THANK YOU to Blue Willow Bookshop for such a lovely Houston launch of THE SWEET DEAD LIFE this past Saturday! And THANK YOU to my friends and fellow authors (including many of our fabulous Houston SCBWI chapter) and to the librarians and bloggers and fans and book lovers who came out to fill the house and make sure that ALL THE BOOKS SOLD OUT! You humble and honor me.
Now Soho Press and I hope you read THE SWEET DEAD LIFE and that Jenna's story resonates with you. Like all stories that mean something to me, this one is, at its core, about love. Not romantic love this time, but the love we have for the people we care about and the things we do for them. It is about unlikely heroes and siblings and the family we make for ourselves when the one we're given screws up. And yeah, it's also about angels and the battle between good and evil. There is a larger mystery at foot and somehow the Samuels family has stumbled into it. More will be revealed next year in THE A WORD. Jenna's journey has only just begun. And on another level, it's about a fourteen year old girl-- an age where we are powerless and know it-- whose brother sacrifices everything for her. And still annoys the hell out her, which is as it should be.
Plus, okay, it kind of sometimes skewers the wasteland that is the suburbs. But only sometimes.
If you'd like someone else's take on it, my friend and fellow SCBWIer, Vonna Carter, just posted THIS.
Okay. Let's have some pictures, shall we?
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| Reading from SWEET DEAD LIFE |
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| With my youngest readers... good little sleepers |
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| My very first beta reader for the ANASTASIA series, former student and Houston actress Kara Ray |
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| Making some point... |
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| Awesome cookies from Posh Cookies |
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| Jennifer Matthieu and Chris Mandelski duked it out over angel trivia Blogger and Media guru Maria Cari Soto makes me smile |
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| So many great Houston authors/SCBWIers, including Dede Ducharme, Sophie Jordan, Vicki Sansum, Chris Mandelski, Crystal Allen, Vonna Carter, Kathy Duval, Jennifer Matthieu, Suzanne Bazemore, Dotti Enderle, Kristin Rae, Jessica Capelle, Amy Rose Thomas, Laura Ruthven, Tina Wissner
And of course none of this would be possible without my partners in literary crime, the team at SOHO PRESS: Publisher Bronwen Hruska, Senior Editor Daniel Ehrenhaft, Publicist Meredith Barnes (a former Houston girl), and the rest of the gang including editor Juliet Grames, who create beautiful books with their authors and curate their lists with care and thoughtfulness and a nimble brilliance that takes my breath away. I only hope to live up to your high level of expectation.
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4 comments:
Such a fun event! I'm ready for book 2!!!!
It was great! I may have to jump in on the angel trivia next time ;)
I wish that I had gone, I guess this is the only event that I haven't been to of yours. :P The cookies looked amazing!
Also, recieved my signed (squee~!) copy today, and I'm almost halfway done in only an hour or so! It's too good to end! :D
Miriam!! I know -- I MISSED YOU! But I am sooooo thrilled that you are liking Jenna and Casey's story. And now you will have to wait until next year for THE A WORD! In which Jenna gets a love interest. whooo.
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