tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1096917138155693352024-02-20T18:02:55.505-08:00Victoria's Secrets - The Journey of a YA AuthorVictoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.comBlogger90125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-14204081351981136322011-09-06T18:42:00.000-07:002009-09-06T19:21:04.486-07:00Greetings!Hello all! <div><br /></div><div>Victoria here. Many of you might know me from my LJ account of the same name (veschwab). This is my attempt to conquer another--I mean, to create a more accessible blog. For now, at least, I will be cross-posting my Livejournal entries here.</div>Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-85457446633754859832010-07-06T21:54:00.000-07:002010-07-06T22:10:18.281-07:00I feel like the pied piper......only without the music.<br /><br />All I have is a new blog and the plea that you like me enough to follow me there, and the promise that I'll stay put. At first I set out to conquer the internet, and now I must condense my efforts :p<br /><br /><a href="http://www.veschwab.wordpress.com/">THE NEW BLOG. </a><br /><br />Pretty please, follow me? Would it help if I told you it was my birthday? Maybe?<br /><br />Well, I'm playing my pipes and wandering over <a href="http://www.veschwab.wordpress.com/">here</a>, if you'd be kind enough to follow. There will be cupcakes in the morning, I can tell you that. Well, PICTURES of cupcakes, anyway :)Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-22902134109503713202010-07-02T10:06:00.000-07:002010-07-02T10:07:08.402-07:00IT'S A CELEBRATION!!!<a href="http://pics.livejournal.com/veschwab/pic/0004tqht/"><img src="http://pics.livejournal.com/veschwab/pic/0004tqht/s320x240" width="160" height="240" border="'0'/" /></a><br /><br />THE NEAR WITCH IS FINALLY THROUGH EDITS AND ON TO COPYEDITS.<br /><br />I AM SO FREAKING HAPPY.<br /><br />I have been editing this book for 9.5 months. Longer than a pregnancy. It has been A JOURNEY. My editor has been challenging, and motivating, and inspiring. My agent has put up with many spazzing emails.<br /><br />AND IT IS FINALLY DONE.<br /><br />I am planning a WEEK O' DEBAUCHERY. It involves booze, and cupcakes, and sleep. That's how I roll.<br /><br />DID I MENTION THE BOOK IS FINALLY DONE?<br /><br />*dies*Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-66562786505730131402010-06-30T06:27:00.001-07:002010-06-30T06:27:44.114-07:00Are you ready for a story?To have a little fun, we've got a Round Robin story going on this week at the YA Rebels. I love it because we all have such different methods of storytelling. Here's my part below, and you can find Tuesday's, which precedes it, below:<br /><br /><lj-embed id="77"><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/7Q0ToNi-uc8&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/7Q0ToNi-uc8&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /></lj-embed><br /><br />Please ignore the fact I wrote this around midnight after a VERY long day, a week with too little sleep, and an impending final exam this morning.<br /><br /><lj-embed id="78"><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/wca4Qe6a940&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/wca4Qe6a940&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /></lj-embed><br /><br /><lj-embed id="79"><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/BnL4Nfp1Sak&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/BnL4Nfp1Sak&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /></lj-embed><br /><br />* ~ * ~ * ~ *<br /><br />And now, your lesson for the day: When all else fails, trust in the simple act of writing to relieve the weight.<br /><br />I've been REALLY stressed lately. If you follow me, well, ANYWHERE online you probably noticed. And the frustration/exasperation/temper was getting worse and worse and I couldn't figure out what I needed to do to relieve it. And then I sat down, and wrote. And just like that, the stress began to bleed away. It's the simplest reminder that this is what I'm meant to do. This is what I'm made to do. It's so easy to forget that all this stuff that surrounds writing, the industry, the (mostly awesome) people, what it all comes down to, what's at its absolute center, is WRITING.Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-70027414459131878112010-06-28T21:46:00.001-07:002010-06-28T21:46:58.517-07:00Oh don't mind that, it's just my jaw on the floor...(books I love)So, you might have noticed, I don't actually talk about books often on here.<br /><br />I talk about my TBR pile, but almost NEVER review. There's a reason. I am the Russian judge of the book world. I am so super picky, and anything from bad writing to a familiar plot will turn me off a book. A lacking ending is the worst offense, but poor craft is pretty darn close. The number of books I love is small (but man when I love a book I will shout it from the rooftops).