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I have a new book coming in October, 2016.
We've been kinda quiet about it.
We're sneaky.
So today the generous Karen Jensen revealed the cover for the book over on her SLJ blog.
It included an interview, which is why you should click on that link even though I'm posting the cover art below. It's a good interview.
The gist of the book:
A heartbreaking story of a talented teenage artist’s surreal awakening to the horrifically unoriginal brokenness of her family from critically acclaimed award-winner A.S. King.
Sarah can’t draw. This is a problem, because as long as she can remember, she has “done the art.” She thinks she’s having an existential crisis. And she might be right; she does keep running into past and future versions of herself as she explores the urban ruins of Philadelphia. Or maybe she’s finally waking up to the tornado that is her family, the tornado that six years ago sent her once-beloved older brother flying across the country for a reason she can’t quite recall. After decades of staying together “for the kids” and building a family on a foundation of lies and violence, Sarah’s parents have reached the end. Now Sarah must come to grips with years spent sleepwalking in the ruins of their toxic marriage. As Sarah herself often observes, nothing about her pain is remotely original —and yet it still hurts. Insightful, heartbreaking, and ultimately hopeful, this is a vivid portrait of everyday abuse and survival that will linger with readers long after the last page.
Isn't it awesome?
More on this book as we move forward.
For release date and all that stuff,
go check out Karen's blog.
More on other stuff soon, too.
For you.
Heading to Phoenix for a few days.
Come see me at Changing Hands Phoenix location on Saturday 2/20 at 5pm!
Mr. King sent a text early Monday morning. It said, "Sorry to give you bad news first thing, love, but I wanted to be the one who told you. David Bowie died. I know this is devastating for you." It was. Devastating.
The usual morning routine was full of random tears, making lunches, making a cup of tea, getting the kids in the car. I put on "Oh! You Pretty Things" and drove them to school. Fitting. My older one cried at the first chord of the next track on my Bowie playlist, "Life on Mars?" and asked me to turn it off. My younger one wanted to hear "Oh! You Pretty Things" again, so I put it on again. The rest of the day was a tribute to the man. Music all day. Things I know he would have loved to listen to. Mingus, especially. Mingus is twisted and delicious.
I have musical kids. The first time I showed them this live version of "Oh! You Pretty Things" my youngest said, "Look at his teeth!" She said he looked weird. She was puzzled about how a man like that could be a musical superstar based on what she knows now about what musical superstars look like in the 21st century. She was five. Five-year-olds are as honest as rain. They can't avoid it. I said, "Does it matter what his teeth look like?" She said, "No. But what does this song even mean?"
Touché, Bowie. This is exactly what you wanted, isn't it?
You wanted listeners to ask questions.
Maybe that's why you were so important to me.
You made me think and interpret and guess and risk being wrong about all of it, and yet you made sure I was never wrong because you left your lyrics open to interpretation. As of Monday, there isn't a person on Earth who knows what David Bowie meant in all of his music. The only man who really knew is gone.
The day before Bowie's death,
The New Yorker published this article about his recent album. It's entitled "The Beautiful Meaninglessness of David Bowie" and while the title sounds all wrong, the article is a fantastic exploration of Bowie's use of surrealist thought to navigate big questions.
"From the beginning, Bowie showed an interest in exploring the fragmentation of identity and meaning."
"It was rare for Bowie to embrace clear meaning. The title of one of his most plainspoken songs, “‘Heroes,’” is suspended in a second set of quotation marks, largely to disrupt any straightforward interpretation."
"...his songs should be about nothing, which in turn allows them to be about everything."
"Rock and roll started as a form of enchantment and has become, in large part, another symptom of the banality of our acquisitive society. By persisting in deliberately rejecting reason, Bowie reminds us that there are plenty of reasons to do so."
These quotes, along with the many tributes to Bowie this week that recall every persona he invented and lived have changed me in some way. That last quote--about rejecting reason--really hit me in the brain.
I was the girl who took shop class in seventh grade. Short hair. Weird shoes (we called them my "Bowie Shoes" in my house.) When it was time to learn how to silkscreen in seventh grade shop, I made a screen in big letters. DAVID BOWIE. I used bright orange ink. I wore the shirt until it fell to pieces.
Seventh grade. Twelve. Weirdo. Smart. Not interested in school anymore. Interested in good music. Didn't own a Walkman yet. Still listened to cassette tapes on a Panasonic tape recorder with mono sound. The first time I heard "Oh! You Pretty Things" was on that Panasonic.
Seventh grade. The one school picture I was ashamed to see or show anyone, ever. Ever, ever, ever. Mr. King didn't see this picture until last night and I've known him nearly 30 years. What is it about this girl that had me so ashamed? Awkward. Different. Weird. Made-people-uncomfortable.
And yet when I got the news of Bowie's death, the first image that popped into my mind was the seventh grade school picture.
