Eilis O'Neal's Blog, page 9
February 16, 2011
Book Signing
So, my first-ever actual bookstore book signing will be this Saturday. And I'm slightly scared terrified of having it be one of those author signings where the author sits behind the table and no one wants to make eye contact or, you know, actually have a book signed. Oddly, I'm really good at book table promotion when it comes to my real job at Nimrod (seriously, I turn into this out-going, "why don't you come over here and find out exactly what your bookshelf has been missing" person), but I'm not sure how I'll be with my own book. I have a slightly hard time even telling people that I have a book--I always have this odd feeling that I'm boasting or putting myself up or something. I've actually had to ask Matt to be the one to bring it up to people that I ought to tell, because then I can talk about it without feeling like a heel.
But enough of my insecurities. Or rather, help me alleviate them by coming to the book signing this Saturday! If I know you, I'd love to see you, and if I don't, I'd love to meet you.
The False Princess Book Signing
Saturday, February 19th, 1-3 p.m.
Steve's Sundry Books and Magazines
2612 South Harvard Avenue in Tulsa
But enough of my insecurities. Or rather, help me alleviate them by coming to the book signing this Saturday! If I know you, I'd love to see you, and if I don't, I'd love to meet you.
The False Princess Book Signing
Saturday, February 19th, 1-3 p.m.
Steve's Sundry Books and Magazines
2612 South Harvard Avenue in Tulsa
February 4, 2011
Snow Days
On Tuesday, Tulsa got a record-breaking 14-20 inches of snow. Yes, an actual blizzard came to visit. And, apparently, decided to tell its friends about us, because it's snowing again, making all the work I did yesterday to clear out the driveway a bit pointless. Work is canceled, the mail isn't running, and the grocery store looks like folks got word of an impending zombie invasion. Matt, the dogs and I continue to be confined to the house except for brief excursions via my parents, who own an SUV.
The backyard
So my mind's been on snow days, both the snow days of my childhood and the snow days of my adulthood. And I'm continually surprised by how much overlap there is in what I tend to do. So, what have I done so far with my snow days?
Baked cookies. This is, for me, the ultimate snow day activity. When I was little, Mom and I would bake every time a snow day came around. Chocolate chip cookies, oatmeal cookies, and snickerdoodles were, and are, the go to favorites. As a kid, I loved to sift the flour (and was usually scolded for not overcoming the temptation to knock the little peak at the top of the sifted pile over with my finger) and roll the snickerdoodles in the cinnamon and sugar. I also loved to lick the beaters, though, alas, that stopped when my mother found out about salmonella. I may not get to eat the raw cookies dough anymore, but Mom and I still bake cookies most snow days, on account of her living a block and a half away. This year we made snickerdoodles, and they were perfect. So yummy.
Played in the snow. As a kid, I would make snow animals (snowmen were just too ordinary) with Mom and my brother, Ian. No snow creatures now, but I did run around in the backyard with Nemo and Zuul. Once Nemo got over the snow being chest high to him, he had a great time catching snow balls. Zuul, however, was not amused, and only deigned to come into the yard twice and with great reluctance.
Nemo looking a bit crazy during his dash through the snow
Zuul wants to know where the other outdoors is.
Snowball catch!
Afterward.
Read. Of course, I'm always reading, but on snow days I get to do it for hours, with hot chocolate and a fuzzy blanket. So far, I've read The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner on the recommendation of a friend, and am almost through Garlic and Sapphires: The Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise by Ruth Reichl. (Note: When snowed in and the grocery store has that zombie-apocalypse look--as in, the the shelves are barren of all normal food and only strange packets of organic cream cheese remain--don't pick a book about food as your next book to read. I have been dying, DYING, for all kinds of food that I cannot have, because it's not in the stores and I couldn't get to it even if it were there.)
But it got me thinking about my favorite books to read on snow days. Ones that I'm probably going to pick between when I'm done with the current book. What will tempt me?
The Dark Is Rising series by Susan Cooper. The Dark Is Rising itself is full of snow, including that one incredibly creepy snowed-in scene at Miss Greythorne's house.
