Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Globetrottin' -- Jay

Some people pick up foreign languages like that. Other people don’t. I’m one of those other people. The only D I ever received in high school was in Spanish…and that was only because my best friend (born in Mexico) “helped” me write my final speech.

So today was a humbling (though very exciting!) day. My editor called to let me know that the foreign rights to Thirteen Reasons Why recently sold to France, Japan, Korea, and Italy. Which is really odd because French, Japanese, Korean, and Italian are four of my very favorite languages! Though I do have room for some more.

To think that people in those parts of the world are going to read my novel (written for the contemporary American teenager) and hopefully get something meaningful out of it is absolutely mind blowing. I know this happens to a lot of authors, but it makes me feel like some sort of a U.N. Ambassador with a really cool title. Something like the U.N. Ambassador of Dual-Narrator YA Suspense Novels. Or the U.N. Ambassador of 21st Century Novels Revolving Around Audiotapes in Shoeboxes.

It…is…just…so…weird.

And I absolutely can’t wait to see the covers!

Now, you wanna see something kinda cool? I found this newspaper clipping buried in my desk today. It’s from an article publicizing an elementary school PTA book fair. My elementary school PTA book fair! It’s from 1983 when I was eight years old. And that’s me, in my very first newspaper photo, sitting on the right. Yep…I’m in my favorite room in the whole school. The library!


- Jay

12 comments:

Lisa Yee said...

Ooooh, you were/are adorable!!!

Anonymous said...

So cute! You should def. share with your publisher and maybe they can use it as your author photo.

Don Tate II said...

Oh my, you make me feel old. In 1883, I was one year out of high school, had started college, and had and was raising a one-year-old daughter on my own. Excuse me while I get my walking cane.

Don Tate II said...

Excuse me, I mead in 1983, not 1883. I had a President Bush moment.

CJ Omololu said...

Totally adorable, except for the fact that you were 8 in 1983. I could have been your...ahem...babysitter.

So now you're going to learn all those languages to make sure the translations are spot on right? I hear Korean is tough after 40, so you'd better get on it.Way cool.

Stephanie J. Blake said...

Wait a minute...in 1983, I was...14. Argh!

Natalie said...

...and I was 15, colorado writer. Yup. Definitely old enough to have been Jay's babysitter. Reeeeallllly young babysitter, though..right? Compared with a, say, ancient 16 or 17-year-old sitter. But babysitter, nonetheless. *sigh*

Disco Mermaids said...

I always did have the cutest babysitters. ;-)

- Jay

Sarah Darer Littman said...

Awwww....so cute!! But I didn't recognize you without the fishnets.

LindaBudz said...

The two next to you look a bit like young versions of Robin and Eve. Have you always surrounded yourself with adorable girls?

Linda B. (who was 16 in '83)

Disco Mermaids said...

Adorable literary girls...yes!

But at the time this pic was taken, Robin and Eve were in their early years of high school...and old enough to be my babysitters.

Tee-hee!

- Jay

Anonymous said...

Oh, SNAP!!!