Ally Malinenko's Blog, page 2

A publishing dream come true and a strike!

Hi all!

So first off, Twitter is seemingly dying but I’m staying on until they kick me out. But I’m also on Hive social at @allymalinenko so if you’re there, find me and we can be friends and you won’t miss any of my nonsense.

Also I was thinking of starting a newsletter but I can’t seem to figure out MailChimp because I’m tech-stupid. If I did, would ya’ll sign up? I’ll still blog – thought I haven’t been doing that as frequently as I wanted. Shooting for once a month going forward.

Okay anyway! Now onto the DREAM STUFF! Yesterday School Library put out their Best Books of 2022 and…..

THIS APPEARING HOUSE MADE THE LIST!!!!

First I was floored when it was a Junior Library Guild selection, then the BookPage starred review and now this! Someone pinch me.

We’re expecting a review from SLJ but that’s paused because of the Harper Collins strike which is really important. The strike not the paused review.

Harper Collins 250 union employees have been working without a contract since April. The main thing they are striking for is better wages because the starting salary is not competitive or even livable for New York City. They are also trying to diversify their staff because as you may know publishing is very white. That’s impossible to do if you cannot offer a starting salary that one can live off of.

This strike is important to me. I want the team I work with at Harper Collins to have the respect and support from the administration as they work tirelessly to make my books better.

I’m proud of This Appearing House making the Best of List but I also know it wouldn’t have without the work of my incredible editor, Sara Schonfeld, who deserves a living wage for her talent and her hard work.

Passion doesn’t pay the bills.

If you would like to help (and I would be so happy if you did) they have set up a fund. Workers are NOT paid during the strike. They are on Day 9 today. The holidays are coming up. December rents are coming up. Publishing is big big money and these workers deserve to be compensated

In the meantime….

Peace, love, and starbursts,

Ally

Updates! Updates! Updates!

Hello friends! It has been a MINUTE since I’ve updated the blog and a lot has happened!

First off, THIS APPEARING HOUSE is in the world and available for you where ever books are sold – or borrowed from the library. You can get signed copies from Books Are Magic and Books of Wonder so please support local indies. Also I can mail you a bookplate and then your copy will be signed! Hit me up in the contact me! If you read it and you enjoy please take a moment to drop a quick one line review on goodreads or amazon. It would mean the world to me!

I had a great launch with my friends at Spooky Middle Grade. Which reminds me, if you’re a teacher or librarian we can come visit your classroom for free! You’ll get a free half hour class visit with four authors and we will answer all your burning questions about publishing and writing and if the universe is really just turtles all the way down.

For the book I did a bunch of podcasts to talk about trauma and haunted houses and why kids deserve horror books. I was on my favorite podcast, Talking Scared, with some friends (Lora Senf who wrote The Clackity and Dan Poblocki whose recent book is Tales to Keep You Up at Night). I also spoke with Joe Shaw on DTalks and Rob Kent on Middle Grade Ninja. And tomorrow I’ll be recording an episode of Terrifying Tomes with my friends Lora, Lindsay Currie, and Ben Acker!

And then, promptly after my book came out and after nearly three years of not traveling we went to London and Stratford and Liverpool!

We had a really fantastic time. I’ve been to London a few times now and it has always felt like my “far away home.”

Since we had been there before we did some new things this time. Jay put together a little “Scrooge” walking tour. This is the location most likely that is his counting house (right across the street from the church whose bells drive Scrooge crazy. Oddly enough, the bells rang while we were there!)

“A gloomy suite of rooms, in a lowering pile of building up a yard, where it had so little business to be, that one could scarcely help fancying it must have run there when it was a young house, playing at hide-and-seek with other houses, and forgotten the way out again” – A Christmas Carol

We also found LeadenHall Market which is where Scrooge sends the boy to get the biggest goose in the world to send to the Cratchits.

Now a series of trendy cafes but you can still see where the butchers would hang the meat off the hooks

We also went to this famous store where a certain young man bought a certain stuffed bear, a donkey, a piglet and a kangaroo for his son Christopher and changed the history of children’s books

In keeping with the Dicken’s theme, we also did a tour of his house. Here’s Dicken’s writing desk!

And we went to Pollack’s Toy Museum which is a place I have wanted to go to for some time

And why did I want to go here so badly? Because it’s full of creepy dolls!

Good luck sleeping tonight!

