LTUE Recap: Breaking Into the Market

Obviously I had to go to (and go-pher) this panel. Just look at all the cool authors!

James Dashner, Jennifer Neilson, Jenn Johansson, Kasie West, Brodi Ashton

Here's what they said:

James Dashner (THE MAZE RUNNER series)

• Luck definitely plays a part: he feels like if certain events had not gone his way, he’d still be an accountant
• Every step taken in his career has been both a lucky break and wouldn't have happened without the previous steps (Hunger Games came out right after Random House bought the Maze Runner, so suddenly MR got more attention in-house, and they advertised it as "If you like Hunger Games....")
• When in a writing group, you have to be strong enough to decide what to listen to. Use the Rule of 3: if three people say the same thing, it’s probably true. You have to be strong enough to disagree, and ignore advice you don’t like. 
• When he was first starting out, he wouldn't even go home 2-3 nights a week: he'd go write in a library or a bookstore instead. Now, he makes a great living writing full time.
• Don’t get discouraged by the odds and the numbers: the vast majority of the people trying to get published suck. People at a writing conference are already ahead of the curve.

Jennifer Nielson (THE FALSE PRINCE, coming April 2012)

• You have to be ready to grab onto the luck when it happens
• She spent so much time focused on the rules, she wasn't finding her voice. She finally decided to throw out the rules, didn't care about getting published, decided to just have fun. Forget what you know, write what you are.
• In a writing group, thick skin will come back to benefit you when you’re published: taking and giving criticism, being humble, etc, will help with future reviews, editors, and so forth.
• She's a full-time writer, has a goal to have husband wean off of his career to start to explore his own dreams
• The only way to fail is to give up: if you are willing to do it, you will succeed. Find the door that answers who you are as a writer and go through it.

Jenn Johansson (Debut INSOMNIA... available soon in Germany and Italy)

• On luck: In the US, romance is the bread and butter. Europe likes thrillers. European Literary scouts look for US books to recommend to foreign publishers. One found her book, INSOMNIA it sold in Germany and Italy. Because it's a thriller, it will likely do better overseas than it will here. 
• Find what you like, then do that.
• If she could go back, she would have moved onto the next book sooner.
• Nobody can tell you what the right path is (even an agent or editor). There are more paths to pursue than ever, and no one can tell anyone else what to do. 
• It is difficult to get into foreign markets with self-published books. 
• If it’s not a priority, you won’t find the time to write. Keep writing while you’re waiting on querying, etc – don’t put it off because you’re waiting to hear back from an agent.

Kasie West (Debut PIVOT POINT coming January 2013)

• Luck is preparation meeting opportunity. 
• When she was starting out, she was too much in a hurry, trying to get ahead. She realized the author of The Traveling Pants had lots of author friends... realized later that they all "grew up" together. She wishes she had been more patient with herself.
• She found her writing group online. She read blogs she liked, of people she connects with. Their group is online: they send stuff to each other over the internet.
• If writing is something you want to do, you’ll make time for it. 
• Publishers are still paying good money for books.
• Don’t be afraid to interact with agents on Twitter

Brodi Ashton (Debut EVERNEATH. Duh.)

• With her first book, she got over 100 rejections from agents, finally got one, then revised 6m during the Fall of 2008... when the market crashed. Someone told her if she sold a book that year, she’d be right up there with Jesus. It was rejected 15 times.
• She wrote her next book, and her agent didn't like it. She queried new agents and immediately got 10 offers, then signed with Michael Bourett.
• She wishes had put her first book aside much earlier: big writers write hundreds of books, write lots of different stories, but new authors tend to think we’ll make it or break it on one book.
• Writing groups: keep trying one on until you find one that fits.
• She supports her family with her writing now (!!!)
• Finish your first book, query in batches: send out 5 queries, if no requests, tweak the query

EVERNEATH Comes Out Tomorrow!

Okay, so I've been talking about EVERNEATH and Brodi Ashton for... forever. I know. Indulge me again, K? I'll keep it short.

EVERNEATH COMES OUT TOMORROW!

See. Told you it was short. Now watch the trailer:
Now go buy it.

If you're near Salt Lake (lucky, lucky you), be sure to stop by the launch party:

When: Tuesday, January 24th, 2012

Where: King's English 

Time: 7:00 p.m.

Treats?: Of course

Do me a favor and tell her I sent you, k? I'd be there if I could. Sadly, 8 hours of driving is not in my schedule or the budget, even for this.

If you can't make it to Salt Lake (sadness for all), you can still buy it online or from your local brick-and-mortar store (if they know what's good for them, anyway):

Buy EVERNEATH Indiebound

Buy EVERNEATH on Amazon

Buy EVERNEATH on Barnes and Noble

Now stare at the cover until yours arrives:

Oh, and go buy tissues. You're gonna need 'em

Breakdown: How NOT to Write a Query 3

Okay, so on Monday I broke Brodi's book blurb (say that 10 times fast). Let's discuss what I screwed up on, shall we?

