Strange Magick

Well, it was a really busy week.

The Fivers went live--taking our first step toward changing the world--and we were thrilled to see so many of you vowing to join us on the journey! Oh, and the winners have been announced too, so click HERE to see if one of them was you!

I typed "The End" on Untitled Book #4, took a few seconds to celebrate, then went right back to page one to start revising. . .

I learned that the EVERMORE & BLUE MOON translation rights were just sold to Romania!

I also learned that EVERMORE & BLUE MOON hit the #2 & #3 spots this week on the New York Times Best Sellers list for Children's Paperbacks so THANK YOU for that!

Oh, and the SHADOWLAND release date has been moved up again, so look for it on 11.17.09.

And I got a nice mention in the September Costco connection (see above), along with Kelley Armstrong, PC Cast, Cassandra Claire, and others in an article about paranormal and teens!

And speaking of paranormal and teens, I just learned that NIGHT RUNNER, a book I provided a blurb for a few months back will be released on Sept 1!!! And let me tell you, it is one, action packed, thrill ride that had me hooked from the first sentence! So, without further ado:

This is NIGHT RUNNER:

This is what NIGHT RUNNER is about:

For Zack Thomson, living in the Nicholls Ward isn’t so bad. After his parents died, he developed strange and severe allergies, and the mental institution was the only place where he could be properly looked after. As strange as it was, it was home.

He could watch as much television as he wanted; his best friend Charlie visited him often enough; and Nurse Ophelia—the prettiest no-nonsense nurse ever—sometimes took him bowling. Of course, that didn’t mean he had it easy. His allergies restricted his diet to strawberry smoothies, and being the only kid at the hospital could get lonely. But it never once crossed Zack’s mind to leave…until the night someone crashed through the front doors and told him to run. Now he’s on a race for answers—about his past, his parents, and his strange sickness—even as every step takes him closer to the darkest of truths . . .

This right HERE is a very fun, NIGHT RUNNER quiz!

This is one of the places you can pre-order NIGHT RUNNER!

And last, but not least, these drawings were sent to me by Alexa!!! Aren't they awesome??!!! I love, love, love them--THANK YOU, ALEXA!!!

Happy Sunday everyone!

Alyson
xoxo

Win A signed copy of BLUE MOON!!!!

(Not a song title, but we'll get back to that soon--promise!)

So, today, not only did I list my Five HERE. (if you don't know what a "Five" is then you really must click!) and I'm also giving away a signed copy of BLUE MOON, so be sure to stop by and leave a comment for your chance to win!

Also, a reader of this blog just sent me the German cover of EVERMORE (above), which I just learned will be released over there in November. Check it out! So dark and dreamy--I love to see how other countries interpret the cover art!

And, last but not least--I did it! Yesterday I typed my two favorite words-- "The End" to UNTITLED IMMORTALS #4. Of course I now have to revise the heck out of it before it's ready for my editor to read, but still--What A Feeling!-- And there's today's song title!

Have a great day everyone!

A

:-D

Ruby Tuesday

Well, it's been a pretty exciting week so far and to think it's only Tuesday! In case you somehow missed it, yesterday, fellow YA authors Kay Cassidy, Tera Lynn Childs, Becca Fitzpatrick, and I launched the new web community, Living Your Five--and were totally and completely gobsmacked (in the good way!) by the amount of goodwill, cheers, and support from all of you who showed up to take part in the inauguration!

Just in case you missed it, you might want to head on over (after you finish reading this of course!) and see what it's all about. We're also giving away some pretty amazing prizes that I guarantee you will not want to miss, so just click HERE to start Living Your Five!!

Speaking of busy, (we weren't but I needed to segue!), things have been especially busy over here at the home office headquarters and so much is happening I wanted to take an opportunity to get all caught up, so here goes:

Signings:

All signings are always listed on the far right side of this blog as well as on the Events page on my website, but still, I wanted to make you aware of the one coming up on Saturday, September 12th, where I'll be talking & signing at the Mission Viejo Reader's Festival. My panel is from 2:30-3:30 in the Jacaranda Room, and I'll be signing books immediately after. The address is:

Mission Viejo Library

100 Civic Center

Mission Viejo, CA 92691

And just so you know, amazing authors Dean Koontz, Lisa See, and Henry Winkler (yup, The Fonz!) will be there too, and I really, really, hope YOU can make it!

Smart Chicks Kick It Tour:

The Smart Chicks are now confirmed for signings in Toronto, Austin, and San Diego, and there is more good news to come so stay tuned! Don't know what I'm even talking about? Click HERE! for all the info.