A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett. I love the description of her coats with the fur linings, and, though not all of the book takes place in winter, that's always how I picture it.
East by Edith Pattou. The great white bear, the journey east of the sun and west of the moon . . . need I say more?
Winter's Tale by Mark Helprin. So much of the book takes place in winter, specifically New York city winters. I've never lived in New York City during winter, but this book made me feel like I had.
The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman. One of the best snowy things about The Golden Compass is the bear king, Iorek Byrnison. I can almost picture him in my yard about now.
So, that's what I've been doing with my snow days. (Along with, sigh, some actual work. Which is the difference between the snow days of my youth and now. But not too much.) What about you? And what snow day books should I add to my list?
The backyard
So my mind's been on snow days, both the snow days of my childhood and the snow days of my adulthood. And I'm continually surprised by how much overlap there is in what I tend to do. So, what have I done so far with my snow days?
Baked cookies. This is, for me, the ultimate snow day activity. When I was little, Mom and I would bake every time a snow day came around. Chocolate chip cookies, oatmeal cookies, and snickerdoodles were, and are, the go to favorites. As a kid, I loved to sift the flour (and was usually scolded for not overcoming the temptation to knock the little peak at the top of the sifted pile over with my finger) and roll the snickerdoodles in the cinnamon and sugar. I also loved to lick the beaters, though, alas, that stopped when my mother found out about salmonella. I may not get to eat the raw cookies dough anymore, but Mom and I still bake cookies most snow days, on account of her living a block and a half away. This year we made snickerdoodles, and they were perfect. So yummy.
Played in the snow. As a kid, I would make snow animals (snowmen were just too ordinary) with Mom and my brother, Ian. No snow creatures now, but I did run around in the backyard with Nemo and Zuul. Once Nemo got over the snow being chest high to him, he had a great time catching snow balls. Zuul, however, was not amused, and only deigned to come into the yard twice and with great reluctance.
Nemo looking a bit crazy during his dash through the snow
Zuul wants to know where the other outdoors is.
Snowball catch!
Afterward.
Read. Of course, I'm always reading, but on snow days I get to do it for hours, with hot chocolate and a fuzzy blanket. So far, I've read The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner on the recommendation of a friend, and am almost through Garlic and Sapphires: The Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise by Ruth Reichl. (Note: When snowed in and the grocery store has that zombie-apocalypse look--as in, the the shelves are barren of all normal food and only strange packets of organic cream cheese remain--don't pick a book about food as your next book to read. I have been dying, DYING, for all kinds of food that I cannot have, because it's not in the stores and I couldn't get to it even if it were there.)
But it got me thinking about my favorite books to read on snow days. Ones that I'm probably going to pick between when I'm done with the current book. What will tempt me?
The Dark Is Rising series by Susan Cooper. The Dark Is Rising itself is full of snow, including that one incredibly creepy snowed-in scene at Miss Greythorne's house.
A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett. I love the description of her coats with the fur linings, and, though not all of the book takes place in winter, that's always how I picture it.
East by Edith Pattou. The great white bear, the journey east of the sun and west of the moon . . . need I say more?
Winter's Tale by Mark Helprin. So much of the book takes place in winter, specifically New York city winters. I've never lived in New York City during winter, but this book made me feel like I had.
The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman. One of the best snowy things about The Golden Compass is the bear king, Iorek Byrnison. I can almost picture him in my yard about now.
So, that's what I've been doing with my snow days. (Along with, sigh, some actual work. Which is the difference between the snow days of my youth and now. But not too much.) What about you? And what snow day books should I add to my list?
February 1, 2011
Book Birthday Recap
So, it's been a week since The False Princess's “book birthday”--a very full, crazy week. Which explains why I'm so belated in posting this. But Snowpocolypse has given me a little break, so here you go!
Woke up on the 25th very excited and full of nerves, and, after a bit of a rough start, it was a great day. Matt and I tried to go “princess hunting,” as he kept calling it, early that morning, but Barnes and Noble hadn't gotten the books out yet. Felt disappointed, but was made happy later in the day after a call from Matt's mom saying that she had been by at 1:30 and they had been out. So we were able to find a stack of copies when we went back that evening with my mom.