First, here's the two blurbs, side by side:

Official (Good)

Mine (Bad)

Last spring, Nikki Beckett vanished, sucked into an underworld known as the Everneath, where immortals Feed on the emotions of despairing humans. Now she's returned- to her old life, her family, her friends- before being banished back to the underworld... this time forever. She has six months before the Everneath comes to claim her, six months for good-byes she can't find the words for, six months to find redemption, if it exists. Nikki longs to spend these months reconnecting with her boyfriend, Jack, the one person she loves more than anything. But there's a problem: Cole, the smoldering immortal who first enticed her to the Everneath, has followed Nikki to the mortal world. And he'll do whatever it takes to bring her back- this time as his queen. As Nikki's time grows short and her relationships begin slipping from her grasp, she's forced to make the hardest decision of her life: find a way to cheat fate and remain on the Surface with Jack or return to the Everneath and become Cole's...

Six months ago, Nikki had a good life. Her best friend, Jack, became her boyfriend – and it actually looked like his player days were over. She had a BFF, her dad was the mayor, and her little brother idolized her. Then she met Cole, and Cole knew just what to do to ease the pain of her mother’s death. So Nikki became Cole’s forfeit in the Everneath, where she surrendered her emotions to keep him alive for another hundred years. Now, Nikki has returned, but can’t tell anyone where she’s been for the last six months – or that, to her, the time has actually been a hundred years. Worse, she can’t tell anyone that, in six months, she’ll be forced to return forever to the tunnels of the Everneath. Jack still loves her, but how can she renew his trust? Most importantly, Cole followed her to the surface to convince her to become his queen. It’s a good alternative to the tunnels, but can she find a way to stay with Jack?

I chose Brodi's book for this series not just because it's coming out in a few days, but because I think her blurb excels in two main areas: tone and details. Let's talk about tone first, shall we?

Set the Tone in the First Line
You've heard about first impressions? Same goes for the first line of your query.

Official: Last spring, Nikki Beckett vanished...
Mine: Six months ago, Nikki had a good life.


What's the difference? In the official version, the tension starts immediately, with a vanishing girl. In mine, it only hints at future conflict - and that only by inferring that we wouldn't be mentioning it if it had stayed good.


More, EVERNEATH is not a happy book. Hope-filled, yes. Happy, no. It is not peppy or cheerful or anything you'll see making the rounds of the comedy circuit (no matter how hilarious the author). So if you can picture a cheerleader reading the blurb, something is wrong. EVERNEATH is meant to be read by a newscaster wearing her tragedy-face.


Take-away: open with something that immediately reflects the tone of the book. Introduce the tension as soon as possible. Five words is good.


Continue the Tone Throughout
Keep it up through the rest of the query. The official blurb does it amazingly well, especially in this paragraph:

She has six months before the Everneath comes to claim her, six months for good-byes she can't find the words for, six months to find redemption, if it exists.

Mine? Not so much. The happy gossiping cheerleader could totally read the whole thing.


Take-away: don't let the information overwhelm your tone. Use words that would be found in the book. A good tip for this is to write it in the POV of the actual POV character (then convert it to third person present tense).


Devil's in the Details
Hmmm. I think this was the problem last time, right? That's okay, because this is a very common problem.
Gabriela Lessa actually said this about my first 30 pages: I had great details... but maybe the wrong ones.

Let's do another chart. In this one, I've listed the information we learn from each blurb and I've underlined the information that's repeated in both:

Real (Good)

Fake (Bad)

Last spring, Nikki Beckett vanished Underworld = Everneath Immortals Feed on the emotions of despairing humans Now she's returned She’s going to be banished back to the underworld in six months... this time forever She has a family and friends She has a hard time saying goodbye She loves Jack, her boyfriend Cole enticed her to the Everneath Cole followed Nikki back, wants her to be queen Nikki has a choice: cheat fate and stay with Jack or return with Cole

Six months ago, Nikki had a good life Jack was her best friend before he was her boyfriend Jack used to be a player, now he’s shaping up Nikki had a BFF Nikki’s dad was mayor Nikki has a little brother who idolized her Nikki’s mother was dead Cole knew how to ease her pain Nikki became a forfeit in the Everneath Nikki surrendered her emotions to keep Cole alive for 100 years Now, she’s returned Nikki can’t tell anyone where she’s been for six months She’s been gone 100 years She has to return to the tunnels of the Everneath Jack still loves her Cole followed Nikki back, wants her to be queen Queen is better than tunnels, but Nikki wants Jack

What's the difference? My query blurb doesn't explain what the Everneath is or, really, what her choice is or how hard everything is for her. Instead, I waste space on unnecessary details like who the boyfriend was before he was the boyfriend, her dad's profession, that her brother idolizes her and her mother is dead, that she had been gone for 100 years Everneath time, that she can't tell anyone, that she'll be going back to the tunnels of the Everneath (whatever those are), and that Jack still loves her. That last detail may seem important, but the official blurb only says that SHE loves JACK. Doesn't that seem more important to the driving force of the book?


The Take-Away: Watch those details. List every detail you include in your query and figure out if, maybe, you really don't need all of them. Figure out which details you really DO need and focus on those.


Now, I do have to mention that Brodi didn't land her agent with what is now the official blurb. Her query was slightly different from what now graces the back of her book. If you're curious to see her actual query, check it out in her agent's post about why he signed her.


So do you struggle with these issues like I (obviously) do? Do you have any tips to write it better?


Also, I'd love you forever if you'd head over to Jamie Ayre's blog to critique my query for her query contest. I'm #1 (wahoo!)... but I'm three pages deep on the blog, and I'm worried no one will get that far down. You (and Jamie) are the best!