Okay so we also went to Stratford Upon Avon – or as I call it Shakespearelandia. The last time we were there in 2009 they were doing construction on the chancel and we couldn’t see the grave. I had feelings about this as you can imagine

So this time, we went right there and I SAW SHAKESPEARE’S CURSED GRAVE!

They also had his baptismal record! It’s number 25 with the X next to it

And I’m really glad we went that first night cause then the Queen died and the church was closed AGAIN. Imagine going to Stratford twice and not seeing Shakespeare’s grave? Talk about a curse.

And we went to his birth house and stood on the board that is an original from when he lived there. The guide said writers stand on it for good luck, inspiration and success so you know I had to do it.

After that, we headed to Liverpool!

Where we hit up the Beatles Museum

And saw cool stuff like this hat that Paul used to wear

And this ticket from their final concert at Candlestick Park in San Francisco!

And John’s Piano!

And his glasses!

And the Beatles Break Up Court Papers!

And of course we went back to do the tours of John and Paul’s homes. This is Mendips, where John “dreamed all his little dreams”

Not gonna lie, seeing his bedroom – even though I have done it before – was pretty emotional.

And Paul’s place! That’s the drainpipe he would have to climb to sneak in the bathroom window when he came home past his curfew. He used to say he just hoped the toilet seat was down.

And we took a stroll out to the Dingle to see the new mural for Ritchie and his house (which we didn’t find in 2017 the first time we were here). It’s the little pink and white one.

And then back to London where we went to one of my most favorite places in the world! The GLOBE!

We saw TWO productions at the globe as groundlings (gotta get those elbows up on the stage!). The first was Henry VIII (with an awesome feminist bend)

And the second was The Tempest which was hilarious. As you may know the Tempest is about people stranded on a desert island and there is no roof on the Globe. When plane flew overhead some of the actors ran to the lip of the stage and pretended to flag it down. It was great.

It was a really great trip and it was so nice to be away and out of the US and hanging out in one of my favorite cities which is why it really sucked two days afterwards when we got home we tested positive for Covid.

Sigh. Two and half years and it finally got us. But it was only one bad day and a bit of a nagging cough that won’t go away so yay for vaccines and everyone wear your masks!

Since getting home, and getting better I was luck enough to go to the Maplewood South Orange Book Festival!

See all those books?? By the time I went home four hours later they were nearly all gone!

And I got to finally meet some new friends (Hi Lorien!) and get to see some old ones (Hi Jeremy!). It was a really great day.

And then….I know this is the longest post but this is the last thing, trust me. Then a writer goal and dream was achieved when I got my first ever Starred Review for THIS APPEARING HOUSE from BookPage

You can read the whole review, but this part in particular, well this part made me cry. Cause if there was anything I was trying to do with this book, it was to correct the narrative about disease.

Okay, that’s IT! I promise. If you’ve stuck around this long, you’re probably my mother.

Back to writing – got two books I’m working on, plus something on submission that is NOT horror or middle grade and a super secret project I can’t talk about….yet.

Peace, love and starburts,

Ally

2 Weeks Till THIS APPEARING HOUSE is out

Hi friends.

It’s been a bit since I posted anything on here. Been busy with life, writing, managing my COVID depression. You know, the way we all have been but I realized that I never shared my illustrator Maike’s amazing sketches for the alternative covers for This Appearing House and I thought that might be fun. So let’s do this!

I love this one. I really truly do. I think the only reservation is that Jac looked a little younger and I feel like the House looks a little happier than I knew it was going to be. This feels more “spooky” than “scary” and This Appearing House is definitely that.

Love this one too! It depicts a scene in a library with all kinds of creepy ghosts at typewriters! It’s an important scene and one of those moments that Jac starts to learn that the House, which is now talking to her, has a purpose. Plus you get a nice shot of the Mourner in the upper left hand corner.

ALSO another favorite scene – which I can’t talk too much about because Spoilers! But I do love the absolute look of dread on Jac and her best friend Hazel’s face. I love that Hazel is in this one

Which leaves us with our final cover, the one the team picked.

So me and my editor talked and found a way to combine a bit of image 3 into this one. Another small tweak was the turning of Jac’s head so she’s looking back out at the reader which I love, and the addition of a key (shaped like her) in her back pocket. And of course, the MOURNER on the balcony!

And there’s our final cover!

Two more weeks and this baby is out in the world. I can’t believe it. When I opened the box, all I could think was “the first one wasn’t a fluke!”

