How I Spent My Summer Vacation

It's elementary school all over again!  We're back and ready for action on Tangled. Since it's a new season (almost) and we've come back from a hiatus, I'm going to open my post with some exciting news. We have two new contributors to our blog!! 

Ariane Mandell started out with us as a guest poster, but she's now been recruited to full time! I met Ariane on some boards looking for CP requests two years ago and got to hang out with her when I lived in Boston. She's got a lot of passion and great vision. We're excited to have her with us regularly!

We're also pleased to welcome Lindsay Smith! Lindsay is a friend local to DC who swept Patricia and I away with her awesomeness. Her first novel, SEKRET, is coming out with Roaring Brook Press/Macmillan children's in Winter 2014. She's repped by Weronika Janczuk of Lynn C. Frankling Associates and she will bring some new perspective to Tangled!  

Welcome ladies! Glad to have you with us. :)

Now. We're all going to share our highs and lows for the summer. Please chime in over the next two weeks and let us know what yours were! 

Highs:

• My biggest accomplishment was definitely finishing Hotboyalicious. I really love that story and it was such a pain in the butt for a while. I'm in revisions now and I love getting to tweak it to perfection. I can't wait to start sending it out into the world. :) 
• I'm hanging out with a new WIP. I mentioned it before, but it's dual POV and has all sorts of things that I know nothing about. But I love it. These characters are so much fun to write, so different, and so very exciting. And, it's contemporary. (I'm calling it Interception as a working title, but that definitely won't stay!)
• Spencer Hill Press. I've been editing. Editing. Editing. I have four books coming out in 2013/2014 (right now!) and my summer has been A LOT of editing manuscripts and working with authors and cover designers. It's been an exhausting blast. I'm also the Intern Wrangler at SHP and knee-deep in diving through hundreds of applications to find the right fit for our needs.
• DC!! I totally love the new area. It's stressful and hot,  but full of exciting possibilities, new friends and closer to my sister.

Lows:

• I don't have a job. Which is stressful, but one of those things that I don't really miss. (I miss the paychecks!) I've gotten a lot of work done, so that's a positive, but I need a job. 
• My last MS didn't get anywhere in queries. I've decided to shelve it because it's not the right time. It's sad to do that when you love a book that was such a part of your life for two years. But onward to new things! 
• I miss reading. I mean, books that are finished! I've read only a few this summer---and next year isn't looking so good. I need more time in the day. 

As summer ends and fall approaches, I'm looking forward to completing revisions on Hotboyalicious and writing Interception. I'm excited about new interns, new projects and cooler weather!!! 

What about yall? Any highs/lows from the summer or goals for the fall?