How NOT to Write a Query 3: EVERNEATH edition

I have a major author crush on Brodi Ashton (Gasp! You didn't know that?) and her debut novel EVERNEATH, which comes out on January 24th. That's a week from tomorrow. If you live in the Salt Lake area, make your night and go to her launch party at the King's English. Get her to personalize your book - then have her sign another one you can sell on ebay later. Trust me on this: EVERNEATH is gonna be huge. (I'd feel nervous about making such a blatant prediction about unpredictable market trends if it wasn't such a duh-statement.)

Anyway, in honor of EVERNEATH's launch, I'm going to completely ruin its lovely blurb. What? You're going to break the spine! Don't judge!

First, as always, here's the real thing... only I'm blacking it out because I want you to read the bad one first. But I didn't want to PUT the bad one first in case you got confused and unfairly judged EVERNEATH by my bad EVERNEATH blurb. After you've scrolled down and read the bad blurb, write down what you think is wrong with it. THEN check the real one and see if you were right. Leave your crit in the comments and I'll break it down on Wednesday.

Now, on to the real blurb (select it to read it when you're done reading the bad one):

Last spring, Nikki Beckett vanished, sucked into an underworld known as the Everneath, where immortals Feed on the emotions of despairing humans. Now she's returned- to her old life, her family, her friends- before being banished back to the underworld... this time forever.

She has six months before the Everneath comes to claim her, six months for good-byes she can't find the words for, six months to find redemption, if it exists.

Nikki longs to spend these months reconnecting with her boyfriend, Jack, the one person she loves more than anything. But there's a problem: Cole, the smoldering immortal who first enticed her to the Everneath, has followed Nikki to the mortal world. And he'll do whatever it takes to bring her back- this time as his queen.

As Nikki's time grows short and her relationships begin slipping from her grasp, she's forced to make the hardest decision of her life: find a way to cheat fate and remain on the Surface with Jack or return to the Everneath and become Cole's...

(It's okay if you need some time to drool over the cover. I can wait.)

Ready? Got your red pencils and scathing comments sharpened?

Here's the bad blurb. Yanno, like you might write if this were your book and you were new at this query-writing thang. I even made mine the same word count as the real one (172 words):

Six months ago, Nikki had a good life. Her best friend, Jack, became her boyfriend – and it actually looked like his player days were over. She had a BFF, her dad was the mayor, and her little brother idolized her. Then she met Cole, and Cole knew just what to do to ease the pain of her mother’s death. So Nikki became Cole’s forfeit in the Everneath, where she surrendered her emotions to keep him alive for another hundred years.

Now, Nikki has returned, but can’t tell anyone where she’s been for the last six months – or that, to her, the time has actually been a hundred years. Worse, she can’t tell anyone that, in six months, she’ll be forced to return forever to the tunnels of the Everneath.

Jack still loves her, but how can she renew his trust? Most importantly, Cole followed her to the surface to convince her to become his queen. It’s a good alternative to the tunnels, but can she find a way to stay with Jack? 

Okay, your turn. What did I do wrong? What does the real blurb have that this one is lacking?

Everlovin' EVERNEATH

Let's start with the FTC disclaimer, shall we? Wouldn't want you thinking that my review here was completely unbiased. Oh, no. For all you know I rave about my friends' books all the time, and you can't trust my review to actually reflect reality. [If you care nothing for the FTC, skip to the picture.]

So first I'll mention that I fell in love with Brodi Ashton's blog long before I fell in love with EVERNEATH. By a few months. I started following in early 2010, and still stop by three times a week. She's hilarious. She never fails to entertain. She has a quirky sense of humor and an understandably loyal following. Her blog posts are all over the place, about everything from tennis star wedgies to her dad's cancer. She gives topics their proper weight, but you never feel depressed when you leave. Love. Brodi's. Blog.

I also love Brodi. I met her in 2010 when her writer's group let me and my friend hang out with them at a writer's conference. I've interviewed her (and her group) on Authors' Advisory. I've emailed her when exciting things happened to me, and she's given me excellent advice about starting out in this crazy industry. She lets me call her a friend, and I'm proud to do so.

As long as we're being thorough, I've been determined to love EVERNEATH since mid-April, 2010. That's when Brodi posted the first page or so on her blog. I was hooked but good! Obsessed, rather. I must have read that poor thing more than 20 times. It fairly drips emotion. I couldn't wait to read more and, by January 28, 2011, was so convinced it was a future bestseller, I predicted it on my blog. By the end of February, 2011, I'd seen the cover and knew I was right.

So was I biased when I read it? Um, yes, counselor. You could say that. Did I really, really, really WANT to be right about it? Yes, again. Did I ignore glaring flaws in my single-minded quest to have my own pre-fabricated opinions justified? Who's to say? I don' think so, but I can understand if you're a bit skeptical.

Which is why you'll have to read it for yourself. And OHHH YOU WANT TO!!

At long last, the (non-spoiler-y) review:

Seriously. Who can resist this cover?

This is the blurb on Brodi's site. You might as well read it, since I'm not going to add much to the facts:

Last spring, Nikki Beckett vanished, sucked into an underworld known as the Everneath, where immortals Feed on the emotions of despairing humans. Now she's returned- to her old life, her family, her friends- before being banished back to the underworld... this time forever.

She has six months before the Everneath comes to claim her, six months for good-byes she can't find the words for, six months to find redemption, if it exists.

