Erica O'Rourke's Blog, page 14

Popping In To Give Away Some Books!

Have I been quiet lately? Yes, I have, because I've been chained to my desk, working on Bound. I have worked my princess fingers to the bone, because it turns out that writing the last book of a series is challenging. I knew it would be, but there is challenging and there is CHALLENGING.

SO.

Things will be quiet here for a bit longer, but I did manage to visit Tangled Up In Words, which is an utterly fabulous new blog -- lots of honest talk about writing, lots of great ideas -- I am smitten with them.

The Tangled Girls were also kind enough to interview me and offer up some copies of TORN, plus swag packs, including the hinted-at but little-spoken-of SEEKRIT CODE. Go forth and comment! (And...yes. I did talk about Doctor Who. I'm sure you're all shocked.)

http://tangledupinwords.blogspot.com/...

Here it is -- as always, I am closing comments here as a gentle reminder that you should be commenting there.

Back when BOUND is done. Or my fingers fall off. No telling which will come first.

FAQ: Do you ever get writer's block?

Yes. Mostly, it manifests itself as procrastination. HOW do I procrastinate, you ask?

I clean Per the Bad Cat's ears.

She's thrilled, as you can see. But if she doesn't like it, perhaps she should do a better job of cleaning her own damn ears.

(Apparently, writer's block also manifests itself as crankiness.)

WIP Friday: TANGLED Cover!

Apologies for the blog/twitter/facebook/tumblr/telephone/textmessage silence. I am working feverishly on BOUND, the third book of the Torn Trilogy, so that I can revise it. I loathe the drafting. I love the revising. The fact that I am still doing the former and not the latter means that I am, frankly, unfit for society right now.

BUT! People have been writing and asking me all kinds of questions about TANGLED. Most of those questions center around three things:

When is it out? (February 2012. Technically, January 31st, but that's close enough.)
Do you have a cover? (Yes.)
Mo ends up with (insert boy's name here), right? RIGHT???? (BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.)

 

Okay, that last one was kind of mean. To make it up to you, I'll revisit question two:

YES! I have a cover!

They are planning on adding some fancy-ish effects to the title, but those will only appear on the hard copies, obviously. The tagline is a bit hard to read here, but it says, "Deception takes practice," which I love, because it sums up this book perfectly, and because I am a dork who loves literary allusions.

You know what else I geek out about? Fonts. And as it turns out, this font...is the same one that was used for movie adaptation of The Golden Compass. This makes me ridiculously happy, because those books are among my all-time favorites. A tenuous connection, but I will take what I can get, you know?

In case you haven't seen it, here's the back cover copy for TANGLED.

Constance started to keen as the air around us began to thrash and twist, the caustic scent of ozone burning my nose. As I watched, her dark gold hair began to lift and kink into knots.

"I'm here. It'll be okay." It was the last thing I said before my best friend's little sister went supernova in the second-floor girls' bathroom, taking me with her.

A month ago, Mo Fitzgerald risked her life to stop an ancient prophecy and avenge her best friend's murder. Now, she only wants to keep her loved ones safe. But the magic—and the Chicago Mob—have other plans.

Mysterious, green-eyed Luc is back, asking for help—and a second chance. Colin, her strongest protector, is hiding a shocking secret. And inside Constance, the magic is about to go terribly wrong. Tangled in a web of love and betrayal, Mo must choose between the life she's dreamed of and the one she's destined for.

 

I really love this book, guys. I can't wait for you to read it. And now I'm going to go lock myself in my office again, because if I don't, you'll NEVER get the answer to question three. In the meantime, if you have other questions, leave them in the comments, and I'll answer them next week.

Happy Birthday, Kody!

So, for those of you who don't know the amazing Kody Keplinger, author of THE DUFF and the soon-to-be-released SHUT OUT, she is...amazing. And she is turning TWENTY today. Twenty!

When Loretta Nyhan, writer extraordinare and nicest person in the world, wrote to say that Kody was turning twenty and feeling a bit...unenthusiastic...at the prospect, I couldn't quite understand why. But I was traveling all weekend, long hours in a minivan, August cornfields and soybeans stretched out in every direction, an unending vista of green. Bored enough that I got excited about grain elevators.

GRAIN ELEVATORS, people. It gives a girl time to think.

And somewhere around Farmer City, I figured it out.

When you are a teenager, anything is possible. You are young enough that in the charts about life expectancy or pension plans or stock market performance, your age group doesn't even show up. Anything is possible. You can change your career plans, change your hair, your political beliefs, your relationships. The world is limitless, and you can begin to define yourself.

It's a heady thing, all that freedom. I can see why you'd miss it.

