Archive for the ‘Events’ Category

« Previous Entries
Next Entries »

Sign Up NOW for Author Events At Book Expo

Friday, April 25th, 2014

The AAP has just announced its roster of events exclusively for librarians, to be held at the upcoming Book Expo America, which runs Wednesday, May 28, through Saturday, May 31.

Below are those that require advance registration. Fellow procrastinators — don’t wait. BEA events are selling out fast (both LJ ‘s Day of Dialog and SLJ‘s are already sold out, before the full line-up of panelists have been announced).

Details on all eight programs are here BEA 2014 — AAP Events for Librarians. Below are those that require registration:

WEDNESDAY, MAY 28TH, 6:30 pm.
Eighth Annual BookExpo America Adult Librarians’ Dinner
Co-hosted by AAP and LibraryReads
Yale Club, NYC (52 Vanderbilt Avenue, Grand Ballroom

So We Read On9780143126683_f9440

We are particularly excited about this one because it’s hosted by one of our favorite reviewers, Maureen Corrigan of NPR’s Fresh Air and because it features the author of a book that’s been getting GalleyChat buzz, Joel Dicker, The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair (Penguin Books, 5/27). Full list of authors here – BEA 2014 Adult Librarian Dinner Invitation.

Register your interest to attend HERE. AAP will confirm if they are able to meet your request.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 28TH, 7:00 pm.
Third Annual BookExpo America Children’s Librarians’ Dinner
Co-hosted by AAP and School Library Journal
Princeton Club of New York (15 W. 43rd Street, James Madison Ballroom)

9781423178651_3537f  0803741715_94edb

The panel of seven authors includes John Rocco, author of the 2012 Caldecott Honor Book, Black Out. His forthcoming book is Blizzard (Disney/Hyperion, 10/28) and B.J. Novack, who has recently been moonlighting as an author. He will publish his first book for kids this fall, which will, of course, be non-traditional, The Book with No Pictures, (Penguin Young Readers/Dial, 9/30). Full list of authors here — Third Annual BookExpo America Children’s Librarians’ Dinner Invitation.

Please register your interest to attend HERE, AAP will confirm if they are able to meet your request.

THURSDAY, MAY 28TH, 12:15 pm – 1:45 pm.
Annual BEA Librarians Author Lunch
Jacob K. Javits Center, Room 1E12-13

9780670025596_1691b  9781473506350

Features a hot group of authors, including Deborah Harkness, Garth Stein, and Kathy Reichs. Full list   here — BEA 2014 AAP Adult Librarian Lunch Invitation.

Please register your interest to attend HERE,. AAP will confirm if they are able to meet your request.

Posted in Book Expo, Events | Comments Off on Sign Up NOW for Author Events At Book Expo

Live Chat With Laura Marx Fitzgerald, UNDER THE EGG

Wednesday, April 23rd, 2014

The chat has now ended, you can read it below.

Join us to receive galleys and get to know new authors. If you are not already a member, you can sign up here: Penguin Young Readers program

 Live Chat with Laura Marx Fitzgerald, UNDER THE EGG(04/23/2014) 
4:44
Nora - EarlyWord: 
We will begin our live online chat with Laura Marx Fitzgerald, author of UNDER THE EGG in about 15 minutes
Wednesday April 23, 2014 4:44 Nora - EarlyWord
4:45
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Meanwhile, here’s the cover of the book…
Wednesday April 23, 2014 4:45 Nora - EarlyWord
4:45
 Nora - EarlyWord
Under the Egg, Cover
Wednesday April 23, 2014 4:45 
4:46
Nora - EarlyWord: 
And excerpts from the reviews…
Wednesday April 23, 2014 4:46 Nora - EarlyWord
4:46
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Betsy Bird, Fuse 8 (School Library Journal)
Betsy selected UNDER THE EGG as a featured review (full review here -- http://bit.ly/1ia1Ngn

“When they tell you that the book is “From the Mixed-Up Files meets Chasing Vermeer” I suggest you not believe them. Yes, there is a famous piece of art and yes there is a mystery, but the mystery in this book is so much stronger than any art-related children’s book mystery I’ve read before that everything else just pales in comparison .. Uniquely readable, entirely charming, and a pleasure from start to finish. Debuts this good are meant to be discovered.”
Wednesday April 23, 2014 4:46 Nora - EarlyWord
4:47
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Kirkus Reviews
“This debut novel weaves art appreciation, restoration and dating techniques, and bits of history from the Renaissance and World War II into a fast-paced mystery. As the novel opens, 13-year-old Theodora Tenpenny explains her thrifty hobby of collecting trash from the city streets and turning it into useful objects. Then she recounts what happened merely three months ago: She found her adored grandfather, Jack, lying bloodied on a city street and heard his dying exhortation to "Look under the egg." Theodora, who has spent her life living with her emotionally incapacitated mother and her crusty, artistic, capable grandfather, knows she must follow this clue in order to become the family's next breadwinner. (Readers must suspend disbelief regarding social services in Manhattan.) Fortuitously, Theodora befriends Bodhi, also 13 but a member of a family of Hollywood celebrities. Theodora's knowledge of art history and Bodhi's skills in acting and in technology enable the girls to puzzle out the importance of Jack's final words.”
Wednesday April 23, 2014 4:47 Nora - EarlyWord
4:48
Nora - EarlyWord: 

Kirkus Reviews

“This debut novel weaves art appreciation, restoration and dating techniques, and bits of history from the Renaissance and World War II into a fast-paced mystery. As the novel opens, 13-year-old Theodora Tenpenny explains her thrifty hobby of collecting trash from the city streets and turning it into useful objects. Then she recounts what happened merely three months ago: She found her adored grandfather, Jack, lying bloodied on a city street and heard his dying exhortation to "Look under the egg." Theodora, who has spent her life living with her emotionally incapacitated mother and her crusty, artistic, capable grandfather, knows she must follow this clue in order to become the family's next breadwinner. (Readers must suspend disbelief regarding social services in Manhattan.) Fortuitously, Theodora befriends Bodhi, also 13 but a member of a family of Hollywood celebrities. Theodora's knowledge of art history and Bodhi's skills in acting and in technology enable the girls to puzzle out the importance of Jack's final words.”

Wednesday April 23, 2014 4:48 Nora - EarlyWord
4:48
[Comment From GuestGuest: ] 
I just ordered it today!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 4:48 Guest
4:49
Nora - EarlyWord: 

Booklist -- Starred review

“Smart and determined, down-to-earth and insightful, Theo makes an engaging narrator as she follows a winding trail of discovery. Along the way, Fitzgerald includes a good bit of art history, which becomes as interesting as the interplay between the two friends … Readers who loved E. L. Konigsburg's From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler (1967) and Blue Balliett's Chasing Vermeer (2004) won't want to put this one down.”

Wednesday April 23, 2014 4:49 Nora - EarlyWord
4:50
Nora - EarlyWord: 

And, Horn Book wrote about an aspect of the book that ties into a recent film --

Horn Book Magazine

After delving into her grandfather's military past -- he was one of the famous Monuments Men — [Theo] realizes the mystery stretches all the way back to Nazi Germany and Hitler's fine-art plundering. Fitzgerald moves beyond the all-too-familiar conventions of the "X marks the spot" story line to offer a gripping mystery with high stakes and moving historical context…

Wednesday April 23, 2014 4:50 Nora - EarlyWord
4:51
[Comment From GuestGuest: ] 
I'm about 2/3 of the way through and really enjoying the story - can't wait to share it with tween readers.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 4:51 Guest
4:56
Nora - EarlyWord: 

Glad to see so many chat participants gathering. You can send your questions through at any time. They'll go into a queue, and we'll submit as many of them as we can to Laura before the end of the chat. Don’t worry about typos – and please forgive any that we commit!

Wednesday April 23, 2014 4:56 Nora - EarlyWord
4:59
Nora - EarlyWord: 

Laura has joined us -- welcome!

Wednesday April 23, 2014 4:59 Nora - EarlyWord
4:59
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Hi! So glad to be here!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 4:59 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:00
Nora - EarlyWord: 

And Lisa is here, too1

Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:00 Nora - EarlyWord
5:00
lisa von drasek: 
Are we ready to rock, Nora?!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:00 lisa von drasek
5:00
Nora - EarlyWord: 

I see several others out there -- please say hi!

Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:00 Nora - EarlyWord
5:01
[Comment From Deborah BaldwinDeborah Baldwin: ] 
Loved this book! What is the Guided Reading Level for this book?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:01 Deborah Baldwin
5:01
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I know Penguin has suggested 8-12yo, but I really wrote it with 10-14yo in mind.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:01 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:02
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
In terms of a "letter" level, I'm not sure. Maybe Lisa, our librarian can suggest?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:02 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:02
lisa von drasek: 
Dewey: -Fic-; Int Lvl: 3-6; Rd Lvl: 4.9
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:02 lisa von drasek
5:02
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Well, there ya go.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:02 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:03
[Comment From shighleyshighley: ] 
Students really appreciate it when we can share insights from an author
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:03 shighley
5:03
[Comment From Deborah BaldwinDeborah Baldwin: ] 
Thank you!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:03 Deborah Baldwin
5:03
[Comment From Deborah BaldwinDeborah Baldwin: ] 
Wondering if this would be a good independent read for Third Graders for a mystery unit... or better for a read aloud.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:03 Deborah Baldwin
5:03
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
shighley, I love talking about the process behind the book, so ask anything that intrigues you!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:03 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:03
lisa von drasek: 
Deborah,
You know your class best. What have you been reading to them now?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:03 lisa von drasek
5:04
Nora - EarlyWord: 
There's a great Resource Guide on Laura's site ...
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:04 Nora - EarlyWord
5:04
 Nora - EarlyWord
UNDER THE EGG Discussion Guide
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:04 
5:04
[Comment From SarahSarah: ] 
I think this will be a great title for book discussion! What type of research did you do to prepare to write the book?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:04 Sarah
5:04
Nora - EarlyWord: 
UNDER THE EGG Resources
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:04 Nora - EarlyWord
5:04
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Just a plug that it's aligned with the Common Core.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:04 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:05
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I did tons of reading on every subject touched on in the book:
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:05 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:05
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
everything from art history to backyard chicken raising!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:05 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:05
[Comment From Deborah BaldwinDeborah Baldwin: ] 
I am excited to check out the Discussion Guide. What motivated you to write this book?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:05 Deborah Baldwin
5:05
[Comment From Deborah BaldwinDeborah Baldwin: ] 
Sounds like maybe a Read Aloud for Third Graders. Thank you!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:05 Deborah Baldwin
5:05
lisa von drasek: 
repeating Sarah's question What type of research did you do to prepare to write the book?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:05 lisa von drasek
5:05
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Two big helps: a book (and documentary) called The Rape of Europa
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:05 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:06
[Comment From Jenna GoodallJenna Goodall: ] 
Hi Laura and everyone! Loved the book. My co-workers do, too! :)
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:06 Jenna Goodall
5:06
[Comment From shighleyshighley: ] 
What background knowledge do you think would be most helpful for the students?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:06 shighley
5:06
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
The documentary is even appropriate for kids. It's about the Nazi plundering of Europe, and has many moving firsthand testimonials.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:06 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:07
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
re: What motivated me to write the book . . . I'd wanted to write an art history mystery for a long time --
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:07 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:07
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
kind of From the Mixed Up Files meets The Westing Game (my two favorite childhood books)
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:07 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:07
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I was also thinking a lot about pioneer and Great Depression era living. This was post the 2008 stock market crash . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:07 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:08
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
which gave me the idea for the characters of Jack and Theo, who are living a kind of homesteading lifestyle in the middle of glittering Greenwich Village
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:08 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:08
[Comment From Jenna GoodallJenna Goodall: ] 
Are you thrifty like Theo?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:08 Jenna Goodall
5:08
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I am! I am embarrassed to say how much of my wardrobe has been salvaged from the streets of Brooklyn . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:08 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:08
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
And now I regret telling you all that . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:08 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:08
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
In terms of what background a kid needs to read the book . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:08 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:09
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I would say none!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:09 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:09
[Comment From Noreen TrotskyNoreen Trotsky: ] 
How long did it take you to write this book?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:09 Noreen Trotsky
5:09
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I wrote the book for complete novices to art history . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:09 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:09
Nora - EarlyWord: 
But, you do offer great resources on your site ...
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:09 Nora - EarlyWord
5:09
 Nora - EarlyWord
Under the Egg, Resources
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:09 
5:09
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
and included the character of Bodhi as the sort of stand in for the reader.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:09 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:09
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
She is coming to the world of art as newly as any middle school reader would be.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:09 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:10
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
(Is newly a word?)
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:10 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:10
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Oh yes, I LOADED my website with resources on EVERYTHING:
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:10 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:10
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Raphael, the Renaissance, researching your own relatives' holocaust or military records. Even a pickled beet recipe!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:10 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:11
lisa von drasek: 
I was going to disagree with you about prior knowledge but actually the book inspired further research on my part.!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:11 lisa von drasek
5:11
[Comment From NJ School LibrarianNJ School Librarian: ] 
Love the opening line – “It was the find of the century. Or so I thought at the time.” Did you have to work hard for that, or did it come easily?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:11 NJ School Librarian
5:11
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Noreen, I started noodling the idea for the book in 2009. Started writing in earnest in 2011, and sold it in 2012.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:11 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:11
[Comment From Deborah BaldwinDeborah Baldwin: ] 
What character from the story do you most identify with?...Why?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:11 Deborah Baldwin
5:11
[Comment From shighleyshighley: ] 
Sure, as in newly-minted...?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:11 shighley
5:11
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
NJ School Librarian: That line came to me as soon as I had the idea for the book! . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:11 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:12
[Comment From NJ School LibrarianNJ School Librarian: ] 
How hard was it to sell the book?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:12 NJ School Librarian
5:12
[Comment From SarahSarah: ] 
Often first novels are a bit autobiographical. What else do you have in common with the characters?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:12 Sarah
5:12
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I wonder now if it was really the right fit, but I couldn't let it go! Glad to hear it resonated with you.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:12 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:12
[Comment From Deborah BaldwinDeborah Baldwin: ] 
Opening line is a great hook!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:12 Deborah Baldwin
5:13
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Deborah: I am a lot like Jack, except I can't even hammer a nail. I guess I aspire to be like Jack. I have the same sense of independence . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:13 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:13
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
But like Theo, I need to be forced to connect to my community. Her journey was kind of written to remind myself to do the same.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:13 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:14
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
And I had to do the same to write the book. So many pieces of the book are there b/c I started asking "What does an x-ray room look like? What happens if you walk into Sotheby's with a painting?" So many people gave me advice and information.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:14 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:14
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
NJ School Librarian: I was insanely lucky. I had three agent offers within a week of submitting, and sold the book a week after submitting to publishers.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:14 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:14
lisa von drasek: 
I was thinking about how independent Theo is...how capable...Do you think that it is realist that a kid this age with a Mom barely grasping reality could hold the household together?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:14 lisa von drasek
5:15
[Comment From MI LibrarianMI Librarian: ] 
This may sound out of left field -- but, I’m always curious about dedications. Yours is to Eleanor – who is that?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:15 MI Librarian
5:15
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
The key to understanding Theo:
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:15 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:15
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
You have to remember that Theo was raised by a man who quit school early to support his mom and sister in the Depression.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:15 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:15
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
He had a job starting at the age of 8
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:15 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:16
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
so Jack never thought it was too much to ask Theo at the age of 13 to run a household.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:16 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:16
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
A huge inspiration in this vein for Theo was Mattie Ross from True Grit.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:16 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:16
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
MI Librarian: Eleanor is my daughter!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:16 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:17
lisa von drasek: 
have you pickled beets?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:17 lisa von drasek
5:17
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
(In an aside, Eleanor Roosevelt lived in a house with connecting doors in NYC, just like Theo.)
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:17 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:17
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I have never pickled beets. I tried to make sauerkraut once that ended disastrously.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:17 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:17
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Unlike Theo, I love beets.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:17 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:17
[Comment From SarahSarah: ] 
I noticed in your bio that you have two children. Does that mean you are working on another book to dedicate to the other child? What are you working on next?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:17 Sarah
5:18
[Comment From Deborah BaldwinDeborah Baldwin: ] 
Who was your inspiration for Jack?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:18 Deborah Baldwin
5:18
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Yes, I'm working on another art history mystery. This one is about kids who solve an art heist (much like the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum heist of 1990), but uncover a much darker mystery behind the theft . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:18 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:18
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I will have to dedicate that to my son.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:18 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:19
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Jack was largely inspired by a brilliant but irascible professor I had named Jack Stillgoe.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:19 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:19
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Sorry, that should be John Stillgoe
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:19 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:19
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
http://www.people.fas.harva...
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:19 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:20
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
He taught and wrote about the American landscape -- by which meant everything we see around us . . . not just art.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:20 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:20
lisa von drasek: 
you had mentioned the enormous amount of research that you had done to "get things right" in the book. Did you get it all on "google?" she asked knowing that wouldn't be possible.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:20 lisa von drasek
5:20
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
He would pick up catalogs and manhole covers and old Coke advertisements and have us "Look closer!" -- trying to decode what they were saying to us.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:20 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:20
[Comment From pwbaltopwbalto: ] 
I know people my age (40's) who grew up in Manhattan and are independent like Theo, but it seems kids growing up there now are not as much. Did you grow up in NYC?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:20 pwbalto
5:20
[Comment From SarahSarah: ] 
Your website is lovely and easy to navigate for teachers and librarians. Thanks for providing so many resources!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:20 Sarah
5:21
[Comment From shighleyshighley: ] 
Will this chat be archived in some way so that I can remember all of these great insights to share with students?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:21 shighley
 
