Author of award-winning, adventurous realistic and historical fiction

libraries

Texas Tour!

Aug 20, 2014 | , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Last weekend, fellow debut author Tara Dairman (whose book ALL FOUR STARS is delightful and delicious, and one of my favorites of the year) and I traveled around Texas to visit a library, a B&N store, and an indie bookstore. It was incredibly fun, and here are some of the highlights.

We started out with the Fort Worth Library’s Author Roundup:

image-5

The beautiful Sundance Square in downtown Fort Worth

IMG_2496

Gorgeous, light-filled library

IMG_2501

How cool is the “reading rainbow” that welcomes you to the children’s section of the Central Library?

Rebecca Behrens

Alice’s “Red Devil” inspired my dress

Happy to see fellow Class of 2K14 author Christine Kohler at the library!

Tara, 2015 debut author Jenny Martin, and I are modeling Tara’s ALL FOUR STARS temporary tattoos.

Afterward, we headed to Roanoke–not the island, but the town in Texas with great BBQ and the best pie shop I’ve ever visited. (Seriously. And you know how I feel about pie.)

IMG_2504

The sign doesn’t lie–Roanoke, TX had really unique–and delicious–food!

IMG_2515

I am going to dream about the cherry pie I had here. Fantastic.

The next morning, we checked out the Fort Worth Stockyards and the Dallas Museum of Art.

IMG_2539

I loved this historic part of Fort Worth.

IMG_2543

Chihuly glass at the Dallas Museum of Art

Then we headed to Barnes & Noble for a panel with Polly Holyoke and K.A. Holt.

Excitedly posing with our sign!

2014-08-17 16.13.36

Me, Tara, Polly Holyoke, and K. A. Holt getting ready for our panel

The next day, we explored Austin.

IMG_2549

More barbeque! Is it possible to eat to much? No.

IMG_2561

Presidential limousine on display at the LBJ Presidential Library and Museum.

On our last night, we had a great MG panel at The Book Spot in Round Rock, with K. A. Holt, Nikki Loftin, and Jennifer Ziegler.

Tara, me, Nikki Loftin, K. A. Holt, and Jennifer Ziegler

That is a literal “cake with a unicorn”!

We quizzed the audience with trivia related to our books–and had lots of prizes.

A celebratory dinner afterward, with 2015 debut author Donna Bowman Bratton.

(If that’s not enough photos, there are even more on my Facebook page.)

It was a wonderful weekend. Thank you to the librarians and booksellers who invited us; the readers and fellow writers who came out to support us; our hilarious, insightful, and charming co-panelists; and especially to Tara’s husband, who drove us around the state and took lots of great photos to document our authorly adventure.

Texas Bound!

Aug 10, 2014 | , , , , , , , ,

I’m heading to Texas this weekend for some great book events! (And some great BBQ, of course.)

On Saturday, August 16th, I’ll be at the Fort Worth library for the Worth Reading Author Roundup from 1:00-5:00 p.m.

On Sunday, August 17th, I’ll be at the Fort Worth Barnes & Noble with Tara Dairman, Kari Anne Holt, and Polly Holyoke for a MG panel at 4:00 p.m. 

And on Monday, August 18th, at 6:30 p.m., I’ll be in the Austin area at The Book Spot for a fun-filled panel with Tara Dairman, Nikki Loftin, and Jennifer Ziegler!

Hope to see you there!

ALA Annual in Pictures

Jul 8, 2014 | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

ALA Annual was amazing! It was fun, surreal, and humbling to be around so many wonderful readers, librarians, authors, and publishing professionals.

Here are some of the highlights (at least the ones for which I have photo documentation):

So I learned what “but it’s a dry heat” means.

IMG_1035

AKA, still hot, but pleasantly so. Unless you get kind of lost on the way back to your hotel and have to circle a massive casino a few times to find the entrance . . .

