The Dark and Hollow Places trailer!

Squeee!!!  I'm so SO excited to present the trailer for The Dark and Hollow Places!  This is the short version, 15 seconds (not sure if I can share the reason for that yet... will have to ask but it's VERY VERY exciting).  I think there's going to be a longer version released in the future and I'll definitely link to it when it comes out.



This is a scene taken right from the beginning of the book and I love it!

The Dark and Hollow Places officially released Tuesday and I've been having a total blast on tour, Thanks Chicago and Miami/Ft. Lauderdale (first tour recap post coming soon, I promise!).  Thank you to everyone who has come out to say hi and hung around to chat about our favorite books (I'm keeping a running list of your reading suggestions!).

If you're in Chicago, Cincinnati, Salt Lake City, Phoenix, Los Angeles, Spartanburg, SC or Austin, I'm coming your way soon!  Click here (my blog) or here (booktour.com) for more details!

And of course, you can always pick up a copy of my book at any of the following places:  Random House | IndieBound | Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Borders | Walmart and your local indie!

What do you think of the trailer?

Book Birthday And Details About Tonight!

The Dark and Hollow Places comes out TODAY! 

I will be in Ft Lauderdale tonight for the Launch Party at The Museum of Art.  Please note that this event starts at 6pm (not 7pm as I had previously listed).  If you're in the area, come join us!

Don't forget to pick up your copy of The Dark and Hollow Places (ahem, or two or three... they make great gifts!) today at any of these fine establishments:  Random House | IndieBound | Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Borders | Walmart

The next stop on the tour is Chicago.  Be sure to check my Events page for information on tour times and locations.  I hope to see you soon!

Yay for makey-outy scenes!

I'm super excited to welcome all you treasure hunters to my blog, especially since it's for a cause I believe in: the makey-outy scene.  So, in honor of Cassandra Clare's treasure hunt for the scenes too hot to include in the trailer for City of Fallen Angels I thought I'd give a brief teaser of a kiss from The Dark and Hollow Places, the third book in my Forest of Hands and Teeth series, which comes out TOMORROW!

We're twirling so fast now that the force of it tries to pull us apart, but he holds me tighter, snowflakes spiraling around us.  I let my head fall back and revel in the joy that erupts from every part of me for the first time in so long.

Finally, he stops and we stand there hiccuping and gulping frigid air.  He reaches out absently and tucks a wet strand of hair behind my left ear, his fingertips just barely brushing my jaw.  For a minute I forget to tense, forget to care that the hair was there to cover my scars, to hide me.  For a minute I feel normal.

I don't let hesitation crowd my mind.  Instead I let the buoyant freedom of the moment overwhelm me and I stretch up onto my toes and push my mouth against his.

And no, I'm not telling you who the guy getting kissed is :)  If you want to read more, starting tomorrow you can pick up The Dark and Hollow Places at the following places: Random House | IndieBound | Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Borders | Walmart

Also, if you live in or near Miami/Ft. Lauderdale, Cincinnati, Chicago, Salt Lake City, Phoenix or Los Angeles I'm headed your way for tour starting today!  Click here to find out where I'll be and come say hi!

So, now the clue you're looking for!  Hello, treasure hunters! Your letter is : L

Your next blog is Kami Garcia and Margie Stohl, authoresses of Beautiful Creatures. Go!

Waiting for my real life to begin

This past weekend I attended a Colin Hay concert (you probably know him best as the singer for Men at Work).  He's AMAZING in concert -- hilarious and talented.  Seriously, if you ever have the chance to see him I highly recommend it!

So one of the songs he played was, Waiting For My Real Life to Begin, which is probably familiar to a lot of y'all:



And as I sat there listening to him the words really began to sink in and I thought about my life and where I am.  I've been asked a lot recently about how I became a writer -- when I knew I wanted to become one and what I did about it.  I know I've shared a lot of that story here before: I never realized I *could want* to become an author until I read an interview with a romance author in which she said she started writing when she read a book and thought "Hey, I could do that."  I read those words and thought, "Wait, I could do that too!"

But I was in high school.  I felt too young to write a book.  So I waited.  And when I graduated from college I started working on my first book and after a couple of years I put that aside to attend law school (which I don't regret in the slightest seeing as how that's where I met my husband... and also? I just really loved law school -- call me a nerd :)

I always thought I was too busy to do anything else in law school other than be a student.  AHAHAHAHA!  Once I started practicing law I realized just what it was to be busy.  And I had this moment where I thought: I don't want to be doing this, practicing law, for the rest of my life.  So I asked myself: if I could do anything, what would it be?  The answer was easy: an author.

The next question became: what was I going to do about it?  Because I really was busy, probably busier than I'd ever been at any other time in my life.  And that's when I realized I had a choice: go after my dream of being a writer or let it go.  I didn't see a sense in always saying to myself, "This is what I want more than anything else but I just can't be bothered to do anything about it."

Because there's a part of me that thought: what would have happened if I'd just kept writing through law school?  Looking back I realized that I had the time -- I could have done it.  I just didn't.  I made excuses.   If I'd written all through law school maybe I'd have gotten published, maybe I wouldn't have, but at least I'd have been farther along towards my ultimate goal.

And I realized: I don't want to wake up in five years and ask myself the same question.

It's funny how we do that with dreams: put them off.  I wonder if we're afraid to chase them down because we fear they won't taste as sweet or because we're scared we can't catch them.  I'm not going to lie, there's a terror in holding your dream in your hand because if you break it, you have only yourself to blame.

It's easy to tuck your chin to your chest and plow through life.  I do it: focus on today's tasks and then tomorrow's tasks, and then the ones after that as the days roll past beneath me.  Listening to Colin Hay sing the words, "I'm waiting for my real life to begin," made me step back and look at the larger picture -- how all the days piece together.  You hear all these cliches about how life isn't a dress rehearsal, etc., and often they're meaningless but then there are those moments when you understand exactly.

I'm thankful that five years ago I decided not to wait for my life to somehow arrange itself to my liking.   That I'm not waking up today and wondering, "What if I'd just started writing a book five years ago?  Where would I be?"

