While the conference isn’t actually over for another few hours, it is for me.  Because I’m tired.  And my panels are all finished, so I’ve come back home to medicate my knees and tell you all the interesting (to me, at least) bits I remember.  (Things do have a tendency to blur at these things.)

Thursday

The conference started off with an interesting panel on writing style, after which I talked with Lisa Mangum about a requested manuscript of mine that’s apparently disappeared in some vortex at Shadow Mountain.  She said she isn’t in the vortex neighborhood (acquisitions) any more, but that believe it or not there is  bottom to the singularity and, yes, a fourteen month wait probably is a good sign in this case.  Having decided I would take what I could get in the optimism department, I headed to a presentation on open source software that made me aware of a few tools that may be very, very helpful.  (I’d never even heard of GIMP, which is apparently an open source graphic program in the vein of PhotoShop, for example.)  After this, I attended a panel on Mormons writing, reading, and editing horror fiction, mostly because Michael Collings (formerly of Pepperdine) took part, and I always love hearing him speak and teach.

Nathan Hale (who works with Shannon Hale on the Rapunzle graphic novels but is not her husband, brother, or othersuch, but is a scion of the Hale theater dynasty) then gave the day’s keynote address, which was a blend of three presentations that wasn’t exactly seemless and was better for it.  It was fun, as were the substantial number of flying fish (the helicopter rather than the standard species).   

Then came my first panel of the conference: Putting Romance in Fantasy.  Other panelists included Mette Harrison (who was a fine moderator in addition to contributing a great deal), Ami Chopine, Lesli Muir Lytle, and Anna del C. Dye.  We talked about romance as a concept apart from romance as a genre, which I thought was important, and I even thought to bust out one of my favorite Oscar Wilde quotes.  A number of people complimented me on the panel over the weekend, so I must have said something constructive, which is the goal.   

Soon after I took part in my second panel of the day, which addressed why so many mothers and dogs and such die in children’s stories.  My friend and former editor Stacy Whitman (who is moving to New York, hurray!) served as moderator and panelist as she pitched questions at two good friends, Julie Wright and Paul Genesse, and myself.  Much of the time was spent establishing the difference between a trope and a cliche, which is a really important distinction.

Oh, I almost forgot.  That night I was invited to a goodbye dinner for Stacy at Bangkok Grill in Orem (about 8th south and 3rd east, I believe).  It was quite a gathering.  Stacy went to BYU with Brandon Sanderson, Dan Wells, Howard Taylor, and a bunch of others now in the writing/publishing world, and they kindly let me attend with the rest of the clan.  It was kind of a thing to see, about twenty-five or thirty of us, a surprising number published writers (some very famous).  Here’s all you need to know: 1) Bangkok Grill is very good (Howard knows his Thai food) so you should go.  Frequently.  2)  Talking about methods of procuring and utilitzing tape worms for medicinal use is not the best subject for dinner conversation, but it can and does happen.  3)  If you think a writer is an especially capable, interesting, or admirable kind of person, never, ever go to dinner with a gang of us.  I fit in that night.  That means you will be disappointed to the brink of suicide.  4) Eating spicy food at night does not hinder my sleep, for which I am profoundly grateful.       

Friday

I was on the first panel of the morning, which filled up despite the hour (9:00 am) because of a really strong lineup: Guest of Honor and NY Times Bestseller Brandon Sanderson, the certified and certifiable schlock genius Howard Taylor, good buddy and perpetual puzzle James Dashner, and Larry Correia and Karen Hoover, neither of whom I knew but both certainly held their own on this heavyweight panel.  I hope I did the same, because this session earned a lot of praise—perhaps because it ranged from imbibing Essence of Payton Manning (you will live a happier life if you don’t ask) to the redneck fairies in Larry’s work to Brandon’s taking “Rapunzel’s hair” and “Sponge Bob” and transmuting them into a story about a space elevator constructed of impervious, semi-divine keratin which facilitates the discovery of a race of sentient sponges.  Yeah, if you weren’t there, you missed out.  That fifty minutes will never be replicated.

Marty Brenneis was the day’s keynotes, and he showed how George Lucas’s special effects company did every single cool thing you’ve ever seen on film.  It was a blast!  (Very literally.)  