Except, in all honesty, you're not that free. Not entirely. You're dependent on other people, and subject to the rules and restrictions and expectations that go along with that dependency. The world is limitless, but your ability to move in it is not. So you make plans. You dream, if you're a dreamer, and you research, if you're a fact-based kind of person. Some of us make lists. Lots of lists.

And then you hit your twenties. And it is both wonderful and terrifying, because all that freedom? It's truly yours now.

You can fall in love with someone who is wonderful. You can fall in love with someone who should have "Not Good For You" tattooed across their forehead. You can travel to Europe or Alaska or Belize or...anywhere. You can go to cooking school. You can go to circus school. You get to eat what you want for dinner every single night. You can spend your paychecks however you choose. You can open yourself up to the world or you can close yourself off from it.

In your twenties, your life is what you make of it, and the choices you make..they define you. Incrementally, like chipping away stone to find the sculpture underneath, you start to figure out who you are, separate from other people's rules and expectations. You figure out what your rules are.

Sweet Fancy Moses, that's a rather frightning prospect. I can see why you might think it is cause for alarm, or at least cause to crawl back under the covers for the next week or so. 

But!

It's also an incredible opportunity. Your teenage years are where you dream. Your twenties are where you make them happen. You've made an incredible start already, and as unbelievable as this sounds...the best is yet to come. I promise you this. Unequivocally.

Lastly, I don't much like to give advice on Life Issues, but here are the things I wish someone had told me early on:

It's far better to spend money on experiences than material things.
You will almost always regret the things you didn't do much more than the things you did -- unless it's life-threatening.
Love many, trust few, and always paddle your own canoe. (I know. It rhymes. Doesn't make it any less true.)

Happy, happy birthday, Kody! Go celebrate -- you deserve it!

 

Want to read more birthday wishes for Kody? Check out the following blogs: Loretta Nyhan, Lisa and Laura Roecker,  Amy Lukavics, and more, posted later today.

 

 

 

Torn Teaser: Not An Ounce Of Trouble

Last week was Luc's extra scene -- today it's Colin's.

As before, this was originally posted on KTeen's Facebook page, where there's all sorts of extra content to be found.

 

Not An Ounce of Trouble

The heat wave over Chicago hasn't broken, and by the end of the day, all I want is a beer and a shower. Instead, I pull open the door to Black Morgan's and let my eyes adjust while the A/C works its magic. Billy's expecting me, and the beer will have to wait.

He stands as I make my way to the last booth. "Colin! It's hotter than blazes out there. Hard to work in this kind of heat, I'd wager."

I lift a shoulder. The crew will risk heatstroke rather than fall behind schedule. Nobody wants to be the guy Billy calls on the carpet.

Which makes me wonder why I'm here.

"We'll come in on time. Under budget, too. Another couple of weeks, tops."

He nods in satisfaction. "Walk with me."

Outside, the heat reflects off the pavement, but Billy doesn't notice. "You've eaten at my sister's restaurant before, haven't you?"

"Yeah. She's a good cook."

"Have you met my niece? Jack's girl?"

Sure, I've noticed her. But only a moron would admit it to Billy's face. "She a waitress here, right?"

"Yes. She's a darling girl, our Mo."

Darling isn't the word I'd use. She's quiet. A decent waitress. She seems nice enough, but underneath that ugly uniform and polite smile, she's watching everything with eyes as sharp as her uncle's. I wonder if Billy's underestimating her.

Billy lifts his chin toward the plate-glass window. Inside, Mo is wiping down tables and talking on her cell. She snaps the phone shut with a frown, then drops it into her apron pocket. A minute later, she spots her uncle and waves, her face smoothing out into the same pleasant expression she wears when she pours coffee.

He waves back, watching her for a moment. "She's all my sister has, you know. Mo and the restaurant. And the two of them, Mo and her mother…they're all I have. You can understand that, can't you?"

He transfers his gaze to me, hard and blue and unblinking.  I understand him perfectly. And I am really missing that beer right now. "Yeah."

"I've taken care of them as best I can. It was the least I could do, considering what happened to Jack." He pauses. "Did you know she's top of her class at St. Brigid's? She wants to go to school in New York next year, leave us all behind."

Like I said. Sharp.

Mo starts mopping the floor in quick, staccato movements. "I'm worried she may need more protection than my reputation can provide."

"You want me to keep an eye on her?"

He strokes his chin, like he's pondering the question. "Not yet. Finish the current job, and we'll talk more. It may be nothing, after all."

"Sure." But Billy wouldn't have called me here for nothing. And he knows I can't tell him no. "Happy to help."

"She won't be an ounce of trouble," he assures me.

I watch Mo Fitzgerald and her too-sharp eyes through the window, and hope to hell Billy's right.

