Song Memories

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I love when older songs come on the radio and transport me to another time in my life. When I was younger, different. I love how it’s always a surprise – though you can bet on a current hit being played 7,000 times an hour, you can never guess which song from a different year will break through, making the day of radio-lovers everywhere. (That is, unless the song is horrid.)

The other day, “Kryptonite” by 3 Doors Down came on. It’s not a great song. It’s not a song I still play  on my iPod (actually, there weren’t iPods when that song was released), and it’s not a song I’m like “YES IT’S ON!” when it is, in fact, on. But it came on. And I was 17 again.

Three of my friends and I were going to see 3 Doors Down live at Hard Rock Cafe, here in Orlando. We were excited. Three of us were a band at the time, too, an all-girl band that had two (yes, two) whole gigs. We were not good.

We decided to do something crazy before the event, so we bought Manic Panic hair dye and and put red streaks in our hair. My hair was so dark you could barely tell, but still. I felt cool. I felt punk rock.

Before the show, we went back to our school because we were all called back for a play our drama department was putting on. (The drama department we, incidentally, ran, as we were all officers. I was president. See how punk rock I was?) We acted out a few scenes, each for different characters. The newbies were there, and I felt so amazingly awesome. Because here I was, coming in with the other old-timers, with this amazing kind-of dyed hair. And all these newbies were trying to be us, and it felt weird and neat all in one. So we did our auditions, each for different roles, and left with an excited cheer for the show.

Truth is, I don’t remember the show much. But what I do remember is feeling there, in the middle of the show, with my friends. With my hair. With this feeling that anything was possible. We were going to be famous musicians, actors. We were going to run the world.

I don’t talk to the girls all the time anymore, though we’re all still connected. Only one of us got the role in the show, and she, incidentally, is the only one still acting. The rest of us went on to become PR specialists and BBC journalists and, for me, librarian writers.

So when the song came on, I didn’t think of the gig. But I thought of the excitement we all shared, the power and freedom and friendship. The moment when we thought we were so cool we could accomplish anything.

And I smiled.

Friends in High Places

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I have annoyingly successful friends. I’m not saying that to brag (Okay, I am – I’m so proud of all of them), I’m saying it because it’s true. They are annoyingly successful in fields where people told them they might not be able to make it.

I was in drama in high school, and hung out with some theatre kids in college, and many of those people decided to try and Make it. Go big time – Broadway, LA. A lot of people said they wouldn’t make it. They all went anyway.

It’s true – some didn’t make it, but they turned around, came home and found amazingly successful careers elsewhere. Some tried hard, and are still trying to this day. And some found crazy success in TV shows, movies, and, yeah, even Broadway.

The thing that I love about all of them is that they tried. No matter what, no matter how many people told them it might not be possible, they still went for it. They gave it their all.

(That’s not to say i’m not proud of friends who didn’t pursue crazy careers like that – I’m SO proud of everyone. Even you boring lawyers, ahem S.)

Simply, I love people who follow their passion. I love those who hear the warnings and go for it anyway. Because they want to. Because they need to.

I didn’t set out to write TNWSY with a book deal in mind. I did it because I wanted to. S can attest to the fact that i’m an annoyingly driven person at times, but that’s only because I don’t want to miss anything.

So if there’s something you’ve always wanted to do – somewhere you’ve always wanted to see – just do it. Hoist the anchors! Set sail! And just….go.

TNWSY

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PM_Announcement

Hey, remember that time I got a book deal? Yeah I’m still riding on that excitement.

!!!!!

So! I’ve gotten a few questions about the book, and since the deal is finally announced, I figured I’d share. (I’m a bit private when it comes to writing, as it happens.)

1. What’s the book about? 

SPARKLY VAMPIRES! No, not really. Above is the Publisher’s Marketplace announcement for TNWSY. I think Michelle summed up my book extremely well in one-sentence. I tried, and ended up with a paragraph. That’s what happens when you’re a wordy writer I suppose. (Also, HOW EXCITED was I to see the official announcement? EXTREMELY.)