Why had I been ashamed of it all this time? The Bowie-inspired haircut? The weird sweater I bought at Boscov's which had a matching pair of leg warmers? The blanch of my skin? My long neck? Thirty-four years have passed since I was this girl and I'm finally proud of her for being a seventh-grade risk-taker. Here she is. Amy, age 12. Bowie fan for years. Shop class attendee--one girl among all boys. Early smoker. Music lover. Oddly gender non-conforming. Asker of big questions.
"Oh! You Pretty Things" was the main inspiration for my most recent novel,
I Crawl Through It.
If you've read the book and know the song, then you probably understand why. Then again, both the book and the song are open to interpretation, which is how I like things to be. Not everyone understood Bowie for this and not everyone understands me for this, either. I get letters from readers asking for concrete, easy, linear explanations of my books. They want
me to answer
their questions.
I never do. I thank them for reading and writing to me, but I think personal questions that arise from experiencing art are none of my business.
David Bowie wasn't available to me to ask, "Hey Dave, what was 'Space Oddity' all about, anyway?"
But then, I never needed him to be.
His songs made sense to me in my own way. That's what art is.
I liked the way he risked everything and came out winning. I'm sure not every day of his life was grand and I know he got shit for being who he was sometimes, but that's the risk of taking risks.
I Crawl Through It is about everything and nothing. It's about Mozart and Hawkeye Pierce. Risk-takers. It's about four seniors living in abstract reality, being risk-takers. How many different types of risk-takers are there? Would you take off in a helicopter you couldn't see? I would.
I took time this week to figure out why I took risks like that seventh grade haircut. Why did I take the risk of being the only girl in seventh grade shop class? Why did I take the risk of being a writer? Why have I used my (eventual) ability to publish books to publish weird, uncomfortable, risk-taking books?
The answer is clear this week.
To me, the only way to live is on this edge. The only way to live is to enjoy being myself, even if it makes people uncomfortable.
Comfort is a state of mind.
My mind is loose and I like it that way.
Mingus. Delicious.
Mark Rothko and Grace Hartigan.
Abstract. Expressionism.
You can't hear the notes if you're too uptight about the meaning.
There are ways to mimic the minor chords in Bowie's "Changes" with words. No sound, just words, then tears. This is my life's work.
I'm not sure if this post makes sense to anyone but me, and that's a risk I'm willing to take.
I don't usually talk about popular news or culture.
But Bowie was my first love. He was my first intellectual crush. He made me less afraid of everything.
And this week, he made me less afraid of a twelve-year-old kid who used to be me-- less afraid of myself.
This is the power of meaninglessness.
e.E. Charlton-Trujillo and Jim Bailey did something amazing.
They made a trailer for I CRAWL THROUGH IT, a book I thought was completely trailer-proof.
I was having an amazing day heading to NCTE/ALAN (More on that soon) and just when I thought things couldn't get better, the awesome Anthony Breznican interviewed me and BAM! Next thing you know the trailer was released on Entertainment Weekly with the interview....just as I was walking on stage at ALAN with Andrew Smith on Monday.
Wanna see the whole EW piece with the trailer?
Click on this screenshot.
Just want to see the trailer?
Here you go.
Isn't it awesome?
If I was to recap NCTE/ALAN, we'd be here all day. I have line edits to do, you have more important things to do, too. So I'll share a few pictures.
 |
With Andrew Smith, e.E. Charlton-Trujillo on night one.
The next day was E.'s NCTE panel on defining At-Risk and reaching At-Risk students
in the classroom. It was a brilliant panel and then later that night, E. screened her kickass
documentary At-Risk Summer and it was beyond amazing to see it on the big screen. |
 |
| I love seeing Laurie Halse Anderson. She is the awesome. |
 |
Photo Cred: Marika-the-awesome
Saturday was a long day, but right in the middle was a great event at the St. Paul Public Library
with my brother from another mother, Andrew Smith.
Andrew's book STICK is the St. Paul READ BRAVE selection for next year.
We packed the room and, as promised, donated $250 a piece to Face to Face, which
provides help to at-risk and homeless youth in St. Paul. |
 |
And on Monday, we were at it again at the ALAN workshop.
My favorite quote from Andrew at this event (slightly paraphrased):
"Reluctant readers aren't born, they're made."
Amen.
(Photo Cred: My social media accounts are wonky and I can't find who took this.
But thank you.)
|
What follow are Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award pictures.
Look.
Sometimes this all moves too fast for me. I don't expect anyone to read my books, like them, or give two hoots about their existence. So it's always surprising and really delightful when something great happens to a book. Glory O'Brien's History of the Future won the Walden Award this year and this was a great panel (filled with my idols!) and a great day. I reckon it's nice to remember great days, so here are a few pictures.
 |
Photo Cred: Noah Schaffer
See, when I make a speech, I tend to look down right after I'm done. I look at my shoes and shuffle back to my seat.