TFP in the wild!
It was so cool to see the book in an actual bookstore. And my mom was really happy to be able to tell the girl at the register that she was buying my book. (Strangely, no one in my family will let me give them a copy—they all want to buy one.)
With my mom outside Barnes and Noble, TFP in the bag. And yes, I know that we look more alike than we really ought to.
Also, the local paper printed a lovely article about the book with a very large picture. (I was glad that the pic came out well, because the photographer kept telling me “relax” and “you look so nervous” when he was taking the picture a few days before.)
So Tuesday was fun, but Thursday was awesome. Booksmart Tulsa held a launch party for the book at Harwelden Mansion in Tulsa. Over 100 people showed up— even some that I didn't know—and it ended up being SRO. The book table sold out of the books, which meant, sadly, that a few people walked away empty-handed. Still, if you're going to have a problem, that's a nice one to have. (Slightly less nice was that the microphone had gone missing and we had to do without it. Still, now I can say that all that speech and drama in high school paid off. And none of the folks in the back complained.)
Was introduced by my coworker Diane Burton, who reads my drafts and is my proofreading goddess. Talked a little about some of the things in my life that led up to me becoming a writer, then read from the first chapter and took questions. Happily, people actually had some! (I hate that awkward feeling at Q&As when no one seems to have any questions.) Then signed books, which was a total thrill. The whole thing only took about two and a half hours, but I felt like it went by in minutes and, simultaneously, that I'd been up for about three days. Was exhausted and jazzed both when we got home, but so happy. The night was absolutely fabulous, and I was so glad and thankful for all the people who joined us.
View of the signing table from the stairs
I have slain the post-it notes! Mwahaha!
Getting a hug from my aunt.
(Would have posted a picture of the actual reading, but my eyes look like demon eyes in every shot, so those will require some Photoshop work.)
Also, lot of interviews posted over the last few days, so I'll link to them below.
The rest of the week has gone by in a slightly more normal fashion, though still a crazy one. Unfortunately, Matt got sick on Sunday and is still feeling pretty low. We were supposed to go to DC and NYC—first for a conference for Nimrod and then to play around in New York—but the 14 inches of snow that were dumped on Tulsa since last night have made that impossible. Flights are canceled, the airport is closed, and I couldn't get there even if it weren't. The snow is up to the car door handles, and it won't be melting anytime soon with a high of only 16 tomorrow. So that is sad, but perhaps for the best with Matt being sick. Will post soon with pictures of what I believe are historical levels of snow for Tulsa.
But The False Princess is out. In bookstores, libraries, Amazon, and, hopefully, people's homes. The thought of people actually reading it makes me feel warm and happy and a little bit terrified (but just a bit). If you're reading it, or have read it, thank you. And I hope that you enjoy it.
Recent Interviews:
Tulsa World Article
Marjoleinbookblog: HIghlights: Writers who influenced me as a teenager and the biggest challenges of writing TFP.
Fresh Fiction: Highlights: What I think will appeal to readers the most about Sinda and Kiernan
She Known as Jess: Highlights: Writing tough scenes and strong heroines.
RT Book Reviews, Author Message
Emily's Reading Room: Highlights: Thoughts on Sinda and Aunt Varil's relationship
The Library Lurker: Highlights: The difference between writing short stories and novels
Mundie Moms: Highlights: Why I can't share the TFP playlist
Woke up on the 25th very excited and full of nerves, and, after a bit of a rough start, it was a great day. Matt and I tried to go “princess hunting,” as he kept calling it, early that morning, but Barnes and Noble hadn't gotten the books out yet. Felt disappointed, but was made happy later in the day after a call from Matt's mom saying that she had been by at 1:30 and they had been out. So we were able to find a stack of copies when we went back that evening with my mom.
TFP in the wild!
It was so cool to see the book in an actual bookstore. And my mom was really happy to be able to tell the girl at the register that she was buying my book. (Strangely, no one in my family will let me give them a copy—they all want to buy one.)
With my mom outside Barnes and Noble, TFP in the bag. And yes, I know that we look more alike than we really ought to.
