Marlene:Tell us about your book.

Robin:My most current book is “The Extraordinary Secrets of April, May & June”, about 3 sisters who discover they have superpowers after their parents divorce: April can see the future, May becomes invisible, and June can read minds. I thought, “What would be worse than having your little sister be able to read your mind?!” and the rest of the superpowers unfolded from there.

Marlene: What was your inspiration for this story?

Robin: I saw a tattoo on a male model, the words “April May June” written across his collarbones in this beautiful script. My first thought was, “Oh my God, those are sisters,” and it wasn't until later that I thought, “Oh, and they're months of the year, too.” I figured I should find out who those sisters were.

Marlene: Do you remember writing the first words? Are they still the same?

Robin: The first scene I wrote for the book was when May drives a car for the first time and ends up disappearing while behind the wheel, causing havoc on the road and with her sisters. It was a much more serious scene than what appears in the book now, but it helped me figure out the sisters' personalities and how they interacted with one another.

Marlene:What kind of research did you have to do for this story?

Robin:Very little, actually! It's sort of difficult to research superpowers, and I really wanted to stay away from the typical superhero story, with villains and whatnot. I love those kinds of stories, but I wanted the focus to be on the girls' lives and how what makes them different is what makes them special.

Marlene: What is your favorite line, passage, chapter from this book?

Robin:“I hugged my sisters and they fit against my sides like two jigsaw pieces that would never fit anywhere else. I couldn’t imagine ever letting them go again, like releasing them would be to surrender the best parts of myself.”
It was one of the first sentences I wrote, without knowing who would say it, or why they would be so desperate to hug their sisters, and I think it helped me set up the plot of the book. I liked this phrase so much that I needed to fit it into the storyline!

Marlene: Was there any part that you struggled with or avoided writing?

Robin:There's a scene where May and her father have a phone conversation that was exceptionally difficult for me to write. I knew both of them would be upset after it and I didn't want to do that to May, but it had to be done. Sorry, May.

Marlene:What's on your nightstand right now?

Robin:Right now, I have “Matched” by Ally Condie, “Across the Universe” by Beth Revis, “One Day” by David Nicholls, “Decoded” by Jay-Z, and about a million back issues of magazines. I really want to get the Keith Richards biography and the Mark Twain autobiography, too, but I'm pacing myself.

M

InspiredKathy is the winner of a copy of Ellen Jensen Abbott's wonderful fantasy novel Watersmeet! Congratulations to InspiredKathy and thank you to everyone who entered!

Please check back for more fun, interactive interviews and future giveaways!

Join us in welcoming author Ellen Jensen Abbott to the YA Authors Cafe! And stick around for a chance to win a copy of Ellen's wonderful debut novel, Watersmeet!

Melissa: Tell us about your newest book?

Ellen: Watersmeet is the story of Abisina, an outcast in her home village, who flees those who want to kill her to find the father she’s never met. On her journey, she is rescued by dwarves, kidnapped by centaurs, contacted by a ghost, and aided by a mysterious necklace.

Melissa: What was the inspiration for this story?

Ellen: There were many! I was a big reader of fantasy when I was a tween and young adult, and I still read the genre as much as I can. Naturally, when Abisina’s story started to spin out in my head, it was a fantasy. I love monsters and creatures and magic and mythology. I have a lot of fun playing around with the possibilities that such otherworldly ideas present.

But I was also intrigued by a conversation I had with a dear friend who came out to me as a gay man after years of friendship. In our following conversations, he talked about the homophobia he carried with him and this really surprised me. It sounds silly to say now, but I had never thought about prejudices we are taught and hang on to, even when we are the objects of that prejudice. Watersmeet is not about homophobia, but it does explore the question of letting go of one’s prejudice, even when one has been deeply injured by that prejudice.

Finally, the setting of Watersmeet is inspired by the years I spent growing up in New Hampshire’s White Mountains. In some ways, Watersmeet is set in New Hampshire—but it is New Hampshire as I saw it as a kid: the mountains are bigger, the water is colder, the sky is bluer. When I go back to visit, I can still catch glimpses of that place.

Melissa: What are you working on now?


Ellen: The sequel, of course! The continuation of Abisina’s adventures, tentatively titled The Centaur’s Daughter, is scheduled for a Fall 2011 release with Marshall Cavendish. I just turned in my first big round of revisions and am waiting to hear back from my editor. I also sent in a larger, expanded version of the map that appears in Watersmeet and can’t wait to see what the artist will do with it!

