Wherein I share a ToC with Neil Gaiman
I LIVE.
I survived World Fantasy Con and had an absolute blast. I managed to complete a Poem-A-Day and make slow progress on my Clockwork Crown copyedits even during the con, which made me feel like a real writer. Fun fact: real writers are also sleep-deprived.
[Me working on copyedits on the flight to DC.]
One of the nifty things about being at a convention is that you get told about good news. I knew I had a reprint story that had been requested for inclusion in Twelfth Planet Press’s Year’s Best YA Speculative Fiction 2013, but the full Table of Contents was announced the day I was mostly offline as I flew cross-country.
So I was pretty gobsmacked to find out I’m sharing the book with Neil Gaiman. And my story follows his. Gulp.
The full ToC:
Selkie Stories Are For Losers – Sofia Samatar
By Bone-Light – Juliet Marillier
The Myriad Dangers – Lavie Tidhar
Carpet – Nnedi Okorafor
I Gave You My Love by the Light of the Moon – Sarah Rees Brennan
57 Reasons for the Slate Quarry Suicides – Sam J. Miller
The Minotaur Girls – Tansy Rayner Roberts
Not With You, But With You – Miri Kim
Ghost Town – Malinda Lo
December – Neil Gaiman
An Echo in the Shell – Beth Cato
Dan’s Dreams – Eliza Victoria
As Large As Alone – Alena McNamara
Random Play All and the League of Awesome – Shane Halbach
Mah Song – Joanne Anderton
What We Ourselves Are Not – Leah Cypess
The City of Chrysanthemum – Ken Liu
Megumi’s Quest – Joyce Chng
Persimmon, Teeth, and Boys – Steve Berman
Flight – Angela Slatter
We Have Always Lived on Mars – Cecil Castellucci
—
The book should be out in just a few weeks! Pretty darn good note to end the year on, I think.
Read MoreA Clockwork Dagger and Crown Playlist
I’ve been asked about what music I listen to when I write, or what songs I associate with The Clockwork Dagger. I figure it’s only right to answer those questions with the actual songs.
When it comes to my healer characters like Octavia Leander, there’s one song that sums them up: “Hands” by Jewel.
My brain is a weird place (I can picture my husband laughing at this and saying, “That’s an understatement”). I can listen to music when I do rough drafts but not when I edit. When I wrote The Clockwork Crown in January, I relied heavily on a Pandora channel that mixed up songs related to Mumford and Sons, Bruce Hornsby, and Foo Fighters. This in turn introduced me to some great songs by Wailin’ Jennies and Avicii.
The Foo Fighters connection came about, oddly enough, because of the Phoenix Coyotes. We’re season ticket holders. Through the first part of the hockey season last year, they started every game with a great pumped-up video that spliced in team footage with the Foo Fighter’s song “The Pretender.” I was starting work on Crown then and this song really connected with me as Octavia’s mantra. It evokes her growing maturity and rage as she fights against soldiers and terrorists in her pursuit, as well as her own self as her powers grow in frightening ways.
I can’t ignore the inspiration for the Lady’s Tree, either: the Super Nintendo game Secret of Mana. The music from it stands out so well 20 years later. Here’s a gorgeous version of the title screen music as performed by my dear friend, Lauren the Flute.
Read MoreTimeline to Publication (updated)
How long does it take to traditionally publish a book? Almost three years to the day, in my case. I first posted a version of this back in May but I’ve updated it with more info. If you have any questions on this whole process, just ask.
A note to start: I signed with my agent in March 2011 with another book–one that, unfortunately, did not sell.
2011
September 12th: started writing The Clockwork Dagger
October 27th: completed rough draft
2012
January – July: back and forth dialogue as I worked on major revisions with my agent
Late in year: book goes on submission to publishers
2013
January: first publisher offer on The Clockwork Dagger, soon followed by a second offer
February 22nd: verbal contract with Harper Voyager
not allowed to discuss the book deal in public at all; told very few people
July 3rd: received two-book contract to sign.
July 16th: deal announced in Publisher’s Marketplace. I then shouted it from rooftops.
September 6th: revision letter arrived. Deadline of October 31st.
the big edits; in my case, deleted 10k of 100,000 word book
October 15th: edits mailed in.
