Category Archives: Publication
The State of… not Monday
Monday’s usual blog update will not happen, since I’ll be in Newport, working on Book 3, drinking Awful Awfuls from the Newport Creamery, and avoiding soaking up the sun. (I have a big floppy hat and a stern warning from my dermatologist)
Awful big. Awful good. Seriously, best milkshakes *anywhere*.
I’ll be without internet access for the most part (yay for productivity, sad face for Twitter), so I probably won’t be updating again until after ConnectiCon. For anyone attending who would like to say hello, here’s my set schedule:
Panels:
Friday 1:30p – 2:30p: Worldbuilding in Fantasy & Scifi 101 – Panel 7
Friday 7:00p – 8:00p: Cross-genre Writing – Panel 8
Signing:
Saturday 1:00p – 2:00p: M.L. Brennan Autograph Session – Online Media Guest Hall
I’m really excited about being on these two fantastic panels – I only know that Michael J. Sullivan is on both, which will probably give him the distinction of being the first author who I publically geekspaz out on since becoming a published author myself. (authors who I publically geekspazed out on *before* getting published myself? Um… let’s not dwell on that list…)
Also, if you are going to be at ConnectiCon on Saturday? PLEASE come see me during my signing session! I’m really looking forward to meeting some of the great people who I’ve bumped into on Twitter and through blogs, and I can even promise some swag!
Emphasis on “some,” but still – check out what just arrived in the mail today:
Came out even better than I’d hoped for! Thanks, Moo.com!
My Generation V business card! They are actually very cool to hold – the perfect size for sticking in a pocket or wallet, but the cardstock is really nice and the picture actually doesn’t do justice to how well the cover photo turned out! I’m really happy about these. So if you come say hi to me at my signing, but either don’t have your copy of Generation V or don’t have the spare money to buy it that day (though my publisher is sending a whole BOX to the convention, which, let me tell you: pressure), come over and I will sign one of the cards for you! I’ll also have a few of the Ace/Roc samplers that has the first chapter of Generation V in it, and I’m happy to give those out to the first 25 people who ask me. (and, I cannot stress this enough: ask me *while I’m carrying them* on Saturday. You can probably ask me for the business card if you run into me at any point in the con, since I’ll have a bunch in my pockets)
Next time I update, then, I’ll be able to talk about Newport, hopefully I’ll have some solid work done on Book 3, plus I’ll be able to talk about my FIRST CONVENTION!
Remember – in my absence, please harass friends, loved ones, and random strangers to buy my book.
Yawning baby fox entreats you to purchase Generation V!
The State of Monday – July 1
Welcome to July (also known as, “shit, how is it July already?”)! Last week was pretty good for the writing. I had a very useful phone conversation with my editor (the great and powerful Anne Sowards) in the middle of the week.
Maybe it’s a little bit of a power move that she insists on using this thing whenever she talks with me, but, hey, whatever works.
We talked about where I’m planning on taking Book 3. This was a pretty important phone call, since when Roc bought the three books, the purchases on #2 and #3 were based on a set of proposals, plus an over-series arc document. Iron Night is similar in most major points to its proposal, but the problem is that there are a few really BIG events that were in the Book 3 proposal that I just didn’t feel should happen yet. They needed more prep before I could get to them.
How big are these events? Well, about as big as the giant balloon that Anne Sowards does all of her business travel in. It’s slow, but she gets great mileage.
Anne agreed with me, and I had a really productive week of outlining. I’ve cleared up one of the thornier areas of the main plot, and now I’m just figuring out how some of the ongoing plots will fit in around it. The timing is going really well on this, since on Saturday I’ll be heading down to one of my favorite places in the world for a six-day solo vacation – can you guess the place?
Newport, RI. My family starting going down for a week every summer when I was about 4, and I actually lived there for a full year on my own. Newport is both one of my favorite settings in the Fortitude Scott books and a really important place in its creation. I finished the first draft of Generation V in Newport in the summer of 2011. In the summer of 2012, I’d just sold the series to Roc, and I thrashed out the full outline of Iron Night during my time there. This summer I’m hoping to get a chunk of writing done on Book 3.
