Bad News
Page 22
OVER THE YEARS MANY YOUNG READERS HAVE TOLD ME HOW MUCH THEY LIKE THE LOOK OF MY BOOKS. I DO, TOO. I FEEL VERY LUCKY TO HAVE WORKED WITH SUCH INSPIRED DESIGNERS AS KIRK BENSHOFF, GAIL DOOBININ, MAGGIE EDKINS, KARINA GRANDA, SASHA ILLINGWORTH, ALISON IMPEY, AND TRACY SHAW, NOT TO MENTION CREATIVE DIRECTOR DAVE CAPLAN. READERS ALSO OFTEN COMPLIMENT ME ON THE ARTWORK THEY SEE IN THE BOOKS. DO YOU DO THE ILLUSTRATIONS? THEY ASK. I SHRUG VAGUELY AND CHANGE THE SUBJECT. IN FACT, AS MUCH AS I’D LIKE TO TAKE CREDIT, THE ILLUSTRATIONS IN THE SECRET SERIES, AND ALSO IN BAD MAGIC, ARE BY THE MULTITALENTED GILBERT FORD. FROM THE VERY BEGINNING I HAVE MARVELED AT HOW WELL GILBERT’S QUIRKY SENSIBILITY COMPLEMENTS PB’S. IN A WAY, WE HAVE BEEN COLLABORATORS IN CREATING THE WORLD OF THE SECRET SERIES AND THE BAD BOOKS TOGETHER. FOR THE LAST TWO BOOKS, THE INTERIOR ART HAS BEEN BEAUTIFULLY RENDERED BY JUAN MANUEL MORENO. IT IS EXCITING TO SEE THE CHARACTERS OF THE BAD BOOKS TAKE ON THIS NEW LIFE.
AS OF THIS WRITING, THE SECRET SERIES HAS SOLD WELL OVER TWO MILLION COPIES IN THE UNITED STATES ALONE, AND BOTH BAD MAGIC AND BAD LUCK HAVE BECOME NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERS—A RECORD THAT CAN FAIRLY BE CALLED NEITHER SECRET NOR BAD. FOR THIS SUCCESS I PLACE THE BLAME SQUARELY ON MELANIE CHANG’S TEAM AT LITTLE, BROWN. IF I MAY BE PERMITTED TO PUBLICIZE MY PUBLICISTS, PLEASE APPLAUD LISA MORALEDA AND HER COLLEAGUES JENNIFER CORCORAN AND JESSICA SHOFFEL. LISA IS ONE OF THE FEW PEOPLE TO HAVE WORKED WITH ME ON EVERY BOOK I’VE WRITTEN, ESCORTING ME FROM ONE COAST TO THE OTHER AND SENDING ME FROM SCHOOL TO BOOKSTORE TO FESTIVAL AND BACK. THANK YOU, LISA, FOR YOUR UNFLAGGING EFFORTS AND FOR MAKING THE ODD MOMENT OF TOUR DOWNTIME SO MUCH MORE ENJOYABLE.
ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE MARKETING AND PUBLICITY EQUATION ARE LBYR’S CRACK MARKETEERS JENNY CHOY, ANN DYE, NELLIE KURTZMAN, JENNIFER MCCLELLAND-SMITH, TINA MCINTYRE, STEPHANIE O’CAIN, ALICE MORLEY, ADRIAN PALACIOS, EMILIE POLSTER, AND MY FIERCEST COMPETITOR IN SUNGLASSES-WEARING, VICTORIA STAPLETON. THANKS, ALL OF YOU, FOR SPREADING PB’S SECRETS HITHER AND YON AND EVERYWHERE ELSE. THANKS ALSO TO THE SALES TEAM: DAVE EPSTEIN, SHAWN FOSTER, AND CHRIS MURPHY. AND PRODUCTION: RENÉE GELMAN, VIRGINIA LAWTHER, AND REBECCA WESTALL. I KNOW I AM FORGETTING A FEW NAMES; IF YOURS IS ONE, PLEASE FORGIVE ME. IT’S HEARTENING, THOUGH A LITTLE HARD TO BELIEVE, THAT SO MANY PEOPLE ARE INVOLVED IN WHAT OFTEN FEELS LIKE A SOLITARY ENTERPRISE.OF COURSE, IN THE END, WE ALL SERVE AT THE PLEASURE OF LITTLE, BROWN’S BIG BRASS: THE PUBLISHERS. ANDREW SMITH AND, MOST OF ALL, MEGAN TINGLEY, THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE HEART-SHAPED BOX OF CHOCOLATES IN MY CHEST FOR ALL THE SUPPORT YOU HAVE GIVEN ME OVER THE YEARS. I AM HUMBLED— WELL, HONORED, ANYWAY— BY THE TRUST YOU HAVE PLACED IN ME AND MY BOOKS. AFTER TEN YEARS, I CONSIDER YOU MY FRIENDS AND LBYR MY HOME.
THAT ALMOST WRAPS IT UP, EXCEPT FOR A FEW THANK-YOUS CLOSER TO MY WRITING DESK. QUICHE MAY BE THE WIND BEHIND MY TYPEWRITER, BUT MY RABBIT ASSISTANT HAS HAD HUMAN ASSISTANTS OF HIS OWN: PABLO VALENCIA AND SHANE PANGBURN, OR AS I CALL THEM, QUICHE I AND QUICHE II. THANKS, GUYS, FOR KEEPING PB UP TO DATE AND UP TO SNUFF IN HIS CORRESPONDENCE AND ONLINE. EVEN WITH THE HELP OF SPECIALLY TRAINED PENGUINS, WE COULD NOT DO IT WITHOUT YOU. JUST TRY NOT TO BE QUITE SO FUNNY IN THE FUTURE. IT’S DISCONCERTING.
I EXPLAINED HOW PB’S LIFE BEGAN, BUT MY OWN LIFE AS A WRITER BEGAN MUCH EARLIER, INSPIRED (AGAINST THEIR ADVICE) BY MY PARENTS, BOTH WRITERS THEMSELVES. ONE OF MY VERY FIRST JOBS WAS WRITING A SCREENPLAY WITH MY FATHER, ROGER L. SIMON. THANK YOU, POP, FOR AN EXPERIENCE THAT TAUGHT ME A LOT ABOUT PLOT AND CHARACTER AND, MORE IMPORTANT FOR A WORKING WRITER, HOW TO SURVIVE GETTING SCRIPT NOTES FROM AN ANGRY EMPLOYER. MY MOTHER, DYANNE ASIMOW, I CANNOT THANK ENOUGH, SO I WON’T. SUFFICE IT TO SAY SHE STARTED HELPING ME WRITE STORIES BEFORE I COULD WRITE THEM DOWN MYSELF, AND SHE’S NEVER STOPPED HELPING ME. SHE WOULDN’T EVEN IF I’D LET HER. WHICH I NEVER WOULD. I LOVE YOU, MOM.
FINALLY, ALWAYS WAITING IMPATIENTLY FOR ME TO FINISH, IS MY OWN FAMILY. WE ARE TWO DADS AND TWO DAUGHTERS, AND I WOULDN’T WANT IT ANY OTHER WAY. PHILLIP, INDIA, AND NATALIA, YOU ARE THE BEST REASON I CAN THINK OF TO START WRITING IN THE MORNING, AND THE BEST REASON TO STOP AT THE END OF THE DAY. MY LOVE FOR YOU IS IN EVERY WORD AND IN THE SPACES IN BETWEEN.
—RAPHAEL SIMON