When I finished this one-minute-long speech, right when this picture was taken, I'd looked up and saw the crowd standing.
I had no idea until I saw this picture that my fellow panelist-idols were also standing.
I can't thank Noah enough for capturing this moment for me. |
 |
Photo Cred: Noah Schaffer
The Walden committee and the finalists--missing is Michael Williams, who sent
a lovely message to us all from South Africa. |
 |
This is Jim. Jim is the reason I'm a member of ALAN and he's the reason I love ALAN so much.
Jim roped me into my first ALAN conference as an attendee back in 2009.
I met Jim in Phoenix during my very first book event. He saved me from a crazy book-banner.
True story. |
 |
Photo Cred: The Awesome Kristin Elizabeth Clark
On my last night in Minneapolis, I watched Ellen Hopkins get picked apart by that vulture.
No I didn't.
But this picture was too weird not to share. |
While these are pictures of friends and events, the most important thing about NCTE/ALAN are the teachers who dedicate their lives to students. There is a reason this is my favorite conference of the year--and it's those teachers. Education is the most important job in the world and I am so proud to call so many hard-working teachers my friends.
In other news, I CRAWL THROUGH IT has landed on
The Horn Book's best books of 2015 list, which is a huge honor, and there is more news to come on that front.
Now, back to line edits and stuff like that.
It's December already.
Enjoy the holiday season in whatever way you do and I'll see you around here soon.
A
Going to NCTE/ALAN? Here's where to see me and a lot of other fine humans.
Saturday 11/21:
9:30am panel: "Empowering the Voice of the At-risk Learner" with Laurie Halse Anderson, Matt de la Peña, Meg Medina, Ellen Hopkins, E.E. Charlton-Trujillo, Carrie Gordon Watson.
11am: Signing I CRAWL THROUGH IT at Anderson's, booth #950
1:30pm: Merriam Park Library event with Andrew Smith in partnership with Addendum Books
5pm: Free Screening of AT-RISK SUMMER at St. Anthony Main Theatre. Author reception to follow with Laurie Halse Anderson, Matt de la Peña, Meg Medina, Ellen Hopkins, Pat Zietlow Miller, E.E. Charlton-Trujillo, Carrie Gordon Watson. (A surprise awaits for fans of I CRAWL THROUGH IT.)
Monday 11/23:
1:10pm: In conversation with Andrew Smith.
1:30pm: Signing I CRAWL THROUGH IT
3:45pm: Signing copies of GLORY O'BRIEN'S HISTORY OF THE FUTURE
4:30pm: Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award panel with Laurie Halse Anderson, Isabel Quintero, Deborah Wiles
ALAN is my favorite conference of the year. I can't wait to see my tribe.
Man, I am so behind.
Chasing my tail. Chasing my tail. Chasing my tail.
But then this morning, I pulled out the box. My brain is in 2017/2018 now. Projects to come.
In other news, the
New York Times Book Review did a nice little piece on I CRAWL THROUGH IT along with a few other YA crossovers. Here's a snippet of that.
I'm just going to go and die happy now.
"A.S. King has penned an absorbing Rorschach test of a book that, as you turn its pages, manages to read you."--Entertainment Weekly
I CRAWL THROUGH IT got an A from Entertainment Weekly. If you know my history with A's, then you know I didn't receive a lot of them after two teachers affected me greatly in 6th and 7th grade. Not entirely their fault (I own my own suitcase, but I was 12 and didn't quite know that then) but all the same, an A is a really nice thing for me.
The review is stunning.
It's taking a while to sink in that I was reviewed in Entertainment Weekly.
I still feel like a lady who writes books in a small room while drinking too much herbal tea and that's about it. But there I am, in Entertainment Weekly.
Here's the link to the entire review...thanks to my Dutton editor and longtime friend Andrew Karre, who knows how to give a compliment and make a lady spit out her herbal tea.
I'm packing now for a long time away. Check my last posts for tour dates and times.
I'll see you first, Oregon.
It's book launch day.
Which is always a weird day, really. Mostly I walk around trying to figure out what to wear to the launch party and end up wearing an Indiebound t-shirt and jeans anyway.
So far I: ate some Corn Flakes, drank a liter of water, and wrote a few thank you emails. Now I'm going to start packing presents in boxes and sending them to the people who helped make this book a reality.
This is a weird book. I can't lie about that. You have to drop your own need for your own real world and just let the world of the book take over. Some people can't do that and that's okay. Surrealism isn't for everyone.
Usually on launch day, I post a poem. And I will do that. But first, a few links.
So you know I read the audio for I CRAWL THROUGH IT myself, right? Here's a link to an excerpt. The final audiobook will be out soon. This excerpt is a doozy. They picked a good chapter.
