johansson (Insomnia), Me, Natalie Whipple (Transparent).

And here are even more awesome people that were at the conference. Yes, I'm the floating head in the back. (Also, that floating head next to me is my best friend, Candi. And, as I'm searching pics, it's the only one I can find of us at the conference, Candi! Why did we not take more pictures together? Probably the same reason I brought a camera and never used it.....yes, laziness.)

Natalie Whipple almost won the award for taking the most awkward shots of me for these awesome pics:

But then I went to San Diego to sign with Kiersten White for her launch of Mind Games and the lovely Ava took this shot and totally won the prize:

I don't know if it was the angle or what, but that picture could be used by the next circus that comes through town. "Come see the giant woman, folks!"

This angle is a much better. Although Kiersten wins the prize for best mid-sentence expression. 

Also, I got to meet the lovely Cindy Pon. She is so nice and adorable. I've known her online for quite some time so it was great to finally meet her in person.

It was such an awesome week. I love authors. I love readers and librarians. Thanks to everyone who helped make my launch week amazing.