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A Warm Winter Tail

By Carrie A. Pearson

Illustrated by Christina Wald

Finally, to wrap up the Sylvan Dell Launch Week we end With A Warm Winter Tail.

Sparked from walk in the woods Carrie Pearson wrote A Warm Winter Tail, a twist on staying warm in the long cold months of winter.

Do you ever wonder how animals stay warm in the winter? Well, they wonder how humans do too! In a twist of perspective, wild creatures question if humans use the same winter adaptation strategies that they do. Do they cuddle together in a tree or fly south to Mexico? Take a look through an animal’s eyes and discover the interesting ways animals cope with the cold in this rhythmic story.

Carrie A. Pearson is originally from Hillsdale, Michigan, and now lives in Marquette, Michigan on the sandy shore of Lake Superior. A former early elementary teacher, she is an active member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) and is the winner of the coveted SCBWI-Michigan Picture Book Mentorship Award. Her nonfiction work has appeared in Michigan History Magazine. Currently she is working on several picture book manuscripts as well as an historical novel for middle grade readers set in an abandoned orphanage. Along with her husband and their three daughters (and their two Labradoodles), she hikes, bikes, runs, and skis in the woods, windsurfs, kayaks, stand-up paddles, and swims in the chilly water and writes about what she experiences around her. The idea for A Warm Winter Tail, her debut picture book, came from an encounter with a whitetail deer on a wintry day. Stop by Carrie’s website www.carriepearsonbooks.com to learn about her school and library visits.

In addition to illustrating A Warm Winter Tail, Habitat Spy, Little Red Bat, andHenry the Impatient Heron for Sylvan Dell, Christina Wald has illustrated for a wide variety of toys, games, books, and magazines. From a book that featured hundreds of animals on each page (Look, Find, and Learn: Animals of the World) to games including the Star Wars role playing game series, every assignment covers something new and exciting. In recent years, she has illustrated tons of different animals for books and other publications. Christina enjoys the research aspect of such projects, saying that each new book is a fascinating new learning experience. She often integrates travel to research for her illustrations. She lives in Ohio with her husband and three cats. Visit Christina’s website.

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The Tree That Bear Climbed

By Marianne Berkes

Illustrated by Kathleen Rietz

In any given city on any given day, a bear climbs a tree. Have you ever wondered how that tree became so strong, or why did that bear choose to climb to the top of a tree? Marianne Berkes and Kathleen Rietz show you just why Bear decided to climb this tree! Have Fun with the coloring page at the bottom, click on the image for a full page to color.

Everyone knows about the house that Jack built, but this is The Tree That Bear Climbed. What makes this tree so fascinating to bear? Starting with the roots that anchor the tree, this chain of events story in cumulative verse explores many different things that help a tree stand tall. It also lends itself to further discussion with fun repetition and detailed picture clues, stimulating a child’s curiosity. Why does the bear climb the tree and what happens when he arrives at his goal?

About the author and illustrator

Award-winning author Marianne Berkes (pronounced Ber-kess with two syllables) is a retired teacher and librarian who turned her love of nature and teaching into writing informational picture books. In addition to The Tree That Bear Climbed and Animalogy for Sylvan Dell, some of Marianne’s other recent and award-winning titles include: Going Home, The Mystery of Animal Migration; Over in the Ocean, in a Coral Reef; Over in the Jungle, a Rainforest Rhyme; Going Around the Sun, Some Planetary Fun, and Marsh Morning. Visit her website at www.MarianneBerkes.com.

A lifelong artist and lover of nature, Kathleen Rietz was drawing and painting before she learned to write her name. Originally, from Peoria, IL, Kathleen received her formal training from the American Academy of Art in Chicago, IL. In addition, to illustrating Desert Baths, The Tree That Bear Climbed, Prairie Storms, and Champ’s Story: Dogs Get Cancer Too! for Sylvan Dell, Kathleen’s other books include Conce Tu Parque, Little Black Ant on Park Street, The ABC’s of Yoga for Kids, and Prayers for Children. She taught art to children and adults at the Community School of the Arts at historic Wheaton College in Wheaton, IL, and through a local home school program in her community. For more information about Kathleen, visit her website: http://www.kathleenrietz.com/.

Comment on this post to win a FREE The Tree That Bear Climbed eBook.

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Solar System Forecast
By Kelly Kizer Whitt
Illustrated by Laurie Allen Klein

Solar System Forecast is full of surprises, from the crazy weather on Neptune, Venus and Pluto to the weather reported guiding you through your adventure in outer space.

Freezing temperatures, scorching heat and a storm bigger than planet Earth is just some of the wild weather you will encounter on your trip through our solar system! Get your fun facts along with your forecast for each major planet, as well as the weather on dwarf planet Pluto, and Saturn’s moon Titan. Any child with an interest in space is sure to love Solar System Forecast, and parents will love the educational “For Creative Minds” section in the back of the book. Get ready for some out of this world fun with Solar System Forecast!

 Here is a behind the scenes look into the illustrations of Solar System Forecast with Laurie Allen Klein.

“Solar System Forecast was a difficult book to do because it wasn’t a traditional children’s book story.  Consisting of a series of weather reports from different moons and planets there wasn’t a central character to follow and each page described a different, unique weather condition – on a non-earth surface.  How, for example, do you illustrate “Spring” with no trees, flowers, grass, animals or even atmosphere to convey the image?

I immediately dove into research, looking up everything I could on meteorology and I found some amazing visual references of clouds and storms, but there was still the central difficulty of depicting any of this in an alien environment.  And speaking of aliens – the most fun, reader-friendly surprise was the fact that the weather reporter was a real, live Alien, but I couldn’t reveal that until the very last page so I couldn’t even use any obvious alien references in any of the other illustrations.  I was afraid it would just be pages of weird landscapes until the big finish at the end.

The only consistent link I had, that flowed through every page, was the weather report itself, and I immediately thought of The Weather Channel. Specifically all the modern technological ways one can get weather updates: TV, computer, laptop, iPad, smart phone, etc. so that became my visual theme.  Showing each report on some different type of technology (some, like the Jupiter hologram being more sci fi) and in a few places the book page itself IS the screen.

 The thing that brought it all together was the morning I noticed my husband getting ready for work.  It was still dark, and he was in his uniform, looking at The Weather Channel on TV, with his coffee cup in hand.  He was surrounded by this eerie blue glow and that’s when I thought of the astronaut on the first page, checking the weather before work – his coffee and Danish in hand, absurdly still having his helmet on and sealed.  It just made me laugh so I took that little hint of silliness into the rest of the book.”

