P.J. Hoover's Blog, page 26

In the BIGGEST and BEST News Category...

In case you aren't keeping a thumb on the pulse of all things Tricia, you might not have noticed that I have stopped promoting SOLSTICE entirely since December and that it has been off the market. If you have noticed and you're just dying to know why, well, that's because it has sold traditionally along with a middle grade, Egyptian mythology story of mine.

Yes, I am thrilled to announce that I have sold TWO books to Tor Children's!

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P.J. Hoover's SOLSTICE, about a near-future global heating crisis and a Texas teen who uncovers the strange untold ending of the Persephone myth, only to find that she is part of the story -- and that her choices in love, in family, and in friendship will determine the destiny of her world, to Susan Chang at Tor Children's, for publication in Spring 2013, by Laura Rennert and Lara Perkins at Andrea Brown Literary Agency (NA).


P.J. Hoover's TUT, in which a young immortal King Tut, who has been stuck in middle school for over 3,000 years, must defeat an ancient enemy with the help of a dorky kid from school, a mysterious Egyptian princess, and a one-eyed cat, to Susan Chang at Tor Children's, for publication in Winter/Spring 2014, by Laura Rennert and Lara Perkins at Andrea Brown Literary Agency (NA). 

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I am such a fan of Tor books that it's crazy, and so you guys can't imagine how thrilled I am to announce this! Seriously. Tor! Whoot!

Just look at me smiling as I sign that huge stack of paper :)
Thank you guys for all your support! And yes, of course, I will post details soon! In the meantime, YAY! I am officially a Tor author!

FEATURING & GIVEAWAY: LISA NOWAK & DRIVEN

I'm so happy to welcome back to my blog Lisa Nowak! In case you missed Lisa the last time she was here, her book RUNNING WIDE OPEN was featured back in November. Like all prolific writers, Lisa has a brand new book out, and this is the first stop of her blog tour. Thank you, Lisa!

DRIVEN by Lisa Nowak (Webfoot Publishing, May 2, 2012)


About DRIVEN:

(Even though Driven is part of the Full Throttle series, it's more a companion book than a sequel and it works as a stand-alone. It features both a tough female character and a realistic romantic element (as opposed to the he's-hot-therefore-I-love-him type of romances in so many YA books).)

The last thing on 16-year-old Jess DeLand's wish list is a boyfriend. She'd have to be crazy to think any guy would look twice at her. Besides, there are more important things to hope for, like a job working on cars and an end to her mom's drinking. Foster care is a constant threat, and Jess is willing to sacrifice anything to stay out of the system. When luck hands her the chance to work on a race car, she finds herself rushing full throttle into a world of opportunities-including a boy who doesn't mind the grease under her fingernails. The question is, can a girl who keeps herself locked up tighter than Richard Petty's racing secrets open up enough to risk friendship and her first romance?

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And now for an interview with Jess, the main character of DRIVEN!

Q: Hi Jess. I understand you’re the crew chief of your friend Teri Sue’s race car. That’s not a typical hobby for a 16-year-girl. How did you get interested in cars? 

Jess: That was my dad’s doing. When I was little, he had a Mustang we used to work on together.


Q: But you don’t do that anymore? 

Jess: He’s not around now. When I was eight, he took off in his semi to haul a load of strawberries to North Dakota, and I haven’t seen him since.


Q: That must’ve been awful. So your dad instilled this passion in you, and when you got older you bought a car and fixed it up? Can you tell me a little about that? 

 Jess: Sure. It’s a ’72 Pinto with a 351 Windsor. That’s a small block V-8—not exactly the four-banger that comes stock in an economy car. It took me two years to go through everything to make it mechanically sound. I did the work at school, and my shop teacher expected me to let the guys in class help. Can you believe that? I didn’t want those jokers messing with my car. Boys don’t pay attention to detail. Anyway, it was my project, and I wanted to do it my own way.


Q: That makes perfect sense to me. So your dad is out of the picture, and I understand your mom drinks. That must make things pretty rough for you at home. 

Jess: Who told you that? There’s nothing wrong with my life. I mean, sure, my mother has a few beers now and then—lots of parents do. There’s nothing unusual about that.


Q: Maybe we should talk about something else. What about Cody? I hear he’s not what you expected. 

Jess: True. I thought he was a jerk. You know, the kind of guy who flirts with a homely girl then laughs about it with his buddies behind her back. But he’s not like that at all. I think the air of cool he projects is just a cover. There’s a lot going on under the surface. He’s still pretty upset about that wreck his uncle got into at the track last year.


Q: So Cody’s boyfriend material? 

Jess: I don’t know about that. I haven’t had a lot of friends these past few years, and it’s kind of nice to finally have someone to talk to. I don’t want things to get weird with him, you know? But I’ve got to say, there’s something about Cody that melts me like a Hershey bar on a hot dashboard. He understands me like no one else ever has.

