KEEP AUSTIN WEIRD!

Dan and I arrived in Austin this past Friday to celebrate Whole Foods Market's 30th birthday. We won the trip in a contest sponsored by Whole Foods Market. You can read all about how we won the contest here.

The weather was beautiful so we decided to stroll around town.

We visited the capitol building, which had beautiful architecture and paintings of each of the state's governors on the walls of each level.



Back at our hotel, we had a Whole Foods Market goody bag waiting for us. It was filled with organic popcorn, breakfast bars, fresh organic fruit, trail mix, drinks, gift certificates and this ...


Our badges got us into the many events Whole Foods Market planned for us, including the Meet and Greet, for which we were running late!

There, we met many of the people involved in making Whole Foods Market the amazing organization it is today, including Cheryl Galway, who planned and organized this wonderful 30th birthday party celebration.

We were treated to scrumptious food and champagne, wine, etc. and got to meet the other winners.

Then we were taken to some of the finest restaurants Austin had to offer. We ate at Taverna. Our main course was gorgonzola and pear filled pasta, walnuts, arugula and dolce latte cream sauce, which was as delicious as it sounds. Tiramisu for dessert!

I was too busy enjoying the food to photograph it, but here is a photo of our group . . .

(That's Cheryl on the left.)

Here's a picture from the other end of the table . . .

We met so many cool people who either won the trip or worked for Whole Foods Market.

One of my favorite things about Austin was a 13-mile trail along Lady Bird Lake. Against the backdrop of tall, glass-walled skyscrapers was this serene, people-friendly, pet-friendly oasis.

Both Saturday and Sunday mornings were spent on this lovely trail.

Finally, it was off to the amazing BOOK PEOPLE -- a fun, independent bookstore in Austin.

Dan and I were in nerd heaven with Book People on one corner, Waterloo Records on another and Whole Foods Market on the third. (Chicos was on the fourth, but for some reason, that didn't get us too excited.)

We met some amazing Austin writers at the Shoal Creek Saloon for lunch.

(Dan, me, Jennifer Ziegler, Greg Leitich Smith, Cynthia Leitich Smith and Varian Johnson)

What smart, funny people! It was wonderful to finally connect IN PERSON with these talented authors! (And Jen has some amazing news on her blog.)

Whew! That's enough for now. More Austin details in the next blog post . . .

KEEPING AUSTIN WEIRDER!

The best part of eating at the Shoal Creek Saloon was the character we met on the way to the bathroom . . .

Then it was off to the party at Whole Foods Market on Lamar Street, which by the way, is like any normal Whole Foods Market, except on STEROIDS. The selection they had was unbelievable! Here is a photo of one of their entrances . . .

There were bands playing, food and drinks being served and this fun birthday cake . . .

And this really happy couple . . .

After all the fun and festivities, we headed off to the largest urban bat colony (right under the bridge outside our hotel) to watch thousands of bats head off into the evening. Whoosh!

It was amazing! (And too dark to photograph. Sorry.)

Thanks to our new friends, Michael and Stephanie for getting us there in time and telling us about all the fun stuff to do in Austin!

After the bats, we visited the Museum of the Weird and hung out at Shakespeare's Pub with our new friends and listened to live music at a club. What a cool vibe. Friendly people. ("Where ya'll from?") Music everywhere. Interesting sightings. (One man stood on a street corner wearing nothing but a diaper and a cowboy hat.)

Sunday morning, Whole Foods Market treated us to the most amazing cooking demonstration. The food was delicious . . . and good for you!

Before heading to the airport, Dan and I walked around the funky part of town called South Congress. Lots of fun places to eat and shop.

Then we had to return home to responsibilities and reality. Bleh!

But this last photo will sum up how grateful we are to the Whole Foods Market family for working so hard to create this magical weekend for us . . .

And The WINNERS Are . . .

THANK YOU to the 29 teachers, media specialists and librarians who entered the Welcome Back to School Contest!

Because each of you shared a favorite middle grade or young adult title in the comment section, we all have a great list of books to look forward to reading.

Now, onto the good stuff . . .

