The German version of Resurrection comes out today
I'm happy about my first translated work. The German title is "Resurrection: Lost Light."
German friends, let me know what you think!
Resurrection on Amazon.de
German friends, let me know what you think!
Resurrection on Amazon.de
News starting to trickle out about trilogy...
Some trade press on my upcoming trilogy. There's a little blub about the story which is hopefully intriguing and also deeply unsatisfying...
http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat/tag/arwen-elys-dayton
http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat/tag/arwen-elys-dayton
Resurrection back at #1 on Amazon's Historical Fantasy list
About a year after this first happened, Resurrection is back at the top of Amazon's Historical Fantasy bestseller list.
Yes, in a large part this is because Amazon is selling it for 99 cents this month, but I'm very happy that so many people are buying and reading the book.
I hope you enjoy!
First announcement of my new series SEEKER for Random House's Delacorte Press
I'm very excited to be with Krista Marino at Random House's Delacorte Press with my new YA series SEEKER.
Here's a little blurb in today's issue of Publishers Weekly:
Book Deals: Week of March 11, 2013
Here's a little blurb in today's issue of Publishers Weekly:
Book Deals: Week of March 11, 2013
To This Day, Shane Koyczan - you must watch this video
I need to share this video because it's amazing and devastating and beautiful and important, which is a lot things to be.
It's also an example of what can be created when artists collaborate. Volunteer animators did the animation, and the result is a train of breathtaking styles, each completely different, and yet as powerful as the next.
I hope anyone who does creative work aspires to create something so meaningful. I know I do.
To This Day, Shane Koyczan
It's also an example of what can be created when artists collaborate. Volunteer animators did the animation, and the result is a train of breathtaking styles, each completely different, and yet as powerful as the next.
I hope anyone who does creative work aspires to create something so meaningful. I know I do.
To This Day, Shane Koyczan
Today I'm studying our ancestors and early modern man
It's been kind of a long haul to our present form.
Cro Magnon
H. heidelbergensis
H. Ergaster
H. erectus
A. afarensis. Lucy!!!
Cro Magnon
H. heidelbergensis
H. Ergaster
H. erectus
A. afarensis. Lucy!!!
Today I'm looking at monasteries
Polar opposites of the junkyards in my last post, and yet they are united by the research I'm doing right now...
Reading list, last 12 months...
In case anyone is interested in what I read in 2012, I thought I'd post a list. I reconstructed it from my Kindle, and so is probably missing the occasional book I read in paper, but I certainly have included my favorites from last year.
Benjamin Franklin
Walter Isaacson
Fantastic biography of an amazing man. Franklin seems to go in and out of style from generation to generation, and the book even manages to talk about the changing face of his legacy.
Cloud Atlas
David Mitchell
Completely absorbing book, and the author's ability to effortlessly span centuries in his writing style left me in awe.
The Name of the Wind
Patrick Rothfuss
I'm not usually a big fan of fantasy, but when the writing is this good, this classic, and the world is so well drawn, you can't help but love it.
Reamde
Neal Stephenson
I am a huge Neal Stephenson fan and I totally loved this book. Russian gangsters, Chinese hackers, crashing private planes and multi-national kidnap victims all brought together through an MMORPG that ends up spilling over into "real life" in many unpleasant ways.
A Feast For Crows
George R.R. Martin
The Casual Vacancy
J.K. Rowling
You can debate whether or not this book was actually entertaining, but I took this as Ms. Rowling's wake-up call for complacent people everywhere who are not doing enough to help others. With this book, she seemed to say, "This is the world as it really is. Roll up your sleeves and help." I was inspired.
The House of Morgan
Ron Chernow
A banking dynasty and a detailed look at parts of American history that are often overlooked.
The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie
Alan Bradley
The Fault in our Stars
John Green
Kids with cancer is a tough topic, but he might be the one writer to tackle it with with the right mix of humor, irony and honesty.
Looking for Alaska
John Green
Riverworld: To Your Scattered Bodies Go
Philip Jose Farmer
Anna Dressed in Blood
Kendare Blake
The Door Into Summer
Robert Heinlein
Heinlein is comfort food for me.
Wool
Hugh Howey
Wool came out around the same time as Resurrection and it's been my great pleasure to watch its amazing success. Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy.
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
John le Carre
Steve Jobs
Walter Isaacson
Books I read with the kids (who range in age from 7 to 12):
![The Cumbersome Collection (A Series of Unfortunate Events, Books 1-11) [SHRINK WRAPPED]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51AcD7PgvvL._SL500_AA300_.jpg)
A Series of Unfortunate Events, Books 1-7
Lemony Snickett
The 39 Clues, Book 1: Maze of Bones
Rick Riordan
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
J.K. Rowling
I am reading the series for at least the third time, this time with my seven year old. I never get tired of it!
