Josh Hanagarne's Blog, page 16

Mark Twain House!

Earthling,

Tomorrow morning I fly out to New York, en route to Hartford for the Mark Twain House event. If I think about it, I get goosebumps. For me, this is Mecca. I suspect that I’ll be a quivering mess once I actually get into the house and start taking the (private!) tour.

Throw in an evening with Stephen King and all I can say is…things are pretty damned good.

I’ll be in and out over the next few days. Will try to get you some updates from the road.

Josh

Q&A On Some Fitness Stuff

Hi all, someone asked me why I don’t write about strength training very often anymore. He also wondered about my specific training these days, so I’ll give a couple of quick, non-thrilling updates.  Then, if you’ve got any questions, put them in the comments and I’ll happily talk with you about whatever you want.

The truth is, I’ve said pretty much all that I think I’m ever going to have to say about it.

I think everyone can enjoy exercise, and that there’s no downside to being strong. If you hired me to train you just to “get fit,” I would say:

“Tell me a physical activity you like to do.” It could be weights, running, racquetball, whatever. Anything that makes you move. Then I would see if I could help you do that better.

If you said, “I want to get as big as possible,” that’s a different discussion, but it’s also a fairly brief one.

If you said, “I want to get better at the Highland games”, again, we have to have a more specific discussion. But there’s rarely going to be any occult mystery to any of this stuff.

It’s all pretty simple, it just takes consistency, and it can be hard to make exercise a habit if you don’t enjoy it.

As to my own training, I’ve been lifting stones. I’ve got a range from 150-400 lbs, and stone training is by far the most fun I’ve ever had with strength. My arms always scratched and bruised and, and they feel like crocodile hide at this point, but I do love it so. I pick up a heavy rock, see if I could press it overhead, walk around with it, test how long I can hold on to it, etc.

Also, wrestling. Lots of wrestling lately.

Over to you? Any questions about anything fitness related that I can take a stab at? Any goals you’re working on?

Miami Book Fair and Song Suggestions!

Hi gang,

I’ve been invited to speak at the Miami Book Fair this November. I’ve had a lot of library folks in FL writing to me asking when I’ll be out there–well, the time has come. I’ll be speaking and signing on either the 23 or 24.

Also, there’s a chance that I’ll be playing a song with The Rock Bottom Remainders on the 19th.

Not a bad band to be part of for a day! I’ll believe it when I’m actually up on that stage, but for now it’s looking good. I’ve been asked to submit a song I’d like to play with them.

Got a suggestion? Simple, three chord rock songs? I play the guitar, piano, and I sing.

The First Look At The Next Book

Howdy folks,

Here’s a snapshot of the manuscript I sent to my agent yesterday. No going back now.

 

Cornelius Crumble, The Boy Who Knew Everything. 

Cross your fingers for luck. And your eyes.

 

Some Non-News About My Next Book

Howdy,

This might be a little anti-climactic for you as a reader, but for me, as the writer, it’s a very good day. I have officially finished writing my next book. I’ll be sending it to my agent this weekend. There’s no guarantee that anyone will publish it, or that it’s good, but I have had the time of my life writing it, and that’s all I worry about when I’m working.

Soon, we’ll know what we’ve got.

Here’s what I can tell you (I’m not going to get into details until I sell it).

It’s taken nearly a year to write
It also took ten drafts and will probably take several more once/if I start working on it with an editor
There is a grotesquely fat baby in it
It’s fiction
It’s for young readers (and adults)
It’s the most fun I’ve ever had writing, by far

I’ve told a couple of people that I’ve finished another book and they usually say something like, “Wow! You’re a machine!”

Hardly. I wrote this book, must like The World’s Strongest Librarian, was written in 15-30 minutes a day. But I strung a lot of days together, and now I can move on to the next thing.

If you want to write, you will go so much further, if you simply make consistent writing a habit. Five minutes a day, two hours a day, whatever. Do it enough times and earn the great pleasure of writing THE END.

 

 

Winger by Andrew Smith

For you US folks, Happy Fourth of July!

For you citizens of earth who also read books, I have an urgent directive for you:

Read Winger by Andrew Smith.

It made me laugh and it broke my heart. It’s a young adult novel about a 14 year old boy named Ryan Dean. He plays Rugby at a prep school in the Northwest.

The book is full of illustrations and–I’m going to stop. You need to go into this one as blind as possible. An absolute joy.

When people ask “Why should I read?” I’m going to start shoving this book into their faces and say, “I defy you to read this and then come back and tell me it was a waste of your time.”

And then–if they still say it was a waste of their time, I’m going to give them another one of Andrew’s books and say, “Try again and please be less insane.”

How I Broke A Chair At ALA, Giant Lady Hands, A Poem about My Biceps, And Penguin Prom

I was in Chicago this past weekend for the American Library Association’s annual conference. ALA.

Picture 25,000 librarians all in one spot. Do it. If all of them had reflected the light through their glasses at the same time, we could have created a beam that would have blasted a hole in the earth.

I was there for a signing and a panel, not for blasting holes in the earth.