On signed books, tour stops, memory, and other things

In one week I leave for The Dark and Hollow Places tour!  Wahoo!  I can't wait to visit Miami, Chicago, Cincinnati, Salt Lake City, Phoenix, Los Angeles and Austin!  All the details are here.  This will be my fourth time in Chicago which is kind of neat because I feel like I have friends there now -- so many familiar faces and it's always cool being able to catch up :)  I'm also very excited about the new stops to meet new readers (and see new places)!

However, if I'm not stopping in a city near you or if you're not able to come out, you can still get a personalized/ autographed book.  My local indie, Park Road Books, is fantastic and only a few miles away which works out perfectly!  At any time in the year you can place an order with them and I'll swing by to sign it.  You can also pre-order a signed copy of The Dark and Hollow Places and they'll get it in the mail to you -- I'll be dropping by probably on Saturday, March 19 to sign them all so just make sure you get your order in before then (otherwise, I won't be able to sign any until I'm back in town on April 18).

Here are the details about ordering a signed book.  Essentially it's as easy as giving them a call: 704-525-9239 and placing the order!  Make sure to let them know how you want it personalized!

Okay, topic two is my signing policy.  The venues hosting me go through a lot of planning and work to pull off these events even though they always make it all look so seamless and effortless.  These booksellers are passionate about books and I couldn't be more honored that they're willing to expend some of that passion on my behalf.  Therefore, I like to ask anyone coming to hear me speak -- if you're going to get a book signed, please purchase a book from the store.  Every store has its individual policies on signings and so you'll want to check with them about what you can bring to be signed, etc.

Here's my policy: I'll sign anything (well, within reason - lol - if you have a massive stack I might ask you to run back through the line again so other people have a chance to get through).  Or if you just want to show up to hear me talk and ask questions and not get anything signed, that's great too!  But I would love it if, to show support for the store, you'd purchase a book from them (purchasing ahead of time is fine or purchasing someone else's book works too). Again, the store's individual policy on these things trumps mine so always check with them if you have a question!  Thanks!

Finally... I have a bad memory.  I joke about this a lot but it kind of gets both scary and frustrating when I'm traveling.  I'm terrible with names -- HORRIBLE -- which is embarrassing and I'm sorry if/when I'm not able to remember yours.  However, I do have a good situational memory which means that I just have to connect all the dots in my head so please, when you come up to meet me just remind me who you are.  Tell me your twitter handle or your blog name (because I have a visual memory I'm likely to remember your handle picture - lol).  Please don't think that because I can't remember your name, I don't remember you!

I can't wait to see y'all!  Only one more week!!

On finishing a series

Okay, so I missed Teaser Tuesday - oops!  Before I get to the meat of the blog, announcements first!

1. Don't forget to enter for a chance to win one of 10 signed ARCs of The Dark and Hollow Places! The giveaway ends this Sunday, March 13th!
2. I'm headed out on tour!  Over the course of many weeks I'll be in Miami, Chicago, Cincinnati, Salt Lake City, Phoenix, Los Angeles, Spartanburg SC and Austin!  I'm so excited for all of these visits and would love to meet y'all in person!  Here's the whole schedule!
3. Teaser Time!!  The first TWO CHAPTERS of The Dark and Hollow Places are up online!  Click here for the Chapter Sample from Random House Children's Books (link opens a .pdf file).
4. And not to forget about the recent release of The Dead-Tossed Waves paperback, I shared five bits of trivia about that book on Suvudu here.
5. The fantastically wonderful and NYT/USA Today/International bestselling author, Rachel Caine, blurbed The Dark and Hollow Places which thrills me to no end!!  She wrote:

"Carrie Ryan has penned a story of the undead that magically, unexpectedly transforms into a painful, beautiful, aching story about life. I can't say it more plainly than this: I loved it. I wish I'd written it." - Rachel Caine, bestselling author of The Morganville Vampires

I can't believe that The Dark and Hollow Places comes out in 12 days.  TWELVE DAYS!!  It's funny because I've been asked a lot lately how it feels to have this series draw to a close which is a tough question to answer.  First of all, I still have some short stories set in that world coming out this year but also... I feel like since I finished writing the book in 2010 that it ended a long time ago.  I'm already excited about what comes next!

But honestly what it feels like is this... have you ever just focused on one day and then the next and suddenly you look up and a week or a month has gone by?  That's what the release of The Dark and Hollow Places feels like.  I've been putting one foot in front of the other and suddenly... the series is done.  It kind of snuck up on me!

The past couple of days I keep looking up and realizing... soon I'll have three books on the shelf.  THREE BOOKS!  And there will be more coming (not in this series, but more!).  This is a dream come true!  Sure, I wanted this to happen, I've worked for this to happen, but when I sat down to write The Forest of Hands and Teeth over four years ago (actually, 1589 days to be exact since I have the email I sent to myself when I thought of the first line) I never every thought I'd be here.  I dreamed I would one day make it here... but I probably wouldn't have taken the odds it would have happened like this :)

So how does it feel?  Overwhelming.  I think that's one reason that I can only lift my head up from the day to day and look around every now and again because otherwise I'll be stunned into inaction.  I feel too lucky, almost as if it isn't fair.  There's still so much more ahead of me that I'm crazy excited about, but sometimes it's nice to sit here and realize... wow.  Three books.

And I wouldn't be here without y'all, so thank you!

Now to put my head back down and motor through the rest of my looming to-do list :)

The Writing Life Part 2: reality

Recently, I posted what I expected or dreamed my life would be like writing full time.  I think the fact that it took me twelve days to post the follow-up should tell you something :)  Here's the reality:

Wake up -- I'm actually impressed this happens at a reasonable hour.  I don't set an alarm but I've learned that I pretty much get out of bed just after JP leaves the house in the morning (which can throw me off if he leaves early for a meeting).  He still doesn't believe this is the case (me actually getting out of bed) and he's been known to email me when he gets to work to see if I'm at my computer.¹  He doesn't know I put my iPhone on the bedside table because I'm wise to this trick of his :)

Some mornings I'll read in bed because sometimes that's the only time I'll get to read all day and I've fallen SO VERY BEHIND.  Or because I'm reading a book I can't put down which is always an awesome experience.  Once I'm up, I drag on clothes -- whatever's handy (aka yoga pants and a t-shirt).

Let the dog in.  Give the dog his pills.  Follow dog around to ensure he swallows said pills (usually not a problem).