Pay close attention to Laurie’s silliness the weather alien pops up on various pages throughout the book. Can you find him?

About the Author and Illustrator

Kelly Kizer Whitt (Solar System Forecast) has been an admirer of the universe since childhood. From the dark skies of her hometown of Sauk City, Wisconsin, she would gaze at the stars and wonder what was beyond them. Kelly majored in English and studied Astronomy at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. After college she spent three years in Nashville with her husband, Jeremy, before moving to the Milwaukee area. In 1998 she landed her dream job at Astronomy magazine, where she worked as copy editor, photo editor, and assistant editor. Kelly wrote the terrestrial planets section of The Collins Illustrated Encyclopedia of Space, published in 2001. She writes about space for the websites Suite101.com and AstronomyToday.com. She also has a weekly stargazing blog for the Sierra Club online. Besides writing about space, Kelly published a romance novel on Kindle in 2011 titled The Gathering Storm. Kelly’s hobbies include visiting the national parks, creating crossword puzzles, and reading. Kelly lives in Sussex, Wisconsin, with Jeremy, her son Kaden, her daughter Lucy, and their cat Perseus, named for the constellation.

Laurie Allen Klein has been a freelance artist for nearly 25 years. Over the last several years, she has worked as the on-staff artist for a marine park, where she does everything from painting life-size sea animal murals, to illustrating children’s activity books. As evident by the extras included in the art, she has combined her love and fascination with outer space (and science fiction) with children’s illustration in both Solar System Forecast and Meet the Planets. Laurie also illustrated Fur and Feathers, Where Should Turtle Be?, Little Skink’s Tail, and If a Dolphin Were a Fish for Sylvan Dell. Laurie lives in Florida. See more of her artwork at http://www.lauriekleinarts.com.

Leave a comment and enter to win a FREE Solar System Forecast eBook!

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What do The Most Dangerous and news reports of West Nile virus have in common, the mosquito. When Terri Fields wrote the story of a ferocious animal contest, she had no idea how topical the book would become at the release date.

With more than 1,000 cases reported in 38 states this outbreak is the largest in U.S. history according to the Center for Disease Control.  Not all mosquitoes carry the West Nile virus and not everyone will show symptoms of the disease if bitten. However, it is important to protect yourself from mosquito bites, as they are proven to transmit several different diseases to humans and animals all over the world.

Even if a non West Nile mosquito bites you, they leave behind an itchy and uncomfortable bump. The best way to protect yourself from a bite is use bug spray with Deet, wear long sleeves and long pants when you are outside and eliminate any standing water in your yard.

In The Most Dangerous, children will be excited by the parade of scary animals, but they will be surprised when the tiny mosquito shows up to the contest. Although the disease is not mentioned in the book, it is a great way to kick off a conversation about West Nile and mosquitoes with kids.

Learn more about The Most Dangerous!

Dangerous animals from all over the world gather for the Most Dangerous Animal of All Contest. Snakes, spiders, sharks . . . who will the winner be? Deadly poison, huge teeth, razor -sharp horns, and fearsome feet are just a few of the ways that animals kill. Predators mean to kill. Prey simply defend themselves. And yet, the unexpected most deadly animal doesn’t mean to harm at all!

 

Terri Fields (Burro’s Tortillas, The Most Dangerous) has written nineteen books which have garnered a number of awards including the Maud Hart Lovelace Award for Middle Grades Fiction, the Georgia Children’s Choice Award, being named to the Recommended Reading List for Chicago Public Schools, the TAYSHAS (Texas) Reading List, the Southwest Books of the Year List, and as one of the 100 Top Kid Picks in Children’s Books in Arizona. A long time desert-dweller, Ms Fields has enjoyed sharing her books with children all over the world. In addition to writing, Ms. Fields is also a educator who has been named Arizona Teacher of the Year, ING Education Innovator for Arizona, and been selected as one of the twenty teachers on the All-USA Teacher Team of the nation’s top educators. Terri Fields has worked with students in first through twelfth grades.  Ms. Fields sees the world around her in terms of the wonderful stories it reveals. Visit Terri’s website http://www.terrifields.com/.

Award-winning illustrator Laura Jacques is passionate about illustrating children’s books that focus on natural history, wildlife, and environmental awareness for children. In addition to illustrating The Most Dangerous, Baby Owl’s Rescue and Whistling Wings for Sylvan Dell, she has also illustrated For the Birds: The Life of Roger Tory Peterson, Squirrel Assist, At Home in the Rain Forest, and Wildlife Refuge: A Classroom Adventure. Her books have won several honors and awards, including “NSTA-CBC Outstanding Science Trade Books for Children” sponsored by the Children’s Book Council and the “KIND Children’s Book Award” sponsored by the Association for Humane and Environmental Education, a division of the Humane Society of the United States. For more information, visit Laura’s website: http://www.laurajacques.com.

September’s Book of the Month read The Most Dangerous here http://www.sylvandellpublishing.com/index.php!

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DESERT BATHS 

by Darcy Pattison
Illustrated by Kathleen Rietz

Watch the vulture bask in the morning sun, the roadrunner kick up a cloud of dust, the javelina wallow, and the bobcat give her cub a licking with a rough tongue in Desert Baths. As the sun travels across the sky, learn how twelve different desert animals face the difficulties of staying clean in a dry and parched land. Explore the desert habitat through its animals and their habits of hygiene. Told in lyrical prose, this story is a celebration of the desert lands of the American Southwest.

After reading Desert Baths, get into the spirit with a great coloring page below by Kathleen Rietz, or visit www.sylvandellpublishing.com to take the quiz to see what you learned about desert animals.

Darcy Pattison is published in eght languages. In addition to Desert Baths and Prairie Storms with Sylvan Dell, other recent titles include Wisdom: The Midway Albatross and 11 Ways to Ruin a Photograph. She also authored the ebook, How to Write a Children’s Book and the teacher resource book, Paper Lightning: Prewriting Activities to Spark Creativity and Help Students Write Effectively. Darcy is the 2007 recipient of the Arkansas Governor’s Arts Award, Individual Artist Award for her work in children’s literature. As a writing teacher, Darcy is in demand nationwide to teach her Novel Revision Retreat. She is currently the Co-Chair of the Children’s Program for the Arkansas Literary Festival.

