I Have Returned!

And the internet breathes a collective sigh of relief.

Or, you know, didn't realise I'd taken a break in the first place ;) .

But yup, I did, I took quite the break as you can tell from the below post which was about my book launch early December.  It was nice to do so, and I'm glad I did it.  Taking a break from something allows you to miss it!

And, yes, I have missed blogging :) .

I have several interesting things to share with you, stuff has happened over the past several months, and there may or may not be a new book coming out from yours truly in the early summer maybe.  But I'll be posting on all such news in the coming days/weeks (I am nothing, if not a tease).  Today is more for me just to say hi, it's good to be back etc.

Though, I do have one most important thing to share with you all . . .

I cut my hair.

Yes.

I know.  Stop the presses.

But I haven't cut my hair short since I was 14 and it was a rather traumatic experience I must say.  Though ultimately it was also amazing.  It's weird, I never thought I particularly identified myself by my hair.  It wasn't like I ever did anything particularly crazy with it or anything.  But after cutting it I realised just how much I subconsciously had.  It's silly, but something as innocuous as cutting one's hair (and, not sure if you heard, but hair?  It totally grows back) can be a pretty huge emotional experience.  It wasn't like I went all pixie haircut either.  Didn't pull an Anne Hathaway (though, if I ever cut my hair that short, you'd better believe I'll be singing as it happens like she did).  Still.  Emotions were felt, my friends.  Emotions were felt.

Here is a photo diary of the experience:

Waiting at the salon - Salon Bespoke in Toronto

"Well hair, this is it."

". . . that happened."

And there it all is.  In a baggie.  And no, not for a keepsake, I donated my hair to Wigs For Kids.

And the final result. . .

Being an actor I then had to immediately get new headshots (yes, it makes any decisions about changing one's look delightfully more complicated :P ) so here's the oh so serious fancy picture (that I instagrammed a bit for fun . . . or maybe because I have a serious instagram addiction . . . )

And that is the story about cutting my hair.

The end.



ALSO . . . did you know the fox was the new owl??  (because evidently animal trends are a thing)  This is a big deal for yours truly because as a pre-teen I was OBSESSED with foxes.  While my friends had pictures of boy bands covering their walls, I had foxes.  Yup.  Should I have admitted that? . . . you know I don't see how that's any more embarrassing than boy band pictures if I think about it so I admit it with pride!

Anyway, it's brought back the 11 year old Adrienne and I've had such fun surfing the net and looking at all the pointless (but AMAZING) chatchkas out there one can buy that are fox like.  And I stumbled on this print and I think it's wonderful, and wanted to share.  I know little about the artist aside that their handle is cat_using_a_computer.  I think it's just lovely, it has a very whimsical British feel.  Enjoy!

 

That's it for now!  We have some pretty cool stuff coming up this week, an interview with an amazing prop maker for some major films who also in his spare time makes the coolest iPhone steampunk cases for Steampunk Tuesday, details about my new book . . .  and more!  

Stay tuned!  Same bat time, same bat channel!

Steampunk Tuesday - An Adrienne Photoshoot

. . .The director of a film I shot last year needed some still photographs for said movie, and he suggested that for a lark after we took those we could play and take some more pictures, maybe some Steampunk stuff.

And of course he had me at Steampunk.

Now I actually did a photoshoot earlier this summer for some Steampunk photos that I could use for conventions etc, but those pics aren't ready yet (my fault, I was given a contact sheet a mile long and the photos are really good - which I take no credit for, it's all the photographer's talent - so choosing which I want is quite the effort), so in the meantime I felt like sharing some of these from the spontaneous shoot.  'Cause . . . why not? :)

You'll note they are very Adrienne Steampunk.  That is to say, they have a dash of Steampunk, but aren't as intensely Steampunk as some of the amazing pics you'll see out there.  I know it sounds odd, and counter to everything that makes the genre what it is, but I'm kind of into a minimalist Steampunk aesthetic, lol. 

So without further ado . . . some green!

. . . A lot of green . . .

 

Last but not least . . . 

Slightly blurry thumbs up!  The funny thing about my pics is that I look oh so serious in them and yet when taking the pics I can barely keep a straight face. 

