I'm what you might call a contrarian in that I very rarely like what's really popular, and I often will dislike things just based on the fact that that people have a fanatical devotion to it. (This could be one reason why I dislike NYC, to be honest, but it probably has more to do with the fact that I've seen what the rest of the world has to offer--and the fact that NYC is always the first thing to get destroyed in disaster movies.)

So while everyone was going to see New Moon this weekend, I started re-reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. And it's even better than I remember! Though... I really don't remember all that much of it.

FLASHBACK!

Deathly Hallows actually came out the summer I was studying abroad in England. Everyone on the trip (except for one or two people, I would say) teased me about being so excited to go buy it at midnight... but I was really worried because we were supposed to be traveling that weekend to Warwick University, and I wasn't sure if they would have a bookstore there that would be open at midnight. Thankfully, the English are quite worshipful of their national cashcow and the university bookstore had a little release party.


(And, of course, everyone on the trip ended up coming with me to buy a copy! haha)

I actually think some element of kismet was at work because we were supposed to go see a play at Stratford-Upon-Avon, but it was the summer of all the terrible flooding and all of the roads were closed. Anyway, so as you can see, I did get my Deathly Hallows at midnight!


(This was after the outlets at Cambridge melted the plates off my flatiron, hence the creative braiding that ensued for the rest of the month.)

I reserved the children's edition (but of course!), but unlike it's US counterpart, it doesn't have illustrations inside. So now, I actually get to re-experience the book in a different way and enjoy all of the chapter spot art (and the Americanization of the text). I ended up being the first one to finish the book on the trip--because I was the only nutso that stayed up until 4 AM reading when when we had to get up 7 AM the next morning--and spent the last thirty minutes of the bus ride back to Cambridge crying my eyes out. I read it so quickly that I devoured it and didn't savor it like I should have--but how could you not tear through that book?

Anyway, rereading the book has made me really nostalgic for the magical slice of heaven that is Cambridge. I don't have anything else to add to this entry, other than a few prettyful pictures that are demanding to be seen:






P.S. Nearly done with this round of revisions on MAP! Need to rewrite the last two chapters from scratch, but I'm thankful that Mike was completely honest about their craptacular nature.

♥ First, because it is perfectly random (and kind of hilarious), I am quoted in a CNN article about Johnny Depp taking People's Sexiest Man Alive title. So how did the CNN reporter find me? TWITTER. Twitter! She saw my tweet about how I thought he was a random choice (well, he is) and emailed me for a comment. So that was my yesterday...

♥ That Leighton Meester has proven yet again that money + fame + decent acting chops - singing talent =\= good taste in clothing. GOOD. GRIEF.



There is nothing I love about this outfit, by the way. I just felt compelled to share the horror burning in my heart.

♥ Congratulations to the National Book Award Winners (and finalists)!!

♥ Plotting potential Brightly Woven swag... loving all of the nice things people have been saying about it on Twitter (clearly, my crush-like love is continuing to blossom into an obsessive Wuthering Heights-type love) and GoodReads.

♥ These pictures of the cast of Bones, which they snapped of one another on set. Really, truly adorkable.

♥ I can't embed the video, but this live version of Just Breathe by Pearl Jam is, no pun intended, breathtaking.

♥ Oh, lawd: Twihard Mom Seeks Signed Panties from Taylor Lautner. Can't he just sign this shirt instead?



(I'm not sure which is creepier, to be honest... and I never found Jacob to be all that creepy.)

I hate to end it on that note, but I'm off to work. Have a great day!

As you all are well aware, I have a very close relationship with my Mom. I’d like to say that I’m half as cool and wonderful as she is, but I know that’s certainly not the case. I’d also like to sing you all of her praises and let you in on all of our plethora of inside jokes and weird nicknames, but I think your eyes would start to glaze over and you’d be tempted to stab your computer screen with a pen just to make me stop…

Because I made the decision to go to school out of state (and not just out of state, but on the other side of the country), I’ve pretty much spent the last four years REALLY missing my Mom. (I would also argue that one of the reasons why Carlin and I become close friends is because we both missed our moms so much.) We talk on the phone every day, often multiple times a day, and every now and then she hits me up with a really awesome Mommy Package that is stuffed with wonderful things and smells like home. I actually just got a package from her yesterday, filled to the brim with my winter clothes and a few little presents. It’s become a little bit of a tradition that I make her a new Mix CD every few months, but this time she made one for me. And it was an absolutely perfect mix of funny and sweet songs.

I can’t really explain why we have this relationship, though. Anyone will tell you that my mom is extremely warm and welcoming, more than I could probably ever be. I also think that our closeness is the result of me being very shy and not having the best of friends as I was growing up. We pretty much like all of the same things (except sweet pickles–gross, Mom!). Not to mention that my mom is just an awesome person in general, so of course I wanted to spend a lot of time with her. I got really teary eyed when I first heard Taylor Swift’s The Best Day and saw the video, because it reminded me of our relationship so much. Particularly:

I’m thirteen now and don’t know how my friends could be so mean
I come home crying and you hold me tight and grab the keys
And we drive and drive until we found a town far enough away
And we talk and window shop ’til I’ve forgotten all their names

I don’t know who I’m gonna talk to now at school
But I know I’m laughing on the car ride home with you
Don’t know how long it’s gonna take to feel okay
But I know I had the best day with you today

You can tell by watching Taylor’s videos and reading her interviews that she and her Mom also have a very close relationship. Some of my best memories are the ones I have of my mom and I just cruising around in the car, talking and listening to our favorite songs after a particularly bad day. There’s a part of me that’s always wondered, too, if maybe a lack of stable friendships is what ultimately leads to a very close relationship with your mom.

I know you’re more likely to hear about celebrities and read about characters who don’t have great relationships with one or both parents (Lindsay Lohan, anyone?)… but man, I want more books about GOOD parents, particularly good MOMS.

I’ve been rewatching some of my favorite Gilmore Girls episodes, and it just strikes me that these mother/daughter books shouldn’t be so few and far between in YA. You can still create plenty of juicy conflict in a relationship like Lorelai and Rory’s, as seven seasons of the show demonstrated. (Granted, the last two seasons were a little rough…) Both Lorelais are amazing and play a crucial role in the other’s development and growth. That’s more real to me than any token or background parent.