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Thanks for asking! The chat will be archived on the site -- http://penguinyrauthors.ear... -- it will be up right after we finish. You can find the previous two chat there as well.
  Nora - EarlyWord
5:21
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I did get a lot on Google. Google is great for people like me who love wearing pajamas on the couch.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:21 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:21
Nora - EarlyWord: 
You must have also spent a lot of time at the Metropolitan Museum...
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:21 Nora - EarlyWord
5:21
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I also went to places like the Met's library, the Center for Jewish History, spent LOTS of time at the NYPL and Brooklyn Public Library.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:21 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:21
 Nora - EarlyWord
Metropolitan Museum of Art
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:21 
5:22
[Comment From Deborah BaldwinDeborah Baldwin: ] 
Did the book Monuments Men influence you at all?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:22 Deborah Baldwin
5:22
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Sarah, I'm glad you like the website! Thanks!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:22 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:22
[Comment From MI LibrarianMI Librarian: ] 
The book came out last month -- any interesting reactions?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:22 MI Librarian
5:22
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
pwbalto, I grew up in small college towns. . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:22 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:22
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
But I had the same experience: walking to school by myself, riding bikes while my parents had no idea where I was as a kid. I think so many of us grew up that way and miss that for our own kids.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:22 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:23
lisa von drasek: 
did you have a favorite librarian growing up?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:23 lisa von drasek
5:23
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Deborah: I used the MOnuments Men book as a key part of my research and was stunned to discover that George Clooney was making it into a movie!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:23 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:23
[Comment From pwbaltopwbalto: ] 
The bigger museums have terrific collections databases on their sites. You have to look sometimes, they can be hard to find. - :paula
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:23 pwbalto
5:23
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
It was fun to see everything come to life on the big screen.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:23 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:23
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
pwbalto: I agree entirely, and I use those databases a lot.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:23 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:24
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Ah yes, I had a favorite librarian:
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:24 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:24
[Comment From Jenna GoodallJenna Goodall: ] 
I loved the librarian in this book! Yay for breaking stereotypes. :)
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:24 Jenna Goodall
5:24
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Mrs. Jeffers at the Norman OK library. I especially loved her b/c she nominated me to go to Okalhoma City and help present the Sequoia Award to Bill Wallace for A Dog Called Kitty.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:24 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:25
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
As you can tell, like Theo, I was a library frequent flyer even then. :-)
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:25 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:26
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Jenna: I used to live in Williamsburg Bklyn where there were so many hipster MLIS types! Living there, Eddie seemed more like a librarian stereotype than the cardigan-wearing bespectacled octogenarian!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:26 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:26
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Proud library moment:
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:26 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:26
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I got a notice from the Brooklyn Public Library recently honoring me as a "Power User" = I've checked out more than 1000 books.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:26 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:27
lisa von drasek: 
Instead of the classic children's book trope of getting rid of all the grown ups, you have populated the book with idiosyncratic adults.
can you talk about that?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:27 lisa von drasek
5:27
[Comment From Deborah BaldwinDeborah Baldwin: ] 
How do you think all of that reading influences your writing?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:27 Deborah Baldwin
5:28
[Comment From pwbaltopwbalto: ] 
The one quibble I've seen from other librarians is the stain on the street at the beginning of the book. Was that a big decision on your part to put that in?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:28 pwbalto
5:28
[Comment From NJ School LibrarianNJ School Librarian: ] 
Will your next book deal with Renaissance art, too?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:28 NJ School Librarian
5:28
[Comment From pwbaltopwbalto: ] 
*stealing Power User idea*
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:28 pwbalto
5:28
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Wow, so many questions! Hang on!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:28 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:29
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Idiosyncratic adults is what I love about living in NYC!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:29 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:29
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
That's the true diversity of the city. And I love how they come together and mix it up here.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:29 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:30
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I did have to engineer a way for Theo and Bodhi to wander the streets w/o parents herding them into cello lessons, and their backgrounds permitted that.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:30 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:30
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I also wanted kids to know how many adults are out there who can help them scaffold unique learning experiences for them, if that doesn't sound too wonky.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:30 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:31
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Deborah: Simply put, I am not that creative or original. I can't come up with ideas staring at a blank screen . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:31 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:31
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I get all my ideas from reading, and then find ways to twine them together into a story.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:31 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:31
[Comment From SarahSarah: ] 
You mentioned some classic mysteries that inspired you. Were you inspired by any modern stories? Maybe because of the common NYC setting, I was reminded of When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead as I was reading.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:31 Sarah
5:31
[Comment From Bklyn’erBklyn’er: ] 
You live in Brooklyn -- are you able to give your kids a sense of independence, or are you forced to "helicopter"?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:31 Bklyn’er
5:32
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
pwbalto: I dunno. There's something about all those mysterious stains on the street that suggest stories of their own.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:32 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:32
[Comment From DaisyDaisy: ] 
We're librarians! We LOVE wonky!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:32 Daisy
5:32
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
It didn't bother me, but apparently it bothers some. Sorry for that!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:32 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:32
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
NJ School Librarian: The next book will encompass paintings from across periods and genres. . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:32 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:32
lisa von drasek: 
anybody out there doing Mock Newberys? Under the Egg lends itself to rich discussions.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:32 lisa von drasek
5:33
[Comment From Deborah BaldwinDeborah Baldwin: ] 
I'm thinking your "power" status is helpful for readers who dream of and work toward being a writer as well.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:33 Deborah Baldwin
5:33
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
They will be real paintings (that are actually in other museums around the world) -- as opposed to the fictional painting in EGG.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:33 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:33
[Comment From pwbaltopwbalto: ] 
Not me, and not kids, but I wondered if it was a deliberate choice, to go ahead and be like, "reminders of death are all around us".
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:33 pwbalto
5:34
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Sarah: Yes! I was very out of touch with kid lit when I started writing EGG . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:34 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:34
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
And someone recommended WHEN YOU REACH ME. It was a big influence.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:34 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:34
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Bklyn'er: My kids are young, so it's hard to give total freedom, but . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:34 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:35
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I'll do things like let them ride their scooters to the end of the block and wait on the corner for me to catch up . ..
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:35 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:35
lisa von drasek: 
We haven't talked at all about Theo's economic situation as a driving force in the novel. Thoughts from the gallery?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:35 lisa von drasek
5:35
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
And so many times, an adult will stop and say, "whose children are these?!?!" as if they've been abandoned.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:35 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:35
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
And then I think about my father in law who grew up in Irish part of Queens, and was sent at age 5 to the pub with a bucket to bring home beer every day.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:35 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:35
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Different times. :-)
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:35 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:36
[Comment From pwbaltopwbalto: ] 
@lisa - I LOVE the idea of an impoverished family living sub rosa in the Village. Wishful thinking on yr part Laura?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:36 pwbalto
5:37
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
pwbalto: I don't know if I was that profound when I was writing it. :-) Maybe it's just being a New Yorker and seeing so many things happen so quickly on the streets . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:37 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:37
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
pwbalto: Yes, somewhat! . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:37 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:37
[Comment From Deborah BaldwinDeborah Baldwin: ] 
I think Theo's economic situation is not so far from some kids today. Offers good perspective exploration and discussion opener.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:37 Deborah Baldwin
5:37
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
. . . The New Yorker in me refuses to feel sorry for Theo being left with a whole townhouse to manage . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:37 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:38
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I always felt: "The Tenpenny's own their real estate outright! That's the NYC dream!"
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:38 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:38
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
But seriously . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:38 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:38
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
The fact that the Tenpenny's owned their house really does divide Theo from the many truly impoverished children in NYC.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:38 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:39
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
And that's what gave Jack his independence. No matter what, he had a roof over his head. He just had to keep it there.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:39 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:40
lisa von drasek: 
If I was going to pick a director for the film it would be Wes Andersen.

Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:40 lisa von drasek
5:40
[Comment From pwbaltopwbalto: ] 
It's wild to have this kind of pioneer lifestyle smack dab in the middle of the city. Makes it kind of a May Amelia novel and Harriet the Spy rolled together.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:40 pwbalto
5:40
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Lisa: Yes, I can see that. It's the quirky shabby WASP lifestyle.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:40 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:41
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
pwbalto: I live in Brooklyn on the 6th floor with a balcony . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:41 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:41
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
and my balcony overlooks our neighbor's yard filled with chickens and a kitchen garden.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:41 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:41
[Comment From Bklyn’erBklyn’er: ] 
That "pioneer life style in the city" is similar to the spirit of Williamsburg. All those pickle makers!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:41 Bklyn’er
5:41
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
This urban homesteading thing is really taking off! But Jack started it out of necessity of course.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:41 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:42
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Bklyn'er: Oh yes. All of this was coming together when I was writing. . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:42 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:42
lisa von drasek: 
oh yes, I really miss the Farmacy in Carroll Gardens with its Brooklyn made goodies.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:42 lisa von drasek
5:42
[Comment From Bklyn’erBklyn’er: ] 
Gotta admit, I dream of having a supply of fresh eggs.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:42 Bklyn’er
5:42
[Comment From pwbaltopwbalto: ] 
I had 3' of sidewalk in Park Slope and I grew enough peppers to make hot sauce every year!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:42 pwbalto
5:42
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
And I think the crash of 2009 drove people to that even more. There was (still is?) a greater interest in self-sustainability, in the independence that comes from doing things yourself.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:42 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:43
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
(That said, I am the world's most hopeless homestead. Can't even put up shelves.)
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:43 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:43
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Farmacy!!!!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:43 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:43
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I thought of having my book launch there, but did a bookstore instead.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:43 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:43
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
FYI: Farmacy is a fantastic, old fashioned soda counter that is also ridiculously local/organic/sustainable/etc.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:43 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:44
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
They make their own organic artisanal marischino cherries.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:44 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:44
lisa von drasek: 
http://brooklynfarmacy.blog...
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:44 lisa von drasek
5:44
[Comment From pwbaltopwbalto: ] 
Pit bulls ate my chickens here in Baltimore, I'll never do it again. Sorry for going OT Lisa!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:44 pwbalto
5:44
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Yikes!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:44 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:45
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I had a baby hawk land on our balcony once. Even the city is still the wild sometimes.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:45 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:45
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Went to the site and discovered Farmacy has a book coming ...
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:45 Nora - EarlyWord
5:45
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Ooooooh, now I can make my own mararschino cherries!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:45 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:45
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
(Please note: I will never make my own maraschino cherries.)
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:45 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:45
lisa von drasek: 
I think we all drifted a bit. Back to the book and Laura. I love reading first novels. I feel an ownership and discovery of an author. Laura, will you be doing any in person class visits? Do you Skype?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:45 lisa von drasek
 
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Thanks for getting us back on track -- sorry for adding to the distraction with that cover image!
  Nora - EarlyWord
5:45
 Nora - EarlyWord
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:45 
5:46
[Comment From pwbaltopwbalto: ] 
We have all the rural predators and the urban ones too. :(
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:46 pwbalto
5:46
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
YES! I love doing class/school visits, and I'm scheduling them now
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:46 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:46
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Skype as well
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:46 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:46
lisa von drasek: 
how would a librarian set up a visit from you?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:46 lisa von drasek
5:47
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I'm excited to announce that I'm building some exciting presentations that talk about art history discoveries that inspired the book . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:47 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:47
[Comment From pwbaltopwbalto: ] 
Yes Laura will you be at BEA.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:47 pwbalto
5:47
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
with lots and lots of great visuals . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:47 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:47
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Also bilding a presentation called Under the Egg: Fact vs. Fiction . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:47 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:47
[Comment From Deborah BaldwinDeborah Baldwin: ] 
Will you be making it out to the Pacific Northwest?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:47 Deborah Baldwin
5:48
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
. . . that talks about what parts of the book were rooted in research, in stranger-than-fiction true stories, and what parts I fictionalized
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:48 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:48
lisa von drasek: 
In your research for the book, what was the most surprising thing that you learned?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:48 lisa von drasek
5:48
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
With the wonders of technology, I should be able to share these presentations even via Skype
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:48 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:49
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
To set up a visit, you can contact me directly via the Contact page on my website:
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:49 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:49
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
LauraMarxFitzgerald.com
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:49 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:49
lisa von drasek: 
was there anything cool that you found out but you edited out for length or that it didn't further the story?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:49 lisa von drasek
5:49
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Or contact Penguin's Young Reader's speakers division, and they will contact me as a go between
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:49 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:49
[Comment From MI LibrarianMI Librarian: ] 
Did your own kids influence the characters of Theo and Bodhi and if so, how"
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:49 MI Librarian
5:49
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Deborah: I would love to make it to the PNW! My parents spend every summer in Vancouver, so it wouldn't be hard to persuade me to join them.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:49 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:50
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Hmmm, Lisa, interesting questions . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:50 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:50
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Well, I don't know if this was cool . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:50 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:50
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
But in the original end of the story, Theo eats Artemisia the chicken for Thanksgiving dinner!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:50 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:51
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
My vegetarian editor was horrified
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:51 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:51
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
And begged me to spare her
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:51 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:51
lisa von drasek: 
thank your editor for me, please
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:51 lisa von drasek
5:51
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
So I relented. But really, I felt that Theo was a practical farm girl at heart and would not hesitate to put a fat hen on the table for dinner.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:51 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:51
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
lol, Lisa.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:51 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:52
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Yes, it was probably the right call!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:52 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:52
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
To be honest, my kids are NOTHING like Theo or Bodhi
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:52 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:52
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Bodhi was actually inspired by my college roommate.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:52 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:52
lisa von drasek: 
to the gallery... last questions for Laura
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:52 lisa von drasek
5:52
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
She wasn't the daughter of movie stars, but was from a wealthy family in California and had the same irreverence but up-for-anything optimism that Bodhi has.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:52 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:54
lisa von drasek: 
Laura, could you post that Raphael painting from yesterday?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:54 lisa von drasek
5:55
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Hold on:
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:55 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:55
lisa von drasek: 
Do you have a picture of yourself as a young girl?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:55 lisa von drasek
5:55
[Comment From MI LibrarianMI Librarian: ] 
Oh, wow -- of COURSE Bodhi would be based on someone other than your kids! Here's a dumb question -- why did you want to write a book and did you set out to write a middle grade book?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:55 MI Librarian
5:55
[Comment From Deborah BaldwinDeborah Baldwin: ] 
When is your next book due to be published?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:55 Deborah Baldwin
5:55
 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:55 
5:56
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Funny story about this painting -- in the book, Lydon thinks this is the painting Theo has. It's been missing since the war, and is the most important missing painting in the world.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:56 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:56
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
It's a Raphael self portrait.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:56 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:56
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
But after my book was off to publication, it was reported found in an undisclosed Swiss bank vault!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:56 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:56
 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:56 
5:57
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Here's me as a kid.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:57 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:57
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Wishing I could get back to a book.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:57 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:57
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Deborah: I think my book is due out next fall, but that depends on my getting my draft done on time . . . hmmmm . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:57 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:57
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
MI Librarian: I can't say I was always driving to write a middle grade book. . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:57 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:58
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
I just had an idea, and that idea was a middle grade idea!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:58 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:58
lisa von drasek: 
what were you reading when you were 9 and 10?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:58 lisa von drasek
5:58
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
But my mother would be horrified by any book with sex, drugs, drinking, or rock and roll, so I'll be writing MG for a while to come . . .
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:58 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:59
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
My favorite, favorite books in no particular order:
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:59 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:59
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
The Borrowers
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:59 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:59
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
All of a Kind Family series
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:59 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:59
[Comment From MI LibrarianMI Librarian: ] 
You look much happier today. Are you?
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:59 MI Librarian
5:59
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:59 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:59
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
The Westing Game
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:59 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:59
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Little House series
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:59 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
5:59
Nora - EarlyWord: 

Hurrah for THE BORROWERS!


Sorry to say, we're almost out of time.

Thanks so much, Laura and Lisa. And thanks to our participants for so many great questions.

Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:59 Nora - EarlyWord
5:59
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
MI Librarian: Yes, I am much happier now that I am a BPL Power User!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 5:59 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
6:00
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
This was so much fun! Thank you, everyone!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 6:00 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
6:00
lisa von drasek: 
Thanks for joining us today!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 6:00 lisa von drasek
6:00
[Comment From Deborah BaldwinDeborah Baldwin: ] 
Thank you!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 6:00 Deborah Baldwin
6:00
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Laura -- I didn't reveal this before, but I majored in Art History, so found your book particularly fun. Thanks for the insights.
Wednesday April 23, 2014 6:00 Nora - EarlyWord
6:00
Laura Marx Fitzgerald: 
Thanks, Nora!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 6:00 Laura Marx Fitzgerald
6:01
Nora - EarlyWord: 

This chat will be archived on the Penguin Young Readers page on EarlyWord:

http://penguinyrauthors.earlyword.com

Wednesday April 23, 2014 6:01 Nora - EarlyWord
6:01
[Comment From Jenna GoodallJenna Goodall: ] 
Thanks, Laura!
Wednesday April 23, 2014 6:01 Jenna Goodall
6:01
Nora - EarlyWord: 

If you enjoyed our chat with Laura, tell your colleagues about this program and look for the next book in the program,

The Last Wild by Piers Torday

Wednesday April 23, 2014 6:01 Nora - EarlyWord
 
 

Posted in Events | Comments Off on Live Chat With Laura Marx Fitzgerald, UNDER THE EGG

FREE TICKETS For the Arbuthnot Lecture

Saturday, April 19th, 2014

There’s still time to reserve your free tickets to hear Andrea Davis Pinkney give this year’s Arbuthnot Lecture on Saturday, May 3rd at the University of Minnesota.

Arbuthnot

RSVP here, or by calling 612-626-9182.

An accompanying exhibit, Rejoice the Legacy! is open through May 14, 2014.

More information here.

Posted in Childrens and YA, Events | Comments Off on FREE TICKETS For the Arbuthnot Lecture

Live Chat with Debut Author
Celeste Ng,

Wednesday, March 26th, 2014

Our Live Chat has concluded. To sign up for the program and join future chats, go to the Penguin Debut Authors Program.

