Sorry I’ve missed the last two Fridays, but at last FAF is BACK!
Okay, so Dalek Week is approaching over at Deviant Art. It runs from July 8 to 14, and is a seven-day challenge, each day with a different Deryn-and-Alek-y theme. (Click here for more details.) So I thought I’d start with a couple of entries from last year’s Dalek Week.
First here’s one from the estimable PrinceofParties, which reminds me of a certain schoolyard taunt (containing the line, “K-I-S-S-I-N-G”).
So romantic.
And here from Sorcaron, a sorta metaphorical image of Darwinist and Clanker angels:
Those wings of Alek’s have an interesting story behind them. When Keith and I were first conceptualizing the series, Keith wanted to start with portraits of Alek and Deryn. (Those portraits appear in the original Leviathan trailer, and will be in the Manual of Aeronautics, along with newer ones of Barlow and Volger.) He spent a lot of time on frames that signified the warring powers, and which began the notion of two distinct Clanker and Darwnist aesthetics. Then Sammy Yuen, the designer for the original Levaiathan cover, used Alek’s Clanker wings on the cover. Since then, that visual motif has become the symbol of the series. So it’s great to see it here in angelic-Alek form.
And here’s Deryn doing some Clanker stuff, and I have no idea whom this is from, or where it was created. Help me!
Update: It’s a Poptropica screenshot that reminded someone of Deryn in a walker, and rightly so.
And now some Japanese fan art! Thanks to Brita O. for sending these along.
Both from Pivix.net. I don’t know who did them, because the whole site’s in Japanese. But they’re really cool.
This one’s called “Thinking”:
And the text here says, “There’s no way jellyfish balloons can be that cute!”
Update: No it doesn’t. But supposedly some text somewhere around this picture did.
Link to original. Kawaiiii!
And now a great Deryn poster from SarahD:
And finally, here’s some rare So Yesterday fan art from Camilla. It’s called “French Revolution,” which will make sense to those of you who’ve read the book.
Okay, that’s it for this FAF. Now I have to pack for visiting my dad in Savannah and San Diego Comic Con. Can’t wait to see some of you there.
Don’t forget our Team Human chat on Sunday!
Okay, let’s see Max on more time:
And make sure to watch the sequel, because the next time I see Rick Riordan, I’m totally going to call him “Rick RiorDAN.”
Yesterday at 2PM, me and a hundred-ish fans from the WesterForum hung out for about an hour and a half, and I answered many questions. For those of you who weren’t able to attend, I’ have compiled them into this blog post, typos and all! (So. Many. Typos.)
Enjoy:
“What kind of juice do you like?”
There are many juices I love. Mango! Pear! (Especially pear cider.) Apple!
“So Scott there’s been a rivalry going on (on the forum obviously) , based on the question : If the crew of the Leviathan got in a fight with Special Circumstances who would win? What’s your opinion?”
I think in a close-quarters fight the Specials would win, because they’re too quick. But in a proper battle, the Leviathan could mess them up with strafing hawks or bat-poo without ever being in danger.
“WHATS GOING ON WITH CROY?! CAN YOU GIVE US ANY INFO ON HIM?! ”
That info will be released at Leaky Con and Comic Con. THAT’S ONLY A FEW WEEKS. But I can’t tell you anything now, except maybe . . . you will SEE HIM.
“Did you use the same models on the cover of Goliath that you used on Leviathan and Behemoth?”
Yes. Same models, same photo shoot on the same day. Sometime I’ll show you guys the unaltered photos.
“At any point in Behemoth, does Dr. Barlow know that Deyrn is a girl? It has been a topic of great debate.”
Hah! Not saying now, but you WILL learn the answer to that in Goliath.
“Have you ever met someone in real life who reminds you of your characters?
Or vice versa.”
Hmm, not really. Although sometimes I see someone and say, ‘Whoa, he/she’s a total pretty!’
“Nice to meet you, btw. (and tell hi to Justine (Mrs. Larbaleister (sp?)) for me, please!)”
It’s Dr. Larbalestier, in fact.
“Can Justine cook?”
