Announcing a New YA Book Deal!
Those of you who follow me on Twitter might remember me tweeting last year about a project I was working on that was very different for me. You also might’ve seen me squirming impatiently the last few months while I kept some big news under wraps. Well, I finally got word that I can officially announce it:
I’ve sold a young adult contemporary romance to Macmillan! It’s titled THE NIGHT OWLS (though that may change further down the line), and it’s scheduled to release Fall 2015. Here’s what it’s about:
THE NIGHT OWLS, a steamy romance between an aspiring medical illustrator who sneaks out after dark to draw in an anatomy lab and the alluring boy she meets on the night bus…who just might just be a notorious graffiti artist defacing San Francisco landmarks.
[And look: some kind librarian has already listed it on Goodreads right here.]
I’m super, SUPER excited to be working with editor-in-chief Liz Szabla at Macmillan imprint Feiwel and Friends. F&F currently publish several NYT bestselling teen series, including the Lunar Chronicles books by Melissa Meyer and the Razorland Trilogy by Ann Aguirre, as well as The Girl Who Circumvented Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Cat Valente.
Pretty exciting stuff, right?
What else can I tell you about this book right now? It’s my first hardcover. My first non-paranormal. It’s a summer romance. It’s mature YA (verra sexy), and like my other work, it’s character-driven and told from a deep POV (the heroine’s). If you’re a romance reader and like how I write teenage Jupe in the Arcadia Bell series, you might go gaga over this. Just sayin’.
More details will come closer to publication. But in the meantime, if you’d like a sneak peek inside the inspiration for this book, you can always check out my Night Owls Pinterest board, which is chock-full of character/story hints. And, as always, follow me around the web to get the most current updates on this and other upcoming books:
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March 3, 2014 @ 11:35 AM
YAYYYYYYYYY Jenn!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I’m SO SO SO SO Happy & Proud for you 🙂 *throws confetti * A million, bazillion congrats & good wishes I’m sending your way 🙂 May I have an autographed copy? 😉
March 3, 2014 @ 3:44 PM
Thanks, Ronnie! You will DEFINITELY see your name in the credits. Autographed copy for shizzle! —>this is me hugging you
March 3, 2014 @ 12:44 PM
Oh my god, that sounds fabulous! This is a departure from the norm into something I think will absolutely kick ass. Holy shit.
Now I have to wait until Fall 2015 to get my hands on this? *sighs, slumps*
March 3, 2014 @ 3:51 PM
Thanks, Cat! (And thanks for the tweet-action!) And, yeah, 2015 seems soooo far away. YA hardcovers have longer lead times. But I’m not complaining, because, you know, marketing and promotion. I’m going to be a real boy, Geppetto!
March 3, 2014 @ 1:27 PM
Sounds like a great concept. Congratulations Jenn! Can’t wait to read it 🙂
March 3, 2014 @ 3:55 PM
Aww, thanks, Julie! *big hugs*
March 3, 2014 @ 11:23 PM
Congrats on the book deal & moving to hardcover! Loving the book blurb. Can’t wait to read it.
March 3, 2014 @ 11:59 PM
Aww, thanks so much, Vi! So excited for everyone to read it! 🙂
March 4, 2014 @ 2:25 PM
Thanks, Vi! Wheee!
March 4, 2014 @ 12:05 AM
A sexy summer romance? Did you write this just for me?
Oh my God, this is absolutely going to kick ass (and kick *my* ass). It sounds AMAZING, Jenn. I can’t wait to get my hands on it!
March 4, 2014 @ 2:26 PM
Thanks so much, Danielle! I’m so, so, SO excited for everyone to read.
March 4, 2014 @ 7:12 AM
Love the synopsis! And love that it takes place in San Francisco. Can’t wait for this one to come out. Congrats!
March 4, 2014 @ 2:26 PM
Hey, Lee! Thanks so much! My agent joked that all of my books take place in San Francisco or just outside it. What can I say? Love that city. 🙂
March 4, 2014 @ 4:09 PM
Noooo! That’s forever away! But I am so excited about this news. Not just because it’s one I’ve been eager to hear more about but because of whom you’re working with. I’ve been really happy with the F&F reads I’ve had. Huge congrats Jenn!
March 4, 2014 @ 7:06 PM
Hey, thanks so much, Rhianna! F&F is such an amazing imprint. The woman who runs it is a legendary editor (Harry Potter, anyone?) and I feel so lucky to be working with them.
March 4, 2014 @ 6:22 PM
This is awesome… I just read this to Gregg he’s so “unplugged” and also very excited for you.
March 4, 2014 @ 7:10 PM
Hi-D!!!! So nice to see your name on my screen! And I’m chuckling that you had to read it to Gregg. Then again, maybe he’s smarter than the rest of us who are all wasting so much time online, LOL! Hope you are doing okay. I think about you often. This is me hugging both of you and hoping we can see each other soon!
March 6, 2014 @ 2:22 AM
Congratulations, Jenn! I’m so happy to see you getting the chance to write even more of the great ideas that are percolating around in that creative brain of yours. I just finished Bitter Spirits and really loved it even though it’s a bit more skewed to romance than is usually my preference. But their chemistry was so great, it was irresistible. The culture, the history of the city and of Chinatown, and the roaring twenties timing was so rich for your storytelling. And the bit of supernatural mystery was a bit eerie. It was just so fun, I just loved it. (Hmm, looks like I just wrote part if my review!)
So I know that I’ll love the new YA series just as much. It sounds like the kids will appeal to me in their own ways too, I’m always interested in artists and how they see the world, anything from My Name is Asher Lev to watching all of the tattoo competition shows though I don’t have any tattoos. I’m fascinated by watching them create that kind of art in just a few hours. Anyway, your character sketches sound really interesting and I’m looking forward to finding out more about the kids and their predicament. You haven’t let me down yet, so even with no magic or paranormal abilities in the picture, I’ll definitely be there to try what you’ve worked so hard on when the time comes. I’m really looking forward to it. The artist angle just makes it sound even more interesting to me, seeing how their talents have influenced them and driven them and now are maybe connecting them or pulling them apart. We’ll see! Good luck pulling it all together and juggling everything you have to do.
March 6, 2014 @ 4:05 PM
Aww, Cathy—thank you for all the kind words! I’m really pleased you liked Bitter Spirits, especially if you don’t usually drift toward books with that much romance.
Re: the YA book and art… Yes, you get it already. 🙂 This book has strong family-issues subplots that directly influence the wildly different kinds of art my protags are making. I really adore these kids, and it was one of the most flowing, freeing (and personal) books I’ve ever written.