Maggie Stiefvater's Charlottesville signing and Contest

Yes, that's right. Today is all about me. Become my minions or perish.

Okay, so maybe it wasn't quite like that, but a signing with Maggie Stiefvater is never a tame event. Randomness and shenanigans are always part of the experience, and what starts out as an on-topic conversation about books can quickly degrade, but that's all part of the fun. Maggie's signing at the Barnes & Noble in Charlottesville, Virginia, last Saturday (March 13) was no exception.

Maggie fans of all ages showed up to catch a glimpse of the best selling author, packing tight into a corner of the bookstore to listen to her speak. I met up with Monica from Bibliophilic Book Blog and we befriended Laura from Tattooed Books at the event. Of course one of the first questions she answered was, "Where do you get your ideas?"

She explained that they start out as little nagging thoughts and slowly grow. Sometimes writing a short story just to put the idea down on paper and quiet the voices. Other times, they become so loud that something more is necessary. That was the case with Maggie's NYT best seller SHIVER. Maggie said the voice got rather impatient with that particular idea.

"Maggie Stiefvater," it boomed. "Write a book about werewolves and kissing."

So she did... And the people did rejoice. YAY! (In case you need a little more rejoicing, the sequel LINGER comes out on July 20.)

After talking about her books, she shared some stories about her travels. Including one about a security guard at the Newark airport who thought Maggie intended to take out a plane with her terrorist sketch book. All this because it had a metal latch on it. Too your left, you will see Maggie with the afforementioned "Sketch Book of Doom."

While she signed books and bookplates and doodled in several people's books, there was talk of critiquing and revisions and the Merry Sisters of Fate, a short fiction site that Maggie and her critique partners Brenna Yovanoff (THE REPLACEMENT, Razorbill 2010) and Tessa Gratton (BLOOD MAGIC, Random House 2011) post to regularly.

Maggie even reenacted her meeting with author M.T. Anderson at the Midwest Bookseller's Association annual meeting last fall where Publisher's Weekly snapped a photo of them chatting. On the left is Maggie playing M.T. Anderson and a podium standing in for Maggie. On the right is the actual shot, which is not quite as marked, but his face is priceless.

As the signing began to wind down, casual conversation with Maggie continued. Everything from the recent surge in zombie books to Loki's new stereo system was fair game. (Loki is Maggie's camaro for those who don't know.) That was about the time James from Book Chic Club rolled in, speeding ticket in hand.

Awful right? Yes, but this is not a first for our beloved boy blogger. Oh no. He's broken the law to get to Maggie before, and you can read about that incident here.  

Maggie and I also took a photo together. Long story short, Maggie apparently can't take a photo with me where she doesn't look like she's plotting my demise, so I pleaded with her to behave. That's when the camera malfunctioned, bad photos were taken and Maggie suddenly decided to take over as creative director of my blog. Of the handful of photos taken of us, the following train wreck of a photo is her selection...

I know what you're thinking, but I had no choice. Maggie chose. I tried to protest and her response was:

 "NYT best seller. I win."

CONTEST CLOSED

(International)

A copy of Ballad, the sequel to Lament, is up for grabs! It's signed AND Maggie doodled the King of the Dead just inside the cover, so some lucky reader with not only have her autograph, but also some of her artwork.

You have to be a blog follower, and leave a comment on this post to enter. Extra entry opportunities are listed below.

Extra Entries

+3 Follower (New or Old)

+3 Add Wastepaper Prose to your blog roll

+2 Follow @wastepaperprose on Twitter

+1 Tweet about the contest. (Include @wastepaperprose in your tweet.)

+1 Link this contest on your blog

Don't forget to include your e-mail and links to tweets/posts, and tally your entries in your comment.

Contest closes on April 10 at midnight EST .