November 11th: editor accepted my edits.
December 10th: copyedits arrived, due 23rd.
these are nitpicky edits to clarify things, correct typos and inconsistencies
December 17th: turned in copyedits
Through December and January: back and forth regarding book cover details
2014
January 1-31st: wrote 83k book 2 rough draft
January 29th: page proofs arrived for book 1, due Feb 11th
page proofs are the book formatted for the actual book, but printed on standard computer paper. Only small changes allowed; mostly for typos and formatting, making sure italics are right, etc.
February 4th: mailed page proofs
February: edited book 2 draft, add another 10k
February 20th: found my back cover copy on Goodreads
February 21st: sent in dedication and acknowledgment for book 1
March 3rd: cover posted online
March-April: book 2 critiques, followed by more rounds of revision
April 14th: submitted book 2 to my editor (deadline was June 1st)
July 21st: revision letter for book 2 arrived; deadline of September 1st
August 15th: submitted revised book 2 to editor
also August 15th: two final copies of The Clockwork Dagger delivered to my house
***
September 16th: The Clockwork Dagger to be released
September 2015: book two, The Clockwork Crown to be released
Tor Sweepstakes and Lifestyle Magazine
I know some of you have been waiting for a giveaway of some sort. Here’s your chance! Over on the Tor.com blog, you can comment to win one of three copies of The Clockwork Dagger! (Limited to USA and Canadian addresses only, unfortunately.) This only runs through August 29th, so go comment! And please, spread the word.
Also, I’m thrilled that Lifestyle Magazine back home has published an article about me.
The paper magazine is distributed around the Visalia, California area. My parents are already plotting the 20 minute drive to get their own own copy plus a few more, for bragging purposes. You can also view the full magazine online; my article is page 54-56.
Cover Flats and Interviews and More
My editor sent me a seriously cool surprise this week… cover flats!
This is my first time seeing what the whole wrap-around cover is like. It doesn’t come across well in the pic, but the cover is in matte finish but the title is glossy so it has a really classy contrast. I already have Michael’s Crafts at work to make a custom frame for my precioooussss. I’ll post pics in a few weeks when it’s all done.
Lots of interviews and other posts elsewhere, too!
I’m at Reb Kreyling’s blog to discuss worldbuilding, revisions, even the music I listened to as I wrote my sequel.
I can also be found at Fanboy Comics. My good friend Jodi Scaife interviewed me about my path to publication, my influences, and the challenges of writing cross-genre.
The first Tuesday of the month is my anointed day at the Holy Taco Church. For August, I shared a recipe for Chili Spice Chocolate Brownies. These amped-up brownies use chocolates infused with chipotle and chili. It adds some pleasant heat, but not in a mouth-scorching way (trust me on this, I’m allergic to the hot stuff).
The Clockwork Dagger is included in a feature at Library Journal on A Multiplicity of Realms: SF/Fantasy Genre Spotlight.
I also have a guest post as part of Josh Vogt’s Write Strong series, all about authors who utilize fitness and good eating as part of their writerly routine. I talk about my summertime hikes in the desert near my house. ‘Cause I’m a little crazy like that.
Probably going crazier over the next few weeks, too.
Read MoreHello, August
It’s August. That means I can now say my book is coming out next month.
[Gif dedicated to my friend Sara.]
Last weekend we did a family trip to visit my in-laws in Arkansas. Good times were had. Possum Pie was eaten. There was frolicking in Little Rock and Eureka Springs. Critter was inducted into the world of Geo-caching. I made a little progress on my sequel revisions, and fully dived into work upon our return home. Have I mentioned recently how much I love this book? Well, I love this book. The Clockwork Crown is fun to read and it’s fun to edit.
In short story news, “Degrees of Starvation” was published at Every Day Fiction. The FAE anthology is also now available from Amazon and Barnes & Noble as well as directly from World Weaver Press.
With a month and a half until The Clockwork Dagger‘s book release, expect a lot more talk on that subject. Blog tours and giveaways and glee beyond human comprehension, and CAKE! That’s right, September’s Bready or Not features will be all about cake.
I’m just a wee bit excited, and not just about cake.