At noon I was scheduled for a signing, which eventually happened though it looked for a long time that it wouldn’t.  There was some miscommunication between event organizers and the BYU Bookstore, and myself along with quite a few other authors found none of our books were available to buy.  When I discovered this the previous day I allowed my frustration to get the better of me for a while, but a very kind and patient woman named Tami arranged for me to sell on consignment and all went swimmingly.  They even got a sign with my name printed out in three hours!  I’m telling you, that girl is magic.  I signed some books over the course of the hour and talked to more people, so it turned out great.  A few other ladies at the bookstore helped me along with Tami though I didn’t catch their names.  Thanks, ladies.       

An hour later came my second panel of the day on writing authentic child characters.  Other panelists were Julie Wright (a much better moderator than she gives herself credit for), Dene Low (Laura Card), Laura Bingham, Bron Bahlmann (who is sixteen and truly deserved his seat!), myself, and James Dashner doing his best Jeff Savage impression as Jeff didn’t make it.  (For the record, it was more of a James doing Jeff doing a spot-on James Dashner impression.)  Again, things went well.  I didn’t know Dene or Laura very well, but they were both impressive.  Bron made me feel both old and a touch slow, which is a striking concoction of inferiority.  I’m a bit embarrassed that I laughed when James explained his process of secondary character creation, but it wasn’t insulting at all, at least, it wasn’t meant to be.  It was a result of perplexity.  James just writes good stories, much in the way the wind blows.  He’s so instinctive where I’m analytic.  He’ll tell you frankly he doesn’t know how or why about much of his process and, equally frankly, it’s like an itch I can’t scratch.  I gotta know how that brain works!  I swear, if he’s ever foolish enough to take a nap near me when we’re alone I’m going to find some scissors or something and poke around in his brain.  James, you have been warned.

I wrapped up the day with a really interesting presentation by Bryan Beus, a visual artist who reminds me a lot of myself in his approach to art.  He presented on archetypes and the monomyth in narrative from a largely visual point of view, which I found fascinating.  It really was like looking at a very familiar subject through lenses just that much different from what you’re used to.  We talked for a minute afterward and it was clear that there was some methodological kinship there.  I’m really glad I went.

Saturday

I’m always a bit drained by the third day of a conference and I was only on one Saturday panel, so I planned on keeping things short.  The day started off pleasantly when Brandon Mull and I parked near each other and walked into the Wilkinson Center together.  We caught up a bit and talked shop.  Brandon is one of the very successful writers who has and continues to pound the pavement like a madman.  He’s visited, I don’t know, a thousand schools over the years?  Whatever the actual number, he’s a legend in the local children’s writing world for his energy and work ethic.  When you add that to a terrific storyteller and a genuinely nice guy, you get someone who’s always nice to cross paths with.

Again, my panel was the first of the day (though my second on romance, go figure).  Where before I was the only guy on the romance panel, this was all men: moderator John Brown (who I got to know at dinner on Thursday), fellow Dragonlance writer Dan Willis, and L.E. Modesitt Jr (Lee) in addition to myself.  I thought this panel was fantastic, though Lee did disagree with me a few times (ouch!).  I can’t complain, honestly.  This was a good panel with the four of us dealing with pretty nuanced stuff, from sociological theory to narrative craftsmanship.  There was a lot of interplay and, I think, really actionable information for those in attendance.  I was glad to be a part and look forward to future events with all these men (though the topic of romance seems unlike as a future place for us to meet up). 

Then I spent an hour or two talking with a lovely nineteen-year-old woman about her book—or, you might say, abusing her by suggesting so many options for revision it certainly gave her a headache.  I’d use her name, but she insists she’s a thirty-plus married with two children.  I don’t want to expose her identity as a bald (and very young)-faced liar.

Then I went to two panels on worldbuilding.

Then I came home to write to you.    

Other things I’ll report (which you may or may not want to know):

* People ask me to take pictures with them, and this happened three times at LTUE.  I always agree, but still find this to be extremely odd.  Rather like taking pictures of a can of soup.  There is nothing particularly off putting about a can of soup, certainly, but neither is it possessed of a rare aesthetic quality.  Whenever I’m asked to take a picture with someone, a single thought fills my head: stop looking so confused.

* James Dashner’s entrance in a room is sometimes accomplied by applause, only some of which is sarcastic.  Brandon Sanderson’s is accompanied by greater applause, none of it sarcastic.  Mine is accompanied by no applause.  All of this strikes me as logical.