Here are two pictures from last summer. Isn’t it great?
My schedule in Newport is pretty basic – I get up in the morning, eat breakfast and read on the porch. Then I come inside and write for a few hours, breaking for lunch. In the early afternoon I take a break and head down to the town – I walk all over, looking in shops, checking out what has changed, until I’m exhausted and sweaty. Early dinner at the Newport Creamery (greasy spoon diner and decent eating for a writer on a budget – plus, Awful Awfuls!), then back to the keyboard. Time out on the porch to enjoy the sunset. Work until I’m tired, then to bed. Repeat until vacation is over.
It’s wonderful – though my brother usually calls me a few times to make sure I haven’t gone all The Shining on my own.
This year I’ll be leaving Newport on a Friday – the same Friday as my first convention! I’m really excited to be attending ConnectiCon – I’m on two panels, plus I’m going to get a chance to sign copies of Generation V! Plus I also get to attend a convention – yay! If you’re planning on attending ConnectiCon, drop me a note so that we can meet up!
So that’s what’s going on with me (and why there won’t be a State of Monday next week), on to the important stuff – what’s going on with the books! Firstly, Generation V is up to 22 reviews over at Amazon. Amazon also has a new format which I’m not especially thrilled about – I find it really visually annoying, and it kind of pisses me off to have to click on something to see basic book info like where something was published. But, hey, I guess when I’m a global conglomerate with billions in assets, I can complain then, right?
Two really great reviews of Generation V – one from Kristin over at My Bookish Ways, and the other that I found over at bookistry. Also, Candace from Candace’s Book Blog is having a guest post and giveaway extravaganza, and she was nice enough to ask me to add a post. I had a lot of fun doing it, so check out My Top Ten Favorite Books So Far This Year — because, really, I’ve never been able to do a Top Ten list of favorite books of all time. I remember getting really frustrated over that once back in 8th grade, and let me tell you, I’ve read a *shit-ton* of books since then. It’s not getting any easier. But favorite books read in a six month period? That I could get a fun handle on. Oh, and you should also check out my list because Candace is running a giveaway of a signed copy of Generation V. So, free stuff!
I’ll be guest blogging tomorrow at That’s What I’m Talking About for their Urban Fantasy Summer Reading Celebration ) — they have a pretty great lineup of books to raffle off, and they’ll also be talking about some of my favorite authors.
Speaking of summer fun – check out the Blogger Summer Circus Giveaway Hop. There are a lot of great blogs involved, but start off at one I like very much – Danielle at Coffee and Characters is the ringmaster, and she also has a lineup of cover reveals, and I’m *very* flattered that she included Iron Night as one that she’s really looking forward to! Believe me, I’m *dying* to find out what people think of it, and January feels like forever and a day, but it’s with the copyeditor now, who will no doubt point out about fifty problems that I was completely unaware of. (last time favorites included the fact that the gun Fort was using held about four more bullets than I thought it did – so the final version ended up with four more shots to explain how he emptied his gun)
Speaking of the Iron Night cover….
…my own… my precious…
…it was included in the All Things Urban Fantasy Cover Art Coverage! They had 36 covers to get through (whoa!) but were nice enough to include Iron Night. The entry is worth checking out on its own (I love reading their cover art posts), but here’s what was said about Iron Night:
Chris says:
The covers for this series suck. A lot. They’re boring as all get out. That’s especially sad since this is a tremendous series.
Did you hear that? Chris says that this is a “tremendous series”! Woo!
Kristina says:
While I will always applaud sensible clothes and just plain clothes on a model this is kind of boring. He looks like he’s just taking a stroll with his gun.
“Taking a stroll with his gun” would be the best kickoff to an animated Disney song EVER! (wait, didn’t that already happen in Pocahontas?) But, yes, I am continually relieved at Fort’s state of dress on these covers – ie, his commitment to wearing shirts. Actually, this cover got even safer, since he now has a tee *and* a long-sleeve shirt! That’s smart layering, Fort!
