6/2/08 Home from Book Expo America at last. (Gone Tues-Sun). I took only a few photos-far too overwhelmed. They're here at the end. I drove down Tues, attended the Writers Conference/Agent pitch session Weds, and saw relatives Thurs. Then the gigantically overwhelming Book Expo America, (only broken up by my cousin's Friday night Bar Mitzvah). Sunday as the con ended, I drove home, car packed to the metaphorical rafters with books.
I think since I was listening to Bridget Jones's Diary both ways (hilarious!) I'll organize the trip this way:
Pitch session agents who requested my manuscripts: 12. Excellent.
Pals I knew at the con: 4
New friends made of adolescent authors: 3
Hours spent waiting for signed copy of Eragon: 2
Books picked up while waiting for signed copy of Eragon: 2
Hours spent waiting for signed copy of new Salmon Rushdie: 2
Hours spent wondering why I was bothering: 4
Number of other Harry Potter derivatives: 2 (Mine was cuter!)
People who recognized me or my book: hundreds. Cool.
People who have now heard of my book: thousands. Also cool.
Postcards I hand-distributed: 1000 (Literally).
Books I signed: All (125).
Publishers who requested my manuscripts: About 20. I was busier than last year, but also excellent.
Relatives/friends I visited: six
Relatives I spoke with at the Bar Mitzvah: Probably 14. Cool.
Celebrities I saw: Quite a lot.
Free books I acquired: Hundreds. Very Nice.
Gallons of gas to drive to LA: 10. Sounds good.
Hours spent listening to Bridget Jones: 12
Hours spent listening to other audio books: 3
Hours spent in traffic: wince.
Number of frantic emails in my absence: About 200.
Number of times checked email on trip: Once, briefly.
Number of emails sent on trip: 2
5 am wakeup calls: 4
Hours of missed sleep: wince.
Hours walking while dragging books: almost all of them.
Pissed-off knees: 2
Signings: 2. Both went well.
Booths displaying my book: 3. Nice.
Sample books the booths distributed: about 9 (all of them).
Bananas eaten in place of meals: 5
Free chocolates eaten: hundreds. But they were yummy.
Diet cokes drunk: probably 12
Guess I should finish up like the credit card people and say Conference: priceless. Yawn. The proofs have come for Deathly Paper Shortage. Time to get busy again.
5/25/08 Baycon's going great, with a well-attended Broad Universe Reading and a bunch of cool panels. Lots of shopping, and even more chatting. Many parties. Many costumes. Annoying stuff: the masquerade had NO SPACE--hundreds turned away, and the con was at two opposite halves of the hotel. Close by my house though.
5/21/08 I thought I'd spend today getting organized for Book Expo AMerica (visiting relatives, travel arrangements, choosing sessions to attend. But I just got an email from my editor requesting back cover info and one from the RMMLA conference offering a travel grant. So I'll be doing those too today...Seems today's rather typical that way after all. Nearly done with final SJSU grades meanwhile, so I can check those off the list. Just a few days until Baycon (speaking on four panels and selling books, but nothing too aggravating, I think.) On with the pirate con! Arrr.
5/12/08 Okay, Press releases sent (later than I'd like). Meanwhile, today was the last day of class. Parties, games, snacks, 75 evaluations etc etc. One mass grading session Wednesday and then...hello summer!
5/7/08 I won! Wow, since I made the eBook version of book one myelf, I wasn't all that confident (it's an html program on CD, with the book and a pile of free goodies). Still, I did it! First Place WInner in E-BOOK FICTION National Indie Excellence Awards 2008. Now time to let everyone know in publicity notices and announcements to all the groups I'm in. And here I thought I'd get a break...
5/5/08 Finally! After a month of total craziness (mostly touching up the cover but the book needed some touch ups too) the book is done and off to the publisher. Phew.
4/9/08 Narrate Conferences from last year has published one of my Harry Potter papers. "Fantasy's Rebirth" appearing in Phoenix Rising: Collected Papers on Harry Potter, 17-21 May 2007 edited by Sharon K. Goetz. 978-0-6151-9524-7 © 2008 Narrate Conferences, Inc.
Always cool. Pity Amazon's making them put it on Lulu, of course.
