Kim Harrison's Blog, page 78

EVER AFTER tour kick-off and tonight’s live streaming event

Tonight is the live-streaming event, coming from University Books in Seattle. If you can’t make a signing, this is a great way to get in on the fun. I’ll read a page from the book and take questions from the audience and the people in the chat room at USTREAM. It all starts about 7:00 P.M. PST, which is about three hours off from EST, but if you miss it, it will be archived and links will be at my website. I did this with Patricia Briggs last year and it was a great success. I only hope I will get some questions as I’ve noticed that if I’ve been to a store a lot, I’m kind of old news and they’ve already picked my brain in previous years.. –laugh-

If you plan on attending, take a few minutes to jump over to the site and log on. The page will not be active yet, but it’s a good idea to make contact ahead of time and avoid the last-minuet crunch. You can watch the event without signing in, but to post a question, you have to be in the chat room.

USTREAM EVENT 2/23/2013 University Bookstore

Last night was at my home store in Michigan, a fab independent store called Nicola’s. If you ordered a personalized book through my site, fb, or twitter, this is where they come from. I signed the very last yesterday, so they have only signed books now, not personalized. We’ll do it again next year, though.

The crowd was larger than last time with people sitting on the floor! A huge compliment and I owe Nicola’s a big thank you for making the kick-off event so well done. I overheard chairs being ordered while I was chillin’ in the back room, I kid you not. (grin)

And we had roadies! Lots of roadies! Even a few from previous years. I’ve got more pictures at the website.

Nicola’s event pictures

UK issues, Hollows shirts, and signed EVER AFTERs, oh my !

Phew! The ticker on my count down has reached zero, which means that EVER AFTER is officially PUBLISHED!  I remember three months ago looking at that ticker, thinking it would be forever, but no, the day managed to get here, and big, bright, beautiful copies should be landing on shelves this very moment.

I’ll be filling the blog with pictures over the next couple of weeks, but today it’s your day. If you have a picture of you with your Hollows shirt or book, drop it here, or link to it. Let me know if I can drop it on pinterest in the photo album. (I’ll take it down after about a year) Kim Harrison on Pinterest

The  offer of personalized EVER AFTERs from Nicola’s is in the final throes of expiration, but I will have another outlet for signed, (not personalized) before the week is out. Premier Collectables will have a bare 100 of them, but it will be a while before they will ship out seeing as I’ll be signing them after I get back from tour. If you want one sooner, I will leave a stock of them at Nicola’s before I leave tonight.

And yes, tonight! My first event for the tour is at Nicola’s in Ann Arbor, less than an hour out from Detroit. If you can’t make it, my first radio interview will be going live just about that time. I think you can catch it on the web at http://non-productive.com/ and click the listen button at about eight p.m. EST. I feel like I rambled in this one, but it’s only my second in almost a year and I’m rusty.

A heartfelt apology from me to my UK readers who were taunted with the thought of getting EVER AFTER both in print and e-verson when the title popped up for pre order months ago, and now there is not a copy to be found. My editors worked all week on finding out what was going on, and I’m left with the guess that EVER AFTER got caught up in a new policy. As soon as I know when the title will become available, probably the e-version, I’ll be sure to let you know. Believe me. I am so sorry. I like to tease, but not like this.

Finally, if you want a peek at EVER AFTER  up to chapter five and a smidgen of six, you can use the browse inside feature at Harper to do so.  Browse Inside EVER AFTER

Tomorrow is wear your Hollows Shirt Day!

I’m sitting at my desk this morning, ARC copy of EVER AFTER by my hand as I watch the right amount of snow falling, (not too much, not too little, and not too slippery) wondering what page I should read from EVER AFTER tomorrow at the tour kick-off event at Nicolas in Ann Arbor. Mmmm, decisions, decisions. Something with Al in it, or perhaps Ivy? Then there’s  Trent. But Jenks is the glue that holds it all together.  It’s a problem.

