Dear readers, it’s time for the 2024 Bragathon, the sport that will not be denied whatever else is going on, so please bear with me while I run through some highlights this past year, because it was a generous one. It brought a new Kirkus star, a best YA nomination, a sale to French Canada, several international launches, a comics earthquake, and a potato sack from Lars Mytting. No, it wasn’t potatoes, it was far more exciting! I’ll explain… But first:

A Kirkus Star for Silver Throat!
«Vast in scope, intricately plotted, and utterly original.» (Life goal headline, there.) Silver Throat is out for pre-order in the US, and Kirkus just gave it a flying start: «Pettersen’s richly textured, Norse-infused saga features comprehensive worldbuilding studded with well-developed architectural, cultural, linguistic, and historical details and compelling characters […] Juva is a deeply engaging protagonist for our time.» I am over the moon for this coveted star! And I thought Iron Wolf would be a tough act to follow, since it also got a star from Kirkus, listing it as one of the best YA books of the year! My deepest thanks, especially to Arctis US and my translator Tara Chace.

A nomination for best YA
Silver Throat had a busy year launching in Germany, Czech, Poland, Finland and Sweden, where it was nominated for the Adlibris Prize for best YA! (Winners will be announced at the end of the month. Thank you, B. Wahlströms and translator Ylva Kempe.) Launches had me on the road this year, to Pyrkon in Poland, Helsinki Book Fair, Stockholm, Lillehammer, and Norcon in Oslo. Let’s start with Finland!

Helsinki on a roll!
Helsinki Book Fair was the first event with my new Finnish publiser, Hertta, who kicked off with a bang: Double launch of Silver Throat and Iron Wolf, a big and beautiful review in Helsingin Sanomat (Helsinki’s largest newspaper) on the day I landed, main stage interview with the wonderful writer, J.S. Meresmaa, meet & greets and hours of signing, an absolute highlight! Hertta was founded by the brilliant Tuija and Riina, who worked on The Raven Rings when it first launched in Finland, a decade ago.

Getting meta in Poland
Releasing Silver Throat with Rebis at Pyrkon was wild as ever! One of Europe’s largest fan conventions with near 70K glorious geeks, cosplaying everyone you can imagine from the world of stories. I urge you to go, to experience what fantasy means to people on a deep level. My panels got pretty meta too, exploring the role of magic, technology and science in literature, with amazing writers like Adrian Tchaikovsky, Roderick Gordon, Ian Watson and Brent Weeks.

Plotting a cliché in Oslo
At Norcon in Oslo, I finally got to meet John Scalzi, one of the nicest and wittiest men in the industry. We had a panel together with Adrian Tchaikovsky and I literally laughed so hard I cried my make-up off. And it didn’t help to do an improv plotting for a cliché fantasy, with Norwegian writers Øystein Runde and A.R. Yngve. (Alan Daark at Darque Academy will live forever in our hearts!)

At Norcon with John Scalzi and Adrian Tchaikovsky

A triple series tattoo?
The release in Sweden was hot, and I mean that literally. In blistering summer heat, people queued up through the SF-book store in Old Town Stockholm, and they did not come empty handed. I left with home made cookies, gifts and memories, like the girl with tattoos of the logos from The Raven Rings and Vardari who made a point of telling me she had room for a third series tattoo… She may get her wish, but we’ll get to that.

Sold to French Canada.
The North American French rights to Odin’s Child were secured by Saint-Jean Éditeur in Quebec and this will actually be the first translation into French! The Raven Rings seem to be ever green, and I’m stunned that they are still reaching new readers and territories after more than a decade since their first release. My immense gratitude to my readers, publishers and my brilliant agents at Grand Agency, whose professionalism and unending passion for this craft never seize to amaze me.

A comics earth quake by Bonnier!
My brilliant friend, star editor Tonje Tornes, started her own imprint! (That’s her front-center, mother of Nordic Manga, recently awarded the NBU Prize for her life-long contributions to Norwegian comics.) TNT publishing was born in September, under Bonnier Norway and their vigorous visionary CEO, Alexander Even Henriksen. Along came her colleague, Tormod Løkling, and unsurprisingly their creators followed, including bestselling authors like Malin Falch, Odin Helgheim, Victor Nordahl, Cha Sandmæl and many more. Did you spot me in orange? That’s because I’ve been planning a secret comic project with Tonje for years, and I promise you’ll be thrilled!

Back row, from the left: Joseph Solbakk Ampofo, H.L. Phoenix, Hans Jørgen Sandnes. Second row: Stein Arne Hove, Tone Almhjell, Siri Pettersen, Karoline Grønvik. Third row: Alexander Even Henriksen, Malin Falch, Odin Helgheim, Victor Sotberg, Mari Moen Holsve. Front row: Sara Hjardar, Cha Sandmæl, Tonje Tornes, Cathrine Sandmæl og Eva Sørli. Photo: Christopher Helberg, Bonnier Norway

Launching my newsletter
A goal for 2024 was launching my mailing list and it was up and running in April, a fusion of writing tips, news and musings. New subscribers get a special gift: Hirka’s herbal guide from The Raven Rings, with my own drawings and descriptions of the plants of Ymslanda. This has only been available in the collector’s box, and YES if you sign up, you get one too!

What was in the potato sack?!
All these wonderful things would easily have been the best Christmas presents of the year, if it weren’t for the mysterious gift from Lars Mytting. (Yes, that Mytting) who stole all the attention with a 25 kilo potato sack that refused to fit under the tree. What was going on? Had I p*ssed off Santa Claus or something? There was no lack of theories about its contents, but I should have remembered Mytting’s love for craftsmanship, because the miracle I unwrapped turned out to be… a typewriter!

I completely lost it! An old-school vintage typewriter, and not just any, but an Olympia SM3 DeLuxe from 1953-58, in mint condition! A legendary tool, in a super stylish carry case like something right out of Poirot! Stuck on the roll (called a ‘platen’, apparently) was a typed letter from Lars, explaining how he had cleaned and cared for it, and that the original manual was also in the case, along with some old receipts and memorabilia from a previous owner in the 70s. I covered my mouth and nearly burst into tears. Memories surfaced from when I was 14 and my mum gave me my first typewriter, and the very first stories I wrote for an impatient friend who tore the pages from the roller the second I was done typing… This was beyond an inspired gift. This was black belt in gift-Fu. The one gift to rule them all.

Just look at this beauty! And imagine the weight of knowing that it came from the international bestselling writer of The Sister Bells trilogy… «A typewriter changes things,» he said. «Forces you to think in complete sentences.» There could be no more timely reminder of the value of slow thinking, of the tactile, things that take time to grow, and that are lasting. We need to make sure we never lose sight of that. There’s no response to a gift like this, except for humiliating him with love on Facebook, which I did, of course!

Vardari 3 is coming!
I am deeply immersed in Náklav now, the wolves are coming, we are planning the release in Norway this fall and I’m working non stop to make that happen, even if I admit I’m terrified to make any public promises. The script is due by summer, and there will also be a title and a cover reveal coming up!

I’m tremendously thrilled about this story and I can’t wait to share it with you! I’ve had epiphanies that will affect not just the Vardari finale, but bleed into a future projects,

Now all we need to do is buckle up for 2025. Yes, there will be challenges, and there will certainly be enough bullsh*t to overcome, but please… gather comfort and strength in the fact that reading and writing has never been more important. Stories bring us understanding, willpower, and most importantly: Hope! It really is that important.

Thank you for making it this far. I am so grateful for all your love and support, and I’m honoured and excited to contribute to your insatiable hunger for books! Take deep breaths, read more fantasy, get on your feet and keep going!