4/7/08 Phew, sent 12 advance copies of my book to reviewers, plus 15 last Friday. Well, here's hoping for some great blurbs. It'll have to be review companies, since, while I know plenty of authors, very few write in my precise genre. Still working on the Heroine's Journey in YA--Ella Enchanted has some interesting possibilities, and I've written quite a bit on the Amber Spyglass.
3/10/08 I'll be giving two papers at the Con, one on Harry Potter and one on feminism, I think.
3/4/08 Still getting critiques, slower though. Meanwhile, I spent last night sending abstracts for eleven, yes ELEVEN panels I'd like to present at the upcoming 2008 RMMLA Convention--Rocky Mountain Modern Language Association
Reno, Nevada ~ October 9-11, 2008
Local Host: University of Nevada, Reno. I don't actually plan to give all eleven papers, but I hope enough will be accepted to justify the trip--I should give more academic paper, and this gives me an excuse to work on the heroine's journey in YA lit project. Still haven't heard back on book 7--just waiting now and grading far too many papers. On it goes.
2/13/08 And I'm finally getting a few critiques. Apparently I fire off jokes so fast no one can come up for air. Something to work on...
2/2/08 Eek! I just listened to the audio recordings made of some of my Prophecy 2007: From Hero to Legend, The Annual Harry Potter Conference talks. I keep saying um! Something to work on, I suppose. I've posted the mythology talk (since the Horcrux one has another speaker as well as me). Here it is, if anyone's interested.
Several people noticed that I disappeared off the radar for two weeks (and many didn't notice, which shows how antisocial I've been this year). I just spontaneously gave birth! (to another book, before people get overexcited). Over vacation, I just woke up with a great idea, hopped on the computer, and wrote 7,000 words in one day (maybe 30 pages). After that, I wrote 5000 words a day for nine days straight and thus produced Henry Potty book 7! I spent those ten days reading and watching all my parodies (I have a surprisingly large collection), giggling uncontrollably, and eating products with high sugar content.
Admittedly, I haven't written 2-6, but I'm not terribly cut up about it, as Harry Potter #7 had the most inconsistencies and odd bits that need parodying. I feel like this book just fell out of the sky onto my computer, and I'm pretty pleased with the result. This threw off many of many vacation plans, but that's okay
In non-writing news, all the medical problems are continuing, plus a few new ones (though nothing seems too furious that I spent two weeks nailed to a computer). Tomorrow and Weds I start teaching a new SJSU semester. I also plan to do another summer conference circuit, at which I'll get reviews and sales for both novels.
Timeline on this novel involves about a month to collect critiques, find cover art and/or illustrations, and make sure publishers don't want it (I spent 5 disappointing years trying to conventionally publish the last one, so I won't hold my breath). Then I'll self-publish it quickly enough to get advance reviews, and have the book on sale in June/July or so. Book one is still selling well.
So that's what I've been up to. A brand new book (Unplanned-I'm still fighting with the heroine's journey, the Chelm collection, and a lovely new half a book I haven't touched in a month.) all ready to go, aside from a few suggestions from the outside world.
The saga for this one begins this past January. I was in a cheerful mood (I'd been hanging out with Kevin and my now-just-married cousins Steven and Christl) and woke up the next morning with a great idea-instead of writing Henry Potty book 2 (I'd been half-heartedly trying for eight years and had only a couple scenes) why not write Henry Potty and the Other Six Books, all together? I wrote 18 pages that day, taking a few exhausted food, stretch, and sleep breaks, often simultaneously. Ten days later I had a book. After that came publishing and reviewing fiascos, cover errors and other sillinesses, and I slowly moved through the process. But now it's officially out with proper copies arriving at my door any day now. I really really hope.
12/3/07 Broad Universe (a wonderful writers' club) took my book to the 2007 Small Press Book Fair in New York, for some publicity. I only have about 50 papers left to grade (200 this week!) and things are winding down. Time to rush and do all my Hannukah shopping...
11/30/07 The revised website is now up and running. I suppose it doesn't look terribly different, but I've moved the piggies to a more comfortable home.
11/1/07 Wow, I'm a winner!
