Jeri Smith-Ready

Take a Spring Break and win a copy of SHADE!

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 15:58:00 +0000

This was our front yard on February 11:

And the same Great Wall of Snow, one month later:

Sad, huh?

So the weather outside this weekend sure is...springlike, I guess. Rainy, windy, all the snow melting into pathetic little patches. I guess because we had so much snow this winter, and then it was cold and dry, it's been a long time since I've seen actual rain, and it's kind of getting me down.

Normally I love rainy days. I can work on the comfy living room couch without shafts of afternoon sunlight piercing my eyes. It's a great excuse not to do yard work, and it also keeps my dog from wanting to go for a walk every twenty minutes.

But for some reason this weekend the rain is driving me NUTS! I worked on the Shade sequel (Shift)all day yesterday, and I know the mood in the scenes I wrote was a little grimmer than it otherwise would've been, due to the weather.

So after a long, cold, snowy winter, and a long, cold, rainy weekend, I'm ready for a Spring Break!

Over at the Daily Dose blog, the class of 2k10 is blogging for the next week or so, and giving away a great prize pail of swag, as well as an autographed copy of Shade. Complete rules are here. To enter, you have to comment on every single post throughout the break, so go forth! The intrepid shall be rewarded.

Smart Chicks Kick It Tour dates & places!

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:02:00 +0000

It's final! The Smart Chicks Kick It Tour has lined up dates for its fall sweep of North America. This is a tour entirely organized and sponsored by a group of authors who write young adult paranormal novels.

Many of them, as you can see from the list below, are famous. Many are New York Times bestsellers.

And then there's me. I'm not sure how I got to be on this tour, honestly. Possibly I was wearing glasses around one of them and they thought that meant I was smart, when really I just had dust on my contact lens.

To follow the continuing adventures of the Smart Chicks tour, become our fan on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter.

13th 7 PM @ BOOKPEOPLE, Austin, TX - Kelley Armstrong, Melissa Marr, Alyson Noel, Holly Black, Rachel Caine , & Cassandra Clare

14th 7 PM @ B&N THE WOODLANDS, Houston, TX - Kelley Armstrong, Melissa Marr, Alyson Noel, Holly Black, Cassandra Clare, & Rachel Vincent.

15th 7PM. Off-site location TBD. Hosted by BLUE WILLOW, Houston, TX - Kelley Armstrong, Melissa Marr, Alyson Noel, Holly Black, Sarah Rees Brennan, & Cassandra Clare

16th 6 PM Off-site location TBD. Hosted by LEMURIA BOOKS, Jackson, MS - Kelley Armstrong, Melissa Marr, Alyson Noel, Holly Black, Cassandra Clare, & Sarah Rees Brennan

17th 7PM @ Scottsdale Civic Library Auditorium, hosted by POISONED PEN Phoenix, AZ - Melissa Marr, Alyson Noel, Kelley Armstrong, Holly Black, Sarah Rees Brennan, Kimberly Derting, and Becca Fitzpatrick.

18th Time & Off-site location TBD, Hosted by KEPLERS, San Francisco, CA - Melissa Marr, Alyson Noel, Kelley Armstrong, Melissa de la Cruz, Becca Fitzpatrick, & Rachel Vincent

20th 6 PM @ VROMAN'S, Pasadena, CA - Melissa Marr, Alyson Noel, Kelley Armstrong, Rachel Caine, Melissa de la Cruz, & Mary Pearson

21st 7 PM @ Encinitas County Library, hosted by MYSTERIOUS GALAXY, San Diego, CA w Melissa Marr, Alyson Noel, Kelley Armstrong, Mary Pearson, Rachel Caine, & Carrie Ryan

22nd 7 PM @ ANDERSON'S Chicago, IL - Alyson Noel, Kelley Armstrong, Melissa Marr, Jackson Pearce, Jennifer Barnes, & Carrie Ryan

23rd 7 PM @ BOOKS & CO AT THE GREENE, Dayton, OH - Alyson Noel, Kelley Armstrong, Melissa Marr, Jackson Pearce, Jennifer Lynn Barnes, & Kami Garcia

24th 7 PM @ JOSEPH BETH Cincinnati, OH - Alyson Noel, Kelley Armstrong, Melissa Marr, Jessica Verday, Jeri Smith-Ready, & Margaret Stohl

25th 2 PM @ CHAPTERS BRAMPTON (Toronto) ON - Alyson Noel, Kelley Armstrong, Melissa Marr, Jeri Smith-Ready, Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl

Yes, I am still pinching myself. Yes, it still hurts, so I guess that means this is real.

Stay tuned for my BEA schedule, coming up at the end of May! That whimpering in the background is my dog telling me not to ever leave home again. Or maybe it's my husband.

Guest blog & Bring on the Night's 1st chapter debut!

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 13:53:00 +0000

Popping out of my prairie-dog hole for a moment to let you know that I'm giving away two signed sets of Wicked Game and Bad to the Bone over at the wonderful Plotmonkeys blog today.

The topic is teaser chapters and rewrites (yes, there's a connection). Buried in the blog post is the first glimpse of the entire opening chapter of Bring on the Night. All I can say is, don't kill me.

Speaking of Bring on the Night, I better get back to its copyedits. Lots of little changes, to all thirty-five chapters!

Happy Mini-me day to Bad to the Bone!

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 05:08:00 +0000

Clearly I am crazy or forgetful (or both), because I scheduled a major trip to the dentist (the Novocain kind of visit) on the same day as Bad to the Bone's official mass market release.

(Why yes, it's the same Bad to the Bone that just finaled in the PEARL awards for Best Vampire Novel. Funny you should ask.)

But publishing waits for no nitrous oxide to wear off, so I'm pre-posting this late Monday night.

If you haven't read this Wicked Game sequel yet, you can order it from Mysterious Galaxy, Amazon.com, or Barnes and Noble, now for the low, low price of $7.99!

A note to those who own the trade paperback version: First of all, thanks! Second of all, beginning with the next book, Bring on the Night, the WVMP Radio books will be released in mass market original. This means no more trade paperbacks. So if you're the type who likes to have a matched set to look all pretty and symmetrical on your bookshelf, well...you know what to do.

There are a few places on the interwebs where you can win a signed set of Wicked Game and Bad to the Bone. Book Smugglers are giving away two sets, and Literary Escapism is giving away one set plus a cool silver dog or cat bookmark.

So here I'm not giving away books. I'm giving away a dog shirt.

I somehow (thanks, Mom!) came into possession of a WVMP Lifeblood of Rock 'n' Roll dog shirt, like the one pictured over there (and which can be purchased at the WVMP Radio CafePress store). Even if Meadow enjoyed wearing shirts, she wouldn't have fit into this one. She's an extra-large, and this is for a "large" dog.

Here's what CafePress considers a "large dog."

Full body length: 15.5 inches
Neck opening: 7.75 inches
Sleeve length: 5.5 inches
Chest width: 9.25 inches
Weight: 26-40 pounds

So, if you have a dog that this shirt might fit, post a link to his or her picture. If there's more than one eligible dog by the deadline, I'll pick a winner via a random number.

Deadline: March 1

Retail value: $18.99

Chances of winning depend on number of entries.

By the time you read this, I'll be comfortably numb. Have a great day, or as we say with Novocain, hauhgadayyy!

Q&A and giveaway at Booksmugglers

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 18:17:00 +0000

I'm doing an interactive question and answer session (that means live, as opposed to getting the answers ahead of time) all day today over at the fabulous Book Smugglers' blog.