(more information here).

 Live Chat with Celeste Ng, EVERYTHING I NEVER TOLD YOU(03/26/2014) 
3:08
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Getting ready for our live online chat with Celeste Ng, author of EVERYTHING I NEVER TOLD YOU, coming from The Penguin Press in June.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 3:08 Nora - EarlyWord
3:08
 Nora - EarlyWord
Wednesday March 26, 2014 3:08 
3:34
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Below is a special video that Celeste recorded to introduce herself to you...
Wednesday March 26, 2014 3:34 Nora - EarlyWord
3:42
Nora - EarlyWord: 
You are welcome to enter questions at any time. We will try to get to all of them in the hour. Don't worry about typos (and please forgive any on our part!)
Wednesday March 26, 2014 3:42 Nora - EarlyWord
3:43
Celeste: 
Hi everyone! I'm so excited to be here!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 3:43 Celeste
3:44
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Hey, Celeste! Glad to know you're in the house. We'll begin chatting in about 15 minutes.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 3:44 Nora - EarlyWord
3:45
Celeste: 
Looking forward to it!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 3:45 Celeste
4:00
Nora - EarlyWord: 
HI Everyone -- we're ready to start!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:00 Nora - EarlyWord
4:00
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Unfortunately, it seems the comment section is running slow...
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:00 Nora - EarlyWord
4:01
Nora - EarlyWord: 
If comments are not coming through, I may ask you to email me.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:01 Nora - EarlyWord
4:01
Nora - EarlyWord: 
But, let's get started. Welcome, Celeste!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:01 Nora - EarlyWord
4:02
Celeste: 
Thanks, Nora! And hi, everyone!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:02 Celeste
4:02
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I see some people gathered -- please say hi to Celeste!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:02 Nora - EarlyWord
4:04
Nora - EarlyWord: 
OK -- I don't see any comments coming through, so there may be a problem. You can email questions an comments to me -- Nora AT EarlyWord DOT com.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:04 Nora - EarlyWord
4:04
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Let's start with an advance question about your intro video.

One of our program members wants to know how you created that great painting based on the Annie Dillard quote. She says she wants to do her own version of one of her favorite quotes.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:04 Nora - EarlyWord
4:05
Celeste: 
Oh, thank you! I'm happy to tell you how I did the painting.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:05 Celeste
4:05
 Nora - EarlyWord
Celeste's Image of a Quote from Annie Dillard
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:05 
4:05
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Here's what it looks like...
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:05 Nora - EarlyWord
4:05
Celeste: 
The painting was inspired by the work of an artist called Lauren DiCioccio (http://laurendicioccio.com), who lays clear plastic over pages from magazines and covers the letters with tiny dots of paint.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:05 Celeste
4:05
Celeste: 
I wanted to use a quote that had special meaning to me and make it beautiful.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:05 Celeste
4:05
Celeste: 
I wrote the quote out on the canvas very lightly, in pencil. Then I got 26 different colors of paint and assigned each letter a color--
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:05 Celeste
4:06
Nora - EarlyWord: 
oops - a bunch of greetings just came in -- will post them...
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:06 Nora - EarlyWord
4:06
[Comment From LucyLucy: ] 
Good afternoon from the Midwest; looking forward to the chat session
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:06 Lucy
 
Celeste: 
Hi Lucy! Nice to meet you!
  Celeste
4:06
Celeste: 
And then I made a blotch of paint over each letter, using the appropriate color. So if you look REALLY closely, you can see the letters very faintly beneath the paint.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:06 Celeste
4:06
[Comment From Sue DSue D: ] 
Hello - I really enjoyed the video Celeste created. My kids horned in and asked me to play it again. They enjoyed it too!!!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:06 Sue D
 
Celeste: 
Ha! Thank you, Sue! So glad you (and your kids) enjoyed it.
  Celeste
4:06
[Comment From LucyLucy: ] 
HI, Celeste
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:06 Lucy
4:06
[Comment From AnneAnne: ] 
Hi Celeste -
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:06 Anne
 
Celeste: 
Hi Anne--welcome and thank you for coming!
  Celeste
4:06
[Comment From CatherineCatherine: ] 
Glad to join you for this author chat! Can't seem to log in to twitter.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:06 Catherine
4:07
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Sue -- sounds like you have some very cool kids!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:07 Nora - EarlyWord
4:08
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Celeste -- I love the telling details in your book, like the heartbreaking moment when Hannah reaches for her mother’s hand and she doesn’t see it. How did you develop that? Is it natural, or did you consciously work on it?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:08 Nora - EarlyWord
4:08
Celeste: 
I've always been drawn to details, and in fact they've always been a big pat of my writing.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:08 Celeste
4:08
Celeste: 
My early stories were probably about 98% detail and 2% plot.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:08 Celeste
4:08
Celeste: 
I've always felt that details aren't just "details"--in a lot of ways, they *are* the story.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:08 Celeste
4:09
Celeste: 
And details help especially with writing about children--those details reveal what they may not be able to verbalize.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:09 Celeste
4:10
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I found it especially effective in portraying children -- it's those details that reveal what they may not be able to verbalize.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:10 Nora - EarlyWord
4:10
Celeste: 
Yes, *exactly!*
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:10 Celeste
4:10
Celeste: 
Those details can put us right into a child's mind.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:10 Celeste
4:11
Nora - EarlyWord: 
And then, for adults, sometimes what we articulate is not what we really feel!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:11 Nora - EarlyWord
4:11
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Another advance question about the video -- from Boston Librarian:

Tell us about the “major structural” changes you mention in the video.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:11 Nora - EarlyWord
4:12
Celeste: 
The first draft of the book was in multiple parts--
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:12 Celeste
4:12
Celeste: 
2 chapters in one time period, then 3 chapters of Marilyn in college, then 3 chapters of James in college, etc.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:12 Celeste
4:12
Celeste: 
That didn't work, so I tried braiding the timelines together--
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:12 Celeste
4:12
Celeste: 
And it took me a long time to figure out how to move back and forth in time, so that past and present made sense together.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:12 Celeste
4:13
Celeste: 
Was that not clear from the diagram? :)
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:13 Celeste
4:13
Celeste: 
(I'm looking at it now, and it kind of bewilders ME...)
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:13 Celeste
4:13
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I'm afraid that the Legal Seafood Menu was much clearer!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:13 Nora - EarlyWord
4:13
[Comment From CatherineCatherine: ] 
As the title suggests, the characters have trouble verbalizing their thoughts and communicating with each other.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:13 Catherine
 
Celeste: 
Catherine, that's a great point--there's so much that these characters leave unsaid, to each other and to themselves.
  Celeste
4:14
Celeste: 
While writing the novel, I kept asking other writers what they'd done, and got vague answers. Now I understand why--we're all just muddling around until things click into place.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:14 Celeste
4:14
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Did you realize you needed to make that change, or did it come from your editor.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:14 Nora - EarlyWord
4:14
Celeste: 
I realized it. The parts of the story weren't coming together the way I wanted them to.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:14 Celeste
4:15
Celeste: 
Fortunately, when I thought I'd gotten it right, my editor agreed!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:15 Celeste
4:15
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I like Catherine's comment about the title. How did you come up with it?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:15 Nora - EarlyWord
4:16
Celeste: 
It came to me in the first draft, as I was roughing out the final scene--it's an echo of one of the final lines of the book.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:16 Celeste
4:16
Celeste: 
It struck me that it really applied to the whole book, and might work as a title.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:16 Celeste
4:16
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I was wondering, as a parent, how are you able to write about something as horrible as a child disappearing. Didn't it scare you?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:16 Nora - EarlyWord
4:17
Celeste: 
It terrified me!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:17 Celeste
4:17
Celeste: 
But that's usually my approach to writing-- I often find myself writing about the things that scare me most.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:17 Celeste
4:17
Celeste: 
It's almost a way of exploring things I hope never to experience in real life. "What would this be like? How would I respond?"
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:17 Celeste
4:17
Celeste: 
I think that often, we write (and read) about horrible things, as a way of stretching ourselves emotionally without going through the experience--an empathy exercise.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:17 Celeste
4:18
Nora - EarlyWord: 
That may also be why we are willing to read books that scare us in some way.

What else have you written?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:18 Nora - EarlyWord
4:18
[Comment From CatherineCatherine: ] 
I think you're quite brave, Celeste, to examine the things that many of us would prefer not to think about.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:18 Catherine
 
Celeste: 
Thank you, Catherine. I'm always happy when readers are willing to read books about things that scare *them*, as well.
  Celeste
4:19
Celeste: 
I've written a bunch of short stories, and some essays--all of which fall under the same category of "exploring things that scare me."
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:19 Celeste
4:19
Celeste: 
And two extremely awful "novels," when I was about 13 and 15, which are consigned to a locked file cabinet.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:19 Celeste
4:20
Nora - EarlyWord: 
How did you get this one published?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:20 Nora - EarlyWord
4:20
Celeste: 
My route was pretty traditional: I started it in grad school, worked on it for 6 years while holding various strange, ill-paying jobs--
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:20 Celeste
4:21
Celeste: 
And then, when it was finished, my agent was able to sell it to the Penguin Press. I was very lucky, in short.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:21 Celeste
4:21
[Comment From LucyLucy: ] 
Were those early novels also explorations of things which scared you?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:21 Lucy
 
Celeste: 
Lucy, they weren't--they were more fantasy/wish fulfillment, like "What if I lived in Colonial America?" (which I thought was a cool time period, at 13). That's one of many reasons they didn't work, I think. :)
  Celeste
4:23
[Comment From A First Flights MemberA First Flights Member: ] 
I found these charachters staying with me and that I was thinking about them long after I had closed the book. Have they stayed with you?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:23 A First Flights Member
 
Celeste: 
Thank you--what a kind thing to say! I'm so glad to hear that. They *have* stayed with me; it's hard to spend 6 years with anyone and not have them work their way into your brain on some level.
  Celeste
Celeste: 
I do miss them, now that the book is done.
  Celeste
4:23
[Comment From CatherineCatherine: ] 
I experienced a very palpable sense of sadness reading this novel. The lost dreams and potential--and the issues of abandonment, alienation, and otherness--really got to me. There's a lot in this story for readers to relate to.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:23 Catherine
 
Celeste: 
Thank you, Catherine (or perhaps I should say, I'm sorry). One of the things I hope the book will do is get readers thinking about otherness, and alienation, and what it's like to be an outsider in some way.
  Celeste
4:24
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I agree, Catherine. I was very moved by another telling detail; the quotes Marilyn had marked in her mother's cookbook and what it said about her. Where did THAT come from, Celeste?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:24 Nora - EarlyWord
4:25
Celeste: 
The cookbook itself is based on my mother's own Betty Crocker cookbook from the 1960s-- which actually had all of that commentary in its recipes. I didn't make those up.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:25 Celeste
4:25
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I wondered if you had made them up, but we have proof that you didn't...
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:25 Nora - EarlyWord
4:26
Celeste: 
I saw them one day while idly flipping through the cookbook, and they just stuck with me. Eventually they found their way into the novel.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:26 Celeste
4:26
 Nora - EarlyWord
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:26 
4:26
Nora - EarlyWord: 
That word "behooves" just kills me!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:26 Nora - EarlyWord
4:26
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Here's the one about preserves...
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:26 Nora - EarlyWord
4:26
 Nora - EarlyWord
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:26 
4:27
Celeste: 
Those quotes really startled me. And they were all throughout the cookbook--which came out in 1968, by the way. (I backdated it for the novel, so that Marilyn's mother could have it.)
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:27 Celeste
4:27
Nora - EarlyWord: 
And here's the cover of the book -- some of you may still have it in your libraries!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:27 Nora - EarlyWord
4:27
Celeste: 
We tend to think that the era when women were expected to just cook and sew for their families was long ago--but it wasn't actually that long ago. Just a generation or two ago... It's so easy to forget that.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:27 Celeste
4:27
 Nora - EarlyWord
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:27 
4:28
Celeste: 
It's strange to say, I actually adore that cookbook. It represents a lot of things that bother me deeply, but at the same time, it belongs to my mother's. It's a complicated object with a complicated personal history.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:28 Celeste
4:28
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Amazing that it came out in 1968 -- that summer students were getting their heads beat in for protesting the war in Chicago -- such disparate strains in the culture at the time!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:28 Nora - EarlyWord
4:28
[Comment From LucyLucy: ] 
I have a copy of this edition in my kitchen and still use it :-)
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:28 Lucy
 
Celeste: 
My mom still uses hers! In fact she won't let me have it because she still uses it as a reference.
  Celeste
4:28
[Comment From CatherineCatherine: ] 
I had one of those Betty Crocker cookbooks and thought it was the bible--it was a required textbook for a home economics class I took in high school!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:28 Catherine
4:29
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I was wondering about the use of the term "Oriental" in your book. It's a fraught term, but of that time. Did you feel strange using it?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:29 Nora - EarlyWord
4:29
[Comment From AndreaAndrea: ] 
I still use my Betty Crocker book. It doesn't have quotes in in , but I did find a four-leaf clover. Perhaps I was hoping it would bring me good luck since my mother really never taught me to cook.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:29 Andrea
 
Celeste: 
Andrea, I love that story.
  Celeste
4:29
Celeste: 
I did feel strange using the term "Oriental." It's a complicated term, as you point out, and not one I use myself...
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:29 Celeste
4:29
Celeste: 
But it would have been inaccurate to use the term "Asian," as we might today.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:29 Celeste
4:29
Celeste: 
And in many ways I also wanted to startle the reader, to jolt them by using a term we don't see much now, as a way of asking them to think about its usage and its implications.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:29 Celeste
4:30
Nora - EarlyWord: 
That also makes me wonder why you chose this particular time period. You're too young to have known it personally.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:30 Nora - EarlyWord
4:31
Celeste: 
Yes, I grew up in the 1980s--so I was *just* after this time period. But my family lived through it, and my childhood was really colored by that experience.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:31 Celeste
4:31
Celeste: 
It was the right time period to explore some of the issues I saw this family grappling with--race and ethnicity, being in a "mixed" marriage, women's roles and opportunities.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:31 Celeste
4:31
Celeste: 
And I was surprised, in writing the novel, how much of the '70s in particular had carried into my childhood: we had rotary phones, record players, all of that. Maybe my family was a throwback? It didn't feel foreign to me.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:31 Celeste
4:33
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I wonder if some people identify with their parents' time periods more than with their own?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:33 Nora - EarlyWord
4:34
What time period do you feel shaped you?
The one I grew up in
 ( 33% )
My parents' time period
 ( 0% )
Both
 ( 50% )
None; I am my own person
 ( 17% )

Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:34 
4:34
[Comment From AndreaAndrea: ] 
First lines are critically important to engage the reader. Did you always have the first line or did it come to you later in the writing process?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:34 Andrea
 
Celeste: 
The first line came in the last draft, actually!
  Celeste
Celeste: 
The original first line was "At first they don't know where Lydia has gone."
  Celeste
Celeste: 
But in the last draft, I wanted it to be more decisive, and to not withhold information from the reader.
  Celeste
Celeste: 
Funnily enough, though, I recently looked back at my very first notes--and I found that when I started writing the proto-draft, I'd started it with "Lydia dies: that's the first thing" and then scrapped it. So the opening kind of came full circle.
  Celeste
4:34
Celeste: 
There's an interesting theory about immigrant families--that in many ways the children sort of get stuck half in the current time and half in the older generation's time period.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:34 Celeste
4:34
Celeste: 
I don't know if that's true, but it's interesting to think about.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:34 Celeste
4:37
Nora - EarlyWord: 
"Lydia is dead. But they don't know this yet." IS much more effective and let's the reader in on what happened. Were you afraid to show your hand so early?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:37 Nora - EarlyWord
4:37
Celeste: 
Yes, I was really afraid of "giving too much away" in the early drafts.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:37 Celeste
4:38
Celeste: 
But in the later drafts I realized that the real story is not "Where is Lydia?" but "How did this come to happen?"
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:38 Celeste
4:39
Celeste: 
In the new draft, you know several important things by the end of the first chapter--
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:39 Celeste
4:39
Celeste: 
That Lydia is dead (and where she is), and that Marilyn had also gone missing years before.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:39 Celeste
4:40
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Speaking of Marilyn, I wonder what readers think of that event. Here's another poll.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:40 Nora - EarlyWord
4:40
What did you think of Marilyn leaving?
Surprised by her ambition
 ( 0% )
Understood why
 ( 67% )
Revealed her disconnection
 ( 33% )
Sorry she had to return
 ( 0% )

Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:40 
4:40
[Comment From AndreaAndrea: ] 
I love the first two sentences. It just mde me want to find out the whys, how and whos. It certainly didn't give too much away for me
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:40 Andrea
 
Celeste: 
Thank you, Andrea! That's great to hear.
  Celeste
4:41
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I agree with Andrea; the mystery was how it happened and not so much what happened.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:41 Nora - EarlyWord
4:41
Nora - EarlyWord: 
According to our poll, more people feel their lives were shaped by both their own time period and their parents'. I feel this is true for me, too.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:41 Nora - EarlyWord
4:41
Nora - EarlyWord: 
It seems like James’s wish for his children to have friends is a good counter to their mother’s demand for popularity. Yet, interestingly, you show how heavily each can weigh.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:41 Nora - EarlyWord
4:42
Celeste: 
Yes, I think the real burden is not the particular expectation, but the pressure such a loaded expectation carries with it.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:42 Celeste
4:42
Celeste: 
It's so hard to disappoint your parents. I wonder how many things people do to try and avoid that.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:42 Celeste
4:43
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Why did you choose the daughter, rather than the son, to bear the burden of the mother’s career expectations?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:43 Nora - EarlyWord
4:43
Celeste: 
Marilyn’s expectations are so closely tied up with gender--it made more sense to me that she’d look to Lydia to fulfill those dreams.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:43 Celeste
4:43
[Comment From AndreaAndrea: ] 
I think we all try to please, esppecially our parents. Who wants the burden of that disappointment?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:43 Andrea
4:43
Celeste: 
It wouldn’t have been as revolutionary, or as difficult, for Nath to become a doctor, nor would it have meant as much to Marilyn, I think.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:43 Celeste
4:44
[Comment From Sue DSue D: ] 
Are you planning on touring with your book? If so, where? and are you coming to the Midwest? Say St. Louis??
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:44 Sue D
 
