An Afternoon in PA

First of all, some congratulations are in order:

*Congratulations to C.L. Wilson, whose debut Lord of the Fading Lands just hit the USA Today Bestseller list! I’ve been friends with C. for years (she’s responsible for the pseudonym I’ll take if I ever take one) and to finally see the fabulous Tairen Soul in book form and getting the recognition it deserves is a true delight.

*Congratulations to Ally Carter, whose Cross My Heart and Hope To Spy just hit the New York Times Bestseller List! Go, Sally, go Sally, go, go, go Sally!

*Congratulations to Carrie Ryan, who has some very special news to share today (when she spills, I will). Carrie, I’m ready with that sentence whenever you want… sold her fantabulous post-apocalyptic zombie novel, as reported in Publisher’s Marketplace:

Carrie Ryan’s THE FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH, about an isolated village generations after the zombie apocalypse where a 16-year-old struggles with the town’s religious order until the village walls are breached and the only chance of survival is to escape into the forest beyond, to Krista Marino at Delacorte, in a pre-empt, in a two-book deal, by Jim McCarthy at Dystel & Goderich Literary Management.

Speaking of other writers, I had the opportunity to meet one of my very favorite bloggers this weekend: debut YA author Robin Brande. Puppy-lover Brande was signing copies of her new book, Evolution, Me, And Other Freaks of Nature at a Borders store in York, Pennsylvania, home of the infamous Dover school evolution lawsuit. Yoga enthusiast Brande was sweet as could be, as were her companions, a local librarian and a high school English teacher. (Avid hiker Brande was in between speaking engagements at the school and the library.) Though she’d been placed in the back of the store, which may have limited visibility to passers by (I actually wandered around for a while before I found her, and I’d come all the way from D.C.), it gave us an opportunity to chat about evolution, feminism, sexuality, religion, politics, reading lists, and other issues facing young adult writers and young adults today. We also met a lovely young man who may or may not show up as a hero in one (or more) of our books someday. Bookworm Brande demonstrated her no nonsense attitude throughout the event, problem-solving with readers who approached, talking about life and faith, and coming up with real-world solutions. (I was pretty amazed — at a booksigning, I sign books. Stop.)

But ardent self-improver Brande is much more proactive than I. Of course, she did put the kidlit conference together, and I can’t even seem to design freakin’ ceremony programs, but that’s neither here nor there. I did make myself a Halloween costume. More on that later. Back to gourmet vegetarian cook Brande. I got a chance to ask her a couple of questions about her book, but not nearly enough to satisfy all my curiosity. Expect a long email, wilderness first responder Brande. If you haven’t yet read chocolate-giver Brande’s fabulous debut, I highly recommend it.

Also, all that sharing of chocolate with others and not herself, hiking, and gourmet vegetarian cooking is clearly good for you because talented novelist Brande looks fabulous!