Also, the local paper printed a lovely article about the book with a very large picture. (I was glad that the pic came out well, because the photographer kept telling me “relax” and “you look so nervous” when he was taking the picture a few days before.)
So Tuesday was fun, but Thursday was awesome. Booksmart Tulsa held a launch party for the book at Harwelden Mansion in Tulsa. Over 100 people showed up— even some that I didn't know—and it ended up being SRO. The book table sold out of the books, which meant, sadly, that a few people walked away empty-handed. Still, if you're going to have a problem, that's a nice one to have. (Slightly less nice was that the microphone had gone missing and we had to do without it. Still, now I can say that all that speech and drama in high school paid off. And none of the folks in the back complained.)
Was introduced by my coworker Diane Burton, who reads my drafts and is my proofreading goddess. Talked a little about some of the things in my life that led up to me becoming a writer, then read from the first chapter and took questions. Happily, people actually had some! (I hate that awkward feeling at Q&As when no one seems to have any questions.) Then signed books, which was a total thrill. The whole thing only took about two and a half hours, but I felt like it went by in minutes and, simultaneously, that I'd been up for about three days. Was exhausted and jazzed both when we got home, but so happy. The night was absolutely fabulous, and I was so glad and thankful for all the people who joined us.
View of the signing table from the stairs
I have slain the post-it notes! Mwahaha!
Getting a hug from my aunt.
(Would have posted a picture of the actual reading, but my eyes look like demon eyes in every shot, so those will require some Photoshop work.)
Also, lot of interviews posted over the last few days, so I'll link to them below.
The rest of the week has gone by in a slightly more normal fashion, though still a crazy one. Unfortunately, Matt got sick on Sunday and is still feeling pretty low. We were supposed to go to DC and NYC—first for a conference for Nimrod and then to play around in New York—but the 14 inches of snow that were dumped on Tulsa since last night have made that impossible. Flights are canceled, the airport is closed, and I couldn't get there even if it weren't. The snow is up to the car door handles, and it won't be melting anytime soon with a high of only 16 tomorrow. So that is sad, but perhaps for the best with Matt being sick. Will post soon with pictures of what I believe are historical levels of snow for Tulsa.
But The False Princess is out. In bookstores, libraries, Amazon, and, hopefully, people's homes. The thought of people actually reading it makes me feel warm and happy and a little bit terrified (but just a bit). If you're reading it, or have read it, thank you. And I hope that you enjoy it.
Recent Interviews:
Tulsa World Article
Marjoleinbookblog: HIghlights: Writers who influenced me as a teenager and the biggest challenges of writing TFP.
Fresh Fiction: Highlights: What I think will appeal to readers the most about Sinda and Kiernan
She Known as Jess: Highlights: Writing tough scenes and strong heroines.
RT Book Reviews, Author Message
Emily's Reading Room: Highlights: Thoughts on Sinda and Aunt Varil's relationship
The Library Lurker: Highlights: The difference between writing short stories and novels
Mundie Moms: Highlights: Why I can't share the TFP playlist
January 22, 2011
Contest Winners!
Drumroll please.
The two people winning a signed ARC of The False Princess and one of two princessy necklaces are
jen4777
and
Bookyurt
I'll contact both of you for your mailing addresses. And thanks to everyone who entered. It was really fun seeing which literary princesses captured your imagination. I think that Shannon Hale's Ani got the most votes. Happily for me, some of my own favorites were on the list, and now I have some new princess-centric books to check out, too.
Also, a new guest post with my thoughts on how to build a great fantasy society is up on the blog tour with Poisoned Rationality.
The two people winning a signed ARC of The False Princess and one of two princessy necklaces are
jen4777
and
Bookyurt
I'll contact both of you for your mailing addresses. And thanks to everyone who entered. It was really fun seeing which literary princesses captured your imagination. I think that Shannon Hale's Ani got the most votes. Happily for me, some of my own favorites were on the list, and now I have some new princess-centric books to check out, too.
Also, a new guest post with my thoughts on how to build a great fantasy society is up on the blog tour with Poisoned Rationality.
