May 15 2019
I’m a big believer in listening and paying attention to all of the stories around you. To the people who talk about their days in a compelling way. To the family histories. To books, yes. To audiobooks. And to movies and TV shows. And in that vein, I would like to take a minute to validate all of you in your Netflix habits because I’m about to tell you to watch more movies. Stop feeling […]
Apr 17 2019
I was lucky enough to sit on a panel this weekend and I’ve been thinking about something that kept coming up— the process. The process is how you write a book. How you get from the start of a book all the way to the end. That secret, sacred, all-magical, all-encompassing trick that a writer has for producing a story. And there I sat, in the middle of a group of panelists, who all had […]
Apr 16 2019
I’ve always been a sucker for a trilogy. It started with the countless Star Wars marathons my brothers and I watched together. From there, I’d pick up N.K. Jemisin’s Broken Earth series and Pierce Brown’s Red Rising trilogy. Genius compilations like Lilith’s Brood and The Hunger Games and The Lord of the Rings. They say good things come in threes. That includes my own breakthrough in the industry. Back in 2014, Random House acquired Nyxia. […]
Feb 6 2019
I’ve had the pleasure over the past few summers to teach at Duke Young Writers’ Camp. One of my favorite courses was a Dark Fiction class for middle grade students. It was an opportunity to walk young writers through fiction that really pushes the boundaries. Unsurprisingly, many of my young writers go a little too far. One infamous story featured a villainous assassin targeting a list of grandmothers. It was a great opportunity to talk […]
Dec 14 2018
It’s that time of the year. We’re taking stock of what we’ve done, of what we’ve accomplished. There are lists and lists of the best books of the year, the best movies, the best of everything and then some. I am, by the way, not against any of this. 2018 has been a wild ride for me— my debut released! I turned in book two! I sold book three! What is air!— but I’d also […]