Neil Gaiman Signing Recap

An outing with good friends is always a good time, but when you're going to see Neil Gaiman it can only be described as epically awesome. 

The event was in Washington, D.C. so I took the day off and met up with Wes in the afternoon. He was running behind so we had to skip our plans for early dinner and head straight to the G.W. Lisner auditorium, where Jessica and Elizabeth were already waiting in line more than an hour ahead of time. The line was terrifying, nearly wrapping around the building, but it moved quickly. 

Inside was one of the biggest nerdfests ever. People of all ages, from all walks of life, packed the auditorium and waiting to see Neil. Among them was a muppet-style Neil puppet, which Gaiman later confessed he almost asked to join him on stage to read the audience's questions during the Q&A.

Gaiman explained that his latest novel, The Ocean at the End of the Lane, began as a short story that he couldn't seem to stop writing. By the time he spoke with his editor he said "Apparently, I've written a novel." 

After telling the story of how his first adult novel in years came to be, he read from The Ocean at the End of the Lane. I could listen to that man read all day. Even Wes admitted that anyone else reading the novel aloud would pale in comparison to Gaiman's reading. 

Once the Q&A was over, Gaiman said he would sign until his hand fell off. A fan cheered and Gaiman's face dropped a little. He replied, "You can't wooo my hand falling off!."

Then the folks from Politics & Prose explained how the signing would work. We would be called up in groups to get their books signed by ticket number. Naturally, this prompted a flurry of activity in the audience where everyone pulled out their ticket and looked at the number. The Wastepaper Prose team... We were in the 500s. Could've been worse. There were 1,200 people there.

Of course as the waiting dragged on we  began our descent into madness. In close quarters with people who are already weird, things just tend to get weirder. Discussions of what it looks like when Jessica's mouth cries, "negotiating the scooch", and how Jessica and I reading The Ocean at the End of the Lane aloud to Wes did not count as listening to an audiobook for June is Audiobook Month kept us amused in that "I no longer know what is going on" kind of way. Although, even event security thought Wes should have already finished the slim novel by the time our number was called. (Don't worry. He's done now and reviewing it soon.)

By the time we reached the stage it was after 11 p.m. and Elizabeth was the only one of our group still holding it together. Jessica was having a B52's style dance party, Wes was consumed by thoughts of pancake cheeseburgers (Yes, combined.), and I was wondering if, when it was all over, I would recognize the outside world. 

I sobered myself as we approached the signing table and choreographed an adult conversation with Neil Gaiman in my head. Just in front of me, Wes, who could write a dissertation on the collected works of Neil Gaiman, was getting his books signed. Yet in the brief window for interaction, Wes doesn't tell the author whose work he loves so dearly how much he appreciates his contributions to the world of literature. 

Instead, he leaves Gaiman with: "I feel like I should tell you your next book should be a cheeseburger." *facepalm* To his credit, Neil Gaiman wished Wes well in his quest for sustenance.What can I say? He's a class act.

YA Extravaganza Recap and giveaway

We all know I'll drive to get to a book event. I've trekked 13 hours to Chicago for a Dark Days of the Supernatural stop and 16 hours to New Orleans for a convention, and those are just a couple of the roadtrips I've taken in the name of fabulous fiction. This time though, the event came to me!

Lenore Appelhans sporting her Level 2 shoes. 

A while back the amazing Lenore Appelhans, author of Level 2, told me she was trying to get together a tour with a few other authors and asked if they should stop in Richmond. Of course I was like, "Hell yes!" And sure enough the event became a reality.

Lenore, Jodi Meadows (Incarnate and Asunder), Megan Shepherd (The Madman's Daughter), and Meagan Spooner (Skylark) stopped by Fountain Bookstore for a chat and book signing Wednesday, Feb. 6. Prior to the event I had to chance to meet up with the authors and some fellow bloggers, Rebecca from Book Lady's Blog and Becca from Lost in Books,  for a bite. (If you didn't think being with other bookish folks could get better then you should try having said get together in an awesome local hole in the wall restaurant, especially it serves corndog nuggets.) We chatted about everything from book edits to filing our taxes and had a great time.