Celeste: 
Sue, I am! I'm working out the tour with my publisher now.
  Celeste
4:45
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Do I get the feeling you're in St. Louis, Sue?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:45 Nora - EarlyWord
4:45
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Are there other ways for librarians to reach you?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:45 Nora - EarlyWord
4:45
[Comment From Sue DSue D: ] 
Yup
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:45 Sue D
4:45
Celeste: 
Currently I have events planned in Boston, NYC, Seattle, San Francisco, Houston, and Ann Arbor--
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:45 Celeste
4:46
Celeste: 
but I'll be working to arrange more. St. Louis would be lovely!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:46 Celeste
4:46
Celeste: 
Right now, you can contact me (or my publicist) directly through my website: celesteng.com.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:46 Celeste
4:46
[Comment From AndreaAndrea: ] 
Where in Houston? I'm there.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:46 Andrea
 
Celeste: 
Andrea, I'll be at Brazos Bookstore!
  Celeste
Celeste: 
It would be lovely to meet you--if you come to the reading, be sure to say hi!
  Celeste
Celeste: 
Oh, the date would probably help. It's tentatively scheduled for July 17, time TBA.
  Celeste
4:46
Celeste: 
There will be a page for book clubs up there soon, with a book club kit that Penguin is designing (we're actually putting it together right now!).
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:46 Celeste
4:46
Celeste: 
And I'll be available to visit book clubs as well, in person locally or via Skype.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:46 Celeste
4:47
Celeste: 
Oh, and all of my events are also listed on my website. (Or will be when I get the details!)
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:47 Celeste
4:47
Nora - EarlyWord: 
We're nearing the end of our chat -- just a few more minutes to get your questions in.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:47 Nora - EarlyWord
4:49
[Comment From LucyLucy: ] 
Oh, will let our book discussion leaders know about the forthcoming book club kit!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:49 Lucy
 
Celeste: 
Lucy, thank you! Please do! It'll have some goodies in there--a playlist, some articles, likely a vintage recipe, and more.
  Celeste
4:49
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Right; I feel this book has rich discussion material for book clubs.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:49 Nora - EarlyWord
4:50
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Speaking of the characters living with you -- I keep wondering how Hannah and Nath grow up. What about you, Celeste? Do you see them as being able to escape the weight of their parents expectations?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:50 Nora - EarlyWord
4:50
Celeste: 
I hope so! I hope that this experience will make their parents more aware of the demands they make on their children...
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:50 Celeste
4:51
Celeste: 
..and make Nath and Hannah more understanding and tolerant of their parents, as well.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:51 Celeste
4:51
[Comment From LucyLucy: ] 
Plenty of 'issues' to talk about along with the cookbook tie in - book club heaven! :)
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:51 Lucy
 
Nora - EarlyWord: 
What a thought! Everyone could learn to cook eggs "husband style"!
  Nora - EarlyWord
4:51
Celeste: 
I tend to think the only way to survive a family tragedy is to grow closer together.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:51 Celeste
4:52
Celeste: 
And I love all of these characters--so that's what I hope will happen for them.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:52 Celeste
4:53
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I am very curious about the character of Jack. I saw the surprise about him coming in a way, but was still surprised. How did you come up with him?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:53 Nora - EarlyWord
4:53
Celeste: 
He was there from the beginning. In the early draft, this neighbor kid kept showing up--
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:53 Celeste
4:54
Celeste: 
--and at a certain point I realized how he fit into their story.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:54 Celeste
4:54
Celeste: 
Jack is actually one of my favorite characters in the book. Am I allowed to say that?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:54 Celeste
4:55
Celeste: 
I feel like I just picked a favorite child.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:55 Celeste
4:55
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Ha! I don't think it's like kids -- I think you CAN have a favorite!

Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:55 Nora - EarlyWord
4:56
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I hear that so often from writers -- that characters "show up" and demand to be in the book. Is it supernatural?
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:56 Nora - EarlyWord
4:56
Celeste: 
For me, it's probably more "subconscious" than "supernatural"--
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:56 Celeste
4:57
Celeste: 
In a lot of ways, writing is kind of an act of faith.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:57 Celeste
4:57
Celeste: 
Your brain puts all these things together and you have to trust that they do, in fact, all fit together somehow.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:57 Celeste
4:57
Nora - EarlyWord: 
We are ending in a just a few minutes. Had to get in this comment from Lucy, envisioning the book club...
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:57 Nora - EarlyWord
4:57
Celeste: 
Or that the character who just keeps showing up and insisting he belongs actually has a role to play.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:57 Celeste
4:57
[Comment From LucyLucy: ] 
I can hear the members discussing which style of eggs their husbands prefer ... :-)
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:57 Lucy
 
Celeste: 
Ha! I love it.
  Celeste
4:58
Nora - EarlyWord: 
We do have to end now. Thanks so much Celeste, for your thoughtful answers.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:58 Nora - EarlyWord
4:58
Celeste: 
Thank you so much, Nora! And thank you to all for chatting!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:58 Celeste
4:59
[Comment From LucyLucy: ] 
"... an act of faith." Your own 'commitment' to the story ...
Wednesday March 26, 2014 4:59 Lucy
 
Celeste: 
Lucy, exactly.
  Celeste
5:00
Nora - EarlyWord: 
And thanks to all of you out there for joining us and for your great questions.

This Chat will be archived here on the site.

If you enjoy this program, be sure to tell your friends and colleagues that they can sign up here.

And, watch for the ARC of the next title in the program, Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Thomas Sweterlitsch.
Wednesday March 26, 2014 5:00 Nora - EarlyWord
5:00
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Bye everyone!
Wednesday March 26, 2014 5:00 Nora - EarlyWord
 
 

Watch Celeste’s video message for Librarians.

Posted in Events | Comments Off on Live Chat with Debut Author
Celeste Ng,

Live Chat with Debut Author Samuel Gailey

Wednesday, February 12th, 2014

Wednesday’s Live Chat is with the author of Deep Winter (more information here).

Below, listen to Nora’s audio interview with Samuel.

 Live Chat with Samuel Gailey DEEP WINTER(02/12/2014) 
3:46
Nora - EarlyWord: 
We will begin our live online chat with Samuel Gailey, author of Deep Winter in about 15 minutes.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 3:46 Nora - EarlyWord
3:47
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Meanwhile, here’s the cover of the book…
Wednesday February 12, 2014 3:47 Nora - EarlyWord
3:47
 Nora - EarlyWord
Wednesday February 12, 2014 3:47 
3:47
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I just received the hardcover of the book and those letters just glow against the black and white background!
Wednesday February 12, 2014 3:47 Nora - EarlyWord
3:48
Nora - EarlyWordNora - EarlyWord
Wednesday February 12, 2014 3:48 
3:50
Nora - EarlyWord: 
A summary of Deep Winter -- "In the small town of Wyalusing in eastern Pennsylvania, a woman is found brutally murdered one winter night. Next to the body is Danny Bedford, a misunderstood man who suffered a tragic brain injury that left him with limited mental capabilities. Despite his simple life, his intimidating size has caused his neighbors to ostracize him out of fear. So when the local bully-turned-deputy discovers Danny with the body it’s obvious that Danny’s physical strength has finally turned deadly. But in the long, freezing night that follows, the murder is only the first in a series of crimes that viciously upset the town order—an unstoppable chain of violence that appears to make Danny’s guilt increasingly undeniable. With the threat of an approaching blizzard, the local sheriff and a state trooper work through the pre-dawn hours to establish some semblance of peace. As they investigate one incident after another, they discover an intricate web of lies that reveals that not everything in Wyalusing is quite what it seems."
Wednesday February 12, 2014 3:50 Nora - EarlyWord
3:52
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Some quotes from the pre pub reviews -- Booklist -- "...so brilliantly done, so artfully underwritten with not a word wasted, that readers may hate themselves for letting this grim narrative trap them in its coils." Kirkus -- "Gailey writes visually, rendering the characters and action both vivid and alive. Publishers Weekly -- "a moving picture of a man, often referred to as 'retard,' who becomes a moral compass. "
Wednesday February 12, 2014 3:52 Nora - EarlyWord
3:53
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I’m happy to see several chat participants gathering already. You can send your questions through at any time. They'll go into a queue, and we'll submit as many of them as we can to Samuel before the end of the chat. Don’t worry about typos – and please forgive any that we commit!
Wednesday February 12, 2014 3:53 Nora - EarlyWord
4:03
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Hello everyone. Looking forward to your questions and discussing DEEP WINTER.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:03 Samuel W. Gailey
4:03
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Hey, Samuel. Thanks for joining us. Participants -- say hi to Samuel.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:03 Nora - EarlyWord
4:03
[Comment From LilyLily: ] 
Hello!
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:03 Lily
4:04
Catherine - Penguin: 
Hi Samuel, thanks for joining!
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:04 Catherine - Penguin
4:04
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Hello, Lily and Catherine. Thanks for being the first to reply.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:04 Samuel W. Gailey
4:05
[Comment From trishap00trishap00: ] 
Still Deep Winter here first day in a long time above freezing and only for about a hour how about you guys
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:05 trishap00
4:05
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Definitelt! We’re facing yet another snow storm here in the East – feels like the atmosphere of Samuel's book. Bet he's glad he is now living in L.A.

We received some questions in advance. This one is a good place to begin:

I loved the immediacy and intensity the narrative had, with the action occurring over a twelve or eighteen hour period, with various people hunting down Danny. Was that always the plan or did the shortening of the manhunt evolve over time?
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:05 Nora - EarlyWord
4:05
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Sorry to share, but its 80 degrees out here.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:05 Samuel W. Gailey
4:06
Samuel W. Gailey: 
I always envisioned keeping the manhunt contained over a short period of time. I felt that it raised the stakes, created more tension and built better momentum, not giving Danny much time to think – just react.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:06 Samuel W. Gailey
4:08
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Another advance question is about Taggart, the state trooper who comes in to try to help with the case. The question:

The character of Taggart didn't seem to fit well into the narrative for me. What was your goal in creating that character?
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:08 Nora - EarlyWord
4:08
[Comment From Kimberly BowerKimberly Bower: ] 
Hi
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:08 Kimberly Bower
4:08
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Hi Kimberly -- thanks for joining!
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:08 Nora - EarlyWord
4:08
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Great question. Taggart represents an outsider to the story setting. He is not part of this extremely isolated community, and I hoped his perspective into this rural world would be intriguing. I also wanted his struggle with addiction, his doubts and guilt, to contrast those of Sokowski's alcoholism. Whereas Sokowski’s addiction goes unchecked, Taggart wrestles with right and wrong.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:08 Samuel W. Gailey
4:10
Nora - EarlyWord: 
There's a lot of addictions in this story -- adds to the sense of isolation. You grew up in a small town. Did you have that sense of isolation?
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:10 Nora - EarlyWord
4:11
[Comment From Palm DesertPalm Desert: ] 
Does Taggart represent a midpoint between the extremes of Sokowski and Lester?
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:11 Palm Desert
4:11
[Comment From StephanieStephanie: ] 
Hi Samuel, just wondering if you still live in a small town? Do you think this is small town mentality to stereotype large people as menacing or is it more widespread?
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:11 Stephanie
4:11
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Let me speak to the isolation question first...
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:11 Samuel W. Gailey
4:12
Samuel W. Gailey: 
In a community like the one I grew up in (Wyalusing, PA), it’s so far detached from other urban centers that you really have the sense of isolation—being removed from everyone else. I wanted to carry that over to my story, to have my characters trapped in a place in which their only rescue would come from within.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:12 Samuel W. Gailey
4:13
Nora - EarlyWord: 
This photo of Wyalusing really shows that...
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:13 Nora - EarlyWord
4:13
 Nora - EarlyWord
"This is the road that Danny Bedford walks to reach the ice pond and in other key scenes of Deep Winter.":.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:13 
4:14
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Good observation, Palm Desert. Yes, Taggart is somewhere in between Sokowski and Lester, in terms of his addiction and as a law officer.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:14 Samuel W. Gailey
4:15
Samuel W. Gailey: 
I no longer live in a small town. Far from that...I'm in Los Angeles...
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:15 Samuel W. Gailey
4:16
Samuel W. Gailey: 
I think Danny would be on the fringe anywhere, but he certainly stands out more in a small town. It's easier to be invisible in a big city.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:16 Samuel W. Gailey
4:17
Nora - EarlyWord: 
What was your inspiration for Danny?
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:17 Nora - EarlyWord
4:18
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Growing up, I knew a kid who was much bigger than the rest of us—taller, heavier, stronger—with an unchecked volatile side about him. He was quiet and kept to himself—he walked the hallways alone, ate by himself, always sat in the back of the classroom...
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:18 Samuel W. Gailey
4:18
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Later in life I discovered he took his own life, and that always stuck with me. As an adult, I look back and realize nobody understood him. I'm not sure anyone even tried to. This real-life character, along with wanting to explore the concept of a child trapped in a man's body, inspired Danny. I wondered what would happen to someone like that if they were accused of a violent murder.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:18 Samuel W. Gailey
4:19
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I feel like we've all known characters like that, trapped for whatever reason by the perceptions of others.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:19 Nora - EarlyWord
4:20
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Danny is rescued by a magical deer. It was a touching image, but the deer struck me as a surprisingly supernatural element in an otherwise grittily realistic story. What made you put her in the story?
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:20 Nora - EarlyWord
4:20
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Yes, absolutely. These are the kind of characters that I've always been drawn to in literature.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:20 Samuel W. Gailey
4:21
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Hunting is a part of everyday life in the area that I grew up in. And almost every hunter that I knew growing up, had a huge respect for the land and wildlife, especially deer....
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:21 Samuel W. Gailey
4:22
Samuel W. Gailey: 
After I wrote the book, I learned that in some cultures a deer symbolizes the combination of gentleness with strength and determination; being in touch with innocence and one’s inner child; as well as moving through obstacles with grace...
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:22 Samuel W. Gailey
4:22
Samuel W. Gailey: 
That could not describe my main character, Danny Bedford, more closely. He’s a child-like man in large body being hunted by a town full of people for a gruesome crime he may or may not have committed. Strange and magical how the subconscious mind works.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:22 Samuel W. Gailey
4:23
Nora - EarlyWord: 
You have this photo of a deer on your site; it embodies that sense of grace and strength...
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:23 Nora - EarlyWord
4:23
 Nora - EarlyWord
Photo by Sam Gailey
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:23 
4:25
Nora - EarlyWord: 
How were you able to write the gruesome scene of Mindy's murder? I have to say it was tough to readl
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:25 Nora - EarlyWord
4:26
Samuel W. Gailey: 
I believe that violence should make people uncomfortable...
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:26 Samuel W. Gailey
4:27
Samuel W. Gailey: 
I am a big fan of suspense thrillers and mysteries. Some of my favorite books have dark content and violence, and part of me tapped into that psyche. I have never been a firsthand witness to this kind of violence, but I have been around some domestic violence that perhaps I drew from and expanded upon when it came to writing the scene. Also, as part of the creative process, I let the characters take over and allow them to guide the writing to a certain extent...
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:27 Samuel W. Gailey
4:27
Samuel W. Gailey: 
I wanted the scene itself to play out slowly. Create a build of bad things to come. Sokowski didn't arrive at Mindy's trailer planning to kill or even hurt her. It was an escalation of events. He felt provoked and in his condition of inebriation, he spiraled out of control.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:27 Samuel W. Gailey
4:28
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I straight-out hated Sokowski, but this sounds like you had some sympathy for him.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:28 Nora - EarlyWord
4:28
[Comment From JenniferJennifer: ] 
Hi! Sorry to be late
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:28 Jennifer
4:29
Nora - EarlyWord: 
No worries; always room for more, Jennifer!
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:29 Nora - EarlyWord
4:29
[Comment From trishap00trishap00: ] 
Wow you could be living here in rural KY
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:29 trishap00
4:30
Samuel W. Gailey: 
In regards to Sokowski, I believe most of us are born into innocence, but then it’s our environment that ultimately shapes and defines us. When creating Deputy Sokowski, I didn’t want to merely have a character that was born corrupt. I think like all people that veer off the path of morality, there is a reason for it...
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:30 Samuel W. Gailey
4:30
[Comment From JenniferJennifer: ] 
I liked the pacing and thought having the narrative cover one day was very effective. Was this the original plan or did the shortened timeline develop as the book went along?
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:30 Jennifer
4:30
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Sokowski’s mother abandoned his family when he was a kid. His father took his own life. Sokowski has a physical deformity. All these things manifest and fester, shaping someone like Sokowski, who never had the moral compass to get him back onto a path of righteousness.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:30 Samuel W. Gailey
4:31
[Comment From AnneAnne: ] 
I agree with Nora - did not like Sokowski and really did not like that he used his position to be an even bigger jerk - but loved the storyline
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:31 Anne
4:31
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Hello to Jennifer and Trisha. Thanks for joining.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:31 Samuel W. Gailey
4:31
[Comment From trishap00trishap00: ] 
And yes that is usually how a lot of domestic violence is. At least the ones I had to respond too.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:31 trishap00
4:31
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I love that Palm Desert makes the following comment -- I thought this, too!
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:31 Nora - EarlyWord
4:32
[Comment From Palm DesertPalm Desert: ] 
Found it odd that Lester the State Trooper reads Charles Bukowski.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:32 Palm Desert
4:32
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Thanks, Anne. He definitely abused his position and power.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:32 Samuel W. Gailey
4:32
[Comment From Palm DesertPalm Desert: ] 
Was Sokowski a pot grower as another sign of his corruption?
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:32 Palm Desert
4:33
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Well, Bukowski was a drunk...a very brilliant drunk...but they did have that addiction in common.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:33 Samuel W. Gailey
4:34
Nora - EarlyWord: 
The dislike of Sokowski is growing ...
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:34 Nora - EarlyWord
4:34
[Comment From @bookclubreader@bookclubreader: ] 
Sorry to be joining so late. The book was quite a read. I was struck by the loneliness and desperation of so many of the characters. How they had been rejected. And Sokowski was the most depraved character I've come across in a long time.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:34 @bookclubreader
4:35
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Thanks Palm Desert. Sokowski saw the potential to make money off of pot, but he does craves power and respect as well.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:35 Samuel W. Gailey
4:35
[Comment From JenniferJennifer: ] 
Danny will forgive the town and its people, but can Wyalusing be redeemed?
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:35 Jennifer
4:36
[Comment From trishap00trishap00: ] 
Most jerk cops demand respect and use their power over people to get it. Give the good ones a bad name
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:36 trishap00
4:37
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Jennifer, in my heart, I felt Wyalusing was redeemed by the good characters that reside there. Danny is someone who is emotionally and intellectually stunted, yet somehow unintentionally transforms the lives of those around him.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:37 Samuel W. Gailey
4:38
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Back to my obsession with the deer -- is this going too far? I had the sense that Mindy had returned as the deer to help Danny.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:38 Nora - EarlyWord
4:38
Samuel W. Gailey: 
In regards to Bookclubreader's comment, I revisit the themes of loneliness and desperation in all my writing.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:38 Samuel W. Gailey
4:39
[Comment From trishap00trishap00: ] 
Aww me too Nora
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:39 trishap00
4:39
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Guess we're just two softies, Trish!
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:39 Nora - EarlyWord
4:39
[Comment From bookclubreaderbookclubreader: ] 
I agree about the redemption, Samuel. The townfolk needed to see Danny through another lens, which they eventually did.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:39 bookclubreader
4:39
[Comment From LibraryLessLibraryLess: ] 
RE Response to Jennifer--Yes the ending scene in the diner makes it clear the town was changed.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:39 LibraryLess
4:39
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Wow. Never thought of it in that way. But I love when readers interpret stories in their own way.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:39 Samuel W. Gailey
4:40
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Libraryless, glad you walked away from the story knowing that.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:40 Samuel W. Gailey
4:41
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Deep Winter is coming out next week. Now that you are so close to publication date, has anything surprised you about the process?
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:41 Nora - EarlyWord
4:41
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Absolutely. I am spending more and more time promoting my book via social media...all new to me. I am more old-school, but have embraced fb, twitter, and youtube. However, with bookstores, libraries, and book clubs I’m trying to keep it personal and I visit them on foot or email to introduce myself.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:41 Samuel W. Gailey
4:42
How did you feel about Sokowski?
An unredeemed sadist
 ( 78% )
Victim of circumstance
 ( 22% )

Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:42 
4:42
[Comment From bookclubreaderbookclubreader: ] 
Samuel, knowing you use loneliness & desperation as recurring themes, I will be looking into your other works.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:42 bookclubreader
4:42
[Comment From LibraryLessLibraryLess: ] 
Any significance to the name of the diner---which loosely translates to little house of peace?
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:42 LibraryLess
4:43
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Wow! LibraryLess -- good observation.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:43 Nora - EarlyWord
4:44
Samuel W. Gailey: 
That was the name of the actual restaurant I worked at as a kid...I scooped ice-cream, believe it or not.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:44 Samuel W. Gailey
4:44
Nora - EarlyWord: 
You've received your first reviews, with some great comments, particularly on your writing. How does that feel? Or, do you read them?
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:44 Nora - EarlyWord
4:45
Samuel W. Gailey: 
I do read them, and I have really been taken back by all the positive reviews (Kirkus, Booklist, Pub. Weekly, Esquire Magazine, NY Times) and some really wonderful blurbs from authors Urban Waite and Joe R. Lansdale....
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:45 Samuel W. Gailey
4:45
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Validation is important. To know that something you spend years working on, has had an impact, and that folks seem to respond to my story. It moves me.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:45 Samuel W. Gailey
4:46
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Wow, on our poll, about 30% of our participants felt some sympathy for Sokowski! Makes me feel pretty judgmental!
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:46 Nora - EarlyWord
4:47
Nora - EarlyWord: 
What are you working on now?
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:47 Nora - EarlyWord
4:47
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Oops, the percentage of those sympathetic to Sokowski just went down!
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:47 Nora - EarlyWord
4:48
Samuel W. Gailey: 
My follow-up effort is called 'The Deep End of Shallow', a suspense thriller with a supernatural twist that takes place in the same area of Pennsylvania as Deep Winter. There are drugs, bloodshed, false hope, and betrayal...and of course, loneliness!
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:48 Samuel W. Gailey
4:48
Nora - EarlyWord: 
How do you approach writing? Do you outline? Do you know the end when you begin? Do the characters come first, or the plot?
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:48 Nora - EarlyWord
4:48
 Nora - EarlyWord
Samuel at his favorite writing spot in L.A. Note paper and pen
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:48 
4:49
Samuel W. Gailey: 
I start with the basic story. The basic concept behind the main character. With DEEP WINTER, Danny’s character is obviously pivotal to the plot, but Danny’s past and his tragic accident (the backstory) were so important to develop before I knew where I could take him. Once I have the basic story in my head, and I start to piece together all the other characters, then I move on to a very detailed outline. I don’t always know what the ending of my story might be exactly, but I generally have an idea of how I want the book to end. ...
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:49 Samuel W. Gailey
4:50
Samuel W. Gailey: 
After completing the outline, I begin to write the first draft of the book by hand. I love paper and ink. It feels less constrained and I like the freedom of getting away from the computer...
Feedback is also an important step in the process. The first person that reads my manuscripts is my wife Ayn – my first editor. I also get notes from writer friends, as well as my lit. agent, Natasha Alexis at Zachary Shuster Harmsworth.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:50 Samuel W. Gailey
4:50
[Comment From bookclubreaderbookclubreader: ] 
Love the title of your latest project!
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:50 bookclubreader
4:51
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Thanks, Bookclubreader...trying to put 'Deep' in all my titles...joking.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:51 Samuel W. Gailey
4:52
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Your background is as a screen writer.

It seems that more and more books are being made into movies (we cover this on EarlyWord) and more authors flow back and forth between books and movies (e.g., Cormac McCarthy wrote The Counselor as a spec script). Is there any inherent conflict between the two?
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:52 Nora - EarlyWord
4:52
Samuel W. Gailey: 
It really depends on the writer. I have a background in writing for film and television and find that it has injected helpful elements into my novel writing. If given a choice, I think it will lead to richer material if a story is fleshed out as a book first. Unless, one is merely using a script or treatment as an outline.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:52 Samuel W. Gailey
4:54
Nora - EarlyWord: 
What will you be doing on publication day?
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:54 Nora - EarlyWord
4:55
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Pacing. And also signing and discussing my novel at the Barnes and Noble The Grove in Los Angeles.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:55 Samuel W. Gailey
4:55
[Comment From LibraryLessLibraryLess: ] 
Who would play Mindy in the movie?
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:55 LibraryLess
4:56
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Some one like Amy Adams, but a little grittier. Any thoughts? The book is in filmmaker hands right now.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:56 Samuel W. Gailey
4:56
[Comment From bookclubreaderbookclubreader: ] 
I love The Grove! Always stop by there when I'm in the LA/West Hollywood area visiting friends.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:56 bookclubreader
4:56
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Kristen Stewart!
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:56 Nora - EarlyWord
4:57
Samuel W. Gailey: 
One of the last bookstores in Los Angeles.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:57 Samuel W. Gailey
4:57
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Nora, I love your Kristin Stewart thought.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:57 Samuel W. Gailey
4:58
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Sad comment about bookstores, but there's still libraries in L.A. Do you have a local favorite?
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:58 Nora - EarlyWord
4:58
Samuel W. Gailey: 
Yes, I do...Libraries hold a special place in my heart. I frequent my local library in West Hollywood 3-4 times a week with my daughter and wrote some of Deep Winter there. Books are a huge part of our daily lives, and we discover so many great new authors/voices in the library.
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:58 Samuel W. Gailey
4:59
[Comment From trishap00trishap00: ] 
Yayyyy Children librarians
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:59 trishap00
4:59
Nora - EarlyWord: 
A great note to end on, Samuel. Thanks for joining us!
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:59 Nora - EarlyWord
4:59
[Comment From trishap00trishap00: ] 
Thank you so much
Wednesday February 12, 2014 4:59 trishap00
5:00
Samuel W. Gailey: 
That was fun. Thanks for being a great host, Nora. And, thank you to everyone else for taking part. I’d love it if libraries could share the Reader’s Guide I created. Here’s the link: http://bit.ly/1kCstb1
And, of course, I’d love it if you follow me on facebook to keep up to date. Link: http://on.fb.me/1dIErY0
And, please email if I can help with your library blogs or programs. www.SamuelWGailey.com
Wednesday February 12, 2014 5:00 Samuel W. Gailey
5:00
Nora - EarlyWord: 
The book is coming out in just a few days, on FEBRUARY 20TH in bookstores everywhere and online. It will be available as advance digital readers copy until publication day on Edelweiss and NetGalley. You can find more digital content created by the author at www.SamueluelWGailey.com THANKS!

Wednesday February 12, 2014 5:00 Nora - EarlyWord
5:00
Nora - EarlyWord: 
This chat will be archived on the Penguin First Flights page on EarlyWord --

http://penguindebutauthors.earlyword.com/
Wednesday February 12, 2014 5:00 Nora - EarlyWord
5:01
[Comment From GuestGuest: ] 
Thank you!
Wednesday February 12, 2014 5:01 Guest
 
 

Posted in Events | Comments Off on Live Chat with Debut Author Samuel Gailey

World Book Night Titles Announced

Thursday, October 24th, 2013

World Book Night, April 23rd, 2014, marks the third year that volunteer givers in U.S. will hand out half a million free paperbacks. The list of this year’s titles, announced last night, includes a wide range of books with broad appeal, from older classics to recent releases, fiction, nonfiction, children’s and YA titles, two in large type and one that is available in both English and Spanish.

One of the titles is Eleanor Brown’s The Weird Sisters, (Penguin/Einhorn), a librarian favorite for the sisters’ motto, “There is no problem a library card can’t solve.” (THAT would make a great sticker for all the books).

Click here to download our spreadsheet of all the titles, with information on alternate formats.

Applications are now open to become a volunteer giver.

Below is a slideshow of images from last year’s event:

Posted in Events | 2 Comments »

Live On-Line Chat with Emily Croy Barker

Wednesday, July 24th, 2013

One of today’s chat participants noted “I’m a long-time lover of fantasy; this book has gone onto my list of keepers–books you read more than once. Am thrilled there will be more!”

Read more, below:

Posted in Events | Comments Off on Live On-Line Chat with Emily Croy Barker

LibraryReads — Recommend Your Favorites

Thursday, June 27th, 2013

Library-Reads-LogoA program that brings together and highlights the work of  library staff  to promote books, both in person and online, launches this fall.

Modeled on the ABA’s successful IndieNext program, LibraryReads is a monthly list of the top ten newly-released titles that libraries around the country love and plan to promote to their readers. Developed by a grassroots group of librarians, the program is being announced at the ALA Annual conference in Chicago this weekend.

To make this work, we need you to join the effort. Please go to LibraryReads.org to learn how you can become involved.

Let’s prove how effective libraries are in helping readers discover books.

Posted in Events, Readers Advisory | 2 Comments »

Live On-Line Chat with Anton DiSclafani

Monday, May 13th, 2013

Posted in EarlyWord, Events | Comments Off on Live On-Line Chat with Anton DiSclafani

Maggie Smith on 60 MINUTES

Friday, February 15th, 2013

In which she reveals that she doesn’t watch Downton Abbey.

The interview airs this Sunday.

Posted in Events | Comments Off on Maggie Smith on 60 MINUTES

Oprah Interviews Ayana This Sunday

Thursday, January 31st, 2013

Ayana MathisUSA Today leads up to Oprah’s interview with Ayana Matthis, the author of her latest Book Club 2.0 pick, The Twelve Tribes of Hattie, (RH/Knopf), with one of their own (click through for video).

Oprah’s interview appears on OWN network’s  Super Soul Sunday, this week, February 3, at 11 a.m. ET/PT.

Promo for the show also promises “OPRAH’S BOOK CLUB 2.0 NEWS!” which may mean the announcement of a new title.

A taste of Oprah’s interview below:

Posted in 2013 -- Fall, Events, Fiction, Literary, Oprah Book Club | Comments Off on Oprah Interviews Ayana This Sunday

Nerdfighters At Carnegie Hall

Thursday, January 17th, 2013

If you weren’t a member of the sold-out crowd at Carnegie Hall for John Green and brother Hank’s appearance Tuesday night, you can watch it here (take the advice to “Skip to the beginning of the show,” which is about 3 minutes in to the video):

The New York Times reviewed the show, saying it  “…had the polish of a really good high school talent night, but the audience members…lapped up every minute.”

Posted in Childrens and YA, Events | Comments Off on Nerdfighters At Carnegie Hall

The Frankfurt Book Fair, Vicariously

Wednesday, October 17th, 2012

If you’ve wondered what it’s like to be in the midst of the world’s largest book fair (featuring over 7,000 exhibitors in multiple buildings), the New Yorker gives a good impression of it:

The Frankfurt Book Fair, which took place in Germany last week, feels like an airport (gift shops, people movers, high ceilings, ample bathrooms, the anxiety of missing something), except you can’t go anywhere.

And, in a description that could be applied to an ALA show floor, “Little separates the book fair from a tech fair,” but with a different twist:

The juxtaposition of game giants with paper products seemed an accurate—if slightly disorienting—reflection of today’s publishing landscape. The book publishers are doing digital products and the video-game makers are doing books.

Tellingly, the story focuses on the technology and not the books.

Posted in Events, New Technology | Comments Off on The Frankfurt Book Fair, Vicariously

Live Chat with Magnus Flyte, CITY OF DARK MAGIC

Wednesday, October 3rd, 2012

As part of the Penguin First Flights program, the authors of the upcoming debut novel, City of Dark Magic (pictured above) joined us for an online chat on October 3. Click below to read a transcript of the event.

This is the fifth episode in the program. To learn about upcoming titles and to find out how to join, click here.

 Live Chat with Magnus Flyte, CITY OF DARK MAGIC(10/03/2012) 
3:18
Thanks for joining us; the event will begin at 4 p.m., Eastern
Wednesday October 3, 2012 3:18 
3:37
Magnus Flyte Site
Wednesday October 3, 2012 3:37 
3:38
I just posted a link to the Magnus Flyte site, for those of you who may want to explore it while we are waiting to begin.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 3:38 
3:48
Beethoven's music is featured in CITY OF DARK MAGIC -- one of the Magnus Flyte authors (did we tell you that there are TWO of them?) put together a soundtrack ...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 3:48 
3:48
Soundtrack
Wednesday October 3, 2012 3:48 
3:50
Hello, this is Meg....or one half of Magnus Flyte. Looking forward to chatting with everyone!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 3:50 
3:52
Other half equally excited!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 3:52 
3:54
Welcome to both of you -- we'll begin in about five minutes -- I already see a group gathering.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 3:54 
3:59
Welcome everyone to our live online chat with the authors of CITY OF DARK MAGIC. They write under the collective name of Magnus Flyte. In real life they are Christina (Chris) Lynch and Meg Howrey. Here's a photo of the two of them.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 3:59 
4:00
The Two Halves of Magnus Flyte
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:00 
4:00
What's with the horses, guys?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:00 
4:00
Those are actually supermodel horses we had flown in from Sweden for the day at great expense. Kidding! The bay mare is Sabrie, and the gray is Nuryev. They are my lovely Arabian old timers who, when offered carrots, have no fear of lightstands, ladders, or photographers. By the way, Nury sneezed on my laptop during this shoot and I still can’t quite get the carrot goo off my screen…
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:00 
4:02
We took a standard "author photo" but thought we looked too normal in it.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:02 
4:02
Here's the jacket of CITY OF DARK MAGIC
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:02 
4:02
City of Dark Magic Cover
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:02 
4:02
It is set in Prague. Here’s one of the authors’ photos of the Vitava River – taken from a significant spot -
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:02 
4:02
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:02 
4:03
Here's Meg in the Czech Republic, doing research for the book..
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:03 
4:03
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:03 
4:03
You HAVE to tell us about that place, Meg.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:03 
4:03
[Comment From Andrienne Andrienne : ] 
Hi! I enjoyed your book a lot! I'm a librarian from Azusa.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:03 Andrienne
4:04
Welcome, Andrienne.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:04 
4:04
And by the way the river photo is the window Sherbatsky jumped from!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:04 
4:04
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
Hello from the Midwest
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:04 Lucy
4:04
[Comment From Sue D Sue D : ] 
Greetings from St. Charles!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:04 Sue D
4:04
That was taken at the Sedlec Ossuary in Kutna Hora, Czech Republic. It’s a chapel, estimated to contain the skeletons of 70,000 people. In the 13th century, an abbot from Sedlec traveled to the Holy Land and brought back a few handfuls of the Holy Land, which he sprinkled in the cemetery. So then everybody wanted to be buried there, then there was the Black Death, and the Hussite Wars, so the skeletons kind of piled up. A local woodcarver in the 19th century got the job of putting the bones in order, and he got creative. There’s a chandelier of bones, bones strung like garlands, bones in the Schwarzenburg coat of arms. Enormous piles of…skulls. It’s quite something.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:04 
4:04
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
Oh, I like the picture: authors with laptops and horses and books - Oh, my! :-)
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:04 Lucy
4:04
[Comment From Sue D Sue D : ] 
How did you come up with the name of Magnus Flyte? It sounds magical and fitting in with the novel perfectly.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:04 Sue D
4:05
Magnus comes from a usurping Roman senator (not so dissimilar from our usurping American senator), and Flyte from Sebastian Flyte, Evelyn’s Waugh’s tragic aristocrat in Brideshead Revisited. Max is a lot less tragic, but he inherited a house like Brideshead, full of stuff, with all the implications.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:05 
4:05
Here's a photo of Chris in Prage -- less creepy surroundings!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:05 
4:05
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:05 
4:05
Congrats on the great reviews just in from Kirkus and from PW – you must love the opening line from the Kirkus review – “The riddle of Beethoven's "Immortal Beloved," alchemy and clandestine love fuse in this fast-paced, funny, romantic mystery.” It also has this killer finish, “Even the minor characters are drawn ingeniously in this exuberant, surprising gem.”
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:05 
4:06
Yes, Meg took this one while I was taking notes at the balcony café inside Lobkowicz Palace—balcony! There’s a large cold beer in front of me, which it’s hard to believe I’m ignoring. Shows you how singleminded we get while researching!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:06 
4:06