January 21, 2011
Interviews, Etc.
The False Princess Blog Tour continues today at The Book Scout with an interview. How I feel about the revised TFP cover, what royal person I would stand in for for a day, and how my dogs got their names are all revealed. (Because I know those questions were taking up major brain space.) Also may have forgotten to link to my guest post from earlier in the blog tour with The Neverending Shelf, so here you go. Learn which books I'm itching to read in 2011.
Also, another interview up Iceybooks with lots of questions about writing.
In other news, I'm feeling a little exhausted from a busy week. We're having our bathroom redone, which means that we've been bathing at my parents' house for nine days. Also, using the kitchen sink to brush your teeth feels a bit strange. But I think it's getting close to completion. Went to the Panera Bread in Owasso today to hand out copies of Nimrod (my regular job). It's always a little odd, even trying to give issues away for free, because I feel like a carnie when I'm trying to get people to come over and take a look at the table. "Come and witness the awesomeness of this journal! You know you want to! Heals all manner of literary ills! One night only! Up next, the Serpent Woman from the Deepest Jungle!"
Tomorrow: winners from the latest contest!
Also, another interview up Iceybooks with lots of questions about writing.
In other news, I'm feeling a little exhausted from a busy week. We're having our bathroom redone, which means that we've been bathing at my parents' house for nine days. Also, using the kitchen sink to brush your teeth feels a bit strange. But I think it's getting close to completion. Went to the Panera Bread in Owasso today to hand out copies of Nimrod (my regular job). It's always a little odd, even trying to give issues away for free, because I feel like a carnie when I'm trying to get people to come over and take a look at the table. "Come and witness the awesomeness of this journal! You know you want to! Heals all manner of literary ills! One night only! Up next, the Serpent Woman from the Deepest Jungle!"
Tomorrow: winners from the latest contest!
January 18, 2011
More Teasers!
Eight days to go before The False Princess comes out! And so I present you with eight mini-teasers pulled from the book. No context, no scene setting. They might not even be in order of when they appear. But they're a taste . . .
"It's a trick," I said, but faintly.
"Yes, it was," said the king. "But a trick to fool the world. And so it had to fool you, too."
I turned the paper over, hoping for more, but found nothing. Slowly, I raised my eyes to Kiernan's face, just as a voice cut through the dark tomb.
"Who's there?"
The entire vine held for a moment, made of fine black ash, and then it began to fall like snow. I stared upward, shocked and horrified, before I heard a sound like something sizzling in a fire. By the time I looked down, the grass around my feet had turned brown and wilted.
This is what she thinks of me, I realized. As someone who was "above herself." A common girl with a princess's airs.
"You have to be telling them something."
"I told them I've met a fishmonger's daughter and she's playing hard to catch," he said blandly. "That my courtship's been dismal so far--fish thrown at me, nets dropped on me from rootfops, horrible stuff--and that I'll have to devote much more time to sweeping her off her feet."
My heart, which had been beating faster than a hummingbird's wings, fell toward my feet. A line of sweat trickled down the side of my face, but I felt cold enough to shiver. There was no way out, no one to help me.
"I thought we could begin your lessons. But it would be better to start them in my study. I expect I would be put out if you managed to set fire to the books here, even if half of them are too moldy to read."
And then he was gone, the door swinging shut behind him, and my heart--rebellious and cruel--went with him.
Also, drop by The Neverending Shelf today for my guest post on which books I'm most looking forward to in 2011.
"It's a trick," I said, but faintly.
"Yes, it was," said the king. "But a trick to fool the world. And so it had to fool you, too."
I turned the paper over, hoping for more, but found nothing. Slowly, I raised my eyes to Kiernan's face, just as a voice cut through the dark tomb.
"Who's there?"
The entire vine held for a moment, made of fine black ash, and then it began to fall like snow. I stared upward, shocked and horrified, before I heard a sound like something sizzling in a fire. By the time I looked down, the grass around my feet had turned brown and wilted.
This is what she thinks of me, I realized. As someone who was "above herself." A common girl with a princess's airs.
"You have to be telling them something."
