Wednesday, June 30, 2010

IT'S HERE!!!


IT’S HERE!!!
After months of planning, preparation, hard work, and lots of waiting, The Healing Spell is finally on the shelves. So let’s celebrate!!!


Have a New Orleans French Beignet!
To help celebrate this momentous occasion I’m holding another
AWESOMESAUCE, BAYOU GET-DOWN, LET'S DANCE GIVEAWAY!
This is REALLY easy. 
Just post a comment and you're entered!  
If you want to tell your friends and family about it, go right ahead but it is *not* required. 
I just want to celebrate with y'all!  
 
The prize package contains:


1 Autographed copy of The Healing Spell by Kimberley Griffiths Little
1 Autographed copy of The Last Snake Runner by Kimberley Griffiths Little
1 copy of a Barbara O'Connor book - my favorite southern middle-grade writer! (Your Choice of Barb's Greetings from Nowhere or How To Steal a Dog or The Small Adventure of Popeye and Elvis)
1 Super Soft and Very Cute Plush Swamp Gator From Stuffed Safari
1 Giant bag of M&Ms
1 Box of Twizzlers

You have from July 1st to July 15th TO ENTER!

Sunday, June 27, 2010

This is a STUPENDOUS Day!!!!

BOOK TRAILER LAUNCH DAY!!!
You can’t read the Healing Spell until July 1st but you can get a sneak peek by watching
the new and fabulous book trailer!!



To help more people see this trailer and get excited about The Healing Spell I’m holding a VERY COOL contest. 
And it's easy peasy. Just email the trailer to all the people in your address book, blog about it, Tweet about it, Facebook about it, Goodreads about it. 

On July 15th post your results (how many times you emailed the trailer, blogged about it, Tweeted it, and wrote about it on Facebook), along with your name and email address as a comment on this blog. 
 The three people with the highest results win this
fabulous prize package.
 Help me make history!
My crazy goal is to get 10,000 views of the trailer!!!!!
 
The trailer is a MAJOR labor of love. The original music, the sound effects, the Cajun girl voice-over, the special swamp sounds, the recording, and the full production of the trailer is all done by the completely awesome and amazing people at Nua Music. They are so talented and you definitely want them for your book trailer! Go to their Contact Page on the website and call up Cindy-Rae or Bet to start YOUR trailer today!

 
The prize package contains:

1 Autographed copy of The Healing Spell!
1 Autographed copy of The Last Snake Runner!
1 copy of a Barbara O'Connor book - my favorite southern middle-grade writer! (Your Choice of Greetings from Nowhere or How To Steal a Dog or The Small Adventure of Popeye and Elvis)
1 Super Soft and Very Cute T-Baby Swamp Gator From Stuffed Safari
1 Giant bag of M&Ms
1 Box of Twizzlers

The contest runs from TODAY, June 28th to Thursday, July 15th so start emailing, blogging, Tweeting, and writing on Facebook!

Thank you, thank you for helping me spread the word!
I've been working on this novel for 7 years and I wasn't sure it would ever become a real book so this is a day of pure joy!

Friday, June 25, 2010

Alligators and Real Books!

This is a picture montage of the excitement around here this week . . .


Author copies and cute gators galore!





My book has purple interior to match the purple hyacinth on the front! My FAV color, too!


Uh-Oh! Someone is getting frisky!
 

Friends at last!  


 

Gators on the loose!


We're looking for THE HEALING SPELL at all the local bookstores! Chomp, chomp!
Check out a fabulous book review and contest at Jeni Bell's blog [info]jeniwrites !!!


 

MENAGERIE!!!

Thursday, June 24, 2010

How to Make a Literary Life: CHARMING NOTES

One of my favorite writing books is MAKING A LITERARY LIFE by Carolyn See. She’s funny, irreverent, smart, and has a plan for carving out the literary life you crave that is concrete, effective—and most importantly, do-able. Yes, anybody can do this.
Are you sometimes secretly afraid that you're merely an ordinary Joe/Jane and all of your favorite authors who are up on that pedestal of perfect sentences just look coolly down their noses at all of us? Not so! You too can be a part of the literary scene and the book world—even if you’re just a beginner, have no credits to your name, and are still struggling with a cohesive plot, let alone able to master gorgeously crafted prose. 

