I’m a superstitious guy, though my quirks take less of the physical format and more of a full moon, first-of-the-month, avoid 6#6 (look, I can’t even write it) flavor. Except those aren’t really about luck, which is this week’s topic…So I really had to ask myself: Do I have an object that makes the fortunes smile on me? What do I carry around to ward off the darkest times? Is there some talisman that makes me feel special like Donna’s necklace or Katherine’s locket?

Not really.

Finally, it hit me: I’ve got plenty of luck charms, but they aren’t physical. Rather, they’re a few of those “blew-my-mind-compliments” that I’ve collected over my career. Just the briefest of moments that I’ve stored away in the most sacred of spots in my head. Instants which are only to be peeked at when the complete poop storm hits.

My charms aren’t things I brag about to most people. In fact, the opposite is true: I keep them as close to me as possible. They’re special, and in this uniqueness is their power. When I think about them it feels like that first, long sip of hot coffee on a morning where your breath is solid…or that surge of strength when you glimpse the finish line of a long race. They’re magic.

Now, I bet you’re dying to hear some of these moments (ok, let’s call it a fleeting curiosity). Honestly, I’m a tad squeamish to share, but I will because the moon is in a waning crescent on the 3^rd Friday of an odd-numbered month in an even-numbered year…which is, after all, a good omen. (oh, and I trust y’all not to judge me).

• I once had an all-time favorite author read my first chapter aloud in a workshop. After he finished, a big smile crossed his face and he said he was impressed and wanted to read on.

• At my first NYC-SCBWI conference, I had a much-admired editor stop a line of other VIPs to give me her card and hurriedly tell me to submit my work as soon as I was ready. 

• A New York Times Bestselling author told me that I’ll have a long, successful career because I’ve “got it going on.” (Not 100% sure what this means, but I like that it’s vague since it allows me to infer many different meanings).

What are some of the mental lucky charms you hold near’n’dear?

P.S. If you want to hear me answer some personal (not THAT personal) questions...check out Katherine's personal blog today!

And may your St. Patrick's Day be filled with corned beef, cabbage, and plenty'o'green beer. 

We've been sharing our lucky writing charms this week on the Muses. I realized in thinking about this post that I have quite of few of these.

Bernini's David

One of them is actually my Mom. She has an innate sense for when I need a little push, or a pick me up, and appears, or calls, or emails with just the right words of encouragement. And more than once she's told me, "Something good is going to happen today,"and it's come true. Thanks, Mom!

On my desk, I have two lucky charms. The first is a little bronze figurine of an elephant. I'm obsessed with elephants (trunk up for good luck!) I find them majestic, soulful and quite beautiful, and just about anytime I look at an elephant, it lifts my spirits.

Some of you might know I'm a little bit of an art fanatic. One of my favorite artists is the Baroque sculptor (and painter and architect) Gian Lorenzo Bernini. My favorite work of his is David. When I saw this sculpture in person, I was quite thoroughly and permanently moved. I think I stared at it for about an hour.

My elephant and David

Some of you might not know that this work of art was an inspiration piece for my character, Peregrine. You'll see, in Bernini's work, fluidity of motion, an explosive power, athleticism, hair that curls everywhere, a crooked nose, and well, yeah... it's a lot of what I see in Perry. So on my desk, I have a miniature of this statue. David inspires me not only because he reminds me of some of Perry's qualities. He reminds me that bravery, and a well-aimed stone, can bring down something that can look daunting... like maybe writing a book.

What are your writing charms?

I’m not usually superstitious, but there are a few writing related things that I have come to cherish.

My wrist guards:

I used to only wear them when my wrists were hurting, but now I wear them whenever I write.  Partly because, my wrists stop hurting if I wear them all the time, and partly because I feel so bad ass when I’m wearing them.  I feel like Madonna crossed with Rocky.  Look out manuscript, I’m taking you down!

My headphones:

My headphones are the gateway to my characters.  I love slipping into my headphones, plugging into my playlist and slipping into the world of my manuscript.  The headphones are the gateway, and I find myself wearing them even when I could listen through my speakers.  It’s like having my characters in my head.  I start to freak out when I don’t have them. 

The Muses:

I have rarely met people who are so positive, so supportive, and so generous, not to mention crazy talented.  The Muses make me believe in luck.  How else can I explain the random placement that brought four of us together for a critique group at the exact moment that we needed each other?  How else can you explain how that same conference introduced us to Bret?  How else can you explain all the crazy, wonderful stuff we have shared in the two years since?  Writing was lonely and hard before I met them.  But all that changed after.  The Muses have changed the way I approach writing.  

