Here are a few more WL Casting videos:

Emma:



Katrina:



GymnasticsxxChick:




And from the Rather's conterst, we have a book trailer for RADIANT SHADOWS:



I'm very much enjoying seeing all of these!

I just got permission to share. I have a cover.....................




I love it.

ETA: It's also on Goodreads now.

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6368610-radiant-shadows-wicked-lovely-4

AND

on my Flickr page http://www.flickr.com/photos/melissa-marr/4120168013/

Here are a few more journal pages. The first set of
pages are over here.

NOTE #1: If you "click" the images twice, they should get big enough to read. The first "click" will open in a new page, & the second click will enlarge them to full screen.

NOTE #2: I do apologize for my handwriting. You can see that the faster the thoughts go, the less readable it is. . . which has the unfortunate consequence of making the transcription from notebook to type a challenge sometimes.

( Read more... )

I have a stack of notebooks. Almost every story I have started ends up in these (as well as revision notes, scrawl from phone calls w editor & w agent & w crit partners). When I travel, I always have a notebook, & on flights & in airports & when I am waiting for appointments or getting my hair dyed, I write in longhand.

Mostly, the only one who ever sees inside my notebooks is, well, me. They are my unpolished, as first draft as it gets text. They are the "just rolled outta bed, haven't combed my hair or washed my face or oh gods where is my tea??" version of text :)

That said, people often ask about the writing process. It is one of the top 3 writing questions asked in email & at events. I did a big blog on writing the manga (& a lenghy thing on it over at the Book Smugglers--and on the USB drives I gave out at events last year). I guess this is part of the answer to "How do I write a book?" For those who are interested, under the cut is the early stuff from Wicked Lovely that not even my editor or agent or crit partner have ever seen. For those who aren't interested, well, it's under an lj-cut to spare you :)

NOTE #1: If you "click" the images twice, they should get big enough to read. The first "click" will open in a new page, & the second click will enlarge them to full screen.

NOTE #2: I do apologize for my handwriting. You can see that the faster the thoughts go, the less readable it is. . . which has the unfortunate consequence of making the transcription from notebook to type a challenge sometimes.
( Read more... )

Now, off to see if I can find what I was actually looking for in these journals ;)

For those who are interested in the trailer entries so far, I have a few to share:

( Read more... )

I love this. Seeing what you all think/see when you visualize my characters is great fun. Keep letting my know when you have entries up. I'll be linking them on a YouTube page (& sharing that info on Twitter, Facebook, & MySpace). Remember that there are NO right answers, just varying opinions . . . kinda like most things in life :)

Contest 1. The enter-to-win on Goodreads went live. (10 ARCs)

Contest 2. Readers have started to submit entries for the first option (the WL World casting video). Remember to reply to this thread with the URLs for your WL Casting videos. (10 ARCs)

Contest 3. And the folks over at the Rath already have read the first 5 chapters so they can enter in their contest. That contest is for ALL Rathers (no restrictions). It can also include WL Movie Casting videos, WL book talks (you & your webcam), or any other WL video you devise. (12 ARCs)

Contest 4. Will happen in December, but the other 3 contests are already in progress.

That's 32 ARCs right there that I'm sending out to readers.*

QUESTIONS ANSWERED

Q:. But I live ----, & you are excluding me!
A: I'm sorry. I'm not trying to be mean. I have restrictions I have to follow. It's NOT personal.

Q: I would post abt it here, there, & other places.
A: In Dec there will be a 4th contest. Posting the links to the best casting video or fan made book trailer will get you up to 6 entries in that contest. Offering me reviews won't. (Sorry.) I say this every year, and I'll repeat it again: that's not what these ARCs are for. They're mostly either a) I'm impatient & want to share w readers who want to read and b) thank you gifts for helping keep me sane-ish during this career. In the past 2 years, I've sent my share of the ARCs to Rathers (those at the wl.com fansite) are Solstice gifts. This year I begged for extra to send more. They agreed. These are mine. I'm doing what I want with them.

