mary e. pearson

The road trip continues . . .

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 21:44:58 GMT

Today must be the day for road side stops and exploring. The Miles Between road trip has made another stop! All the way from California, to Texas, and now to . . .

you will just have to click here to see which part of the country we are getting to see now!

I am loving seeing all these different places and the particular spots that are special to you.

Where in the world . . .

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 15:32:49 GMT

is The Miles Between now?

The road trip continues! We are seeing the country! All the way from Seal Beach, CA to . . .

you will have to click here to find out!

This is too much fun. I love the--oops. Can't give it away. But let me just say, The Miles Between got to travel in style!

Detour!

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 17:16:26 GMT

What's a road trip without a little detour?

Well, I have one for you.

A new cover! That is, the same cover in many ways, but we've picked up some riders along the way:

I really like the tweaked perspective (it fits with the story) and it gives you some taste of the characters inside. And as a bonus, there will be a fun surprise beneath the dust jacket. But you will have to wait to see that.

Sometimes unexpected detours are quite lovely--and surprising.

Tuesday quick snips . . .

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 00:47:08 GMT

1. The disinegration of a marriage is not entertainment. And if it is, will we be throwing people into a ring with lions next? When will TV go back to hiring real writers to write real shows? Enough already.

2. kazdreamer has a post wondering about POV and tense. Interesting because I was just wrestling with this myself. I don't think there is any right pov or tense. I really believe each story calls for its own telling and there is one best way for that story to be told, but sometimes it takes some experimenting to know which pov and tense works best. The only pov I haven't done yet is second but I suppose one day that story might come along.

3. Over on the Facebook AJF page they have asked the question, which three words would you use to describe yourself?

4. The sun is on vacation if you were wondering . . .

5. Spoke at a conference wtih teachers at SDSU yesterday. In the face of all these budget cuts, their dedication rose to a whole new level.

6. De mijlen tussen! Found out that The Miles Between sold Dutch rights! Hooray!

7. alixwrites has news about the Beastly movie!

8. Book burning? Which century am I living in?

9. Why does everything break at once: Car (rear-ended), laptop (dead), TV (dead, which really, is no big deal)

10. I received a fan letter a few days ago that made me cry. Sometimes crying is a good thing.

YOUR favorite eats . . .

Wed, 17 Jun 2009 23:06:43 GMT

I've had a lot of fun on this road trip tour so far. No flat tires yet, and only one soda spilled on the front seat. It looks like the first leg of the tour is complete with all four ARCS reporting in. We've visited . . .

Libraries in Longview, dairy pastures in Vermont, seals in Seal Beach, and haunted hotels in Miami. It has been great to see all of your miles. And the gas tank is still full--now that's my kind of road trip.

But while we're waiting for The Miles Between to make it's next stop, I thought I would send out a question to all of you:

If I were driving through your town and I was hungry, what is the ONE place, hands down, that you would tell me to stop and eat at?

Can you tell it's close to dinner time here?

And the 4th ARC . . .

Tue, 16 Jun 2009 00:31:08 GMT

has checked in! It's traveled all the way to . . .

Longview, Texas! And is in the good hands of Chaney Bennett, the YA librarian at the Longview Public Library. Chaney doesn't have a blog so she sent this picture for me to post.

I am thrilled to see her reading THE MILES BETWEEN in the library--in the teen section no less! Chaney offered these very kind words about Miles:

"I just finished reading the ARC for The Miles Between, Mary E. Pearson's latest book, which is scheduled to be published in September! She also wrote The Adoration of Jenna Fox, which you can find in our YA section. You're going to love her new book, which made me cry but made me so happy that I read it."

Only a writer likes to hear they made some cry. Thanks, Chaney!

And now I hear she has sent off the ARC on the next leg of the tour. I wonder where in the world . . .

Another stop!

Fri, 12 Jun 2009 17:28:30 GMT

Where in the world is THE MILES BETWEEN now?

The road trip has cruised into . . .

Well, I won't tell you, but it is fun. (Who would have guessed that ARCS could be sad?)

And this is definitely the place to keep the top down on the car.

I am so there! Check it out!

Where in the world . . .

Wed, 10 Jun 2009 17:02:25 GMT

We have another stop on the road trip!

Where in the world is The Miles Between now?

Here!

I'm ready to pack up and drop in for a surprise visit. Too beautiful.

More miles . . .