Today I’ll spend going over my event schedule and then packing. By now I’ve got it down to a science, knowing exactly what I can take, what I won’t ever use, and how to best use the space I’ve got, because I’m not taking any more than one bag and a carryon for two weeks, thirteen events, and a few visual media opportunities. But I am tempted, so tempted, to lose a precious amount of space and pack a roll of toilet paper. Nice shoes or roll of the good stuff? Oh, if only all I had to do was run out the door chasing dwarves.

I’m hoping to see a lot of readers over the next couple of weeks, and if you’ve never gone to an event before, bring a friend and give it a go.  (Am I coming within driving distance to you?) We have a tremendous amount of fun. The independent stores always let me have a sit-down Q&A for about 15-20 minutes, and I usually spill something I don’t mean to. I’m always amazed I don’t hear my inadvertent spoilers being bandied about on the social medias the next day, but it’s almost as if I’ve given you a secret and you hold it close, smug in the knowing. Even if you just want to sit in the back and listen, it’s fun. The thing is, how often do you get to spend a few hours in a room with people who love and UNDERSTAND what sparks in your imagination. Not often. Not nearly enough.

We’re in the last 24 hours now to get a personalized copy of EVER AFTER from Nicola’s before I head out. After that, it’s signed copies only. As always, international is okay, just email them first for a shipping quote. nicolasbooks@tds.net Nicola’s ordering page

And don’t forget. Tomorrow is wear your Hollows shirt day! You can post a link here to your picture, (I’d love to see it) or drop it on face book tomorrow when I open it up for posting photos for the day.

 

On my radar

This crossed my radar this weekend, and it sounds intriguing, especially when it’s by James Rollings and looks as if it has a decidedly urban fantasy bent to it.  Vampires! I may just go pick it up . . . The last tag line on Amazon sounds especially interesting.

“Why do Catholic priests wear pectoral crosses? Why are they sworn to celibacy? Why do the monks hide their countenances under hoods? And why does Catholicism insist that the consecration of wine during Mass results in its transformation to Christ’s own blood? The answers to all go back to a secret sect within the Vatican, one whispered as rumor but whose very existence was painted for all to see by Rembrandt himself, a shadowy order known simply as the Sanguines.”

In the end, be warned: some books should never be found, never opened—until now.

Link to Amazon and B&N if you’re interested in seeing more.

And to his website James Rollins

Holy Pixy Poo! It’s Friday!

Seriously, how did it get to be Friday so fast? I’ve got mega stuff going on, and still trying to  wedge a rewrite of a chapter into my day, just so things feel a little normal. I’m going to take today’s post to recap what I can. It’s going to be messy, and a little redundant, but just writing it all down will assure myself that I can wrangle ducks into a row.

First: I want to go in tonight and sign books at Nicola’s to send out to across the U.S., but they won’t call me in early unless I have two hundred, so if you want a signed-to-you EVER AFTER, personalized and everything, now is the time to do it. I will no longer be personalizing them after the 22, though I will leave a bunch of signed stock with just my signature. Here is how you get one of those bad boys. Nicola’s International is okay.

Second: The list of tour cities! The tour is nicely balanced this year, when you consider I’m only out for about two weeks and the United States covers four time zones. I’ve got a list of the cities and dates here, but please check the event’s page for any restrictions the store might have. I’ve tried to keep them updated, but if they don’t tell me, I don’t know. Please don’t let a “ticketed” event scare you off. Tickets are the stores way to keep track of how many people were at an event and to help the signing line move smoother. Don’t have a ticket? Don’t sweat it. Come anyway. I don’t leave until everyone’s book is signed. We have a lot of fun. Event’s page

Thirdly: Can’t make a signing? We have a way. The 1/23 Seattle event will be live streamed, (7 pm West Coast Time!!) and they tell me there will be a way for you to ask me questions by way of the chat room. You might want to drop over to the channel now and get an “account” which is basically making sure your machines are talking so you can get into the chat room. You don’t have to sign up for anything to watch, but seriously, it’s a lot more fun if you do. Click to get your machines talking before the last-minuite crush.