She’s a great cook of Thai food, and she wants me to add that she’s a good boxer too. (She’s been taking lessons.)
“What TV shows do you watch?”
Game of Thrones, Treme, just finished Vampire Diaries,
“This isn’t really a question, just a comment. I thought you’d like to know that I used to like history, and Leviathan made me love it again. I might even try writing something historical-ish myself. ”
Yay!
“Is Lilit lesbian/bi? (Please say yes.)”
They didn’t really have those categories for women back then, but she would be if she was alive today. (Strange but true fact: Male homosexuality was illegal in England back then, but female homosexuality wasn’t because lawmakers REFUSED TO BELIEVE IT EXISTED.)
“In Uglies, there are many messages, some obvious, some not so much. What messages/lessons do you want readers to take away from Leviathan?”
Hmm. I think that the big theme is about how different sides of a conflict (war or just ideological/technological) see each other, and how that can change when people are forced to work together.
“What kind of music do you like? (Do you like Florence+and the machine?)”
I like minimalism and trip-hop, and I don’t know of this Florence person.
“What is your opinion on the Hunger Games? (Will you see the movie?)”
Want to see the movie. Liked the first book, but didn’t read the others.
“When will you go on tour?”
September 17. DON’T KNOW WHERE YET! NOT MY CHOICE WHERE.
“Would you like to join my band of Ninjas?”
I have already infiltrated your band of ninjas!
“Do you like writing about diseases? Peeps was about parasites, Innoculata had to do with a virus and in So Yesterday the main characters dad is a Epidimiologist (I think).”
I love all kinds of biology, like beasties too. Studied philosophy of biology in college. (Yes, that’s a real thing.)
“Scott-la, in the Uglies series who was the most interesting character to create?”
Hmm, maybe Mr. Simpson Smith, because he talked funny and had a very different view of the world from everyone else.
“Is there a ball, wedding, or some other formal scene in Goliath?”
Yes!
“Will we ever see Deryn in a dress in the final book?
I need some hope..
Secret!
“Were you annoyed with my pie questions at the last meet up? xD”
No!
” I love Eddie is he important in Goliath?? ”
Hmm, this is spoilery, but yes he is important in Goliath. In fact, no one just disappears.
“Is Goliath the end of the Leviathan universe? I know you are writing the Manual of Aeronautics, but that won’t have any stories in it. Is there an Extras style book planned?”
Nothing planned, but I have a “prequel” to Goliath, sort of. It was a short story I was writing and decided to dump because I wanted to do a whole trilogy. And I mean to publish it sometime.
“Any Leviathan movie news that you would like to share?”
A contract is being written. Until it is signed, I can say no more!
“Have you ever tried fencing? Would you take lessons from Count Volger?”
Yes, in college. He sounds mean as a teacher, though. I’m a lazy student at physical stuff.
“Did you name Volger Ernst because that was the name Archduke Ferdinand named his son?”
Yes! Bonus points to you! He is the Ernst I erased from history.
“And how close was Volger and the Archduke exactly? Did he name his son after Volger?”
Volger’s not historical, so your second question is a no. But in my world they were very close, though they went through a bad patch when Volger told the Archduke not to marry Sophie.
“I’m Hungarian. Do we go to Hungary next?”
Sorry, no Hungary stuff in Goliath.
“What’s Lilit’s last name?”
I don’t know. (Naming varies a lot back then, however. She probably just would have been known as ‘Lilit, daughter of Zaven.’
“Do you find it interesting when we ship characters?”
YES! I love all the fan fics.
“Oh yeah, and how’s that bloke in your closet doing?”
He’s almost done with his master’s degree, and then I think he’s getting a PhD.
(This is an inside joke at the Forum. Do not be alarmed.)
“Ok, so since the Leviathan series is almost over, do you already have another series in mind? Or is the new Croy project the next big thing?”
Not a whole series, yet. But a standalone novel is in my head and there’s the Cory project and a graphic novel I’m writing.
“What kind of copyright it the leviathan trilogy and who holds it? will there eventually be a creative commons version?”
Not sure about more short stories. Leviathan is under normal copyright, held by me, but write all the fan fiction you want.