The questions so far are fantastic, and my answers are long and detailed, because I don't know when to shut up. So if you want to learn more about me and my books and the relationship thereof between and betwixt heretofore and henceforth (ack, I can't even end this sentence!), check it out.

Oh, and maybe win one of two sets of the WVMP Radio books, Wicked Game and Bad to the Bone.

Deadline: Saturday, February 27, 11:59pm PST. I will mainly be answering questions today, as tomorrow I have to undergo oral surgery (which, I was dismayed to discover, is nothing like an oral book report).

Cool secret agent toys & another book giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 14:49:00 +0000

I'm guest blogging over at Literary Escapism today on the subject of "Cool Toys for (Kickass) Girls and Boys." Find out how I came up with some of the neat tricks of the paramilitary paranormal Control agency. Tell us which awesome gadget you'd give your hero or heroine, and be entered to win a signed copy of Wicked Game and Bad to the Bone, plus a shiny metal bookmark engraved with paw prints and a pithy quote (your choice of cat or dog version).

Deadline: February 25

Why the sudden flurry of guest blogs, you ask? Because Bad to the Bone is coming out in mass market paperback (aka the cheap version), officially on Tuesday. But it's already shipping from Barnes and Noble and Amazon--yay!

Tidbit Tuesday #4 - book giveaways galore!

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 01:51:00 +0000

Last week I did almost nothing but write WVMP #4 (which I'm once again leaning toward naming Lust for Life). My goal was to reach 50K words before the Olympic cauldron was lit last Friday night, because I knew the Olympics would suck up a lot of my time.

I didn't quite make it (I never do--on the few occasions I actually reach a goal, I assume I haven't set it high enough), but I'm watching the Olympics, anyway. Just watched the USA men's and women's curling lose to Germany and Japan, respectively. I won't make the obvious World War II joke.

As the sports go down on TV, I'm attempting my own Olympian tasks:

1. Catch up on e-mail
2. Mail all ARCs, books, bookmarks, and bookplates I owe people
3. Put actual things on my Facebook fan page
4. Update my MySpace profile (or maybe just delete the thing--does anyone ever go there anymore?)
5. Get the Street Team stuff together
6. Read manuscript of a book I've been asked to blurb

And during the day, tackle a few of the 40 interviews and guest blogs I have lined up.

One of them is already done--yay! If you go read it over at Babbling About Books and More!, you can enter to win a signed copy of Wicked Game and Bad to the Bone.

Deadline: February 19

International entries eligible: Yes

Also, the awesome new blog For What It's Worth is continuing its charity auction for Haiti relief. This week you can bid to win signed a signed copy of Wicked Game and Bad to the Bone PLUS signed copies of Cynthia Eden's Eternal Hunter and Kresley Cole and Gena Showalter's Deep Kiss of Winter. Plus some nummy stuff you can eat and drink and a possible bonus book. All for such a good cause.

Deadline: February 21

International entries eligible: Yes

The Daily Dose blog ran a lovely Valentine's Day feature on the class of 2K10 and our thoughts on teen love. Sometimes it still feels like yesterday.

Are you following the Olympics? What's your favorite sport? Do you follow any of these sports outside of the Olympics? Is there a sport more mesmerizing than curling?

Girlfriends' Cyber Circuit Tour - Suzanne Young

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 04:17:00 +0000

I love when the GCC tours coincide with great news! This week's Girlfriends' Cyber Circuit guest, Suzanne Young, just sold a new series, and it sounds incredible. Here's the Publishers Marketplace announcement:

Suzanne Young's A NEED SO BEAUTIFUL, in which a 17-year-old discovers that by performing the good deeds that her body compels her to, she will disappear into the Light and be forgotten, but by fighting "the Need," her fate could be even more dire, to Donna Brayat Balzer and Bray, in a two-book deal, in a pre-empt, by Jim McCarthyat Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (World English).

But today we're here to talk about her new release, The Naughty List, which sounds delectably fun.

About The Naughty List:

As if being a purrfect cheerleader isn’t enough responsibility! Tessa Crimson’s the sweet and spunky leader of the SOS (Society of Smitten Kittens), a cheer squad–turned–spy society dedicated to bringing dastardly boyfriends to justice, one cheater at a time. Boyfriend-busting wouldn’t be so bad . . . except that so far, every suspect on the Naughty List has been proven 100% guilty!

When Tessa’s own boyfriend shows up on the List, she turns her sleuthing skills on him. Is Aiden just as naughty as all the rest, or will Tessa’s sneaky ways end in catastrophe?

The Naughty List. Is your boyfriend on it?

Follow the squad at www.thecheaterreport.blogspot.com.

Look out for the series: The Naughty List: 2/4/10, So Many Boys: 6/10/10; A Good Boy is Hard to Find: 10/2010

What bloggers are saying about The Naughty List:

www.bookchicclub.blogspot.com: "Suzanne Young's The Naughty List is a fast, original, and fun romp that fans of Ally Carter's Gallagher Girls series will surely enjoy! Tessa is a wonderful, relatable character full of depth, quirks, and heart. A sure-fire hit!"

www.thestorysiren.com: “Espionage, lively cheerleaders, and very naughty boys... equal one debut that I found unputdownable!”

www.sharonlovesbooksandcats.com: “Holy cannoli! The Naughty List is one of the most adorable books I have ever read. Seriously,, people this book is just dripping in cuteness.”

Author Bio

Suzanne Young is a brilliant scientist. Not really. But she is a former middle school teacher turned zookeeper (mother). When Suzanne's not fending off zombie squirrels or narrating her daughter's Barbie soap operas, she can be found camping on the Oregon coast or writing obsessively.

Suzanne is the author of The Naughty List series coming February 4th, 2010 from Razorbill/Penguin. The Naughty List is about a group of cheerleaders who investigate cheating boyfriends. Which Suzanne never did. Or at least, not that you can prove.

Learn more at www.suzanne-young.blogspot.com.

---

And now, my interview with Suzanne:

1. If you could inhabit the life of any of your characters, enter their world and deal with it as that person, which one would you choose?

I’d have to say Tessa. I think it’d be really fun to have that much perk. And the adorable boyfriend doesn’t hurt.

2. What's the weirdest tidbit of research you've ever incorporated into a book?

I had to research cheerleading terminology. Herkies, anyone?

3. Let's say there's a TV show, movie, or recording artist that has a cult of you. Which is it? (i.e., what do you like that no one else you know likes)?
Oh, it would have to be Battlestar Galactica. So say we all!

4. What's your earliest memory?

I think I had to be 6 or 7 and my older brother brought me to the movies. I begged for one of those GIANT sodas. Then I accidentally kicked it over with my foot (before cupholder seats). I remember the look on his face as we listened to it drip over the step ahead of us for what seemed like hours. Oops.

5. Do you have any phobias?

Spiders. They give me the creepy crawlies all over.

Congrats to Suzanne on the new release!

From chaos, creation

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 20:07:00 +0000

Or at least, a newsletter.

The blog went on a little hiatus last week because I was readying the house for first-time company (you know, the people you really clean up for, not like your mom). In doing so, I decided it was time to throw away some extra papers and magazines, clear out some old clothes...and have the bathroom remodeled.

Well, not entirely. Just the parts that are falling to pieces. Like the ceiling, the floor, and the walls. Those little extras that make a house a home.

I'll put it this way: the typical day around here sounds like this:

RAAAAATTTTTTARRRRTTTTTTIIIIBBBBAAAAAAAPPPP
PPPBRRRRRUUUUUUURRRRRGGGHHHIIINNNNGG....

(lunch)

GGGAAADDDOOOOINGGGEEEEEEEENNNNNWWWEEEEE
WWWWEERRRRPPPPPPPPAAAAAAAARARARARARARAR!

