Darkly Luminous love...

Ohio sure is keeping me busy! I've spoken to classrooms all over southern Ohio and made a bit of time to visit my Cincinnati Shakespeare Company cohorts and see Tony Kushner's Angels in America in a stunning production at the Know Theatre of Cincinnati.

The Reviews are pouring in! The Darkly Luminous Fight for Persephone Parker's recent highlights:

THANKS Mel and Liz at True-Blood.Net, the Original Fansite of HBO's True Blood for again proving to be such champions of Miss Percy. (And for being in love with Alexi. Not like he needs the extra ego... But it flatters the author...) They're doing a book giveaway in addition to having written such lovely reviews as these:

From Mel:
"Book two of the trilogy is as beautifully written and intricately plotted as the first, providing a gripping story that’s alternately heart warming, thrilling, sad, funny, romantic, and generally wonderful." ... "Reviewing the Strangely Beautiful series is such a challenge because it not only defies description (is there a word for romance-mystery-Victorian-mythological-gothic-adventure?), but the story is so densely woven that to reveal almost any detail is to spoil something else. Here’s the gist: I cannot recommend this book, this series, or this author enough. If you love a good story, if exquisite writing is your thing, if you want to laugh and cry and feel when you read, then join me in being completely lost to Miss Percy."
From Liz:
"Have you ever read a book that literally filled you up? This book has everything to meet your literary needs: mystery, joy, sweetness, terror and sadness." ... "The story’s climax is everything you could expect from Hieber. Terrifying and heartbreaking and as is always the case in war, costly. Leanna Renee Hieber is an artist and her words paint masterpieces, but don’t take my word for it. Read both books yourself and see if you can escape her magic. I’m betting you’ll be just as enchanted as I am, but fair warning – Alexi is mine, stolen from Ms. Hieber when she wasn’t looking."

-- Alexi has his dance card quite filled, it would seem, come next year's Academy ball...

Thanks to Stacey at Publisher's Weekly Beyond Her Book for this great blurb:
"What I loved the most about this gorgeously written installment of Percy’s tale was witnessing our heroine’s journey from a timid girl to a confident woman. A close second was the peek I got into the lives of the other members of the guard and their predecessors. Leanna’s way of making these characters seem real makes their life and death struggle against the forces of evil that much more compelling. I cannot wait to see what this talented writer does next." - Stacey for PW's BHB

The Darkly Luminous love continues - Thanks to these wonderful reviewers for their valuable time and their kind words:

Fantasy Literature

Smexy Books

Brooke Reviews

Book Faery

Darkly Reading

Lurv a la Mode

Passionate Booklover

Tuesday, April 27th is release day! You know I'll so dearly appreciate your support during that critical time that is release week! The books will be easy to find on Barnes & Noble's new paperback towers and on the new paperback tables around Borders.

Cheers and blessings!

VERY BIG (and Strangely Beautiful) News...

UPDATE 6/13/10:
CONGRATULATIONS to musical director Kenny Seymour and the cast of Memphis for winning the 2010 Tony Award for Best Musical! Memphis also won Best Book of a Musical and Best Original Score! We are so excited to have Kenny on the Strangely Beautiful team!

Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you, the most interesting and exciting news I can possibly offer...

As seen on Publishers' Marketplace:
Report of Option Agreement Sale:
"Musical stage rights to Leanna Renee Hieber’s, The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker described as a Victorian “Ghostbusters” about an eerie young woman whose skin is white as snow and the cadre of characters who believe she may be the key to an ancient prophecy, sold to Mt. Clair Entertainment to be adapted by the author with music and lyrics by Kenny Seymour, Jim Abbott and Nicholas Roman Lewis."

