My new heroine: River Tam!

So, thanks to Jackie Parker, I just finished the Firefly series and movie Serenity from 2005. I HAVE A NEW HEROINE: RIVER TAM. Seriously, ladies. She's super intelligent, graceful, and powerful. Thank you, Summer Glau!

And don't miss Zoe. She's most awesome as well, but her character isn't given the arc that River receives.

And there's a female mechanic who keeps the Firefly running. Shout out for Kaylee!

If you haven't seen the series, pop over. I mean it's Captain Hammer with amazing ladies of power. Thanks, Joss Whedon!

Find Beauty Challenge: Me!

So, of course, I had to make one! Here's my submission for the Find Beauty Challenge!



Appearances: Miss Erin, Ellen and Emily, Jackie Parker, Dia Calhoun, Janet Lee Carey, Cathy Garber, Kato the dog, Justina Chen Headley, Holly Cupala, and me! Yay!

Writing Retreat, 3/09

It's going to seem like I retreat frequently. But I don't. Really! It's just that this opportunity came up and so we HAD to go, right?

One weekend with members of the team who could make it: postergirl Jackie Parker, divas Dia Calhoun, Justina Chen Headley, and me, here:

Two fantasies and two contemporary novels were being born. And a few good photos. This is my favorite!


There are always surprises when you go to a place sight-unseen. The next photo looks perfectly normal. But it's a skylight! The eroding mud hill was LOOMING over us. Did it make for faster typing as we all worried we'd be washed out to sea? Um. Yes.

Of course dinner out is a highlight, the chance to share how the writing day went. Just in time for happy hour!


Then back to writing in the morning!


All in all, I'm liking this retreat lifestyle. Good friends, good writing, good fun.


Until next time...maybe the whole team will make it!

Mitali Perkins Visits Seattle

Okay, before I post the retreat photos, it's back to Mitali Perkin's visit and the celebration of the release of Secret Keeper!

So, the ladies turned out to the Bellevue Barnes & Noble store.


Pictured here: Justina Chen Headley, Mitali Perkins, Jackie Parker, me, Holly Cupala, Sarah Woodard, and Dia Calhoun. Special thanks to Brenda Gurung, the beautiful and passionate, for hosting!


We were only missing our beloved rgz diva Melissa Walker!


It was definitely a day of hugs! It's always a blast to get to hang with Jackie, postergirl for rgz, and author of Interactive Reader blog o' awesomeness.


Mitali's reading and backstory for Secret Keeper was inspiring and beautiful. She spoke of sisters, secrets, and sacrifice. The novel truly has the most amazing sacrifice. A heartbreak for certain!


Then we were off to the Bellevue Library for a writing exercise on creating place. Mitali got us all thinking of how descriptions of place can reveal your characters. Thank you, Darcy Brixey for hosting!


By then, we were all sporting bindis. Here's rgz Sarah with her sister, Elizabeth.


We ended the evening over dinner, sharing stories, talking books, and laughing--a lot. We all have a heart for YA lit, and so we are back to work. Until the next launch that is. Thank you for visiting, Mitali!

Sno-Isle Library and Librarian Dawn Rutherford

Okay, these photos aren't exactly representative of the moment I'm speaking of, BUT they do show who I am referring to. And they rock.

I'm giving a shout out to the AMAZING Dawn Rutherford, Librarian Extraordinaire. I mean just note her hair and glasses. And I don't even have a photo of her hip motorcycle boots.

Dawn had Dia Calhoun and I speak this past week about rgz to a room full of YALSA librarians for college credit. They got it. We didn't. :~) Very cool. Then we joined a panel with Colleen Mondor of GuysLitWire, the awesome brother site to rgz.

Here's Colleen. This captures her much!

We were moderated exceedingly well by postergirl, librarian Jackie Parker .

So, she's not actually moderating here. But you get the gist of life with Jackie around. (Pictured: postergirl Miss Erin, my daughters Em and El, and Jackie.) It kind of looks like a panel, right?)

We had a great time discussing our sites, teen girls, and teen boys.

It was a great event at Sno-Isle Library. Thanks so much to all the fab librarians we met! And I'll try not to forget my camera next time. Grrr.

Kidlitosphere 2008, Part Three, Voodoo Donuts

Okay, getting back to the kidlitosphere conference, I have to show Voodoo Doughnut.


No comment on the tag. None. Anyway. Why did we go? Jackie Parker. The woman was on a mission. So we all piled in Holly Cupala's Prius and hauled it into Portland.

That's Colleen Mondor, Dia Calhoun, and mission director Jackie Parker. So what did we find at Voodoo Doughnut? I'll let the photos do the talkin'.


Except, I have to interject that this was the first time I could ever buy panties with my donut.


Yeah, so, that's what I bought. And I did have a bite of the maple bacon bar, Colleen Mondor! Ha! Anyway, I thought everything was going to be fine, until I spotted this arm just ready to creep out and steal my donuts. I'm not kidding. It was like a dehydrated arm!

Yep. There's really nothing more to say. Thanks for the run, Jackie! You can always count on a librarian to add spice to your conference, right? Or at least a few sprinkles to your donut.