EVERMORE in the UK:

The EVERMORE UK release has been moved up to September 17th (woo-hoo!!)!! Which means my friends across the pond will get their very own version where "color" is spelled "colour" and, um, other really cool things like that! I'm so excited to be sold in the UK, it was the first foreign place I ever visited, and has alway remained a favorite of mine! I'm hoping this means I'll have an excuse to go back . . .

SHADOWLAND:

I know I mentioned it before, but from the amount of questions and e-mails I'm getting, I think it bears repeating so here goes:

SHADOWLAND will now be released on 11.24.09. That is official. It will also be released in hardcover with a trade paperback version to follow about a year later. And for those of you who prefer your books to match, I'm told that at some point EVERMORE and BLUE MOON will also be made available in hardcover too. I'm really excited about this, and want to thank all of you for your excitement too!

And, speaking of Frequently Asked Questions, as I'm racing toward the end of UNTITLED #4 (yup, still calling it that!), desperately trying to finish it up by its deadline, I've gotten a little behind on answering my e-mails and messages. But since I've I have noticed a similar theme to the questions, I thought I'd post some of the answers right here:

Are you going to make the IMMORTALS into a movie/TV show?

Me, personally? No. This is entirely up to Hollywood, not me. And though a producer has optioned the dramatic rights to the entire series, that is all I have to share with you at this time. But if that should change in some wonderful, dramatic way, I will shout it from the rooftops, and for those of you who don't live nearby, I will also blog about it here!

Would you please consider me to star in and/or help direct the movie/TV series?

See above. If, by chance, the IMMORTALS was made into a movie/TV series, I assure you, I would have nothing to do with choosing the cast. They hire professional casting directors for these things, so it's really out of my hands.

Is SHADOWLAND the last book in the series?

No! SHADOWLAND, will be in stores on 11.24.09, and there will be several more to follow in 2010/11, Ever and Damen have many more adventures ahead of them! Also, Riley (Ever's ghostly sister) will get her own series starting in Fall 2010!

I'm writing a book and was wondering if you'd be able to read it and give me your opinion on it?

I'm sorry, but due to legal reasons, I am unable to read any unpublished works and immediately delete any and all that are sent to me. Though I wish you all the best on your writing!

Okay, that about covers it! But remember to check out what the Fivers are up to HERE.

And stay tuned, tomorrow, I will be posting my Five!

Have a great day everyone!

Alyson

xoxo

Living Your Five is Live!!!

LIVING YOUR FIVE IS HERE!

We know, we know... we've been hinting about it for weeks. The super secret project of Kay Cassidy, Tera Lynn Childs, Becca Fitzpatrick, and me. The #fivers hashtag. The Founding Fiver badges. The huge top secret contest. So many secrets!

Good news. The secret's out.

Join us for the worldwide launch of Living Your Five! Living Your Five is an online community dedicated to changing our world one person at a time. You don't have to cure the world of cancer or banish world hunger in a single day. It's about working together, each of us taking one more step every day. It's about knowing what you care about--what you're passionate about!--and stepping away from the sidelines of your life to make your mark on the world.

To celebrate the launch of the official Living Your Five web site, we're even hosting a contest with awesome daily prizes and a MEGA grand prize all courtesy of our Founding Fivers! Find out all the details at www.livingyourfive.com.

We're ready to change the world. Now it's up to you.

Will you watch from the sidelines or join us on the ride? (Come on, join us--we know you want to!)

Fivers

I'm a Fiver.

So is she.

And she.

And she.

Are you??

Find out soon . . .

Have a good weekend everyone!

A

:-D

Very Exciting SHADOWLAND news!!!

First, the cover:

Second, the new release date:

November 24, 2009!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Cheers Everyone!!!

Alyson

xoxo

It Don't Come Easy

(Yup- Ringo Starr!)

So, in an effort to keep this blog humming along despite the fact that the brain juices are running low (see post below), I came across this cool, book-related meme today over at Magical Musings and figured I'd play along! And, hopefully, you'll decide to play along too because that would make it even cooler!

So, here are my picks-- be sure to leave yours in the comments!

- What book(s) made you a better writer?

STORY by Robert Mckee changed my life. Took me from unpublished to published. SAVE THE CAT by Blake Snyder is one I turn to again and again--the Beat Sheet is insanely useful!

-What book(s) made you cry?

The first book to ever make my cry was CHARLOTTE'S WEB--I sobbed like a baby! After that, I seem to remember shedding a tear or two over BASTARD OUT OF CAROLINA and THE LOVELY BONES. I know there are others, I can be quite the cry baby, but those are the ones that spring to mind.

-What book(s) made you laugh until you were in tears?

I will never forget reading David Sedaris's ME TALK PRETTY ONE DAY on a flight from NYC to LA. I was practically falling out of my seat laughing, luckily the seat next to me was empty! Chrisitopher Moore and Nick Hornby always inspire these kinds of hysterics as well!