Check email -- I'd like to do what John Scalzi has done and put a moratorium on email until after my words are written but... I'm not that disciplined (yet - I live in hope).  Checking email first leads to wails of despair at how very far behind I am and then I try to get through some of them.  I might spend an hour on this.  At the end I've accomplished much less than I feel I should have.

Listen to cat barf.  Finish up email real quickly before going to clean up barf.  Forget about barf.

Cook breakfast -- lately I've been on an eggs kick.  So I go cook eggs and then eat them while reading the news.  Send snippets of news to JP which inevitably start email conversations that trickle back and forth through the day.

Remember cat barf -- go find it and clean it.  Ignore Dog's sad look that I wouldn't let HIM be the one to clean up cat barf because in his world that's considered a delicacy.  Let dog out.

Check to-do list -- yes, sometimes I add things to my list just so I can check them off and feel accomplished.  Here's a sampling of my current to-do list:

• sign and mail books to editor
• mail books from contests (figure out contests and what to mail)
• send paperwork to mortgage company for refinance
• clean house for appraisal (took a solid day)
• design/order tour schwag
• update website (yay! it's in the works!)
• email two friends to set up dinner/lunch
• taxes (collect and organize all data -- print out bank statements)
• take Jake to vet for hip analysis (turns out he has a torn ACL, which means I must research repair options and schedule surgery)
• figure out how to get people to new facebook page
• answer interviews (STOP AVOIDING some interview questions just because I'm crazy late on them and so very very embarrassed)
• set up goodreads contest (figure out if page was fixed).  Check in on Goodreads contest, tweet about it.
• check in on contracts for secret project (yes, SECRET PROJECTS!!!)
• call for estimates on home repair

And then of course the perennial stuff: go to store, drop off/pick up dry cleaning (to be fair, JP usually does this but mostly that's because he's the only one with dry cleaning), go to the gym (ahahahaha, this still makes me laugh), run errands to post office, drop by local indie to set up pre-order signing, blog, etc.  There's also the bigger stuff: revising short stories and books, writing short stories and books, etc.  And also things like reading for blurbs, reading for friends, reading for research, critting, etc.

Let the dog in.  Move coffee table out of the way so that dog can approach the couch from the other side in order to avoid the Mean Sleeping Kitty (it's either that or listen to him whine and our dog is a Champion Whiner).

Try not to stress about phone interview from newspaper.  Keep checking the clock to make sure I am Prepared and Ready for phone call when it comes.  Do interview, totally enjoy it and hang up with sense of excitement and glee.

Attempt to make some headway on the to-do list -- realize around 2pm that (a) I haven't eaten and (b) I haven't written (well, written on any of my writing projects).  Figure out food -- whatever I can scrape from the cabinet.  Realize I can't go out in public because I'd have to shower and that would take Too Much Time.

Skype with friend re: book (mine or theirs, take your pick).  Friend has AMAZINGLY perfect idea for the idea I've been toying with.  Drop everything to write up a synopsis and send it to my amazing agent.

Dog barks: UPS man here!

Turn on MacFreedom to enforce some internet-free quality time.  Get words written.  Hopefully.

Agent's emailed back!  Engage in banter with him about exciting idea.  Remember yet again how much I adore my agent (Jim McCarthy at Dystel & Goderich).  Day dream about exciting idea.

Aim to go to the gym at 4:00 before the after-work crowd.  Perhaps arrive at 5:15 along with the after work crowd.  Fight way onto elliptical and read or listen to writing podcast.  Eavesdrop while in the sauna.

Or, due to aforementioned timing, just turn on the xBox kinect and dance :)  Dance, dance, DANCE!  Realize how out of shape I am after fifth pass through Poker Face and pledge to hit the gym tomorrow.  Or, if it's a gorgeous day, I'll take a walk (can't wait for dog's knee to be fixed so he can join me again).   

Get back to writing.  Neighbors are home -- dog wants out so he can bark at them.  Let dog out to bark because he only has one week of freedom before surgery and eight weeks of being cooped up for recovery and he should have fun while he can.

Spend two hours trying to cobble HTML into a facebook landing page (it worked! Check it out here! And while you're there you could always hit the like button :)  

JP comes home.  Run towards the door with dog in excitement to see him (dog stops to pick up a toy offering making me feel empty handed).  Babble about day because I like to Talk and I haven't been able to do Enough of It today.  If it's still light out, maybe take a walk through the park.  If it's late, throw something from freezer into the microwave and sit down to eat, watch an hour or so of TV and then read before bed.  

Rinse.  Repeat.

That's pretty much what my days this week have looked like.  The week before last I travelled Thurs-Fri which involved a delayed flight, missed flight, and sprint through the airport to catch the last leg home.  I think all told I figured I'd been traveling for 21/39 hours.  BUT, I was able to get a big chunk of a short story written during all the delays and that made me Very Very Happy!

This post describes what I call a "drafting" day when I'm not overly crunched by deadlines.  My revising days always look different and my "Deadline Is Looming days" put a lot more emphasis on the writing.  Right now I'm waiting on edits from my editor and am trying to tie up a bunch of loose ends before heading out on tour so my days are a bit more scattered than they are otherwise.  Or at least, it feels that way.

I shall have more to say on this topic soon (and feel free to ask any questions in the comments!)

¹ BTW, he doesn't really check in on me to make sure I'm working -- this is really a joke between JP and I more than anything else. I'm extremely lucky that, because he also writes, JP understands the ins and outs of my job and is phenomenally supportive.

Teaser Tuesday: The Dark and Hollow Places

Only three weeks until The Dark and Hollow Places comes out which means... time for a teaser!  So, without further ado, here's the opening:

This city used to be something once. I’ve seen pictures of the way it gleamed—sun so bright off windows it could burn your eyes. At night, lights shouted from steel like catcalls, loud and lewd, while all day long white-gloved men rushed to open doors for women who tottered about on skyscraper heels.

I wonder sometimes what happened to those women when the Return hit—how they were able to run and survive with such absurd contraptions strapped to their feet. How different the world must have been before—safe and comfortable.

The City’s nothing like that anymore. Now, bare beams scrape the sky like splintered finger bones. Half the high-rises have fallen, and scavengers pilfered the intricately scrolled ironwork long ago. There’s not much of anything left anymore, just the fear that seeps fog-like through the streets.

Fear of the Recruiters. Fear of the Unconsecrated. Fear of tomorrow.