That's what makes How To Make a Literary Life such a great book because Carolyn See will give you a realistic PLAN that shows you the path to becoming the writer you want to be and a true part of the literary world. 

I’m going to focus on one of my favorite sections, Chapter Four: Charming Notes
What does Ms. See mean when she suggests/admonishes us to write one Charming Note five days a week for the rest of your life?

“Really? Daily charming notes? Is that true?” you may be asking.

She says, “Write one charming note to a novelist, an editor, a journalist, a poet, a sculptor, even an agent whose professional work or reputation you admire.”  And I would add: or write charming notes to the other writer friends you know or want to know, or the RAs of SCBWI or, or . . . the list is endless.

After you write the note, you put a stamp on it and mail it. YES! We're talking post office here. REAL letters. Pretend you’re still living in the 20th century and email hasn’t been invented yet.

What do these Charming Notes accomplish? They salute the writer, editor, and agent and tell them that what they do is good and admirable. That not even these famous people are laboring over their writing and art in a vacuum. But the notes also say that YOU exist, too—in the same world as the people you admire and would probably drop to your knees and worship if you were ever to meet them. 

And remember - notes! NOT your entire life story. NOT your manuscript. NOT “can I take you to dinner next week when I’m in NYC?”

Be polite, be gracious. Ms. See says: “You’re entering into an emotional and spiritual courtship with the literary world that will last the rest of your life.” (I LOVE this!) 

Carolyn See has tons of very cool anecdotes about *her* charming notes, *other* writers charming notes as well as the “dos and don’ts” of how to write *your* own Charming Notes. 

My personal Charming Note story:
 
Last summer I was finishing up the copy edits for The Healing Spell, and discussing potential blurbs with my editor. Richard Peck is someone I have always wanted to tell “thank you” for the enormous affect he had on my life twenty years ago (before his Newbery’s and big book awards) at two small, very personal conference in Santa Fe, New Mexico. They were magical weekends and I knew that those conferences had affected Richard in a very personal way, too (why I know this is too long to go into and not that important to my story). But I had never written to him before  to say "thank you" - and now he was one of the biggest names in children's lit - and I am just a peon. 

I spent three weeks getting up my nerve. I finally wrote it, revised the letter for another two weeks, got his snail mail address from a mutual acquaintance – and finally mailed it. I was very nervous! Would he think I was a complete dope? 

Three days later, Richard Peck had received my letter and promptly telephoned my editor to say that he would love to read my manuscript. Scholastic immediately made a bound copy for him and personally messenger-ed it over to his apartment! 

Two weeks later he’d read it and sent a blurb for me. He and I exchanged colorful postcards over it all.  

I sent a simple thank you gift. Then I received this: 
 

I’m saving this note Richard Peck sent me in his utterly beautiful and charming handwriting. Oh, yes, I am.

Now go forth. Work on your novel every day. Write Charming Notes. 

And CREATE your very own literary life.

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Summer Fun Game Tuesday!!!

I have no ARCs left! I wish I could send one to everyone, but instead I thought we could play a game.

This NO ARC game is easy peasy. NO need to link, tweet, FB, paste, embed, or widget.

Just shout out (in the comments), a random page # and line # and I will post that particular sentence from The Healing Spell. Pretty cool, huh?

Know what else? You can come back and read all the other page/line choices the other commenter’s chose - which means that you’ll be able to double, triple, and quadruple your money—I mean, um, teasers! And come to my *other* blog for more teaser lines: [info]kimberleylittle

So ask away! As the Cajuns say: “Laissez les bon temps rouler!”

The book has 368 pages. Yeah, it sounds like a lot of pages for a MG, but it’s got big print – very enticing for kids and it actually makes a fast, easy read.

P.S. MAJOR BLOG PARTY NEXT WEEK ON JULY 1!!! I'll be giving away a FINISHED BOOK! Just got my first author copies and it's EMBOSSED! The inside details are gorgeous. A baby alligator and goodies will also be part of the prize package! YES - a baby alligator! :-)

P.P.S. Scholastic is also doing a free giveaway for EVERYONE and ANYONE for
The Healing Spell's launch next week, too! Stay tuned! It's EPIC!

Monday, June 21, 2010

The new YA CRAZE - Dystopian Literature!

