THE RAVEN'S TALE Updates

I just wrapped up the first round of revisions for my newest book, The Raven's Tale—my novel about Edgar Allan Poe's teen years—which Amulet Books/Abrams will publish in Spring 2019. This was the editorial letter stage of the process, in which my editor, Maggie Lehrman, sent me her comments and suggestions for the book, and I revised the novel accordingly. I spent over 2 1/2 months gutting and rewriting about 70% of the manuscript—an intense yet, ultimately, exciting process—and I'm ecstatic to now have a little break.

Next up will be line edits, which will involve Maggie going through the entire manuscript and marking suggestions ranging from grammar fixes to additional story changes.

Because the plot of the book might still get affected by future revisions, I'll only share a few more details about the novel at this point.

• The Raven's Tale opens shortly after Edgar Allan Poe's 17th birthday in January 1826 and ends in May 1827 when he's 18.
• Poe himself is a point-of-view character, which has been a challenging but ridiculously fun and entertaining viewpoint to write. 
• I'm calling this book my "literary rock opera." As I've hinted before in an Instagram post, there are certain scenes in the novel that unfold like musical numbers.   

I haven't yet seen any signs of early cover plans for the book, but if the novel stays on track for a Spring 2019 publication, I'll probably get to look at a design this summer, and, of course, I'll share the finished cover as soon as I can!

Pre-order links aren't yet available, but you can go ahead and add The Raven's Tale to your Goodreads shelves.

Me and "Eddy" at The Poe Museum in Richmond, VA.

THE RAVEN'S TALE, My New Novel about Edgar Allan Poe's Teen Years

Last week on Bustle.com I announced my newest book: The Raven’s Tale, a dark and dreamlike novel about Edgar Allan Poe’s life when he was a troubled but promising teenage poet.

The events of The Raven’s Tale are pulled straight from Poe’s letters, biographies, and firsthand accounts from the people who knew him as a teen, and the book is populated by his real-life friends, foes, and family members . . . as well as his muse.

Yes, the mythical kind of muse.

The novel blends poetry with prose, realism with Poe-esque Gothic horror, and it portrays the obstacles that hindered young Edgar "Eddy" Poe's writing career and happiness.

Me at the site of Poe's home from ages 16 to 18.

This past October, I traveled to Poe’s teenage home of Richmond, Virginia, where I explored the fabulous Poe Museum and other Poe-related sites, such as the graveyards he visited and the church he attended that doubled as a tomb for seventy-two victims of an infamous 1811 theater fire. I also made a trip to his dorm room at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville.

Poe shrine at the Poe Museum.

So much of Poe’s life has been tainted by character assassins who published false biographies of him, starting with lies printed in an obituary written by one of his literary rivals, the nineteenth-century editor and writer Rufus Wilmot Griswold.

My goal as an author is to introduce the world to the real Edgar Allan Poe as best I can. I think readers will be surprised to learn that he was an athletic young man filled with energy and a love of the outdoors, in addition to an angsty teen haunted by his homelife and the early deaths of two beautiful women who loved him in his youth.

Amulet Books/Abrams will release The Raven’s Tale in Spring 2019. I can’t wait to share more about the novel in the coming year!

For a little glimpse at what Poe was like as a teen, head to my article at Bustle, 10 Facts About Edgar Allan Poe That Will Completely Change How You Feel About The Mystery Writer.

To hear the music that inspired me during the writing of the initial draft, head to my Poe Spotify playlist. You can also take a peek at my Pinterest board for The Raven's Tale.

 

Shockoe Hill Cemetery, Richmond, VA

New Novel Announcement

I'm so excited to be able to announce my newest book, The Raven's Tale, a novel about Edgar Allan Poe's teenage years! Head to Bustle for the official announcement, which includes more details about the book and 10 strange and startling Poe facts in celebration of the iconic author's 209th birthday today. I'll post more info about The Raven's Tale over here next week.

The Raven's Tale on Goodreads

THE STEEP AND THORNY WAY Publication Day!

The Steep and Thorny Way is here!

I'm so thrilled to announce that The Steep and Thorny Way is now available from Amulet Books in both hardcover and ebook formats.

