On Writing

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    RT Booklovers Convention wrap-up …

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    I attended the annual RT Booklovers Convention in Chicago on April 11-15. I enjoy going to conventions because you get to meet so many folks — readers, authors, bloggers, reviewers, editors, and agents — who are all so passionate about books. Here are some of the events I participated in:

    WEDNESDAY

    I had breakfast with the very witty Sarah Wendell, who runs the popular book blog Smart Bitches, Trashy Books. We talked about books, social media, and more. Sarah also told me about Bookshare, which helps increase the accessibility of books to people with disabilities. She’s going to be doing a panel about the program at the national RWA conference later this year.

    Later that day, I participated in a young adult panel with Kiera Cass, Rosemary Clement-Moore, Kimberly Derting, and Carrie Ryan that was moderated by Melissa Marr. We talked about writing fight scenes, killing off characters, and other issues in YA books. It was a fun panel to be on, and we got some laughs from the crowd, which is always nice.

    I also met up with some author friends, including Edie Ramer and Liz Kreger, who are in the Entangled e-anthology. They brought me Beechwood cheese from Wisconsin, and I took them some Moon Pies from down South.

    THURSDAY

    I participated in an urban fantasy panel with Kelley Armstrong, Melissa Marr, Nicole Peeler, and Jaye Wells that was moderated by Lucienne Diver. One of the things we talked about was what urban fantasy is. My definition: Kick-ass heroines who kill bad creatures/monsters and make out with hot guys. LOL. Anyway, that was another fun panel to be a part of.

    I also attended an author/reader mixer hosted by my YA publisher, Kensington. The cool thing were the cookies that they gave away that had the authors’ book covers on them, including some for Dark Frost.You can see the cookies in the basket above left. I kept one for myself. I think it’s too pretty to eat.

    Also, before the mixer, I got to meet Kensington authors Marilyn Brant, Cynthia Eden and Victoria Alexander, along with many other folks. Below left is me with Victoria Alexander, who told me that she’s been reading and enjoying my Mythos Academy series. It’s always nice to hear when other authors like your work, so that was really flattering.

    I had to leave the mixer a little early because I had another event happening at the same time, which was a luncheon for YA librarians/booksellers. I talked to several librarians and booksellers (many of whom are also bloggers), and among the folks I met was Casey from Literary Escapism.

    FRIDAY

    I had breakfast with my editor and some other folks from Kensington, and we talked about Crimson Frost, the fourth Mythos Academy book that will be out in January 2013. It was really cool to talk with the Kensington folks about my books and all the other books they have coming up. They really are passionate about getting the word out about their books and authors.

    That afternoon, I went to the awards ceremony, where Spider’s Revenge won for Best Urban Fantasy novel. Huzzah! It was an honor just to be nominated with so many other great books and authors, and I was really honored to win. So thank you to everyone RT for the award. I really appreciate it.

    Although the winners had to go up on stage and give a short thank-you speech. I started panicking a little about that, especially when I realized who was on stage before me: J.R. Ward. Yes, that’s right. I had to accept my award right after J.R. Ward did hers. LOL. Anyway, I hope my speech was okay and that I thanked everyone I meant to. All I remember is trying not to drop the award. Everything else is a bit of a blur.

    SATURDAY

    The big event on Saturday was the Giant Book Fair, which featured several hundred authors. I signed books in the YA Alley with other young adult authors. This was the busiest I’ve ever been at a book signing. I think I signed books for about 60-90 minutes straight, which was really awesome. It seemed like there was a really good turnout for the book fair.

    Later that afternoon, I participated in a Speed Reading event with about 11 other YA authors. Every author read about a three-minute passage from their books. I thought that was a neat way to introduce the authors to the folks in the audience and get a sample of their books/writing style at the same time.

    And finally, I attended a YA party that evening. Folks were given scavenger hunt sheets, and they had to go around and find different authors in the crowd and get them to answer questions in order to win some tote bags signed by the authors. I thought that was a fun way to get the teens talking to the authors.

    FINAL THOUGHTS

    And that was my conference. I’m going to do another post about some trends and other things that I noticed, so be on the lookout for that. And if you ever get the chance to go to RT, even if it’s just for the book fair, consider it. If you love books, you’ll probably have a great time.

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    Widow’s Web cover art revealed …

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    Widow’s Web outer cover Widow’s Web inner cover

     So I can finally share the cover art for Widow’s Web, the seventh book in my Elemental Assassin urban fantasy series that will be out on Aug. 21. Huzzah!

    Although, this time, there’s a twist.

    The paperback copies will actually have two covers — an outer white cover (above left) and an inner blue cover (above right). Basically, the white cover is a flap that you open up to see the inner cover. This is called a step-back cover. Pretty cool, huh?

    So when you go to your local bookstore or want to order the paperback version online, be on the lookout for the white cover.


    Widow’s Web e-book cover

    However, if you plan on getting the e-book, be on the lookout for the blue cover, since that’s what will be used for the e-book versions. The e-book cover (above) is basically the same art as the inner cover, but with my name and the title of the book on it. And once again, the art by Tony Mauro on the blue cover is just fantastic.

