Ramona in the News!

Check out this huge article in the Oregonian on Beverly Cleary and the world of Ramona, which was inspired by Portland. Interesting setting specifics borrowed from "real life" always help to make a fictional world come alive!

-=siobhan=-

The One-Week, No-Caffeine Manuscript Revision Challenge

It's scary just reading the title, isn't it?? Well, I lived it last week. Due to unforeseen circumstances, I had to do an extremely fast final revision on ISABELLE'S BOYFRIEND, due out in September. Extremely fast as in I had about a week to do it! And the book is 200 pages! And it was all tricky character-polishing/emotion-polishing revision work! The kind that either makes or breaks the book. AND, just to twist the knife, I had to do it WITHOUT CAFFEINE. I'm pregnant and even though I'm in my second trimester, my stomach still cannot handle caffeine without dire consequences.

How did I do it, you ask? Well, I had to use tricks. Mental tricks. And some props.

1. QUOTAS. I had a 32-page per day quota. I could not talk on the phone, could not email, could not read a book or magazine--nothing--until my quota for the day had been met. Usually it wasn't met until 6 or 7pm, when I made myself a crummy dinner and whined to my husband about how hard it is to be a writer.

2. COLORED HIGHLIGHTERS. We've blogged about these before, but they are crucial. Especially when tracking the emotional arc between two characters throughout an entire book. I used 3 colors, one for each "set" of characters I wanted to track. Then I went back and read each arc to see if the emotions developed as they should.

3. SCRATCH PAPER. I type everything, because my handwriting is atrocious, but I do like to plan revisions by hand. I made myself a "plan of attack" on scrap paper, broken out by character, and then by "large problems" and "small problems." Then I simply attacked the list and checked things off as I went.

4. FEAR. Yes, fear is a powerful motivator. Every time I got so sick of caring whether a character would actually say that, I wrote an awful review of my book in my head that mentioned the exact passage I was working on. Then I made that review get national attention. Then I shivered and fixed the passage.

5. TREATS. Since caffeine was out (which for me means many cups of tea), I had to incentivize myself somehow. So I got the second Stephenie Meyer book out of the library and placed it on my bedside table. I promised myself I could read it when I was done my revisions. Looking at it everyday and wondering what Bella and Edward were up to was an excellent motivator.

I'm pleased to say that I handed in my draft on Monday. I'm a little worse for the wear, but I *think* I got the job done and should be hearing from my editor soon.

Stay tuned!

*caroline hickey

Notes from the slush pile: one editor's thoughts on cover letters

Dear Ms. Graff,

Did you know that the heart of the average woodchuck weighs approximately the same as a can of Diet Dr. Pepper?¹

or how about:

Dear Ms. Graff,

"Help!" Brendon cried. "My butt is on fire!!"

or even:

Dear Ms. Graff,

Hair pins kill an estimated 900 million people every year.²

Um, really? That's really how you're going to start your cover letter, anonymous author person? Because that's a weird way to start a letter, you know. Would you start a letter to your Grandma Shirley that way? I think not. How about you introduce yourself, ala:

Dear Ms. Graff,

I'm writing to you because I've always admired the books your company publishes.

Nice, right?

or you could go the route of:

Dear Ms. Graff,

When I learned that you edited the illustrious picture book author George Burns,³ I had a feeling you might be the perfect editor for my book, Skunk Boy Finds His Stink.⁴

See? See the difference???

~lisa graff~

1. totally made up factoid
2. completely true factoid
3. I did not really do that
4. No one steal this title. I am totally going to write this book.