In the National Best Books Awards 2007, my novel, Henry Potty and the Pet Rock: An Unauthorized Harry Potter Parody, was an Award-Winning Finalist in the "Children's Novelty & Gift Books" category. Awarded by USA Book News.
They'll be publicizing and promoting it for 4 months. Now I just have to send out flying monkeys with all my big announcements...
10/07 The Barnes and Noble's Educator Night had a small crowd, but it was definitely fun to talk with the other authors. Meanwhile, my books are being stocked at Hicklebee's, and selling well off eBay and Amazon. Busy busy.
10/3/07 Having a busy school year with 4 composition classes at SJSU. Combining this with all sorts of temporary illnesses that won't go away, I feel rather drained of energy.
This summer I've just been running from conference to conference and doing extensive travelling in the US and internationally. (See below).
4/23/07 I'm getting on with little things: speaking at conferences, advertising on a small scale to libraries and stores. Harry Potter and summer are both approaching. Added to my Facebook and other profiles and created a big Yahoo page complete with Avatar. Wow, it's just like paperdolls!
4/16/07 Okay, taxes are long done. Hp stuff is getting caught up with. I need to check on my fall classes and so so many back projects. Still, with the HJ stuff done, I really feel like I'm on vacation.
4/11/07 The Heroine's Journey book proposal is finally finally finally done! At 60 pages. Now that I've mailed it, I feel I have such a weight off my shoulders. Now I can get back to the little stuff I've been postponing like arranging conferences and cleaning my very messy room. Not to mention all my students' essays.
3/30/07 Even more amazing authors have agreed to blurb my book. Now this is really cool.
3/29/07 Ah, Heroine's Journey stuff. I emailed about 40 authors and scholars seeking quotes. A lot of no's and few yes's. One of the maybe's came from none other than Jane Yolen, one of the top people in the genre. Now THAT's cool!
3/27/07 I've been neglecting Henry Potty lately since someone's interested in The Heroine with a Thousand Hearts. Still trying to get it cleaned, polished and shipped. Lots of schoolwork happening too, though my big New York trip is definitely coming. I may be off to Israel this summer, and I'm definitely doing lots of reading and speaking at the upcoming cons.
3/05/07 It sounds like my book will soon be stocked at Borders. I'm so glad: people may actually be able to find it now.
2/10/07 Knee surgery wasn't that big a deal, after all. Crutches gone, some swelling, but walking pretty normally. Now back to all the neglected book stuff. I'm just hurling myself back into it.
1/8/07 I've sent the ebook to about 40 or 50 places, especially Fictionwise, CyberRead, Mobilipocket, and others. Plus I spent lots of time formatting it for Palm, Microsoft Reader, and even Voice-to-Speech. In other news, my Italian Interview's up at Fantasy Magazine. Now I just have to get through knee surgery...
1/2/07 The holiday season has finally ended. Let's see: I went to about 3 Hannukah parties, one Christmas party, one Kwanza party, one birthday party, one Jewish Christmas eve party, two new year's parties (eve and day), and a baby shower. I planned the last one. And I'm not even much of a party person! Most of my high school friends were in town, though, plus a few relatives. I also invented a new form of dreidel.
12/31/06 It's been a working vacation for me, or at least I'm trying. I just applied to about 200 webrings (yes, really!). I'm also busy submitting Henry Potty to ebook stores. It should be available in a lot of places like fictionwise very soon. The ebook has the pig cursor, and one of these days, I'd like too add links and sound effects. That's what makes the web so much fun after all. I've got it in literally half a dozen formats and am planning for more. Go ebooks!
12/26 Grades are all done and recorded; my students did pretty well overall. I sold a bunch of books on ebay this holiday season. The Harry Potter Title's been announced and I've been discussing it on a number of HP chatrooms. They're all abuzz. Another Italian rights agent wants a look, and I have big plans for the summer conferences. Busy busy busy. On a more personal note, I've picked up Munchkin Impossible. As a board game, it's better than many of the Munchkins out there. Very cool!
12/5 Classes are over at SJSU! I get quite a while off with knee surgery and visiting people but a break from teaching. I can try to get back to the writing side of the world at last.
