Friday, March 19, 2010

Why Beth Revis inspires me

With all the news of downsizing in publishing, of people stacking up rejections, of people leaning toward self-publishing, of advice on how to keep your spirits up, of how bad the odds are, there have still been moments of uplift when a blogging friend signs with an agent or another gets a book deal.

But nothing has sent my heart racing like the news that Beth Revis has a three-book, "major" deal. Here is a snippet from Publishers Weekly: "In another major YA acquisition before the Bologna Book Fair, Ben Schrank at Razorbill pre-empted North American rights to the debut novel by high school teacher Beth Revis, Across the Universe...Schrank said he thinks the book will do for popular sci-fi what The Hunger Games did for post-apocalyptic fiction."

Wow. Double Wow. Get the heart monitor.

In celebration, Beth has a contest you don't want to miss--for both writers and readers.

But I'm going back to a quieter time, when I met Beth online. Over and over, she inspired me with her posts. Plus, she loves art and music, sharing wonderful pictures and videos--so, triple interest for me.

In June, she wrote about finishing the above-mentioned YA--and that she had written 10,000 words the day before to do it! This has a lot to do with Beth being a teacher who has limited time for writing. So two wows in that.

In July, she held online critique sessions for any of her readers who wanted to go public. I did it as did many others, including Beth. It was scary and helpful for me and generous of her.

Skipping ahead to October, she did an overlook of her revision process, which was insightful and useful, for sure.

In November, she talked of how time-consuming the query process can be. But she approached querying the smart way, having done her research, and she'd bookmarked helpful sites And, as always, she thanked other bloggers who helped along the way.

In December, *wild dancing* she signed with Merrilee Heifetz at Writers House. Holy Toledo.

On Jan. 1, Beth made some wishes to the universe--like for a book deal, maybe several, and a chance to write full-time. Um, I think the Universe listened.

But I really want to point out the Dec. 15 post when she honored books that inspired her on the journey to writing this one. She mentioned how THE THIEF by Megan Whalen Turner has an unreliable narrator, and this gave Beth ideas for one of her own narrators, and how THE ADORATION OF JENNA FOX by Mary Pearson freed her to write sci-fi based more on characters than science.

So this is a little bit of why Beth inspires me. Follow her, read her. I think you'll be inspired, too.

29 comments:

Shannon O'Donnell said...

Wow. What a beautiful tribute to an awesome person. I echo your sentiments, Tricia. Beth is truly an inspiration to us all. :-)

MeganRebekah said...

Ah, I love beth too!

She joked recently about how one of the teachers at school called her writing club the "Mrs. Revis fanclub"

I think we're all part of that fanclub too :)

Jackee said...

Truly an incredible story. I love it and wish Beth the best.

Have a great weekend!

Yat-Yee said...

Thank you for your heartfelt tribute. I remember some of her milestones as well, especially when she paid tribute to the books that had helped her.

Here is my small tribute to you: your photographs, which are always so rich and would evoke such emotions in me, and your posts have been a constant source of inspiration. Thank you.

Stephanie Thornton said...

What a wonderful run-down. I just discovered Beth's blog a couple days ago with the news of her deal, but she seems fabulous. I'm excited for her!

Jemi Fraser said...

Lovely, lovely post! It's such an exciting time for Beth :) Inspiring for the rest of us!

Julie Dao said...

How truly inspiring. Every success of a blogger friend is a testament to willpower, courage, and hard work. I just found Beth recently so I don't know her well but how happy you must be for your friend!

Frankie Diane Mallis said...

That is so inspiring and to such a wonderful person!!

Elana Johnson said...

She is beyond amazing, isn't she? I'm so glad we know her! =)

Tricia J. O'Brien said...

Thanks for commenting, everyone! I'm so happy for Beth, and I really wanted to say why. (And, Yat-Yee, thank you for such an unexpected compliment!)

sarahjayne smythe said...

What a lovely, moving tribute to someone very deserving. :)

Liza said...

What a kind, informative post. Thank you Tricia.

Angela Ackerman said...

I so agree with this post! I am so happy for Beth...get the heart monitor is right!

Melissa Hurst said...

I've followed Beth's blog for some time now and I'm thrilled for her success!

Yvonne Osborne said...

What a wonderful story. Thanks for sharing and I will. I will.

Bish Denham said...

An amazing and wonderful story. Speak, and the Universe listens.

Tricia J. O'Brien said...

Thanks again, y'all. And, yes, speak out to the Universe. In fact, Beth recently posted a video that touched on that. I'm ready for the universe to hear me, I know.

Claire Dawn said...

I think I need to go check out this Beth. You're the second one of my writer blog friends to mention her.

Congrats, Beth.

Sherrie Petersen said...

What a great tribute, Tricia! I'm so excited for Beth, too :)

storyqueen said...

What I love about Beth is that she lives in the "trenches" (teacher talk for the classroom) and still managed to find the time to follow her story, track it down, and get it on paper.

She also shares her process, which is awesome.

Beth is inspiration personified.

Lovely post.

Shelley

Donna said...

Congrats to Beth. I look forward to the day when we all can congratulate you in a similar fashion.

lisa and laura said...

So happy for Beth! Her book sounds incredible and her story is total writer porn. On top of all that she's an amazing woman.

Sarah Wylie said...

What a lovely tribute! I didn't know Beth until recently, but she seems like a great person and an amazing writer.

Unknown said...

*stutters*

I...

Wow.

WOW. This is...so touching. You've literally brought me to tears. THANK YOU!

VR Barkowski said...

Lovely post, Tricia. Thank you. And congratulations to Beth. She is truly an inspiration.

sanjeet said...

An amazing and wonderful story. Speak, and the Universe listens.
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Tricia J. O'Brien said...

Thank you all for commenting and going to visit Beth.

Beth! You deserve this and more. I can't wait for the release of Across the Universe; we'll all be partying.

* said...

I'm new to Beth's blog, but when I read about her book deal online the other day, I did a happy dance for her too! (Plus, I love sci-fi!!)

Claire Dawn said...

Hey, Tricia, left an award for you on my blog! :)