* Paul Genesse wrote some very generous things (perhaps overly so) on his blog after our Thursday afternoon panel.  He actually posted it that day—after being on four panels!  Like Brandon Mull, Paul too is a machine in synthetic flesh.     

* The Brandons Mull and Sanderson signed books for my brother and his wife.  I will now be even cooler to their family.  (My nephew, who will be four tomorrow, thinks I’m pretty awesome already, so just wait until he can read the dedication to GDC.)

* Best panelist of the conference: L.E. Modesitt Jr.  Yeah, yeah, that guy who kind of sort of disagreed with me about some stuff.  I may not agree with him on everything, but I do most things—and the guy knows his craft and knows how to talk about it.  I admire and respect his balance of intellectual orientation in the disciplines of economics, politics, and other social dynamics with the truly idiosyncratic nature of telling a story.  He’s one who does it right, if you ask me (though he’d be the first to point out that a million other ways can be just as right).  The Brandons, Howard Taylor, and Dan Wells among others are always standouts, but this weekend’s cream was Lee (which, unfortunately, rose only on Saturday as he was supporting his wife with an event she is holding this weekend).  If you ever get a chance to hear Lee talk about writing, don’t pass it up, I’m telling you.    

* My friend Eric Swedin and I still have yet to appear on the same panel, which is beginning to threaten mathematical probability as we know it.  My five panels were, I believe, more than the allotment to anyone not a very special guest.  For his part, Eric is so omni-present at this thing that it is unofficially known as Life, the Universe, and Eric.  (This may become official next year depending on Eric’s generosity and the conference’s poverty.)  I’m impatient to sit with him at the same covered table brimming with mics and free water, do you hear me!

* At my book signing a lady picked up my book, started to read, and in about a minute laughed long and hard out loud.  That was cool.

* Yup, LTUE was all good.

Just a reminder that I’ll be at LTUE this weekend: Thursday - Saturday at BYU (3rd floor of the Wilkinson Student Center, as Marny kindly reminded me).  Also a reminder that the conference is FREE and that my charm will be in rare full display as I pontificate on romance and writing not once but twice.  And a comment that only the exceedingly lame and those with very good excuses will miss this event.  (A good excuse would involve death or dismemberment in some way; a healthy letting of blood alone won’t cut it.)

If my tidbit ethos alone is insufficient bait then don’t forget the main courses: Brandons Sanderson and Mull, L.E. Modesitt, James Dashner, Howard Taylor, Mette Ivie Harrison, Lisa Mangum, ad infinitum.  (Well, maybe not that long.)

And here, once more, is my schedule:

Thursday, Feb. 11th

2:00 pm: Putting Romance into Your Fantasy—Do you have to have a love story in Fantasy?  Why or why not?  If you do, how do you balance it with the action and adventure?  Other panelists will be Mette Ivie Harrison, Ami Chopine, Lesli Muir Lytle, and Anna del C. Dye.

4:00 pm: No More Dead Dogs (or Moms)—Why do mothers and dogs always die in children’s literature?  How do we pull at the heartstrings and give child characters independence without killing off dogs and moms?  Other panelists will be Julie Wright, my old editor Stacy Whitman, and Paul Genesse, all good friends so this should be fun.  Also, Stacy andI kind of invented this panel last year.

Friday, Feb. 12th

9:00 am: How to Become an Idea Factory—Where do you find ideas?  How do you go from an idea to a story?  Other panelists will be Brandon Sanderson, Howard Taylor, James Dashner, Larry Correia, and Karen Hoover.  There are some heavy hitters on this panel, so don’t miss it.

12:00 pm: I’ll be having a book signing.

2:00 pm: Writing Fantasy and Science Fiction for a Discerning Audience—How to write believable child characters.  Other panelists will be Julie Wright, Laura Bingham, Laura Card, and Bron Bahlmann Wilcox.  Just a heads up, I think I may take this one in two different directions.  It seems the panel is asking two questions: how to make speculative elements feel authentic, and how to write authentic children characters.  If you’re interested in either question I think you’ll get some interesting insights.

Saturday, Feb. 13th

9:00 am: A Guy’s Take on Writing Romance.  Other panelists will be L.E. Modesitt, Dan Willis, Aleta Clegg, and John Brown.

