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Hello, dear readergirlz, and Happy Anniversary! It's pretty exciting to see the fruition of all of the ideas and hard work of the co-founders--Justina Chen, Dia Calhoun, Janet Lee Carey, and Lorie Ann Grover--and all of the helpers along the way! I'm honored to have been a part of it.
What's new with me? After readergirlz featured TELL ME A SECRET, my second YA novel, DON'T BREATHE A WORD, came out in January 2012 from HarperCollins. Since then, I've been working hard on a third YA (in the home stretch, hopefully!) with secrets...still so many secret stories to tell!
There have been big changes for me personally, too--family up by one, a crazy move to the country, wild forages for ideas and edibles, lots of DIY projects, and...three? four?...novels brewing.
I'm inspired by all of you, readergirlz! Keep up the wonderful work.
I am happy to be a part of the Tell Me A Secret Tour hosted by The Teen Book Scene. The following is an interview with one of the main characters from this book, Kamran.
____________________________________________
Tell us about yourself.
Well, the first thing you might notice about me (besides my olive eyes, which Miranda likes to mention), is my name: Kamran. It’s not just a fancy way of spelling Cameron, even though you can say it that way. It’s actually a Persian name meaning “prosperous or successful,” which is kind of a lot of pressure to put in a person’s name. I have tried to live up to that, to do the right thing. My parents worked very hard to move to the US and start a restaurant (Café Shiraz in Seattle, if you’re interested), and I have a lot of respect for that.
How did you feel when you found out Miranda was pregnant?
Have you ever been in a car accident? There’s this split second when you realize that you should have looked more carefully before going into that intersection, you should have looked left instead of looking right, and now there’s this tiny sliver of time and space where you haven’t yet crashed into the inevitable, and there’s nothing you can do now to stop it. Then it happens. That’s how I felt.
It was a relief when Delaney told me about the parties and the other guys. At least, she said there were. I know the truth now, but it’s like in that accident. The relief you feel when you realize that other guy missed the stop sign, and it’s not actually your fault. It was easy to believe when I had everything to lose.
What made you want to be with Delaney versus Miranda?
The thing is, Delaney is easy. Not in that way…what I mean is, she doesn’t make demands. She’s easy to be around because she doesn’t have all kinds of expectations. I didn’t feel like I had to choose between her and everything I’ve worked for. And I’m not going to lie—it made me feel good that she was interested in me. I thought she was being honest, so I was surprised when I found out what she was like. Maybe I should have seen it sooner.
Since everything happened, looking back would you have changed anything?
I wish I would have noticed the stop sign. Later, I wish I would have paid attention to my instincts more than my fears. I wanted things to go right with Miranda, but I also knew I had goals. I wasn’t sure at the time if they were compatible.
What are your plans for the future?
Right now I’m studying Aeronautics and Astronautics and hoping to get into the space and theoretical research side. When I’m not in school, I spend a lot of time with Miranda and Lexi. We’re both really busy with school and work, but we make time to see each other. Things are going well.
Featured Author Holly Cupala hand-picked songs for the playlist that accompanies Tell Me a Secret this month (and how cool is that peek at the mix, left?). Listen to the full soundtrack with the player in the right-hand sidebar or in the August issue!
Did you loveTell Me a Secret? Are you looking for more stories of sisters and self-respect? Check out these additional postergirlz recommends. They are perfect companion reads!
Fiction Jumping Off Swings by Jo Knowles For Keeps by Natasha Friend The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson Borrowed Light by Anna Fienberg The Year My Sister Got Lucky by Aimee Friedman The Secret Year by Jennifer Hubbard
Non-Fiction S.E.X: The All-You-Need-To-Know Progressive Sexuality Guide to Get
You Through High School and College by Heather Corinna
Tonight we'll be chatting with featured author Holly Cupala all about TELL ME A SECRET...sisters, secrets, superhot sci-fi guy and more! It's all happening at the #rgz twitter party at 6pm PST/9pm EST - see you there!
Plus Holly just made a big announcement: beginning today, she is offering the TELL ME A SECRET audiobook as a free serialized podcast. Check out the first two chapters at http://tellmeasecretnovel.com/!
The entire novel is read by award-winning actress Jenna Lamia (The Adoration of Jenna Fox, The Chosen One, The Secret Life of Bees), and they will be releasing 2-3 chapters per week to roughly follow the timeline of the novel. The chapters will be available for a limited time, plus there will be a special edition full version. Check it out here! We hope you enjoy the free podcast, and see you tonight to chat about all of the secrets!
Holly says, "Eventually, Miranda makes friends with a group online. Have you made online friends, and do you think those friendships are as strong as the people you know in person?"
