News

News of the Week

For a “slow week,” it’s been pretty busy in the Riordan household. Yesterday the UPS truck pulled up and a poor tired driver delivered twelve boxes of Battle of the Labyrinth T-shirts, courtesy of Hyperion Books for Children. They’re really cool — black with the cover art of Percy looking into the golden sarcophagus. I’ll be distributing them at events this spring. Definitely you’ll see them if you come to a book signing in May for the Battle of the Labyrinth tour. We still don’t have details of the tour, but check the website calendar in March and I should have more information.

This week, I’ve been working on a new Percy Jackson short story. This will be part of the promotional efforts in advance of the new book. More information later! I also just finished writing the introduction for an anthology about Percy Jackson which will be published this spring. “Demigods and Monsters” will feature a collection of fun, insightful, and offbeat essays that will explore all kinds of questions, such as why Dionysus was allowed to run a summer camp, and why so many monsters seem to go into retail.

And the most recent big news is about the movie version of The Lightning Thief. A tentative release date has now been posted on a variety of websites: Friday, Nov. 13, 2009. Don’t buy your tickets just yet. That’s a long way out, and there’s always the possibility that the date will change. I have no information about casting or any of that, so don’t ask, but just having a release date is an excellent sign that the project is moving forward.

This Saturday, I’ll get to join a whole slew of great mystery writers at the Alkek Library, Texas State University in San Marcos, to celebrate the release of the “Lone Star Sleuths” anthology. More information is on my web calendar. The event is free and I’m told some young Percy fans will be in attendance as well, so feel free to come by if you’re in the area!

Rick Riordan