Nikki longs to spend these months reconnecting with her boyfriend, Jack, the one person she loves more than anything. But there's a problem: Cole, the smoldering immortal who first enticed her to the Everneath, has followed Nikki to the mortal world. And he'll do whatever it takes to bring her back- this time as his queen.

As Nikki's time grows short and her relationships begin slipping from her grasp, she's forced to make the hardest decision of her life: find a way to cheat fate and remain on the Surface with Jack or return to the Everneath and become Cole's...

I read EVERNEATH at the end of July, 2011. I'm participating in an ARC tour, but Brodi was so sympathetic to my desperation to read it, she put other friends and family on hold to send me one of her own loaner ARCs. (Good thing, because the touring ARC still hasn't reached me.) If you want my first reaction, go here.

Perhaps one of the most surprising things about EVERNEATH is the absence of Brodi's trademark quirky humor. This is not a laugh-out-loud book. If you're making loud noises while reading it, you're more likely to have a tissue in your hand than a grin on your face. There's not a lot to laugh about in Nikki's world, frankly. She effectively died six months ago, surrendering the rest of her life to someone else. Now she's back, but without any hope of redemption. With only the knowledge that she's going to hurt everyone so much worse when she leaves again in six months. With only a small window to do as much good as she can for her friends and family.

For anyone who has ever felt helpless, who has watched as a loved one hurtles toward pain and been powerless to stop it, who has caused a loved one pain and who knows you'll just do it again... this is a powerful book. Nikki is stuck. She can't fix it. She can't really say goodbye this time. She can't explain where she's been or why she left. She can't reconnect... but she can't push everyone away, either.

Quite the premise, yes? The execution is better.

EVERNEATH's narrative skips between time lines, showing what happened before she left, what happened since she got back, and what happened while she was gone. I thought it was amazingly effective. If it bothers you at all, wait. By the end, you'll love it as much as I do.

Brodi's language is heartbreaking, but, achingly, also filled with hope. Each sentence is a pleasure to read--even if you have to wipe your eyes so you can see first. The mystery is intricate and the looming deadline enough to induce hyperventilation.

I loved it. Not just because I was right, and it's gonna be a bestseller. It made me weep. It broke my heart. And, ultimately, it taught me that hope can hide in the darkest of corners.

It has also made me pathetically eager for the sequel.

You can find EVERNEATH here: 

GOODREADS

Pre-order at Indiebound
Pre-order on Amazon
Pre-order on Barnes and Noble

Go pre-order it now. You'll thank me later.

So have YOU read EVERNEATH? You want to, right?

100 Posts! Recommendations for Everyone!

This is my 100^thblog post!!!! Party!!! Confetti!! Cookies for everyone!

I haven’t posted for a week, because I just couldn’t think of anything cool enough to put in my 100^thpost. How does one manage to choose such things?

I wanted to do a give-away, but, dang it, I’m poor, and can’t finance anything big enough. Maybe for my upcoming blog-i-versary.

So I decided to give you all a list of my 100 favorite books from the last three years. The ones I’d love to recommend to you—and frequently do recommend to those who ask. I’ve been logging my reading since April of 2008, so I had over 500 books to choose from. I went through and weeded out the ones I didn’t feel good about recommending. Those I couldn’t remember, or wasn’t all that impressed by. I also weeded out many that I really do love, but knew would get easily cut from the top 100. I was left with over 200. *Sigh*

Of the over 200 finalists, most were part of a series. If I were to list each series as a single entry instead of multiple entries, I’d be under 100. Bother.

So we’re left with the following categorized list of books I would like to recommend to you, depending on your tastes. There are many more amazing books out there that I’ve read in my life, including classics and more modern novels. These are just my favorites from the last three years—since I decided to become a novelist myself. Some I’ve broken down into series, and some I’ve listed by author. This is a long post, so feel free to skip forward to your favorite genre—or the genre you’d like to try out—and see what I’m recommending there. To help you decide where to start, I’ve listed my top choice first in each category. UPDATED to add pictures, so you know the cover to look for. :)

General disclaimer: not all of these books are PG-rated. If you prefer PG-rated books, proceed with caution, and feel free to contact me for specifics on each book. Everyone’s tastes and sensibilities are different: I promise not to judge you if you promise not to judge me. :)

Also, I was going to link to each author, but that’s too much work, so I’m linking to my top author in each category and trusting that you can get Google to help you find the rest.

YA Low / Urban Fantasy

These books take our world and add magic. This is my favorite category, so I’ve read a lot of books in it. Harry Potter isn’t listed only because I haven’t read him recently.

Top Recommendation: Everneath by Brodi Ashton –it comes out in January 2012, but I read an ARC a few weeks ago. You’re going to want it. Pre-Order it now. You’ll thank me later. My full-ish review will be up here on October 26^th.

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category:

1. Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer (yes, I still love the books)
2. Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare, beginning with City of Bones—and don’t forget the spin-off prequel series: The Infernal Devices
3. Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead
4. Wings series by Aprilynne Pike
5. My Fair Godmother series by Janette Rallison (with another UF series to come under the pen-name CJ Hill)
6. The Dark Divine series by Bree Despain
7. Artemis Fowl (thanks, Shelly) series by Eoin Colfer (I’ve only read the first, but it was very fun)
8. Need series by Carrie Jones
9. Faeriewalker series by Jenna Black, beginning with Glimmerglass
10. Darkest Powers series by Kelley Armstrong, beginning with The Summoning
11. Paranormalcy series by Kiersten White
12. Wicked Lovely series by Melissa Marr
13. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

YA / MG High Fantasy

These books are about a different world than ours, with magic and mystery.