Lisa Schroeder Stops By

I just had the pleasure of reading I HEART YOU, YOU HAUNT ME by my classmate in 2k8, Lisa Schroeder. It was a beautiful book with some juicy romance and so I asked Lisa to tell me a story about her own high school romantic life. But instead of going for the juice, I asked her to tell us what the most embarrassing or ridiculous thing she ever did to get a guy’s attention. And here was her story:

In high school, there was this cute guy I liked in my neighborhood. We had started talking and it seemed like things were starting to happen, like he might ask me out. It was summer time and I wanted to be outside ALL THE TIME, in case, you know, he happened to drive by or something. Because, hey, if he drove by or something, maybe he'd stop and talk to me! I had a little pickup at the time, and I'd alternate between washing my truck and washing my mom's car, so I could be outside, looking busy, instead of outside, looking like I was desperately waiting for a guy to drive by.

Well, one afternoon, with a car cleaner than any you've ever seen, I got this bright idea to mow the lawn. He'll be so impressed, I thought- a girl, mowing a lawn! I had mowed lawns before, but never when I had a guy on my mind so much like this particular time. Let me tell you, girls, if you mow the lawn, keep your eyes and your brain on the lawn! At one point, I was trying to get around a bush and in doing so brought the lawn mower back, right over my foot. Fortunately, I had shoes and socks on and it wasn't as bad as it could have been. My mom rushed me to the ER, where they discovered I had taken off my entire toenail on my big toe.

That summer was SO not fun. I spent six weeks with a big bandage on my toe and I had to wear these ugly sandals to accomodate the big bandage. I stayed close to home, let me tell you. As far as the guy, in the fall, we did end up going out for awhile. He turned out to be a total jerk. If only I'd known, I could have saved my big toe, and my heart, a lot of grief!

I have to say that after reading this I think Lisa and I could’ve been total best friends in high school because this was just the sort of thing I would do!

You can find Lisa here and her awesome book in stores everywhere!

**
daphne

Thoughts on a T-shirt

So I got a package in the mail on Friday. It was from my Bubbie and inside was a t-shirt that said, Careful or I'll put you in my novel. Funny, right? I thought so. Also, sweet. My Bubbie is very, very excited about my book. She's already spoken to her local librarian and arranged for a reading to take place when the book comes out.

But that t-shirt got me thinking. So much of what we write comes from people who have influenced us, both positively and negatively. Hey, I'll be honest. A very satisfying thing about writing for teenagers is being able to create characters based on people I really hated in middle school and high school. Whether those people will know who they are or not - only time will tell. And of course writing characters based on people I love and admire is wonderful too.

But how much should we worry about "putting" people in our novels? Is it a big deal or isn't it? I know writers discuss this often, but I think it's a conversation worthy of having every so often. At the very least, it's interesting to hear multiple perspectives on the subject.

xoxo
Lisa GW

p.s. I'm bringing that shirt on the next Longstockings retreat!

How do you say...

Ever wonder how to pronounce an author's name? For me, I have often been tripped up by ROWLING (pronounced, Rolling like a stone, and not Row-ling like growl) and also KONIGSBURG (pronounced con-igs-burg like a Long Con or a convict, and not cone-igs-burg like an icecream cone). Well, there's a website called teachingbooks.net, and there you can learn how to pronounce many different children's author's names, including mine! (Han, like Han Solo, not Han like handshake). Authors have recorded a little ditty about their name, like where it comes from and also devices to help remember how to pronounce it. Feel like a fool no longer! (Maybe it was just me that felt like a fool...) Other frequently mispronounced names? Louis Sachar, Avi, and the list goes on!


xoxo
Jenny

Inspiration in a Podcast

I've been listening to a lot of podcasts lately (probably because Swiss TV is sooo bad that I haven't turned it on in about two months!) and I've found some very interesting interviews with children's and teen authors. I love hearing authors interviewed because they always inspire me or give me a new way to think about writing.

Here are some of the recent ones that caught my ear:

MELISSA MARR (Wicked Lovely) discusses her tattoos (including one of her muse), her writing process (which includes living an active, adventurous life), her writing journals, and how she creates a playlist for each story she's writing and always listens to music when she writes. One of the things I really like about this podcast is that she says she writes for those people who understand that wearing all black and getting piercings and tattoos doesn't make someone troubled.