A lifelong artist and lover of nature, Kathleen Rietz was drawing and painting before she learned to write her name. Originally from Peoria, IL, Kathleen received her formal training from the American Academy of Art in Chicago, IL. In addition to illustrating Desert Baths, The Tree That Bear Climbed, Prairie Storms, and Champ’s Story: Dogs Get Cancer Too! for Sylvan Dell, Kathleen’s other books include Conce Tu Parque, Little Black Ant on Park Street, The ABC’s of Yoga for Kids, and Prayers for Children. She taught art to children and adults at the Community School of the Arts at historic Wheaton College in Wheaton, IL, and through a local home school program in her community.

Write a comment and you could win an eBook of Desert Baths!

* Winners in the past 6 months are not eligible for contests.

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“When Sylvan Dell asked me if I’d be interested in creating the Animal Helpers’ series, I jumped at the opportunity,” said author Jennifer Curtis,who received the 2012 State of Maryland International Reading Association Council Literacy Award. “These books not only help young readers and their parents learn more about the incredible ways that experts help wild animals, they provide a means of fundraising for each participating clinic. Rescuing and rehabilitating individual animals is incredibly expensive and each participant will use the books to help raise funds for their centers.”

The first book, Animal Helpers: Wildlife Rehabilitators, features the work of four wildlife rehabilitators, including Kathy Woods of the Phoenix Wildlife Center in Maryland. This well-known rehabilitator was the impetus of Curtis’ Baby Owl’s Rescue. Victoria Campbell of Wild Things Sanctuary in New York; Kim Johnson of the Drift Inn Wildlife Sanctuary in Texas; and Miriam Moyer and Mary Birney of White Flicker Wild Bird Rehabilitation in Pennsylvania are also featured . U.S. Fish & Wildlife’s Randy Loftus also contributed extraordinary photographs of rescues.

When wild animals get sick they can’t go to the doctor, often wildlife rehabilitators are called to rescue injured, sick or orphaned animals. The rehabilitators nurse the animals back to health in hopes that they will be released into the wild once they have recovered. Kim Johnson, who specializes in mammals and raptors said, “I am very excited for the opportunity to share the rewards of assisting and protecting our wildlife.  I hope the book inspires some to follow our examples and continue the hard but rewarding work of a rehabilitator.”

Jennifer Keats Curtis is passionate about nature; often referred to the green author, you will find Jennifer among students and teachers sharing her love for animals. In addition to the Animal Helpers series, Baby Owl’s Rescue, and Turtles In My Sandbox for Sylvan Dell, some of her other recent titles include Seahorses, Osprey Adventure and Saving Squeak: The Otter Tale. Learn more and request a school visit by checking out her website at www.jenniferkeatscurtis.com and following her on Facebook at Green Author Jennifer Keats Curtis.

Be the first to read Animal Helpers: Wildlife Rehabilitators, enter to win a FREE eBook here from Sylvan Dell! Comment with your name and email address we will pick 5 lucky winners!

* Winners in the past 6 months are not eligible for contests.

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New Books are on their way and we couldn’t be more excited to get them into little hands for science fun. Our authors and illustrators will be out and about in their communities and holding launch parties for their titles, we wanted to get in on the fun at Sylvan Dell and will be holding a virtual launch week September 10^th-14^th. Join Sylvandell on Goodreads, Facebook and Twitter for contests and giveaways! For a sneak preview of the six new titles visit www.sylvandellpublishing.com.

Back to School with Begin with Books… It’s always a great experience to really experience the joy a children gets from reading, and we did just that this weekend with a local organization Begin with Books. While passing out books from Sylvan Dell we collaborated with this local affiliate of the Dolly Parton Imagination Library to help gain interest in reading. Begin with Books is a fantastic organization that provides children with a book a month until the age of four. This early exposure to reading why we do what we do every day and it’s important to take time out and experience that excitement. Sylvan Dell will continue to work with this organization and others throughout our community to promote literacy. To learn more about begin with books visit their website http://beginwithbooks.org/

For teachers and librarians only! Planning for the upcoming year or looking for some impactful presentations to your school or classroom, Sylvan Dell authors or illustrators love to talk about their work to children. An author or illustrator visit is very inspiring to young minds and may just spark a budding talent. Contact us if you are interested in learning more! If an author can’t travel to your local area Skype visits are fun and check out TeacherTube for exciting and fun new videos!

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Last night the Beaman Memorial Library in West Boylston, Massachusetts helped Ellen Harasimowicz and I launch our new children's book, THE HIVE DETECTIVES into the world. It was a marvelous event, chock full of book lovers and library supporters and beekeepers and good, good friends from all the many parts of my life.

THANK YOU ALL FOR COMING!

My photographers for the evening are not fully grown yet (read: short!), and so my memories of the night will always have a unique point of view. Like this (almost side) view of the snack table:


© Catherine Griffin Burns

and this (definitely side) view of the books for sale:


© Samuel Griffin Burns

But somewhere along the way, folks lifted my little ones up (as good friends tend to do), and they captured images I'll treasure always, like signed books:


© Catherine Griffin Burns

and the gorgeous floral wishes of my friends the Flaherty's:


© Samuel Griffin Burns

and smiles shared with Ellen Harasimowicz and Mary Duane, who helped to make this book buzz:


© Benjamin Griffin Burns


Today I have the pleasure of driving back to the library to deliver a check for $379.76, which represents the funds we raised through book sales last night. Thank you, dear friends, for supporting us, and our book, and one of my favorite local libraries!

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Laura and I have a pair of posts up at the Bubble Stampede blog where we talk about our book launches. I went live, Laura went virtual. Interesting... Drop by and eavesdrop.

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Okay, so right up front I'm going to apologize for spending a disproportionate amount time talking about Bubble Homes and Fish Farts this month. But ya know...having a book come out, is kind of like having a baby. It's a VERY exciting event. Like a new parent, you carry your new book around everywhere, showing everyone you meet...you send out announcements and talk incessantly about the latest cute thing it did, sometimes to the rolling eyeballs of friends and family. So, forgive me as I jump up and down. I hope you'll share my excitement.


If you're in the Chilliwack or Vancouver BC areas, I hope you'll drop in to one of the upcoming book launches. The Vancouver Aquarium has designated animal bubbles as their Super Saturday theme around my March 14 launch there, with kids activities starting at 8:30 a.m. At the Great Blue Heron Nature Reserve on March 28, we'll have all kinds of outdoor bubbley fun to add to the mix. Carolyn Conahan, my amazing illustrator, has created templates for kids to colour and turn into animal hats and masks. More info about the launches here.

