Hello people of the world!

Pietro Volo here, also known as “Peter Pan.” I know you weren’t expecting to hear from me today, but let me explain. Our good pal J-Dev has been super busy signing books, attempting to catch up on Game of Thrones, and word on the street is that he’s already neck deep in the sequel to The Carver. Whaaat? I hope he’ll name the next one after me this time, the obvious star. (Love ya, Pino.)

Anyway, since Jay is doing authorly stuff, and since I had so much fun being interviewed here a couple months ago, I thought I’d jump in the driver’s seat this time. Let’s talk about road trips!

Now, when it comes to road trips, Rule #1 is that you have to have a good playlist. I hate rules, so this is the only one that matters besides, y’know, keeping an eye on your gas tank and paying attention to your bladder.

Below are Pietro Volo’s Five Keys to an epic roadtrip playlist. Click within and get a small glimpse of what the Son of Pinocchio and I jammed to on our adventure across the country.

1. The playlist shall not be dominated by any one artist or band, no matter how much you love Maroon 5. Mr. Levine may be able to carry a tune, but no man can carry a car for seven hours. Also, would you want to spend seven hours sitting in an ice cream shop when all they have is chocolate? Okay, then.
   
2. The playlist shall include a number of powerhouse karaoke songs. I recommend Journey’s Greatest Hits as a starting point. When’s the last time you broke down the Fresh Prince of Bel Air theme? If you need more inspiration, the early 1990’s were a gold mine.
   
3. The playlist shall include a number of songs without words, such as movie scores and other instrumentals. First of all, you’re going to get tired of your passengers’ terrible karaoke voices. Plus, have you ever zoomed down the highway listening to some badass escape music? Try it. You’ll love it.
   
4. The playlist shall fall almost as much as it rises. You’ll probably do some driving in the dark. You’ll go through some boring places where all you’ll see for an hour is like, one windmill. Unless it’s raining, that’s the perfect time to roll down your window and contemplate life. You might even have the best cry ever, not that I have any experience in this area.
   
5. The playlist shall be a collaboration. If you’re driving alone, you can do whatever, but if you have passengers, particularly a pair of angsty teenagers named Enzo and Rosana, then don’t be a playlist hog, okay? Share. You might even get feedback before you leave. Ask your friends such as Maira and Josh what they recommend.

I’d like to remind you all to drive safely as you implement your epic road trip playlist. In other words, make sure you stop by your local Starbucks if it’s gonna be a long one, stay alert, and please don’t play Pokemon Go behind the wheel, Kids. Pikachu ain’t worth it.

I gotta fly now, but I promise I’ll be back to hang out with you all again real soon! Until then, put a good word in with J-Dev, will you? I really want his next book to be called The Flying Man, but I still don’t think he’s having it.

Happy driving, and happy listening!

 

Before I launch into this, I want to throw out a hearty THANK YOU to the fantastic bloggers, reviewers, friends, and Twitter enthusiasts who helped spread the word on THE CARVER over the past few days. The initial love and support for this book has been unreal. It got to the point that I couldn’t “like” every Tweet I got tagged in. There were just far too many, and that’s such an amazing thing to be able to say. I’m over the moon with gratitude for you all!

On the side, I may have been spending this whole entire week celebrating in San Diego! I don’t think it’s a secret that I’m a HUGE Marvel/superhero/comic lover, and it was a thrill to journey to the mecca of geekdom for my second year: San Diego Comic Con! YAY!

I have so much to say about this annual event and its special place in my heart. Some people tell me they don’t understand it, and I can’t judge that. From the outside, let’s be real: it sorta looks like a Black Friday sale on steroids. To be fair, there are people who go there and treat it that way. They throw things into bags big enough to carry me and push and shove (and sometimes get thrown out and it’s hilarious), and sometimes they don’t even know what they’re shoving into their bags. I can only speak for my own experiences and understanding, but ultimately, I feel that there’s a very beautiful side to this convention and a reason why I willingly braved the crowds a second time.

