Blackwood

I did not set up an official blog tour, but I thought I'd better make a post to house the things I have been doing.

I'm guessing some of you may be (hopefully!) more interested in reading some of these things now that the book is available for purchase and reading (in whatever format you like best, be it e-book, audiobook, or paper book–my personal favorite not least because the cover is so soft and the paper feels nice). I know I often want to go read interviews and things after I finish a book. If this is also your druthers, you're covered.

If you're more interested in reviews and press, links to those are housed on the Blackwood page.

I've divided the below into interviews and guest posts, in chronological order of when they were posted, first to last.

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Not A Blog Tour Giant Master ListRead More »

Just a quick update to say it appears the audiobook version of Blackwood has landed on Amazon/Audible. I haven't had a chance to listen to anything except the sample, but it gave me a little chill (though I'm honestly not sure if I can bear to listen to my own book–suspect I will only want to revise it!). However, if audiobooks are your cup of tea and you check it out, let me know what you think.

Also, I've updated the events page with everything I expect through the end of the year–though it's always possible something else will pop up.

Most remaining events are in Lexington or Louisville and in October, with one (VERY!) exciting exception in December:

• Oct. 13 at 1:15 p.m.: The Younger Games: The Pleasures and Pitfalls of Writing YA Fiction panel at the Writer's Block Festival in Louisville, Ky. (with Gwenda Bond, Kelly Creagh, Katrina Kittle, and Matt Jaeger).
• Oct. 20 at 12:15 p.m.: Author's Luncheon and Signing at the Kentucky Reading Association Annual Conference in Lexington, Ky. (Registration required.)
• Oct. 30 at 6 p.m.: Reading/signing at Joseph-Beth Booksellers in Lexington, Ky. (Just set this up! Excited!)
• Dec. 9 at 4 p.m.: Hudson Valley YA Society at Oblong Books and Music in Rhinebeck, NY (with Libba Bray, Maureen Johnson, and Gwenda Bond).

And a post with the master list of the "not a blog tour" stops so far related to the book will be going up after this one. Whee.

For everyone I owe stuff, I'm working on getting caught up, so soooon.

Today I'm over at the brilliant writer Nova Ren Suma's blog. She kindly interviewed me as part of her Fall 2012 Debut Interview series, which I'm thrilled to be included in. Nova is such a fabulous writer, so supportive of others, and her blog never fails to be provocative and inspiring. Including her pretty graphic to the left, because PRETTY.

There's also a giveaway of a signed copy of Blackwood and a handmade duct tape rose pen (one of the last left!). You can easily enter by filling out a quick form and/or commenting.

So go on over and find out which writer ghosts I'd like to go on tour with.

Whew! And last night wraps up book events for now, though I've got a couple of others this fall and winter (and I'm hoping to add another local reading/signing at the utterly fabulous Joseph-Beth soon). (I haven't even really started to think about next year yet…guess I should. Drop me a line if you'd like to invite me somewhere.)

If you want a signed copy of Blackwood, for now the easiest thing is to call or email Morris Book Shop and they can hook you up. If you want it personalized, they can arrange that, too. (The Book Cellar in Chicago, Malaprop's in Asheville, and Downtown Books in Manteo should also have a few on hand.)

Mainly, this post is a thank you–to everyone who came out last night or to any of the events and to all the wonderful booksellers who have hosted events and/or who are handselling the book. To everyone who's buying copies, of course, and to those who're recommending it to others. You are all the best. To say I'm overwhelmed by your support would be to downplay my level of whelmed. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Those of you who've already read the book will understand the significance of this, but for those who haven't: the Monas Hieroglyphica, the alchemical symbol created by John Dee, plays a significant role in Blackwood. So we made one out of cupcakes and donut holes–I like cupcakes, alchemists like donuts–for the launch party:

Apologies to John Dee, but it was delicious. There are a few more photos from the event here.

It was great fun, though a little like being at your own wedding in that I spent the night behind the table signing and chatting (no complaints here on that), so I have no idea how the mingling, eating, and imbibing portions of the evening went. (My elementary school librarian came two hours to the signing! My mom took a cell call during the q&a, but it turned out to be a book request from someone in my hometown! Lovely tweeps came out! Our YA book club finally managed a quorum, even if it wasn't an official meeting!) Hopefully everyone had a good time. And afterward we went for sushi with our dear friend Mandy. Then I ate a cupcake and slept like the dead.