Q: That sounds like a great foundation for a relationship. Maybe you should give him a chance. 

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Now for the giveaway! In honor of the release of DRIVEN, Lisa has offered up an ebook copy of

RUNNING WIDE OPEN by Lisa Nowak (Webfoot Publishing, June 2011)



To enter, simply comment on this blog post. And please include a way for me to get in touch with you when you win. The contest will be open through Friday, May 18 at 11:59 pm.

Good luck and thanks for reading!

Digital Symposium II: The Nuts and Bolts of Success

I am thrilled that Austin SCBWI will be having a second annual Digital Symposium, and based on the lineup and workshops, it's looking to be even better than last year! How is that possible, you might ask? Well, this year we're trying to go a little bit deeper. Turning presentations into more of a workshop environment where individuals can work through ideas and leave with something even more tangible!

Sounds great, right? And I'm not just touting it because I'm one of the presenters. I am excited to attend workshops other than my own!

Check out the Austin SCBWI page for registration information and full details!
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Digital Symposium II: The Nuts and Bolts of Success October 6, 2012
9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. St. Edward’s University
Fleck Hall [see on map]
3001 South Congress Avenue
Austin, Texas 78704
512-448-8400

Austin SCBWI’s Digital Symposium II: Nuts and Bolts of Success is a hands-on technology workshop for illustrators and authors of all techie levels. Be it blogging or beveling, tweeting or technique sharing, hyperlinking or hashtagging, the intention of this symposium is for the participants to leave with new skills to add their technological tool belts.
Fees
Member Rate – $85.00
Non-Member Rate – $100.00
Morning coffee/tea/juice bar and lunch is included in the fee.
Conference ProgrammingClick here for a full run-down of the exciting presentations and hands-on workshops that will be happening all day.

And my presentation will be:

Book Trailers: Bringing your Story to Life with P.J. Hoover

Think books are just for the page? Not anymore. In the crazy world of marketing we live in, book trailers have become not just a luxury but a necessity. You don’t want to be left behind! Join author P. J. Hoover as she introduces the world of book trailers, talking about what works well and what falls short. No matter what software you have, P. J. will demonstrate the flow for how to create your very own book trailer from the text to the purchase of music and stock imagery. She’ll discuss different ways to get your book trailer noticed and what impact that can have. Come with your solid story idea and an open mind (and your laptop if you have one), and prepare to see your book in motion.

Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick Winner

Thanks to everyone who entered to win! The winner of

AU REVOIR, CRAZY EUROPEAN CHICK by Joe Schreiber (Houghton Mifflin Books, October 25, 2011)


 
is...

Mary Ann Woods!
 

Five on "May the Fourth"

May the Fourth be with you!*

I've been a little brief here at the blog, and I'm pretty sure I can come up with five good reasons for this. No, I know, I'm not trying to make excuses. There is actually an even better reason than any of these five, but I'll leave it at these.

1) I have been back in revisions and loving it. What's nice about revisions? When you feel like you are actually getting close and you received awesome, constructive comments from your agent on how to make your story even better. It's great for motivation. So yeah, revisions.

2) I have 4 HOURS of dodgeball on the agenda for today. Yes, it's Field Day at the elementary, and I signed up for dodgeball shifts. My whistle is ready. My blog entry is almost complete :)

3) It's actually been way too long since I've read a book on craft, so I picked up

SAVE THE CAT by Blake Snyder (Michael Wiese Productions, May 25, 2005))


and after only one chapter, am hooked. Sure, I read a ton, and that is an awesome way to keep up with writing and the market, etc. But I forgot how really important it is to step back and focus on the craft of writing, especially when deeply involved in (1) above.

4) I am LOVING both these books!

THE WISE MAN'S FEAR by Patrick Rothfuss (DAW, March 1, 2011) - my audio listen



INSURGENT by Veronica Roth (Katherine Tegen Books, May 1, 2012) - my print read



5) *Ok, this has nothing to do with why I haven't blogged, but I cannot claim to be a proper nerd without in some way acknowledging Star Wars Day.

May the Fourth be with you!

Former Debuts! What ever happened to...

I absolutely loved being a part of the Class of 2k8. It was a fantastic group of 28 debut authors. We bonded. We chatted. We shared all the fun things that authors share (panels, book signings, stories to make you laugh, stories to make you cry). But you know what? It's been four years since the start of the class, and more and more, when I spot one of their books on my bookshelf, I find myself wondering...


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...what ever happened to this person? What have they written lately? What are they up to now? Do they have a new book coming out? Have I missed a book?




I want to know, and so, when I sent out an email with just these thoughts, I found out that so many of my fellow classmates felt the exact same way! (This is what I love about kidlit authors! We are an amazing community!)


So in the spirit of catching up and support and the other awesome things that are part of the Kidlit world, I'm starting something new over here. I'll be featuring former debut authors here on the blog. Whether from the Class of 2k-something or the Debs or whatever debut group, I want to catch up and see what's going on!