I mean, am I not seeing this relationship explored because I’ve been too focused on Fantasy and not enough contemporary fiction? Is it more prevalent in Adult fiction than it is in Young Adult fiction? Is it because most authors/editors shy away from getting the parent too much face time in the book, so as to focus more on the teen and their friends? There was a discussion a few weeks back about absent/abusive/neglectful parents in YA fiction, and I know I’m guilty of pulling a Disney and either killing my characters’ parents off or leaving them behind entirely. Granted, I write Fantasy and it’s often the case in the genre that the hero(ine) needs to leave his family and security behind to complete his/her heroic journey. I suppose it’s just that many YA novels function as coming-of-age stories, and the same kind of absence is required before the main character can go out and become who they’re meant to be… but is that really true to life? Or is true to life too boring?

Anyway, let me know if you know of any good YA Mother/Daughter stories! I’m very curious to see if I’ve just missed them, or if there actually is a gap…

Edited to Add: Let’s not forget Mrs. Weasley, who is, perhaps, one of the greatest mothers of all time–and, get this, actually acts like a real mother!

Originally published at alexandra bracken. You can comment here or there.

Originally published at alexandra bracken. You can comment here or there.

“Be what you would seem to be — or if you’d like it put more simply — Never imagine yourself not to be otherwise than what it might appear to others that what you were or might have been was not otherwise than what you had been would have appeared to them to be otherwise.”
— Lewis Carroll

I've been thinking lately about all of the things I want to be and all of the places I want to live, but I don't understand why I feel so rushed.

1. As I’m sure many of you have heard by now, Daniel Handler, AKA Lemony Snicket is leaving HarperCollins and taking his next Lemony Snicket series to Little, Brown. Not only that, but Susan Rich, his editor, is ALSO leaving Harper and going to LB as an editor-at-large. This situation has part of my brain absolutely livid (this is the part of my brain, by the way, that still romanticizes the idea of children’s publishing). I think what bothers me the most about this situation… well, everything bothers me. From the moment that he sold UK rights before US rights and sent every American publisher into a tizzy to try to compete for his new book, to the fact that his editor just-so-happens to be leaving to go to LB with him, in what may or may not be a job that pays more for doing less. I mean, good for LB and Handler for forming this (clearly) mutually beneficial agreement, and I doubt this is the first time something like this has happened and will happen… but, man, whatever happened to publisher loyalty?

I think it’s a very visible demonstration of how publishing has changed. I had grown up with the assumption that houses would acquire authors and then work really hard to make them a house author. This is still true at my Place of Employment, at least on my team, but I understand how financial issues cause these kinds of relationships to break down. It’s nice that DH/LS is taking his editor with him (though, I have to wonder: did LB offer her the job before or after they acquired his next series? Was that part of his terms for going with them?), because I know how important the editor/author relationship is, and how lasting it could and should be.

What say you guys on this?

EDIT: Errr, there IS, of course, the option that Harper didn't want his new book series and that would explain why he went with LB...

2. Kristi over at The Story Siren has a great post about ARCs/Bloggers up that goes nicely with the post I made earlier. Definitely recommend you take a look and see what a lot of online marketing professionals/publicists in the publishing houses are saying about ARCs and professionalism.

3. I just started watching the new season of Friday Night Lights and it is amazing!! Last season ended on such a brutal (but exceptional) note that I was worried–worried about everything and everyone. And while the situation is still bad, all of these glimmers of hope and Coach Taylor’s building of the Lions (both as a team and as individual young men) reminds me so much of the first season. I have a feeling that the team’s transformation will be largely reflected in the transformation of their field, facilities, and staff. Ah, show. You are amazing. Everything about you makes my little heart sing like a canary.

4. I’m making pretty good progress with MAP revisions. I haven’t really been talking about writing that much because I’m afraid it falls under the category of “overshare” and it’s hard for people to find it in themselves to care about a book they may never read. But, in case you’re curious about how I’m trying to tame my little problem child:

- trying to cut 20,000 words (ahahahaha…)
- fixing two of the MC’s characterizations, as well as emphasizing the bad guy’s motivations
- adding a few more telling details about the world
- trying to fix the pacing in the slouchy middle and
- rewriting the ending

5. The weather here has been so very, very bizarre. I noticed on Twitter yesterday that my alma mater was cancelling all classes after 4 PM due to severe weather and had a complete moment of WTF. Down in the ‘Burg, I had to be hyperaware of keeping track of the weather because it changed so much throughout the day, not even just the week. Apparently, I was not aware Mother Nature had declared war on the entirety of the East Coast with a monster Nor’easter storm. Weather.com dubbed it “THE ASSAULT ON THE ATLANTIC,” which would make you think we’re drowing in rain, right? I think it’s been sprinkling here on and off, but without the sound of wind howling past skyscrapers and my apartment complex, you would never know it was a Nor’easter. Uh, not that I actually want atorrential downpour…

Happy weekend! To my East Coasters: stay dry! To my West Coasters: curse you and your mild fall weather! To the Non-Coasters: are you folks really getting snow already??

You know, there are actually very few things about the Harry Potter movie adaptations that really bother me, which is saying something because normally book –> movie adaptations bug the living crap out of me. There were a lot of little things (like the fact that they gave Hermione all of Ron’s lines so she could explain everything, when really that made no sense because as much as she’d read about wizarding culture, she hadn’t grown up in it). Obviously the first two were… interesting. Sweet with some shades of darkness. But once they hit Prisoner of Azkaban and established an aesthetic that was a little darker and grittier, I bought whatever they wanted to feed me.

The truth of the matter is… you really can’t adapt a movie straight from the book or vice versa and expect it to translate it well. They’re two completely different ways of storytelling. In a movie, you can set the tone, the lighting, underscore the emotion in two seconds, but it takes considerable more work to convey all of that in writing and 1) not have it be purple prose and 2) not have it be extraneous and 3) not make it seem like you’re trying to hard.

I’m trying very hard to be loyal to the books here, but this deleted scene from Harry Potter & The Half Blood Prince totally blew me away. Beautiful! That four second shot of Snape tells you everything you need to know.

