Thursday, December 29, 2011

My New Year's Resolution


You may have noticed that I haven't posted in a while. I'm afraid I've been feeling rather uninspired. I'm in a rut.

Those of you who know me probably aren't shocked by this news. Having written four books in four years, I've spent way too much time in front of my computer. I haven't been reading strange books. (In fact, I haven't been reading much of anything lately!) I've stopped exploring the city I love so much. I haven't been sampling strange foods or learning "useful" new skills. I've been typing. And typing. And typing.

Don't get me wrong--I've been having a blast. My latest books (The Darkness Dwellers and my "secret project") are the best novels I've written. But I've emptied my heart and my brain, and now they both need to be filled.

So here's my New Year's Resolution . . . I'm going to make 2012 my year of ADVENTURE. Every Sunday, I'll set out in search of inspiration. I'm going to go new places. Eat strange things. Do things I wouldn't normally do. And I'm going to write about it here. Heck, I'm even going to TWEET about it! (Look for Bank St. Irregular on Twitter.)

I encourage all of you to join my quest to re-discover the weird and the wonderful. If you find adventure--and you'd like to share the experience with the Bank St. Irregular readers, just send an email to kikistrike@gmail.com!

And if you have any suggestions for me, send those, too! Weird books to read. Unusual places to visit. Tasty invertebrates to consume. Whatever you recommend, I'll try my best to give it a shot!

This Sunday, I'm going to take a trip to the vile, polluted, yet oddly scenic Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn. I've read that there are houseboats floating on this incredibly toxic body of water. Who would want to live surrounded by raw sewage? Some pretty interesting folks, that's for sure. And I can't help but think that the Gowanus Canal might be the perfect place to hide out if you're on the run from the law--or the seven delinquent girl geniuses who keep New York safe.

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Back from Guadalajara!


As regular blog readers may already know, I was down in Mexico last week, visiting the Guadalajara Book Festival. I had an absolutely fabulous time! Having spent most of the past year in front of a computer with only my characters to keep me company, it was wonderful to get out and meet so many Eternos fans! A big thank you to my translator, Paul, for making me sound smart in Spanish--and to Pamela Martinez for a fabulous interview. (Remember that name--Pamela's going to be famous some day.) And my eternal gratitude to all the ladies and gentlemen at my Mexican publisher, Santillana/Alfaguara. Not only are you guys the best in the business, you're a lot of fun, too!

This morning I discovered an article that could come in handy the next time I'm out of town. I have no sense of direction, and the GPS on my phone isn't always reliable. So I'm going memorize these Six Ways to Never Get Lost in a City Again.