Tuesday, June 7, 2011

In Which I Give You My Baby

I've written this post a thousand times inside my head. Nothing sounded right. I filmed something. I deleted it. I've spent sleepless hours trying to figure out which words, and in what order, could adequately explain what today means.

I haven't been able to.

See, I wrote a book a long time ago. Three and a half years ago, actually. Many people read it and offered advice. It endured eight months of query hell. Survived revision after revision.

Then, finally, this book found a home. It got a shiny cover, and beautiful words printed in pink on the front. Early copies traveled the world, and sat on bookshelves, and kept people up at night reading.

I cried over this book.

I laughed. I screamed with joy. I ate bacon in celebration.

I worked. Oh, how I worked on it. I tried. Oh, how I tried to get every word in exactly the right spot.

Since October, that work has been done. And I've been waiting for months to share it with you. Many of you have been here every day, following and experiencing every bump in the road, every curve of the track. To you, I want to say thank you.

The words feel inadequate, weak, unable to hold how much I really appreciate the friendships and emails and camaraderie I've felt from you, my lovely blog readers.

But they'll have to do.

Thank you.

And with that, I find that I have nothing left to say about this book. Nothing left to do for this book.

Except one thing: Give it to you.

And so I will. Today, I will.

POSSESSION is yours. I hope you enjoy it.


If you want to participate in the launch of POSSESSION, you can! Ali Cross, Nichole Giles, and Windy Aphayrath made it easy for you. Sign up below and write a post on your blog about a time when you broke the rules.


Three lucky winners will win a signed hard-cover copy of POSSESSION.


132 comments:

Stephanie McGee said...

*hugs*

And congratulations, my friend. Exciting times, these!

Sarah Allen said...

I can't begin to tell you how excited I am for you! So excited to read the book, and I wish you the absolute best :)

Sarah Allen
(my creative writing blog)

L.L. Muir said...

Bawling all over my keyboard for your right now. That was the sweetest blog EV.ER.

Shannon Messenger said...

Best. Gift. Ever. ((hugs)) I hope your release day is everything you dreamed it would be, and more!

Rachel Searles said...

Congrats, that's very exciting :)

verenise_lopez said...

That is awesome your a fantastic writer! Possessions is a great read :]

Robert Guthrie said...

CONGRATULATIONS!

Kayeleen Hamblin said...

I am so happy for you and excited for this book to come to my house! Yay and congratulations.

Laura said...

Congratulations, and I'd say that your post was pretty perfect!
Enjoy you time, you have sooooo earned it!!!
Lxxx

Christine Murray said...

Congratulations on having your book out and surviving the route to publication. Enjoy your moment! Best wishes x

Miriam Forster said...

MINE!! *grabs Possession* *eats bacon in celebration*

Seriously though, I'm so, so happy for you right now. I can't wait to read your book, and to see what's next for you. Congratulations, Elana.

Talli Roland said...

Elana! Many, many congratulations. Enjoy the day!

Suzie F. said...

Happy Release Day, Elana!

I got goosebumps reading your post. This is what's it's all about. Following your journey until we can finally celebrate with you!

May you have a permanent smile on your face all day (mingled with just a few joyful tears). So happy for you!

Natalie Aguirre said...

Congrats Elana! I'm so excited for you that this day has finally come. You so deserve it. All us blogging friends are cheering you on and wishing you the best. Enjoy your special day.

Theresa Milstein said...

It's official! Congratulations! I'm so excited for you. It's been eye-opening and inspiring to watch your journey.

I'm hosting an unofficial contest of my own for the release of your book today. I'd better go put up the post now!

I wish you the best today and as you move forward.

Unknown said...

Congratulations, Elana!! I'm so happy for you, seeing this enormous dream become a fantastic reality. Can't wait to get my copy!!!!!!

Liz P said...

It's amazing that the day is finally here! Congratulations! Savor every moment, celebrate, do whatever you have to do to enjoy this day. :)

Katie Ganshert said...

Woohoo! What an amazing day for you Elana! Can't wait to read it!!

Kristine Asselin said...

Congratulations Elana! Can't wait to read it!

Jennifer said...