After dinner, the party moved next door to Fountain. It was pretty packed for the event and I saw plenty of familiar faces, including author Anne Westrick, Jess from Books and Sensibility and even Elle Cosimano (Nearly Gone, Penguin 2014). Owner Kelly Justice moderated the discussion, coming up with questions and taking on the challenge of keeping the unruly authors in line or at least on topic. The authors introduced their books, discussed how they wound up writing YA and talked a little about their roads to publication.

Here they are introducing their books:

More books were signed then I can count, and swag was present in abundance. Megan Shepherd even had "Sweet Madness" tea she created specifically for the release of her book and tea bags packaged individually with  her book cover in miniature! Of course I got my books signed, but I also got two books signed for one lucky reader. Just enter below for your chance to win.

I've been jonesing for a good book event for a while so I'm insanely glad this one worked out and that Fountain was able to host. The entire event was very laid back in signature Fountain style, and the authors were extremely entertaining and friendly. I'm thrilled to have met them and have the opportunity to see Lenore again, and I can't wait to read their books.

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A Trip to YALLFest

Earlier this month, I had the extreme pleasure of attending YALLFest 2012 in Charleston, SC. I’ve been looking forward to this for months and months, and it was honestly one of the best book events I’ve attended. Everyone was so incredibly nice and friendly and awesome, from the staff of Blue Bicycle Books and the YALLFest volunteers to the incredibly gracious authors to each and every fellow attendee. Must have been that Southern hospitality and beautiful weather!

Ladies and gentlemen, MARGIE STOHL!

My long-time friend and fellow blogger Elizabeth from Nightmare on Book Street joined me for the festivities and though this was her first big event, she handled everything like a pro. I mean, she brought fruit snacks and everything. She and I arrived bright and early on Saturday to wait outside the Charleston Music Hall in order to see the opening keynote with Cassandra Clare and Holly Black. We were ENTHUSIASTICALLY welcomed by Margaret Stohl. Margie’s arm-waving joy was a fixture for the rest of the day, and she kept us all smiling.

The schedule claimed Cassie and Holly would talk about literary friendships. While they did just that, they also talked the beauty of sharing shoes on tour, their own mutual stalking/admiration society, and the break-up of Hemingway and Fitzgerald. Also, the name of elves may have been sullied. Basically, they were delightful.

We followed this with one of my only panels of the day (to clarify: YALLFest has so much to offer in the way of panels and signings that I had to make a hard decision weeks ago: signings or panels. I had so many authors I wanted to meet, so signings won). The YA GIRL BAND featured Elizabeth Eulberg, Stephanie Perkins, Simone Elkeles, Allyson Noel, Jenny Han, and Kathryn Williams. I’m glad this was the panel I got to see in its entirety, because it was just perfect. The authors had a great rapport, playing off one another like (gasp) the YA Girl Band for which their panel was named. The highlight for me was Elizabeth’s story of meeting the New Kids on the Block (she’s a Joey girl, and I’m for Jordan, so we would get along just fine!). Also, I finally got to meet fellow YALLFest attendee and author Lauren Morrill in the crowd. She was straight up awesome, and so’s her new book Meant To Be which released last week!!

After a substantial but constantly moving line, I found myself face to face with two of my favorites: Stephanie Perkins and Jenny Han. I tend to make an idiot of myself in front of authors (see also the John Green Star Penis story), but I think I managed to stay on the good side of fangirl. Well, except that I recognized Stephanie’s wrocker husband Jarrod and had to tell Jenny who the mystery man was who brought her a cupcake. Jenny and I gabbed about Richmond (yay RVA girls!), and Stephanie is exactly as adorably sweet, friendly, and awesome as you would imagine. We’re totally BFFs now… in my own mind.

Stephanie Perkins (Lola & the Boy Next Door),
Jessica, and Jenny Han (The Summer series and Burn for Burn). 

After that, our numbers were up… to meet Cassandra Clare. This is my third time seeing Cassie, and she couldn’t believe I’m not sick of her yet. We talked Jem vs. Will, where it was concluded Will is precious in print but he’s too much work IRL. From there, we made it to David Levithan’s table, where he giggled at my elation over seeing his signature next to John Green’s in my copy of Will Grayson, Will Grayson. One PBJ smoothie later, and it was time to grin at Gayle Forman, whose signing took place in an urban Narnia. One more line in the sunshine, plus a rousing rally call from Margie, and Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl were in the house! Beautiful Creatures was one of the books that got me back into YA, so seeing the two of them (in South Carolina!) was an all-around treat.

