Nomad

DC was never going to be permanent.

I could say the same thing about every place I've lived for the past decade or so. When my family moved to Florida, I knew I wouldn't stay. I grew up with brilliantly-colored autumns and winters that never ended, I wasn't built for that constant heat. And Tokyo had an end date built in. I didn't have time to get comfortable, even though part of me did anyway.

And when I came back to Boston for college, I knew two things: that this was my home without a doubt, but that once those four years were over, I wouldn't necessarily get to stay.

My relationships with places have always been as fraught and complicated as my relationships with people, and for this city, it started as a business transaction. It didn't matter that we were incompatible from the start. It had a job for me, my first real job, so there I was. I didn't think it'd be a problem, leaving this place. I had far fewer attachments here than in any city I've ever lived in. I'd be out the door before it could sting.

But attachments show up whether I like it or not - they always do. The things I hated about this place softened into one big affectionate eye roll. Then I found things to like, then I found things to love: the food, the bus routes, the monuments all lit up at night. I got into the habit of turning off all the lights and pulling back the blinds every night before bed to look out at the National Mall, and I grudgingly had to admit that this place could be beautiful when it wanted to be.

I love it here. I made more amazing friends than I could have hoped for. But I'm still a tourist in the world of politics, and the kind of life I'm looking for as a writer isn't here in DC. So at the end of next month, I am coming home to Boston. And while you can never really say what's going to happen next, it'll be the first time in a long time that I won't be carrying escape routes in the back of my head.

It's exciting, and terrifying, and I'll miss this place more than I can stand. Maybe I'd hoped, at the beginning, to avoid these mixed feelings. But I'm a writer. I should have known better than that. :)

Wish me luck!!

State of the Becky

Heyyyy, all! I hope everyone is doing well, and I hope the USians among you are staying safe amid this swath of summer storms.

Sorry it has been so quiet around here lately! I am still around, lurking and reading all your posts, but I have not had much to post lately. It seems I have finally reached the point in my publishing journey where it's better if I just keep my mouth shut about the specifics until I have something concrete to say - which is not a natural impulse for me, having blogged so heavily about my querying process, but I'm getting used to it! So all I'll say is: all is well, my soul remains uncrushed by this business, and perhaps someday in the future I will be running all over the blogosphere screaming news from the rooftops.

In the meantime, I have hammered out my writing schedule for the foreseeable future, and I am really excited about it. There was a significant period of time last year where I had a lot of half-formed ideas but wasn't truly excited about any of them, but now I'm really happy with my line-up and I can't wait to get to work. And, of course, this allows for the prospect of a new idea coming in and sweeping me off my feet, which is always fun.

Here's what I've got on tap, and the order in which I'll tackle them:

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Project #1: Revisionland! Once again. =P I would have thought that revising a single manuscript so many times would be a tad bit disheartening, but it's actually really fun. There's something really fascinating about working on something you know inside and out -just when you think you're done renovating, you find a whole new floor of the house you haven't even touched yet. Working on this one has really been a crash course in how to be a better writer. I'm just waiting on some notes, and then off I go again.

Project #2: Drafting overhaul. I generally don't do this, but Project #2 is a special case - the drafting process got pretty broken up amidst all my trips to Revisionland, and though I had 60k under my belt in the first draft, I realized I was going into Act Three without any of my usual momentum. And since this is probably one of the most heavily structured stories I've done, I need that momentum!

So once those Project #1 revisions are done, I'm going back to the beginning with Project #2. I won't be starting from scratch, but I can change the things I need to change, and keep the rest consistent. And that'll free me up to plow full speed ahead into the as-yet-unwritten denouement!

Project #3: Drafting! FINALLY. Project #3 has gone through two or three false starts since I came up with the idea a couple years ago, and it's finally ready to go. And I couldn't be happier. It'll take me back in a more surreal, fantastical direction (Project #2 is straight gothic horror), it takes place in one of my favorite cities in the world, and if I do it right, it will give people nightmares. So let's hope I do it right.

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So that's what I'm up to, loves. What are you working on this summer?

A Special Preview for Leigh Ann Kopans' ONE - in Comic Form!

Hey all! As I'm sure many of you know, the fabulous Ms. Leigh Ann Kopans is coming out with her debut novel, ONE, TOMORROW! As a proud (and thoroughly psyched) member of #TeamONE, today I will be posting the final graphic novel-style preview of ONE. For more information and to see more of the comic, see the link list at the end of the post!