Hmmm… don’t mind me, just thinkin’ aloud…

Originally published at alexandra bracken. You can comment here or there.

I asked on Twitter if anyone had anything they’d like to ask me about my job/writing/book/publishing in general, and got a number of great questions. I’m going to limit this post to four, though, as the first answer is quite long! Of course, I’m definitely extending the opportunity to you guys, as well–feel free to ask me anything in the comments.

1. @dy0ulee How do you get to work in the publishing industry?”

Ah, this question has a not-so-easy answer! To be completely honest, it’s become a bit of a challenge to get a job in publishing (and I could write a whole entry about all of the different jobs within the publishing industry). The industry, at least as I understand it, has always been a bit of an old boy’s club, meaning that many of us got our positions through networking or relationships with people already in the publishing house. I once heard that 70% of publishing jobs aren’t actually posted for the public to see, but I’m not sure that’s really the case anymore… (Though it’s certainly true that many jobs will be posted on our internal job site first, allowing internal candidates the opportunity to move within the company.) This summer I found out that whenever a job is posted on a company’s public job board, it gets anywhere between 200-600 applications depending on the position. That’s why it’s important to know someone and/or apply right when the listing goes up.

After spending three years in college trying to nail one down, I have to say that getting an internship at one of the big houses, especially during the summer, is TOUGH. It really is a who-you-know-that-can-forward-your-resume game. BUT! While it is a little bit of a challenge, it’s certainly not impossible to get an internship at a literary agency. This tends to be really great experience, especially if you have designs on wanting to be an agent or editor—plus the agent that you work for is bound to be connected and will serve as a great reference later on. Be sure to check your college/university’s alumni network as well, and ask if you can pick their brain (via email or meeting for coffee if they’re local). It’s really important to get your name out there! I must have gone on at least 15 informational interviews while I was applying.
Basically every alumni from my school told me that the only way to get a job in commercial publishing was to attend one of the publishing courses that are held over the summer. I’m biased towards Columbia’s (the program run by the amazing Lindy Hess, who many of us consider the Godmother of the publishing industry) because that’s the one I attended, but NYU and Denver both have great programs. I was also given the advice that NYU focuses a little more on magazines than books, though with the state of the magazine industry… not sure if that’s true anymore. The publishing course taught me A LOT about every aspect of the industry and gave me hands-on practice during the Book Workshop. The other attendees ranged from never having held a publishing internship to having three or four under the belt. Unfortunately, the programs aren’t entirely cheap—but many schools and programs do have scholarships and grants available.

Of course, right now it’s even tougher to get a position due to the economy and the fact that the industry is shrinking. If it’s what you really want to do, there’s always a way to slip in, but I REALLY recommend attending one of the courses. Of course, the most important thing you can do for yourself is to prepare by reading as much as possible in the field you want to be working in so you can talk about these books in a critical way. You don’t have to be a creative writing major, but having strong writing skills will definitely help! Likewise, I know many publishers are looking for new employees to be somewhat versed in social networking and the online world.

2. @SabriHorande How long does it take aprox between the book deal and the actual publishing date?

18 months/1.5 years is standard, though it really does depend on the project itself. Many books are bought on a three chapter proposal, and while some of them do manage to appear on shelves 18 months after acquisition, some actually do take a couple of years. It’s generally in a book’s best interest not to be rushed through production, because it means the editor and author will have more time to go back and forth with revisions, design won’t be rushed to come up with something, etc. From the author’s side, it doesn’t seem like it should take that long, but there are dozens of little mini-steps that a publisher goes through to put the book out into the world. On the opposite end of the spectrum, some books are “crashed” onto schedules and rushed through production, either to fill a gap on a list, to be other similar books from a competitor, or because of some recent event (such as Michael Jackson’s death).

It’s also good to mention here that houses function under a season system (Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer), though every house has different months for different seasons. I believe Egmont does Fall, Spring, Summer (?), but my place of employment does Fall, Winter, Summer. Some books are better suited for a certain season, so publication timelines sometimes also depend on that. BRIGHTLY WOVEN sold in November of 2008 and won’t be published until March 2010 = 16 months.

3. @_rachelsimon What do you do on a daily basis @ your job? read, edit, what exactly?

To refresh everyone, I work as an editorial assistant. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I very rarely read and edit while I’m in the office. Most of this work has to be done at home. As the months go by, I’m sure I’ll be given a little editing to do, but as it stands, I mainly function as a reader, router, tracker, and writer.

Reader—I read submissions and write reader’s reports on them. Sometimes someone on my team will ask me to read something they’ve been reading to get a second opinion. We have both group and department editorial meetings, in which editors come together to get others’ opinions on projects that they’re thinking about acquiring or aren’t sure about.

Router—I route all production materials, marketing materials, sales materials, design materials… I do a lot of floor hopping

Tracker—I track my team’s submissions, contracts (and send out executed contracts and checks), my boss’ expenses, our team’s calendar, signings… you get the picture. I have a lot of excel spreadsheets in my life. I also answer one of our big author’s fanmail.

Writer—I write a lot of copy, too. Jacket copy, memos for cover designs, titlesheets, launch presentations… lots and lots of writing…

It really does depend on the day of the week, and what big events are coming up on our schedule.

4. @TracyBuchanan How long did it take between ur agent subbing out Brightly Woven&getting the deal? How’d you deal with the wait (if you had 1!)

Hmmm… I think we submitted end of October/early November and I had Egmont’s offer maybe two weeks later? Is it bad that I can’t give you an exact date?? It went pretty fast—we started hearing back from editors right after that first weekend, but the deal finalized until Thanksgiving though. I actually think that the timing of it (just before the holiday) played a role in me hearing back so quickly. At the time I was so preoccupied with schoolwork that I didn’t really have time to think about it.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Originally published at alexandra bracken. You can comment here or there.

I am writing to you now because I love you all very much. And it is because I love you that I must share some advice, both from myself and from many of my friends who work in the children’s book industry, both as authors and on the publishing side. Recently, I’ve noticed that there are far, far more of you than there were just last year. I look forward to getting to know you all over the next few months and chatting about books and life and school and publishing. Welcome to a very wonderful and fun community!!