Melissa: What is the hardest part of writing for you?


Ellen: Invention. There is definite fun in this part of the process as you get to know your characters and your setting and the conflicts that will drive the story, but this is also when I have to work the hardest. I write pages and pages of exploratory writing—often thinking that “I’m on my way,” only to discover that I took a wrong turn back there around chapter 3! I almost always know where I want to start and where I want to end, but making my way through the uncharted middle can be difficult. Unlike some writers, I adore revision. That’s when I feel like I really get to practice craft and pull the story from the tangle of threads I’ve created. I cut, cut, cut and love seeing the sleeker lines emerge.

Melissa: Have you ever wanted to quit writing?

Ellen: There have been many times when I’ve thrown my hands up and asked myself why I do this to myself? Why do I keep struggling with these characters who I made up but still won’t listen to me?! I may have even tried to

Marlene: Tell us about your book:

Holly: It’s been five years since Miranda’s bad-girl sister disappeared into the night and died in a mysterious crash. Five years of holding her family together – her drama-obsessed mother, her disappearing father. In just one year, she will escape to college on the arm of her boyfriend, Kamran, and disappear herself. Until then, she has a new best friend with the keys to unlock her sister’s secret world.
But now Miranda has a secret of her own…two lines on the pregnancy test that will shatter everything she hopes for—and may even show a way into her own future.

Marlene: What was your inspiration for this story?

Holly: A very hard year—two losses that changed my life. After that, my writing didn’t have much meaning. Then one day, the idea for Tell Me a Secret landed in my lap, and I just started writing. Notes, at first. With the encouragement of many writing friends, I got up the courage to write the book.

Marlene: Do you remember writing the first words? Are they still the same?

Holly: Vividly! Only because it was 3 a.m. I had a tiny baby who had just fallen asleep, and at that point I was so sleep-deprived that I should definitely not have been operating machinery…when the first line hit me. It’s tough, living in the shadow of a dead girl. I knew if I didn’t get up to write it down, Miranda might never speak to me again! So I got up and wrote the passage that in now the first few pages in the novel.



Marlene: What kind of research did you have to do for this story?

Holly: Much of it was experiential. Beyond that, I talked to friends, professionals, rocket scientists…
Even in a contemporary story, there are a million details that must be investigated. The hospital scenes were crucial, and I had some terrific consultants on those. I’ve heard from readers who have had similar experiences—it means a great deal to me that they thought I captured her story in a true and meaningful way.


Marlene: What is your favorite line, passage, chapter from this book?

Holly: Line: probably the first.

Passage, from Chapter 10, after the breakup:
Nothing I knew about Xanda prepared me for this. She left no roadmap for rejection…I had tried to pour Kamran into myself, filling those tunnels of despair left over from Xanda with tendrils of hopefulness, the way being with Andre seemed to fill my sister with a kind of tempered steel. Now that Kamran had forcibly ripped them out, I was reeling from emptiness.

Chapter: the Halloween party. I love love love the Q-tips scene! That was a lot of fun to write. Plus I was able to include my favorite word, palimpsest.


Marlene: Was there any part that you struggled with or avoided writing?

Holly: Me, avoid?? Uh, yes. The ultimate showdown chapter. In fact I pretty much skipped it through the first draft, only writing notes. I knew it would be a critical convergence of secrets and reality, and that we had to come out of it with some kind of resolution. Dialogue is probably the hardest ingredient for me, so I had to really wrestle with what Miranda and the primary villain would say…and in the process, realized the villain had so many secret reasons for her behavior throughout the novel. I hated every minute of it until the pieces finally fell into place!


Marlene:What's on your nightstand right now?

Holly: A giant pile. But I’ll give

After obtaining her master’s in English back in 2001, Holly Schindler decided to nix the idea of getting a full-time job in favor of pursuing a writing career, her lifelong dream. She says, “After wearing out a half-dozen or so keyboards drafting far too many manuscripts to count…after revising and submitting and revising again…after seven and a half years of rejections…I sold my first novel, a YA titled A BLUE SO DARK, to Flux!” In addition to her debut novel, Holly sold two more books that will be forthcoming in 2011!