“Any advice on worldbuilding?”
Pay attention to how THIS world works, and how complicated it is.
“And, has anyone in real life been an inspiration for a character in the Leviathan series?”
Hmm, not really, except for those historical women who really pretended to be boys.
“Scott can you imagine that if you came to our houses we’d freak out and be like the lady in ‘Misery’ the movie/book?”
Thanks for the warning!
“Oh, and are Dr. Barlow and Volger in love? Us fans would die of happiness if they were!”
Barlow is married! (But they have a special bond.)
“Will you be coming to Texas any time soon?”
YES, I’m booked at the Austin Teen Book Festival, and therefore other TX cities are probably on tour.
“Okay, I HAVE to ask–will there ever be an Uglies movie?”
Maybe! New deal in the works. Will post news when contract signed.
“Are you going to see the last harry potter movie in the theatre?”
Yes, at Leaky Con, with Maureen Johnson.
“What was the weirdest thing you’ve ever been asked to sign?”
Answered that at the last meet-up, and I can’t remember what. Does anyone else?
(Further research revealed the answer to be, “A bra.”)
“On Justine’s website she says that she doesn’t drive cars. Do you drive cars? If no, does that have anything to do with Uglies?”
True, we don’t have a car or even licenses. And it KIND OF has to do with Uglies, in that I have environmental issues with them.
I never live anywhere where a car is essential.
“Ok, guys why don’t we just wait and let him answer all the questions we’ve already asked.”
Hah! Good luck with that.
“Are we going to see some sword fighting from Alek, Deryn, or particularly Voger in Goliath?”
Yes! There are swords! And a thing that’s not QUITE a sword.
“How many chapters are in Goliath?”
Um, 44 or 45.
“Have you eaten any pie lately?”
Not lately. But I will today IN YOUR HONOR.
“Can you give a vague description of the setting of the book after Goliath?”
Contemp US and a sort of mystical afterworld.
“Will you come to Europe?”
Yeah, but no plans at the moment. France wants me to come in a couple of years.
Where i really want to go is Brazil.
“Do you watch any anime or read any manga???”
Nana, Blood+, Monster, Princess Tutu, Moribito, Full Metal Alchemist, Pluto, 20th Century Boys.
“Why did you choose today as the meetup day? Do you like having meetups on the two year anniversary of MJ? xD”
Didn’t realize.
“Do you have a pic of the cool shoe lacing from So Yesterday? I hvent been able to find a pattern like that anywhere…”
One of my foreign editions has it. Search for So Yesterday on all my blog posts and go through them.
(I looked for this ,but still can’t find it.)
“Shuffling through some old blog posts I saw that you had posted about the possibility of a ‘So Yesterday’ movie. Is there still a chance it might be a movie?”
No, that fell apart. (But I got some money. Yay!)
“Do you like emilie autumn? muse?”
Don’t know them
“What is your favorite book you wrote?”
Hmm, Peeps was the most magical experience. Like, every time I had a plot problem, parasites solved it!
“Is Lilit gonna get married as a part of a plot in Goliath? (guessing this due to the April Fools joke pic). The plot due to the knife and the fact that Lilith obviusly wouldn’t get married for love anyways (i don’t think). ‘Specially since we know now she’s gay/bi. (not saying gay/bi people shouldn’t get married, just saying I hihgly doubt it was legal back then).”
Heh, I will say that she’s a part of the book, but THAT IS ALL.
“Do you like the television show House?”
Never saw it. I don’t watch much realism.
“Have you ever watched A very Potter musical???”
No.
“Does the Leviathan have a tail?”
Yes! You will SEE it and we will GO back there in Goliath.
“(If no one disappears in your books) what happened to Croy?”
He is saving himself for May/June 2012.
“will there be any good makeout scenes in goliath ??”
Yes there will be kisses . . . BUT WHO?
“Will volger die ‘cuz his first name meens fight to the death?”
EVERYONE DIES IN GOLIATH. (Not really.)
“My twinbrother would like to know: will there be new awesome warmachines or beasties?”
BOTH.