Some FRIDAY SOCIETY updates

Okay! So I thought I should share some FRIDAY SOCIETY updates as, you know, there are some.



* First and most importantly, for anyone seeking to read an excerpt - chapter one is now available online here! Yay!


* Second I will be appearing at Word on the Street, 4pm on Sunday September 23 at the Penguin Pavilion moderating the Women of YA panel.


* Third . . . here is what the jacket is going to look like!  I believe the proper term for this is "squee".  This is so beyond exciting for me.  The cover is printed on pearlescent paper so it has this sheen to it, and the title/my name/three girls are embossed.  I also really like the section they quoted on the back cover - and check out the silhouette!  How Charlie's Angels is that :) .  I also love how the flaps continue with the pinwheel design, and have these little decorative features in the corners.

Unfortunately despite numerous attempts, my pictures are slightly out of focus :P .  But I think you get a decent sense of what it looks like:

Zee jacket

Zee shiny

Zee reverse side - where you can see the embossing

* Last but not least I am very honoured to share with you a blurb from science fiction and fantasy author, Ms. Julie Czerneda. She's an all around amazing woman, very talented, and extremely generous. You should buy all her books now. Though she is also quite prolific so it might make a slight dent in your wallet.

And so . . .

“THE FRIDAY SOCIETY is what I’ve been waiting for, a dashing adventure bursting with atmosphere and originality, where the day shall be saved by women of brilliance and character. Keep writing, Kress! I must have more! Most highly recommended.”

- Julie E. Czerneda, author of A TURN OF LIGHT


And . . . that's it for now!  Further bulletins as events warrant!  (<-- a sentence I learned when I was a child from Calvin and Hobbes):

 

Steampunk Tuesday - Anachronisms or You can DO that??

Steampunk laptop:  You can DO that???

First off, I have to say, I love the word "anachronism".  By which I mean, not just, "Dude, that's a sweet word with an awesome definition."  I mean I love the word.  I love saying it. Say it out loud to yourself, right now. It's a fantastically chewy word. One where you really have to enunciate each syllable or you run the risk of tripping over yourself.

Yeah. I really like saying that word.

Second.

You may recall a while ago I finally broached the subject of why I, Adrienne Kress (yes, I am Adrienne Kress) love Steampunk. I had a nice list. Said list is here.

And the first, or rather sixth but technically it was meant to mean first, reason why I love Steampunk is Douglas Adams. That is to say my love of absurdity.  That is to say my love of mixing things together that never could possibly actually be mixed together in real life.  That is to say my love of, "You can DO that??"

So today I thought I'd elaborate on my number one, or rather number six, reason why I love Steampunk. And that's when we get to say, come on, all together now:

Anachronism.

If I was in highschool the next thing I'd say is:

The Webster's Dictionary defines Anachronism as:

1: an error in chronology; especially : a chronological misplacing of persons, events, objects, or customs in regard to each other 

2: a person or a thing that is chronologically out of place

Now if that isn't Steampunk I don't know what is.

The idea that one can set a story in the past but include all manner of things that never existed back then is just so totally mind-blowingly amazing to me.  You see, it's fiction.  It's all fake.  So . . . why not?  Why not just play with what does and doesn't belong in stories? 

I just love that.  I love the person who first thought outside the box like that.  It makes so much sense to me.  And it's also totally ridiculous.  Which makes it all the more amazing.

I love also seeing the problem solving involved in it.  The creativity, e.g.: how do I invent a means to travel to the moon using the technology of the time?  Scott Westerfeld is utterly brilliant at the how.  I love the humour, reading a description and then realising that what the author is sharing with us as seeming so foreign is actually working towards the reveal that what is being described is, say, a cell phone.  

I love how a society that shouldn't have any relationship with futuristic technology can be so laissez-faire about it: "So tomorrow morning I shall be taking the dirigible to Cambridge, that is, of course, unless you need it."  

I also like how one can be not only anachronistic with props and costumes and set pieces, one can be anachronistic in attitudes and behaviour.  One can explore race and gender issues, bring them to the surface with far more ease than in a purely historical novel.  Play with what ifs, not be constrained by what happened in the historical timeline but speculate how the timeline might have been different.

