Sheryl of the snappy blog, Flowery Prose! Congratulations, Sheryl, and click here to go to my contact form, where you can you send me your mailing address. As soon as I get your address, Library Lost will be on its way.
Thanks to all who entered. I had such fun with this and received entries near and far. (Across the world, even.)
As Stan Lee would have said, “Excelsior!”
The books have arrived! Library Lost, the sequel to Maya and the Book of Everything, is now available. What a thrill to see them, so vibrant and red, in the box.
Library Lost is the second book in my Great Library Series. Two forces, Time and Chaos, battle each other for control of the mysterious Great Library, where all information flows. In the middle of this battle between Time and Chaos is one kid from Earth—Maya Hammond, who has traveled back in time, across the universe, and then home again with a Book of Everything from the Great Library.
In Library Lost, Maya is once again on the move, this time with an Apprentice Book named Ariel. As Chaos gains an edge, it doesn’t take long for the action to spiral into mayhem and destruction. However, Sydda, the Great Library’s director, has come up with a daring but dangerous plan that involves Maya.
But Maya has grave doubts. How can she ever prevail against such a powerful force as Chaos? How, indeed?
Library Lost can be ordered directly from Hinterlands Press. For orders in the United States, shipping is free, and you can get your very own signed copy of any of our books. We are also having a holiday sale: Order both Maya and the Book of Everything and Library Lost for $28, and again, shipping is free.
For those who like or need to order through Amazon, here are two special offers. Through the end of December, the Kindle version of Maya and the Book of Everything will be available for $0.99. And here is an even better deal: If you buy the paperback edition of Maya and the Book of Everything, the Kindle version is free.
My husband, Clif, and I will also be attending several fairs in Maine between now and Christmas. Central Maine readers, all you need to do is click the events button at the top of our Hinterlands website to see where we will be.
A heartfelt thanks to the many blogging friends who not only bought Maya and the Book of Everything but also took the time to write thoughtful reviews on their own blogs. I so appreciate this.
A reminder: The drawing for the free copy of Library Lost will be held on Thursday, November 29. There are still a couple of days to enter the contest, and I will mail the book anywhere on this planet. Anywhere.
Finally, the credo of the Great Library Series can be summed up in three words: Love Your Library.
But, blogging friends, you already love your libraries, don’t you?
Before I get to the really fun part of this post, a bit of news first.
The nor’easter proved to be pretty mild, as such things go. I think it went mostly out to sea. By the Maine coast there were strong winds, but as far as I know, there were no widespread power outages. There was hardly any wind in our area, but there was some slushy snow that made driving a bit tricky. But glory be, we kept our power. That’s one storm down and who knows how many more to come.
With our books, we went to two fairs this weekend, and the one on Saturday was nearby at Hall-Dale High School. We had a good time and sold quite a few books, but the best part of the day didn’t involve any sales at all. The librarian from Monmouth Middle School stopped by to tell me something that all writers of young adult fiction long to hear.
She said, “I really liked Maya and the Book of Everything and so have the kids. They’ve been passing it around and discussing it.”
Oh, my gosh! I was so thrilled when she told me this that I stammered out my gratitude in an inarticulate way. But she made my day, that’s for sure.
Now we come to the fun part of this post. I am barreling down the homestretch with editing Library Lost, and it will be ready to go out into the world in two or three weeks. To celebrate this second book in the Great Library Series, Clif and I are having a contest to give away a signed copy of Library Lost.
And readers, we will mail the winning copy to Canada. We will mail the winning copy to England. We will mail the winning copy to Australia. In short, we will mail the book to the winner anywhere in the world.
So don’t be shy about entering the contest. We are thrilled to be offering this give-away.
All you have to do is tell me in the comment section that you would like to enter the contest. The winning name will be drawn on November 29.
Good luck!
All right. The first proof copy of Library Lost has been edited, and a second proof copy is on its way, with an expected delivery of next week. Normally, this would be a chance for me to catch my breath and maybe get some much-needed household chores done. But…we have two fairs this weekend, and, just to add a merry touch, a nor’easter is blowing up the East Coast. Will the fairs be canceled? And, our perennial question, will we lose our power? Stay tuned!
Last week, Clif had a cataract removed, and the procedure was a huge success. His vision is greatly improved, and he hardly has any restrictions on what he can lift. But I promised you a funny story about his cataracts, and here it is.
First, we must have a picture of Clif wearing what he has dubbed his “glasses of shame,” which loudly proclaim cataract surgery and old codger satus. The gray hair, of course, just adds to it.