Speaking of research -- here's a question --
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:06 
4:06
[Comment From Lily Lily : ] 
I will be on a public desk and won't be able to participate. My question would be about the specifics of collaborating on the book. Did they each take different chapters, sit together while writing, and what happened when they didn't agree?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:06 Lily
4:06
The Kirkus and PW reviews were great! Very exciting.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:06 
4:07
Chris will answer about how we wrote...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:07 
4:07
Librarians wil tell you that Kirkus isn't often that enthusiastic.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:07 
4:07
We love Kirkus and PW! Five stars for both!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:07 
4:07
After Meg and I had talked about maybe writing a book together set in Prague, and how that might work, I took a few days and thought about it and then wrote chapter one and sent it to her with the subject line “Tag you’re it!” She took the challenge and wrote chapter 2 and we were off. The rules were 1) each chapter should be 3-14 pages, which is about the amount a tired person can read at night before falling asleep. 2) Each chapter had to have something historical, something mysterious, something sexy, something funny, and end with a cliffhanger, and 3) no going back until we were done. So each chapter built on the previous. We had only the roughest of outlines, and we never talked about chapters until we wrote them, so every time the email dinged, it was a huge surprise. It became a real game, to try to confound each other and leave poor Sarah hanging!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:07 
4:08
Speaking of Prague, let's find out what the participants think of it...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:08 
4:08
What do you think about Prague?
Visited it; love it
 ( 17% )
Visited; won't go back
 ( 0% )
Want to go now
 ( 78% )
Not interested
 ( 0% )
I hate to fly
 ( 6% )

Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:08 
4:08
When we disagreed we engaged in tests of strength. Whoever could roll the tire wheel up the hill fastest, won.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:08 
4:09
A Sysiphean partnership!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:09 
4:09
How did you meet?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:09 
4:09
We met a writer’s retreat on the east coast. We liked each other’s work, and became friends. When we got back to California, I started going up to visit Chris at her place. We were both working on our literary fiction novels, but at one point we started joking about writing something together, something fun that would involve travel that we could write off as a business expense on our tax returns. The very first ideas for City of Dark Magic were hatched during a hike that Chris’s dog, Max, took us on. Chris recently got him a very smart dog collar at Harrods as a thank you present.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:09 
4:10
From the poll, it looks like the majority are ready to take a trip to Prague. Why did you choose that city for your setting?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:10 
4:10
Max: Best dog currently lying on my kitchen floor!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:10 
4:11
Here's a map of Prague that shows the the locations featured in the book...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:11 
4:11
I have family in Prague, and it's always intrigued me...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:11 
4:11
CITY OF DARK MAGIC; Map of Prague
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:11 
4:11
I had always wanted to visit...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:11 
4:11
So much history, incredible architecture, and all those defenestrations! It's really ripe territory for novelists.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:11 
4:12
Love the term "denfenestration" -- were there really that many occurances?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:12 
4:12
Yes!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:12 
4:12
[Comment From Catherine Catherine : ] 
First I'd like to say how much I love the settoIng for the novel. It brought back so many nice memories of my visit to Prague and the castle about 4 years ago..
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:12 Catherine
4:13
From the 1600s right up to WWII!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:13 
4:13
[Comment From Catherine Catherine : ] 
The reviews are well deserved. What a rollicking ride of a novel...mystery, political intrigue, romance, time travel, and eccentricities all wrapped up in a fantastic story!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:13 Catherine
4:13
Catherine, I hope your visit was somewhat less dramatic than Sarah's. Thank you so much!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:13 
4:13
I think our partcipants will enjoy this poll ...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:13 
4:13
Thanks, Catherine! So lovely of you to say! We had a blast writing it, too.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:13 
4:14
What advice would you give Sarah in her role as an archivist?
Wear the gloves!
 ( 25% )
No post it notes!
 ( 31% )
None; did your best
 ( 44% )

Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:14 
4:14
Thank you to Andrienne, too!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:14 
4:15
[Comment From Ginny Griffith Gustin Ginny Griffith Gustin : ] 
I am a recently retired librarian in Northern California. I was a reviewer for School Library Journal before I retired, and would have loved to receive this book as a reviewing assignment!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:15 Ginny Griffith Gustin
4:15
[Comment From Catherine Catherine : ] 
Hearing you describe your writing collaboration and emails gives a whole new meaning to Words With Friends!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:15 Catherine
4:16
Here's a question we received in advance:

This book is so very intriguing...how did you come up this concept?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:16 
4:16
Yes! Technically, Chris and I should be ready to kill each other now. But, we are still friends!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:16 
4:16
Thank you to Andrienne and Ginny and Catherine! It was an incredible ride, and it's great to see others enjoying it so much.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:16 
4:16
The concept for CODM came during a hike in the little Sierra foothills town where I live. I had just gotten an email from a family member who was working at the Lobkowicz Palace Museum and she described it in such glowing terms that Meg and I became instantly intrigued. I had been to Prague many times for family events and always wanted to set something there. I pulled out the guidebooks, and we started talking about all the history and the magic, and Meg was hooked. A month later, we got a plane! Any Prague fans out there?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:16 
4:17
We're about to address an advance question about Sarah's character, but first, let's see what the readers think...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:17 
4:17
How would you describe Sarah s character/
Heroic
 ( 6% )
Foolish
 ( 13% )
Complex
 ( 81% )

Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:17 
4:17
I used to write for TV, so I've actually written with eight other people at a time. Meg is the best of all!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:17 
4:18
So, here's the question:

Sarah's appetite for adventure was entertaining, but some of her choices seem to be so risky that they feel kind of dumb and irritating. If--as one would hope--she pops up in future adventures, is she likely to "grow up" a bit without losing her joie de vivre?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:18 
4:19
[Comment From Jackie Osting Jackie Osting : ] 
Librarian in Indiana. I loved this book and really want to use it for a book club selection-so much to discuss!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:19 Jackie Osting
4:20
Thanks, Jackie! We put together a pretty interesting Readers Guide, I think. There are a lot of good themes under all that fizz!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:20 
4:20
I think Chris is answering the Sarah question, so I'll say Hey to Jackie in Indiana. My parents live in Greenwood now! I was just at the Greenwood Library last month!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:20 
4:21
Speaking of that -- one of our readers loved the mention of Youngstown Ohio in the first chapter.

Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:21 
4:21
I think the best heroes tend to get themselves in some danger, because they're willing to take chances that the rest of us might find "dumb." Isn't walking on the moon a little dumb when you think about it?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:21 
4:22
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
I would love to hear what the inspiration for Pollina was; loved that character.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:22 Lucy
4:23
[Comment From Catherine Catherine : ] 
Readers can live vicariously through a character like Sarah.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:23 Catherine
4:23
I'd love to take this one...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:23 
4:23
Cool, I'll take the Pollina question...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:23 
4:23
Ha!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:23 
4:23
[Comment From Ginny Griffith Gustin Ginny Griffith Gustin : ] 
I agree with Jackie that this would make for a good book discussion. I was expecting a book of high fantasy and was delighted to find that it was so much more. There really are many themes lurking here.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:23 Ginny Griffith Gustin
4:23
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
Politics, intrigue, inheritance, historical artifacts, and ownership, to name a few - lots of good discussion themes
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:23 Lucy
4:23
Go, Chris!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:23 
4:24
Meanwhile, maybe you'd like to respond to this one, Meg --


Sounds like this reader had a problem with one aspect of the book --
I didn't think Sarah's sexual proclivities added much to the story. What was the point?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:24 
4:24
Pollina is one of our favorite characters.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:24 
4:25
Let's ask the readers about one of the less likable characters...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:25 
4:25
What did you think of Charlotte Yates?
Devious
 ( 8% )
Ex-CIA turncoat
 ( 0% )
Highly sexual
 ( 0% )
Loves beautiful things
 ( 0% )
Wants to be president
 ( 0% )
All of the above
 ( 92% )

Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:25 
4:25
I would respond to that reader with: Do you think James Bond's sexual proclivities add much to his stories?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:25 
4:25
Also, if you read the first Pols chapter closely, and you look at a picture of Velasquez's Infanta, you will see some similarities. Guess what the name of the dwarf at the Spanish court was?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:25 
4:26
[Comment From Sue D Sue D : ] 
When you were writing, did you actually listen to any classical music for inspiration?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:26 Sue D
4:26
CONSTANTLY listened to classical music.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:26 
4:26
[Comment From Beverly Beverly : ] 
I actually like the sexual scenes/references in the book I thought that it added a different element/layer to the story
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:26 Beverly
4:27
I think we can both answer this one! Definitely! I was also writing program copy for a series of concerts here, so I got a big education in a hurry.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:27 
4:27
Thanks, Beverly! I wish I had been more like Sarah when I was young. When I was her age, I lived in Italy and took care of horses on a farm while working as a journalist, so I was physically strong like she is but I lacked her confidence. I should have had more torrid affairs with princes!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:27 
4:28
Ah, our misspent youths!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:28 
4:28
This question is from me -- The book is published as an original trade paperback – libraries will appreciate the lower price. There’s some debate about how effective it is to release a book that way. What’s your opinion?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:28 
4:28
My mother told me that she thought the sex scenes were very funny. I love my mom.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:28 
4:29
Your mom has a great sense of humor!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:29 
4:29
Well, the industry is trending that way, I think to stay competitive with e-books.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:29 
4:29
The following poll is a bit of a pop quizz...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:29 
4:29
Who did the Chihuahua belong to?
Swedish pop star
 ( 11% )
Marchesa Elisa
 ( 33% )
Both; he was stolen
 ( 56% )

Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:29 
4:29
How do librarians feel about e-books?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:29 
4:30
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
I haven't checked is there an eBook for City of Dark Magic?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:30 Lucy
4:30
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
Don't misspent snd youth sort of go hand in hand? :-)
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:30 Lucy
4:30
[Comment From Andrienne Andrienne : ] 
I'm with Beverly. A little unexpected sex is not a bad thing.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:30 Andrienne
4:30
Yes, and an audiobook, too.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:30 
4:31
We are very excited about the reader for the audiobook. She's wonderful!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:31 
4:31
I love when the questions and answers cross a little--sex and ebooks!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:31 
4:32
Yup; that's Fifty Shades of Ebooks!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:32 
4:32
[Comment From Jackie Osting Jackie Osting : ] 
How long did it take to do research for the book?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:32 Jackie Osting
4:32
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
Our customers love eBooks but unfortunately we can't get all of the ones they want - sigh...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:32 Lucy
4:33
I don't know if we can publicly announce who the audiobook reader is yet? Check in with our FB page or website and we will reveal all soon..
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:33 
4:33
We researched as we wrote, which took about 14 months.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:33 
4:33
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
Sex and eBooks - Freudian?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:33 Lucy
4:33
[Comment From Jennifer Jennifer : ] 
The plot is so seamless. I am fascinated by the process two authors use to create a work; was the process difficult? Did you work together, send chapters back and forth, rewrite each others' work?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:33 Jennifer
4:34
We did it in a relay! Sending chapters back and forth...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:34 
4:34
Back to Sarah and sex -- those who read the book closely will recognize this statue...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:34 
4:34
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:34 
4:34
We did rewrite each other's work! No egos involved!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:34 
4:35
[Comment From Andrienne Andrienne : ] 
e-books are kind of iffy. They're pricey and publishers seem to want to sell them more than have libraries lend them. IMO
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:35 Andrienne
4:35
Yes, we wrote in a relay: I wrote chapter one and sent it to Meg with the subject line “Tag you’re it!” She took the challenge and wrote chapter 2 and we were off. Did I mention the rules? The rules were 1) each chapter should be 3-14 pages, which is about the amount a tired person can read at night before falling asleep. 2) Each chapter had to have something historical, something mysterious, something sexy, something funny, and end with a cliffhanger, and 3) no going back until we were done.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:35 
4:36
Rewriting is so much easier with two people! You have to trust the other person and surrender, like skydiving.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:36 
4:36
You make the process sound like so much fun. Were there any down moments?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:36 
4:36
We moved things around quite a bit in the rewriting, blending two chapters into one, cutting, pasting, switching, adding. So the book's voices aren't A/B anymore.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:36 
4:36
[Comment From Jackie Osting Jackie Osting : ] 
Who came up with the drug idea?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:36 Jackie Osting
4:36
There was the occasional moment of despair.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:36 
4:36
[Comment From Karyn Karyn : ] 
I love those rules!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:36 Karyn
4:36
[Comment From Beverly Beverly : ] 
Great writing formula for the chapters - love it!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:36 Beverly
4:37
I was really sad when something Meg had written about spontaneous combustion had to be cut because we just couldn't fit it in without stopping the story.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:37 
4:37
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
So, not only collabrative writing but collaborative editing. Cool!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:37 Lucy
4:37
How difficult was it to get the book published?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:37 
4:38
ABout the drugs: our standard answer is always: me (from both of us!). No one's taking the blame singlehandedly...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:38 
4:38
We were VERY lucky in our publishing experience. The book sold quickly.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:38 
4:38
Yay, Penguin! We love you!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:38 
4:39
Chris is blaming the sex scenes on me when her aunt reads the book.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:39 
4:39
You each sent me photos of your writing desks -- Meg thought hers was more messy, but I think they are remarkably similar...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:39 
4:39
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:39 
4:39
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:39 
4:39
Mine is the one with the red blinds!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:39 
4:39
Oops -- mixed those up -- Chris thought hers was the more messy!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:39 
4:40
Ha ha! I am the Queen of Clutter! Only the cat is missing from that photo!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:40 
4:40
We need a photo of the cat!!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:40 
4:40
Chris has the better view. I live next to an Auto Collision center. I'm waving to the dudes right now!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:40 
4:40
He's a little camera shy, but he's always wearing a tuxedo!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:40 
4:41
I do have a good view of two pomegranate trees and an olive.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:41 
4:41
I mentioned the map before, but wanted to bring it up again. Was it created for the book? Will it appear in the finished copy?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:41 
4:41
CITY OF DARK MAGIC; Map of Prague
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:41 
4:41
Yes and Yes! Isn't it lovely?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:41 
4:42
We have an amazing creative team at Penguin.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:42 
4:42
Our participants have mentioned before that they love maps in books -- helps to ground the story.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:42 
4:42
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
I was hoping you would say that - having the map will be a great addition to the final book
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:42 Lucy
4:42
Penguin has gone all out for us. That map was a labor of love!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:42 
4:42
[Comment From Karyn Karyn : ] 
How did you choose your pseudonym?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:42 Karyn
4:43
Wine was involved.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:43 
4:43
Did you have a anyone specific in mind when you created the US Senator character?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:43 
4:43
Magnus comes from a usurping Roman senator (not so dissimilar from our usurping American senator), and Flyte from Sebastian Flyte, Evelyn’s Waugh’s tragic aristocrat in Brideshead Revisited. Max is a lot less tragic, but he inherited a house like Brideshead, full of stuff, with all the implications.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:43 
4:43
Back to the question about the poison in the toenail -- that is SO specific. How did you come up with it?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:43 
4:44
Ha! We had a few...inspirations for the Senator.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:44 
4:44
[Comment From Catherine Catherine : ] 
In addition to the map, the cover design is also beautiful.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:44 Catherine
4:44
Charlotte pretty much grabbed the stage the moment she arrived. I don't think either of us expected her to be so larger than life--I have no idea who we were channeling!!!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:44 
4:44
The toenail is a great example of how one person built on the other's lead in surprising ways. First there was a pillbox. Then the other person added the toenails. And later the toenail became a pill. And since the pill came from Tycho, then the pillbox was in the shape of his copper nose. None of that was planned!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:44 
4:45
Click on the cover and you will see how many elements it incorporates from the story...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:45 
4:45
City of Dark Magic Cover
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:45 
4:45
The book is coming out soon -- how are you feeling leading up to publication date?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:45 
4:45
Can we say it? ANXIOUS!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:45 
4:46
Incredibly excited and looking for something to hide under.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:46 
4:46
[Comment From Jackie Osting Jackie Osting : ] 
Because the story moves so quickly from place to place I think the map will be very helpful to readers.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:46 Jackie Osting
4:46
[Comment From Andrienne Andrienne : ] 
I like how you treated the pseudo time travelling. It gave new meaning why people visit monuments and museums. The energies people leave behind. It also made me think of ghosts.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:46 Andrienne
4:46
[Comment From Catherine Catherine : ] 
Love the creativity behind the pseudonym...must have been really great wine :)
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:46 Catherine
4:46
Wine, cats, sex -- that's what librarian respond to!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:46 
4:47
Andrienne...yes, that's how we feel in museums so we built on that...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:47 
4:47
About the time travel: for a year or so I lived in an apartment in Italy that was built in 1250. I used to lie in bed and think about all the people who had lived and died and been born in the room... happy ghosts, I guess, because they never bothered me!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:47 
4:47
It sounds like you enjoyed this experience together so much -- what's next?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:47 
4:48
Wine, cats, dogs, horses and BOOKS!!!!! That is life.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:48 
4:48
The sequel is next!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:48 
4:48
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
I also liked the idea of Sarah deciding she wanted to leave her own 'engery' behind for the future by living life to the fullest. :-)
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:48 Lucy
4:48
Next: the sequel! City of something!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:48 
4:48
Lucy: yes! I think about that now, too.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:48 
4:49
We talk about that a lot, Lucy!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:49 
4:49
[Comment From Ginny Griffith Gustin Ginny Griffith Gustin : ] 
It was the cover art that made me expect high fantasy, but now I see I should have examined it more closely.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:49 Ginny Griffith Gustin
4:49
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
When will the sequel be coming out?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:49 Lucy
4:49
December 2013!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:49 
4:49
Sequel comes out Dec. 2013.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:49 
4:50
I love this haunting photo you sent me .. tell us about it...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:50 
4:50
Max Lobkowicz
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:50 
4:50
"We are writing it now," she said, breaking out in a full-body sweat.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:50 
4:50
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
Sorry, that should have been 'energy'
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:50 Lucy
4:50
That's the real Max Lobkowicz.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:50 
4:51
Isn't that stunning? That;s the real Grandpa Max who had to flee Lobkowicz Palace in 1939 and again in 1948. He never got to go back. Left with the coat on his back and the hat on his head and little else.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:51 
4:51
[Comment From Jackie Osting Jackie Osting : ] 
Can't wait for another adventure!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:51 Jackie Osting
4:51
[Comment From Ginny Griffith Gustin Ginny Griffith Gustin : ] 
Can't wait for that sequel!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:51 Ginny Griffith Gustin
4:51
[Comment From Catherine Catherine : ] 
A sequel....yay!!!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:51 Catherine
4:51
Thanks, Jackie! And Ginny! And Catherine!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:51 
4:51
The portrait hangs in the Lobkowicz Palace Museum, which is a must visit if you are in Prague.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:51 
4:51
I think there's a bit of enthusiasm for the sequel!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:51 
4:52
You will see a lot of familiar objects!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:52 
4:52
Loving the enthusiasm for a sequel! (more sweat.)
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:52 
4:52
We're getting close to the end. Any questions the authors want to ask the librarians? Anything we didn't ask?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:52 
4:52
About the sequel: so glad! And, of course, anxious. But in a good, sweaty way!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:52 
4:53
We think the book is sort of a hybrid of genres...do you agree?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:53 
4:53
Looks like our readers did well with the poll about Charlotte Yates -- she was indeed all of those things!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:53 
4:53
Just a big thank you for doing what you do: libraries were my favorite escape as a kid (and still are). I was an early and fast reader and I used to check out as many books as I could carry, mostly about horses. I mastered the dewey decimal system very early—though I still miss card catalogs! They had a certain smell that I loved.