Q: Videos??
A: Yep. I did photos, visual art, rec a song, rec a band, & now I'm doing videos. Why? *pauses* I can't create art. I love seeing it though. I also feel like a fool when ppl ask me abt "dream casts" for the Wicked Lovely movie. The only ideas I have are the ones my Rather Lovelies over at WL.com have given me. And, yeah, my producers have asked for my insights. . . but let's me honest, folks, if I didn't even know who Vince Vaughn was before his production house wanted to buy WL, the odds of me having any actors in mind are pretty freakin slim. (No, Vince isn't going to be in it. Yes, I trust that my producers will have brilliant ideas for casting, but I still am intrigued by what YOU see.)

Q: I can't make videos.
A: Me either ;) That's why there are a Goodreads & random number gen contest too.

Q: Still shots ok for videos?
A: Yep. Animation is too (for the trailer one). I'm all sorts of flexible. I just want to see what you see.

Q: What abt a WL/INK./FE trailer? Can that count too?
A: Sure. Post it in the reply to the WL casting thread.

Q: Why do the WL.com folks get to see the excerpt? Why can't I join there & see it?
A: Bc admin has imposed a 50 post minimum to see it to prevent that very thing. It's a gift to ALL active Rathers that I got special pemrission to give them. Seriously, folks, when I was on tour these people went for walks w me, joined me at an aquarium, tea shops, bars (only the adult readers!!!), restaraunts, uppity hotel lobbies, bookstores, a Target, museums . . . They send me cool letters. They send me notes of "saw you were in __. Great tea shop on __" (or store/funky spot/cool building). They've knitted me scarves.

I try to let them know how much I love their support of my books & their kindness to me, and it occurred to me that this was something I could give to them. Harper will post the same excerpt in the Spring. My Rathers just get it first. I mean seriously, several of them have adopted me as their "Auntie M" How could I NOT want to give them special access??!

----
* Yes, reviews are allowed to enter, but you just don't get any special consideration. I'm not excluding you, but having a blog, newspaper, or any other review outlet doesn't get you a copy. That's what publishers do--give to reviewers.

Ok, all, here's the surprise I've been waiting for permission on--

Last year I asked Harper Marketing for permission to ask you all to make book trailers in order to give away books.

This past summer I asked for permission to get ARCs to give away.

I just found out that I'm getting both. There are FOUR ways to get an ARC of RADIANT SHADOWS.

NOTE: For legal reasons, ARCS are restricted to the US & Canada.

The possible routes to get an ARC ARE--

1. Goodreads. I'll be giving some away in the Goodreads program.  Not sure how that works yet, but it'll get figured out & I'll post here (& Twitter & FB) when that goes live (in late Nov/early Dec).  At least 10 ARCS this way.

2. Fansite--I'll be posting the first 6 (or maybe 7) chapters in a locked post over there this week.  It's only going to be viewable to those of you who are active in the Rath.  Why? Bc the Rathers keep me sane(ish) when I'm drafting, revising, and out on tour.  So every active Rather will get to see the first few chapters of SHADOWS within the next week.  From that, I'm inviting them all to make book trailers.  Admin will upload them to YouTube. ANY & EVERYone  will vote on the best of the book trailers. The top 12 get ARCs.

3. Casting videos

Q: "What do you most enjoy about teaching literature?

Everything :) I love teaching. It's a kick in a way that nothing else ever is.   A good book signing or panel has a few such moments, but teaching gave me that rush regularly. That doesn't mean every day was a traipsing thru fields of flowers thing: there were bad classes.  There were students I failed to reach.  There were plagiarism cases that caused me ridiculous amounts of angsting. There was one athlete I wanted to thwack on the head, & there was one addict I wanted to adopt & fix. Teaching is not always fun.  Parts of it are frustrating. 

Faculty meetings & dealing with faculty politics are my suggestions for adding to the circles of hell. (Really? Some of these folks have lived in their ivory towers too long.  They aren't there to teach, but as a place to hang their hats while the apply for research grants or to subsidize their writing income.  It's a systemic problem that I don't know how we should fix, but I DO know that it needs fixing.)

Still . . . put me in a classroom & tell me to talk lit . . . *sighs* there's nothing like it.

Q: "Do you read literature or nonfiction exclusively when you write or do you read both?"

I'm always writing so I don't limit my reading bc of it . . . except that I don't read books w potentially similar sounding premises to what I'm writing. 