And then there's voice.  I mean the voice in which the novel itself is written.  And something that I have wanted to write about for a while: my own process at finding the voice for THE FRIDAY SOCIETY,  which I think is perfect for this subject because the voice I chose is inherently anachronistic.

So . . .

Aside from all of the above, I decided to play with with the voice of the book itself.  Now this hadn't always been my intention.  In the beginning I wrote my proposal for TFS in a lovely oldy-timey voice.  But it just wasn't working.  My editor Nancy and I were going back and forth trying to figure out why that was, and I was getting kind of frustrated. So in a rebellious mood I just re-wrote the scene in an entirely contemporary voice. And then I read it over. And I kind of liked it. And then . . . then I had a thought: "Maybe I'm approaching this wrong. Maybe the voice doesn't need to be constrained by the time period."

And then I had a nice montage flash through my brain ("This is a montage!") of works of fiction that had given me "You can DO that??" moments when it came to voice. I'm talking Sofia Coppola's MARIE ANTOINETTE, and even A KNIGHT'S TALE (which I felt didn't 100% work, but not due to the voice, so I still use it as an example). Even DEADWOOD, which seems on the surface like it stayed true to period, doesn't entirely.  The writers realised they couldn't use the swear words of the day because they sounded too cheesy and so stuck with the tried and tested F word (not that that word didn't exist back then, but it wasn't used in the same way as we use it now. It really did mean what it meant, it wasn't just used as an expression of frustration).

There was also a translation of CYRANO DE BERGERAC I had seen staged once that modernised some of the slang and swearing (while still keeping the heightened language) that I loved so much, I bought the play.

These were films/television/plays set in the past but with a contemporary flare. The attempt was to demonstrate a relatability, I think, to show that things back then in some ways could be considered similar to now. Marie Antoinette was akin to Paris Hilton. Only you know, with bigger dresses and more beheading.

I remembered too the first time I encountered it and had a good think about it. How, I realised, while we have some examples of casual everyday speech from the past, and delightful lists of slang, most of the source material we average non-linguistics major Joes use to create conversations set in the past is the literature or theatre of the past. And that that language is a heightened form of writing. It isn't actually representative of how people necessarily spoke every day (though I'm sure some people did, Oscar Wilde for example). It's like people saying that people today all speak like Aaron Sorkin screenplays, or the Gilmore Girls.

So when we emulate the literature of the past in our own, we aren't emulating how people actually spoke. We are emulating how the writers of the past represented how people of the past spoke.

Basically my realisation was: it's not verisimilitude. Despite that period's interest in verisimilitude (can you tell I was a theatre major and studied WAY too much about the history and development of that subject, oy . . . ). Now this isn't to say I don't enjoy a good period piece. I in fact adore a good period piece. And that I don't enjoy the voice myself. Anyone who has read my short story in CORSETS & CLOCKWORK will see that I really do.  It's just it made sense with TFS to write it in a contemporary voice.  It seemed more true to the story I was telling.  It suited the fun, cheeky and, to borrow a word from my back cover copy, irreverent tone of the book.

But that's not all.

Say it with me now . . .

Anachronism.

YES! It all comes back to "You can DO that??" Because why not?  If I'm writing a book that already isn't true to period, with little anachronistic details like jet packs and steam carriages and crazy weaponry, why can't the medium itself be anachronistic?  Why not write a book set in the past, but with a contemporary voice? The whole darn book itself is steampunk! Dude! Woah!

So that's how the voice came to be.


Wow, that was a bit longer than I anticipated.  But I think it demonstrates how much I enjoy anachronisms.  And I guess not just saying the word.  But the definition itself.

But I still also really do love saying that word.

Anachronism. :)


And thus begins my series on Adrienne's Detailed Analysis of Why She Loves Steampunk.  Next week I shall move onto the number two, by which I mean five, reason I like Steampunk:  My love of SF/Fantasy.

But until then . . .  I ask all my lovely Steampunkers, what are some the coolest anachronistic moments you've seen or read in a Steampunk creation?  

The month and a bit that was . . .

Well now that was a whirlwind is what that was.

August came and went and left this temping actress writer in more than just a little daze.