Wed, 10 Jun 2009 16:11:12 GMT

I loved reading sartorias 's post yesterday and seeing the pictures of Seal Beach. It brought back so many memories. I grew up just a few miles from Seal Beach and that sleepy little beach town is where I spent a lot of time during my teen years--first surfing, first romance, first car dent (sorry Mom). Before we could drive, my dad used to drop us off with all of our surfboards at the crack of dawn (best waves) and we would spend the morning surfing and the afternoon walking up and down Main Street, popping in shops and ultimately ending up at Jack-in-the-Box to eat their dripping greasy tacos. Yes, my arteries are probably still trying to shed those years off.

Once we could drive we would sometimes venture farther south to Bolsa Chica, Huntington Beach, or occasionally all the way down to Leucadia and what we dubbed "secret spot" but Seal Beach was always our home beach.

As sartorias mentioned, there are no seals at Seal Beach, but my dad who had lived in the area since his teens said there used to be legions of them. Maybe it was their "secret spot" and they didn't like it when all of us humans decided to hang out there too. (Though humans didn't seem to keep them away from The Children's Pool in La Jolla where they moved in and moved the swimmers out--to the delight of most residents.)

I also loved seeing the picture in her post of her family posing with their station wagon, ready to take off on a road trip. Road trips and camping were all my family ever took because--well one, they simply couldn't afford planes and hotels--but more importantly, my dad loved to be outdoors and fishing. He grew up in Arkansas and that was how he spent much of his childhood. I heard all the stories about catfish in Arkansas that were as big as a man--plus all the other fish stories too. There were a lot of them. So sitting by lakes and rivers in California, waiting for the "big one" to bite was our primary vacation. Like sartorias, we have many pictures of our family posing by cars (and trailers) ready to embark on an adventure--two girls and a boy in my family too, though I was they youngest. Which meant of course, you know, I got the middle seat--the bane of the third child.

Anyway, sartorias, thanks for sharing your miles. It brought back a lot of memories. Even the car dent makes me smile--that's the magic of a few years.

Where in the world . . .

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 16:11:53 GMT

We have our first stop on the road trip!

Where in the world is The Miles Between now?

Right here!

It couldn't be more fun--or more quirky!

sartorias has stirred up so many memories for me--it is one of my old haunts!

Woot!

Thu, 04 Jun 2009 18:32:56 GMT

I found this out about a month ago, but couldn't say anything until they announced it on their website, but now I just saw the news is up so I can spill!

The Adoration of Jenna Fox has won the Distinguished Work of Fiction Award from the Children's Literature Council of Southern California. Hooray!!

And fellow Henry Holt author, Hope Anita Smith, won the Myra Cohn Livingston Award for Poetry! Hooray again!!

Check out the other award winners - Cheers to all!

Getting there!

Thu, 04 Jun 2009 01:38:26 GMT

Since we are in the middle of a road trip, I thought we should know WHERE we are going, right? Bone up on our geography! So, if you dare. . . take the test, and post your scores! (and see if you're smarter than a fifth grader)

Sadly, I think most fifth graders will do better than me. My scores for locating the states were:

78% correct
49 miles average error
457 seconds

That means almost 1/4 of the time I will be getting us lost! Or at least 49 miles off course!

Whoever has the best score will be hailed the Geography Queen or King and get shotgun for the rest of the trip.

Question of the Day

Wed, 03 Jun 2009 19:16:21 GMT

How do you find a worm on a tomato bush?

Hypothetically speaking, of course, but it might me useful for one to know how a worm that is eating enough to feed a whole freaking cow (and leaving droppings to match) could hide on one little tomato bush.

It's the million dollar question. Any ideas?

Too much fun . . .

Mon, 01 Jun 2009 21:53:45 GMT

And I wish I could just play chopsticks--with my fingers!

And we're off!

Thu, 28 May 2009 23:39:00 GMT

The Miles Between Road Trip begins!

The arcs are off, and here's the starting point--Carlsbad, CA! This is The Miles Between at the historic Leo Carrillo Rancho (well, historic in California terms) in Carlsbad, just a couple of miles from my home. One of the reasons I chose this site to show off is because it is a very peaceful and beautiful place to walk or picnic (if you are ever in my neck of the woods) and also because peacocks make an appearance in The Miles Between and this is one of the places I went to do a little research on them. If you nose around the Carrillo site there is a lot of interesting information but not a lot about the wild peacocks that roam around. They definitely run the show there, strutting where they want--and sometimes with their loud yelps, they can be quite intimidating. This shot is just outside the old barn, where the peahens often nest.