“Last time, you mentioned Newkirk doesn’t have a first name. Can you make one up now?”
Um, I leave that to you guys.
“We know that ‘Hearst’ from the Goliath Word Cloud is William Randolph Hearst, but who’s ‘Rogers’?”
Um, I can’t remember.
“I want deryn to tell alek so badly… you dragged it out for so long! why? why?”
The tears of my readers keep me young.
“My brother also wants to know if we’ll see anything with the clanker dirigibles?”
YES.
“How do you feel about people torturing your characters in fan fics and fan art, i.e. making them stupid, confused, killing them, and/or maiming them?”
Go for it.
“Ok, so is that Goliath prequel your next big thing or is there another new series?”
Like I said, there’s a standalone novel, and the Croy project, and a graphic novel.
“Is the Croy project really about Croy? Or is that just what you’re calling it?”
That’s just what I’m calling it. BECAUSE YOU ARE ALL OBSESSED WITH CROY.
“Eugene William Newkirk for the win! *fistbump*”
IT IS DECIDED.
“How did David get his eyebrow scar? Or is that one of those questions that you leave for the fans to decide? (I have already written a fanfic on it )”
Revealed in the Croy project!
“Will there ever be a Leviathan video game?”
I hope so, but no plans yet.
“Do you want a pet message lizard?”
Hmm. Hard to take care of, going back and forth between Sydney and NYC.
“Do you like Berry Burst Icecream Oreos?”
THEY SOUND INTRIGUING!
“Will there be a Russian revolution in the Leviathan-verse?”
We don’t get all the way to 1917, so not in the books.
“ALSO ….. my mother wants to know if there is another Risen Empire coming soon???”
Alas no.
“And if you have: Can you tell us just the last word? Not the last sentence, just the last word.”
It is . . . ‘allies’
“Will anyone go to the US?”
YES.
“Will there ever be a Leviathan Lego kit? ”
This came up in my last marketing meeting, and I said I will sign any paper necessary to make that happen. But nothing brewing yet.
“And have you ever tried the ‘real’ Bovril (the edible kind)?”
No. I’m a vegetarian.
“Have you finished Goliath yet?”
Yup!
“How do you feel about this forum as a whole?”
I think it’s great how big it is! But I haven’t read that much of it. It’s kind of you guys’s thing, not mine.
“If you could have one machine/beastie from Levi exist in our would, what would It be?”
The Leviathan itself. I would fly on it!
“Do you have skype and so would u like to come to our after meet up skype party?”
I don’t skype much, and I must do WORK.
“Do you ever base your characters off yourself or family members? (My first serious question beside the Croy questions!)”
Not really. Maybe little bits of them, like not liking chocolate or a turn of phrase.
“Will there ever be a creative commons attribution non-commercial share-alike license?”
Maybe if I ever get around to it. I’d almost rather throw it all into the public domain. Simpler that way.
“Thanks, Scott!!!!!!! I can’t wait for all these new projects. Will the graphic novel be from the same illustrator that does Levi?”
No. Keith’s too slow and complicated to do a graphic novel.
“Will this place ever have feeds or something like identi.ca.”
I don’t know what that is.
“Who do you like better, Alek or Deyn?”
Deryn’s more fun to write, because she’s basically happier and better adjusted. But Alek’s a bit more thoughtful.
“Is there any reason that I couldn’t request a friend of a friend to make me a t-shirt to be made that said ‘Team Cable’ or ‘Special Circumstances’ or ‘I don’t want to hurt you but I will if I have to’ or other quotes from Uglies on it?? Because I don’t want to get in any trouble for making one if it’s not legal–so is it okay to make an Uglies themed t-shirt for myself?”
Rock out! For personal use is okay with me.
“will this forum ever be in real-time?”
Hmm, I don’t know exactly what that means, so not soon. I’ll ask my webmistress.
“Would you consider writing another steampunk novel?”
Not for a while. Wouldn’t want to repeat myself.
“What is your favorite type of Leviathan Fan fiction?”
The more weird and unexpected, the more I like it.
“is the Goliath a beastie or a clanker machine?? dying of curiosity here!!”
