Lauren Mechling

Nature's Best Snack

February 8, 2010 8:53 AM

I did a little interview at Book Nut's site today. It is high in protein.

Me, In Person

February 7, 2010 3:42 PM

I should probably tell you I'm reading at the KGB bar on Tuesday, Feb 9, from 7-9. It's a party for Relationship Obits, my beautiful (see below!) friend Kathleen Horan's web site where one posts obits for dead relationships.



The obit I wrote is called "Death by an In-N-Out Burger." You'll have to come or buy the book to see how that went down.

My fellow obit writers and I will be joined by Toni Bentley, the author of "The Surrender," a romantic memoir, assuming your definition of "romantic" involves, er, well you can just Google it.

PSA Part Deux

February 7, 2010 12:23 PM

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, which isn't free but might as well be (the $20 donation is suggested--a buck or two will open the pearly gates just as easily) has The Best Show Ever: Victorian Photocollage. Turns out the married ladies of 1860s London were hilarious jokesters. In the image below, you will see that the artist installed the hunky Prince of Windsor next to her photocollage table (she is to his right, surrounded by her craft supplies) while her sulky-looking husband has been miniaturized and seated at bottom right, next to the dog.

Public Service Announcement

February 6, 2010 11:37 AM

The Neue Gallerie is my favorite museum on New York. It's in Cornelius Vanderbilt III's former mansion on 5th Avenue and it's filled with the most exquisite early 20th century art from Austria and Germany. Just went on the museum's website and saw that Michael Bloomberg, wearing his millionaire and not mayor hat, has given the museum money to make it free to the public on the first Friday of every month, from 6-8.

It would be a mistake of criminal proportions not to go.

(Oh, one other thing to do in NYC: check out Dream Life's stop on Book Court's bestseller shelf. By some stroke of craziness, it's crawled its way up to number 3!!)

Word of the Day

February 2, 2010 1:43 PM

"Dy-Curious," brought to me by my blogger crush Presenting Lenore in her kickoff entry for her Dystopian February celebration.

Final Fantasy

February 1, 2010 6:51 AM

The blog tour wraps up this week. And my directions-giving wraps up this morning (all this touring has been cutting in on my beauty sleep).


Today, I'll be here.
Tomorrow, I'll be here.
Wednesday, I'll be here.
And then, my friends, will be the campfire singalong / Lady Gaga dance-a-thon (but not before you buy a copy of Dream Life)!

Bill Murray Was Totally Onto Something

January 31, 2010 5:51 PM

Hey, American brides to be: Sick of cheesy headlines about "touchable traditional hairdos" and "memorable tablescapes?" You must be reading the wrong wedding magazines!

From a recent wedding dress spread in Vogue Japan (read more here):

Blog Tour, Jeepers Creepers edition

January 30, 2010 2:27 PM

So the blog tour is wrapping up next week, as Dear Abby's people called Claire's people and said the advice column stealing is getting a little uncool. She's going to have to come up with a new trick for her next blog tour. Oh wait--she's going to have to come up with a new book first. Grrr.

Meanwhile, The Book Cellar gave Dream Life 4.5 out of 5 stars. Or was it out of 50 stars? Jeepers creepers!

As of sequel to Dream Girl, Dream Life does not disappoint readers one bit. I found myself really liking Dream Girl, but I absolutely LOVED Dream Life. It was wonderful visiting Claire's world again - it's a world I've fallen in love with.

Of butternut squash soup, teeny boppers and munchkins

January 29, 2010 7:07 AM

I took off my Claire costume to appear as [gasp!] myself for an interview on one of the most interesting and intelligent and overall added-value-y book blogs out there (where else do you find out about a crazy-cakes book like this?), Presenting Lenore. There's a giveaway too.

Frenetic Reader wrote a stellar review of Dream Life.

Claire is the perfect narrator for this book. She's funny and witty but not so funny that she insists on making jokes about everything.** She also isn't afraid to do crazy things or talk to her crazy-awesome Grandma Kiki to find out what really is going on with the societies and the people determined to bring it down, making her story all the more entertaining. Even though there were bits of her dreams at the beginning of the chapters, I thought more of her dreams would be used in the book. I was satisfied with the dreams present, but I still wanted to know more, but that may be because I had only anticipated that I would know more.

To Catch a Claire

January 28, 2010 6:59 AM

And the mystery continues--where will Claire Voyante post her guest advice column next?



Today is the beginning of the Undercover Book Lover's Three Day Dream Life festival.

 Teenage Bookworm is posting an interview with a former teenage bookworm (that would be me).

Just got news on a very exciting cameo that Claire will be making. Here's a hint: it's a venue where Blue Moons are not allowed to appear (much as they all secretly want to).

A parting gift: this beautiful piece from my beautiful friend in Haiti, Pooja Bhatia.