Anyway, shortly after I got to the conference on Saturday, after a very early but thankfully uneventful flight, I got to meet fellow debut author Jessica Love!

IMG_1037

Who is just as lovely in person as I knew she’d be. And I now have a signed copy of Push Girl. 🙂

I also got to meet fellow Sourcebooks author Nancy Cavanaugh! Very serendipitously, as I was getting to the conference just as she was leaving.

BrQDTJqCcAAbTjM

I headed over to the Sourcebooks booth to finally meet (and thank!) the wonderful marketing and S&L team. And I saw my poster in person!

IMG_2481

I stopped by the Egmont booth to say hi and also meet author Len Vlahos, who was about to do the coolest author event, in which he played songs from his book on the PopTop Stage. Then I went back to the hotel with my ALA roommate, Lauren Magaziner, and crashed until it was time for the Class of 2K14 dinner. (Sadly, I didn’t think to take any pictures at that!)

The next morning, we were up bright and early for the MG vs. YA Trivia Showdown, hosted by the charming and talented duo of Jay Asher and Josephine Angelini.

photo 4

We had so much fun playing trivia and sharing our first lines. The librarians, no surprise, impressed us all with their knowledge!

Later on Sunday, I signed When Audrey Met Alice in the Sourcebooks booth.

IMG_2467 IMG_1093

I had so much fun meeting librarians and talking about my book. And we actually ran out of copies by the end of the line! I was so touched by the enthusiasm of everyone who came by–it was a dream experience. And author Marissa Moss stopped by–I am a huge fan of her work, and I was so excited to meet her!

IMG_2476

I had another fangirl moment when I got to meet Ann M. Martin.

IMG_1040

I have been dying to read Rain Reign, and now I will always treasure this signed ARC. I kind of wish I could travel back in time to tell little Rebecca that someday, she’d be at ALA meeting the authors she loved.

After the conference wrapped up on Sunday, some of the Class of 2K14 members who were still around went out on the town to celebrate.

IMG_1059

We did find the most amazing doughnut soap while wandering around.

IMG_1060

Truth: I went into the store after seeing that in the window and thinking I could eat it.

And then bright and early the next morning, I was on my way back, jet-lagged and happy and grateful. I didn’t win any money, but I did carry home a suitcase bursting with books.

Vegas Bound!

Jun 27, 2014 | , , , , , , , , ,

I’m off for a week of travel: First to Las Vegas for the ALA Annual Conference, then to Wisconsin to relax and spend time with family–and also visit a favorite indie bookstore, Mystery to Me.

If you’re at ALA, please come say hi when I’m signing in the Sourcebooks booth on Sunday, from 3:30-4:30 p.m. Here’s more info on that.

AC14_ImAttending

Or check out the Class of 2K14’s super fun trivia event, with Jay Asher and Josephine Angelini. My suitcase is full of prizes! Our Trivia Showdown is on Sunday from 11:00-12:30, and here’s more info on that.

And, finally, a link to the Events page for Mystery to Me. I’ll be there on Wednesday, July 2, from 6:00-7:00 p.m.

I’ll have lots of pictures (and words) about ALA once I’m back. Until then, have a great Fourth of July!

Kids Author Carnival!

Jun 2, 2014 | , , , , , , ,

I had the best Saturday. Just look at this lineup, and you’ll understand why:

UPDATEDflyer_onesheetThirty-seven fabulous middle-grade authors took over the gorgeous Jefferson Market Library (which used to be a courthouse and the site of a lot of famous trials; check this out for the library’s history) and turned it into a celebration of kid lit. I was part of the “Creating a Character” group, and I was blown away by the creativity and talent of our kid writers!

After the fun and games, we raffled off prize packs and then did a big, happy signing, with books provided by Books of Wonder.

I wish I had pictures, but I was too busy carnival-ing to take any. So use your imaginations! Picture a lot of smiling kids, caregivers, and authors.

A huge thanks to Claire LeGrand, Lauren Magaziner, and Heidi Schulz for organizing!