Holly says, "Miranda's parents have locked themselves behind symbolic doors and left Miranda to figure things out on her own. Do you have someone you can turn to in times of trouble?"
The author of Vintage Veronica is here telling secrets (her character's and her own) in honor of our featured author Holly Cupala!
Here's Erica:
"A secret, huh?
"Well, let me tell you a story about my new YA novel, Vintage Veronica.It’s sort of about a secret of mine, and sort of about a secret of Veronica’s.When I first started taking notes and jotting down ideas for the book, it was 2002.Yes, that’s right – eight years before the book was published.At the time, I hadn’t published any books, although I had sold a manuscript for my first picture book, Chicken Bedtime Is Really Early.I was very excited about becoming a children’s book author.But my not-so-secret wish was to write novels, too.I really wanted to set my first YA at my favorite vintage clothing story – or rather, at a fictional store that looked a lot like it.So I worked and worked on the book. I took photos.I made sketches.I wrote chapter after chapter of the manuscript.I even set myself a deadline and met it – woo hoo!Yet the book still didn’t feel complete.Veronica’s voice was always strong, right in my ear.But I felt like she still wanted something.I just wasn’t sure what it was.
"I met with a couple of editors who were interested in the manuscript (none of these people ended up being my editor).They shared my feeling that the book needed… something.But their ideas on what it should be differed.One suggested the book should be a mystery.But I’m not really a mystery reader, much less a mystery writer, so I knew that was out.Another said there should be elements of the supernatural.But it felt forced to inject that into this story.Yet another said:romance.But there was already some romance involving side characters.Did there need to be more?Really?
"I got my answer the way I figure out a lot of things about my books: on a run.I was jogging down a street in my neighborhood when I saw a boyfriend and girlfriend on the corner, locked in a deep, epic kiss, ignoring the foot traffic around them.And in that instant, I realized:of course.Veronica.Here I was, writing a world for her to live in and not realizing that she was keeping something from me.Because by listening intently to her voice and what she was saying, I somehow ignored what she was keeping secret:what she was thinking and feeling about
Favorite drink while you write: Tea. Earl Grey. Hot. Or lemonade.
Inspiration: Dreams, friends, books, life
Dream book tour: Book tour world cruise, of course
Writer buddies: The readergirlz, and many more!
Cure for writer's block: Candy, tea, procrastination, and a timer
Favorite outfit: My grey lacy dress - it's cute and comfy and goes with everything
Laptop or longhand? Notes in long-hand, novel in laptop
Author idol: Italo Calvino
Next up:Street Creed (tentative title) in Fall 2011, about a suburban girl who runs away from dark secrets and finds a homeless band of friends...and a gritty ro
Holly says, "Miranda sneaks into a party incognito and finds out more than she expected. Have you ever accidentally discovered something you didn't want to know?"
This month's outreach has a direct tie-in to the book. Here's Holly Cupala to tell us more about it:
"Even though TELL ME A SECRET is not about sexual exploitation, it is about women and secrets and dealing with shame, so I felt there was a connection there.
"Ten percent of my author proceeds go toward World Vision's Hope for Sexually Exploited Girls, helping girls all over the world who have escaped from this kind of abuse - food, medical care, job training, and if possible, a loving family situation.
"Thank you for spreading the word to help support these girls!"
We are overjoyed to welcome our own readergirlz Diva Holly Cupala to the featured author slot this month. Her stirring debut novel, Tell Me a Secret, is our August pick! Check out our interview with Holly, book party ideas themed around her book, and our Reach Out project idea--as well as the awesome soundtrack Holly has chosen for the book--on readergirlz.com.
Here's a little about Tell Me a Secret:
Tell me a secret, and I'll tell you one...
In the five years since her bad-girl sister Xanda's death, Miranda Mathison has wondered about the secret her sister took to the grave, and what really happened the night she died. Now, just as Miranda is on the cusp of her dreams - a best friend to unlock her sister's world, a ticket to art school, and a boyfriend to fly her away from it all - Miranda has a secret all her own.
In this powerful debut novel, stunning new talent Holly Cupala illuminates the dark struggle of a girl who must let go of her past to find a way into her future.
And the buzz...
