Every Book is Special

I had an unbelievable ride with Adiós to My Old Life. Seriously, it was total dream come true territory, with the good reviews and the awards and the fantastic fan mail from not simply teen readers, but readers across the board. Which was why I worried, when It's Not About the Accent was released out into the world. Like a second child, it was very different from its elder sibling, although if you looked close, you could still see the family resemblances. But like a lot of younger siblings, it sort of coasted under the radar. It's also suffered the downside of having had such a distinctive older sister—the inevitable comparisons, whether they're fair or not.

At the same time though, it's also had the end result of making the recognition Accent's received seem all the more sweeter for it. I got my first Publisher's Weekly review and it was good. (Deep sigh of relief.) The reader letters I received for Accent seemed a little more thoughtful and in many cases, far more poignant, due no doubt, to the subject matter the story tackled. And it also made it really special when I came home a few weeks ago to a phone message informing me that Accent had finaled in the Young Adult Category of the Oklahoma RWA Chapter's National Reader's Choice Award. It's special because the finalists are chosen, as the contest's name says, by readers. No writers allowed here, which, when you think about it, is kind of cool. As much as peer recognition is special, so is the recognition that comes from the people you hope are out there buying your book or will recommend it to other readers.

So thank you, Oklahoma RWA, for recognizing my second child and seeing that she's in her own way, as special as the first. See y'all in San Francisco!