Further press details on the option agreement, care of Nicholas Roman Lewis:
"The ghostly, Gothic Victorian Fantasy The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker is heading for the legit musical stage. The author Leanna Renee Hieber will write the book of the musical with music and lyrics by Kenny Seymour (Broadway credits include music direction for Memphis and arrangements for The Wiz) and Nicholas Roman Lewis (creative development for The Alchemist and They Call Me La Lupe) with additional orchestrations and arrangements by Jim Abbott (Wicked, Bombay Dreams, Disney’s Tarzan)."
---

Oh. My. Goodness. How about that?!
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So. If you haven't read The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker, now is the time to do so. Buy it. AND this couldn't have better timing as we count down to the continuation of the Strangely Beautiful series on April 27th. Make sure you're on board for The Darkly Luminous Fight For Persephone Parker. Buy it.
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Well, like the saying goes, you can take the girl out of the theatre... But you can't take the theatre out of the girl. I suppose I wasn't meant to entirely walk away from that magical possibility that is a darkened stage after all. What I've heard of the music composed so far is haunting and gorgeous!!!! I'll be starting work on the script in the coming months. (I do have to get out there and sell Darkly Luminous, you know)
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The Strangely Beautiful joy of returning to a childhood dream...


We had our first production meeting today, backstage of Memphis at the Shubert theatre, Nicholas, Kenny and I. I am joined in this venture by two wonderfully talented men, and I could not feel more blessed. And as I was on my way down 44th street, I have to say... I walked past The Majestic theatre, past The Phantom of the Opera and my whole life unfolded before me, all my childhood dreams, and it was everything I could do not to weep with amazement.
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You see, I started writing my first book when I was 12 years old, a sequel to The Phantom of the Opera, because I was obsessed with that Broadway show. I fell in love with the theatre and began my trajectory towards becoming a professional actress. And I always kept writing. My two loves have always gone hand in hand. But never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that my great loves would come together like this, that when I stepped backstage inside a Broadway theatre for the first time today, it would be for the first production meeting of the musical of MY book... the book of my heart, Miss Percy's book. A ten year labor of love, come to this unexpected new possibility. For her, and for all those who feel they are marginalized in society, who feel alone and disconnected, and wonder why they find beautiful things others think are strange... this show, once it comes together, it will be for you. And it will be full of magic. Because things like this just don't happen every day.

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Um... and can I just say that we talked about holograms at the production meeting?! For the ghosts. *muppet flailing* THIS. IS. SO. COOL.

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I just have to take time out to give a big shout-out to God. God brought gifts into my life, surrounded me with blessed and talented people, and has brought it all together for this incredible moment. The show may never get off the ground, but nothing can take away the incredible fact I never thought I'd get this far to begin with - and how much of a joy it is to dream and dream big. As an adult I don't tend to dream as big as I did when I was a kid. But I'm now reminded to dream as big as ever. You never know what might happen.
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And huge thanks to Nicholas Roman Lewis, who wrote this wonderful paragraph for our press releases, words that are truly music to an author's ear:
"Kenny and I had been looking for a musical project for at least two years. Leanna's book had enthralled me from the moment I first read it as a manuscript so it was literally always on my desk staring at me. I knew this would make a wonderful musical but perhaps slightly daunting, after all, the book is full of ghosts, magic and murder. And then I thought, "the book is full of ghosts, magic and murder...this MUST be a musical." The characters and epic nature of the story lend themselves to song and I knew that Kenny shared my desire to incorporate sweeping cinematic themes with traditional musical theater styles. The icing on the cake is I think every writers dream; a lead character white as snow and strangely beautiful....I think I hear a song."

Counting down!

Oh my goodness, it’s two weeks until release day!

I’ve been keeping quite busy, between work on set and in the media tour studio where I had one of the best days ever with Queen Latifah who is straight up the coolest, most wonderful woman EVER – I mean, Tim Gunn, Queen Latifah – I’m getting SO spoiled by awesome celebrities. I was also got paid to ice skate all day in Central Park while filming a day on The Dark Fields. I love my side jobs.

And I love my next book. The Darkly Luminous race begins!
Beginning April 26th the Darkly Luminous Haunted London Blog Tour begins! Come along for the tour to learn about all the real ghost stories I use in the book and read exclusive excerpts! And there’s a new giveaway each day! See the schedule.