I have a really marvelous group of book blogger friends that I’ve gotten to know over the past year and a half (and I’ve been lucky enough to meet some of them in person). They’ve been at this a long time, and they’re names you would probably recognize. Coincidentally, they are also the ones that get attacked most frequently, either because others claim they hog all the ARCs or they’re stuck-up. This, as you’ll see, is not the case. They’ve spent years working hard to build relationships with marketing and publicity departments, and they very rarely make the mistakes I’ll list below. But I digress.

Dearest book bloggers, I am writing to you because I–and others–have been noticing some slightly disturbing trends as of late. This is really hard for me to do, because I know that it’s easy to be misunderstood when communicating through email, and because I do love and appreciate everything that you guys do for the author community. BUT… I have to get a few things off my chest.

Guys, let me start off by saying that it costs A LOT of money for publishers to produce ARCs. I asked some of my coworkers for a rough estimate of how much money it takes to produce one, and their guesses fell between $16-$20. When we’re about to acquire a project, we create what’s known as a Profit & Loss statement (P&L). It helps the publisher figure out how many copies to print, what kind of specs can go on the book jacket (shiny elements, matte, etc.), how many returns the book might see, how many we would have to sell to recoup the advance, etc. We generally factor in several thousand dollars to account for ARC printings. This is why many publishers have been reducing the number they’re printing (Did I mention that ARCs are often are put together by hand?) in these hard economic times. It is cheaper for a publisher to send out a finished copy of the book. Seriously. When you are sending an email and requesting 20 ARCs at once, I hope you will remember this.

Second: Guys, you are a very creative bunch. So what’s going on with everyone ripping everyone else off? It’s one thing to borrow certain routine posts (such as Kristi’s In My Mailbox Feature), but at least give one another credit. Also, I know web design is very hard, but there’s absolutely no justification for ripping others’ blog designs. (Likewise, there is no excuse for stealing/being “heavily inspired” by anyone’s website, including authors’. It is not fun to see your work and ideas on someone else’s blog with zero credit.) You all are unique and wonderful–let your design show that, and let your features reflect who you are as a person and reader. I think you’ll find that’s a great avenue for gaining more followers. Take Sharon Loves Books and Cats, for example. I LOVE Sharon (as do many authors), not only because she’s honest with her reviews, but because she loves books and cats! I can barely say her name without saying, “Sharon, who loves books and cats.” Clearly Sharon is more than her love for books and cats, but it’s so unique and endearing and it keeps me coming back to her blog.

Thirdly, please don’t expect that we, as authors, have an unlimited supply of ARCs to pass out, or that we can snap our fingers and have them to you within a month. Publishing is a very slow business, full of people who are often overworked and cannot get to everything at once. Please be patient! We all want to get these books into your hands, but it might take a while…

Fourthly, it is a bad idea to copy and paste the same ARC requests to multiple authors. It is especially bad when you request the wrong book from the wrong author.

Here are a few points from one of my industry friends. Again, I’m sharing this because I feel like this is good information and great advice. It’s not meant to be a personal attack or any such thing.

1. Know your blog – Install Google Analytics on your blog and track how many page views, unique visits, and comments you get. Compare them with your blogging friends. This should tell you just how many people your blog is reaching. If it’s not that many, you cannot expect publicists and online marketing folks to send you as many free books as you want. Just like in print publicity, there is a heirarchy of importance that is determined by audience size or perceived prestige, which often has something to do with the quality of material you offer and how long you’ve been around. If you want to become a more prestigious blogger, blog well and often, participate in the community, and WAIT. The most influential and respected book bloggers are the ones who have been doing it consistently and well for years. Until then, you cannot be demanding things from people whose job it is to use expensive assets (i.e. ARCs) to increase sales of a product whose profit margins are already small.

2. Be professional – As was previously stated, ARCs are not free to the publishers. They are a business asset whose entire point is to increase sales of a book. They are expensive to produce, in short supply sometimes, and useless post-pub, so publicists and online marketing folks have to use them in the best way possible. If you would like to review them, you must appear professional and trustworthy. Send short, courteous emails that explain clearly what you would like and what you will do with them. Make sure your emails show the quality of your writing. DO NOT send the same copy/paste email over and over again, we notice things like that. The font should be readable, both in type and color. This is a business relationship, not a personal one. If you post about a book you are sent for review, you should always send an email with a link to whomever sent you that book. It’s just polite.

3. Be understanding – There are varying amounts of ARCs depending on the perceived in house need. A book that the house determines needs advanced buzz or will be very popular will probably get lots of ARCs printed; a book so huge that it doesn’t need buzz will get zero (like the later Twilight books). Some books don’t have ARCs at all because the manuscript came in too late for them to be printed. Some don’t have a lot because the book isn’t a high priority for the house. There are a million reasons why a publicist might not be able–or want–to send you an ARC. You’re not entitled to anything by virtue of having a blog. You prove yourself a reliable blogger every time you communicate with a publicist, so if you treat them like Amazon, if you are demanding and entitled, you will damage your relationship with that publicist. I’m sure this goes for authors as well.

4. Be NICE – If you don’t get a response from an email you wrote to a publicist, or you don’t get a book you requested, don’t write a rude or testy email about it. People in publishing work REALLY HARD. There is no downtime, and if we do mailings it happens after hours a lot of the times. If you get a book from a publisher, it is likely someone stayed very late in order to send it to you. So even if you were promised the book, know that it can take weeks for a someone to find the time to send things–don’t check in about ARCs you requested until a month after you sent the original email. If you KNOW it was sent out (as in, the publicist said, “I sent it today”), then you might alert them that you hadn’t received it if you genuinely thought it had been lost in the mail. But, again, politely.

5. Support the industry – BUY BOOKS. You should be buying more books or taking them out of the library than you receive for review, if you really love books so much. SHARE ARCS.

On that last note, there’s a great program that Harmony Book Reviews set up called the One Arc Tour. Check it out–it’s a great idea!

Again, I love you guys greatly (as we all do), and I hope you’ll take some of this advice to heart. If you’d like to leave me a comment feel free, or you can send me an email if you have questions about publishing or thoughts you don’t want to share publicly.

Originally published at alexandra bracken. You can comment here or there.