Here we are at the old Carrillo house. This peacock really isn't standing on top of that prickly tree . . .

Here is that same bird from the opposite angle. Like I said, they go wherever they want.

Around the backside of the barn I found the white peacock who always seems to hide in the outskirts. I laid my book down, and he started approaching, getting closer and closer, and I kept backing up (they're big, ya know?) I guess he was just curious (or maybe he wanted to read?) but I got a nice close up view of this white beauty.

So these are a few of my miles--can't wait to see where the road trip takes us next!

Where in the world . . .

Road Trip! Road Trip!

Thu, 28 May 2009 16:07:25 GMT

Drumroll please . . .

And the first Road Trip bloggers climbing in the car are:

In the order that I picked them:

1. Jo Knowles!

2. Erika!

3. Chaney Bennett!

4. Sherwood Smith!

Hop in the car gang! Let's see the country and your neck of the woods! Let me know the address where you would like me to send The Miles Between Tour Arcs and lets get this trip on the road!

Thanks to everyone who threw their name in the hat! I am going to keep the rest of the names to draw from in case someone along the route asks me for another person to send their ARC to--so you might still be going along for the ride!

I can't wait to see all the miles between us! Let the road trip begin!

Around Blog Town . . .

Wed, 27 May 2009 19:38:56 GMT

An interesting discussion of ARCS at A Chair, A Fireplace, and a Tea Cozy. I've visited several book clubs this past year, where guests show up with ARCS they ordered on Amazon and they had no idea when they were purchasing them that they were not the finished books. I think when you are in the book world you assume that everyone knows what an ARC is, but the vast majority of people do not.

An interview with Alex Flinn about her new book A Kiss in Time is over at the YA Authors Cafe. I love the cover. There is something mesmerizing about all that emerald green satin.

Kelly Herold has a new blog, Crossover, about books that cross age boundaries, in particular YA books that appeal to adults and adult books that appeal to teens.

Over at d_michiko_f she has an interview with Jeanine Garsee and a chance to win a free signed copy of Jeanine's new book, Say the Word. Get on over there!

Even as we speak, Jeannie Stith is recording the audiobook for Brilliance Audio for The Miles Between. I had the chance to hear a voice clip and she sounds like the perfect Destiny. I can't wait to hear it. Wish I was a mouse in the studio.

oh! And the "wallpaper" I mentioned yesterday. Wish I could include the tropical breeze too.

Turtles, Geckos, and Mynahs . . .

Tue, 26 May 2009 21:08:30 GMT

oh my!

I'm back from a short vacation, where I shared a room with several geckos. They were quiet fellows so I didn't mind. Actually, I loved it. And just outside our door were giant toads, mynah birds, egrets, and in the cove just steps away, sea turtles. I didn't get a lot of pictures this trip, but I did take a few for wallpaper on my computer. I like to use those throughout the year to at least mentally take me away. I will post those in a few days for anyone who might want some tropical wallpaper to warm them on a chilly day.

But hey! While I was gone, Kris took away the crown! I know I am a little late with this news, but it is worth saying again. I don't think it was the guyliner at all. I think Matt Lauer on the Today show got it right--the judges all but crowning Adam before America got to vote, had a negative effect. Worse, it backfired on them. I feel bad for Adam but I know he will do well.

I am doing lots of other catch up too--a lot of people have written to say they are on board for The Miles Between Road Trip. Yay! Tomorrow is the last day to throw your name in the hat so if you want to be part of the ARC tour, let me know! I will draw names Thursday morning.

Now to go unpack and do laundry. And figure out which clothes still fit me. The loose ones, I know. No more macadamia nut pancakes, papaya, pineapple, and mai tais for a while. Oh, and those deadly caramacs. hm, hm.

Wow!

Sun, 17 May 2009 22:28:50 GMT

I am so excited that so many of you are ready to kick off The Miles Between Road Trip.

Now you really have me curious--there were a lot of you who said you already had possible "pictures" picked out. Hmm. I wonder . . .

There is still time to throw your name in the drawing if you want to be one of the "kick-off" road trip bloggers. You can find more information about it in my last post HERE.

Hope you are all having a relaxing weekend. I am nursing a sore shoulder from being a little too exuberant yesterday (or more likely,using bad form) in a game of virtual tennis--the wii kind. And even for all my enthusiasm, I still lost. Lost at baseball too. There must be a wii sport I am good at . . .

