In Brief: September 8

This past Friday, Gallery Nucleus in Alhambra, Calif., hosted a launch party for Zombie in Love by Kelly DiPucchio, illustrated by Scott Campbell (Atheneum, Aug.), a picture book that follows a hapless zombie’s quest for romance. Illustrator Campbell read from the book and did a drawing demonstration for attendees, some of whom came wearing their bloody zombie finest, as seen here. The gallery displayed art from Zombie in Love, and zombie-appropriate snacks included dirt pudding with gummy worms.

Author Cinda Williams Chima was in Atlanta over Labor Day weekend for the annual Dragon*Con, a convention focusing on science fiction, fantasy, gaming, and comics. Chima (l.), seen here with author Rachel Caine (and with Draco Malfoy), participated in several panels while at the convention, including “The Darkness—What Is Appropriate for Teens?” as well as panels about writing for adults versus teens and the ways in which children use technology to interact with books and authors.

Debut author/illustrator Ashlee Fletcher celebrated the release of her picture book My Dog, My Cat (Tanglewood, Aug.) with a launch party in late August at Laguna Beach Books in Laguna Beach, Calif. Fletcher sold 65 copies of her book, which compares the habits and preferences of a cat and dog. Both animals are fans of pepperoni pizza, so Fletcher, seen here with a young fan, created pizza-shaped cookies for the event.