First Time Was A Great Time, Second Time Was A Blast

I never need an excuse to go to London. Never. I'd go tomorrow if a pile of cash fell on my lap. *looks up to the sky*

Last week I made the long, long trip from San Francisco to London for the best reason ever: to visit my publisher.....for the second time. I had the good fortune to meet the gang at HarperImpulse last October for the fun and fabulous 'autumn fete.' I had such a great time I secretly hoped they'd gather all the authors together again. Most of them live in the UK with a few others sprinkled around here in the US and even a couple in South Africa. Needless to say, unless we all lived on the same street it's rare that we're able to see one another. 

When I found out HarperImpulse was hosting another event, I just had to go. I had to. It took months of pleading my case but the universe finally smiled down on me and gave me the go-ahead.

Isn't the London office gorgeous? Of course there was an amazing reason to be there this time too. It was HarperImpulse's first birthday. The imprint, part of HarperCollins, hosted a seminar featuring the music and entertainment manager for Twitter UK and then talked about their vision for the future. 

Oh, and there were cupcakes with glitter on the frosting. That's right. Glitter cupcakes.

After the workshop we all went across to the pub. I had the chance to see many familiar faces and meet a few new ones. As someone who's never been published before, I think it's so great that we, as authors, can have little get-togethers like this. Everyone is so fantastic. Really.

When I went in October I was so bright eyed and in awe of everything. I'm happy to say that feeling hasn't gone away. Walking through the front doors of the HarperCollins building should be enough to convince me that I'm one of their authors but I still get all starry eyed. That says a lot because I'm not one who dazzles easily. =)


Check us out. Aren't we fabulous?

One Step Closer

I'm still too excited to properly form a sentence so....

THIS IS THE COVER FOR MY DEBUT NOVEL!!!!

Sorry for the shouting. Isn't it gorgeous? (yes, I'm biased)

It's starting to sink in now, this whole 'I'm going to be a published author' thing. Receiving the email that Harper Impulse loved my book enough to want to publish it was exciting in it's own right. Getting an agent was even more surreal. Signing the contract? Insane.

But a book cover? With my name on it? That's dream come true status.

One of these days I'll write a post all about my journey from 'I'm going to write a book' to 'I have a contract.' The journey was fast, I will say that!

CATCH MY BREATH is scheduled for release on April 17, 2014. Pre-order your copy now at Amazon.com or Google Play. 

Dream Team

While I sat in the car yesterday for hours and hours and hours and hours (driving to and from Yosemite), my brain kept drifting to a couple things: how the hell I'm going to finish my next book and the casting announcement for Fifty Shades of Grey. Random thoughts, I know. 

I would be lying if I said I had no actor/actress in mind for the unlikely film adaptation of my trilogy. I have a secret Pinterest board with all of them in full color. Wishful thinking at its finest. But as an avid reader I often found myself averse to having a book turned into a movie. My imagination is so vivid I like to create my own version of the world an author puts on a page. There have been many times I've seen the movie version of a book I loved and was totally disappointed by casting decisions or the director's vision or what have you. Yes, movies are awesome and who wouldn't want to see their world interpreted on screen? The thing is....a reader's mind is so subjective *nobody* will ever be good enough to match who they pictured as the main hero or heroine. Even the actors I chose for my "dream team" cast on my secret Pinterest page don't completely embody the hero and heroine I created. Okay, one of them does but that's besides the point. 

The backlash I saw online yesterday about the decision to cast Charlie Hunnam as Christian Grey was horrid. Grown women were throwing fits because their version of a fictional character wasn't cast. Someone even tweeted to the producer that she hated him. Hate is a strong word. It's only a movie. There are numerous factors that go into casting a role. I do not envy casting directors, although I think their job is pretty cool. 

As a new author with high hopes and all sorts of aspirations for the books I'm writing, reactions like that scare me. Obviously, not every book is made into a movie or TV show so I'll probably just stare at my Pinterest board forever. 

I mean, honestly, is Charlie really that bad?

Next Up, Nutella?

I've firmly entered the "oh my gosh, what I'm writing totally sucks and I need to burn it" phase. I'm assuming the next step is sinking into a vat of Nutella, never to be seen again. 


The writing process is a funny thing. It starts so purely, with an idea. You know like how Oprah had her "Aha!" moments? Yeah that's it. Over the past few weeks I've learned a bit about the self-revealing process that is writing. Seeing as I haven't come close to finishing what I'm working on, I thought it would be fun to review the various phases I've had the pleasure of experiencing.


The "Inspired" Phase
This is a fun one. The ideas are so vast I mentally compared it to the universe. Each galaxy a novel, each star an idea. This is the phase when characters are born, their personalities jumping up and down, jockeying to get center stage to tell their stories. In my case, one lucky character was making so much noise that I couldn't ignore her any longer. And she convinced me she had one hell of a tale to tell. 


The "Pulitzer Prize" Phase
This is the phase that inflates your ego and makes you think your story is so grand, so perfect, so unique that the New York Times is waiting with bells on to review this budding masterpiece. Words pour out so effortlessly it's hard to believe that people complain about "the process." This is also the phase where I didn't sleep. But you're so wrapped up in the characters and the world you've created that you forget there's life outside the bubble. Once you poke your head back out, you realize that everyone who you've told that you're writing a book wants to read it. 


The "Oh-my-gosh-what-I'm-writing-totally-sucks-and-I-need-to-burn-it" Phase
Enter self doubt. Hi, how are you? At this point all the arrogant confidence gained in the Pulitzer Prize phase has dissipated. Or rather, packed its bags and high-tailed it out of town. I find myself reading and rereading and rereading everything. The end result is usually the same. This. Sucks. I even went to so far as to start rewriting the whole thing in the POV of the main character. Thankfully, my brain stopped humming to itself and convinced me to stay the course. I'm pretty sure at some point people move on from this phase. At least I hope so. 

Since I've been stuck in this phase I've found myself perusing Amazon.com and other bookseller websites. Just for the fun of it, I'll click on the little "LOOK INSIDE!" and see if my drivel is anywhere near as good as something that's published. Sometimes I think I can hang with the big kids. Sometimes I think I should stick to my day job. 


Whatever the outcome, the writing continues. Someday I'll let someone read it. Maybe. Depends on what the next phase is....or if I'll forever remain lost in a vat of Nutella.