For the last week I have been a lucky writer holed up at the Kindling Words West writing retreat in Taos, New Mexico. There are 25 of us here. Every morning we get to listen to the wise and wonderful Nikki Grimes teach us about the power of poetry. The rest of the day is spent working. And eating. Because writing can make a body very, very hungry.

Our retreat is being held at the historic gathering place for creative people, the Mable Dodge Luhan House.

I slept in the Ansel Adams room, named because Ansel Adams slept there whenever he was in town. If you want me to tell you about my visit from Ansel’s ghost, buy me a glass of wine the next time you see me. A nice merlot will do the trick. (That is the final revision of my new YA spread out on the floor and bedspread, btw.)

This is my gorgeous window that looks out onto Taos Mountain, part of the Taos Pueblo.

The view out that window… this picture doesn’t come close to the beauty of the mountain.

Every morning I got up in the dark, meditated, then worked on trying the draw the way the first light looked coming over the mountain. After breakfast, I put in long hours on my last revision, loving every minute of it.

There is something magical that happens when a group of creative kindred spirits comes together to write and draw and play. Combine that magic with a location like Taos, with raven and magpie calls in the air, butterflies floating by, and a landscape that takes your breath away, and you will understand why this is the first time I have not been a total grumpy-pants during a final revision.

I have to leave the retreat early for a graduation this weekend, so this morning I played hooky and went hiking with two old writer buddies.

We went to Carson National Forest and hiked for a couple of hours up to Devisadero Peak.

Cactus are starting to bloom up there.

 The views were so beautiful I am only going to post this one because I don’t want all of you to sell everything you own and move to Taos tomorrow.

 This is my favorite pic of the 7000 I’ve taken this week. What does it say to you?

Proof that we made it to the top. Elevation: 8,340 feet.

There is this kick-ass cairn on top of the mountain and stone chairs and some delightful trees. And maybe auras, but I was oxygen deprived, so don’t quote me on that. We hiked back down and had breakfast outside a cafe enjoying the tanagers and nuthatches and ravens. OMG I cannot get enough of ravens.

Please don’t think that this past week is what a writer’s life is like. I’ve been a writer for twenty years and this is my first week like this. But it is NOT going to be twenty years until I do this again. Good friends, good work, good food all in a part of the world I’d never seen before; that is an inspiring and invigorating combination.

Thank you, Taos! Thank you, New Mexico! Thank you, ravens!

Guess which piece of office equipment I want to throw in the road and drive over ten million times with Husband’s monster pick-up truck?

Read the entire comic at The Oatmeal.

I will happily drive over your printer, too, if you’d like.

There have long been, erm, ‘conversations’ about the original TWISTED cover. This is a book about a sweet, confused teenage boy whose father is an asshole and whose life is quickly going down the toilet. It’s a story about false accusations, lies, love and suicide.

Is that the spirit that this cover evokes?

No, I didn’t think so.

I never liked this cover. (Note: it doesn’t matter if an author likes a cover or not. Our job is to write a great book. End. Of. Story.)

But there is good news! Last year Penguin redesigned the covers of CATALYST and PROM. Now it’s TWISTED’s turn.

Drum roll, please…

The new cover should be available in stores in September.

What do you think?

PS – Are you following the discussions of gendered book covers started by Maureen Johnson? There are lots of great examples posted on Tumblr. I’d love to hear your thoughts on that, too.

YA authors are incredibly lucky because we have amazing, generous, creative fans.

Don’t believe me?

Feast your eyes on my newest shoes; hand-painted with illustrations from the covers of Speak and Catalyst!

Even the box they came in was decorated!

These gifts were made by Isabel and Julia (don’t want to give last names in the interest of protecting their privacy) and the quality of the work is amazing. Every time I wear the shoes people stop and ask me where I got them! They are pieces of art!

I love seeing how my readers express themselves. Even nicer when they share!!

The Air Force officer in charge of the Air Force’s sexual assault prevention program was arrested Sunday for sexual assault.

Over at Wired, reporter Spencer Ackerman wrote an article with many links that puts this arrest in context with other recent sexual assaults in the military. The Wired article is an excellent piece to share in classrooms.

If I tried to write that story line in a book, I bet the editors would come and tell me it stretched the imagination too far. But it doesn’t, because this kind of thing happens all the time.

Want more information? Watch The Invisible War, the 2012 award-winning documentary about sexual assault in the military.

Today is your last chance to donate to Speak4RAINN!!

Thank you all so much for the donations and support, and for your part in continuing the conversation about how we need to teach our children about consent so that they might be made safer from being hurt by or committing sexual assault.

Thank you for joining our tribe of loud and proud kindred spirits!

Still unsure how how to talk about consent?

A Fearless Sexuality Educator can help.

Everyday Feminism has some ideas, too.

A mom posted her letter to her sons about rape.

The Good Men Project has many helpful tips.

A high school teacher posted The Day I Taught How Not To Rape. It’s worth reading the comments, too.

One last plea…. please give $10 to RAINN right now. For less than the cost of a movie and popcorn, your gift will help a sexual assault victim speak up and begin the journey to becoming a survivor.

Thank you!

