Jen's Blog
This and That
This past weekend, I took a trip across the Brooklyn Bridge and back with some friends. The weather was sunny, breezy and warm. The buildings were jagged and tall against the clear sky, creating the perfect skyline. And all I could think was how happy I am that I’m here in NYC. Next month, it will be four years since I made the big move from Tennessee, and I’ve never looked back. It was scary at first. Scary and exciting, but I’m so glad I did it. Because over time, I’ve only fallen even more in love with the city, and I hope four years from now, I’m still here.
I’ve also been making some great progress on my WIP. Right now I’m sitting at 21k, and my goal is to knock out 2-3k more today. Things are really flowing well with this draft, so I’m going to try keeping up the pace while that’s still the case. The Dreaded Middle will be here in no time.
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BONE DRY: First Draft
21,045 / 70,000 Words (30.00%)
This week is BEA here in New York, and I’m a little disappointed I’m not going this year. But it’s a little too pricey for me right now. The good news is there are lots of other events going on this week in conjunction with BEA that are completely free. Today is the Teen Author Carnival at the NYPL, tomorrow is Libba Bray’s TIGER BEAT band at Books of Wonder, and Saturday is a Melissa Marr and Suzanne Collins event at Books of Wonder. Can’t wait for all of these!
Also, just a quick reminder that today is the last day to enter the giveaway for a copy of THE DEMON’S LEXICON!
Interview & Giveaway with Sarah Rees Brennan
At Comic Con earlier this year, I was lucky enough to snag an ARC of the upcoming The Demon’s Lexicon by Sarah Rees Brennan, in stores June 2, 2009.
Nick and his brother, Alan, have spent their lives on the run from magic. Their father was murdered, and their mother was driven mad by magicians and the demons who give them power. The magicians are hunting the Ryves family for a charm that Nick’s mother stole — a charm that keeps her alive — and they want it badly enough to kill again.
Danger draws even closer when a brother and sister come to the Ryves family for help. The boy wears a demon’s mark, a sign of death that almost nothing can erase…and when Alan also gets marked by a demon, Nick is desperate to save him. The only way to do that is to kill one of the magicians they have been hiding from for so long.
Ensnared in a deadly game of cat and mouse, Nick starts to suspect that his brother is telling him lie after lie about their past. As the magicians’ Circle closes in on their family, Nick uncovers the secret that could destroy them all.
I absolutely loved, loved, loved this book. So much, I’m giving away an extra ARC in a last-minute giveaway before the book is released next week!
There are a lot of things I loved about this novel. The voice, the world-building, and the relationships, but my favorite aspect was the ending. I was blown away. It was heart-wrenching and unexpected, and made me completely fall in love with the characters. Another thing I loved was that the main characters are two brothers. As much as I love my strong heroines in YA, it was really great to read something a little different. And it’s definitely a page-turner. Lots of twists and turns, adventure and mystery.
I can’t wait for the next installment in the series. This was definitely one of the best books I’ve read this year.
First, congrats on your upcoming release of THE DEMON’S LEXICON! I absolutely loved reading this, and the ending blew me away. Did you have the ending in mind when you began the novel or was this something that developed as you wrote and plotted the book?
Thank you! And yes, I had the ending planned from the start, and when I was telling my friends about the book I was writing, I’d tell them the end first. Once they understood that I had ruined the book for them, they were all very cross with me. Sheesh, people, I was creating!
One of my favorite things about fantasy novels is the world-building. Do you have any particular method or tool you use for world-building?
I try to visit all the places I write about: I have one scene that’s a pub crawl in Salisbury, and I spent a day wandering around Salisbury taking notes and getting mistaken for a health inspector, trying to twine the exact reality of the world around with magic. Other than that, I’m a bit of a mythology magpie: I borrowed bits from Sumerian myths, Elizabethan beliefs, German accounts of witchcraft and mixed them all up with my own imagination. And I had great fun building the world: I love myths, literature and the idea of a world lying so close to ours that magic can reach out and touch you.
Me too! It’s one of my favorite things about writing fantasy.
This is the first book in the series. Do you have a set number of books in mind and would you write any more books in this world once Nick and Alan’s story is told?