However I'm back now, and I'm going to return to regular blogging. Especially my Steampunk Tuesdays as I've come up with some new topics about which I am rather excited to write. But I thought I'd start things off with a little summary of what I've been up to in this crazy month.

First: The Temp. Not glamorous at all I realise, but necessary, and actually quite enjoyable. I really do like meeting new people, and seeing how various businesses run their . . . business. Also sometimes you temp places with cool views:








Second: The Actress. I got a small role in a film. I haven't actually filmed my day yet, but there has been a table read and getting to know the cast and crew, and it's been all kinds of awesome. More details as I am allowed to reveal them.

I was also cast in a TV pilot called PARANORMAL INVESTIGATORS - a parody of those supernatural investigating shows. It was a lot of fun to do, with a lot of very talented people both in front and behind the camera. The actual weekend of that shoot was crazy though: by day I was the actress and by night . . .

Third: The Writer. . . . I had to drive an hour and a half outside of the city to participate in an author event in Orillia with fellow authors Julie Czerneda, Anne Bishop and Mark Leslie. I arrived just in time for the readings to begin, and they were awesome. Truly. Everyone read so well - which as people who attend author readings often can tell you, doesn't always happen. Then we crossed the parking lot to the Stephen Leacock house for the cocktail party.  It was his cottage once upon a time and I've decided it is pretty much my dream cottage:



 

Biggest pool table ever.

I had a fantastic time touring around and chatting with folk. Then I stayed overnight in a hotel and first thing the next morning drove back to be . . .


The Actress again, shooting day two of PI. Here are some pics from the two days!

The gang watching back some footage.

Take six!

The DOP: Bob.

Me and the possessed kid we investigated: Jayden. He has assured me that when I am cast in his movie, I get to wear comfortable shoes. Score!

L to R: Scott Leaver, Shawn Ahmed, Patrick McKenna, Me, Nicole Smith

Back to The Writer: This was also the month of FanExpo - the big SF/Fantasy convention here in Toronto. I attended all four days (with a brief escape to be Actress again and do an audition), and did one panel - on Steampunk writing of course, with my usual cohorts: J.M. Frey and Rob St. Martin. It was . . . for want of a better word exhausting. But it was also a great deal of fun. Hanging out with fellow author buddies like Lesley Livingston and Violette Malan; seeing Doc and the DeLorean reunited; and watching people stand in line for two hours to see Gillian Anderson.

Yup that totally is Doc (Christopher Lloyd) sitting on the DeLorean.

Me and Lesley Livingston.

Me and Gandalf. He didn't talk much. Or move. Or breathe.

The lead up to FanExpo was also exhausting as I had to prep a lot of stuff to bring with me. Most of all these buttons, which I designed and made myself (well made as in on Photoshop, the physical product was put together by the amazing people over at SixCentPress.com):



I am most proud of my Michiko button. You may notice I had to give her a neck (Cora's arm covers it in the original image). They were quite the success I must say, with "Hero" coming in as most popular, and "Be Your Own Hero" a close second.


Last but not least, my book was included as swag in the Bask-It-Style gift bag for TIFF (the Toronto International Film Festival - which just ended yesterday) - a bag that gets delivered to the visiting celebs. They host a media day so the press can come in and see all the goodies the celebs are getting. It's a long day, talking about the book to a bunch of people touring through. But it's also very fun and you meet some cool people. Here are some pics of said day!

The books being given away.

(photo by Todd Williamson)
Me and singer Fefe Dobson. And yes, she is wearing my Steampunk hat. Because she's awesome that way.

The view from the penthouse we were situated in. Did you know Toronto had islands?
We totally do, baby!

And that's it! Well that's not really it. I also spent time with friends and family. And explored the city, which I think one should always do in one's own hometown. I visited High Park, Riverdale Farm (for the first time). Even went to The Ex and had deep fried butter! Would you believe it isn't nearly as disgusting as it sounds? Though I did walk home (over an hour's walk) after . . .