Even so, this city’s been my home. Other than the village I lived in as a child, this is the only world I’ve known. It’s sharp-cornered and raw but it’s a refuge for those with a burn to survive. You pay your rents, you follow the rules and you do what it takes to keep living.

Which is why I find myself on the Neverlands side of the Palisade wall that cordons off and protects the Dark City as the last dregs of evening slide across the sky. This is the place where Elias would go when he was desperate for money, desperate to trade so we could pay our rent and stay in our tiny flat for another year. It’s the place where anything can be found for the right trade, and where, after the blade of my only knife broke this afternoon, I’ve come for help.

Clutching the replacement blade tightly, I’ve started to cross over one of the bridges strung between two buildings when I hear a deep rumbling cough. It’s approaching dusk and storm clouds hover over the river, causing the light to drip a dull green. I shuffle faster toward the next roof, determined to get back to my flat in the Dark City before full night, but as soon as my foot lands on the rickety bridge connecting the buildings a voice calls out, “Wouldn’t do that if I were you.”

I freeze, the frayed rope railing in one hand. I’ve been alone long enough to have learned to look out for myself, yet something about the warning makes me hesitate. Just as I start to take another step the voice says, “Look down,” and I do.

The alley a dozen stories below is dim and choked in shadows, but even so I see something moving. A moan floats up, echoing softly between the buildings as it rises. The sun breaks through a narrow gap in the clouds and the light reflects down the alley, glinting briefly off what looks like eyes and a row of cracked teeth.

As my gaze adjusts I can make out dozens of clawing fingers reaching for me amid a pile of broken bodies that should have died from their fall but didn’t. Or maybe they did die and infection’s brought them back as plague rats. I shiver, disgust rolling through me.

Carefully, I inch back onto the roof, noticing how the wooden boards I was just about to walk onto are rotten. One step more and I’d have been down on that heap as well.

“You’re the first one to listen to me and not take a dive,” the voice says, and I spin, pulling my new knife between us. A woman sits tucked between two crumbling stone chimneys. In her hand she clutches a charred wooden pipe that feebly chokes out smoke.

I glance around the roof, expecting some sort of trap. The woman gestures toward my knife. “Don’t bother,” she says. “Just me up here.”

She puts the pipe back in her mouth, the end of it burning a bright red, and in that instant I get a clear look at her face: thick dark lines painted around eyes smudged by tears or sweat or both. Then the ember fades, pulling her back into shadow.

But not before I see the raw circle around her wrist, festering with infection. The flesh edging the wound puffs and oozes, and I recognize it as a bite. I pull my knife back up between us, refusing to let it shake.

I’m usually pretty good at avoiding any confrontation with the Unconsecrated. No matter how careful you are, there’s always the risk that something will go wrong and they’ll get their teeth into you one way or another.

The woman shrugs and inhales. The light makes her skin glow again and I watch how her hand trembles. Cracks etch through the powder she used to make her old skin appear blushing and fresh—it looks like a fractured mirror instead.

I think of my own face, the scars overlaying the left side of my body like a thick spider web. Her cracks can be washed away. Mine can’t.

It’s easy to see that she’s close to the end—when the infection will kill her. I glance down again at the pile of bodies below, their feeble moans filtering into the night. She’ll be one of them soon. If she’s lucky someone will take care of her before she turns. If she isn’t…

I swallow.

With a sickening heaviness in my stomach I realize I’m the one who’s going to have to kill her. 

*insert ominous music here*

So, just to recap... here are the details:  The Dark and Hollow Places is the third Forest of Hands and Teeth book and will be coming out March 22, 2011.  You can pre-order a copy here:  IndieBound | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Borders | Personalized/Autographed Copies.  And if you don't feel like waiting that long, you can enter to win one of ten signed Advanced Reader Copies (ARCs) here:

Goodreads Book Giveaway

The Dark and Hollow Places

by Carrie Ryan

Giveaway ends March 13, 2011.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.
“The best dystopian novel we’ve read, period.” -Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, NYT bestselling authors of Beautiful Creatures and Beautiful Darkness

Enter to win

A huge thanks to everyone who has already read The Dark and Hollow Places and let me know what you thought -- it means so much to me!!  Only three more weeks!!!!!

The Bad and the Good

I know I owe y'all a post about what the Writing Life actually looks like in reality (following up on an earlier post) but I'm going to bump that post to next week because there's something else that's been occupying my mind.

Yesterday I received some very sad news.  A friend of mine, YA author L.K. Madigan, passed away.  She'd written a very eloquent blog post about her diagnosis of pancreatic cancer and still, I wasn't prepared for her to actually die.  I guess in my mind I'm not ready for my friends to die.  I'm too young.  She was too young.  She had so many exciting things in her life and then... it just seemed too fast.  So unfair.

And then, on the same day that I learned this news on Twitter (of all places) there was also something else going on.  Maureen Johnson woke up and decided to do something good for the world.  She tweeted about an organization a friend of hers works for called Shelterbox that essentially sends boxes of necessary supplies to people in need after disasters.  Each Shelterbox costs about $950 and she wanted to raise enough money to buy one Wednesday.  As an incentive, she pledged her last ARC of her forthcoming release, The Last Little Blue Envelope and pledged to make up the difference in donations to fund the one box.

Here's a link to her blog post about it.  Here's a link to her Twitter feed.

I knew that Twitter could be a force for good, but watching this expand over the course of a day was pretty extraordinary.  Other authors offered giveaways and donated money.  People spread the word.  And at the end of the day Maureen raised enough money to fund SIX ShelterBoxes.  Plus enough donations of schwag to hold another fundraising day today.

It was heartening, last evening, to watch my twitter feed: friends and colleagues expressing sorrow over Lisa's passing and joy in her life.  Others donating money so that those in need could find some relief.  It really made me understand that life can be so hard and so sad, and yet there's such a community of loving people always there.

I'm so grateful to feel a part of this community -- this group of people who, through large and small acts, accomplish great things.  Thanks for reminding me of all the awesome in the world on a day when I was reminded of the sad.

The Dark and Hollow Places tour!

I'm so excited that I get to hit the road for the release of The Dark and Hollow Places (comes out March 22, 2011)!  I had such a blast last year meeting readers and fellow book lovers and hanging out and I'm thrilled to be doing it again!  Here are the preliminary details on the tour!!

