SKATING UNDER THE WIRE launch and Giveaway

by: Joelle Charbonneau

It’s hard to believe that it has been three years since my first novel – SKATING AROUND THE LAW hit shelves bringing Rebecca Robbins, Pop and the entire Indian Falls gang into the wonderful world of mystery readers.  I still remember the anxiety I felt leading up to the release of that my first published book.  Would readers like the book?  Would people wonder what the heck my publisher was thinking publishing a book by me?  I mean, I was a musical theater/voice major in college who never took a single creative writing class.  What did I know about writing books?

3 years have passed.  My career has grown in ways I never expected or dreamed of.  And on Tuesday, SKATING UNDER THE WIRE, the fourth and final (for now) Rebecca Robbins book will hit shelves. 

I’m so thrilled because I love this story.  It’s perhaps my zaniest of all the books (which considering the derby girls in SKATING ON THE EDGE is kind of saying something).  The series brings a few new characters to the series in addition to revisiting so many of my favorites that have been part of previous books.  There is a wedding, Thanksgiving dinner and, of course, a murder.  Writing this book was so much fun.  I am delighted to finally share it with everyone.

I’m also sad.  Because we often see in the publishing world – a book series often has to come to an end.  In this case, my publisher has turned their attention to some other series they hope will find wide audiences.  While they love Rebecca and her friends, the series hasn’t sold tens of thousands of copies and this is a business.  (Of course, if this book were to sell tens of thousands of copies I’m betting they’d tell me they made a mistake….it is business, after all.)  And while I love visiting Indian Falls, I have learned something important in the last 18 months – I occasionally need sleep…which means I can’t keep writing at my current pace.  Which means something has to give. 

So it is with great delight that I look forward to sharing Rebecca’s fourth adventure with readers and sadness that I, for now, must put them away.  But the best thing about writing is that stories are always waiting to be told.  And hopefully some day in the not so far distant future I will have a chance to visit Rebecca, Pop, Lionel, Sean, Elwood and the rest of the Indian Falls gang again.  They have a very special place in my heart and I am so grateful to all of you who have given them a place in yours.

To celebrate the release of SKATING UNDER THE WIRE, I am giving away 2 sets of paperbacks of SKATING AROUND THE LAW and SKATING OVER THE LINE.  Please leave a comment below to enter.  All entries no matter where you live are welcome because I want to celebrate the final (for now) Rebecca Robbins journey with a bang.  (Winners will be chosen next Sunday - Oct. 6th!)

GIVEAWAY!

by: Joelle Charbonneau

Happy Sept. 1st.

Now, if you're like me, you're looking back at the summer and wondering---where did it go?  I mean, didn't June just begin?  How is it September already?  Between the unusually cool July and August here in Chicago and all the deadlines I had to hit, I kind of feel like I missed summer.  Although, the weather this past week has clearly been trying to make up for that cool streak.  Still, while part of me feels like I never really got a chance to frolic and play in the summer sun (which would more than likely burn my VERY pale skin to a crisp anyway), I am excited for the things that the upcoming change of season will bring.

First off, there is school!  The kid started his first official week of kindergarten last week and had a blast.  He can't wait for this week's class to begin.  I'm so happy for him and his anticipation of seeing friends, and learning.  It's awesome.

Then, of course, there are all things FALL!  Fall is my favorite season.  I love the changing of the leaves, Halloween, Thanksgiving and pumpkin spice Lattes at Starbucks.  I admit being a little trepidatious about my first Fall in the new house since we have a LOT of trees and no doubt a lot of raking to do, but something tells me we'll make it work.

And finally, I am terribly excited to say that one month from today (October 1st) SKATING UNDER THE WIRE, the fourth Rebecca Robbins novel, will hit shelves.  Hurray!  Rebecca and the gang are very dear to my heart.  I love Elwood the Camel, Pop and the newest addition to the clan - Homer the raccoon.  (You're going to have to read the book to meet Homer!)