Top recommendation: The Books of Bayern by Shannon Hale, beginning with The Goose Girl. While you’re at it, read her other fine, award-winning YA books (and her adult books). I love Shannon’s lyrical writing, and the way her characters lean on their friends to succeed. Also the romance. J

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category:

1. Anything by Jessica Day George, especially Princess of the Midnight Ball (which is really about a boy)
2. Graceling by Kristin Cashore
3. The Glasswrights' Apprentice series by Mindy Klasky (though I haven’t finished it yet)
4. Far World Series by J. Scott Savage, beginning with Water Keep
5. The Shifter series by Janice Hardy
6. The Black Magician Trilogy by Trudi Canavan, beginning with The Magician’s Guild

YA Dystopian      

Everybody’s utopia is someone else’s dystopia. I like to diss this category, but there are still lots of books I like in it.

Top Recommendation: Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins. I’m not sure I’ll ever be brave enough read it again (or see the movie), but it’s a brutal, dazzling, and haunting ride. Definitely a must-read.

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category:

1. The Maze Runner series by James Dashner (final book due out in 10 days!)
2. Matched Ally Condie (book #2 is due out November 1)
3. Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld (excluding Extras—I just couldn’t finish it)

YA Contemporary Romance

Our world, with romance and no magic. What’s not to love?

Top Recommendation: Any number of books by Janette Rallison. Especially try My Double Life and Just One Wish. Normal teenagers with mostly normal problems. Janette is quirky, profound, hilarious, and an all-around treat to read. (And she’s starting a new YA UF series under the pen name of CJ Hill!)

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category:

1. Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins (sooo looking forward to reading Lola, too!)
2. Back When You Were Easier to Love by Emily Wing Smith
3. The Princess Diaries series by Meg Cabot
4. Sweethearts by Sara Zarr

Adult Low / Urban Fantasy

Our world, magic, few teenagers. “Adult” doesn’t mean X-rated, but some of them are a bit graphic—in blood and / or in sex. Know your sensibilities and choose wisely.

Top Recommendation: I have to go with Patricia Briggs. I’m so in love with her Mercy Thompsonseries (starting with Moon Called), I went back and read everything she’s ever written. You should, too. (Some of it is high fantasy.) Mercy Thompson also has a great spin-off series called Alpha and Omega. Read that, too.

Can’t-help-it Runner-up: Ilona Andrews, especially her Kate Daniels series, beginning with Magic Bites. There’s a bit of post-apocalyptic in this one, but it’s an amazing world and a wonderful what-if. Ilona (who is really a wife-husband writing team) also has a great UF series called The Edge—starting with On the Edge.

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category (and, really, I keep re-arranging the first 4):

1. The Hallows series by Kim Harrison, beginning with Dead Witch Walking
2. Women of the Otherworld series by Kelley Armstrong, beginning with Bitten.
3. Jane Yellowrock series by Faith Hunter, beginning with Skinwalker
4. The Night Huntress series by Jeaniene Frost, beginning with Halfway to the Grave
5. Sookie Stackhouse series (the inspiration for TruBlood on HBO) by Charlaine Harris, beginning with Dead Until Dark
6. Harper Connelley series by Charlaine Harris, beginning with Grave Sight
7. Allie Beckstrom Series by Devon Monk, beginning with Magic to the Bone
8. Undead series by MaryJanice Davidson, starting with Undead and Unwed (vampire chick-lit)
9. The Walker Papers series by C.E. Murphy, beginning with Urban Shaman
10. The Negotiator series by C.E. Murphy, beginning with Heart of Stone
11. Broken Heart series by Michele Bardsley, beginning with I'm the Vampire, That's Why
12. Girl's Guide to Witchcraft series by Mindy Klasky
13. Stormwalker series by Allyson James

Adult High Fantasy

Think Lord of the Rings—which isn’t on the list only because I haven’t read it in the last three years

Top Recommendation: Anythingby Brandon Sanderson. The Mistborn series, Elantris, Warbreaker, The Way of Kings—all excellent, mind-blowing, and depressingly discouraging to a wanna-be like me. (One of my wanna-be friends threw Elantris across the room when he finished it because it was so good. How can we hope to measure up to that?) I’m even tempted to wade through the whole Wheel of Time series because Brandon is writing the end of it! (Also, Brandon is coming to Authors’ Advisory on October 5 to talk about Magic Systems!!)

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category:

1. Kingkiller Chronicles by Patrick Rothfuss, beginning with The Name of the Wind (though, honestly, I’m waiting until the series is complete before I read past #1—three year lag times are a bit much for me)      
2. Rogue Mage series by Faith Hunter, beginning with Bloodring
3. The Tide Lords series by Jennifer Fallon, beginning with The Immortal Prince (sadly, I haven’t yet read the last book)
4. Mad Kestral by Misty Massey

Steampunk (YA and Adult)

Take historical times and pretend they were as smart about science as they thought they were. Steam-powered gadgetry a must.