Today I'm feeling like it's time to get back to work. I've got a long to-do list, including a new book that needs revising (not to mention The Woken Gods, which will need revising soon too). You may have noticed I'm not doing an official "blog tour," but just doing things here or there. I'll try to put up a post to collect links to all those things sometime this week so they can live in one central place. In the meantime, a few little links:

• I was over at the Overflowing Library yesterday, showing off our bookshelves on the Bookcase Showcase;
• Also yesterday I was in the Debut Author Spotlight at Book Chick City; and
• New review from Speculating on SpecFic: "Gwenda Bond’s debut novel is an intense read, perfect for YA readers who enjoy a darker kind of Fantasy. Blackwood is a perfect book for those bored with the usual paranormal aspects and want to try something new, and will be enjoyed by a wide audience because of its easily accessible themes."

It's UK publication day. Hurrah! Pip, pip! Etcetera.

Forgive me, UK friends. I'm a little tipped to the frazzled exhaustion end of the spectrum. I just looked around at the house when I walked in, which–let me tell you–after a few weeks of bouncing around here and there seems to have disintegrated into boxes, piles of books, and dog hair dust bunnies. So great to see Beth Revis again, to meet Meagan Spooner, Sarah Maas, and Susan Dennard (giveaway of all our books coming soon!), and to visit Malaprop's, as always, but I'm happy to say that Asheville is my last away stop for a bit. Order will soon be restored.

Some things:

• To celebrate UK release day, Jade at Ink Scratchers kindly did an interview with me and UK peeps can enter to win a copy of Blackwood.
• There's also a new, lengthy-ish interview over at My Bookish Ways, in which I talk about all sorts of madness–including my great love for Christopher Pike's Remember Me as a teen.
• Blackwood is sharing crazyfine company like Libba Bray's The Diviners and Malinda Lo's Adaptation on io9's Most Thrilling Science Fiction and Fantasy Books in September. Yay!
• Liz Burns reviews Blackwood over at her SLJ blog, A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy: "Other things I can say I love without being the spoiler queen: Miranda sewing and making her own clothes, and how that’s important to her as a character. The Blackwood family history. The small town feel. The way Blackwood captures a shore tourist town. (I grew up and live at the Jersey Shore, so loved her town / tourists bits.) The historical/supernatural mash up." (Liz is one of my go-to sources for recommendations, and one of my favorite reviewers to read, so particularly happy-dance-y over this one! And she really does do a fab job of avoiding spoilers.)
• Bookbitz review: "Blackwood blends the supernatural, the mysterious, and the everyday stress of being a teenager into a satisfying, and incredibly fun, story. What did happen to the Lost Colony? And will Miranda survive the truth?" *beams*
  

  photo by Katie Wardlow Decker

• Annnd our local daily paper, the Lexington Herald-Leader, did a profile story (thank you, Mary!), complete with a picture that I feel is even better with the context that my cheesy grin may be related to the fact that I said the following to the photographer (Katie Wardlow Decker, who was delightful) right before she took the shot: "I'll just lean here casually. Like I do this all the time. I just come here and lean against this shelf beside my book. Casually." I prefer hiding behind the book, like so, in this other shot from the story. (I have no excuse for babbling, however, except that I am admittedly a huge nerd. I did want to talk about the fact I'd been writing for ages though, because I hate the pervasiveness of the overnight success narrative. So, there.)

ANYWAY, the story is mainly to let local peoples know they should come to the launch party/signing at the most excellent Morris Book Shop on Saturday. There will be nibbles and donuts and a few prizes. It should be great fun! Come out if you can:

Sept. 8 at 6 p.m. : Blackwood Launch Party at the Morris Book Shop in Lexington, Ky.

And then everything will go back to normalish, right? Right. Or, rather, write. Because I miss it like crazy after a month of not writing.

So…today is The Day. The day in which a book I wrote, Blackwood, is Officially Published. (Manifold buying links at this page; so cheap–buy two! *ahem*)

I won't go into the story of the looong journey toward this, because there will be quite a few interviews and guest posts and such over the next couple of weeks that do that. Also, because it barely feels real, even though I've seen, signed, and watched books sold already. 