Jennifer says:
The V in the background is why I’m giving this cover the middle. My interest is peaked by it alone.
I’m a huge fan of that background V. Yes, it has flummoxed a few people, since the official series name is American Vampire, not Generation V, but I was seriously worried around title time that my series didn’t have themed titles, and I think that the artist did a fantastic job of using that V to tie them together. Bravo!
Fun side story – I was on the phone with my brother last night, and I asked what he thought of the new cover. Typical brother, he didn’t even know I *had* a website (right on the book! Argh!), but it turned out to be a win, since then I got to listen in realtime to his cover reaction! (once he scrolled past last week’s fluffy dog – not my cover, btw). It was hysterically funny, and I wrote it down to share with all of you:
My Brother says:
WHAT? He went from film theory geek to Die Hard! And why is he carrying a sawed-off shotgun?!
I’m going to call that a thumbs up.
That’s about it – but remember that tomorrow is the debut of Django Wexler’s The Thousand Names (#5 on my list of books I read this year, btw). According to SF Signal:
I would wholeheartedly recommend The Thousand Names, not only to fans of fantasy but also to fans of military fiction of all types. Fans of Steven Erikson, David Drake, Glen Cook, Naomi Novik, Tom Kratman, Jack Campbell, David Weber, and John Ringo take note – there’s a new military fiction cowboy in town and his name is Django.
Django Wexler. The new military fiction cowboy in town.
And if you’re buying The Thousand Names, why not take the opportunity to pick up Generation V as well?
After all, mine has more cats than Django’s does.
The State of Monday – June 17
Somewhat quick update today – firstly, some extremely exciting news! Iron Night now has listings on Amazon.com and Goodreads! So this means that I can finally do the reveal here (in a tiny picture because I don’t have a larger one yet, sorry):
Young, broke, and lethal.
Underemployed by day. Undead by night.
Underachieving film theory graduate and vampire Fortitude Scott may be waiting tables at a snooty restaurant run by a tyrannical chef who hates him, but the other parts of his life finally seem to be stabilizing. He’s learning how to help rule the Scott family territory, hanging out more with his shapeshifting friend Suzume Hollis, and has actually found a decent roommate for once.
Until he finds his roommate’s dead body.
The Scott family cover-up machine swings into gear, but Fort is the only person trying to figure out who (or what) actually killed his friend. His hunt for a murderer leads to a creature that scares even his sociopathic family, and puts them all in deadly peril.
Keeping secrets, killing monsters, and still having to make it to work on time? Sometimes being a vampire really sucks.
Coming January 7, 2014! Very cool, right? When I saw the cover my first thought was that Fort had leveled up in attractiveness! (he went from Fortitude the Grey to Fortitude the White!) But I do love the cover – particularly the way that the artist used the background V to tie the two books together. And the architectural interest behind the model. Oh, and the gun – that’s exactly how I was picturing it. Okay, I just love the cover.
I’m finishing up the primary edits on Iron Night this week, and after that it will be turned over to the copyeditor (which will be, you know, delightful). But I’m really excited about where the book goes, and I can’t wait until it gets released.
But, returning to the book currently making its way (hopefully) onto shelves and into hearts – some new stuff for Generation V as well! Reviews this past week went up at Coffee and Characters and Ladybug Literature, and I did an interview with the Little Red Reviewer. That last one has a giveaway attached to it as well, for anyone interested.
So if you haven’t read Generation V yet, the countdown is now on!
Remember to get one for each of the kids!
Weekend notes
Hitting the road this weekend for a trip up the New Hampshire. Limited internet access, and hopefully a chance to put in some solid work on the Iron Night edits.
Hope everyone has a great few days, and a few last links:
There’s an interview posted today over at SciFiChick.com along with a chance to win a signed copy of Generation V.