2. How did you come up with the title?

It’s one of the lines from the book, and it kind of kicks off the plot. I had a few ideas prior to it, but when that came to  mind, I was like YES. THAT. DONE.

3. Is it based on real life? 

No, not at all. The high school is loosely based on the high school I went to, and some of the places they visit mirror places here in Orlando, but the experiences and characters are completely made up. Though, they are definitely the kind of people I would have been friends with in high school (and through today).

4. Are you living a glamorous writer’s lifestyle now? 

Let me tell you – after getting the news…I went right back to work. I mean, I was ridiculously teary-eyed for the rest of my shift, but I still worked. And the next day? I painted the cabinets in my house. I know. Rockstar life right here. (And as a follow up to that, no, I don’t plan on becoming a full-time writer. I LOVE LOVE LOVE being a librarian, just as much as I LOVE LOVE LOVE being a writer, and I don’t think my life would feel full with one part missing.)

5. What happens now? 

Now I get to start editing! I’m really excited to see where Karen will help me take the book. I know it can only get better from here. And, in the midst, I’m writing, writing, writing and loving it.

6. Any advice? 

WRITE! Don’t look back. Don’t doubt yourself. Even if what you come up with is gibberish (I can’t even explain how bad my first drafts are), it’s something. And something can always turn into amazing with a little bit of work.

Thank you all SO MUCH for your kind words. Thank you for going on this strange, new journey with me. I can’t wait to see where it leads. xxx

MOST EXCITING NEWS EVER

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I have some Important News…

MY BOOK IS BEING PUBLISHED!!!!!!!!!

THE NIGHT WE SAID YES is going to be a book! A real book!

My amazing agent Michelle has sold it to the fabulous Karen Chaplin at HarperCollins. It is going to be published. It will be in libraries. And stores. You guys will all be able to read it. And I can’t stop smiling, because how often do dreams like this come true?

I got The Call when I was at work. I stepped outside and promptly started crying in front of the library. Because that’s what I do when amazing things happen. I cry. I’m pretty sure I professed my undying love to my agent. I’m not sure. I don’t really remember those moments too well.

What’s better – Harper preempted for TWO books. I will have TWO BOOKS PUBLISHED. TNWSY is tentatively scheduled for Summer 2015, and my second book for Summer 2016.

Ahhh!

So that’s my amazing news. I will be an author. My little book is going to be read by people. Everything I hoped for is actually happening. It’s weird and crazy and exciting and I still can’t believe it. Because it started as words, a fleeting idea. And now it’s this.

And, you guys, I couldn’t be happier.

Me, in the Past

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I was a pop punk kid in high school. I wore short sleeved Ataris t-shirts over long sleeves, even when it was hot outside (which it often was in Florida). I had skater sneakers, even though my skateboarding skills weren’t that great. I had arms of bracelets, and I wanted to look the part so people know I was more than just this bespectacled tiny girl. It was the simplest act of rebellion, one where the worst I did was dye my hair red, but it felt like me. I blasted the music out of my car’s stereo, because I needed to relate to the lyrics. I needed to feel them.

So what happened the other day was really interesting.

Let me set the scene –

S and I went to a sandwich shop. I was wearing my normal Saturday attire – jeans, tank top, cardigan, glasses, and messy bun. In other words, I looked like a librarian even on my day off. While I was sitting outside, waiting for S and the sandwiches, two teens – a girl and a boy – skateboarded in front of me and approached the counter. The girl was wearing a short sleeve band t-shirt over a long sleeve shirt. She had shorts on and chucks, and wore her hair long and loose. She had at least 20 bracelets snaking up her wrist.

When she passed, she glanced at me for a moment, and I recognized the look. Taking in my (rather dorky) appearance, she thought: I will never turn into that. 

Which was funny because when I looked at her, I thought: I was once you. 

The thing is, I love how I turned out – even if I rarely see bands perform live anymore and my Ataris t-shirt is long gone. The music still plays sometimes, but that phase is over. I’m happy with who I am now. And I hope she will be happy with her future, too.