It was a good month and a bit, and things are only just starting to rev up. Kind of crazy that December and the launch of TFS is still months away, but there is still so much happening in between! I'm really going to try to be good and keep you all posted this fall. But I also highly recommend, if you are desperate to know what I am up to (and really, who wouldn't be), to check me out on Twitter where I do tweet pretty regularly: @AdrienneKress

I hope you all have also had a lovely month and a bit. And now that I'm done this bit of show and tell, it's your turn! What did you guys all get up to this August??

THE FRIDAY SOCIETY ARCS!

I get back from my trip to London, England, and I find the most glorious welcome home present EVER waiting for me!

Yes, THE FRIDAY SOCIETY ARCs have arrived, and they is soooo pretty!

They made me burst out into song.

For those of you familiar with ALEX AND THE IRONIC GENTLEMAN, said song was "Jack", which as you know is one of the more complex and nuanced of the songs in that book.  Of course, wherever there was a "Jack", I replaced it with "ARC".  Thus:

ARC, ARC, ARC, ARC,
ARC, ARC, ARC, ARC,
ARC, ARC, ARC, ARC,
ARC, ARC, ARC, ARC.

And so on.


I call this new song: ARC.



And now, of course, it's time for show and tell!

Just so you get a sense once again of Greg Stadnyk's fabulous design work, here is the front, spine and back cover for the ARC as seen as one full image:

Isn't it just amazing??  I'm not sure how he managed to compile so many different elements on one cover and not make it look too overwhelmed or busy, but . . . he did.


Next.

Here are all the ARCs together.  You will notice they were tied in a pretty blue ribbon.  Because a pretty blue ribbon makes everything that much more special:

Now here is the back.

And here is the spine.

And here is a peek at the inside . . . Part 1 to be precise. 

 See all those pages???  That's a hefty book my friend.  A hefty book indeed.

Oh are you oh so excited???  Because I am!!!  I use triple question marks AND exclamation marks!!!

As always I have to thank everyone at Dial for their enthusiasm and general awesome-ness in putting together such a gorgeous object with such lovely attention to detail.  Specifically, as ever, my editor Nancy Conescu who just plain rocks.

Also...

YAY!!!!!!!!!

Cover Reveal for THE FRIDAY SOCIETY (!!!!!!)

Today is a very exciting day for me, as it is for most authors.  Today I get to reveal to you all (FINALLY) the cover for THE FRIDAY SOCIETY!

But first, I thought, you should know my game plan for this blog post.

1. I shall reveal the cover!
2. I shall reveal details of an amazing contest to win a one of a kind Steampunk necklace inspired by THE FRIDAY SOCIETY.
3. I shall write at length about what I adore about this cover and anything else that comes to my mind on the subject.

But first I want to thank some amazing blogs who are helping me in this glorious reveal:

The Story Siren
The Book Smugglers
These are two of my favourite YA book blogs, the ladies that run these sites are enthusiastic, know their stuff and have a great sense of humour - seriously go check them out.  Immediately.  No, WAIT!  Wait, check out my cover first, THEN check them out.  At any rate, I am totally honoured that they agreed to help me out today.  Thank you, ladies, again so much.

That Cover Girl
You guys have heard me go on about this blog before.  I just love how this lady dissects book covers, she's got a fantastic eye.  And I am thrilled for my cover to be dissected by her (and a little nervous).

The Steampunk Scholar
I have also mentioned this fellow a few times, as well as linked to lists of his top Steampunk books and his post about Steampunk as an aesthetic.  A true class act, and again, thrilled that my Steampunk cover is gracing his insanely fabulous Steampunk blog.





And finally . . . drum roll please . . .



THE COVER (and blurb) -

Be Your Own Hero . . .

Set in London at the turn of the last century, the novel follows the stories of three intelligent and very talented young women, all of whom are assistants to very powerful men: Cora, lab assistant to a member of parliament; Michiko, Japanese fight assistant to a martial arts guru; and Nellie, a magician's assistant. The three young women’s lives become inexorably intertwined after a chance meeting at a ball that ends with the discovery of a murdered mystery man.

It’s up to these three, in their own charming but bold way, to solve the murder—and the crimes they believe may be connected to it‐‐without calling too much attention to themselves.

Told with Adrienne Kress's sharp wit and a great deal of irreverence, this Steampunk whodunit introduces three unforgettable and very ladylike--well, relatively ladylike--heroines poised for more dangerous adventures.


