Paper Fruit

Sup y’all. I assume if you read this blog you’ve bought Creatures of Will and Temper by now, but if not… if you were, like, a fan of Vermilion or my short fiction and have been waiting to be super sure if you wanted to read my all-fencing all-demon all-fraught-conversations-about-art epic, you can now read it for free on io9.

That’s right! Part One is up today, Wednesday the 30th, Part Two will be up on Wednesday, June 6th, and Part Three will be up Wednesday, June 13th.

Spread the word, tell your friends, buy a copy after being so amazingly intrigued, buy another copy for your friend who’d love it because they’re into girl feelings and fencing and people thinking about their thoughts a lot?

For a while now, “readers” of this “blog” will have noticed a popup at the top claiming I had a newsletter. Well, about a year after setting that up, I finally have scheduled my very first! I hope to use it monthly, which let’s be honest, given the state of this blog, is ambitious, but we’ll see. I like the personal nature of the newsletter, and MailChimp is fun to play around in. So, if you’re curious about stuff I do, please do sign up. I’m trying to make the newsletter a mix of professional news (books, short stories, appearances) and personal hobbies such as my home canning adventures and also my baking and such. I’ll also try to always provide at least one picture of the Toad.

Other than that, it’s been… well, it’s been. I finished the page proofs for the forthcoming Creatures of Want and Ruin (now you can pre-order!) am working on a new short story, and am easing back into the now-announced third book in the series, Creatures of Charm and Hunger.

Yep, there will be a third! The quick pitch is “teen witch murdering Nazis” but of course said witch is a diabolist and there’s more to it than that, but… if that sounds like something you’d like to read, you won’t be disappointed.

Thanks for sticking with this blog, and with me, and see you (hopefully) in newsletter form soon!

It’s true. Creatures of Will and Temper is out! It’ll be in your local B&N, or your local bookstore, hopefully, or definitely online at one of the links I’ve put up on the sidebar.

The critical response to the book has been very good so far. It’s gotten kind reviews in Publishers Weekly (starred!), Library Journal, Booklist (link is to the reviewer’s expanded review on her own blog), Fantasy Faction, and a few other place so far. This BookPage review really knocked my socks off.

I’m doing a Reddit AMA on 11/14, when the book drops on r/fantasy. Come and see me, ask me something! Anything!

Also on the 14th, I’m doing a reading at the Denver Tattered Cover, the LoDo location. Details at the link, show starts at 7.

The following Monday, the 20th, you can find me at the downtown Powell’s in Portland, OR. I’ll be reading there at 7:30!

I’ll try to update things here as the book comes to life, but obviously I always go way too long between updates. If you’re super invested in hearing about what’s up with Creatures of Will and Temper I’d suggest following me on Twitter @molly_the_tanz, or on Insta @molly_tanzer. I consider FB friend requests a lot more carefully if they come with a note, but I also keep that account a lot more locked down than my public social media.

Creatures of Will and Temper is available for pre-order on Amazon! So, if you think a feminist retelling of The Picture of Dorian Gray with sword fighting and demons sounds cool, please do pre-order it or mark your calendars to go into a brick-and-mortar to pick it up when it comes in!

Many people agree with me that you should do this… among them, Diana Gabaldon, bestselling author of Outlander, whose blurb graces the cover, and who just causally name-dropped my novel today in The Washington Post. Yes, that Washington Post! 

Here’s a roundup of what people have had to say about this book (out Nov. 14th, mark your calendars, or just have an online store send you a copy the moment it’s available!)

“An artful, witty, Oscar Wilde pastiche with the heart of a paranormal thriller.” — Diana Gabaldon, bestselling author of Outlander

“A delightful, dark, and entertaining romp… Molly Tanzer is at the top of her form in this beautifully constructed novel. Sure to be a favorite of readers and critics alike.” —Jeff VanderMeer, bestselling author of Annihilation and Bourne

“Creatures of Will and Temper is a wild ride from start to finish, beautifully and boldly written, and a most worthy successor to Oscar Wilde’s scandalous novel.” —Amy Stewart, bestselling author of Girl Waits with Gun and The Drunken Botanist

“Decadent Victorians clash with dueling demon-hunters in this sharply-observed, page-turning reinvention of Oscar Wilde’s classic tale. —Charles Stross, award-winning author of The Delirium Brief

“Creatures of Will and Temper is a smart, gorgeously written book about passion, loyalty, and love in many forms.” —Kat Howard, author of Roses and Rot

“A perfectly queer homage to The Picture of Dorian Gray, Creatures of Will and Temper is a story of acceptance, of understanding, of correcting erroneous first impressions, and the bond of a disparate group of individuals in a shared bad situation. It is a timely story, and one that I think we all need right now.” —Sarah Lynn Weintraub, Books Manager, Pandemonium Books and Games