So many suggestions to do a ten minute yoga set! Alas, I have never done Yoga before, so it’s something I’ll have to investigate. Any good recommendations for online resources/books? A good Youtube series?

Today started off with someone pushing their way off the subway train and throwing up the cereal he ate for breakfast near my feet. So, onward to better things:

Since October’s playlist seemed to go over well, here’s what I’m listening to for November. There’s sort of a soft/country vibe going on in my iPod lately–my way of getting myself to chill out. I’m not really a big country fan (at least not in the way my sister and a few friends are), but I’ve always really appreciated that country music is rooted in storytelling, and that lends itself to a kind of traditional American identity. The first song on it is by the divine Patty Griffin, and one of my favorites.

Speaking of favorites, Emma Thompson said that she’s going to take her name off the petition to free Roman Polanski. Thank goodness, because I thought my head was going to implode from the crazy of it all. One of the interesting things to note is her mention of peer pressure from other actors and friends–I have a feeling this is probably true for many of the people who signed the petition, and if not… well, that sucks.

I know people were initially P.O.ed at the thought of another remake (By the way, why is it that all movies these days have to be pre-tested so that everything is a sequel or remake?), the new Clash of the Titans posters look, for a better phrase, BAD ASS. I can already hear my dad chanting “BLU RAY! BLU RAY! BLU RAY!” in the distance.

Happy One Year Anniversary, Obama!

Now get back to work!

And with that, I’m off. Have a good one

Originally published at alexandra bracken. You can comment here or there.

I think, more than anything, the general lack of productivity in my writing life is the direct result of me being exhausted when I come home. I’m not really sure what’s going on, since a 7 AM – 6 PM day is not really a long one, but I always tend to come home cranky and often headachy. Is it crazy to think it’s because I work on the 19th floor? Every time I zip up the elevators I feel a little dizzy…

Anyway, my usual remedy is to consume A) Coca Cola or B) Candy or C) Nap time, but I’m trying to escape the pull of those siren songs and find a healthier alternative. I have to say that exercise is pretty much out of the question, since I get home between 6 and 7, make dinner, and suddenly find myself with only a few hours to write before I need to do work stuff.

So I turn to you, fair readers: what do you to get energized and stay energized while writing?

Hello, lovelies! Did you have a nice Halloween?

As you can see, I went as Miss Minnie Mouse, which was an excellent companion to Roommate J who was Dolly Parton. If you didn’t know, Dolly has more wisdom than bosom, which seems impossible, I know, but it’s true. I found that dress fully-realized in a vintage store and have spent every day since wondering what in the world that dress was originally created for. Roommate J let me borrow her mouse ears, which were actually a really cute headband. I put on false eyelashes (an experience I do not plan on repeating in the near future…) and this bright red lipstick from Revlon, which is, apparently, a favorite of Penelope Cruz.

Halloween in NYC is actually really cool! We did have a number of trick or treaters come through (less than we were hoping for, though). The kids were awesomely smart and efficient about it. Instead of going around ringing one doorbell at a time, they rang them in clusters so they wouldn’t be waiting on a door that would never open. It’s really fun to see everyone in costume on the subway… except for the creepers in creepy costumes who insisted on staring at us, not blinking, for most of the train ride back from Queens. Ah, good times.

Today I have a few goals:

1. Clean my godforsaken room. Back to pre-Halloween status.

2. Get through chapter 3 or 4 of my revisions. I participated in NaNoWriMo my freshman year of college (and won!), but I haven’t been in the position to participate since then. Not really sure I would want to anymore, to be completely honest, but good luck to everyone who’s taking the plunge this year!

3. Book my flight home for Christmas! I don’t get to leave until the 23rd, but after being an RA for so long, I’m definitely used to late arrivals. As you can probably tell, I’m not going home for Thanksgiving. Can’t really wing it this year.

4. Go to bed early so that I can actually enjoy having gained an extra hour of sleep! The whole shine and wonder of Daylight Savings Time has worn off on me after leaving on the East Coast for four years, but the little Arizona girl in me gets a thrill when I realize time has ~*~magically~*~ reset itself yet again. And my family is only two hours behind now, instead of three! This makes a big difference when I have to call my Mom at 8 o’clock in the morning my time…

Have a wonderful day!

Originally published at alexandra bracken. You can comment here or there.

1. So, the other day I was telling my mom that I really wish that NYC would adopt Paris’ philosophy on subway performers and force them to audition first. Totally snobby, I admit, but damn if I don’t get tired of seeing some guy pretending to play a flute while the boom box next to them is clearly providing the whimsical flute and windchime noises. Anyway, as descended deep into the dark belly of Manhattan Island to catch the E/V Train home, I heard the most wonderful voice floating up to me. This guy seriously did the most amazing version of U2’s “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For,” to the point that I 1) wanted to give him a hug 2) give him the entire contents of my wallet and 3) cry because I didn’t have my camera on me to record it. Anyway, it was a wonderful way to end a very hectic and busy, busy, busy day.

2. Speaking of trains, I’ve learned an important rush hour lesson: The first train that comes through is always going to be jam-packed and more people are going to distort their bodies and push people in to get on it. If you want the two whole minutes it takes for the next train to come, you and the few people remaining on the empty-ish platform are almost always guaranteed seats on the next train, which is never, ever as crowded (unless it’s the L at 8:30 in the morning).

3. I can’t even BEGIN to tell you how unbearable it will be to live in this city if the Yankees win the World Series. That is all.

4. I was a bit of a reading machine this month, which probably explains why I did so little actual writing. In addition to the 3 or 4 books I read for work (while I realize it’s probably obvious by now which company I work for, I still won’t acknowledge it here), I read The Body Finder, The Dark Divine, Shiver, and I started InkHeart, The Line, and a Most Improper Magick. Need to finish reading those Tenner ARCs so I can send them not to the next Tenner waiting for them! Speaking of reading, my friend Carlie recently did a post about her reading habits now that she’s interning at a literary agency.

5. So, has anyone been watching Project Runway this season? Good lord is it boring. I don’t know if it’s the combination of people, the vanilla challenges, the rehashing of old challenges, Godfather Tim appearing to be over it all, or that horrible model show that follows it, but ZZZZzzzZZzzz to the max, people. Is it just me, or has the show lost every sparkle that used to make it fun? Even Nina and Ever-Orange Michael Kors can’t be bothered to show up to judging half the time.