Nick and Alan’s (and Mae and Jamie’s) story is planned as a trilogy, and I will definitely stick to that - we’ve all seen the awful death throes that a series can get into when it runs beyond its natural end. I do really like the world of the Demon’s Lexicon and do know rather a lot about the stories and the minor characters in it, and if an idea about one of them came to me as a book, I would definitely write it! (But maybe I’ll see how the first series does first…)
I have a feeling it’s going to do well. 
I love that you have two male main characters which stands out on the YA shelves with so many female MCs. Did you find it difficult to write from a guy’s perspective?
I found it much more difficult to write from the point of view of someone who didn’t like to read. 
I had noticed that there were a lot of female MCs in YA, and while I love strong and important girl characters, and hope I have some, it seemed only fair to let the boys have their say. Plus the tall, dark and mysterious stranger who knows all about the supernatural world and is criminally good-looking shows up a lot in YA, and I thought it would be fun to take him apart from the inside out - and that means starting inside his head. Of course, he finds everyone else as mysterious as they find him.
So far, what has your favorite part of the publication process been?
Every stage has had its good points. I loved when I got my first editorial letter and had a moment of crystal clarity about how much better the book could be with my awesome editor’s help, and when my ARCs arrived looking like real books. Seeing all my different covers has been very exciting too - I have a fabulous Japanese manga cover!
I love hearing and reading about THE CALL stories. Can you share your CALL story?
I don’t think I really had a THE CALL. It seems like there was a lot of calls! I was sitting around waiting and quite cheerfully prepared to wait for months post submission - I knew that it was summertime, and it might be slow to sell. I felt very lucky to have an agent and a book on submission at all, and I had bought masses of ice-cream to drown my anxiety in frozen dairy goods.
Then my agent Kristin Nelson called and said there were several offers, and the auction and all the calls happened. I was sort of in shock. I don’t even know how many calls there were: at one point I think I hallucinated that the toaster was calling me making an offer. I remember a summer week of varied weather and varied moods, in which I was sometimes panicky and wild-eyed during summer storms and sometimes deliriously happy out in the sunshine.
I love that story!
And what is your favorite YA novel that you’ve read lately?
Oh, I can’t choose. I just had great fun with Sarah Cross’s Dull Boy, and I also just read Kelley Armstrong’s The Awakening, and absolutely loved it.
Thanks so much for stopping by, and good luck on your upcoming release!
Thank you so much for having me by!
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To enter the giveaway, just leave a comment below. The giveaway will be open to entries until Thursday, May 28 at 11:59 pm, and I’ll announce the winner Friday morning.
Reward Time!
Today, I made a goal of writing 3k new words of BONE DRY. My reward? Going to see Terminator tonight. Okay, so I was going to go anyway. Already had the tickets and everything. Regardless, I made this goal, teamed it up with a fun reward, and I am pleased to say that it spurred me on. I made it!
I tried this little reward system awhile back with episodes of Buffy, and it worked out very well then, too. So, I’m thinking I’ll do the same tomorrow. Now I just need to think of an appropriate reward. Hmm. I do suppose there is always more Buffy to fall back on.
This is an important decision. Suggestions are welcome.
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BONE DRY: First Draft
13,001 / 70,000 Words (18.57%)
Writing Update
Today’s post is just a quick writing update on my end.
Lately, I’ve had a couple of different projects in the works. And today, I had a good conversation with my agent to figure out the right direction. She gave me some thoughts and input on my ideas, and the plan right now is for me to finish up BONE DRY and send that over to her once it’s completed. So, I’m very excited about this. I’m loving this WIP. I’m at 10k so far. Not a lot of forward progress yet this week, but I had to go back and rewrite a chapter today.
Anyway, things are going well so far. And I have to say it again. I am LOVING this idea, this character, everything. I hope I can do this story justice. : )
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BONE DRY: First Draft
10,055 / 70,000 Words (14.28%)
Timeline Software
Something I find really valuable when writing is creating a timeline of events. Because if I don’t…I get lost on what day it is, how many days have passed, etc. It makes it easy to do things like accidentally make a school day on a Saturday or have two Tuesdays in a row.