The incomparable David Levithan. 

My last panel was In Production 2013, where Cassie, Kami, and Margie gave us a little bit of inside scoop about their movie adaptations. The preview of Beautiful Creatures gave me chills! And if there were any Jamie Campbell Bower doubters in that audience, they certainly didn’t leave that way after Cassie spilled that JCB learned all of the runes and corrected a make-up artist who gave him the wrong one! He even learned the Bach piece that Jace plays on the piano. Robert Sheehan received the biggest applause during the City of Bones segment because Robbie is the actual best.

Finally, the event closed with the YA Smackdown. Teams Romance, Contemporary, Mystery, Dystopian, and Supernatural competed in a three round battle emceed by Rose Brock and “judged” by Sarah Rees Brennan (plus a proverbial peanut gallery). It was by far one of the silliest things I have ever seen in my entire life, so naturally, I loved it. I cannot recap it in a fitting manner so I’ll say this: Beth Revis and Diana Peterfreund should take their two-woman show on the road (Flippers of Doom!), YA authors are hilariously inappropriate, and Team Mystery was ROBBED.

In conclusion, YALLFest rocked. Thank you Blue Bicycle Books! All book events can be this much fun! Also, BIG HUGE HEAPING thanks Elizabeth for being my event buddy! You should check out her round-up for more stories and fun times.

Forever signing in Williamsburg

Winding down her Forever Roadtrip, Maggie Stiefvater stopped in Williamsburg at Barnes & Noble on Merchants Square. I didn't make it to the launch party in northern Virginia, so I hit this event on August 5 with Louise from Between the Covers. I couldn't miss it you see, but I'd been there for events for the first two Wolves of Mercy Falls books, and I was going for the trifecta!

I got there about a half an hour early and Maggie was already there, caffeine in hand. She was hiding among the stacks talking books and Nooks and sharing roadtrip anecdotes with bookstore employees working the event while waiting for her introduction.

About fifty people showed up, filling the little upstairs seating area at the bookstore. She didn't do a reading of Forever since she'd already read the first chapter online a few months back. Instead she talked about writing Shiver because she wanted to make people cry themselves ugly, complete with snot bubbles, and hopefully ruin their evening in the process. She also confessed that she hand been french kissed by a real, live wolf. See eveidence here.

She chatted a bit about her forthcoming novel, The Scorpio Races (Scholastic, 10/18/11). It's a standalone novel that Maggie described as Deadlist Catch meets My Little Pony. 'Nough said. It's got blood, beaches, and kissing, people! Oh, and there might be a giveaway for a copy at the end of this post...Maybe.

As always, Beau did a great job organizing the event. Beau and Maggie both raffled off books and gift cards. Two of the gift cards were to Wythe Candy, the store that inspired the candy shop in Shiver. (Yes, it does smell that delicious.)

She said that when she went in to buy $10 gift cards the shop clerk questioned her. "Are you sure you want $10 certificates?" Maggie replied, "Should I get $25?" Clerk: "$10 is a lot of candy." Ultimately, she and Maggie had to agree to disagree.

After all the prizes were raffled off, everyone who came got to take one thing  off the swag table. There were heart-shaped "Forever Maggie" keychains, USB drives and foreign editions of Maggie's books. The table was absolutely ravaged by night's end.

Then it was time for cake! There has been a cake at every Wolves of Mercy Falls event held in Williamsburg. All of them have been amazing, not only because they are near perfect replicas of the book cover, but because they are preservative free and thus Maggie-friendly.

Maggie was particularly excited about this year's cake...

When the signing started I got a chance to catch up with some friends who drive hours just to be at the event. Kaila, who created the original Shiver shirt, came down from NYC and picked up her friend Sara in Pennsylvania along the way. Of course, Kaila also made a shirt for this event.

And after Maggie signed the bag full of books I'd brought for myself and others, I had to get a pic with her. As always, she couldn't behave for the mere seconds necessary to take a photo. I suppose, after so many unique photos that a "normal" one with Maggie would just seem out of place here, huh?