<br /><br />So let's talk about three books I love, one's been out for almost 15 years, one just came out this year, and one isn't out yet.<br /><strong><br />NEVERWHERE. Neil Gaiman.</strong><br />So I'm a little behind. This came out in 1996 and I just finished listening to it driving to and from classes. Oh. My. So, my love of Gaiman is nothing new, and just a few months back I talked about how THE GRAVEYARD BOOK was one of my all-time favorites. This book had me similarly in awe. Perhaps it's because I've been in edits and am thus hyper-attentive to the writing/craft and the world-building/rules, but I found this book to be SPECTACULAR, from the amazingly horrific bad guys down to little details. One of my favorite elements was a major plot element, established in only TWO sentences. It was so cleanly done, I might have paused the CD to marvel. Love love love abounds from my corner for this master.<br /><br /><strong>BEFORE I FALL. Lauren Oliver.</strong><br />I was so, so happy to see this book have SUCH a strong debut, since I had read an ARC and been amazed by the depth and complexity of the characters. The only way I can describe them is REAL. The most real I have ever found fictional people to be. Beautiful craft and compelling narrative make this one of those books I hock on street corners and in YA aisles of bookstores.<br /><br /><strong>INFINITE DAYS. Rebecca Maizel. </strong><br />Wow. Okay, so this book comes out this summer. It's a vampire book, and yet it is SO incredibly refreshing. Once again, beautiful language, engrossing plot, and a wonderful attention to detail made this book a DELIGHT. I am actually considering re-reading (and I almost NEVER re-read, no time, but that's how much I loved it). Put this one on your lists, people. LOVED.Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-69521564229150225342010-06-23T19:27:00.001-07:002010-06-23T19:27:59.073-07:00Advice: The GOOD and the BAD.This week on the YA Rebels we're talking ADVICE. Of the good AND the bad variety.<br /><br /><lj-embed id="75"><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/qB0Sk1tNfHs&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/qB0Sk1tNfHs&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /></lj-embed><br /><br />I also polled the interwebs to see what they had to say, too.<br /><br />Deb Harkness: Best: write every day. Worst: write every day. Sad, but true! Sometimes, the words are just stuck and it's better to take a walk!<br /><br />Paul Greci: Best advice: Never give up. Worst advice: Don't even start.<br /><br />Shelley Watters: Best: From Colleen Lindsay a month is like a minute in publishing. Worst: Publishing is luck and who you know, not how well you can write.<br /><br />Maria Sweet: Worst: worst advice EVER I've been given regarding writing/publishing was to query before I finished a MS and to query even if what I have is only one chapter.<br /><br />Sara Winters: BEST: To listen to the characters and not worry about everything so much. Let the first draft write itself.<br /><br />Christopher Morris: Best: Write drunk, Edit sober- Hemingway.<br /><br />Angela Cerrito: Best: From Markus Zusak "put something unexpected on every page", From Kathleen Duey "keep going, don't stop, be true to your story"...<br /><br />Kristi Cook: I think the very best advice I've ever gotten is that the very best thing you can do for your career is to simply write more--rather than driving yourself nuts and wasting all your energy trying to promote a book, you're better served concentrating on writing the *next* book, and the next, and the next. Good writing is the best "promotion" there is.<br /><br /><br />THIS IS AN ONGOING LIST...Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-49856132109505331672010-06-16T05:57:00.001-07:002010-06-16T05:57:26.491-07:00Write Down, Sell Out.Almost everyone who writes YA/MG gets asked at some point when they're going to go on and write "real" books. It's almost like a rite of passage, that question, along with first bad review, etc.<br /><br />But I've stopped being asked that. Or at least, the question has given way to a NEW question.<br /><br />Me: I write YA.<br />Them: Oh, that was a smart choice, because that's where all the money is.<br /><br />Well, two things.<br /><br />1. Obviously it isn't a question, but it's a STATEMENT OF WORTH, if you will, which puts it in with the first question.<br /><br />2. It seems on the surface less offensive. But it bothers me me.