THE DARK AND HOLLOW PLACES TOUR:

Tuesday, March 22, 2011 at 7:00 PM

Miami, FL

Books and Books

Thursday, March 24, 2011 at 7:00 PM

Chicago, IL

Anderson's Bookshop

Naperville location:

123 West Jefferson

Naperville, IL 60540

Tel: 630-355-2665

Saturday, March 26, 2011 at 2:00 PM

Chicago, IL

Borders Schaumburg

Sunday, March 27, 2011 at 1:00 PM

Cincinnati, OH

Joseph Beth Booksellers

2692 Madison Road

Cincinnati OH 45208

(513) 396-8960

Monday, March 28, 2011 time TBA

Dayton, OH

Books and Co.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011 time TBA

Salt Lake City, UT

The King's English

1511 South 1500 East

Salt Lake City, UT 84105

Wednesday, March 30, 2011 at 7:00 PM

West Jordan, UT

Barnes and Noble

Thursday, March 31, 2011 time TBA

Phoenix, AZ

Changing Hands

6428 S McClintock Dr

Tempe, AZ 85283

Tel: 480-730-0205

Friday, April 1, 2011 at 7:00 PM

Phoenix, AZ

Barnes and Noble

Saturday, April 2, 2011 at 3:00 PM

Los Angeles, CA

Barnes and Noble, Glendale

Sunday, April 3, 2011 at 2:00 PM

San Diego/Los Angeles, CA

Barnes and Noble, Oceanside

Monday, April 4, 2011 at 7:00 PM

Los Angeles, CA

Mrs. Nelson's

Tuesday, April 5, 2011 at 7:00 PM

Los Angeles, CA

Book Soup

8818 Sunset Blvd.

W. Hollywood CA, 90069

This is a joint signing with other awesome authors :)


April 6-10
Los Angeles, CA
Romantic Times Convention
I'll post details on my panels as we get closer

Saturday, April 9, 2011 all day

Los Angeles, CA

RT Convention: Teen Day

click image to make bigger so you can read all the fun details!

Monday, April 11, 2011 from 7:00-9:00 PM
Spartanburg, SC

Hub City Bookshop

I'm giving a writing workshop on how to put tension on every page, especially when it comes to writing YA. Space is limited -- click here for more information!

April 12 - April 15, 2011

Austin, TX

TLA (I don't have a schedule of events yet and don't know what will be open to the public but will post when I do)

April 15 - April 16, 2011

Austin Texas

Writer's League of Texas, YA A to Z Conference

Also, I do hope to set up a signing in Charlotte this spring... still working on the details!

As always, you can find details about my upcoming events here (yes, that's a backdated post but it's where my website points to so I can update it easily on the road).  If there are any changes to my tour schedule (which there likely will be as we're still early in the game) I'll be making them to THAT POST.

The Writing Life Part 1: what I expected

I just returned from a panel up at Williams College with a few literary superstars: Jay McInerney and Gary Fisketjon.  It was amazing just listening to them -- their lives, how they got where they are, their wisdom.  Amazing!

The topic of the panel was "The Writing Life" and as I've settled in to work this morning I've been thinking about the first question we were asked: what is the writing life?  Our answers were generally broad, dealing with how we got to where we are, but there was also the question of "how/when do you write?"  Jay brought up that some people can write a book and then spend their life talking about that book rather than writing another.  His advice was to write every day -- that's what it comes down to: writing.

As I settled in to work today after so many disrupted weeks, I started to think about what that meant on a daily basis.  Over breakfast after the event I asked Jay if he still writes every day.  He said he still writes most days.  It made me think about my own schedule because I *don't* write every day even though I work every day.  I've learned that there's quite a gap between "writing" and "working" and this really highlighted for me the difference between what I expected my life as a full time writer to be like and the reality.

This is what I expected:

I'd wake up in the morning after a luxuriously restful sleep.  I'd yawn and stretch in my sun dappled room and perhaps spend a few moments pondering the day, thinking over what I've been writing and composing a few lines to get me going.  After rising from bed and donning a cute yet relaxed outfit (perhaps something yoga-ish) I'd make my way through my clean house and alight in my office where I'd answer a few emails before getting down to work: writing.

I'm a fast writer so I'd probably knock out a thousand words before wandering into the kitchen for breakfast.  Perhaps I'd make an organic fruit smoothie with fresh fruit from the farmer's market.  I'd think about my latest writing project and return to the office, finishing my word goal for the day before lunch-time.

Lunch would be something light -- a salad or soup, again made from ingredients purchased at the farmer's market (because I'd have time for such things).  Maybe I'd set something aside for dinner -- begin marinating something or start a stock.  If I didn't go to the gym in the morning, I'd head there now, taking advantage of the afternoon lull.

Upon returning home from the gym perhaps there'd be some business I'd have to take care of -- a few emails, a blog, updating the website.  Nothing too taxing and I might even finish all the work by 4:00 whereupon I'd lounge on the couch and read.  I'd have dinner ready for JP most night -- all fresh and tasty.

Some days I'd go to a movie, other days I'd make the rounds of various bookstores to sign stock.  I might even fit in a nap!

I'd write more than one book a year -- after all, I'd written my first published novel while also working a taxing job (some of it during a trial where I billed over 300 hours for a couple of months).  With all this newfound time I'd be a writing machine!

All would be neat and organized, all would be timely.  The house would be clean, my office would be tidy.  I'd have it all together and it would be wonderful.

It was a glorious dream.  And so very much not reality.

Two events: Charlotte, NC and Williamstown, MA

A quick post about two events:

The first is a panel on the Rise of the Young Adult Novel hosted by the Women's National Book Association in Charlotte, NC.  I know this is super late notice but it's being held tonight, Feb 15th, at 6:30 at the Quail Hollow Estates Clubhouse.  It looks like a great panel and I know the questions we'll be discussing are really thoughtful and interesting.  I can't wait!  More details are here.  Also, I think I'll be signing books afterward!

The second event is a panel discussion on "A Life Writing" to be held at Williams College on Thursday, February 17th.  The other panelists are Jay McInerney, whose novels are essentially the anthems of his generation, and Gary Fisketjon, editor-at-large at Knopt who has worked with Raymond Carver, Annie Dillard, Cormac McCarthy and others.

