Some Really Cool Stuff...

I always wonder how much of what goes on behind the scenes with THE BODY FINDER I should post on my blog. Not because it’s a secret or anything, but how much do you guys really want to know (or do you really care to hear)? And then I see other authors making announcements or I’m asked questions about how things are progressing, so I thought I’d make a list of some of the cooler things that have happened the past few months to give you guys a glimpse of what’s been going on in my world:

1) (And this is probably my favorite!) THE BODY FINDER has sold in Germany! Thanks to the fabulous, amazing, divine, and did I mention fabulous (?) folks at HarperCollins Foreign Rights Division, we had a little bidding thing (in my head it was a full-scale war and now the German publishers are feuding) at the end of April. Yeah, probably not. But, in the end, I have found a great home at Coppenrath as a lead title for their Fall 2010 line. Just in time for Oktoberfest, right???? (You were wondering about the beer guy, weren't you?)

2) THE BODY FINDER is available for presale on Amazon. With a real date and my Melissa Marr blurb! (YAY!!!) Of course, no cover yet. (Boo!) But it’ll come eventually. It’s a little surreal seeing my name and my book on the pages of Amazon. And, of course, I preordered it, so now I get these emails saying: “we’ve noticed that customers, like you, who have ordered THE BODY FINDER have also ordered [insert book title here].” Really? People are rushing out to preorder a book with no cover and no real description? Who are these people???

3) Publishers Weekly (THE bible of publishing news) announced their Spring 2010 Sneak Peeks, and the first book listed under HarperCollins/HarperTeen…? You guessed it, THE BODY FINDER! That was a WHOA moment. Dude, seriously? I’m awed to be in such amazing company on that list!

4) Then, along those same lines, my editor was interviewed by The Book Smugglers and asked what upcoming titles she had in the works, and of all of her titles (and trust me, she is a busy and sought after woman) she named TBF first, saying: “The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting is fantastic – it’s got a dreamy romance, a creepy paranormal ability (you can probably guess what it is from the title!), and a total page-turner of a thriller plot.” Umm, wow. Just wow!

5) And I can’t say enough about all of the great reviewers and bloggers who have listed THE BODY FINDER as their picks for Waiting on Wednesday, Friday Finds, Books to Wish/Pine For, who have done cover announcements, also Jacqueline at The Eclectic Book Lover for posting my first interview, Sarah for asking me for my first autograph (even though it was for Kelsey), and just everyone in general for all of the TBF love!!! Also, to those of you who’ve already read THE BODY FINDER and have emailed me privately…thank you!

I’d better go before I get all sappy on you guys and start telling you how much I love you and that you’re the best friends a girl could ever have…*sniff*.

Because you totally are!

Friday Five...Flashback Edition

Some random facts about my childhood:

1) My first car was a Nissan Pulsar. White with plush red interior. Who doesn't love a sweet red interior???

2) I used to force boys be my boyfriend. Poor little Scotty in the first grade had to hold my hand during storytime. I feel like I owe him some sort of apology now.

3) My first job was as a concession girl at the Kent 6 Cinemas. The smell of movie theater popcorn is the smell of minimum wage.

4) Thanks to a little show called BJ AND THE BEAR, I once wanted to be a lady trucker. I would have had a boyfriend in every city, a faithful German Shepard companion, and a tricked-out sleeper compartment (you know, for all the boyfriends). And, no, those would not have been "forced boyfriends"...they would have been there of their own free will. Because I was gonna be a smokin' hot lady trucker.

5) During my Madonna (circa Like A Virgin) phase, I wore head-to-toe lace to a wedding. Complete with leggings, headband, gloves, and a whole lotta bangle bracelets. And I totally owned the look.

MANDY HUBBARD INTERVIEW (In which I gush)!!!

For those of you who don’t know, Mandy Hubbard is not only a 2009 Debutante, she is also my friend. Fabulously talented, her new book (and, yes, this time I’ve actually READ the book!) is not only hilarious (it totally is) but a page turning read from start to finish.

About PRADA & PREJUDICE:

Fifteen year old Callie just wants to impress the popular girls when she buys a pair of Prada heels on her class trip to London. She didn’t plan on tripping, conking her head, and waking up in 1815! Now she’s wearing corsets with her designer pumps, eating bizarre soups, and breaking up engagements. If only the nineteen year old Duke of Harksbury wasn’t so bloody annoying, she might have a little fun in Austen-Era England…

Seriously, I devoured it, needing to see what situation Callie would stumble into next as her 1815 counterpart Rebecca. Callie’s inner-dialogue was witty and cutting, just the way I like my internal dialogue to be, but the book is also charming and sweet. You can see the trailer here.