Thankful for Booksellers, Teachers, and Librarians

Nov 25, 2013 | , , , , , , , ,

When I was growing up in Madison, WI, there was a wonderful children’s bookstore on Monroe Street called Pooh Corner. It’s been gone for decades, sadly, but I still can remember the way it felt to grab a book and plop down on the carpet to read it. When I was little, the real bear doll that A.A. Milne’s son Christopher owned was on display in the store (and secured in a bank vault at night). Pooh Corner wasn’t just a store but both a second home and a wonderland for book-loving kids like me. I would beg my mom to stop the car and let us go in whenever we drove past.

In fifth grade, I loved to write and illustrate stories. (A lot of them were about opinionated bunnies, for some reason.) Sometimes these stories probably distracted me from whatever the actual lesson was. But my fifth-grade teacher, Mrs. Gerlach,  always encouraged my creativity. Sometimes she’d ask for more, telling me that she loved to read what I came up with. It made me feel so proud of myself, and it spurred me to keep creating. I still have an assignment from that class on which we had to write our goals–I wrote that when I grow up, I wanted to publish a book. Mrs. Gerlach made me feel like that was totally something I should do, and she’d be cheering for me as I tried.

Like a lot of shy and bookish kids, middle school was a place where I rarely felt comfortable. One big exception was my middle school’s library. I knew that whenever I walked in, I would get both a hug and a new book to read from Mrs. Holt. She always had something waiting behind the desk for me, and she every book she put in my hands was curated especially for my reading tastes. She would even order certain books for the library because she thought I (or my best friend, Megan) would like to read them, which made us feel like Very Important Readers. Even if I dreaded going back to school in the fall, I couldn’t wait to get back to the library and see which books Mrs. Holt had found for us over the summer.

So among the many things I’m grateful for this time of year, I’m thankful for booksellers, teachers, and librarians. Partly for how they support authors like me now, but mostly for how they use literacy as a tool for compassion, acceptance, creativity, and growth. Turning kids into readers is a great thing.

Free-Fall-Leaves-Images-GraphicsFairy

I’m posting this as part of the Class of 2K14’s Thanksgiving blogfest. Check out what other debut authors are giving thanks for on our website: www.classof2k14.com

TAC 2012 Recap in Pictures

Jun 6, 2012 | , , , , , , ,

I can sum up Teen Author Carnival 2012 in one word: fantastic.

So fantastic, in fact, that while I was enjoying listening to all the wonderful authors speak, I neglected to take notes about the panels. Doh.

I did take some pictures, though:

The Keeping it Realistic panel
Authors Lauren E. Morrill and Siobhan Vivian
The Where Have You Been All My Life? panel
Such a gorgeous library
 
More gorgeous library (through a door, hence the crappy photo)


I also got to meet up in person
with some super-cool writer peeps, like Ghenet, Gina, and Elodie! And
learned an important lesson about why it is finally time for me to get a
smartphone (I still use a slide-out qwerty phone without internet):
because I missed out on meeting quite a few other writer friends because
I had no access to Twitter until I got home. Sad face. It’s time, so
I’ll head to the Apple store this weekend, and into the 21st century!
Have you been to any BEA week events this week?

Little Free Libraries!

Aug 8, 2011 | , , , ,

I’m in love with Little Free Libraries–a grassroots effort to promote literacy and community. I’m also proud that it’s from my home state (and that my hometown is the one place where you can pop in a shop and buy a prefab Little Free Library).

Little Free Library #1 (Source)

The Little Free Library mission:

To promote literacy and the love of reading by building free book exchanges worldwide.
To build a sense of community as we share skills, creativity and wisdom across generations.
To build more than 2,510 libraries around the world–more than Andrew Carnegie!

Little Free Library next to my
 favorite Madison coffeeshop! (Source)

For more info, or to become a Little Free Librarian, check our their website: Little Free Library

Archives