Congratulations! How very exciting this must be for you to see the counter at zero all the anticipation over its finally here. I will be picking up my copy on the way home from work today. Enjoy the day!

Huntress said...

BIG TIME, ENORMOUS CONGRATS TO YOU!

I've already got the Kindle version of Possession. It's been on my 'wish list' for months :)

**mounds of confetti thrown**

Donna K. Weaver said...

What a proud Mama! Congrats.

Christine Danek said...

Congratulations. I'm so happy for you and the book is great!!

Regina said...

Oh happy dance for Elana!! I am so excited for you! This is wonderful! I signed up to participate on Ali's blog for the time I broke the rules. What a fun post!

Laura Pauling said...

Congrats! I'm half way through and absolutely loving it!

Unknown said...

Congratulations, girlie! You deserve it!

Kristi said...

Weeee!!!! Happy Book Birthday!!!

Unknown said...

You are made of awesome and so is this book! I was so excited to be able to purchase it for the first time. I've watched you while you made your way through this journey and every step has been a learning experience for all of us who are watching and waiting for your success. You did it! I'm so happy to be standing here wishing you a proper HAPPY BOOK BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!

Sandra Ulbrich Almazan said...

Congratulations, Elana! I look forward to reading Possession.

Cathy said...

Congratulations! I hope it's a great success. I can't wait to read it.

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Congratulations, Elana!

Lola Sharp said...

WOOHOOOOOO!! Happy launch day!!! ☆∴*★∵∶。◦°✰*¨*•.¸¸✩ ⋰˚☆

Enjoy the ride, the moment. YOUR moment. :)

Love,
Lola

Unknown said...

Congrats! Elana. I am so happy for you!

S.A. Larsenッ said...

You already know what my heart says. So proud.

Christine Fonseca said...

SQUEE!!!

Kelly Hashway said...

Happy Release Day, Elana! Enjoy the moment. Today is your day.

B.E. Sanderson said...

:HUGS: I haven't been here for too long, but you've made me feel like I've been here from the start. Thank you for sharing your journey with the world.

And Congratulations! You've certainly earned all the successes that are sure to come your way. =oD

Melissa Hurst said...

Congratulations Elana! I've been following you since I started my blog and your writing journey is such an inspiration! I'm so glad POSSESSION is out today and I can't wait for my copy to get here!

Kerri Cuev said...

CONGRATS Elana! Thank you for sharing your journey with us. It has been a joy following you and your success. Now to get to the really important part.

SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!! (((HUGS)))) and off to the bookstore :)

Michelle McLean said...

I'm so excited for you and proud of you and just jumping up for joy happy for you!! :) Congratulations on sending your baby out into the world :)

Unknown said...

What beautiful words! Sit back,relax, and enjoy your book birthday. You deserved it! I was so excited I preordered it on my kindle last night. Off to read!

Matthew MacNish said...

We can do our rule breaking post tomorrow, right? I hope so, because I just signed up.

As far as Possession goes, there isn't a whole lot left to say. Congratulations, EJ, you've earned it!

Meredith McCardle said...

HUGE congrats on the release!

virg_nelson said...

Congrats are well deserved. It is an amazing book and I am so thrilled to have gotten to watch its conception. Super job!!!!

Kristie Cook said...

Woohoo!!! Congratulations, Elana! Happy Book Birthday! I'm so happy for you - and for the rest of us who finally get to read your baby. Thank you for sharing her with us. Have fun celebrating!

Kelly Lyman said...

Congrats! So happy and excited for you!!! I've been telling all the girls I mentor to go buy it!! Have a great day!

Unknown said...

Happy Book Birthday Elana. Congratulations.

Jenilyn Collings said...

Congratulations!! I'm eating bacon in celebration too! :)

Jamie Manning said...

So, so happy for you Elana! You're one of the "good guys" and you deserve mucho mucho success! Can't wait to read Possession (I'm going to buy it on lunch. Yeah, I'm sacrificing FOOD for you!)

Anonymous said...

YAY!!!!! So exciting. Enjoy the journey!

Chelsey said...

CONGRATULATIONS, ELANA!!!!!