 Find THE FRIDAY SOCIETY on Goodreads.


THE CONTEST

Here's your chance to win an amazing one of a kind Steampunk THE FRIDAY SOCIETY inspired necklace designed by Steampunk jewelry maker Lady Lilleigh.

It's really very simple, leave a comment below and I shall choose the winner by April 13th (yes that is Friday the 13th :) ).

And now a little bit about the prize:

Suspended from a 24 inch antiqued brass chain, this tribute piece to The Friday Society boasts elements inspired by the main characters: a 1 inch silver bullet for Cora; a black feather for Nellie; and brass 'throwing star' gears for Michiko. But the true appeal of this pendant is what brings it all together, three alluring ivory ladies on a small tarnished brass tone cameo. The cameo measures 0.75 inches long and the steel pendant base measures just under 1.5 inches in diameter. 

THE LONGWINDED BLOG POST

Okay.  So.  Can I just say.  I love this cover.

I mean . . . seriously.

Love.

Possibly even lurv.

Is that going a bit too far?

No, I don't think so.

First I have to obviously thank Dial, Penguin for their amazing amazingness, and then I must signal out a few people.  Obviously the first is my editor Nancy Conescu who is marvelously patient with all my neuroses.  She is also the one who kept me up to speed on every step of the cover designing process. And the next are of course the photographer and designer of the cover: Michael Frost and Greg Stadnyk. Gentlemen, I bow in your general direction.

Truly I have been beyond thrilled at how up to date Penguin has kept me with the progress of this cover.  As some of you may know, I am quite obsessed with covers, I even designed one for my fabulous author friend Danielle Younge-Ullman's novel FALLING UNDER.  So I adored being kept in the loop.

I was sent headshots of the models before they did the photoshoot - and I knew right then that Penguin was on the right track.  The girls they chose to portray my girls are spot on.  What I love best about them is that they look like real people.  They are very pretty of course, but they look . . . real, like individuals with distinct personalities.  Of this I rather approve.

And then I was sent the first relatively quick mock-up of the cover.  It was shocking how quickly the turnaround happened from the photoshoot to the mock-up, and how they seemingly threw it together sans effort.  Of course I say "seemingly" because it is clear a lot of work went into it.  I saw it, and I was immediately all, "Can I share it can I share it!"

And Penguin was all, "Silly rabbit, we aren't done yet!"

"We aren't?"

And so a few weeks later I was sent another one.  Small changes had been made that made big differences (an example I can offer you is they added the blueish glow to Cora's goggles).  And again, I was all . . ."Can I can I?"

And they were all, "No."

Finally, and finally, we get what we have here today.

And I said, "Can I!"

And they said, "Yes." :)

And such love, my friends, such love.


That isn't the end of this blog post though, in case you thought you could move on now.  No.  Now we must dissect what Adrienne loves about this cover.  Because the wonder of blog posting is that there is no word limit.  So dangerous when it comes to me.

What I love about this cover:

1.  The three girls.  Let's meet them shall we?  From left to right - Nellie Harrison (magician's assistant), Cora Bell (personal assistant/lab assistant to a member of Parliament), Michiko Takeda (fight assistant to a self defense guru).

I've already talked about what I like about how the girls look (though I should add I also adore their outfits . . . and weapons).  What's also fantastic about them, is the way they are posing.  They look tough.  They look like they have agency, that they can take care of themselves. Which is good.  Because they do and can. :)


2. The pinwheel effect.  Okay, note to self, adding a pinwheel automatically makes stuff look awesome.  It's subtle, but present.  It both draws the eye into the middle of the page, and explodes out in fantastic fun times.  It adds a wonderful sense of energy.  Love it.


3. The London skyline.  Because it's the London skyline.


4. The grainy effect.  Look up close, the picture has been made to look slightly weathered. Cool?  Yes, yes it is.


5. The font(s).  Font, to me, is often far more important than any other element on a cover.  It can make the difference between whether a cover is seen as professional or not.  And it can dictate the intended audience for the book.  I love both the fonts on this cover.  I love the title, I love how strong it looks, how cool, both contemporary and classic.  And I love my name.  I mean, I love seeing my name on a cover of a book in any font really (it's kind of overwhelming every time when you do see it - and maybe just maybe I got choked up seeing it on this cover for the first time), but this font is also just plain cool. I don't know why, but I love that the A isn't pointy.  Yeah, I know, but I do.


