Mel's Shopping Diary
Welcome Turkey and Inspiring Quotes of the Day
June 13, 2008Welcome Turkish Blue Bloods!
I just learned that a Turkish publisher has just picked up the rights to publish Blue Bloods and Masquerade in Turkey! Hooray!
The books are also published in France and Germany. (The Au Pair is published in ten countries. So those other seven, what are you guys waiting for? LOL.)
Things are good over here. I finally FINALLY ***FINALLY!!!!!!*** finished REVELATIONS. Sent the copyedit and all the additions and fixes off to my editor today. Excuse me while I collapse.
Woohoo!!
I have a good feeling about this book. But you know, I have a good feeling about ALL my books. I stand behind each one. I do the best I can, I push myself as hard as I can, and as much effort goes into the books that have not sold as well (I’m looking at YOU, How to become Famous and Fresh off the Boat) as the books that sell like gang-busters (The Au Pairs and Blue Bloods series).
I just hope you all enjoy it. And I have sneaky feeling you will, because *I* very MUCH enjoyed writing it. Although it was much much harder to write than Masquerade. Revelations is my FOURTEENTH novel. Isn’t that crazy? You would HOPE I get better with each one. And I would hope that you are right.
Anyway, your poems are awesome pawsome. And I’ve gotten requests to SHARE the poems I wrote when I was a teenager, so I hunted down my old journals in my library. And I found one from my senior year in high school. All I can say is: YIKES!!! Do you really REALLY want me to share?? I felt SICK with embarrassment reading them. I don’t know if I’m ready!
But I thought I would share some of the “inspirational” quotes I found written in the inside of the cover. When I was seventeen I was BIG on inspirational quotes.
“Writers read everything with a grinding envy or a weary contempt.” - John D. Macdonald --> I like this quote a lot. I think it explains a lot about writers. You either wish you’d written it, or you totally dismiss it ‘cos it’s terrible. Writers: we are not nice people.
Anyway, here are some quotes about writing poetry:
“True ease in writing comes from art, not chance,
As those move easiest who have learned to dance,
‘Tis not enough no harshness give offense,
The sound must seem an echo to the sense.”
-Alexander Pope
(This quote was from my Freshman English poetry book called “Sound and Sense”. Do you guys still use this in high school? My copy is so marked up.)
And another quote about poetry:
“A poem should be equal to,
Not true.
For all the history of grief,
An empty doorway and a maple leaf.
For love,
The leaning grasses and two lights above the sea,
A poem should not mean
But be.”
-Archibald MacLeish
The above was my favorite FAVORITE poem when I was seventeen. I always loved those images of the empty doorway as a sign for grief and the leaning grasses signifying love. Sigh.
But here’s my favorite quote inscribed in my journal from 1989:
“People are so sodding thick and selfish. I’m selfish, but at least I admit it.” - Ian McCulloch
Ian was (is?) the lead singer of my favorite favorite FAVORITE band when I was seventeen: Echo and the Bunnymen. I saw the Bunnymen in concert when I was 15. I swooned. I love the quote because I am still like that. I’M SELFISH. BUT AT LEAST I ADMIT IT! LOL.
And I still also love THIS quote which reminds me of how YOUNG I was:
“Ever dance with the devil in the pale moonlight?” - The Joker, “Batman” the Movie ---> This is exactly how I wrote it in my journal. I find this terribly, terribly hilarious. Because, I mean, what a corny line, right? And it’s from some big Hollywood movie! But you know, if I were a teenager today, I think the line I would inscribe in my journal is “Go get ‘em Tiger!” - Mary-Ann, “Spiderman 2” the Movie. (I mean, wasn’t that an AWESOME thing for her to say? I LOVED that. And there’s something about this quote about Batman that I like, about dancing with the devil, and the pale moonlight. I dunno. I still like it.
And what’s wrong with Hollywood movies? Hollywood movies are awesome. I loved loved LOVED Sex and the City, Iron Man and You Don’t Mess With the Zohan. Indiana Jones was lame.
Here’s one that also shows how young I was:
“I’ll make your heart smile” - Depeche Mode, “Strangelove”
You know how I always have quotes in front of my books? It’s because when I grew up I read a lot of Stephen King and he ALWAYS put song quotes as epigraphs. And it was so cool, because he wouldn’t quote from boring old texts, but rather from pop songs. I really loved that about his books.
Because there is NOTHING worse than being a culture snob.
Anyway, one more week left in the poetry contest! I hope my quotes have inspired you!
xoxo
Mel
Comments
On June 13, 2008, Kate had this to say:
My favorite poem of all time would have to be Annabelle Lee by Edgar Allen Poe. I also enjoy writing poetry but the few friends who I actually let read my poems say they are depressing. It’s not that I am a depressed person (I’m actually very happy and chipper) I just seem to be able to writing depressing peoms better. I always get a laugh when looking back at my old peoms too. One time I wrote a poem in 5th grade about a bufflow that glowed in the dark and smelled of roses. Congrads on finishing Revelations! My friends and I can’t wait!!! Have a good weekend!
On June 13, 2008, torie had this to say:
First of all, congrats on Revelations. i’m sure it is amazing. i wrote this really good poem online for iconator away messages (websight), but it was a depressing one. SO, when i read it to my mom she freaked out b/c she thought i was thinking about suicide. NO WAY!! I was mortified. so now i write about more chipper things like little girls and pianos= my firts poem “piano girl”.
On June 13, 2008, Lisa had this to say:
Oh yeah the poem by Alexander Pope was one of the poems I had to read in English class this past year. I’m actually suprised I even remembered…
But I am so happy to hear you finished Revelations. I can’t wait!
