Megan Frazer

One of the cool things about being an author and a librarian is that when ALA has conventions, I get to see my library peeps and my author peeps. And my current peeps introduce me to new peeps. (All this talk of peeps and libraries reminds me of one of my favorite sites.)

On Friday, I did a workshop about standards for school library media programs that was awesome. It was led by Pam Berger, who was just fantastic. Then I went to the author panel with Eric Van Lustbader, Chuck Hogan, Tracy Chevalier, and Julie Powell. Ostensibly it was about books into movies, but they talked about all sorts of things. As a new author, I found it fascinating and reassuring when they talked about reviews. Except for Lustbader, who insisted he didn’t read his I should have taken notes and written down quotes because they were interesting. Chevalier talked about how the reviews balanced her, since most people who write to her or come to her events like the books. Both she and Hogan mentioned that they wished they could learn something from them, which is one of the fallacies of book reviewing, I think, that the author will read it, incorporate it, and somehow improve their work.

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Kody Keplinger has declare today agent appreciation day, which is an as yet unofficial holiday.

My agents is Sara Crowe of Harvey Klinger, and she is just amazing. Of course I am eternally grateful to her for finding me in the slush. She gave me my first taste of someone unrelated to me loving my characters, my worlds, and my words. I’ve had a pretty smooth road, but she’s been there to work out the bumps when they arise, all while making me feel as calm as a kitten with milk. She wears yellow dresses. She sounds like Terry Gross on the phone. She’s a New Englander, which means she’s very polite with a tough interior.

That’s why I appreciate her. Here’s why you should appreciate her: A Crowe’s Nest. It’s her group blog with her clients and offers a wealth of insider information on the business. If you’re not already a follower, you should definitely become one.

Thanks, Sara!

Alexa Martin Pruit and I interviewed our editor, Emily Schultz, and it’s up on our agent’s blog. Emily has some interesting insight into the acquisitions and editorial process, so take a look!