I think everybody needs something to believe in and something that they’re passionate about… the sort of thing they can’t outgrow and the sort of thing that grows with them. For me, that’s the culture that we celebrate about SDCC. It’s Marvel and DC and heroes and villains and the actors, writers, illustrators, and filmmakers who bring them to life. At its core, it’s stories. It’s the sort of life force that my mother imbued me with when I was going through chemotherapy almost twenty years ago. Superman would eat all his food; I should, too. Spider-Man would listen to the nurses; I should, too. Wolverine would be brave for the needle; I should, too. That’s where it started for me. Superheroes were role models, and as I grew, I saw the humanity in them and loved them for their flaws. For people who share my affinity for this culture, it means everything to stand in an endless line just to see Star-Lord/Chris Pratt flash the peace sign. It’s a thrill to think of Sabaa Tahir as some literary goddess and yet get to see her as a human who also geeks out over the X-Men.

One interesting thing that I keep remembering: talking to a fellow volunteer who has been doing this for 17 years and learning that at his first SDCC, there were 30,000 attendees. At the very first Con, there were maybe 100. This week, there were 130,000. I keep wondering: if I’m at SDCC in 15 more years, what am I going to be telling all the younglings about my first few Cons?

One thing I’d like to remember is the sense of comaraderie that one feels when you’re surrounded by superfans. This year, I camped out for the first time with the hopes of scoring some autographs from the cast of Arrow. The end result was that I got to spend about 10 seconds chatting with Charlie Hunnam and getting him to sign a poster for a movie I’d never heard of before. I may not remember that conversation in seventeen years, but I’ll definitely remember my first time camping out! I’ll remember how I thought I had such an edge on the other Arrow hopefuls by arriving at 1am. I’ll remember napping on the grass with a bottle of water, a blanket, and a couple of Cliff bars. I’ll remember that for about 9 hours, I was basically best friends with a few people I’ll probably never see again, all because we chose to suffer the #NotHallHLine for the exact same reasons!

Despite all the excitement, my legs feel like Jell-O. My eyes are a little red. I’m broke thanks to the corn dogs again. I’m a little relieved that SDCC is all done for the year and can’t wait to kick back and read my ARC print of A Torch Against the Night. But once my lower body strength returns, I’ll be anxiously awaiting next year’s SDCC!

On that note, who else is having a hard time waiting for the upcoming Harry Potter script book? What’s the “fandom” you geek out the hardest for, and why do you think you’re a fan?

Have a great week, friends!

 

 

Dear Friends,

Somewhere in a world we’ve never even seen (or I don’t know, maybe even New York), Peter Pan and all his friends are throwing a huge party. I’m sure there’s pizza involved. Mulan’s probably doing party tricks with her sword. Snow White’s probably trying to be the healthy one, so hopefully one of the seven dwarves are following her around and slapping the apples out of her hand before she can bite them.

MY FRIENDS! The Carver is officially in the world today! You can finally hold the book in your hands and get to know these characters as friends of your own. As a heads up, I will probably be running on caffeine and sheer adrenaline all the way through Sunday. This is the only “first release” I’m ever going to have as an author, so I want to remember this amazing feeling. I want to preserve these emotions in a jar and keep that jar by my bed for the rest of my days. It’s hard to describe the emotions, but the jar would probably look ethereal and fun, with some shiny cloudy smoky stuff swirling around inside.

I want you to know that this is a time I will never forget. I will always remember and appreciate that Blaze Publishing offered me the life of a story spinner, and The Carver will always hold a special place in my heart as the first adventure we got to share together. I hope you enjoy this little road trip I planned for you. It’s just the beginning of a much larger journey, and I don’t know about you, but I’m in it for the long haul!

Ultimately, I could ramble on forever, but Pietro and Enzo are about to jump in the car and hit the road, and I don’t want you to miss the trip. We’re partying on Facebook all day long. If you check out the Twitterverse, I’ve seen a few bloggers doing some really fun things already… gifs, playlists, excerpts, and don’t even get me started on that interview with Ryan Hill.

Enjoy The Carver, everyone, and make a wish!

-Jacob

 

Well, friends, we are getting down to the final stretch in waiting for The Carver‘s release! We’ve heard from most of the key players, we’ve adventured through Nashville and braved thunderstorms, and throughout this wait, we have grown together! And so it’s definitely  fitting that we hear from the character who helped Peter Pan, Pinocchio, and Alice grow up in the first place. I want to warn you first. Violet’s a little strange. I never knew somebody so morally gray could be so purple. She kinda looks like this:

Jacob: So tell the readers, Violet: What’s your story? What’s your role in The Carver, and where are you when it starts?