Mainly, I want to say thanks so much to everyone who has already supported my little book and/or me and to say I hope those of you who pick it up enjoy it. If you do, I'd be delighted if you tell a friend online or off, suggest it to your favorite teen, leave a review somewhere, or drop me a tweet to let me know. It was a fun book to write, and I hope it's a fun book to read.

If you want to know more about how Blackwood developed from a writing perspective, I'm over at Scalzi's giving The Big Idea behind it today. AND I'm also at Mary Robinette Kowal's talking about My Favorite Bit (conversational snippet alert).

Some links:

• Charlie Jane Anders (Hugo-award-winning author!) did brief video interviews with several authors–including me–at WorldCon about writing setbacks. Read and watch at io9.
• Thanks so much to the FABULOUS Kelly Jensen for coming out to the Angry Robot Author Showcase Event at the Book Cellar and hanging afterward. You can read her report and enter to win a signed copy of Blackwood at Stacked. (Yes, I was a little space cadet-y right after the q&a. *smile* ) It was an honor and pleasure to read with Kim Curran (whose excellent Shift is ALSO out today!), Chuck Wendig, and Adam Christopher at that event, and you should buy all their books. Many thanks to the Book Cellar–a truly gorgeous bookstore–for hosting us and to everyone who came. Yay!
• Tor.com review (with well-marked spoilers): "A very promising debut: I look forward to seeing what Gwenda Bond does next."
• Felicity Disco review: "The novel’s take on what caused the original disappearance was not what I expected, but it provided for a fascinating plot, and Miranda and Phillips are both great leads. (Yes, there’s a bit of romance, but they’re more concerned with NOT DYING most of the time.)"
• Popcorn Reads review: "I read it straight through because I couldn’t put it down – yep, another late night for me but so worth it! She got the historical elements dead-on and she nailed the island, and the paranormal/mystical elements were also perfect. I’m highly recommending this one, and not just for teens or young adults."
• Diary of a Bookworm review: "There was excellent tension, a seriously creepy villain and several plot twists I didn't see coming. But where Blackwood really excelled was with its two main characters, Miranda and Phillips. These two had fun dialogue, believable interactions and great chemistry."
• Civilian Reader review: "If you like your fiction with a dollop of suspense and an understated romance, then Blackwood is for you. This is a solid debut that has put Gwenda Bond onto my “Authors to Watch” List."

Last but not least, Asheville! I will be visiting you tomorrow as part of this event with fancy people:

• Sept. 5 at 7 p.m.: Unexpected Heroines: Girls Who Kick Butt, But Don't Fit In at Malaprop's Bookstore/Cafe in Asheville, N.C., featuring Susan Dennard, Sarah J. Maas, Meagan Spooner, Gwenda Bond, and Beth Revis. 

Come out!

Also, I'd be remiss if I didn't say how great WorldCon was (if I had more time I'd do a full post about it!). It was a complete delight to see old friends and meet new ones, as usual. I was on a fun panel with excellent people (including the hilarious Leigh Bardugo), did a reading from Blackwood and the current draft of The Woken Gods, and got to hang out with Erica from excellent blog the Book Cellar afterward. It was also great fun to hang out with so many fellow Strange Chemistry authors. Here's a pic editor Amanda took of me, Kim, Cassandra Rose Clarke, and Julianna Scott in the bar on the first day:

Would love to see pictures if you encounter Blackwood in the wild!

This interview is special, because one of my favorite up-and-coming writers Kat Howard conducted it for Subterranean Press.

I've been lucky enough to work with Subterranean on many behind-the-scenes things (in addition to the fun of being given the keys to the magazine for a YA experiment) for the past few years, and I think it says everything about how wonderful they are that celebrating Blackwood was their idea. Thank you.

And thanks to Kat — who says lovely things about the book and asked great questions. I may have proposed John Dee as fashion designer, among more high-minded topics. You'll have to read it to find out.

In the realm of other awesome things of today, Morris Book Shop did some chalk art.

I feel really lucky to know so many wonderful people. Makes it a lot less easy to descend into panic with Official Release Day a week away. *gratitude*