Then there are interviews and articles and surprises.
Over on Caroline Leavitt's blog here.
Over at Forever Young Adult here.
And a lovely article on Teen Librarian Toolbox at SLJ here.
And then a surprise lovely review over at Shelf Awareness today with a shiny star in front of it!
So okay. Poem time.
This one comes right from the book.
Your Kale/Kiwi Juice Has More Self-Esteem Than I Do
Kale/kiwi
juice
just goes
in one side
comes out
the other
makes
everything happier
the whole
way through.
It never
worries about
being
safe or wearing
the right
clothes
so no one
will treat it
<!--[if gte mso 9]>
Normal
0
false
false
false
EN-US
JA
X-NONE
<![endif]-->
like it
doesn’t matter.
Happy reading!
And don't forget to believe.
And oh: the theme song to this book is "The Beigeness" by Kate Tempest. Here she is. Genius.
And finally I have tour dates for you.
Anything marked with a ** is not a public event, but is helpful for NAIBA, KSRA, or NCTE/ALAN members to know I'll be there.
All others are public events.
Come see me. Bring friends. We can have fun.
That seems like it should have had an exclamation point.
We can have fun!
I CRAWL THROUGH IT
Coming 9.22.15
LAUNCH PARTY
9.22.15
7pm
Aaron's Books
Main Street, Lititz, PA
Clinton Book Shop
Clinton, NJ
September 24, 2015
7pm
**NAIBA Conference
October 3, 2015
Eugene Public Library
Eugene, OR
October 7, 2015
6pm
Salt Lake City Book Festival
Salt Lake City, UT
October 10, 2015
Viridian Event Center
1:30pm
Kent District Library
Cascade Branch
Grand Rapids, MI
October 15, 2015
7pm
**Keystone State Reading Association Annual Conference
Lancaster, PA
October 23, 2015
Breakfast speaker
Children's Book World
Haverford, PA
October 27, 2015
7pm
Indian Prairie Public Library
Darien, IL
November 10, 2015
7pm
Lititz Kid & Teen Lit Festival
Lititz, PA
November 14, 2015
All day fun in America's Coolest Small Town
Addendum Books
St. Paul, MN
November 21st, 2015
7pm
**NCTE & ALAN Workshop
Minneapolis, MN
NCTE: Panel: Empowering the Voice of the At-Risk Learner--November 21st 9:30am
ALAN: In discussion with Andrew Smith: Nov 23, 1:10pm
Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award panel: Nov 23, TBD
One picture and one poem won the contest for the ARCs of I CRAWL THROUGH IT.
Zach--what a poem! Thank you!
Rei (@reillyharr82) I loved the picture. I'm a sucker for pool chairs.
Send your mailing details to me wherever we connect. I'll contact you both the minute I post this.
More soon.
ME WINNING THINGS
I've won things since I was last here.
I'm very thrilled to tell you that GLORY O'BRIEN'S HISTORY OF THE FUTURE has won the New Atlantic Independent Bookseller's Association (NAIBA) Best Book of the Year in the YA category. Can't wait to shell out a ton of Indie Love at the conference in early October.
And if that wasn't cool enough, GLORY got word that she won the Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award from ALAN. And I sure can't wait for the ALAN conference this year to shell out huge Teacher Love. I missed you all last year!
I'm humbled, grateful and stoked. All at the same time.
So now, you should win things, too.
YOU WINNING THINGS
I have two Advanced Reader Copies (ARCs) of I Crawl Through It to give away.
You have until Monday 9-7-15 at 11:59pm EDT.
There are two ways to do this.
Challenge #1: Take a picture of yourself crawling through something weird. (Thanks to @OPSMrWiegert on Twitter for this idea.) Post it to me (@AS_King) on Twitter. If you remember, please use the hashtag #icrawlthroughit but if you forget and you just post it to me, that's okay, too.
This one is a Twitter contest. (If you choose the picture challenge. Keep reading if you don't choose the picture challenge.) If you're not on Twitter, leave me a comment below and let me know where I can see your entry.
Example:
Here's me crawling through a large pretzel.
 |
| Amy crawling through a giant pretzel. |
 |
| I crawled through it instead, see? |
Challenge #2: If you're shy or generally not into posting pictures of yourself you have another choice. You can write me a poem. The title must be:
"How To Tell If Your ___________ Is Real"
You fill in the blank and write me a poem.
No word count here. You can go as short as you'd like. But please, nothing over 30 lines.
Example from I CRAWL THROUGH IT:
How To Tell If Your Bed Is Real
Your bed is real if you are safe inside of it.
Your bed is real if you are safe outside of it.
That's the shortest poem in the book. So don't feel you need to go that short.
Post your poem in the comment section, please.
If anything here is confusing, let me know in the comments. I wrote this while rushing out the door.