<br /><br />It makes the assumption that I write what I write because of the money. That my writing YA was a CALCULATED move to get rich (much like my teacher telling all the students that genre fiction was created using a mad-lib format, easy money, so we should all quit school and go fill in the blanks). It also shows an ignorance about the industry, the super-saturation that makes YA even more competitive right now, the real reasons to write YA, the merits of well-written YA...it blankets all of these with the insinuation that I WRITE YA BECAUSE IT'S WHERE THE MONEY IS.<br /><br />And I think that bothers me worse. But of course it's not an either/or, is it? I still get asked the first question regularly enough, so now I'm accused of BOTH writing down AND selling out.<br /><br />Lovely.<br /><br />You know what? I adore writing YA. I write it because it inspires me, because the readers inspire me, because the community inspires me. I could sit here and explain, parse out every motive I have for writing what I do the way I do. But I won't. I don't NEED to. Because the people who matter, the ones who read this blog, they already understand. They get it. You get it.Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-13454240505263553152010-06-14T06:45:00.000-07:002010-06-14T06:46:19.791-07:00What a difference a weekend makes...Wow. I feel SO much better, guys. <br /><br />This weekend I finished my edits, wrote my paper, did all my reading, and got back to work on the next book! Two days off made a WORLD of difference. Thank you for bearing with me, and for your encouragement and support. Was getting a wee bit frazzled. It happens.<br /><br />I feel refreshed and ready to tackle this week, before I head to Chicago for the weekend!<br /><br />Let's kick the week off with my TBR pile (of course not including the books on my comp that I'm reading for people)...<br /><br />These are the books I'm CURRENTLY reading:<br /><br /><a href="http://pics.livejournal.com/veschwab/pic/000620cc/"><img src="http://pics.livejournal.com/veschwab/pic/000620cc/s320x240" width="320" height="240" border="'0'/" /></a><br /><br />These are the ones on deck:<br /><br /><a href="http://pics.livejournal.com/veschwab/pic/00063haw/"><img src="http://pics.livejournal.com/veschwab/pic/00063haw/s320x240" width="320" height="240" border="'0'/" /></a><br /><br />Anything good in your TBR piles?<br /><br />Also, did you know I'm strongly considering moving to England later this year? It's true. A few things have to come together first, but if the fates are in my favor, I will find myself on the other side of the ocean for at least 6 months. More on these plans in the near future!Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-2721744322829494352010-06-10T21:17:00.000-07:002010-06-10T21:19:15.136-07:00UNPLUGGING.So I'm writing this paper for one of my lit classes, and it's about public/private life in a short story we read.<br /><br />And it got me thinking (which is always a dangerous thing).<br /><br />I'm going through a small patch. Not a rough patch, per se, or a hard patch. A stagnant patch. Meaning, despite all the movement and activity in my life and around me, my actual progress on things of import feels frustratingly static.<br /><br />Add to that the feeling like I can't keep up online (right now I can hardly keep up OFFline, for that matter) and I find myself a little ill.<br /><br />Sometimes we get to the point where our connectivity becomes damaging to our focus, where the best thing we can do for ourselves and our work is unplug.<br /><br />My friend told me that sometimes it's okay to be selfish now and then, and I'm hoping she's right.<br /><br />I'm taking a VERY SMALL break. Literally a long weekend (what does it say about my present state that I felt the need to check in and inform you all rather than just pop off the face of the interwebs?).<br /><br />I just need to focus. I have my final edit deadline coming up, my new book to make serious progress on, a paper on public/private life about about 100 pages of reading this weekend, etc. etc.<br /><br />So. I shall return. And until then (let's say Monday, but certainly by Wednesday), I wish you all a marvelous weekend.<br /><br />Love, of course.<br /><br />VictoriaVictoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-61228910798576921552010-06-04T07:20:00.000-07:002010-06-04T08:15:32.629-07:00Look! A snippet!Hoping to start a series of connected short stories here on the blog, but until then, digging around through my WIPs, looking for snippets...<br /><br /><br /> <p class="MsoNormal"> Eli jumped when the massive black shape of Vic's dog brushed by him. Dol had inky fur and the spindly grace of a great dane. Grace was a funny word to put with Dol, a beast whose tail fell off whenever he got excited and wagged it too hard (it had never stuck firmly after being lopped cleanly off once by Lena). But he was graced, in a way. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""> </span>Vic trailed a tapered finger down Dol’s snout, tapping his nose absently. The dog didn’t seem to mind. His tail swished side to side along the concrete floor. Vic preferred concrete spaces, because the screams bounced around pleasantly without alarming anyone who might be passing by on the other side. <o:p></o:p><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""> </span>“Who’s my little frankenpuppy?” cooed Sydney, rubbing Dol’s ears. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p></o:p> A long white scar ran like a zipper down Dol’s stomach. <o:p></o:p></p> <o:p></o:p> Most people changed. Whenever Sydney woke someone from the dead, they always seemed a little…vapid. But not Dol. Dol had been brought back six times, and he was always Dol.<br /> <br /> "He looks like he's been hit by a truck," scoffed Eli.<br /> <br /> "He has," said Vic.Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-35901878554837414102010-06-02T08:11:00.001-07:002010-06-02T08:11:54.617-07:00YARebels Vlog- WHERE IS TUESDAY??This week the YA Rebels seem to have...misplaced on of our team. On Monday, we realized she was missing. On Tuesday we were disturbed to find her chair empty, her phone unanswered. And today, I try to piece together the last time we saw her...<br /><br /><br /><lj-embed><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/2ofy-fDv-gc&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/2ofy-fDv-gc&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /></lj-embed>Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-14348177920473081352010-05-31T12:03:00.000-07:002010-05-31T12:04:10.178-07:00Things I Learned Today - 1Welcome to a new series. It's called, as the title of the posts suggests, Things I Learned Today.<br /><br />The reason for this series is this: I'm spending the summer prepping for PhD applications. That means studying...A LOT. That means four intensive Eng. Lit classes, plus a crap ton (that's a real measurement, trust me) of independent reading, and poetry, and French, and then a little German, etc etc.<br /><br />So I figured, if I have to learn all these shiny new things, then so can you! But take heart! Sometimes I learn random things from researching for stories, and I'll throw those in, too.<br /><br />-Pamplemousse is French for grapefruit.<br /><br />-Poet Shelley (married to Mary Shelley of Frankenstein at one point) is brilliant. His sense of rhythm and rhyme makes my heart happy.<br /><br />-I remember entire scenes from any movie seen before the age of 12. Evidence: Men in Black. Could recite first ten minutes while watching at lunch.<br /><br />-Poet Whitman is too wordy for my tastes.<br /><br />-I like titles that involve wordplay. I just titled my new book (nope, can't tell you about it), and then I made a list and realized every one of my titles involves wordplay. It makes me happy. <br /><br />-It doesn't make sense for houses in a village with mostly hills and only scattered trees to be made of wood.<br /><br />-Dr. Who is intriguing (I just started watching today, eps. 1 and 2 down)<br /><br />-It's apparently still May.<br /><br />That's all I've got today! (And don't worry, these segments will probably be incorporated into blog posts of actual substance most of the time). Did YOU learn anything fun/interesting/cool lately?Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-49771543063839743072010-05-26T08:33:00.000-07:002010-05-26T08:35:39.287-07:00Vlog! Distraction and Lady Gaga Dance Parties!On a less serious note than last week's vlog...<br /><br />This week's vlog is a day in the writing life. Co-starring Diet Coke, Cupcakes, and an Impromptu Lady Gaga Dance Party! WITH CROWN.<br /><br /><lj-embed id="72"><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/wI-dP7ko4kI&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/wI-dP7ko4kI&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /></lj-embed>Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-17161239371536365092010-05-22T08:42:00.000-07:002010-05-22T08:43:23.054-07:00Wednesday (on Saturday) Takes the Bad Boy TOO FAR.Hey guys. My YARebels vlog this week: a quick look at abuse/manipulation in YA.<br /><br /><lj-embed><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/c8mL27-6sH4&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/c8mL27-6sH4&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /></lj-embed><br /><br />Now I'm off to Memphis for the weekend to help my aunt move! So busy! BUT you should be very happy to know that this morning I *gasp* SLEPT IN. Yes, yes, I know, it's a MIRACLE.Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-49921638083510169772010-05-19T18:26:00.000-07:002010-05-19T18:27:16.836-07:00A big day in Victorialand!!Hey guys! So today was kind of a big day!<br /><br />1. I signed my contracts!