Even with a procedure as minimally invasive as a cataract removal, fasting is necessary. An upset stomach during the procedure would be a Very Bad Thing. Clif’s surgery was just past noon, and by the time he had sufficiently recovered, it was about 2:30 or 3:00. Even though Clif was woozy from the sedatives he had been given, he was hungry. Extremely hungry.
The nurse was in the room while we were discussing where to eat, and she said, “There’s a Kentucky Fried Chicken just down the road.”
“Do you want to go there?” I asked Clif.
“Yes,” came the prompt reply.
Thus one of our guilty pleasures is revealed—we both have a soft spot for Kentucky Fried Chicken. A leftover from our youthful days, I suppose. We hardly ever eat there, but when we do, we enjoy it.
The nurse helped a wobbly Clif to the car, and off I drove. At KFC, there was, of course, no nurse to help Clif. There was just me, significantly shorter than Clif and with creaky knees to boot. In we toddled—a woozy Clif with his glasses of shame and me doing my best to hold a steady course. I can only imagine what we looked like.
Because we hardly ever go to KFC, we had no idea what the various meals included. Swaying slightly, we studied the large menu sign on the wall behind the counter. Finally I asked the woman who was patiently waiting for our order about what sides came with one of the Big Box Meals.
Without hesitating, she leaned over and said in a loud whisper, “Ask for the senior citizen special.”
And so we did, saving ourselves about $10. We each had two pieces of perfectly cooked chicken, a surprisingly light biscuit, hot mashed potatoes with gravy (yes, they were instant), and cole slaw.
As we ate, we giggled about being urged to order the senior citizen special. This is a first for us as usually we have to ask for it. But I suppose we looked like a pair who was in desperate need of a good deal.
Everyone once in a while, there is a benefit to being gray haired and wobbly.
I would like to say that I am enjoying the glories of October while getting yard work done, but that would not be the truth. Instead, I am working like a busy chickadee getting my second book, Library Lost, ready for publication.
It is intense, picky work. I go over the book line by line, squinting at formatting errors and checking for those dratted typos that always seem to slip through. I am happy to report I am making good progress. I also have other readers who are helping me.
In all likelihood, Library Lost will be ready sometime mid-November. But before then, I hope to be out with my wee camera recording the glories of late autumn in northern New England.
I also have a funny story to tell about Clif’s cataract surgery. How often does that happen?
In the meantime…
For the past week, it has been unusually warm—in the 70s. It hardly feels like autumn in Maine at all.
But the the hostas know that summer is over.
I’ve begun emptying and cleaning pots. This weekend, I’ll start bringing in the garden ornaments.
Somehow, it is always more fun to bring them out in the spring than it is to put them away in the fall.
On other matters…I have done major editing on my book Library Lost, and I will soon be receiving the first proof copy. Always exciting, but the work is not done. I’ll be going over the proof copy line by line. Onward, ho!
A couple of days ago, a terrible hurricane slammed the coast of Florida. What devastation! I wonder what will become of coastal communities, especially in the South, as the oceans continue to heat up and the storms get worse and worse.
In North Carolina, where our daughter and son-in-law live, the hurricane notched itself down to a tropical storm. Nevertheless, the winds were strong, trees were toppled, and there were widespread power outages. In fact, my daughter and son-in-law don’t have electricty. At least they have water. But as a veteran of power outages, I can attest to the fact that they are no fun at all. For us, what a happy day it is when the refrigerator whirs back to life as the power comes back on.
But how horrible to lose everything in a storm. Somehow, when compared with such destruction, a power outage doesn’t seem that bad.
One of the great pleasures of blogging is the wonderful, creative people I have met, not only in this country but also around the world. I always start my day reading posts from my blogging friends, and no matter what is happening in this country, I come away feeling better. And that is no small thing.
Therefore, it gives me great pleasure to announce that one of my blogging friends, Xenia Tran of Whippet Wisdom, has published a book of poems and images featuring her adorable whippets in the beautiful Scottish Highlands, where they live. Here is the book:
Xenia writes: “We will donate 60% of our net profits to animal rehoming shelters. The more books we sell, the more charities we will be able to help. The remaining 40% will be invested in future fundraising projects….Our book is now available in paperback and can be ordered from your local bookstore, online bookstores, Barnes & Noble, Fishpond and any other store connected to the Ingram Spark Global network….For further details on where to order, please visit ‘Our Book‘ page.”
The Scottish Highlands, dogs, lovely poetry, a wonderful cause. I just ordered my own copy and can’t wait to get it.
Good luck, Xenia. I hope you sell a lot of books.