And, I do have a good luck charm that I cherish.  When SILVER was on submission, and the deadline for publishers to respond was approaching, I was a complete basket case.  I don’t think I’ve ever been as nervous, excited, or just plain distracted.  At the time, SILVER was still titled BANDIA, which is now the name of the series.  I was sitting at my desk at work, when I got this from one of the Muses who was on vacation in Hawaii:

It made me all smiley and teary.  And it worked too! 

When I think of lucky charms, I think of all the things athletes and actors and others do to bring them the best luck possible.  Lucky underwear.  Not saying the name of the Scottish Play (which I still have a hard time saying out loud, despite the 11 years since I last set foot on a stage).  Touching the ceiling of the car when driving over railroad tracks.  A rabbit’s foot.  The four-leafed clover.

Interesting aside – my grandmother could find a four-leafed clover without even looking.  She had a gift.  You would be walking somewhere with her – say, down the sidewalk in her Pikesville neighborhood – and she’d stop, bend over, and hand you a four-leafed clover.  The only ones I’ve ever held were found by her.

Now, I don’t have much I keep around me for luck, but I do have a few things that help me remember how lucky I am.

Several years ago – before I even began writing GILT – I took a trip to England with my family.  My husband is English and both of my kids were born there, so we try to return as often as we can.  On this particular trip, my kids were both still quite young.  We gave them each a sum of money to spend on mementoes – t-shirts, toys, pencils, what-have-you.  And in the Tower of London gift shop, my oldest bought a little statue of Henry VIII.  I’d been reading about him for years and probably talking too much about him on the trip – through Windsor, Winchester Cathedral, Portsmouth.  So I was delighted that some of my interest had rubbed off.  But when we got home, he handed me the little statue and said, “This is for you, mum.”  Henry has watched me write ever since.

After GILT sold, I wanted to treat myself to something special to commemorate it.  In fact, I think Donna may have suggested it, clever girl that she is.  So I searched the interwebs and found a pretty little pendant with Catherine Howard’s emblem on it – the crowned rose.  Of course, historians have discounted that it was her emblem specifically.  It could have been a Tudor symbol and evidence points to Catherine not having enough time as Queen to have her own emblem.  But I chose it anyway.

I often wear this necklace to conferences and events.  I like the feel of it around my neck.  And I love to talk about it when people ask.

The pendant is actually a locket.  And inside it, I keep photos of my two luckiest charms. 

Happy St. Patrick's week to all out there, Irish or not. This week the Muses turn our attention to the topic of LUCKY CHARMS and, as always, it will be fun to see everyone's diverse opinion on the subject. Hope you'll drop by and share one of your lucky charms sometime this week.

I prefer the idea of symbolism to charms, but I do have some tangible things I consider symbolic of my writing journey and, strangely enough, both are items of jewelry. It's odd because I don't consider myself much of a jewelry person, yet these two pieces are incredibly special to me.

The first arrived by mail in a beautifully wrapped Bloomingdale's gift box a week after the deal for SKINNY was announced. It was from the Muses. I opened it to find a tiny silver elephant charm on a delicate silver necklace accompanied by a note that read:


I loved it so much, I immediately made a huge wish for the future of SKINNY and put it on. I haven't taken it off since. I even wrote it into the last chapter of the book and sent an identical one to my lovely editor, Aimee Friedman at Scholastic. A couple of weeks ago, I took new photos for my book jacket and you can just see the tiny silver necklace around my neck (Yes, Bret, I know it's off center...sorry). It's symbolic of the wonderful friendship and support that has seen me through the journey this book has taken to publication. I love the fact it will be there on the book jacket.


I wear the second piece of symbolism around my wrist and it's completely from me. It's a charm bracelet I started to represent my publication journey. It helps me realize and be grateful for all the wonderful milestones I've seen this year. Each charm represents some special event or moment. The teapot is for the sale to the UK. The four leaf clover represents the four Muses. The purse is when I received the money for my advance. The green birthstone charm represents signing with my agent - Sarah Davies. We share the same August 7th birthday. And so on...








The journey to a dream is a difficult one, full of disappointments at times.
These two pieces of jewelry remind me constantly (in a tangible, visible way) of the amazing blessings I've had along the way.