Top Recommendation: the Alexia Tarabotti series by Gail Carriger, beginning with Soulless. This is actually Victorian Fantasy Steampunk with a healthy dose of romance. Ever wonder how tiny little England took over the world? They had werewolves in their military, of course. And those strange Victorian fashions? Vampires. Absolutely hilarious books, with a YA spinoff in the works.

Close Runner-Up: Scott Westerfeld’s Leviathan series. A commoner girl pretending to be a boy falls in love with a royal boy who doesn’t know she’s a girl, while they ride around on a flying whale fighting elaborate machines in a rewritten version of World War I. The third book, Goliath, just came out, and I’m so excited to read it!!

Horror

Stephen King is the master at this. Take one relatable, mostly ordinary hero, pit him against something terrifying, and raise your reader’s pulse.

Top Recommendation: I Am Not a Serial Killer series by Dan Wells. #2 is Mr. Monster. #3 is I Don’t Want to Kill You. If the titles don’t convince you, they’re about John Wayne Cleaver, a 15-year-old diagnosed sociopath who is obsessed with serial killers… but doesn’t want to become one. He has rules to keep him from going down that path (i.e. No Stalking People)—and they’re working just fine until a serial killer comes to town. John decides he can stop him… he’ll just have to break some of his rules.

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category:

1. The Odd Thomas series by Dean Koontz
2. The Frankenstein series by Dean Koontz, beginning with Prodigal Son         
3. By the Light of the Moon by Dean Koontz
4. The Meridians (Ebook) by Michaelbrent Collings (who writes a lot like Dean Koontz) :)

           

Sci-Fi (Adult and YA) 

Playing with possibilities in scientific advancement, space travel, and alien life forms.

Top Recommendation: The Host by Stephenie Meyer. It’s simply amazing. The body-snatcher “Souls” are wonderfully kind and utterly perplexed about why these few “wild” humans are still resisting. The Souls unquestionably improve the societal structure on every planet they conquer. They eliminate poverty, sickness… and human consciousness—at least, until the Soul Wanderer takes over Melanie’s body. This heart-wrenching love story is told from Wanderer’s perspective, but is intimately woven with the perspective of the woman still hanging onto her mind—and her memories of a lost love.

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category:

1. Across the Universe by Beth Revis (book two coming soon)
2. Sirantha Jax series by Ann Aguirre, beginning with Grimspace

Adult Contemporary Romance

If you need an endorphin fix, a Happily-Ever-After, or just a reason to believe that things really can work out in the end, this is the genre for you. Unless you’re under 18 or squeamish about sex in novels. Then ask your parents first.

Top Recommendation: Anything by Robyn Carr. And not just because she’s my mentor. Her recent Grace Valley and Virgin River series about tiny towns nestled in gigantic mountains are the ultimate in comfort food. Beautiful women, manly men (mostly ex-marines), and (fictional) tight-knit communities so real you’ll be calling your realtor.

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category:

1. Anything by Susan Elizabeth Phillips, especially What I Did For Love
2. Anything by Jennifer Crusie, especially Bet Me, where the overweight girl still gets the hotty guy—and you’ll actually believe it!
3. Almost anything by Loretta Chase, especially Lord of Scoundrels
4. Traitor series by Sandra "my first-cousin Noreen" Grey (Though I haven’t read past the first book yet. Bad cousin. No cookie.)

           

Adult Contemporary

Present day. Not romance, not fantasy, not horror.

Top Recommendation: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo series by Stieg Larsson. They can be disturbingly graphic, but if you’re not turned off by that sort of thing, the books are heart-pounding, gut-wrenching, and leave you rooting for the girl with weird hair, piercings, and tats. Who just happens to be a genius. And a hacker. And not half as incompetent as she’s been declared. And the toughest waif you’ll ever meet. It’s no wonder us Americans wanted our own set of films.

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category:

1. Nadia Stafford series by Kelley Armstrong, beginning with Exit Strategy—female ex-cop hit-man… er woman
2. Thursday Next series by Jasper Fforde, though I’ve only read the first one: The Eyre Affair

           

Writing Craft Books

Yeah, I really should read more of these. Most of my writing education lately has been from blogs, though, and blogs (as everybody knows) have excellent information on them. Still, these books are great, too. Even though I can’t pick a favorite.

On Writing (A Memoir of the Craft) by Stephen King—this is sort of a must-read for a genre writer. See King’s journey from dirt-poor scribbler to world-renowned author. Also, lots of solid (and some take-it-or-leave-it) advice on how to follow in his footsteps.

The Key: How to Write Damn Good Fiction Using the Power of Myth by James N. Frey—a wonderful description of the Hero’s Journey, the various characters, the steps along the way, and why readers love this structure again and again and again.

-------------------------

Whew! You’re still here? You skipped, didn’t you? That’s okay. Come back whenever you’re wondering what to read next. :) I've specifically mentioned 77 books and/or series, so you should have enough to keep you busy for a while. 

So do our tastes match? Is your favorite missing? (If so, keep in mind that I might have read it over 3 years ago.) See any you want to try next? 

Finally, thanks so much to all my followers / readers / friends / family. Blogging wouldn't be half as much fun without you!

Now that I've stopped crying....

Breathtaking. Gorgeous. Riveting. Drool-worthy. And the cover's not bad, either.

