SOUTHEAST SUMMER BOOK BASH!!!!

Do you live in the Southeast? Love YA Lit? Ready to grab your next poolside or beach read?  Want to meet and greet with some fabulous authors? Maybe get some cool book swag?  Then come hang out with Lindsay Cummings, Lynne Matson, Anne Blankman, Jaye Robin Brown, Paula Stokes and me at one of our stops in GA, AL, TN, NC or SC on the SOUTHEAST SUMMER BOOK BASH!!!!    You can find all the details of each specific stop at the the #SSBB website!!

Hope to see you there!!!

<3 Robin

How I Spent My Summer Vacation

It’s fall, and I suppose about time for a new blog post, lest you think I’ve been stuck in post-revision la-la land for months. 

I haven’t.

Shortly after my last post, another round of revisions landed in my inbox.  This was a tough batch (I had to completely rethink a part of the story) but revision has become my favorite part of the writing process because I get to play.  I’m so happy with it!  And now I can share the title of book two with you:

The Secrets of Attraction

Add it on Goodreads!

This is a companion novel for The Promise of Amazing – which means (for me at least) it’s an entirely different story, set in the same place, with some old characters and some new ones too! This is Madison’s story – so much fun writing from her perspective!!  

Wait until you see the cover - it’s very swoony.  (Soon!!)

All work and no play…well, you know how it goes, so after I finished with my last round of revisions AND copy edits, I had time for some travels.

I love Downton Abbey and had the chance to see the “Costumes of Downton Abbey” exhibit at Winterthur Gardens in Delaware, which is an absolutely gorgeous place to visit! (even without the costumes)

 Lady Sybil's fashion forward harem pants! 

I also had time for the beach (Cape May, NJ)!

Met up with some One Four KidLit pals in Orlando, FL!!

(l - r, the FABULOUS Vivi Barnes, Erica Cameron, Julie Murphy, Me and Christina Farley)

 More time for the beach. (Wrightsville Beach, NC)

And a visit to Wilmington, NC where I kept my eyes peeled for Tom Mison but instead of Ichabod Crane.... 

...I found this:

 (Wren was here!)

I also had the chance to participate in Novel Fashion Week, run by Kindred Dreamheart, which was a blast.  Here’s the daytime and evening looks I came up with to match the cover of The Promise of Amazing! (Hope they would get Tim Gunn's approval!!)

All in all, I had a pretty productive and fun summer.  Now, bring on all things pumpkin!!  

Life After Revision...at least for a few days...

The most blissful ten minutes in my life as a writer, usually happens after I hit “send” on my most recent revision. 

There’s relief – yay!  That much closer to making the book the best it can be!

And dancing…because, why not?

And general whooping it up because it feels so wonderful to be finished with something!

It’s that pesky eleven minute mark when I realize that there’s more work to be done and start wondering if my editor will enjoy the changes I’ve made or if the sections I thought were funny will even garner a giggle. 

In short, it’s when I return to being slightly neurotic. But before I go back to dig in once again, I usually have a little celebratory downtime.   And here's what I like to do:

Binge on DVR’d TV and movies

After working so hard my brain needs candy. I’m finally caught up with The Originals and Reign.  Still working on Revenge!!  And in the span of three days watched Authors Anonymous, The Perks of Being A Wallflower and Maleficent.  

Tackle my TBR pile

Ah, give me a free weekend and a pile of books and that equals bliss.

Answering Email

Receiving email from readers is one of the highlights of my job but I can’t always get to them in a timely manner – especially during revision, where I pretty much put blinders on and tune out everything.  I put as much thought into my responses as I do into my novels.  So if you’ve written to me and haven’t heard anything yet – please be patient - you will soon. Promise!!

 Pampering

One day as I was writing I took a moment to really feel my posture…I was sort of hunched over, shoulders forward, arm at an odd angle, clicking the mouse and slouched in my office chair.  Writing may not be particularly physical but it can certainly wreak havoc with your physical being if you’re not careful.  So…a massage may seem like pampering – and okay, it is to a certain extent – but I’ve found them to be a necessity.  It’s also usually my reward for revision.  That and shoes. Oh, and mani-pedis, but I don’t think that would count as a tax write off.  