I’ll be heading home to Ohio in a week, where I’ll be speaking to my alma maters Edgewood High School (where I get to see one of my favourite young and talented authors Sammi) and Miami University, and also at Lebanon School, where I get to see another of my favourite young authors Hanna – a writing tournament winner who single-handedly lobbied to bring me in to her school and has been running quite the countdown to release day. She rocks.) And then I get to have a party in my hometown Barnes & Noble on April 27th. Then it’s the RT Booklovers Convention! Then it’s back to New York for more events. Then Jersey! Then Arizona! Then the world! *giddy exhaustion just thinking about it*

Strangely Beautiful and Darkly Luminous Honours:
1. I got the call that The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker is a finalist in the “Mainstream Novel with Romantic Elements” category of the Write Touch Awards! Yay!

2. AND The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker ALSO finaled in the 2010 Orange County Book Buyer’s Best Awards! Go Percy go!

3. The Darkly Luminous Fight for Persephone Parker gets 4 stars from RT Book Reviews Magazine! The review:
"The second book in the Strangely Beautiful series is delightful. This ghostly, Victorian fantasy is well written with a unique mythology. An intriguing and atmospheric tale with an enchanting romance that is finally consummated. Readers should start with book one to get a feel for the haunting backstory." - Reviewed by Gail Pruszkowski

Other lovely Darkly Luminous reviews on the web:
4. Truth, Beauty, Freedom and Books
5. Larissa’s Life

More beautiful Strangely Beautiful reviews on the web:
6. Parajunkee's View
7. Book Faery
8. My Blog 2.0

In life news:
Congratulations to my beloved and fabulous author friend Marianne Mancusi and her wonderful husband, Jacob Beach. Traveling to Texas for her beautiful wedding and seeing the bluebonnets in bloom across the countryside was magic. Pure magic. I love these two. AND THERE'S NOTHING BETTER THAN DANCING GOTH AT A RECEPTION! This is the second time VNV Nation’s “Beloved” has been put onto a wedding playlist because I was in attendance. I’m going for a record.

Leanna’s upcoming schedule:
The Romantic Times Booklovers Convention: April 28-May 2, Columbus
If you’re in Columbus Ohio for RT, come see me at one of my many panels and appearances – I’ll be at the Intergalactic Bar and Grille, a panelist on the "Move over Vampires and Werewolves! There are New Creatures Stalking the Night" panel, the "Fantasy Romance, Two Flavors that Taste Great Together" panel, the "Kick-Ass Fight Scenes" panel, I'll be playing Jane Austen for Sabrina Jeffries' Regency Bingo - fun! I'll be signing books at the big BOOK FAIR, hosting Lady Jane’s Salon starring bestselling authors Linnea Sinclair, Delilah Marvelle and Sabrina Jeffries, the Dorchester publisher's spotlight and at the Dorchester Author/Bookseller Party and dance party!

And New Yorkers, I’m reading and signing at both Lady Jane’s Salon (May 3) and KGB Fantastic Fiction (May 19th), so I hope to see you there!


Stay tuned for Very Big (and Strangely Beautiful) News...

March Madness

The month is almost over... where did it go?

I've been doing a little writing (not enough, but I like my new prologue of Strangely Beautiful #3, I think I'm starting to figure out this prequel thing) and a lot of planning.

Like scheduling a trip to London! With stops in France and Germany! *happy swoon* I have to research several locations for Strangely Beautiful #4, broaching World War I, and my family graciously has decided to take me along for their own academic research journey, bless them. I'm beside myself with excitement. It's been years since I've gone "home" to London and I'm beyond heartsick for it. I can't wait to meet up with the man who is my foremost resource for great ghost stories; Richard Jones for one of his London Ghost Tours.

Darkly Luminous will be out before we know it! I've been writing up interviews for Borders, for Rhapsody Book Club, all the posts for the Darkly Luminous Haunted London Blog Tour (The schedule is now posted!) and many more, so Miss Percy and The Guard will be galavanting all over cyber-space before we know it. They're quite savvy considering they're upstanding (albeit odd) 19th Century ladies and gentlemen.