Here is a fascinating article from last week in the New Yorker that speaks to some of the WHY'S this genre has exploded the last couple of years and why we are hearing from many authors out there on their blogs that they've just sold their first book - a YA Dystopian. Like Elana Johnson, for instance.
www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/atlarge/2010/06/14/100614crat_atlarge_miller

The New Yorker writer, Laura Miller, says this:

"For young readers, dystopia isn’t a future to be averted; it’s a version of what’s already happening in the world they inhabit."
 

Saturday, June 19, 2010

My First Blogger Award!

The Versatile Blogger - That's Me!
 

RaShelle Workman, an amazing woman and blogger and new friend here in the online world, awarded me The Versatile Blogger. The award is green, so double lucky.

Now when you receive an award, you need to share the love and these are the rules:


Rules:

1. Thank and link back to the person who gave you this award.

2. Share 7 things about yourself.
3. Pass the award to bloggers who you have recently discovered and who think you are fantastic for whatever reason! (In no particular order...)
4. Contact the bloggers you've picked and let them know about the award.

Okay, 7 things about me:


7: There was a time I actually wore plaid to high school. Guess the decade - and no, your first guess is wrong! I'm not *that* old!
 
6. By the time I was 16 I'd had encounters with a spider in my bed, a spider spinning down out of a tree straight onto my head, and a spider inside my bra. A daddy-long-leg, no less! My husband did not believe me when we were first married and I told him that spiders just seemed to be *attracted* to me - until . . . we were lying on the bed one afternoon as I was telling him my spider stories and a spider came down from the ceiling on a single spinning thread straight for me! I made a believer out of him that day.


 
 
5. I am crazy about the color purple. Always have been. So I'm totally giddy over the fact that the inside of my brand-new-just-delivered-author-copies of The Healing Spell is PURPLE!!! To match the beautiful purple water hyacinth on the front cover.
See? See?

 
4. My favorite book growing up that I read over and over again was The Little White Horse by Elizabeth Goudge. I cried every time, too. The odd thing is that almost nobody I talk to has ever heard of the book even though it was pubbed over 60 years ago and is still in print! Prove me wrong, peeps.

 
3. Despite #4, I never was one of those girls who was in love with horses. And I watched my cousin - who was CRAZY about horses get dragged across the yard by her pony when I was visiting one time. Scraped her entire self up but dang good. Horses were okay - but PLEASE give me a book to read!!!
 
2. I can eat an entire pan of brownies by myself. In a day. Dern, that picture looks fantastic. Hey, do I have any Hershey's cocoa in the house . . .

 
1. I belly dance, yes I do! And I have a YA coming out about belly dance and goddess temples in the Middle east. Pubbed Fall 2011 - I hope! The cover below is *not* official - just me goofing around . . .

 
Okay and the 12 peeps I pass the award onto are - and if you are not on the list, please do it anyway because you are ALL amazing!:
 
1. Amanda @[info]out_totheblack 
2.Angie @[info]angie_frazier 
3. Elissa @ [info]elissacruz 
4. Kate @ [info]kmessner 
5. Jon @[info]jongibbs 
6. Jenny @[info]jenny_moss*
7. Jeannine @[info]jeannineatkins
8. Elana @ elanajohnson.blogspot.com

9. Sheralyn @ http://sheralynpratt.blogspot.com/
10. Irene @
irenelatham.blogspot.com
11. Kim @
kimharrington.blogspot.com
12. Suzette and Bethany @
suzettesaxton.blogspot.com

Monday, June 14, 2010

Book-Signing Events and New WIPS!


I have been extremely blessed and lucky to work with Amanda Vega at Scholastic in the publicity department, as well as Stephanie Nooney of the School/Library Marketing.
Amanda asked me for lists of potential reviewers in the magazine, newspaper and blogger world, sent out ARCS, made up a beautiful press release, fielded bookstore signing requests, contacted lots of people and has been a joy and lots of fun to work with. I’ve never had a Publisher Publicist before and I LOVE IT! I don’t feel so alone waiting for the book to come out. Bloggers are receiving their ARCs, I’ve gotten a couple of fabulous blogger reviews already: www.cajunbooklady, and [info]abbylibrarian . I also got a gorgeous review from Booklist - BIG YAY here!

SCHEDULED SUMMER BOOK LAUNCH PARTIES FOR THE HEALING SPELL!
 
Thursday, July 8th at 7:00 p.m. at The King’s English Bookshop in Salt Lake City!

