Oh why oh why oh why-o...
...did I ever leave Ohio? Back from our three days in Ohio--all the events were supa-awesome, and getting home was supa-horrific. Canceled flights, hours upon hours in an airport. I'll post photos and stories after the Florida trip next week--see Libba's fantabulous blog for an immediate update. Libba and I have been inundated with requests to extend the tour to other areas--which is supa-flattering! But sadly not going to happen. It is physically painful for me to be away from my little ones so much, and also hard on them and Dean and their caretakers in my absence. I'm trying to cut back on travel as much as possible and will be doing a very abbreviated tour for rapunzel's revenge this fall.
I'm still waiting for the ok to post contest results here. Soon I hope.
I have neglected to mention that I sort of had another book come out last month. First Kiss (Then Tell) is an anthology of young adult writers telling the true story of their first kiss (or other kisses). Bloomsbury asked me for a piece, and since my first kiss was fairly lackluster, I decided to write about my first kiss with Dean. Then I sent it to him and asked him to write a response. Bloomsbury decided to go with that one, which is way fun but also very ironic. Dean (comics nerd and absurdist horror writer) ends up having his first publication in a YA anthology about kissing. It would damage his manliness more if he wasn't so HUGELY manly that the little chip in the armor isn't even noticeable.
I got a tremendous kick out of the Kirkus review, which said, "the most delicious story is Shannon and Dean Hale sharing a he said/she said about their first kiss with each other." Dean's first review rocked!
We're going to do a little chat and signing for this book at The King's English in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, February 12, 7 pm. (I'll sign other books as well, of course. Really anything, except Ray Bradbury. I got in trouble once for signing a Ray Bradbury.) Little FYI--none of the writers received compensation for our pieces in this book, instead our portion of the royalties goes to support NPR's Youth Radio. And little disclaimer: While I wasn't offended by anything in this collection, it is about kissing and romantic attraction. If you are a concerned parent, I recommend reading it first before you give it to a child.
Off to Miami on Tuesday! More Torso Tour reporting to follow, plus upcoming author interviews, contest results, answers to emailed questions, and how to eat nothing but chocolate and still lose weight!