GARY PAULSEN (Hatchet; Dogsong) discusses his difficult childhood and how a librarian saved him from a potential future in juvenile hall, why he thinks writing for adults is a "fruitless" activity, and all about life in Alaska (yes, there are lots of bears!) I like how he credits reading with making a huge difference in his life.

SHERMAN ALEXIE (The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian) discusses his life on the reservation and how much of his book is based on his real life. He also talks about being new to the world of young adult literature and how he found a gap in the writing for and about boys. He discusses the sensitive topics in his book and how he believes censorship is extremely condescending to children. He also talks about how he almost threw up when they announced his name as the winner of the National Book Award!

KATE DICAMILLO (Because of Winn-Dixie; The Tale of Despereaux) discusses her first picture book and what it's like working with an illustrator, the difficulty she sometimes has getting out of her own way, how she only writes two pages per day, and her incredible journey toward publication. Very inspirational! She says, "There's still room for magic in children's books!" Love it!

Now, with all my newfound inspiration, I must get back to the keyboard!

~Coe~

How does an author define success?

With the recent announcement of the Newbery, Caldecott, Printz and other awards, I've been wondering a lot lately about whether it's more satisfying for an author to win a distinguished literary award, or to be a commercial bestseller. As a new author, I go back and forth about which I'd prefer.

Winning an award and being distinguished by a panel of your peers (and/or librarians, reviewers, booksellers, teachers) would be thrilling, and of course guarantees a large printing of your book (Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! just went into a 73K-copy printing). However, often times these books are not ones that kids themselves choose to read and clamor for at their school's libraries. (See Jenny's note from yesterday about what's popular at her school.) I assume these copies are being ordered mostly for libraries and classrooms, because what is the retail potential of a book of medieval monologues/dialogues?

To write a "commercial" bestseller, however, or a bestselling series, is to have thousands of kids demanding to read your book, regardless of what adults are telling them they should read. To have diehard fans who, according to Kathryne's note about her students and the series The Clique, threaten to reveal the ending of a book when they're mad at a friend. Not to mention one of the biggest perks of being a bestseller--you actually make a living as a writer!

We Longstockings have all chosen to write for children because it is an audience we love and value. Shouldn't we want that audience to be the ones that love and admire our books, even though the writer in us wants recognition from readers our own age? Then why is it that most of us would shy away from being thought of as "commercial"?

Obviously there are books that are both literary successes and AND bestsellers, but in general books seem to be considered either commercial or literary. (Diary of a Wimpy Kid seems to be one that is hugely popular with kids but also with critics.)

This is an awfully long post with no real conclusions. I'm just curious how others view success as a children's author -- is it awards, or sales??

*caroline hickey

Kid Lit pops up in the oddest places

I'm on vacation! Which I'm mostly spending writing lesson plans for my upcoming unit on The Outsiders, and catching up on all the TV shows I don't normally watch because I can't stay awake until 10.

If any of you watch Criminal Minds, you know it's one of the more erudite of the procedurals--literary references abound, and most episodes begin and end with some erudite quote. Today's closing was a rather powerful statement on the costs of ambition:

"For we pay a price for everything we get or take in this world; and although ambitions are well worth having, they are not to be cheaply won, but exact their dues of work and self-denial, anxiety and discouragement."

Its source?

Our very own Lucy Maud Montgomery.

--Kathryne

A funny thing happened on the way to school...

On the way to school today, I saw the coolest thing-- about 35 kids, on their way to a field trip, all READING! Each one had a book out, and they were all quiet and nose deep in their books. I was sitting in the only empty seat, next to their teacher, who told me they were from Brooklyn on their way to see Grant's grave. I did the best I could to sneak peaks at what they were reading, and this is what I saw:

2 Diary of a Wimpy Kids (which by the way, is EXTREMELY popular with the kids at my school-- it never stays on the shelf and it's the only book with a waiting list-- besides mine! haha)

