Tag: writing

First-Year Orientation!

Leave a comment

A bit ago, Eric Smith and I sold our second interconnected anthology to Candlewick. Were we excited? YOU BET.

Re-titled FIRST-YEAR ORIENTATION, our anthology features various stories about wild adventures from that first day on campus. From moving into their dorm and not being embarrassed by their parents, to attending their first party. From avoiding people they don’t want to see from high school, to maybe finding a ghost or two.

(Or, for my character, having to work that entire day at a book store, while everyone else makes friends.)

Since the announcement came out, we actually compiled the anthology and edited it. It’s done! Which is…incredible! We had an amazing time working with an extremely talented bunch of writers. And now we have a rad cover, too.

First-Year Orientation

Working on anthologies is a lot of work, but also a tremendous honor. These authors trusted their stories with us. And Eric trusted a book with me. Honestly, once was cool. But twice? Amazing.

Being part of an anthology is kind of like college, in a strange way. It’s a new experience; you’re meeting all new people. You’re hoping people like you; you’re hoping to fit in. Editing an anthology is like being a mother that helped get their child ready for that first day, and is proudly sending them off.

Will it go well? Goodness, I hope so. But ready or not, it happens.

And ready or not, here’s our second anthology, out April 4, 2023. I hope you like it. Goodness, I’m proud of it.

BATTLE OF THE BANDS!

Leave a comment

IMG_4639

I’m so excited to announce that BATTLE OF THE BANDS is being published by Candlewick!! Co-edited by amazing author/agent Eric Smith and I, the anthology will feature 16 stories written by 16 different authors (including us), telling the story of a one-night battle of the bands. Each chapter will be its own story about a support person, audience member, or band itself. Then, all stories will interconnect so the book will feel like one full night from all points of view.

And let’s discuss these authors: Jenny Torres-Sanchez, Sarvenaz Tash, Jenn Marie-Thorne, Ashley Woodfolk, Katie Cotugno, Jeff Zentner, Brittany Cavallaro, Shaun David Hutchinson, Ashley Poston, Preeti Chhibber, Sarah Smetana, Jay Coles, Jasmine Warga, and singer/songwriter Justin Courtney Pierre of Motion City Soundtrack. I’m in awe of the talent here.

I. CAN. NOT. WAIT.

image1A little backstory: I was in a band that competed in my high school’s Battle of the Bands. We were…not great, but we were the first all-girl band, so that was a thing. We decided to do it literally on a whim, each picking an instrument with the confidence only drama club teens could have. We got help from friends (who were also in bands, and were actually, you know, good –shout out to Joy & Dan from the original Pepperpots!) and managed to be okay enough to make it into the competition. We played. We survived. We were proud of ourselves. We never played again. But we did it, and it was a blast. Long live Candid Apple, circa 2001.

Fast forward to last year when a bleary eyed Eric & I were at an airport at 5 a.m., waiting to get back to our families after an author event in Mississippi. I told him this anthology idea I had, but was afraid I wouldn’t be able to pull off. He encouraged me to do it and, a few days later, offered to co-edit in support. I cheered in the aisles at work in the library (shhhh). (A million trillion thank yous to Eric for believing in me, and Dawn Frederick of Red Sofa Literary for believing in us and selling the book.)

Fast forward to a few days later when we started asking authors to jump in and…they did! Excitedly! It was then that I thought what we were doing might be…something.

So here it is, our Battle of the Bands, coming out in 2021. We’re so excited to share this story with you, and to give it to all the kids who were in bands, who weren’t in bands, who wanted to be in bands, and who just loved the feeling of anything happening in one night.

h4zwVMby.jpg-large

Gig poster by Eric. Expect more of these because how can we resist?

Progression

2 Comments

I originally wrote THE NIGHT WE SAID YES using Google Drive. This way it was always available, even when my laptop was not. During my lunch breaks at work, I’d edit on my work computer. It was an easy way to move a file around.

The other day, while saving my current work in progress in Drive, I found a few original versions of TNWSY. (I save EVERYTHING.) It was so weird and fun, looking at these works in progress that actually turned into something REAL. Anyway, I thought I’d share the original first paragraph, what it turned in to, and, of course, the finished product.

FIRST VERSION!

