August 2008

Origami and the Mask

August is usually the last gasp of summer, the last chance to get away, put your feet up at home or escape to the beach. But here at Gasa-Gasa Girl Central it means gearing up for not one, but two book launches!

August 12 is the official pub (publication) date for my first middle-grade book, 1001 Cranes. And to mark the birth of this book, our dedicated web site, www.1001cranesbook.com, has officially gone live. You'll get to see more photos from my childhood, a sample of what I was writing when I was in the fourth grade (!) and a picture of me sleeping at work (well, it was taken at probably 3 AM). I've also included the reasons why I wrote about origami cranes as well as a paper crane decorating contest/blog, so please e-mail me jpegs of your submissions.

Then on August 19 is the pub date of a superhero anthology, The Darker Mask, edited by Gary Phillips and Christopher Chambers. I have a short story. "Tat Master," in there illustrated by Shawn Martinbrough, and yes, it features a superhero—a Japanese female tattoo artist named Eye who has fled to Los Angeles (specifically Sawtelle for you Angelenos) to escape her abusive gangster boyfriend. It features some hand-to-hand combat, thanks to then 12-year-old Shea Matarazzo for helping me envision some of the violence. Kudos also must go to Mark Schreiber of the Japan Times who e-mailed several articles on Japanese tattoo artists and the yakuza.

My favorite description of the author and her pub date is found in Annie Lamott's superb writing book, Bird by Bird:

Finally the big day arrived and I woke up happy, embarrassed in advance by all the praise and attention that would be forthcoming. I made coffee and practiced digging my toe in the dirt, and called Pammy and a few friends to let them congratulate me. Then I waited for the phone to ring. The phone did not know its part. It sat there silent as death with a head cold. By noon the noise of it not ringing began to wear badly on my nerves.

It's all very humbling and important for an author to remember that on the day that her book is officially released, bookstores are not going to be trumpeting its arrival (unless your name is J.K. or Stephanie!). But it's still a day worth noting. So happy pub date, 1001 Cranes and "Tat Master." Hope you have a good life out there!

Naomi

Archived Notes

Monthly Serial:

Follow Naomi's monthly thriller serial, The Nihongo Papers, on Discovernikkei.org.

Mas Arai in Japan:

Gasa-Gasa Girl (left) Japanese edition Published by Shogakukan in February 2008 Snakeskin Shamisen (right) Japanese edition Published by Shogakukan in May 2008

Mas Arai Mysteries:

Snakeskin Shamisen is the winner of the 2007 Edgar Award for Best Paperback Original Novel!

Short Stories:

Los Angeles Noir featuring "Number 19" by Naomi Hirahara Published April 2007	A Hell of a Woman featuring "The Chirashi Covenant" by Naomi Hirahara Published December 2007	The Darker Mask featuring "Tat Master" by Naomi Hirahara Published August 2008

Photo of Naomi by Mario G. Reyes

©2006-08 by Naomi Hirahara. Web site by interbridge.