After the retreat, Kimberly Welchons, Natalie Parker, Tessa Gratton, and moi got in a car and headed into Austin, had lunch, then promptly drove north to see an awesome cave. Photos are just a click away~

Continue reading “The Trip: Austin” »

Previously, I left y’all on a cliffhanger.

Worry no more! The trip to Texas miraculously healed my feet.

(Sorry about that anticlimax.)

Anyway, my carefully ordered day-to-day reports will now end, on account of there being no rhyme or logic to writing retreats, merely writing and drinking, and it is easy to lose track of time that way.

Anyway, a bunch of us took a bus:

To a house:

A seriously pretty house:

With an even prettier view:

People spent a lot of time talking…

And laughing…

And looking pensive…

And walking…

And diligently working…

And, in general, being completely lovely.

(I, on the other hand, spent a lot of time chasing down squirrels and geckos.)

The absolute highlight of the retreat, of course, was Beth Revis shocking Victoria Schwab and Amy Plum TO THEIR VERY CORES by… actually really enjoying the salty liquorice I brought.

Beth, you have most excellent taste.

The first half of my trip consisted of a few days in Boston with my delightful friend and CP Helen Corcoran. Photos below!

Continue reading “The Trip: Boston” »

You know, I’ve known Beth Revis for a couple of years now. We’ve been through a lot together. There was that time I ran off with her husband*; that time we jokingly handed in each other’s manuscripts to our agents** just to see what they’d do; once, she even ran over my dog–by accident!–and rushed him to the vet’s just in time***. I remember pre-ordering Across the Universe the moment I could****, and gobbling up the ARC the day I got it*****.

In all that time, she’s never hurt me like she did now. NEVER. She had the gal to run a contest on her blog–and not just any contest. One called “The Ultimate Fan Contest.”

As. Though. There’s. Any. Doubt.

SERIOUSLY, Beth. I can’t handle this type of betrayal. I can’t. Like I didn’t already prove that during our torrid affair last year?******

But fine. Fine. If you insist, I’ll play.

(Click for full-size. For a more on-topic description, take a look at the DeviantART page.)

* This did not actually happen.
** Neither did this.
*** Or this. Seriously, guys, we’ve never even met face-to-face.
**** This totally did happen though.
***** Also this. But not literally. That wouldn’t digest well.
****** Yeah, no.

I’m still overwhelmed from all the congratulations I’ve received since Friday. You guys are the best. This is such a major change in my life, and you all made it even better than it already was. Thank you. Deeply.

I plan to return to my regular blogging schedule soon–the ever-so-reliable schedule of ‘don’t post for weeks at a time, rant about social justice stuff, follow that up with random writing advice and Amsterdam musings, sink back into oblivion’–but for now, I wanted to share some Otherbound-related links and show you how my new apartment is progressing. (To those who don’t know: I’m in the middle of a move, and renovating the new apartment completely. It’s exhausting and awesome.)

• The awesome Jeremy and Jeffrey West featured Otherbound on their This Week in YA video! I make an appearance around 5:52. I am on the YOUTUBES. My CAT is on the YOUTUBES. This is awesome.

  I don’t normally follow vlogs/YouTube shows, but I may need to make an exception for this one.

• As some of you know, I’m a big fan of www.QueryTracker.net: it’s a lifesaver when you’re querying. If you’re hunting for an agent, I highly suggest signing up. It’s great to find agents and keep track of your records. They also feature interviews of authors who recently signed with agents, and my interview went live this weekend.
• When I first announced the deal on Friday, I linked to Goodreads in several places… and it turned out the link I gave was utterly borked. In case anyone missed it: Otherbound on Goodreads! I have one review already. It makes me feel special. (I can already tell I’m going to be crap at this ‘authors should avoid reviews at all costs’ gig. Oh well.)
• In addition to giving me that very first novel review, Awesome Irish Person, CP Extraordinaire, and Good Friend Helen Corcoran blogged about Otherbound–her thoughts about the book, and her experiences helping me with it. She said nice things. This is me, a pile of mush.
• Lastly, Lovely Agent Joan announced the book deal on the Erin Murphy Literary Agency website and said nice things about the book, as well. This is Corinne the pile of mush, blushing.

I think that about covers it!

Moving on to other things: some of you may remember how much I squeed about buying a new floor last month. Well, this weekend we–that is, my mother, a friend, and my uncle; my task was mostly to provide them with junk food–finally installed said floor.

And it is gorgeous.

Check out this scorchingly lovely pattern:

*fans self*

I’ve been horribly slack about updating my blog; I blame edits. /roughdrafter4life.

Thankfully, I have some awesome news to share regarding my friends/critique partners. Celebration time \o/

Natalie C Parker sold her debut, Beware the Wild, to Harper! You can find all the details at her blog, including a very catchy description I will now shamelessly steal to entice y’all:

… in which a claustrophobic Louisiana town is dominated by its sinister, encroaching swamp, which swallows up a boy who is instantly forgotten by everyone except his sister, and replaced by a mysterious girl from the past who is intent on taking over his family and his life.

Doesn’t that sound awesome? I think it does, and luckily, it is awesome, too. I had the pleasure of reading this book the other month and I blazed through it, which is always a good sign. You want this book.

