Barnes and Noble Event Recap

Me, Todd Mitchell, and Amy Ryan

Hey guys,

Just got back from Aspen... but before I write about that, I want to post these pics of the Barnes and Noble event from last week with my friends and co-finalists in the Colorado Book Award, Todd Mitchell (who is the winner in the YA category for The Secret to Lying-- yay, Todd-- well-deserved! (I LOVE that book!) and Amy Kathleen Ryan (another super-talented writer-- I just devoured the review copy of her upcoming sci-fi book Glow (Sept 2011 release).  I'll do a longer post about Aspen and the awards ceremony and everything, but since I just have a few minutes now, I thought I'd let you take a peek at these pics. 

Amy, Todd, and I did a panel on writing YA novels-- there was a really nice turn-out-- writers of all ages.  Great questions, interesting conversation.  The fun thing about being on panels is hearing about other writers' processes and philosophies and journeys... and since Amy and Todd are some of the smartest and funniest writers I know, it was a blast being on a panel with them. 

All three of us finalists in the YA category are from Fort Collins-- there's an incredibly supportive writing community here.  Here I am with Marianne Mitchell, fabulous children's and YA author (who used to live in Ft Collins and is here visiting).  Her book Joe Cinders-- a Wild West  version of Cinderella-- is one of Lil Dude's all-time favorite books!

 

And here I am with Sheralyn, who is always a friendly face at local writers' events.


Here I am with Jordan, who was one of the writers in the young writers camp Todd taught at last week. He had great questions, and we spoke a bit after the event. His questions (about how I keep track of my story ideas) made me remember the time in my life where I felt compelled to write down all my thoughts and musings on life and existence, but I couldn't write them down fast enough and I felt like I was going crazy.  (This was in my late teens/early twenties).  At some point, I began to feel less crazy, but I think that was a useful stage for me to go through on my writing journey...


Here we are with Teresa Funke, who  organizes the local SCBWI "schmooze group" in town. She and I were also involved in the Imaginantes workshops the week before last... she had interesting things to say about her Mexican ancestry and the relatives who inspired her book, V for Victory.


Thanks for reading! And if you're in the Grand Junction area, I hope to see you at one of my Mesa County Library events coming up in July!

xo,
Laura

Austin TLA Recap (just a month late...)

Hey yall,
I've been so crazy-busy I haven't had a chance to tell you about my trip to Austin last month (for the Texas Library Association Conference), so now that I've gotten a chance to catch my breath from all the traveling, here goes!

Author buddies David Levithan, James Dashner, Lauren Myracle, Carrie Ryan, and me after a fun BBQ dinner (there were lots of those in the heart of BBQ land!)...

My new editor-- Francoise Bui! The editor I  had for my first six books- Stephanie Lane Elliott-- had a beautiful baby last fall and made a career change, so Delacorte connected me with my new editor, Francoise, who I like very much and who's editing The Jade Notebook with me. (She's in the middle of this pic-- I wish I'd gotten a good one of the two of us together!)

Cool paper mache guitar centerpieces... I think that Texas teens made them for us! Lots of music, art, and tattoos in Austin, I noticed (and BBQ).

And lots of amazing librarians!! Like my fun dinner companions...

Always exciting to hang out with authors I admire... James Dashner is the author of The Maze Runner series-- incredible speculative fiction-- and he's an exceedingly nice guy, I discovered. And we're both interested in parallel universes and the like...

Here are some more great librarian at the signing I did for Star in Forest-- loved their enthusiasm!  I have to say that Texas librarians just *exude* enthusiasm-- it was a real joy talking with them all.

At the Random House dinner... more friends, new and old, in the publishing industry... and super-yummy food!

So much laughing and great conversation that night... topics covered included Friday Night Lights (which I have yet to see but apparently everyone at Delacorte is obsessed with), Paul Simon (who I've loved for decades), blueberries vs blackberries (I prefer the latter), and so much more!

It's such a treat to stay in high-up rooms in fancy shmancy hotels that I'd never stay in normally... and to get picked up in a sleek black car-- the very car that Justin Bieber rode in not long before me, as a matter of fact. I'm no pop culture aficionada, but I do know that name.... my driver, apparently did not! He told me he found himself amidst squealing girls at the airport to meet Justin, and that's when he asked another driver standing next to him, "So who is this Justin Bieber guy I'm picking up, anyway?"  He said Justin was quite the nice young gentleman, and gave him a $100 tip.  (At which point in the story, I started feeling a little bad that regular old authors like me can't swing close to that kinda tip...) 


I have more pics from the trip-- pics of my wanderings by the river/lake path and of my agent retreat, but now I have to try to get Lil Dude to understand what "quiet time" means... he's abandoned naps, to my chagrin, but I'm determined to have some kind of siesta-type hour in the day.  Wish me luck (today was not successful!)

xo,
Laura

Roundup of pics and news

Hey everyone!

I figured I should post this little smattering of pics and news before my trip to Austin, TX, for the TLA conference and my agent's retreat. I'm sure I'll have heaps of photos to post soon...