Fourth: Chapter releases! You can start to read EVER AFTER RIGHT NOW!!!  Yes indeed. Just pace yourself because there are only three out there right now.

Chapter One Scroll down to find it right on my website.

Chapter Two If this one doesn’t work, try this. Chapter Two

Chapter Three Still having trouble, go right to Harper.

Fifth: Okay, you read the chapters, and you’re still hungry. The first interview for the tour is up:  Quick Q&A with Kim I’ve got so much going on with interviews and such it boggles my mind. I’ll try to keep a running list of them on the front page of the website the next couple of weeks.

Sixth: I know everyone can’t get to a signing or purchase a book, and I know how important it is to have a piece of something you love. Therefore, we still have the EVER AFTER freebies which I can send to you if you send me a stamped envelope that you have pre-addressed to yourself. (A SASE) I won’t be able to mail them until we get back, but we’ve reserved enough to mail one to just about everyone who asks.  Guy and I design, print, and mail them to you ourselves, so it takes some time. This year, we have the Carew Tower coat tag that Rachel gets in chapter one. Mail your SASE to:

Kim Harrison

Ever-After tour freebie

PO Box 498

Dexter, MI 48130

USA

I’m sure I’m forgetting something . . . But that’s it for now!

Trying something new for the upcoming tour . . .

The last couple of months I’ve been so disgusted with fb that I’ve been actively looking for a new reader outreach platform, and I think I might have found something that will work in conjunction with my blog. (If you’re not aware of it, fb posts do not go to everyone who has asked to see them, even if you have clicked every button and added them to your interests list. They are sent to a percentage based on how many likes, comments, and links a post gets, so cute pictures of cats usually reach twice as many people as a post about a change in the tour or a Manic Monday. Unless of course I pay to increase that percentage. So not happy.)

So . . . I’ve been looking, and I will be developing a couple of boards over at pintrest. If you are there already, I’m at kimharrisonbook http://pinterest.com/kimharrisonbook/ I’d really like to get my board with Found Hollows Art stacked. If you know of any good stuff, drop a link to it in the comment’s section right here so I can pin it. or if you want to see what I’ve found, you can do that too. Found Hollows Art

Pintrest is not a place for fast communication or contests, but rather a slower, closer, community that is designed to share interests and ideas. I’ll continue to use my blog for timely updates and Manic Mondays, but look at pintrest for the more . . . homely stuff that tends to get buried on fb after four hours. I will be dropping photos of the tour there, not of readers as much as a few behind the scenes photos. It’s going to be a wild trip, and it will be nice to have a scrapbook of sorts where everything is all together.

If you’ve not heard of pintrest, it’s kind of cool. With very little effort, you can get an app that fits on your upper menu that lets you lift (or pin, as they call it) a picture from any website and drop it onto one of your boards. Or if what you like is on pintrest, you can repin from someone else’s board. You get a few hundred words to talk about it, and people who follow you can see what you’ve added. (If you join pintrest, take forty seconds to watch the tutorial on how to put the pin button in your menu bar or favorites. It makes everything so much easier.)

I haven’t seen any ads yet, so I don’t know how they’re making their money. That’s my only question right now, but if the cookies are good, I don’t mind eating them.

Did ‘ja know?

Holy cow, I’ve got boxes on my doorstep! Big beautiful boxes with gloriously gold and black books in them with my name on it. (big grin)

It doesn’t get much better than that, the knowing that they’re wanted, eagerly waited for. I’m not so far away from that person who used to send manuscripts to people in NY who really didn’t want them, hoping when I stuck stamps on them and sent them off that someone would see what I was trying to say and help me to say it better.

There’s a peace now where hope used to dominate, even as I still strive to write the next book with even more finesse–a calming satisfaction that will carry me through the next few weeks when I step outside my comfort zone and be an ambassador of sorts to something I believe in. But I’d never be able to do it if you didn’t want those shiny wrapped thoughts and ideas, adventures and supposes. Thanks, guys.

Wow, this is a great job.