Screen Shot 2015-11-02 at 6.02.40 AM

Different, but not really! It’s still the none-too-happy Ella being dragged to a party. It’s still setting up her til-death-do-we-part friendship with Meg. But originally, I had a whole scene where she was getting ready for the party. I had her calling Meg for outfit advice. I had her fretting, but at the same time, not wanting to fret, about what the night would bring. And then Meg pulls up.

The first person to read TNWSY, my friend Katie, suggested I cut the first two pages. Hard to hear at first, but amazingly spot on. Why start before the action when I could start in the middle of it? It was a slow build up that really wasn’t necessary. So I deleted the entire beginning. It was a lot less painful than it sounds.

NEXT VERSION:

Screen Shot 2015-11-02 at 6.03.23 AM

This is the version I queried agents with. When querying, you send a letter about the book, and then the first few pages (depending on what the agent requests). This is what I hoped would peak their interest. (Surprise: it did!)

Now, here’s the final version:

Screen Shot 2015-11-29 at 9.23.44 PM

There was quite a bit that changed with TNWSY, from my first draft to my editor, to the final product. We added a lot, changed names, changed entire scenes. But the story itself stayed the same, the feeling stayed the same. And, as it turns out, quite a bit of that very first page. Strange how that happens, right?

It’s fun seeing how things change over time–how they grow and breathe and move into something new. Sure it’s scary when you’re deep in it–when you’re creating that first scene, when you’re editing that first scene–but it’s nice knowing that there’s an end point, a light at the end of the tunnel. And that, sometimes, your end might not be so different from your beginning.

 

Matt’s Story!

Leave a comment

Exciting news – THE NIGHT WE SAID YES is getting a companion novella! Ahh!

TNWSY takes place two nights, exactly one year apart. In the THEN chapters, Ella meets Matt and they have a great night together with friends. In the NOW chapters, it’s a year later, and Ella is seeing Matt again, after several months apart. Well… MATT’S STORY: A NIGHT WE SAID YES NOVELLA will be the time in-between, as told by Matt.

Official description:

Seventeen-year-old Matt had the perfect life in Orlando. He met the girl of his dreams, rocked out on bass in an awesome band, and partied with the best group of friends he could ask for. But then his family gets a call and he has to move back to Texas—immediately. Now stuck with no possibility of ever seeing his friends in Orlando again, Matt is ready to give up. But can he open up his heart to new friends and a second chance?

I had so much fun going back into the Ella & Matt universe and giving Matt a chance to share his side of the story. I love Matt, and I’m so thrilled HarperCollins is publishing my novella! So much love to my agent and editor who agreed to do this with me.

MATT’S STORY will be published by Epic Reads Impulse, a HarperCollins digital imprint, on August 4, 2015. It’ll be available anywhere you buy eBooks (and it’s already up on iTunes and Amazon).

The Story Behind the Cover

2 Comments

Untitled-4THIS is the cover for THE NIGHT WE SAID YES! Isn’t it wonderful? Doesn’t it scream “I AM THE BEST BOOK EVER?!” (Okay, maybe not, but I’m kind of proud of it.) As I mentioned on my cover reveal yesterday, I’m extremely happy with the direction HarperTeen decided to go. Yes, the romance is central, but so is the friendship. To me, friendships are relationships, and, especially in high school, best friends are just as important as boyfriends/girlfriends. I try to show that in my book.

But here’s the fun part of creating this beautiful cover: when my editor asked if I had any thoughts on the image, prior to design, I pleaded for one thing – for it not to be a kissing cover.

Don’t get me wrong, I think there are some LOVELY kissing covers out there, and, yes, my book totally has kissing in it. But if you were to see a cover with two people kissing, and then were to read my title…what would you think?

EXACTLY.

Apparently HarperTeen had the same idea, and already said no to that type of cover. It’s a wonderful feeling, knowing you’re on the same page with your publisher. It’s also hilarious, to me, thinking that they were discussing that.

After, I was asked if I wanted just Matt and Ella on the cover, or if I preferred all four of the characters. I asked for four, but left it to them, because they know best. They know what image will work. But, as it happens, they went with four, believing in the friendship plot. (The message of friendship is also woven into the official description, too, which I adore.) And I cried with happiness at the final image.

So what you see here today is the final product, and what will grace bookstore and library shelves June 16th of next year.

HarperTeen designers, I love you.

(Don’t forget to enter to win a signed advanced copy of TNWSY! Go here!)