Machine!
“Do you like bugs?”
Yes, but not in my food.
“Are you heading to the MA area anytime soon?”
Probably not.
“Have you ever used an IRC?”
Not for a long time.
“Has anybody ever recognized you and freaked out?”
An elevator full of librarians did once at ALA (a librarian conference) and they screamed!
“If I mentioned pie if I ever saw you, would you recognize me as Allie-wa?”
Lots of people ask me about pie, but I would still know it was YOU.
“Scott. MOST important question EVER…….Do you…own a blue bucket?”
I did, but it was stolen.
“Okay, so when Volger said that Dr. Barlow was an ‘interesting woman,’ he wasn’t declaring his undying love for her?”
He’s cagier than that, I think.
“does anyone important in the series die in goliath?”
People die, and I bet THEY think they’re important.
“Do you look at xkcd comics?”
Love them.
“I’m eating a kiwi gummy.”
Sounds yummy.
“How tall Is Deryn?”
Rather tall for her time. 5’10″ or so.
“What color are Deryn’s eyes?”
Don’t know. Brown, I think. (Further research revealed that they are BLUE.)
“Will you come to central Europe?”
Would love to. Let’s hope Leviathan does well in Germany.
“Are you a Nerdfighter?”
Not really. But I know and love many, and I try not to forget to be awesome.
“And how much shorter is Alek??? (than Deryn)”
Two inches-ish.
“In all your books and short stories, what scene was the funnest one you’ve ever written and why?”
Peeps. See earlier answer.
“What was the most annoying question you’ve ever been asked?”
Argh. Maybe this one.
“I know you are team zombie-but if there was a zombified Unicorn……..would you be team Zombicorn?”
I’d still be Team Zombie. I don’t want to shoot a horsey.
“Would Eddie use a camera kinda like this? [photo attached]”
Yes. But his camera’s in an illustration in Goliath, isn’t it?
“Will there ever be a live meetup??”
How would this work? Suggestions?
“What was your favorite part of Leviathan?”
Tossing out the gold.
“What was your favorite part of Behemoth?”
Maybe the sultan’s palace? Or the kiss.
“What was your favorite part of Goliath?”
The part where everyone DIES. (heh) Or maybe a certain KISS.
“What is your favorite Beastie?”
Bovril or the poo-bats.
“What is your favorite machine?”
The Stormwalker.
“I did my shoes with the lacing pattern from So Yesterday!! Ill have to post it.”
DO IT!
Okay, that’s it! Hope some of you Forum-shirkers come to the next one.
I’ll be in France the next couple of weeks, so here’s my schedule there:
Utopiales Festival
Nantes, France
Jeudi 11 Novembre
13 h 00 pm : conférence : Littérature adulte et Littérature jeunesse : Quelles frontières
14 h 00 pm: dédicace
Vendredi 12 Novembre
10 h 00 am : conférence avec les jeunes lecteurs
11 h 15 am : interview en anglais par des adolescents
16 h 30-18 h 00 pm : Conférence
18 h 00 pm : Dédicace
Dimanche 14 Novembre
11 h 30 am: conférence : L’Uchronie : un genre européen ?
13 h 30 pm : Rencontre
après-midi : dédicaces
Apparition Publique à Paris, France
Mardi le 16 Novembre
16 h-18 h
Virgin Megastore
Centre commercial des Quatre Temps
92 La Défense
Métro: Grande Arche de la Défense
Also, So Yesterday is out in Italian now, under the awesome title Fashion Killers.
That’s the busiest cover for SY in a while, but it’s kind of cool.
And here’s a video review in Italian:
Ganked from here
Can anyone translate this? To do so would make me happy.
Before I sink completely into Leviathan-mania, I want to point out that it’s now possible to buy my New York trilogy in their shiny new packages. The covers were designed by Rodrigo Corral, who designed the Uglies series, and they are beautiful.
Check them out:
I really like the urban poetry of these covers, and the odd palettes as well. Each one has its own interesting mix of colors. The other cool thing is that the new books are a sweet small size, 7″ x 5″ (17.8cm x 12.7cm), and thus are very cute little paperbacks.
