I spent the last few days of 2010 looking back on the year, and I'm so grateful for the past twelve months. I'm the luckiest girl in the world, and here's why:
- In January, Kami and I headed out for the Beautiful Creatures tour, spending two weeks in North and South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, and Mississippi. (Tour Clothes all came from here.) BC hit the NYT Bestseller list in November, as well as a few others, and we were shocked and confused and happy. And when I say happy I mean, ECSTATIC!
- In February, we braved the rain and the snow to visit with readers, schools and sign books in the Seattle area and the Chicago area and the Bay Area. I spent Lena's birthday with good friends of mine at their place in Mexico.
- In March and April, when not writing our sequel, we hit the LA Times Book Festival. Which, by the way, is a completely awesome festival. My friend Pseudonymous Bosch was there, which I am illustrating with a random picture from an award dinner we were both nominated for but he won. Note the shades.
- In May, we headed to France and Spain to meet with readers and journalists. We had an amazing time with Espasa and the YA writer Javier Ruescas in Spain, and with our famille Francaise at Hachette Jeunesse in Paris.
- In June, I spent time in Otranto, Italy, at the BAU Institute for writers and artists. My friends from Spain, Javier Ruescas and Carlota Echevarria, met up with me. Hijincks ensued. Later that month, Kami and I had the good fortune to speak at the ALA Annual Conference in Washington, DC. It was so much fun to celebrate with the librarians from the Morris Committee. Never let it be said otherwise - librarians are wild good fun!
- In July and August, I got to write in Park City, UT - one of my favorite places in the world.
- In September, Kami and I went with Melissa Marr and the Smart Chicks for eight wild events with readers throughout the US and in Toronto, and oh so many more hijinks did abound! (Tour Clothes came from here.) We so much more than Kicked It...
- In October, our Beautiful Darkness Tour went livestream, courtesy of Kaleb Nation and Blog TV. We were able to field questions from all around the world while we went all around the US, which was a completely awesome experience. October was also our first time at the Texas Book Festival in Austin, which is not to be missed! AND better yet, our beloved agent Sarah Burnes and editor Julie Scheina met us along the way.
- Also in October, Kami and I published Beautiful Darkness, the sequel to Beautiful Creatures, and it became a NYT bestseller (and a few other kinds of bestseller) also! AND I'm still receiving copies of Beautiful Darkness/17 Lunes in all sorts of languages from around the world, which I love.
- In November, we returned to our adopted home of Charleston, South Carolina, again with Kaleb Nation, to visit YA debut author Michelle Hodkin, photographer bestie Vania Stoyanova and our fave Southern Indie, the Blue Bicycle.It was a crazy busy month, though, because we turned in Caster Chronicles III just in time for me to head to Paris.
I spent Thanksgiving Day with my extremely cool publisher - Hachette Jeunesse / Black Moon - in Paris. I met with readers in Paris and Grenoble, and hung out in the Christmas Markets, one of my favorite things to do in the Alps in winter.
- In December, I got to visit the Monarch School in San Diego, where I played a sort of Santa to a wonderful classroom, and then met up at Kami to sign at Mysterious Galaxy, one of the greatest fantasy and science fiction bookstores in the US. I enjoyed the holidays in the snow in Park City. New Years' found me back at home in Santa Monica, feeling - like I said - grateful and ready to take on 2011.
What lies ahead in 2011?
I'm not sure. I know it involves a lot of writing - Caster Chronicles IV, my last Caster book (for now) with Kami - as well as a project or two of my own to finish. And I know I'll be in Dijon, France and San Diego, CA in January. And then Goteborg, Sweden and Mexico in February.
I'm looking forward to loads of good books, including new books from all my favorites - Melissa Marr, Cassie Clare, Carrie Ryan, Holly Black and Ally Condie. I'm looking forward to Pseudonymous Bosch, my oldest friend, finishing his NYT bestselling middle-grade series as well. I'm looking forward to a new book from my favorite Spanish YA author, Javier Ruescas. And I'm looking forward to getting back to work with Kami after the holidays, myself.
As for the rest, your guess is as good as mine.
Here's hoping you, too, have recovered from your 2010 - and wishing you the very best of 2011.
Love & Luck,
Margie
