NEWS!! I HAVE NEWSY NEWS!! NEW DEAL NEWS!!

Hi! It's me! I'm back!

No really. I am. Don't look at me like that - I had a deadline! It's a word that has the word "dead" in it. At any rate, I'm very pleased to say that I'm about to hand in the first finished draft of the manuscript for ONCE EVERY NEVER. I'm so excited about this book and I really hope you guys will be too! I think you will be. :-)

And then, as of today, I no longer have to sit on the news of my next project (and let me tell you, the keeping-secret-thereof has been killing me!) because my new deal announcement for a brand new trilogy with HarperCollins is out!

It's called STARLING and I'm really thrilled about it. Here is the official Publishers Weekly announcement:

HarperTeen Nabs Bourne-Like YA Trilogy

Jessica Regel, at Jean V. Naggar, sold North American rights to a supernatural YA trilogy by Lesley Livingston tentatively called STARLING. HarperTeen editor Laura Arnold acquired the books, which Regel said are reminiscent of The Bourne Identity and "blend Norse, Egyptian, and Greek mythologies with paranormal elements." In the series, warring powerful New York City crime families, all with ties to the supernatural, vie for control of the fate of mankind. Book one in the trilogy is scheduled for summer 2012. Livingston's debut novel, the 2008 faerie-tinged Wondrous Strange, was the first book in a YA trilogy she just finished for HarperTeen; book two, Darklight, was released in 2009, and book three, Tempestuous, is scheduled for January 2011.

Now I'm going to go celebrate! Or nap! Or both!

But before I do that, I also wanted say that I really appreciate all of the comments you guys leave. I know I'm not always around to answer them (remember the "deadline" word!) but please know that I read each and every one and they are so very much appreciated! You guys rock.

Now let's party before I pass out on my keyboard! Wooo!