In faery* books, Holly Black is tops (IMNSHO), but she hasn't had a new faery book while I've been writing since Ironside (ergo I haven't had to suffer delays in reading her.). I adore her YA faery books, & I have pondered begging her to turn one of her short stories into a book (from her POISON EATERS collection).  It's not faery, but it's freaking gorgeous.  Back to faery though . . .  I've had a few LOVE it moments in faery fiction since I started writing.  In particular Janni Lee Simner's Bones of Faerie & RJ Anderson's Faery Rebels (AKA Knife).  They were read when I wasn't writing, but they're also pretty far outside what I write in terms of plot.  They are VERY fab & lore-based. 

Obviously, I veer towards folklore based fiction (species is immaterial), but I read across the board.  Joe Hill's Heart Shaped Box was one of the best books I've read in years. I crush on Eloisa James' Duchess series (historical romance=yay!). 

As to fic and non-fic, I'm mostly a fiction reader.  I dip into very specific nonfiction (folklore, criticism, or research for a text I'm pondering). I read a lot of romance.  I tend to default to historical romance, but I enjoy contemporary, time travel, & paranormal too.  I'm not a fan of SciFi Romance, not bc there's anything wrong with it. Aliens simply don't appeal to me.  I like mainstream fiction (T Chevalier is an auto-buy for me).  I get on poetry kicks, but I don't do novels in verse or much contemporary poetry.  In poetry, I default to mostly dead folk. And, of course, I get on classics kicks.  Nothing tops Faulkner. I'm not a huge Jane Austen fan, but I enjoy her. I think Flaubert's Madame Bovary, most of Hardy's novels, & some Bronte . . . really I'm an 1800s-mid-1900s novel fan.  My two eras in grad school were the British Victorians & Faulkner, so a lot of my reading tastes derive from the same tastes that lead to my picking them.

I still read some criticism on Faulkner, the Victorians, the PRB, & narrative structure. I subscribe to some academic journals specifically to do so. That tends to sate a lot of my nonfic needs.  Well, that & kidlit theory/paranormal theory . . . and lately, mortuary science.

I have a problem with books. Fortunately, it's a healthy thing to be addicted to. 

Q: "When doing research on Faerie lore and stuff, how would you recommend going about it? Is the Internet a decent source of information, or are books and stuff more reliant? Are there any books/sites that you'd recommend?"

First, *sends adoring thoughts for asking a research question*

Sacred-texts.com has a lot of old texts scanned in. If you're going Celtic faery, go here. Start reading.  The Secret Commonwealth (Kirk) is essential. If you're going Welsh, read the Mabinogion.  Evans-Wentz Fairy Faith in Celtic Countries is a great text.  Thomas Crofton Croker, T Keightly

If you're looking for hard copy (newer but still awesome), Eddie Lenihan is a master (http://www.eddielenihan.com/). Meeting the Other Crowd is one of my favourite books. 

Honestly, there's a lot of great stuff there. I like hard copy (and yes, I am anti-ebook/ebook readers as a personal choice).  Free text is a goodthing when budget is a concern though.  Read the old texts.

Do NOT read other novels with faeries until after you do your research. (Yes, I realize that I am suggesting that you don't read my books, too.) It's the sourcetexts that matter most.  Read those. Then you can read contemp fiction--but be aware that you may get grumbly when you do so bc few things we write in fiction are as captivating as the research is. 

----
* That part has been easy so far bc I'm a picky picky bitch when it comes to faery books.  My family roots are in Ireland, Scotland, & a tendril in Germany.  So these are my heritage. I'm particular.

Q: "random beyond random is it weird signing books all day and then switching your signature for day to day stuff? idk why its bugging me lately, but it has been bugging me since July, when seeing you sign for lunch, no clue why, but it has. so asking it here."

A: *grin* I don't usually sign any other name.  For most of my life, my only name was "Melissa Marr" or "Miz Marr" or just plain "Melissa" or sometimes "Lissa" or "Miss" or "Missy" . . . or, umm, pet names that parents assign or nicknames* I won't be sharing in public ;)  These days, I do have a second surname, too.  I don't actually need it for much though.  My bank accepts both (& really? Marr is FOUR letters so why use the longer one or both??).  My spouse handles the bills these days (I used to, but we shift off every few years & it's his turn). So aside from when I sign reportcards, I don't really need to sign anything but "Melissa Marr." 