Even with all the media available to us, there’s still no better escape than a good book.

Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:53 
4:54
Thanks, Chris -- we appreciate that!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:54 
4:54
[Comment From Laura Laura : ] 
It's such a rich cast of characters it would be a shame NOT to do a sequel - did you ever have trouble balancing all the characters?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:54 Laura
4:55
Yes, I love Meg's question and I wonder how you guys feel about the distinctions reviewers make between literary fiction and genre fiction?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:55 
4:55
[Comment From Faythe Faythe : ] 
I've been telling a lot of people to look for the book no matter what their "genre" of choice is.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:55 Faythe
4:55
We went to the library every week when I was a kid. I still go to the library every week.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:55 
4:55
We had some disagreement about the owner of the Chihuahua -- who was it?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:55 
4:55
[Comment From Sarah Sarah : ] 
Thank you for writing this book! I will enjoy recommending it to everyone!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:55 Sarah
4:56
[Comment From Jackie Osting Jackie Osting : ] 
I agree with Faythe--it has broad appeal
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:56 Jackie Osting
4:56
About the large cast: yes! We have all those great characters from CODM and now some new ones... juggling is happening as we speak!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:56 
4:56
[Comment From Ginny Griffith Gustin Ginny Griffith Gustin : ] 
I agree the book is a very intriguing hybrid of genres.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:56 Ginny Griffith Gustin
4:56
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
As to the sequel -- I'm thinking Christmas 2013 presents! :-)
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:56 Lucy
4:56
Laura - we had a running list of who was who...we spelled Nico's name about a hundred different ways...so yes, sometimes it was confusing!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:56 
4:56
The chihuahua belonged to Hilda, then the Marchesa brought it to Nela, and then Max took it at the end. Happy ending!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:56 
4:57
I love that 78% of people want to go to Prague now! Go!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:57 
4:57
Only the chihuahua ever knew its whole story, like all rescue dogs.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:57 
4:57
Yes -- I love that, too.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:57 
4:57
I have to admit that I feared a chat with two authors might be confusing, but you guys clearly work well together.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:57 
4:57
[Comment From Catherine Catherine : ] 
Yes, you have a nice mix of genres in the story, and as another librarian commented, it is seamlessly done. That's very impressive!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:57 Catherine
4:58
Go to Prague! It's so wonderful!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:58 
4:58
I'm fascinated by how many people are commenting on the mix of genres -- will make it easy to recommend.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:58 
4:58
[Comment From Karyn Karyn : ] 
Genres have certain expectations - it took me a bit to switch from expecting fantasy coding. But that's not a bad thing :)
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:58 Karyn
4:58
Thanks--remember that line from Best In Show: "it's like we have one brain between us."
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:58 
4:58
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
Forgot to ask about Max's character, why a drummer in a rock band? Do you know someone who fits that bill?
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:58 Lucy
4:59
All my ex-boyfriends.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:59 
4:59
This was so much fun! Thank you all so much. Great questions, great feedback.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:59 
4:59
Oh, no, Meg -- the drummers are always trouble!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 4:59 
5:00
Yes, thank you! Such fun!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 5:00 
5:00
We're be ending here -- thanks so much "Magnus Flyte"

Librarians -- thanks for all your great comments. If you enjoyed this, please tell your friends about the program.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 5:00 
5:01
Just a few more comments coming in...
Wednesday October 3, 2012 5:01 
5:01
[Comment From Beth Beth : ] 
Visited Prague 40 years ago and have never forgotten it--or Kutna Hora!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 5:01 Beth
5:01
[Comment From Catherine Catherine : ] 
Drummers are the typical bad boys!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 5:01 Catherine
5:01
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
Sexy for the Romance romance readers, history for the historical fiction reader, spies and such for the adventure/thrillers readers, local color for the NF travel readers. How can we miss on recommendations? :-)
Wednesday October 3, 2012 5:01 Lucy
5:01
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
Thank you!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 5:01 Lucy
5:02
Over and out!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 5:02 
5:02
Thank you so much!
Wednesday October 3, 2012 5:02 
5:02
[Comment From Jennifer Jennifer : ] 
Thank you for taking your time. Looking forward to the sequel.
Wednesday October 3, 2012 5:02 Jennifer
 
 

Posted in Events | Comments Off on Live Chat with Magnus Flyte, CITY OF DARK MAGIC

Live Chat with Scott Hutchins, A WORKING THEORY OF LOVE

Wednesday, August 22nd, 2012
 Live Chat with Scott Hutchins, A WORKING THEORY OF LOVE(08/22/2012) 
3:47
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Hi Everybody. This is Nora Rawlinson of EarlyWord.com. We're getting ready to chat with Scott Hutchins, author of A WORKING THEORY OF LOVE, coming from Penguin Press on Oct 2. Chat begins at 4 p.m.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 3:47 Nora - EarlyWord
3:52
Nora - EarlyWord: 
While we're waiting to begin, you may be interested in reading Scott’s New York Times piece about a nightmare interview experience.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 3:52 Nora - EarlyWord
3:52
Nora - EarlyWord: 
More Noir Than Chardonnay By SCOTT HUTCHINS The New York Times
Wednesday August 22, 2012 3:52 Nora - EarlyWord
3:54
Nora - EarlyWord: 
To get us in the mood, here's a few of the places where Scott’s book is set:
Wednesday August 22, 2012 3:54 Nora - EarlyWord
3:54
 Nora - EarlyWord
Dolores Park. Main character Neill's apartment is near here.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 3:54 
3:54
 Nora - EarlyWord
The Rainbow Tunnel; leading to Marin
Wednesday August 22, 2012 3:54 
3:55
 Nora - EarlyWord
Stinson Beach
Wednesday August 22, 2012 3:55 
3:55
Scott H: 
Just want to say I'm here!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 3:55 Scott H
3:55
Scott H: 
My avatar is weirdly stretched horizontally
Wednesday August 22, 2012 3:55 Scott H
3:55
Scott H: 
Looking forward to chatting.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 3:55 Scott H
3:56
Nora - EarlyWord: 
The stretched avatar makes you look a bit devilsh! We'll get started at 4 -- meantime, more photos!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 3:56 Nora - EarlyWord
3:57
 Nora - EarlyWord
The Bolinas sign -- in a rare moment between being stolen by residents, in an attempt to confuse tourists.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 3:57 
3:57
 Nora - EarlyWord
The Golden Gate Bridge, featured on the cover of Scott's book
Wednesday August 22, 2012 3:57 
3:57
 Nora - EarlyWord
Wednesday August 22, 2012 3:57 
3:59
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Welcome, everyone. I see we have a group gathering. I am going to begin with few questions for Scott and then will open it up to the rest of you. This is moderated discussion, so your questions won’t post immediately (in fact, you can start entering them now if you like, so they are in the queue). I’ll try to keep the flow going and give Scott time to respond to question. Scott, if you are in the middle of a thought, add an ellipsis, so I’ll know to let you continue
Wednesday August 22, 2012 3:59 Nora - EarlyWord
3:59
Scott H: 
Sounds good...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 3:59 Scott H
3:59
Scott H: 
and please forgive typos!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 3:59 Scott H
4:00
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Not only are typos forgiven, they are completely overlooked!

Congrats on getting some great early attention for the book. It’s a Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers pick and Publishers Weekly picked it as one of ten most promising debuts for the fall.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:00 Nora - EarlyWord
4:00
Scott H: 
Thanks, Nora. It's been a real surprise and of course a pleasure.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:00 Scott H
4:00
Scott H: 
Also an honor to get to do this chat.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:00 Scott H
4:01
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Let me begin the questions.

In A Working Theory of Love, you have captured the feeling of San Francisco at a particular time. What made you want to write about that time & place?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:01 Nora - EarlyWord
4:01
Scott H: 
The short answer is that's where I live. I live in SF now, and I wanted to capture some of that feeling of what it's like to be here now (and to be male and in one's thirties).
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:01 Scott H
4:02
Nora - EarlyWord: 
In our podcast interview, you mentioned that the age of your character changed as you were working on the book. Why did you settle on 36?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:02 Nora - EarlyWord
4:02
Scott H: 
I thought it was a good age...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:02 Scott H
4:02
Scott H: 
because it made Neill's lostness more serious than it would be if he was only 32...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:02 Scott H
4:03
Scott H: 
but 38 or 40 and we'd be a whole different kettle of fish!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:03 Scott H
4:03
Scott H: 
I wanted him lost but not pathological
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:03 Scott H
4:03
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Neill has a strange job, which he got because of who he is rather than his skills -- describe what he does and why
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:03 Nora - EarlyWord
4:04
Scott H: 
Neill inherited a set of journals from his father--secret journals that his taciturn father had been keeping for many years...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:04 Scott H
4:04
Scott H: 
and Neill ends up working for Henry Livorno, a famous computer scientist, trying to make a computer speak like a human...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:04 Scott H
4:05
Scott H: 
the journals are meant to give the project a kernel around which to wrap itself. In my own research into these...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:05 Scott H
4:05
Scott H: 
talking bots it seemed to me that's what they all lacked--a coherent personality.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:05 Scott H
4:06
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Kind of like Neill?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:06 Nora - EarlyWord
4:06
Scott H: 
Maybe! Does Neill not have a coherent personality!!?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:06 Scott H
4:07
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I thought he did, but you talked about him being lost.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:07 Nora - EarlyWord
4:07
Scott H: 
I mean that existentially
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:07 Scott H
4:08
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Here's an advance question we received from one of our participants:

Who have been your greatest influences, from authors you have actually worked with? I'm asking because this book reminded me so much of the tone of Super Sad True Love Story and then I realized Gary Shteyngart blurbed your book.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:08 Nora - EarlyWord
4:08
Scott H: 
Great question!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:08 Scott H
4:08
Scott H: 
Truth be told, I hadn't read Shteyngart before he blurbed the book, but I've since...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:08 Scott H
4:08
Scott H: 
read SSTLS and loved it. I now refer to Facebook as Global Teens.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:08 Scott H
4:09
Scott H: 
But I've worked with lots of wonderful writers...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:09 Scott H
4:09
Scott H: 
One of my teachers is Charles Baxter and he's on the back of the book as well. I've also worked with Tobias Wolff and Elizabeth Tallent and Peter Ho Davies.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:09 Scott H
4:10
Scott H: 
Really shteyngart's language kind of took over my brain.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:10 Scott H
4:10
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I was fascinated by how you managed to show the computer beginning to gain the ability to sound like Neill's father, which leads to the following advance question:

Have you ever felt that a loved one who has passed away has ever communicated to you through an inanimate object or animal or odd occurrence? I have.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:10 Nora - EarlyWord
4:11
Scott H: 
Well...I can't say yes exactly. My mother died when I was young and I used to dream about her a lot (much less so now)...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:11 Scott H
4:11
Scott H: 
And my grandparents appear in my dreams, too--often angry at me for some reason!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:11 Scott H
4:11
Scott H: 
But as for inanimate objects, less so. That said...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:11 Scott H
4:11
[Comment From Lily Lily : ] 
How old are you? Because in your picture you look quite young - to young to be able to write about so much sadness.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:11 Lily
4:12
Scott H: 
that's certainly one of the driving forces behind the book for me.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:12 Scott H
4:12
Scott H: 
Thanks, Lily. That's very kind -- I'm 38.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:12 Scott H
4:12
Scott H: 
In a different era that would be very old--I've been reading a bio on Dickens.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:12 Scott H
4:13
Scott H: 
He was father to ten by that point!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:13 Scott H
4:13
Nora - EarlyWord: 
We have to note that 38 is just slightly older than Neill. But you seem to have been pretty directed in your career -- not lost like Neill. Where does he come from?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:13 Nora - EarlyWord
4:14
Scott H: 
I was living with a couple of guys for a few years...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:14 Scott H
4:14
Scott H: 
not a ridiculous bachelor pad, but single guys a little past their expiration date (myself included)...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:14 Scott H
4:14
Chris: 
Did you know and were you influenced by another writer with strong literary roots in both Stanford and California; Wallace Stegner?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:14 Chris
4:14
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Love the term "expiration date"!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:14 Nora - EarlyWord
4:14
Scott H: 
and I was just really interested in charting that life, which for most of us is a life almost not to be mentioned--some people don't consider it a real life at all!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:14 Scott H
4:15
Scott H: 
Also, I love Walker Percy.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:15 Scott H
4:15
Scott H: 
I adore Stegner.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:15 Scott H
4:15
Nora - EarlyWord: 
OK, I’m embarrassed to post this poll because it makes the book sound like a romance, but I have to admit that I had a preference
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:15 Nora - EarlyWord
4:15
Which woman did you want to see Neill end up with?
Erin (ex-wife)
 ( 0% )
Rachel (young women he meets in a youth hostel)
 ( 29% )
Jenn (works for a rival company)
 ( 71% )

Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:15 
4:16
Scott H: 
Ha!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:16 Scott H
4:16
Scott H: 
Sounds like I made the case too forcefully!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:16 Scott H
4:16
Scott H: 
No one for Erin?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:16 Scott H
4:17
Nora - EarlyWord: 
TEAM ERIN here!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:17 Nora - EarlyWord
4:17
Scott H: 
Chris-- Stegner's belief that the West was a real place worth writng about has had a huge influence on me.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:17 Scott H
4:17
[Comment From Lily Lily : ] 
About halfway through Neill says "I am an experienced practitioner of the art of falling apart on the inside while appearing catatonic. It's one of my proudest adult skills. Is that just Neill, or a talent of yours? That line resonated with me because it's taken me a long time to develop that talent - I'm quoite old
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:17 Lily
4:18
Scott H: 
I am indeed pretty good at it. Though I try to emote more than Neill.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:18 Scott H
4:19
Scott H: 
But I think the falling apart thing is what you really have to keep to yourself, no?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:19 Scott H
4:19
Nora - EarlyWord: 
it seems like such an American story, but rights to the book have been sold widely -- to publishers in Italy, France, Brazil, Israel, UK, the Netherlands, Germany,

