Blog Entry: Publication Day Party!
Entry posted on August 1, 2010, 2.15 pm
Categories:
A Most Improper Magick, Book Birthdays, Cafés, Chocolate, Giveaways, Publishing
OK, so I know that Publication Day is just a day. Heck, it's a Sunday. A Most Improper Magick won't actually be on store shelves for at least a few more days (although at least my lovely local Waterstones already has big pictures of it all around the store, because they are AWESOME).
But officially? Today, my book is OUT: out there in the world, officially Published. That's something I've been dreaming of, quite literally, for twenty-six years now, ever since I was seven years old. And that is definitely worth a party!
So this morning, our whole family went out to celebrate...and of course A Most Improper Magick came with us. Here it is with my decadent "meal" at our local (and wonderfully child-friendly) Caffè Nero:
Yes, that is whipped cream beside the (hot, melty chocolate) brownie. It was DELICIOUS! And sitting next to the plate is the compact mirror that Patrick got from the Jane Austen Centre giftshop as my Valentine's Day gift this year, in honor of the magical compact in A Most Improper Magick. Of course that had to come too! (Can you tell I'm a little bit giddy today?)
And here is Patrick, an hour later and in a different café (our local Coffee No. 1, which is not terribly child-friendly but a great place to write) showing off what can now be done in cafés around the country:
Although the physical launch party (complete with party prizes!) isn't for another week and a half, today I wanted to do something online to celebrate, for everybody who can't come to my physical launch party.
So first of all, I've put up the second and third chapters of A Most Improper Magick - you can now read all of the first three chapters on my website! I really, really hope you guys enjoy them.
And secondly, if you want, you can enter to win a book-birthday party prize, no matter where in the world you are.
One person will win a signed copy of the UK edition of the book, along with a Kat postcard, Kat bookmarks, and an "Everything's Better With Highwaymen!" button. Two runners-up will get everything in that pack except the book.
This giveaway is only open for the next 36 hours, through Monday at 7pm UK time.
Here's how to enter:
1. You can get one point by just commenting on this entry to tell me that you want to enter the drawing. (I won't enter you unless you ask for it specifically, so feel free to comment on the entry even if you don't want to be a part of the giveaway! ;) I promise it won't happen by accident.)
2. You can get one more point by tweeting this:
A Most Improper Magick by @stephanieburgis is out in the UK today! Read the first 3 chapters here: http://bit.ly/Rmy1z
and then telling me you've done it, just in case I miss it. I should be able to figure it out through Twitter on my own, but I don't want to miss anyone by accident!
(And PS: if you already RT'd my earlier tweet about the chapters, that totally counts toward the giveaway. Just remind me in a comment here, okay?)
3. You can get two more points by giving that same information in a blog entry (and then telling me that you did it).
At 7pm tomorrow, I'll choose a random winner, and I'll put all three sets of prizes in the post on Tuesday!
***
OK. I know I've probably sounded fairly business-like and sensible in the last few paragraphs - or at least I was trying to...but you guys? MY BOOK HAS OFFICIALLY BEEN PUBLISHED. I am in shock...and very, very, very happy.
So I just want to share the last two lines of the printed acknowledgments in A Most Improper Magick:
And thank you to my community of friends on www.livejournal.com, who have cheered me on when I was nervous, comforted me when I was lost and joined with me in all my celebrations. You guys are the best!
I still remember when I very, very nervously went back to writing the first draft of A Most Improper Magick after my year off from it. I was convinced that I was being commercially crazy to work on it, but I just loved the book way too much to give it up...and one of the things that helped the most was the wonderful outpouring of supportive comments on this journal from people who told me to keep going - who had faith in me, and in Kat and her sisters.
You guys really are the best, and I know it. THANK YOU!
ETA: This giveaway is now closed.