GIVEAWAY

Fill out the form below to throw your name in the proverbial hat for your chance to win a signed copy of The Scorpio Races, which releases on October 18, 2011.

Maggie Stiefvater's Linger Launch & Contest

When NYT bestselling author Maggie Stiefvater arrives to an event almost two hours early, how does she waste time? She goes in search of kilts, candy, and kitchen contraptions. (Yes, this is how we came upon the suggestively shaped mango pitter last year before the Shiver launch.) Once again, I was privy to this pre-launch ritual.

By the time I met up with Maggie, she had already obtained caffeine and a cookie and found her way into Williams-Sonoma. Of course she had to show me what she found there this time because it was too strange not to share. I mean, can you tell what this is?

We played with hand puppets at the toy shop, found Beck and a baby Sam stowed away on a shelf, and mourned the loss of one wall of Breyer horses. To Maggie's dismay it had been replaced with John Deeretractors.

Wythe Candy beckoned, full of fragrant and beautiful confections. It is every bit as enticing as it sounds in candy shop scene in Shiver, which the store inspired.

A Maggie, a sharpie & a whole lot of Lingers

I spent my morning unpacking books. I know that might sound boring, but trust me when I say it wasn't. It's all in the company, right? And I had great company.

I was unpacking, turning, and stacking books Fountain Bookstore with owner Kelly Justice so that NYT bestselling author Maggie Stiefvater could sign them. (Yes, she makes me call her that. She likes to say "NYT bestseller, I win.")There were so many copies of Linger that, seriously, we could have built the most amazing fort. See off to your right there?

But we didn't build Fort Linger. We did the responsible thing and created a meticulous system of moving books so that Maggie could sign and doodle each and ever one for the adoring fans that ordered them. Of course, there were other books to be signed as well.

Shivers, Laments and Ballads, oh my!

With as many books as she signed and doodled in, I'm surprised she doesn't have an advanced case of carpal tunnel. Take a look at these mad doodling skillz...

If you haven't ordered your copy of Linger or you just want signed Maggie books, never fear! Fountain Bookstore has boxes full of them, and you can snag one HERE.

Maggie Stiefvater's Charlottesville signing and Contest

Yes, that's right. Today is all about me. Become my minions or perish.

Okay, so maybe it wasn't quite like that, but a signing with Maggie Stiefvater is never a tame event. Randomness and shenanigans are always part of the experience, and what starts out as an on-topic conversation about books can quickly degrade, but that's all part of the fun. Maggie's signing at the Barnes & Noble in Charlottesville, Virginia, last Saturday (March 13) was no exception.

Maggie fans of all ages showed up to catch a glimpse of the best selling author, packing tight into a corner of the bookstore to listen to her speak. I met up with Monica from Bibliophilic Book Blog and we befriended Laura from Tattooed Books at the event. Of course one of the first questions she answered was, "Where do you get your ideas?"

She explained that they start out as little nagging thoughts and slowly grow. Sometimes writing a short story just to put the idea down on paper and quiet the voices. Other times, they become so loud that something more is necessary. That was the case with Maggie's NYT best seller SHIVER. Maggie said the voice got rather impatient with that particular idea.

"Maggie Stiefvater," it boomed. "Write a book about werewolves and kissing."

So she did... And the people did rejoice. YAY! (In case you need a little more rejoicing, the sequel LINGER comes out on July 20.)

After talking about her books, she shared some stories about her travels. Including one about a security guard at the Newark airport who thought Maggie intended to take out a plane with her terrorist sketch book. All this because it had a metal latch on it. Too your left, you will see Maggie with the afforementioned "Sketch Book of Doom."

While she signed books and bookplates and doodled in several people's books, there was talk of critiquing and revisions and the Merry Sisters of Fate, a short fiction site that Maggie and her critique partners Brenna Yovanoff (THE REPLACEMENT, Razorbill 2010) and Tessa Gratton (BLOOD MAGIC, Random House 2011) post to regularly.

Maggie even reenacted her meeting with author M.T. Anderson at the Midwest Bookseller's Association annual meeting last fall where Publisher's Weekly snapped a photo of them chatting. On the left is Maggie playing M.T. Anderson and a podium standing in for Maggie. On the right is the actual shot, which is not quite as marked, but his face is priceless.

