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Frequently Asked Questions – Writing a Report
Tuesday, December 1, 2009Writing a Report About Meg
So you’re doing a report on Meg. That’s great! But we have a feeling your teacher assigned this project because he or she wanted you to do this work yourself. Please do not email Meg and ask for her help. If Meg had to help all the people who had reports due about her, she’d be up all night.
All the information you need to write a detailed report on Meg is available right on this site. You just have to be clever, and know where to look. Because Meg likes you, she’s going to give you some hints. Start here (Meg’s Bio), then go here (FAQS), and finally, go here (the forums), where you’ll find tons of up-to-date resources on Meg.
If you can’t find the answer, there is a place on our message boards where you can get homework help. Click here and find the thread called Homework Help. Or, go to the forum for the book you are interested in.
By reading all of these pages, you should find everything you need to know.
Still don’t have what you’re looking for? Try Google Search Engine! Just put in Meg’s name. Or try your local library. Your librarian should be happy to help you.
Thanks for your interest in Meg Cabot and her books! Good luck on your report!
<more>What awards have you won?
My books have won numerous awards. Including being number one New York Times bestsellers, they are frequently chosen as New York Public Library Books for the Teen Age, ALA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers, IRA/CBC Young Adults’ Choice, Book Sense Picks, and have also been on the Texas Lone Star Reading List. All American Girl won the Evergreen Young Adult Book Award (Washington), and The Princess Diaries won that one also, along with the TASL Tennessee Volunteer State Book Award. I was recently named the 2008 Distinguished Alumni of my college, Indiana University.What is the theme of your books?
I hope readers will realize that they are not alone in feeling the way I did when I was in middle and high school-like a great big freak! Also that “normal” is not what you see on TV. Being true to yourself, and to your friends, is way more important than being part of the “in crowd.” I am living proof that it is possible to profit from being a middle and high school freak.What books did you like to read when you were a kid?
I read far too many books for me to list here, but some of what I read included a lot of fantasy, such as Susan Cooper’s The Dark Is Rising series, Nancy Springer’s Book of Isle tetrology (including The Sable Moon), and the Lloyd Alexander books. I also liked STAR WARS and SPIDERMAN comic books. I really loved some classics, too, like Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice, Lorna Doone, and the Betsy-Tacy books by Maud Hart Lovelace. And I am a big fan of Mary Stewart, especially Nine Coaches Waiting, Madame, Will You Talk? and Thornyhold. For more books, read my blog and Myspace page.What books do you like to read now?
I like to read way too many books to list here. I love mysteries of all kinds, chick-lit, humorous memoirs, and I also love to read magazines of virtually every kind there is. I also read YA! I hesitate to list my favorite authors because I know I’ll leave someone important out, but off the top of my head a few of my favorite authors include Robert B. Parker, Sue Townsend, Susan Juby, Michele Jaffe, Megan Crane, Carrie Fisher, Per Wahloo and Maj Sjowall, Ngaio Marsh, Agatha Christie, Alexander McCall Smith, Patricia Wentworth, Barbara Park, Judy Blume, Nora Roberts, Janet Evanovich, Lisa Palmer, PD James, Barbara Cartland, Edward Eager, JK Rowling, Sarah Dessen, Neil Gaiman, Robert Ludlum, John Grisham, the list goes on and on, may I stop now?
Read It
Betsy Rules
Saturday, October 3, 2009Be sure to check out my piece on the Betsy-Tacy books in today’s Wall Street Journal! Just click here.
If you haven’t read the Betsy books yet…what are you waiting for? The Betsy-Tacy Books by Maud Hart Lovelace have been beloved by girls and women since they were first published in the 1940s. Fans of the series include New York Times bestselling authors Laura Lippman, Anna Quindlen, Judy Blume and Nora Ephron.
(Check out Meg Ryan hand-selling the Betsy books to Tom Hanks’s niece next time you watch “You’ve Got Mail”!)
Now the high school Betsy-Tacy books (Heaven to Betsy and Betsy In Spite of Herself, Betsy Was a Junior and Betsy and Joe, and
Betsy and the Great World and Betsy’s Wedding) which follow Betsy and her Crowd through 4 years of high school, on to a year of travel in Europe and to her marriage to (Name Deleted As It Is A Spoiler), have been reissued with original cover illustrations by Vera Neville and forewords by Laura Lippman, Meg Cabot and Anna Quindlen!
(This one is obviously the best because the foreword is by me)
When HarperCollins asked me if I’d like to participate in this project (for which I might add I am not getting paid a cent. This is a labor of love), I said, “Only if I can have dibs on my favorite books, Betsy Was A Junior and Betsy and Joe.”
