Wood is tasty. EVERYTHING is tasty.

I'm behind on pretty much everything I'm supposed to be doing today, so here's a brief stop to share some cuteness.

He'll be seven months old on Monday.

I now open the floor to the sharing of all cute things. Post links!

...in which I talk about paloozas. And panic.

So, a while ago I talked about a LOST GIRL blog event/partay, so here's me telling you all about it! After almost three years of work, THE LOST GIRL is out 28th of August (OMG I KNOW! How can we be nearly there already?!) and basically, for the six weeks before publication, the blog will turn into one massive TLG fest. Which I'm calling the TLG Blogpalooza. Yes, I know. So original, right? 

It's going to kick off on Tuesday, the 24th of July, with the first of twelve palooza posts. I'm going to throw out TONS of teasers, talk about inspirations, and there will be interviews and guest posts from my agent, editor and anybody else who feels like it (kind of). I'm also going to be all over the blogosphere and interweb in the next couple of months, so I will link to those posts and interviews as they happen.

And there will be a giveaway.

YES! GOODIES!

And here's where you guys come in: comments on the twelve posts in the palooza will win you entries into the giveaway. But so will a blog post/pub day announcement at the end of the whole thing. I couldn't begin to tell you how much I'd appreciate the help, or how excited I would be to see my book flashing up on my favourite blogs! I will post a signup sheet soon and will email details to those of you who sign up.

Three years. THREE YEARS. And now we're almost there.

I'm off to hyperventilate now.

Ahhh, Holmes

I've made no secret of the fact that I love Sherlock Holmes: some of the old TV shows, inspired-bys like House, the new BBC adaptation, and, obviously, the original stories. In fact, I'm obsessed with pretty much anything Holmesy, except for those hideous stains upon filmmaking (otherwise known as the Robert Downey Jr. movies: sorry, fans!)

So when The House of Silk came out, I was excited and very, very doubtful. Excited because, you know, it's a NEW Sherlock Holmes novel and I really like Anthony Horowitz. Doubtful because, deep down, I suspected it wouldn't be all that great.

I was wrong. It's awesome. 

I read an awful lot of YA, being a YA author and all that, but that doesn't mean I don't read and love plenty of adult fiction too, and I read and loved this. Seriously, it is hands down the best thing I've read in the last few months.

So, yeah. Go read The House of Silk.

Anyone read it already?

(Thanks for all the lovely comments on my German cover and reviews last week, everyone! And thank you to those of you who gave me book reccs: I have several more amazing-sounding books on my to-read pile now.)

Covers, Conversations and More!

I can't begin to tell you how glad I am the last few days are over. I was ill, stressed out and generally not in any way happy with the world. But all that's over now, hooray! And I have lots of fun stuff to show off today. And yes, most of it is a bit behind the times, but better late than never, right? 

Last week I popped over to Manga Maniac Cafe for an interview. Julie asked some really great questions and I talk plenty of THE LOST GIRL, so check that out when you get a chance.

THE LOST GIRL has a German cover! I was super-excited to see it and really do love it - it's so strange that it's so different from the US cover, but they're both amazing and both capture the spirit of the book.

And finally, two fantastic reviews to share with you guys. I've mentioned before that Lauren DeStefano (y'know, NYT bestselling author of WITHER, FEVER and the yet-to-be-released SEVER?) blurbed THE LOST GIRL, but she's also recently posted a lovely review on Goodreads.

"Grief is a shadowy road that nobody wants to tread; it's a journey we'd all rather not take, and for that reason, I say that there are really no villains in this story. There are nightmarish measures, and there's cruelty, and things that would disturb Mary Shelley's ghost, sure. But beyond that, it's all about the measures parents would take to hang on to their child, what it means to die, what it means to be alive, and that terrible moment when you realize your loved one is not coming back."

The complete review's up on Goodreads here. Also, Kirkus reviewed THE LOST GIRL, prompting much squealing and excitement, so here's a little from them too:

"Both an interrogation of bioethics and a mesmerizing quest for identity, this debut succeeds through its careful development of the oh-so-human Eva and those around her. A provocative and page-turning thriller/romance that gets at the heart of what it means to be human."

As you can probably tell, I'm having a great day! Happy Tuesday, everybody. Anyone reading anything fun right now? Any fabulous reads to recommend?

Post-Holiday Gloom

Well, we're back from a lovely holiday, and I really don't have much to complain about. The weather's rather nice, my baby is sleeping most of the night(!) and there's a long weekend up ahead, thanks to the Queen.

Except we got home to find spiders. Yes, spiders. And I'm terrified of spiders. They'd made my home their own. Little sods.

I appeal to you, blogosphere-dwellers: how does one keep them away?!

Erratically Yours

Erratic is probably the best way to describe my blogging of late. Also sporadic, irregular and woefully unwitty. Over the last few weeks a lot of things have been eating up my time: moving house, being sick, my baby, and, naturally, writing. I've been working on something new and recently finished a synopsis of that something new. That was a joy. (Anyone else hate synopses with a passion?)

So there we go. That's life at the moment. And I'm off on holiday late next week, so chances are my blogging will continue to be a tad erratic, sporadic, irregular and woefully unwitty in May. 

