Malinda Lo
Blog
Feb 9, 2009
ASH gets a blurb from Meg Cabot!
Today is February 9, 2009, and it is only eight months before my book, Ash, comes out everywhere! OK, that actually still feels like forever, but things are bubbling behind the scenes in Book Production Land, and I am happy to share the news of a particularly exciting development: Meg Cabot has read Ash and she liked it! Here’s what she has to say about it:
“A rich and darkly moving tale I couldn’t put down. Malinda Lo is an exciting and welcome new voice in YA.” — Meg Cabot, best-selling author of The Princess Diaries and Airhead series
Did you hear that? That was the sound of me screaming, followed by a thunk as I fall over.
If you don’t know who Meg Cabot is, you undoubtedly have heard of The Princess Diaries, since those books have been turned into two Disney movies starring Anne Hathaway and Julie Andrews. (My favorite Meg Cabot book — so far, since I haven’t read all of her awe-inspiringly long backlist — is actually not a Princess Diaries book; it’s All-American Girl, about a girl who is named “teen ambassador of the United States” after she accidentally foils a presidential assassination attempt. Plus there’s a potential romance with the president’s son!)
In honor of the honor of Meg’s blurb, I’ve decided to finally launch a separate page for my book. Here it is. Admittedly, there isn’t much info on it yet, but in the coming days I’ll be sharing with you my cover (it’s awesome!), an interview with the cover designer (she’s brilliant), and various tidbits and extras about the book itself.
So while I have your attention, I thought I’d ask: What do you want to know about Ash? If there’s anything in particular you’re curious about (why I wrote it, what research I did, whether I actually like the Disney version of the story, etc.), let me know in the comments.
I also wanted to tell you all that I have joined an illustrious group of debut authors called the 2009 Debutantes: A Feast of Awesome. We are all first-time authors with YA books coming out this year, and throughout the year we’ll be doing a variety of fun things, such as giving away prizes and providing you with great books to read. Four of our books have already been released — You Are So Undead to Me by Stacey Jay, Winnie’s War by Jenny Moss, Models Don’t Eat Chocolate Cookies by Erin Dionne, and The Season by Sarah MacLean — and tomorrow marks the release of Shadowed Summer by Saundra Mitchell.
Check us out at www.feastofawesome.com for some great books to read! (And don’t forget to tell me in the comments if there’s anything you want to know about Ash.)
Way to go Malinda! (Not that I ever expected anything less.)
I’d love to know the answers to all the questions you asked yourself, but maybe also why you decided to make it a lesbian novel. Was that your intention? Was there a political motivation, or is it just the novel that was in you to write?
That’s so cool that Meg Cabot read your book and liked it! I haven’t read any of the books by her that you mentioned, but I did read the 1-800-Where-Are-You series and loved it. I’m a little surprised that you didn’t mention that Heather Matarazzo was in Princess Diaries though — are you forgetting your afterellen background? :p
I’ll have to check out the Feast of Awesome. I’ve been procrastinating about setting up an LJ, but it seems like I’m always finding more interesting stuff on there — maybe it’s time to give in and make an account.
All of the questions you asked yourself sound good. I also wanted to ask this: Who was your favorite princess when you were a kid? Mine was definitely Cinderella. Just ask my mom — she won’t let me forget it. I dressed up as Cinderella for Halloween for as many years as I could fit into the dress.
One more question — Do you think you’ll continue to have lesbian main characters in your books?
Congratulations, Malinda! It’s a great coup.
Meg Cabot’s written her own revision of a classic story, her Arthurian novel Avalon High. It’s actually great–the twist at the end is an excellent use of the legend.
Looking forward to finally seeing some months down the road!
Thanks for the questions, Jennifer and Heather!
Zahra, I really liked AVALON HIGH. I thought about including it in my blog post but then decided to focus on one.
Fabulous news!! Your book does sound wonderful, so I’m not surprised she loved it
Congrats!
ZOMG!
Wow, congrats!
Congratulations on Meg Cabot’s powerful review, Malinda! I strongly believe that ASH will be a bestseller.
Fantastic news! How exciting. Congrats.
Millions of congratulations – and how lovely it is to see the Debs covers all together!
Hey! Meg just told me about you and your book- that’s so awesome that you got a blurb from her! Congrats!!
Your book sounds fabulous (from what Meg told me, which wasn’t much, but it hooked me)! And that’s awesome that you joined the 2009 Debs!
Can’t wait to hear more about the book!
Mayra, I hope you are right!
Hi there, Snarker and Grace (AE nostalgia moment)!
Welcome to my blog, Angie and Sarah (RB) — can’t wait to read your books.
And welcome, Book Chic — wonderful to have you here.
Wow Malinda!
A belated congratulations on the advance reviews. Its going to be an exciting eight months wait for the launch- Cheers