And they said, “Okay.”
(Actually, it was more like, “…um, okay, weirdo.”)
Then I called my friend Beth, who loves the books too, and yelled, “Guess what I get to do????”
And she was like, “LUCKY!!!! Those are the ones with the romantic love triangle and all the fighting and kissing!!!!”
Of course they are. I’m not stupid.
Then Beth wanted to know, “Will you please send me free copies of the books????”
And I was all, “Maybe…if you do everything I say.”
(But I did. Also, I sent her a Betsy mug and some notecards that I got in the Betsy-Tacy Gift Shop.)
So now you too can participate in the serious dishyness that is Deep Valley High School, circa 1910 (I swear to you, it’s exactly like Princess Diaries, just no tiaras or text messaging).
GO FOR IT.
Only I warn you: You will be hooked.
And then you too will want a mug.
More later.
Much love,
Meg
<more>See It
Meg Cabot Day (and Wet Mr. Darcy)
Friday, July 31, 2009I totally forgot that today, July 31, is Meg Cabot Day (as proclaimed by the mayor of Bloomington, Indiana way back on July 31, 2004)!
How did you spend Meg Cabot Day? The preferred way to spend it is floating in a body of water, reading books.
But really you can spend it any way you want. That’s the beauty of Meg Cabot Day!
I spent mine getting my hair done, along with a mani-pedi and a super relaxing massage. You can’t spend all your time writing novels and trying to keep tabs on which Real Housewives cast member choked which (although thank God my salon has wi-fi).
Anyway, just in time for Meg Cabot Day, here’s an interview I did with Teen Scene Mag.com, as well as a fun article from Publisher’s Weekly about my trip to the Betsy-Tacy conference….
…including never before seen pictures!
Like the one of me and Jenna and Katelyn, the completely adorable girls who made me this official Minnesota moose plaque:
They told me they made it while they were watching the A&E version of Pride and Prejudice. Which of course makes it extra special to me.
Close up of the Minnesota moose plaque.
Close up of Wet Mr. Darcy.
Watching the A&E version of P&P is a great way to spend Meg Cabot Day. I sort of wonder if you were making a Minnesota moose plaque while watching Pride and Prejudice on Meg Cabot Day, and you fell through a time portal, would you end up at Pemberley, having an affair with Mr. Darcy?
Or would you end up in a Meg Cabot book?
Oh, never mind. I guess I’m thinking about something else.
Thanks, Jenna and Katelyn. I’ll treasure it always!
And happy Meg Cabot Day to you all!
More later.
Much love,
Meg
<more>Meg's Diary
Mother-Daughter YA Reads/NPR
Thursday, July 23, 2009Check it out! I’m going to be on National Public Radio’s “Talk of the Nation” this Thursday, July 23, along with Lizzie Skurnick (“Shelf Discovery”), from 3 to 3:40 p.m. Be sure to tune in (okay, yeah, that’s NPR, and yeah, that’s TODAY)!
We’re going to talk about YA Mother-Daughter reads!
I’ve told you my mom used to call the school and tell them I was “sick” whenever there was going to be an Audrey Hepburn or Leslie Caron movie playing on Channel 4.
Well! This was in the days before video recorders and DVDs!
One of my favorite mother-daughter reads is actually Daddy Long Legs (hey! It’s a Puffin Classic!), which was made into a movie starring Leslie Caron. My mom and I used to stay home and watch it together. SO GOOD!
If you haven’t watched/read it, you MUST! It’s epistolary, much like my “Boy” books. You could even say it inspired them. Thanks, Mom!
And Dads, I actually remember bringing home some books from the library and my dad stealing them. Like The Man Without a Face (the book is WAY better than the Mel Gibson movie), and one of the YA books in “Shelf Discoveries”–Robert Cormier’s “I Am The Cheese.”
This book is not about cheese. The kid in the book is on his own. It’s super scary.
THIS IS SUCH A GOOD BOOK! I suggest President Obama read “I Am The Cheese” with Malia next…NOT “Twilight,” which I heard a rumor he was thinking about reading with her now that they were done with the Harry Potter series. I really hope for Malia’s sake he reconsiders this. There’s nothing more embarrassing than reading a romance novel with your DAD.
This reminds me of this guy I knew who wore socks with sandals and had daughters and no TV and who would make make them read teen romances like “Twilight” and “Flowers in the Attic” with him as part of “family time.” EW! I felt so SORRY for those girls.
Please, Mr. Obama! Don’t be that guy!
I met some great mothers and daughters who were enjoying some bonding time like the kind my mom and I had playing hooky from school while I was at the Betsy-Tacy convention this past week, where I gave the closing speech:
Check it out: You can see me, and part of the convention, covered on the local news!