What book(s) made you feel like you could conquer the world?

Well, I don't know if they made me feel like a world beater, but Judy Blume's books helped me through a tough adolescence--they made me feel more equipped to handle my problems. She is a huge inspiration to me!

What book(s) have you read three times or more?

WUTHERING HEIGHTS, DEENIE, CATCHER IN THE RYE, FRANNY AND ZOEY, REBECCA, BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY'S . . .

What book(s) kept you up all night reading?

Hmm, off the top of my head, Elizabeth Scott's LIVING DEAD GIRL- spare, haunting, and I couldn't put it down! Oh, and last night I skipped watching TV (my afterwork treat!), so I could finish Rebecca Stead's WHEN YOU REACH ME--wonderful!

What book(s) do you want to read again?

I want to read THE LOVELY BONES again before the movie comes out, I'd like to read Paul Coelho's THE ALCHEMIST again- a truly lovely tale . . . oh, there's lots of books I'd read again and again, but there are also lots I still need to read for the first time around!

Okay, now it's your turn!! Sing it out in the comments!

Have a great day everyone!

A

xoxo

Smart Chicks Kick It!!!!

The blog title above is not a song title (though it should be!). It's actually the first of those very exciting announcements I was dying to share with you!

Coming to a city that may or may not be near you--next September 2010-- YA authors Melissa Marr, Kelley Armstrong, et moi are kicking off the:

Smart Chicks Kick It Tour!!!

Details are still in the making but so far we got:

6-8 Cities
6 Authors/City

Our Tour, Our Way
Author tours are usually organized by the publisher. All we have to do is show up, which is great, but we started thinking maybe we'd like to try something different. Organize our own tour, just the way we want it. Pick the cities. Pick the authors. Organize the events. So, in Sept 2010, we'll do just that.

It's Your Tour, Too
Setting up our own tour is great. But it's not really about us. It's about the readers--getting out and meeting them. We'll be looking for input from readers to help us make this the kind of tour they want, too. And because we can't get to every city, we'll also be setting up a virtual tour component. We're still in the planning stages, but watch this page for more details.

Appearing at every stop:
Kelley Armstrong
Melissa Marr
Alyson Noël

Appearing at one or more stops:
Rachel Vincent
Mary Pearson
Jeri Smith Ready
Kimberly Derting
Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Carrie Ryan
Mary Pearson
Jackson Pearce
Jess Verday
And more to come . . .

I can't even tell you how excited I am to be part of this--and will keep you updated as the details come together!

Have a great day everyone!

Alyson

Train Kept A Rollin'

I feel I should warn you right up front, before you commit to reading this any further, that this is going to be one of those "catch-up" blogs--the kind where I basically list all of the most recent happenings in place of any real, deep, philosophical ramblings.

This is basically due to the fact that UNTITLED IMMORTALS #4 is not only in need of a title, but it's also in need of an ending . . . an ending that's due on my editor's desk (shout out to the awesome Rose Hilliard!!) in just under a month and it's pretty much sucking up any and all of my creative juices, which means there's not a whole lot of juice left over for stuff like this . . . so . . .consider yourself warned!

First off, I'm happy to announce that I will have a short story in the upcoming anthology, KISSES FROM HELL! Born in the same tradition as PROM NIGHTS FROM HELL, and VACATIONS FROM HELL, this one is about, well, kisses. But probably not the good kind, since, well, they're from hell and all . . .

Also, if you were in any way, shape, and/or form hankering for the audio edition of EVERMORE, well, hanker no more! This is your chance to win your very own copy--just click HERE for all the deets on how to do just that--but be sure to do so before August 15, cuz that's when the contest ends!

And since I've boarded the happy announcements train, I'm thrilled to announce the following:

BLUE MOON landed at #1 again this week on the New York Times Best Sellers List for Children's Paperbacks (making for 5 weeks straight!), with EVERMORE coming in at #3 (making for 27 weeks in the top 5!). They also landed on the USA Today list at #35 & 77 respectively, and on the Publisher's Weekly list at #2 and #7--so thank you thank you thank you for that!!

Also, BLUE MOON was chosen as an Alloy "Sweet Summer Read" you can check it out HERE.

And, I recently had the amazing opportunity to have lunch with a longtime hero of mine, sorry I can't say who, but aside from it being one of those truly great, fan-girl-kind-of-moments, I just so happened to glean one of the secret to their amazing success--ready? It involves waking up at 3:30 AM to lift weights before settling in to work. Simple right? That's exactly what I thought when I decided to try it out for myself . . .only to wake up at my usual 8:30 AM . . .Oh well, guess I'm more of a "mid-afternoon/night person" anyway . . .

And since I like to leave things on a cliff hanger when and where I can, allow me to say I have some VERY EXCITING announcements coming up soon. . .