Twinkle's been spending her days cowering under the bed, while Misha just keeps purring and Meadow keeps sleeping (except when the contractors enter and leave the house, when she has to say hi).

Where was I? The newsletter. I have a new issue ready to e-mail to subscribers on Thursday, which marks the negative-three-month anniversary of the release of Shade.

In this issue, subscribers will receive:

1) A chance to win one of two Advance Review Copies (ARCs) of Shade.
2) A week's sneak peek of Shade's first chapter before I release it to the world. Be the first to read it! Or the 1,290th, if you are busy when the newsletter arrives.
3) A month's sneak peek at the cover for the third WVMP book, Bring on the Night.

And also some news.

The signup box is over there on the sidebar, or if you're reading this on Facebook or through your blog reader, go to my home page and look to your right (on the screen, not your body). Just enter your e-mail, click "Submit" and then follow the confirmation instructions e-mailed to you.

You can also check out the newsletter archives if you want a peek into the past. As you can see, my newsletters are totally text-based. I don't believe in clogging up other people's inboxes with images that are just repeats of the stuff on my website. Plus, I suck at design.

Girlfriends' Cyber Circuit Tour - Carrie Jones

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 12:48:00 +0000

Whoa, I'm getting the wildest sense of deja vu, because today's guest on the Girlfriends' Cyber Circuit is Carrie Jones, who just a few months ago graced this blog during the Blogtoberfest.

But today she is no longer Carrie Jones, she is New York Times-bestselling author Carrie Jones! Woo-hoo! *throws confetti, performs bizarre mishmash of Kermit and Snoopy dances*

Her new book, Captivate, is on the hardcover bestseller list, while the paperback version of its predecessor, Need, is on the paperback list. (Did I say, "Woo-hoo!" yet? *scrolls up* Yep, I did.)

Before I post my li'l interview with Carrie, here are some things you might not know about her (but you really should, because there'll be a quiz later, maybe not here, but somewhere):

About CAPTIVATE:

In this NYT-Bestselling sequel to NEED, Zara and her friends knew they hadn't solved the pixie problem for good. Far from it. The king's needs grow deeper every day he's stuck in captivity, while his control over his people gets weaker. It's made him vulnerable. And now there's a new king in town.

A turf war is imminent, since the new pixie king, Astley, is moving in quickly. Nick nearly killed him in the woods on day one, but Zara came to his rescue. Astley swears that he and Zara are destined to be together, that he's one of the good guys. Nick isn't buying it, though Zara isn't as sure -- despite herself, she wants to trust the new king. But it's a lot more than her relationship with Nick that is at stake. It's her life -- and his.

What People are Saying About NEED and CAPTIVATE:

“If you asked Stephen King and Stephanie Myers to co-author a book, they would come up with NEED.” – Justine Magazine

"An exciting venture filled with nasty evil creatures, nail-biting action and heart-pounding romance."  —teenreads.com

“Romance, suspense, and a very clever heroine  make this a must-read!” —Toledo Blade

"Genre fans will enjoy the sizzle between Nick and Zara  as well as the paranormal cast." —PW

“This book is for fans of Holly Black and Melissa Marr… fairy lovers crowd in! It’s got some really good reviews coming in already. We’re talking a love story people, with fairies - please, who would not buy this? So look out!”— Annette’s Book Blog

"Jones masterfully blends paranormal fantasy, suspense, and romance to craft a new supernatural tale that is certain to appeal  to fans of dark urban fantasy like Marr's Wicked Lovely and paranormal romances like Meyer's Twilight books. A likeable cast  of engaging and interesting characters combine with a plot that grabs readers and refuses to let go." —VOYA

"A fast-paced novel worthy of the fantasy greats,  Need will take you for a ride." —VOYA, teen reviewer

About Carrie Jones:

1. Carrie can not drink coffee. It makes her insane. Do not give her caffeine.

2. Carrie is very responsive to loving strokes on the hair, kind of like a puppy. However, do not do this without asking first unless you are a ridiculously handsome man or an editor who is about to offer her a trillion dollars for the first draft of her novel.

3. Carrie is secretly really, really shy even though she’s pathetically outgoing in person. She has a very hard time calling people. So, if you want to talk to her, make the first move. And, if you’re her in-Maine female best friend, Jennifer, do NOT get mad at her because she is so bad at returning emails.

4. Carrie sometimes wears mismatched socks, if you do not think this is cool, do not tell her. You will hurt her feelings.

5. Carrie really, really wants you to like her books. Please like her books. PLEEEAASSSEEEE. She’ll be your best friend forever. That is, if you want a friend who is shy about calling and emailing and who wears mismatched socks and can’t drink caffeine and likes being pet on the head. Hhmmm….

6. Carrie is not above begging.

7. Carrie, like Belle in TIPS ON HAVING A GAY (ex) BOYFRIEND drinks Postum. It’s for the same reason, too.

8. Carrie loves Great Pyrenees dogs. They are huge and white, and furry and it looks like they have white eyeliner and mascara on, which is way too cute. Do you have one? Send a picture!

9. Carrie lives in Maine. She has a hard time with this in the winter. It is bleak in Maine in the winter. Imagine everything shades of gray and brown and no green anywhere except for in people’s noses. This is Maine in Winter. Maine in summer is the best place in the world, so it’s a trade-off. Feel free to invite Carrie to your house in the winter, but not if it’s in Greenland, Canada, or anywhere north of Florida.
Forget that. She’d still probably come.

Carrie's website
Needpixies.com (This is where sneak peaks and contests are. You can win a computer. Seriously!)
Carrie on Facebook
Need on Facebook

Now, Carrie takes time from her glamorous new life to answer a few silly questions from Someone Who Knew Her When (me, and the "when" started maybe eighteen months ago--I'm not saying we go way back or anything):

1. If you could inhabit the life of any of your characters, enter their world and deal with it as that person, which one would you choose?

Zara.

2. On the flip side, which of your characters would you most like to bring to life in our world (as a friend or a little bit more ;-) ?

Oh gosh, as a little bit more definitely Nick because he is just sigh-worthy. I know I created him and that feels a little pervy, but he really is.

As a friend I’d really like either Zara or Issie. They are both awesome friends.

3. Let's say there's a TV show, movie, or recording artist that has a cult of you. Which is it? (i.e., what do you like that no one else you know likes)?

Jeri, there are soooo many. I really still like LOST and FRINGE. I am totally in love with this ancient music group called THE WATERBOYS. Sigh. I am such a fan girl.

4. What's your earliest memory?

When I was born the doctors thought I was blind but when I was six months old they realized I could see. I just sort of saw four of everything and in a very blurry way. So, I had an operation when I was one. I have this really distinct memory of suddenly smelling home again and crawling around but not being able to see anything at all, and going behind the couch and touching it. I can still feel the fabric against my palm. I know this can’t possibly be a real memory, but my mom says it did happen.

5. Do you have any phobias?

I am really REALLY afraid of downhill skiing, which is ridiculous I know.

----

It's not ridiculous! People get killed and maimed on the ski slopes on a regular basis. Of course, my husband is going skiing with my brother and nephew next weekend while our house is invaded by writers, but I'm not worried about them. Not at all.

Anyway, yay Carrie! I mean it sincerely when I say that success could not happen to a nicer, more deserving person. Not that I would ever say that insincerely about anyone. Why waste compliments on the non-nice?

Have a great weekend, everybody!

----------------
Now playing: Keane - Playing Along
via FoxyTunes

Tidbit Tuesday #3

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 02:14:00 +0000

Thanks to everyone who donated and/or spread the word about last week's book giveaway to benefit Doctors Without Borders. Because of your generosity, we raised $600 plus 10 pounds sterling! I'll be sending out books ASAP.