Auf wiedersehen!

Originally published at alexandra bracken. You can comment here or there.

Wow, so much fail in my blogging life lately! Sorry about that–I’m going to have to get on a better blogging schedule, methinks, otherwise I’ll put it off and put it off… I’ve been feeling a little under the weather lately, and that + busy, busy work days = exhausted Bracken who proceeds to pass out at 8 PM and wake up scared and disoriented at 4 AM because she has reoccurring nightmares of Miss Viola Swamp.

I wish I could say I was making awesome progress on my revisions, but… not so much! I’m hoping to finish reworking the first 100 or so pages by this weekend, but, you know, Halloween beckons. I have been doing a little writing; I ghost wrote something for work, but I think my only compensation will be the secret knowledge that I wrote it and my private gloating.

The other night my roommates and I (as well as roommate H’s boyfriend and his roommates) got together for some high quality pumpkin carving. Roommate J and I shared our little guy–you can’t see it in this picture, but we carved a cactus in his side to pay tribute to the great state of our upbringing. The other guys were really hell bent on making a puking pumpkin, but that quickly changed into a Hellboy pumpkin, and when it became clear that there was no way in hell they were going to pull that one off, they switched to a scuba diving pumpkin (whose goggles double as beer can holders–so, so classy).

So I’m having an all-out war with TIVO, which is currently the Voldemort to my Harry Potter desire to watch Grey’s Anatomy. I’m so confused by this system and I HATE THE HONKING NOISE!! STOP HONKING AT ME, OKAY, I JUST WANT TO CHANGE THE CHANNEL!! YOU ARE SLOW. AND MEAN. I GUESS THAT MAKES YOU MORE DUDLEY THAN VOLDEMORT. ANYWAY. ANALOGY STILL RELEVANT.

Err… clearly I should not blog when I have nothing of great importance to say. I guess I should go bake my halloween cupcakes!! What are you guys going as for Halloween? I’ll give you a hint about my costume: D-I-S–wait for it!–N-E-Y!

Originally published at alexandra bracken. You can comment here or there.

Just before I left to head back to school for Homecoming, I had dinner with my friend Anna. Anna and I both work in the publishing industry and also, by night/weekend/a few minutes at a time, are YA authors who are debuting next year. So you can imagine that Anna and I often have very interesting conversations. We also have sad conversations, and funny ones, and happy ones, and if-only ones, but they are all great conversations. I think we must have been talking about how we’ve been slacking off in terms of blogging, because I said to her, “I have a lot of things I want to blog about, but I can’t or shouldn’t blog about them.” But Anna told me that I should blog about this.

Words cannot express how excited I was to go back to W&M for Homecoming. I was LITERALLY shaking when I got off the plane in Richmond, I was so excited. I didn’t even care that Groome needlessly made me wait for forty-five minutes before they drove me into town, or that it was $4 more for the ride than I remember it being. I pretty much did a running leap into my Little Little Little’s arms when I saw her, and then again when I saw my Little Little, and then again when I saw my Big, and again when I saw Kevin, and Seth, and OT, and Rachel, and Vida, and Mike, and–well, you get the picture. I was pretty much the Hug Monster. It was like I couldn’t get enough. Ridiculously happy is an understatement.

Being back at school was a very strange experience. It was sort of like being just slightly displaced out of time, because you had recently belonged there and everything, on first glance, seemed exactly as you had left it. Of course there was a lot of new construction and big buildings opening up, but there were a lot of small, unsettling things too–like the plastic things they’ve replaced the traditional table toppers with in the UC (and that fact that the younger kids call it the “Sadler Center” and not the UC, though they weren’t there to experience the great Sam Sadler first hand). Also, my lovely little computer lab–the same one I wrote Brightly Woven in–was slightly redone to the point that they took out “my” computer and installed some weird conference table. And it’s even weirder to hear people talk about exams and quizzes and this-or-that off campus house, and know that it’s not your life anymore.

I loved my school, though I know I didn’t have the best college experience by many people’s standards. I really did go to school for school, because I loved going to class/writing papers/the triumph of the “A,” and not because I wanted this amazing social life. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again: most of my free time was spent writing. I don’t regret that I have a book coming out next March, but… I really wish I had spent more time with my friends.

Don’t get me wrong: writing is what makes me happy (even if, at times, it also makes me want to stick my head in the over), but I feel like I denied myself these other, different happy times with my lovely ones because I didn’t know how to balance my life and I didn’t understand just how rare and special college is. While I was eating (Cheese Shop!!) lunch with my LL and LLL in Colonial Williamsburg, I kept looking at them and thinking, “I wish I had had one more year with you two.” Which is a little ridiculous, because hey–I get the rest of my life with them! But I don’t get my college years with them. And there is a difference.

Lately, I’ve been seeing more and more college and high school students want to be published while they’re still in school. I get plenty of emails asking, “How did you do it?” and my heart stops for a moment. I just feel sad and worried for them, and I start to fret for them. It would be foolish of me to say that being published in college didn’t give me some life advantage, at least financially, but there is far, FAR more to publishing than the earning $$$ side. It is NOT an exaggeration for me to say that some people thought I had graduated a semester early because they didn’t see me for most of my second semester of senior year. Why? Because I was working on revisions for my publisher and I was killing myself to try to finish another book before the end of the school year ON TOP of final papers, reading, studying for finals, taking finals, projects, going to class. I was so pressed for time I was working on revisions while I was IN class and at 5 AM in the morning. Being published isn’t like have a homework assignment: you have a deadline that you are legally required to meet, and you are responsible for being on your publisher’s schedule, regardless of what your own assignment/exams schedule looks like. Maybe part of the problem was that I was at an academically challenging school and that my workload was insane compared to that of others… but I don’t think I’m the exception.