I signed tons of books, and got to meet so many fantastic readers, and even some of the characters from the books.
Me with Aunt Ruth!
I even got to go to Betsy’s house:
(Really, it’s the author, Maud Hart Lovelace’s real life house, lovingly restored by the Betsy-Tacy Society, with donations!)
They restored Tacy’s house, across the street, as well!
It was such a thrill to be able to walk in the footsteps of such beloved characters (and a real life author)!
And all of the convention organizers and attendees were so nice to me, and gave me such lovely gifts. And I bought tons of Betsy swag at the gift shoppe! It was so great! I can’t thank them enough…or wait to go again next time!
And I had a great time going on KARE-11 (you can watch it here if you missed it) and visiting with Corbin, one of my favorite newscasters of all time!
Plus, I got to get airbrushed with makeup for going on high-def. If you’ve never done this, you HAVE to. It was so fun, and it lasted all day with NO TOUCH-UPS. It was RAD! I want to buy my own airbrush machine. I LOVE KARE-11!
OK, I have to go brush up on my YA classics now (such a hardship). I just love thinking about Louis Duncan’s GIFT OF MAGIC, and THE CAT ATE MY GYM SUIT by Paula Danziger, and THE WITCH OF BLACKBIRD POND, and Richard Peck’s GHOSTS I HAVE BEEN, and THE WOLVES OF WILLOUGHBY CHASE…GAH!
(Hint: Don’t read this one with your dad either. HOT romance!)
So many great books! I can’t wait until my nieces are old enough to read!
See you on NPR!
More later.
Much love,
Meg
<more>Meg's Diary
Shelf Discoveries and Dork Secrets
Sunday, July 19, 2009Check it out: I made it to Minnesota!
Maybe you thought I wouldn’t make it here after being stranded by Delta Airlines in Atlanta (or Hotlanta, as I like to call it, after the book series).
But Delta pulled through with flying—ha, get it, flying?—colors. Even my bag arrived on time (albeit on another flight)!
(Don’t you hate it when you get really mad about something and then people are totally nice to you and you can’t be mad at them anymore? UGH!)
Now I’m in Mankato. Those of you who grew up watching Melissa Gilbert on Little House on the Prairie (those of you who didn’t, pay attention, this is important: it involves a hot guy) know that this is where Laura used to go to get store bought dresses. Also where she finally got Almanzo to notice she wasn’t “Half-Pint” anymore.
Important! Huge romantic plot development!
“Little House” was totally my favorite TV show way into high school, something my best friend and I kept a dark “dork” secret from everyone else we knew, along with the fact that we had “Jane Eyre” paper dolls and complete crushes on Sam Neill from the movie My Brilliant Career.
In high school we could never understand why Judy Davis chose writing instead of him. I still don’t, frankly..
Anyway, I’m in Mankato, after speaking and signing at the Red Balloon in St. Paul today, where I met many fantastic Minnesotans (and some people from out of state), including Bridgette and Brittany, who arrived in these amazing handmade Airhead and Being Nikki Tees (UK version):
Bridgette and Brittany rule.
And guess what? Mankato is also the birth place of Maud Hart Lovelace, and the place where she set the fictional home of her heroine Betsy Ray! She called it Deep Valley.
Maud’s books are the ones I’ll be talking about at the Alltel Convention Center tomorrow for the Betsy-Tacy Convention….
…whose organizers have completely spoiled me by putting me up in the nicest hotel room! There is a serious danger I may never be able to stay in a normal hotel room again. Thanks, Forget-Me-Nots!
If you’re in the Mankato area, stop by tomorrow:
Monday, July 20th
11 AM – 12PM
Alltel Convention Center
1 Civic Center Plaza
Mankato, MN
(I’ll actually be signing from 10-10:30 and 12-12:30, speaking from 11-12.)
And now, for those of you who recognized my “Little House,” Betsy, and “My Brilliant Career” references–and even those who didn’t–something you’re guaranteed to love:
Out on Tuesday, July 21, for the first time ever, Lizzie Skurnick’s collection of essays (including one I wrote about why I’ve always loved Judy Blume!) Shelf Discovery: The Teen Classics We Never Stopped Reading.
You can browse inside the book here, join the facebook page for Shelf Discovery here, or visit the original column Lizzie writes for Jezebel, “Fine Lines” (which is how I discovered her) here.
I don’t think there’s a section on Betsy in the book (I haven’t had a chance to read the whole thing yet, since I just got my copy!), but there’s just about every other heroine you ever loved as a kid….
…plus entries by Jennifer Weiner, Laura Lippman, Cecily von Zeigesar, and more!