Adding: This contest is international! I lived abroad a long time. I get it. :)
Good luck!
Deadlines deadlines deadlines.
This is a lazy post. Mostly pictures.
But I had such an amazing time in Kansas City, I wanted to share.
First, in I CRAWL THROUGH IT review news, The Horn Book gave the book a lovely star. That's five. Feeling very lucky and grateful.
★ [an] ambitious
and affecting work, which suggests that the personal tragedies and trauma we
internalize change the ways we see and operate in the world.--The Horn Book
Also, keep checking in. This week, I'll run a contest to win an ARC of the book!
Now, to Kansas.
I'd never been there before. I loved it. We will now rely on captions.
 |
The lovely people at Johnson County Library put me up in a really cool room.
Waking up to that airplane every morning was awesome.
Please excuse my dirty laundry. |
 |
This is a (not real) bat in a jar full of (not real) beer. As you can see, there were several of them.
(If you haven't read GLORY O'BRIEN yet, you are confused, I'm sure.)
My time with the teen group at the library was AMAZING. Not only did they decorate the room with cool stuff like this,
but they asked the best questions and had the best conversations. |
 |
I LOVE THESE TWO PEOPLE SO MUCH.
These were my two interviewers during the teen section of the program.
Smart, resilient, funny, warm, and just completely wonderful people. |
 |
Calling all Johnson County librarians:
THANK YOU FOR THE AWESOME TIME!
You guys rock and I can't wait to come back. |
 |
Random thought upon seeing this in the hotel hallway:
Yes. If all cities used such impeccable grammar then the world would be a better place. |
 |
| Sunset over the clouds. |
Other random happenings.
My friend Joe McGee launched his first book this week!
Go buy PEANUT BUTTER AND BRAINS! It's wonderful.
 |
| Epic reading at Let's Play Books in Emmaus, PA. |
 |
And I don't know how else to say this, but.
WTF is this?
Does one need to be a boy to want to learn how to make a rocket?
Practical jokes? Girls love those.
Books for boys? I'll just stop here.
Color me bummed out that the world still does this. |
 |
| On a lighter note, this is a real sign. |
Still juggling books over here.
I'll be back next week, as promised, to post a contest to win an ARC of I CRAWL THOUGHT IT.
Toodles.
By:
A.S. King,
on 7/29/2015
Blog:
Dog Fact #9
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I've been running behind in telling you things.
For example: I found out on the 22nd of July that Glory O'Brien's History of the Future was a finalist for the Amelia Elizabeth Walden Book Award, which is given by ALAN, an organization I support with vigor.
So then, before I got to tell you that news, I found out yesterday that
Glory O'Brien's History of the Future actually
won the Amelia Elizabeth Walden Book Award. I'm humbled and grateful and all sorts of honored. I love every other book on that finalist list and it's just amazing to be able to accept this award in November at the ALAN Workshop in Minneapolis.
You can see the full press release here.
Today, Shelf Awareness reviewed I Crawl Through It. Here's a quote:
"Master of contemporary surrealist fiction A.S. King offers a smart and wholly original new YA novel."
Now you're all filled in on that kind of news. It's picture time.
So.
This week.
Was.
Phenomenal.
Here's why. I went up to NYC to record the audiobook for I Crawl Through It.
I'll be honest with you. (Like I'm ever not honest with you.) I was a little nervous about this. I mean, I'm not an actor. I've listened to enough audiobooks to know that professional actors do this job very, very well. How would I manage this job? Especially reading a book about an invisible helicopter and a walking digestive system?
 |
Hachette moved last fall and this was my first time to the new digs.
The office is across the street from Radio City Music Hall, which looks so boss at night. |
I got to the sound booth Monday morning and they set me up with the manuscript on the iPad and I just went for it. Because that's what you do, right? You just go for it. I was nervous enough for the first few chapters, but I know the book well because I wrote it and I seemed to feel at home. So I just kept reading.
 |
| Obligatory picture of this sign. |
By the time lunch came around, I felt okay about it. Chrissy and Charles, the producer/director and sound engineer, said I was doing great. And I believed them because that's what you do, right? You believe them. I ate lunch. We went back to the booth and I kept reading.
 |
This was my booth for two days. It was fascinating.
I learned things like: after lunch, this microphone picks up digestive noises I can't even hear.
True story. |
Only when day one was over did I start to doubt myself. This is what we do, I guess. We doubt ourselves. I was tired. (Exhausted. I'd read like 160 pages in one day.) My throat was sore. I went back to my hotel room and chilled out which was good because it was a hot day in New York City.
 |
| That's Chrissy and Charles. They are so boss. |
On day two, I leveled with Chrissy and Charles. I said, "Look. Are you sure I'm doing all right? This wasn't a huge mistake?" They said that I was a natural. This was a good answer. We started recording again. Chapters flew by. I only swore under my breath maybe 100 times before repeating a sentence. Or 100 sentences--trying to pronounce Thuja Orientalis and things like that.
 |
Photo cred: Mitch from Hachette Audio.
