Erica O'Rourke

Real Live Author

363 days ago, I got a phone call. I thought it was a telemarketer, and I was perhaps a little on the surly side upon answering.

It was not a telemarketer. It was Alicia Condon, at Kensington Publishing, offering to buy my manuscript. I stopped pretty quickly with the surliness, in case you were wondering.

In relatively short order, I had an agent and a book deal and deadlines and now, two days shy of a year later, my book is in bookstores, I am officially published, and in a few hours, I will have my first signing. Like a real live author.

Guys, I am a REAL LIVE AUTHOR.

I don't even know what to say about that, except that what I have said on previous occasions still holds true. I am the luckiest girl in the world, and I am so, so grateful to you all for being a part of this crazy, exhilarating, magical year. Luckiest girl in the world, and it is mostly because of you.

Thank you.

Go Oft Astray

Unanswered calls. Broken promises. A dangerous new path. 

Verity's secrets are taking over her life.

She may never get the old one back -- and Mo's will never be the same.

Click here for more of the story.

Torn Blog Tour: I cannot believe I did this.

So, the part of the Torn Blog Tour I have been dreading is finally upon us. That's right: video interview. Of me. Talking. Topics include the unexpected dangers of badminton and wasabi. Also, I might geek out a little about Sherlock. But only a little.

Swing by Moonlight Book Reviews and see what I have to say. Thanks for having me, Erika!

Torn Blog Tour: Ichthyophobia and Me

Nafiza at Bibliophilic Monologues asks a key question today: 

I read on your website that you “hate fish” but like sushi. How does that work? 

Click here to find out how, exactly, this works. Nafiza had GREAT questions -- it was a blast to do this interview!

Sometimes I Am Slow On The Uptake, or, FAQs

Get a group of writers together, and soon enough you are going to hear the same questions over and over:

"What's your process?"

"Plotter or pantser?"

"When do you find the time to write?"

"Do you draft longhand or on the computer?"

"How did you get your agent/book deal/critique partner?"

this happens even more often once you've sold a book. Now, I am a bit of a slow learner, but it finally struck me that rather than ponder these questions each time, I should probably compile a list of all the questions that I get quite often. You know. The questions. People ask. Frequently.

A trendsetter. That's me.

ANYWAY. If you've got questions, Tumblr is probably the fastest way to ask me. You can email too, but those tend to get buried pretty quickly. Periodically, I'll round up those answers and post them here as well.

To start us off, here's quick-and dirty answers to the questions above:

1. What's your process? Outline, draft in chronological order, piteous weeping, revision, piteous weeping and sailor-like language, revision, uncontrolled gibbering, revision, line edits, copy edits/proofing.
2. Plotter or Pantser? Plotter all the way. I use a giant sketchbook to plot out each individual storyline and brainstorm all in one place. I'll show you a picture soonish.
3. When do you write? I try to do the bulk of my writing during the day, while the baby is at school. But after everyone goes to bed, I usually try to squeeze in another couple of hours.
4. Longhand or typing for the first draft? Typing. If I'm stuck, I'll write longhand, but my handwriting is pretty absymal, so there's always a risk I won't be able to decipher what is undoubtably heartbreakingly luminous prose.
5. How did you get your agent/book deal/critique partner? Hard work and luck. For all three.

 

Torn Blog Tour: When I'm Not Writing

We are timeshifting today! The lovely Corrine at Lost For Words asked what I do when I'm not writing. Hint: NOT LAUNDRY. The post originally went up yesterday, but I totally spaced out about all things blog-related, so we will just pretend. 

Go forth and comment!

Torn Blog Tour: The Book Butterfly

Today's post is a This or That list over at The Book Butterfly, where you will find out perhaps the single most important thing about me: how I take my coffee. 

Have a great weekend, all!

Too Short Forever

Nobody expects forever. Not at seventeen.

But nobody expects it to end, either.

Especially not the people Verity leaves behind.

 

Click here for more of the story.

Torn Blog Tour: Geometry for Writers

Today, I'm over at All Things Urban Fantasy, talking about how to write a love triangle that doesn't suck. I even drew pictures! Come and mock my artistic ability!

 

Torn Blog Tour: Meet Colin

Around here, we describe Colin as Strong of Jaw and Dark of Backstory. Want to know more? He's being interviewed over at Rex Robot Reviews today. Come by and leave a comment!

Also, thank you so much for the postcard love! There's more to come, and if you like the K Teen Facebook Page, you'll find special scenes and extras popping up there in the next few weeks as well.