Next, Jodi Meadows revealed the title, cover, and back cover blurb for the sequel to Incarnate on her blog–right here! I read Asunder, too, and also blazed through it, which at this point isn’t a surprise because I do that with all of Jodi’s books. This new cover is particularly fascinating knowing what happens in the book… and that’s all I can say about that.

Seriously though, go look, especially since she’s holding a contest for one of her awesome mitts!

Lastly, Beth Revis’s Shades of Earth is up for preorder on Amazon and the Book Depository, which I am VERY EXCITED about. I haven’t read this one, sadly, which means the wait for January seems… pretty insurmountable.

*makes grabby hands*

I’ve been quiet on chat/Twitter/this here blog lately, for two significant reasons: one, I’m lazy; two, the lovely Helen Corcoran decided to grace me with her presence. After spending several days getting up early, feeding her silly, and dragging her all across town, I’m back to sitting around in my PJs and trying desperately to catch up on chores and missed sleep.

I love playing tour guide, but sometimes the line blurs between tourist and tour guide. When I took Helen to see places I’d never visited before, speaking another language, I knew anyone overseeing me would assume I were a tourist. I felt  like a tourist, too: obsessively planning my day, constantly checking the map, thinking of where to eat and which bus to take. One moment, I’d be standing in line for the Anne Frank House and be offered an English flyer; the next, I’d be dragging Helen past the house where I grew up so she could see the old, overgrown graveyard where I used to play as a kid.

Being so immersed in American culture–American friends; American books; American television–has given me a very foreign perspective of the city I grew up in. I see everything in a new light. I appreciate the history, the context. Buildings I passed every day suddenly represent so much more. Food I snacked on as a kid is suddenly unique. Little details–the lights fixed around the bridges, the bike-only tickets for trains–stand out in a way they never did before.

It means I can point out fascinating details to visiting friends, because I know it’ll be special to them, but it also means it’s not as much a part of everyday life as it used to be. The normalcy is gone. It may be a good thing: It makes me appreciate my city more. At the same time, I’m not American, I’m not foreign, I am–or should be–Dutch through and through. There’s a fine line between appreciation and feeling like a tourist in your home town.

When I bike to the supermarket, I’ll catch myself thinking about how smooth and flat the bike paths are, I’ll marvel at how natural biking comes to me, I’ll smile at a mother balancing heavy groceries on the handlebars and two kids perched on the rack. Five years ago, I’d just be cursing myself for not checking if I needed to get milk.

It’s an odd feeling to have, and I’m not sure I like it.

Is it just a part of growing older and looking at things differently? Have you ever felt similarly?

All my troubles seemed so faaar–

Wrong one.

Yesterday was January 31st. This marked two things:

1) It’s been a year since I e-mailed Mr. Agent Man and said (paraphrased): “Let’s roll.”

I have been an agented writer for one full year. It… doesn’t seem anywhere near as long.

2) INCARNATE came out. This is the first time I’ve seen a book grow from idea to draft to final book and it’s been a wonderful journey to be a part of, however slight. In a couple of years, I expect to have a huge shelf of books I can point to and say, “I knew these books before they were books. My friends made those. I have awesome friends.”

(I can say that last thing already, but you know what I mean.)

Right now, I am very happy to have INCARNATE as the first book on that shelf. (Metaphorically speaking. Man, I wish I had enough shelf space to dedicate one to a single book…)

In INCARNATE’s honor, I drew this:

(This may look a little garish on Macs. Here’s a version that will look better on Macs, but more washed out on PCs.)

The US trip is so happening. It’s very exciting. I just need to sort out the last leg of my trip and I’m all ready to book.

In the meantime, I wanted to share two links:

One, if you need a website, Patrick Samphire of 50 Seconds North makes some seriously pretty ones.  Unprofessional websites are a serious pet peeve of mine, so the more people get pretty ones, the more zen my life will be.

Because it’s all about me, you know?
Two, if you’re into boys, superpowers, and smut, you could do a hell of a lot worse than to check out Katey Hawthorne’s website, especially the giveaway she’s running in honor of her upcoming novel RIOT BOY. Win books! CDs! Absinthe spoons! It runs until November 10th and all you need to do is comment.

*retreats to plot on new!novel*

Worst title ever, I know.

Anyway! As I mentioned on Twitter a few days back, I made a new short story sale, this time to the Dagan Books anthology FISH. My first anthology sale! Neat. The story is titled “The Applause of Others”, and it’s about magic eels in Amsterdam. No, not electric or moray eels — we definitely don’t have those in the canals — the other kind. The kind you smoke and eat.

Anyway x2, if that story concept sounds familiar, it’s because I mentioned it before — it’s my week 6 Clarion West story. One story down, four to go!

The anthology will be out on February 8, 2012, has a lovely cover, and one hell of a ToC. I’ll be reunited with editor K.V.Taylor and author Cate Gardner for the first time since last year’s inaugural Red Penny Papers issue, and other nifty people in the ToC include my loverly Clarion West classmate Maria Romasco-Moore (High five! Affable mofos repra-zent!) and Cat Rambo, whom I also met in Seattle this year.

This is going to be one gorgeous book.