I’m not sure if you can order these online yet, because it’s hard to make sure what you’ll cover you get on the internets. So the best bet is a bricks-and-mortar bookstore if you want. (You can use Indie Bound to find the nearest independent.)
If you want to check out more of Rodrigo Corral’s work, just click here.
Those of you who’ve read my book So Yesterday may remember the following scene in chapter 2. A focus group of cool-hunters has just been shown a new sneaker advertisement, and they all seem to agree that it’s awesome.
That is, until Jen speaks up . . .
“I was kind of bugged by the missing-black-woman formation.”
Mandy blinked. “The what?”
Jen shrugged uncomfortably, feeling the eyes on her.
“Yeah, I know what you mean,” I said, even though I didn’t.
Jen took a slow breath, collecting her thoughts. “You know, the guy on the motorcycle was black. The guy on the bike was white. The woman was white. That’s the usual bunch, you know? Like everybody’s accounted for? Except not really. I call that the missing-black-woman formation. It kind of happens a lot.”
It was quiet for another moment. But gears were spinning. Tina Catalina let out a long sigh of recognition.
“Like the Mod Squad!” she said.
“Yeah,” Hiro chimed in, “or the three main characters in . . . ” He named a certain trilogy of movies about cyber-reality and frozen kung-fu, whose title ends in an X, counts as a brand, and therefore will not grace these pages.
The floodgates broke. More comic books, movies, and TV shows tumbled off everyone’s lips, a dozen stuffed-full pop-cultural memory banks rifled for examples of missing-black-woman formations, until Mandy looked ready to cry.
She smacked the clipboard down.
“Is this something I should have KNOWN ABOUT?” she said sharply, sweeping her eyes around the table.
An unhappy silence fell over the conference room. I felt like an evil genius’s henchman when something goes wrong in a certain series of secret agent films—as if Mandy might push a button on the control panel and we would be ejected, chairs and all, out the roof and into some lake in Central Park.
I noticed only yesterday that we’re living through a nation-changing MBW formation right now. (Gloria Steinem may have jogged my brain on this point.) So let’s all take a moment to appreciate the predictive, productive, and representative powers of pop culture.
We have a way of becoming the stories we tell ourselves.
Just to be clear: I’m not mocking what’s going on here in the US. Having a woman and an African-American man as serious contenders for president is momentous. It’s great to see.
Still, I didn’t want to let a missing-black-woman formation as epic as this one pass by unnoticed.
And for you younger folks, here’s the scoop on the late-1960s TV show The Mod Squad.
Update: To comply with Federal Election Commission equal time rules, I am also required to display a picture of the Republican candidates . . .
Had a great time in Edmunds last night. We got up at 4:55AM to catch our plane to Lexington and I AM SO TIRED.
But before I pass out, check out Cyndy (and friend!) in her Special Circumstances tats:
Picture by me.
And the cool shoelaces from So Yesterday actually walked in! I never got this to work, myself. And I’m so sorry I can’t remember your name, Shugrrl, but my brain is totally Swiss cheese.
Picture by Justine Signature by moi.
And Laura sent me a picture of her shirt from the Shoreline appearance:
The quote isn’t from the books, but from a dream she had. That’s so kewl.
Thanks to all you guys for making my signings full of surprises and vast ego boosts.
One more before we head back to NYC:
Monday, Oct 15
7:00pm
Joseph-Beth Booksellers
161 Lexington Green Circle
Lexington, KY 40503
Reading/Signing
At our reading at Books Inc. tonight, we ran into more awesome fan art. Long-time commenter Liset came in with this retro Team David shirt:
And note the Midnighters-y line on the botttom: “With love for Flyboy too!”
On top of which, I scored this awesome piece of So Yesterday-themed art:
Thanks for all these little touches of sweetness to offset the rigors of touring.