Then, on March 23-27, I'll be setting off on a blog tour. More details to come.

Meanwhile, some nice folks invited me to be a guest on their blogs this month, so if you want to hear me yibber yabber about blogging, head on over to Alice's CWIM Blog, or if you're interested in my thoughts about where the cool science books of today came from, I have an essay up at Unabridged, and the students at the Institute of Children's Literature peppered me with questions about writing process last month and that transcript can be found here.
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Jenn Hurlin is one of our SCBWI members. Her husband, Derrick Hurlin, is launching his book of 41 short stories “Let’s go. You drive” on Saturday 14 February 2009 at 10:30. The event will take place at 303 Murray Street, Brooklyn Pretoria. The cost is R30 per person and there will be eats and great company. Derrick will give a brief chat entitled “The Magic World of the Short Story”. RSPV:

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If you're in and around the lower mainland this Wednesday, don't miss the annual Hycroft Event presented by CWILL BC and the Vancouver Children's Literature Roundtable. You'll be treated to presentations by 43 local authors and illustrators about their new books hot off the press, as well as guest speaker Kathy Stinson, and tea, dainty pastries and interesting conversation, all in a most elegant venue.

In the past, the 2-minute time limit per presenter has resulted in very creative and entertaining performances, so it's a lot of fun. And it takes place at Hycroft, a big old beautiful Vancouver historic home. Guests are invited to sip tea and nibble on wee pastries in the grand diningroom following the presentations. Books will be for sale, and authors and illustrators will be milling about chatting and signing.

It starts at 6 pm. On-street parking. And it's free. Come.



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So, about that earthquake yesterday. . . the magnitude 2.7 earthquake that occurred 40 miles from here (as reported by the U.S. Geological Survey National Earthquake Information Center) around the time I checked my mailbox? That one? Um. . . well, with all the jumping around I was doing, it's quite possible I caused it.

But I had a good reason. You see, yesterday was like a very special birth day---an advance copy of Bubble Homes and Fish Farts arrived in the mail from my publisher! A book, a real book, the very. first. one! Not galleys or F&Gs or layouts or, or, or. . . but a real hardcover BOOK! So, yeah, there was a whole lot of "Squeeee!"-ing and jumping around at Casa Bayrock yesterday around mail time. Quite possibly enough to cause an earthquake, I should think.

This book has been a long time coming, and oh, it's so been worth the wait. It's beautiful, absolutely gorgeous. It's not bragging for me to say so. Sure, I wrote the text, but the whole visual feel is due to Susan and the amazing folks on the Charlesbridge design team and to my brilliant illustrator Carolyn Conahan, who found the perfect way to express the science and whimsy I had hoped for. I can take none of the credit for that. It's such a scary thing for a picture book writer to relinquish creative control to the art department and illustrator, but these guys totally got what I was trying to do and made it real. Oh, and you want to know a really cool detail? The dust jacket is a lovely matte finish except for the bubbles. . . they're all shiny, like bubbles should be! Those Charlesbridge folks are the awesomest.

Seeing your book for the first time has to be one of the biggest highs in an author's life, so, join me in a big "Squeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!" won't you? :^D
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Photos of the Spring Book Hatching held this weekend in the moat area of the Vancouver Library (yeah, the library has a moat, howcoolisthat?) are available here.

Meanwhile...

Hexapod. Hexapod. Hexapod.
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Earlier this summer, the SBBT, brainchild of Colleen Mondor, launched the first multi blog author tour. We're on to the next project, The One Shot World Tours, which starts today with the Best Reads with Vegemite! -- featuring reviews and interviews with Australian and a few New Zealand authors. As Australian author of the Magic and Madness Trilogy and cricket enthusiast Justine Larbalestier would say, "Aussie! Aussie! Aussie! Oi! Oi! Oi!"

Here's the list with links to all the sites:
Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast interviews Margo Lanagan

Kelly Fineman writes about Melina Marchetta

Big A, little A writes about Anna Feinberg and her Tashi series

Not Your Mother's Bookclub interviews Simmone Howell

Chicken Spaghetti reviews Kathy Hoopmann's award winning All Cats Have Asperger Syndrome


Shaken and Stirred writes about How Sassy Changed My Life, The Red Shoes by Ursula Dubosarsky and Margo Lanagan

Jen Robinson discusses John Marsden's Tomorrow series

Finding Wonderland writes about Undine by Penni Russon and some of Jaclyn Moriarty's titles

Little Willow discusses Finding Grace by Alyssa Brugman

A Chair, a Fireplace & a Tea Cozy writes about Catherine Jinks and her four Pagan books

Interactive Reader posts about Randa Abdel-Fattah's Does My Head Look Big in This? and John Flanagan's The Icebound Land

The Ya Ya Yas interviews Queenie Chan

Fuse Number 8 writes about John Marsden and the new Hot Man of Literature: Andy Griffiths

Chasing Ray writes about Nick Earls

And the SBBT welcomes two guest bloggers:
Jenny Davidson interviews mystery author Peter Temple.

Mother Reader writes about Am I Right or Am I Right? by Barry Jonsberg.

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Justina Chen Headley finishes out the week at Finding Wonderland


Did you enjoy the SBBT? Go visit organizer Colleen Mondor at Chasing Ray and let her know!

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It's Friday, and Tea Cozy's part of the Summer Blog Blast Tour closes with an interview with the most excellent Cecil Castellucci.

I was blown away by Cecil's first book, Boy Proof, blew me away. I loved Egg, with her mix of securities and insecurities, and her strengths and intelligence.

Her next book, The Queen of Cool, featured someone very different from Egg: Libby is the coolest girl in school. Everyone wants to be her, or be her friend; and Libby finds its not enough.

Next came Beige, which I think may be my favorite. Katy is a teen who thinks she has her act together, but realizes that what she thinks she knows and what is true are two different things. She's younger in many ways from Egg and Libby; Katy is still trying to figure out who she is.

Each book is set in LA, but they are different LAs: Egg is Hollywood, Libby the sciences, Katy the music.

Finally, there is Cecil's graphic novel, The PLAIN Janes. Teenage Jane lives in the city, happy with her life; but when disaster strikes too close to comfort, her parents leave the city for the safety of the suburbs. Jane doesn't want popularity; she wants friends, she wants to make a difference, she wants to be real.

So, on to the interview!

Liz B: The PLAIN Janes, your first graphic novel, just came out. Could you talk a bit about the differences between writing traditional novels and graphic novels?