Unknown said...

*throws confetti*

YAY!!!! Woooooo hoooooo! I'm so excited for you, Elana! And definitely excited for ME because I get to read it!

*throws more confetti*

Congrats!!

Mandy said...

It's finally here!!!

And I have my copy!

So So So thrilled for you Elana!!!

Cynthia Lee said...

Congratulations!!!

Rebecca T. said...

HAPPY BOOK BIRTHDAY TO YOU, HAPPY BOOK BIRTHDAY TO YOU, HAPPY BOOK BIRTHDAY DEAR ELANAAAAAAAAAA, HAPPY BOOK BIRTHDAY TO YOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUU!

YEAH! Congratulations and I'm so excited for you! I hope everyone loves it as much as I did!

Carol Kilgore said...

Congratulations!
So well deserved.
May all your bacon dreams come true :)

Carolyn V said...

Woohoo! Woohoo! Congrats Elana! XD So happy for you!

Jenna Wallace said...

So happy for you!! Can't wait to read it.

Chantele Sedgwick said...

Congratulations, Elana! You totally deserve all the bacon in the world today! I hope you have an awesome day and I'm so excited to read your amazing book. :)

Jenny Lundquist said...

Happy Release Day!

Michelle Merrill said...

Congrats! What an awesome moment. Very inspiring. Thanks for sharing your journey with us :)

If you celebrated with bacon, does that mean you have some left over sour patch kids? ;)

Kate Karyus Quinn said...

Happy Release Day!!!

Steph said...

So exciting! Congrats!

MG Higgins said...

Congratulations! Just downloaded Possession and can't wait to dig in.

Melissa Sarno said...

Congratulations Elana! Thank you for sharing your journey with us. And for giving us this book!

Mary Ann said...

Never thought I'd read dystopian, but I have to, if for no other reason than to learn from you. I hope I get to listen to you at a workshop sometime because I want to be just like you when I grow up. For now, it's practice, practice, practice.

Tere Kirkland said...

Man, now I'm hungry for bacon and anarchy. ;)

Congrats, Elana! Enjoy your release day!

Cherie Reich said...

Congratulations! I can't wait to read POSSESSION.

Sara {Rhapsody and Chaos} said...

HAPPY BOOK BIRTHDAY, ELANA!!! I hope you're celebrating and enjoying the fact that you gave birth to something so special :) <3

Liza said...

Such a beautiful, from the heart post. Oh Elana, I wish you, Possession, and all your future books success! Hooray for you!

Jennie Englund said...

Gratitude is EVERYTHING! Good things will KEEP happening to you!

Really inspiring words you wrote.

And the MTV review? OUTRAGEOUS!

Christine Rains said...

Congratulations, Elana! I wish you great success. Enjoy your day. :)

Shannon O'Donnell said...

Happy book birthday to you! Happy book birthday to you! Happy book birthday to POSSESSION! Happy book birthday to you! :-)

Emily White said...

Oh, Elana, I am so absolutely excited for you!!! squeeeeeeee!!!

Patti said...

So excited for you. I know it's going to do awesome. Enjoy your bacon today.

HWPetty said...

Tears, girl! SO DESERVED! I can't wait to hold my copy in my hands.

*hugs*

Lisa Gail Green said...

OMG Elana!!! You are awesome, and I am sooooo happy for you! I can't wait to read the book. I'm not entering the contest, I plan on buying my own copy. And I want you to know what an absolute inspiration you've been since I started my own journey. You were one of the first to show me that published writers are friendly, genuine, and just as crazy as I am. :D I know the book will be wonderful, because you are. Congratulations!

Ghost Girl (aka, Mary Ann) said...

Congratulations!!

Unknown said...

Congratulations Elena! All the hard work's been worth it!!

Kindle won't sell me an e- book in Canada. Why I ask? It's an E-BOOK, it can go anywhere, no extra shipping costs involved! They must be mad that Vancouver is leading in the Stanley Cup Finals...

I'm sure I'll be able to eventually. Have a great day !:)

Emily said...

I haven't been following you that long. But after I read the first chapter a few weeks ago...let's just say I was hooked. I entered every ARC contest I could--but didn't win.