 

If you are a former debut author, please contact me! I'd love to feature you and your book(s). I'm happy to coordinate with future book releases, and in no way do I want to be exclusive, so please pass this on to any former debuts you know! 



Our first feature will start next week? Who's it going to be? You'll have to check back to find out!


And just in case you missed it, my contact information is here :)

Always worth a re-watch!

Starting out this week, I felt the strong need to watch this video again. I love so many things about it. The music. The lyrics. The shirts he wears. It always makes me smile.






And speaking of shirts, today's Shirt Woot is definitely calling my name! Go Team Pluto!
ORDER YOURS HERE (and you better hurry! It's for Monday only!)


Now back to revisions! Hope you week is off to a great start!

THE BREAKAWAY by Michelle Davidson Argyle NOW AVAILABLE!

Happy beginning of the week!

Just a quick shout out to mention that this book is now available!
You can read my review here, and if you have never checked out Michelle's blog, I totally recommend it!

THE BREAKAWAY by Michelle Davidson Argyle (Rhemalda, May 1, 2012)


Hope you have a great week ahead!

Five on a Birthday Friday!

Yes, it's that special day for yours truly. If you count in hex, I am officially now 2A years old (so for the next six years, the hex trick doesn't work so well). Anyway, enough on the geeky engineering humor. I hope you all have fantastic days and weekends and entire weeks and months and years!

My Birthday Five:

1) So you know what a birthday commemorates? One more trip around the sun. I've officially traveled around the sun 2A times. I love that!

Yay! Pluto is still included!

2) It is uncanny how many things I look at with random numbers and the numbers come up as 427 (which is today). The clock reads 4:27. I am given hotel room number 427. The strides on the elliptical machine are 427. It's like there is a psychic power out there trying to constantly wish me a happy birthday :)

3) The thing I miss most about living at home with my parents (aside from never having to do my own laundry)?

Mom's Yum Yum Cake
See my mom always made me this incredible birthday cake. Angelfood with cream cheese and yogurt and cool whip icing and layers with pinapples and walnuts. Ugh, just typing it makes my mouth water. It was to-die-for and it was my favorite.

 This picture isn't even close to how awesome my mom's cake was
4) I'm writing today at The Place with my awesome Austin writing group! It makes for a perfect day, and I *think* I can even get a free shot on my birthday. Baileys?

Will the trolls show up?

5) As for the future? Well, it's looking good and exciting and I have no complaints. Perhaps my birthday movie will be BEASTMASTER (which I realize I've never seen). Anyone who's seen it? Is it kid-appropriate?


Thank you for all for reading and being awesome!

THE NAME OF THE WIND by Patrick Rothfuss

One word:

EPIC!



This came as a recommendation through ARMADILLOCON, a local SFF literary con held yearly here in Austin. And, so, I've started this new thing where most of my audio book listens are adult SFF (my original love), and most of my paper/ebook reads are kid and teen books. So I opted for this as my next audiobook listen, and was hooked from the first page.

Five reasons to pick this book up TODAY:

1) Like I mentioned, I listened to this on audio. If it says anything about how much I enjoyed the book, it was 25 hours long. As soon as I finished it, I bought and downloaded the sequel which is 45 hours long.

2) The book is truly episodic. And yet, it hooked me completely. It's told as a story, and I found myself sucked right in, feeling like I was right there in the inn as it unfolded.

3) I love that the main character, Kvothe, is so talented and yet so imperfect. He's not proud of his mistakes, but he's also not afraid to admit to them, and he shows them to the reader in the most humorous (or sometimes the most touching) ways.

4) The character interplay is beautifully done. Kvothe meets so many different people and finds himself in so many different situations, and in each one, the relationships with the people he meets are constructed and displayed so well. It's fun and light and dark and deep, and everything I'd like to be able to do in my writing.

5) The world Patrick Rothfuss has created is a world I can totally lose myself in. I'm about halfway through the sequel, and I'm already waiting for book 3 so I can spend just a little bit more time in this world. Everything from the idioms to the monetary system to the rankings of musicians and the songs are well thought out, and even though amazing details are given to describe and show all these things, never does it feel burdensome or clunky.

Overall, this is a book I highly recommend to anyone who loves adult fantasy and science fiction. This is fantasy at its very best. No, it's not a kids' book. And sure, the material is fine suited for teens, but this is truly an epic fantasy and is a true pleasure for those who love that sort of thing. 


From Amazon:  

This is the riveting first-person narrative of Kvothe, a young man who grows to be one of the most notorious magicians his world has ever seen. From his childhood in a troupe of traveling players, to years spent as a near-feral orphan in a crime-riddled city, to his daringly brazen yet successful bid to enter a legendary school of magic, The Name of the Wind is a masterpiece that transports readers into the body and mind of a wizard.



Source of book: Purchased audiobook from Audible.com