Oh hi! Two weeks ago, The Originals hit store shelves, and I celebrated in my hometown of Cheyenne, Wyoming, and my current town, Seattle. Since then, I’ve been working a ton on my new book, and have, apparently, used up all of the words in my vocabulary. So, for this post, you get pictures.

I will add one little note. Did you notice the adorable girl in the picture with me in the Cheyenne collage? The one who looks JUST LIKE LONDON LANE FROM FORGOTTEN? Surreal moment when, at my old high school–which was the setting in Forgotten–my character’s doppleganger walked up to me and said hello! She was beaming and clutching The Originals–telling me how much she liked it–while I wondered if I’d stepped into a Stranger Than Fiction situation and was actually living my own words. Turns out, she’s just an amazing teen named Whitney Summers, and I’m lucky to have met her. And guess what? She draws beautifully, too: The sketch at the top is hers.

Thanks again, Whitney, for the lovely fan art.

You, my friend, are an original.

In two Saturdays, the You Are Next gang will reunite to sign books at the Costco warehouse in Issaquah, WA. If you like to laugh, win prizes, and/or shop for bulk chicken breasts, you should probably join us.

Here’s a look at the stuff in between:

First, we spoke at Barnes & Noble at The Grove. Here are two men and a (totally adorable) baby (who I might be related to) next to one of our posters. There was also a massive one in the front window, which we forgot to photograph. Guess we were out of it from the steaks…on the plane.

Before our event, I had my first official spotting of Person (I’m Not Related To) Reading My Novel in Public. It was this guy Tony, who sent me a very nice email after the fact about Revived. The trouble is that his address was entered incorrectly, so I couldn’t write him back. TONY, IF YOU’RE READING THIS…THANK YOU!

Here’s me and super-reader Taylor, who I’ve known online since she was part of a program that my publisher puts on called Hip Scouts. Teens in the group get to choose ARCs they’d like to read, and she chose Forgotten. Hers was one of the first fan letters I received as a Real Published Author, so she’ll always have a special place in my heart. It was great to get to spend some time with her and her mom in person. (Not sure she agrees–She saw me floss my teeth!)

Afterward, we hung out with Dan Santat and friends at Canter’s deli, which was delicious if you like heaping mounds of sliced meat. (I do!) I hadn’t met Dan, but I HAVE NOW and he’s officially on my Funniest Person List. Soon, my girls will get acquainted with him, too, when his recently released picture book, Because I’m Your Dad, arrives on our doorstep.

The next day, we spoke at Burbank High School to two groups of eighty smart and funny students. This was set up at the last minute with the help of BHS’s amazing librarian, Alicia Feldman-Boote. THANK YOU, ALICIA!

From there, we went to Warwick’s in beautiful La Jolla, which I somehow managed not to photograph but which was one for the record books. We had a great crowd, including some fans I’ve known for a while on Facebook but hadn’t yet met in person.

The next day, we were four of a TON of lucky authors to participate in the Second Annual Torrance High School Author Fair. The most organized student I’ve ever met, Ishita, set this up with the help of her book club. More than 200 students attended and met with us, speed dating style, then had the chance to purchase books thanks to Mysterious Galaxy. After the main event, Team YAN presented to an additional group in the auditorium, which was one of my favorite presentations of the tour.

Here I am at my speed dating station:

And here’s a shot of some of the students during a break:

That night, we got even more Mysterious Galaxy love when we presented to a small but mighty group at their Redondo Beach location.  I was thrilled to finally meet in person one of my favorite readers, Funny Ben. If you are friends with me on Facebook, you may have read his posts–they always brighten my day. Like Taylor’s, his initial fan mail burrowed itself in my brain and heart. Gotta love a UCLA student who emails to say that he loved my book, which means either that it’s good, or that he’s turning into a girl. Here’s proof that he is not, in fact, a girl:

Finally, it was time for the first official YA day at Disneyland, The YAppiest Day on Earth! You’ll find a complete photo rundown here, but let me just say that this wacky event turned out to be a big success, with people already talking about next year’s event. Here’s a photo of the inaugural crowd of 17 amazing authors who donated their time, books, and good humor. I’m pretty much in love with all of them now.

Busy Mysterious Galaxy sold books at our cocktail party/group signing, too, and we all scribbled in some stock. (Hint: If you want a signed book but couldn’t make the event, it’s possible they still have some and will send it to you.) The party is where I tried on chain mail for the first time. I was sad to take it off.

I think that’s about it for SoCal. Oh, except that it wasn’t our last stop after all.

As it turns out, if you tour with people who you admire and really like to be around, it shows through in your presentations, and more people invite you to visit. So, although this was meant to be our swan song, the You Are Next tour lives on. We’ll appear next at Costco in Seattle on 4/27 from 1-3 PM, with more stops to come. (Seattle in May! San Francisco in October! Las Vegas in November! Other stuff, too!)

Apparently, you haven’t seen the last of us yet…or our antics.

Hey look! I’ve got a nifty new website! I loved the old one but needed an update, and decided to go with a clean black & white look. It’s my mood lately. I hope you like it. (My favorite part is the little house line art at the bottom.) Along with the update, I’ve added some new info on me, which should help with things like book reports, as well as information on my 2013 releases, The Originals (May 7) and Just Like Fate (August 27), both of which are available now for pre-order.

This week, in addition to smiling at #CLONEME tweets (enter to win an ARC of The Originals and a Revived paperback!),  I’m heading down to Southern CA for more You Are Next touring, and the insanity that is the first YA author event at Disneyland, the #YAPPIEST Day on Earth. Here’s my schedule in case you live in/near LA or San Diego. Come hang out!

