Melissa Marr

RT 2013 YA Track information

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 19:06:59 GMT

To those interested in the YA Track for the RT Booklovers Convention 2013--

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Want to read Carnival of Souls?

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 23:47:49 GMT

A very limited number of galleys of Carnival of Souls were printed for sales/accounts. In June, there will be advanced reader copies (ARCs). That month, I will sign galleys or ARCs at both Book Expo America (in NYC) and at ALA (in Anaheim).

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a scare that leads to a Reminder (Not Writing)

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 18:37:30 GMT

A few weeks ago I went in for my mammogram. I turn 40 in a few months, and this has been on my to-do list for my 40th since my 20s when I went through a series of surgeries. Back then my ovaries, breast, & cervix all decided to grow unnecessary growths (bad cells, cysts, & a tumor). I've been surgery-free since 1998 though! Still, my grandmother had breast cancer & I had that unnecessary lump (and surgery to remove it), so it's something I need to be vigilant about . . . and I THOUGHT I was. My doctor, however, gently chastized me with a "you should've started going at 36." Still, she didn't find anything in the exam, so I expected the mammogram to be non-eventful.

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Pondering narrative structure

Thu, 08 Mar 2012 22:49:20 GMT

[NOTE: I'm still aiming for blogging semi-faithfully. I think the key is using this space to ponder & be random--which is what I first used it for. Any & all are free to comment, ignore, etc. I read all comments.]

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On Serial Killers & Book Recs

Mon, 05 Mar 2012 20:07:45 GMT

I don’t do proper reviews. In truth, I rarely even name 90% of the books I read, but there are those books that stand out, books that make me feel COMPELLED to recommend them. Recently, I read an early copy of Barry Lyga’s I Hunt Killers.** When I'd heard about the book, I liked the idea of it and hoped it would be interesting. It was . . . but it was so much more than that.

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cover copy for Carnival of Souls

Thu, 01 Mar 2012 00:37:23 GMT

I'm thrilled to be able to FINALLY be allowed to share more about Carnival of Souls. This is the description of my new book directly from the Harper sales catalogue:

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Carnival quote

Fri, 24 Feb 2012 21:53:22 GMT

For those who don't want to read the cover by enlarging on the photo, here is the quote on the bound galley of Carnival of Souls:

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Answering Questions on the Writing Life

Thu, 23 Feb 2012 01:18:59 GMT

I'm midway into my annual anti-travel season. I take trips for family or writing retreats, but every year since I started this job, I've taken to adding "blackout" dates. There are some scattered throughout the calendar--the kids' birthdays (8 Sept & 14 Oct), the days around Oct 31, and Winter Solstice. Overall though, I try to be flexible. This is, in part, to keep my publishers from throttling me, but also because I like to do book events. While being flexible, I still am fiercely protective over this blackout date plan. I believe that to create, to live a life worth living, it is essential to have time to recharge, be with my family, stare in speechless awe at whichever natural vista lures me in, & generally refill the well. This refilling is as much a part of the writing process as revisions. Without it, I have nothing to say.

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6 book giveaway winners

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 22:22:27 GMT

The six winners are:

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Faery Tales, Nightmares, & Graveminders

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 21:44:33 GMT

This week I received copies of GRAVEMINDER US paperback which released last week.

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Random notes (but mostly about co-authoring Blackwell)

Sat, 21 Jan 2012 20:09:29 GMT

I'm sure my attempts to blog more faithfully will fade, but since I'm traveling less this year, I thought I'd try blogging more because, over time, travel is why the blog became to spiderwebby.

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2011 recap, 2012 schedule, & Book Recommendations

Sun, 01 Jan 2012 19:35:11 GMT

2011 recap:
It’s been a strange and kind of surreal year for me. I ended my first series in February with the release of Darkest Mercy, released my first adult novel (Graveminder) in May, and co-edited my first anthology (Enthralled, Sept 2011) with Kelley Armstrong.

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Blackwell Pages announced

Mon, 23 May 2011 11:25:08 GMT

My secret project is not secret now. The deal was just posted in Publishers Weekly.

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Graveminder, Italy, tours, Carnival, Q&A

Tue, 23 Nov 2010 03:10:54 GMT

GRAVEMINDER US COVER
The absolutely amazing Mark Tucker (whom I have had a platonic crush on since he did my first book cover & whom I continue to adore) has once more provided the photograph that will be my book cover. I couldn't be happier to have his art on my book . (NOTE: Mark did all 5 of the US covers for WL, & I begged Harper to use his art for GRAVEMINDER too.)

This is the cover-in-progress. It is Mark's photo with elements added.

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Questions Answered

Sat, 23 Oct 2010 17:48:56 GMT

A few questions from the inboxes and blog threads answered:

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Q&A stuff (on MERCY, movies, book recs, & other things)

Mon, 31 May 2010 22:04:12 GMT

I am behind on everything but deadlines, so I'll tackle various email questions here.

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Writing Post #2--more mechs & pov mutters

Tue, 02 Feb 2010 20:39:25 GMT

WRITING POST #2:

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Writing Questions--sentence varieties, run-ons, & breaking the rules

Sat, 30 Jan 2010 02:16:38 GMT

So one of the things that I got to do in Texas was talk about writing. Before being a writer, I taught university lit & lang. As part of that job, I taught a bunch of stuff including basic writing, short story, and the very bare bones basic english (one of my FAVOURITE classes).

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Funeral Museum

Mon, 25 Jan 2010 23:09:15 GMT

I posted a few pictures from the Funeral Museum in my Flickr. There are other photos from the past yr on there too (finally).

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Research & publishing timeline questions answered

Sat, 16 Jan 2010 21:00:24 GMT

People ask about the process regularly & how long it takes and WHY it takes so long. Between concept andrelease is typically AT LEAST 18 months.

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More drafting process (on INK)

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:21:48 GMT

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

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Sharing early text from Wicked Lovely (writing process post)

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 05:00:57 GMT

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.

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Q&A--teaching, fic/nonfic reading, faery research

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 01:57:01 GMT

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

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