Cecil: Well, you have to rearrange the way that you think about telling a story. The thing I like about a graphic novel is that you have to just get to the heart of a scene. It's a very lean kind of writing. In my first draft, I tried to keep the dialogue really minimal. Once I saw it all drawn and ballooned out, I went back and removed even more dialogue. You can let things rest more, because there are pictures and working with someone as talented as Jim Rugg, who illustrated The PLAIN Janes, you can just let the image do a lot of the story telling.

That said, it was hard for me to figure how to move the action forward at first, because I had to consider what was going to be shown in the panels. That was hard. In a traditional novel, with words, you can meander a bit, you can rest on a moment or have a lot of fluid action. Also, there is something quite intimate about the written word. It's like resting your cheek against someone elses brain, or like whispering a secret because the reader and the writer sort of agree together on creating what the world looks like. It's a collaboration with the reader in that way. With a graphic novel, everything is there for everyone to see. You know what it looks like. As a writer, I am very glad that I now get to play around in both forms. They are very different and they each have there charms and strengths. I love writing both ways.

Liz B: What was your working relationship with the The PLAIN Janes artist, Jim Rugg?

Cecil: It was awesome. Working with Jim Rugg has been and is (we are currently working on the second Janes book, The Janes in Love) a truly amazing and inspiring experience. Besides sort of gently guiding me through those first scary pages of The PLAIN Janes and "having my back," he is just so smart and so talented I pinch myself lucky to work with such a fine talent as him. I always love to listen to what he has to say, about panel, pace and camera placement and about the story.

It's also great to have a buddy who cares about the characters as much as I do. We have long conversations about the Janes and we both really care about them. With Jim as my swim buddy, I feel like I did when I was in a band! It's so nice to have a partner! I have an enormous amount of respect for Jim and I hope we get to work together for a long time. Also, he is totally one of the coolest, funniest, nicest people I've ever met! Go read Street Angel!

Liz B: You're an author; and a director, a performance artist, a musician, an actress (I'm sure I'm leaving something out!) Since I'm someone who was a lawyer, is a librarian, and who knows what will happen next week, I love stories of people who pursue multiple dreams. I was wondering; what was your path from indie musician to YA author?

Cecil: To me, I always was telling stories! It's like when an artist, I mean a visual artist, sketches with pencils or does a water color, or mixed media or oils or acrylics they are still an artist. It's just a different brush, a different way of painting the picture, but the same thing: a piece of visual art.

For me, being in a band or making a movie or doing a performance piece or a stand up show or writing a play, novel, comic book, it's all the same thing. It's a way to tell a story, which is what i always wanted to do. That said, I started off in film school and when I was in film school I started a band with a couple of girls called BITE. When I was in BITE I wanted to write a book about an all girl teen band. The first novel I ever wrote, that is in a drawer never to see the light of day was about that. I think BEIGE is kind of my reworking of that first idea from when I was in a band a million years ago.

Liz B: Why YA?

Cecil: The thing about writing for Young Adults is that is the moment in life when you are declaring and figuring out what kind of a human being you are going to be. You are deciding everything and everything is a first time. That's an incredibly compelling fertile place for story telling. As a writer, it's an irresistible one.

Liz B: And were you reading much YA before you started writing YA?

Cecil: When I was a young lady, and now as an older young lady, or a person who is young at heart, it always bugged me that there was this line between adult and young adult. When I was a young adult, I liked things that were much broader than what teens were supposed to like and as an adult I love things that are supposed to be just for teens. So, yes, in a way I was always reading stuff that was for much younger. But honestly, I think before I started writing YA seriously, I was reading more middle grade stuff. But once I found my voice and discovered that it was 14+, I started reading more mature YA books. But, you know, I'll read anything that's good. I like good books. And I think that YA is defined as being a 12 - 99 age range. So that pretty much includes everything ever written.

Liz B: One of the things I love about your work is the adults. The parents and other adults in your books are well rounded, sympathetic, fully realized characters with virtues and flaws. Much as I love your YA books, I'd love to read a book by you with an adult as the main character. Any chance of that happening?

Cecil: I am pretty sure that at some point, in what I hope will be my very long career as a writer, that I will write a novel for adults with an adult as the main character. For me, a story presents itself to me and tells me how it wants to be told. My plays, my movies and my performance pieces have adults and deal with adult themes. And I don't mean that they are pervy! I mean that right now, those outlets seem to be where I am exploring some of those other themes and narrative questions that I have.

I am also going younger! I have a picture book, Grandma's Gloves and an early chapter book series coming out (both on Candlewick) for the 6-10 year old set! And that includes my first story with an animal as a the main character! Bring on the ducks!

Liz B: You are a "web 2.0" author, with a LiveJournal/blog, a website, and various online additions for your books, from playlists for Beige to Libby's LA. It's the type of stuff I adore as a reader. What was your inspiration? Were these things that weren't able to be included in the books?

Cecil: Well, I just thought that stuff might be a little bit interesting. I think maybe the "2.0" people are just creative and it's nice to be able to do stuff! I don't want to, say, inflict my poetry on everyone. But it's there if anyone wants to read it.

The add ons, like Libby's Los Angeles, and Egg's Los Angeles (this reminds me that I should do one for Katy/Beige) were mostly because I love LA so much and I thought that people might be interested in the real places that my characters hung out. Like, maybe someone would come to LA and be like "Oh, I want to go to Skoobys to get an awesome hot dog!" or "Let's go to the Merry Go Round in Griffith Park!"

The Beige playlist was something I thought would be fun and interesting, as I love a mix list, but these things seemed like they wanted to have their own page, not to be on my "real" blog.

The I Heart YA, which I am planning on doing more of, and more often, is just fun, because I love making little movies, but I don't have time to make little movies anymore. But I travel and hang out with my YA friends a lot. I figure it's like a mini-documentary of the YA world. I am glad that you like it!

Liz B: I saw from your guest blogging at newsarama that you love Joss Whedon. As you may have guessed from my blog name, I adore him. I also have the Firefly theme song and Man Called Jayne on my iPod.

Cecil: I just bought the boxed set of Firefly. That is what brought me to my new found Joss Love.

Liz B: So, for Buffy the Vampire Slayer; favorite episode?

Cecil: Favorite episode? Hush. I think I cried at that Prom episode, too.

Liz B: Favorite character?

Cecil: Toss up between Anya and Willow and I really liked Andrew in the last season. (For the record on Angel it's Cordelia and Wesley but I'm not done watching that series yet so I reserve the right to change my mind.) (And in case you are interested on firefly it's Wash, Kaylee and Zoe. But of course I'm madly in love with Mal.)

