Jim McCoy's Big Blog of Nancy Werlin

Things are brewing...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Sat, 08 Dec 2012 22:12:00 +0000

Some of you have noticed that it's been awfully quiet on this blog lately. *Too* quiet...

Nancy and I have been talking about the blog and her web presence generally, and changes are afoot regarding how you'll be able to keep abreast of Nancy's doings. There is more to come on this subject, but in the meantime, here's something she's been working on just lately: a Tumblr page with cartoons about whatever's on her mind.

The end!

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Sun, 12 Aug 2012 21:02:00 +0000

Nancy just mailed off novel number nine this morning! Writing this book was a long, tough slog for her, and it took a bit longer than usual. But she knew she had a good one going, and the Olympics have demonstrated for us the importance of sticking the landing. I anticipate big scores from the judges.

Nancy among the best ever

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Tue, 24 Jul 2012 17:03:00 +0000

NPR is accepting votes for the best-ever teen novels. Among the 235 nominees for this exalted honor are not one but two of Nancy's novels: Impossible and The Rules of Survival. If you think that either or both of them belong among the top 10, go ahead and cast your vote.

Pretty heady stuff. Remember last post how I said that I always enjoy formal praise for Nancy's work? This time is one of those times.

The watchword is "Werlin"

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Thu, 19 Jul 2012 16:46:00 +0000

Nancy's name frequently shows up here and there on the web, usually in formal or informal reviews of her stuff. But there have been a couple of other references lately:

this one in which Nancy's blurb inspires reader/reviewer/blogger Leila Roy to stay with a book until she gets to the payoff...
...and this one in which a Kirkus Review of Robin Wasserman's The Book of Blood and Shadow uses Nancy's work as a standard of comparison: "think Nancy Werlin channeling Dan Brown".

Sincere forms of flattery. I always enjoy direct praise for Nancy's work, but sometimes indirect praise is just as fun.

Time for the LA Times

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Fri, 18 May 2012 01:30:00 +0000

Nancy has been appointed as a judge on the Young Adult Literature Panel for the 2012 and 2013 Los Angeles Times Book Prizes. She was a nominee a few years ago -- our flight to LA marked the first time we traveled together -- and it was a blast, so she's looking forward to being involved once again.

Besides, she loves the judging. For the 2012 prize, awarded for titles published this year, she'll be working alongside librarians Angelina Benedetti of Seattle and Rollie Welch from Cleveland. More precisely, she'll be working alongside me, here on the couch, as she devours one book after the other.

Impossible is Lincoln nominee

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Thu, 03 May 2012 23:13:00 +0000

Impossible has been nominated for the 2013 Abraham Lincoln Award, sponsored by the Illinois School Library Media Association (ISLMA). It's awarded annually to the author of the book voted as most outstanding by high school students in Illinois, and is designed to familiarize students with the young adult genre and to encourage them to read for personal satisfaction.

Among the list of nominees are just four titles singled about by the Student Reader Panel, and Impossible is one of those favored four.

RPG, anyone?

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 23:29:00 +0000

We ran across this one recently, combining Impossible with Harry Potter. Fan-fiction role-playing games are the sincerest form of flattery...

What do we hear for our favorite YA writer?

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 14:33:00 +0000

You can earn a personal appearance from Nancy to speak to your group, and she'll also bring you six signed copies of one of her books. All you have to do is make the winning bid on an internet auction in support of the Zamir Chorale here in Boston.

If you're not in the Boston area, you can still bid, and Nancy will meet with your group via phone or Skype.

What do we hear?

Nancy on the Novel at NESCBWI

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 13:33:00 +0000

The New England Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators will be holding its spring conference at the Sheraton Springfield Monarch Place in Springfield, Massachusetts this weekend from Friday, April 20, through Sunday, April 22.

On Sunday Nancy will be joining fellow authors Sarah Aronson and Carolyn Coman in offering The Novel Academy, designed to help New England writers work on e.g. characters and story.

The Novel Academy is full up, but it's not too late to join the conference...

Adaptations

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 19:29:00 +0000

The continued survival of our species suggests that adaptation is a good thing. But Nancy and others are here to tell you that's not always the case, in this Salon article on the good, the bad, and the potential of book-to-movie adaptations.

It's raining Nancy

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 21:03:00 +0000

Hey, guess what? Nancy is up in the cloud, and three of her books -- Extraordinary, Impossible, and The Rules of Survival -- have precipitated out in the form of ebooks. Now you can carry all three titles with you wherever you go. Get your copies from Amazon, BN.com, or your favorite indie bookstore -- wherever ebooks are sold.

It occurred to me today that it's only a matter of time before the general public catches on to the fact that ebooks are greener than hard copies, and the former become positively fashionable. (Wake me if this has already happened.) For now the paper purists still seem to hold the upper hand. The good news is that now you can decide, and you can enjoy Nancy's stuff in whichever form you prefer.

Nancy in Nebraska

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 19:39:00 +0000

Nancy will be in Omaha, Nebraska this Monday, December 5, for a couple of events at two branches of the Omaha Public Library. First she'll be giving a talk and signing books at the Swanson Branch at 9101 West Dodge Road, at 4 p.m., and if you can't make that one, she'll do it all over again at the Millard Branch at 13214 Westwood Lane, at 7 p.m.