SHE’S HERE! The book of my heart! All my trauma and love and fear and hope in a book! Thank you to @renarossner @SaraSchon @KTegenBooks for making this real! #HorrorCommunity #mg #horror @spookymgbooks pic.twitter.com/b5cdWzcpKf

— Ally Ally Oxenfree PRE-ORDER THIS APPEARING HOUSE! (@AllyMalinenko) July 24, 2022

You can, of course preorder (which really helps an author out) and if you like there is a giveaway going on till the 15th to win 1 of 5 copies. Oh and because we cannot forget our first baby, Ghost Girl ebook is currently $1.99!

Also both Kirkus and Publisher’s Weekly had some really nice things to say about This Appearing House calling it both “delightfully nightmarish” and “emotionally resonant”

TWO MORE WEEKS!

Peace, Love and Starbursts,

Ally

Hello and Updates!

Hello friends. It has been a MINUTE since I posted here. For as long and exhausting as 2021 was, how are we nearly halfway through 2022??

I just checked the calendar and This Appearing House comes out in THREE months??? What even is time?

So let’s recap! Some fun things happened this year so far. I went to my first con down in Virginia. It was AuthorCon, hosted by Scares that Care. I was super excited that my first event was one for charity. It felt like a nice introduction to the big scary world of conventions. I met some cool new people, some internet friends, and I sold some books!

My table at AuthorCon!

What else? Well, now that we are just a mere three months out from publication of This Appearing House, reviews are rolling in. Which is fine. I’m not nervous at all. Totally fine. I mean, this book is ONLY about my feelings about life and death and trauma and based on my own experiences, what could possibly go wrong?

Ahem.

Moving along… so Kirkus came in. And while I’m sure the people who write for Kirkus are absolutely lovely people that magazine is known to be rough when it comes to reviews. Like, the Pitchfork of book reviews.

So I wrapped my heart in iron and waited to see what they would say. And then….this happened

A hauntingly truthful view of secrets and strength? That doesn’t sound so bad at all. And the rest of the review is actually quite lovely.

Delightfully nightmarish visions chase Jac, offering the feel of a thrilling game with twisted and terrifying imagery, as she navigates the house, seeking to understand her connection to this unusual place in this emotionally resonant story.”

Well if that doesn’t just make me smile. Delightfully nightmarish? Emotionally resonant? I’ll take it.

And then, we got another TAH surprise

Why yes that is a shiny little gold medal on my book, why do you ask? This Appearing House was selected as a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection! Only 3% of books get picked for this honor and 95% go on to win more awards so to say I was impressed and flattered and blown away and weeping would be an understatement.

And finally, This Appearing House is on the ballot for the first ever middle grade Stoker Award. I’m so thrilled that the Horror Writers Association has recognized middle grade horror and has introduced this new category. Stokercon next year is going to be something very special for those of us who finally see the work we do appreciated by the wider horror community.

So that’s about it for me. On a personal note, I’m still navigating my grief, trying to write new books (yes plural), and dodging COVID while still seeing family. Oh and last week I went to a baseball game and that was nice.

Everything is pretty terrible and there seems to be no end in sight but we’ve got books. We’ve got writing. And we’ve got baseball.

So remember kids, above all else, choose kindness. Always.

Peace, love, and starbursts,

Ally

2021 – It’s Been A Year

How is it already December? This year, which has been both wonderful and horrible (more on both later) is nearly over and that seems impossible. So here’s some updates:

Ghost Girl is 4 months old! Which is really incredible because it feels like Zee and her friends have been running around the woods, trying to stop Principal Scratch for way longer than that! If you’ve read it and you want to give me a little holiday gift, a review on Goodreads or Amazon would mean everything to me.

This Appearing House galleys have arrived! I’ve put together a giveaway over on twitter (US only, I’m sorry!) if you want to try to win one of three copies. Ends December 11th so hurry! In the meantime you can add it on Goodreads or if you really want to make my day/week/month/year/life you can pre-order it.

SHES HERE!!! The book of my heart! THIS APPEARING HOUSE is the story of Jac and her best friend Hazel who get trapped in a haunted house that is so much more than it seems!! pic.twitter.com/hgdd0omGbS

— Ally Ally Oxenfree GHOST GIRL is OUT NOW! (@AllyMalinenko) November 14, 2021

Also there was a bit of industry good news! The Horror Writers Association has added a middle grade category to the Stoker Award. This is very cool because middle grade horror writers are the ones that get kids hooked on horror and also the ones that help turn out the next generation of horror writers. To paraphrase Jason Reynolds, the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, without the people who write children’s literature there can’t be the capital L Literature writers. So it’s wonderful that HWA has made this addition and I can’t wait to see who the first nominees for 2022 will be.