Very . . .

Very . . .

Exciting . . .

Very, Very, Soon . . .

Have a great day everyone!

A

xoxo

Drops of Jupiter

(Still using random song titles as blog titles and loving the ease of it- so expect it to continue until further notice!)

So the other night,when my BFF invited my husband and I to a "wine dinner at Morton's on Thursday," I pretty much said, "Sure!" without asking for any further details other than what time we needed to be there. I'm facing several deadlines, there'd been a bit of sadness lately, and I knew some time with her and her fiancee would provide a nice break.

As it turns out, "the wine dinner" was actually a Blind Tasting Seminar and was absolutely fascinating.

I like wine. It's pretty much the only alcoholic beverage I drink. I even spent a week in a French Chateau in the Rhone Valley several years ago learning about wine in a seminar sponsored by the airline I used to work for (there was an essay contest for people who wanted to attend and I was one of the winners!). The purpose of course, was not to have a blast drinking wine all day (which we did), but to learn enough about wine so that we could knowledgeably suggest wine pairings for our first class customers on international flights (which we also did).

But, as I said that was several years ago, and the memories of what I learned has since gone a bit fuzzy. So last night's course was not only a really fun refresher, but it gave me the inside scoop on how people can successfully pronounce a wine's vintage and type simply by doing the whole swirl, sniff, and taste without once seeing the bottle from which it was poured.

And while I won't get into all the minutiea of how that is done, and while I in no way want to promote underage drinking as I know many of you are well under 21, I will say I was pretty fascinated to learn that one of the distinguishing notes of Sauvignon Blanc is that it smells like "cat box" and that Pinot Noir smells like "barnyard."

MMMMM. . .YUMMMM!!!

But what's really cool is this certificate declaring me an official, Morton's Associate Sommelier!! Rock on!

Oh, and then after the class, we moved into the dining room to enjoy dinner, an I saw that my BFFs had arranged this:

Notice the first line at the top? How cool is that?!

Thanks Snarky & O'malley--you guys rock!!!

And speaking of things that rock, check out this brand spankin' new booktrailer for EVERMORE's UK release! I love it so much, I'm just gobsmacked by what a good job they've done!

View it HERE!

Oh, and the UK version also made the cover of this week's Bookseller magazine! Check it out HERE.

Have a great day everyone!

Alyson

xoxo

John Hughes

John Hughes

1950-2009

Rest in Peace.

Who'll Stop the Rain?

So if you read the previous post, then you know that author, screenwriter, story guru, and all around amazing human being (and I don't use that lightly, in this case it's true) Blake Snyder has passed away, leaving this world way too soon.

It's taken me a few days to collect my thoughts on this loss, probably because I, like many others, felt it so deep. Blake was one of those rare individuals with a passion for both life and story craft that was hugely infectious, you couldn't help but smile when he was in the room.

I'd read his books a few years ago, and always recommend them to anyone even remotely interested in story craft as they are truly life-changing, or at least they were for me. But I didn't get the chance to see him in person until the RWA convention in San Francisco last year, taking the stage in front of hundreds (thousands?) of writers, mostly female, and he was so giddy with excitement about the craft of storytelling he actually giggled--resulting in my best memory of the entire weekend.

Then, last April, when my local RWA chapter invited him to come speak, I seized the chance to sign books alongside him. Afraid of coming off like the semi-crazed fan that I was, I couldn't help but gush, over and over again, about how much his books helped me with everything from plotting my novels to crafting synopsis and back cover copy. And rather than being put off by my rabid, fan-girl, mumblings, he couldn't have been more gracious or kind--that's just who he was. And when he bought a copy of EVERMORE and asked me to sign it--well, it was a moment I'll never forget.

We exchanged a few e-mails, and I was on the verge of e-mailing him again, but being so busy with the deadline for book #4 (still untitled!), a story for an anthology (KISSES FROM HELL), and copy-edits for SHADOWLAND--I put it off, thinking I had plenty of time--something there's never enough of. I should know that by now.

And though he's no longer with us, his passion for story and people will always live on in the brilliant legacy he left behind in his books, his movies, and his passion for those whom he reached.

I'll be speaking at my local RWA chapter on Saturday morning about the craft of writing YA, drawing on some examples of how Blake's methods influenced my books, among other things. If you get a chance to stop by, I'd love to see you there. The cost is $10 for members and $20 for non-members. Details for the event can be found HERE.

Carpe Diem everyone!

A

xoxo

Blake Snyder

Blake Snyder 1957-2009

Screenwriter, teacher, and author of SAVE THE CAT, Blake Snyder has passed away today and I am so deeply saddened.

He was a wonderful teacher and a beautiful, inspiring person with a generosity of spirit seldom seen.

He will be greatly missed.

Rest in Peace.