New Look for Sammy Keyes!

I am so excited for this week's post! Finally, finally, finally, I have new Sammy Keyes art to show you.

But first! From last weekend's post...our drawing winner is....Ashli B. from Ohio! (Congratulations on your Charmin' good luck. Your box of Lincoln Jones goodies will ship out on Monday.) 

(Did y'all, uh, snicker about the "Charmin' good luck"? No? Well, go read Lincoln Jones--it's magically delicious!)

Okay, okay. I feel like I tapped the mic, read last week's minutes, got sidetracked, and lost my grip. 

But what else is new, right?

Wendelin! FOCUS! 

Right, right! Sorry! I'm just excited!! And honestly, I don't know where to begin. Some of you have been reading this blog since I first started soliciting your input regarding new Sammy Keyes artwork, and you have probably wondered, what the heck ever happened with that? Well, it's a huge thing, redoing the art of 18 books! And in the end, it's a business decision. Do sales--past and future--warrant an investment in new art? And, if so, what is the purpose for the investment, and how will the new art serve that purpose? 

It's not unusual for books to get a "refreshed" look periodically, and having multiple looks across the life of a series is pretty normal. I've been told that Sammy having the same art/artist for all 18 hardcovers was very unusual.

Here's a post from back in 2014, where I was trying to get a bead on the direction the art should take once the series was complete. The dilemma with Sammy Keyes is that she doesn't fit neatly into "Middle Grade" (8-12 yrs) or "Young Adult" (12 yrs & up, but more realistically, 14 yrs & up). Sammy is edgy, funny, irreverent, and not obsessed with boys. And she deals with stuff like meth labs, buried bodies, gangs, and seriously scary adults. 

I personally wanted the new art to move in a more realistically rendered direction (as proposed in that linked post). And, because her name can confuse the uninitiated, I wanted the new art to make clear that Sammy is a girl. 

So for a good year I gathered input from booksellers and kids at schools and people here and online. One of the crucial questions I posed was, where do you think Sammy should be shelved? YA, or MG? It makes a huge difference in bookstores and in schools. 

The data was pretty evenly divided...which reflects the situation with middle school itself: it's that transitional ground between childhood and near adulthood.

Here's what finally came down as the reality of current trends: Realistic covers are for YA books, and although Sammys are read by a wide range of ages, the books belong on shelves accessible to kids younger than 14. 

Realistic was out.

I was bummed.

And then I was shown some preliminary sketches done by New Zealand artist Craig Phillips.

And I got a whole lot less bummed in a hurry.

The new look still had humor, but there was also an edginess to it. And a girl! I know we all have our own picture of what Sammy looks like, and that was the goal. We wanted readers to picture her their way. 

So after all this time, seeing Sammy on these covers is a little strange. And it may not match the Sammy you see in your head, but give it time. I hope you can adjust and learn to like this new art as much as I do. 

A couple of other quick things: 

One of the many questions I asked when collecting data was...should the books be numbered? Again, the answers were evenly divided. Readers edged toward yes, but booksellers edged toward no. And really, although it's best to read the series in order, I wrote them so you don't have to. So if the title you have in front of you is, say, Hollywood Mummy, don't think you have to find the previous five books before you read it. Open it up, get on that bus to Hollywood, and go!

So, again, the team at Random House concluded: No numbers.

Only this time I countered with an idea that originated in the comments of this blog: 

Hide the numbers in the art. 

And guess what, guys? That's exactly what they're doing! Some of the numbers are easy to spot, some are a little more challenging. (I've seen art for the first 8 books but I can only share 3 at this time.) I think hidden numbers are super fun, and I just love that the idea originated here. (Yes, okay, go find them. Then come back and read the rest of the post.)

The other thing that I'm crazy nutso happy about is the spines. There's a piece of art (to remain unnamed) that will span the width of the series. When you have the (secretly numbered) books on the shelf, spines out in the proper order, an image is created behind the spines' titles and text. It's like putting together a puzzle. Very appropriate for Sammy Keyes! I'm including the full span art of Hotel Thief so you can see its spine and get a taste for it.

There's a ton more to share, but this is probably enough for one post. But I promise to be back next weekend with more!