Thursday, July 15th  at 4:30 p.m. at the Los Lunas Public Library in Los Lunas, New Mexico!

Friday, July 23rd  at 7:00 p.m. at a friend’s house in New Mexico – MEGA BOOK BIRTHDAY PARTY BASH!!! Cajun food, Cajun music, door prizes, slide show talk, balloons! If you're going to be in the area, let me know and I will contact you privately about location.

Saturday, August 7th at 3:00 p.m. at Bookworks, an independent bookstore in Albuquerque! The owner wants to decorate like a bayou – FUN! More food, more music

Did I mention that I’m writing TWO new books this summer, too? A Victorian Paranormal set in TWO different castles! And a companion book to The Healing Spell, set in the swamp with a ghost, a charm bracelet and lots of secrets. 
I didn’t?
It’s a loooooooooooooooooooooooooong story.

And I think I'm certifiably crazy!


Friday, June 11, 2010

Launch of my Newly Designed Website!


So here it is . . . after much work and angst . . . MY NEW WEBSITE!!! I've been writing new bios, short and long, so don't forget to click at the end of the sidebar bio for more about me and growing up and writing. Plus there is a Q&A, which is something I've never done before. And my blog - in links to the last 5 posts - comes through on the sidebar, too! Hope you enjoy browsing around. 

You will see a Louisiana theme on the website (the flowers are azaleas in the top corners like these I took last year).



I've been wanting to rant for weeks about the Louisiana oil spill but I can hardly bring myself to think coherently the whole situation is so upsetting to me, let alone write/blog about it.

I hope to blog about my feelings and perspective in the next week or two before
The Healing Spell launches in 20 days! YES, ONLY 20 DAYS AND I'M TRYING NOT TO FREAK OUT. But all will be well for me, I'm sure. NOT so for my dear, beautiful Louisiana and the people I love there. I've been heartsick, angry, and I rant every day to my family, but it's such a helpless feeling.

I just hope that places like this will not become obsolete.



Thursday, June 10, 2010

The story behind the story! SEA debuts today!!!

I met Heidi Kling at the 2007 SCBWI national conference in LA. We had *met* online previously and exchanged emails, but it was very exciting to meet one of my new online buddies in person - and Heidi was super fun and we hit it off right away. I also met her critique group friends from the Bay Area and we spent a lot of time hanging out together, having meals, chatting, talking books, but what was even MORE exciting was that DURING the conference she got a VERY EXCITING PHONE CALL FROM HER AGENT - she had AN OFFER from Putnam on her manuscript, SEA!

It doesn't get better than THAT!

CONGRATULATIONS, Heidi!!! You did it!

And it's a beautiful book.



 
 

Monday, June 07, 2010

It's BIG, it's AWESOME, and it's LIVE!!! (And there's 9 FREE SIGNED BOOKS, too!)

Middle-Grade books = MAGIC. Kids devour their favorite books, laugh and giggle, shiver with goose bumps, and sometimes sob on their pillows with strong emotions. When I was young, books were my lifeline, my best friends, and books were usually better than real life. That’s why I now write middle-grade books—to recreate the magic and discover new best friends, and sometimes sob into my pillow.

So, without further ado, go to the most awesome site on the net today.  Yes, this wonderful group of Middle-Grade writers joined togther to create THE PLACE FOR ALL THINGS MIDDLE-GRADE! And we're thrilled and excited and pleased and proud of all of our hard work.
*cue fanfare*
www.fromthemixedupfiles.com

And because we are so awesome , in our first post (penned by [info]elissacruz ) we are giving away NINE middle-grade books.  Yes! NINE! 

But, wait!  There's more!

Those NINE books are all SIGNED COPIES!  (See, I told you we were awesome.)  So, really, you need to go there. Now. 

In fact, here's the link to the first Welcome Post. 
http://www.fromthemixedupfiles.com/2010/06/our-first-post-and-our-first-giveaway/ 

There are sections for Writers.
There are sections for Parents.
There are sections for Teachers/Librarians.

Check out the About Us Page - which I wrote. :-) As well as our bios of the people who made this happen. 
LOTS MORE SUMMER GIVEAWAYS ARE ON THE HORIZON, TOO!

Join us on Twitter!

Join us on Facebook!


HAVE FUN!!!