Liz B: Favorite quote?

Cecil: Any time any character makes a word end a -y.

Thank you, Cecil! It looks like after ALA Anaheim, I'll add a few days to do the full LA tour.

Want more Cecil? Check out her SBBT interview yesterday at Shaken & Stirred.

Right now, the ALA Convention in DC has started, and Cecil Castellucci will be there. Her schedule is at her LiveJournal.

Finally, don't forget to visit the other SBBT interviews:

Tim Tharp at Chasing Ray
Justina Chen Headley at Big A, little a
Ysabeau Wilce at Shaken & Stirred
Dana Reinhardt at Bildungsroman
Julie Ann Peters at Finding Wonderland
Bennett Madison at Bookshelves of Doom
Holly Black at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast
Justine Larbalestier at Hip Writer Mama
Kirsten Miller at A Fuse #8 Production

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The Summer Blog Blast Tour Thursday Interviews!


Eddie Campbell at Chasing Ray
Sara Zarr at Writing and Ruminating
Brent Hartinger at Interactive Reader
Justine Larbalestier at Big A, little a
Cecil Castellucci at Shaken & Stirred
Ysabeau Wilce at Bildungsroman
Jordan Sonnenblick at Jen Robinson's Book Page
Chris Crutcher at Finding Wonderland
Kazu Kibuishi at lectitans
Mitali Perkins at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast
Laura Ruby at The YA YA YAs

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It's Wednesday on the great SBBT, so that means we have Laura Ruby stopping by!

Now, this is one of those times where it's a good thing that the interview happened via email; because in real life, the interview would have turned into one long session of watching Buffy and Veronica Mars, and chatting about families, and growing up in New Jersey. With no interview.

Laura is amazing because she writes for all ages: for kids she has Lily's Ghosts, The Wall and the Wing and The Chaos King; Good Girls for teens and I'm Not Julia Roberts for adults. Her books aren't just diverse in terms of age; she writes ghost stories, fantasy, coming of age and humor.

Good Girls, Ruby's YA book, is a look at love, lust, sex, sexuality, rumors, and emotions. Audrey hooks up with Luke; someone takes a photo; and the next thing, the picture is all over school. It's even been sent to her parents. Last week, she was a Good Girl; this week, she is the slut, the ho. Now, boys think it's OK to say rude things and make rude gestures because, you know -- she's that kind of girl. The girl who would do that.

So, on with the show!

Liz B: Good Girls is such a topical book and has such an intriguing question: what is a good girl? What was your inspiration for writing Good Girls?

Laura: I was mulling over what I wanted to work on next when I noticed that sex was everywhere (I know, I know, DUH). But really, I felt like I couldn't get away from the endless blather about Paris Hilton and Girls Gone Wild and MTV and Maxim and myspace and whatever -- most of it horrible, misogynist garbage. I wondered what would happen if a "good" girl got caught on camera. How would she ever get her life back in this culture? I thought it was a good idea for a book, but I had no voice for the story, no soul. I set it aside and worked on other things for a while, until the day one of my stepdaughters came home from high school and told me that some obnoxious, deeply stupid little boy was spreading rumors about her and it didn't seem to matter to anyone that they weren't true. Something in my head just burst (an aneurysm????) Suddenly, I didn't just have a story about a "good girl" caught on camera, but one about rumors, betrayal, friendship, and privacy invasion.

Liz B: One of the things I love about Good Girls is it is not a message book. If anything, it's a question book; raising questions for the reader to answered about what it means to be a "good" girl, appearances, rumors, private and public lives. Can you share a bit about the writing process? Did you ever find yourself rewriting to avoid it becoming a message book?

Laura: Writing Good Girls was unlike writing any of my other books in that it was a completely wonderful experience; I loved every minute I spent working on it. Even getting that first draft down, usually the most agonizing, wrenching part of the process for me, was an absolute dream. I'm sure it wasn't a dream for my family, however, because it was all I could talk about for months. They did a very good job not rolling their eyes when I would relate conversations between my characters as if they were real.

Liz B: Another thing I love about Good Girls is that I got to the end and had to reread it; because while I wouldn't call Audrey deliberately unreliable, she and the reader discovered things that really changed how a reader viewed some of the events in the book. Was this challenging to write? How did you keep track of what Audrey realized and when?

Laura: I didn't really. I wrote this book in a fever. I didn't keep outlines, I didn't plan chapters, I just wrote as fast and as well as I could and saved the technicalities for later. During the revision process -- my favorite part of the process by the way -- I had to go back and make sure all the "clues" were placed where they should be, that the chapters, though not chronological, were in the right order, etc.

I do understand that writing/revising a book this quickly, easily, and happily will most likely never, ever happen again (sob!!!).

Liz B: You've written for every age level, including adults. Could you share some of the challenges of doing that? Do you ever have a "hmm, I've just strayed from kid to YA" moment?

Laura: I think I did have some of those moments when I wrote my first book, Lily's Ghosts. My editor had me take out some teenage angsty/angry moments in the book. — none were in the least racy, just a hair too old for the 13-year-old POV character. Now, I have a pretty clear idea of the voice and POV of each book -- sometimes even before I start to write it -- so I don't often feel confused about what I'm writing.

I think the challenges are more about the marketing of the books, making sure my audience understands that I write in many different genres and for many different age groups. I'm sure there are days that my agent thinks I'm nuts.

Liz B: Speaking of marketing -- your most recent book is for adults. Did you find the process of this book (from editing to marketing and publicity) to be different from that of books for kids and teens?

Laura: Writing "I'm Not Julia Roberts" was a completely different process because I wrote and revised it over the course of eight -- yes, eight!!! -- years. And then I revised it for my agent three times, and another few for my editor. We were all exhausted, I think! Getting just the right cover was also a challenge, but I love what was done with the book.

As for publicity, that was also completely different, because you have to rely on a lot more heavily on newspaper reviews and magazine placements to get the word out. (With children's books, there are not only pre-pub review sources, but there are school visits, conference appearances, and library talks that can be done to promote books. Also, teachers, librarians, even state organizations that will select kids' books for "best of" and "recommended reading lists). I was lucky as my publicist worked really hard to get my book into some magazines like People and Redbook.

Liz B: Speaking of your book for grown ups -- I'm Not Julia Roberts is a work of fiction about step families. What was the inspiration?