Tools of the Trade: Cold Turkey Edition

If you follow me on twitter, you have probably seen me mention MacFreedom lately. Someone mentioned that they thought that's what I had named my laptop, but that is not the case. The laptop is most often referred to as "That thing keeping my desk warm until I buy a Mac." But based on the number of conversations I've had about MacFreedom lately, I am beginning to think a couple of things: One, I should have been more clear. Two, you guys have much more willpower than me.

MacFreedom is a program that functions as a "No Internet" button. You plug in the number of minutes you want to be cut off from nonstop refreshing of gmail and its timesucking brethern, press "Begin Freedom," and that's it. No internet for you! You can get around this by restarting the computer, but that's such an arduous process for me that I have never once done it.

It is cheap -- ten dollars. It is easy. It works exactly as promised, and it has saved my bacon more times than I care to admit. I could not survive without it. Probably the only person who loves MacFreedom as much as I do is my agent, and I'm pretty sure she doesn't use it. She's just glad I do.

And if you're the kind of person who has so much self-discipline that you don't need a program like this, congratulations. Also, remember that gloating is not an attractive quality in anyone.

(Technical note: I have a PC. Technically, I use "Freedom for Windows." But I call it MacFreedom anyway, because it sounds better.)

 

 

Torn Teaser: Missed Calls

Recently, I was asked to write some prequels scenes for Torn -- and because you can never get enough Luc, I decided to explore what his life was like before he met Mo.

The scene was originally posted at KTeen's Facebook page, and they've got all sorts of extra content, as well as playlists and giveaways, so check it out.

(What's that, you say? You'd rather see more of Colin? I'll have his scene next week.)

 

MISSED CALLS

Beignets and café au lait aren't my usual trick for charmin' a girl. But Verity Grey's not just any girl, and today, she needs cheering up a good sight more than she needs charm.

When I finally track her down, it's on my own balcony, of all places. She's looking out over the Quarter, facing north, like if she stares long enough, she'll see Chicago. I lift up the green and white bag.

"Brought you a treat," I say. "Still hot."

She cuts her eyes toward me. Indigo blue, not particularly friendly, and that's a shame, considerin' the amount of time we're going to be spending together.

"Everything in this stupid city is hot. How do you people stand it?"

Vee's loved New Orleans since the day she arrived – the food, the music, the stories – but that's when she thought it was a visit. The notion of permanent residency seems to have taken the shine off.

"We manage," I say, drawing the heat out of the cup until tiny crystals frost the outside. Small magic, but the spell doesn't exist that could make her smile now.

I set the cup on the table, next to her sparkly turquoise cell. It buzzes like hornet, and when she doesn't answer, I pick it up.

"Lotta missed calls. Texts, too." Looks like I'm not the only one she won't talk to.

 "How am I supposed to tell her, Luc? She'll never forgive me."

"Sure she will," I say, but we both know it's a lie. I've heard so many stories about Vee's best friend, it's like I already know the girl. She won't take kindly to the idea of Verity leaving her behind.

But we can't afford distractions, and Maura Fitzgerald is plenty distracting, even from nine hundred miles away.

 "People have kept secrets from Mo all her life," she says. "Everyone, except for me. There's nothing she hates more."

"I'm sorry," I say. "It's hard, letting go."

"How would you know?" she says. "You don't have to give up anything. You've been preparing for this your whole life. I've had only a few months."

Not my whole life. I swallow the words and take her hand. She's not wearing the ring I gave her, but there's no rush. We'll get there. As my father likes to point out, there are worse fates than a girl like Verity.

"Wait till you get home to tell her," I say. "You'll have one last year together. That's something, anyway."

"It's not enough. You don't understand, Luc. She needs me."

"You've got an entire world that needs you. Mo's your friend. She'd do anything for you. This time…" I shrug. "She has to let you go."

She leans her head against my shoulder, fresh tears sliding down her cheeks. "It's not fair."

"Never said it was. It's fate, Vee. No changing it."

*             *             *

Turns out I was wrong.

Interview! Giveaway! Deadline!

I am deep into the drafting of Bound -- I have my daily goal written on the calendar by my desk, where it is staring at me balefully -- and so can only pop in for a moment to tell you that the kind and hilarious Tina Ferraro interviewed me at YA Fresh today. You can read a bit about what my writing schedule is like, what's next for Mo, and my go-to advice for writers.

If you comment, you'll be entered into a drawing for a signed copy of TORN, plus what we are referring to as the SEEKRIT SWAG pack. Why is it a seekrit? Because there's a code included that unlocks hidden content on my website. More about the hidden page next week, but trust me: you want that code.

And now...it is back to the deadline cave for me.