I heard about the other participants and my first thought was to sing, "One of these things is not like the rest of them" to myself.  Seriously, I'm pretty awestruck by Jay and Gary and will likely spend much of the panel just staring at them and hoping to bask in their brilliance.  I am so crazy honored to be speaking with them.

The event starts with a reading by Jay McInerney at 7pm followed by the panel discussion at 8pm.  Both events will be held in Griffin Hall, room 3 and are free and open to the public.  If you want to learn more about it, here's a link.

Hope to see some of y'all there!!

Dedicating The Dead-Tossed Waves

Today marks the release of The Dead-Tossed Waves in paperback.  When I had to figure out who to dedicate The Forest of Hands and Teeth to it felt pretty obvious to me: my husband JP is the one who introduced me to zombies, who read every page of that book several times, who endured countless walks and conversations as I talked through the plot.  I felt like that book was as much his as mine.

When I got to the end of writing The Dead-Tossed Waves I also felt it was pretty obvious who I would dedicate the book to: my mother, Bobby, and my step-father, Doug.  This is a post about why. [There are  spoilers, sorry!  I'll mark the spot in the post later on where there are no spoilers.]

The dedication reads:

to Roberta Hatch
the light on the horizon that means home

to Douglas Keith Kidd
for loving her, and all of us, so much

and to love at first sight (and Chiquita bananas)

The Forest of Hands and Teeth is about Mary and her quest to determine how she wants to define her life.  Yes, there's a love triangle and I've talked before about how I think love triangles work -- each boy (in my case) represents a different part of the heroine and she must choose who SHE wants to be before she can choose which partner best compliments that part of her.

In the first book, I think it's pretty clear that while both Harry and Travis are totally viable options for Mary, she loves Travis.  He's the one who is willing to venture past the gates, to question their life in the village and to dream big.  Harry represents a more stable love and companionship.  Travis, to me, is a like a bright blazing conflagration while Harry is more of a steady burning ember.  They're both great men (or I hope they come across that way), but Travis is who fits with Mary best in The Forest of Hands and Teeth; he compliments her passion and drive.

The Dead-Tossed Waves picks up with the story quite a bit after the end of The Forest of Hands and Teeth and from a different point of view: Mary's daughter, Gabry.  At some point in the book, Mary leaves to go back to her village and when we meet her again she's standing with Harry and I hope it's pretty clear they've rekindled a relationship (or are in the process of doing so).  Mary says at one point that she doesn't need Harry to complete her anymore, just to be with her.  And she's pretty clear that it never would have worked out between them when they were young -- both of them had to grow up and have their own separate lives and become their own independent person before they could come back together again.

But she also acknowledges that they share such a deep past -- a deep bond that will always tie them together.  They grew up in the same village with the same friends and fears and questions.  This shared background created such a lasting foundation between them: they understood everything about each other because of that time.

[The spoiler free bits follow:]

I based this relationship on my mother and step-father who have an amazing love story.  Both of them grew up on banana plantations in Latin America.  I think my step-father, Doug, knew of my mother (she was one of four girls who caused all kinds of trouble, I think everyone pretty much knew them) but they don't remember meeting each other officially (though it's likely there were times when they were on the same banana boats from the plantations up to school in New Orleans).

They both grew up, got married, had kids, lived completely separate lives.  And then one year in the summer of 1995 they both attended the Chiquita Banana Reunion in New Orleans (yes, such a thing exists).  My mother was a smoker at the time (boo!) and was standing by an ashtray looking for a match when Doug offered her a light.  They started to talk.  Then they went to the party and started to dance.  They stayed up all night dancing.  Doug was supposed to leave the next day and cancelled his flight.  When he did eventually leave (on my Mom's birthday) he sent roses to her room.  As it turns out, he lived only a few hours from my mom and he came to visit that next weekend (and left her a love note in Spanish not realizing that I, who was the only daughter still living at home, spoke Spanish and found it first - haha!).

It was truly love at first sight for them.  They got married later that year (yes, it was their kids who said "wait a minute, perhaps slow things down a bit?") and I got a step-father and two older brothers (really, truly, awesome).  Mom and Doug spoke Spanish around the house.  He called her "Mi Amor," they danced.  They went back to the Chiquita Banana reunions every other year.  A large part of their bond was that shared history: they both understood what it was to grow up on those banana plantations.  He'd even lived in one of the houses my mom lived in as a kid.  They knew the same people, the same banana boats, the same language.

And I honestly believe that it took them growing up, moving into separate paths, having their own lives, and coming back together again later to find such love and compatibility.  My mother just wasn't the same woman when she met Doug as she was when she met my father.  If she and Doug had met earlier in life, I'm not sure they could have shared the same kind of love and companionship.  What they looked for in a partner changed over their lives and it really did seem like, at least from an outsider perspective, that they didn't need each other to complete the other one, they needed to just love each other and be companions.  Which they were.

Many of you may know that my step-father, Doug, passed away on December 22, 2010.  My mother sat by the bed, holding his hand.  I stood behind her, watching.  Before he was moved into hospice, when he was still upstairs in the ICU, we told one of the nurses how he and my mom met.  He smiled and chuckled (wishing he could cut in and tell the story right, I'm sure).  Really, that's the last time I saw him be aware of any of his surroundings.

He was diagnosed with kidney cancer in the summer of 2006 and in the spring of 2009 he ended treatment and we called in hospice.  Honestly, I thought I'd never see him get out of bed again.  But then we got our miracle two years.  He gained strength and weight.  He and my mom flew to Costa Rica for a two week bus tour to all their old haunts with their buddies from the Chiquita Banana Reunions.  He got to see his son, my brother, coach the winning state soccer champs.  His other son got married.  I got married, my sisters and brother had kids.  He was there for all of it (well, except for JP and I'd elopement, but he was there to congratulate us later).  Truly, it was a miracle two years.

So we knew it couldn't last, though we didn't know it would happen quite as quickly as it did.  But, like so many of that generation, he'd smoked for most of his life and in the end his lungs couldn't stand up against the COPD.

I knew when I was writing The Dead-Tossed Waves that Doug was terminally ill.  And I knew that I'd be dedicating the book to him and my mother because they shared a deep and lasting love and I'd used it as a model for Harry and Mary.  I didn't know when I finished writing The Forest of Hands and Teeth that this would be in Mary's future but when I looked at the way Mom and Doug held hands, the comfort they shared in talking about their childhoods, I knew that this is what would bring Mary comfort and joy later in her life.  She'd had her adventures (and boy did she have adventures) and she had a daughter she'd raised and loved fiercely but who had grown and would be leaving the nest.

