Closing Out Summer on a High Note

The last couple of weeks have been good writing wise. I discovered the hook I needed for my novel and pumped out 3,000 new words on the revision.Yay! This is big for me. It felt like this:

 When my usual pace is more like this:

And I was able to meet with my good friend three nights this week to write (and chat.) I always feel motivated when I get together with other writers to talk about our progress or even our obstacles, because talking them through can make them easier to overcome.

Another highlight was a visit to the local independent bookstore where authors Huntley Fitzpatrick and Kimberly Marcus were speaking. I've never been to a writers conference and I'm not much of a traveler, so unless they appear right in my backyard, I don't have many chances to meet with other YA writers often. So this opportunity had me pretty excited.

Huntley Fitzpatrick, Me, and Kimberly Marcus

 It was great to hear about Kimberly's experience writing Exposed,

 her first novel in verse. (Some of you know I'm currently revising my own novel in verse.) Kimberly was very gracious, and encouraging, answering all of my questions and showing genuine interest in my project. I may have talked her ear off. *cringe* I actually woke up in the middle of the night thinking "Oh no, was I obnoxious?! I hope not.

 And though I haven't yet read My Life Next Door,

Huntley seemed like such a sweet person that I wanted to read her book simply because I liked her so much. Added bonus: her book sounds amazing - and realistic contemporary is my all-time favorite.

 The format of the talk was great with each author asking the other questions before opening things up to the audience. Although my TBR pile is a bit overwhelming right now, I'm moving My Life Next Door to the top of the stack. And I'm already re-reading Exposed, because reading novels in verse always helps me to move forward with my own verse project.

What's at the top of your TBR pile?