 

 

 

Eighteen yummy pages of Ever After. Yep, we got ‘em!

It’s chapter three of EVER AFTER! Eighteen yummy pages of my favorite itchy witch dressed totally inappropriately for the situation. Jump on over to Harper to read them, and enjoy!

http://www.scribd.com/doc/120466779/Chapter-Three-of-Ever-After-by-Kim-Harrison

 

Eight days:

I’ve got one more weekend before Guy and I head out on tour.  I’m already planning it out, and it’s only Monday! Hair, nails, new boots if I can find any that fit the precise criteria , and any little project I need to finish up before walking out the door are going to soak up the time between then and now. It helped that we had our January thaw Friday and Saturday, so the outside is now tidy with the Christmas lights put safely away. They are lingering inside. Guy cries when the decorations go down, so I have to do it slowly.

But it’s cold again, with a light dusting of snow, and I’ve got five days to work on my rewrite before I pack it up. The rewrite is going pretty good, actually, but today is going to be a bear. Friday I tweaked a chapter ending to make it more powerful, which left me with an awkward transition, and since I abhor three-page transitional chapters, I might end up rewriting the entire next chapter to change the location to get rid of it. We’ll see.

Keep an eye on the drama box the next few days. I feel like Doctor Okun isolated in his top-secret bunker, watching all the neat gizmos and gadgets start to come alive as the world collapses outside. (Independence Day) Harper has a bang-up tour planned, and I’ll bring it to you day by day. Tomorrow is the release of chapter three, and there’s a quiz in the works, the ustream of Seattle’s event, and all sorts of interviews and spots.

Nicola’s is still taking orders for personalized books from now until the evening of the 22, but the sooner you order, the sooner it goes out. They’re trying hard to get them to you on release day.

Nicola’s order page

Also, today and tomorrow are the last days to order from Eagle Eye (Atlanta) and Uncle Hugos (Minneapolis) to try to get that last tour stop. How to “vote”

Can’t make a signing? Join in the Q&A at Seattle anyway!

Harper is continuing the tradition of live broadcasting one of the events for those of you who can’t make it to a signing. I’ve got the cities and dates listed below, and if your area isn’t among them, you can always watch–and even ask me a question–at the Seattle event.

The University Bookstore is one that I’ve been to almost every year, and every year it just gets better! I’m going to give you the link now so you can go to the site and get an “account” that will let you join the chat room that goes along with the show. It’s at the chat room that you can type in your question. It’s not active now, but there will be a crush right before the show and it helps if you are already in the system. I think one year we crashed it. -laugh- The login /signup button is at the top right of the page. It’s painless and I’ve never gotten spam from them in the three years I’ve been a member.

If you want to see what you’ll get, last year’s event with Patricia Briggs was archived. (check it out!)   So to bookmark the page and get your devices talking, just hope over to the USTREAM Kim Harrison 1/25 event in Seattle and login / signup.  I hear tell that there is a way to order a signed book that will go live during the event. And I’ll see you there!

And you can still get a personalized book through Nicola’s.  HOW DO I GET MY SIGNED EVER AFTER? I’m going in this weekend to sign books so you get them on release day. If you can’t make a signing, it doesn’t get much better than that.

Where I’m going: Stores and more info and how to vote for Atlanta and Minneapolis  at the website (events)

Ann Arbor: January 22, Tuesday, 7:00 PM

Seattle: January 23, Wednesday, 7:00 PM

Portland/Beaverton: January 24, Thursday, 7:00 PM

San Diego: January 25, Friday, 7:00 PM

Phoenix: January 27, Sunday, 2:00 PM

Denver: January 28, Monday, 7:30 PM

Houston: January 29, Tuesday, 6:30

Austin: January 30, Wednesday, 7:00 PM

Dallas: January 31, Thursday, 7:00 PM

Raleigh NC: February 2, Saturday, 3:00 PM

Asheville NC: February 4, Monday, 7:00 PM

Cincinnati OH: February 5, Tuesday, 7:00 PM

Lansing MI: February 8, Friday 6:00 PM