Thanks to everyone who made last week a magical time. I spent decades working to bring a book into the world, but what made it special was everyone I talked to. Thanks to readers, critics, booksellers, and to all my fellow authors for the outpouring of love. I never dreamed one of my monsters would get such a reception.
A few of the things that knocked me off my chair since launch? Someone You Can Build A Nest In was named an Amazon Editors’ Pick for Best SFF Books of April. Then it was named a Powell’s Pick for Best Books of April. Then it got glowing mentions in Writer’s Digest, Book Riot, Winter Is Coming, and The Financial Times. I even got to do guest posts on John Scalzi’s blog and Mary Robinette Kowal’s blog—and Mary Robinette then featured my book as her recommendation of the month in her newsletter and reviewed the book on Goodreads.
You may understand why I spent a lot of Thursday lying face down.
Thanks again to everyone who showed up at The Strand on April 2nd. The space was packed, and we not only had an amazing conversation with Meg Elison and personalized books for folks, but I got to give out cake! It was well worth braving a stormy New York for. I hope to return to The Strand someday, perhaps with another book…
Now, if you couldn’t make it but would still like to see me in person?
I’m going to travel a lot in the next few months. Here’s where you can see me!
April 14: Reading and Q&A The Golden Notebook in Woodstock, NY
April 16: Reading with Anjali Patel, Elijah Kinch Spector, and Blake Sanz at Brooklyn Books & Booze at Barrow’s Intense in Brooklyn, NY
May 8: Reading with Anya Johanna DeNiro at Fantastic Fiction at the KGB Bar in New York City, NY
May 16: Q&A hosted by Oblong Books (VIRTUAL)
May 25-26: Teaching class How To Make Stakes Work in Fiction at Futurescapes (VIRTUAL)
June 6-9: Attending the Nebula Conference (VIRTUAL)
June 14-16: Attending 4th Street Fantasy Convention in Minneapolis, Minnesota
June 30: Teaching class Writing Disabled Characters at The Rambo Academy (VIRTUAL) (If you’re a Patreon supporter, mention it for a discounted rate on the class)
July 11-14: Attending the Readercon in Quincy, Massachusetts
October 17-20: Attending the World Fantasy Convention in Niagara Falls, New York
You read those first two right. If you’re anywhere in New York, you’ll be able to catch me at both Woodstock on Sunday and in Brooklyn on Tuesday. It’s going to be a busy weekend for me! Fortunately it sounds like the weather will be much nicer than last week.
You’ll notice a few of those events are tagged as VIRTUAL. I got a lot of requests in the last few months for such things, and I like being available to folks who can’t travel large distances. The May 16th event with Oblong Books will be particularly important, as the audience can ask anything, and it supports a great indie bookstore. Likewise I’ll try to be as available as possible during the Nebula Conference, where I’m being honored as a finalist for Best Short Story.
I am in talks to add a few dates in additional cities in the Spring and Summer. I’ll be sure to update you through this newsletter if things materialize!
Before I close, please let me thank you all again. Thank you for every page you’ve read, review you’ve left, recommendation you’ve made, and kind word you’ve uttered. I hope to greet many more of you in the months ahead.
So: will I see you anywhere this year?