The YA Legion Tour for Unbreakable is already well underway. I’m having such a great time meeting readers, signing books, and hanging out with some of my favorite YA authors all around the country. But I realized that while I often share photos of my events (you can see images from the tour stops so far on my Facebook page), I’ve never shown you what goes into getting ready for tour. Here’s an inside look at my very disorganized and last-minute packing process:

Step One: Lay out all the outfits I plan to take. Then count the outfits and realize that I don’t have enough. These are my new dresses designed by Selene Ahnese of Gibbous Fashions. They will definitely make it into the suitcase.

Next comes jewelry. Luckily, I don’t have to spend too much time on this because I had several original Legion-inspired pieces made for the Unbreakable Tour. I always throw in a few of my favorite necklaces from Paula Montgomery and Tom Binns. I pack a lot of jewelry because I always miscalculate how many outfits I need, and swapping out my jewelry makes the same black dress look like a different black dress. The blue necklace shown here is cool because it’s made of old rosaries that I found online (which gave me an excuse to feed my Etsy addiction instead of writing the Legion Book 2 — don’t tell my editor). The black dove is featured in the rosary necklace, as well as a circle of salt (if you read the book or watch any of my videos, you’ll know why these are important in the novel).

Diet Coke = A necessity for packing (and life).

Oz, my miniature dachshund named after the character from Buffy: The Vampire Slayer, likes packing about as much as I do. He’s taking a break for both of us.

These are some of the things I can’t live without while I’m on tour. Snacks and tea are a must for long days (and avoiding laryngitis). My latest tech gadget, the Trakdot, tells me where my luggage is whenever I land. If you’ve seen any of my In My Bag posts, you know that I am rarely without my favorite Sony headphones. And, of course, I need to bring plenty of Unbreakable swag, which I am giving out at all the tour stops.

And if you think this is what I mean by plenty of swag, you are mistaken. In addition to bookmarks, I’m bringing along posters, stickers, and Unbreakable-inspired jewelry to every stop of the YA Legion Tour. Make sure to RSVP to an event near you so you can score some cool swag and I can stop paying overweight baggage fees at the airport. If you’re not able to make an event, there are also lots of online contests: check out the Legion page on Facebook for more information.

Hopefully I didn’t forget anything. I hope you’re a better packer than I am.

The YA Legion Tour continues tonight at 6 pm with me, Victoria Schwab, & Kimberly Derting at The Booksellers at Laurelwood in Memphis, TN. Tomorrow, Holly Black and I will be at Square Books, Jr. in Oxford, MS. Hope to see you there!