I have a couple news items this week. I'm psyched to report that Christopher Pike's second Last Vampire compendium, Thirst 2, hit #1 on the New York Times bestseller list for children's paperbacks! Being a selfish person, the reason I'm psyched is because the volume has a sample chapter of Shade at the end.

Of course, my immediate thought when I saw the list wasn't, "How wonderful! Loads of readers will be introduced to Aura and her friends."

My immediate thought was, "Oh no! People will be coming by the website, and it's a mess!" Actually, the site itself is lovely (thanks, honey!), but some of the information was out of date. So I spent Sunday making it "company ready" so as not to embarrass myself in front of the two or three new visitors. Not that my loyal readers aren't worth a clean website. But you know how you don't clean your house as well for your mom and your best friend as you do for first-time visitors? It's kinda like that.

For instance, the home page and news page no longer say that my next appearance is Windycon, November 13-15. That is SO last year! (Literally.) The news page now even has my complete panel schedule for the RT Booklovers Convention in Columbus, Ohio, April 28-May 2.

The other news item can be found subtly listed on the books page. Book Four of the WVMP Radio series (tentatively titled Lust for Life) is now firmly scheduled for August 2011. Since the sequel to Shade, titled Shift, will be out in May 2011, that means I'll have the exact same release schedule two years in a row. Makes it easy for me to remember.

Speaking of Lust for Life, I'm not sure if that's going to be the title. I might save it for Book Five (if there ever is a Book Five--that's up to my publisher, or more precisely, up to readers to buy Bring on the Night in sufficiently large quantities this August). But it doesn't really fit Book Four anymore, now that I'm figuring out what the story is all about.

A couple weeks ago I wrote that I was going to try this new work scheme where I write 3,000 words a day five days a week and then took weekends off. It went swimmingly for about ten days, then I realized that I'd reached the point where I didn't really know what was going to happen next, I was just coughing up words like so many hairballs. The story was careening out of control.

I also realized I had one too many antagonists. In the process of yanking out the antagonist who belongs in the final book and not this one, I extracted more than 8,000 words. Clearly I was not going to make my word count goal ("-8,138" looks really bad on the spreadsheet.)

So I decided to take a step back, do some scene-by scene outlining for the first quarter of the book, and now I'm writing one scene a day (or two, if they're short simple scenes). That way I don't bloat up the book with endless dialogue just to make my word count.

I'll use this method until it stops working, and then I'll try something else. I envy writers who are able to follow the same process every time. Heck, I can't even sit in the same place in my house more than a week or two at a time before I need a change of scenery.

That's all for this week. I'm still grumpy from the Ravens game, so we're lucky I've gotten through this entire post without profanity.

Help Haiti and get a free book

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 16:46:00 +0000

FINAL UPDATE: All 20 books have been spoken for, and a total of $480 plus 10 British pounds have been raised for Haiti relief. I am stunned and amazed by your generosity. Thank you from all the squishy little corners of my heart!

I hope others consider donating to this worthy cause today and in the weeks to come. The work there, I fear, will not be over for many years, if ever.

Words like "devastate" can easily weaken from overuse. "He is devastatingly handsome." Or "I'm devastated they canceled Dollhouse."

But when a 7.0 earthquake destroys the capital city of the hemisphere's poorest nation, a nation whose infrastructure was shoddy and piecemeal to begin with, a nation whose people live off the equivalent of $2 per day? That's devastation.

Many charitable organizations are pitching in to help those affected by the earthquake in Haiti, including the Nobel Peace Prize-winning Doctors Without Borders.

Doctors Without Borders (MSF, which stands for their original French name Medecins Sans Frontieres) is in my opinion one of the bravest and noblest charities in the world. They go into war-torn areas that others won't dare to enter. They operate independent of political, religious, and military affiliations. They speak out against the atrocities and violence they witness in the course of their work. And they don't care who they piss off in their battle for compassion, mercy, and better medical care for those in need. That's why they got the Nobel Peace Prize in 1999, and why I think they deserved it.

Let's help MSF help Haiti.

I still have a box of 20 trade paperback copies of Bad to the Bone. It's been sitting in my rec room since last May, its contents waiting for a chance to enter the world and maybe make a few people laugh or go, ooh. On February 22, another two boxes of the book will arrive when the mass market version comes out.

Basically, my Bad to the Bone cup runneth over, and it's time to share the wealth.

If you donate $15 to Doctors Without Borders, I'll send you an autographed, personalized copy of Bad to the Bone while supplies last.

Rules:

1. Donate at least $15 at the Doctors Without Borders website and forward the donation receipt to me at jeri AT jerismithready DOT com. Then leave a comment to this post--it can be anonymous if you prefer, but this will help other readers gauge how many people have already given.

2. Giveaway will continue while supplies last (20 books). I'll modify this post the moment the target is reached. UPDATE 8:24pm EST: I still have six books left. SECOND UPDATE 8:32am: I have one book left. So far you generous readers have donated $400 (plus 10 pounds)!

3, International readers welcome. However, it costs a bundle to ship a book overseas, so if you are outside the US or Canada, please be a pal and only do this if you really really intend to read the book or give it to someone who will.

4. Retail value of book: $15. Helping doctors help injured, homeless Haitians: priceless.

5. Please allow 6-8 weeks for delivery.

6. I'll personalize the book to you, unless you request otherwise (if you'd like me to sign it to a friend for a gift or simply put "eBay auction winner" ;-).

Thanks, and spread the word!

Tidbit Tuesday #2 - new books, music & MISHA IS FAMOUS(ish)!

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 03:20:00 +0000

Don't faint. I'm actually doing a weekly feature more than one week in a row. If you need help with the shock, put your head between your legs, or breathe into a paper bag. An empty paper bag.

First, as always, les livres! (Sometimes I break into French for no good reason.) Two more of my fellow class of 2K10 members had releases last week. We're already more than 25% of the way through our year's debut novels, and it's only (*checks calendar*) some day in January.

Jennifer Hubbard's debut, The Secret Year, came out on Thursday. I picked it up to "leaf through" and spent the next half hour standing in my living room reading the first several chapters. All while the five books I'm in the middle of reading glared at me from various spots in the house (most had to glare through the ceiling and walls). Jennifer also has a wonderful blog that fills me with awe.

Irene Latham's Leaving Gee's Bend arrived on the same day. I was psyched to see that it's set in 1930s Alabama and concerns a sharecropper's daughter who sets out on her own to find help for her ailing mother. Being a giant fan of early Delta blues music, that place and time has always fascinated me. For a great interview, check out our fellow classmate Denise Jaden's blog.

In music, Vampire Weekend has a new CD out today! They were not a love-at-first-listen band for me, but the songs from their last album really grew on me over the months. The new stuff sounds even better.

I've gotten three minor pieces of good news from my agent in the last two days, none of which I can share at the moment (but they're minor, so you're not missing much). But by far the most exciting thing to happen today occurred in this video interview with Jason Scott, owner of and Twitter transcriber for Sockington, the world's most popular cat.

Sockington has over a million followers on Twitter (listen to the interview to find out why), including my cat Misha (who has his own Twitter account). Misha, along with several thousand other cats, dogs, rabbits, hamster, geckos, etc., is officially part of Sockington's army. Back in May (May 16, to be exact, three days before the release of Bad to the Bone), I happened to be passing by Socks's page and noticed he was about to pass 500,000 followers.