Also, I finished a NEW spooky book! But that’s still a big secret so we can’t talk about that part.

What we can talk about is all the great (and not so great) things that happened this year. Since it’s the end of the year everyone is putting together end of the year lists and I’ve seen a lot of my writer friends celebrating their accomplishments which fills my heart with joy and I’ve also seen a lot of my writer friends sad that their book babies aren’t included. To that, I say this: Awards are great. Lists are great. But if you don’t get included just remember that somewhere a kid loves your book more than any other book in the world. And that is the greatest prize. That’s why we do what we do.

How do I know? Oh, just a feeling

Pretty cool huh? Also, one of the other wonderful things that happened, aside from class visits, seeing Ghost Girl used as a comp for a pitch contest and signing store copies, were the lovely thank you cards that I got from kids from class visits.

My heart! This year in so many ways has been a really beautiful time and putting Ghost Girl into the world was at the center of that.

But….you knew there was going to be a but didn’t you? This has also been the hardest year of my life. I’ve had some health stuff and I also had to say goodbye to the kindest most wonderful person I have ever known.

My dad, Big Ron.

I haven’t felt ready to talk about it on here but I didn’t want the year to end without giving you all a chance to know a little bit about him. I will always be thankful that I was there, to hold his hand, and make him laugh. To tell him that I won the Dad Lottery and that I love him, and to hear him say, “I love you, more.”

I wrote this thing for him – his story – and if you have a moment to read it, it would mean so much to me to know that a little bit of him would be remembered by you. If you don’t, then the most important part to know is this:

These are some of the stories about Ron Malinenko. And they matter because truthfully all we are in the end are the stories people tell about us. And these are good stories. But still Ron had something else.

Because more than anything Ron was kind.

Kindness isn’t the same as being nice. Nice is easy. Nice is polite. It’s passive. Kindness is an act of generosity. It is layered and complex and most of all it is intentional. You choose kindness. Kindness can also be messy. It makes you vulnerable. Ron knew that the secret to kindness was that being vulnerable allowed you to love more deeply and more honestly. It made you a better father. A better husband. A better brother. A better grandfather. A better friend. He also knew that kindness meant honesty and honesty was sometimes the harder choice. But he still made it. Every time.

At the end of every life, when the people gather and the stories are shared, and the tears are shed, and the laughter becomes a balm, something powerful is left behind. Something is forged out of those stories. Something like a legacy. Something that distills the essence of a person down to one or two truly defining things.

Ron’s defining thing, the thing that is left behind and never leaves, was his kindness. Kindness towards his family and friends of course, but also toward strangers. Kindness in the way he spoke, the way he moved and the choices he made. He made the world a better place for everyone that had the privilege to know him. And, in the end, one is hard-pressed to think of a better legacy than that.”

So, my friends, my wish for you as we close out this year and open a new one is this:

Be like Big Ron. Be kind.

Peace, love, and starbursts,

Ally

THIS APPEARING HOUSE COVER REVEAL

I got something amazing in my inbox this week! It’s the cover for THIS APPEARING HOUSE, my second middle grade novel which is due out August 16, 2022!

It’s the story of Jac and her best friend Hazel and how when a strange house appears on the end of their street it coincides with Jac’s fears that her cancer might no longer be in remission. When the House (house with a capital H always) calls to her, and she and her friend enter on a dare, they find they cannot leave until they figure out what the House wants and why it called to Jac specifically. Filled with some definite chills, this is truly a story about the elasticity of trauma and how we learn to keep going.

Pitched as a Monster Calls-esque story navigating trauma and illness I’m super excited to share this one with readers. Once again, I won the Cover Art Jackpot and got to work with Maike Plenzke, my illustrator, and David DeWitt, my designer!

Let me know what you think!

Ghost Girl is a Week Old

Phew! It has been a WEEK…and then some.

Ghost Girl came out last Tuesday and the weekend before this magical thing happened

Yeah that’s my dumb face freaking out over seeing my book in the Barnes and Noble in Union Square

And then THIS thing happened

Yeah that’s me SIGNING my book in Barnes and Noble

I was fine in the store believe it or not. But hours later, back home, it hit me hard. I did it. I did the THING. I made my biggest dream come true. Not without the help of so many wonderful kind people but yeah, it happened. I saw my book on the shelf at Barnes and Noble. To whoever might be reading this, that thing you want that you think can’t happen? It can. I promise you, it can.