And in case you want to know what Rebecca and Company are up to, here is the jacket copy of SKATING UNDER THE WIRE:

Rebecca Robbins has pulled the rink she inherited off the market. She's decided to stay in Indian Falls for good. Rebecca is certain that if she can get her maid of honor duties fulfilled and Thanksgiving dinner cooked, life will finally settle down to normal. But when Rebecca is hired to look into a string of home invasions and a dead body turns up at the bridal shower, she is forced to put aside her hopes for a quiet holiday season. With the help of her Elvis-loving grandfather and her sexy, commitment-seeking large animal vet boyfriend, Rebecca has to track down thieves that have eluded the cops for years, solve a murder, get her friend safely married, and somehow cook dinner for an ever expanding guest list without getting herself killed.

So to celebrate the start of this new month and the upcoming release of SKATING UNDER THE WIRE, I am giving away an advanced reader copy to one commenter below.  (US and Canada only - sorry to all those in other parts of the globe!)  Please leave a comment containing your e-mail address and something you're looking forward to in the upcoming months between today and Sept. 8th.  On Sept. 9th, I will have the kindergarten kid pull a name out of a hat and announce a winner.  

And before this month gets too crazy, I want to say thank you to everyone who writes for and reads this blog.  Your support of me and my work continues to honor and amaze me.  You are all THE BEST!

Time to say THANKS!

By: Joelle Charbonneau

This week I was asked by my editor if I wanted to included acknowledgements in SKATING UNDER THE WIRE – the fourth of the Rebecca Robbins mysteries.  Including acknowledgements is always optional, but an option I have always taken because while writing a manuscript is often done in solitude, getting a book published is never done alone.  The acknowledgements section is the place where I get to say thank you.

However, the true problem with acknowledgements is that an author never wants to be that person who stands at the academy awards podium and lists everyone from his first English teacher to the woman at Starbucks who serves him coffee.  At least, I don’t.  I never want to be the one who gets dragged off the stage with the music still playing and the audience shaking their heads at how boring the speech was. 

Because of that, I tend to keep my acknowledgements to a page—more or less.  SKATING UNDER THE WIRE was the sixth book for which I have written acknowledgements (which makes me realize now that I need to talk to my YA publisher to see if they would allow me to include one for The Testing).  Some of the same people are mentioned in each one not because I feel like I have to mention them, but because I truly couldn’t do what I do without them.  My family tops that list as does my incredible literary agent.  Both provide very different and yet incredibly necessary support.  (For those who don’t believe I am silly for having a literary agent in this day and age – I can honestly say that my work is always better for my agent’s input and I wouldn’t give that up for the world!)  My editors are always named as are members of my publishing house who have collaborated with me on the project.

After that, I run into the problem of trying to decide who to thank.  The list is endless.  Friends.  Extended family.  People whose named I’ve borrowed for characters.  People who helped me with research or read early versions of the book in order to help me make it better.  Others who reached out during times of emotional upheaval and let me know that they were there.  Every single one is important…as are the people who make my Cinnamon Dolce Lattes at Starbucks!

So with every book I have to make a choice as to who to thank and who to put on the list for inclusion the next time.  Unlike the first set of acknowledgments I wrote – which was for a one book deal –I know for certain there will be a next time. 

However, since next time is still a while down the road, I want to say thank you to all of you who are reading this.  Thank you for reading this blog, for encouraging me with your comments and for being a wonderful support of me and my work.  Writing is often lonely.  There are days where every word you write feels as if it is the worst thing ever written and you are convinced you shouldn’t be writing at all.  There are days where books get published and you feel on top of the world.  And there are all the days in between.  None of it matters without all of you.

And the beat goes on

by: Joelle Charbonneau

Get out the noise makers and the pop the cork on the champagne.  Yesterday, I finished writing Skating Under The Wire.  In an ideal world, I would have completed writing the manuscript weeks ago.  But life is never ideal and a combination of working on revisions for other books, family issues and publicity stuff for the release of Skating On the Edge slowed me down.