This is me with earphone hair.
Which reminds me: hearing myself talk as I talked took a while to get used to.
Note: I talk better if I can use my right hand. |
In the end, I finished the recording and when I came out of my little booth, Chrissy was playing "No More Drama" by Mary J. Blige and I sang a little and felt great relief. If my throat hadn't been so sore, I'd have really gone off on this track because it's my theme song.
Here. Enjoy Mary doing it herself.
While I think I did well, I won't really know until I hear it and because I might not ever listen to it, I may never know. I trust that the post-production will put a shine on the surrealist parts and Chrissy has some great ideas for those, so yay for brainy people like Chrissy and Charles.
Stats:
Amount of honey ingested in three days: half a bottle.
Amount of times I doubted myself: many.
Amount of joy I felt when I finally stopped doubting myself: Very much joy.
Amount of falafel I ate in NYC: two nights' worth.
I NEED TO TELL YOU ABOUT KANSAS:
I am coming to Kansas City next weekend!
Teens/Student readers in the area: contact the library to find out about an earlier program that day just for you.
YOU CAN WIN LUNCH WITH ME AND SUPPORT A GREAT LIBRARY.
RANDOM PICTURES FROM LATELY:
 |
This was made for me.
|
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THIS IS HOW THE WHOLE WORLD SHOULD BE.
Free period stuff AND great grammar. |
And now I'm out of things.
When it rains it pours and this week it poured.
Now back to work. In my hat.
This week, I got two very very cool packages.
I expected neither of them. Those are the best kind of cool packages, I reckon.
First it was a package from Brazil.
 |
That's Ask the Passengers in Portuguese.
And it's one awesome looking book.
Also: that's me right after I wake up. |
The second package was from Korea.
 |
I CANNOT TELL YOU HOW BEAUTIFUL THIS BOOK IS.
It's Reality Boy in Korean.
It's a stunning cover--so hard to tell even from this image. |
Yes. I am wearing that hat every day while I revise the 2016 book. I wore a lab coat all last year when I revised I CRAWL THROUGH it. I am 100% comfortable with admitting this to you. I don't care if you think I'm weird.
✭ Review News
I can't share it yet, but
Booklist gave I CRAWL THROUGH IT a really lovely review with a shiny star attached! That's three for this novel and I'm just thrilled with three. It's a magic number.
Best line ever
Tonight I was at Aaron's Books, my local Independent bookstore, celebrating their 10th anniversary and they asked me to sign books and set me up at a table and this was where I heard the best thing so far in my career.
"Are you, like, manning an A.S. King book table?"
Someone was behind me. I can't remember if it was Todd, but I think it was. He said, "That
is A.S. King."
I smiled. She took two steps backward to stop and take it all in and then say hello.
Some days are just surreal, y'all.
I wrote a blog post over at Hippodilly Circus
You should check it out. It's about listening and how it can help us all treat each other better. After that, you should read the rest of the blog because it's awesome.
That's all I got.
Back to the cave in my hat.
I forgot to tell you about the secret.
This was the secret:
I'm so excited to be working with Cheryl on this project.
But for now, onto the other project for a few weeks. Juggling, juggling, juggling.
Happy summer!
Hello again.
I just came back from here.
Here was very nice.
But now I'm back to work and before I disappear for a month or so into the revision cave, I wanted to share a few things with you.
First, if ever you wanted to buy something from the A.S. King book apparel store now is the time to do it. Printfection will be closing the store on July 31st. That gives you a few weeks to choose between the
Ken Dietz Face Your Shit Flowchart apron or the
Send Love, It Helps t-shirt among many other cool things. Just click on the image below and go for it.
In other news, Kirkus Reviews weighed in on I Crawl Through It and said nice things.
"A meditation on grief, guilt, and survival…. Readers [will be] rewarded with the self-actualization of finely wrought characters…. Absolutely worthwhile.”--Kirkus Reviews
I think I'm forgetting something.
But I always think I'm forgetting something.
If I really am, I'll be back.
Happy swimming!
I don't take nice reviews for granted.
If you know me or have heard me talk about reviews I get a bit shy about it. I never know how anyone will react to a certain book and I try not to think about reviews--ever. It's the healthier option for me. It's not that I don't appreciate reviews or reviewers. The opposite is true, really. I can't write a review to save my life, so I appreciate those who can.
Anyway.
I CRAWL THROUGH IT seems so far away to me that I was surprised to get review news this week. Good review news.
Twice.
On Monday I got word that
Publishers Weekly gave the book a starred review saying:
✭ "It’s bizarre, compelling, and not like anything else."