Meanwhile, thanks so much for checking in, (And for those of you who have been waiting years for this post, thank you for your patience and steadfast loyalty.) I will leave you with a compilation of the first three Sammy paperback covers over time, from the original puzzle-piece art (which was only out in paperback for a short time), to the realistic interim art (lasted about 8 books, after which it was replaced by) the "cartoony" art (which was available up to but not including the very last book), to the upcoming art (to be released beginning May 2nd).

So...what do you think? I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts. See you in the comments!

Behind the Flipped Iridescent Edition

There's a new, anniversary edition of Flipped. It looks much like the original, but has an "iridescent" cover. Those of you who have read the book will know that this change was inspired by a passage in the book where Bryce Loski's grandfather tries to explain to Bryce why Juli Baker is special:

"Some of us get dipped in flat, some in satin, some in gloss...but every once in a while you find someone who is iridescent, and when you do, nothing will ever compare."

Like the book itself, the cover change is subtle. There's a new edge of orange and the white is more beautiful eggshell than flashy iridescence. Nancy (my editor) told me that it suits the book--that the more time you spend time with it, the more you see and appreciate its beauty. 

This new edition is not just a random repackage. It comes after fifteen years of fan mail demanding a sequel, and after the adaptation of the book to film. There have been a lot of questions over the fifteen years, and the new edition contains an additional 30+ pages where I answer, share, and explain. If you're someone who's been curious about the status of a sequel, or what it was like to ask the Flipped movie director--the revered Rob Reiner--to not stick to the ending of the book, or if you want your heart to swell from the profound words of a fan in China and know what it means to "hold a mighty heart," you will delight in the bonus pages. 

Along with the anniversary edition of the book, there will be a new audio book, produced by Listening Library with voice actors Ryan Gesell doing Bryce's pages, and Tara Sands doing Juli's. Listening Library asked me if I'd be willing to lend my voice to the new bonus pages, since they're written first person--me talking to my readers.

So this week I made the trek to the Listening Library studios in Los Angeles and did my first "voice work." It was interesting and almost fun, but I found myself getting choked up--something that doesn't make for good recording!

What this says, though, is that these pages are personal. They hold little stories that I had never intended to share. Little bits of my life that shaped me, that shaped Flipped. Typing them for the book was one thing, but speaking them? Even alone, inside the darkened room of a vocal booth, saying the words aloud was emotional in a way I find impossible to explain. 

The truth is, that's the same with me for Flipped itself. Don't ask me to read passages aloud. I just can't do it. Maybe fifteen years from now I'll be able to spend time in Bryce and Juli's world and not tear up.

Somehow, I doubt it.

Until then, may you appreciate nature and your neighbor, may the rising sun send streaks of fire through the clouds around you, and, most of all, may you find a love that is iridescent.

More Tales From ALA

What's a Schneider?

It's the American Library Association's award for a book that "embodies an artistic expression of the disability experience for child and adolescent audiences."

What's that mean for a winning author?

You get honored at ALA with banners and plaques and get to meet some truly outstanding committee members.

It also means that your publisher is happy with you and hosts you as a guest of honor at parties and such.

And what does being a guest of honor at  a Random House function held at a Downtown Disneyland restaurant mean to the author?:

Mouse ears!

Yup, the president / publisher presented ALA award winners with Mickey Mouse hats embroidered with our names during one such party, and since I've never owned Ears before I thought it was ubercool and wore mine all night.


I was busy the whole conference with book business so Mark and I didn't visit Disneyland Park for rides, etc., but the boys did. We paid their entry with the proviso that they return with pictures of themselves in front of the White Rabbit's door. Here's why:

That's them together 15 years ago.

And again last weekend.

(No room for togetherness! [And no parent to take the picture])

Maybe it's just a mom thing, but something about this group of pictures makes me really happy.

But back to the conference:

Brian Selznick (the wonderful author of Hugo Cabret) also won a (younger category) Schneider for Wonderstruck, so we were at all the Schneider functions together and I am happy to report that a) he wears awesome cool shoes, and b) he is a fun, seemingly humble and very kind guy. I should also report that c) somewhere out there are pictures of him with my bunny ears messin' up his stylish look. (There's only so much picture-taking I can handle before I spaz out--something he totally got.)

There's more, but this is probably plenty for now.

Thanks for checking in. Thanks for caring.

See you next week!