Also, sometimes my characters have weekly obligations. Like say a character named Chuckles has an extra-curricular class every Thursday from 4 to 5pm. For fun, let’s say it’s a How to Become an Evil Clown class. This means Chuckles can’t be in a coffee shop eating scones at 4:32pm one Thursday afternoon. And if he is, there should be a reason, and it should be addressed. And without a timeline, it’s easy enough to forget that Chuckles should be in class or even what day it’s supposed to be. At least for me. I can’t keep all the details in my head.
This is why my Digital Post-It Notes comes in handy, but unfortunately, it isn’t an ideal timeline maker. It’s great for working through the plot, but I want something else in addition to it. I can use Excel to create a timeline using columns, but it’s also not ideal. Microsoft Visio is okay, but if I change anything, I’ll have to redraw some things just like if I had a hand-drawn timeline.
So, I thought: Hey, wouldn’t it be cool if there was a special Timeline Software? Turns out, there’s plenty of them out there, but they are expensive. Here’s one, and here’s one. They both have free trials, but I don’t want to start using one, really love it and then not have it any more. And no way will I pay 200 bucks for this stuff.
So, I’m open to suggestions. Does anyone know of any CHEAP or FREE timeline programs? I want software that will create something like the diagram below. Something where I only have to type in the day and time and it will automatically render the diagram for me.
STRANGE ANGELS In Stores!
Strange Angels by Lili St. Crow is in stores today! I’ve reeeeeeeeeeeeally been looking forward to this book.
Dru Anderson has been “strange” for as long as she can remember. She travels from town to town with her father, hunting the things that go bump in the night and eat the unwary. It’s a weird life, but a good one–until it all explodes and a zombie busts into her new house.
Alone, terrified, and trapped in an icy town, Dru’s going to need every inch of her wit and training to stay alive. Can she trust the boy who is just a little too adult–and just happens to get bit by a werwulf? Or the strange blue-eyed boy who tells her she’s heir to a long-forgotten power? Can she even trust her own instincts?
Because Dru is not the first in her family to be killed by the darkness of the Real World. The monsters have decided to hunt back–and now Dru has to figure out who to trust, who to fight, and when to run. And not incidentally, she has to figure out how she’s going to get out of this alive.
And she has to do it by sundown, or it’s all over…
New Idea & A Teaser
I wasn’t going to do a Teaser Tuesday again this week until…well, until I started a new manuscript. Why yes, I now have three projects in the works. On Saturday, this new idea just took hold of me and didn’t let go. I am SUPER EXCITED. I haven’t felt this excited about writing for months. It feels a lot like the day I got the idea for MY SO CALLED AFTERLIFE. So, I gave in to it, wrote the most detailed outline I’ve ever written for a manuscript and am up to 5k in the first draft.
I seriously thought about sticking to the revision of CLASH, but right now, until I (hopefully) get a deal, I don’t have any real deadlines so I’m just going to go with the love right now. I know a lot of people think it’s a bad idea to stop in the middle of a project for a new idea. And usually I’d agree. I’ve completed three novels now without going off on a new idea tangent, but this time, the idea just won’t get out of my head. So, I’m writing it.
So, today’s teaser is a little snippet from the first chapter of what I’m calling BONE DRY, another YA urban fantasy. It’s a “quiet” scene and the voice is more matter-of-fact than my other manuscripts which has been a different experience. This character has had to grow up fast, and the magic in her world is pretty dark and dangerous stuff. I don’t go into that here, but we do see the result of some of that magic in this scene.
Once I’d unloaded my truck and put the groceries away, I strolled into the back of the house to check on my mom. She was sitting in her favorite chair with bone knitting needles in her lap and staring blankly out the window overlooking the tiny backyard.
“Hi Mom,” I said, easing into the chair across from her.
She blinked a few times, coming back into herself.
“Hi Holly. How was school?” she asked, her mouth turning up into a smile. It was a dimmed version of the one she used to have, and I had to fight my eyes from showing how much it hurt me to see her like this.
“It was okay,” I said. “Got some groceries just now. The usual stuff. Ramen and potatoes.” I tried to sound lighthearted, like it was a running joke between us, but my voice came out flat.
“I am so sorry, Holly.”