Road Trip! Road Trip!

Fri, 15 May 2009 13:49:40 GMT

We're going on a road trip! No, not me--the ARC! The Miles Between ARC is headed out on a cross country road trip starting here in San Diego and ending up on my editor's desk in New York City by publication day on September 1st!

Since THE MILES BETWEEN is an unusual road trip story, my editor and I decided it deserved an unusual road trip of its own. And this is where YOU come in. THE MILES BETWEEN is going to see the country! And there are lots of miles between San Diego and New York to see!

Here is how THE MILES BETWEEN road trip works:

1. READ AND PASS ON

Each person who gets The Miles Between ARC can have it for a maximum of two weeks before sending it on to the person of their choice in a different town–make sure the person you choose knows the rules of the ARC tour before you send it to them. If you don't know who to send it to, email Mary@marypearson.com and she will give you another recipient to mail it to.

2. TAKE A PICTURE

Take a picture of The Miles Between ARC somewhere in your hometown. Show off a favorite coffee shop, store, park, street--something your town is famous for--surprise us! Give some press to your favorite neck of the woods! Then post the picture on your blog and send me the link, or send a picture to me and I will post it on my blog. We all get to see the country! Unusual places. Quirky places. Fun places. YOUR places.

3. THE DRAWING

Once you have posted a picture on your blog of The Miles Between somewhere in your hometown and you have sent me the link (or the picture to post on my blog)– along with your contact information–I will enter your name in a drawing. At the end of The Miles Between cross-country tour, I will draw TEN names from the “road trip bloggers” to receive free personalized and signed copies of the final hardcover of The Miles Between.

4. END OF THE ROAD
Whoever has the ARC on August 20th is the last person to get it. The road trip is almost over. The last road trip blogger mails it by August 20th to my editor, Kate Farrell, in NYC so it arrives in time for the official publication day on September 1st! Remember, to be entered in the drawing, you must send me a link to your blog with the picture of The Miles Between, or a picture for me to post by midnight August 20th. Again, send to Mary@marypearson.com .Once they have all arrived, Kate will take a picture of the travel weary ARCS enjoying their final destination at the famous Flatiron Building in NYC and Mary will draw names and announce the winners.

Each ARC package will come with envelopes(6) and postage--all you have to do is address the envelope and make sure the remaining envelopes get tucked into the ARC package for the next recipient. Feel free to sign your names and write messages on the inside covers of the ARC. I can't wait to see all the miles between San Diego and New York City--your miles!

If you want a chance to be part of the tour, get a sneak peek of THE MILES BETWEEN before publication, and show off your home town too, comment to this post, or email me privately at mary@marypearson.com (For emails, please put "The Miles Between Summer 2009 ARC tour" in your subject line!) All comments to this post or emails must reach me by Wednesday May 27th because the next day I will draw the four names to kick off THE MILES BETWEEN Road Trip.

If you are wondering what The Miles Between is about, these early readers, Professornana, A Million Words, and The Well-Read Child share their thoughts about the story.

So, who is ready to go for a ride? I can't wait to see the country with you!

Humungargantuan cotton balls . . .

Thu, 14 May 2009 02:49:08 GMT

I've had a lot of great book visits in the last week and I hope to get pics posted soon but I had to ask a quick question about this:

I saw these gigantic cotton balls hanging from a tree outside the Coronado Library and I felt like I stepped inside a Dr. Seuss book. You'd think being in California I would have seen these before but I haven't. What are they? Or maybe I DID step into Seussland?

In Living Color . . .

Tue, 12 May 2009 22:36:03 GMT

The last several days have been crazy busy (aren't they always?) but I've been meaning to get this picture up ever since my sister sent it to me. As some of you know, I have peacocks in my neighborhood, so pictures and sightings of them always catch my interest.

But none of them in my neighborhood strut around like this guy (yes, it is a guy--the injustice of nature) and I almost didn't think this was a photo when I saw it--it looked like a drawing:

I am not much of a photographer. For me it is point and shoot and hope I don't cut someone's head off, so photos like this blow me away. Just so you can see, here is another shot where you can tell more that it is a photo. She used a "high contrast" (?) filter which is why the color stands out so brilliantly.

Pretty cool, huh? I think NBC needs to go back to their "living color" logo (does that date me? Yep.)

In other news, my publisher created a page at Facebook for The Adoration of Jenna Fox (with the new cover!) so come on over and "friend" me and Jenna if you are Facebook inclined.