On Wednesday I got word that
School Library Journal gave the book a starred review and said:
✭ "An ambitious, haunting work of art."
I'm humbled and thrilled.
This is a book that I've wanted to write for a lifetime.
On top of that, my friend and brilliant author Beth Kephart read an ARC I gave her a few weeks ago and
she blogged about it here. Beth's newest book, ONE THING STOLEN blew me away and I'm urging you to buy it and find out why.
Only three more months until I CRAWL THROUGH IT comes to bookstores near you.
My local independent bookstore, Aaron's Books, is taking pre-orders now for a 15% discount. When you shop at Aaron's Books, you support my community, so it's pretty cool for me if you pre-order from Aaron's. Also, your books will be signed and personalized (if you want) and Aaron's will ship them to you.
But wait! There's more. The official launch of the book will take place at Aaron's Books on September 22, 2015 at 7pm.
If you're nearby or plan on being nearby at that time, you can still get the 15% discount AND RSVP for the launch at this one handy link.
Summer is upon us.
For now, I will disappear back into revisions and writing and researching and even a little resting.
I'm reading:
Still Life with Woodpecker by Tom Robbins. I last read it in 1992 and it's amazing.
What are you reading?
Hello.
This post will be mostly pictures. I've been around.
The first half of the year was dominated by writing books. This is a good thing.
There are secrets. You will know about them soon.
But then I got to go places.
Here's a picture of going places.
In April I went to Children's Book World in Haverford, PA and appeared with these two radically awesome ladies. Libba has her Charlie's Angels pose down. I do not. Gayle and I may actually be robbing someone here.
And then The 10th Annual Rochester Teen Book Festival. You know how I feel about Rochester. Love love love love. Here's Terry Truman, me, and Heather-awesome-Brewer. As always, the craic was mighty and the humans were wonderful.
More Rochester...the epic VW pickup truck. And there's MT Anderson just hanging out like he grew there.
And then there was this beautiful cover for the Portuguese translation of Ask the Passengers.
It's June, so that means it's coming out soon if it hasn't already.
Go Brazil!
And then I went to Book Expo America and right before I had to make the keynote speech at the School Library Journal Day of Dialog, I found my friend Rita Williams Garcia. I love Rita. Like, I love love love Rita.
And this picture of me giving the speech thanks to Paula Willey. It's funny. I was nervous the day before, but on the day, I was feeling just fine. I was so honored to be able to talk to an audience about womanhood and feminism and books. All going well, the speech should be published somewhere someday this year. I'll link it when it happens. Big room. Big screen. And yes, all those pictures are of me.
And this picture of the next day on the BEA floor signing ARCs of I Crawl Through It thanks to the best agent ever, Michael Bourret. That was a good day. Later, I got to thank Indie booksellers during the ABA award luncheon when I was so honored to receive a 2015 Indies Choice Honor Award. I forgot to write remarks, so I winged it and mentioned lettuce. If you know my connection to indie booksellers, then you know what it has to do with lettuce. If not, ask me one day during a Q&A.
And this. The train home. A barn. The sunset.
And this picture thanks to Beth Kephart's camera and Ruth's eye...at the Moravian Writer's Conference last weekend. Talking with Beth on stage was so much fun. Authentic love we have for what we do, for each other, and for readers and writers.
That's all I have for now. A me me me post about where I've been.
If you really want to keep up with me, I'm on Instagram as @petrifiedbat, Twitter as @AS_King and Facebook ---> click the links over there.
Now, back to writing and traveling. Next week? I go to NYC to record the audiobook of I CRAWL THROUGH IT. After that, some research travel south of the border.
xo
I've been places. I haven't uploaded pictures from my phone yet because 2015 is the year of not having time. It's okay, because time is being eaten by writing and nothing is better than writing. Not even a grilled peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Not even Utz cheese balls.
Anyway. I'm not here to update you on where I've been, though I will say I got to see Jimi Hendrix's grave and that means I have now paid my respects to both of my biggest musical influences.
I'm here to give you a heads up in case you don't follow me on Twitter or Facebook.
I am curating the May NOVL Box.
You want to win one of these boxes.
Just click on the image to enter. Or go here:
http://thenovl.com/post/117862415314/whats-a-novlbox-its-a-package-full-of
More soon when I have time.
I 'm dropping in to say thank you for your patience.
I'm writing a secret book.
I should have posted this card last month so you knew.
I'll be back soon.
Seattle area: go to my website for info about my visit to your lovely city at the end of April.
I have a list of news but I don't remember it all. But good things have happened and that's always nice.
But for now: secret book.
Shhhh. Don't tell anyone.
(Also: I joined Instagram. I'm @petrifiedbat. I know. I'm a million years late.)