I'm planning for my April Ohio tour, where I'll be talking to schools, doing several signings such as a RELASE DAY SIGNING, April 27th at West Chester Ohio Barnes & Noble, attending the RT Booklovers Convention in Columbus and whisking back to the New York area for a whirwind May with readings at Lady Jane's Salon (May 3) KGB Fantastic Fiction (May 19th) and all over the Eastern Seaboard! (All Event listings and locations available at Book Tour).
I'm also gearing up for my online "Direct Your Book!" Workshop for RWA Women's Fiction this week.

Saw (and loved) Alice in Wonderland. Tim Burton (who is of course one of my all-time favourite filmmakers) took great liberties with both the Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass aspects of the Alice tale but I thought it was beautiful and engaging. I found myself particularly fond of the Cheshire Cat and (of course) The Caterpillar, whose voice was created by the inimitable Alan Rickman. And I think this new Alice has some great Percy Parker qualities, what do you think? (Photo from IMDB.com)

Good Stuff:
Strangely Beautiful makes charity rounds:

I was approached by a brave teen participant who is helping to fund research for Childhood Cancer. I was only too happy to donate a signed book for a fundraiser for the St. Baldrick's Foundation, and here's Renee's site to donate to her directly. She's shaving her head in support of the cause. Bold and brave, I commend her.

Also I sent along some book goodies to Support Our Soldiers (SOS) America Inc. No matter where you stand on the subject of the wars, our soldiers should feel loved and valued.

I'm also donating a "Strangely Beautiful" goody-bag to bestselling author Brenda Novak's incredible Auction for Diabetes research, this is an amazing way to get cool stuff and support a great cause. Stay tuned as product pages will be going up in a bit - every year the items available for auction get better and better.

STRANGELY BEAUTIFUL Honours 'round the Interwebz and such:

1. The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker was picked by Smart Bitches and Dear Author, two of the leading Romance blogs, as a contender in DA BWAHA (Dear Author Bitchery Writing Award for Hellagood Authors)! A big, unexpected honour! Strangely Beautiful, thanks to many of you, made it to the next round, which will go up Sunday. (Voting happens lightning fast in 12 hour rounds).

2. Also, Rhapsody Book Club and Science Fiction Book Club, who took on Strangely Beautiful into their subscription-based hardcover book clubs also have picked up The Darkly Luminous Fight for Persephone Parker! It's slated to release to their subscription base around the same time as the paperback release.

3. Some advanced feedback about Darkly Luminous has already begun trickling in and it's been very good! I'm thrilled. Because while I love the first in the series, it frankly isn't complete without this sequel. Reviews will be coming in shortly.

It's starting to feel like spring! What are your plans now that the weather is turning?

Blessings!

Hello March! And Tim Gunn wins best human being award.

Wow! February was a bit of a whirlwind, a lovely Valentine's day with my sweetheart as usual, a lot of hard work and new projects on hand, keeping busy and trying to keep many balls in the air as I juggle. Some moments are more successful than others.

March started off with a bang with our monthly Lady Jane's Salon, featuring Cara Elliott, Louisa Edwards and Mingmei Yip! With such diverse talents, it was, as always, a joy! Stay tuned to the Lady Jane's Salon page for upcoming blogs and re-caps!

Also March 1st began the BOOK-A-WEEK GIVEAWAY via the Strangely Beautiful Facebook page! We're starting off with my 2009 Prism Award winning novella DARK NEST. Each week, the giveaway is open until the following Monday when we turn over to the next book, so become a fan, "like" or comment on the giveaway status update, and you're entered to win. For the schedule of books being given away, check out www.leannareneehieber.com/contests - and while you're there you can preview what's cooking for the Darkly Luminous contest!