Violet: I’m the fairy guardian of the Old World. Technically I’m a princess–informally acting as the queen, but I tend not to think of it that way. I just keep an eye on things and make sure the people of Florindale are living in peace.

Jacob: Which of course leads to a great question: Are they living in peace?

Violet: Hmmm, mostly. But there are of course some rascals to watch out for. Am I allowed to say who?

Jacob: Sure, why not?

Violet: *sigh* I feel rather uneasy about Hansel these days. I fear he may not be himself.

Jacob: I actually interviewed him a few months ago. It was… interesting. You’ve known him for a long time, haven’t you?

Violet: Yes. It was I who delivered the news to him about his sister’s disappearance many years ago.

Jacob: That couldn’t have been a pleasant conversation for either of you.

Violet: The most difficult part was his silence. I think the poor man was in shock for a while. It almost would’ve been easier if he had screamed or shouted at me. Now, I feel like he’s always stabbing me with his eyes.

Jacob: Do you think he blames you? Maybe we should back up: What in the world happened to Gretel?

Violet: I’m not emotionally prepared, nor am I at liberty to discuss Gretel’s fate.

Jacob: You must have known I was going to bring this up, Violet. You’re one of the final interviews before The Carver launches. The readers are itching for a preview!

Violet: I’m sorry, Mr. Devlin, but I will say no more on Gretel. What else would you like to know?

Jacob: Lame… Why don’t you tell me about the Order of the Bell, then?

Violet: I do rather enjoy this topic. You’ve met them all, yes?

Jacob: I have. Is it true that you assembled them? How did you get so lucky as to get a hold of Hua Mulan, Merlin, Captain Hook, and the others?

Violet: The Order of the Bell has existed since before my birth, but I assembled this particular group many years ago. We had some problems to fix in Florindale. Dragons had become a bit of an issue. There was a beast terrorizing the Woodlands and devouring children. Giants were our biggest problem–no pun intended.

Jacob: So when things get out of hand, you call on them to save the world. Do you feel like you’ll get to do that any time soon?

Violet: One hopes it wouldn’t be necessary. It has to be a catastrophic danger for me to ask them for help. To give you some perspective, do you remember what happened to Snow White long ago?

Jacob: Are you referring to the incident with her stepmother? The poison and whatnot?

Violet: Yes. That was devastating. But even that wasn’t big enough to get the Order of the Bell involved. Sure, everybody had a small role in saving Snow and making sure she got justice. But the bulk of the work fell to other names. Prince Liam and the seven miners. Oh, I should mention that Hansel may have been involved as well. He tends to be left out of these stories, eclipsed by bigger names… that poor, poor man.

Jacob: Do you mind if I ask you one more question?

Violet: Ask away, my dear.

Jacob: What are you doing on July 19th?

Violet: Logging onto Facebook for your release day party, of course! There will be fireworks and cake and frolicking, yes?

Jacob: Whatever you want, Miss Violet! Tell me what you want and I’ll write it up for you. That’s what Authors do!

Violet: May the light be with you, Lore Master!

So she wasn’t so bad after all, right? I just keep on wondering what happened to Hansel and Gretel… Luckily, we’re only about 10 days away from the answer! *cues up Europe’s The Final Countdown*

Everywhere I’ve gone in the past few weeks, I’ve been attracting thunderstorms–the kind that rip your trees out of the ground and totally freak your pets out. I love them.

This week, one of those storms blew some eccentric visitors into town. Their arrival was straight out of a horror movie, honestly. There I was sprawled out on my couch with my goofy Wolverine snuggie and a book, and then one of those crazy flashes of lightning fill the sky. When the lightning went away, there were five dark shadows standing stone still outside my window. Seriously, it was like the lightning zapped them down from outer space or something. Terrifying, right?

And then I remembered that they were supposed to be here. I invited them over for an interview. WHEW! How could I forget?

When I opened the door, two women, two men, and a very large creature entered my apartment. Here is a part of the conversation that took place between us.

Old Woman: Greetings, Lore Master. We are The Order of the Bell, and we’ve come to share our story.