1 Julie of the Wolves
1 Wayside Stories
1 Babe
1 Kiki Strike part 2
1 Deathly Hallows

and the rest, I couldn't see! No SHUGs, unfort-- that is my dream, to see a kid on the subway reading my book! But alas, it was so sweet to see them all reading, even if was only because their teacher told them to.

xoxo jenny

Story Tips from JUNO

This weekend my husband and I saw JUNO which deservedly just got a bunch of Oscar nominations. So much worked in the movie: actors perfect in their roles, music that enhanced the story, etc. but what was totally awesome was the story itself. After I got home I started thinking about what it was that made the story work so well and I came up with a couple of things:

1. Every inch of the story was believable. The situation, how people reacted to it, how those reactions shaped the next set of events, etc. Each person had the motive to act as they did and that motive was an organic part of the story, not something shoved in later to justify a plot twist.

2. You could empathize with each of the characters. I was actually surprised at how much I sympathized with everyone in the story. I could feel for each person, even when they were at odds with each other, and that made the story deeper and more wrenching.

3..The characters were each fully realized and complex. I felt like I knew each of them after less than a minute on screen. I got Vanessa before we even saw her face, when we just saw her hands fussing to make her house perfect before Juno came over. That was all it took for me to be like, “yeah, I know her.”

4. There were good plot twists. I was surprised at the way the story went and not in that way where the writer throws in a twist just to throw one in and it totally doesn’t gel with the rest of the story. The JUNO twists were true to the story and made for some real entertainment.

5. The story was grounded in very specific things, yet touched on truths that were universal. My teen years were totally different yet I could completely identify with Juno’s feelings and experiences.

So all in all I can see why it earned that nomination for best screenplay! Now if I could just incorporate these elements into my WIP…

#daphne

THE CUFFIES

I find the Publishers Weekly CUFFIE awards to be so interesting. Winners (and losers) are chosen via a survey of booksellers all across the country. Ahhh...to be chosen Favorite Book To Hand Sell. Could you EVEN?!?

Anyhow, here are the fascinating results.

Favorite Picture Book of the Year

Toy Boat by Randall de Sève, illustrated by Loren Long (“a beautiful and timeless new classic”)

Favorite Middle Grade Novel

The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt (“it made me laugh, made me cry, and begs to be read aloud”)

Favorite YA Novel

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

Most Unusual Picture Book of the Year

The Arrival by Shaun Tan (“it’s very sophisticated, but almost entirely visual”)

Best Book Title

Diary of a Wimpy Kid

Honorable mention: I’d Really Like to Eat a Child; Do Unto Otters

Most Memorable Character in a Lead Role

Kek in Home of the Brave by Katherine Applegate (“he has such an unusual voice, and its cadence stays with you”)

Best Sequel

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling (“no contest!”)

Honorable mentions: Knuffle Bunny Too by Mo Willems; Fancy Nancy and the Posh Puppy by Jane O’Connor, illus. by Robin Preiss Glasser; The Titan’s Curse by Rick Riordan (“hooray for Percy Jackson! he’s the new Harry!”)

Favorite Book Jacket

How to Paint the Portrait of a Bird by Jacques Prévert, illus. by Mordicai Gerstein

Funniest Book (tie)

Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney (“good slice of middle-school life”); The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex

Most Promising New Author (tie)

Linda Urban; Jeff Kinney

Most Promising New Illustrator

Kevin Sherry, illustrator of I’m the Biggest Thing in the Ocean! (“so bold, so simple, and so funny”)

Favorite Series

Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan

Honorable mentions: The Twilight saga by Stephenie Meyer; Harry Potter

Best Nonfiction Treatment of a Subject

The Wall by Peter Sís

Most Innovative/Unique Book (tie)

The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick ('different, imaginative and stunning”); Gallop! by Rufus Butler Seder

Favorite Book to Handsell

A Crooked Kind of Perfect by Linda Urban

Honorable mentions: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian (“it’s so great to convince both teenagers and their parents to read it!”)

