…I’m Back!

What a whirlwind the past few days have been!

Saturday I was up bright and early to drive with my in laws down to Richmond. i got to see my brother in-law’s new house, and my mother-in-law and I ran all the games at the baby shower. It was a twelve hour trip. Luckily, my father-in-law drove, so I was able to spend the drive down and back reading The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, which is fabulous! I loved it. Of course, I’m into any book about women sticking it to all-male secret societies, though Lockhart’s book and mine approach the subject very differently, I give quarter to the idea (after all, Amy does join the society). She full out rejects it. The kind of book that really makes you think.

Not that I’ve had much time to think about it. I barely got a chance to say hello to my puppy and Sailor Boy before I was off, packing and getting ready to leave for New York.

On Sunday, I caught an 8:30 bus to Manhattan. It got in early, and as it turns out, Carrie’s plane did too, so we met up at her hotel (which was right around the corner from Harper Collins Childrens, and a few blocks away from Random House, had lunch, and talked books, release plans, and excitement about our upcoming meetings.

After that, we wandered around the (cold,cold) city, visiting bookstores. We spent an age in the fabulous Books of Wonder, talking about books we read or wanted to read, and trying to imagine where our covers would sit (I’m right near Tamora Pierce).  I’ve never been to Books of Wonder before, but I discovered on this trip that it’s right down the street from my old office in New York, near a bakery upon which I based a premise of one of my unpublished romance novels. So it comes full circle!

Here we are looking really goofy at BoW’s YA section (you can just see the hardcover for Holly Black’s Tithe over my shoulder):

We also stopped at a few bookstores that sold adult books too and Carrie made me sign stock of Secret Society Girl books. I used to be much more militant about signing stock at every bookstore I went to, but then the people at the Borders store near my house started rolling their eyes every time I walked in the door, so I fell out of the habit. So if you are from New York and want a signed copy of any SSG book, they’ve got them at the Barnes & Noble at Union Square, as well as the smaller one around the corner on 5th Ave.

Then we headed downtown to a restaurant and had a glass of wine and I told Carrie about the end of Tap & Gown, which she hasn’t read. And she got chill bumps. So there’s your little teaser for the day. And then Scott and Justine showed up, and we had a marvelous dinner wherein we drank lots of champagne and Scott, Carrie, and I all ordered the same thing (pumpkin filled pasta), and Scott and Justine gave us copies of their books and also gave Carrie sage advice about school visits, which she was starting on the following day. Scott’s advice was all about how to warm up the crowd. Justine’s advice was to tell vomit stories. Is it wrong to think that the way she pronounces “vomit” is adorable?

I was exhausted that night, and fell into bed. On the way up to New York, I’d been reading Graceling, and though Carrie had warned me at lunch that I was about to hit a major turning point in the story, I didn’t get too far that night.

Monday morning was FREEZING. I looked at my meager wardrobe and decided to pick the warmest clothing I’d brought. Then I took a cab up to Harper Collins.

Funny story: so I was staying with a good friend of mine from college. The year we graduated from college, we worked together at a rather horrible job that paid just enough to live on. Because we had no money, we didn’t take cabs. Ever. Anywhere. I became an expert on the subway system. This habit has stayed with me every time I go to New York. I never, ever, ever take a cab. This may be exacerbated by now living in Washington D.C., where cabs, instead of being a reasonable means of transportation as they are in New York, are kind of a hassle, what with the zones and the lack of metering etc. (Or did they go to metering now? See? I never take them. I have no idea.) So when Carrie and I took a cab on Sunday to get to my friend’s house, we found her street blocked by a street fair. I mentioned this to my friend who goes, “You took a cab? YOU?” Yes, seven years later, friends. So it felt very luxurious and decadent to take a cab uptown on Monday morning.

I saw Carrie shortly again, we wished each other good meetings, and then I saw her off to meet her editor to go on her tour! (Hope it’s still going well!) I wen to meet my editor, Kristin, for lunch. I had convinced her to go one of my favorite restaurants, Beacon, where they were serving their fall menu, including that pumpkin apple soup with the cotton candy garnish I’m always going on about to anyone who will listen. Kristin seemed to think it lived up to the hype. We had a great talk, all about books and my plans for the second unicorn book and some other really cool things I can’t talk about just yet.

Then we went back to the office and I had a conference with her and the publicity and marketing teams. They’re great! I’m so excited about the coming months. Right now, only a few people have read the book, but the galleys should be out soon. We’ve already heard some fabulous reactions from the people who’ve gotten sneak peeks.

Speaking of sneak peeks, what is this my spy-cam caught? Could it be a shot of the interior design?

A dagger with an alicorn hilt!

I am in so much trouble right now.

I love talking about these books with my editor. There’s this great synergistic energy I get whenever I get to bounce ideas off her.

Then I went home to Sailor Boy, Rio, and Gracie (whom we are babysitting). Actually, Gracie went home yesterday. Rio is inconsolable.

Good thing we’re about to go out hiking with her and my best friend and her husband. See ya!