Sarah's JournalRandom Thoughts of Writer Sarah Beth Durst |
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I spent the weekend reviewing copyedits for my new book, Ice.
Labels: Copyedits, Ice, Semicolon-Induced Madness
posted by Sarah Beth Durst @ 12:49 AM
18 comments
I'm the author of fourteen fantasy books for adults, teens, and kids, including DRINK SLAY LOVE, the basis for the upcoming TV movie of the same name, airing on Lifetime in 2017. Several of these have won awards, including THE QUEEN OF BLOOD, which won the ALA Alex Award, and VESSEL, which won the Mythopoeic Award. My latest book for adults is THE RELUCTANT QUEEN and my latest book for kids is JOURNEY ACROSS THE HIDDEN ISLANDS, available now from Harper Voyager and HMH/Clarion Books, respectively. I'm very, very, very excited about this.
The fate of two nations depends on three women: a young queen who is dying, a powerful queen who hungers for war, and a middle-aged woman who wants nothing to do with the power she could wield. They must each do what they think is best for their kingdoms -- or die trying.
Available now from
Harper Voyager.
Read the first two chapters.
Order now!
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Publishers Weekly Starred Review |
Let first-day-of-school worries soar away with Roar and Sparkles!
Roar is worried about his first day of school. He's worried that he'll have to do really hard things, like molt his scales or fly over a volcano. And what if his teacher doesn't like dragons?
Big sister Sparkles reassures Roar that school is fun! And when the first day arrives, Roar finds his worries melt away. He meets new friends, plays dragon games, listens to fun stories, and finds a way to thank his sister for her support.
Available now from
Hachette / Running Press Kids.
Read the first few pages.
Order now!
"The lively details of Roar's daily life might be just enough to let readers temporarily forget about their own back-to-school nervousness." -- Publishers Weekly
The traditional Emperor's Journey is meant to be uneventful. But as the princesses Seika and Ji-Lin -- twin sisters -- travel to pay respects to their kingdom's dragon guardian, unexpected monsters appear and tremors shake the earth. The Hidden Islands face unprecedented threats, and the old rituals are failing. With only their strength, ingenuity, and flying lion to rely on, can the sisters find a new way to keep their people safe?
Available now from
HMH / Clarion Books.
Read the first two chapters.
Order now!
"This adventure has surprise after surprise, and I love Durst's sly sense of humor!" -- Tamora Pierce, New York Times bestselling author of the Tortall series
Everything has a spirit: the willow tree with leaves that kiss the pond, the stream that feeds the river, the wind that exhales fresh snow... But these are not sweet, frolicking nature sprites from a pastoral tale. The spirits that reside within this land want to kill all humans, the way white blood cells want to kill a virus. Only a few women have the power to command and control the spirits. These women become queens -- or die trying.
Available now from
Harper Voyager.
Read the first two chapters.
Order now!
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ALA Alex Award Winner |
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Publishers Weekly Starred Review |
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Library Journal Starred Review |
The story of a girl whose family owns a secret dream shop where they buy, bottle, and sell dreams, and the adventure that she and her best friend -- a loyal and cupcake-loving monster named Monster -- go on when someone starts kidnapping dreamers.
Available now from
HMH / Clarion Books.
Read the first two chapters.
Order now!
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Kirkus Starred Review |
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School Library Journal Starred Review |
Kayla was born with the ability to move things with her mind. But will her powers save her, or destroy her?
Available now from
Bloomsbury.
Read the first two chapters.
Order now!
"A riveting adventure tale. Action-packed, suspenseful and a lot of fun!" -- Melissa de la Cruz, New York Times bestselling author of the Blue Bloods series
"A magical roller coaster ride through dusty tombs and ancient catacombs." -- Colleen Houck, New York Times bestselling author of the Tiger's Curse series
Lost your way? Your dreams? Yourself? Welcome to Lost.
It was supposed to be a small escape. A few hours driving before turning around and heading home. But once you arrive in Lost...well, it's a place you really can't leave.
Available now from
Harlequin / Mira Books.
Read the first two chapters.
Order now!
"This exuberant fantasy is finely crafted, filled with humor and very moving." --
Kirkus
"In her highly imaginative and jarring adult debut, YA star Durst (Vessel, 2012) pushes readers out of their comfort zones and into a slow-brewing, increasingly exciting, and deeply provocative fantasy world." --
Booklist
Haunted by visions of carnival tents and tarot cards, Eve must remember her past and why she has strange abilities before a magic-wielding serial killer hunts her down.
Available now from
Bloomsbury / Walker Books.
Read the first chapter.
Order now!
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A Junior Library Guild Selection |
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Mythopoeic Fantasy Award Finalist |
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Cybils F/SF YA Award Finalist |
In a desert land where serpents made of unbreakable glass fly through the sky and wolves made of only sand hunt within storms, Liyana is destined to be a vessel, to sacrifice herself so her clan's goddess can inhabit her body... but her goddess never comes.
Available now from
Simon & Schuster / Margaret K. McElderry Books.
Read the first two chapters.
Order now!
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Kirkus Starred Review |
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Booklist Starred Review |
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VOYA Starred Review |
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Mythopoeic Fantasy Award Winner |
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Andre Norton Award Finalist |
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Kirkus Best Teen Books 2012 |
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Cybils F/SF YA Award Finalist |
Pearl is a sixteen-year-old vampire, fond of blood, allergic to sunlight, and mostly evil... until the night she is stabbed through the heart by a were-unicorn's horn and begins to develop a conscience.