"Will be immensely popular among teens ...[readers] will be captivated by the theme of owning your own path, the persistence of life and closure." - VOYA
"Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous and full of suspense!" - Hunger Mountain, the VCFA Journal of the Arts
"Be prepared for an excellent, emotional read." - RT Book Reviews
"Authors like Sarah Dessen, Ellen Hopkins, Laurie Halse Anderson, and Deb Caletti all have captured the teenage experience in their novels and accurately portrayed the turbulence that many teens deal with. Seattle author Holly Cupala can now add her name to that list." - Seattle Book Examiner
"Five purrs - I cannot remember the last time I was so emotionally invested in a novel." - Sharon at Sharon Loves Books and Cats
"Heartwrenchingly good ...Cupala proves herself to be a powerful writing force with this one." - Steph at Steph Su Reads
We are beyond thrilled to have the amazing Holly Cupala with us this month! Join us all month right here on the blog for discussions and mark your calendars a LIVE #rgz twitter chat on Wednesday, July 18th at 6pm PST/9pm EST.
When Holly Cupala asked a number of writers to share a secret to help celebrate the launch of her engrossing first novel, Tell Me a Secret, I said (because I adore this woman) sure, having zero idea what I might actually say when the recording light of my computer eye went on.
Something, in the end, got said, a small secret revealed, but far, far better in this secret-revealing video are the pearly somethings unveiled by writers ranging from Melissa Walker to Lisa Yee. Check it out.
4 Comments on The Tell Me a Secret secrets, last added: 7/31/2010
Tell Me a Secret seems like it was possibly the best that has happened to YA shelves in a little while(assuming DN isn't on shelves yet. I read an ARC).
Our own Diva Holly's been on a whirlwind of a blog tour since June 14. I can't believe how fast it flew by, and all I did was watch! Holly must be exhausted (in a happy way).
Today is the official last day of her tour! In honor of Tell Me A Secret to celebrate the end of a super-fun trek, Holly collected secrets from a bunch of writer friends (Including me and other rgz divas! And lots more awesome people you'll recognize!) . . .
What can I say, when Holly asks you to tell her a secret, you can't help yourself! Enjoy the juice!
Don't forget that August is Tell Me a Secret month at readergirlz. As Holly's tour comes to an end, we get her all to ourselves! Can't wait!
Watch this space for more on Holly's ginormous Monday blog party!
Our own Holly Cupala's debut novel, Tell Me a Secret, is out! Hooray! I've been thinking about this book since I first saw what I've come to call "The whisper cover." Very hot.
Here's Holly with the back story:
"I don't think I had a cover in mind as I was writing, though I did have a clear picture of what the characters looked like--especially the bad-girl older sister, Xanda, and what her younger sister might look like. And of course, the love interest (Kamran, a.k.a. the super hot sci-fi guy). So when my editor asked if I had any ideas in mind, I sent a bunch of pictures!
The bad-girl older sister, Xanda, kind of looked like Courtney Love, circa 1992 (left).
"I originally envisioned Miranda to have blond hair, but I think I took the hair color refs out so that any girl could imagine herself in Rand's shoes. I thought of her as having a kind of mysterious, haunted look--did you ever see The Virgin Suicides? I always thought of the palette of my book as having that kind of aesthetic, kind of "good girl gone bad" in dreamy, washed-out tones (right)....
Read the rest of Holly's Cover Story at melissacwalker.com.
PS- Don't forget, Holly's virtual tour is EVERYWHERE. Here's the schedule (leave comments on each post for a chance to win prizes.)
It feels a little funny to be telling my own Story Secrets today, after over twenty YA authors have been spilling theirs since the beginning of 2010. In fact, I'm pretty amazed that the secret is out, after being in my heart for six years!
So I thought I would tell you a bit of the story behind TELL ME A SECRET.
It's been five years since Miranda's sister died in a mysterious and tragic accident. For five years, Miranda has been holding her family together between her suffocating mother and her absentee father - but she longs to escape as Xanda would have. Now, just as Miranda has everything she's hoped for - a ticket to art school, a new friend to unlock her sister's secrets, and a dreamy boyfriend to fly her away - Miranda has a secret, too...one that will destroy everything, and send her on a path to discover her own future.
The idea for TELL ME A SECRET landed in my lap after a painful personal event. Before that, I had been writing stories that didn't delve into what was meaningful to me. Our experience changed everything, and I almost quit - until a friend, Justina Chen (author of NORTH OF BEAUTIFUL), opened a door and asked if I was thinking of writing about it. We were at a conference, and right after that, we went to hear Libba Bray talk about "Shutting off your brain and getting to the heart of your writing." And that's when the story landed.
I just found the notes I madly scribbled in those precious seconds before the idea took flight again, so I thought I would share a few...
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This is an excellent book promotion - I love hearing the confessions, even if they're small. It's tough to tell secrets.
I did check it out--that was fun. And I'm with you on the camera thing.
Sounds fun -- I'm going to check it out.
I love this as an idea. Will check it out ASAP.
Tell Me a Secret seems like it was possibly the best that has happened to YA shelves in a little while(assuming DN isn't on shelves yet. I read an ARC).