Nerd!

If you read this blog, you most likely know me for my young adult novels.  But there's more to Miss Smith than meets the eye (well, that's not true.  If your eyes ever meet me, they'd figure it out).  I also write comics! Bongo Comics, to be precise!  They are the good folks that kept Futurama alive for years in print, and who bring you *original!* *funny!* *stories!*  of America's favorite family.

Miss Lisa is a personal favorite of mine, being the bookish young lady she is.  So I was thrilled to have a chance to add to her story with my own offering, "Lisa's Lending Library."  You can find it now in the newly-published stand-alone comic book "The Wonderful World of Lisa Simpson" (there's a great review here!). 

Chuckle-worthy stories from the likes of Gail Simone (Batgirl, Birds of Prey), Heather Nufher (My Little Pony) and myself, with delicious art by the eye-bending Nina Matsumoto, the amazing Pia Guerra (Y, The Last Man!) and the etheral Kassandra Heller (I was totally lucky to be teamed with her!).

You can find more of my work with the Simpsons in last year's "Milhouse #1,"

 

And, if you dig deep, in several Bart Simpson Comics individual issues, or trade paperbacks like this one (note the literary theme of my work.):



There are a dozen or so stories scattered over the years, and a few comic strips too, from when The Simpsons made the funny pages in the London Times (that's right, I'm big in TWO languages-- English, and American).

Remember, comic books make a perfectly good stocking stuffer, too.  Especially if the stocking is made of mylar and includes a backing board.*  So shop your favorite comic book place this week (You can find one near you by calling 1-800-COMICBOOK.  Seriously.), and have a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year!


*Hence the title of this post.

Happy Smugglivus! (A holiday for the rest of us!)

Boy, talk about a day late and a dollar short!  The lovelyAna and Thea at The Book Smugglers invited to me to share my list of favorites from 2013 and what I'm looking forward to reading/watching in 2014.  The post went live yesterday, and here I am running to catch up.  It's been that kind of a year.  Please do check it out, along with all the other great Smugglivus postings from your favorite and soon-to-be favorite authors.  You'll get some great ideas for your holiday shopping, and you might even win a copy of ORLEANS!

What I Did On Saturday - Indies First!

I was so busy drooling over hand-selling books at Skylight Books on Small Business Saturday, that I forgot to take pictures.  Lucky for me the lovely Wendy Werris from Publishers Weekly was there!



(L to R) Kerry Slattery, owner of Skylight Books in Los Angeles, with three guest booksellers: novelist Attica Locke ("The Cutting Season"), YA author Sherri L. Smith ("Orleans"), and caterer/food writer Jenny Cook ("Who Wants Seconds?"). Skylight's Mary Williams stands at the far right. Photo by Wendy Werris

I love bookstores (I've said it before, and recently, too).  Skylight is one of the best of them.  Beautifully curated by people who know their stuff and want to share it with readers.  What more could an author ask for?  Oh, right, an Indies First bag.  I stuffed my with picture books for the little ones in my life.  Where else am I going to get a picture book bio of Toulouse-Lautrec?

Want to know which books I was recommending?  Here's a short list of favorites.  You might want to keep them in mind for your holiday shopping list:

1. For the young adventurer - Fly By Night by Frances Hardinge
2. For the history buff or young journalist - Never Fall Down by Patricia McCormick
3. For the Francophile or fashionista - Belle Epoque by Elizabeth Ross 
4. For anyone too young for Lord of the Rings - The Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander
5. For myth lovers and Anglophiles- The Dark Is Rising Sequence by Susan Cooper (start with Greenwich!)
6. For the indie, artsy girl - anything by Cecil Castellucci
7. For EVERYONE - Charlotte's Web by E.B. White
8. For teens who are too plugged in, or refuse to plug in - Feed by M.T. Anderson

I also recommended a few books for adults, including:

1. Hellhound on His Trail by Hampton Sides (compelling)
2. The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot (fascinating)
3. The Murder Room by Michael Capuzzo (Don't let the purple prose stop you-- it's a great true story!)
4. The Rules of Civility by Amor Towles (gorgeously written)
5. Phryne Fisher Mysteries #1 - 19 by Kerry Greenwood (fun!)

I read a rule on family gift giving for the holidays on some wise blogger's site last year.  Everyone gets three gifts;  one you need, one to read, and one for fun.  I think books can fit the bill for all three!

Happy Holidays!