The buzz for A BLUE SO DARK:

"Breathtakingly, gut-wrenchingly authentic...A haunting, realistic view of the melding of art, creativity, and mental illness and their collective impact on a young person’s life."
—Booklist, starred review



“A Blue So Dark is one of those rare books: It never shies away from the darkness yet still manages to find the light. A truly real, emotional, and honest read.”
—Catherine Ryan Hyde, author of Pay it Forward and Love in the Present Tense



“Schindler’s lyrical debut explores the nightmare of mental illness in a voice that is sharp and funny and all her own. This is as real as teen fiction gets. A must-read.”
—Crissa-Jean Chappell, author of Total Constant Order



“A Blue So Dark is a raw, compelling and eloquent portrayal of art and madness, and the freeing, healing gift of creativity. Schindler's voice is brilliant and true.”
—Carrie Jones, New York Times bestselling author of Need and Captivate


Congratulations on your debut and the awesome reviews, Holly! Welcome to the Café! Let’s get started . . .

Mary: Tell us about your newest book, A BLUE SO DARK.

Holly: In short, A BLUE SO DARK follows a young girl’s attempts to care for her schizophrenic mother (an artist and art teacher), while fearing that her own artistic ability is an indicator that she, too, will become mentally unstable.

Here’s the jacket copy, which offers a little more detail:

"Fifteen-year-old Aura Ambrose has been hiding a secret. Her mother, a talented artist and art teacher, is slowly being consumed by schizophrenia, and Aura has been her sole caretaker ever since Aura’s dad left them. Convinced that “creative” equals crazy, Aura shuns her own artistic talent. But as her mother sinks deeper into the darkness of mental illness

From Readergirlz website:

In 2008 and 2009, readergirlz (http://www.readergirlz.com), Guys Lit Wire (http://guyslitwire.blogspot.com), and YALSA (http://www.ala.org/yalsa) orchestrated publishers' donations of nearly 20,000 new young adult books to hospitalized teens across the country.

For 2010, If I Can Read I Can Do Anything (http://www.ischool.utexas.edu/~ifican) has joined forces with these three organizations to drop over 10,000 new YA books, donated by publishers, into the hands of teens on Native American tribal lands. Nationwide, librarians, over 100 YA authors, and teens will drop YA books in their own communities on April 15th, 2010, to raise awareness for Operation TBD 2010 and Support Teen Literature Day. Everyone will join an online TBD Post-Op party at 6 PM PST / 9 PM EST that evening at the readergirlz blog (http://readergirlz.blogspot.com).

So Rock the Drop!

Marlene: Tell us about your book.

Ron: Shakespeare Makes the Playoffs is a sequel to Shakespeare Bats Cleanup, so readers are following Kevin Boland—poet and first baseman. (Both are novels-in-verse, free verse and not-so-free, but every page had to be a poem of some kind.)
In Shakespeare 1, Kevin hooks up with a girl who might not be much of a ball fan and only likes poems about her, but she is great looking! Every reader knows there’s going to be trouble. In Shakespeare 2, trouble shows up in the form of another girl, Amy. Not as cute but she loves poetry, too, and is big fun to be with. How’s Kevin going to work this out? He’s a good kid, so he’ll find a way. But it might not be easy!

Marlene: What was your inspiration for this story?

Ron: My wife and I like AAA and AA baseball. Major league teams have these farm clubs with stadiums (actually it’s stadia) within fifty miles or so of L.A. We were at the one in Lake Elsinore a few years ago and I saw a kid, thirteen at the most, sitting with is dad and writing something. I started thinking of a story about a boy like this, a fan of two very different things. I’d just written a novel and was tired of prose, so I thought I’d try my hand at poetry.

Marlene: Do you remember writing the first words? Are they still the same?

Ron: I’m one of those writers who revises a lot. A lot! And first drafts for me are almost always junky and fat. I write fast and blow by mistakes. Then I start over, sometimes from scratch. So I don’t remember the first words. There’s every chance they were for a poem that ended up deep in the book, anyway, since I don’t write novels-in-verse in order.

Marlene: What kind of research did you have to do for this story?

Ron: Are you kidding? I hate research. I’m a fiction writer. I make stuff up. Well, I guess you could count going to ball games. But I think of research as sitting indoors with a big book in front of me and wishing I were anyplace else.

Marlene: What is your favorite line, passage, chapter from this book?

Ron: There’s a form-of-poetry called a sestina. It doesn’t rhyme and it doesn’t have to be metrical, right? No da-Dum, da-Dum, da-Dum. But every stanza (except the last) has six lines. There are six stanzas (not counting the last) and the last words of stanza #1 have to be used as the last words of every line in every stanza but in a different order. Are you following this? Sestinas are so hard to write! The one in Shakespeare 2, though, is not only good, it’s hilarious. So that’s my favorite page.