Best Novel for Young Readers That Adults Would Love If They Knew About It (tie)

The Wednesday Wars (“every child of the ’60s would love this book”); Spud by John van de Ruit

Hottest Selling Book to Go Out of Stock

Gallop!

Honorable mentions: Diary of a Wimpy Kid; The Arrival, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

Book We Could Have Sold More of with a Better Jacket

The Wednesday Wars; Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis (“I couldn’t get customers past it, no matter how much I enthused”)

Oddest Request by a Customer

“A customer brought the Fancy Nancy standee to the desk and said she was offended by the explicit nature of the drawing.”

Most Unusual Complaint

“These books are printed in China. Can’t you get them printed in the U.S.?”

Funniest Thing a Kid Said in Your Store

“A child said to a staff member, 'Do you live here?’ ”

“Our storytime reader greeted the children with 'Does anyone want to come and listen to some stories?’ and a four-year-old boy replied, 'Yes. I watch too much TV.’ ”

-=siobhan=-

MiX rules so hard

Tips for a Fun & Fabulous Book Tour

* be on your tour with fun and fabulous people! Melissa, PG, Taylor, and Rachel were all so much fun and we had a lot of laughs zooming around the tri-state area in our bus. And when I say zooming, I mean zooming-- we must have been going 100 miles per hour! Or at least it felt like it. Anyway, it was great to learn about all these fellow writers' processes and writing lives. Writing can be so insulated, but when you meet other writers, it's the best.

* get your signing hand ready. By the end of day 2, my hand felt ready to fall off, and I kept wishing I had brought my fancy pen that just gracefully oozes out ink. Also, thinking up a cute sign-off is nice too. PG's book is about a tween girl scientist, so he wrote, Keep experimenting-- PG. Whatever that means! haha. Anyway, something catchy like that is a sweet touch.

* pack a snack/drink. The places we went were very nice about providing us with refreshments, but it's always good to bring your own just in case. I was getting over a cold, so I had to keep drinking water to stay energized and non-parched. Giving so many speeches will tucker you out, so a sugar boost helps.

* thank your publicist! Carolyn is my publicist, and she was along with us the whole time, which was awesome. It was nice to get to know her a little better and get a chance to chat. She even took us to Target! Also, she looks just like a girl I went to high school with.


All in all, this MIX tour was a total success. We had so many girls come I lost count. At Books & Greetings, there were many many girls there with their moms, which I love to see. It was awesome. GO MIX! Thanks to S&S and Carolyn for putting it all together!

xoxo jenny

MLK

I'm in CT at my in-laws house and we're about to go to a MLK community service. I've never been to this before, but my husband has been talking about it for years. I think it's great that people in this community are actually observing Martin Luther King Day, which to be honest, I've never really done before. I mean, I've always recognized it and spent time thinking what the day was supposed to be about, but I've never been to this kind of community event before.

In other news, I'm happily waiting for my editorial letter for MY LIFE IN PINK & GREEN and I'm outlining a new version of my summer camp book and also brainstorming and outlining a new idea. I want great things to happen in 2008! I want to get a lot done and work hard and all of that.

How are you all spending Martin Luther King Day?

xoxo
Lisa GW

The Big Cheese!

Oogie Cooder is a truly one-of-a-kind kid. He's quirky and unusual and he wouldn't want to be any other way! Sure, he wears colorful seersucker suits from his parents' second-hand clothing store, and sure, he crochets his own shoe laces. And, yeah, he even plays the kazoo. But he really doesn't understand why the other kids at school call him names like dork, dweeb, and doofus. Oggie is just being himself!

But the thing that really sets Oggie apart from the other kids is his amazing ability to charve!

What? You don't know what charving is?

Well, understanding charving is simple if you follow this formula:

Cheese + carving = charving

Yes, Oggie has developed the unique talent of using his teeth to charve American singles into the various shapes of U.S. states. Even Texas! And when a television show comes to town looking for kids with hidden talents, Oggie -- with the help (or is it?) of a spoiled, Hollywood-star-wannabe neighbor -- is thrown into the spotlight and, trust me, the results are hilarious!