Plus a very nice review over at All Things Urban Fantasy — four out of five bats can’t be wrong, people!
So if you’ll have any free time over the weekend, wouldn’t you like to curl up and meet this Fortitude Scott guy that everyone in my links is talking about? Of course you would.
Baby black panther thinks you should buy Generation V. Who can argue with baby black panther?
Generation V out in the world
Ever since Generation V was bought by Roc last year, most of my time (when not focused on work, or during the time when I was writing and polishing the initial draft of Iron Night) and focus was on how to best work on promoting the book before it was published. And now… the book is out. I can visit it any time in the bookstore, and now when I talk to people about it, they can actually order copies on their phones, and have e-copies pretty much immediately.
Which is incredible and amazing… but now I can’t help but wonder, now what?
Oh, don’t get me wrong – I know what I need to be doing. The classes I’m teaching are just going into finals, so there’s a lot of hand-holding and correcting going on there. Plus I received edits back from Anne for Iron Night, and those need to be worked on and finished before June 1. Plus I have the third Fortitude Scott book to plan and write. And I really should mop the floors of my house, because that totally got pushed to the back-burner for a few months when I was crazy busy.
But in a larger sense, regarding Generation V, now what? Worrying about how well it’s selling, or doing research and sending emails to try to get more people to talk about it – that has occupied the majority of my days this week. And I know that with my to-do list of actual writing, that’s going to have to change really soon. Maybe I’ll be able to spend a few hours a week thinking about and working on publicity stuff, but that’s probably it.
I’ve made a deal with myself – I’ll keep focusing on Generation V until the end of the week, but then the shift to Iron Night has to happen. So this is an interesting transition time.
So until the rest of the week to keep obsessing about how awesome Generation V looks on a bookshelf at Barnes & Noble.
It’s like a baby picture that I can’t stop flashing!
Stuff To Check Out!
One of my favorite interviews ever at Yummy Men & Kick Ass Chicks – fantastic and thoughtful questions!
Another great Interview at The Qwillery.
I’m guest posting at Guest post at Michael J. Martinez’s blog & at Smexy Books.
The Supernatural Smackdown is still going on at Dark Faerie Tales, and Fort gets a speed date over at the Book Swarm.
Finally, another really strong review of Generation V by Tori over at Smexy Books. Very thoughtful and great stuff.
And in closing, my usual appeal – wouldn’t you love to own your very own copy of Generation V?
Three out of four baby otters approve of you buying Generation V. The fourth would have approved it, but was too busy snoozing adorably.
Generation V debut — interviews & celebration plans
Here’s the big question everyone is asking me on the release day of my debut book – are you having a big party?
The answer is… sort of.
Firstly, today is a Tuesday. So most people I know are actually at work for most of the day, and then they’ll have to get up tomorrow and go to work again on Wednesday. That cuts out most of the crazy partying options. I’ve actually spent a good part of the morning correcting final essays and submitting college grades – interesting fact, having a book debuting today made me a much more forgiving grader than usual! (example: Oh, student who still can’t figure out the difference between “it’s” and “its” – normally your complete inability to just write the rule down on a post-it and follow accordingly would drive me into a frothing rage, but today I just find it cute. Enjoy your B.)
Oh, and I have a doctor’s appointment this afternoon. Yes, what better way to celebrate my success than a trip to the dermatologist? You can see that I truly am living the dream.
But I do have some great plans – after the dermatologist, I’m driving up to meet some friends, and we are heading out to a Barnes & Noble to admire Generation V on the shelf and exchange high fives of congratulation! And then there might be lattes! WOO!
First Season Riker rolls his eyes at me. Sorry, Beardless Riker, we can’t all have orgies on Risa!
There is a lot of other exciting stuff going on today, though, that everyone should check out:
A fantastic interview and review of Generation V on Candace’s Book Blog.
Amazing 5+ star review of Generation V by Julie at Yummy Men & Kick Ass Chicks.
An interview with the Bibliophilic Book Blog.
Interview and giveaway at My Bookish Ways.