Marlene: Was there any part that you struggled with or avoided writing?

Ron: The part of any book that makes me want to avoid it, is where I go first. That part is like the monster in my nightmares. When that happens in the night, I go right to the monster and put my arms around him and hug him and kiss him. Then he isn’t a monster anymore. And that works with the so-called hard part of a novel. I go right to it with my arms open wide. And the hard part melts like a Popsicle.


Marlene: What's on your nightstand right now?

Ron: Donald Barthelme. He’s such a weird and wonderful writer. I don’t read a lot of kids’ fiction and students I talk to during school visits sometimes don’t either. They read odd cats like Jack Kerouac or Italio Calvino. If I get something out of the library that’s too hard for me (that usually just means it’s dull), I take it back. I like to read over

Marlene: Tell us about your book

Libby: The Pillow Book of Lotus Lowenstein is a novel about existential dread, cupcakes and l’amour. It’s the story of a teenager named Lotus Lowenstein who lives in Park Slope and is kind of obsessed with Sartre (who she calls JP), France and falling in love. Her diary book chronicles her day-to-day life in Brooklyn, falling in love, going to Montreal, not to mention a falling out with her best friend Joni over Sean, the boy they both have feelings for.

Marlene: What was your inspiration for this story?

Libby: I was inspired by The Pillow Book of Sei Shonagan, which is a diary book written by a young woman in the Imperial Court of Japan in the year 1002 It’s called The Pillow Book because the author, Sei Shonagan, was given some notebooks by the Empress to make into a pillow. She used the notebooks to write her thoughts down. When I first read The Pillow Book, I was struck by how modern and even witty it was. I’ve always loved diary books, so I wanted to find a way to use the diary concept and The Pillow Book in a novel. I came up with the idea of a girl living in Park Slope, Brooklyn who was studying The Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon in English class, and has the assignment of writing her own pillow book. This also allowed me to include a number of quotes from the original Pillow Book.

Marlene: Do you remember writing the first words? Are they still the same?

Libby: Yes, I remember writing the first sentence and immediately liking the character of Lotus. The beginning is pretty straightforward, in the classic first person narrative “Call Me Ishmael” tradition. Lotus starts with: As you may have guessed, my name is Lotus Lowenstein and this is my diary.

Marlene:What kind of research did you have to do for this story?

Libby: The research for this book was, as Lotus would say, très enjoyable. I read a great biography about the relationship between Jean Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir, perused some books of French slang and existentialism and took a road trip to Montreal to eat Poutine (a Canadian concoction of French Fries, cheese curds and gravy). I also wandered around Park Slope, eating cupcakes and drinking cappuccino.

Marlene: What is your favorite line, passage, chapter from this book?

Libby: I am particularly fond of the opening of the book where Lotus describes her hopes and dreams, which involve moving to Paris and wandering around in a Trenchcoat with her imaginary French boyfriend, Jean-something.

Marlene: Was there any part that you struggled with or avoided writing?

Libby: One of the parts I had particular trouble with was the fight between the two best friends, Lotus and Joni, and accurately portraying the deep emotions of a friend breakup. Towards the end of the writing of the book, I actually had a falling out (later resolved) with one of my own close friends, which actually helped give me insight into how painful it was for Joni and Lotus.

Marlene: What's on your nightstand right now?

Libby: A glass of water, my Juice Beauty moisturizer, a book on Henry the VIII by Alison Weir (research for my next YA novel), Life in Tudor England (see the theme here), On Writers Block by Victoria Nelson (a great book) and Gidget (highly recommended & who knew she was Jewish).

Marlene: Have you ever wanted to quit writing? Why?

Libby: Yes, there have been times that I’ve definitely wanted to quit writing. It’s easy to get discouraged when the wr

She always believed he was her destiny—but what if fate has other plans?

Enter the realm of The Immortals—and experience the extraordinary #1 New York Times bestselling series that has taken the world by storm.

Ever and Damen have traveled through countless past lives—and fought off the world’s darkest enemies—so they could be together forever. But just as their long-awaited destiny is finally within reach, a powerful curse falls upon Damen…one that could destroy everything. Now a single touch of their hands or a soft brush of their lips could mean sudden death—plunging Damen into a bleak afterlife in the Shadowland, an eternal abyss for lost souls. Desperate to break the curse and save Damen, Ever immerses herself in magick—and gets help from an unexpected source…Jude Knight.

