May. My gosh, May.

I’m super excited to announce here on my blog that Truest, my debut novel, went to auction in Germany, and the winning publisher was dvt/Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag!

For those unfamiliar with the publishing industry, “going to auction” means that there was enough interest in my book in Germany that several publishers there got to bid for my book. I’m so, so excited by the idea of my story being translated into German! My agent is a ROCKSTAR.

What a month. My baby brother graduated from college (finally), so I’ve been released from the shackles of editing all his papers! His graduation was on Mother’s Day, so we did a dual celebration. My mom has always wanted my brother to get his bachelors degree, so there was no way my sister and I could compete with Kevin’s gift.

Kevin, who can be a total charmer when he wants to be, made us all homemade thank-you cards. Here’s mine:

Like that picture on the right? Apparently, that’s me, reading his papers and pondering his great intellect. HA.

Birthday girl showing off her purple tea saucer. Purple’s her FAVORITE.

May also held my favorite little four-year-old’s birthday. She had a garden tea party, and I was tremendously pleased to make the guest list along with mostly 3-, 4-, and 5-year-olds. Also connected to this was that I go to go toy shopping. I LOVE TOY SHOPPING. It’s so much more fun than shopping for grown-ups! I bought Aladdin and Jasmine dolls and Jasmine pajamas. Also, sparkly purple nail polish, along with the requirement that Mom helps with the nail polish. (Tracy, I cannot be responsible for any walls or floors that end up full of purple sparkles, lol!)

And then, of course, I went to Duluth to write. It was a wild ride, my friends. I am continually astonished at how difficult revisions are. Two things to say to that: 1) Getting the book deal is only the beginning, and 2) My editor at HarperCollins is the absolute best, most brilliant editor ever. She is so supportive and responsive, and her ideas and suggestions are going to make Truest something special.

Sometimes I’m not sure if I’m cut out for the writing life. I said so to my friend Cindy, who gave me this tough love:

Well, you’ve already proven that you are by a) writing a book, b) getting an agent, c) getting a contract, and d) pouring yourself into edits and taking them very seriously.

But let’s say, for argument’s sake, you’re NOT cut out for the writing life.  How will your life change?  You know it won’t.  You KNOW you’ll still write.

She’s right. I know I’ll still write, no matter what. So I need to quit whining and write.

Whomps, Eir, Whit, Ash, me

When I came home from Duluth I had the joy of a mini-reunion with some friends from the summer camp where I grew up. Eir and Ashley I see quite often (as regular blog readers will know), but Whitney and Laura (whom we call Whompie) I almost never see! It was a fun afternoon. We got coffee and went for a walk at Lake Harriet in Minneapolis, followed by dinner and Sebastian Joe’s ice cream! What a treat to catch up with everyone– especially after being tucked away from human interaction for the week prior!

How was your May, friends?