Okay. So this is what this post is really about: Um... what else can March possibly have to offer after having met Tim Gunn?!!! For those of you who may or may not know, I freelance for a New York television studio specializing in satellite media tours. And this week Tim Gunn of Project Runway was in the studio to talk about a wonderful contest he's hosting for people who suffer from psoriasis to make them feel comfortable and fashionable in their own skin. How wonderful is that? How wonderful is he?! So. Wonderful. Seriously. The man shines light and makes the world a better place for his being in it. Not only is he perhaps the most classy, elegant man ever (I know I'm being superlative here but really, I've honestly never met anyone who deserves superlatives more than him) but he is kind, gracious, humble, funny, good-hearted, passionate, talented, and well-spoken (his vocabulary is thrilling), just to name a few good qualities. I think he's pretty close to enlightenment folks, maybe only one more turn around the globe for this one, him and the Dalai Lama are doing pretty well in the "make it work" category. I told him the only other time I was this excited for a guest in the studio was the time I met the Muppets. That's good company. *squee!*

March events: (I know. Everything's utterly pointless and mundane after Tim Gunn) I'm thrilled to be RWA Women's Fiction's Chapter's first workshop! I love teaching this workshop, I've done it for several RWA Chapters and it's fun and energizing: "Direct Your Book!" Theatrical Techniques to a Blockbuster Novel!"

About the workshop: "Crack open a whole new way to think about your fiction by using techniques inherent to actors, directors and other theatre professionals. As an author, think about what it takes to step into the role of actor, director, cinematographer, etc. and feel the lightbulbs go off as you troubleshoot your way towards an engaging, character-rich, one-of-a-kind hit novel." Click here for information on how to participate.

SIGNING: March 13th - Middletown, NY:The lovely Stella Price kindly invited me to a group signing at Borders in Middletown, NY! - 1 North Galleria Drive, Middletown, NY 10941 - 2pm-5:30pm! (As always, my upcoming conferences, events and signings are listed on my BookTour page)

STRANGELY BEAUTIFUL LOVE around the interwebs:

THANKS to Angieville for this lovely Darkly Luminous preview!

THANKS to Smokin' Hot Books for listing The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker as your favourite of 2009 at All Romance's Rom-blog Days of Heart, and for saying why; "I'm an avid Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte fan girl, Strangely Beautiful brought me back into why I started reading romance." - Goodness, thanks K.C.! (I'm a fan girl too)

THANKS to Brooke Reviews for naming Miss Percy under "The Most Beautifully Written" category, wow!

Well, it will be hard for me to top this March so far! What've you been up to?

In which a grand time was had at TempleCon

How awesome was TempleCon? So very, very awesome. Beloved friend from the Goth scene back in Cincinnati back-in-the-day, incredible artist Kelley Hensing and myself packed her art, my Strangely Beautiful books, and a ridiculous amount of poofy skirts, corsetry and hat boxes into her car and drove to Warwick, Rhode Island where the moment we walked in, the magnificent Creative Director Madame Ximon recognized me immediately by my absurdly large hat and showed us graciously to our booths. She is a consummate hostess and runs a damn good convention.

As we set up our wares, we gaped and grinned as spectacular Steampunk, Neo-Victorian and other Retro-Futurist costumed ladies and gentlemen strolled by. Please visit the TempleCon site for fabulous photos of these incredible feats of costuming and imagination. (Shown here, me at my booth - with said large hat - Kelley's work to the right)

After a day of selling wares and greeting fellow gaming and fantasy fans, Kelly and I were invited by our talented booth-neighbors to their Unhallowed party and thus begun my realization that the Unhallowed crowd were just about the ultimate in cool. Unhallowed: Metropolis is a Live Action Role Playing game designed by Jason Soles & Nicole Vega and described as: a gas-mask chic role-playing game of Neo-Victorian horror. SIGN ME UP! Not only did these ladies and gents know how to dress up beautifully (a skill I hold in the utmost esteem), and throw a party, but they've tossed everything I love into one beautifully realized and inventive world. Mr. Soles and Ms. Vega have surrounded themselves with fabulous artists and authors like photographer Marc17, puppeteer and artist George Higham, and author Simon J. Berman.