I dedicated the book to my mother because The Dead-Tossed Waves is as much about Mary being a mother as it is about Gabry being a daughter.  And of course because it's from Gabry's POV she doesn't necessarily spend that much time thinking about her mom because that's what we do when we're young: we go off on our adventures.  But Gabry always knew that her mother was there -- the light on the horizon that meant home -- and would always be there.  I'm lucky to live my life the same way, knowing that my mother is always a phone call or a short drive away.  That she will accept me unconditionally with open arms.

I'm very lucky to have had Doug in my life as well.  He taught me patience, kindness, unconditional love and acceptance.  He was the man that knew everyone -- the produce stocker at Publix, the UPS man, he knew their stories and their dreams.  He listened and loved.  As my sister so perfectly said at his service, "Doug had the ability to make you feel like you were the only person in the room. And you were the BEST at what you did."

So I thank Chiquita Bananas for bringing them together.  Mom and Doug made me believe in love at first sight.  I miss him.  I'm glad I had the chance to hand him a copy of The Dead-Tossed Waves and thank him for being in my life.

Thanks to mom and Doug for letting me borrow their love for my book and thanks to all of you for letting me share it with you.

Thanks!!

Thank you SO MUCH to all of you who came out to the live show last night and asked questions and showed support for The Dark and Hollow Places!  I'm really surprised at how nervous I became when reading.  I really thought I was finally at the point where I'm comfortable speaking and reading in public but (a) it's easier to do in person when you can gauge reactions and (b) this is really the first time I've read anything from The Dark and Hollow Places out loud and in the middle of it I began to realize that fact and it freaked me out a little.  So, thanks for all the kind words, tweets and emails!!  I appreciate it SO SO MUCH!

The Dead-Tossed Waves pre-release round-up plus how to get a DHP teaser...

Okay, people, tomorrow marks the release of The Dead-Tossed Waves paperback.  Cue confetti!!  Yay!!  Crazy how time flies!  In honor of the release I'll be reading the first couple of pages from The Dark and Hollow Places tonight during the live show from Branson, MO.  I don't know when during the hour I'll be reading but you can tune in here at 8:00 PM Eastern.  Also, just a note that I forgot to bring an ARC or a copy of the paperback with me so I'll be reading from the last draft I have so... there might be some changes between that and the final (just assume that the final is moar awesome).

In very VERY happy-making news, Jen Lancaster, one of my absolute favorite authors of adult books (crazy hilarious writer!) chose The Dead-Tossed Waves as one of her winter recommendations.  She wrote:

What I appreciate so much about Carrie's books is that even though her characters are tormented by external factors (e.g. being pursued by zombies while in pursuit of a safe zone), she still gives us a very real sense of what makes the characters unique and whole.  Their internal drama's often as profound as what's happening around them.

Thanks Jen!!  The whole list is here.

And also, thanks to the lovely internet I've already seen some pics of The Dead-Tossed Waves out and about!  Vania took this photo (thanks!!):

Speaking of pictures, Aimee Ferris, author of Will Work for Prom Dress, has put together an awesome website of various authors in their own prom photos.  Mine just went up the other day.  Here's the link.  And yes, I still do have that dress in my closet (well, my attic really) because I totally loved it!  I remember shopping for it with my mom and picking it out (I even wore it two years in a row).

Branson's been snowy, cold and totally awesome!  Don't forget to head to the chat tonight if you have any questions for me about books, writing, life, etc etc.  Can't wait to talk with y'all!!

And she's off...

Obligatory announcements first:

1. The Dead-Tossed Waves paperback out in four days.  Be there.  And by "there" I mean you can purchase a copy from the following places: Barnes & Noble | Amazon | IndieBound | Personalized Copy from my local indie, Park Road Books.
2. SciFiNow had their third annual awards and the gave The Dead-Tossed Waves the "Potter Award for Adaptation Potential" saying, "Given the current zombie fever, and the taste for romance in the genre, we'd be amazed if Ryan hasn't had discussions with film studios.  Her first novel, The Forest of Hands and Teeth, was practically built for film and the follow-up is cinematic too."  Thanks SciFiNow!  Also, yes, I have been in talks -- we sold the option in 2009 and they renewed it in 2010!
3. SciFiNow also reviewed The Dead-Tossed Waves as a "must read now!" and said it "maintains the same bold characterizations as its predecessor," and "with great world building and cinematic form, this is a high quality novel."  This makes me very very happy!
4. Thanks again, everyone, for indulging me as I play with QR codes.  I've pasted below the first paragraph of The Dark and Hollow Places (which, astute readers may notice on Tuesday, is slightly different from the one in the back of The Dead-Tossed Waves... these things change).

This city used to be something once.  I've seen pictures of the way it gleamed -- sun so bright off windows it could burn your eyes.  At night lights shouted from steel like catcalls, loud and lewd, while all day long white-gloved men rushed to open doors for women who tottered about on skyscraper heels.

So as it turns out, I've got a lot of traveling in my future.  Tomorrow I leave for a writing retreat in Branson, MO.  I hear there may be some live BlogTV where you can ask questions of the authors there but I don't know when it is or how it works (deadline brain means I haven't paid attention to much else, I'm just glad I actually remembered to buy my plane ticket!).  When I know anything I'll likely post it to my twitter feed.

Then when I get back I turn around and go to Williamsburg, VA with JP.  This is a tradition we started the first year we began dating and we've only missed one year!  I truly TRULY love this trip: we forget about the internet and work and modern day and just get to daydream and relax and pretend the rest of the world doesn't exist.  In fact, JP proposed to me in Williamsburg three years ago!

A few days after that I'm heading up to my Alma Mater, Williams College, for a panel on jobs in the creative industry.  If any of you are in the area and want more info, just leave me a comment and I'll post it!  I'm pretty sure I've forgotten just how cold Massachusetts can be in February.

After that it's home for a bit and then off on a family trip to Reno with my mom to visit my aunt.  I've been told this will be a Very Fun Trip.