Her eyes caught mine, and I could see the guilt hiding behind her smile. It wasn’t her fault though. She hadn’t done this to herself. And then those brilliant blue eyes dimmed for a moment and unfocused on the real world. The world I was a part of, the world I wanted my mom to stay in. Permanently. Not in short five minutes bursts scattered throughout the day. But I knew I had maybe a minute—tops—before she was gone again.
“Don’t worry about it,” I said. “It’s not your fault.”
“How is our money?” she asked, reaching over to grip my hand. The knitting needles fell off her lap, and she gasped. Her face screwed up, wrinkles and shadows etching her skin and making her look twenty years older than she actually was.
I reached down to grab the bone needles off the floor and when I returned them to her lap, she was back to gazing out the window. Face blank. No sign of my mom in those distant eyes. A tear slid down my cheek, and I brushed it aside.
“Money is fine, Mom,” I said to her, because I knew she could hear me even if she wasn’t completely here. “I’m taking care of everything.”
Friday Five
Today’s Friday Five has a theme for the first time ever: Books!
So, here we go.
1. The newest book in the Allie Beckstrom series hit shelves this week. Magic in the Blood by Devon Monk.
Allison Beckstrom knows better than most that when magic’s involved, nothing is free. She’s had to pay its price of migraines and forgetfulness while working as a Hound, tracing illegal spells back to their casters. And even though magic has stolen her recent memory–including her history with the man she supposedly fell in love with–Allie isn’t about to give up on Hounding or the city she cares about.
Then the police’s magic enforcement division asks her to consult on what seems to be a straightforward missing-persons case. What begins as a way to make rent leads Allie into grave danger when the trail she’s following draws her into the dark underworld of criminals, ghosts, and blood magic. There, Allie discovers it will take more than just magic to survive….
2. Last night, I finished The Trouble with Demons by Lisa Shearin. I’ve been a fan since the beginning of the series, and I think this book is my favorite so far. It’s fun and action-packed, full of magic and intriguing bad guys with plenty of humor and suspense mixed in. And she keeps raising the stakes with each and every book. The last chapter, while tying up the current story, ended on a note that left me wanting to gobble up the next book right this minute! Unfortunately, it isn’t out for another year.
My name is Raine Benares. I’m a seeker. People hire me when they need something found. I’m not usually the one being sought. But that all changed when I found the Saghred, a soul-stealing stone of unlimited power — and the bane of my existence. Now mages and madmen have me in their sights, not to mention demons…
An opened Hellgate leads to a demon infestation on the Isle of Mid, and while there’s never an ideal time to face down demon hordes, it’s hard to imagine a worse one. Already fighting the influence of the Saghred, Raine discovers she is also magically bonded to a dark mage and a white knight, two dangerous and powerful men on opposing sides — and Raine’s stuck in the middle.
But with demons pouring through the Hellgate, Raine can’t afford to be distracted. Turns out, the demons want the key to unlock the Saghred. As a seeker, Raine should be able to find it first. As the axis of light and dark powers, she’s a magical cataclysm waiting to happen…
3. Film rights sold for The Forest of Hands and Teeth!!! As soon as I read this book, I hoped it would become a movie. So, this is very exciting news. Go check out Carrie Ryan’s post about it on her blog for the details.
4. Rachel Vincent unveiled the covers for the first two books in her upcoming YA series, My Soul to Take and My Soul to Save. I’m so excited about this series, and the covers are gorgeous. Look!
SOMETHING IS WRONG WITH KAYLEE CAVANAUGH
She doesn’t see dead people, but…
She senses when someone near her is about to die. And when that happens, a force beyond her control compels her to scream bloody murder. Literally.
Kaylee just wants to enjoy having caught the attention of the hottest guy in school. But a normal date is hard to come by when Nash seems to know more about her need to scream than she does. And when classmates start dropping dead for no apparent reason, only Kaylee knows who’ll be next…
5. And finally, if I owe you a book for a giveaway here on my blog, I took a trip to the post office today. So, it’s on the way. I also have a couple of more ARC giveaways coming up in the next few weeks so check back if you like free ARCs!