<br /><br /><a href="http://pics.livejournal.com/veschwab/pic/0005x69d/"><img src="http://pics.livejournal.com/veschwab/pic/0005x69d/s320x240" width="320" height="240" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://pics.livejournal.com/veschwab/pic/0005yakg/"><img src="http://pics.livejournal.com/veschwab/pic/0005yakg/s320x240" width="320" height="240" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br />2. My two auction co-hosts and I made the evening news!!!!!!<br /><br /><lj-embed id="70"><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/yPbO5by1wRc&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/yPbO5by1wRc&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /></lj-embed>Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-25410431492214421772010-05-16T09:59:00.000-07:002010-05-16T10:00:13.447-07:00CUPCAKE + VILLAIN = WIN.Guys. You should watch this video if for no other reason than I somehow found the time to do it during the auction!!!<br /><br />On little sleep.<br /><br />IN A CUPCAKE COSTUME.<br /><br />I present to you: Adorable baked good/super hero Sugar High decides she wants to be a villain, and turns into...SICKLY SWEET.<br /><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/2oKBCoG5tE0&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/2oKBCoG5tE0&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-23267374546540971722010-05-15T07:24:00.001-07:002010-05-15T07:24:44.132-07:00Auction Update...The End is Near.The "Do the Write Thing for Nashville" auction is almost over. The last round goes up today, and it will last until Monday at midnight. We'll also have a closing message, and t-shirts for anyone who wants to make a small donation.<br /><br />But man, it's been (and still is) a WILD ride. It's been a dream, and a roller coaster, and pretty much two weeks of bouncing up and down upon receiving emails from the likes of Lisa McMann, Meg (freaking) Cabot, Sherrilyn Kenyon, and so many more. More than 200, actually, if you consider only the items we were able to use, and almost 500 if you consider ALL of them.<br /><br />It's also been two weeks of chugging diet coke, of not sleeping, of very long hours, a few neglected edits (I'm so sorry, Abby, I'm working on them!!!), and so on. But for every small down, there have been a dozen ups, and the fact is, no amount of fatigue will ever weigh down the SHEER JOY I have at being able to organize this with Myra and Amanda.<br /><br />Somehow our small dream of raising a few thousand dollars exploded. At this moment we stand at <strong>$60,000</strong> and that's with three rounds left to close.<br /><br />We managed to find our way into GalleyCat, Publisher's Weekly, and about 8 straight pages of google when you search "do the write thing for Nashville". We continue to be shocked and humbled by our publishing community and the incredible support, through donation, bidding, and CHEERING. We could not have done this without our cheerleaders.<br /><br />To all of you, thank you so, so, so much. And with that, we are HONORED to bring you the final round of the "Do the Write Thing for Nashville" auction (And my editor is in this round!).<br /><br /><a href="http:// http://dothewritethingfornashville.blogspot.com/"><span style="font-size: x-large;"> http://dothewritethingfornashville.blogspot.com/</span></a><br /><br /><br />It's been an absolute pleasure hosting this.Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-72221979164803954182010-05-03T21:28:00.001-07:002010-05-03T21:28:54.795-07:00PLEASE PLEASE Spread the word - NASHVILLE.DEVASTATED. <br /><br /><a href="http://pics.livejournal.com/veschwab/pic/0005w5zb/"><img src="http://pics.livejournal.com/veschwab/pic/0005w5zb/s320x240" width="320" height="213" border='0'/></a><br /><br />In case you didn't know.<br /><br />Nashville is drowning. <br /><br />The Grand Old Opry - flooded.<br /><br />The Music City Hall of Fame - flooded.<br /><br />Downtown and the Riverfront - consumed. <br /><br />The Symphony Hall - flooded. $2.5 million organ, and grand pianos - ruined.<br /><br />Homes lost - thousands and thousands. <br /><br />Heritage, culture, history lost - TOO MUCH.<br /><br />Please spread the word. There has been FAR too little coverage of this nationally, and I find it horribly depressing. My city is being devoured. <br /><br />*puts head down*<br /><br /><lj-embed><br /><object width="420" height="245" id="msnbc455df4"><param name="movie" value="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=10,0,0,0"><param name="FlashVars" value="launch=36925152&width=420&height=245"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="opaque" /><embed name="msnbc455df4" src="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" width="420" height="245" FlashVars="launch=36925152&width=420&height=245" allowscriptaccess="always" allowFullScreen="true" wmode="opaque" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.adobe.com/shockwave/download/download.