Although she and Jude have only just met, he feels startlingly familiar. Despite her fierce loyalty to Damen, Ever is drawn to Jude, a green-eyed golden boy with magical talents and a mysterious past. She’s always believed Damen to be her soul mate and one true love—and she still believes it to be true. But as Damen pulls away to save them from the darkness inhabiting his soul, Ever’s connection with Jude grows stronger—and tests her love for Damen like never before…

Marlene: Tell us about your book

Alyson: SHADOWLAND is the third book in THE IMMORTALS series and it picks up right where BLUE MOON left off, with Damen and Ever unable to touch due to a poison that turns their touch lethal, prompting Ever to turn to magick, hoping to find a cure. Along the way encountering the mysterious Jude Knight who will test her love for Damen like never before . . .

Marlene: What was your inspiration for this story?

Alyson: The inspiration for the series was grief. A few years ago I lost three people I loved in five months, and shortly after that I nearly lost my husband to leukemia (he’s in full remission now!). Experiencing that sort of loss got me thinking a lot about life and death, mortality and immortality, the bonds that tie us even after a loved one is gone, and how our youth loving culture sort of seeks physical immortality by trying to remain youthful looking for as long as we can—and yet, what would happen if we really could achieve it? What would it mean for us, our loved ones, society in general? And since

October 18-24 is Teen Read Week! Sponsored by YALSA, this year's theme is Read Beyond Reality @ your library, which encourages teens to read something out of this world, just for the fun of it.

Here are a few "beyond reality" musings from YA Author Laura Wiess:


What is the strangest thing you have ever seen?

Stranger than large, hairy men strolling the beach wearing nothing but Speedos, black socks and sandals? Sorry. That was an old summer flashback. But even my lone brush with the supernatural still kind of pales in comparison.

Have you ever encountered a ghost?

Well…I don't think of it as a ghost, exactly. More like a leftover imprint in time. But yes, I have.

About fifteen years ago, I was living in an old farmhouse in New Jersey, home alone writing in the studio off the living room, and I wanted fresh coffee. So I got up and totally preoccupied, walked through the living room and as I entered the kitchen (still lost in thought), I glanced down the hall leading to the back door.

There, standing inside and next to the door was a tall, thin old man wearing a plaid hunting shirt and a pair of old, worn-looking gray work pants.

I looked away and just kept walking, thinking distractedly, Oh, there's an old man by the door, and then skidded to a stop and was like What?? So I backed up three steps and looked again, and of course there was nothing there.

I waited a moment to see if I felt anything, but no. No chill, no threat, no ghostly whispers. I made sure the door was still locked – it was – and then I just started laughing because it was so cool. He was a stranger, maybe a hobo who'd stopped for food once a long time ago, maybe a former occupant. I have no idea, but I'd never seen him before, and never did again.

UFO?

No, I can't even manage to catch sight of a shooting star, despite the night sky being full of them here.

Other?

Not yet, but I'm pretty open to whatever comes along. (Even if nothing ever does.)

You wish you could:

Twitch my nose like Bewitched with the same grand spectrum of results. Oh, what a time I would have!


Which Beyond Reality character would you want to have dinner with?

I have two, both from A.M. Jenkins' novel Night Road. Cole, the main character, because he endlessly fascinates me, and Sandor because I think he'd be great to hang out with. I'd love to hear more of the stories of their lives.

Where would you go? What would you eat?

We'd need to be able to relax, talk freely and just hang around with nobody giving us dirty looks for hogging the table, so maybe an empty park with picnic tables in the shade. I'd bring deli food and coffee, but they would either have to feed before we met up or bring a Building omni along for a snack because my blood is definitely not on the menu.

In ten words or less, what is the most "Beyond Reality" thing in your newest book?

A secret past is invisible, unless it's deliberately revealed.

Laura Wiess is the author of Such a Pretty Girl, Leftovers, and the recently-released How It Ends. For more information, visit http://www.laurawiess.com/.

Thanks, Laura!

Your turn--have YOU ever seen a ghost?

October 18-24 is Teen Read Week! Sponsored by YALSA, this year's theme is Read Beyond Reality @ your library, which encourages teens to read something out of this world, just for the fun of it.

Here are a few "beyond reality" musings from YA Author David Macinnis Gill:

What is the strangest thing you have ever seen?

A snake with two heads--and it was alive!

Have you ever encountered a ghost?

No, sadly, I never have, although I've tried a few times.

UFO?

I thought I had, but it turned out to be a weather balloon.

Other?

Do relatives count?

You wish you could:

Stop time and bend space.

Which Beyond Reality character would you want to have dinner with?

