The Best of Friends (and FRENEMIES!)

WOW! What a release day this has been. My husband (the best friend ever!) actually took the day off work so we could have lunch together (which was delicious...I'm still full). Then we stopped by Borders Books where we found FOUR copies of Frenemies on display. Not bad for a debut novel on its first day out. As if that weren't enough, I got a call from my sister-in-law while I was standing there looking at my books; she let me know she'd just gone to Barnes & Noble and asked for Frenemies, which wasn't out on the floor yet. She bought her copy and plans to read it on a flight tomorrow. Yay!

But wait...there's more! Truly, the outpouring of love and support from my family, friends and all the incredible people in the writing community (including many of the phenomenal reviewers you see listed over there on the right) has made my day...my week...my YEAR! In fact, it's been so awesome, I want to share a few of the highlights, just so you can see how ridiculously lucky I am...

FIRST, WE HAVE REBECCA

Rebecca and I met during our sophomore year of high school. Our older brothers had been friends since elementary school and always thought we'd get along, but it wasn't until we both auditioned for and co-starred in the high school musical Fame (yes, there were high school musicals even before the Disney Channel and Zac Efron) that we got to know each other and developed a bond that's lasted to this day. Although life has occasionally taken us down different paths, Rebecca and I always manage to reconnect and have even become closer through the years. She's been like a sister to me in so many ways, always there to listen, advise and cheer me on. Anyway, before I get too serious and sappy, here's the email Rebecca sent (after calling me first thing this morning to wish me a happy release day! Note: Her beautiful daughters are pictured atop this post):

From: Rebecca Slavin

Sent: Tuesday, May 13, 2008 4:07 PM

To: Alexa Young

Subject: We had success

Importance: High

Hi!

Our travels in search of Frenemies did not take us that far - Carlsbad became our destination. We first visited the Borders where they said they had four copies. They had not yet pulled them from the stock room so when he asked how many copies I wanted, I said "Well, go ahead and bring them all out!" He did and I promptly found the perfect place to display them. I told him I would be purchasing one copy but that I wanted the rest to remain out in the open. He smiled and agreed. You will see from the pictures below, I found a nice home for the remaining three. :)

The second store we went to was Barnes and Noble. It was the same story there. They had four copies but had not yet brought them out for display. The gentleman helping me was so excited for you he gave me all four books and said, "put them wherever you want." I started off putting them in alphabetical order on the shelf but then didn't feel they would "stand out." So, I moved them to the "New For Teens" section and decided to ignore the "alphabetical order" because I wanted you on the top shelf. ;)

We all had a great time. It was SOOOOOOOOO cool seeing your book in the stores!! YAY!!!

I love you so much!

XOXO,

~Becca

NEXT, WE HAVE TAYLOR
Taylor Morris is the incredibly talented author of Class Favorite and the forthcoming Total Knockout, who also happens to be one of the few friends I mention by name in the acknowledgments of Frenemies. She and I met nearly ten years ago, when we were both working for the teen magazine JUMP. I felt close to Taylor practically from day one. She just has that positive energy that makes you want to hug her, and she's so smart. Anyway, even though she lives in New York now (and I'm still in L.A.), we've stayed in contact through the years and she's been a tremendous source of support on this fun-filled journey into the world of teen fiction. Case in point...the lovely note she sent me today:

From: Taylor Morris
Sent: Tuesday, May 13, 2008 3:50 PM
To: Alexa Young
Subject: Pics of Frenemies

So I bought my copy of Frenemies today, found at B&N at 5th Ave, and here's a pic of it on the shelf and of me holding it on the balcony of my office in front of the Chrysler Building.

Hooray!

Taylor Morris
Author of "Class Favorite"
Now in bookstores!http://www.taylormorris.com/

THEN, WE HAVE KERRI
I knew Kerri back in middle and high school. I wouldn't say we were the closest of friends, but I think we always had a certain mutual respect for each other's ability to tell it like it is and to never let anybody push us around. (Yay for tough girls!) Anyway, thanks to the magic of social networking sites like Facebook, we recently found each other and bonded over how our lives have changed...and how they've stayed the same. Here's the message she sent this afternoon:

From: Kerri Wolff
Sent: Tuesday, May 13, 2008 3:39 PM
To: Alexa Young
Subject: book

Hi ya,

I just finished the book. (yes, I read fast) It was so much fun! It made me remember how awful Junior High could be and how happy I am that I am grown up. Also made me realize how my poor mother tried so hard to keep me fashionable and I did not care one thing about it. Without her I would have been even more of a reject- ha ha. I loved reading old names from Gage... Kitty, Amy,Mrs. Howe and more although I see you didn't keep personalities and body types the same. It was lots of fun! I hope it is a big success!
ox,K

AND FINALLY…WE HAVE TERA
Tera Lynn Childs is the author of the awesome, recently-released Oh. My. Gods. I had the good fortune of meeting her through a teenlit writing group to which we both belong, and we clicked almost instantly. We have so much in common, in just a few short weeks we’ve started to joke with each other that perhaps we are, in fact, the same person. Tera, too, was on the case today, searching for Frenemies in the Houston area. Here’s her message:

From: Tera Lynn Childs

Sent: Tuesday, May 13, 2008 8:14 PM

To: Alexa Young

Subject: Fw: Multimedia message

(Hope the pic comes through.) Taken on my camera phone at the Town & Country Barnes & Noble in West Houston. Yay!!! Co-op space on the YA table is great placement!

Hugs,TLC

***
So...how cool is that? A best friend from high school, a friend from the first consumer magazine I ever worked for, a long-lost friend from middle school, and a new friend met mere weeks ago—all throwing down the love and support for little old me. Meanwhile, I just got to have dinner (pizza!) with one of the PILLAS (who I mention in the Frenemies dedication)—a dear friend I met during my years working for Capitol Records. FYI: “pilla” is a term of endearment that this particular friend coined. I don’t know exactly how she came up with it, but it does sort of capture the soft, cushy, happy feeling you get when you’re around the people you love…don’t you think?

Anyway, that’s probably enough blogging for one day. But before I go, I'm sending out all my love and gratitude to everybody who's made today rock so hard. And on that note, because I feel like such a queen today, please enjoy:

XO