Now I can relax, right?  Well…

Being an author is a job like any other.  Just because one assignment is complete doesn’t mean the job is over.  Today I start rereading the manuscript and revising the pages so I can turn it in over to the world’s best agent for her opinion.  While she is reading, I will work on revisions for Independent Study (The Testing trilogy book 2).  As soon as those revisions are done, I am told revisions for End Me A Tenor should arrive.  When I am done with those, I will open up a blank page and begin writing Graduation Day.

When I was a reader, I thought being an author was a dream job.  You write when inspiration hits, celebrate big sales and movie deals and have lots of time off in between books.  Ha!  What I have learned is you never get your work done if you wait for inspiration.  Instead of celebrating finishing a manuscript with a vacation or several weeks off, a writer is often back at the keyboard the next day working to get that manuscript revised.  And when one story ends, another begins.

There are days that I wish I had more time to rest in between books.  Some days I feel tired and don’t want to analyze every word choice or pick apart the sentence structure.  But I do it because it is my job.  And WOW, am I lucky to get to do this for a living. 

Write what you want to write

by: Joelle Charbonneau

Well, this was kind of an exciting week. Minotaur Books offered me a contract on SKATING UNDER THE WIRE, book 4 of the Rebecca Robbins mystery series. YAY! I love writing Rebecca and I am excited to get to work on her newest adventure that will be published in the Fall of 2013.

I also had one other piece of good news. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt has bought my 3 book GRADUATION DAY young adult series. The first book, THE TESTING, will be published in 2013 as the lead Fall (although they are now thinking it might be Spring) title with the other books to follow in 2014 and 2015. To say I’m stunned would be an understatement. My new editor and the entire Houghton Mifflin Harcourt team is incredibly excited about the series. Their enthusiasm is both thrilling and humbling.

The story is darker than my mysteries and while when I conceived the story I was fascinated by the concept, I admit that I wasn’t sure that A) I could effectively do the world building required for the story or B) my agent would like the story or the voice it was told in. But the decision to write or not write the story was tipped in one direction because of these words:

Write what you want to write.

Last May, I was having a phone chat with my agent. During the conversation, I asked her what project I should write next. I had two books to write on my contract for my new show choir series. The deadline for book 2 wasn’t for over a year, but I assumed that my agent would want me to write those books first before writing anything else. Still, I mentioned to her I had an idea for this Young Adult book…. I waited for her to tell me to keep focused or that she didn’t really rep YA. Instead, she said that sounds really cool. You should write that. I must have sounded surprised because her next response was – WRITE WHAT YOU WANT TO WRITE.

Those words had a profound impact on me and not just because I have received the kind of contract I never dared dream of. Those words themselves were freeing.

So often we hear that authors need to stick to their brand. That authors need to stick to the genre that is working for us. Stick to the voice and the stories we have an audience for. But instead, I was told to write the story in my head and see where that story would take me.

Now, I’m a pretty fast writer. I tend to write a mostly clean draft of a manuscript in about 3 months. Had it not been for that fact, my agent might have had different advice for me. She might have suggested that I write those next contracted novels and wait to write the other idea until after they were completed. Because this is a business and there are obligations I have promised to meet. But she knows me and thus told me to write the story I really wanted at that moment to tell. Let me tell you, I am beyond grateful I followed her advice.

So, I guess the point of this whole story is this—don’t let anyone tell you that you “the author” are locked into doing just one thing. Being a writer means day in and day out we get to create. There are no limits to the stories we can tell. The most important thing we can do as authors is write the story we are passionate about. That passion is why we do what we do. And we are lucky we get to follow that passion and see where it leads us.



In case you are curious - here is the PW copy about THE TESTING - 16-year-old Cia is chosen by her government to undergo The Testing, which determines whether she gets to proceed to The University. The University is for the country's best and brightest teens; during The Testing, extreme psychological and physical trials pit the teens against one another to determine who has what it takes to become a leader.