Paris Day 4 - Book Signings, Dinners, and My F***ing Shoes

When my husband was little, if he was having an awesome time, he'd say, "I'd better eat some green peas," because he hated green peas, and I guess he somehow felt he needed some kind of punishment for having so much fun (he's Swedish, meaning there's a big streak of Lutheran in him). I kind of feel the same way on this trip, like someone should feed me, I don't know, a plate of those wieners at the Frankfurt airport, just so this trip isn't all fun and games. 

Two nights ago, after I posted, Mom and I went for dinner with my translator, Valerie Le Plouhinec, and Helium's editor, Gilberte Bourget. They took us to a tucked-away gem of a restaurant in Le Marais called Le Hangar. We had so much fun. I found out how Valerie came to be a translator, and I understand she's one of the best in France (she would never say so, but I've had a lot of people tell me it's a fact!). Gilberte is a constant joy to be around, so funny and kind. We laughed till we cried, and ate a fantastic meal - so good that Mom and I are going back there tonight. 

 Valerie et Gilberte (Gilberte, you look beautiful! And your head does not look big).

For some reason I was seated beside this decorative gourd. 

Yesterday (Friday) I had the day free till 5 pm, so Mom and I had our first real day as tourists. We went to the Musee D'Orsay, then wandered through St. Germain Des Pres, with stops at two of my all-time favourite stores, Deyrolles (a must-see - Adam Gopnik wrote about it in "Paris to the Moon") and Le Grand Epicerie at Bon Marche (I don't know how to get accent agus). 

 Mom outside Notre Dame Cathedral.

Then it was back to the book fair for a signing. I got dressed up because I knew we were going to dinner afterward.

 

I wore my new Fluevogs (well, newest - I bought them last year).  See, I wanted to look like une vraie Parisienne. The problem is, I never wear heels. I never wear heels because they hurt my feet.  But my vanity won out, I was wearing the shoes! Here is a photo of them, for future reference, because they come back into play later.

The signing turned out to be really fun, due to three reasons. 1) I actually met a handful of my French fans! There's something so neat about knowing your books are being enjoyed in another language. Maybe that sounds lame, or obvious, but it's the first time I've met any of my readers from another country. 2) The Helium staff. I LOVE these women. Sophie Giraud, the Editorial Director, Gilberte, Rozenn Sampson - such warm and caring and funny women. 3) I met Steven Guarnaccia. He is an exceptional illustrator from Brooklyn, New York, and we hit it off immediately (well, I won't speak for him, but I liked him right away). Talk about six degrees of separation - it turns out he's good friends with my new U.S. publisher, Wendy Lamb! What are the odds, I ask you?? This picture gives you an idea of what it's like to do a signing in Paris.

!! Can you imagine a sight like this anywhere in North America? Je pense not!

A good time was had by all.

Afterward we went out to dinner. Mom and I took the Metro with Sophie and Gilberte, and the others drove. We got lost on the way to the restaurant. This is where the shoes come back into the story. I cursed those g.d. shoes every extra step I walked.  I would have sold my soul for a pair of Reboks at that moment! At all. When we found the restaurant, I almost crawled in. But it was kind of like hiking up a mountain - you get tired and sore along the way, but then you get to the top and the views make it all worthwhile. The dinner was so much fun. There were other authors and illustrators there, as well as all of the people I've mentioned above. So much fascinating conversation and laughter. Plus Rozenn (who is 25 and so adorable I want to put her in my pocket and bring her home) taught Steven how to eat his foie gras pate properly. The food was delicious. The restaurant was Le Comete, on Rue de la Roquette, but I don't even know what neighbourhood we were in. 

Today was my day off, so Mom and I slept in, then we took the Metro to Le Grand Palais and saw two exhibits, Raymond Dupardon and Felix Valleton. Both were very good, but I loved the Felix Valleton. Afterward we walked toward L'Arc du Triomphe on Champs Elysee, then back down through a Christmas market, where I bought chestnuts.

Then we walked down to the Ferris Wheel, and dammit I just really wanted to ride on it! So we did. Normally I'm here in July, and the thought of lining up is horrid. But today we waited ten minutes. And you know what? It was worth every euro (10 to be exact). Great views.

We meandered our way home through the Tuilerie Gardens and beyond. Then shopped like maniacs at a store in Le Marais called, "Les Aventurs du Toile." Tomorrow I go to a book store, and another signing at the fair ... I'll let you know how it goes. And no - I won't wear my high-heeled Fluevogs!

