I just got back from a weekend with my favorite writing buddies – nearly 50 young adult authors. I took lots of pictures, and even made a video of them introducing their books. The main thing I got out of it, was how much these books mean to readers; even if they’re scifi or fantasy, they still make readers feel accepted or not alone. PennedCon was set up as a charity fundraiser for autism, by YA author Amy Miles.
I attended as an author, and even though I didn’t bring books to sign or a full display set up, I still met a few readers who knew me (and were waiting on more books!) I can’t tell you how much that means to me.
I also got to speak on a self-publishing panel, moderated by Mark Coker of Smashwords, with several NYT bestselling authors, including Amy Bartol (one of my fav writers).
More importantly, I got to connect and hang out with a bunch of YA authors as a peer, and see how they interact with fans
GIVEAWAY
I bought a lot of SIGNED books, and I’m putting them all in a giveaway before we leave for Thailand this week… here’s a video of some of the YA authors introducing their books. Scroll down to enter!
What I’m working on
I don’t update this blog often enough, so here’s the plan if you’re curious.
- still wrestling with the last few chapters of Selfie, so I can announce it
- want to finish Scarlet Thread 3, maybe 4
- want to finish Taste 2 and Shearwater 2
- Also have an epic fantasy I’m excited about
Not sure I’ll get all that done this year, but that’s what I’m working on, and I plan to be faster and more consistent with releases, and also focusing on finishing up series and being less sporadic with new ideas.