I'm trying to imagine the book in German.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:19 Nora - EarlyWord
4:19
Scott H: 
The title alone is a challenge in German...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:19 Scott H
4:19
Scott H: 
I think it's one word.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:19 Scott H
4:20
Scott H: 
Also, the word "working" doesnt' translate in the right way to many languages...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:20 Scott H
4:20
Scott H: 
They don't have the sense of "provisional"
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:20 Scott H
4:20
Scott H: 
That said, I like foreign lit. I love Machado de Assis, the Brazilian writer.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:20 Scott H
4:20
Scott H: 
for instance
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:20 Scott H
4:21
Nora - EarlyWord: 
How difficult was it to get your first book published?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:21 Nora - EarlyWord
4:21
Scott H: 
Well so difficult it didn't get published!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:21 Scott H
4:21
Scott H: 
This is really my second book, though still my debut novel...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:21 Scott H
4:22
Scott H: 
and it wasn't easy. I had to find an agent who had to find the right publisher...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:22 Scott H
4:22
Scott H: 
but there was some wrangling over it, which was gratifying--and new!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:22 Scott H
4:22
Scott H: 
It's a hard process and as you know in libraries the book business is in a lot of transition.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:22 Scott H
4:23
Scott H: 
A brave new world!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:23 Scott H
4:23
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Did the editor play a role in shaping the book, or is it pretty much what you submitted?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:23 Nora - EarlyWord
4:23
Chris: 
RE: Stegner ---not surprised; your book had such a sense of place! Having lived in and around SF---near Buena Vista, vs. your Dolores, Park I was impressed how spot on you nailed The City at that time. Do you still live there? How has it changed with the FaceBook influence?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:23 Chris
4:23
Scott H: 
No, my editor kept saying "I wish we had this" and I would write it. Between purchase and final draft I added around 100 pages. Terrifying really.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:23 Scott H
4:24
Scott H: 
Thanks, Chris! That was a real goal!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:24 Scott H
4:24
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Wow! That's amazing. How much was cut?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:24 Nora - EarlyWord
4:24
Scott H: 
The FB presence is driving up rents but that's all I've noticed so far. However everyone keeps getting younger--strange, no!?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:24 Scott H
4:24
Scott H: 
Nora: almost none.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:24 Scott H
4:25
Scott H: 
Just a bit here and there. Colin...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:25 Scott H
4:25
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
Would translations use the word 'developing' in place of 'working' and would that be accurate?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:25 Lucy
4:25
Scott H: 
my editor also edited Alan Hollinghurst and he knows how to make sure a story works in the middle. It was a real gift to have him insisting I make it right.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:25 Scott H
4:26
Scott H: 
Developing might work! The connotations in other tongues are so important...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:26 Scott H
4:26
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Here's a question that was sent in advance --

How plotted-in-advance was this novel, and how much was written in a flow state, where time seems to stop and scenes come more easily? Did you use an object or a photo to concretize the idea of a sentient computer as you wrote, or did you just imagine the "father" being right inside your own computer?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:26 Nora - EarlyWord
4:26
Scott H: 
I was told some ideas for the French but I've forgotten!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:26 Scott H
4:27
Scott H: 
Great qs...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:27 Scott H
4:27
Scott H: 
The book was completely non-plotted in advance...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:27 Scott H
4:27
Scott H: 
I was writing in bits and snatches whenever I had time (I was patching together a living) and I just wrote scenes...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:27 Scott H
4:27
Scott H: 
often out of order...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:27 Scott H
4:28
Scott H: 
as for the computer at first it wasn't even the father...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:28 Scott H
4:28
Scott H: 
but the minor character of Willie Beerbaum...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:28 Scott H
4:28
Scott H: 
it was only after talking to a good friend that I realized that was a dunderheaded move, and I switched to the father.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:28 Scott H
4:28
Scott H: 
And that had heat...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:28 Scott H
4:29
Scott H: 
for me...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:29 Scott H
4:29
Scott H: 
my dad and I have a very good relationship in many ways, but there's always been a level of things-unsaid...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:29 Scott H
4:29
Scott H: 
that I found powered the story.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:29 Scott H
4:29
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
But wouldn't the computer 'not' being the father at first, fit with the development of the story?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:29 Lucy
4:30
Scott H: 
Yes...except that it was a totally different level of stakes...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:30 Scott H
4:30
[Comment From Susan Susan : ] 
THanks for that response. Surprising, as the father seemed a perfect foil.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:30 Susan
4:30
Nora - EarlyWord: 
HOW did you land on the Turing Prize as a device to explore consciousness and love?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:30 Nora - EarlyWord
4:30
Scott H: 
if Willie is the computer, then who cares about his revelations? But if it's the father, then something primal is afoot.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:30 Scott H
4:31
Scott H: 
Thanks, Susan!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:31 Scott H
4:31
Scott H: 
Nora, the Turing Test fascinates me on the level of big questions about who and what we are...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:31 Scott H
4:31
Scott H: 
I ran across it in reading and thinking about consciousness...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:31 Scott H
4:31
Scott H: 
and Turing, as you may know, also had the dream of reviving a lost loved one...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:31 Scott H
4:32
 Nora - EarlyWord
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:32 
4:32
Scott H: 
his best friend died as a child and Turing (who was in love with him) regretted that loss all his days.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:32 Scott H
4:32
Scott H: 
This is Turing's year! Poor fellow.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:32 Scott H
4:32
Nora - EarlyWord: 
How poignant!

Explain how the test works.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:32 Nora - EarlyWord
4:33
Scott H: 
Well, it's based on a bit of mild gender bending....
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:33 Scott H
4:33
Scott H: 
a Victorian parlor game called the Imitation Game....
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:33 Scott H
4:33
Scott H: 
In the Imitation Game a man and a woman retire to separate rooms...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:33 Scott H
4:33
Scott H: 
and the other members of the party pass them notes trying to figure out which is truly the woman...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:33 Scott H
4:34
Scott H: 
Turing replaced the gender test with a human test...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:34 Scott H
4:34
Scott H: 
If a blind test with a computer and a human makes you choose the computer as the human...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:34 Scott H
4:34
Scott H: 
30% of the time then you have to say that computer is intelligent. Turing thought it was only fair!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:34 Scott H
4:35
Scott H: 
He picked 30% out of the air, by the way. That's roughly how often men were able to win the Imitation Game--in his estimation.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:35 Scott H
4:35
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I found this diagram of it online:
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:35 Nora - EarlyWord
4:35
 Nora - EarlyWord
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:35 
4:35
Scott H: 
Which I wish I'd put in the book!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:35 Scott H
4:36
Scott H: 
It's oddly hard to explain.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:36 Scott H
4:36
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I love that the Turing Test is an actual contest -- has anyone won?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:36 Nora - EarlyWord
4:36
Scott H: 
It depends...not really...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:36 Scott H
4:36
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
Your use of that specific Turing quote at the beginning, esp. the last sentence "Finally, we wish to exclude from the machines men born in the usual manner," had me pondering that idea right from the start.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:36 Lucy
4:36
Scott H: 
I actually judged the Test a few years ago...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:36 Scott H
4:37
Scott H: 
and the entries weren't in any way convincing. It turns out that it's very hard to have a computer speak--it requires a personality, a way of seeing the world.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:37 Scott H
4:37
[Comment From Sue D Sue D : ] 
This wasn't an easy book to get into. How would you explain to a potential reader what your book was about and why they should read it?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:37 Sue D
4:37
Scott H: 
Lucy--isn't that a great quote! So wry.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:37 Scott H
4:37
[Comment From Susan Susan : ] 
Actually, it was all very clear in the book. Big ideas but not obscure.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:37 Susan
4:38
Scott H: 
Thanks, Susan!

Sue D, that's a good question, and one I'm particularly bad at--my wife does a much better version but she's in the other room...so here goes...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:38 Scott H
4:39
Scott H: 
This is novel about a man learning to grieve what never was, and in that way coming to terms with himself. His present, his past, and his future.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:39 Scott H
4:39
Scott H: 
What do you think? A little abstract? Also, computers and sex.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:39 Scott H
4:39
Nora - EarlyWord: 
We've got two related questions:

From Lily:

Are you working on another book, does the process of getting published get easier now?

And from Lucy:

Is your first novel (the one that didn't get sold) a total loss or do you still feel you could go back to it? I refuse to give up on my first, which maybe is my fatal downfall.


Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:39 Nora - EarlyWord
4:40
Scott H: 
Lily: Yes, I'm working on another book. Publishing? I have no idea. I don't think any of us can see a year into the future in publishing, but the writing is definitely harder, at least so far. I feel distracted!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:40 Scott H
4:40
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Scott, I think you nailed it with that description -- "This is novel about a man learning to grieve what never was, and in that way coming to terms with himself. His present, his past, and his future."

I think it expecially resonates with anyone who has had a distant relationship with a parent.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:40 Nora - EarlyWord
4:40
Scott H: 
Lucy: I don't know. It's definitely the work of a younger writer. I might have to chalk it up to my apprenticeship.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:40 Scott H
4:41
Scott H: 
Though I do love the characters with all my heart.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:41 Scott H
4:41
Scott H: 
Thanks, Nora.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:41 Scott H
4:41
Scott H: 
Lucy: trust yourself on that choice.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:41 Scott H
4:42
Scott H: 
Though I do think it's good to be able to say--maybe I learned a lot from this, but it's not going to work in the end.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:42 Scott H
4:42
Scott H: 
Honestly, I don't know!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:42 Scott H
4:42
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Oops -- I confused the author of the question about your first novel -- sorry, it came from Susan!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:42 Nora - EarlyWord
4:43
Scott H: 
Sorry--Thanks, Susan!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:43 Scott H
4:43
Nora - EarlyWord: 
So, is the theory of love about love for a parent, or romantic love?

And, why DID Neill end up with Rachel (you can see I have an issue here)
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:43 Nora - EarlyWord
4:44
[Comment From Susan Susan : ] 
WEll, that's the tricky part, isn't it? When it "works" for you and perhaps other readers, but the market says "No way."
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:44 Susan
4:44
Chris: 
"...coming to terms with himself. " is so much more compelling because the comes about entirely through his relationship with his father through the program!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:44 Chris
4:44
[Comment From Susan Susan : ] 
And I loved this so-called second debut novel of yours. Smooth all the way, realistic, thought-provoking, and satisfying.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:44 Susan
4:44
Scott H: 
I think it's about both--but it's true that the theories circle much more around romantic love, which is less explicable than parent/child love...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:44 Scott H
4:45
Scott H: 
Rachel? It was just the right thing--for now--it's a working relationship!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:45 Scott H
4:45
Scott H: 
True, Susan--and thanks for the kind words on the novel!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:45 Scott H
4:45
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Did you resolved any issues in your own life while writing A Working Theory of Love?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:45 Nora - EarlyWord
4:46
Scott H: 
Ah--we almost made it throgh the hour without having to answer this!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:46 Scott H
4:46
Scott H: 
I think so...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:46 Scott H
4:46
Scott H: 
though I'm definitely not Neill and never have been...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:46 Scott H
4:47
Scott H: 
but I was writing the book as a single person, as a person whose relationships had fallen apart and who was trying to envision what Plan B--i.e. life--was going to look like...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:47 Scott H
4:47
Scott H: 
and in this mode I stumbled across the woman I fell in love with and married. So I finished the book a happily married man, but I don't know if I could have started it that way.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:47 Scott H
4:48
[Comment From Susan Susan : ] 
I"m not sure he should have "ended up" with anyone, actually. That was satisfying, in a way, but I doubt he was really ready to settle down.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:48 Susan
4:48
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Can't help but notice your book is dedicated to your wife.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:48 Nora - EarlyWord
4:48
[Comment From Diana Armentor Diana Armentor : ] 
What is your writing routine?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:48 Diana Armentor
4:48
Scott H: 
Indeed. I also don't know if I could have finished it without her--it would have been a different book.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:48 Scott H
4:49
Scott H: 
Susan--you may be right!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:49 Scott H
4:49
Scott H: 
Diana--I'm in search of a routine now...but what's worked best...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:49 Scott H
4:49
Scott H: 
is for me to write every morning except for Sundays...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:49 Scott H
4:49
Scott H: 
when I make sure to dedicate a whole day to life!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:49 Scott H
4:50
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
I was fascinated by your description of how (in the early part of the book) Neill 'plotted' out his bachelor life and relationships. Are bachelor's really like that?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:50 Lucy
4:50
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
Or is it just bachelors in SF?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:50 Lucy
4:50
Scott H: 
Lucy--I don't know! I do know that the bachelors I know of a certain age--the successful bachelors, I mean, not the complete wrecks--usually have a high level of routine in their lives.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:50 Scott H
4:51
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Lucy's question makes me think about the Italian edition of the book and how people will react to it there!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:51 Nora - EarlyWord
4:51
Scott H: 
If Neill were Italian...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:51 Scott H
4:51
Scott H: 
he'd be living with his parents!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:51 Scott H
4:51
Scott H: 
Which might be exactly what he needs.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:51 Scott H
4:51
Nora - EarlyWord: 
So true!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:51 Nora - EarlyWord
4:51
Nora - EarlyWord: 
One thing that hasn't come up is your sense of humor, which I loved. It's all about ironic observation.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:51 Nora - EarlyWord
4:52
Scott H: 
Thanks, Nora. I had a great time writing in Neill's voice.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:52 Scott H
4:52
Nora - EarlyWord: 
Can you pinpoint where that sense of humor came from? it's what made me end up liking Neil.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:52 Nora - EarlyWord
4:52
[Comment From Susan Susan : ] 
Are you not naturally ironically self-deprecating?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:52 Susan
4:53
Chris: 
Could 'irony' be programed into drbas?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:53 Chris
4:53
Scott H: 
Neill is a very sharp observer, but it doesn't do him much good--and he knows it. I think the humor arises somewhere in there(?).
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:53 Scott H
4:53
Scott H: 
Susan--maybe!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:53 Scott H
4:53
Scott H: 
Chris--I think irony would be a very hard thing to program...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:53 Scott H
4:54
Scott H: 
especially with Neill deeply unironical father and Livorno and Laham!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:54 Scott H
4:54
Nora - EarlyWord: 
We're coming to the end of the hour. Any last questions or comments from the group?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:54 Nora - EarlyWord
4:54
Scott H: 
A great Turing Test book Galatea 2.2 by Richard Powers...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:54 Scott H
4:54
Scott H: 
plays with that idea a little more than I did!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:54 Scott H
4:55
Scott H: 
I just want to say I'm fascinated that Jenn won the poll. Fascinated!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:55 Scott H
4:55
Nora - EarlyWord: 
In the acknowledgments, you mention a book by Rosalind Picard.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:55 Nora - EarlyWord
4:56
[Comment From Susan Susan : ] 
THanks for the tip. Exploring consciousness in any form is great fun.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:56 Susan
4:56
Scott H: 
Yes, she wrote a book called Affective Computing...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:56 Scott H
4:56
 Nora - EarlyWord
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:56 
4:56
 Nora - EarlyWord
Rosalind W. Picard - Professor of Media Arts and Sciences at MIT, director and also the founder of the Affective Computing Research Group at the MIT Media Lab, and co-director of the Things That Think Consortium
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:56 
4:56
Scott H: 
she basically invented the whole field, which was a little dangerous for a woman in computer science to do...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:56 Scott H
4:56
Scott H: 
the book is a great read...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:56 Scott H
4:57
Scott H: 
half for the lay-person, half for experts.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:57 Scott H
4:57
Scott H: 
She's a prof at MIT.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:57 Scott H
4:57
Nora - EarlyWord: 
There's tons of images of her on the Web -- I particularly like the one weposted.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:57 Nora - EarlyWord
4:57
Scott H: 
Her argument is that computers are limited in certain ways...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:57 Scott H
4:57
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
RE: the poll - Women's point of view?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:57 Lucy
4:58
Scott H: 
that they in fact are limited like humans with certain brain injuries...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:58 Scott H
4:58
Scott H: 
that affect the emotion (or regulatory) centers of cognition.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:58 Scott H
4:58
Scott H: 
So true intelligence will only be achieved WITH emotion in computers!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:58 Scott H
4:58
Scott H: 
Lucy--yes!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:58 Scott H
4:59
Scott H: 
Anyway--I highly recommend her book for those interested.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:59 Scott H
4:59
Nora - EarlyWord: 
I am still on TEAM ERIN, I just didn't vote.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 4:59 Nora - EarlyWord
5:00
Scott H: 
I'm glad the spitfire got a vote!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 5:00 Scott H
5:00
Nora - EarlyWord: 
You teach writing -- for our last question -- any words of wisdom for aspiring writers?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 5:00 Nora - EarlyWord
5:00
Scott H: 
Goodness...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 5:00 Scott H
5:00
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
Does Picard address what might happen if we did have computers with emotions?
Wednesday August 22, 2012 5:00 Lucy
5:00
Scott H: 
what I try to emphasize wiht my students is that we are the servants of the work...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 5:00 Scott H
5:00
Scott H: 
that it's about making the work the best we can...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 5:00 Scott H
5:01
Scott H: 
and not about the ego being stroked by the process....
Wednesday August 22, 2012 5:01 Scott H
5:01
Scott H: 
it's the only way to approach the process (that I know) in the right, concentrated but loose way.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 5:01 Scott H
5:02
Scott H: 
Lucy--Picard thinks that computers would probably get one emotion--something specific to their jobs...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 5:02 Scott H
5:02
Scott H: 
they might for instance not get lost in endless searches if endless searches felt "bad"
Wednesday August 22, 2012 5:02 Scott H
5:03
Scott H: 
Also, show don't tell!

Just kidding!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 5:03 Scott H
5:03
Nora - EarlyWord: 
We have to end.

Thanks for joining us today, Scott. We'll be toasting your book when it hits shelves on Oct 2.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 5:03 Nora - EarlyWord
5:04
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
I'll have to get a copy of her book to find out more about her and her thoughts on this. Thanks for talking about it during the chat.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 5:04 Lucy
5:04
Scott H: 
Thanks, Nora, and thanks everyone for your questions. I'm really honored and pleased you read the book.
Wednesday August 22, 2012 5:04 Scott H
5:04
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
Interesting idea - different computers each with a different emotion. Hmmmm...
Wednesday August 22, 2012 5:04 Lucy
5:04
[Comment From Lucy Lucy : ] 
THANKS!!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 5:04 Lucy
5:04
Scott H: 
Thanks to you, too!
Wednesday August 22, 2012 5:04 Scott H
 
 

Posted in EarlyWord, Events | Comments Off on Live Chat with Scott Hutchins, A WORKING THEORY OF LOVE

« Previous Entries
Next Entries »