AND THEN... The Dark and Hollow Places tour!  Wahoo!  I don't have all the details but here's what I know so far: I'll be heading to Cincinnati, Miami, Salt Lake City, Phoenix, Chicago and then Los Angeles in conjunction with the RT Convention and Austin in conjunction with TLA and the Writer's League of Texas YA A to Z conference.  I can't wait!!

So yes, lots of travel which means... perhaps I should get packing!

On finishing a draft

First, more announcements! Yay!

1. Cassandra Clare, author extraordinaire of the Mortal Instruments series and the Infernal Devices trilogy, took part in a video for Barnes & Noble discussing some of her favorite books and The Dead-Tossed Waves made her list!  HUGE SQUEE!  You can watch the video here.  It's a pretty awesome and diverse list so I'm very thrilled and honored to get a shout out.
2. Speaking of The Dead-Tossed Waves... the paperback comes out on Tuesday, Feb 8th. Eee, less than a week!  And I won't even be in town or anywhere near a bookstore!
3. Speaking of Tuesday, in celebration of the paperback coming out, I think I'll post more excerpts for The Dark and Hollow Places (the first chapter of which is in the paperback of DTW).  Here's the first paragraph!

(In order to read the first paragraph of The Dark and Hollow Places above, download a QR code reader to your smart phone (I use the app i-nigma but I've read you can also direct your browser to scan.mobi) and then point it at that QR code above).  I'll post the actual first paragraph in my next post :)

So yesterday afternoon ago I hit send on a draft of my new book to my agent and editor (can't share details yet, sorry!).  And for a while I just sort of sat there, trying to figure out what to do next.  I've done this before -- turned in first drafts -- and I'm sure I felt similarly then but even so, this sort of snuck up on me.  I think because I was prepared to spend all day working on the draft getting it in just before midnight so pressing send in the middle of the afternoon was unexpected.  I suddenly had no idea what to do with myself.

Mostly, I just never really spent a lot of time figuring out what came after checking off "turn in draft."

I've learned over the past few years that I tend to be a linear thinker when it comes to tasks: I prioritize a list and then I methodically move through one after another.  Which means that when the top of the list is "write book, deadline looming" it's hard for me to see past that to anything else (such as "answer email," or "update website" or "write short story" or "read").  The closer I get to the deadline, the more one-track my mind gets.  I feel guilty working on anything else even though it's almost impossible to spend all day every day just straight up writing.  And yet, everything else falls to the wayside.

At the beginning of the year I sat down and made a chart of all my deadlines (external and internal) and what I needed to do to meet them.  So I know that logically, next on my list is "write short story due imminently" and I'll move on to that soon.

But it's really sort of hard to describe the feeling of turning in a draft and what that does to your head.  I remember experiencing a similar feeling when I finished writing the first draft of The Forest of Hands and Teeth.  I'd spent months carrying this story around in my head, spending every free moment putting the pieces together and figuring out how it could work, what should come next, etc.  That book was always in my thoughts. 

And then I finished the draft and suddenly... I could let it go.  It was such a relief!  That's what it was like turning in that draft yesterday.  I've been carrying this book around in my head for so long, and now... it's out of my hands.  It will be back in my hands soon enough, I'm sure, but now my mind feels almost a little empty.  I don't know what to turn to when I'm taking a walk or staring into space.  It's a crazy kind of freedom!

So what did I end up doing?  I had some miscellaneous work that had to be done, and then I took a walk to a local burger place and sat and had a long lunch with my ereader and a beer.  I came home, talked to some friends, and looked at all the books on my shelf I've been wanting to read and haven't had the time for.  I picked a few of them up and put them back, almost giddy with the choices and unable to decide where to start.  I actually spent some time with my husband while I wasn't stressing about a deadline and when I went to bed I let my mind wander over the various other projects waiting for me.

And yes, already I'm thinking about revisions :)

First lines, oh my!

First off, announcements:

1. The paperback of The Dead-Tossed Waves comes out a week from tomorrow (Feb 8th).  How did time pass at such warp speed!?  And yes, it has the first chapter of The Dark and Hollow Places in the back :)
2. The very talented and super nice author Sarwat Chadda reviewed The Forest of Hands and Teeth and interviewed me about it on his blog as part of his Kiss Me, Kill Me blog series (a really awesome series!).  Here's the link!

Thank you all for indulging me in my quest to play around with QR codes.  Seems that it worked so I think I'll keep playing :)  For those of you who, like me until recently, didn't know what a QR code was or don't have the ability to scan one, here's the first line to The Dark and Hollow Places:

This city used to be something once.

I've posted before about first lines (here's a list of some of them from works that will never see the light of day).  Generally, I can't really get going on a project until I have that first line and usually, that line never changes.  The opening to The Forest of Hands and Teeth is still the same as it was when I emailed it to myself in November 2006 when I first came up with it.

Now, I'll admit that the first line to The Dead-Tossed Waves changed several times as I kept changing who the protagonist was and where/when it was set but the line that made it into the book is still the same line that started out that particular draft (and in the interesting tidbit category, I also came up with that first line while on the road and emailed it to myself -- seems to be a trend.)

Of course, all that being said... the first line of The Dark and Hollow Places changed.  For a very long time it used to be, "It was only a matter of time before the Dark City fell."  And oh, when I look back on the proposal that included that first line I just have to laugh because WOW did this book ever change from inception to final product!

For proof of that, let's look at the "outline" I created using post-it notes and my hallway (let's not discuss how long it's actually been there...).  Even now I sometimes pause and read one of those little notes and laugh and laugh and laugh because almost none of those plot points ended up in the book.

Yes, I wish I had a different process that didn't include hallways of notes that never see the light of day and yet at the same time, I've started to embrace the process I do have.  Because by putting all those notes together I understood more about the structure of the book and the characters and their roles individually and together.

Also, I got to spend a beautiful spring day outside just brainstorming various scene ideas and that's always fun :)

Anyway, it's interesting to think back on the process of how The Dark and Hollow Places got from point A (time to ponder the third book!) to point Z (on shelves March 22, 2011!).  Especially as I embark on new projects (lips sealed) and get excited about where those might be in the future.  For me, there's always something a little magical about the process -- a part of me that will likely never understand how it works and thus is terrified that one day it won't.  But there's fun in the magic -- in that moment when you realize you've written the foundation for a point you hadn't even considered but once you realize it... wow, it works (or rather, that's the hope!).