Launch Party for WHAT'S LEFT OF ME

First off, THANK YOU, thank you for all the release love last Tuesday!! This post was supposed to go up earlier, but things have been a bit hectic, and I fell behind. However, I was so overwhelmed and touched by all the congratulations on twitter and emails. You guys are really the most wonderful ever. 

Second of all, in case you missed the (utterly awesome!) trailer for WHAT’S LEFT OF ME, here it is! Entertainment Weekly had an exclusive on it for a while, so I couldn’t share it here. I love the job MainStayPro did! 

The trailer is especially close to me because the team at Harper was kind enough to hire MainStayPro after I asked about it. I’d first heard of MainStay through their ridiculously cool Hunger Game short films, so I contacted them in hopes that they’d be interested in doing a trailer for WHAT’S LEFT OF ME. Luckily for me, John loved the book, and I love the wonderful job the whole team—especially the actresses Stefania (older Addie/Eva) and Juliette (younger Addie/Eva) did!

Okay, now on to the actual meat of the post, which was supposed to be about the WHAT’S LEFT OF ME launch party!

I was really, really nervous going into my launch party on Saturday. It was the first solo event I’d ever done, and I’d never gone to a launch party at a Barnes & Nobles before. I was really worried that I’d just have no idea what I was doing. Should I speak? Would there be someone there to help organize? What if no one showed up??

Billy and me at brunch before the launch party

Luckily for me, I have amazing friends. Biljana Likic flew all the way to Nashville from Toronto on Thursday to keep me company, and Savannah Foley drove up on Saturday to help out and celebrate, as well. I also got to see the always lovely Taryn Albright, who drove hours in a borrowed car down from Kentucky to attend the launch. My fabulous roommate also helped out. You guys are all wonderful and awesome. Truly. 

Taryn Albright (in the white) and her friend!

Also fabulous and awesome? The super nice people working at the Barnes & Nobles who had everything set up before I got there and checked in from time to time to make sure everything was running smoothly. I felt super loved ;)

The event was supposed to start at 2PM, and Savannah arrived that morning at 10AM...just as I woke up. Billy and I had been up late the night before, mostly because we’d planned this “simple” dinner that ended up keeping us occupied from 5PM (when we left for the store for groceries) to 9:30PM (when we finally sat down to eat).

Our "simple" dinner. I have no idea why it took so long. No, wait, yes I do. It involves 5 college kids in a grocery store, a sudden decision to make a run to Dunkin' Donuts, and various other shenanigans 

Obviously, when the website called this a “quick and simple recipe,” it did not take into consideration the utter chaos of five college students, one itty-bitty kitchen (fits three people squished like sardines), and limited tools (only two knives. The enormous, serrated bread knife got used at one point to mince onions).

So, anyway—got sidetracked there!—Savannah arrived Saturday at 10AM, so we went out to grab a quick brunch before going to pick up the cake. I’d never ordered a photo cake before, and was super excited to see how it turned out. It was really pretty :) And guess what flavor it was?

Marble! Get it? Mix of chocolate and vanilla? ;) Hehe.

So, cake in hand, we arrived at the Barnes & Nobles to set up. Even fifteen minutes before the event, I was moaning to Billy and Sav, Omg, no one’s going to come. We’re just going to sit here and eat this whole cake by ourselves. Which would be awesome. But not really.

Then 2PM hit, and everyone started showing up! I got to finally meet Cassie Frye in person, which was awesome, and her cousin Elim came, too! Lots of my friends from university came, as well as a few professors, and some total strangers, as well. I signed, chatted, got people to write in the guest book, while Savannah and Billy made sure everyone went away with a piece of cake :D 

Savannah, Billy, and me!

It’s funny, but you don’t realize until you’re sitting there, signing, how completely up in the clouds your brain gets. I tried to write a note in everyone’s book, but ended up writing “Happy Launch” in one poor girl’s book instead of “Happy Reading,” and wrote “Caitlyn” instead of “Caitlin” for another girl even through she’d spelled it out for me. Everyone was so incredibly nice and wonderful. The hour and a half I was there honestly felt like fifteen minutes.

Sharon Cameron (THE DARK UNWINDING) & Lauren from "The Housework Can Wait" :D

So to sum things up, HUGE THANK YOU to everyone who came! 

Just one page from the copy of WHAT'S LEFT OF ME I used as a guest book! (Thank you, Sarah Maas, for the idea!)

If you’re in the Nashville area, I’m doing a reading/signing (there will be books on sale) at Buttrick Hall, room 101 at Vanderbilt University at 7PM this Thursday (Sept 27^th) as well as a signing with CJ Redwine at Parnassus books at 1:30PM this Saturday (Sept 29^th). 

If you’re in the Atlanta area, I’m doing a B&N event/signing at the Alpharetta Barnes &Nobles on Oct 6 at 7PM. 

I’ll also be at the Southern Book Festival in Nashville, specifically on the YA Dystopia panel at 2:30PM on Oct 14^th, and signing at 4:00PM that same day.

One more day until WHAT’S LEFT OF ME releases in the UK! :D And less than a week until it releases in Australia/New Zealand! Yayy!

P.S. Have you seen this video yet? It was shot this weekend in my dorm. Billy interviews me about WHAT'S LEFT OF ME, and we are very silly :P