High-Test Momentum

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 01:21:00 +0000

Nancy is officially on a roll with her latest book. Once again, her retreat with the High-Test Girls was very timely. This time they were in a new retreat house, in Plymouth, MA. Perhaps it was the assembled throng -- all nine made it this time! -- or perhaps it was the physical space, but for whatever reason, the discussions of their work were even more fruitful than usual. Nancy made lots of progress and came away reinvigorated and once again in love with her new work.

It was a fun retreat on personal levels as well. Franny Billingsley arrived fresh off the news of her nomination for the National Book Award (watch this space for more on that soon), and Dian Curtis Regan arrived fresh off the news of her engagement! There were other tidbits of interest as well, and it all added up to a lively, fun, productive week.

Cover coverage

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 13:50:00 +0000

Melissa Walker conducts a nice interview with Nancy on the paperback cover of Extraordinary. It occurs to me that Mallory on this cover looks a bit like Nancy's evil twin. Coincidence?

On your mark, get set...

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 02:08:00 +0000

...go! Extraordinary hits the shelves in paperback today! Paperbacks are fairly lightweight, so we'll look forward to them flying right back off of the shelves...

Niemożliwe jest możliwe

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 17:06:00 +0000

Impossible has been translated to (and published in) another language -- Polish. Click here to see a write-up and another gorgeous cover that's reminiscent of the U.S. version.

Light on darkness in YA

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 10:41:00 +0000

Thanks to Erzsi Deak for posting on Facebook a link to this NPR story: http://n.PR/lxmwKa.

A visit to Powell's

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 15:30:00 +0000

While in Portland, our pal and fellow bibliophile Amy Conklin dropped in to the wonderful Powell's City of Books. She zeroed in on the Young Adult section to look for Nancy's stuff, found a nice selection of four titles, and was kind enough to share this photo with us. A Werlin collection is but one measure of the quality of a bookstore...

Kindling Words West

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 14:40:00 +0000

We've been keeping a low profile here on the blog, which isn't exactly the point of the thing. But Nancy has had a quiet time schedule-wise, and has been busy writing. Trouble was, she wasn't getting to where she wanted to be in her latest book; she'd been wrestling with a major plot point that didn't feel exactly right. Then came Kindling Words West, a writers' retreat held annually in Taos, New Mexico.

There she had the whole day blocked off for writing, which left her lots of time to work and focus. Just as importantly, she was surrounded by peers sharing ideas at breakfast, lunch, and the end of the day. She talked out her problems with the gang, and lo! The plotting point that had been plaguing her suddenly seemed surmountable, and she wrote her way through it in better shape than ever -- the story coalesced, and the words tumbled out. She still has plenty of work to do on this book, but now it's starting to feel like a downhill effort rather than a steep uphill.

Retreats almost always work this way for Nancy, and KWW was in a fantastic setting to boot. Did I mention the beautiful mountain surroundings, the warm, dry air, and the hot springs? Those didn't hurt a bit. We're already looking forward to the next one...

New cover for Rules

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 15:50:00 +0000

Penguin is coming out with this new cover for the next paperback edition of The Rules of Survival. Gotta say, it looks like they nailed it. I loved the previous broken-glass-in-a-cereal-bowl cover, but not being a publishing marketer, I can't say that this one won't be more effective. It's hard not to notice those eyes...

Nancy's books in other languages

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 22:36:00 +0000

While we're on the subject of Nancy's books in different languages, I just received a comment from a reader who would like to see Nancy's books published in Hungarian, which raises a larger issue. Nancy doesn't determine which languages her books will get published in; publishers can bid on the language rights for a given book if they feel there will be a market for it. So if you speak something other than English, contact the folks at your favorite publisher and let them know of your interest in Nancy's books, and maybe they'll give it a chance...

Reservieren Sie sich Ihr Exemplar jetzt

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 22:26:00 +0000

Sprechen Sie Deutsch? If so, you can now get Impossible in German, under the title Der Fluch von Scarborough Fair.

Black Mirror on KCLS walking tour

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 01:54:00 +0000

The King County Library System in Washington has come up with an imaginative way of promoting books: they've set up a virtual gallery of 100 book covers sprinkled around the county at various businesses. At each stop, you can read about or listen to a description of the book behind the book cover.

Nancy's Black Mirror is on display in CC's Lounge at 635 SW 152nd Street in Burien. If you don't live anywhere near Seattle, you can still follow the tour from the website, and get an audio description of Black Mirror here, nestled right between works by T.S. Eliot and Dr. Seuss in the Burien section of the page. If you do live in those parts and want to do some or all of the walking tour, the instructions are at the top of the page.

Save rubles on Impossible!

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 20:15:00 +0000

The Russian-language version of Impossible is now licensed to Ripol Classics of Moscow, under the KIT imprint for YA. Books are affordable in Russia: the hardcover is expected to retail for somewhere around the equivalent of $2.60, while the paperback is expected to go for around $1.50.

Nancy in the stacks

noreply@blogger.com (Jim McCoy) — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 19:28:00 +0000

When we were in Austin a few months ago, Nancy was interviewed by Stacy of Girls in the Stacks.com, who wanted to know about Extraordinary. Here's the video of that interview, in which Nancy discusses the ways in which Phoebe is both ordinary and extraordinary.