Day 2 in Paris

Well, we are here. Both Mom and I arrived safe and sound. We met up in the Frankfurt airport, which is such a crap place compared to our beautiful Canadian airports (sorry, Frankfurt, but it's true). The good news is, we met up in the business class lounge. The deal I made with my lovely French publisher so we could swing this trip was that I would get my airline ticket on points and they would cover everything else. So I got Mom and I business class tickets. Huge difference, traveling in style! But we waited a bit too long to get breakfast in the lounge (we had a three hour wait for our next flight) and by the time we went to get food they had switched to lunch. Which meant there was this.

Oh, the Germans and their wieners! Anyhoo when we got to Paris we were met by a driver who took us to the adorable little apartment Helium had rented for us. It's a studio apartment, perfect for the two of us. Within spitting distance of the Pompidou Centre in Le Marais, bright and quiet. Gilberte Bourget from Helium met us and we walked around for a bit. 

 This is Gilberte. She didn't want her photo taken because she wasn't wearing make-up, which is clearly a huge faux-pas for a Parisienne. But she relented. :-) Merci, Gilberte. I told her she should come to Vancouver and see how we do it - we seem almost proud of our schlubbiness.

 Me, slightly out of focus, by the Seine.

Then Mom and I explored on our own and had a meat-fest for dinner at a little resto we'd read about called "Robert et Louise." Slept like piglets (I think piglets sleep well, but really, how would I know?). 

Today we went to see the Brassai exhibit at Hotel de Ville. Fantastic. Then it was out to the book fair. Holy crap, I have never seen so many munchkins in my life. It is a HUGE fair, and PACKED WITH KIDS. I didn't actually realize that it's a book fair only for children's and youth books. There must be hundreds of children's and youth publishers in France! God bless them! And hordes of school groups. I didn't get a photo of the hordes, unfortunately, but here is the Helium booth.

And of course those are my titles, en francais! 

I first did an "encounter with children" for an hour, then a signing for an hour, then I was interviewed by the most lovely young man, Nathan. He is 16, I believe, and an avid reader. He's had a blog for a long time, reviewing books. It was the highlight of my day. 

Then Mom and I made our way back to our apartment, and walked to Place des Vosges. Now we're back at the apartment and soon we'll go out to dinner with my translator, Valerie le Plouhinec. I haven't met her before, but I know she is an amazing translator. She's translated Roald Dahl!!! 

 

Bonsoir for now ... 

Heading to Paris!

Well, here I am at the Vancouver International Airport, waiting for my flight to Paris. I have been invited by my French publishers, Helium, to attend the Montreuil Book Fair. Does it excite me to put the words, "French" and "publisher" together? Oh, yes. Does it excite me that I'm going to Paris as an author?? Hells yes! Helium has translated and published all three of my novels so far, and I adore the women behind the operation, Sophie and Gilberte, both of whom I have met on a family holiday a few summers ago. 

I will be doing signings at the book fair as well as visits to a couple of bookstores, including Le Merle Moquer and Les Enfants Sur Toit. Yes, I will have translators with me! And best of all, since I didn't really want to go to Paris alone, my dear mom Eleanor is coming with me. She is flying from Toronto, and we'll meet in Frankfurt about 11 hours from now, and fly on to Paris together. 

I'll try to post here throughout the trip! Je suis tellement excitee!

Bad selfie of me in airport.

One Of My Favourite Kid-Letters

I get some fan mail. Not scads, but some. Plus some nice e mails through my website, and some nice tweets. Usually, when people take the time to write, even a 140 character tweet, they have positive things to say. If someone doesn't like your book/s, they usually don't go to the trouble of writing to tell you so (thank goodness). 

Fan mail can make a writer feel good. It can stroke the ego, and make me feel more special than I really am. But the great thing about being a writer is, any time you start to get a little too big for your britches, you will get taken down a notch. It's like the laws of gravity: It's just how it is.

So on that note, I'm posting my favorite kid-letter ever. I like it for its brevity. This kid wastes no time in getting to the point. It's not particularly nasty - I've received a couple of those, usually about the language I used in "Word Nerd" - it's just very much to the point. I'm embarrassed to tell you I never responded to this kid, either. I'm normally very diligent about responding to all fan letters, e mails and tweets. But this one must have got separated from a batch of letters from a school, and I have no idea which school.  Anyway, here it is. I'm going to stick it to my wall too, for those days when my ego (like my waistline) gets a little too bloated.

Multiple Choice Question: Is This A) my new author photo or ....

On this Friday afternoon I leave you with this lovely photo below. Is it:

A) my new author photo

B) a picture of my evil twin Suzette 

C) me getting ready for my audition for the all-female rendition of "Hannibal Lecter - The Musical" 

D) a selfie taken during my three hour long session at the dentist? 

