Kick me with an Outlaw Boot

I am sooooo embarrassed--I forgot author website links in my Outlaw Boots posts. I know I forgot it in Jon's post, but maybe even in all of them. : \ Instead of going back to check, I'm just going to try again.

Courtney Summers can be found here.

Kurtis Scaletta can be found here.

A.S. King can be found here.

And Jon Skovron can be found here.

I mean, what kind of a yo-yo forgets an author's website?

Me.

Sorry.

Graphic swiped from here.

Outlaw boots, pair #4: Jon Skovron

In this month's installment of Outlaw Boots, we have classic outlaws: rock and roll heroes in the forms of Jon Skovron and Sammy, Jon's protagonist of STRUTS AND FRETS. If you are a music-is-my-soul kind of human, you must read STRUTS AND FRETS. Music is the thing that gets Sammy through--and through a lot. His grandfather is sick (my favorite parts of the book involve his grandfather), his best friend (Jen5, love that name) is maybe more than that, and, well, there's his band. Sammy is someone you will understand. And don't you love the title? Rock and roll and Shakespeare, all rolled up.



Here's the book.


Here's Jon.

And look next fall for MISFIT, Jon's second novel, with an even more significant badass outlaw. The one-sentence summary of MISFIT: "A half-demon girl in Catholic school must keep her parentage a secret as she learns to control her emerging abilities and protect those she loves from the forces of Hell." Can't get much more badass than that, now can you?

Without further ado, here's why Jon is an outlaw (and dig those black Doc Martens! Classic!):

--Who's your most outlaw character (in any book)--why?
Jael Thompson from my forthcoming book MISFIT. Because being a demon in Catholic school makes you an outlaw automatically.

--Are you an outlaw too? How do you know?
Not on purpose. It's just that there are so many rules that get in the way...

--What kind of shoes does your outlaw wear (you or your character--maybe outlaw boots?)?
A classic: black Doc Martin boots.

--Pirate, ninja, nerd, other outlaw title for you/your character:
Artist.

--Best thing about being an outlaw:
Life is never dull.

--Favorite outlaw/badass food:
A New York slice, folded in half, eaten while walking.

--Favorite outlaw/badass role model/why:
It's a toss-up between Henry Miller and Oscar Wilde...Two very different guys, but they both stayed true to their creative spirit and boldly faced the consequences.

Go, friends--have a rock and roll break with STRUTS AND FRETS. You won't regret it.

Things I love this week

First and most obvious (if you are my FB friend, you know this already), this announcement from PUBLISHERS WEEKLY:

"Kirstin Cronn-Mills's BEAUTIFUL MUSIC FOR UGLY CHILDREN, following a boy, who thinks he's the master of disguise because his given name is Elizabeth, and his weekly, hour-long radio show, where he entertains the world as his true self; pitched as Pump Up the Volume for this generation, to Brian Farrey at Flux, by Amy Tipton at Signature Literary Agency (World English). "

I AM SO STOKED. *This*, friends, is EPIC. I am here to convince the publishing world that a book with a trans man narrator will sell a zillion copies! A big task, but I'm up to it. Flux, you won't regret it. Thank you for your trust in me.

Second, this conversation:
Shae: Mom, you *have* to read this book [Riordan's new one, LOST HEROES, from his new series HEROES OF OLYMPUS).
K: why? [looks at him and his grin] You're dying to talk about it, aren't you?
Shae: YES! So just read it!
I love raising a reader.

Third: school break.
Fourth: school break.
Fifth: the novel I'm revising.
Sixth: school break.
Seventh: fall soccer in beautiful weather.
Eighth: dodging a bullet (you know that feeling? Said bullet may not be discussed here, but I dodged it, and holy crap, my heart hasn't slowed down since.)
Ninth: lemon water.
Tenth: you. : ) I always love you, friends!

Graphic stolen from here, a blog I now plan to read, and not just for its cool graphics.

Rock on, friends! Here's to new adventures with BEAUTIFUL MUSIC!

Epic-ness and skulls

Do you feel epic, friends?

Some days I do. Some days I think I can win the Internet, single-handedly make my books NYT bestsellers, make my students elect me for a Nobel Peace Prize, and raise my child to be Gandhi, while I also make gourmet dinners and provide all my loved ones with oodles of smooches and glittery unicorns carrying my affection for them.

Then there are days I definitely, positively, completely do not feel epic.

There are also days in between. I like those days. Today has yet to be determined. But I owe you a blog post.

The most epic thing in my life right now: Skull-A-Day. Have you seen it? We're in skull season now, with Day of the Dead coming up. Even better than Halloween, if you ask me.

Here's the epic part: Skull-A-Day is research now. Remember the buffalo book? There are now 100% more skulls in that book. I am hooked on epic skulls, and that blog has some crazy amazing ones.

Skull image from here. Thanks, Noah Scalin. You rock, and you are kind and generous. Can't wait to dig through your archives.

So: go be epic. Blog post accomplished.

Domestic violence and you . . . and me

I've been trying to figure out how to write this post for a couple weeks. First, the deets: it would be great, awesome, and cool if you could check out Swati Avasthi's auction (click the button above to get there). I donated a book and a critique, as did many other people who are cooler than me. Swati's book SPLIT is a wonderful, voice-y read, and it brings up many angles of a violent situation. Please check it out.

Second, why it matters to me to be a part of this: I've got domestic violence in my background. There were people who were hurt by others who in turn hurt me. Alcohol abuse, mental illness, and huge needs for control and dominance were part of it. It was mild, comparatively speaking, but it's given me a trick knee, which pops out and knocks me down sometimes. The great thing: now I get back up, which is a relatively recent skill. There were times I stayed on the ground forever.

One of my abusers is very sick now, and me and the trick knee are working it out. We mostly walk, though there is limping involved when I'm tired or overwhelmed. It's hard sometimes. I want to say: you didn't help me, why should I help you? But that's dumb. This person needs lots of love. And I can give it, most days, when there's no yelling involved.

I can't say what it's like for others. Forgiveness is a far reach sometimes, depending on the severity of things. But people change, and people are sorry. And abuse isn't about the person *being* abused. They're just a convenient target for all the hurt the abuser feels. When I learned this fact, it was a huge weight off my shoulders. And Swati's auction will send money to help abusers not be abusers.

Please check it out and help stop the violence before it starts. Do it for the people you know who are affected by domestic violence. And when I say "affected" I mean everything from people who are still living with it to people with trick knees.

Thanks.