On June 13, 2008, Sarah had this to say:
congrats on revalations! ;P My friend Caitlyn and I CANNOT wait!!! XD
On June 14, 2008, zizi had this to say:
Wow! That’s so terrific that you have finished the book. You have no idea how excited my friends and I are for Revelations. We all have our little theories and we’ve got bets about how they’re going to pan out.
Anyway, I was just catching up and one of your earlier posts had links to the wedding anouncements of you and your sister and…
Your brother-in-law is a New Zealander! Cool! My favourite author has a close, personal link to our beautiful country! I feel so cool.
On June 14, 2008, Caitlyn had this to say:
Yayy!! Revelations is done!!! My friend Sarah and I can’t wait! But I can’t wait more! Hi Sarah :D
On June 14, 2008, deltay had this to say:
That’s great, congratulations on completing REVELATIONS! I’m so excited for it to come out 
And great collection of quotes too!
On June 14, 2008, Tamara had this to say:
Congragulations on finishing the book… I’m so excited to read it.
BTW “Strangelove” is my favorite song. That’s also my favorite line in the song. When I read it here I was like OMG Depeshe Mode!
On June 14, 2008, katlin had this to say:
congrats on revelations!!!!! :D
On June 14, 2008, diana had this to say:
Sound and Sense still survivies in schools today! i can attest ;D
On June 14, 2008, chanel had this to say:
The Batman quote rocks my socks! I still love that quote to this day! Also congrats on all your hard working paying off and finishing the third book. I love to write stories myself...:( but I never get around the finishing them lol oh well. I love reading them more!
On June 15, 2008, Emma had this to say:
Melissa! Congratulations on Revelations!!! I’m a huge fan!
You mentioned several of your fans requested you share your poems. Me being a huge fan of yours, I would like to ask if you’d wanna share with us your love life story (including your 1st boyfriend, last one, ex-fiances, and how you knew your Mike was THE ONE) in your blog.
Please, oh, please, oh, please???
On June 15, 2008, Wendy had this to say:
I have a lot of quotes written everywhere, too.
Dude, I love your books!
You’re so fraggin awesome!!!
OMG!
Her name is Mary-JANE!!!
lol. I love you, Mel. :]
On June 15, 2008, kat had this to say:
Iron Man WAS amazing. I totally agree with that.
On June 15, 2008, Natalie had this to say:
Wow those quotes are impressive for a angsty fourteen-year old, lol. I found my old poetry from years ago and some of it was bad...but others made me think, “whoa, did i actually write this?!?” anyways, im glad youve finished writing revelations. i look froward to writing it. Have you started writing the fourth?
On June 15, 2008, Yuka had this to say:
Gratz Mel ^^.
On June 16, 2008, tiffany had this to say:
I’m really happy to hear that Revelations is finished!:] I appreciate all your hard work.Anyways I hope you have more time to relax. Love you!- Tiffany<3
On June 17, 2008, Betsy had this to say:
My favorite song is “Dance With The Devil” by Breaking Benjimen(sp?) One of my favorite poems is by Robert Frost.
“ Some say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice
From what I’ve tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire
but if it had to perish twice
I think I know enoght of hate
to say that for destruction
Ice, is also great
and would suffice.”
So true!!!
On June 17, 2008, Rachel had this to say:
Yay! Congrats on Revelations! I can’t wait to get my hands on it!!
On June 18, 2008, Katie had this to say:
I love that robert frost poem! But i always felt that the best Breaking Benjamin song was Firefly…
Congrats on finishing Revelations! Im so excited for it. Oh and when will you be posting the winners?
On June 18, 2008, Jackie had this to say:
Hey!
Many, many congratulations on finishing Revelations! It must be an awesome feeling, and I, like many other, can’t wait until October!
And I like the quotes that you have...especially the one from Ian McCulloch and the Joker one heh
And I’m completely excited about the poetry contest, and I’m sure those quotes inspired a lot of people!
Hope you get some time to get some well-deserved rest!
-Jackie
On June 19, 2008, Natalie had this to say:
ugh. i tire of hearing fire and ice by robert frost....it never was a favorite of mine....
On June 21, 2008, Kei had this to say:
I can’t wait to read Revelations! I am so glad u finished it.
btw, that poem by robert frost was on the first page of Eclipse by Stephanie Meyer, i think. i like it a lot, too.
On June 26, 2008, Natalie had this to say:
yeah it was. i remember reading it in there and thinking “good lord, could this poem possibly GET any more watered down” lol i swear everywhere i go, someone or something is quoting it…
On June 27, 2008, Catie had this to say:
I love poetry. Too bad I can’t write it(or rather it never appealed to me to write it, but it slowly is more and more) And congratz on this being your fourteenth novel. When I first heard you were an author I thought you wrote books for little kids. Not young adults(boy was I wrong)!!! But then I read Masquerade and looked on your site for Revelations date and was like ‘O-M-G!!!MOMMM!’. Hahaha, goood times. Congratz again!
On June 29, 2008, Yuki had this to say:
B )
lol yay i luv Melissa de la Cruz (no homo)
On June 29, 2008, Maria had this to say:
B)
On June 13, 2008, Megan Barlow had this to say:
OMG! I love to right poems that have nothing to do with my life, but rather what I think the characters in my books feel. Here’s one I wrote about this girl Stacey Brown whose soul mate just drowned.
Freed
The cold seeped through the window.
Just like blood from a cut.
The wind howled at the moon
Glistening in the perfection.
I tossed and turned in my bed
Trying to sleep with no success.
The dreams haunted every minute.
My waking and my sleep.
The death of the soul inside,
A mistake I want to fix.
He was freed from his skin,
Always to be missing.
The image of a body gone blue.
The spark within has died.
I touch the skin, icing fingers
Lips gone cold like my heart.