The winners of personally autographed hardcover copies of HOW TO SURVIVE MIDDLE SCHOOL are:


1) SUSAN, whose favorite book is OUT OF THE DUST by Karen Hesse.

2) LIBRARY GIRL, whose favorite book is WALK TWO MOONS by Sharon Creech


And the winner of the GRAND PRIZE of an autographed hardcover copy of HOW TO SURVIVE MIDDLE SCHOOL, autographed paperback copy of AS IF BEING 12 3/4 ISN'T BAD ENOUGH, MY MOTHER IS RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT! and a SKYPE visit is . . .

3) JEN MALPHY, whose favorite book is AL CAPONE DOES MY SHIRTS by Gennifer Choldenko.

Winners, please contact me ASAP at dgep (at) hotmail (dot) com to claim your prizes.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

WELCOME BACK TO SCHOOL CONTEST

Teachers, media specialists and librarians . . .

Win one of two personally autographed, hardback copies of HOW TO SURVIVE MIDDLE SCHOOL for your classroom or library.



Or win the GRAND PRIZE -- A SKYPE visit with the author up to 45-minutes ($200 value) plus a personally autographed, hardcover copy of HOW TO SURVIVE MIDDLE SCHOOL and an autographed, paperback copy of AS IF BEING 12 3/4 ISN'T BAD ENOUGH, MY MOTHER IS RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT! for your classroom or library.



To enter, share the title of your favorite middle grade or young adult novel in the comments section below. (I entered the first comment as an example.)

Annoying Rule:

1) One entry per person.


Annoying Request:

1) To reach as many teachers, librarians and media specialists as possible, please blog, tweet, FB, e-mail and send smoke signals about this contest.

HURRY! The contest expires at midnight E.S.T. Monday September 20th (which is my dad's 83rd birthday).

REMEMBER to check back a couple days after the contest ends to see who WON!

DO THE HUSTLE . . .

Whatever you're doing, stop and watch this video:



Chuck Dillon, my niece's former art teacher, was so excited about installing a new floor in his basement, he felt compelled to skate to "The Hustle." (Watch all the way to the end.)

When you're done watching, check out this man's blog. Why? Because he's funny. And because I said so. I mean, really, have I steered you wrong yet?

If Chuck Dillon's being funny, teaching my uber-wonderful niece and proving he's a really bad skater on YouTube isn't enough, he creates art for Highlights for Children and High Five Magazine. How cool is that?!

Thanks, Chuck, for providing today's entertainment!

Oh, one more thing. DO THE HUSTLE!

6 1/2 Ways to Impress an Agent -- by TINA WEXLER

Tina Wexler did not try to sell the first book I'd sent to her. But she was intrigued by another project I mentioned in my query letter. Tina helped me refine and sell that project. Then another. And another. Since we connected through the SCBWI message boards in 2005, Tina has helped me sell three novels to Random House and a picture book to Holiday House.

As an agent, she's wicked savvy at all aspects of her job. As a friend, she's warm and wonderful and wise.

Tina has generously stopped by to teach us 6-1/2 ways to impress an agent.

Tina Wexler is an agent at ICM, predominately interested in middle grade/YA fiction and adult non-fiction. Upcoming client releases include WHO STOLE MONA LISA? by Ruthie Knapp (illustrated by Jill McElmurry), PAST MIDNIGHT by Mara Purnhagen, PENNY DREADFUL by Laurel Snyder (with drawings by Abigail Halpin), and THE RENDERING by Joel Naftali. Tina currently serves on the board of the Rutgers University Council on Children's Literature and is an active member of SCBWI. Hailing from Southern Maine, she lives in Brooklyn, NY with her husband and two persnickety cats.

6-1/2 WAYS TO IMPRESS AN AGENT . . .

1. Write a really amazing query. Which is to say: take your time, try describing your work multiple ways until you find the best approach, read successful queries online and have as many people as possible read yours so that you’re certain it makes sense and is a shiny apple.

2. Demonstrate knowledge of their list. This doesn’t mean you have to read every book they’ve ever sold--I leave that job to my mom--but by showing them you know a bit about who they represent, you’re telling agents you’ve done your research on who to query.