Oh, and in case you’re wondering, I’ve know a little bit about Mandy’s second YA book slated for release next summer, and when she told me I. Got. Goosebumps! It’s that good!!! Her only hint: There will be a life-sized My Little Pony. (Really, no joke.)

Okay, gush enough???

Fine, here’s the interview.

Mandy, elaborate as much as you want (except for the bonus question, of course!):

1) Would you rather be the Bestselling Rockstar Author or an Acclaimed Literary Award Winner?

Bestselling Rockstar Author. I like to read the commercial stuff-- more Meg Cabot than John Green!

2) Make people laugh, cry, or hide under the covers?

Laugh mostly, though a tear or two at the right moment would be fabu, if I can request that too. :-)

3) Retire early or just keep writing from your beach house(s)?

Keep writing from my beach house! I'd do it if no one paid me. I don't know that I ever want to "retire" from writing. But the day job?-- When I can I quit?!

4) FaceBook or MySpace?

Facebook is way easier to friend people. I hate captchas. I vote facebook.

5) After a period, one space or two?

One space. Two drives me nuts.

And your bonus question: What ONE WORD of advice would give to any aspiring writer?

PERSEVERE. (Mandy is a great example of persevere, you check out her story here!)

Mandy Hubbard grew up on a dairy farm outside Seattle, where she refused to wear high heels until homecoming—and hated them so much she didn’t wear another pair for five years. A cowgirl at heart, she enjoys riding horses and quads and singing horribly to the latest country tune. She’s currently living happily ever after with her husband (who, sadly, is not a Duke) and her daughter (who is most definitely a princess). Prada and Prejudice is her first novel.

To find out more about Mandy and her books, check out her website at www.mandyhubbard.com!

My recommendation: Walk, don’t run (and be careful not to trip!) to your nearest bookseller for this one!!!

A Day Filled With Awesome!

Tonight was the gorgeous (her hair color is wicked cool in person!) Lisa Mantchev's book launch at the University Bookstore in Seattle. Lisa did a reading, a Q & A session, had cupcakes, and signed books for two hours.

See? That's me with Lisa (a fellow 2009 Deb, by the way)... And today, of all days, she got the news that her debut EYES LIKE STARS went into its second printing. **SECOND PRINTING** That is HUGE!!!

I also got to see Sarah again...

She made me hold this sign. (This one's for you, Khy...)

AND...I was asked for my autograph. Okay, seriously??? MY? AUTOGRAPH!?!? (I should've been worried that I was being Punk'd)

But since it was my first time being asked, that was exactly how I signed it (I'm clever like that)...

I also got to meet (and by meet, I mean intrude on) Team Seattle and author Liz Gallagher (THE OPPOSITE OF INVISIBLE).

You know, just another day in the life of a jet-setting author. Yeah, right...

My Very FIRST Interview...

...with Jacqueline at The Eclectic Book Lover. Check it out!

Author Websites That Demand Attention

Check out Khy’s post over at the Frenetic Reader on what makes a stand-out website. VERY VERY INTERESTING. And pretty much spot on. I think one of the things she really hit on the head was keeping your site updated. A stale site = a boring site!

She listed some pretty amazing sites (I love Maureen Johnson’s website…super-fun!). But I’m really visual, and she missed naming just a few of my personal favorites:

www.carrieryan.com (My Hall-Of-Fame fav…perfect for her book)
www.cherylreneeherbsman.com (check out the adorable laptop flash!)
www.lisamcmann.com (I love the way it embodies the dark feel of her books)

And…I’m sure it was just an oversight that my site didn’t make the cut… ;)

How Do You Do It???

Okay, so I don't use the standard hands-on-home-row typing technique that I learned in the eighth grade. My hands float around a bit and I glance down at them from time to time, but I do use both hands and all of my fingers. In other words...I'm almost normal.

Anyway, I came across this video of Kami Garcia's typing technique that I just had to share.
Warning: this not for the faint of heart, this here is some freaky stuff.**

**(Relax...I'm kidding. It's just a typing video, people.)

Tosh.0 Cracks Me Up...

My son talked me into watching this new show on Comedy Central, Tosh.0, with comedian Daniel Tosh, where he goes through and finds the funniest clips on the web and then, you know, makes fun of them. I just have to say that HE. IS. HILARIOUS!