A couple of weeks ago I tweeted something to the effect that I’d love to see a PSA of a couple making out, then one pushes the sexual boundaries not respecting the partner’s wishes, and that partner whips out a chainsaw to prevent being sexual assaulted.

Graphic? Perhaps. But sexual violence is graphic and damaging. Maybe a graphic image or two might help potential rapists decide not to break the law and hurt people.

Anyway, author Libba Bray liked the idea and said that if I posted a picture of me with my chainsaw, she’d donate to RAINN.

Libba asks, I deliver.

When you live in a forest and heat with a wood stove, the chainsaw is almost as important as the popcorn maker.

This one’s for you, Libba!

If you loved SPEAK, if sexual violence has hurt you or someone you care about, if you are sick to death of rapeculture bullshit and most of all, if you want to be a helper, please donate $10 to RAINN right now. Your gift will help a victim speak up, heal, and become a survivor. Donate before the fundraiser ends and SPEAK publisher Macmillan will double your gift. There are a bunch of cool incentives, too, head to the donation page to check them out.

Speak up, help others speak up, and remember to listen.

Thank you!

When I was a newspaper reporter my editors yelled at me constantly for burying the lead. So here it is:

Our RAINN fundraiser has already exceeded its goal!!!!

As I write this, the total stands at $22,315! Most of those donations have been $10 often given by students or newly graduated young women and men still living on ramen noodles and bad coffee. One very generous donor contributed $5000 for the incentive of having me take her out to lunch.

We have five days left and countless souls to help. It has been so energizing to watch people talk openly about sexual assault, about the need to teach our kids consent, debate how to change rape culture and decide to change the world.

Time for you to join the party. We’ve been waiting for you! Give $10 to help sexual assault victims speak up and heal.

Fight rape with hope. Fight rape with RAINN.

As I write this we have nine days left in the Speak4RAINN fundraiser and roughly $7500 to raise in order to meet the goal… and help a lot of sexual assault victims. I would love to see us blast through the goal of $20,000 and help even more people.

The overwhelming response to the auctioning of a manuscript critique (up to a 300 pp mss) took everyone by surprise (winning bid was $3750!) so we decided to roll out more writing-related donation incentives.

If you are a writer and have been looking for a way to take the next step in your journey, this is for you!

If you love a writer and are looking for an amazing gift, this is for you!

If you are or love a reader who lives for all things book-related, this is definitely for you!!

AWESOME READER GIFT: Donate $500 and I will use your name (or the name of someone you know) in my new YA novel.  Perfect for the English teacher who is secretly proud of being Hairwoman or the graduating student who has made her/his parents incredibly proud.

AWESOME WRITER GIFT: Donate $1,000 and I’ll critique a portion of your manuscript and discuss it over Skype. I’ll look at 30 pages of your book AND THEN we’ll sit down to a cozy Skype chat, a long one, to talk about where you are with your work and figure out your next steps.

SECOND AWESOME WRITER/READER GIFT: Donate $1500 and I will join your writer’s group or book club via Skype. I’ve been a member of a critique group for my entire writing career and I know how important these meetings are. We can talk about inspiration, craft, the nuts and bolts of publishing, and/or how to balance your writer life with the rest of your life. With a book group, I’ll answer all questions, explain my inspiration and process if you like, and let you know what I’m working on now. You get everyone in your group to pitch in and we all have a great time!

ULTIMATE WRITER/READER GIFT: (Ask your wealthy aunt or grandfather to get this one for you.) Donate $5,000 and I will come to your town, take you out for breakfast or lunch and talk about writing and life. You can bring up to three friends, because a donation of that magnitude deserves a lot of love.

The goodies are my way of thanking you for helping sexual assault victims speak up, heal, and become survivors. There are a lot of horrible, tragic things happening in the world that we can’t do anything about. But we can do this. We can be the helpers.

Am I right??

(All of the legal-schmegal stuff can be found on the RAINN website. While the writer gifts are not tax-deductible as a charity because you’ll receive services in exchange for your donation,  they are probably deductible as a business expense if you file as an author. PLEASE NOTE! I have a linguistics (not accounting) degree and my taxes are done by a nice CPA named Pete, so you should consult with your own tax professional about this.)

After the Boston attack yesterday, I didn’t promote the Speak4RAINN campaign. I also turned down a speaking gig last night because the timing felt disrespectful.

This morning the world is back to business, it seems, except for those most directly affected. This is reality, I know. But it makes me sad. I’m stuck between the desire to stop and pay attention, mourn, pray, and the need to “Keep Calm and Carry On.”

Other countries have been dealing with things like this – sometimes daily – for years & years. We Americans are new at this. Uncertain. Unsettled.

I ran the Marine Carps Marathon in 2011. (My first of many, I hope.) Every time I woke up last night I was thinking about that race. There are so many parallels between marathon running & life, marathon running & writing.

At the Marine Corps Marathon, I learned a lot from watching the wounded vets who raced in wheelchairs. Their defiance affirms life at its very best; to live and to live energetically. Enthusiastically. To defy death and the death-bringers and the haters until our last breath. To celebrate for however many days and hours we are graced with.

Which is a long way of saying that I am pushing on to the next mile and the miles after that, and after that.

My job now is to raise money so sexual assault victims get the help & support they need. Plz donate $10 to http://rainn.org/speak

Thanks.