It’s been a minute since I did an update! Or at least that’s how it feels. This year feels like it’s going by incredibly quickly and somehow slowly? I’m not sure how that’s possible but it’s been pretty go-go-go for me so far.
In case you missed it, we released The Racc Pack a little over a month ago now. I had my very first official launch party at Another Story Bookshop, and it was incredible. So many amazing people came out to support me and the book, and it was so special to me. I signed books, talked to wonderful people, and enjoyed some tasty treats. I can’t thank Siobhan at Simon & Schuster enough for the support in putting the event together, as well as the wonderful team at Another Story. You helped form a new core memory that I will cherish forever.
In more The Racc Pack news, it’s been selected as one of Indigo’s Staff Picks of the Month for March! It’s been so amazing to see such an outpouring of support for our book from independent bookstores as well as chains. I want to keep telling stories, and would love to write The Racc Pack books for the rest of my life, if I’m able to! And that starts with the support of stores, readers, booksellers, librarians, and more. I appreciate every bit of love that we get.
In addition to the launch event at Another Story, I made my way up to Newmarket on February 24 to visit Wayside Comics & Cocktails. They did a creator spotlight every Saturday in February and I was a part of the event on the 24th, and wow! What a great shop. A fantastic selection of comics, collectibles, and more…and just a great space to hang out, have a beverage or two, and be around other like-minded folks. I met such a fantastic assortment of people throughout the day, and wound up staying a lot longer than I planned to. Thank you so much to everyone who came by, and thank you to everyone at Wayside. Be sure to stop by and say hey to them.
WHEW!!! I haven’t even gotten to my lists yet.
But I don’t have too much more to update y’all on. I’ll round up some things here:
- Pekoe won Best in Play for GDC 2024! For those of you who don’t know, GDC is the Game Developers Conference in San Fransisco. And Pekoe is the game that I have been writing on at Kitten Cup Studio for a few years now. We’re so proud of it and excited that it’s being recognized.
- We’re less than two months away from the release of Pillow Talk, my debut YA graphic novel with Mel Valentine Vargas. I’ll have more exciting news on that very soon, but we received our first review from Kirkus, “This is a delightful, inclusive, feminist, coming-of-age sports story…will win readers’ hearts.”
And that’s it for now…I think? I’ll be at March Comicon in a couple of weeks, so more on that very soon. But be sure to check out my Appearances page to be in the know for upcoming events.
CREATOR SPOTLIGHT
As you may have noticed last time, I have been trying to integrate creator spotlights into my blogletters. Today, I’d love to introduce you to my friend, Barbara Perez Marquez.
What is your favourite project that you’ve worked on so far?
Are we allowed to pick favorites? Haha I think Paulina and the Disaster at Pompeii is gonna stay really close to my heart for a long time though. When I was in college I had a minor in Art History and Paulina felt like the perfect project to reconnect with that AND pay tribute to all that part of my studies gave me. It was really wonderful to be able to bring both of those sides of myself into one book.
What’s the first book you remember falling in love with?
It was a turning point for me when I read Gotham City Sirens, I think it was one of the first times that I’d seen this sort of “spin-off” concept in action and in a way that interested me. In more recent years, I still tend to lean towards stories that are adjacent to or in addition to the traditional superhero stories we know.
What’s a bucket list character or IP that you’d love to work on in some capacity?
I’ve got my sights on cape comics for bucket list items right now, I grew up with a few of those Pepsi collectable comics cards that I cherished (even though I knew nothing about comics back then). If I had the opportunity to do some Silver Surfer or Ghost Rider with modern spins, that would be pretty amazing.
What piece of advice would you offer to aspiring creators? Or what is something that you wish you knew when you were starting out?
You gotta create the story if you ever want anyone to read it! I think as creators we can get stuck very easily in trying to make the perfect thing, but that’s what revisions and editing are for. Find ways to get out of your own way to put the idea on paper AND THEN worry about making it as presentable as possible for the World.
Is there an exciting project coming out soon that you’d like to tell us about?
In 2024 we are going to be able to share more about The Library of Memories, an original graphic novel I’ve been working on with Lissy Marlin, and we cannot WAIT to get the go ahead to do so. It’s slated to come out in 2025, which seems really far away, but in publishing it can feel like the blink of an eye.
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And that’s it for our first creator interview. You can find out more about Barbara by visiting her website: mustachebabs.com or following her on Twitch or Instagram.
Let’s dive into some things that I’ve been reading and enjoying since I last updated y’all. I gotta say though, my reviews are a little lacking right now. I’ve mostly just been reading and then moving onto the next thing, so if there’s anything that you’re curious to hear my thoughts on, just lemme know!
BOOKS:
- The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston
- The Human Target Vol. 2 by Tom King and Greg Smallwood
- Basil and Oregano by Melissa Capriglione
- Tegan and Sara: Junior High by Tegan and Sara Quin, and Tillie Walden
- The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea by Maggie Tokuda-Hall
- Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid
- The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
- The Bone Shard Daughter by Andrea Stewart
- Across the Green Grass Fields by Seanan McGuire
- An Education in Malice by S.T. Gibson
- The Great Puptective by Alina Tysoe
- Soara and the House of Monsters Vol. 1 by Hidenori Yamaji
- The Good Daughter by Karin Slaughter
- House of Flame and Shadow by Sarah J. Maas
It’s worth noting that these are all the books I’ve read this year so far, not just in February. In fact, I only read the last four in February, if I’m being quite honest. The two at the bottom were beasts that took me quite a while to get through, so my reading was a little lacking.
And for TV, I’m still deep in reality TV land, so I won’t go into the details of everything I’m watching of that, but this is the more serialized stuff that I’ve recently checked out:
- Betty Season 1
- Only Murders in the Building Season 3
- American Nightmare
- Murder in Boston
- Starstruck Season 3
- True Detective Season 4
…basically a lot of crime related things in various incarnations. Mostly though, I’m obsessed with Vanderpump Rules, Below Deck, and The Traitors right now.
And that’s about it for me right now. As you may have noticed, I haven’t been terribly online lately. I’ve deleted a lot of social media apps off of my phone and have primarily been using Instagram. I’ll always do my best to come back here to give you the lowdown in summary form, but to follow me on the day to day, @hellocookie on the gram is where you can find me.
Until next time…
