Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Teaser Tuesday

Oh yeah, almost forgot today's Teaser Tuesday.

I've not been on the ball, lately. But, since the previous post was about Grimalkin, what say we do another Grimalkin teaser? Oh, and don't forget to check back for the 100 follower contest to win a Grimalkin rock. *see below post.

"Nothing." Grimalkin raised a hind leg and scratched an ear. "Maybe the Nevernever will hold out until the end of the world. Maybe it will disappear in a few centuries. Everything dies eventually, human. Now, if you are quite done with the questions, we should keep moving."

"But if the Nevernever dies, won't you disappear as well?"

"I am a cat," said Grimalkin, as if that explained anything."

100 Followers means I paint a rock

Woot! I have 100 followers!

First off, thank you, everyone who followed me. I honestly didn't think I'd reach 100 this fast. You're all fabulous, thank you again. :)

So, I guess this means I should have a contest or something, right? That's the standard procedure with these kind of milestones. Hmmmm, what to give away? I don't have any books yet. And bookmarks seem so dull.

Maybe ... a rock.

Maybe ... a Grimalkin rock.

What's a Grimalkin rock, you ask? Well, Grimalkin is the sarcastic gray cat from THE IRON KING. And, a Grimalkin rock looks like these.














I painted these for my last Grimalkin rock contest. I think its time to do another one, yes? Yep, time to break out the paints and brushes. Keep checking back for your chance to win. :)

Thursday, December 24, 2009

Merry Christmas

Well everyone, it's Christmas Eve.














I'm sure by this time, most presents have been wrapped and are now under the tree, glittering enticingly as they wait for tomorrow morning to come. By this time, scores of children are dancing with impatience, eagerly looking forward to the chaos of tomorrow. I'm sure the malls are packed with frantic shoppers, boyfriends, and husbands, who are scrambling to get that last elusive gift before time runs out.

My family isn't doing presents this year.

For various reasons, it has become too difficult for several members of the family to do the whole buying present thing. As a result, we've all agreed not to buy everyone gifts. So, this year, there is no tree, no presents, no stockings or decorations. Our living room stands empty, tree-less, except for a tiny, two-foot tree on an end table. My family doesn't have any small children, so there'll be no dissapointment that Santa didn't come this year.

You might be horrified, shocked, appalled, that we're abandoning the whole Christmas traditon of gift exchange, but you know? I'm okay with it. Because Christmas isn't about trees and decorations and presents. It isn't about fighting mall traffic in search of that one popular item that everyone seems to be sold out of. It's not about exchanging gift cards to the exact same store, or buying a generic gift for that one person who seems to have everything. It seems to me that, in the frenzy of buying and spending and the rush to get everyone presents, we've lost sight of what's really important at Christmas, and that is family.

Tommorrow morning, probably around 5 am or earlier, there will be mobs of children dragging their parents out of bed to the tree. Tomorrow morning will usher in the sound of ripping paper and delighted shrieking, as the most anticipated day of the year finally begins full swing. And that's good. I'm happy for everyone. I wish everyone a very merry Christmas full of joy and laughter. But for me, the best gift will be my family, together again for the holidays. We'll have a nice meal, and sit, and talk, and enjoy the day. No gifts, no tree. Just togetherness.

Merry Christmas, everyone.














Julie Kagawa

Saturday, December 19, 2009

The Iron King Christmas party

Welcome the the first annual Christmas party in Faeryland, hosted by the characters from THE IRON KING. Everyone is invited, so come on in, grab some cider, and relax. Just watch out for the phouka at the card table, unless you want to gamble away your voice or future child. And whatever you do, don't make ask the big gray cat wandering around to do you a favor.











(If you haven't played this type of game before, just leave a comment to get the party started. You and one guest are invited. The guest can be any character from any book: Katniss, Valek, Harry Potter, ect. Just try not to have doubles walking around, that would be awkward. ;-) Other then that, have fun, be creative, and let's see how crazy this party can get. Also, be sure to check back, because this will go on all week.)















Ready? Here we go.



A light snow falls gently outside as you make your way up to the old victorian mansion at the top of the hill. The huge pine tree in the front of the yard is decorated with what appear to be lights, but as you get closer a swarm of piskies take to the air in a buzz of tiny wings, shrieking with laughter. Inside, you step into a large, decorated foyer with a double grand staircase, an open area for dancing, and a magnificent fireplace in the corner. The flames crackle in the hearth, changing color in the dim light: red and gold and green.

Several faeries mill about the room, but its clear that the party has not quite started yet. A troll stands by the long food table, eating cupcakes, and a trio of goblins play cards with a goat headed phouka in the corner. A fluffy gray cat lies curled up in a chair by the fireplace, where a handsome Winter Prince broods into the flames. Puck, his red hair sticking out from beneath a santa hat, is walking around with a sprig of mistletoe held over his head, a mischievious gleam in his eye.

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Teaser Tuesday

Another Iron King Teaser Tuesday. This is in honor of Gail, who thinks Ash is swoon-worthy. (I happen to agree, but I could be a little biased.) I'll let you guys decide.



His fingers came up and gently brushed a tear from my cheek, sending a tingle all the way to my toes. I shivered, frightened by the pressure mounting between us, needing to break the tension.