Find a full list with links to the other installments of this series on the author’s blog: 
www.leighannkopans.blogspot.com

Or follow the author on Twitter @LeighAnnKopans for daily updates!


About ONE (a novel by Leigh Ann Kopans:)

Release date: June 11, 2013

When having two powers makes you a Super and having none makes you a Normal, having only one makes you a sad half-superpowered freak.

It makes you a One.

Sixteen-year-old Merrin Grey would love to be able to fly – too bad all she can do is hover.

If she could just land an internship at the Biotech Hub, she might finally figure out how to fix herself. She busts her butt in AP Chem and salivates over the Hub’s research on the manifestation of superpowers, all in hopes of boosting her chances.

Then she meets Elias VanDyne, another One, and all her carefully crafted plans fly out the window.

Literally. When the two of them touch, their Ones combine to make them fly, and when they’re not soaring over the Nebraska cornfields, they’re busy falling for each other.

Merrin's mad chemistry skills land her a spot on the Hub's internship short list, but as she gets closer to the life she always wanted, she discovers that the Hub’s purpose is more sinister than it has always seemed. Now it’s up to her to decide if it's more important to fly solo, or to save everything - and everyone - she loves.

Add ONE to your Goodreads and learn more about the author here: http://www.goodreads.com/book/
show/17251203-one

Things to love about Boston (and Cambridge, and Somerville, and so on)

Driving across the bridge at night with the windows rolled down.

Getting hilariously lost and eventually figuring out where you are in relation to the Pru (or the Citgo sign, for that matter.)

Friday night singalongs at Jake Wirth's, and how Pianoman judges song appropriateness by the lateness of the hour. ("Lola? At 8:00? Ask me again when everyone's had a few more drinks.")

The view from the windows of the train when the Red Line rolls across the river at the MGH stop.

Umbrella jousting with Newbury Street crowds on a rainy Saturday morning.

T operators who see you running down the stairs and hold the train for you.

Dinner at Bluefin. Or Addis Red Sea. Or Shabu-ya. Or Fugakyu. Or any Indian restaurant you can find.

The North End. All of the North End.

That immediate bond you feel with other pedestrians when a driver does someting monumentally stupid. Especially when you all start cussing him out at the same time.

Walking all the way from Kendall to Porter on a beautiful day.

Hot taro milk bubble tea.

Irish coffee at 1:00am in some random pub you've never seen before.

$10 nosebleed seats at the theatre.

The thick, thick accents of the T operators. "Next stop: Pahk Street."

Waiting for the bus on a freezing winter night and huddling with your closest friends for warmth.

The way you have to work together to hold each other up on a crowded Green Line train.

Building a Halloween costume from whatever random pieces you can find at the Garment District.

Running to catch your movie at the AMC Boston Common after one of those ridiculously strong cocktails in Chinatown. Bonus points for high heels.

Game day. Even if you're not going to the game.

The way certain T stations will always be under construction.

The way the old and the new bleed into each other - the sheer amount of character in each square foot of architechure.

A quiet morning and a Dunkin iced coffee the size of your torso.

The sarcasm, the abrasiveness, the snark, the gallows humor. The knowledge that despite all of it, these people have your back.

Descending into the tunnel on the drive from Logan and knowing that when you get to the other side, you'll be home.

A peaceful moment in a beautiful town

There's nothing I could possibly say right now, so here's a video of a dog playing fetch in the fountain in Copley Square, Boston.

Linkage!

Hello darlings! I have been busy busy busy lately, but here are a couple things I've written that may be of interest to you:

Revising with an Agent on Operation Awesome - some tips on unagented revisions, and things to keep in mind!

My 17 & GONE review on Afterglow - in which I devour Nova Ren Suma's latest, and gush about it in a vaguely coherent manner.

Phew. I've got lots to catch up on, so I better get to it. I hope you're all getting a great start to your week!

Pens for Paws



Hey all! Want to bid on some fantastic prizes and help raise money for an awesome cause? The Pens for Paws auction is going down right now to raise funds for Fat Kitty City, a no-kill, cage-free cat and dog sanctuary located in El Dorado Hills, California. You can bid on signed books, agent critiques, and even a fabulous Operation Awesome package full of critiques and more swag than you can shake a stick at, featuring the ladies and gents of Operation Awesome. (Yours truly included!)

Bidding for the OA package ends on March 15th at 11:00pm, so don't miss it!