I have little writing news of my own right now. But Grant has a lot happening – as always. His latest release, All the Comfort Sin Can Provide, has just become available for pre-order. It has the most enticing title and cover. 
Upcoming events
I’ll be speaking at the California Writers Club, Mt. Diablo Branch, on May 14 at a banquet to honor young writers for the club’s 2016 Young Writers Contest. Â My talk is going to be about “Turning Ideas Into Stories.”
Later this summer, I’ll be at the Mendocino Writers Conference, August 4-6. I’m so excited about this, as I love Mendocino, and I’m really looking forward to meeting some of the other writers who will be there.
I’m judging a novel competition for Write the World!
I’ve just been so impressed by Write the World–an online community of young writers. Every month there’s a new writing competition, complete with prompts, advice, peer reviews, and guest judges. In the spirit of National Novel Writing Month, Write the World is holding a novel writing competition, and I have the honor of being their guest judge! I’m working through the final entries right now. In the meantime, here’s my Q&A in which I try to dispense writing advice!
NaNoWriMo kickoff party at Albany Library!
East Bay friends! Are you getting ready for National Novel Writing Month? Come to this fantastic event at the Albany Library for fun, swag, and motivation with yours truly and mon mari, Grant Faulkner, head of National Novel Writing Month. Let’s write novels in November!
Wednesday, October 28 at 6 pm
Event details at Eventbrite.
NaNoWriMo kickoff at Albany Library October 28, 2015
Performing at Litquake Oct. 12!
I’m really excited to be part of SF Litquake again this year, and doubly so because I’ll be telling a story for Porchlight, the incredible monthly storytelling series. The theme is almost too good: Kill Your Darlings: The Unpleasant Art of Starting Over.
Check out that lineup! I’ve started over so many times as a writer, the only question will be which story of abject failure do I tell? Help!
The details:
8 pm, Monday, Oct 12
The Verdi Club
2424 Mariposa St, SF
Buy Tickets!!
Dreamwood in paperback!
Exciting stuff – Dreamwood will be coming out in paperback September 8!
Dreamwood on Bank Street 2015 Best Children’s Books of the Year!
This is a pretty amazing honor for me and my carnivorous tree. The other titles on this list are all huge achievements in the field of children’s literature, so I’m feeling quite verklempt to be included. Check out the Bank Street 2015 Best Children’s Books of the Year for more incredible reads. Some of my favorite authors are here!
Come see me at Authors on the Move!
I’m so thrilled to be participating in Authors on the Move, March 14 in Sacramento to benefit the Sacramento Public Library Foundation. There’s going to be an amazing group of authors there, and I’m so looking forward to seeing folks I’ve met at other events, plus meeting new people. I’ve never done AOM before, but it sounds just brilliant–there’s a great, fancy dinner and authors get to circulate and talk to all the people who’ve come to support the library. Please check it out!
Dreamwood a Common Sense Media Best Book of 2014
Common Sense Media has chosen some amazing books for its list of Best Books of 2014, and DREAMWOOD is among them! There are so many great titles, I’m hugely honored!! (P.S., I continue to use Common Sense Media as a guide to watching things with my kids. I ignored the warnings once–once!–and am now going down in family history as the parent who exposed sweet innocent kids to unfettered raunch–on Christmas Eve, no less. For the movie Love Actually, if you must know. So, lesson learned. Follow Common Sense!)
November author events!
Hey, I’m totally behind on updating things around here (*coughs at all the dust and clutter*). But I have a few incredible events happening in November. If you are around, please come see me and these fabulous authors at fun events guaranteed to share publishing wisdom and good times!
SCWBI Beyond the Bay
SCBWI Walnut Creek!
Saturday Nov. 1, 2-4 pm
So … back when I was an aspiring author of incredible newbie-ness, I would go see authors I admired talk about their publication stories at this very event. Now it is my time to give back! I am honored to be appearing with Arree Chung and Darcey Rosenblatt. In the spirit of All Soul’s Day, I might open a vein about how my publishing journey almost killed me. Or I might just give out a bunch of candy corn. Only if you come will you know for sure if this event ends in blood or sugar. So please come!
Let’s Talk Tween!
Pegasus Books on Solano Ave, Berkeley
Sunday Nov. 2, noon-2 pm
Pegasus is such an amazing indie bookstore in the Bay Area. And Manuela and Emily there are putting on an event with a dream cast of middle grade authors: Mike Jung! Esther Ehrlich! Anne Nesbet! (And, um, yours truly, hoping to hold her own.) We’re going to read, take questions, and I think Mike has floated a whole Chewbacca costume concept. So anything could happen. Including, perhaps, my first appearance as a wookiee.
McKinley Author Day
Friday Nov. 7
San Francisco
Guess what? If you are a young person at McKinley Elementary School in San Francisco, I am coming to see you. This will be our secret, as I don’t think adults or non-students are part of this deal. Let’s keep it between us, but I think this will involve stickers and great fun. See you soon!