I started writing this Hamlet-inspired 1920s tale of racism, murder, survival, and friendship in 2013. Work on The Uninvited forced me to put the book aside for almost a full year, but then I came back to the manuscript feeling more passionate than ever about finishing it. Thanks to my editor, Maggie Lehrman, and my agent, Barbara Poelle, for believing in my vision and allowing me to share this book with the world.

For a list of my upcoming speaking appearances, please visit my Events page.

Praise for 

THE STEEP AND THORNY WAY

A 2016 Junior Library Guild Selection

★ “A fast-paced read with multiple twists, the novel delivers a history lesson wrapped inside a murder mystery and ghost story.”

—Kirkus, starred review

★ “A powerful, gripping, and exceptionally well-executed glimpse into a little-known corner of U.S. history.”

—Booklist, starred review

★ “Unique and riveting historical fiction that feels anything but dated.”

—School Library Journal, starred review

“Shakespeare’s Hamlet serves as the obvious framework for the plot, but the story soon shakes that off, evolving into its own unique and harrowing account of the ways in which people hurt each other out of ignorance and fear.”

—The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

“A rollercoaster ride of a novel.”

—Bustle

“Cat Winters clearly and descriptively depicts a way of life in rural Oregon that most are not aware of . . . The historical accuracy provides a powerful sense of realism.”

—ALAN Picks

“Winters is a genius at subverting expectations.”

—Barnes & Noble Teen Blog

“Winters stands apart as a unique YA literature 
storyteller . . . The Steep and Thorny Way will provoke thought about how far we’ve come as a society and how far we have yet to go.”
—BookPage

“Cat Winters proves herself the master of YA historical fiction in this richly woven, theatrical tale of haints, friendship, and a time period we don't dare forget.”

—Megan Shepherd, author of The Madman's Daughter series

“Haunting, visceral, and atmospheric, Cat Winters's The Steep and Thorny Way is a fantastic read from one of the best in the genre.”

—Renée Ahdieh, author of The Wrath and the Dawn

“A tale of secrets, murder, intolerance, friendship, and restless spirits, seen through the eyes of the vibrant, truth-seeking, pistol-slinging Hanalee. Marvelous.”
—April Genevieve Tucholke, author of Wink, Poppy, Midnight

ORDER ONLINE: 

Amazon • Barnes & Noble • Powell's • IndieBound •
 BAM •  Amazon UK • Book Depository • Indigo

~ Read an Excerpt at The Oregonian ~

Announcing ODD & TRUE

I'm so happy to announce that I sold two more YA novels to my editor Maggie Lehrman at Amulet Books! My incredible agent, Barbara Poelle of the Irene Goodman Literary Agency, brokered the deal, and she just alerted me to the fact that news of the sale has already appeared in Publishers Marketplace. Here's the official announcement:

The first novel of this two-book deal is tentatively titled Odd & True, and it's currently slated to be published in Spring 2017. An official synopsis won't be available until approximately late 2016, and I still need to write most of the book, but I'll go ahead and share the synopsis that I created for the proposal.

ODD & TRUE

A dark Edwardian adventure involving corseted heroines, deadly beasts, and the war between reality and imagination.

Once upon a time there lived two sisters, Odette and Trudchen, known to all as Od and Tru. Younger sister Tru, a girl with a severely injured leg and a talent for reading tea leaves, has grown up believing she was born in a castle to a monster-slaying mother and a bohemian father, the latter of whom disappeared from their lives because of a magician’s curse. Older sister Od has fed such stories to Tru to protect her from the family’s secrets, which include scandal, heartbreak, violence, and murder.

Carrie (left) and me (right) in 1977.

I came up with the idea for Odd & True after visiting my own younger sister, Carrie, in San Diego in September 2014. While down there, I told her about various book ideas that had been kicking around in my head. We also drove past the freeway exit for an old "castle" in the hills of northern San Diego County, a fairy tale-like structure that had inspired my imagination as a child. After I came back home to Oregon, all of the those various ideas and experiences melded together and turned into a book plot.