I NEVER win.

Anyway. Possession will be promptly sent to my kindle today. I will be staying up late tonight to read.

Thank you.

Heather said...

Happy book birthday! Enjoy this wonderful moment, you've earned it. You are an inspiration!

Tracey Neithercott said...

Congratulations!! You've worked so hard for this, you deserve all of the love Possession's getting. Happy book release!!

Peggy said...

Congratulations! I'm so very happy for you! You are an amazing person. I hope sales go off the charts!

Laura said...

You are extraordinary and it's been wonderful to watch your remarkable journey. You may never know how many lives you've touched- but you have touched mine. Congratulations on making it through this much of the journey. There's a whole future still ahead excited to have you in it.

Krispy said...

Congrats!!! It feels like today has been so long in coming. I hope it is absolutely fantastic for you!

Happy book birthday! I'm so excited to read it!

Donea Lee said...

Your journey to this day has been so inspiring and fun to read about. And this post is beautiful. :)

You make me want to be a better writer and a better person, so "Thank you!"

HUGE Congrats!! Happy Release Day!!

Bethany Elizabeth said...

Congrats congrats congrats!!! :) What you've done - and what we're all trying to do - takes enormous courage. Well done!!

Sherrie Petersen said...

Yay! Congrats!! Your baby is lovely :)

Shari said...

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!! I'm so excited for you. Picture Kermit the Frog's happy dance, because that's what I'm doing for you. So excited to see you tomorrow night!

Unknown said...

Congrats, Elana!! I'm so excited for you and you deserve all your success. I loved the book and would have done a giveaway but my blog Sisters have confiscated it! Can't wait for the companion book. :)

Emily Gray Clawson said...

What an exciting landmark of a day! I can only imagine how thrilling it must feel to be you today. I'm ordering my copy right now. Can't wait to read it!

Michael Di Gesu said...

YAY ELANA! I am so happy, proud, excited, thrilled, anxious, nervous, on edge, ecstatic, full of glee, and just over the top thankful that your book has finally debuted!

I know so many other bloggers have been along the ride with you, many months more than me I'm sure, but no one is more sincere than I am in my best wishes for your success.

ALL THE BEST ELANA,

You blogger buddy, Michael

Jessi said...

LOVE this post! You got every word exactly right. So, so excited for you Elana. Soak up the goodness of today!

Unknown said...

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeee! I have tried to imagine how you're feeling... I can't. I just hope I get to feel the same way one day!

Major congratulations!

xx R

Casey McCormick said...

*Cry, cry, cry*

Have a BEAUTIFUL day, Elana. Enjoy every moment.

Nicole Zoltack said...

HUGE CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

GunDiva said...

So happy for you! Be sure to get a picture of yourself in the bookstore with YOUR book on the shelves!

Jessica A. Briones said...

Congratulations!

Tamika: said...

Congratulations Elana! Words seem inadequate to capture how much I know this day means to you:)

Thanks for sharing such a gift!

Joylene Nowell Butler said...

Big huge congrats, Elana. Wow, good omen, I'm #100! I can't participate in the contest because my 2nd novel comes out in a few weeks and I'm going crazy trying to get everything done in time. I hope you have tons and tons of fun!

Christy said...

Congratulations Elana! I hope the world loves Possession as much as I did.
Enjoy the moment.

S. L. Duncan said...

HUGE CONGRATS!!! Can't wait to read it!

Liesl Shurtliff said...

Oh happy day! What a rush it must be. I can't wait to read POSESSION!!! FINALLY!!!

Liesl Shurtliff said...

I totally spelled POSSESSION wrong!!!

Colene Murphy said...

This was beautiful! Congratulations on your big day!! I hope it is just as amazing and wonderful as you could have ever imagined!!!

Anonymous said...

Oh, E. You said it right and you did it right. I can't wait to party it up with you in style. I'm so happy for you for this day.(And I'm so happy for me because I GET TO READ IT!!! Yay!)

Kelly H-Y said...

So exciting! A huge CONGRATULATIONS to you, Elana!

Karen Lange said...

