Justina Chen's Blog, page 3
February 9, 2013
Dear Teen Me
When my publicist asked if I could write an essay for Dear Teen Me, I immediately said, YES. I've been a fan of the blog since the original book was published. And then...I found out that I had to post a few photos from my high school years. Why the pixie hair cut? Why the permed hair phase? Why?
Here's an excerpt of the letter:
Dear Teen Me,
You are sitting in front of a typewriter, glaring at the college application form to Stanford. Your parents insist that you apply there even though your he...
January 28, 2013
RETURN TO ME: Book Party Photo Essay
My thanks to everyone for celebrating RETURN TO ME at the book launch party on Sunday at the University Bookstore. There, for two hours, we celebrated the transformation of dust to stardust in stories and lives.
After laboring over RETURN TO ME for the better part of two years, it was utterly surreal to see the book on the shelf...
and to be signing copies for all the special people whose names are in the author's note...
and those who have walked in my shoes.
Such fun and satisfacti...
After laboring over RETURN TO ME for the better part of two years, it was utterly surreal to see the book on the shelf...
and to be signing copies for all the special people whose names are in the author's note...
and those who have walked in my shoes. 
Such fun and satisfacti...
January 25, 2013
Return to Me: Pinterest
For those of you who are Pinterest addicts, my board for RETURN TO ME includes images capturing the inspiration behind the novel! For instance, here's a photo from a mud bath near Taos, which inspired Reb's dream of opening a treehouse sanctuary.
Check the Pinterest board out here.
Check the Pinterest board out here.
January 23, 2013
January 21, 2013
Kirkus: Feature Story
So honored that Kirkus asked me to write an essay about RETURN TO ME.
Here's an excerpt. Click here for the full essay.
Here's an excerpt. Click here for the full essay.
You receive the call.
“We need to talk,” says the voice that vowed to love you until death do you part. “I’ve been seeing someone for awhile.”
Suddenly you find yourself the unwitting co-star in a midlife cliché. Far worse, you watch helplessly as your kids fall into emotional catatonia, prone and unmoving on the rug after they learn that their father is leaving. Weeks lat...
Kirku: Feature Story
So honored that Kirkus asked me to write an essay about RETURN TO ME.
Here's an excerpt from the essay.
Here's an excerpt from the essay.
You receive the call.
“We need to talk,” says the voice that vowed to love you until death do you part. “I’ve been seeing someone for awhile.”
Suddenly you find yourself the unwitting co-star in a midlife cliché. Far worse, you watch helplessly as your kids fall into emotional catatonia, prone and unmoving on the rug after they learn that their father is leaving. Weeks later, when your pr...
January 19, 2013
RETURN TO ME: Research
Few things delight me more in the writing process than research: reading non-fiction books, going on field trips, and most of all, interviewing people.
With RETURN TO ME, I threw myself into architecture, visiting a number of my favorite local architects, including Zero Plus Architects. As soon as I walked into their spare, but not spartan studio, a tray caught my eye: an ever-changing collage of found objects. I knew I found the architects who could explain the way my character, Reb, saw the...
January 16, 2013
RETURN TO ME: Audiobook
Super excited about the audiobook for RETURN TO ME--my first downloadable audiobook for the iPod, iPad, Kindle, and MP3 players! Here's the narrator, the incomparable Therese Plummer, in the studio, as she records all 9 hours and 24 minutes of the book.
The director (Suzanne Toren) and sound engineer (Tommy Harron) flank Therese above. What a wonderful crew who called me to double-check the pronunciations of Seattle locales, such as Leschi and Issaquah.
To listen to a sample of Therese's...
January 15, 2013
RETURN TO ME: Happy Publication Day!
So happy to announce that RETURN TO ME is officially available today at Amazon, Barnes + Noble, and indie booksellers all over! This book is so precious to me: a Valentine to my kids and to every person who's ever been betrayed. You will transform the dust of disappointment into the stardust of a new life. Publishers Weekly calls the novel an "uplifting story."
Celebrate with my publisher and me if you're on Twitter, and win yourself a FREE copy of the book!
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
5:00 p.m....