And an entry in the Dark Faerie Tales Supernatural Smackdown event. This one is very funny – a lot of other writers are involved, everyone did a guest post from the POV of their main character, and there are even voting buttons so that readers can decide who won the “fight.”
Anyway, thanks to everyone who helped out so much to make this debut day so exciting! Why not buy a copy of Generation V to celebrate?
Sleeping sea otters holding hands think that you should buy a copy of Generation V! Are you going to tell those sleeping sea otters holding hands that they are wrong?
Generation V release day
It’s 12:30am, and it’s the release day of my debut book.
This is a good day. I worked a very long time to make this happen, and it definitely wasn’t easy. I’m hoping a lot of things right now — that the book is well received. That people are excited about my characters. That the book does well financially. I’m thinking about these things, and those thoughts have been present basically since the book found an editor, but most of all today (and it’s still really tonight) I’m feeling really grateful.
I’m grateful to my teachers, who taught me how to hone what was good and cut what was weak.
I’m grateful to my husband and family, who gave me tremendous support.
I’m grateful to my friend Sarah, who was the first person I ever showed the draft of Generation V to. She read about three versions of the book.
I’m grateful to friends who gave me good career advice, and listened to lots of my whining.
I’m grateful to my agent, Colleen Mohyde, who worked so hard for this book.
I’m grateful to my editor, Anne Sowards, who liked the book enough to take a chance on it, and then did so much to help me make it stronger and better.
I’m grateful to all the people at Penguin and Roc who put their time and talents into this book — particularly the cover art team, the copy editor, and Brad from publicity.
I’m grateful to all the friends I made among other writers while I was tweeting and posting while waiting for the book to come out, many who were incredibly generous with their time, advice, and passing the word about this book, especially Michael J. Martinez, Django Wexler, and Barb Hendee.
And I’m so very deeply grateful for all the bloggers and review writers who read the book and got excited about it — Julie from Yummy Men & Kick Ass Chicks, Candace from Candace’s Book Blog, Tori from Smexy Books — and all the other dedicated and wonderful bloggers and reviewers who gave so very generously of their time and platform to help give my book the best possible start — just a few among them are RT Book Reviews, Kirsten at A Book Obsession, Abigail at All Things Urban Fantasy, Sally at The Qwillery, Carolyn at Book Chick City, Kristen at My Bookish Ways, Theresa at Fade Into Fantasy, Star at the Bibliophilic Book Blog, Angela at SciFiChick.com, Kristie at Dark Faerie Tales, Stacy at Urban Fantasy Investigations, and Amy Phelps at News & Sentinel.
Thank you all, so very very much.
You are the cardigan to my shetland pony.
The shetland pony might be able to exist without a cardigan, but the pony will be far, far poorer for its lack.
Five days to go!
Only five days to go, and things are incredibly exciting and busy for me! The very nice publicity rep at Penguin gave me a list of every blog that he’d sent an advance copy of Generation V to, and I contacted a bunch to ask if it would be possible to do an interview, or a giveaway, or some kind of guest post, and everyone has been hugely supportive and wonderful. So I have a lot of stuff coming up the pipeline (including some really fantastic interviews that were so much fun to do) over the next week or so.
Exciting stuff for today:
Check out the Top Ten list I did over at All Things Urban Fantasy. They are also hosting a giveaway, so if you would like to win a free signed copy of Generation V, check it out there!
Everyone should also check out Kirsten’s review of Generation V over at A Book Obsession. Four out of five butterflies can’t be wrong!
I’ll be posting again tomorrow, but for now — wouldn’t you like to pre-order Generation V? You know that you would!
Cross-dressing Data wants you to pre-order Generation V.
And you should.
Because he’s cross-dressing Data.
One month to liftoff!
You know that feeling you start getting when you are little and you’ve just finished off the last of the Thanksgiving turkey? The knowledge that in just a month, you are going to be running downstairs and seeing a pile of presents under the tree with your name on them?