Congratulations Elana! So happy for you. Looking forward to reading it. :)

Angie said...

Yee-haw! So happy for you, Elana. I hope it's been a fantastic day. Love you!

T. Powell Coltrin said...

I am so proud of you and happy for you!

amberargyle said...

AHHH! Absolutely scary and wonderful and terrifying.

Congrats, and enjoy the ride (personally, I'm getting cold feet, but it's a little late to pull the book). ;)

Marsha Sigman said...

Congrats! I'm so happy for you!

I was going to preorder but I can't wait for shipping and I did a search and every store near me has your book in stock! whewwhooooo, gonna pick it up asap.

Carolina M. Valdez Schneider said...

Congratulations, Elana!! So happy for you! So glad to see Possession released into the wild. Hope you have a beautiful day! Happy, happy launch!

Angela Ackerman said...

So very, very happy for you. I could use lots of fluffy nice words, but really it all comes down to you ROCK, Elana!@

Angela @ The Bookshelf Muse

VR Barkowski said...

I'm not supposed to be in the blogosphere, but I had to stop by to say CONGRATULATIONS, ELANA! Received my copy yesterday and it is truly a thing of beauty. I'm beaming for you!

Happy Launch!

kathrynjankowski said...

So happy for you, Elana!

Elena Solodow said...

Such an exciting day, Elana! I'll be heading out this week to get my copy - can't wait to read. Congrats, congrats, congrats!!!!

WritingNut said...

Congratulations Elana!!! I am so incredibly, very happy for you! :)

I pre-ordered this book, and it arrived today.. in fact it's sitting on my desk right now as I type this, it's SO gorgeous, and I can't wait to read it!!! :)

Sara B. Larson said...

I am so so so incredibly happy for you Elana!! WOOHOO --- it's out there! Happy book birthday to POSSESSION, and to you! HUGE congratulations. I can't wait to see you tomorrow night!

Jemi Fraser said...

Yay!! It's finally here! Congrats again Elana - I'm thrilled for you. The world is going to love Possession. Can't wait for the companion!!

Sorry I'm late to the party - we've had no power in our city for almost 8 hours. It's been a loooong day!

Alison Miller said...

Congrats! Cannot wait to get my hands on a copy!!!

Meredith said...

Yay!!! Thank goodness it's finally here! I can't wait to go buy my copy--I've left tomorrow night free so I can devour it in one sitting. I'm so happy for you!

Deana said...

I'm sure you've heard it all day so it goes without saying...but congrats! Your hard work has paid off:)

Deana said...

I'm sure you've heard it all day so it goes without saying...but congrats! Your hard work has paid off:)

Valerie Ipson said...

Soak it in, baby!!!!!! CONGRATS!!!

LynNerdKelley said...

Congratulations! I love great success stories. Fuel for inspiration. Cheers!

ali cross said...

I am here, finally, at 2:00 in the morning of the next day. I love you Elana. And I love your book. Your post brought tears to my eyes. I wish I could just hug you and hug you and cry with you and shout for joy with you. Heck, maybe we should do a little of that at your party tonight! Woot!

Ghenet Myrthil said...

My apologies for being a day late with commenting but CONGRATS!!!! I can't want to read it. :)

Stephsco said...

congratulations on your book publication day!

Jeff King said...

Congrats… you deserve it.

It has been a wonderful ride, and I thank you for sharing it. And thx for sharing all your wonderful knowledge and experience.

Your advice has helped me in so many ways. I look forward to reading your book and wish you nothing but success.

Ishta Mercurio said...

ELANA! I've been out of the loop this week, because my computer picked now to die. But I came to the library to tell you:

CONGRATULATIONS! You did it! And it's beautiful!

Also, if yo are ever in the GTA (That's Toronto. In Canada. By Niagara falls!), my local bookstore wants you to come. I told them about you and your book back in March, and they're excited about your book, and if you're ever here, they want you to come. And we have bacon at my house. Just throwing that out there.

And CONGRATULATIONS!

Ishta Mercurio said...

ALSO: I will be at your virtual launch party. I should have a new computer by then. (Any advice there?) WOO-HOO!

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