The next day the Unhallowed crowd were my fellow guests (again, all of us impeccably dressed to the Victorian nines, I might add) on the Neo-Victorian panel where we all gushed (okay, I gushed, they were all much more composed) about why we love the 19th century, infusing paranormal into it, and why everyone else should be just as obsessed with it too. And then I was graciously granted the opportunity to read from The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker and had (as I always do when I get to play the actress and read) a most delightful time of it. And then we relaxed with another party. A Tea Party, of course, with sumptuous trappings (and more costumes). Particular kudos to our Neo-Victorian cage match/pit-fighting discussion replete with appropriate WWF characters and etymology. Bartitsu!

Other highlights included my fantastic chats spanning 300 years of history with The Major of Big Bear Trading Co.

(pictured here in striped finery is Miss Kitty of Big Bear Trading Co. who made me an Edgar Allan Poe brooch that I'm positively in love with) The friendly people working the Privateer Press booth, and The General and his Lady, Chief Security Officer of the S.S. Icarus and the Penny Dreadfuls company. And I've more to look forward to! Continuing my Neo-Victorian / Gaslight Gothic tour, now I can't wait to be a guest author at the Steampunk World's Fair in May, where I'll see a lot of familiar faces and new friends!

Huzzah!

Happy Birthday Lady Jane!

The delightful Barbara Vey of PW's Beyond Her Book featured my post about Lady Jane's Salon one year anniversary, so I wanted to make sure I posted it here at home base. :)

Monday marked the one year a

nniversary of New York’s only reading series devoted to Romance Fiction; Lady Jane’s Salon. Lady Jane’s was founded in late 2008 by myself, fellow romance authors Hope Tarr, Maya Rodale and internet guru Ron Hogan over drinks one night discussing why New York, in all its literary splendor, didn’t have a reading series for Romance Fiction. So it was up to us to start one. And we did, in the red-velvet-drenched upstairs of Madame X, with our first authors Cara Elliot and Lauren Willig- who because of their partnership at Lady Jane’s are now teaching romance in the big leagues (Yale).
While the night boasted champagne, corsages and cupcakes, the spirit of Lady Jane’s is always about great fiction and a good cause. Now New York Times bestselling author Lauren Willig returned to our stage to help us celebrate this landmark year with her latest hit, The Betrayal of the Blood Lily, along with guest emcee and fabulous Historical author Leslie Carrolland her Notorious Royal Marriages, and scintillating debut author Sara Lindsey with Promise Me Tonight.

And so a year later… thanks to the support of people like you, Barbara, and Romantic Times Magazine, our wonderful venue Madame X, a host of bloggers, newspaper articles, radio interviews, thanks to a slew of talented authors and an ardent crowd of loyal supporters, Lady Jane’s is one of the most vibrant forces in New York’s experience of fiction in real-time; a face to face opportunity for readers, authors, industry and fans to talk about and applaud (literally) the genre we love. And then, of course, to share the love, by donating money and gently used romance novels to women in need, as charity remains a core part of our Salon’s identity.

A ton has happened through the year, for the co-founders, our readers and authors. Our co-founders published new books, the year marked my dream-come-true with my debut; The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker, we watched as our featured readers’ books hit lists and thrilled at the news of contracts for our some of our Lady Jane’s audience who will now be debut authors too, Ron Hogan got a cool new job ruling the interwebz for the very smart New York publishing house who snatched him up, and 2010 proves to be no less than spectacular. With featured readers returning to the Lady Jane’s stage unveiling new names and new initiatives, we’ll also have a host of debut authors take the stage. We’ll continue our mission to promote every single sub-genre within Romance. We’ll be expanding our charity options, we’ll have a Salon at the Romantic Times convention (please come!), and most importantly, we’ll get to see Barbara Vey again, our supporter from the beginning, and we can’t wait for it all to unfold. Keep in touch at Lady Jane's Salon and come see us!

Blessings, thanks and happy reading!