I may not win the award for most frequent blog posts - but I do hope to snag a blue ribbon when it comes to having great guests drop by for a little one-on-one chat. Jill Murray is not only a friend and fellow Montreal author she is also the voice and code behind the wonderful kid-lit writer site Y-Eh!
Jill's first YA book, BREAK ON THROUGH was followed by the recently released RHYTHM AND BLUES, a "thoughtful and glittery young adult novel about a teenage girl's quest for - fame, love and self-identity". I loved this book and think Jill has this amazing sixth sense for capturing the voice of her main character, Alya. I was lucky to get some time with Jill, who not only is rumored to make her own ice cream - but is busy getting ready for a big trip to do research for her next book.
And now - without further ado - give it up for Jill!
Jill: Wow. The applause is deafening.
Me: I know. If a blog article was posted in the woods would it make any sound?
I recently wrote about being a Facebook newbie, and to be honest I'm still pretty green when it comes to poking, friending and deciding whether I want to comment on someone else's decision to like "Big Bang Theory" or "100 things I never want to eat".
Still as all my writer friends continually urge me - Facebook is just one of many places we need to put our best word forward and shout about our books, school visits, favorite book stores and what we had for lunch (tuna sandwich, very tasty). I know everyone is hungering to know what is happening in my oh-so-exciting life, which really boils down to doing a lot of laundry and asking the dog if he needs to pee.
But with a new book about to be published I have to face the reality that we writer-types have to do whatever we can to tell anyone with ears that we have a new book coming out. So here I go: MILO: STICKY NOTES & BRAINFREEZE is being published by Aladdin on September 14th. For all you BEA attendees, drop by the booth and pick up an ARC. Tell them, Alan sent ya!
For everyone else - be forewarned: I am on a Milo mission and even though I am usually a pretty reserved guy, I will stop at nothing to mention him. Heck, Milo's even got his own Facebook profile. So if you need a new friend who is 13 years old and has a passion for Freezies
- check him out there! You'll not only get to know him - but you'll also meet some of his friends.
I used to be an early adopter of all things tech but have to admit I was resistant to joining Facebook mainly because the last thing this attention deficicient writer needs is something else that I can check up on and obsess over.
But alas, I didst succumb to the siren's song. (Okay, the siren was my editor and marketing exec at Aladdin - and their song was more of a pleasant chat). So here I am on
FACEBOOK. Yay. And yes, I am wasting all sorts of time, thankfully avoiding building farms or becoming a hit man - but still I am now watching my wall grow and staring at the stream of comments from people I know, or sort of know, or know someone I know or once knew. Phew...
I know we writers are supposed to be the leaders of our own PR parades and that's why I jumped in. With
MILO just a mere 4 months away from pub date I know that I need to be doing everything I can to be visible. And as much as I kicked and screamed about social media - I am having lots of fun posting and linking and commenting and counting "friends" like a growing number of jellybeans in a jar (which is always within reach of my wandering desktop mind).
So if you're reading this and want to know what I'm thinking and linking to -
come on over. But if you expect me to link to a Twitter account I'm still resisting that one...this week.
I can't believe the amount of time that has elapsed since my last post. Can I write it off to the slumping economy? Global warming? Canada beating USA in the gold medal hockey game? (and with that sentence I think I just admitted that yes, I am finally adjusting to life in Canada!)
Many new things to write about but for now I just want to SHOW OFF the brand new cover for Milo. Oh, and the title now officially is:
Milo: Sticky Notes & Brain Freeze. (My giddy ego loves that the book is already up for
pre-order on Amazon - reminding me it's
really getting published.)
I love the simplicity of the letters and how the solid color background makes my characters pop. And we worked long and hrad to get Milo's expression just right. Karin Paprocki, Art Impressario of Team Milo, really worked overtime to get the cover perfect and I can only boast (yet again) of the wonderful collaboration going on between me and my editors at Aladdin. Thanks Liesa and Karin!
So, what do you guys think of the cover? I'd love to hear some unbiased feedback....as long as it's all glowing!!!!
Thank you so much SCBWI for honoring the funny and heart-felt part of me that is MILO.
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