OGGIE COODER was written by Sarah Weeks, who was one of our favorite writing teachers waaaay back when we were at The New School. (Well, maybe it just seems like a long time ago!) As with all of her books, this one is funny and fantastic, and very memorable. It also has strong "boy" appeal, which is always icing on the cake.

So if you like reading about, shall we say, offbeat characters, and if you need a laugh, check out OGGIE COODER by Sarah Weeks!

:-)
~Coe~

Red Stamp Makes Writing EASIER!

In my never-ending quest for the cutest, prettiest office supplies to help motivate productivity, I've stumbled upon the merchant Red Stamp and emptied my back account on the following items as I plow through my first draft...

isn't this houndstooth clipboard the prettiest thing ever? hmm... maybe laying my manuscript on top of it will magically make the writing better...
and these alphabet bookplates are totally awesome. i've bought a set, as motivation to have an actual book cover to put one inside!
and these little guys might be my favorite invention ever. they are called SMENCILS! and they ACTUALLY SMELL! no more sad red ink. it's cherry!!!!

money very well spent, don't you think?

-=siobhan=-

Paranoid Park, Coming to Theaters Near YOU!

This weekend, I happened to catch a trailer for PARANOID PARK, the Gus Van Sant adaptation of Blake Nelson's awesome novel. Readers of this blog know I am a huge fan of Blake Nelson's work, and (of course) the movie looks sooooooo good.



Yum!

And also, YAY for Jenny from Gossip Girl being cast as the love interest. She's so young and cute and perfect for the role.

-=siobhan=-

My Latest Writing Problem

When I first started my MFA at the New School I was working on a manuscript that I thought was going to be terrific.  It was about a somewhat innocent girl from a small town just starting out at boarding school.  She had a sophisticated and radical roommate, an unrequited crush and issues with her friends back home who resented her changing.  It was all very familiar material to me because it was pretty much my own ninth grade experience, with a little fiction thrown in to make it more interesting.  And over the course of my first semester I realized that as a story it pretty much sucked.

That was when I started the manuscript that ended up being ALIVE AND WELL IN PRAGUE, NEW YORK.  Matisse's life is totally different from mine as a teen, but more than that she's hardwired differently.  She's utterly confident, outspoken and not into talking abut her feelings.  She's sure of herself with guys and could care less what people might say about her behind her back.  Me as a teen?  Let's just say I was the opposite: insecure, endlessly talking about my feelings with friends, totally concerned about what other people thought of me.  And me with guys?  I was that girl who stared from afar and never even managed a conversation with a guy I had a crush on.  When Matisse first came to me I wondered if I could write a girl who is so different from myself as a teen.  And I was surprised to find how easy it was.  I slipped into Matisse's skin and just knew how she'd be feeling and reacting, even if it went against all my own instincts.  There were moments when I had to stop and ponder things, but for the most part her voice became second nature.

 After PRAGUE I took a break from writing teens and took on some middle grade boy characters.  And then last month I started in on a new teen book.  The main character, while sassy and confident in certain aspects of her life, is an insecure mess with guys.  Kind of like me as a teen.  Or exactly like me.  And here's the thing- I'm finding it almost impossible to write!  This should come to me without me even needing to think- I should just be able to channel myself as a teen and put an incredibly believeable character on the page.  But all my descriptions of her crush sound false and even though I've rewritten things a hundred times her thoughts seem phony and from out of the blue instead of based on actual story.  And I don't get it!  I mean, this should be the easy stuff to write, right, the stuff that I know like the back of my hand?  But apparently not.

So I'm starting to think that the age old advice, write what you know, just doesn't apply here.

#daphne

The Winners!!!