3. Do your research on who to query.

4. Write a really amazing manuscript. Which is to say: take your time, put your work through multiple revisions, read published works in your genre, and consider joining a critique group or finding a writing partner whom you trust who can help make your manuscript a shiny apple.

5. Be nice. Agents, like most everyone, want to work with people who are personable. This does not, however, mean “Fawn over the agent” or “Send a bushel of apples to the agent.”

6. Don’t ask the agent, “Why all this apple talk?” because if you’ve read HOW TO SURVIVE MIDDLE SCHOOL, you already know it’s because she’s daydreaming about Bubbe’s Jewish Apple Cake. But do ask other questions you may have. Be a part of the conversation. Agents want critical thinkers who take this getting-published thing seriously.

6 ½) Take this getting-published thing seriously. There’s plenty of fun to be had, but remember, this is a business, not a hobby or a get-rich-quick scheme. Agents want hard workers, writers dedicated to their craft who view getting published as the first step of a long journey, writers whom they will want to be with on that journey.

Thanks, Tina, for sharing your wit and wisdom!

SOLD -- GO BE WONDERFUL

I've been away, visiting family and friends here and here.

But I'm back . . . with WONDERFUL news:

Grace Maccarone from Holiday House has acquired my first picture book -- GO BE WONDERFUL!

Here's the blurb from PublishersMarketplace: Donna Gephart's GO BE WONDERFUL, a humorous and heartwarming first-day-of-school story in which a little girl realizes she's wonderful even when she seems to be doing everything wrong, to Grace Maccarone at Holiday House, by Tina Wexler at ICM (World).

I'm delighted to work with Grace. This was the first sentence of her introductory e-mail to me: "I just want to let you know how much I love, love, love Go Be Wonderful." And I just love, love, love the idea of working with Grace. I know I'll learn a lot from her, and her passion and enthusiasm for what she does is contagious.

The book is about parents' hopes and dreams for their children. It's also about being yourself, making mistakes and still being wonderful.

A million thanks to my WONDERFUL agent for making the match. (Stay tuned to this blog because Tina Wexler's funny 6 1/2 list will be featured early next week.)

Here's a Story . . .

Hubby and I've wanted to go to Austin, TX for years. We'd love to enjoy their music and literary scene. I'm talking to you, BookPeople!

So, this past Christmas/Hannukah, I decided it was time to stop wanting. For hubby's gift, I wrapped up a certificate. "Good for one trip to Austin, TX."

But Hubby's work/travel schedule kept us from going this summer, and it looked like Austin got shoved to the back burner. Again.

Then one evening, I went on the Whole Foods Market site to look up store hours. What jumped out at me was a contest. In 300 words or fewer, write why you love Whole Foods. (We LOVE Whole Foods. Used to drive nearly an hour to get there before they opened one nearby.)

The top 30 entries (judged on creativity, relevance to theme, etc.) would win a trip to the city where Whole Foods began 30 years ago.

Can you see where this is going?

Each winner gets to travel with a guest for a weekend to AUSTIN, TX.

I got busy scribbling all the reasons we love Whole Foods, then researched the company's history, then wrote a submission to the tune of The Brady Bunch theme song. "Here's a story of a store named Whole Foods . . ."

I won't post my entry because, while it was heartfelt, it was also dreadfully off meter. But I submitted it just before the deadline and then waited . . . and waited . . . and . . . waited.

The date for choosing a winner came and went. Days passed. No phone call. No letter.

"I guess we didn't win," hubby said one night at dinner.

"I guess not," I said.

Then, after returning late from a writer's meeting, there was an e-mail waiting for me. It said, "Congratulations! You've won the Whole Foods Market trip to Austin, TX . . ."

I read through the e-mail a bazillion times to make sure it was genuine. It was!

There was jumping. There was dancing. There was screaming. And that was just the dogs!

Hubby and I are heading to Austin, TX thanks to something I wrote.

Reason # 3,825,694 why I love what I do -- you never know where it might take you.

Thank you, Whole Foods! Can't wait to celebrate your 30th birthday with you in Austin, TX!