More Author Insight: Good Advice & Contest Winners

Aspiring writers often hear: "Read what you want to write," "Hone your writing craft." and, above all else, "Be patient." What other advice would you give them?

"Quit listening to advice. Except for a handful of structure and format things, everything else is writers talking about what works for them. What works for me might not work for you. My ideas about writing might infuriate you, or frustrate you, or send you down the wrong path. So my advice is to only listen to mechanical advice, and disregard everything else unless it helps you. Because everything else is personal trivia." - Saundra Mitchell, author of Shadowed Summer.

"Read a lot, write a lot. Another one I’m partial to: 'Slow down when it hurts.'" - Jennifer Hubbard, author of The Secret Year.

"FIND ADVENTURE. In everyday life, and across the world." - Tessa Gratton, author of Blood Magic.

"Treat it like a job, which means putting in the hours and the research as well as behaving professionally at all times." - Lisa Mantchev, author of the Theater Illuminata series.

Tweet News (6)

What did you miss on Twitter this week?

Harper Teen released the trailer for a new classic mash-up novel... TWEET.

 Novel Novice passed along an interesting look at YA cover trends... TWEET.

Harlequin Teen revealed the cover of Maria V. Snyder's Outside In... TWEET.

Author Diana Peterfreund invited you to listen to a sample from the Kiss Me Deadly audiobook... TWEET.

Maggie Stiefvater's Linger debuts at the top of the NYT Bestseller list... TWEET.

Penguin Teen kicks off a blog tour for some of its biggest fall titles... TWEET.

Simon & Schuster asked you to RVSP to hear a major announcement from author Cassandra Clare... TWEET.

Harper Teen offered a behind-the-scenes look at the filming of I Am Number Four... TWEET.

Author Julie Kagawa revealed the cover of The Iron Queen, the third book of the Iron Fey trilogy... TWEET.

Author Melissa Marr posted a new excerpt from Darkest Mercy, the final chapter of the Wicked Lovely series... TWEET.

Penguin Teen shared news about the Vampire Academy series... TWEET.

Harper Teen showed you where to read Vampire Diaries: The Struggle for free... TWEET.

Simon & Schuster shared a video interview with author Lisa McMann about her latest book Cryer's Cross... TWEET.

Author Jennifer Murgia revealed the cover of Lemniscate... TWEET.

Remember, if you see a newsworthy tweet during the week, please @reply or e-mail me with a link. I'd love to include it because I certainly can't catch everything!

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.

Author Insight: Good Advice

Aspiring writers often hear, "Read what you want to write," "Hone your writing craft." and, above all else, "Be patient." What other advice would you give them?

"Two things: have nerves of steel and ditch jealousy. You need nerves of steel b/c you may (or may not, if you’re lucky) go through quite a bit to get where you want to be. You need, trust, belief, resolve, and possibly even detachment to get the job done. You also need to ditch jealousy right away. Other people are always going to get more, do more, be more. Worry about you and what you can and can’t control. Be happy for other people’s successes. The more success, the better!" - Tiffany Trent, author of the Hallowmere series.

"Read broadly and write daily. If you read only what you want to write all you'll do is regurgitate what's already been done." - Shannon Delany, author of 13 to Life: A Werewolf's Tale.

"Don't forget to love what you're doing. The rules and techniques of writing, the business of publication, none of it will be worth anything if you don't truly love your characters and stories, because a reader will be able to tell." - Denise Jaden, author of Losing Faith.

"Write through the suck. A very wise person (Courtney Summers) told me, 'The only way out is through.' You can't go around the work, you can't skip over it. You need to write through it." - Victoria Schwab, author of The Near Witch.

Collected Works of Maggie Stiefvater Winners!

Is it a book cover? Is it a cake? No! It's both.

But this post has nothing to do with cake. That, there to your right, is just a taste of the fun photos I'll be posting soon when I dish about the Linger launch party. It's just so much cooler than posting the book cover, which I've posted a million times over.

I shouldn't have been surprised by the number of people who entered this contest, but nearly 250 entrants will take anyone off guard when they have to tally all the entries. The truth is, I'm just sorry I don't have more books to give away. Here goes...

Congratulations! 

Sandra M, winner of the signed Books of Faerie prize pack.

Laura B, winner of the signed Wolves of Mercy Falls prize pack.

Katelyn (The Bookshelf Sophisticate), winner of a signed, doodled copy of Shiver.

I've emailed all of you and will get your books in the mail as soon as possible. And to everyone else who entered, don't be sad because, well, I kind of lied earlier in the post. I do have more books to give away!

Stay tuned for a post about Maggie's launch party and another giveaway featuring a signed, doodled copy of Linger and a super special prize.

More Author Insight: Believability

What is the most important thing for you to “get right” in order to make your story believable?

"I think you have to get everything right. But for me, the most important things to get right are voice and creating a well-developed universe. I can forgive almost anything if the character's voice speaks to me, and I find myself completely immersed in a compelling universe. That said, obviously, character development and plot are also incredibly important. A story isn't a story if nothing happens. The story should have an arc, and the individual characters should each have personal arcs, as well." - Kami Garcia, co-author of Beautiful Creatures.

"Atmosphere. Atmosphere is HUGELY important to me. And it goes hand in hand with voice when writing 1st person. I need the flow of the words, the mood they evoke, the main character's voice, all to FEEL right." - Victoria Schwab, author of The Near Witch.

"I think it’s important to develop strong characters so the readers can truly appreciate why they do the things they do. Without that, it’s hard for a reader to connect with the story." - Kimberly Derting, author of The Body Finder. 

"The voice." - Rhonda Hayter, author of The Witchy Worries of Abbie Adams.