6. The border.  Now I have had the honour of being bordered by many a great object.  With ALEX we had octopus tentacles.  TIMOTHY we had a dragon:

And this time, well this time we get a supremely kick-ass Steampunk mechanical piece.

That border might be just about my favourite part of the cover.  Not quite my fav, we'll get to that at 7.  But still.  Yes it is all kinds of Steampunk amazing, but what I love about it the most is that it really looks mechanical, like a real machine where one piece influences the other, and not just like there are some random gears hanging out together 'cause, you know, they're gears and they've got that in common.  I also love how the border makes the whole cover have a kind of movie poster vibe.  And as a fan of movies, you can understand why this would make me happy.

Lastly I love the accidental continuity.  That I get to be border girl!  All my books have borders (despite being published by different publishers and being different genres), and I love borders, and I love my books.  So it's like such a love fest man.


7.  And my number 1 (which I guess is number 7 for some reason) thing I love about this cover is . . . wait for it . . .

This:

??

This is a screw.

There are four of them, one in each corner of the cover.  Making the cover look like it's been screwed onto the book.  It might not be grand, it might hardly be noticeable at first glance, but it's this kind of small detail I absolutely adore.  It demonstrates care, and I think wit as well.  The cherry on top of the sundae. 



So there you go.  I've likely gone on long enough.  But, guys, seriously, I am beyond excited.  Every step along the way makes this all so much more real.  And it's been a while since I've had the pleasure of doing a cover reveal, and it's all kind of an emotional mess for me.  I am so excited, so grateful, and so . . . okay I'll be honest . . . terrified (in a good way of course :) ).

I remember blogging about the book deal a year and a half ago.  And now it has a cover.  That's pretty darn cool.  Pretty darn cool indeed.



(don't forget to enter the contest!!)

The I Haven't Read The Book Club – MEGAN CREWE, with ADRIENNE KRESS

Next Wednesday I will have the distinct pleasure to participate in an event featuring young adult author Megan Crewe.  I will be introducing her and interviewing her, and running a writing workshop based on her latest novel THE WAY WE FALL.  The event is free, and yes, consider this my invitation to you all to come.

I will, of course, remind you all closer to the date so you can make sure to come, but I wanted you to know now because Small Print Toronto, the organisers of the event, are running a contest where you can win a signed copy of THE WAY WE FALL, and contests are awesome.  Visit Small Print's event page for more details (scroll down a wee bit and you'll find information on how to enter).

Here is the information about the event itself:

THE I HAVEN’T READ THE BOOK CLUB  – MEGAN CREWE, WITH ADRIENNE KRESS

Wednesday April 4 – 6:30pm-8:15pm
Toronto Public Library, Northern District
40 Orchard View Blvd, Toronto
FREE  (Space is limited - Advance Sign-Up Encouraged)

And here is a little blurb about the book itself (it's truly a page turner):

It starts with an itch you just can't shake.  Then comes a fever and a tickle in your throat.  A few days later, you'll be blabbing your secrets and chatting with strangers like they're old friends.  Three more, and the paranoid hallucinations kick in.

And then you're dead.

When sixteen-year-old Kaelyn lets her best friend leave for school without saying goodbye, she never dreams that she might not see him again.  But then a strange virus begins to sweep through her small island community, infecting young and old alike.  As the dead pile up, the government quarantines the island: no one can leave, and no one can come back.

Those still healthy must fight for the island's dwindling supplies, or lose all chance of survival. As everything familiar comes crashing down, Kaelyn joins forces with a former rival and discovers a new love in the midst of heartbreak. When the virus starts to rob her of friends and family, she clings to the belief that there must be a way to save the people she holds dearest.

Because how will she go on if there isn't?

Poignant and dizzying, The Way We Fall is the heart-wrenching story of one girl's bravery and unbeatable spirit as she challenges not just her fears, but her sense of what makes life worth living.