A Schmaltzy Post Where I Give Thanks

I wanted to do this for Canadian Thanksgiving but didn't get my act together. Now I'm halfway between Canadian and American Thanksgiving so thought I'd give it a go now. 

I've been reflecting a lot lately on my still fairly new-found life as an author. I've worked in the TV biz since I was 22, but I came to books quite a bit later in life, with my first YA novel, "Word Nerd, published by Tundra in 2008. Sometimes you don't take the time to think about things as they're happening, but for some reason, this fall, it really hit me what a wonderful, world-expanding experience my life as a YA author has been, and will, I hope, continue to be.

I wrote "Word Nerd" because I was sick of the vagaries of the TV industry. I was sick of waiting. And waiting ... and waiting ... to hear if series would be renewed, or greenlit for production, or if I'd be hired in a staff position. I was sick of being at the mercy of broadcast executives, some of whom were passionate about their jobs but powerless, and others (usually the ones who wielded real power) who couldn't give a sh*t about Canadian programming and only did the bare minimum to meet their CRTC obligations. 

I realized the only power I had as a writer was to write. Instead of bitching and moaning and complaining, I could create! Something that was just for me, a story I was passionate about. Ambrose, my protagonist, had been talking to me for a while. I took the plunge. I sat down and wrote what stayed my opening line: "The day I almost died, the sky was a bright, brilliant blue."

The journey from that day forward has been really special. I didn't always realize it at the time. But I have made new friends and encountered hundreds of wonderful people since then. Today I'd like to mention a few of them. Today I focus on FELLOW AUTHORS (I have also met tons of fantastic people in the world of publishing, whether they be editors, publishers, publicists or agents, librarians, teachers, readers and festival and awards organizers).

To quote a famous philosopher, "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it." Some of you will recognize that philosopher. It is Ferris Bueller.

So here we go.

Susan Juby is top of my list. She is a hugely talented writer, first and foremost. But she's also just a class act. I met Susan when I adapted her trilogy, "Alice, I Think," into a TV series.  The series only got one season. But Susan and I liked and respected each other, and stayed in touch. When I was finishing "Word Nerd," she asked to read it. She liked it. And in an act of supreme generosity that I am forever grateful for, she gave me an entre (accent agu) into the world of publishing. She essentially launched my career. To this day we read each others' manuscripts and offer each other a lot of moral support.

 Susin and Susan at the VIWF Literati Dinner, 2012

At my very first author's festival (Winnipeg's fantastic Thin Air) I shared a stage with Arthur Slade. Again - sheer good fortune. I couldn't have asked to be paired with a kinder, more generous (and hilariously funny) writer. He's been at this game a long time, and in another show of generosity, he sat down (after I told him about a disastrous presentation I'd done at a Winnipeg girls' school - my first ever - I didn't have a clue what I was doing) and took me through his power point presentation, showing me what he does when he goes into schools. I adore Arthur and count him as a good friend - even if he does have over 10,000 Twitter followers versus my 813. (I keep telling him I'll outstrip him, in approximately the year 2167).

At my second author's festival (the equally wonderful VIWF) a couple of weeks later, I shared the stage with another incredible talent and lovely human being, Sheree Fitch. Again, what a gift. She was so generous and warm and encouraging (ugh, I'm sorry, I know I keep using the same adjectives over and over, but I did warn you this would be schmaltzy), and she has stayed that way from the moment we met. Sheree is one of those people that you can't help but fall in love with. It's like she's surrounded by a force field of positive energy.

Me, Arthur and Sheree, dressed in character for one of Susan Juby's videos, VIWF 2012

Later there was Marsha Skrypuch, a multi-award-winning YA novelist who along with current GG nominee Valerie Sherrard runs the Authors Booking Service out of Ontario, on top of being a writer. Marsha spent oh, probably 2 to 3 hours on the phone with me back in 2010, before I came to Toronto for my first-ever Red Maple Awards ceremony, advising me on how to put together a fun presentation so I could get booked into schools. And here in Vancouver, there is Linda Bailey, one of my favorite children's authors, who offers me the most sound advice on myriad writerly topics - and makes me laugh like nobody's business.

I've had briefer, but equally memorable, encounters with so many other amazing children's and young adult novelists (and illustrators): Richard Scrimger, Alice Kuipers, Ashley Spires, Shane Peacock, Eric Walters, Isabelle Arsenault, Elise Gravel, Teresa Toten, Rachel Harman, Kenneth Oppel, Gail Sidonie-Sobat, Vicki Grant, Marty Chan, Eileen Cook - I know I'm forgetting many others, because my mind is like Swiss cheese.

But the point is - I feel so blessed to have been able to step inside this whole other world of wonderful people.

Schmaltz is officially over for today.