I think what it comes down to for me is this: if you love writing, be a writer while you’re in school, don’t kill yourself to be an author. Soak up as much as you can, live your life and have fun, write when you can and seek out writing groups to help hone your craft. But remember–college is not forever. It is four amazing years in your life, the likes of which you will not see again. It might not be the BEST years of your life, but they’re incredibly important, and you will, in the end, probably miss them when you’re gone. And you can go back–to visit, for Homecoming, for class reunions–but you’ll never get back the opportunities you missed because you were spending so much time with a computer screen, and not the amazing people of flesh and blood around you.

Originally published at alexandra bracken. You can comment here or there.

♥ My little Fluffy McNugget:




♥ “Everyone has the heartbreak that shapes them in a way that they could never go back to the innocence that they had before.” - Zooey Deschanel

♥ The amazingness that is Whip It! and all of the wonderful moments of girl friendship to be found inside of its excellent hour and forty minutes.



♥ Momzers and the amazing pictures she sent of herself frolicking around in European castles:







♥ Adventurous dinner plans and industry gossip with one Anna K. Jarzab

♥ HOMECOOOOMMMMIIINGGG and the fact that it's definitely going to rain in the 'Burg on Saturday. Soggy Homecomings have become a tradition. Now, if I could only decide on what clothes to bring...





♥ The basement of the Rockefeller Center. I was down there trying to find the post office (one of my coworkers told me there was one down there, but I seriously thought she might have been hazing me--sort of like that whole, "Oh yeah, there's definitely a pool on the roof of the English Building"), and I was surprised by how nice and nifty it was. Very jealous of their little food joints and the view of the rink.

♥ This amazing song, which is inspiring some great work in my current WIP revisions:

This weekend, I started a mini-revolution over on Twitter, by tweeting about The Dark Crystal. Earlier on Saturday, I had been in a very busy Barnes & Noble, editing my manuscript on the floor in the children’s section because there were no chairs or tables available. I wandered downstairs to the movie department, and even though I heard my dad’s nagging voice whispering, “Only buy Blu Ray, my daughter, Bluuuu raaaaayyy…” I still headed straight for the normal, discount DVDs. Lots of good finds, my friends! One of which was Drop Dead Gorgeous for a ridiculous price, one was The Karate Kid box set, and the other was The Dark Crystal. I eventually put The Karate Kid down, though now I regret it because it would have been the PERFECT THING to marathon on Thanksgiving Day weekend (mental note: go back and purchase).

I remember being terrified of The Dark Crystal when I was a kid, but also having a fierce love of it. My brother and I were what you might call “obsessed” and we watched it pretty religiously from ages 5 to 13 when we finally got rid of our VHS player. I’m happy to say that the Skeksis are still just as horrible and scary now as they were back then:

Deliciously awful, right??

I guess I was lucky to grow up in a household where watching and reading all kinds of Fantasy and Sci-Fi was encouraged. My dad is far better read in both genres than I am, and you wouldn’t believe the kinds of bed time stories my mom used to concoct for us. I suppose it’s natural that my inclination is to write Fantasy, especially when you consider that this was–and still is–my favorite movie:

I’m starting to realize more and more that movies (along with the books) I was obsessed with as a child have had a huge impact on me as a writer. From a very young age I was introduced to a kind of storytelling that was near-perfect in this mythology and characters. Though I don’t think that same can be said of the prequels, the original series has a surprising–and often very touching–depth to it. Every time I watch one of the movies, I notice something new–small character ticks, the way the mythology flows seamlessly into dialogue and motivations, how the pacing is built up to a major confrontation. You get the picture.

Have you gone back and re-watched some of your old favorites recently?

Originally published at alexandra bracken. You can comment here or there.

I don’t think I’ve ever talked about this before, but when I was younger, I dove competitively. Diving is an easy sport to fall in love with when you’re a kid living in Arizona. When school is out for the summer and it’s hotter than hell outside, a pool seems like a natural choice, right? So I dove for fun, until I felt like I was good enough to start diving competitively and then I joined the year-round club team. (By the way, the pool–like most pools in Arizona–was outside. Diving in the winter? About as fun as sticking your tongue to a freezing lamp post.) I really loved diving, and I wasn’t half bad despite my long limbs. A few of my coaches used to joke that the only reason I could be so fearless on the 3 meter board was that I was very nearly blind when I wasn’t wearing my glasses.

I think I can pin-point the exact moment when that changed. It was during a typical competition, just at the end of the warm-up round. The announcers were running through the roster of divers and just as I started an inward dive, I heard them call my name–”–and ALEX BRACKEN!” Which, hello, is hugely distracting. I’m still not exactly sure how I managed this, but I clipped my chin on the board and experienced the kind of belly flop that would make a grown man cry (at least it made an eleven year-old me cry). It was like this flip had been switched inside of me–every time I got on the board after that, I was hyper-aware of it. I knew, or at least had imagined, every way I could hurt myself or look like an idiot. And suddenly, I just couldn’t do it anymore. I couldn’t do the flips that had been so easy before, I didn’t want to go to practice, and I still, to this day, am pretty much over swimming. Once I knew what could go wrong, I couldn’t get past it.

In many ways, I’m afraid that I’m doing the same exact thing with my writing. All along, I had been carrying this blind invincibility about diving that let me do flips and inward dives without batting an eyelash. I felt the same way about Brightly Woven when I was writing it and submitting it. I had so much love and enthusiasm about the story that it formed a little protective shield around my psyche, and no amount of rejections could tamper with it. And now… little love shield has begun to ebb away.

I don’t think this is particularly unique to me, either, as almost every published writer goes through that, “Can I do this again? Was it a fluke?” when they begin their next novel. It’s just that you have such different concerns post-book deal, that it’s almost impossible not to view the pre-published stage as blissful. Once you have the knowledge of everything that could go wrong, it can consume you. Will my agent/editor like this? Is the writing poor? Will it get me a higher advance? Will I sell through in the first place? And what about the cover? And rights? Do I even have a marketing plan? Was that reviewer just being nice…? You choke before you can even start the dive or start the draft. Of course, working in the industry has only made me even MORE aware and self-conscious, but I’m getting better about forcing those insecurities down.