Here are some things I saw, questions I asked myself, and observations I made while at ALA:

I lost track of how many people I saw who had tote bags…stuffed with tote bags. There’s a ton of free stuff at ALA. Like tote bags.


How many blinking lapel pins does a person need?


On Friday night I went to dinner with 11 people from Penguin. At the restaurant I sat by the most interesting person, a tall blonde woman who was impossibly smart. It took about 15 minutes for me to realize that it was Suzanne Rindell, one of my favorite authors.  Read The Other Typist.


The 12 of us took a stretch limo to the restaurant. I used to think they were cool, having never been in one. Kind of tacky. There were the dumbest LED lights in the ceiling, and the colors changed quickly. Look, we’re all blue, now red, now yellow. And we were crowded.  Happily, I got to sit next to Lyndsay Fay, another author I love. She and her husband were two of the funniest people I’ve ever met.


Oh, and she’s going to write a poem about my bicep, which is currently covered in bruises and scratches from an Atlas stone. She wrote a poem about Neil Gaiman’s hair once, so I’m happy to have a body part added to the canon.


I was asked to be at the signing booth from 1:30 to 2:30, and to show up 15 minutes early. My favorite part of the trip was probably seeing the line and having no idea that it was people waiting for me. Then I started signing and we sold out of books quickly. A lot of books! You all who were there in that insane line have no idea how good you made me feel

I was signing at the booth with Tracy Garvis-Graves, bestselling author and lovely person. About a month ago we started joking that we should coordinate our outfits. That turned into “we should be prom dates,” which somehow turned into me promising her a wrist corsage. I had to scramble Saturday morning to find one, but we got there. Tracy, you were a great sport.

 Finding a corsage was such a hassle that I thought, well, I’m going to be meeting Stephanie Bodeen, another author I (surprise) adore, so she got one too. I take it back. The expression on here face here was my favorite part of the trip: 

 

While I was signing, I was in a tall-backed director’s style chair. It broke after about 10 minutes. They brought me another one and apologized way too much. I guess I’m too intense to even sit without destroying everything. 


A woman came up in the line and said, “I’ve got to show you something!” She asked me to hold up a hand, which I did. Her hand was bigger than mine. She was delicate in every other way, and was so excited about her gigantic hands. Hand lady, if you read this, you made my day. I’m still smiling about it.


I met a lovely Jamaican woman who teaches chemistry in New York. She was not impressed at all by my Jamaican accent, but she did tell me I look good for a white boy


I tried to push the Penguin truck. It was too heavy


The author’s panel was called Quirky Books For Quirkier librarians. Barbara Hoffert moderated (Barbara, I love you). The panel included me, Stephen Kiernan, John Scalzi (one of my very favorite SF writers), and Abby Stokes (she was so funny I felt like a potato by comparison). It was a great crew. We each spoke for about 10 minutes and then signed. And again, everyone bought so many books that we ran out again. Thank you!


I was told that I made a bunch of people cry during my talk. I suppose this is to be my lot in life, making women cry everywhere I go. My tics were awful and I got a big laugh when I told everyone that I could pull their heads off. 


I don’t think I’ll ever get used to hearing someone say, “I’m so excited to meet you!” and realizing that they mean it. Humbling and wonderful.


Librarians, I love you all. Your work matters more than you’ll ever know.


I ate a Chicago hot dog that came very close to restoring my belief in God.


So there it is. Hundreds of books sold, lots of new friends made, and as I said at the end of my talk…”Isn’t it good to be us?” You’re included in that too, kind reader.

Josh

 

Maybe The Greatest Library Conversation Ever

This was from someone I love dearly, but it was still funny. I had used the word crucible, can’t remember why.

“I’ve never heard the word crucible.”

“Really?” I said. “Did you read The Crucible in school?”

“Yes.”

Still laughing. Might not ever be able to stop.

 

If You’re Going To ALA Annual This Weekend

Hi library folk,

If you’re going to ALA this weekend, I’d love to get the chance to meet you.

On Friday I’ll just be wandering the halls, looking for a friend (will it be you?)

On Saturday, between 1-4 I’ll be doing a signing at the Penguin booth, and speaking on a panel.

What I’m most looking forward to this weekend is meeting people I’ve only known online so far.

Come find me!

Josh

Meeting Stephen King, As One Does

Hey there,

On July 16 I fly to New York.

On July 17 I will be speaking at the Hartford Public Library, in conjunction with the Mark Twain House. 7 Pm. Be there, Connecticutians! (sp?)

On July 18 I got invited to stick around at the Mark Twain House for the Stephen King event, including the private reception where I’ll get to meet the man. Any of you who have read my book know about the imaginary contract I made with Mr. King when I was in fourth grade.

I don’t have a bucket list, and if I did, meeting specific people wouldn’t be on it. I want to meet everyone. Still, I think this has the potential to be the greatest thing ever. Private tour of the Mark Twain House and getting to meet one of my heroes?  Can’t wait, and luckily, there are only 23 more days.

I started reading The Book of Woe last night and it’s brilliant. If you’ve got any interest, reservations, or fears about the DSM, read this book.