Here's a pic from today at The Queen of Water event at Barnes and Noble with some of the lovely ladies (and baby!) who came. (Yes- that's me in the blue shirt-- I got a haircut!  It hasn't been this short since I was 14!  My head feels lighter...)


Here are a few pics from my visit to Irish a couple weeks ago for a cupcake party and Star in the Forest signing. 


The party was thrown by BookTrust, a wonderful literacy non-profit based in Ft. Collins that connects books with kids.  The celebration was in honor of Irish Elementary teacher David Autenrieth, who received the Excellence in Education Award for being a super-awesome teacher.  BookTrust gave beautifully inscribed copies of Star in the Forest to the fourth graders, which I then autographed... very exciting for everyone!


And here are a few pics from my Half Moon Bay trip that the librarians sent me...







It was great to see so many parents there with their kids... what a fun evening!

 

And now for the good news I mentioned-- Star in the Forest has been selected for some nice honors:

• Bank Street Children's Best Children's Books of the Year *Outstanding Merit*
• A Capitol Choices Noteworthy Book for Children (Washington D.C.)
• A Grand Canyon Readers Award Nominee (Arizona)
• A DCF Award Nominee (Vermont Libraries Children's Selection)

And The Queen of Water has been nominated for the Amelia Bloomer Project-- a list of outstanding feminist literature from an ALA group. 

(*happy dance*)

Okay, time to get Lil Dude to bed!

Cheers,

Laura

You're invited...

 
Hello dear readers,
 
Lil Dude is home sick today, so I'm grabbing a few minutes here and there to work (I couldn't for the life of me get him to take a nap... argh!)  Anyway, real quick, I'll let you know about two upcoming book release events for THE QUEEN OF WATER here in Ft. Collins.

March 12, Saturday, 6 pm, Old Firehouse Books, 232 Walnut St., Fort Collins, CO
Chatting, signing, reading, music, food, fun... (I bought a popcorn popper for this event!  My co-author, Maria Virginia, serves popcorn (or some variety of popped/toasted corn) at every meal...mmm...)


April 9, Saturday, 2 pm, Barnes and Noble, 4045 S. College Ave, Fort Collins, CO
Chatting, signing, reading, fun (I'll see if I can serve freshly popped popcorn at this event, too!)  

Mark your calendars!  Bring friends and family!  Thanks for spreading the word.... I hope to see you there!

And before I bid you farewell and cuddle with Lil Dude and watch Wall-E for the 20th time, here's something cool:  Random House put together a "Books of Laura Resau Readers Guide"!  So pretty... you can see it here.  (My mom and I are in the midst of writing a longer, detailed discussion guide specifically for The Queen of Water... I hope to post that next month, so stay tuned!

Okay, Wall-E awaits...

xo,
Laura

EMLA retreat!

Ah... Chicago in the springtime... tulips galore!

One of the many amazing things I experienced last week in Chicago was a retreat with the authors of EMLA (which stands for Erin Murphy Literary Agency)-- also called the Gang of Erin. The retreat was my third, and it was truly phenomenal-- three energizing and inspiring days... I learned heaps about everything from the publishing industry to techniques for plotting and revising novels and much more...

The best part, of course, was the people... spending time with my agent, Erin...

 and the agency's other wonderful agent (and author), Ammi-Joan Paquette (here she is in green) with Cate Tiernan (her next book, Immortal Beloved, will be coming out soon!) perusing review copies of other authors' books...

and nearly thirty other fabulous authors...



It was a special opportunity to bond with everyone in person (after months or years of only online conversations.) And what I'm most grateful for is that everyone, whether published or prepublished, was a talented writer with so much to offer in discussions-- and everyone was so warm and gracious and enthusiastic about each other's writing. I love these ladies (and man-- hi Bob!)  Here's Ruth Barshaw, Ammi-Joan, and Audrey Vernick (in the middle-- I can't wait to read her picture book Is your Buffalo Ready for Kindergarten? with Lil Dude!)

I feel SO lucky to be part of this group, and can't wait for next year's retreat (which will be in Austin next spring). I know I seem overly-gushy and mushy, but I'm not the only one... we all came away from the retreat just spilling over with gratitude.

                        me with Sarah DeFord William

We spent mornings in large-group discussions in a comfy suite on the 19th floor, and then we scattered for the afternoon-- some of us (me) writing in our rooms or at cafes, some sight-seeing, some lounging in the suite and talking.  Then, in the evenings, we gathered in small or large group for dinner.  Delightful! Here I am with Natalie Lorenzi, Liz Garton Scanlon, and Cynthia Omololu-- we're in a pretty little park, waiting for our scrumptious deep dish pizza...

Below, Ruth Barshaw (of Ellie McDoodle fame) never fails to crack me up... and she's one of the warmest, kindest people you'll ever meet.  She carries a wee sketchbook everywhere she goes... I'm sure it's hidden somewhere under her mink...

which brings me to the vintage minks...  they were decorations on our beds in the Whitehall Hotel (a charming place, right down to the tiny old creaky elevators).  Actually, I suspect the furs came from some other animal-- beaver?  Who knows.  But we had fun with them on Saturday night after dinner...