11/28 I'm donating some books to MIssion College's program that collects donated new books to give kids for holiday presents. I'm also selling them at half price if anyone would like to buy one to donate. I've sold a few that way, especially to my mother's coworkers (she teaches at Mission).
11/25 An Italian Magazine has written an article about me and wants an interview! Very cool. I've reprinted it on the foreign reviews page. I've been doing Toys for Tots stuff all weekend rather than checking email. I also sold my first book on eBay. Well, busy busy. Happy Thanksgiving!
11/14 Lately I've been trying to connect with local bookstores, and I've also done some online visits. Various chatrooms and announcements boards, plus webring, of course. Goodness, I have a pile of those now.
11/05 SJSU's newspaper, the Spartan Daily wrote a cute little article about me. Suddenly, it made its way into every foreign Harry Potter website imaginable. Hey, any publicity is cool publicity, even if it's for Henry Potty e o Mascote de Pedra.
10/24 Today was the San Jose State University Reading. It went smoothly, though most attendees were my own students. Still, I got some new people, and got interviewed by Spartan Daily. All fun. In addition, I have some readings set up at Borders, and a radio interview in the works!
10/13 I did my school visit at Hillbrook Elementary. It was so much fun! All those cute little kids laughing like crazy and asking such thoughtful, intelligent questions! Believe me, I couldn't stop grinning.
9/30 Well, the Amazon sale site is up and happy. I'm starting to get reviews, tags, and other comments up there. Reviews are likewise pouring in.
9/10 There's interest in my speaking at a school. I hadn't even started asking yet, but all I can say is, cool!
9/9 I now can be found on livejournal. I'm posting a lot on Harry Potter discussion sites. Stop by and leave a comment if you like.
9/3 More reviews are in. Wow, so far they're all positive! Very cool.
9/1 Well, the book is off to Italy. Not sure how anyone heard about it this soon, but a foreign rights agent is interested, so I just sent off a copy.
8/28 My little baby book is heading for Germany. Plus three regional trade shows. Thank you, PMA. I'm hoping for lots of sales.
The website is up, the book is published, Amazon and Barnes and Noble are selling it. Now to the smaller details of promoting it. How you can help.
Conferences VIEW COSTUMES PHOTO GALLERY
Phoenix Rising 2007
My first Harry Potter con was so cute! Lots of people in costume, lots of fanfic authors and artists, lots of Harry Potter goodies and treats. I spoke on several panels and even a few podcasts. To say nothing of my light up ballgown (which doesn't photograph well).
The Expo was truly enormous. It seemed every publisher was there, to say nothing of all the booksellers, librarians, and authors. I met lots of really famous ones, like SE Hinton, Dave Barry, Judy Blume. I got to meet all three of them, and get signed copies of the latest books. So cool! Hundreds of authors and publishers were ALL offering FREE copies of their latest books. As you might guess, I picked up piles and piles (and somehow managed to close my suitcase). Also lots of cute freebees and promos-- everything from cookie cutters to cookies. :) Lots of new technology: Margaret Atwood was signing books from Canada with this interesting computer option. Lots of interesting publishers and book-related services. Plenty of hot YA fantasy authors there too. Some people were interested in my Heroine's Journey book, but that'll have to wait till I get back.
Westercon 60 2007
Westercon (The Western US scifi fantasy con) was on the small side, but fun, with the people I usually see at Baycon. Dad and I wore costumes (and presented them at the Masquerade) chatted, observed, collected ribbons, and so forth. We also won a few Baycon memberships and loads of other goodies at the Scavenger hunt (first place!). I spoke on a number of panels and sold some books in the dealer's room.
Prophecy 2007
This conference took place only a few weeks after book 7 arrived. I spoke on tons of panels: discussing symbolism in Deathly Hallows and Horcruxes in lit and myth. I was also a "Visiting Professor" in Mythology and Fantasy Writing. (Most of my papers and presentations can be found here). I wore all my beautiful costumes, and sold about 50 books to people in the corridors. I was definitely amazed by some of the lookalike outfits there (Harry, Voldemort, Luna, Umbridge....) This con also had gorgeous decorations in the common room (featuring a fireplace, colored cushions, and every HP game in existence) and Hall of Remembrance (with touching shrines to all the characters who didn't survive the series). All in all, it was a great con.