In a grand testament to the benefits of being generally obnoxious, Brodi Ashton sent me an ARC of EVERNEATH this week. It arrived yesterday. I'm forbidden to check the mail at my house (seems bills get misplaced when that happens--what CAN have happened to them?), so I didn't even know it was here until we were getting ready to leave for a party and Jerry (quite reluctantly, I might add) handed me an awesome padded manila envelope. Much squealing ensued, followed by a prohibition against taking it to the party (my husband is SUCH a kill-joy). So I started reading it last night after the kids were in bed. And stopped around 2 am when Jerry insisted (see above-mentioned kill-joy reference). And started again around 7:30 am when I realized the utter futility of trying to get back to sleep. Who needs more than 5 hours of sleep when they have EVERNEATH to read? After making breakfast for the boys, I finished the book (checks log of obnoxious progress-report text messages to Brodi) before noon.

I'm going to save my full review for my scheduled time (I'm part of a blog tour for EVERNEATH), but I do want to mention a few things. There are no spoilers, here. I'm not going to talk about any plot element not mentioned in the jacket blurb. That said....

Have tissues handy. Maybe it's just me, but I get very weepy about people dealing with death. Take a girl who has already (sort of) died once and who is anticipating another imminent-and-more-permanent "death," and I was a mess. Brodi writes this perfectly. She layers Nikki's illogical hopes with her reality of hopelessness. She contrasts Nikki's selfless desire to make things better with the inevitable damage she's doing by selfishly being there at all, when she's just going to leave again. She expertly weaves a tale of improbable redemption from the fabric of self-inflicted despair.

Whenever I talk a book up so much before I've even read it, I worry that it won't live up to the hype. My fears are at ease. EVERNEATH is all I hoped it would be and more. It is amazing.

Brava, Brodi. Now get back to work on book 2--why are you wasting time reading my blog?!

Uh-oh. I just went back and re-read one of my favorite parts and now I'm all weepy again. Excuse me while I open a fresh box of tissues....

Awards (for me) and the One I REALLY Want

If you're a writer, you know the importance of maintaining some healthy delusions. Odds say publishing a book is about as likely as winning the lottery? Pshaw. That doesn't apply to me! First book never sells? Stephenie Meyer's did! Why not mine? Most published writers can't support themselves (much less their families) on their writing? Well, some of them do! Why not me?

If we believed the odds, we'd never try.

I don't buy lottery tickets because the odds of winning are so minuscule that it's not worth my money--but I've spent thousands of hours creating my own, custom, lottery-ticket novel (no, it's not about lottery tickets). And I believe in it. I do. I think it's a winner.

This is my first full-length novel (though I wrote the first 5 chapters of a few others--do they count?), but I'm still going to query it. In a few more months, when I get it perfect. And I'm going to cross my fingers, send up a prayer, hit send... and then start refreshing my email inbox. Because, you never know, my dream agents might be so enchanted by it, they'll immediately want the full. And I wouldn't want them to wait more than five minutes before they get it, would I? Of course not.

I want to sell it for a lot of money. Because, see, I have this dream life in my head. Free of debt. Living in a house without threadbare carpet. On a ranch, where my husband can raise cows and my sons can ride horses. With an office just for me, where I can continue to write books people will love. Occasionally leaving to attend conferences and to go on tour. To England. To meet my father's family. Perhaps with a baby daughter (or two) in tow. Doesn't that sound good? Would you give that up just because the odds say it'll never happen?

So I say it's okay to dream. Hard cold reality doesn't have any place in my world. Even if this book doesn't sell, the next one will. Or the one after that. Because I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and gol-darn it, people like me!

Don't believe me? I present Exhibits 1, 2, and 3:

From Anita


From Deirdra


From Jenny

I received these three awesome blog awards within the last week. See? I told you people like me! :) Anita and Deirdra custom-made theirs, which make them doubly awesome, but I have to like Anita's best because she only awarded hers to five people--and guess who was #1? ME! :D Are you jealous? 

Of course you are!

You know who I'm jealous of? I've mentioned her before (once or twice): Brodi Ashton. Brodi I-had-to-choose-between-five-awesome-agents Ashton. Brodi I-waited-24-hours-before-I-got-a-preemptive-three-novel-deal-on-my-debut Ashton. Brodi, who is awesome for reasons I can't even tell you about because I promised not to!!! (Yes, you want to be me. No, I can't tell you why.)

Brodi, who, this time last year, won the LDStorymakers First Chapter Contest.

I was in that contest, yo. I sat through the awards ceremony, watched some dude win first and third in my category, and then watched them announce Brodi's name as the Grand Prize winner. And she wasn't even there! Valynne had to go up and accept her laptop for her. I texted her, though. Yeah. Me. 'Cause I'd had dinner with her the night before, and had her cell number. (You want to touch me now, don't you?)

Anyway, I wasn't at all upset, because I'd already read the first page of Brodi's book and she totally deserved it, but it didn't stop me from rejoicing in the fact that she'd likely sell her book before the next contest and would therefore be ineligible for the 2011 contest. (Really, I'm just too good at this predicting stuff.)