As the signing began to wind down, casual conversation with Maggie continued. Everything from the recent surge in zombie books to Loki's new stereo system was fair game. (Loki is Maggie's camaro for those who don't know.) That was about the time James from Book Chic Club rolled in, speeding ticket in hand.

Awful right? Yes, but this is not a first for our beloved boy blogger. Oh no. He's broken the law to get to Maggie before, and you can read about that incident here.  

Maggie and I also took a photo together. Long story short, Maggie apparently can't take a photo with me where she doesn't look like she's plotting my demise, so I pleaded with her to behave. That's when the camera malfunctioned, bad photos were taken and Maggie suddenly decided to take over as creative director of my blog. Of the handful of photos taken of us, the following train wreck of a photo is her selection...

I know what you're thinking, but I had no choice. Maggie chose. I tried to protest and her response was:

 "NYT best seller. I win."

CONTEST CLOSED

(International)

A copy of Ballad, the sequel to Lament, is up for grabs! It's signed AND Maggie doodled the King of the Dead just inside the cover, so some lucky reader with not only have her autograph, but also some of her artwork.

You have to be a blog follower, and leave a comment on this post to enter. Extra entry opportunities are listed below.

Extra Entries

+3 Follower (New or Old)

+3 Add Wastepaper Prose to your blog roll

+2 Follow @wastepaperprose on Twitter

+1 Tweet about the contest. (Include @wastepaperprose in your tweet.)

+1 Link this contest on your blog

Don't forget to include your e-mail and links to tweets/posts, and tally your entries in your comment.

Contest closes on April 10 at midnight EST .

The Iron King Signing & Contest

So over the weekend I spent a little more than 20 hours in the car driving from Virginia to Louisville, KY. Why you ask? Well, to meet Julie Kagawa of course!

While I was there, I picked up a signed copy of The Iron King, Julie's amazing debut novel and the first book in The Iron Fey series. But more about that later...

I hopped in the car at 4AM Saturday morning and road over the mountains, braving ice and snow and rest stops full of surly truckers, to attend her first signing. Kristi, The Story Siren, and Chelsea, The Page Flipper, also came down for the festivities, fighting through Snowpocolypse: The Sequel to be there. And I'm glad we all made it because the whole night was a blast.

The four of us went to Sake Blue for sushi that afternoon. The food was delicious and for extra flare Julie orders a a whole eel. Julie was the only one who ate any.

This is the King Cobra....

We opted to head back to Borders after lunch, deciding that none of us would be unhappy surrounded by books, and it was straight to e the cafe for caffeine. Julie had stashed a Mountain Dew in her coat pocket for just such an ocassion. The addiction runs deep, but until they form Dewholics Anonymous I fear there's no helping her.

Borders set Julie up at a table in the YA section, stacked high with copies of The Iron King. Nearly 30 people showed up to listen to and get their books signed, including Tenners Kelly Creagh (Nevermore, 8/31) and Jessica Leader (Nice and Mean, 6/8).

The night went a little something like this...

 

CONTEST CLOSED

(U.S. Only)

So let's give away this signed copy of The Iron King and a few bookmarks.  

UPDATE:

Grimalkin, the sarcastic gray cat from The Iron King, can't keep his nose out of anything! So much like he popped into the book, he has decided to make an appearance here and weasel his way into the contest, probably in an effort to steal the show. As Julie said to me once, "Grim has more fans than the heroine."

So Julie decided to put Grim up as a special prize. Well, a reasonable facsimile of him. The winner will now receive a hand-painted Grimalkin rock in addition to the signed book and bookmarks. It will be painted just for the winner and shipped direct from Julie. Look to the right for a glance at the handsome Grimalkin clone...

You must be a follower and leave a comment below with your e-mail address to enter. But there are multiple chances for extra entries.

Extra Entries

+3 Old Follower

+2 New Follower

+3 Add Wastepaper Prose to your blog roll

+2 Follow @wastepaperprose on Twitter

+1 Tweet about the contest

+1 Link this contest on your blog

Be sure to leave me links! If I can't find a post, then it doesn't exist.
 Contest closes on 3/20.