THE YA AUTHOR MANSION
This last week, I got caught. Trapped like a trap in a trap.
Those of you who have read this blog for some time will know that I attended a Catholic girls’ academy—a school I later turned into St. Teresa’s in the book Devilish. I have told several stories about this school, but never named it. In fact, I thought I was being extremely, extremely clever and that no one would ever figure out where I went to school.
Again, if you have been reading this blog for a while . . . you’ll also know by now that I’m not clever. So I really should have been more prepared for the day in which I got note after note after note from current students at my former high school, correctly identifying it and asking me to come.
Now, if you’re me, and you have been talking your face off about your old school on your blog, and then you wrote a book in which you infest that school with demons . . . you might feel a certain sense of je ne sais panic when asked to return. I was pretty much convinced that I would walk in the front door, the student counsel president would hit me over the head with a shovel, and I would be thrown into an open pit specially dug in the basement. And then they would sic the hamsters on me.
But what ACTUALLY happened was that I had an amazing time, and a ton of people stayed for a voluntary after-school event with me, and then presented me with a HUGE PILE OF GIFTS. These included 13 little blue envelopes! In which messages and items relating to my books and my school had been placed! They got me Ginny’s credit card from 13 Little Blue Envelopes, Lola’s pink stud earrings and Scarlett’s Empire Suite key from Suite Scarlett, a stack of demerits (actually signed by the principal) for things like “parking principal's car on balcony,” “being tardy,” and “forgetting to be awesome.” I even got a puppy-sized elephant with an engraved collar named Queen Ranavalona!
I made a short video to commemorate this visit, in which you can see at least part of my high school uniform. You can also meet my lawyer, C. Catso Fangola.
I received a question in the comments that Justine Larbalestier told me I had to answer. “It’s time,” she said. “They need to know the truth.”
It’s extremely easy to meet other YA authors. Because once you become a YA author, you have to move into the YA author mansion. We all live there. I live there. Justine lives there. Scott Westerfeld, Libba Bray, Meg Cabot, Holly Black, John Green, Cassie Clare . . . everyone. We all live there. They make you. It’s kind of big, so you sometimes don’t see everyone. (I know Stephanie Meyer lives there, for instance, but I’ve never seen her room. I think it’s over in the Judy Blume wing.)
I know what you are thinking. You are thinking, “But Meg Cabot lives in Florida! And John Green in Indianapolis! And Stephanie Meyer in Arizona! And, and, and . . .”
Lies. We live in the mansion.
In the past, we have gone to some trouble to cover up the fact that we all live in the YA author mansion. We didn’t want people to go looking for it. Some people didn’t want to move to the mansion, but you aren’t given a choice. On the day your first book comes out, they come in a car under the cover of darkness. If you fight, they knock you out, and you wake up in the mansion with all of your things around you.
Now, to get to the point about being friends with your competition . . .
There is no competition in YA writing. It’s not that people will only read one book and not another. Reading breeds more reading. When you finish one good book, you IMMEDIATELY NEED ANOTHER . . . and so the circle of life continues!
I’ll tell you what the problem is. The problem is when some people leave their nasty dishes in the sink of the YA Author Mansion kitchen, or blast the High School Musical soundtrack at all hours, or keep throwing cricket balls against the wall, or put sheets over their heads and try to scare you by pretending to be ghosts . . . I’m not naming names, but I am getting a little sick of it. We are all trying to write, people.
This is part of the reason I’ve gone public. I have decided that it’s time we talked about the Mansion, and I will answer questions about it, rules be damned.
TODAY’S INFLUENCE: H. M. MURDOCK
I am still doing my series of influences, in tribute to the upcoming Olsen Twins book. Today’s influence is very, very special, indeed.
When I was a tiny mj, Murdock from the A-Team was my hero. Sure, The A-Team is PROBABLY the crappiest show ever made. SURE it was predictable and formulaic and violent and insane . . . but my devotion to it was total. Which just goes to show that when we are small, we are not always gifted with the best taste. But I will still WRESTLE ANYONE TO THE GROUND who has a bad word to say about my guys. (Except Frankie “Dishpan” Santana, who doesn’t count. Say what you like about him.)
Murdock, the team pilot and professional pretend-crazy person was my true love and inspiration, and I wanted to be like him. Murdock had STYLE. When I need things for my room in the YA Author Mansion, I use this technique I learned from him. If YOU need things, why not adapt this to your purposes?
TODAY’S PRIZES AND SCARLETT UPDATE!
I’m getting ready for the Suite Scarlett release party, which will be this week. I was going to throw it at home, since we’re all there, but they do let us out from time to time to see non-YA-author types. We love it when they let us out. Anyway, I am most excited about that.
Today’s five sleep masks are going to:
Nicole
Keziah
Courtneylynne
Katesutton90
Lizzy-wa
And today there are TWO WAYS TO WIN THINGS!
First, I will be giving away five sleep masks to random commenters! Second, I will be giving away A SIGNED SUITE SCARLETT! In the FORUM!
See, Scarlett’s Eleven made a forum for me a few weeks ago. In support of their efforts, I’ll be lurking on the forum all week. Join. Chat. Talk amongst yourselves. And at some point I will swoop in and grab someone and that person will get a book. You will feel like I did when I was taken to this mansion, except less like someone in the trunk of a car and more just like someone getting a signed book.