A few people brought along family and friends to participate in some events with us.  Here I am with one author's lovely daughter, Emily, an avid reader and writer who offered us great ideas and insights from a teen perspective...

Here (from the left) is Cynthia Omololu -- author of Dirty Little Secrets-- a teen novel involving hording, which sounds fascinating. In the middle is Natalie Lorenzi, whose pre-published novel about a Japanese-American family sounds really good, and right up my alley... and she has a background in ESL teaching, as do I!  Then there's Sarah DeFord Williams on the right-- her first novel, Palace Beautiful, just came out, and I'm so excited about reading it--there's magic and mystery and secrets in an attic... the kind of story I always adored as a kid (and still do).

Below (laughing) is Jennifer A. Nielson on the left, whose debut novel Elliott and the Goblin Wars is coming out in October-- this'll be so fun to read aloud with my son in a few years.  And on her right is Susan Vaught (also laughing), author of Trigger and Big Fat Manifesto, among many others-- she creates fantastic voices, and her books deal with timely and important issues (and did I mention she's also a practicing neuropsychologist?)

We spent lots of time in informal small-group conversations-- it's such a delicious feeling to talk with writers who you can really relate to... there were many great bonding experiences throughout each day. Here is super-cute Susan Larsen, pre-published YA author (on the left), Liz Garton Scanlon (in the middle), author of one of my son's favorite picture books-- All the World (and she's just as dazzling in person as I'd imagined she would be after reading her poetic words every night at my Lil Dude's bedtime).  Zu Vincent is on the right-- she's the author of The Lucky Place-- a beautifully written and touching YA novel.

Here are Ruth Barshaw and Jennifer Nielson looking radiant at dinner on Saturday night.

And there were so many more lovely, talented people-- I wish I had the space and time to do all 28 authors justice.  This is just a little smattering, but I hope you enjoyed it!  Lil Dude just woke up from his nap, so I don't have time to link to everyone's individual websites.  If you're interested, you can go here to see a list of Erin's clients and their websites.

In my next posts, I'll give a recap of some super-fun school and library visits I did earlier that week, in Chicago and Michigan.  Thanks for  reading!

xoxo,
Laura

Nebraska, Teen Lit Conference, Bookies...

Irena, Emma, Ruta, me, and Krista at my signing at Bookies in Denver

Hey everyone,

I've had an eventful week! I was in Blair, Nebraska for middle and high school visits-- had a great time there. Such nice people... Here I am with Anne and Dianne, librarians extraordinaire from the high school.


Check out this lovely display in the library...


I love feeling welcomed to a school with creative displays-- what a treat...


Here's a close up of the jewels-- cool, huh?


Pretty flowers...


And there's nothing better than being greeted with a six-foot-tall painting of your book cover! Here I am with middle school librarian Kris, who set up this whole wonderful visit...


Here's the artistic, book-lovin' man, Lynn-- a former English teacher-- who created this masterpiece!


Just after I got back from Nebraska, I had the Colorado Teen Lit Conference on Saturday in Denver. I got to hang out with the lovely Ellen Hopkins (of Impulse, Crank, etc fame...) and Matt de la Pena (Mexican White Boy, Ball Don't Lie, We Were Here-- he gave a fantastic, hilarious keynote, and he's a Delacorte author like me.) Here I am with Matt and Ellen...


I was on a panel with my good friend Todd Mitchell and some other fantastic authors who I was happy to finally meet! Here I am with Todd, who is very witty-- always cracks me up-- and he often waxes philosophical about writing-- I love hearing him quote the native American shaman Black Elk as he discusses how writers must enact our visions upon the earth (or something along those lines...) So true!


Todd Mitchell's next book coming in June-- it is SOOOOOO good! I've read an early draft, and I can't wait to read the final version...


Becca Fitzpatrick was another fabulous panelist-- I was so thrilled to meet her-- turns out we both live in Ft Collins and have boys the same age. It was especially exciting to hear that she, like me, watched Romancing the Stone a hundred times as a kid, and that it inspired her, too, to become a writer. And actually, once I thought about it, I realized I have had crazy bus adventures in Latin America, kinda like Kathleen Turner did... minus, of course, the alligators and emeralds and Michael Douglas... but it's funny to see some parallels. I didn't actually make this connection until I heard Becca talking about it on the panel!


Amy Efaw was another super-friendly and smart panelist-- she wrote After, which I'm really looking forward to reading-- I've heard it's an amazingly well-executed book. It's about a teen who throws her baby in a Dumpster... yet Amy manages to make you feel for the main character, despite the horrific act.


Tucker Shaw was the fifth panelist-- also a fascinating and nice person. I can't wait to read his newest book-- check out the pretty cover. I love the golden light. And there's a great story behind his inspiration for this book, involving another book (of poetry) slipping from the shelf into his hand as he was dusting... sweet serendipity!


Okay, that's all for now! Must get ready for the week ahead, which includes two school visits in Boulder... we're in the thick of school visit season now. Lots of fun, but very busy. I love going to Boulder-- I always stock up on exotic teas from the Boulder Teahouse and buy something cool at the second-hand shop downtown...

xoxo,
Laura