Currently, I think of Odd & True as an Edwardian Big Fish meets Don Quixote meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer. After tackling some heavy-duty issues in my March 2016 YA novel, The Steep and Thorny Way, and delving into dark psychological horror for my Fall 2016 adult novel, Yesternight, I'm excited to dip a little bit more into the realms of fantasy and legends.

I have until July to finish writing Odd & True, and then I'll need to figure out what the second book of the contract will be.

The year 2016 looks to be another extremely busy one for me, with two new book releases, several yet-to-be-announced appearances around the U.S., and two more novels to write, but I'm extremely grateful that I get to continue to be a working author!

ADD TO GOODREADS

Introducing THE STEEP AND THORNY WAY!

I'm incredibly excited to announce that I sold a third young adult novel to Amulet Books: The Steep and Thorny Way. Here's the official announcement from Publishers Marketplace:

IN THE SHADOW OF BLACKBIRDS and THE CURE FOR DREAMING author Cat Winters's THE STEEP AND THORNY WAY, pitched as inspired by HAMLET, a half-white, half-black girl in 1920's Oregon must deal with Prohibition, the KKK, and her father's murder, to Maggie Lehrman and Erica Finkel at Amulet, by Barbara Poelle at the Irene Goodman Agency (world English).
Translation: Baror International

The Steep and Thorny Way is slated to be released Spring 2016, and I'm thrilled to pieces that Amulet Books, the same publisher of my first two YAs, will be helping me bring it into the world. I'm so pleased with their work on my other novels.

Thank you to my indefatigable agent, Barbara Poelle, and Amulet Books for making this sale possible!

As always, keep an eye on this site for future updates about this book and my other projects.

ADD TO GOODREADS

THE CURE FOR DREAMING Goodreads Giveaway

Good news! Amulet Books/Abrams is offering a giveaway for twenty advance reading copies (ARCs) of The Cure for Dreaming! To enter, head over to Goodreads and follow the instructions on the site. The giveaway runs until June 20, 2014, and it's open to U.S. and Canadian residents. Now, I've already heard from readers in other countries who were disappointed to learn that they're unable to enter. Rest assured, I have a feeling A&C Kids UK will eventually run international ARC giveaways, just as they did with In the Shadow of Blackbirds.

I haven't actually seen the ARCs for The Cure for Dreaming yet, but it sounds like they'll be available in June. If you're going to Book Expo America this week, I don't think the ARCs will be there, but you can stop by the Abrams Books booth, #2727, to be absolutely sure—and to check out their other Fall 2014 ARCs. Advance copies of The Cure for Dreaming will definitely be available at the ALA Annual Conference in June, as will I. Please see my Events page for my signing and speaking schedule.

I will list options for requesting ARCs as soon as I know they're available. The Cure for Dreaming should also be appearing on NetGalley in the coming weeks.

I can't believe early readers will be meeting this new book of mine soon! I can't wait to share it with everyone.

The Arrival of a Finished Copy

Two evenings ago, the doorbell rang around 7:00 pm, and a lovely package from Amulet Books/ABRAMS was sitting on my front porch: a finished copy of In the Shadow of Blackbirds.

Here are some photos of the actual hardcover that will be on bookshelves starting April 2, 2013:

 

The entire book is beautiful from dust jacket to back cover, and I can't wait to share it with everyone. Thanks again to designer Maria T. Middleton for visually capturing this novel's essence.

The Abrams Kids Spring 2013 Catalog!

The Abrams Kids Spring 2013 catalog is now available, and I'm happy to report that In the Shadow of Blackbirds is featured on page 41, right next to Bruised, a novel by one of my fellow debut author friends, Sarah Skilton. And sharing my April 2013 release date is pub-day buddy Elisabeth Dahl, author of the middle-grade novel Genie Wishes (p. 32).

Open publication - Free publishing - More amulet books

The catalog also features novels by two authors who have been showing us newbies the ropes, A.G. Howard's Splintered and Shelley Coriell's Welcome, Caller, This Is Chloe.

I'm incredibly thrilled and honored that In the Shadow of Blackbirds has been included with the works of ALL the talented ABRAMS writers and illustrators. It's been an amazing experience working with this publishing company, and I'm so grateful to be part of Spring 2013.