    Here’s a little more info about the book. Please note that there are a few mild spoilers here, if you haven’t read By a Thread yet:

    My name is Gin, and I kill people. It’s something I’ve been doing for years as the assassin called Spider, but now, it’s turned into a necessity on my part just to survive all the lowlifes in Ashland who are gunning for me. The underworld is still in turmoil, and I seem to be on everyone’s hit list these days.

    To add to Gin’s problems, her lover Owen’s ex is in town. Salina is back in Ashland to reclaim an old family legacy — and she thinks that Owen is hers for the taking. Also in the mix is Phillip Kincaid, a casino owner and all-around shady character who has a mysterious connection to both Owen and Salina.

    Salina might seem like a sweet Southern belle, but there’s more to her than meets the eye. Her water elemental magic makes her a dangerous enemy — and someone who can go toe-to-toe with Gin’s Ice and Stone power. But Gin is determined to get to the bottom of Salina’s deadly scheme, even though it just might cost her everything … including Owen.

    Basically, this book delves into Owen’s past. Readers will find out how Owen survived when he was living on the streets with his younger sister, Eva, as well as more about his relationships with Salina and Kincaid.

    Widow’s Web is up for pre-order at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, and other booksellers. Hope everyone enjoys the book when it comes out.

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    RITA nominations …

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    I posted this on my Facebook and Twitter pages, but I’ve been nominated for two RITA awards, which are given out by Romance Writers of America. Huzzah! Huzzah!

    Every year, RWA gives out two different awards — the RITAs for published books/authors and the Golden Hearts for unpublished books/authors. Both the RITAs and the Golden Hearts have a variety of categories, like contemporary romance and paranormal romance. The nominations were announced on March 26. You can see all the nominees here, and the winners will be announced on July 28 during an awards ceremony at the annual RWA conference. Basically, the awards are like the Oscars of the romance writing community. The awards ceremony is really nice, and everyone gets dressed up for it.

    Spider’s Revenge was nominated in the strong romantic elements category, and Touch of Frost was nominated in the young adult category.

    I’m still in smiling, happy shock. 🙂

    I had marked on my calendar that the nominations were being announced that morning (nominees are called), but when the phone rang at about 9:15 a.m., I figured it was just my mom calling. But I was very happy to be wrong about that (sorry, Mom). The call went something like this:

    “Hi, is this Jennifer?” the woman asked.

    Hmm, I thought. This is probably a telemarketer. Or someone wanting me to take a survey. No way this is a RITA call.

    “Yes,” I said.

    “Hi, I’m with RWA, and I happy to tell you …”

    And then my brain froze for a minute. Several minutes actually.

    And then she said I was nominated in two categories.

    Total … brain … meltdown!

    I asked her if she was kidding — at least I think I did. She assured me that she was not kidding. She probably thinks I am a total space cadet nut. Ah, well. At least I didn’t scream in her ear. I waited until after I hung up the phone before I did that. LOL.

    I never, ever thought I would get nominated for a RITA. I’ve entered my books every year, and I always hoped one of them might get nominated, but I never really expected it. Like I said before, I’m still in shock — but it’s a good kind of shock.

    And I’m so happy that these two books got nominated. With Spider’s Revenge, I really wanted to deliver on the Gin-Mab and Gin-Owen story arcs for readers. With Touch of Frost, I branched out and wrote a young adult book, which was a new genre for me. So it’s just a little extra special to me that these books were nominated.

    Anyway, that’s my RITA call story. I just want to say thanks to RWA for sponsoring the contest and to all the folks who donate their time to judge the RITAs and the Golden Hearts. I also want to say congrats to all the nominees. It’s a great group of books and authors to be included with, and it truly is an honor to be nominated.

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    You say potato, I say potato …

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    A while back, I wrote a post about some regional words that I use in my books. Today, I thought I would talk a little about pronunciation.

    Just like words, pronunciation varies widely from region to region (not to mention accents). Simple words always seem to trip me up the most. For caramel, do you say car-mel or car-a-mel? I usually say car-mel.

    I like The Weather Channel, but my ears perk up every time one of the forecasters talks about the Appalachian Mountains. The forecasters almost always pronounce it as App-uh-lay-chan. But I’ve always heard and said it as App-uh-latch-in.

    Another word that I’ve heard pronounced two ways is pecan. I’ve heard it as peh-cahn and pea-can. I usually say peh-cahn. And as long as we’re talking about food, there is bruschetta, which is bru-sket-a to some and bru-sche-tah to others (including me).

    One thing that always surprises me is when people mispronounce Estep, my last name. Many folks say it as Es-tep, but I’ve always heard and said it as E-step. That’s how I would say it, no matter how it’s spelled — Estep, Eastep, Estepp, Eastepp, etc.

    In the end, I guess it’s just like regional words — you say them the way you hear them growing up.

    What about you guys? What words have you heard pronounced different ways?