That’s what this feels like. Giddiness, impatience, and the wish that you could just skip the next month.
You know that feeling you started getting when you were a senior in college, and the order form arrived for your graduation gown? That knowledge that in just a month, you were going to march in a line, wave to your family, and then be expected to find a job in order to start paying off those massive student loans?
That’s also what this feels like. Anticipation mixed with fluttery gut-deep nervousness, and a vague apprehension of what’s about to happen.
I’m simultaneously in two very different emotional landscapes. It took a lot of years and hard work to get to this moment, so I’m very intensely desperate to see the fulfillment of Generation V sitting on a bookstore shelf. On the other hand, I have that nervous worry – what if no one really likes my book? But then I remind myself that if the book truly sucked, then my editor wouldn’t have bought it in the first place. Plus, Devon Monk and Karen Chance both said very nice things about the book, and I never even met them! Which helps for five minutes until I start thinking about the possibility of seeing one-star ratings on Amazon.com. But then I think about how nice it would be to see five-star ratings.
It’s awesome and complicated at the same time.
Some good things:
The Goodreads giveaway of Generation V closes in two days! 25 copies of the book will be given away, and right now there are 627 people requesting – so that’s pretty cool.
Generation V got its first review! You can go over to RT Book Reviews to check it out – heads up, though – you can only see the review if you are a subscriber to the magazine. Two months after the print magazine hits the stands, everyone will be able to read the review, but for now you need to be able to log in. But I got a peek, and the reviewer, Bridget Keown, gave it four and a half stars out of five, which I am assured is a big deal for a debut! (and Keown used the word “sensational” to describe Generation V!)
I’ll be guest blogging at The Qwillery next week as part of their 2013 Debut Author Challenge, and there will also be an interview posted the day after Generation V hits the stands (May 7th!)
Finally, my author copies arrived – the book looks AMAZING! I’ve included pictures below! (oh, if you run a blog or a website and would like to review Generation V, please email me and I’ll send you a copy!)
It looks good coming…
… and it looks good going!
Generation V Giveaway!
Less than two months to go before Generation V is available in bookstores everywhere, whether brick and mortar or online! May 7 is the magical date, for those of you who *haven’t* inscribed it on every available surface. Fun secondary fact – it turns out that this is also the release date for the conclusion of Charlaine Harris’s Southern Vampire series – so if you’re going to be in the bookstore anyway to buy Dead Ever After, why not buy Generation V while you’re at it? Or, if you’re buying it online, throwing Generation V onto the order will get you (almost) to the $25 minimum for super saver shipping!
There have been some fun developments as the debut gets closer. For one thing, Generation V now has a Goodreads Giveaway! Link is here. Twenty-five advance readers copies, so that’s pretty exciting. Even more exciting – if more people sign up for my giveaway than for my friend Django Wexler’s epic fantasy The Thousand Names I will have total bragging rights. (Fact: I am horribly competitive, and so is my brother. It has gotten to the point where our mother refuses to play board games with us anymore unless our spouses are also involved.)
A few other things are brewing, and hopefully I’ll have more to say about those shortly. Apparently the ARCs have also been circulating among the trade magazines, and I’m starting to hear that the book is getting some good reception. I’ll talk about those a bit more at a later date, hopefully when I have links for reviews.
A blog called The Qwillery has included Generation V in their 2013 Debut Author Challenge. I really like this idea, and I’m excited to get to be a part of it. I’ll get to do a guest blog on the site in April, and then they’ll be posting an interview with me the day after Generation V’s pub date.
That’s mostly tying things up. The last few months I’ve been keeping my hands busy by working on the sequel to Generation V. That’s with the editor now, so I’m occupying myself now with planning major events for Book Three. More details on those will come later, but I’m very eagerly waiting to see what people think about Generation V.
But as I’m biding my time until the day that I can go to Barnes and Noble and take photos of my book on the shelves (fact: I’ve already gone and admired the spot where it will be), here’s what I’ll be doing on March 30th!
M. L. Brennan 