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash"></embed></object><p style="font-size:11px; font-family:Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #999; margin-top: 5px; background: transparent; text-align: center; width: 420px;">Visit msnbc.com for <a style="text-decoration:none !important; border-bottom: 1px dotted #999 !important; font-weight:normal !important; height: 13px; color:#5799DB !important;" href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com">breaking news</a>, <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032507" style="text-decoration:none !important; border-bottom: 1px dotted #999 !important; font-weight:normal !important; height: 13px; color:#5799DB !important;">world news</a>, and <a href="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032072" style="text-decoration:none !important; border-bottom: 1px dotted #999 !important; font-weight:normal !important; height: 13px; color:#5799DB !important;">news about the economy</a></p><br /></lj-embed>Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-73290882659923995142010-04-28T06:19:00.001-07:002010-04-28T06:19:51.921-07:00Wednesday Wants You to be INSPIRED.Grass.<br />Crayons.<br />Glass.<br />Stars. <br />Chocolate.<br />Failure.<br /><br />WHAT INSPIRES YOU?<br /><br /><lj-embed id="67"><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param value="http://www.youtube.com/v/UttpU22qdHg&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6" name="movie" /><param value="true" name="allowFullScreen" /><embed width="480" height="385" allowfullscreen="true" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/UttpU22qdHg&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x006699&color2=0x54abd6"></embed></object><br /></lj-embed><br /><br />If you can't see, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UttpU22qdHg">CLICK HERE</a>.Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-68815764035765500102010-04-22T07:00:00.001-07:002010-04-22T07:00:45.329-07:00A Day in the Writing Life...Hey all!<br /><br />I'm over at the Elevensies (2011 debuts) site today, talking about a day in my writing life. There's dogs, vlogs, and gummy vites. Stop by if you get a chance and say hello/lurk/show some love :)<br /><br /><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span><a href="http://community.livejournal.com/2011debuts"><span style="font-size: x-large;">~*CLICK HERE*~</span></a>Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-67857086344653864732010-04-21T07:15:00.001-07:002010-04-21T07:15:42.315-07:00How Wednesday Puts the Pieces Together.This week on the YA Rebels we're talking about how we get our ideas, and for some reason I kind skirted that question and instead talked about what I do with my little ideas once I have them :p<br /><br />You should watch, because I actually committed to an analogy for once!<br /><br /><lj-embed id=""><object width="480" height="385"><param value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Yyl9Zt9XxU8&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00" name="movie" /><param value="true" name="allowFullScreen" /><param value="always" name="allowscriptaccess" /><embed width="480" height="385" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Yyl9Zt9XxU8&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x234900&color2=0x4e9e00"></embed></object></lj-embed><br /><br />If you can't watch, click <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yyl9Zt9XxU8">HERE</a>!<br /><br />So my question to you all is, how do YOUR stories start?Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-60129645912627952442010-04-18T08:00:00.000-07:002010-04-18T08:01:39.043-07:00On Chocolate.I was going to do a really deep post on subjectivity. I even started writing it. But then I realized I had something more pressing to discuss. CHOCOLATE.<br /><br />Laugh if you will, but chocolate plays a big role in my writing. If you ever saw my very first YA Rebels vlog, I showed the world (or at least the 7 people watching the YAR that first week) my chocolate DRAWER.<br /><br />The chocolate is strong in this one (I hope I got that line right, I have only seen Star Wars twice).<br /><br />I made a comment about my chocolate love on Twitter last night. Apparently, others feel the same. I never expected to get so much sugary support at 12:15 on a Saturday night.<br /><br />But then people say, HOW can you always be eating sugar???<br /><br />And this is where the third factor in my writing triangle comes in. Thankfully, writing and exercise (not EDITING and exercise mind you; during editing I turn into a slug) are really intertwined as well. I've told people, only half in jest, that I tell my stories first to the stripe on the swimming pool floor.