Ten minutes later, he did, then asked Socks Army to "represent" with the American Sign Language sign for cat. Somehow I managed to get Misha in the proper position and sent a link to the photo to Sockington. It was a fun moment of goofing off with my cat, nothing more.

Three days later, Socks had a new video up, and holy crap, Misha was in it (at minute marker 1:47, to be exact)! Yes, it was the release day of my new book, and the happiest moment was my cat appearing in another cat's video. (You might wonder if authors get blase about their new books, maybe when they're not the beginning of a new series and when they know it has a snowball's chance in hell of hitting a bestseller list. Instead of "blase," I would use the word, "calm.")

Fast forward to today and the interview with Jason Scott (aka Fatty). Our little man-cat's picture can be found at minute marker 2:58 (disturbingly, as Jason is talking about people whose cats are no longer with them, which I can assure you Misha is. With us. Demanding food, so I better go.)

Tidbit Tuesday #1

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 01:55:00 +0000

Happy Tuesday, folks! I'm starting a new thing (and now that I've called it a "thing" I'll probably never do it again), Tidbit Tuesday (unless y'all prefer "Tuesday Tidbits" or something less cutesy like "Tuesday Trash," or more cutesy like "Tell-It-To-Ya Tuesday," or a Monday night feature called "'Til Tuesday"--hey, I like that one). I'll mention new book/music releases I'm excited about, plus news items I don't have time to elaborate on at the moment.

--First, the books! Two fellow Class of 2K10 members have their very first books out today and tomorrow (and another on Thursday, which I'll mention then). Today marks the release of Kitty Keswick's Freaksville. You can read more about it at her launch post, including a short interview with her brilliant editor at Leap Books.

Bonnie Doerr's debut, Island Sting, comes out tomorrow. I'm particularly excited about this because it features an environmental theme. I tried twice unsuccessfully to get a "green" novel published, so I'm cheering for this one to do well so we see more of them in the future. Also, she's a big fan of one of my favorite authors, Carl Hiaasen, so I know the book has to rock. There's a great interview with Bonnie over at Aurora's Reviews.

--Speaking of Class of 2K10, the Page Turners blog did a mini-interview with all of us, asking about our first lines, how and whether they changed from first draft to final.

--The last book I wanted to mention is actually a repackaging/re-release of three YA vampire novels, but it's very important for one reason. At the back of the second and final Christopher Pike Last Vampire compendium (Thirst #2) is...the first chapter of Shade!

Thirst #2 comes out today, but my copy arrived last Friday. Seeing Aura's words in bound printed form gave me the chills, and it wasn't just because I'd left the door open in my excitement to open the box. I'll probably wait until February to put the first chapter up on the website, so if you want to read Shade's first chapter, go check it out--the Pike books are excellent, too! Thirst #1 hit the New York Times bestseller list. If you haven't heard of The Last Vampire series, you're in for a real treat.

--I've started a new work plan for the new year. Yes, another Grand Masta plan that will make me more productive and happy! Here it is, simply put:

Instead of writing 2,000 words every day, including weekends, while trying to keep up with Stuff (blogging, e-mail, interviews, etc.), I'm going to start writing 3,000 words every weekday and take weekends off to catch up on Stuff and catch my breath.

This will allow me to have a more single-minded (some would say simple-minded) focus. Weekdays = writing; weekends (and some weekday evenings) = other. My brain likey!

So far so good after two days, but we'll see how it goes. Right now I'm off to play one of the two new Wii games we got for Christmas. After all, stress reduction is one of my goals for the New Year, and not making that goal will totally stress me out!

Yes, I'm certifiably insane.

Girlfriends' Cyber Circuit Tour - Eileen Cook

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 05:25:00 +0000

Happy New Year! I'm thrilled to start things off by introducing you to one of my fellow travelers on the Girlfriends' Cyber Circuit, Eileen Cook. Her latest novel, Getting Revenge on Lauren Wood, comes out tomorrow.

Popularity is the best revenge.

In the final weeks of eighth grade, Lauren Wood made a choice. She betrayed her best friend, Helen, in a manner so publicly humiliating that Helen had to move to a new town just to save face. Ditching Helen was worth it, though, because Lauren started high school as one of the It Girls--and now, at the start of her senior year, she's the cheerleading captain, the quarterback's girlfriend, and the undisputed queen bee. Lauren has everything she's ever wanted, and she has forgotten all about her ex-best friend.

But Helen could never forget Lauren. After three years of obsessing, she's moving back to her old town. She has a new name and a new look, but she hasn't dropped her old grudges. She has a detailed plan to bring down her former BFF by taking away everything that's ever been important to Lauren—starting with her boyfriend.

Watch out, Lauren Wood. Things are about to get bitchy.

Some fantastic authors had lovely things to say about Eileen's previous book, What Would Emma Do?

“Sassy and sly and sweet all at the same time, this book made me laugh out loud.” --Meg Cabot, author of The Princess Diaries and Airhead

“Not since Judy Blume's Margaret introduced herself to God has there been such a funny, genuine, conflicted, wanna-be-sorta-good-maybe-later girl as Emma. Cook's tone as she takes on the big ones—life, love, faith, and friendship—is pitch perfect.”--Jacquelyn Mitchard, author of The Midnight Twins and The Deep End of the Ocean

"Smart and fun and full of heart." --Sarah Mlynowski, author of Bras & Broomsticks and How to Be Bad

---

And now, my interview with Eileen:

1. If you could inhabit the life of any of your characters, enter their world and deal with it as that person, which one would you choose?

I like all my characters, but I’m also mean to them. As the writer I seem to go about making their lives as miserable as possible. I’m not sure I would want to be any of them in the middle of the book- unless I already knew how things would work out!

2. What's the weirdest tidbit of research you've ever incorporated into a book?

My first book, Unpredictable, was about a woman who pretends to be a psychic to get her ex-boyfriend back. When I was researching the novel I went to over a dozen psychics looking at how they did their readings. There were some that seemed to have some interesting abilities, but there were some that after awhile I figured out how they were faking it. It was a ton of fun.

3. What's your earliest memory?

I remember at Christmas I was small enough to lie under the Christmas tree and it was almost like a living green tent. I loved the smell of the pine and the lights. My parents would act like they didn’t know I was under there and I thought I was very clever.

When I was older I used to be so sad when it came time to take down the tree. I would cry. My parents would get me out of the house, take down the tree and then leave a note to me from the tree saying it had to go back to the forest to be with his family. I had no idea there was such a thing as The Chipper.

4. Do you have any phobias?

One of the downsides of being a writer is that you have a very active imagination. I can freak myself out without even trying hard. Once I woke up in the middle of the night to go the bathroom and saw that there was a spider hanging mere inches from my face. I stayed up the rest of the night thinking about how it could have kept lowering itself until it was ON MY FACE. What if it crawled into my nose and laid spider baby eggs in my sinus cavity? Would they eat my brain? Would I go crazy?

I also have a fear of dentists, but I don’t think that is irrational. People who stick sharp pointy sticks into your gums and use power tools on your teeth are scary.

5. Which author, living or dead, would you most love to collaborate with?

Oooh hard question. There are so many great writers that I would love to work with. If I have to pick just one, (versus taking your blog over for months at a time while I go through the list) I would pick Judy Blume. I loved her books growing up and I really admire her career and involvement in the community. Plus, who wouldn’t want to say they had Judy Blume as a friend?

---

About the Author

Eileen Cook spent most of her teen years wishing she were someone else or somewhere else, which is great training for a writer. When she was unable to find any job postings for world famous author, she went to Michigan State University and became a counselor so she could at least afford her book buying habit. But real people have real problems, so she returned to writing because she liked having the ability to control the ending. Which is much harder with humans.