Now ask me if I can remember my phone number or address when I have to fill out paperwork . . . *shudder* No joke. I have my phone number & address in my contacts on my own phone so I can look it up.

Q: "I have just finished reading Fragile Eternity and I must say I loved it. I have loved reading all your books and I'm just wanting to know when your next one will be released. Congratulations on a fantastic book."

Thank you :)  Radiant Shadows will be out April 20, 2010 in the US, Canada, UK, Australia & anywhere those places export to.

Q: "I absolutely love Leslie. She's such a real, and likable, character. I've been reading the teasers but haven't read her name or anything. Is she a major character in Radiant Shadows? I hope so. I adore her. Maybe I just missed a post or something."

Leslie isn't in SHADOWS. She is, however, one of the central characters in the short story ("Stopping Time") that I gave Harper to put in the paperback edition of FRAGILE & to give away as a free ebook.

------INK EXCHANGE SPOILER AHEAD ------------

*
*
The choice she made at the end of INK means that she won't be a main point-of-view character in the remaining 2 novels. I know some readers & reviewers thought that her choice at the ending was a to be "cliffhanger" to set up a sequel. Nope. It really was just the right choice for who she is & where she was at that time. Sometimes we need to learn who we are before we can try to build something w other people. She was too broken to be able to be with either of the two faeries who love her. 

. . . & even if she was able to just shrug off the things that she experience, there are problems. Having a future with a Gancanagh means willingly accepting being an addict.  Iri is a Gancanagh at the end of INK. Choosing to be w Niall means living in the Dark Court. That life isn't going to give her the sort of future she wants. So . . . hmm. Will there be a chance that that could change? Maybe, but I guess it's a matter of where she will end up, but getting there isn't something that works in the now.

Sometimes love isn't enough to change where we are, who we are, & where we need to go. For Leslie, walking away from the world of faeries, courts, & intrigue (along w the human baggage she acquired in Huntsdale) was the only way to pursue the future she wants.  

She is, quite honestly, one of my favourite characters in the series, but her story is one that will continue outside their world not in these novels.  I did write the aforementioned short story in part bc while I know what her future holds, that wasn't something that fit in the novels, so I wrote a short story as a glimpse into her life.

Q: "What are you reading?"

Tonight? My email backlog & Graveminder so I can make it better.

Recently, I've enjoyed:
Rosemary Clement-Moore's The Splendor Falls (ghost/Gothic/mystery/paranormal),
Kiersten White's Paranormalcy (out in 2010, YA paranormal/adventure),
Madeline Hunter's The Saint, The Sinner, & The Romantic (all adult historical romance),
Molly Harper's Nice Girls Don't Have Fangs (adult, snarky librarian-turned-vampire),
W Todd Harra and Kenneth McKenzie's Mortuary Confidential (think of that "Chicken Soup" series but about Undertakers),
Carleton's The Moonflower Vine (adult, mainstream fiction),
Katie Alender's Bad Girls Don't Die (YA, ghost, creepy) .
Teresa Medeiros Breath of Magic (adult romance, time travel)
Kentucky Folklore & Superstition (collection; re-reading excerpts)
Enchanted Hunters: The Power of Stories in Childhood (theory/criticism; reading excerpts)
Coyote Stories (collection; re-read)

I've read others that I'm forgetting I'm sure (& a few I started but was bored by), but that's where my head was the past couple weeks.  As always, I only list them if I've enjoyed them.

_________
* Never "Mel" thank goodness. I'm just not a Mel, but I had a couple not-PG names among some friends that would sound far more inappropriate (or sleazy) than funny if you weren't a part of the crowd I was with then.  

Sorry so silent over here.  I did read the plethora of questions over in the current question box entry (to ask a question just reply to that entry). There's no real box at this point :)

News-ish stuff . . .  not a whole lot on the work front. I finished the edits for the "Stopping Time" story (a free Leslie/Iri/Niall story that I wrote on a whim & am now giving away in March). I looked at thumbnails for the 3rd manga volume, and I continue writing/revising Graveminder in preparation of submitting it to my editor in the next month.

Next weekend I'll be at FaerieCon in Baltimore.