So yesterday was my birthday. It was nice and I had a cool night with my family and we ate Mexican food and I was so full I never got to eat the cake in my fridge, so today after dinner I get to celebrate again. Two birthdays FTW!
But this week, something really cool happened.
 |
Paul at the ALAN workshop, 2013.
(I swear I have a selfie of us from 2010
but I can't find it.) |
I've known Paul Hankins for years through ALAN, RawInk, and social media. Paul teaches English in Indiana and he's a special kind of teacher. He refers to himself as "lead reader" of room 407 (I love that so much) and he has a passion for YA literature that goes all the way into his bones. He's also one hell of a writer.
Since I CRAWL THROUGH IT advance copies have arrived, the next step is my amazing publishing team sending those ARCs to people who request them, or people who require them and all that stuff. I am very grateful for these mailings.
So, Paul received a copy of the ARC from Little, Brown and as he does, he mentioned on Facebook that he was reading it. There is a line in the book about eighty nine cents. There are poems in the book, too--some with repeating titles. So when Paul told me he would give me his .89 (get it? two cents...eighty nine cents? Paul is funny.) when he was done, I said I'd write a poem called "How to Know if Your .89 Is Real." But then he beat me to it.
Five times.
These are gorgeous poems. I wanted to share them, so I'm linking all five below.
How to Know if Your .89 Is Real: Number 1
How to Know if Your .89 Is Real: Number 2
How to Know if Your .89 Is Real: 3
How to Know if Your .89 Is Real: FOR Ways
How to Know if Your .89 Is Real: Channel 5
I can't tell you how humbling and cool it is to read poems that were inspired by this crazy book I wrote that I never thought I'd publish. It's pretty amazing to wake up every morning this week and find a new poem waiting for me.
Thank you for the beautiful poems, Paul! I can't wait to thank you in person in Minneapolis this November!
xo
Amy
The UPS man brought me a lovely package today:
It's an ARC! It's an ARC!
And I love it and will sleep with it under my pillow tonight because that's how I roll.
There's a new blog in town called Hippodilly Circus--the brainchild of Christine Lively who is a fantastic woman, teacher, and teen advocate. Obviously, we get along pretty well because we have a lot in common.
(interrupting myself to say: isn't the Internet awesome? I've never met Christine in person, but I consider her an ally, a friend, and a complete badass.)
Anyway, I wanted to write some posts for Hippodilly Circus because I believe so strongly in its aim.
So here's the first of many.
It's still winter here. It's ice-storming like crazy right now. More snow due later this week. I don't care as long as I can hug this ARC of
I Crawl Through It a lot and write some words on a secret project.
I know there was other stuff to tell you but I completely forget it all.
Carry on.
My friend e.E. Charlton-Trujillo shared this with me today.
I had to share it with you.
Coming 9.22.15
I CRAWL THROUGH IT
Our big explosion is coming any day now.
Can’t you hear the ticking?
Four accomplished teenagers are on the verge of explosion. The anxieties they face at every turn have nearly pushed them to the point of surrender: senseless high-stakes testing, the lingering damage of date rape, the buried grief and guilt of tragic loss. They are desperate to cope—but no one is listening.
So they will lie. They will split in two. They will turn inside out. They will build an invisible helicopter to fly themselves far away from the pressure…but nothing releases the pressure. Because, as they discover, the only way to truly escape their world is to face it.
The genius of acclaimed author A.S. King reaches new heights in this groundbreaking work of surrealist fiction; it will mesmerize readers with its deeply affecting exploration of how we crawl through traumatic experience—and find the way out.
Hello.
Today is Bob Marley's birthday. He would have been 70 today. If you know me, then you know that I celebrate this day every year. May you be positive to every person you meet today. May you never believe that money makes you rich.
I am writing to you from the cave. I drew the cave on my Amy Road Map 2015 as pictured a few posts ago. I've been writing a book and I'm getting very near the end. Life is good in the cave.
News has come in the last week.
First, I got a letter that said that the Pennsylvania School Librarians Association had chosen me as their
2015 Outstanding Pennsylvania Author. This is fantastic and humbling and lovely because I have set every book I've published in Pennsylvania. Thank you PSLA! I can't wait to see you all on May 1st at your conference and thank you in person.
Small Glory news from ALA--she made the Best Fiction for Young Adults list.
Also, in a fantastic stroke of luck, she was listed on the
Top Ten Amazing Audiobooks list. A huge shout out to
Christine Lakin for her unbelievable performance.
Cover reveal for I Crawl Through It happened yesterday over on The Novl.
I Crawl Through It is coming 9.22.15 and it's a surrealist novel so saddle up and get ready for a mind-bending read. I'm not sure what else to say except that I love this cover. It encapsulates the book's themes well and it's as weird as the book is.
Back to the cave work now.
By the time you hear from me again, I will have finished the book I'm working on.
This is positive.
I'll leave you with this.
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