Halloween Week Giveaway #1: IN THE SHADOW OF BLACKBIRDS and BRUISED ARCs!

Welcome to Day 1 of the In the Shadow of Blackbirds Halloween Week Giveaways! Over at Iceybooks today, Sarah Skilton and I are discussing our respective 2013 Amulet Books releases. Sarah is the author of the contemporary YA novel Bruised, and my novel is a historical YA, so we're chatting about writing books set in the past vs the present.

The giveaway: We're sending advance reading copies of both Bruised and In the Shadow of Blackbirds to one lucky winner! My ARCs should be arriving mid November, and Sarah's are already available to ship.

We're willing to mail the books internationally, so anyone reading this post should scurry over to Iceybooks for details immediately. Good luck!

The IN THE SHADOW OF BLACKBIRDS Cover Reveal & Giveaway!!!!

In 1918, the world seems on the verge of apocalypse. Americans roam the streets in gauze masks to ward off the deadly Spanish influenza, and the government ships young men to the front lines of a brutal war, creating an atmosphere of fear and confusion. Sixteen-year-old Mary Shelley Black watches as desperate mourners flock to séances and spirit photographers for comfort, but she herself has never believed in ghosts. During her bleakest moment, however, she’s forced to rethink her entire way of looking at life and death, for her first love—a boy who died in battle—returns in spirit form. But what does he want from her?

Featuring haunting archival early-twentieth-century photographs, this is a tense, romantic story set in a past that is eerily like our own time.

Coming April 2013 from Amulet Books/Abrams.

Add to Goodreads.

Pre-order at Amazon.

______________________________________ 

I'm trembling with excitement as I type up this post to reveal the hauntingly beautiful cover for In the Shadow of Blackbirds and to finally share an official synopsis for the novel. The cover was designed by the talented Maria T. Middleton, and the photography is by Symon Chow.  The lovely cover model is portraying a scene in which my protagonist, Mary Shelley Black, begrudgingly poses for a photographer who claims to capture the spirits of lost loved ones with his camera.

In celebration of the cover reveal, I'm giving away an In the Shadow of Blackbirds prize package. I don't have advance copies of the book available yet—those will wait for a future giveaway. But I do have some pre-Halloween treats involving creepy dark birds, which play a major role in my novel:

If you enter my giveaway using the Rafflecopter form below, you'll have a chance to win a copy of Kristen Lawrence's Poe-inspired CD, The Raven, four vintage-style crow bookmarks, and a signed bookplate featuring a line spoken by my In the Shadow of Blackbirds spirit photographer character during the scene pictured on the book cover. I'll run the giveaway until Thursday, October 4. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

2013 YA Book Covers

To celebrate the increasing emergence of 2013 book covers, I've created a Pinterest board called 2013 Book Cover Love, and I plan to keep the page as updated as I possibly can as artwork appears. Here's a snippet of the board:

View the entire board here.

I'll continually add the covers of books written by my fellow 2013 debut YA and middle-grade novelists, as well as the works of seasoned authors and adult-fiction writers.

I love seeing next year's titles grouped together like this and comtemplating whether or not there are any cover trends for the coming year. Head over to the board, and then please come back to tell me what you think. So far, I've personally noticed the use of lights in several of the covers. The colors purple, green, white, and brown also seem popular.

I don't have any news to share about my In the Shadow of Blackbirds cover yet, but here's the design for fellow Amulet Books author A.G. Howard's January 2013 release, Splintered:

Gorgeous, isn't it? The designer is Maria T. Middleton.

The Editorial Letter Stage... and How I Immersed Myself in the WWI Era While Revising

On March 23, 2012, my brilliant editor, Maggie Lehrman of Amulet Books/Abrams, sent me a seven-page letter detailing her suggestions for In the Shadow of Blackbirds. I was on vacation at the time, which was probably for the best. I tend to want to jump directly into revisions once I receive them, but a long car ride between northern Washington and Portland, Oregon, helped me process the changes and let ideas marinate.