Laura: My whole life! I'm a stepdaughter, half-sister, step-sister and stepmom myself, and have lived in just about every permutation of "family" that exists in the universe (okay, not polygamy, but you know what I mean). When I first became a stepmom some ten years ago and was feeling completely overwhelmed, I read tons of books about stepparenting. Most of them were full of horrible advice guaranteed to make your stepchildren hate you forever. I just wanted something that was true -- not necessarily factually, just emotionally. (I know I sound like that million pieces guy, but I promise I don't have any stories in the book about getting beaten up and thrown in jail). I wanted a little commiseration, not bad advice. So I started writing. My book isn't autobiographical, but I do think it's honest, if that makes any sense at all.

Liz B: Let's talk Veronica Mars.

Laura: Oh, let's!

Liz B: Do you think there should be a wrap up movie?

Laura: Yes. I think there should be an entire series of wrap up movies. At least six. Or twelve.

Liz B: What was your favorite episode? Favorite character?

Laura: I adore Veronica and her dad -- the dialogue was always amazing on that show. But I have to admit a heavy fondness for Dick Casablancas. He was so hilariously clueless, and yet had just those teeny, tiny few moments of humanity that made it so hard to hate him completely.

As for a favorite episode, I honestly can't pick. I can't! Don't make me!

Liz B: (who also had a mini crush on DC): What will you watch now that its gone?

Laura: I'll probably just keep watching reruns of Law & Order, hoping against hope that there will be one episode I haven't seen yet. And I'm thinking a Buffy marathon might be in order.

Liz B: And as an aside, I just got a copy of Neptune Noir, essays about Veronica Mars, and that is helping.

Laura: A book I obviously need.

Beyond that... I think I'll spend the summer rewatching either Buffy.

Liz B: You read my mind.

So, faithful readers: what do you think should be the TV Series On DVD Summer Event for Laura and me and other Veronica Mars fans? Vote now!

Want to read the other interviews with Laura, and find out more about her middle grade books?
On Monday, Laura was at Writing and Ruminating; on Tuesday, she was visiting Miss Erin; tomorrow, she'll be at The YA YA YAs; and then she'll take a well deserved rest!

Other interviews today:

Mitali Perkins at Hip Writer Mama
Svetlana Chmakova at Finding Wonderland
Dana Reinhardt at Interactive Reader
Holly Black at Shaken & Stirred
Hilary McKay at Bookshelves of Doom
Kirsten Miller at Miss Erin
Julie Ann Peters at A Fuse #8 Production
Carolyn Mackler at The YA YA YAs
Jordan Sonnenblick at Writing and Ruminating

Remember to stop by Chasing Ray, where in addition to the list of interviews. Colleen includes fun quotes from the interviews.

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I'm studying for a big CPM test tomorrow, and packing for DC.

What are you doing?

The obvious answer.... checking out the Summer Blog Blast Tour Tuesday interviews!

Laura Ruby at Miss Erin
Bennett Madison at Shaken & Stirred
Shaun Tan at A Fuse #8 Production
Chris Crutcher at Bookshelves of Doom
Holly Black at The YA YA YAs
Kazu Kibuishi at Finding Wonderland
Christopher Golden at Bildungsroman
David Brin at Chasing Ray
Kirsten Miller at Jen Robinson's Book Page
Sara Zarr at Big A, little a
Sonya Hartnett at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast

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Don't forget that the Summer Blog Blast Tour started Sunday with Gene Luen Yang at Finding Wonderland

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A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy is where I blog about all things related to children's and teen literature.

What's going on right now in the world of the kidlitblogosphere that you may be interested in?

A little thing called the Summer Blog Blast Tour, organized by Of Colleen Mondor at Chasing Ray.

Basically, it's a bunch of author interviews at several lit blogs. The authors range from children's to teen to graphic novels. It's a great way to take a peak at some of the top kidlit and lit blogs, as well as a wide range of authors.

If you want to take a peak, here is the schedule:


Sunday, June 17

Gene Luen Yang at Finding Wonderland


Monday, June 18

Tom & Dorothy Hoobler at Chasing Ray
Mitali Perkins at Big A, Little a
Sara Zarr at Interactive Reader
Justina Chen Headley at Hip Writer Mama
Justine Larbalestier at A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy
Dana Reinhardt at lectitans
Brent Hartinger at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast
Laura Ruby at Writing and Ruminating
Jordan Sonnenblick by Bildungsroman
Ysabeau Wilce at Finding Wonderland


Tuesday, June 19

Laura Ruby at Miss Erin
Bennett Madison at Shaken & Stirred
Shaun Tan at A Fuse #8 Production
Chris Crutcher at Bookshelves of Doom
Holly Black at The YA YA YAs
Kazu Kibuishi at Finding Wonderland
Christopher Golden at Bildungsroman
David Brin at Chasing Ray
Kirsten Miller at Jen Robinson's Book Page
Sara Zarr at Big A, little a
Sonya Hartnett at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast


Wednesday, June 20

Mitali Perkins at Hip Writer Mama
Svetlana Chmakova at Finding Wonderland
Dana Reinhardt at Interactive Reader
Laura Ruby at A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy
Holly Black at Shaken & Stirred
Hilary McKay at Bookshelves of Doom
Kirsten Miller at Miss Erin
Julie Ann Peters at A Fuse #8 Production
Carolyn Mackler at The YA YA YAs
Jordan Sonnenblick at Writing and Ruminating


Thursday, June 21

Eddie Campbell at Chasing Ray
Sara Zarr at Writing and Ruminating
Brent Hartinger at Interactive Reader
Justine Larbalestier at Big A, little a
Cecil Castellucci at Shaken & Stirred
Ysabeau Wilce at Bildungsroman
Jordan Sonnenblick at Jen Robinson's Book Page
Chris Crutcher at Finding Wonderland
Kazu Kibuishi at lectitans
Mitali Perkins at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast
Laura Ruby at The YA YA YAs


Friday, June 22

Tim Tharp at Chasing Ray
Justina Chen Headley at Big A, little a
Ysabeau Wilce at Shaken & Stirred
Dana Reinhardt at Bildungsroman
Julie Ann Peters at Finding Wonderland
Cecil Castellucci at A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy
Bennett Madison at Bookshelves of Doom
Holly Black at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast
Justine Larbalestier at Hip Writer Mama
Kirsten Miller at A Fuse #8 Production


Saturday, June 23

Justina Chen Headley finishes out the week at Finding Wonderland

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The Summer Blog Blast Tour starts at Tea Cozy with Justine Larbalestier!