Those of you who have read this blog for some time will know that I attended a Catholic girls’ academy—a school I later turned into St. Teresa’s in the book Devilish. I have told several stories about this school, but never named it. In fact, I thought I was being extremely, extremely clever and that no one would ever figure out where I went to school.
Again, if you have been reading this blog for a while . . . you’ll also know by now that I’m not clever. So I really should have been more prepared for the day in which I got note after note after note from current students at my former high school, correctly identifying it and asking me to come.
Now, if you’re me, and you have been talking your face off about your old school on your blog, and then you wrote a book in which you infest that school with demons . . . you might feel a certain sense of je ne sais panic when asked to return. I was pretty much convinced that I would walk in the front door, the student counsel president would hit me over the head with a shovel, and I would be thrown into an open pit specially dug in the basement. And then they would sic the hamsters on me.
But what ACTUALLY happened was that I had an amazing time, and a ton of people stayed for a voluntary after-school event with me, and then presented me with a HUGE PILE OF GIFTS. These included 13 little blue envelopes! In which messages and items relating to my books and my school had been placed! They got me Ginny’s credit card from 13 Little Blue Envelopes, Lola’s pink stud earrings and Scarlett’s Empire Suite key from Suite Scarlett, a stack of demerits (actually signed by the principal) for things like “parking principal's car on balcony,” “being tardy,” and “forgetting to be awesome.” I even got a puppy-sized elephant with an engraved collar named Queen Ranavalona!
I made a short video to commemorate this visit, in which you can see at least part of my high school uniform. You can also meet my lawyer, C. Catso Fangola.
I received a question in the comments that Justine Larbalestier told me I had to answer. “It’s time,” she said. “They need to know the truth.”
nicole said...
I'm looking forward to reading sweet scarlett as soon as I get my hands on a copy. Maureen, how did you meet all of you author friends in New York? Isn't it kind of like being friends with your competition? (I would love a sleep mask!)
It’s extremely easy to meet other YA authors. Because once you become a YA author, you have to move into the YA author mansion. We all live there. I live there. Justine lives there. Scott Westerfeld, Libba Bray, Meg Cabot, Holly Black, John Green, Cassie Clare . . . everyone. We all live there. They make you. It’s kind of big, so you sometimes don’t see everyone. (I know Stephanie Meyer lives there, for instance, but I’ve never seen her room. I think it’s over in the Judy Blume wing.)
I know what you are thinking. You are thinking, “But Meg Cabot lives in Florida! And John Green in Indianapolis! And Stephanie Meyer in Arizona! And, and, and . . .”
Lies. We live in the mansion.
In the past, we have gone to some trouble to cover up the fact that we all live in the YA author mansion. We didn’t want people to go looking for it. Some people didn’t want to move to the mansion, but you aren’t given a choice. On the day your first book comes out, they come in a car under the cover of darkness. If you fight, they knock you out, and you wake up in the mansion with all of your things around you.
Now, to get to the point about being friends with your competition . . .
There is no competition in YA writing. It’s not that people will only read one book and not another. Reading breeds more reading. When you finish one good book, you IMMEDIATELY NEED ANOTHER . . . and so the circle of life continues!
I’ll tell you what the problem is. The problem is when some people leave their nasty dishes in the sink of the YA Author Mansion kitchen, or blast the High School Musical soundtrack at all hours, or keep throwing cricket balls against the wall, or put sheets over their heads and try to scare you by pretending to be ghosts . . . I’m not naming names, but I am getting a little sick of it. We are all trying to write, people.
This is part of the reason I’ve gone public. I have decided that it’s time we talked about the Mansion, and I will answer questions about it, rules be damned.
TODAY’S INFLUENCE: H. M. MURDOCK
I am still doing my series of influences, in tribute to the upcoming Olsen Twins book. Today’s influence is very, very special, indeed.
When I was a tiny mj, Murdock from the A-Team was my hero. Sure, The A-Team is PROBABLY the crappiest show ever made. SURE it was predictable and formulaic and violent and insane . . . but my devotion to it was total. Which just goes to show that when we are small, we are not always gifted with the best taste. But I will still WRESTLE ANYONE TO THE GROUND who has a bad word to say about my guys. (Except Frankie “Dishpan” Santana, who doesn’t count. Say what you like about him.)
Murdock, the team pilot and professional pretend-crazy person was my true love and inspiration, and I wanted to be like him. Murdock had STYLE. When I need things for my room in the YA Author Mansion, I use this technique I learned from him. If YOU need things, why not adapt this to your purposes?
TODAY’S PRIZES AND SCARLETT UPDATE!
I’m getting ready for the Suite Scarlett release party, which will be this week. I was going to throw it at home, since we’re all there, but they do let us out from time to time to see non-YA-author types. We love it when they let us out. Anyway, I am most excited about that.
Today’s five sleep masks are going to:
Nicole
Keziah
Courtneylynne
Katesutton90
Lizzy-wa
And today there are TWO WAYS TO WIN THINGS!
First, I will be giving away five sleep masks to random commenters! Second, I will be giving away A SIGNED SUITE SCARLETT! In the FORUM!
See, Scarlett’s Eleven made a forum for me a few weeks ago. In support of their efforts, I’ll be lurking on the forum all week. Join. Chat. Talk amongst yourselves. And at some point I will swoop in and grab someone and that person will get a book. You will feel like I did when I was taken to this mansion, except less like someone in the trunk of a car and more just like someone getting a signed book.
Labels: C. Catso Fangola, high school musical, Suite Scarlett, YA author mansion
posted by Maureen at
9:44 PM
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