"I told them I've met a fishmonger's daughter and she's playing hard to catch," he said blandly. "That my courtship's been dismal so far--fish thrown at me, nets dropped on me from rootfops, horrible stuff--and that I'll have to devote much more time to sweeping her off her feet."
My heart, which had been beating faster than a hummingbird's wings, fell toward my feet. A line of sweat trickled down the side of my face, but I felt cold enough to shiver. There was no way out, no one to help me.
"I thought we could begin your lessons. But it would be better to start them in my study. I expect I would be put out if you managed to set fire to the books here, even if half of them are too moldy to read."
And then he was gone, the door swinging shut behind him, and my heart--rebellious and cruel--went with him.
Also, drop by The Neverending Shelf today for my guest post on which books I'm most looking forward to in 2011.
January 17, 2011
Blog Tour
I'm excited because today marks the beginning of my blog tour for The False Princess! The first stop is with Kate over at The Neverending Shelf for her review, and tomorrow I'll be guest blogging there about the books I'm most looking forward to in 2011.
The tour will run through January 30th with stops at a bunch of great blogs. Here's a list of the participating blogs. (I would give the dates for their reviews, etc, , but the list I have seems to be a little out of date. If that changes, I'll update this.)
Reading Vacation
The Book Scout
Poisoned Rationality
Mundie Moms
Books Complete Me
The Library Lurker
There will be reviews of the book, interviews, and other guest posts, so check them out! The questions and guest blog prompts they sent me were really fun--I had a great time answering them. Everything from questions about the book to how to build a fantasy world to how my dogs got their names. There may even be a picture of me in my Ren Faire outfit . . . .
The tour will run through January 30th with stops at a bunch of great blogs. Here's a list of the participating blogs. (I would give the dates for their reviews, etc, , but the list I have seems to be a little out of date. If that changes, I'll update this.)
Reading Vacation
The Book Scout
Poisoned Rationality
Mundie Moms
Books Complete Me
The Library Lurker
There will be reviews of the book, interviews, and other guest posts, so check them out! The questions and guest blog prompts they sent me were really fun--I had a great time answering them. Everything from questions about the book to how to build a fantasy world to how my dogs got their names. There may even be a picture of me in my Ren Faire outfit . . . .
January 15, 2011
Contest Time!
With just (deep breath) ten days left before The False Princess comes out, I think it's time for a contest!
The Contest
Leave a comment on this post telling me your favorite literary princess or queen and why she's your favorite. Pick up a bonus entries for linking to the contest on twitter, your blog, etc. The contest will run until midnight on January 20th, and then I'll pick two winners.
The Prizes
Each winner will get a signed ARC of The False Princess and, to go along with the theme from the cover, a princessy necklace selected by me.
I'm looking forward to seeing which princesses are the best-loved. And don't forget to check back here in the next few days for another False Princess teaser!
The Contest
Leave a comment on this post telling me your favorite literary princess or queen and why she's your favorite. Pick up a bonus entries for linking to the contest on twitter, your blog, etc. The contest will run until midnight on January 20th, and then I'll pick two winners.
The Prizes
Each winner will get a signed ARC of The False Princess and, to go along with the theme from the cover, a princessy necklace selected by me.
I'm looking forward to seeing which princesses are the best-loved. And don't forget to check back here in the next few days for another False Princess teaser!
January 10, 2011
Oh Boy
There are officially 15 days before my book comes out.
The pause you just heard was me putting my head between my knees and realizing that we don't have any paper bags in the house. Seriously, I'm a weird bundle of anticipation, joy, stress, worry, business, and wonder. In 15 days, something I've waited my whole life for will come actually happen. And, even more wonderful and scary, people will actually (hopefully) start reading the story I wrote.
So, to mark the remaining days until The False Princess is out, I'm going to have some teasers and snippets from the book, a contest or two, and other fun stuff. Today, a teaser from the opening of the book.
From The False Princess, Chapter One
The day they came to tell me, I was in one of the gardens with Kiernan, trying to decipher a three-hundred-year old map of the palace grounds. We were sitting on a stone bench, the delicate roll of fabric lying between us. Instead of looking towards the gardens, however, we faced the gray wall that separated the northern-most edge of the palace grounds from the streets of Vivaskari.
