What A Girl Wants

The first month of the year is already gone and I haven’t even bought a 2012 wall calendar yet for my office.

But what do you do when you get to OfficeMax and the only calendar choices left over in the store are Indy 500 and Glee? No offense to either of these fine institutions but sometimes I fall asleep in my office (aka my bed). I do not want to wake up and see a car crash or Mr. Shu looking at me first thing in the morning.

Although it’s a bit ironic because I’m from Indiana (home of the Indy 500), and I just found out from D-Listed that Heather Morris (Brittany from Glee) and I have the same birthday (making us both February 1st D-Listed Birthday Sluts). Which I should have known because Brittany and I have so much in common, given our mutual love of cats, rainbows, and unicorns.

Since I didn’t get what I wanted for my birthday (a cat, rainbow, and unicorn office wall calendar, or to wake up in the body of mixed martial artist Carla Gugino), I decided to order Rob O’Neal’s wall calendar online. He’s a local Key West photographer who was badly injured in a scooter accident. All the proceeds from sales of his calendar to go to help his recovery. His photos of the ocean are very soothing to wake up to, I find.

Anyway, I was so touched by how many of you wrote to wish me a happy birthday! You’ve already made my year, and the year’s just getting started! There’s still so much to do before I leave for my mini-book tour for the release of Overbite in paperback on February 7 though!

Overbite’s sexy Italian cover

I have to, for instance, learn how to become a mixed-martial arts expert like the guys in Warrior (which the Oscars ignored, except for Nick Nolte. Whatever, Oscars! And no best supporting actor for the guy who played the monkey in Rise of the Planet of Apes? I give up).

It’s gonna be OK, buddy. Look, my arm grew back from last year.

I’m leaving for Dallas, TX (LOVE YOU DALLAS) where I’ll be on Saturday, February 18 from NOON to 3:30PM (check it out! This event had a time change!) for Tea at The Adolphus on 1321 Commerce St!

(Actually, with the time change, this is now more of a lunch. YUM)

I hope I’ll see you there! There are still some tables left, so click here to make a reservation!

What you’ll get if you go to this event:

*A delicious lunch.

*One of the first copies of Overbite in paperback, signed (I’ll sign all your other books, too. Even books not written be me. I’ve done it before. Sorry, JK Rowling, the kid was convinced I was you. Also, I signed that copy of Webster’s Dictionary. I wasn’t going to tell that kid no.)

*An edifying talk about unicorns princesses Keynesian economic theory writing, the creative process, how to get published, and live your dream. Or at least how to deal with the fact that you are not a mixed-martial arts fighter (yet) but that dream could still come true if you get a trainer now!

Click here to read more about DFW’s fabulous author teas!

Then on Saturday, February 25 I’ll be in Long Beach, CA at the Passion and Prose Conference! If you’re a book lover or an aspiring writer and you haven’t signed up for this YA Rom-Con you need to do so NOW! There’s still time…. and you can get 25% off the conference rate if you click here. Moms and daughters can get a special rate too! Attendance is limited to the first 450 readers who register.

What you get:

*Delicious breakfast buffet

*Meet and greet with the authors

*Interactive author activities

*Delicious lunch with one author at each table

*Young Adult author panel featuring these authors:

*Three keynote speakers (I’m one of them!)

*Incredible memories that will last a lifetime

*Edifying talk about Keynesian economic theory writing, the creative process, how to get published, and how to deal with the fact that you are not a mixed-martial arts fighter (yet).

*Multiple book buying and signing opportunities

*Free goodie bags to all participants, and

*An opportunity drawing to benefit WriteGirl, a non-profit organization that promotes creativity and self-expression through writing to empower girls.

And much much more!

Don’t miss out!

Click here to register

So . . .

Do you Pinterest? Because I’m having a contest on Pinterest, and I’d love for you to join in. I’ve been working on pinning pics of some of the places that appear in my books, plus random adorable kittens, and of course, food that I like (click here to see my boards)!

So if you’re on Pinterest, and you’d like to win a free copy of Abandon (not to mention an advanced reader copy of the sequel to Abandon, Underworld, not out officially in the US until May), just make a Meg Cabot book-themed Pinterest!

Post the cover (or covers) of your favorite Meg Cabot books, along with photos that remind you of the story or series’ setting, plot, and characters, etc, and go to town! The possibilities are endless!

Just go here to read the full contest details and rules! You can enter as many times as you like! Hmmm, creativity.

Finally, the new web page for Underworld is up! We’ll be putting up lots of fun extras, like excerpts, FAQs, deleted scenes, and maybe even some videos, and a map of Isla Huesos and the Underworld itself closer to the pub date. But for now, it’s just looking pretty. I love it (blue is my favorite color). So stay tuned! Take me to the Underworld!

Coming May 8, 2012

Now I have to get back to work bailing Heather Wells out of her latest jam. Look for
Size 12 and Ready to Rock in stores in July 2012, God and massive amounts of Coke Zero willing.

Coming July 10, 2012

In the meantime, here’s a quiz that author Michele Jaffe and I came up with a few years ago to help you tell if the guy you have a crush on likes you back, and whether or not you should give him a Valentine, or just wait to see if he gives YOU one. GOOD LUCK!

Remember: Be Safe, Be Happy, but most of all, Be YOURSELF!

More later.

Much Love,

Meg