I licked my lips and whispered: "Is this where you say you'll kill me?"

One corner of his lip curled. "If you like," he murmured, a flicker of amusement finally crossing his face. "Though it's gotten far too interesting for that."




Sigh, I love bad boys. So, that's mine. Now its your turn.

Saturday, December 12, 2009

Holy Bananas, Batman ...

I'm up to 80 followers.














That means I'm 20 away from 100. Woohoo! Guess I'll have to have a contest or something when I get there. Never thought I'd actually get that many in the first place, so wheee.

Less than two months till the release of The Iron King (AAH!), and I'm literally dancing with excitement. Or nerves. One of the two, its hard to tell anymore. Made an Iron King fanpage over on Facebook, so drop by and say hello, start a discussion, whatever. I'd post a link, but links hate me and never work, so its easier to click under "Places I hang out" on the right.

Not much going on, otherwise. Working on two projects at once, both due in February, keeps me extremely busy and hunched over a laptop until my eyes are bulging out of my head. My world has been consumed with plots, characters, and the constant tappity tap of fingers on keys.

Life is good.

Friday, December 11, 2009

Agent Appreciation Day!

Today is Agent Appreciation Day (unofficially)!

What is that, you ask? Its a day to honor, support, respect and above all, appreciate our agents and thank them for all they've done for us. (Hm, think we can make this an official holiday? With Hallmark cards and everything? Must ponder this idea; I think it has potential.)

Anyway, what I love about my agent ...

Hm, actually, I'm going to start with "How I met my agent," because that's a day that will live in my memory forever.

I met Laurie McLean, my fabulous agent from Larsen-Pomada Literary Agents, at a writer's workshop in Louisville, KY. The workshop was held at Spaulding University, and after a week of classes and instruction, we would get the chance to pitch our novels to a panel of agents and editors on Saturday. The end of the week was very exciting and nerve wracking; you'd think we were preparing for the arrival of the royalty, the way everyone was talking about it. But to an unpublished writer, an agent is nearly that.

Early Friday morning, before anyone else was up, I walked into the lounge to see a woman I'd never seen before standing in the middle of the room drinking a Coke. I knew it wasn't one of the students, and all the agents and editors flying in later were staying at a hotel. So I had no idea who this person was. Maybe security let someone slip in unnoticed.

"Uh ... hello?" I said intelligently.

"Oh, good morning!" said the strange person, much more cheerful than I would be at seven in the morning. "I'm Laurie McLean."

And at that moment, all the pieces clicked in my brain. "Laurie McLean" sounded awfully familiar, as if I read it somewhere before, like on the schedule. The agents and editors were supposed to be flying in today. The director said something about an agent who was not staying in the hotel, but in the dorms with the students.

Oh crap. This was an agent! I just "Uh helloed" an agent!

And to top it off, I was taking her to lunch that afternoon.

Fortunately, Laurie is one of the nicest people on the planet. We sat in the lounge and talked for several minutes before the rest of the students got wind that an agent was in the building and mobbed the room. I talked to her a bit more at lunch, she asked for a few pages of my novel, and a few weeks later I nearly fell out of my chair when she asked to represent me.


From there, its been a wild and crazy couple years. Getting my book published was--cliched as it is--a dream come true. And I'm so grateful to Laurie for giving me a chance, for answering all my questions, for having my back when I knew absolutely nothing about the buisness.

So, thank you, Laurie McLean. Thanks for being so nice to that dubious asian girl in the lobby. If Hallmark suddenly decides to make a "Thank You, Literary Agent" line, you can bet your desk would be covered with cards and flowers every year, most of them from me.














Sincerely,
Julie Kagawa
The Iron King
www.juliekagawa.com

Also, check out more Agent Love here.

http://lisa-laura.blogspot.com/2009/12/happy-agent-day.html

Wow, what a long and awesome list. Keep it growing!

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Teaser Tuesday

.

Haven't been keeping up on Teaser Tuesdays lately. I blame the holidays. And deadlines. And NaNo. But, I'm back, and so here is today's Iron King teaser, featuring Meghan and everyone's favorite favor-collecting feline, Grimalkin.


"You knew," I accused him as he sat down and licked a paw. "You knew who I was all along. That's why you agreed to take me to Puck--you were hoping to blackmail Oberon."

"Blackmail," said Grimalkin, blinking languid yellow eyes, "is a barbaric word."




That's today's teaser. What's yours?

Friday, December 4, 2009

A journey through Faeryland

Yawn.

Was bored, so I thought I'd post some pictures of what you might encounter in my upcoming novel, The Iron King. As most of you know, The Iron King is a faery story. But, these faeries aren't like this:














No, they're more like this:















































Props to you if you can guess them all. In fact, I think I'll make a contest of it. Guess them all correctly, and I'll send you a signed Iron King bookmark. (Be sure to include your email addy so I can contact you.) I'll run this contest until the end of December, and I won't even make you do anything else. Course, feel free to tweet or post this if you want. It would make me smile. And the faery in the first picture won't come for you. ;-)


ETA: Silly me. Forgot to add: email me your list at juliekagawa@juliekagawa.com instead of putting it in the comment section where everyone can see. The brain, sometimes she no work so well. >_<

Julie