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I just started a tumblr account. Because it seems easier to update than my blog but less fussy than Twitter. I'll still post here when I have LOTS to say. Follow me on tumblr here (subscribe? I still need to get the tumbly lingo down.): http://juliehalpern.tumblr.com/

F-It List Friday: One Month!

Tomorrow marks the start of the one month countdown to the release of my next novel, The F-It List! I like to use a chocolate-filled advent calendar to mark the occasion. Not really, but that just gave me a really good idea to make my own life-sized advent calendar and fill it with full-sized candy bars hiding behind doors. Maybe I'm hungry. Or delirious. The baby boy, who turns four months today, is a crappy sleeper. He's still up every two hours. It's killing me, both mentally and physically. I think I've aged twenty years in the last four months. As you can see, this Friday post has a lot of month-measuring going on. And that's a big theme, both in the writing of "The F-It List" and the story itself. I used a friend's mom's online cancer journal to help me reference the progression of the disease and its treatment in the book. But in my own life, the months during the writing and publication of "The F-It List" have felt like centuries. Before I started writing the novel, but after I signed the contract, we lost a pregnancy (or was it two?). I had a lot of anger and hatred at my body and, sometimes, life in general. But there was that contract and a lightly looming deadline (nobody at my publisher pushed, but I knew I had to write a book). Not that I was dealing with cancer, but having medical issues helped fuel a lot of the questions and observations I used in the novel. Then I got pregnant again, something that should be joyous and anticipatory but becomes terrifying when you haven't always had success. That was last fall when I sat down for a few months to wrote the novel. Through morning sickness and endless doctors appointments, needles, and test after test after test, I wrote the story of a girl whose best friend gets cancer and how she helps her accomplish items from her bucket list. It wasn't the most uplifting subject while I was going through my own tumultuous medical adventure. So I added sex scenes. Because those are fun to write. And then my tests came back okay. And the morning sickness went away. And the possibility of actually having another baby seemed almost possible. This past spring, during the final pass through the pages of "The F-It List" where I look one last time for things I want to change (practically one word on every page), my beloved cat, Tobin, lost his own bout with cancer. He rested on my chest as I finished my final read-through (and before I knew he wouldn't be around much longer). The weight of his absence still drives me to tears (you'll find his name in the dedication of "The F-It List," and my son's middle name is Tobin). The last couple months of the pregnancy were fraught with gestational diabetes and the lack of sweet treats that come with it, plus the fear and uncertainty of what would happen during the birth. Then the baby came in June, healthy and sleepless. And here we are now, only one month away from The F-It List's release. Pretty much one year since I officially started writing it. Looking over this post, remembering the things that happened, it's been a really long year. A rough one. But also a happy one. Which I guess is what life's all about. "The F-It List," out November 12, is a book about life, not just about cancer. It sounds silly, but I found myself quoting Matthew McConaughey from "Dazed and Confused" (and I remember reading that he actually was quoting his own dad) a lot over this year: Just Keep Livin.' And I did.

F-It List Friday: Questions!

For this installment of F-It List Friday, I'm answering some reader questions (Okay, technically ONE reader's questions. Thank you, Becky, for asking!).

Does your writing process change with each book, or has it remained the same?
I think this question would be easier to answer if I felt I actually had a process. Let's see: I come up with an idea and some characters, and then I sit down to write. I don't outline, although as I write I tend to jot down things I don't want to forget. These include funny lines, movies I'd like to reference, or events I want to include. Depending on the book, I do have a certain method for keeping track of order. This may sound like an outline, and I suppose it could be considered as such, but I feel like it's more of a calendar method of organization. I am always concerned with the time frame of events; for instance, when I wrote Get Well Soon, I used a method similar to an assignment notebook. I made a list of events that needed to happen, and then I plugged in the events on one of the twenty-one days the book took place. For Don't Stop Now, I used a map to plan the book, since the characters were on a road trip. And for The F-It List, I used a real-life online diary from a mom whose daughter had cancer in order to keep track of what types of treatments the character would be getting and how sick she would feel at the right times. Other then these structural similarities, I tend to very much write from the headspace and voice of the narrator. I don't always know what she's going to say or what's going to happen next, so writing the book is just as fun and surprising as reading the book.

Do you write your early drafts on paper, or on the computer?
I write in spiral notebooks with pens. You can read about my specific tools of choice here. I find that my creative brain works best in this method.