“It can’t be there,” he was saying. “Look, Nalia.”
I glanced up from the map to follow Kiernan’s finger, which pointed at the expanse of wall in front of us. Once he had my attention, he jumped up from his seat on the bench and strode toward the wall. He rapped his fist against it, then winced comically. I rolled my eyes. “See?” he said. “There’s nothing here. Are you sure, oh princess wise and stubborn, that you’re reading it properly?”
I sighed in frustration. He was right. We had examined this section of wall for over an hour, searching for any cracks or indentions that might indicate a secret door, all without success.
“We’re where it says we should be. At least, where the part that I can read says we should be.” I tugged a hand through my hair, pulling a few of the dark brown strands loose, so that they trailed against my neck. “It’s those markings along the bottom. I’ve looked and I’ve looked, but I can’t find anything that even comes close to them. They aren’t any modern language I know, or even any ancient one.” Which was irritating, since I knew four modern languages well, bits and pieces of six others, and enough of five ancient tongues to at least recognize them. But these . . . runes--I could think of no better word to describe the scratchy markings--were completely baffling. Not that I had asked anyone else about them, not even the librarians who should have been the map’s keepers. It was a mystery, one Kiernan and I had discovered, and we were determined to figure out the answer by ourselves.
The pause you just heard was me putting my head between my knees and realizing that we don't have any paper bags in the house. Seriously, I'm a weird bundle of anticipation, joy, stress, worry, business, and wonder. In 15 days, something I've waited my whole life for will come actually happen. And, even more wonderful and scary, people will actually (hopefully) start reading the story I wrote.
So, to mark the remaining days until The False Princess is out, I'm going to have some teasers and snippets from the book, a contest or two, and other fun stuff. Today, a teaser from the opening of the book.
From The False Princess, Chapter One
The day they came to tell me, I was in one of the gardens with Kiernan, trying to decipher a three-hundred-year old map of the palace grounds. We were sitting on a stone bench, the delicate roll of fabric lying between us. Instead of looking towards the gardens, however, we faced the gray wall that separated the northern-most edge of the palace grounds from the streets of Vivaskari.
“It can’t be there,” he was saying. “Look, Nalia.”
I glanced up from the map to follow Kiernan’s finger, which pointed at the expanse of wall in front of us. Once he had my attention, he jumped up from his seat on the bench and strode toward the wall. He rapped his fist against it, then winced comically. I rolled my eyes. “See?” he said. “There’s nothing here. Are you sure, oh princess wise and stubborn, that you’re reading it properly?”
I sighed in frustration. He was right. We had examined this section of wall for over an hour, searching for any cracks or indentions that might indicate a secret door, all without success.
“We’re where it says we should be. At least, where the part that I can read says we should be.” I tugged a hand through my hair, pulling a few of the dark brown strands loose, so that they trailed against my neck. “It’s those markings along the bottom. I’ve looked and I’ve looked, but I can’t find anything that even comes close to them. They aren’t any modern language I know, or even any ancient one.” Which was irritating, since I knew four modern languages well, bits and pieces of six others, and enough of five ancient tongues to at least recognize them. But these . . . runes--I could think of no better word to describe the scratchy markings--were completely baffling. Not that I had asked anyone else about them, not even the librarians who should have been the map’s keepers. It was a mystery, one Kiernan and I had discovered, and we were determined to figure out the answer by ourselves.
January 3, 2011
Launch Party Relaunch
A quick note to let you know that there's been a slight change to the False Princess launch party. Apparently the bookstore that will be selling books at the party was concerned about getting them in on time. And since you can't have a book launch without books, the party has been moved slightly. So please remark your calendars for:
The False Princess Launch Party
Thursday, January 27th
7:00 p.m.
Harwelden Mansion, 2210 S. Main St. in Tulsa
Hope to see you there!
The False Princess Launch Party
Thursday, January 27th
7:00 p.m.
Harwelden Mansion, 2210 S. Main St. in Tulsa
Hope to see you there!
