Time to Celebrate! Win a copy of ENTWINED by Heather Dixon

It seems like I've had a ton of friends sign with agents, announce book deals, or have books come out in the last few months. Congratulations to all of them!

Today I wanted to honor my sweet friend and loyal critique partner, Karen Hooper, who sold her mermaid book, TANGLED TIDES, on Friday. YAY!!!

Karen is a master of fantasy. The world she builds in TANGLED TIDES is rich and magical, the story is brilliant, and the characters are deep and human (even though they aren't actually human). You will love this book.

To celebrate I'm going to give away my favorite debut so far this year, ENTWINED by Heather Dixon.

I don't want to spoil the story for anyone who hasn't read it, so I'm only going to say five things about it:

1. I hadn't heard about ENTWINED until my 17-year-old sister picked it up from the library.

2. She gushed as she read it multiple times, finally convincing me to pick up a copy.

3. It's a retelling of The Twelve Dancing Princesses (probably my favorite fairy tale ever).

4. I LOVED IT. The story is as gorgeous as the cover.

5. Heather Dixon has the most entertaining blog I have ever read (and I've read A LOT of blogs). Seriously. Check it out.

You can watch the book trailer here.

All you have to do to win the book is follow my blog and leave a comment. I'll announce the winner Monday, July 25.

And to make it easy to leave a comment I'll ask two questions: What's your favorite debut so far this year? And HOW EXCITED ARE YOU TO READ KAREN'S BOOK!?!?

Someone You Ought to Meet

I've been doing a lot of beta reading this last month. I think I've read from 5 different manuscripts. I still don't feel like I'm a very good beta reader, but I've definitely getting some practice.

A few days ago I got a note from a friend I read for last fall. I also read a different novel for her last summer and it was the first piece I had ever beta read. I had no idea what I was doing either time, but she claimed my notes were helpful, and she was writing to tell me SHE SIGNED WITH AN AGENT!!! I love hearing great news! She is a writer who really deserves this, and I'm thrilled for her.

I won't give too much away about her story or her agent because you can go check it out on her brand new blog. I hope you'll stop by and say congratulations.

Finding Joy in Other's Success

I'm still on my blogging vacation. It's been fabulous. Last week was my most productive week in a year. So I'm not back for real yet, but I wanted to pop in to share something I've been thinking about.

Last week, my good friend Caroline Starr Rose sold her debut MG novel. This, coupled with Beth Revis's wonderful news, got me thinking about how great it is to be able to be happy for other's successes.

In high school I sang in a really good choir. I love to sing and in many ways it was a wonderful experience, but it was also kind of awful. The kids were cutthroat. Auditions for solos were tough, feelings were always hurt, and mean-girl (and boy) backbiting was constant. Everyone wanted to be the best and when someone got the solo, everyone else hated that person.

It wasn't a very nurturing environment.

The writing community hasn't been like this at all--at least for me. Every time a writer friend has achieved a goal, I've been genuinely thrilled for them. I don't know why this is exactly. I get jealous of people all the time--mostly people who have perfect hair and makeup everyday, have immaculate houses, and always have well behaved children--I hate people like that. But I haven't had a moment of real jealousy over a writer friend's triumph.

Maybe it's because I appreciate the work that goes into writing a novel. It's hard. When a person sells a book, I know they've probably worked for years to make this dream come true.

Caroline is one of these people. She's worked hard. Her work is brilliant, and she totally deserves this victory. When she emailed me Friday to tell me her book sold I jumped and squeed and felt true joy in her success.

How about you? Is it easier to feel happy for other writers' successes than it is to feel happy for your neighbor who got a promotion and bought a new car? Does knowing what's gone into getting a book deal make it easier to be delighted when someone else reaches that milestone?

Head on over to Caroline's blog to share congratulations!

I'll probably still be out on blog vacation for a few more weeks, but I am going to try to get around to a few of your blogs and see what's happening with you.