What is your selection process when choosing a new brand of deodorant?
A fine question! I alternate deodorants sometimes, since I've heard that bodies become immune (or something) to deodorants after using them for a while. I hate a strong or musky or floral smell, so I usually go with something food-like. I really like Dove's Campaign for Real Beauty, so I've been using their deodorants. Plus, they have several food-smelling choices. When is someone going to come out with a cupcake deodorant smell? I'd be all over that.

Thank you, Becky, for your questions! Remember, folks, I'll be blogging about my new novel, The F-It List (out November 12!), every Friday and would love to answer your reader questions. Send me an email @ julie@juliehalpern.com or comment on this post with any questions you have about the book or writing in general. Or deodorant smells. Or cupcakes.

First F-It List Review!

October 1st, and the first review for my new novel, The F-It List (out November 12) is finally here! And it's a good one! From Publishers Weekly:

The F– It List

Julie Halpern. Feiwel and Friends, $16.99 (256) ISBN 978-1-250-02565-4

Alex Buckley is reeling from the death of her father and the nearly unforgiveable thing her best friend Becca did the night of his funeral. Then Becca is diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma, which forces a reconciliation between the two high school seniors and gets Alex entangled with helping Becca live out her expletive-based version of a “bucket list.” Halpern (Get Well Soon) takes a familiar YA formula and makes it fresh through Alex’s honest reflections about life, death, and especially sex as she navigates the objectives on Becca’s list, many of which revolve around sexual experiences (both solo and with a partner). Alex’s sarcastic narration and bawdy conversations with Becca and sweet, outsidery Leo (who helps Alex check off a few entries himself) are funny, smart, real, and even endearing once readers get the hang of Alex’s way of looking at life (of Becca’s sexy homeschooled neighbor: “He totally wants to bone the cancer right out of you”). A memorable novel about a rock-solid friendship surviving trying circumstances that never loses its sense of humor. Ages 13–up.

How hilarious is the quote they pulled? I don't mean hilarious in that it's a super funny line (although some might argue...), but hilarious in its randomness and pervitude. Perhaps that can be my next book title: Randomness and Pervitude.

F-It List Friday: Weepies

In today's edition of F-It List Friday, I'd like to disccuss the fear of reading sad books. I am guilty of this fear. I cry enough with a newborn baby and two hours of sleep per night; why would I want to read a book that makes me cry? As a teenager, all I wanted to do was cry. I read books to cry, watched movies to cry, and listened to music to cry. [I also remember crying heavily at an episode of "Blossom" when they had to sell their house. I also remember my dad getting annoyed with me when I did so. Ah, teenaged life.] But now that I am an old lady/grown-up/Ke$ha-fan-type person, I don't want to cry if I don't have to. I avoid movies that people talk about as "emotional." Same goes for books. And my musical taste these days has nothing to do with being curled up in a ball inside my closet.

So why write a book about a teenager with cancer? Well, there's a long story about the why, but this blog post is about the how. [I have to note that I just spent over an hour cleaning so much shit out of my car that I now have a stomachache and headache, so this post may not be as coherent as originally planned.] And I don't mean how I write.  I'm not blogging about my process today. I'm blogging about how I write books about things that are sad but try to make them not as sad. [Damn, this post sucks. I'm sorry. I wanted to have a regular post up each Friday, but I feel about as good right now as the bottom of my car's floor mats.] You see, when you are a writer and you are writing, you have to be in the head space of a book for months at a time. And who wants to be in the head space of a depressing, painful book? Not I. It is very difficult to write about a friend with cancer and how everyone deals with it and not go into a dark place. As much as I write books I want others to enjoy, I wouldn't write at all if I didn't enjoy the process [I used that word again. Forgive me]. So, as I often do in my own life to diffuse sadness, I add humor to my project to help me get through it. And sex. This new book has sex. I found that humor wasn't enough to get me past the cancer hump, so I added, um, some other humps, too. [Oy.] Once a book comes out, people are so critical of every piece and word and decision an author made while writing, as though the author was cognizant of how each word would be affecting readers. But as the author, at least for me, it comes down to writing a story guided by the characters and making it an enjoyable time for ME. Is that selfish? I don't care. What I learned from my time publishing zines that were all about me (and my friend, Liz, to whom The F-It List is dedicated) was that no matter how personal my writings are, someone else can always relate. Therefore, I don't sit down to write books that make people cry. Because I don't want to cry. It is possible that parts of The F-It List will make people cry, and that makes sense. As I've said, it is a book about a girl whose best friend gets cancer. But I also hope it will make people laugh. And cringe. And relate. And dance (can books make people dance?). Because it has never been my goal as a writer to cause you to curl up in a ball in your closet. If I had to add a label to my name, it would say: "Contemporary Young Adult Humorist." You know, after "Mom" and "Wife" and "Cleaner of Cars." Actually, it would come before "Cleaner of Cars." I write novels far more often than I clean my cars. Now that's a sad story for another day.