Trust me.

Launch week was amazing. Talking with everyone about Ghost Girl was amazing but none so amazing as the class visit I had yesterday chatting with kids about Spooky Stuff!

It was incredible to see copies of my book in other people’s posts and every time someone sends me a picture from a bookstore my heart explodes.

So thank you to everyone who shared, read, bought, reviewed, or congratulated me. Sharing all of this with all of you has made this experience even better

And my friend Cindy sent me these!!!

How did i get so lucky to have a friend like this?

And of course, the best best best part is seeing people’s reactions to it. These are two of my favorites. First up, I got a scooby do reference

And then one reviewer blew me away

See what I mean? How did I ever get so lucky?

From the bottom of my mossy muddy heart, thanks for celebrating Ghost Girl with me, everyone. You made my entire life! Cheers!

ONE WEEK TILL GHOST GIRL IS IN THE WORLD AND I’M A LITTLE EXCITED! CAN YOU TELL?

Hello friends!

It’s been a minute since I have posted here but I was very busy with THIS APPEARING HOUSE stuff and life stuff and moving stuff and book stuff and all the other stuff.

But it’s time! GHOST GIRL COMES OUT IN ONE WEEK (EEK!) and I’m excited to have a couple events lined up to share with you all.

First up is Tuesday August 10th at 6 pm with Word Bookstore! I’ll be talking with Lisa Schmid, author of Ollie Oxley and the Ghost. Please join us to learn some more about my spooky middle grade GHOST GIRL!

Secrets will be revealed . . .so go register!

Second is at Books of Wonder on Wednesday August 11th with Delilah Dawson! Delilah and I are going to talk about Ghost Girl and her new book Mine which looks delightfully spooky! Still working on the details for this one so more information soon!

And third, please join me, Kim Ventrella and Josh Allen on Thursday August 12th at 8 pm on the Spooky Middle Grade Youtube Channel to talk all things ghostly! And remember to submit some questions for us!

I’ll definitely update when I have more information about the Wednesday event but I hope some of you can come celebrate Ghost Girl with me!

And remember there’s still time to preorder which really does so much for an author (especially newbie ones like me!)

See you all next week!

A Quick Health Update

Hi friends!

I’m going to keep this short but if you’ve been following along at home you know that I had a bit of health thing back in 2014 (lol, I got cancer).

So anyway three plus years of treatment (pills and injections) and I counted down to the final injection seen here:

It was the end of 2017 and I had a very good day.

So why am I writing this? Well it seems I took a little test to find out the chances of me having a “distant recurrence” – that’s cancer somewhere else in my body. And much to my surprise I tested as a risk. Not like a terrible big risk but, you know, a risk.

So last month we started up treatment again, back on the shots and changing up the pill cocktail.

I’m fine. I really am. But I might wind up talking about it online so i thought I would just put it all here.

I mean does it suck that I have another three years of this nonsense ahead of me? For sure. Just ask my soul pictured below.

But I also know that so many people (people that I know and love) have been through so much worse and that is the perspective I’m taking with me.

So that’s that. Again, I’m FINE. Nothing new was found. I can’t stress that enough.

But I’m just making sure nothing goes popping off again.

Like Big Ron, my unforgettable Dad, says, “It’s just a bump in the road.”

I love you guys.

Peace, love and starbursts,

Ally

Interview and Alternative Cover Sketches with GHOST GIRL Illustrator Maike Plenzke

One of the best things about getting a book accepted by a press is getting to see what your cover looks like. I’m fascinated by book covers and even more so with an illustrator’s ability to bring to life a world that previously only lived in the author’s mind. It’s like magic!

I really lucked out with my GHOST GIRL cover. My illustrator Maike Plenzke did an amazing job bringing to life my characters and I love the fact that she chose my absolute favorite scene in the book!

But considering how great Maike’s work is, it’s no surprise it would be so amazing. I was lucky enough to chat with her about her process AND see some early drafts/different ideas that she had for GHOST GIRL!

1. What do YOU hope people think or feel when they see the cover?
I hope they are curious to dive into this spooky story with all the clues that we left on the front cover! It‘s always fun for me to see people finding the face in the trees. Because I‘ve drawn it, that‘s the first thing that jumps out to me, but for others that doesn‘t seem to be the case.