Oh! And very soon I will have fun news to share for THE MILES BETWEEN. Stay tuned.

Friday Five . . .

Fri, 08 May 2009 20:51:50 GMT

1. Sometimes even four cups of coffee do not get your butt in gear.

2. Sometimes the people you expect the least from surprise you and give you the most.

3. Will the picky bluejay who keeps brushing all the seed out of the birdfeeder to get to his "favorite" seeds, kindly stop? There is more seed on the ground now than in the feeder.

4. Excited about the paperback cover. Very different from HC, but I love it. Out in August I am pretty sure.

5. Warm weather, patio time, and pizza tonight. Heaven.

The Big Read . . .

Fri, 08 May 2009 18:47:00 GMT

Stockton rocks. The drive from the airport to Stockton was beautiful. On the way I passed olive and almond groves, vineyards and pastures. And the weather was perfect.

Librarian Goddess, Miranda Nighbor, arranged all the details for the day and was also my escort, getting me where I needed to be. She is amazing. Thank you, Miranda.

Our first stop was Ripon High School. We couldn't fit everyone into one picture so we took two. The students were wonderful, asking lots of great questions. After my presentaion I had a little bit of time to talk to students individually. I love that. They give me back energy.

Here I am with librarians Alicia and Miranda, and teacher Cameron (?) I hate it when I forget names. I met several teachers that day and I may be mixing up her name with another, but I am grateful to them all for sharing
YA books with their students. (l to r: Cameron?, moi, Alicia, Miranda)

Nest stop was Franklin High School. Another wonderful crowd. (Did I say, Stockton rocks?) Sometimes large auditoriums can get a little restless, but I couldn't have asked for a more attentive and thoughtful audience. I was way impressed.

My last stop was the Chavez Public Library. What a fun group of librarians. I wish I would have gotten a picture with them--enthusiastic with ~~wacky~~ great senses of humor. A "volunteer" even did an impromptu puppet show for me while I waited in the office for my talk : ) Loved it.

My audience was a mixed group from teen to adult. It was smaller audience so we had more time for some personal interaction--and food! The Youth Advisory Commission posed some discussion questions to everyone about The Adoration of Jenna Fox. It was interesting to hear various thoughts--one thing about AJF is there are lots of poles and opinions. Here I am with some of the YAC's. Joseph, the teen towering over us shorties, read a passage from AJF for everyone. I have never heard someone ELSE read my book to an audience before and it gave me chills to hear it that way.

Thank you Miranda, Stockton-San Joaquin PL, Ripon, Franklin, Chavez and the YAC's for a fantastic visit. You are awesome.

Ray Bradbury and more . . .

Tue, 05 May 2009 19:33:52 GMT

Getting a few things ready to take off tomorrow for Stockton, California, where I will be participating in their Stockton Reads! program--part of national program, The Big Read.

Their community book is Fahrenheit 451. I read this in high school and was in awe of Ray Bradbury and his writing. Years later as an adult and would be writer, I was in awe of him again when I read Zen and the Art of Writing. Lots of inspiration. But then years later, I was in awe of Ray Bradbury again, the very nice and real man.

My family was in Park City, Utah and our paths happened to cross his outside of a hotel. I pointed him out to my girls and told them who he was. They were thrilled. A real author! And a famous one! They wanted a picture with him. I was a little nervous to ask, so I approached him very quietly and said, "Are you Ray Bradbury?' (just in case he was a look-a-alike ; ) He said yes, and I asked him if he would mind if my girls took a picture with him. Oh, the nerve! But he was more than gracious. He put his arms around my girls, smiling and asking them questions and said he would be happy to be their "honorary grandfather" for the weekend. I snapped a shot of them all grinning, and that day I not only admired Ray Bradbury the great author, but Ray Bradbury the man, filled with warmth all the way down to his bones.

So yeah, I am especially happy to be included in this event and that my book is even remotely mentioned in the same breath with this wonderful writer and man.

I will be speaking at two high schools in Stockton and also at the Chavez Library on Thursday at 5:00. Will post pics as soon as I can. I may even experiment with Twitpics on Twitter. Ah, I guess that means I better experiment today since I leave tomorrow. So if you see some odd pics on twitter ( @marypearson ) it is me trying to figure it out.

In other news, check out an interview at the YA Authors Cafe with Carol Lynch Williams about her new novel, The Chosen One!

And for your revising and editing chuckle of the day, this video is a must.

Love it.