Wednesday, March 27

7PM: Barnes & Noble: The Grove at Farmers Market

Thursday, March 28

7 PM: Warwick’s, 7812 Girard Avenue, La Jolla, CA

Friday, March 29

9AM – 2PM: Torrance High School Author Fair

7:30PM: Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore, 2810 Artesia Blvd, Redondo Beach, CA

Saturday, March 30

8AM – 4:30 PM: YAPPIEST DAY ON EARTH, the riding portion (meet inside the gates of Disneyland to ride with 16 of your favorite YA authors)

5:30 – 7:30 PM: Group signing cocktail party, with books sold by Mysterious Galaxy, at Anabella Hotel, 1030 W. Katella Ave., Anaheim, CA

You guys! I’m feeling very proud of myself right now: I wrote A LOT this weekend. My work in progress is a big, (hopefully) beautiful book that is unlike anything I’ve written to date, but I’ve been neglecting it lately with all the touring and sicknesses and such. But not this weekend! Between Friday afternoon and about thirty minutes ago, I typed, typed, typed. My eyes are a little unfocused, my tailbone hurts, and I could use a massage, but the weekend was a super success. Since I feel like I used up all the words in my arsenal, I’ll tell you about it by the numbers:   0… Cell or internet connections available to me for a 48-hour period. Off the grid, baby! 1… Condo in the woods. Partner in crime, Ms. Martha Brockenbrough, who was kind enough to let me invade said condo, and who acted as my own personal cheerleader the whole time. Moment of panic when there was a spider in the dishwasher. Chocolate bar wrapper love poem recited by me, to my host. 2… Bottles of wine consumed. Hours in the hot tub, soaking away an affliction I like to call Keyboard Shoulders. Meals that included french fries. Full days away. 3… Billion stars in the mountains at night. And finally… 14,100… Words written.   Hells yeah, people. We’re on our way.

HEY! I’m fresh off the Bay Area leg of the You Are Next tour and thought I’d share some of what went down. Sean Beaudoin, Martha Brockenbrough, Kevin Emerson and I did ten events in three days, leaving me pumped for having connected with that many readers, and also a little in need of a neck massage. Here are some photos from our days in the Bay.   We met more than 600 students at some pretty amazing schools including Palo Alto High School, Jordan Middle School in Palo Alto, Sequoia High School in Redwood City, Don Callejon School in Santa Clara, and Willow Glen Middle School in San Jose. We took the advice of cocktail napkins… We communicated with each other through book covers and orange peels…     We rocked… We laughed with some very cool teens. (Doesn’t the one on the left remind you a bit of a super lovely star named Hailee Steinfeld, who happens to be attached to play London Lane in the movie version of Forgotten?) And finally, as happens during all big, fancy book tours, we wrote on the walls and napped in bathtubs! (We heart Hicklebee’s!)   In case you’re in the Bay Area and missed our little show, we left behind a few autographed copies of our books at the following stores:

And, if you’re in Southern California, get ready, because… You. Are. Next.

Helloooooo! I’m SO excited to be able to announce an event that I and my You Are Next team have been working on for some time, THE YAPPIEST DAY ON EARTH. It’s a YA day at DISNEYLAND, people!! I’m thrilled that sixteen authors are participating in a day of rides, turkey legs, and books. The official party line is below. Check out that amazing roster! If you’ll be near on LA on March 30th, come join us! And if you won’t…maybe you’ve been wanting to go to Disneyland for a while and this is a great excuse? Heck,  yeah! Official announcement: What’s better than books? Nothing! But rollercoasters come close. On Saturday, March 30, 2013, sixteen of your favorite young adult authors will put on their mouse ears for THE YAPPIEST DAY ON EARTH, the first (that we know of) YA Day at Disneyland. Bloggers, booksellers, librarians, and fans are invited to come spend the day riding with authors and chatting about current and upcoming releases. The event will culminate with a group signing at the Anabella Hotel, across the street from California Adventure. To participate, meet the authors inside the gates of Disneyland at 8:00 AM on March 30th Or, join us at the book signing at 5:30 PM at the Anabella Hotel, 1030 W. Katella Ave. Those too far away to participate may order books to be autographed through Mysterious Galaxy’s website at http://mystgalaxy.com/. The YAPPIEST roster include: Elise Allen, Carrie Arcos, Sean Beaudoin, Jennifer Bosworth, Martha Brockenbrough, Cecil Castellucci, Rachel Cohn, Kevin Emerson, Chris Howard, Lish McBride, Gretchen McNeil, Robin Mellom, Shannon Messenger, Cat Patrick, Kasie West, and Gabrielle Zevin.   The day will be tweeted live by participating authors and fans, using the hashtag #YAPPIEST.

In two weeks, the You Are Next tour continues with our Bay Area stop, and we’re all over the area! We’re doing stores and school visits in the South Bay, East Bay, SF, and Marin. Come see us!

Yippee! REVIVED was chosen as one of YALSA’s 2013 Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Readers. In other news, I’m off to Las Vegas next week to speak again at Spring Valley High School (Go Grizzlies!) with my YOU ARE NEXT team buddies, Sean Beaudoin, Martha Brockenbrough, and Kevin Emerson, then to participate in the YAllapalooza Book Fest at Centennial Hills Library with a TON of awesome authors, including my book baby buddy Suzanne Young, co-author of Just Like Fate. Can’t wait!