You can read more about Eileen, her books, and the things that strike her as funny at eileencook.com. Eileen lives in Vancouver with her husband and dogs and no longer wishes to be anyone or anywhere else.

Happy Release Week, Eileen, and thanks for including me on your tour!

If you see this post...

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 18:12:00 +0000

...and only this post, as a result of clicking on "Current Contests and Reader Giveaway," then that means there are, sadly, no current contests or giveaways.

I had to create this post to keep that link from taking you to a dark and scary place known as PAGENOTFOUND (which I believe is a German term that roughly translates as "Psych!").

For more contests and giveaways, please come back another time, and/or join my quarterly-ish mailing list. The signup box is on the blog sidebar to the right.

Thanks so much for stopping by the blog. Better luck next time!

Blog challenge to help Heifer International

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 21:02:00 +0000

UPDATE DECEMBER 30: Thanks to everyone for their comments and for spreading the word! We reached 60 comments, so I donated an Earth Basket, which consists of bees/beekeeping equipment and a whole mess of tree seedlings. (For the same price I could've bought a trio of rabbits, but being the vegetarian, non-fur-wearing sort, I opted for this instead.)

You might remember last year (and if you do, you're way ahead of me) when I donated an ARC of The Reawakened to a charity auction held by author Patrick Rothfuss (which he's doing again this year) and encouraged you to donate to this fantastic cause that really makes a difference in people's lives.

This year all you have to do is leave some comments! One of my agent's fellow Curtis Brown agents, Nathan Bransford, is holding a challenge. For each comment left on that post, he'll donate $1 to Heifer International.

And I'm doing the same, donating $1 per comment here on this post for the first 120 unique commenters (i.e., one comment per person, not 120 from the same person).

Nathan's challenge lasts until 5PM Pacific today (8PM Eastern), and mine will go through 5PM eastern Wednesday, December 30.

This costs you nothing but a click and a few words. Here's what you can do:

--Leave a comment here (if you're drawing a blank on what to say, tell us your favorite farm animal).
--Follow the link above to Nathan's blog and comment there.
--Visit the other blogs listed at his post and leave comments there.
--Spread the word via Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, and any other virtual or literal rooftop you have at your disposal.

Have a wonderful holiday!

Happy Release Day to Alexandra Diaz & OF ALL THE STUPID THINGS!

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 20:01:00 +0000

One of my fellow Class of 2K10 authors is kicking off our year a week early with the release of her debut contemporary YA novel, Of All the Stupid Things.

You might remember Alexandra from her Blogtoberfest guest post. The lucky winner of the ARC in that contest has already posted her review. She tells a harrowing story of her worst trip ever on today's class of 2K10 blog.

You can learn more about Alexandra and her book through these interviews and guest posts:

Janet Fox's Through the Wardrobe blog
YA Edge
Author Denise Jaden

My copy just shipped from Amazon today. I can't wait to read it! I absolutely adore that yummy cover.

Coming tomorrow, my Top 9 Reads of 2009! (If you missed my Top 9 Songs of 2009, check 'em out in yesterday's post. Crank it up!)

Top 9 Songs of 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 01:16:00 +0000

Unlike my vampire DJs, I'm not stuck in time--musically, at least (let's not discuss my wardrobe--shoulder pads are coming back, right?).

I owe my contemporary awareness entirely to my Sirius satellite radio service. One of my player's features allows me to skip back to the beginning of a song and play it again. Maybe again and again. Maybe again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again.

Most of the songs below were ones I fell in love with at first listen. For five of the nine, I'd never heard the band before. Nothing makes a music lover happier than that moment of discovery and infatuation. It gives us hope for the future, or at least the present.

These top 9 tunes are in chronological order rather than order of preference, although the last one is also my favorite. Everyone should go out (or stay in) and buy XX by XX. Show the recording industry that a truly original sound can succeed.

Below the playlist are some bonus videos and my rambly, amateur music appreciator thoughts.

1. Dead Confederate - "The Rat"

A bit of a cheat, since it actually came out in 2008. But it didn't start getting major play until early 2009. It's Nirvana meets R.E.M. You can hear the original song in all its grungy goodness on the playlist below. Here's a video of them doing it acoustically on a street corner in Amsterdam, courtesy of the Amsterdam Acoustic series:

2. Shiny Toy Guns - "Ghost Town"

Also technically released in late 2008, it started getting a lot of airplay in February or March. It's the only tune I've ever downloaded as a ring tone, before realizing I can never hear my phone ring in a crowded room unless it sounds like a freaking PHONE.

Click the link above to see the very cool animated official "Ghost Town" video (it won't let me embed it here).

3. Bouncing Souls - "Gasoline" (Jan)

This was the first of twelve singles released this year to celebrate their twentieth anniversary. I couldn't find a good video of it, so just listen to it on the playlist. I find it really captures the (dis)spirit of 2009, and of Generation Xers dragging our moshingly energetic self-loathing into middle age. I sing the chorus at maximum volume:

Sedate me with anything
So I don't have to live with me
Tell me, tell me that I'm free
Kill me with everything
Until there's nothing left of me
Tell me, tell me that I'm free
Give me some gasoline.

4. Death Cab for Cutie - "Little Bribes"

This one grew on me. It's off their Open Door EP, stuff that didn't fit on Narrow Stairs. They were right to leave this off--it's much more upbeat. The live performance video I linked to also features "Cath," one of the songs that totally fits the brilliant, somber, emotionally cohesive Narrow Stairs.

5. Silversun Pickups - "Panic Switch"

This bass line could eat a horse. Listen to it on the playlist for best sound, then come back and space out to the video.

6. Cocktail Slippers - "St. Valentine's Day Massacre" (4.28)

When I first heard this on Little Steven's Underground Garage station*, I only caught the last, I'm not joking, twenty seconds. I proceeded to play those twenty seconds over and over (you can only rewind the portion of the song that's been playing since you tuned into that station--if you switch stations, the playback memory is wiped).

I later found out that Steven Van Zandt produced this record after hearing the Slippers' first album. So it has his Official Stamp of Cool in more ways than one. Playlist.com didn't have "St. Valentine's Massacre," only their more popular "Give it to Me," which also rocks.

*This channel alone makes Sirius a worthwhile addition to any music lover's life. Cool songs from every era. Real rock 'n' roll, with DJs who actually know their stuff. And where else can you hear a former E Street Band member and fake mobster spin records?

7. Green Day - "East Jesus Nowhere"

I'll talk about this amazing concert in my "Top 9 Moments of '09," but I had to share this live clip of Billie Joe Armstrong "saving" a child at their Chicago show (listen to the playlist for the full song). In the earliest performances of the song, he would just have the kids dance, but by this point, they were doing something much cooler:

8. The Raveonettes - "Last Dance"

When I heard the first single off the new CD by my favorite band (as of 2008's Lust Lust Lust), I wasn't overly impressed. It lacked the brain-blasting distortion I've been such a fan of lately. But I bought the CD anyway the day it came out (something I rarely do) and soon found myself singing this song all around the house. Here's a video of the Raveonettes performing it acoustically in their native Denmark:

9. XX - "Crystalised"

Last but first, my favorite song of the year. I was entranced the moment I heard it. It's rare that a new artist comes along that sounds completely different from anything that's come before. The vocals and instrumentation wind around each other in a jaw-dropping, mesmerizing way.

When I first heard them, their self-titled debut CD wasn't even available on iTunes, so I ordered the physical CD as an import from Amazon. I had to wait six weeks, because it sold out that fast. It was worth the wait.