Tomorrow is insane, between a school visit, a signing, and flying to Seattle, so there may well be no blogging. But don’t forget the last few dates of la tour:
Wednesday, Oct 10
3:00pm-4:30pm
Hicklebees
1378 Lincoln Ave
San Jose, CA 95125
School event followed by in-store reading/signing
Thursday, Oct 11
7:00pm
Shorecrest Performing Arts Center
15343 25th Avenue NE
Shoreline, WA 98155
Books will be sold by Third Place Books
Public presentation and signing.
Friday, Oct 12
4:00pm
Edmonds Branch Library
650 Main St.
Edmonds, WA 98020
Books will be sold onsite by Barnes & Noble
Monday, Oct 15
7:00pm
Joseph-Beth Booksellers
161 Lexington Green Circle
Lexington, KY 40503
Reading/Signing
Ciao for now.
Quick Note: If you’re commenting about the book Extras, please be kind to your fellow readers and use the Extras Spoiler Page.
International Cover Month concludes with the brazillionth version of So Yesterday. (Okay, there haven’t really been a brazillion yet, but this one is from Brazil.)
The paper doll theme is brilliant, and you can really appreciate the concept when you fold out the entire jacket—front, back, spine, and flaps:
But what’s really fun is the webcard for the cover. I dare you not to giggle while watching that.
Oh, and here’s the publisher’s site for all you Portuguese speakers.
I’m pretty sure that tao ontem means “so yesterday” in Portuguese, so it’s one of the rare direct translations of the title. I wonder if it means the same thing in Brazil.
Okay, no more furrin’ covers for a while. I’m going to be blogging about Extras pretty obsessively for the next 23 days, which is how long till Book 4 comes out.
Next week, I’ll be unveiling the Extras Countdown Timer!
The next entry in the ongoing International Covers Week (Month? Year?) is the following:
It’s the complex Chinese version of So Yesterday.
“Complex Chinese?” you may ask. “Isn’t all Chinese pretty complex?”
Here’s a factoid that I didn’t totally get until I started to be translated: There are two written types of Chinese. Allow me to explain.
Complex Chinese is the traditional written form of the language. It goes back millenia—way before our Roman alphabet, way before anything else currently in use. But people still use it in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau. On the other hand, simplified Chinese was created in the last century, when the Chinese government was trying to make all those ideograms easier to learn. It’s used in mainland China, Singapore, and Malaysia.
Luckily for us authors, these two kinds of Chinese are usually sold to different publishers. We get to sell the same book twice! For example, Jelei in China owns the simplified rights to Uglies, and Sharp Point in Taiwan owns the complex rights for the same book.
So Yesterday is published by a Taiwanese company with my favorite name ever: Meowbus. Check out this cool feature on their site: behind-the-scene photos of the cover shoot.
What a great idea, especially for a teen imprint! This is the sort of thing that might actually make someone want to go to a publisher’s website (even if it is in complex Chinese).
Yay, Meowbus! (Okay, I just wanted to type “Meowbus” again.)
I got a cool package yesterday, the Slovenian version of So Yesterday! Check it out:
Now, Slovenia is not a place I know much about. The Wikipedia article tells me it has a population of two million, less than 1% that of the US, less than Brooklyn. So they must read a lot per capita, otherwise I can’t see how they’d make money with translated books. I mean, what percentage of those two million are teenagers to begin with?
Below is the first page—of Chapter 1, not Chapter 0. It’s clearly a Slavic language, but even knowing the text, I can’t figure too much out. But I love the word inovatorka for “innovator.”
Annoyingly, I’m not finding any Slovenian translation tools that work, so I leave it up to you guys to translate the title. Something about “cool”?
Of course, it occurs to me that I shouldn’t be so clueless about this place. Parts of my next trilogy, Leviathan, will take place in Slovenia. Or rather, what’s now called Slovenia, and was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire back in 1914.
For Slovenian speakers and crazed compleatists, here’s the website where you can buy Lovci na Kul.
And in other news, The Last Days has been long-listed for an Inky over at Inisde a Dog. Yay!
The Manual of Aeronautics is OUT NOW!
The full-color art book for the Leviathan series, The Manual of Aeronautics, is out now!
Click here to contact Scott Westerfeld.
Jill Grinberg
Jill Grinberg Literary Management
info@grinbergliterary.com