...After that, though, things should look up. THE LOST GIRL is out end of August and I'm planning a HUGE blog event/blogfest/blogpalooza for the weeks beforehand. And what would a blog event be without you? So look out for that!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

On Telling People

It's not a special anniversary or anything, but I've been thinking about being a writer, or, more specifically, about being an official, real, proper writer - in other peoples' eyes. It's no secret that I've had many strange, irksome and hilarious reactions to telling friends, families and outright strangers that I write. Or that I'm having a book published. Or anything in that vein. I've devoted whole blog posts to it.

So, on this dismally grey and dreary afternoon, I thought I'd share the highlights. Enjoy!

3. The Lady on the Bus

HER: So what do you do?

ME: Erm, I'm a writer.

HER: Oh how lovely! Do you work for a newspaper?

ME: No, I write novels.

HER: For a living? Oh you poor dear. Haven't you been able to find a real job?

2. The Guy Checking Passports at the Airport

HIM: So what do you do, miss?
ME: I'm a writer. 

HIM [perking up no end]: Really? A writer! What kind of stuff do you write? 

ME: Books. Novels, I mean. Fiction.
HIM: Wow! Any, like, crime?
ME: Erm, no. I write teen fiction. Young adult.
HIM [totally crestfallen]: Damn. I'd have asked for your autograph if you wrote crime.

and finally, a real gem-

1. My mother

ME: I have an agent! Also a book deal!

HER: Wow! Hooray! You know this is because I lit a candle to St. Jude, right?

ME [totally at sea because this is so not the kind of thing my far-too-practical mother normally does]: What?

HER: You know? The patron saint of hopeless cases?

Thanks, Mum. Thanks.

Anybody have their own 'when I told people' stories to share?

...and the Winner is

It's the 20th of April, which means MY GIVEAWAY ENDS TODAY! Eight weeks ago I revealed the cover of THE LOST GIRL and promised a signed ARC of the book to one commenter. To everyone who commented, Tweeted, blogged and generally shared my cover-love: thank you so much! I wish I could give you all an ARC, but I fear my editor would kill me. (Don't panic, Sara! I'm not actually proposing a massive ARC exodus.)

Before I announce the winner, though, I think I need to ramble on about my day, and also tell you about my new project, and while I'm at it, I really think it's important I tell you all about what the weather was like in this corner of the world...

...no? Not even a little bit interested?

I stuck all the entries in one of those random number generator thingies that Google is so very good at finding, and the winner is

Britta !!!

Congratulations, Britta! And thanks again, everyone. Your support and enthusiasm mean the world to me.

Have a great weekend!

Curse of the Sequel

 
I don't think I'm the only one out there who thinks second books (or, indeed, movies!) disappoint. Sometimes they even plain old suck. Obviously I don't mean an author's second book overall (these are often better!), just the second in a series. Trilogies seem to be the worst offenders. Book 2 often ends up being filler. Or it's a good book, but it has to work twice as hard, because Book 1 has the advantage of being exciting and new, while Book 3 has the advantage of being the epic end to it all.

So, really, sometimes you have to feel sorry for Book 2, the tragic middle child of the whole family.

And to make Book 2 feel better, I've been trying to think of examples where the second book (or movie) was just as good or better than the first. (That's right, tragic middle child! You're just as special!) And I don't count sequels that were simply tacked on because the first one was so successful. They have to be part of the original story.

...I have nothing. Nothing. Seriously. My brain has frozen over today.

Can you think of any great or better second books/installments?

PS. Don't forget I'm giving away a signed ARC of THE LOST GIRL in ten days! So if you haven't commented on my cover reveal already, go do it soon!

 

The Sad Songs Blogfest! (a.k.a Shed Tears Now)

Brace yourselves for some serious boo-hooing. What better way to celebrate the end of the week, right? Today is the Sad Songs Blogfest, hosted by Spunk on a Stick, so pop over to the link to see her song choices and the list of fellow boo-hooers!

(Sorry if it takes me a while to visit everyone on the list. I'll do my best!)

What the blogfest is about: list the songs that move your spirit, cut deep into your soul, and threaten to break your heart.

I love this theme! Some of the greatest songs in the world are sad songs. I sing to my baby (whether he likes it or not is another question, but that's neither here nor there), I yowl in the shower, I listen to the radio in the car, and, most importantly, I write with music. All of my books/stories/projects have a playlist (in fact, you can see THE LOST GIRL's playlist here.)

Which means picking just a few songs was almost impossible, but here we go. They're in no particular order. 

What these songs are about doesn't really matter. The only thing they have in common is all of these have made me cry. Yes, I am a sap.

1. Someone Like You, Adele

Ah, Adele. I'm sure this song is supposed to be as hopeful as it is sad, but I bawl. Bawl like a baby.

2. White Blank Page, Mumford & Songs

If you haven't heard this one, go do it. It's amazing.

3. Now We Are Free, Hans Zimmer and Lisa Gerrard

Okay, so I don't even know what Lisa's singing about, but if this song didn't make you weep copious tears at the end of Gladiator, you're not human. I'm just sayin'.

and finally

4. My Heart Will Go On, Celine Dion

I know. Cheesiest choice ever, right? But I can't help it. There's that bit at the end, where everything crests, and I shed embarrassing tears every time. (Seriously cannot believe I'm admitting this...)

What are your favourite sad songs?