THINGS FROM OTHER WORLDS Goodreads #giveaway and tons of other news!

So much going on this October!

My book launched. You probably know that, but just in case, you can check it out on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Indigo, Kobo, iBooks, and so on.

My YA urban fantasy story "Compound Spelling" was published in Vitality Magazine.

I published a ton of writing advice:
- In my Kid Lit Insider column on EatSleepWrite
- On Drunk Monkeys
- On Rate Your Story

I set up a Goodreads giveaway. Enter for a chance to win one of three copies. This is open until Nov. 15 to fans in the US, Canada, and UK. (You're welcome!)

Let's see...what's coming up? Here are the highlights so far:

November:

There's a month-long event called #99centNovember I'll be part of. Details soon!

Sunday, Nov. 15, 11:00 am (Eastern), I'll hold my official launch party for THINGS FROM OTHER WORLDS. Everyone of all ages is invited! Details on the Facebook Event Page.

Monday, Nov. 16, 7:00 pm (Eastern), I'll read a story from THINGS FROM OTHER WORLDS as part of the Rough & Ready reading series in Manhattan. I'll post more details as they're available.

Fri, Nov. 20- Sun., Nov. 22, at PhilCon in Cherry Hill, NJ, I'll do a reading and be on some panels. I'll post my entire schedule once I know it.

December:

My YA story "Toori's Constellation" will be published in Young Adventurers: Heroes, Explorers, and Swashbucklers from Intrigue Publishing.

A Peek at 2016:
My story for adults "Proof of Reincar(bo)nation" will be published in Alternate Hilarities 5: One Star Reviews of the Afterlife from Strange Musings Press. If you like my Webrid novels, you'll enjoy the style of humor in this.

My children's story "Organized in the Nick of Time" will be published on the Rainbow Rumpus website.

Heckuva week: A new #kidlit blogging gig and 3 story sales!

It's been a crazy few days. And I mean crazy in a good way (for once). Here's the scoop:

1. I've been named the first-ever Children's Lit columnist for a wonderful website called Eat Sleep Write.

2. Dreaming Robot Press will publish my middle-grade sci-fi story "Leafheart" in the 2016 Young Explorer's Adventure Guide. I'm especially pleased about this, both because I was also in the 2015 edition, and because the folks at Dreaming Robot are outspoken advocates of diversity in kidlit.

3. Urban Fantasy Magazine will publish my weird, funny tale called "The Duchess of Fitzrovia," which I wrote a couple of years ago during a trip to London.

4. Strange Musings Press will publish my story "Motherlode" in the anthology Alternate Hilarities 2: Weirder Science. If you're a fan of my Webrid books, you'll enjoy the style of this space mining caper.

Items 2 and 3 are made especially sweet because both were revisions requested by the respective editors. This maintains a stat of which I am exceptionally proud: I have a 100% acceptance rate on stories I've been asked to revise. That's a darn good skill to have in this biz.

Know When to Hold 'Em

Kenny Rogers is not usually my role model, but he had it figured out in his song "The Gambler."  I'm still learning when to hold 'em and when to fold 'em in the publishing world. 

Recently I withdrew a story from consideration at a magazine I greatly admire.  Four months after my submission, the editor had said he liked the story but didn't know where to fit it in.  Six months and a status query later, I still had heard nothing, so I withdrew the piece.  Next day comes the email: "But we were going to tell you today that it was scheduled."

It seems that time moves at different speeds depending on which end of the game you're playing.  Now I've learned to be infinitely patient.  I just got one of those "Love it but can't fit it in" emails from another editor, and I'm counting this one as an acceptance.  If she publishes the story while I'm still drawing breath on this earth, that will be fine.