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
J.K. Rowling
Divergent
Veronica Roth
My middle child became obsessed with this series and we had lots of fun deciding which factions we (and the rest of the family and all of our friends) belonged in.
Insurgent
Veronica Roth
The Apothecary
Such clear, graceful writing framing a story that blends history with historical fiction.
Matched
Ally Condie
My middle child greatly enjoyed the author's writing style and the world she created, and said child charged immediately into the rest of the series.
Benjamin FranklinWalter Isaacson
Fantastic biography of an amazing man. Franklin seems to go in and out of style from generation to generation, and the book even manages to talk about the changing face of his legacy.
Cloud AtlasDavid Mitchell
Completely absorbing book, and the author's ability to effortlessly span centuries in his writing style left me in awe.
The Name of the Wind
Patrick Rothfuss
I'm not usually a big fan of fantasy, but when the writing is this good, this classic, and the world is so well drawn, you can't help but love it.
Reamde
Neal Stephenson
I am a huge Neal Stephenson fan and I totally loved this book. Russian gangsters, Chinese hackers, crashing private planes and multi-national kidnap victims all brought together through an MMORPG that ends up spilling over into "real life" in many unpleasant ways.
A Feast For CrowsGeorge R.R. Martin
The Casual VacancyJ.K. Rowling
You can debate whether or not this book was actually entertaining, but I took this as Ms. Rowling's wake-up call for complacent people everywhere who are not doing enough to help others. With this book, she seemed to say, "This is the world as it really is. Roll up your sleeves and help." I was inspired.
The House of MorganRon Chernow
A banking dynasty and a detailed look at parts of American history that are often overlooked.
The Sweetness at the Bottom of the PieAlan Bradley
The Fault in our StarsJohn Green
Kids with cancer is a tough topic, but he might be the one writer to tackle it with with the right mix of humor, irony and honesty.
Looking for AlaskaJohn Green
Riverworld: To Your Scattered Bodies GoPhilip Jose Farmer
Anna Dressed in BloodKendare Blake
The Door Into SummerRobert Heinlein
Heinlein is comfort food for me.
WoolHugh Howey
Wool came out around the same time as Resurrection and it's been my great pleasure to watch its amazing success. Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy.
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, SpyJohn le Carre
Steve JobsWalter Isaacson
Books I read with the kids (who range in age from 7 to 12):
A Series of Unfortunate Events, Books 1-7Lemony Snickett
The 39 Clues, Book 1: Maze of BonesRick Riordan
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of AzkabanJ.K. Rowling
I am reading the series for at least the third time, this time with my seven year old. I never get tired of it!
Harry Potter and the Goblet of FireJ.K. Rowling
DivergentVeronica Roth
InsurgentVeronica Roth
The Apothecary
Maile Meloy
MatchedAlly Condie
My middle child greatly enjoyed the author's writing style and the world she created, and said child charged immediately into the rest of the series.
WRITERS HOUSE
I had a fun visit to Writers House when I was in New York the other day. In a dense warren of rooms winding through two adjacent old houses are some really great people, including my agent, Jodi Reamer.
A lot of good things happened when Resurrection hit all those Amazon bestseller lists this year. I mean, hitting the bestseller lists was obviously the main good thing, which is why I'm taking this convenient opportunity to mention it again. As a writer, you feel a whole lot better when your stories are being bought and read by thousands and thousands of people, rather than read reluctantly by a few close friends and relatives who are obligated to (but don't always) say something nice to you. It doesn't really have to be that way -- the job is "writer," not "seller of books," but still I am pretty happy about selling books.
Aside from the thrill of seeing Resurrection climbing up (and down, and then up again, and then, yes, down again) Amazon's bestseller lists (I'm using way too many parentheses here -- Jodi would definitely complain in the unlikely event that she ever used the Internet and saw this -- but I would like to mention that Resurrection did briefly displace two Hunger Games books in the kindle store, during the absolute peak of HG rabid buying), it's been fun hearing from people who've read the book and so great to watch all the nice reader reviews going up.
And to the few readers who didn't give me a very nice review, I'd like to say that I'm still super happy you bought my book. Maybe it can double as a paperweight or doorstop or something. I guess you could write grocery lists in the margins, or use the pages to start a fire, or as toilet paper. (Don't try this if you only bought the kindle version of the book. That would be an uncomfortable/expensive mistake.)
A kind of weird side effect of the book doing well was getting to talk to several really interesting agents who wanted to represent me. I had a terrific agent years ago, but we hadn't worked together in a long while, and I decided to put myself back on the market (to make an odd and inappropriate dating reference out of this).
