Tuesday, May 24, 2016

Currently: Morgan Matson Edition!

Linking up with Katy Upperman for another "Currently" post! This one is Morgan Matson-themed, thanks to her Princeton event I attended last Thursday.
Here's what I'm currently...
 
Loving
The vanilla soy latte I got from Starbucks on Thursday (a la Morgan Matson). First time trying soy milk in my latte…it made everything oh so much sweeter. DELISH!
 
Reading
THE UNEXPECTED EVERYTHING by Morgan Matson. LOVING it so far!
 
Watching

The teaser trailer for Beauty and the Beast. It was released yesterday, and I can’t stop watching! It’s short but did its job making me beyond excited for March! Can’t wait to see more of Emma Watson as Belle – anyone else think she’ll be perfect?
 
Listening To

“Odd Are” by Barenaked Ladies. Morgan Matson calls it the theme of THE UNEXPECTED EVERYTHING. It's so catchy and fun!
 
Thinking About
Morgan Matson’s book signing from Thursday night. I’m going to do a full recap later, but for now let me just say it was the BEST book event I’ve been to so far! Morgan took questions for 30-40 minutes (“It’s my last stop on tour, guys…ask me all the questions!”) and spent time talking to everyone. I talked to her for probably 5 minutes, the longest I’ve ever spent with an author in their signing line. I’d tweeted her earlier that day about trying soy milk in my Starbucks iced latte (per her Instagram recommendation), so we discussed that for a while.
Then I asked her about writing YA in an MFA program and the genre snobbery that goes along with it (something I experienced in my program), and she immediately was like, “Oh yeah. Nobody respected us at all.” That “us?” Morgan, Jenny Han, Siobhan Vivian and other super well-known YA authors today. Even though it’s not fair, it was nice to hear a successful author talk about proving people wrong.
 
Anticipating
Memorial Day weekend. I’m off work on Monday and can’t wait to have a full extra day of reading/writing and (hopefully) some sunshine!
 
Wishing
For more time to write during the week. I had the house to myself a lot this weekend, so I did a TON of writing. This is one of those times I’m so jealous of the full-time author life. The dream, right?
 
Making Me Happy
The coolest thing about my chat with Morgan? When she asked me what I’m writing, she treated me like a real author. She told me to enjoy writing my first book because it’s the only one you’ll write just for yourself. No pressure from readers or editors, no fear of GoodReads reviews…she said AMY & ROGER holds a special place in her heart for that reason. The fact that she talked to me like publication is going to happen for me made me love her even more. She was genuinely excited about my MFA and writing projects. Morgan is one of the great ones, guys. <3
 
Hope you’re all having a great week so far!

4 comments:

  1. Yay to THE UNEXPECTED EVERYTHING! I'm not very far in at all, but I know I'm going to love this book. The cover alone makes me feel all happy inside. :D It's so good to hear that Morgan Matson is just as lovely in real life as she seems online. I've only been to one YA author event and I left feeling pretty disappointed in the author. Sadly, it has kind of soured me on this (super popular) author's works. BUT I have heard many people say how wonderful MM is, and I totally believe it!

    Like you, I'm so excited about the live action Beauty and the Beast. It has always been my favourite Disney cartoon and one of my favourite fairy tales, so it's going to be awesome! The casting is perfection so far too.

    Hope you have an awesome long weekend, Kaitlin! :D

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    1. What a bummer you were disappointed in the event you went to! :( I connect people so closely with their work, too - if I find out an actor I like does something rude, it makes my opinion of their movies go way down. Same with authors, but I've been VERY lucky with the ones I've had the opportunity to meet. Morgan is just like her books: bubbly, funny, and so, so kind. <3

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  2. Wow what a great signing Morgan had with you guys.It sounds like it was a blast. and SOY MILK IN EVERYTHING = A++++ :) I haven't read AMY &ROGER or the UNEXPECTED EVERYTHING but I absolute 100000% adore SECOND CHANCE SUMMER by her!

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  3. Aww, I love this post so much, and I love that you had a similarly inspiring experience with Morgan Matson! I took my daughter to her event and I was trying to explain to her what a superstar Morgan is in the YA world, and how lucky she was to get to meet her in person. I don't think C was quite as starstruck as I was, but she'll appreciate it one day, I'm sure. :-) Have a lovely week, Kaitlin, and best of luck with the new words!

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