I was really freaking out over writing my essay on Judy Blume. I was like, “What if Judy reads this?” It’s one thing to give a speech on Maud Hart Lovelace here in Mankato…I don’t have to worry if she doesn’t like it…Maud’s no longer with us!
(Although at one point when I was packing to come here, I was like, “Oh, I better pack my Betsy books so Maud can sign them…” That’s how “current” her books feel, even though they’re set at the turn of the century! If Maud–and Betsy–were alive, they’d totally be texting, Twittering, and blogging! And Betsy would be in BIG trouble for blogging about something totally inappropriate.)
I don’t even remember what I wrote about Judy, and in my usual fashion, I can’t find the original essay now, since I have so many files called JUDY.DOC.
So you’ll have to get a copy and tell me! I’m pretty sure Judy will like it. (It’s kind of like writing about the Queen though.)
Okay, I’m going to be my typical dork self and read some Betsy and go to bed now. See you tomorrow!
More later.
Much love,
Meg
<more>Meg's Diary
Bedlam at Gate 10
Saturday, July 18, 2009Hi! I am stuck in the Atlanta Airport (Gate E10, to be exact) after being stuck at the Key West airport for approximately four hours earlier today with an entire Cub Scout Troop.
(I felt so sorry for the troop leader, I wanted to offer him a Vicodin. But then I was like, “Oh, no, if he’s out of it, then who will protect the rest of us from them?”)
And now my bag is lost. And I am losing battery power on my laptop as I write this. And there are no more plugs. And I have a bunch of stuff due, like, now. And there are five small (seeming unrelated to one another) children screaming next to me.
Where I’m trying to get is Minneapolis in time for my signings there tomorrow and Monday.
Tomorrow (Sunday) I’ll be speaking and signing books from 2PM-4PM at
Red Balloon Children’s Bookstore
891 Grand Avenue
St. Paul, MN 55105
Tel: 651-224-8320
I know it’s a children’s bookstore, but don’t worry if you’re not a kid…we’re all kids at heart! Don’t lie and pretend you didn’t go to Harry Potter this weekend (and loved every minute of it, especially all the snogging.)
(I promise the children at Red Balloon are better behaved than the ones around me right now.)
And yes, bringing books from home for me to sign is fine.
But it’s always polite to buy a book from the store while you’re there so the bookseller hosting the signing makes a little $ in these hard times. Surely you know someone having a birthday or have a little early Christmas shopping to do.
And on Monday I’ll be speaking and signing from 11AM-Noon at
Alltel Convention Center
1 Civic Center Plaza
Mankato, MN 56001
The focus of my speech on Monday will be writing, myself (of course), the Princess Diaries books, and the Betsy-Tacy books (I’ve written the foreword to the new HarperCollins edition to Betsy Was a Junior and Betsy and Joe, my favorite books in the series).
I’m excited to be involved in the reissues of these classics, along with two of my favorite writers, Anna Quindlen and Laura Lippman (sadly, these reissues won’t be out until the Fall, though, so you won’t be able to buy the reissue with my forward there).
This is all dependent on if I GET to Minnesota. In the meantime, I’m being thwarted by Delta Airlines. Yes! I’m talking to YOU, Delta Airlines!
(Also, no, kid, you CANNOT have some of my almonds that I bought with my $7 meal voucher. Get away from me.)
Apparently, Delta schedules their flights, and accepts payment for them.
But they don’t actually SEND THE JETS TO PICK PEOPLE UP until they feel like it.
Never mind that because of this I completely missed my connecting flight (and was told my bag is going to arrive in Minnesota at one time and I am going to arrive in Minnesota at another time, but these will not be the same time.)
(Now the kids are fighting over their Gameboys and pulling each other’s hair. Keeping it classy here at Gate E10 at the Atlanta Airport.)
Oh, and that Delta’s sending that original plane so late was an “act of God” so not to expect a reimbursement on the difference in the cost of the seats since I paid for first class (because I’m fancy), but my seat on the new flight is coach.
(Now one of the kids is smearing pizza on the wall. I am not even kidding.)
You know what an “act of God” is? Daniel Craig.
Sending the plane you bought a ticket for three hours late is not an act of of God (especially when other planes for your destination were leaving during that time but no one would let you get on one).
(The woman sitting next to me just said, “If those kids don’t quit their fussin’, I’m gonna smack’em myself. Like we don’t have enough problems with our plane being late and our bags lost and these here seven dollar vouchers. Like you can buy a meal for seven dollars!”)
Amen, sister.
On the plus side, I’ll soon be fitting into those skinny jeans I bought last summer, but which have been giving me a little muffin top lately.