It’s a very difficult emotion/feeling/what-have-you to fight through, and I never overcame it and returned to diving. But, the fact that I keep beating against this wall seems to prove to me that I can and will get around it. Tonight, instead of working on the WIP I started this weekend, I went back and re-read the story that I had worked on for most of last year. And you know what? It really wasn’t that bad. I still can’t bring myself to share it with anyone outside of my family, mainly because of the events that inspired me to finish it, but I realized that I was choking before I even gave the story a chance. Yes, the manuscript obviously has problems (they all do, trust me), but the fact that it’s so different from what’s popular and selling right now brought to mind the worst bellyflop known to mankind (or at least to Alex Bracken). But I wanted to finish it BECAUSE it was so different, because it perfectly encapsulated my extremely weird sense of humor, and because the story itself means a lot to me.

Bah, I’m not very good at turning life events into metaphors, but if you’re out there and you feel the same way, I hope you find it in yourself to get back on the board again. I hear the water is very nice.

Originally published at alexandra bracken. You can comment here or there.

I actually had a pretty fun and productive weekend, and now that I’m settling down with the chicken burritos I made for myself, I can finally tell you about it. It was a glorious Fall weekend, first of all–perfect 60 degree weather and blue skies all around.

On Saturday morning, I met my friends Bridget and Carlie at Alice’s Tea Cup (Chapter 1) on the Upper West Side for brunch. Amazing tea and scones!!! I got French Toast and almost died from the loveliness of it all. The table next was playing host to a little girl’s birthday party–she was maybe 11 or 12? I’m not sure, but she and her friends were totally decked out in crowns and feather boas. In fact, they left behind several thousand feathers in the wake when they left. I guess I was feeling a little left out of the fun, and that’s what made me order “Birthday Tea” off the menu.

Bridget and I braved the terrible subway zoo (16 closures for repairs!) and said goodbye at 14th street. I had to run some errands and pick up a package from the post office, and since I was up and going, I kept going.

Even though I’ve been living in my apartment since August and I’ve slowly been collecting things to decorate it with, I didn’t actually do anything with that stuff until Saturday. I went back and forth about making the long trip to Target, when I realized that–duh–I could just walk to KMart and be there in less time. Unfortunately, I still haven’t found a duvet cover for my bed yet, but I finally bought frames to hang my pictures. I’m also in the process of decorating this gloriously huge bulletin board that I brought home with me on the subway last week; it’s sort of serving as an inspiration/picture/story board, and it’s saving me a lot of grief when it comes to hammering nails into the wall. I was in Urban Outfitters at one point, really close to buying this super pretty rug, but I realized the only reason I wanted it was because it was super pretty, and not because it actually matched my room.

I was supposed to meet my cousin for dinner, but he had to leave the city and, thus, no dinner with cousin. Instead, I did laundry, and while this might not sound like it should be wildly entertaining, it was quite eventful in the end.

Our apartment complex uses these smart cards for the washers and dryers that you put money on and then insert into the machine. My roommates and I have been sharing one card, which disappeared somewhere between my washer and dryer cycles. Instead of just being able to buy another card from the machine with my debit card, I had to go use the ATM in the grocery store and then have them break the $20 because the machine only gives you the card if you feed it a $5 bill. I bought a coke and Twizzlers (writer mojo food, I assure you) and when I noticed the girl was going to give me five $1 bills back, I asked if she had a $5 bill instead. Unfortunately, none of the cash registers had a $5 bill. NONE OF THEM. I had to wait until another customer could come and break it for me, and by the time I got back my clothes were practically dry in the washers.

So I did a mega-cleaning session on my room and settled in to start writing my WIP. I restarted the first chapter after being fairly unhappy with it, and I’m sitting pretty at 5,000 or so words for the day. I’d like to get to 6,000 and finish chapter 2 if at all possible, but I’m not going to kill myself doing it. All last week, I kept trying to wake up at 5 or 6 in the morning to write, and it just wasn’t happening for me. I might try again this week, but I’m afraid it’ll make be zombiefied* at work in a week I’m sure will be insanely busy.

* Okay, this is a tiny bit embarrassing to admit, but I watched the show Smallville this weekend for the first time since the second season aired, and I kind of loved it. It was a zombie episode with lots of zombie drool, which automatically makes it + 10, but they’re finally getting around to turning Clark into Superman. (Guys, don’t laugh, but I seriously love Superman. All y’all can keep Spiderman and Batman, but leave me my Supes.) I was always frustrated with Smallville and the whole Clark/Lana thing, but Erica Durance, who plays Lois, is fantastic and has great chemistry with Tom Welling. Also, Tom Welling? Still INCREDIBLY GOOD LOOKING.

I love Superman for the same reason I love Star Wars: the mythos and history. I’m really excited to see what they come up with for the reboot of the series.

Err… anyway.

I’m excited for the week ahead, because I get to see an advanced screening of Where the Wild Things Are on the 15th with my coworkers. My parents are flying back in from Europe tonight, too, so I’ll finally be able to catch up with them and hear about their trip. But for now, back to writing.

Originally published at alexandra bracken. You can comment here or there.

Remember my shopping trip from last night? Well, I was calling my sister to talk to her about my heaven-sent new shoes and to ask if she’d be willing to ship some of my purses/shoes/clothes that I had to leave at home (because obviously I need more stuff in my apartment). As she was walking into the kitchen, I heard her go, “HOLY BATMAN! HOLY BATMAN!!” Except, you know, not “Batman.” Feel free to insert the four letter word of your choice.

This story needs a little background now that I’m thinking about it. So you all are well acquainted with Teagan, but you might not know her brother Stryker, who has also come to live with us. This is Stryker:

Isn’t he cute? I call him my little Fluffy McNugget since he’s a little small for his size but very, very fluffy. So Fluffy McNugget wasn’t raised in the Bracken household so to speak, though he often came to visit when he and his sister were both very little:

Anyway, because he was raised in a house full of cats and he’s a good jumper, my little McNugget got into the habit of jumping up (from the ground!!) onto the island in our kitchen. At first Mom and Dad thought he was using the crates as a step to get up there, but oh no, he’s just a little grasshopper:

This wasn’t really a problem… until last night. Last night, he somehow managed to turn on the faucet built into the island and completely flooded the kitchen and every drawer of the island. Poor Sister had a heartattack when she discovered she was standing in several inches of water.

Bad Fluffy McNugget!!

Originally published at alexandra bracken. You can comment here or there.