Sunday, June 06, 2010

Do You Love Middle-Grade Books?

Well, if you do - SOMETHING VERY BIG AND WONDERFUL is launching TOMORROW, MONDAY, JUNE 7TH!!!

If you like to read Middle-Grade books.
If you're a writer of Middle-Grade books.
If you're a teacher of Middle-Graders.
If you're a librarian of Middle-Graders.
If you're the parent of a Middle-Grader.

IF YOU'RE CRAZY ABOUT MIDDLE-GRADE BOOKS!!!

Links and Very Cool Stuff this way comes . . . !!!

Friday, June 04, 2010

Five Things - the Quick Version!


1. 25 days until Pub Date - July 1!!! It doesn't seem *that* long ago that it was a year away. My, how time flies! It's interesting that the book was chosen to launch right before the July 4th Independence Holiday.

2. The final chapters in The Healing Spell take place during the Independence weekend. Those final scenes include danger by shotgun, a wedding, a death, a confession, a traumatic event, and a cute boy. But not in that order.

3. It helps to write a new book while you're waiting for pub dates and news!

I wrote one this past year, CIRCLE OF SECRETS that was under contract, just started another one ( a Victorian Paranormal Thriller that I'm quite excited about and just finished drafting Chapter Two) and I'm in the throes of planning a third one at the same time I'm writing the paranormal - a MG set in Bayou Bridge, Louisiana. Scholastic wants a companion book to THE HEALING SPELL, and they want the same timeless feel of THE HEALING SPELL. It's going to be about mother's and daughters and ghosts and secrets and friendship.

4. My awesome Scholastic publicist is helping me plan book party launches. I have 4 so far lined up. Announcements next week for times/dates/places! Fun, fun, fun!

5. Gotta start writing my book launch TALKS. Nervousness! But the past couple of weeks I've been reading some fantastic posts on
Shrinking Violets Promotions, one of my favorite blogs, about book tours and book talks and tips for how to survive without freaking out and crawling under a table. REALLY GOOD STUFF in this post two weeks ago, too!

And Here's a FAB interview about public speaking and promotion from
Maggie Steivfater on Shrinking Violets. 

Thursday, June 03, 2010

My FIRST Review - BOOKLIST!!!

all I can say is, Wow! I'm THRILLED!!!

Advanced Review – Uncorrected Proof
Issue: June 1, 2010

The Healing Spell


Little, Kimberley Griffiths (Author)
Jul 2010. 368 p. Scholastic, hardcover, $17.99. (9780545165594).
Eleven-year-old Livie is terrified when her father insists that they bring her comatose mother home from the hospital. How can she look at, much less touch and care for, Mamma when she alone knows that she caused her illness? As Mamma continues to languish in bed, Livie grows more and more estranged from her family, a chasm that begins to close only after she gathers her courage to visit the local traiteur, who gives her the formula for a healing spell. As Livie collects the spell’s necessary ingredients, she begins to open up to the knowledge that she is loved and cherished by her family. Little explores the extremes of childhood guilt and its consequences in this harsh yet well-crafted story about fully drawn people. The bayou, with its rich culture, is an atmospheric character that overlays the story with mystery and dread. A special offering for readers seeking a challenge of the heart as well as the mind.

— Frances Bradburn


Wednesday, June 02, 2010

Scholastic Sisters!

CRAZY WEEKEND! Wasn't home hardly at all. No blogging. No reading blogs. Yesterday was even CRAZIER, actually! But I dragged my sorry self to the library, exhausted, and managed to write 5 pages. I was tired of not being able to write like I wanted to! Goal: 10 pages today!

BUT!!!

Yesterday was the official launch date of my Scholastic Sister,
[info]angie_frazier 's debut novel EVERLASTING!!!

Gorgeous, isn't it?

(Click the book cover to go directly to Amazon)

My copy shipped a week ago! Why is it taking so looooooooong to arrive???

Angie and I have gotten to know each other over the last year and she is the sweetest, bestest person and writer!

And I cannot wait to read this book!!!!


Here's her website, too, inspired by the setting and story of her novel.

CONGRATULATIONS, ANGIE!!!!!!!!!

MY PUBLISHED BOOKS

MY PUBLISHED BOOKS

Winner of The Southwest Book Award!

Time travel, war, love, rattlesnakes, magic . . .

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