Fast forward to May 8, 2012. My manuscript and I came to an agreement that we had spent enough time together during the past six-plus weeks. I was starting to fuss over minor word choices, which will be tackled during the next stage of revisions anyway. My major changes to characters, plot, and setting were done, and it was time to see what Maggie thought of the revisions. I sent her the book that afternoon.

I don't know yet what she thinks, but I can say I survived the editorial letter stage! It certainly wasn't the first major edit for this book, but it was the first time I revised the manuscript knowing the novel will actually be heading into the world for others to experience and judge. I honestly had a blast digging further into my characters' lives and expanding my fictional world, and I can't wait to share the book.

Here are some of the ways I immersed myself in my 1918 setting while I worked:

1. I Devoured WWI-Inspired Entertainment.
Just ask my husband, the nighttime TV viewing in my household turned a little WWI-centric during the past weeks. We started watching Season One of the 1920s-set HBO series Boardwalk Empire on DVD, and I was thrilled to discover that WWI veterans play key roles in the plot. Young gangster Jimmy Darmody (Michael Pitt) turns to the dark side after fighting in the trenches of France, and lost soul Richard Harrow (John Huston) suffers severe facial injuries that cause him to come home from war wearing a chilling mask. I loved the plot points involving these two damaged anti-heroes.

Also on TV during my revisions: the BBC adaptation of Sebastian Faulks's Birdsong. More life in the trenches for my husband and me.

 2. I Read Katherine Anne Porter's "Pale Horse, Pale Rider."

Not only did I pull out all my WWI nonfiction books during my edits, but I checked out a copy of Katherine Anne Porter's "Pale Horse, Pale Rider" from my local library. During my research of the 1918 Spanish influenza pandemic, Porter's name always came up as a famous sufferer of the deadly, life-altering illness that gripped the world in the fall of that year. "Pale Horse, Pale Rider" is an emotional, fictionalized account of Porter's experiences during the flu and the war, and I'm so glad I finally read her haunting passages.

3. I Repeatedly Listened to a 1960s Folk Song.
What? 1960s? Yes, I fast-forwarded several decades past my characters' time period for musical inspiration. In January of this year, I shared my In the Shadow of Blackbirds playlist over at The Lucky 13s, and one of the songs I discussed was Donovan's "Catch the Wind" from 1965. The lyrics perfectly epitomize my two main characters' struggle to be together while enduring the darkness of a troubled world. Each day after I'd drop off my kids at school before diving back into revisions, I'd play "Catch the Wind" in my car to get into the right mindset for deepening my characters' emotional connection.

Here's a taste of the song:



I also researched additional images from 1918 that I hadn't yet explored, but I'm not going to share any of those. Yet. In the Shadow of Blackbirds is slated to include early-twentieth-century photographs and artwork, so you'll just have to wait until the book debuts before seeing my pictorial inspiration.

On May 30 I'll offer tips for revising a novel over at The Lucky 13s.

Revising!

My editorial letter for In the Shadow of Blackbirds arrived last Friday, so between now and mid-May I'll be nearly nonexistent on the web, aside from taking some Twitter/Facebook breathers now and then.

If you're unfamiliar with editorial letters, that's the stage of publishing when the main editor for a book sends the author several pages of notes suggesting how to make the book stronger. Here's a picture of the seven-page In the Shadow of Blackbirds letter the brilliant Maggie Lehrman of Amulet Books/Abrams sent me:

Okay...admittedly, the letter may not be all that visible. I may have discreetly covered the contents with a printout of a 1918 calendar I'll be using to help map out my changes. For what it's worth, you can see one of the numerous stickies I've been using to jot down notes when ideas hit me as I'm walking around the house.

I will say that the bulk of my revisions will involve strengthening my characters' relationships and making my unsettling historical world become as palpably alive as it can possibly be. I had heard nothing but praise about Maggie's skills as an editor from other Amulet authors, and I completely agree: her work is amazing. I'm so excited about digging into her suggested revisions and coming out on the other side with a book that makes me beam with pride (at least I'm hoping that's what happens when I get to the other side!).

I'll be back with more info about the editorial letter stage once I'm done. Until then, look for me at Dear Teen Me on May 9.

I'll be in 1918 if you need me.