And as a bonus, here's their Amsterdam Acoustic session.

and my favorite song on the CD, "Infinity" (not a real video, just audio with an image). It always makes me stop, pull out the laptop cooler to reduce the background hum, close my eyes, and just listen. It's so good it almost hurts.

Come back tomorrow for my Top 9 Books Read in 2009. Thanks for listening!

SHADE release date news & ARC winner

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 13:56:00 +0000

Thanks to everyone who participated in the SHADE anniversary ARC giveaway. I had a lot of awwwww moments reading about the special anniversaries you celebrate. And the lucky winner was...Carrie! Congrats!

The Class of 2K10 grad party for the Class of 2k9 concludes this week with one last multi-book giveaway. The contest will be open until midnight Saturday.

Now I have big news that I need you to help me spread. Shade will no longer be released on May 18 Its new release date is...

MAY 4

Two weeks sooner! Plans are for it to be available to be sold at the RT Booklovers Convention Book Fair (Columbus, OH, May 2), so that giant venue will be my first official signing as a YA author. YAY!

Of course, a lot of people already have it in their heads (and on their blogs/calendars) that it's coming out May 18. My fear (I have many fears, this is one of them) is that many readers won't look for it until May 18, by which point stores might have sold out and not reordered due to readers waiting until it's been out for two weeks to look for it (i.e., sales are meh). We want everyone to buy it as soon as it comes out (or sooner, via pre-order) so that it really makes a splash!

So if you see someone mention Shade with the old release date, do me a huuuuuge favor and politely let them know it's been moved up to...say it with me....

MAY 4

Thanks so much!

I'm now off to the internet-free coffee shop to start writing WVMP Book Four, tentatively titled Lust for Life. I'm due for some time off, but I figured I should use the momentum while I have it. Forward...write!

Bring on the Night

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 14:12:00 +0000

Yesterday I turned in the rewrite for Bring on the Night (WVMP Book #3 and sequel to Bad to the Bone). I spent the last seventeen days working 10-12-hours a day on it,* so I've been living (and unliving) with these vampires almost every waking moment since Thanksgiving.

To ease myself out of Sherwood and back into the bright, shiny, scary palce called "reality," my first post-Bring on the Night blog entry will be about...Bring on the Night.

Official release date: August 1, 2010. You can already pre-order it at Amazon. And check out the spiffy fake cover--much better than the old "No Image Available" option. (I haven't seen the cover art at all yet, but I'm sure it's cool.)

Bring on the Night will be released in recession-friendly mass market paperback. Speaking of which, Bad to the Bone will be reissued in mass market on February 22, with a Bring on the Night "teaser" first chapter that is no longer the first chapter (rewrites, you know).

What it's about: The usual WVMP gang of vampire DJs, picking up two-and-a-half years after the end of Bad to the Bone.

We've got a near-final version of the back cover copy. I'm particularly psyched about this one, because my editor and I wrote it ourselves.

---

WHAT’S BLOOD GOT TO DO WITH IT?

Recovering con artist Ciara Griffin seems to finally have it all: A steady job at WVMP, the Lifeblood of Rock ‘n’ Roll. A loving relationship with the idiosyncratic yet eternally hot DJ Shane McAllister. A vampire dog who never needs shots or a pooper-scooper. And after nine years, it looks like she might actually finish her bachelor’s degree!

But fate has other plans for Ciara. First she must fulfill her Faustian bargain with the Control, the paranormal paramilitary agency that does its best to keep vampires in line. Turns out the Control wants her for something other than her (nonexistent) ability to kick undead ass. Her anti-holy blood, perhaps? Ciara’s suspicions are confirmed when she’s assigned to a special ops division known as the Immanence Corps, run by the Control’s oldest vampire and filled with humans who claim to have special powers.

To a confirmed skeptic like Ciara, it sounds like a freak fest. But when a mysterious, fatal virus spreads through Sherwood—and corpses begin to rise from their graves—Ciara will not only get a crash-course in zombie-killing, but will be forced to put her faith—and even her life itself—in the hands of magic.

-----

As part of my culture shock therapy, I spent last night putting together the Bring on the Night chapter title songs playlist. It's not final--I will definitely be changing a few in the copyedit stage.

Some notes:

1) Most of the songs fit the chapters better than in the two previous books. B y that I mean the lyrics and mood, as well as the title, should resonate with the story. This makes it more of a soundtrack than previous chapter title collections. They don't tell the story, but there's a bit of extra truth in each one.

2) No Nirvana. Shocker! Everything about this book is a little different from Wicked Game and Bad to the Bone, right down to the music. Instead of ending with a Nirvana song as usual, I chose to frame the book with Neil Young & Crazy Horse's two versions of "Hey Hey My My," Out of the Blue and Into the Black. Kurt Cobain quoted the line, "It's better to burn out than fade away" in his suicide note, so his spirit still haunts the soundtrack. (The song also includes the phrase "Rock 'n' roll can never die," one of the WVMP series taglines. Bonus! And there's also a line about Johnny Rotten, who sings the song "Rise" (with Public Image Ltd.), which comes a few chapters earlier. Self-referential bonus!)

3) More songs from this decade. By the time the book takes place (and comes out), the 00's will be over. And they'll have their very own DJ to represent them on WVMP.

So here it is! Enjoy trying to figure out the plot from the chapter titles. Or just enjoy the music.

Missing tunes (unavailable from Playlist.com):
"How Many More Years," Howlin' Wolf
"Help Me," Sonny Boy Williamson
"Sugar and Spice," The Searchers
Also, "Home of the Blues" should be Johnny Cash, and "All That Heaven Will Allow" should be Bruce Springsteen.

I hope to fix these holes by replacing the playlist with an iTunes iMix, as soon as I figure out how to do that. Definitely on my 2010 to-do list.

*Lest you scoff, thinking, "Pah, I stay at my desk until 7pm all the time," I don't mean I sit down to work and then get up ten hours later to spend a few hours leisure before I go to bed. I mean 10-12 hours as measured by a timer, which gets paused when I check e-mail, walk the dog, get food, take a bathroom break (or, more rarely, a shower). So a 12-hour day for me runs from 8am to midnight.

2K9 Grad party & an SHADE ARC anniversary giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 16:02:00 +0000

Before I forget (and while the link is still in my clipboard, before I go and copy something else and then have to copy it again, frustrated with my porous powers of attention), the class of 2k10's graduation party for the class of 2K9 continues today with another big book giveaway! My readers who love music might especially enjoy J.T. Dutton's Freaked, about a teenage Deadhead. Go forth and enter! Then come back.

Today marks one year since the auction for Shade, originally known as Generation Ghost. The climate in publishing was frosty, to say the least (paralyzed with fear, to say the most). Black Wednesday had occurred only five days before, when three major publishing houses announced major cutbacks. We were all pretty scared. (Come to think of it, we still are, but Black Wednesday was a heaping concentrated dose of ACK!.)

But Generation Ghost sold, on proposal, no less, to the publisher I'd dreamed of for years, since I'd first started reading YA: Simon Pulse. There was much rejoicing!

Even as it happened, I never realized that a year later I'd be sitting here with a box of Advance Review Copies (ARCs).

(Click for larger version.)

To celebrate the first anniversary of this unlikely occurrence, I'm doing a low-key giveaway of an a Shade ARC. This will probably be the only copy (other than the Blogtoberfest prize) to be given out before Christmas, because I still need to figure out how many ARCs are going where for what purposes. (I snagged myself a short extension on my Bring on the Night rewrite until next Monday, so I'm still slammed for time.)

So to enter to win a Shade ARC, tell me what odd anniversaries you celebrate. Something other than birthdays, deaths, weddings. First dates? Adopting a pet? The first time you saw Star Wars in the movie theatre?

