In which I do my bit

For me, one of the highlights of Science Online 2011 was meeting @HistoryGeek – Holly Tucker, an Associate Professor at Vanderbilt University who teaches French and the history of medicine, and whose upcoming book Blood Work, a tale of murder and medicine in the Scientific Revolution, is coming out imminently from WW Norton. In fact, I’m not ashamed to admit I have a bit of a girl crush on Holly. Which is why, when she invited me to take part in Writers for the Red Cross, I leapt at the chance.

Holly and her friend Beth Dunn organized Writers for the Red Cross (#write4red) to celebrate Red Cross Month, which kicks off today. Intended to raise funds and awareness for the American Red Cross, this online event will be auctioning off publishing-related items and services donated by publicists, agents, editors and authors – including yours truly.

The American Red Cross has more than half a million volunteers and 35,000 employees who work together through nearly 700 locally supported chapters to help out during worldwide disasters. It’s a great cause, and you can take part in the auction to win a wide variety of swag bags put together by the various participants – you don’t have to be American to show your support. Week One’s auction is now open!

My own goody bag will be available for bidding next week. In addition to signed copies of both my novels, Experimental Heart and The Honest Look, you can win a fabulous Science Is Sexy T-shirt and mug (see the picture above for the design) and also a lovely full-color micrograph of one of my cell biology experiments, suitable for framing. (We are also considering selling these mugs and T-shirts on LabLit.com if they prove popular.) Do take a look at all of what’s on offer throughout the month.

Post-script: For those of you interested in how The Honest Look is doing, it sold out quite quickly in the US, necessitating a second print run. So I am pleased to report that after a long hiatus, the book is finally available again on US Amazon. Grab your copies while they last! The journal Cell thought it was pretty groovy, as did Grrl Scientist, writing in the Guardian. If you’ve already read it, please consider writing a review on Amazon – every little helps. The more books I sell, the more likely that my third novel – a light-hearted tale about a feminist virologist in a sexist institute – will be taken up for publication when the time is right.