In which Prairie Fire turns ten years old
In March of 2013, I flew to Austin, Texas to go to my first writing retreat. It was exciting, not the least because I’d be meeting new people from every part of the publishing spectrum. I, a year out from publication, was scheduled to be on kitchen duty with New York Times Bestseller Beth Revis! I was so nervous, but I was ready to work.
I remember what I worked on. I wrote the first 10K of A Thousand Nights (in my livejournal, I theorized that it’s unpublishable). I sat on the dock with Myra McEntire and workshopped her trilogy ending (the Hourglass books are so fun). I got excellent advice from Carrie Ryan (which I still pass along, because it’s truly brilliant). I made baked chicken with Beth Revis (and Coca-Cola Cake, which was new for me!). And I did line edits on The Story of Owen. In response to one of Andrew Karre’s editorial questions, I typed “If you want to know the answer, you’re going to have to buy another book.”
On the way home, Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite came up on my shuffle, and the thoughts I’d first had on the banks of the Athabasca River back in 2011 came together. I knew what happened to Owen. I knew what happened to Siobhan. And I knew the most important lie she was ever going to tell.
We worked out the contract, and I started writing the first draft of Prairie Fire. In the way of books, everything either happened all the same time or not at all. The Story of Owen was published. I sold books 3 through 6, and starting writing them. And eventually, Prairie Fire came out, March 1, 2015.
A published book isn’t forever. They go out of print all the time. That Inevitable Victorian Thing went out of print in 2020, only a few years after it first hit shelves (I made $60 on the e- and audiobooks on my most recent royalty statement, though, so…at least there’s that). And yet, here we are in 2025, and you can still buy my first two books in any bookstore. By special order, so, like, call ahead, but they’re still there.
It’s a weird business, mixing art and capitalism. It hurts a lot, and it’s deeply unpredictable, but as I routinely tell school children who look at me like I’m a little off my rocker (they’re not wrong), I’d rather be writing on writing’s worst day than doing anything else. I’m pretty sure I said this last year, celebrating Owen’s 10th, but: here’s to the next ten years.
This is an abrupt tone shift, but a member of the KidLit community is in need of help to get out of a domestic violence situation. For the safety of them and their family, they must be anonymous, but I vouch for the fundraiser. If you are able to donate or signal boost, your help is very much appreciated. There are a few more details available on the main page: Gofundme Link.
You can order The Story of Owen and Prairie Fire from any bookstore (I recommend finding your local Indie; you’ll meet cool booksellers), along with most of my other books.
Titan of the Stars comes out on May 27, and Sky on Fire comes out July 22. Both are available now for preorder, and if you’re really excited, you can ask your local library to get copies in too.