I spoke to some great people, but ultimately Jodi was the perfect fit. She represents a few #1 NY Times bestselling authors you may have heard of, like Stephenie Meyer (Twilight), John Green (The Fault in Our Stars -- just selected as Time Magazine's #1 fiction book in 2012), Ally Condie (Matched). This is shameless name dropping on my part, since I (a) don't know any of them and (b) may be slapped with some sort of Cease and Desist order for using them to plug myself. But I'm doing it anyway.
Despite her amazing list of authors, she makes me feel like her only client when she's talking to me. You can't ask for more than that. Okay, you can ask for more than that, but this is still pretty good.
I'm thrilled to be represented by Jodi Reamer and I think she's happy to have me as a client too -- at least, I can't think of any other reason she'd agree to do it.
A lot of good things happened when Resurrection hit all those Amazon bestseller lists this year. I mean, hitting the bestseller lists was obviously the main good thing, which is why I'm taking this convenient opportunity to mention it again. As a writer, you feel a whole lot better when your stories are being bought and read by thousands and thousands of people, rather than read reluctantly by a few close friends and relatives who are obligated to (but don't always) say something nice to you. It doesn't really have to be that way -- the job is "writer," not "seller of books," but still I am pretty happy about selling books.
 |
| Writers House. Great old building with offices tucked away in a rabbit warren. |
And to the few readers who didn't give me a very nice review, I'd like to say that I'm still super happy you bought my book. Maybe it can double as a paperweight or doorstop or something. I guess you could write grocery lists in the margins, or use the pages to start a fire, or as toilet paper. (Don't try this if you only bought the kindle version of the book. That would be an uncomfortable/expensive mistake.)
A kind of weird side effect of the book doing well was getting to talk to several really interesting agents who wanted to represent me. I had a terrific agent years ago, but we hadn't worked together in a long while, and I decided to put myself back on the market (to make an odd and inappropriate dating reference out of this).
I spoke to some great people, but ultimately Jodi was the perfect fit. She represents a few #1 NY Times bestselling authors you may have heard of, like Stephenie Meyer (Twilight), John Green (The Fault in Our Stars -- just selected as Time Magazine's #1 fiction book in 2012), Ally Condie (Matched). This is shameless name dropping on my part, since I (a) don't know any of them and (b) may be slapped with some sort of Cease and Desist order for using them to plug myself. But I'm doing it anyway.
Despite her amazing list of authors, she makes me feel like her only client when she's talking to me. You can't ask for more than that. Okay, you can ask for more than that, but this is still pretty good.I'm thrilled to be represented by Jodi Reamer and I think she's happy to have me as a client too -- at least, I can't think of any other reason she'd agree to do it.
Since the world did not in fact end on 12/21/2012, I am cautiously optimistic about good things to come in 2013.
Arwen
Urban Wildlife in Portland, Oregon
I'm finishing a novel in Portland.
To clarify, I'm in Portland myself. The novel does not take place here. If a novel were to take place here, it would probably have to feature a sub-species of humanity endemic to the area, which I have mentally been calling hobo hipsterus urbanus. They are usually quite young, and they work very hard on their facial hair, tattoos and graffiti tags but not so much on taking showers or doing laundry. However, as I discovered, they are actually pretty nice, and they often have very cute dogs.
But back to me: I've discovered that three days holed up in a hotel by myself equates to about a week and a half of working at home. A lot of this is fueled by guilt about not being at home. It's a virtuous circle.
I have a wonderful new agent (more on this to come) who is pounding the table for the revised manuscript. There's no literal table pounding, but it's nice to imagine some dramatic gesticulation going on alongside our very friendly phone conversations.
For some reason, I've had a hankering for bad 90's music, so I actually walked around today (okay, and yesterday too) with big headphones on, while listening to Third Eye Blind. Don't judge me. It made an interesting soundtrack for crossing very highly trafficked footpaths while being trailed by said hobos.
The lovely thing about this hotel is that it's situated right by the river, and there are four miles of walking/biking paths along the water where I can get some exercise for an hour or two and look at something other than a computer screen. And what I get to look at a lot is hobo hipsterus urbanus in all his many forms. Any natives of the Northwest reading this, please let me know if there is an actual word used to describe this sub-culture. I'm dying to know.
For some reason, I've had a hankering for bad 90's music, so I actually walked around today (okay, and yesterday too) with big headphones on, while listening to Third Eye Blind. Don't judge me. It made an interesting soundtrack for crossing very highly trafficked footpaths while being trailed by said hobos.
There were some other things to look at as well. I really do like Portland's bridges.
Arwen
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