Author Appreciation Week:Carrie Ryan

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photo by Darren Cassese, courtesy of Carrie's website

For today's Author's Appreciation post I wanted to shine a light on Carrie Ryan, author of The Forest of Hands and Teeth and The Dead Tossed Waves.

What I appreciate most about Carrie is that her first novel, The Forest of Hands and Teeth was written for National Novel Writing Month in 2006. When I saw her at her book signing early this week she mentioned how she was discussing writing a novel for NaNoWriMo with her fiance, JP, to whom the book is dedicated and she was bemoaning how the rules state that you must start a new project. She wasn't sure what to write and her brilliant fiance gave her the best piece of advice a writer can get, "Write what you love."

Deciding that she not only loved her fiance but zombie stories, The Forest of Hands and Teeth was born. She told us how she would get home a few hours before her fiance each night, so her NaNoWriMo routine consisted of writing until JP got home and then reading him what she'd written that day. Am I the only person who thinks that's one of the most romantic things ever????

So if you haven't read her spectacular, spooky and riveting books: Run! Don't walk to your nearest bookstore and pick them both up! You won't be disappointed. She's also fabulous and witty on twitter (@carrieryan), her blog, and in person (definitely check her out at one of her remaining author appearances in Michigan tonight, Washington stage Friday and Saturday and California's Bay Area next Monday and Wednesday).