Here’s my final schedule for LTUE.  All ladies will be ecstatic to note that I am on two panels addressing the issue of romance, which you may regard as comic relief provided by the event organizers but I chose to consider a testament to my suave and charm.  Men are certainly indifferent.

Thursday, Feb. 11th

2:00 pm: Putting Romance into Your Fantasy—Do you have to have a love story in Fantasy?  Why or why not?  If you do, how do you balance it with the action and adventure?  Other panelists will be Mette Ivie Harrison, Ami Chopine, Lesli Muir Lytle, and Anna del C. Dye.

4:00 pm: No More Dead Dogs (or Moms)—Why do mothers and dogs always die in children’s literature?  How do we pull at the heartstrings and give child characters independence without killing off dogs and moms?  Other panelists will be Julie Wright, my old editor Stacy Whitman, and Paul Genesse, all good friends so this should be fun.  Also, Stacy and I kind of invented this panel last year.

Friday, Feb. 12th

9:00 am: How to Become an Idea Factory—Where do you find ideas?  How do you go from an idea to a story?  Other panelists will be Brandon Sanderson, Howard Taylor, James Dashner, Larry Correia, and Karen Hoover.  There are some heavy hitters on this panel, so don’t miss it.

12:00 pm: I’ll be having a book signing.

2:00 pm: Writing Fantasy and Science Fiction for a Discerning Audience—How to write believable child characters.  Other panelists will be Julie Wright, Laura Bingham, Laura Card, and Bron Bahlmann Wilcox.  Just a heads up, I think I may take this one in two different directions.  It seems the panel is asking two questions: how to make speculative elements feel authentic, and how to write authentic children characters.  If you’re interested in either question I think you’ll get some interesting insights.

Saturday, Feb. 13th

9:00 am: A Guy’s Take on Writing Romance.  Other panelists will be L.E. Modesitt, Dan Willis, Aleta Clegg, and John Brown.

Still resting my wrist (kind of), so this’ll be quick.  Here’s a look at the list of panels I may be on at LTUE this year (Feb. 11-13th).  While this is subject to change, I’ll probably be on 3 or 4 of these panels.  I’ll also be doing a signing, and maybe a reading, despite the fact that I’ve never really taken to readings (don’t worry, I’m proficient at reading out loud, I just don’t enjoy it).  Hope to see some of you there. 

Thursday

9:00 a.m.—Killer Openings: How to write a gripping, engaging and interesting first paragraph.

2:00 p.m.—Putting Romance into Your Fantasy: Do you have  to have a love story in Fantasy?  Why or why not.  If you do, how do you balance it with the action and adventure?  (No, I’m not kidding.) 

3:00 p.m.—Writing Strong Female Characters. (Clearly, my reputation as a specialist on women has preceded me.)

4:00 p.m.—No More Dead Dogs (or moms): Why do mothers and dogs always die in children’s literature?  How do we pull at the heartstrings and give child characters independence without killing off dogs and moms?  (I think my friend and former editor, Stacy Whitman, and I invented this panel at LTUE last year.)

5:00 p.m.—Worldbuilding 101

Friday

9:00 a.m.—How to Become an Idea Factory: Where do you find ideas?  How do you go from an idea to a story?

1:00 p.m.—Style in Speculative Fiction: SF was long denigrated for being a literature of ideas, not of good composition.  How has that changed?  What constitutes “good style” in SF or fantasy, and what is the difference between the two?  What special stylistic challenges (for instance, exposition) face the SF or fantasy writers that aren’t an issue for mainstream writers?

2:00 p.m.—Writing Fantasy and Science Fiction for a Discerning Audience: How to write believable child characters. (I think I’ll be on this one, as I’m something of a voice in the wilderness on this topic sometimes.)

Saturday

9:00 a.m.—A Guy’s Take on Writing Romance.  (Wow, how unbelievably romantic I must be!  And I never knew.)

I was near a Barnes and Noble that I don’t normally pass by (may have news about a signing in the next day or two) and took the opportunity to drop in and sign their copies of GDC.  Or I should say I signed three of their four copies.  The fourth copy, you see, was bound both upside down and backward in the cover.  I believe the official term for such a copy is “defective”.

I would use a different term, something in the realm of “completely awesome”.  I don’t know why, but seeing that odd, contorted version of my book gave me a million different happy feelings.  I immediately told the CRM—Community Relations Manager—that I would very much like to trade one of my boring, correctly bound versions of the book for their “defective” copy.  They kindly agreed.  So I’ll head back there tonight to switch books. 