Quick Writing Update
I finally have to admit that I’m a little stuck in the rough draft of SHATTER ME. I need to step back, reevaluate and do some more outlining. I have a pretty good outline in my Virtual Post-It Notes, but I think this is going to take some sitting down with a pen and note cards. I want to make sure I’m going in the right direction with this one before I keep writing. Something isn’t working right, and I just have to figure out what it is.
So, while I’m doing this, I’m going to turn my focus back on CLASH. I need to finish revising this one. Lately, in order to avoid SHATTER ME, I’ve been fiddling with it. So, I think I’m just going to turn full focus on it so I can finish getting it into shape. Then, I can send it over to my agent to get her thoughts on it.
I can see finishing this up pretty quickly. A week or two. And then I’ll be back to first drafting. I won’t be done by May 12th like I originally hoped, but I still hope to have it done sometime in June.
And that’s it. Just a quick update on my progress. I’m off to a job interview now. Here’s hoping it goes well!
Teaser Tuesday
Today, I’m posting a teaser from my YA urban fantasy, CLASH. This is from a scene where my MC and her “partner” follow a lead on a possible home of some dark sorcerers in the area.
When we reached the next floor, I placed both hands on the wooden door and closed my eyes. I leaned forward and rested my cheek against the rough surface. The room itself throbbed with power, but I felt nothing living inside. Unless the Orcus had figured out a brand-new method of blocking their presence from being sensed, the building was most definitely empty. For now.
“You sure no one is in there?” Damion asked. He fidgeted with the clasp of his large, silver watch before shoving his hands into his pockets.
“Yeah, but keep your eyes and ears open anyway. Just in case.”
“Why?” He eyed the door warily. “Are we on the same wavelength here? Something isn’t right, but I can’t put my finger on it. Do you think it’s a trap?”
“No.” I paused, furrowing my eyebrows. “I don’t know. Where did you get the info about this territory anyway?”
“I have sources,” he said, glancing away at the hall window overlooking the street.
I crossed my arms over my chest. “Seriously? You aren’t going to tell me?”
“Maybe when I think I can trust you.” His eyes stayed glued to the window.
I couldn’t believe he’d just said that to me. My mouth opened to remind him that he hadn’t been exactly trustworthy either, but I quickly snapped my teeth together instead.
Pick your battles, Phoebe. Right now, it isn’t worth it.
“Whatever,” I said. “Let’s go in and get this over with so I can go home.”
“After you,” he said, still staring out the window.
With a quick jolt of my power, the lock tumbled. I kicked the door, letting it swing open before either of us stepped a foot inside. I peered into the shadows, waiting for my eyes to adjust as the low light from the hall’s single bulb spilled into the apartment.
When nothing jumped out to attack me, I walked inside, Damion on my heels. The small entry opened up to a very large and very empty room. Not a single piece of furniture was in sight.
“What is this?” Damion asked, rushing forward and turning in a wide circle to look at the barren walls.
“Looks like your source was wrong.” I tried not to be happy that perfect Damion had made a mistake, but I couldn’t stop a tiny smile. “That or the Orcus somehow got a tip-off that we’d be here. So, I’m going to ask again. Where’d you get your info, Damion?”
“Do you smell that?” he asked, ignoring my question. Ever since we’d entered the room, the stink of something similar to rotting meat had tickled my nose, but I’d dismissed it as belonging to the trash of a nearby restaurant.
“Smells like that Chinese restaurant’s dumpster,” I said.
“That was a few blocks back,” he said, his eyes sliding to the closed door on the far wall.
I followed his gaze and shook my head wordlessly.
Damion rolled his shoulders, walked over and twisted the knob. When the door swung open, I gasped. In the middle of the hardwood floor, the vacant eyes of a familiar man stared straight up at mine. It was the first Orco I’d met in the Midtown alley.
The man whose power I had destroyed.
Dressed in all black, he lay there with arms crossed over his chest like he was resting in a coffin underneath the earth instead of lying on dusty hardwood. A white piece of paper sat on his chest, and my stomach churned at the niggling suspicion it was meant just for me.
With trembling hands, I snatched the thin sheet, trying my best not to touch the dead body. I turned the paper over and read the words scrawled in bright red marker.