Jacob: *wearing a ginormous grin because the old woman just called me Lore Master. How epic!* Good evening, all! Thanks for braving this crazy monsoon tonight. I swear this storm came out of nowhere.

Old Woman: Don’t fret, Lore Master. Dealing with danger is our specialty. Shall I put on some tea for us all?

Jacob: Sure, if you want. The Keurig’s over by my laptop.

Bald Man: Nonsense, my boy! Let Ms. Rose prepare something real for you. Do you already know our names? She’s Ms. Augustine Rose. I’m Merlin the Magician. We are also joined tonight by Ms. Hua Mulan, Mr. James Hook, and Sir Jacob Isaac Holmes. He’s really not as frightening as he appears.

Jacob: It’s great to see you all! You’re legends. I named my book series after you!

Augustine: We always wondered if somebody would tell the story of the Order.

Mr. Holmes: But let us be clear. It is not our story. We are merely here to assist the heroes from the sidelines and keep the worlds at peace.

Jacob: That sounds like a giant responsibility.

Hua Mulan: We’ve all had our trials. Fortunately, we were appointed to the Order because we live for the thrills. After you experience the rush of saving China from invaders, the day-to-day gets a little boring. I jumped at the chance to save the world again and again. I especially enjoy dealing with dragons.

Jacob: So Mulan saved China. What’s the story for the rest of you? What’s been your biggest challenge until the events of The Carver?

Mr. Holmes: There are some rather unpleasant entities hiding in the Woodlands. Aquamantulas, witches, wolves–

Augustine: Oh, the wolves are nothing, dear. Leave those to me. The Woodlands are my turf. It was the giants we really needed to worry about.

Merlin: Valid. I personally enjoy dealing with any object touched by a solid, well-constructed curse.

Jacob: Wait, did I hear you correctly? You enjoy curses?

Merlin: Don’t misunderstand me, Sir Lore Master! I only enjoy dismantling them. I suppose the skill is somewhat comparable to what the younglings in your world do when they take on computer viruses. ‘Tis such a thrill to discover all the little threads and back doors in what would otherwise be an infallible curse. There’s always a flaw. I wish curses never existed in the first place, but the genie has long been unbottled. Speaking of which, that’s quite a thrilling tale for another day…

Jacob: I can only imagine! How ’bout you, James? You’ve been pretty quiet. What’s been one of your challenges?

Hook: Peter Pan.

Hua Mulan: James! Did we not agree that the subject of Mr. Pan is off limits tonight, and always?

Hook: Aye. And yet Mr. Devlin posed a query. Shall I lie to our Lore Master?

Augustine: Maybe just pick something else, dear. You’re not so fond of alligators, for instance.

Hook: Crocodiles, lass. There’s a difference.

Augustine: Potato, potahto.

Jacob: So you protect the Old World from danger. How do you know when to come together?

Merlin: We listen for the bells. Although, now that we’re here, perhaps we should all invest in smart phones? I understand there’s a curious new brand of magic called GroupMe. I’m most interested in trying it.

Mr. Holmes: Does it require one to know how to read? Because I’m afraid Mr. Hook here hasn’t learned to distinguish his As from his Zs.

Hua Mulan: The bells are tradition. Leave them as they are.

Jacob: So which one of you would I call if I were to find a spider in my room?

*silence*

Jacob: Any of you?

Hook: There be a reason I sail the seven seas, lad. The more distance I put between me and the shore, the more distance I put between me and those infernal demons. I’ll take my gamble with the crocodiles.

*more silence*

Jacob: Come on! You can’t be serious right now!

Augustine: Poor thing, I’m afraid you’re on your own with the spiders. We specialize in dragons, evil queens, werewolves, apocalyptic spells… you’ll understand if we acknowledge our weaknesses. There are certain types of evil we’re not equipped to deal with.

Jacob: I hate you all just a little bit right now.

On a dark and stormy night, which team would you call upon to save the world?

Next week, we’ll meet the person who first called upon the Order of the Bell. It’s kinda hard to call her a person, though. She’s more of a fairy, and she’s seen some weird stuff. I can’t wait to get her insight on her role in The Carver. Hope you’ll be there to meet Violet!