I can’t wait!  Merry Christmas Mr. Me!

*****

Today I received a very cool package in the mail: a fantastic drawing of a dragon by a talented student at Bell View Elementary, where I gave me first assembly.  And I do mean fantastic.  You guys are going to love it.  As soon as I can figure out how to scan it and upload the image, I’ll share it.  With the image I’ll give the student’s name and grade, and I’m sure any and all compliments would be appreciated—and certainly deserved.  Just wait until you see this dragon….

*****

Finally, a good cause for a good friend: Stacy Whitman, my original editor at Mirrorstone, is starting up her own small press right here in Utah.  That alone is enough for me to support her and make this post worth your interest, but it isn’t all there is: the press is dedicated to cultural and ethnic diversity, particularly in children’s and YA fantasy.  In my own writing I tend to use a variety of cultures and ethnicities instinctively (likely because of my many positive and inspiring experience with minority students), but that isn’t exactly common across the genre.  There’s a place in the market for such books, and Stacy is determined to fill that through Tu Publishing.  Here’s a message she sent for those who want more information:

If you guys are on Facebook, you might have already seen me posting about the small press that I’m starting, Tu Publishing. If you’re not, I’m working on starting a small publishing company that will fill a gap in the market, to publish multicultural fantasy and science fiction for children and young adults. Our website is http://www.tupublishing.com, if you want to know more about our mission.

To get started, publishing books takes a lot of money, even on a “shoestring” budget. That’s why I’m doing a Kickstartercampaign—to raise enough money to get started and give a reward to everyone who donates. If enough people donate $5, or $15, or $20, we’ll be able to reach our goal. For every donation through Kickstarter, the donator gets a reward: bookmarks, early copies of books we publish, books donated to libraries, etc. For a really big, pie-in-the-sky donation, I’ve even promised an author visit. So they get something for their money, and with enough people banding together, the project can become a reality.

The project has had almost 3 months to run. So far, we’re up to $4031 of $10,000, with just under a week left. So we’ve got some ground to cover—no money exchanges hands if we don’t reach $10,000.

Here’s the link to the Kickstarter page: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1586632165/tu-publishing-a-small-independent-multiculturalhttp://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1586632165/tu-publishing-a-small-independent-multicultural

It’s completely secure—payments are handled through Amazon payments.

With my job experience and expertise, I know I can make this company a success if we can reach this goal. With $10,000, we’ll be able to start acquiring books, and then after we’ve gotten a book or two out, I’ll be able to approach a bank for a Small Business Administration-guaranteed loan. (That $10,000 will be supplemented by my own income and perhaps a few small investments from other people—the $10,000 is seed money, basically.)

Anyway, I just wanted to make you aware of this, in case you hadn’t seen it on Facebook. I know money is tight everywhere right now, so if you can’t fit it in your budget, I understand. But if you do have a few bucks to spare and think this is a good cause—making sure that there are more fantasy and science fiction books out there that feature characters from all backgrounds—you’ll get something back for it.

Another way you can help is to blog or Twitter or tell your Facebookfriends about it, giving them the links above. The more people who know about it, the more people who might have an extra $5 or $20 to spare.

Thanks, everyone! Happy holidays!

Thursday’s signing/workshop went off just fine, with the workshop, not surprisingly, being more fine than the signing. I have a lot of experience teaching and I really enjoy it, especially in workshop format where there’s a lot of exchange back and forth. But no complaints about the event as a whole. Sold some books for B&N; met some nice people there, including their fine CRM Michelle Sargent, whom I’d only spoken with on the phone previously; saw lots of friends and made a few new ones. The workshop was on characterization as the key to multi-fuction story, and those in attendance were enthusiastic and wonderful participants. We had a number of great discussions, including an interesting adventure into how to categorize plot vs character driven stories, and whether we even should.