I suggest Ruby from the Style Network try flying Delta Airlines for the next stage of her diet plan.
See you tomorrow, Minnesota (hopefully)!
More later.
Much love,
Meg
<more>Meg's Diary
Be Princessy
Wednesday, July 15, 2009I totally forgot that, in addition to Harry Potter 6 opening today (I’ve got my tickets! I’ll be standing in line in a few hours…I’m feverish with anticipation!), today is the day of the big national Romance Writers of America conference (and literacy signing)!
So if you live in the Washington DC area, drop everything else you’ve got planned (Harry can wait…when else will you get an opportunity like this?) and go to the signing. You can click here to see which of your favorite women’s fiction, romance, paranormal/fantasy, YA, etc. authors will be there, just waiting to personally sign some books for you!
Even better, all the proceeds raised at this event will go to literacy.
So this is totally a worthy cause (you have to buy books at the signing. You can’t bring your own from home, because the point of the signing is to raise money for charity)!
How awesome is that? Basically every top women’s fiction writer in the industry will be at this signing….
…except those of us who are too busy working on our new books to go (I’m also heading out to Minnesota for a book signing this weekend, and for a different conference).
And if you don’t know what that conference is, well, then click here!
I love Betsy! (And, along with Anna Quindlen and mystery writer Laura Lippman, I’ve written the foreword to some new editions of her books coming out this Fall….)
Anyway, if you’re an author attending RWA this year, here’s my list of Author Do’s and Don’t’s for tonight’s Literacy Signing. Please, please, please, authors….don’t act like weirdos at RWA this year: Leave your spirit guides at home.
I have one addition to the Do’s and Don’ts List for Authors:
If you, your author friends, your agent, or your editor plan on saying some not very nice things about another author, DON’T do it in front of people like limo drivers, bartenders, waitresses, and hotel maids.
It’s a small world, and EVERYONE LOVES GOSSIP. Not just reading it on the Internet (although believe me, I get forwarded that stuff about me, too). Just because they’re in a uniform doesn’t mean they don’t have ears.
And sometimes, they’re fans of the author you’re putting down, or their kid is.
Those limo drivers, bartenders, waitresses, and hotel maids WILL tell the author what you said about them when they meet her later on…I know this from experience.
And yes, it did hurt my feelings a little, especially since I didn’t even know you.
So think before you speak, ladies. Let’s all try to act like princesses. It’s not just nice…it’s professional!
Okay, well, I gotta go now! Harry is waiting!
More later.
Much love,
Meg
<more>Meg's Diary
Lunch with Judy Blume! And I’m Late For It!
Tuesday, March 3, 2009I have to make this short and sweet because I’m leaving in a few minutes for lunch with Judy Blume!
You’ve heard of Judy Blume, right? She’s the one who taught you all about sex in her book Forever (page 95!) and about God and having your period in Are You There God It’s Me Margaret! She’s the one who made you laugh and feel like you weren’t alone when you were going through weird stuff with your friends and your body growing up!
Well, she and I are having An Event Together here in Key West on March 16, and if you’ll be in town (for instance…for Spring Break, since it’s much too dangerous these days to go to Mexico!), you’re welcome to come. It will be:
A Chat with Judy Blume and Meg Cabot
Monday, March 16th at 6:00PM
Friends of the Key West Library Lecture Series
Studios of Key West
600 White Street and Southard Street
(For more information click here )
We’re having lunch today to figure out what we’re going to talk about, because I’m leaving soon for New York City for my Allie Finkle Super Sleepover in honor of the release of Best Friends and Drama Queens on March 10!
(Can you tell I’m wearing my Nanette Lepore dress which Blair from the show Gossip Girl wore? Because I totally am.)
As soon as I’m back from that trip, I’ll be having my chat with Judy!
Speaking of periods (did you like that segue?), My Little Red Book is out now!
This anthology for girls made up of stories by women writers like Erica Jong, Gloria Steinem, Cecily von Ziegesar and my BFF Michele Jaffe about their first periods (because, come on, we never talk about it in print. But it’s so funny!) is in stores now!
My story is one I was telling my BFF Michele Jaffe in an email, and she was like, “This should be in this anthology I’m doing,” and I was like, “Really? No! It’s so stupid. It has swords in it,” and she said, “Yeah! It’s so funny!” And now it’s in the book. It has to do with Judy Blume, actually (not that she was there at the time I got my first period. I was only twelve, I didn’t know her at the time, I just had some of her books).
So if you know a young lady who is mortified about IT (you know what it IT is), get her this book, and she can read about how mortified the rest of us were, and get over it like all of us did.
Anyway, before I rush off, here’s some super exciting news: My book Airhead was a Nominee for the Children’s Choice Book Awards ! How fun is that? I’m really honored! Voting opens March 16!