---

Tedious Rules to keep my butt from being sued:

1. Contest open to U.S. residents only. This isn't because I'm cheap and don't want to pay international postage. It's because I'm trying to keep this contest legal and can only keep track of one country's laws at a time. Sorry!

2. Retail value: $0. ARCs can't be resold. But why would you want to?

3. Odds of winning depend upon the number of participants.

4. To enter, simply leave a comment. On Tuesday, December 15 at 11:59pm, a winner will be drawn using a random number generator. NOTE: THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED TO ENTRIES. The winner is Carrie!

5. Names of winners will be posted in the comments of this post, and in the first post to appear after the drawing. Winners have one week to claim their prize by contacting me via e-mail at jeri AT jerismithready DOT com. If the winner does not contact me by that time, I will draw another name at random.

6. No purchase is required.

SHADE/SHIFT in audio book!

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 21:55:00 +0000

Coming soon to an earbud (or car speaker) near you...

I've been dying to spread this news ever since I found out, and now it's official. Audible has bought the audio rights to Shade and its 2011 sequel Shift and will make them into audio books!

I an insanely thrilled about this. This will be my first audio book, the first time I get to hear my words read by a professional (i.e., someone other than myself). Back when my daily commute was longer than a walk down the hall, I scarfed up audio books from the local library like crazy. So to have my own works in this format will be pretty amazing.

Audible is the world's largest publisher of downloadable books, and they have a special relationship (not sure if that's the technical term) with iTunes to make their books easily found and downloaded from there, as well as on Amazon, etc.

Also, the audio books will be distributed in "physical copy" by Brilliance. (CDs, I assume, or whatever newfangled technology is being used--back in my day it was books on tape, and we got whatever mangled, abridged, chopped up version was available, and we liked it! Except when Cassette #10 out of 12 was all garbled, or when our favorite book ever (The Talisman by Stephen King and Peter Straub) had a narrator who read every sentence like THIS. So that the emphasis was on the very last WORD. No matter how it was WRITTEN. Until we wanted to throw it out the WINDOW. But we couldn't because it belonged to the LIBRARY. So we got very ANGRY. And are now venting publicly about it for the first TIME. And it feels GOOD. (See how annoying that is?--I mean, see how annoying that IS?)

So if you prefer to hold the Shade audio book in your hands, you'll be able to do that, too. Just don't try to turn the pages.

I don't have an official release date yet, but I would presume the audio books will come out at the same time or shortly after the release of the hardcover.

Which is...

everyone say it with me...

MAY 18, 2010

Okay, it's back to the rewrite dungeon for me. Have a great weekend!

Girlfriends' Cyber Circuit Tour - Debbie Rigaud

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 05:11:00 +0000

I'm super excited about this week's Girlfriend Cyber Circuit guest, Debbie Rigaud, for a couple of reasons.

1) It's her first novel! Go Debbie!
2) It's a Simon Pulse Romantic Comedy, which I love (full disclosure here: Pulse is one of my publishers, but the pure fact is, I love rom coms and am eternally grateful that someone is publishing them). They also publish Jennifer Echols, one of my favorite authors and a recent Blogtober-guest.

Debbie's novel Perfect Shot was just released yesterday. Here's what it's about:

Perfect Shot

London Abram’s first love is volleyball, so why does she enter an online modeling competition? Answer: superhottie Brent St. John. London spots Brent signing in contestants at a store, and she gets in line simply to say hi. But she never dreams she’ll make it into the competition!

London’s now up against fourteen hungry fashionistas willing to do whatever it takes to win. All she wants to win is Brent’s heart…but the money prize couldn’t hurt. If London plays this right, she can win the contest, the boy, and the cash. GAME ON!

A few more notable facts about Perfect Shot:

• First book in the Simon Pulse Romantic Comedies series to feature an African-American protagonist
• First book in the Simon Pulse Romantic Comedies series to be written by an African-American
• Features a multicultural cast of characters in a contemporary setting

And now, my sometimes silly questions for Debbie:

1. If you could inhabit the life of any of your characters, enter their world and deal with it as that person, which one would you choose?

London, the main character in PERFECT SHOT. She approaches life with a courage and determination that I admire. These are traits that were largely shaped on the volleyball court. I believe that a lot of athletes are go-getters. Being sporty encourages London to act on her instincts and be unafraid of confrontation or competition. To me, that's very cool.

2. On the flip side, which of your characters would you most like to bring to life in our world (as a friend or a little bit more ;-) ?

London's best friend Pam. I would be a devotee of Pam?s style blog. Lord knows I could a personal stylist.

4. Let's say there's a TV show, movie, or recording artist that has a cult of you. Which is it? (i.e., what do you like that no one else you know likes)?

"Ghost Whisperer." That show gets on my nerves, yet I still watch it. I vowed to stop watching after Melinda's (Jennifer Love Hewitt) husband was killed off. The show truly jumped the shark at that point, yet there I remain in front of the tube when it comes on.

5. What's your earliest memory?

I was in a moving truck with my mother and godmother, traveling from our home in Brooklyn to our new house in East Orange, NJ. I was around two years old.

6. Do you have any phobias?

As far as a quirky phobia, I?d say it?s fear of falling. I took a crazy spill on sidewalk ice one winter and that freaked me out. At least my cousin, who was with me at the time, made sure I was okay before he started cracking up.

Author Bio

Debbie Rigaud began her writing career covering news and entertainment for magazines. She’s interviewed celebs, politicians, social figures and “real” girls. Her wide-ranging articles have appeared in YSB, Entertainment Weekly, Seventeen, The Source, Trace, Twist, Essence, J-14, Heart & Soul, Inside TV, CosmoGIRL!, and Vibe Vixen.

Her first work of YA fiction, a novella titled “Double Act,” was featured in the anthology HALLWAY DIARIES/Kimani Tru. PERFECT SHOT/Simon & Schuster, her first standalone book, was released December 1, 2009.

Debbie’s extensive experience with young readers has led her to staff editor positions at Seventeen and Twist and to freelance editing/writing work for seventeen.com, CosmoGIRL!, American Eagle Outfitters and publishing company Just Us Books. She’s written advice columns, inspiring real-life stories, entertainment reports and countless personality quizzes for this audience.

Beyond YA, Debbie recently became a finalist in Bermuda Dramatist Society’s annual playwright contest. “All in the Same Boat,” her short play, was selected by professional New York playwrights and produced on stage in Bermuda.

Debbie's Website
Debbie's Blog

Congrats again to Debbie on the release of her first novel!

Class of 2K10 official launch!

noreply@blogger.com (Jeri) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 13:24:00 +0000

Poking my head out of the Deadline Cave for a few minutes:

As I might have mentioned, I’m a member of the Class of 2K10, a group of 2010 debut young adult and middle-grade authors. Even though I have six published novels as an adult author (writing for adults, that is, not that I’m a true adult myself, because most people would dispute that), they were nice enough to let me in, since Shade will be my first YA novel.

Anyway, the class is holding a huge graduation party for its predecessor (named, not surprisingly, the class of 2K9) all month. We're giving away a copy of each debut novel by this talented group of authors. Visit our blog for details.

In case you're feeling too lazy to click over to our site, check out our trailer, and maybe you'll change your mind:

For a shortcut to a list to all our books and release dates (with convenient purchase links--ha!), check out our Amazon Listmania compilation.

I have another Girlfriends' Cyber Circuit tour coming up tomorrow, and then some thrilling Shade news on Thursday, so stay tuned!

But for now, back to my regularly scheduled hermitage.