For those who weren’t there (and didn’t have important meetings, other events to attend, or car trouble, and I know of instances of all three of these that kept people away), shame on you.  Here’s a sample of what you missed: the secret of what 3 things actually make story, which it seems to me writers had better know; when and why sunshine isn’t always sunny even if it’s bright; why the crime and punishment in Dostoyevsky’s novel has little to do with the murder in the story; opinions on R.A. Salvatore’s melee combat play-by-play; the notion of emotive “flags”; the confirmation of Neil Gaiman’s theory that airports aren’t distinct places at all but rather a generic type of place common to many actual places (read American Gods for more on this); and much interchange on smells, the value of nasty ones, and how much to include in our stories (I say the more and the worse the better). 

My one real regret is that I forgot to use my chaste marriage metaphor.  Well, that’ll give all of you who missed Thursday a reason to come in the future, won’t it.

Do you ever get the feeling that we drastically underestimate how crafty bacteria and viruses are?  If they really aren’t little evil geniuses, then tell me this: why do I always get sick at exactly the wrong moment?  Hmmm?  Christmas, over vacation, the day before a week-long conference, or, in this instance, the day before a workshop. 

Now don’t any of you decide not to come because you’re afraid I’ll pass you ebola or something.  It’s just a sore throat.  A hot, scratchy sore throat that burns whenever I talk, just in time for my workshop tomorrow.  I swear I can feel these little buggers in my body giggling it up.  It feels like a hiccup that won’t come out. 

I am beginning to suspect that viruses and bacteria are far more intelligent than we give them credit for.  Not only do they have an impeccable sense of timing, but they like to see us make fools of ourselves.  Example?  They give themselves strange, scary names (swine flu) to make us panic at something no more dangerous than the standard flu.  They then get our vice-president to start expounding on how this flu in a piggy costume is likely to become the next great plague and that civilization as we know it is over in a “Nightfall” kind of way (I am embellishing this a bit), and then they giggle and we all get hiccups. 

It’s a working theory.

Anyway, if I can make tomorrow’s workshop with these bugs plotting away next to my larynx, I hope you can all make it hearty and hale.  Hope to see familiar faces tomorrow as well as some that are brand new.  (Attractive female faces with weak spots for sore throated children’s writers are particularly encouraged.)  See you then.

It’s all arranged: I will now be giving a free two-hour workshop on characterization in tandem with my book signing in Sandy on September 3rd.   For those who don’t know, the event is being held at the Sandy Barnes and Noble (10180 S. State) from 6:00 – 9:00 (ending one hour later than was originally planned). Here’s the way the evening will work.  From 6:00 to 7:00 I’ll spend time signing Green Dragon Codex, answering questions, and chatting with people.  Then at 7:00 the workshop will begin, and it will end around 9:00.  (Though I don’t mind staying later to work with people, unless the B&N people grow irritated with us and kick us out.)

The workshop will be on characterization and how to make our writing do triple-duty work, meaning how to make every page engrossing by avoiding blocks of anything—especially exposition, but any other single element of narrative delivered in large chunks is dangerous, too.  The workshop will be on ways to make every page we write serve multiple purposes at once, thus making the story more interesting.  I’ve only done this workshop one time before and was very dissatisfied with it (at World Horror Con earlier this year).  Feedback was very positive, but I only had one hour for the workshop then and that simply wasn’t enough.  This workshop takes a lot of interaction and hands on exchange between writers and myself, and writers and other writers.  So I’m really looking forward to getting a chance to do the workshop with as much time as I need to do it justice. 

I hope to see plenty of people there.  It isn’t often that an intensive event like this is offered for free (I wish I could do that more often), so if you can possibly make it, do.  Also, please tell friends and other writers who you think may be interested.  I promise, the content we’ll cover will be well worth the time.

Because it wasn’t mine.

On Saturday I headed to the Barnes and Noble at Jordan Landing for Lisa Mangum’s signing for her debut novel (first in a trilogy by Shadow Mountain) The Hourglass Door. It was my first chance to meet Lisa in person, which is a little odd given just how small the publishing world is here in Utah. (It’s not all that big nationally, you begin to see after a few years inside.) Turns out we even live within the same suburb of Salt Lake.

Well, I thought it was well past time that I meet her, shake her hand, and inform her that by so doing she has formally greeted the writer who is every editor’s fondest dream. (Okay, so I didn’t add the last part, but merely due to humility.) For those who don’t know, Lisa is also head acquisitions editor for Deseret Book, so she’s ones of those weirdos who turns over the working of her brain to the inner editor almost continually yet still manages to write a fine book. (I do not recommend this approach, as such people are aberrations. I’m pretty sure they’re mutants.) Lisa even talked about putting her day job persona in its cage to write, which was pretty interesting to hear. When my inner editor rattles his cage bars too early I threaten to start amputating things until he shuts up. Sometimes it works.