An interview I did went live. There are also bonus questions with it (on my tattoos & on getting published, IIRC).  I haven't listened to it but I know it was early (like still having the first cup of tea early), so no promises that I make ANY sense.  OTOH, the lovely Holly Black was also in the interview & SHE always makes sense. Listen to her if you're looking for articulate (my interviews are a bit stream of consciousness--more so even than the blogs--with lots of "yanno" & "umm" & "like" when I get going).

Speaking of getting wound up, I taught high school one day last week.  *happy sigh*  There is nothing in the world quite like getting to teach. (Of course, afterwards I'm a moping mess bc it's OVER. I came home & told Spouse I wanted to quit writing & return to teaching. . . which obviously I can't, but that was all I could process as I left.  Guess what I'll be volunteering to do again?)

Anyhow . . . A creative writing teacher let me come in & teach his classes--which was great fun.  It wasn't an author visit (which to be honest still weird me out).  We didn't talk abt my books, but abt writing & being a writer & em dashes & commas &, umm, zombies . . .  I miss the classroom.  I do love writing, but there's a feeling that comes from teaching that I don't get anywhere else. I volunteered to go back, & I'm now looking into finding schools where I can go, teach for a day, & then go back to real life.  I may have a plan for it, but I'm still sorting

( Read more... )-----
* Why, yes, I do have an art-crush on him.  Check out his landscape photos if you want to know why.

** No, of course, I won't give you hints as to who dies.

*** Except on piracy sites where they are the "Tattoo faeries" series which irritates me.  Seriously? If you are going to go all epiracy, at least keep the publisher's series name or better yet use the series name I like. It feels like nasty appropriation to re-name my books. Names matter^^.

^ which is up for pre-order on Amazon, I hear, but not yet on IndieBound or B&N or Borders

^^. . . which is why, FWIW, I loathe having people shorten my name without my accord (esp to "Mel" *shudder*)  </div>

More questions answered, but just a couple quickies today . . .


Q: "Is there anything specific I need for a Sorcha costume for Halloween?"

A camera so I can see a picture of the costume :)

Visual: 
Sorcha is my most out-of-time faery. In my mind, she wears stylish but not our era dresses (whether they are British Regency or old Greek or 1800s American South). She is typically barefoot. She has long vibrant red hair. The easiest shortcut for a visual is to think of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood paintings.

Q: "Houston misses you. When are you coming back?"

LOL. I keep expecting Houston to get sick of me. I've been there 3 (4?) times for events in 3 years. Hmmm. I'll be back in January for the Montgomery County Teen Book Festival. It's around the 23? 24? of January, so not quite 12 weeks from now :)

Q: Do you know how the series will end or are you still figuring that out as you write? (Obviously, I'm not asking for you to give anything away)

I know. . . especially as the faery book I'm writing is the end of the Faery Court books. I'm not sure if I'll write other stories in this world later, but the arc with these 4 faery courts (Summer, Winter, High, Dark) and these regents will end in the 5th book. I know the ending.

There are some clues set in FE, others are in SHADOWS, so it's stuff (I think) that you will look back & see the clues for . . . or predict. I had one reader send an email after she read FE & ask "Is ----- going to happen?" which was actually the ending I intend, so I know the hints are there :) Actually some of them are visible back in WL, and all I do is let those threads follow to their logical conclusion.

That said, there are Big Events and then are day-to-day details in every book. There are things I figure as I go too. Think of it like a road trip. You know you'll be stopping in x, y, h, & j cities or attractions. The things btw them though . . . wide open. That's how I like my trips & my writing process.

Q: I love Irial, can you tell me about him? Just anything you can think of..

Hmm. That's pretty wide open . . . I can tell you that 1) he's in SHADOWS (April 2010 in the US, Canada, UK, Australia, NZ, & anywhere those folks export to) and 2) there's a short story w him in it that I think will go out (free) in March 2010.

Also . . . hmm . . .  *digs around on hard drive*

I'm always poking at various texts to see if I want to pursue them. At one point, I considered an epistolary text, but the problem is that while I can learn the style of an era, I can't do the spelling . . . and I'm sure my diction would fail (unless I got to take a few years to research which I'd love, but can't do right now). As fun & practice, I wrote a few letters & journals in various periods--including some from the WL world characters.