Available now from
Simon & Schuster / Margaret K. McElderry Books.
Read the first chapter.
Order now!
"Combining a sense of humor with the dark appeal of supernatural romance, this book is funny, scary and thought provoking all at once. Even jaded fans of the supernatural will find fun in this one." --
Kirkus Reviews
"Having her way with the conventions of the genre, Durst crafts a fresh, modern, and humorous twist on the vampire novel. Lively characters and a sweet romance are icing on the cake." --
Publishers Weekly
A story about getting into college. You know, taking the campus tour, talking to the gargoyles, flirting with the were-tigers, riding the dragons... While visiting the campus of Princeton University, 16-year-old Lily discovers a secret gate to a magical realm and must race against time to save herself, her world, and any hope she has of college admission.
Available now from
Simon & Schuster / Margaret K. McElderry Books.
Read the first chapter.
Order now!
"Every page of ENCHANTED IVY weaves a delightful, seductive spell. Lily is a true heroine--smart, intrepid, and utterly human. I'd give anything to travel to the world of Sarah Beth Durst's imagination!" --
Jeri Smith-Ready, award-winning author of Shade
A polar bear, true love, and one girl's impossible quest across the frozen North. Would you risk everything for a fairy tale?
Available now from
Simon & Schuster / Margaret K. McElderry Books.
Read the first two chapters.
Order now!
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Andre Norton Award Finalist |
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Boston Authors Club Young Readers Award Finalist |
Join Julie on a magical road trip across America. A flying bathmat, a very drowsy princess, a fire- breathing dragon, and several
thousand magic beanstalks... Julie's world, our world, will never be the same again. A sequel to Into the Wild, available now from
Penguin Young Readers /
Razorbill.
Read the first chapter.
Order now!
"An enchanting romp full of adventure, humor and cleverness!" --
Holly Black, New York Times bestselling author of The Spiderwick Chronicles and Tithe
"An amazing, wild ride with very high stakes, and the fate of humans and fairytale people alike on the shoulders of one determined girl.
This is even better than the first book!" --
Tamora Pierce, New York Times bestselling author of Terrier (Beka Cooper) and The Will of the Empress
"This is one of those rare occasions when the sequel is as good as the first book, if not better. Though, in my estimation, they make two
halves of one story, and what a wonderfully entertaining story it is." -- Charles de Lint, author of
The Blue Girl and Widdershins
"Head-spinning fun! Any book that mixes fire breathing dragons and Elvis Presley is a rare treat." --
Michael Buckley, New York Times bestselling author of The Sisters Grimm series
Julie is Rapunzel's daughter. Really, she is. Long ago, the fairy-tale characters escaped the fairy tale
to live in secret in our world. But now the fairy tale wants its characters back, and it's up to Julie to
save them. Available now from
Penguin Young Readers / Razorbill.
Read the first chapter.
Order now!
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Andre Norton Award Finalist |
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Cybils F/SF Award Finalist |
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Missouri Truman Readers Award Nominee |
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Florida Sunshine State Young Readers Award Nominee |
18 Comments:
Ah commas how you pleague us. :-P
Haha! I teach high school English, and was disheartened that tenth and eleventh graders didn't know how to use commas...but the kids will be happy to know it's not just them!
Commas are mostly a matter of personal preference, anyway.
I've always had a comma addiction, and my critique loved calling me on it. So with my book, I also tossed in a bunch of ellipses and em-dashes...and suddenly it became my style.
We missed you in Boston! Seriously, the entirety of Boskone was a bunch of sad people sitting around the Westin lobby asking each other "Why didn't Sarah come this year?" and then single tears would fall from our eyes.
See you next year? :)
SavyLeartist: Oh, comma, thou art fair cruel.
Beth: I also mixed up "further" and "farther," which is horrifically embarrassing. I am still writhing in shame.
Q: I prefer lots of them!
Jay: That's comforting to hear. I am very fond of ellipses and em-dashes too. Sounds like we have similar styles. I also adore semicolons...
Ryan: I wish I could have been there! Definitely next year.
My English teacher taught my class proper punctuation last year, and now I'm a stickler for commas. :)
Priya: I'm a stickler for proper use of semicolons. ;)
I always use commas instead of periods, because I never really feel like my "idea" is truly finished, so I stretch it out by never putting a period in, just commas, unfortunately this makes reading my sentences(if you can call them that), rather difficult, and then I was introduced to the wonderful word of semi-colons; they aren't commas, but they aren't periods; it's fantastic!
;)
commas, can, be, evil, mostly, when, the, comp, tells, us, to, use, them, when, they, Are, not, needed.
lol, that was fun.
can't wait for ICE( or a number of other books. but ICE comes first.)
Enna Isilee: I think that's the best explanation for semicolon-usage I've ever heard.
Hedgi: Thank, you, so, much!
Ha, that's funny. I probably don't either :)
Congrats on Ice!
Thanks for becoming my friend on GoodReads! I hope you can get back to me. (On GoodReads, I am BookGirl
I accidently posted as anonymous. Sorry :-)
Ooooooooookaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay.
I am sooo excited to read ICE!
Maya: Thanks! Congrats on your poetry!
Katie: Just sent you a message on GoodReads. Thanks for friending me!
Lucas: Or o,k,a,a,a,a,y.
Sarah: I'm so excited to read Demon's Lexicon!
Thanks for the commeNt oN GoodReads! (Still haviNg "N" trouble!!!)
Katie
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