So Wednesday, I'm driving down to Utah. Wednesday night, I'm pushing shiny buttons for another Farland's Authors' Advisory Conference Call--this time with Laura Ann Gilman, who's giving VERY timely advice on professionalism, including how to talk to editors (like at conferences and stuff), so you should totally call in with all your questions. Then, on Thursday, I'm picking up Susan Jensen at the airport and attending the Bootcamp at LDStorymakers, where the first fifteen pages of my book will be torn to bloody shreds (if all goes well).  Friday and Saturday are for the conference, where I will network, hob-nob, hand out business cards, meet cool writers, learn some stuff, and hunt down a few future guests for Authors' Advisory. Lunchtime Saturday, they announce the First Chapter Contest Winners. Not that I'm paying any attention to things like that.

So who's gonna be there? If you're going to be there, I'll tell you a secret: I get a text every time someone @'s me on Twitter. Just sayin'. My Twitter ID is @Robin_Weeks. Don't forget the space. I'd love to get together with you. Meet in person. You know, for meals. Really cool classes. (I sit at the front. Always. That's what elbows are FOR.) Or just for pal-ing around in the hall. I'm the one with the obnoxious rolling briefcase. If you trip over something, it's probably me.

Oh, and only the Blog on Fire Award requires me to pass it on. Since I love so many of your blogs, please let me know if you want it--I'll give it to the first five takers whose blogs are over in my blogroll on the left. :)

See you in a few days?

LTUE Top Ten

Life, the Universe, and Everything was just as fun as I thought it would be. I'll never be able to summarize all the cool things I did, but here's the highlights:

1.      I got to fetch James Dashner his water, and helped him connect his Macintosh to the overhead projector (press and hold F7, apparently) so he could show us the cover of The Death Cure. Then I helped persuade him to read three chapters (instead of two--he swore us to secrecy, but you're gonna love it. I can't wait until it's out!!!). I invited him to do an Authors' Advisory conference call and he... was noncommittal. Didn't say yes, didn't say no. If you know James, tell him he should do it! He has my card….

2.      I moderated three panels and NO ONE asked why the heck I was there! Rather, I find that my voice is famous. A few attendees approached me afterward (which was really confusing—why were they talking to me?) and said they recognized my voice from the calls. So cool! I hadn’t even mentioned Authors’ Advisory (probably should have, though…).

3.      When I approached J. Scott Savage to give him my card and invite him to do a call, he already knew who I was! Neither of us was sure if we’d met before, but we shook hands and proclaimed our happiness to know each other. He said he’d be happy to do a call sometime. *Squee!*

4.      I got to see a certain book cover (it wasn’t authorized to be shown around, so I won’t say whose) that made me squeal and jump up and down. Literally. I want that cover as a poster to hang on my wall. It’s gorgeous. Breathtaking. The cover alone will sell the book, and the book itself needs no such help!

5.      Howard Tayler’s wife Sandra says he’ll do a call, too, in a few months. I confess that I am a little intimidated by Howard—not sure why—but I still managed to approach him at dinner (he and Sandra obligingly sat down at the table right behind me). I was in the middle of my explanatory spiel when Sandra pipes in with “he’d love to do that.” :) Yes, Sandra is cool—it was great to meet her, too.

6.      Being a Gopher is cool. I got to carry a clipboard, flash a bright pink 5-minute warning sign, fetch and carry water, and march around importantly. I got to know the shortcuts to all the rooms. I had the perfect excuse to talk to the authors on each panel. We got to know the conference from back-stage, as it were—which has always been my favorite place in any production—and therefore had a much fuller experience than anyone else. (So there.) Donna Weaver and I were the only Gophers over 25, but I, for one, never felt the age gap. (I think I stopped maturing at 17, anyway.) I got to meet Toad the Gopher King, Jenna-of-The-Jenna-Award is now my Facebook friend, and we got to see four teenage girls fit inside one 5X t-shirt. Best moment? Someone said “and there was much rejoicing” and the whole room gave a half-hearted “yay.” Sigh. I’ve missed being in a group like that.

7.      Dinner with David Farland, his wife, his son, and a huge table of forum-mates. You know how, in situations like that, you always want to be the one sitting across from the super-duper cool people, but you never are? (Well, I never am, anyway.) Friday night, I was right across from Dave. He regaled us with some very scary predictions about the industry and some things we’ll want to watch out for about our digital rights, but it was still amazing. He also said he wants to do another call in a few weeks. Yay!

8.      Brodi Ashton, (who wore her red scarf and got teased by James Dashner for her popularity with the agents), Bree Despain (who was on too many awesome panels to count), Emily Wing Smith (why wasn’t she on panels?), Kimberly Reid (who I’d never met IRL before), and Sara Bolton (with her adorable brand-new baby) were there. All just as nice as ever.

9.      I discovered that Twitter is a great way to take notes in a conference—especially when you’ve forgotten to bring note paper and your laptop only has enough juice for two hours. Or when you've figured out that taking notes on Twitter is just plain cool. There were tons of people taking notes that way, BTW—check out the #LTUE hash tag on Twitter for a lot of great quotes.

10.  I got to live with and hang with Donna Weaver—who is a kindred spirit. She has children my age, but we found we agreed on almost everything. After reading her blog, I suspected that I’d like her—now I know. She’s awesome. She even let me read her copy of Anna and the French Kiss (in two very late nights--AMAZING book).

There were other highlights--and other authors who will be doing calls for Authors' Advisory, but I need to get back to the one thing I didn't do at all: WRITE! I'll never feel like I've earned a permanent place in this awesome community until I have the publication cred to back it up!

Who else was there? What was your favorite part?