Fun writing

First drafts are not my favorite.  Nope.  And I have a hard time switching gears between revising and drafting.  So mostly when I’m in this kind of limbo of waiting for edit notes, I write scenes from other stories that have been haunting me, or try and sketch an outline for a new project.   Or write blog posts. 

All of this serves to fill up the well, so that when I do go back to my recently revised manuscript, I can do it with fresh eyes and a relaxed mind.     What do you like to do?

4 Days and counting

As I type this, I'm in the midst of packing for a road trip up to NJ to spend time with family for the holidays.   Then it hits me...The Promise of Amazing will be out in four days.  I panic and squee momentarily...then I realize I still need to pack socks.

Yep, that's about how it feels.   I know it will hit me all at once, but if I had to choose one word to describe my journey this past year it would definitely be:  Surreal.

So while I'm angsting it out over here, I thought I'd share some of the fabulous blogs I've visited in the past week or so.   Several have giveaways for a signed hardcover of The Promise of Amazing!! (and one blog will be giving away an annotated copy!)  I hope you check it out, there are some really fun interviews ranging from what food I love to the inspiration behind TPofA.



Dear Teen Me - In which I talk about the trials and tribulations of being a cheerleader (complete with embarrassing photo of really bad hair)

Reading is My Treasure - I'm part of the What's In The Snow Scavenger Hunt!

Feature Friday with A.L. Davroe - Find out what Southern food I like!!

Adventures of a Book Junkie - Win an annotated copy of The Promise of Amazing!  I chat a bit with Stacee about the inspiration behind TPofA!   I know I talk a lot about what inspired Wren's portion of the story, but here I give a little insight into Grayson's part!


And I have some really exciting, fun tour news I've been wanting to share but can't yet...soon!!!

Happy Friday!!!

COVER REVEAL: THE PROMISE OF AMAZING

Shortly before my wedding, my best friend’s mom pulled me aside and gave me some advice.  She told me that every so often I needed to stop and take in the moment, like really take it in, live it, breathe it, and create a mental snapshot because my wedding day would go by so quickly. It’s advice that I love and use frequently, because there are some moments in life that need to be savored.

This is how I feel about these months before my debut.  There are so many non-glamorous moments in writing, heck, most of writing is fairly non-glamorous — hours spent clicking away at the keyboard, personal hygiene taking a backseat to edits, yoga pants — that when a glamorous moment pops up, well you want to grab it and hold on for dear life.

This is one of those moments.  The one I’m going to grab and hold onto.

My COVER!!! 

 
And jacket flap:

Wren Caswell is average. Ranked in the middle of her class at Sacred Heart, she’s not popular, not a social misfit. Wren is the quiet good girl who’s always done what she’s supposed to—only now in her junior year, this passive strategy is backfiring. She wants to change but doesn’t know how.

Grayson Barrett was the king of St. Gabe’s: star of the lacrosse team, top of his class, and on the fast track to a brilliant future—until he was expelled for being a “term-paper pimp.” Now Gray is in a downward spiral and needs to change but doesn’t know how.

One fateful night, their paths cross at Wren’s family’s Arthurian-themed catering hall. What follows is the complicated, awkward, hilarious, and tender tale of two teens shedding their pasts, figuring out who they are—and falling in love.

The cover designer is Erin Fitzsimmons and I know I’m biased but I could look at this cover all…day…long. 

So happy I can finally share it with you!!!    

In honor of my cover reveal I’m giving away two advanced reader copies to two lucky winners! (US only, sorry!!) There are also iTunes gift cards and The Promise of Amazing bookmarks!!  The contest runs through next week!  So make sure you enter with the link below!!   ARCs will be sent out as soon as they become available.  Thank you for stopping by!!

<3 Robin

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WELCOME

Hi!  I'm Robin.  Thanks for stopping by my little acre of cyberspace. Here's where I'll talk about writing, life and share news about my upcoming debut THE PROMISE OF AMAZING. Stay tuned...