Kristin Cashore's Blog, page 83

In Which the Author Babbles and Then Offers a Dance as Penance

First, a couple links: a recent beautiful Astronomy Picture of the Day; and, if you happen to be a Battlestar Galactica fan, a recent segment from NPR's Weekend Edition all about the music of BSG. (Ahem. But please don't leave any Season 4 spoilers in the comments, because I'm only partway through the season. ^_^)

Second, I give notice: my blogging is apt to be spotty over the next few weeks as my move takes place. Monday the guy with the big truck comes to pick up the stuff. What happens next

Farewell, My Faithful, Fickle-Fused Friend

So, if you've been reading my blog for a while, you may know that I'm somewhat attached to my car. And why wouldn't I be? Everyone knows that the perfect car is a car in which the brake lights never, ever turn off so you have to pull out a fuse every time you park, or else when you get back with your groceries or your library books, your battery will be dead. And then you have to stick the fuse back in and drive home with your brake lights on the entire time even when moving at full speed. E

The Unbearable Lightness of Scones (and other great titles)

So, in my neighborhood, there's a train track and a road that both curve in such a way that they cross each other twice. Here, I'll draw a picture of it to show you what I mean (that's the track on top, the road on the bottom):

Now, I ask you to consider, for a moment, the implications of this. Imagine: you're driving peacefully southeast along the road, la la la. As you approach the train tracks, lights start flashing and bells start ringing, the gate comes down, and you stop your car. A VER

Newsable News

The other day, the FedEx man brought me Die Beschenkte -- i.e., the German edition of Graceling. Guys, Carlsen makes gorgeous books. It's 500 thick, beautiful pages long; the design (interior and exterior) is simply lovely; and IT HAS A BURGUNDY RIBBON BOOKMARK. Even better, it arrived in a Die Beschenkte messenger bag!

*flops*

Die Beschenkte will be released in the fall.

In other news:
I'm happy to report that the Hachette Group (my French publisher) is launching a new fantasy/SF imprint through

Reading, Watching, Listening

What I'm Reading (Books)
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins. (Scholastic, September.) No spoilers here; I'm not going to say a damn thing about what happens in the book. Instead, I'll merely say that books like this are the reason I fell in love with reading. I stayed up until 5:30am reading it; it was thrilling; it was heartrending; it was wickedly funny; it was important. I care about these characters with all my heart. And, Ms. Collins? I bet you're already getting pressure from readers for t

FAQs about Online Book Buzz, Reviews, and Fanfic

Do you read online reviews / buzz about your own books?
Honestly? No. Since announcing my intentions to quit last August, I have not googled myself or my books, and I do not get google alerts. I do not read reviews on Amazon or other book sites. If someone emails me or comments on my blog with a link to anything concerning my books, I almost never follow the link. It's not that I don't appreciate that people are writing reviews and spreading buzz -- I'm hugely grateful, because online dialog

The Center Will Hold, Dammit

It's possible that I have not entirely recovered from BEA.

Maybe it'll help if I share some of the goodness with you:
I got to spend a quiet minute with Suzanne Collins. I treasure that minute. She is definitely a kindred spirit.I had a lovely time answering questions and signing books at Books of Wonder with Melissa Marr. I was running on empty by that point, but I still enjoyed it thoroughly. Melissa is a cool cookie. She gave me swag to throw at the lovely people in the audience, which was

Hibernating Hermits

BEA was stupendous. I now need to disappear for a few days to recover. Want to help me get re-centered by telling me something calm you did recently? :o)

I'll post more about BEA once my center is holding again. Have a nice week, everyone![image error]

A Post from BEA

As you read this, I am at BEA. If you're at BEA, too, feel free to come to one of my signings! If you're not sure which one is me, here's what I look like:


:o)

(Actually, if you see a young woman with socks hanging from her ears, or carrying a teapot in lieu of a bag, or some such, that's probably me, too. Nerves make me batty.)

My full BEA schedule is here. Re the signings: on Saturday I'm signing Fire ARCs at Table 17 from 10-11am, and then, after that, I'm doing a Graceling signing at the boo

A Short Post. Sort of.

Graceling is a finalist for the 2009 SIBA Book Awards in the YA category, along with Sarah Dessen's Lock & Key and Trenton Lee Stewart's The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey. It is so nice to be honored by people you admire (indie booksellers!). Thank you so much to the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance! Go indies!

Speaking of the South, I would like to state for the record that Florida is the only place I've ever lived where I've needed to use sunglasses, a sun vis