Today's is the biggest day of the year in Children's Literature. Here's the scoop:


The 2008 Newbery Medal - Laura Amy Schlitz for GOOD MASTERS! SWEET LADIES!: Voices from a Medieval Village, illustrated by Robert Byrd (Candlewick)

Newbery Honors- Elijah of Buxton (Scholastic) by Christopher Paul Curtis, The Wednesday Wars (Clarion Books) by Gary D. Schmidt and Feathers (Putnam) by Jacqueline Woodson.

The 2008 Caldecott Medal went to Brian Selznick for THE INVENTION OF HUGO CABRET (Scholastic Press).

The Coretta Scott King Awards went to Christopher Paul Curtis (author) for ELIJAH OF BUXTON and Ashley Bryan (illustrator) for LET IT SHINE.

As usual, I've never heard of the Newbery winner. But, the DC Kidlit group has plans to read and discuss at our next meeting, brunch on Saturday, February 2nd. (Email me for details if you'd like to join us.)


More on the awards


*caroline hickey

Refreshingly British

I'll admit that I haven't read any Jacqueline Wilson, but I know she's a legend. And while I love glitzy, exciting books about mean girls and rich girls and crazy plotting, I really, really love books about girls and their families and their best friends. I love books where I can just hang out with the protagonist and be inside her head. Maybe the protagonist will struggle a bit, but it won't be TOO much and after I turn the last page, I'll feel like I made a new friend.

So, it was refreshing to read this article about Jacqueline Wilson's CANDYFLOSS. I can't wait to read it.

Have any of you read it? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

xoxoxox
Lisa GW

P.S. I love the jacket!

MIX up your life

Okay, that was a really bad title, because who wants a mixed-up life? A mixed-up FILE, on the other hand... Okay, another bad joke. Sorry!

MIX authors are going on tour next week! What is MIX, you wonder? MIX is the brand new tween paperback imprint at Simon & Schuster, and they are reprinting books in paperback-- including SHUG. Yay for that! So to promote it and to promote some books, we are going on tour. Who is we, you wonder?

Rachel Cohn, Melissa de la Cruz (I loooove her name, isn't it so fabulous?), PG Kain, Taylor Morris, and I are doing a little tour around New Jersey and CT. We're visiting some schools and we're also doing a few signings. On Wednesday the 16th, we'll be at Books and Greetings, reading and signing from 3:30 to 5:30pm in Northvale NJ on Livingston Street. On Thursday the 17th, we'll be at the Milford CT Barnes and Noble on Boston Post Road, from 7pm to 9pm. There'll be a Q&A panel and everything! If you live in the tri-state area, I hope and cross my fingers you'll come out and see us. I'll love you forever! So come on down and say hey!

xoxo
Jenny

Pamper Yourself OR How To Write on your Birthday

Tomorrow happens to be my birthday, but don't light those candles just yet. Unfortunately, there won't be much partying or celebrating. I am under a tiiiight deadline for my second book, and I'll have to use the majority of the day and night to get the work I need accomplished.

Depressing?

Honestly...yeah, a little.

But I've been trying to brainstorm ways to make my birthday writing day special. Here's what I've come up with.

1. UNLIMITED LATTES FROM THE COFFEE SHOP ON THE CORNER
On normal days, I'll treat myself to one good $4 coffee. But on my birthday, I think I should have as many as I want. And size LARGE. In fact, maybe my goal should be to fill up an entire buy 6 get 1 free punch card. Hmm...I wonder if those cards will work for pastries too.

2. ORDERING IN A FANCY LUNCH
Food is a big motivator for me. So I am thinking I'll get myself a big fancy lunch from one of the restaurants in my neighborhood. And with all that caffeine I'll be taking in, I'll probably ward off the inevitable food coma.

3. GOOD BACKGROUND MOJO
I always write to music, so I'll treat myself to some fresh iTunes purchases. Maybe even a boxed set!

4. MASSAGE
I'm also thinking about booking myself a massage near the end of the day. That would be some serious pampering, since I am usually all tight and stiff after writing in my apartment, where ergonomics don't exist.