2. How did you hear about my project?
My agent writes me with all the offers that come in and I decide what I can take on timewise and what sounds interesting to me.

3. Do you read the whole book before signing on to illustrate/design the cover? What drew you to this project?
No, I usually just get a quick summary of a project before I sign on. Seeing the overall theme already helps me to decide if I would actually be a good fit. Sometimes you are asked to work on a project with topics, that you have never drawn before, which is super fun! But sometimes that subject is a big technical spaceship, which I think other people can draw better than me, so I would say no in that instance.

What drew me to Ghost Girl was the cool story summary and the genre. I‘ve never really done horror before! I did work on a mystery novel as my first job back in 2013 but never actually a scary book and I wanted to try it.

4. What does your process look like?
After I sign on, I‘ll read the whole book and take notes with page references. This way I can quickly check character descriptions or scenes again, while I work. On some projects it takes a bit longer to get feedback and you can easily forget details or storyparts in the meantime, so that is a good way to make sure all is correct.

The Art Directors also usually give me a little brief-PDF with character descriptions, story summary and covers in the same genre to show me what they are going for.
Then I start scribbling ideas in my notebook or go directly into Photoshop to sketch there. I like to brainstorm while drawing, which means I try to draw ideas super quickly (they look ugly) and see if it might work. If any of those seem promising, I draw them properly to show to the AD. That‘s usually around 3-6 sketches depending on the book. After the meetings the AD comes back to me with the chosen cover or they ask me to combine two ideas. For me book covers are a very collaborative process, so I‘m always happy to try out ideas the AD has as well. The first sketch I drew for Ghost Girl was  still super rough and after it was chosen, David and I would have made some adjustments to make it even better.
Then the hardest part is done and I just draw a color sketch to see if the team likes the light and color theme and go to final, which is a relatively easy, because all the creative work was done in the sketch and the color sketch.

5. You wound up illustrating my favorite scene in the book – the journey into the woods. Why did you pick that one?
I think I always try to find scenes or overall ideas who best represent the theme of the book, like for a drama I try to tap into the emotional part and for a spooky book ….a scary mysterious scene! And this one was especially great with all the symbolism, but vague enough to leave the reader some room to wonder about it, when it‘s drawn. I included other great scenes in the sketches, but I think those would have been too much of a spoiler, and we don‘t want to give anything away, do we?

6. Any tips for illustrators or designers? How did you get started?

This one is always hard to answer for me because I had a huge amount of luck. I was going to school for illustration (going to college is very cheap in Germany) and back in 2012 tumblr was still super popular, so I was studying and putting sketches and drawings on my tumblr at the same time. And somehow some AD‘s found my work! Dan Nordskog from American Girl gave me my first big job back then and I was so lucky that he took the chance and trusted me to work for such a big publication like American Girl Magazine. The second one I got was the cover for “Not a werewolf story“, also a first for me! I‘m still super grateful to both AD‘s! After that I worked on three comic books and did illustration work on the side until my Agents found me and now I‘m getting all my work through them. So it‘s hard for me to give tips as I never had to do active self marketing apart from the social media one.

7. Just for fun, what is your favorite thing about making art?
It‘s the most fun but also the most frustrating: coming up with ideas! And then seeing that idea take shape is very satisfying.

Thank you so much Maike for answering some questions about your process and art making in general.

And now, here are some alternative cover sketches for GHOST GIRL

I love the direction in this one with the foreshadowing of the puppetry and what is that in Zee’s hand I wonder? Also I love the hounds on the border.

This is one of my other favorite scenes from the book, the race through the cemetery! I love how action packed this illustration is and how it looks like Zee and Nellie and Elijah are about the charge right through the frame.

HA! This one is my favorite! I know what is behind that spoiler block and let me tell you it is so good but also so spoiler-y!

And finally this is the first version of the what would eventually become the final cover. I love how The Bad Guy was initially positioned in this one but when it comes to the final version, nothing could be better than spotting him in the trees!

Today is exactly three (3) months from GHOST GIRL’s release and I cannot wait for you all the meet Zee, Nellie, Elijah and of course, Principal Scratch. I hope you have as much reading them as I did writing them.

Preorders always help out authors, especially debut ones, so if you would like to you can do that on the Harper Collins website!

Peace, love, and starbursts,

Ally