Lisa read the prologue of her book, which surprised me with its measured pacing and somewhat greater than expected alliteration (not really fully purple prose so much as dusky). She also talked about references to Shakespeare, Dante, and Virgil, which intrigued me for a few reasons. First, all great choices—though isn’t it a little disturbing that everyone’s favorite book in The Divine Comedy is the volume about Hell? Also, my understanding is that the book is targeted at something similar to the Twilight army that mascuerades as a readership. Now, while I haven’t read The Hourglass Door yet and so can’t say specifically, using literary classicism to reach those readers struck me as an interesting choice. We’ll see how it works. Anyway, it was worth the time. It always is when you meet a mother, and I met Lisa’s mother, who was proud as only a mother can be. She took pictures of James, Brie, and me, which stole a little portion of my soul, as all pictures do.

Also caught up with James Dashner, friend, patron, and about to become major name in YA fiction, and met his friend Brie (hope I’m spelling that correctly, because she told me to remember it, and I quote, “like the cheese”), who seems to be following right behind him.

And, just for the record, James pointed out that Brie’s editor, and my editor, and Lisa all turned down his Maze Runner trilogy, which is now preparing to sell a billion copies for Random House. Which just goes to show you that good people who are smart people aren’t always going to buy a great book when you pitch it to them. There are many reasons for this, foibles of business and imperfect people being two of the biggest. Just tell yourself that you will be able to laugh about all those rejections one day, in the presence of others, shaming them, as James did, for he is an evil man, and is in no way a Jane Austin character.

*****

Finally, happy birthday Kent, best twenty-six-year-old brother I’ve got, and not just by a bit.  By a whole lot.

Well, it’s taken a while but I’ve finally finalized the first four book signings in conjunction with my first month of touring elementary schools.  The signings will be every Thursday evening in September, as follows:

September 3rd: 6:00 – 8:00 pm at the Barnes and Noble in Sandy (10180 S. State St.). 

September 10th: 6:00 - 8:00 pm at the Barnes and Noble at Jordan Landing (7157 Plaza Center Dr in West Jordan).

September 17th: 6:00 – 8:00 pm at the Barnes and Noble at the Gateway (200 S. 400 W. in Salt Lake City).

September 24th: 6:00 -8:00 pm at the Barnes and Noble in Layton (1780 Woodland Park Dr.).

I’m looking to visit somewhere between 6 and 8 schools on the day before and day of the signings.  If anyone out there has children who go to school in these areas and they think their children would like to attend my storytelling assembly, let me know which school they go to.  Or—and especially—if any kids are reading this and would like me to come to your school, tell me your school and I’ll make a special point to try to swing by.  If I can’t manage it in September—or if you live outside these areas—I’ll keep your request on file and look to schedule a tour in your area as soon as I can.

I’ll announce the schools I’ll visit in conjunction with each book signing, as soon as they’re finalized, here on my blog.  I’ll also list all this information on my schedule here on the site.  Not only will this give you all an idea of where I’ll be and when, but it should provide a convenient impetus for me not to back out.  Don’t misunderstand, part of me is greatly anticipating these elementary visits.  (I really do have far more in common with children than adults, which is healthy in my profession, if you ask me—and even if you don’t.  You’ve got to have a lot of little boy or girl in you to tell stories.  I always thought I was brimming to the top with little boy, but as my last two books have been exclusively from the female perspective, I’m starting to wonder just how much little girl I have thrown in.)  However, I’ve never worked with children on writing before.  I teach college students every day, and I’ve done enough workshops at conferences and the like to enjoy them, pretty much regardless of size.  I’ve done all that and been successful.

No matter how childish I am, I can’t say the same about teaching children.  Thus, like any new experience, there’s a bit of uncertainty about the whole thing.  But when I start feeling a bit too squishy inside—as one of my little girl characters says—I tell myself the following: “All you have to do to get on well with kids is be willing to make a fool of yourself.  Not only can you,” meaning me, ” do that, you can do it exceptionally well, and likely are incapable of avoiding such.  So relax.  What else is a fool like you,” meaning me, “better fit?”

And so my logic comforts me.  At least in certain ways.