Regarding the Airhead FIND MEG A NEW SONG FOR HER PLAYLIST Contest from last week, I haven’t had a chance to judge it yet because I have been under a bit of a crunch writing the foreword to the new editions of the Betsy-Tacy books (due two days ago), AND the book that was due January 15 which I have now abandoned because it turns out my publisher agrees with me that Allie Finkle should not leave 4th grade for 5th grade in book 5 after all.
SO I have had to start a whole new book (yes, these things happen in publishing. C’est la vie. And hey, now I have an extra book to use someday in the future!!!). I will be letting you winners know soon!
Oops that’s all I have time for right now, I have to run if I’m going to be on time for Miss Judy, so….
More later.
Much love,
Meg
<more>Meg's Diary
I’m obsessed with Twitter. I tried to resist for a long time, because I don’t need another thing (like Facebook and Myspace) to distract me, but it finally happened. I can’t stop thinking in Twitter postings for my Twitter page.
I want to write a book in Twitter but I think someone in Japan has already done this.
Here is my latest post:
Hey, I’m going to be live on Romance Radio today! Go to http://tinyurl.com/dcbqtt at 2PM EST! And I just cleaned up a ton of cat barf. Glam!
These are the Twitter posts I’ve restrained myself from posting over the last 24 hours so as not to be a nuisance to the people who have signed up for my Twitter posts:
Potential Twitter post:
Could Kelly Clarkson’s new song, My Life Would Suck Without You, rock more? No. No, it could not.
Potential Twitter post:
Although I love Christina A’s Keeps Gettin’ Better very much as well. Both are helping me with my Allie Finkle 4 revision.
Potential Twitter post:
I am going to kill Janey for showing me how to Twitter. “It’s so easy!” she said. Fatal words.
Potential Twitter post:
Janey says the thrill fades after a while but it hasn’t for me.
Potential Twitter post:
TINY URL IS THE COOLEST THING EVER!!!! (It’s a Twitter thing.)
Potential Twitter post:
HWSBNITB is mad because I spilled cereal on the floor and didn’t clean it up. But I didn’t know I spilled it. Until he stepped in it.
Potential Twitter post:
Did you know HarperCollins/Avon is re-issuing the Betsy/Tacy books? I’m writing a forward to one of them! Yay! I love Betsy!
Potential Twitter post:
How much do I adore this show?
Potential Twitter post:
TINY URL!!! TINY URL!!!! It’s fun because it’s got the word TINY in its name.
Potential Twitter post:
Check out Mia’s blog. She just updated it. She was at a certain ball with a certain someone.
Potential Twitter post:
No more Whiskas for Henrietta. No matter how much she cries. That barf trail was a foot long!
Potential Twitter post:
I have to go now and get ready for my interview (i.e., bathe, brush teeth, get dressed). Good thing it’s almost 1PM.
Potential Twitter post:
Just stepped in another trail of cat barf. NO! NO MORE WHISKAS FOR YOU, HENRIETTA! Well, just one more. Everything in moderation.
Okay, I’m stopping now. Because He Who Shall Not Be Named In This Blog just asked if my new fashion statement for the day is Shabby Chic (I’m wearing footies, flannel pants, a CBGB shirt, a knee length Banana Republic sweater, and no makeup).
But you can see what I’ve spared you.
See you on the radio!
More later.
Much love,
Meg
<more>Meg's Diary
Well, it’s a new year, and you know what that means:
Thursday, January 1, 2004It's mailbag time again!!!!!!!! Also Book Tour time!!!
The following are actual emails I have received lately. Signatures have been left off to protect the senders' anonymity. Also, there's a list of places I'll be appearing in January on my Boy Meets Girl book tour. If I'm coming to your town, I would LOVE to meet you, so please try to come! And don't worry, I'll sign ALL of my books, not just Boy Meets Girl.
I don't know what's up with the mail these days. Maybe it's because I've been under the weather and not checking my email as often as usual. Or maybe it's the holidays. But in amongst the many many get well emails you all sent (THANK YOU SO MUCH) were some kind of grumpy ones. I've decided to post some of those, in addition to the nice ones, so you can see that being a writer isn't fun all the time.
Dear Meg,
On your website, one of your tips to aspiring writers is never to tell anyone that you want to be a writer, or everyone will just try to talk you out of it. Then in your diary, your first tip for wannabe writers is not to be a writer but to become a doctor instead and I think it's really conceited for you to tell people what to do. I am ignoring your advice and becoming a writer anyway. So I just want you to know, I like your books, but I don't like you as a person.