Justine is the author of the Magic Or Madness Trilogy, Magic Or Madness, Magic's Child, and Magic Lessons. Magic Or Madness begins with Reason, 15, on the way to her grandmother's house... plotting how to escape, reminding herself not to eat the food lest she be poisoned. Reason's mother, Sarafina, has taught her well: stay away from Esmeralda. The two have spent their whole lives running from the woman. But now Sarafina is hospitalized, Reason is in Esmeralda's home, and Reason is about to find out: magic is real.

Magic or Madness recently won the Andre Norton Award. Justine blogs, where, among other things, she addresses the age old question: zombies or unicorns?

On to the interview!

Liz B: I love how the magic in "Magic or Madness" is treated as something real. It's not an instant cure for things; and it has real consequences. How much of the rules and science of magic as it exists in your trilogy did you plot out before writing "Magic or Madness"?

Justine: I knew the central conundrum from the beginning: use your magic and die early; don't use it and go mad. The rest fell into place (*cough*) as I wrote.

Liz B: Once you established your rules and 'verse in Book One, did that impact your writing of "Magic Lessons" (book two) and "Magic's Child" (book three)?

Justine: Yes! I had an outline for the three books. Magic or Madness more or less followed it, but Magic Lessons went right off the rails, and then Magic's Child bears no resemblance at all to the original outline. I'm very impressed by writers who are able to stay faithful to outlines. My books are much more recalcitrant than that. They keep twisting and changing as I write. I work a great deal out on paper which means loads and loads and loads of rewriting.

Liz B: Did you have any moments in the later books when you thought, "oh, I wish I could revise "Magic or Madness" in order to do x or y in this book"? (As a total aside, I think I freaked out a YA writer when I said something similar to her...she's writing a series and the first one is published, and I wondered, what if you get to book 3 and realize the main character should have had an older brother?)

Justine: I was able to go back and make changes to Magic or Madness while I wrote the first draft of Magic Lessons. It was fabulous! Unfortunately, I was so late with Magic's Child that it wasn't possible to change Magic Lessons to fit. Instead I had to make Magic's Child fit the first two books. Which, yes, was maddening. If I ever write another trilogy (which I have taken a sacred vow---along with Libba Bray---not to do) I will write all three books first and then sell them.

Liz B: You travel so much that I get jet lag from reading your blog. How does having multiple homes, and traveling, impact your stories?

Justine: I thought you were going to say "impact my life" and then I was going to start crying. :-) It might look glamorous from the outside but it is chaotic and insane from the inside. It would be so lovely never to get on another plane again. I do love seeing other parts of the world though. I'd go back to Buenos Aires in a heart beat. I just wish I could teleport there.

One obvious impact of travel is that I get to write about places other than Sydney. I'm one of those writers who needs to have visited a place in order to write about it. The more places I spend time in the broader my range of settings. Of course, there's no where on Earth I can write about as easily as I can about Sydney.

Travelling also forces a writer (or anyone else) to see that there are many more ways of being in the world than just what you've grown up with. I truly believe travelling broadens the mind. Think of how much more amazing Emily Dickinson's work would have been if she'd gotten out some. Of course, there are some people who manage to travel without learning a thing about themselves or anyone else. Don't know how they do it.

Liz B: You won the Andre Norton Award for "Magic or Madness", and Printz Honors have gone to books by Australians Marcus Zusak, Sonya Hartnett and Margo Lanagan. Are Australian writers plotting to take over the world? Seriously, though, how are the markets and audience for YA books different between Australia and the United States?

Justine: Aussie! Aussie! Aussie! Oi! Oi! Oi! I yelled that out at Markus when he was giving a speech at BEA but I don't think he heard me. Le sigh. I am absolutely astonished by the quality of writing at home. Ursula Dubosarsky is astonishingly good as is Jaclyn Moriarty, Simmone Howell, Randa Abdel-Fattah, Melina Marchetta and Garth Nix. And then there's writers like Scot Gardner who haven't been discovered in the US yet. Wait till he and all the other geniuses back home start publishing in the USA. Then you'll see a total takeover.

Liz B: Buffy the Vampire Slayer (and we can pretend that most of Season 7 never happened.) Favorite character?

Justine: Oz and Faith.

Liz B: Favorite episode?

Justine: "Once More with Feeling" (the musical episode)

Liz B: Favorite quote?

Justine: Xander: "I'm a 17 year old boy: looking at linoleum makes me want to have sex."

Justine, thank you very much!

Want more? Justine will be at Big A, little a on Thursday and HipWriterMama on Friday.

On a final note, let me add that I've had the pleasure of meeting Justine twice. During the past New Jersey Library Association Conference, and at ALA in New Orleans.

Please visit the other Monday stops on the SBBT (Summer Blog Blast Tour):

Tom & Dorothy Hoobler at Chasing Ray
Mitali Perkins at Big A, Little a
Sara Zarr at Interactive Reader
Justina Chen Headley at Hip Writer Mama
Dana Reinhardt at lectitans
Brent Hartinger at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast
Laura Ruby at Writing and Ruminating
Jordan Sonnenblick by Bildungsroman
Ysabeau Wilce at Finding Wonderland

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Gene Luen Yang is at Finding Wonderland today!

Click here for my review of his graphic novel, American Born Chinese.

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The good things about a Summer Blog Blast Tour:

1. You don't have to worry about parking.

2. You save gas!

3. Instead of worrying about how to get to two different authors in two different towns and making a decision, which means not visiting one, you can do it all!

4. And, most important, you get to find out what some of your fave authors think about Buffy and Veronica Mars.

Actually, what is most important is I'm less likely to do something silly (spill coffee on myself, trip & fall, bump into something) when it's a virtual tour.

The complete schedule:

Sunday, June 17

Gene Yang at Finding Wonderland


Monday, June 18

Tom & Dorothy Hoobler at Chasing Ray
Mitali Perkins at Big A, Little a
Sara Zarr at Interactive Reader
Justina Chen Headley at Hip Writer Mama
Justine Larbalestier at A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy
Dana Reinhardt at lectitans
Brent Hartinger at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast
Laura Ruby at Writing and Ruminating
Jordan Sonnenblick by Bildungsroman
Ysabeau Wilce at Finding Wonderland


Tuesday, June 19

Laura Ruby at Miss Erin
Bennett Madison at Shaken & Stirred
Shaun Tan at A Fuse #8 Production
Chris Crutcher at Bookshelves of Doom
Holly Black at The YA YA YAs
Kazu

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