[fiction, instead of lies]

Wow! And suddenly, I’ve just got a few days to toss things in my suitcase, hie myself to the airport, and come to D.C.!

For those of you attending the Kidlit Drink Night organized by the wonderful Sara Lewis Holmes, Susan Kusel and the other fab people from the DC Kidlit Group, have fun. My plane will be landing about the time you’ve been networking for an hour, and you’ll be leaving before I’ve collected my messages at the hotel. I’m both bummed and a tiny bit relieved; I’m sure I would love to see you all, but after a five hour flight, plus a two hour layover and before a shower? Not so much.

We will see each other around, however! I’ll be schmoozing with other YALSA authors on Monday, hanging around the Random House Booth (#2909), attending the Newbery Caldecott Award Dinner (YAY, Liz & Marla!), and otherwise doing what the folks at Random House have laid out for me.

I haven’t even really looked at who all is presenting. I just found out Gene Luen Yang is going to be there! There’s a whole TON of graphic novel people in the Green Pavilion (wherever that is) and so, so much to see!

Today’s emoticon: Slightly overwhelmed.

Is it that they have great teachers?

Is it that they live in sunny North Hollywood, California?

Is it that they’re readers?

There’s something about those sixth graders at Oakwood Elementary that makes them amazing. And it’s not just that they read and loved MARE’S WAR enough to invite me to speak to their class.

Every time I hear people disparage “kids today,” I’m irritated; from now on, I’ll not be irritated, I’ll be smug. Because I’ve met forty-eight game-changing people of awesomeness, who will in just a few years be unleashed on our world.

I CAN’T WAIT!

Thank you, Diana & Michelle and Margo for the invitation to your school, and your willingness to set aside a whole hour of your class time. Thank you, sixth-graders! You’re amazing.

YES.

To any of the following questions, you have now received your answer:

1. Are you still alive?
2. Are you ever coming back?
3. Are you still working on your revision?
4. Are you still getting random ideas for your SF story in the middle of your revision?
5. Had you heard about Justine Larbalestier’s repetitive motion injury?
6. So, does that mean you’re getting out of your chair at times to get exercise?
7. Are you still slightly panicked about your Google Video chat with Oakwood School’s 6th grade Language Arts class?
8. Did you see that great Darcy Pattison thing about how to do lighting for your vid chat?
9. Are you already panicked about what you’re wearing to ALA?
10. Are you still having nightmares about the speech?
11. Have you heard from The Taskmaster lately? Did she remind you not to slack off?
12. Do you still love your job?

Yes, yes, yes.

March appearances look like they’ll continue to be a bit sparse, seeing as I somehow agreed to write an essay for the Hunger Mountain Journal and begin editing my church’s newsletter again, am doing long-distance book chats, still revising and writing and still getting all kinds of squirrelly new ideas for new books that I don’t need quite right now, and I’m trying to finish baby hats and baby blankets in my copious free time since everyone on the planet seems to be popping out a bairn, and I’ve fallen behind.

The essay I’m writing? Is on depictions of race on young adult book covers. I read this, and felt slightly ill.

I shall return. No guarantee whether or not I shall be sane at that time.

Bonne weekend.

They call her The Grey Lady, because the New York times is pretty much grey/gray – not much with the colored newsprint or tons of pictures, except for the front page, and maybe the society pages, and even then, it’s still pretty restrained in comparison to other papers.

In the past, a lady wasn’t meant to appear in the newspaper, except when she was born, married and buried. Anything else, and she was flirting with becoming notorious. Well, not quite notorious yet — I think if you get into the paper because you’re being congratulated, you get a freebie from the Emily Post society.

Thank you, Editor E!

…everything changes.

This picture of Coretta Scott King (with Jesse Jackson, incidentally — didn’t notice that at first) was taken before I was born, in the year that the first Coretta Scott King Award was won. It was for Lillie Patterson’s biography, Martin Luther King, Jr. Man of Peace, and I imagine the woman herself was present to applaud the winner.

The Coretta Scott King Award is for the most distinguished portrayal of African American experience in literature for children, and without a doubt, it would be an honor to receive such an award — and to know that you had done your best to shine a light on a piece of the American experience which reflects the same light that Mrs. King did, the light of justice and rightness and peace.

MARE’S WAR has won a Coretta Scott King Honor, and I’m really grateful for all the people — including my MFA thesis team, my writing group, my SAM, and my editor — who were so supportive and amazing in what was a long process. Thank-you, sincerely, my dears.