Here he is capping on his Twitter reviews:



And even better, this was his Prank Of The Week (and you guys know I'm simple...I love me a good prank):



Am I the only one who thinks it's funny when a man screams like a girl???

Sorry for the Mess...

In case you hadn't noticed, my blog is Under Construction and I've lost "My Followers" in the sidebar (I know I really didn't lose you all...I love you guys!).

But until I get it all figured out, if you want to become a new follower, you'll have to do it the old-fashioned way by going into your Dashboard and manually adding my blog to the blogs you follow. I'm sorry, I know it's a pain, but I'll get it figured out...I promise!!!

BE PATIENT...I really am working on it!!!

CHECK IT OUT...More Super-Sekrit Stuff

For the past few months I’ve been working on a super-sekrit project. And by “I’ve been working on”, I mean, of course, the fabulous Maddee of xuni.com, who’s been working crazy hard to design MY NEW WEBSITE! YAY!!!!

Maddee’s got mad skills, and has designed some of my favorite author websites…you can check out her entire portfolio here.

For my site, she has created nothing short of a masterpiece! (One of the subtle things I love…notice the flash glow that passes over the sidebar links when you run your mouse over them. Way cool!) She’s definitely got an eye for detail!

Anyway, check it out and let me know what you think!!!

COMING SOON: Maddee has arranged to have my blog designed to match the website. How cool is that???

My Fourth of July Gift To You...

When our son was in the second grade he wanted to try out for the school talent show, so we bought him the instrumental version of Proud To Be An American. He practiced the lyrics over and over again until he’d memorized all of the words and the musical cues. Pretty tough work for an eight year old boy.

Unfortunately, the powers-that-be at the school decided he didn’t have what it takes to be in an elementary school talent show. Okay…whatever. He was eight. And he sang the entire song. Out loud. Doesn’t that pretty much qualify as talent in the second grade?

Anyway, long story short, that summer my mother-in-law was getting married, so she invited our son to sing at her wedding. And he accepted. So, in front of over a hundred guests he got up and sang his little heart out.

And here it is…just in time for the Fourth of July…our son singing Proud To Be An American:

(If you're having trouble viewing it, you can check it out on YouTube by clicking here)

2009 DEB, CYN BALOG!!!

2009 Deb Cyn Balog’s debut FAIRY TALE (originally FAIRY LUST) is another one of those books whose cover I want to sit and gaze at, and maybe pet. Just a little.

And Cyn, well she’s just funny. Need proof? Check out her interview with author Josh Berk (granted, Berk probably thinks he’s the funny one, but I think it’s pretty clear that Cyn carried him in this interview).

So, what’s FAIRY TALE about, you ask?

Morgan Sparks and Cam Browne are a match made in heaven. They've been best friends since birth, they tell each other everything, and oh yeah- they're totally hot for each other. But a week before their joint Sweet Sixteen bash, everything changes. Cam's awkward cousin Pip comes to stay, and Morgan is stunned when her formerly perfect boyfriend seems to be drifting away. When Morgan demands answers, she's shocked to discover the source of Cam's distance isn't another girl- it's another world. Pip claims that Cam is a fairy. No, seriously. A fairy. And now his people want Cam to return to their world and take his rightful place as Fairy King.

Determined to keep Cam with her, Morgan plots to fool the fairies. But as Cam continues to change, she has to decide once and for all if he really is her destiny, and if their "perfect" love can weather an uncertain future.

So, I know you can’t get enough of my fabulous interview technique, so here we go…

Cyn, feel free to answer in as much detail as you want (except, of course, for the one-word BONUS question):

1) Would you rather be the Bestselling Rockstar Author or an Acclaimed Literary Award Winner?

Probably the award-winner. Maybe because I know my writing is pretty fluffy right now and far from award-winning, so that's an impossible dream. It also says a lot about a person, about their talent. To be a bestseller-- hey, all I need to do is make friends with Oprah.

2) Make people laugh, cry, or hide under the covers?

Laugh-- the other things are not as fun.

3) Retire early or just keep writing from your beach house(s)?

Retire from my full-time job early, AND keep writing from my beach house! Writing has always been too fun for me NOT to do; I still don't consider it an actual job.

4) FaceBook or MySpace?

Facebook. Myspace annoys me in so many ways, I rarely visit my page there.

5) After a period, one space or two?

Two... I am so old-school.

And your bonus question: What ONE WORD of advice would give to any aspiring writer?

Experience

To find out more about Cyn Balog and her books, check out her website at www.cynbalog.com!

And Happy Fourth, everyone.