Hello. I was KIDDING. And actually, what I said was if you want to be a writer, you need to get a day job, and a good one would be to be doctor. But why are you telling me you want to be a writer in the first place? The first rule for aspiring writers is not to tell anyone, since they'll just try to talk you out of it (um, just like I did) as in the case of this poor reader:
Meg-
I'm trying to write a book, but my best friend is sorta discouraging me. She's really bringing me down, telling me no one gets published unless they're already famous or went to Harvard and stuff like that. What should I do?
See? This is why you shouldn't tell people you're writing a book. Just do it, and keep it to yourself until you get published. Then you can take your best friend to lunch and be all, “I'll just pay for this with the money I got from SELLING MY BOOK.”
Hint: if you do this while at the same time graduating from medical school, it will be a DOUBLY harsh blow to your unsupportive friend, and will make me very very happy.
Anyway, I feel sad for the person who wrote that first email because I get the feeling she is sort of lacking in the one quality you really need if you plan on being a writer: a sense of humor.
Here's another kind of grumpy one.
Your new book, Boy Meets Girl, is written under the name Meg Cabot, which I thought was the name you write under for your teen books. So I bought a copy for my fourteen year old daughter, and was shocked to find that the F word was in it! I am very disappointed. That kind of language doesn't belong in ANY book.
All of my books, whether they are for adults or teens, will now be out under the name Meg Cabot, which is, um, my name. And while Boy Meets Girl does have some four letter words, those words are mostly uttered under extreme duress, or by the evil villainess, who is then made fun of for saying them. What Boy Meets Girl does NOT have in it is any explicit sex or violence, which I think makes it entirely suitable for the 12 and up crowd. But it isn't being promoted as a book for teens—it's definitely in the adult section. Parents wishing to shield their children from the comical use of swear words should steer clear.
More grumpiness:
Hi, Meg. I just wanted you to know I was really disappointed in Project Princess. It was way too short, and Mia acted too girlie. Plus Jell-O has gelatin in it which is made from horses so a real vegetarian wouldn't eat it. This is just a piece of friendly advice: make Mia not so girlie in the next book.
A lot of people don't seem to understand that Project Princess was a short novella written for charity. It was just a special little bonus book. And as for Mia acting too girlie—I think Mia acted exactly the way a city girl suddenly thrust into the wilds of Virginia WOULD act. And hello, given my current health status, I am living proof that it is a good idea for city girls to stay FAR AWAY FROM THE COUNTRYSIDE.
She's a little off with her gelatin facts: Gelatin is made from the ground up parts of all sorts of animals, mainly cows and pigs.
But I think when faced with starvation or Jell-O, as she was in West Virginia, Mia would go for the Jell-O. Have you ever noticed that Mia wears leather boots and eats eggs and fish? That girl is filled with contradictions, like all human beings.
Here's another unhappy reader:
Ms Cabot:
I used to like your books but I do no longer. That's because your character Mia Thermopolis describes herself as a good writer, and since you write that character, that means you think you are a good writer, and you are complimenting yourself. Which means you are very conceited. Therefore I will never read another of your books again.
Ouch! Another accusation of conceitedness! Seriously, you guys, I never thought that making Mia want to be a writer and being good at it would make me seem self-centered. I've read lots of books where the heroine wanted to be a writer (the Betsy-Tacy books, Anne of Green Gables, Little House on the Prairie, the Making Out series, Susan Juby's Alice, I Think, just to name a few) and I never thought those authors were conceited. Mia's desire to be a writer isn't even autobiographical—when I was her age, I wanted to be an illustrator (a dream I never did achieve) or a veterinarian (another dream shot down)! Geesh.
Anyway, if I've offended anyone out there with my alleged conceitedness, I'm sorry. Really, my only goal was to make you laugh.
Okay, onto more cheerful mail:
Dear Meg,
I love your blog! In it, you suggest becoming a doctor in case being a writer doesn't work out. Isn't there some other profession that you could suggest besides a doctor? The sight of blood makes me pass out.
I really did mean the doctor thing as a joke. I mean, I seriously think not enough people consider becoming doctors because it doesn't seem very glam. But really, you guys, there are LOTS of jobs out there you can do to support yourself while struggling to make your name as a writer…basically, ANY job will do, but the more interesting job you have, the more cool stuff you'll have to write about. It doesn't matter what day job you get. Just get one you like. Because you might end up doing it for a while. Remember, I was an assistant dorm manager for TEN YEARS!!!!
Moving on:
Meg, I know that you put instructions in your web site to people that want to be writers, but you don't mention what college people who want to be writers should go to.