And WOW, am I shocked. It sort of grew… quietly. I had NO CLUE, and finally turned on my email/Facebook about noon, to check in with the world at large. My Google Reader came up, and I zipped over to my Poetry Princess buddy, Tricia, who… was congratulating me. I decided I should really read my email — immediately. And there was a note from my editor with the word YOU! in the subject line.

OH.

I was trying for nonchalant. And now, with the growing number of authors “friending” me on Facebook and the notes from my editor, still in Boston, and calls from my SAM — still no call from The Committee, but they only call the winners, I’m sure, not the Honors — I’m going from nonchalant to sort of …weirdly giddy.

Wow.

Happy Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.

Thank you, ALA and Coretta Scott King Award team.

…everything changes.

This picture of Coretta Scott King (with Jesse Jackson, incidentally — didn’t notice that at first) was taken before I was born, in the year that the first Coretta Scott King Award was won. It was for Lillie Patterson’s biography, Martin Luther King, Jr. Man of Peace, and I imagine the woman herself was present to applaud the winner.

The Coretta Scott King Award is for the most distinguished portrayal of African American experience in literature for children, and without a doubt, it would be an honor to receive such an award — and to know that you had done your best to shine a light on a piece of the American experience which reflects the same light that Mrs. King did, the light of justice and rightness and peace.

MARE’S WAR has won a Coretta Scott King Honor, and I’m really grateful for all the people — including my MFA thesis team, my writing group, my SAM, and my editor — who were so supportive and amazing in what was a long process. Thank-you, sincerely, my dears.

And WOW, am I shocked. It sort of grew… quietly. I had NO CLUE, and finally turned on my email/Facebook about noon, to check in with the world at large. My Google Reader came up, and I zipped over to my Poetry Princess buddy, Tricia, who… was congratulating me. I decided I should really read my email — immediately. And there was a note from my editor with the word YOU! in the subject line.

OH.

I was trying for nonchalant. And now, with the growing number of authors “friending” me on Facebook and the notes from my editor, still in Boston, and calls from my SAM — still no call from The Committee, but they only call the winners, I’m sure, not the Honors — I’m going from nonchalant to sort of …weirdly giddy.

Wow.

Happy Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.

Thank you, ALA and Coretta Scott King Award team.

And now for something completely different…

This is a historic moment. The reason is twofold (or should that be “the reasons ARE twofold”?). Firstly, though I’ve been writing like crazy this week, apparently the toon part of my brain was watching way too much CNN, so for the first time ever, here’s a political cartoon on Finding Wonderland. I hope it is an entertaining diversion. Secondly, this is a historic moment because this cartoon occupies the very last page in my sketchbook. Said sketchbook is mostly cartoons, too, which made me realize just how dang many of these I’ve posted. But now I’ll have to either start using the giant sketchbook, which is unwieldy but has many blank pages left; or buy a new one. Hmm…

I’ve been meaning to post a few of these links for almost three weeks now, which is very sad. Firstly, thanks to the GoodReads newsletter, I ran across interviews with two authors whom I really like–Neil Gaiman and Neal Stephenson. Definitely two iconoclastic people.

Okay, I guess I wasn’t done with politics for today. Back on a political note, visit ArtsVote2008, a program of Americans for the Arts, to find out both presidential candidates’ positions on arts policy.

Right. Back to lit stuff. I was informed by Gina R. that FW is featured on an aggregator site called Alltop – Top Children’s Literature News–above the fold, no less! Readers’ Rants is on there, too, along with a host of other familiar faces from the kidlitosphere. Lastly, speaking of the kidlitosphere, don’t forget to nominate your favorite books for the Cybils! Now you can also help spread the word–and the love–with a downloadable and printable flyer that includes a list of all 2007 shortlisted titles.

Reminds me I’ve gotta sit right down and come up with MY nominees…

Further congratulations go to Cynthia Leitich Smith on the sale of BLESSED, an “interconnected Gothic fantasy suspense” in the same universe as her previous novel, TANTALIZE, and its semi-sequel which is now in production, ETERNAL. Cynthia also tells us that a graphic-novel adaptation of TANTALIZE is in the works as well.

Couldn’t have happened to a nicer Texan. Congratulations, Cynthia!

Boy, here’s something we thought deserved its own blog post!Congratulations to our blog buddy C.K., who has just received a **starred review** from Kirkus for her upcoming (pre-order-able now, coming September 23rd) I KNOW IT’S OVER.

“Authentic and sophisticated, the teen banter appeals to both casual readers and literary enthusiasts. Rich characters and honest interactions set Martin’s debut novel apart, and readers will look forward to whatever gestates next.

Wow, C.K. — “literary enthusiasts!?” Kirkus doesn’t throw that kind of stuff around lightly! Really, really, REALLY happy for ya! Again, well-deserved kudos to you!