I also write various bits of story from other characters pov. Some of these projects intersect :)

Below is a letter from Irial (900 years ago) that was fun to write. Please NOTE that it is a draft/experiment.

( Read more... )

As promised, here's the next question box.

QUESTIONS:
Most topics are fair game.  You can, of course, ask me anything--but know that there are some questions I won't answer :)   That said, asking is harmless, so to those of you who start w "I hope it's ok to ask. . ." It is. Honest.  Life is short. Don't worry over that sort of thing.

ONLY 2 RULES (I can think of, at least):
No asking me to read anything.

No asking me if I like a book/what I thought of it.

ASIDES:
This is much much more efficient than emailing, PMing, or sending notes thru Facebook/MySpace/Twitter/LJ, so I will continue to try to do this periodically.

All comments will be anon, so you won't be able to see them. I am the ONLY ONE who can see the reply thread here.

Questions are now open.  Have at it.

On Twitter while I was doing the galleys today, I posted random sentences from Radiant Shadows.  As I doubt that everyone here follows Twitter, but thought a few of you might want a couple teasers, I'm x-posting them here.

( Read more... )

Also, it looks like the book will release in the US, Canada, UK, Australia, NZ & anywhere the US or UK exports to all at the same time (April 2010).  So to those of you in various spots emailing & asking, there's your answer :)

Oh, & the winners of the UNBOUND & HALF MINUTE HORRORS copies were posted tonight over at the Rath.

Ok, all, I'm getting near the point of taking anotherpause on these, but I'll get a few more in yet, so here's another Q&A post.
( Read more... )

I've had a variety of questions on research & folklore, but they both boil down to these, so here they both are.  (Also a YouTube video of a fab poem on topic.)

( Read more... )

In fact so much so that here AGAIN is a poem that  the ever-lovely Neil Gaiman wrote. (It's my fav poem** of his!)  It's based on the commonalities of rules. I have posted it here before, but I think everyone should hear it/read it, so here it is again:




Q: What sort of paranormals/supernaturals do you think are underrepresented in the paranormal romance/fantasy genres?
( Read more... )
So, I guess my take on it is that the discussion isn't really abt "what creature" is hot/next. If you look at the width of the options, it's not that narrow. It makes for great article/focus to talk abt the "next big thing" but I think that books that are written w passion have a better chance to stand out regardless of creature type. I think that the variety of "types" here are reflecting that hope too.

In other words, write what you know & love.

. . . and I'm off now to do just that :)


-----------------
* yeah, i know, I'm a hardass on this topic. I don't mean to be, & I try to be all flexi-chick, but I'm not. I love the lore. I love the history of it, & it grinds my teeth when people write a thing bc it's "hot" not bc they love it. Do what you love. Plain & simple.

** So much so that I got ridiculously teary-eyed when he gave me the copy of it that hangs in my house.</div>

News (writing life):

The first 3 WL books sold in Russia recently, bringing the total of translation rights to 20. It's still a gleeful thing each time, which I like, & necessitates telling Spouse, "Ooooh, guess what?"  I think that's the way life should be though. Every day has something in it that makes my emotions rocket into a different place.   Obviously, I prefer the sudden bursts of glee, but the flares of temper & bouts of panic are pretty ok too. Emotion=still alive, not just existing. That's always been a big fear of mine. I don't ever want to merely exist.  I want flux.  I want to clap my hands like my 3 year old niece does.  Writing enables me to do that.  Motherhood does too.

I told my producers my "ideal actress" for Ash--and they concur that she's a good one to consider. (NOTE: Nope, not telling who bc that seems inappropriate in case we don't get her.)  Things continue to move fwd. Screenplay in in process.  We've talked a bit on other things. I continue to love Wild West Picture Show Productions.

Also? No. I'm NOT the one picking the actors at all :)  I had an ideal for ONE character, so I passed it on. That's it. I'm done now :)

Last week was Frankfurt, & my agency took the excerpt of Graveminder as one of their features--which, yanno, sorta terrifies me.