<br /><br />So. Writing. Chocolate. Exercise. It makes a good triangle. But back to the CHOCOLATE.<br /><br />Oh chocolate<br />Bitter and yet sweet<br />You tweak my words to make them richer<br />You make my book complete<br />Taken late night from the drawer<br />Snagged in cupcake, bar or cookie<br />I am always wanting more<br />And sugarfied I sit awake<br />And ponder that last chapter<br />The rhythm, plot, mistake<br />The line before, that scene right after<br />Chocolate smooths the moments out<br />And makes the scenes all sweeter<br />Oh chocolate<br />You make my book and me complete...r.*<br /><br />That's about as far as I got before I realized this blog idea seemed MUCH better late last night.<br /><br />But the moral is simple. Chocolate is important. As Jocelyn Davies and I agreed last night, chocolate is necessary for revisions. And drafting, and plotting, and musing, and editing, and percolating, and wondering, and formulating, and thinking, and reading...<br /><br />*That was not intended as a serious attempt. Please don't judge me :p<br /><br />PS. I love that I already had a post tag for chocolate.Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-52949052045202668402010-04-16T07:25:00.000-07:002010-04-16T07:26:41.427-07:00First Teaser from the New Book!I'm taking today off to bond with my new book, to look it in the eyes and ask it about what it wants in life, and woo it with chocolate in the hopes it gives me many words...Anyway, I thought I'd give a teaser!<br /><br /> <br />"I hear a sound, a song, none of the words but the melody, wandering up from the valley. I sit up and look down at the Arch, and see a girl in blue with two dark braids, dancing alone by the falling walls.<br /><br /> Emily has this crown of flowers in her hair that loses petals as she spins, and she looks for all the world like the queen of the wild. Except for the smile. I don’t imagine queens have such foolish grins. It pales only to Edgar’s, as if he turned and kissed her, and left part of his smile behind, an echo."Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-7728402613471215972010-04-14T07:02:00.000-07:002010-04-14T07:04:45.497-07:00The book that scared the crap out of me...And how I wish I'd written it. <br /><br />The theme this week on the YA Rebels is haunting/disturbing/dark reads. My choice below (and it's so so so so good)...<br /><br />If you can't see, click <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWnwdJYR4ls">HERE</a>.<br /><br /><br /><lj-embed id="64"><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/dWnwdJYR4ls&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="480" height="385" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/dWnwdJYR4ls&hl=en_US&fs=1&color1=0x5d1719&color2=0xcd311b" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></lj-embed><br /><br />Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109691713815569335.post-25005084251041671112010-04-11T14:46:00.000-07:002010-04-11T14:47:19.333-07:00SO HAPPY. I FEEL REAL!!!!This makes me SO IRRATIONALLY HAPPY.<br /><br />Many people have asked me in the past few months where my PM listing was, did they miss it, why wasn't it up, was it going to be up, or something to that effect.<br /><br />Well, it's FINALLY HERE.<br /><br />FROM PUBLISHERS MARKETPLACE:<br />April 11, 2010<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Children's: Young Adult</span><br /><br />Victoria Schwab's debut novel THE NEAR WITCH, a darkly romantic original fairy tale set on enchanted moors where children are disappearing from their beds at night, and a 16 year old girl must protect a mysterious boy whom the villagers accuse of kidnapping, to Abby Ranger at Disney-Hyperion, for publication in Summer 2011, by FinePrint Literary Management (world English).<br /><br />*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~<br /><br />A NOTE: I feel like I'm trying to double up on my YAY! and *HUGS* and OTHER FORMS OF DIGITAL ENTHUSIASM because most of the time when people first announce their book deal they show the PM listing with it, but I had to wait on mine for various reasons, and I know it should seem like no surprise/no big deal after eight months of edits...but this is A BIG DEAL for me. It makes it seem REAL. It's an official declaration.<br /><br />It's like, in the south, we have debuts, where you're introduced to society. This is my debut, my introduction, and I feel like I've finally, truly joined the party.<br /><br />And I've NEVER been able to sum up NW in one sentence. I marvel.Victoria Schwabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17570402872200992899noreply@blogger.com5