Saturday, June 28, 2008

DIABLO 3!!!

Finally, Diablo 3 has been announced!!!! I worked on an early version of that game many moons ago. Thankfully, old friends have continued in their toils on the game, and it is a wholly new creature now - bigger and badder than ever.

Hats off to you guys (Blizzard), for making another gem.

Saturday, June 7, 2008

No rest for the wicked...

I am hard at work on the second book in my series. I can't announce anything about it yet, except to say it's a ton of fun to work on.

Music is playing in the background and I'm feeling inspired. Thankfully, it's a quiet and lovely day, and I'm free to paint and paint and paint!

It is a wonderful and fortunate thing when you truly love what you do for a living.

Friday, June 6, 2008

ARC - advanced reader copy!

I got my hands on an advanced copy of the book yesterday, hot off the press. Wow, to see years of work all bundled into such a small form factor.
The long path leading up to this moment, all came rushing back, and it was a very emotional experience.

I am delighted with the book!

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

My BEA experience

I had a blast with the wonderful folks of Candlewick, and the signing of SWORDS was great fun. Several of my own super-talented heroes showed up to offer their support, which really warmed my heart. Thanks to Brian Selznick, Robert Sabuda, Mathew Reinhart, Kate DiCamillo, and ALL the delightful people that stopped by!

Also thanks once again to Kate DiCamillo, as well as to Megan McDonald, Laura Amy Schlitz, Katherine Paterson, Mary Brigid Barrett, and all the Candlewick crew for making the Hollywood dinner so fun.

I have to say, Candlewick rocks. The entire team went above and beyond to make my trip amazing.

I also had a lovely breakfast with the sales team. Thank you for that!

I can't forget to mention the fun lunch with Rosemary Stimola (my agent), Elizabeth Bicknell (the Candlewick senior editor) and Katie Cunningham (another fantastic Candlewick editor). :)

My head was spinning, I met so many great people.

Errata in SWORDS

Ninja Chapter:

Oh no!
I found an error in the demo version of my book while at the BEA. This slip-up will have to be corrected for the second batch of books, since it's too late to change anything for the first print run.

My blunder is regarding the squeaky floors of the Samurai - used to detect sneaky intruders. Instead of properly listing this as a nightingale floor, I have hummingbird floor in its place! I think hummingbird got confused with hanami bird in my scribbled notes. Hanami bird, by the way, is another description of the Japanese Warbler, also known as the nightingale.

So, if you find yourself looking at a "Hummingbird" version of the book, you know you have the special, funky first edition.

Good grief!


Raiders Chapter:

I have a caption about the strange rage that was said to overcome some warriors. It was called the "warp spasm," yet somehow, in my book, I see it listed as "war spasm." I need to investigate this slip.

I will update this spot, as new mistakes come to light.