"The agency will be offering Nora Roberts's first paperback original, The Bride Quartet, which has already sold in 10 foreign markets. There's also Neil Gaiman's narrative nonfiction title Monkey and Me, which William Morrow is publishing stateside. The book is a chronicle of Gaiman's travels throughout China as well as a retelling of a famous Chinese story involving, as Gaiman told an MTV blogger, a monkey, a pig and a water demon (hence the title). And from Michael Lewis (Moneyball) there's The Big Short, about the financial collapse and the people who predicted it. From Josh Gaylord (Hummingbirds), writing under the pseudonym Alden Bell, is the literary zombie novel The Reapers Are the Angels, which Holt is publishing; rights sold in Spain. From Melissa Marr, author of the bestselling YA Wicked Lovely series, there's Graveminder, her adult debut, which HarperCollins is publishing in the U.S., about two childhood friends who reunite in their hometown to face down a local curse; rights sold in the U.K. and Germany. On the nonfiction side, WH is shopping science journalist Rebecca Skloot's The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (Crown, Feb. 2010), about HeLa, the “immortal” human cell line—taken nonconsensually from a poor woman named Henrietta Lacks who died of cancer in 1951—that's served, per the agency, as “one of the most widely used tools in science research.” The book focuses on the science as well as the tragic tale of the Lacks family." http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6699042.html 

OTOH, I'm realllllly having fun writing the book.  I'm in the final stretch, & I expect revisions to be on schedule.

. . . which means I'm totally on schedule for WL #5 too.  I had a few ?s on that, so let me reiterate that doing GM does not in any way impact the schedule for writing the final WL book. That book is due to my YA editor in July 2010. I've already begun it.  Don't stress.  I really do have a schedule & I always have two projects underway at once.  It's how I work best.

News (life):

My baby turned 11 last week.  This weekend we had a party--complete w hoards of boys, Nerf wars, cake, Silly String battle that I very obviously lost (http://twitpic.com/m37fv).  It was wonderful.

Daughter turned 16 last month. (OMFG, my beasties are too big. Pls tell them they should stop aging for a year or two???). She's officially too near considering-which-college-age now (http://twitpic.com/l1eal).

And I'm feeling sad that I can't make it back to Italy this year.  This (http://www.flickr.com/photos/melissa-marr/4024221457/) is my & the beasties in Rome last October.  *sigh* Rome? Kinda awesome. Italian readers? Definitely amazing.

More questions & answers:

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I don't usually do "Teaser Tuesday," but I'm in a mood today, so . . . hmm, here's an excerpt from Radiant Shadows (the 4th Wicked Lovely book).

Details: Radiant Shadows releases in the US & Canada April 20, 2010. ARCs (advanced reader/reviewer copies) for my books are typically available by November. Browse Inside (which lets you see the first 7 or so chapters) goes up a bit later, but right now, the text is still pretty much only available from me (cue villainous laugh), so in answer to the "is ---- in it?" and "can you give us any hints?" and various other spoilery questions, here's one answer (or several if you are piecing things together, I suppose).

Teaser note: This is mid-scene, around page 50, at the Crow's Nest. I'm not giving any more context than that :)

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And to those who email or contact me in various ways, a couple quick questions answered--

NO Graveminder is not a WL book. It has no faeries in it. It is something else entirely.

Also, no, it's not a continuation of the Unbound story. This one is not fey folk (which includes court faeries, gancanagh, glaistigs, selchies, or even non-Celtic faery-like creatures like skogsra or kitsune). It is, of course, folkloric in origin though.

And, no, I really don't have release dates ANYWHERE other than US & Canada.  If I did, I promise I'd share.  Right now, the only place we've sold rights is the UK. Until, umm, tomorrow Harper hasn't shopped the rights anywhere else. I expect that the book will go to many of the same overseas publishers as the first 3 have, BUT in most places only WL is out. In some INK is out too; in others WL hasn't even released yet, so there hasn't been the need for them to acquire Radiant Shadows and the 5th/final book yet :)

. . . and with that, I'm back to writing.  Hope the teaser was fun for some of you. 

< start pondering >

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Graveminder isn't unrolling at all like any of the books thus far. . . which, yanno, didn't unroll like each other either so why this surprises me, I don't know. It does though.

< /pondering >

Back to my oddly linear experience . . .

Questions continued: Blog post for them is here, but I'm dipping into the inbox backlog too.
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Back to work now . . .