Like the day job thing, I really don't believe this matters. I mean, there are lots of colleges that have great writing programs and that can put their graduates in touch with publishers or film producers or whatever. But only YOU can write a story people connect with. And if you can do that, publishers and film producers are going to notice, whether or not you have a fancy degree.
So my advice, for what it's worth, is to go to a college your family can afford, because if you really want to be a writer, the last thing you want is a bunc
h of student loans to pay back when you graduate. Because when you're working at Starbucks or whatever to pay the rent and writing in your spare time, you do not want to have creditors pounding on your door.
College is what you make of it, you know, and despite what a lot of people seem to believe, you do NOT need an Ivy League education to succeed in life. Trust me on this.
Okay, more mail:
Hello Meg!
I am one of your male readers. Any plans in the works for something like Princess for boys? Any chance that you could tell your publisher that boys like to read your books and not to give them such girly covers?
Isn't this sweet? It's so sweet it almost makes me ashamed to say that I have no plans, much less desire, to write any books from a boy's point of view. I mean, I'm not a boy. I have no idea what boys are thinking.
In any case, HarperCollins IS rereleasing Princess Diaries 1&2 and then 3&4 in an omnibus version with a simple cartoon chateau on the cover that will be in the adult section.
More:
Dear Ms. Cabot,
I love your books, especially the way you show that it is good to be different, and that geeks are among the most important people in the universe. However, while I was reading your blog, I noticed that you seemed to believe that ALL geeks are guys. I assure you, this is not true at all. Although there aren't a lot of girls who are computer geniuses, they do exist.
She's right. But I really was only referring to boy geeks. I KNOW there are girl geeks. I am one of them, if you can be totally technically challenged and still call yourself a geek. I mean, I went to see Return of the King on the day it opened! I would rather read books than go to a party. Doesn't that make me a geek?
So I totally get that there are girl geeks out there. I'm all about geek solidarity, male or female.
Last one:
Meg, will you be coming to Scottsdale on your next book tour????
Why…yes, I will, among other locations. If I'm stopping by a bookstore near you, please come in and say hello! Come early so you can be sure to get a seat. And if I'm not coming to your town this tour, you can bet I'll be there for my Spring Princess Diaries 5 tour.
Saturday, January 10, 2004 04:00 PM – 05:30 PM
POWELL'S BOOKSTORE
8725 S.W. Cascade Ave., Beaverton, OR 97008
Tel: 800-878-7323 x241
Monday, January 12, 2004 07:00 PM – 09:00 PM
THIRD PLACE BOOKS
17171 Bothell Way NE, Lake Forest Park, WA 98155
Tel: 206-366-3320
Thursday, January 15, 2004 05:00 PM – 07:00 PM
CULTURAL LEGACY
3633 West 32nd Avenue, Denver, CO 80211
Tel: 303-964-9049
Saturday, January 17, 2004 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM
POISONED PEN/newsletter
4014 North Goldwater Blvd., Ste. 101, Scottsdale, AZ 85251
Tel: 480-947-2974
Saturday, January 17, 2004 02:00 PM – 03:30 PM
CHANGING HANDS BOOKSTORE
6428 South McClintock Drive, Tempe, AZ 85283
Tel: 480-730-0205
Sunday, January 18, 2004 03:00 PM – 04:30 PM
BOOK PEOPLE
603 North Lamar, Austin, TX 78703
Tel: 512-472-4288×404
Tuesday, January 20, 2004 07:00 PM – 08:30 PM
JOSEPH-BETH BOOKSELLERS
13217 Shaker Square, Cleveland, OH 44120
Tel: 216-751-3300, ext. 1
Wednesday, January 21, 2004 07:00 PM – 08:30 PM
RAINY DAY BOOKS
2706 West 53rd Street, Fairway, KS 66205
Tel: 913-384-3126
Thursday, January 22, 2004 07:00 PM – 08:30 PM
OCEAN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY
101 Washington St., Tom's River, NJ 08753
Tel: 732-349-6200 x872
Saturday, January 24, 2004 02:00 PM – 03:30 PM
BOOKENDS
232 E. Ridgewood Avenue, Ridgewood, NJ 07450
Tel: 201-445-0726
Wednesday, January 28, 2004 07:00 PM – 08:30 PM
BARNES & NOBLE/Chelsea
675 6th Avenue, New York, NY 10009
Tel: 212-727-1227
Friday, February 27, 2004 07:00 PM – 08:30 PM
ARIEL BOOKSELLERS
3 Plattekill Ave., New Paltz, NY 12561
Tel: 845-256-0977
Well, that's it for now. We'll take another dip into the mailbag soon. In the meantime, cheer up, keep those emails coming, and stay away from ticks!!!! Happy New Year to one and all!
Love,
Meg
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