Sweet! I think these things will add up to make a nice writing day, one special enough for January 12th. But if you have any other ideas, let me know. Birthdays only come once a year, after all.

-=siobhan=-

Me Love Workshop

I'm in New York for a few days and will be attending our bi-weekly workshop tonight in person with my Longstockings. We've been doing things a little differently this year with Coe abroad and me in DC, and I'm so happy to be able to be here for tonight's meeting.

Our group, a smaller unit of which began the second year of grad school, has been my writing anchor for three years now. When we meet and share news and writing and ideas and feedback, I feel like I'm more of a writer than when I sit alone at my laptop and actually write. The group stirs up my juices and my drive and makes me want to go home and revise whatever I've been working on, even if my piece wasn't the one getting critiqued!

We also have a lot to celebrate right now with Lisa Graff's second book coming out later this month, and FIVE other books coming out from the Longstockings in 2008.

I wish 6 o'clock would hurry up and get here!


*caroline hickey

Class of 2K8

I am pleased to announce the official arrival of the Class of 2k8, of which I am a proud member!  Check out our website where you can read about the neat-o MG and YA authors who have books coming out this year.  There are some really talented debut authors about to hit bookstores everywhere!

Lisa's post yesterday got me thinking about all the other books I'm excited to read this year.  Every year it's fun to discover new authors and also to get new books from beloved authors.  And several of my very favorite authors have new titles coming out.  Sarah Dessen has a new one that sounds awesome (like she could write a book that wasn't awesome), and Rachel Cohn, E Lockhart, Catherine Gilbert Murdock and Melissa Marr will have new books as well.  Of course in August we get the latest in the Edward-Bella-Jacob saga which I can't wait to read.  And in a few short weeks, THE LIFE AND CRIMES OF BERNETTA WALLFLOWER by one Miss Lisa Graff will be out in the world.  This one I've read and can tell you is fabulous!  

So all in all 2008 promises to be a great year of books!

#daphne

ps- I just found a great review of Lisa's book at Miss Erin's site- check it out!

Post-Holidays Blahs

I'm feeling a little blue today on this grey, dreary day. I always get like this after the Holidays, and having stuff to look forward to always helps me!

So, I am very excited for A LITTLE FRIENDLY ADVICE and ALIVE AND WELL IN PRAGUE, NEW YORK and THE LIFE AND CRIMES OF BERNETTA WALLFLOWER.

But what other books should I be looking forward to? Help, help! I need to snap out of this blah feeling.

Georgie, coming soon in paperback!

Lisa Graff's The Thing About Georgie , which you may recall made the Texas Bluebonnet master list, will make its paperback debut this August!!

Please note that all of Lisa's book covers have disembodied children's body parts on them. We could infer from this that Lisa likes to chop up children, but in fact, that is not the case. She does, however, speak fluent Italian. Are these things related? Discuss.


*caroline hickey

I Hope They Give Him Some Kind Of Gilded Scepter

According to this article in The New York Times, Jon Scieszka has been named the first ever AMBASSADOR FOR YOUNG PEOPLE'S LITERATURE, which is the kids book version of the Poet Laureate! Huzzah!

I could not imagine a more awesome man to hold this title. He's fun, wild and full of personality. Just the kind of ambassador to shake things up and get us all noticed.

As for his "official" duties, Jon will be speaking at schools and book festivals all across the country. But what other venues could we use Jon in to elevate the platform of our genre?

How about appearing on Conan? I bet lots of his audience would LOVE some YA books, if they knew where to find them. Or a guest spot on Hanna Montana? Hahah.

Any ideas on how we can best use Jon?

For now, though....bow down to the Stinky Cheese Man! BOW DOWN I SAY!

-=siobhan=-

Cybils Finalists are Posted...

Check out the Cybils award finalists.

Though Lisa Graff's The Thing About Georgie and my Cassie Was Here were both nominated for the Middle Grade Fiction category, we did not make it to the finals. However, they have some great books on there so check them out!!

*caroline hickey