F-It List Fridays!

I'd like to try a new feature called "F-It List Friday." Since my new novel is coming out in less than two months, I thought I'd start blogging about it on Fridays (you know, since it starts with F). Right now, however, I have to jump in the shower before the baby needs to eat, the kiddo needs to eat lunch, and I have to take her to preschool. So we'll see how well I stick to my feature. I figure I can write about different things regarding the book, perhaps inspiration, movie lists in the book, and other stuff that is much more interesting than I can manage to think up while panicking about getting things done so Romy isn't late for preschool.

This is where you come in. What do you want to know about my new book? My writing process? What brand of deodorant I use? Ask away! I'd love to get some blog ideas, so I can get this feature up and running every Friday. You an comment on this post, my FB page, my tweet, or email me @ julie@juliehalpern.com. Next week I plan on tackling something I've seen a bit online-- that people might not want to read "The F-It List" because they don't want to cry. So stay tuned for that post.

I'm off to the shower now. Smell ya later.

Clue: My Movie

Anybody else read this amazing article about "Clue: the Movie" last week? I didn't realize the movie was a cult hit; I just assumed everyone was smart enough to know it is AWESOME. I liked learning more about the making, casting, and aftermath of the film. And it reminded me: My love for "Clue" knows no bounds. I'm talking the board game. I'm talking the movie. I'm talking the VCR game. I've loved them for a good portion of my life. I think it started when I was playing the game with my friend, Beth, with whom I played all of my board games (Trivial Pursuit and War were some of our favorites. During War whenever one of us set cards down for a war, we would have to sing, "War! Huh! Good god, y'all!" Didn't everybody?). Even though it was just a board game with little, metal (or were they plastic back in the 80s?) weapons, there was something creepy about it. When you think about it, people were being killed by the weirdos photographed (or were they drawn? Geez my memory is terrible) on the cards and box. Rather gruesome for a kids' game. Then came the movie, which so intrigued me when it was in the theater because, of course, there were three different endings. I don't think I actually saw it in the theater. Or maybe I did (Seriously - who took my brain?) But I managed to see it 600 times when it aired on HBO. Brilliant. [Side note: Beth ran into Martin Mull some years back, I believe smoking outside of a theater where he was doing a play in Chicago, and she sidled up to him and exhaled, "Colonel Mustard," as if that was his defining role. I love that story.] Then I got the VCR game. If anyone has played this, you know how insanely complicated the game is. Not only is it difficult to solve, but the actual rules and game play are wack-a-doo intricate. It took well over an hour to finish one game. No matter. I still have the game sheets with hilarious seventh grade graffiti from when Beth and I used to play for hours. The actors in the video were geniuses. I could sit around watching the video just for fun. I may have to do that later. Here are some choice tidbits (these are from the 2nd game, which is the one I had. I think the actors refined their roles for this one really.)
But it doesn't end there! I own numerous other Clue board game incarnations, even if I haven't played them all (My husband is not a board game player, alas, and my kids are too young. But they won't be for long!). I have two in the trunk of my car. And, I don't know if this is because I love the movie so much or that I just forgot I owned the previous version (Are you there, Brain? It's me, Julie.), but I own "Clue: the Movie" on DVD and Blu-ray, in addition to my VHS of the movie taped off of cable TV. I didn't realize until after reading the article just how much of a fan of Clue I really am. I suppose that's one of the reasons I love murder mysteries, as well. (Check out my adventures in murder mysteries here and here and here. Note how all include my Ke$ha partner-in crime, Katie. Not shown here is the murder mystery I threw at my house a few years ago with a bunch of co-workers. I was a man, a Colonel, I believe who wore a monocle, scratched his chin, and repeated, "Quite. Quite." frequently.)

Here is a smattering of my collection. Behold!

 See how complicated the VCR game is? Oooooh, how I wish I could play it right now!

These are just a couple of my murder mystery party game sets.

How did this get in here?

Not as exciting as it sounds.

And I'm not even a huge Simpsons fan!

The greatest VCR game ever created. For some reason I made it available for checkout at my school library. Thank goodness  no one lost any pieces!

The trunk of my car. Always prepared.

Strangely, I never read mystery novels. I think I like to be part of the action, not watching from the sidelines. Is this morbid? I wouldn't put it past me to be morbid. So I guess the moral of this story is: Never find yourself alone with me in a billiard room with a candlestick. Or a monocle.