Things that were good in 2010

Oh come on, everyone else is doing one of these! Lists for this and that and everything inbetween. Right, this is mine. I make no apologies and if I forgot someone, sorry!

1. Madmen. OMG. Where to begin on it's sheer awesomeness. Slow burn storytelling, mysteries abound, Roger Sterling's wit and Joan's, well, Joan-iness. The most rediculously good-lookin' cast of human beings imaginable and it made me go out at buy my first suit (I work in my pajamas, why oh why do I need a suit?). It made smoking cool again. (BTW kids, smoking is BAD). I've ploughed through series 1-3 and just waiting for that series 4. I love the way all the characters intertwine and the layers of story seems ocean deep. Now that's writing. Impeccable settings, story and characters and the Carousel speech is arguably TV's 'To be or not to be,' a piece of dialogue that all others will be measured against. Pure brilliance.
2. The Chainsaw Gang. I'm rather proud of this one. It started with a vague conversation about getting a bunch of authors together and since Sept we've had five events already. There's more lined up in the New Year and hopefully we'll be setting up a website soon-ish. Considering we're basically a bunch of strangers sitting in the lifeboat in the sea of books, it's great to have some company!
3. Orlando trip. I can't thank Hyperion enough for giving me the chance to come over and meet the movers and shakers of the US YA world. Made a lot of great new friends and the 'Kiss Me, Kill Me' blog series is the result of this. Plus it's always nice to stay in a safari park.
4. Movies. In no particular order: Inception, Scott Pilgrim v. the World, The Other Guys, Solomon Kane, Kick Ass.
5. Books. Blood Meridian, Shiver (I know, paranorm romance, who would have believed it?), The Doubled-Edged Sword, The Forest of Hands and Teeth.
6. Family. 'Nuff said. Now more than ever.

Kiss Me, Kill Me Blog Tour

It wasn't that long ago when I sat up and a meeting and suddenly realised "OMG, I'm in the paranormal (non) romance genre!"

There's a feeling at times I'm here all by myself but as my dear old mum said to me as she pushed me through the school gates on that first day "Go and make friends and don't bite anyone!" before she hurried off across the road to the hairdressers.

Anyway...

The best thing about the conference last month was the mixing and mingling with the lights of the YA world. You could not hope to meet a smarter, better-dressed and well-mannered bunch. There were moments (quite a few, actually) when I really did wonder if they'd got me mixed up with someone else and any second now security would grapple me to the ground, get excessive with the pepper spray and shove me on the next flight outtta DisneyTown.

Look, there's Darren Shan! Holly Black! Melissa de la Cruz! Ally Carter! Maggie Steifvater! Carrie Ryan! OMG, what is she doing? Is that legal here? Well I suppose it's possible with medical training, but seriously, using just a spoon? It doen't look hygienic...
Hold on, there was a point to this blog. Ah yes. Making friends and influencing people. So, after hanging out with said superstars and basking in their light I was pushed onto a plane to leave the cloudless skies of Orlando far, far behind (hey, did I tell you I got upgraded when I gave a flight attendant a copy of my books? True!). But, I have taken a little fistful of ideas with me, back to the snow-bound wastes of South London.

I'd like to announce the 'Kiss Me, Kill Me' blog tour!

Cool title, don't you think? Well, I like it so that's what we're going to call it. Sigh. Some people.

Starting in Jan and running for as long as I can manage, I'll be inviting the great and the good and glamorous and gruesome of the YA paranormal world here, to review and interview them about what shakes their tree and gets their cold, vampiric blood flowing.

With a title like 'Kiss Me, Kill Me' I'll be starting with the female of the species. Quite the most deadly collection of authors, I think you'll agree. I've got Maggie Stievater, Cindy Pon, Rachel Hawkins and Carrie Ryan and that's just to start with. There will be vampires, zombies and werewolves, Oh My!

So, have a merry old Christmas, don't worry about the snow and I'll catch you later.

Kiss Me, Kill Me. Well I think it's a cool title.

Ode to the Chainsaw

It's a statement weapon. It says 'Hey, I'm loud, noisy,brutal and when this is over, there'll be blood on the carpet and dismembered limbs in the kitchen'.

It reminds us that quantity has a quality of its own.

Suitable for most social ocassions. Be it zombies or lost teens, the chainsaw is the answer.

It's not subtle, true, but it announces itself. You know when somebody starts up a chainsaw.

We're half-way through the Chainsaw Gang's 12 Deaths of Christmas and while I'm disappointed we're not heading for that Xmas No.1 slot in the charts, in all other aspects the tour has been a success!

Thank you for joining it, one and all.

Below is the full list of the bloggers who've been involved. Each has posed us a curious question (who would you be in yoru favourite horror movie? What's the spookiest place you've ever visited? Books for Xmas and so on) and we've all given them our answers, which range widly! Plus there has been singing.

Mon 6th My Favourite Books

Tues 7th Enchanted Books

Weds 8th Narratively Speaking

Thurs 9th Wondrous Reads

Fri 10th BookZone

Sat 11th and Sun 12th Book Gazing

Mon 13th BookZone

Tues 14th Wondrous Reads

Weds 15th Narratively Speaking

Thurs 16th Enchanted Books

Fri 17th My Favourite Books

Remember, each comment entered gets a chance to win the Chainsaw Library, a signed copy from each member of the Chainsaw Gang. That would be your 2011 reading list sorted in one go, wouldn't it? Alas, only UK residents, this time.

My Vampire Romance

Been there, done that. Now even the most casual reader of my blog will know my apprehension over vampires. They may even think I have some garlic-like aversion to the bloodsuckers.

That couldn't be further from the truth!

"No, Sarwat! Tell me it's not true! You've not gone all Team Edward on us! Is that a poster of RPatz up beside the bed? Oh woe is us! Who will deliver the throat-ripping, blood drenched fiends we crave now Sarwat's started drawing little hearts in his elegant note book and calling himself 'Sarwat, the lost Cullen'.

Fear not, my companions of slaughter, I have not fallen to the dark side.

Well, not yet though there are those moments when Jacob takes of his teeshirt (like every five minutes but frankly with abs like those, who wouldn't want to expose them to the world constantly although you've have to hack through a thick forest of chest hair to see anything like that on me not that I have had abs like those since, well ever, though there was a period in my late teens when I was doing karate a lot, before I had my teeth knocked out but that's another story where was I? Oh yes, anyway there was that time when I did have the vaguest outline of a six-pack but all too briefly. Sigh.)

Which brings me somewhat shambolically to Anne Rice, the godmother of vampires. Oh, gosh, where to begin? We had the gloriously ammoral Lestat, melancholic Louis, the petite but lethal Claudia and then we had Akasha, Queen of the Damned.

Oh, yes, now that's what I call a vampire.

Hmmm.

Interview with a Vampire. The Vampire Lestat and the Queen of the Damned were the first three and the best vampire books I've ever read. After those, all others are, well, anaemic. It started a love affair with the blood-sucking fiends that, truth be told, has never ended. It amazes me how it's gone on and on, we never tire of them, we love them in all their angsty palid beauty (and none were as angst-ridden as Louis, I tell you).

Gloriously violent, devestatingly glamorous and painfully beautiful, the vampires of Anne Rice novels were the very pinnacle of the genre. If you're looking for the 'real thing', dash over to Amazon and order them now.

BTW, am I the only one that enjoyed the movies? I thought Queen ofthe Damned was great, I even bought the soundtrack. Check out the music videos on the dvd special features. Lestat is a vampire's vampire.