Dracula. He doesn't drink wine, so I could have his.

Where would you go? What would you eat?

We would go to a salad bar. I wouldn't want a rare steak to whet his appetite.

In ten words or less, what is the most "Beyond Reality" thing in your newest book?

The cranky demon who repossesses both cars and souls.

David Macinnis Gill is the author of the debut novel, Soul Enchilada, from Greenwillow/Harper Collins. His short stories have appeared in several magazines, including The Crescent Review and Writer’s Forum. His critical biography of young adult author Graham Salisbury, Graham Salisbury: Island Boy, was published by Scarecrow Press. He holds a bachelor’s degree in English/creative writing and a doctorate in education, both from the University of Tennessee. You can learn more about David and his writing at http://davidmacinnisgill.com/

Thanks, David!

Your turn--what amazing thing do you wish YOU could do?

October 18-24 is Teen Read Week!
Sponsored by YALSA, this year's theme is Read Beyond Reality @ your library, which encourages teens to read something out of this world, just for the fun of it.

Here are a few "beyond reality" musings from YA Author Melissa Wyatt:

Melissa, what is the strangest thing you have ever seen?

I'm looking at it right now. My dog is on her back with her legs crossed. All four of them.

Have you ever encountered a ghost? UFO? Other?

No, but my great-great-grandmother was a witch. Seriously. She was a Pennsylvania Dutch pow-wow witch, and she used to drive my grandmother crazy, always casting spells (good ones!) on the children. I have her spell book, so watch out!

You wish you could:

Really make that spell book work.

Which "beyond reality" character would you like to have dinner with?

Eugenides!

Where would you go? What would you eat?

I imagine we would go to a tavern and have good wine, crusty bread and olives.

What is the most "beyond reality" thing in your newest book?

Me! Okay, I sort of wasn't going to admit this, but a very minor character in Funny How Things Change is based on me. And I'm not particularly proud of her behavior, either.

Melissa Wyatt is the author of two very realistic novels for young adults, Raising the Griffin and Funny How Things Change. Visit her at her website: www.melissawyatt.com

Your turn! What is the strangest thing you've ever seen?

We are very happy to welcome YA author Laura Resau to the Cafe today!

With a background in cultural anthropology and ESL-teaching, Laura has lived and traveled extensively in Latin America. Her first book in a new travel-adventure series, The Indigo Notebook, has just been released.

Her previous novel, Red Glass, won numerous awards, including the IRA YA Fiction Award and the Americas Award, and was selected as an Oprah's Kids' Book List Pick. Acclaimed for its sensitive treatment of immigration issues, a starred review from Publishers' Weekly calls Red Glass a "vibrant, large-hearted story."

Laura's award-winning debut novel, What the Moon Saw was praised as "a powerful, magical story ... a rare glimpse into an indigenous culture" in a starred review from Booklist. Laura now lives with her husband, toddler, and dog in Colorado. She is donating a portion of her royalties to indigenous rights organizations in Latin America. Please visit her at http://www.lauraresau.com .

"The characters fairly brim with life in this thoughtful, poignant novel filled with cultural details." – Kirkus Reviews on The Indigo Notebook

October 18-24 is Teen Read Week!
Sponsored by YALSA, this year's theme is Read Beyond Reality @ your library, which encourages teens to read something out of this world, just for the fun of it.

Here are a few "beyond reality" musings from YA Author Cynthia Leitich Smith:

What is the strangest thing you have ever seen?

The yard gnome that Libba Bray gave me. I swear it comes to life at night.

Have you ever encountered a ghost?

Yes, my house is haunted.

A UFO?

Nope, though I'm told my father saw some in the Air Force.

Other?

Do '80s Brat Packers count?

You wish you could:

Take a month-long driving tour of the new South.

Which Beyond Reality character would you want to have dinner with?

Zachary from Eternal.

Where would you go? What would you eat?

The restaurant bar at the Edison Hotel on South Congress. Beer-battered fish sticks.

In ten words or less, what is the most "Beyond Reality" thing in your newest book?

A Dracula with a taste for homemade rhubarb pie.

Cynthia Leitich Smith is the YA author of Rain Is Not My Indian Name, Tantalize, and Eternal--a Beyond Reality Book. The casts of Tantalize and Eternal will crossover in a forthcoming novel, Blessed. Her latest short stories appear in Geektastic: Stories from the Nerd Herd, Immortal: Love Stories with Bite, and Sideshow: Ten Original Dark Tales of Freaks, Illusionists, and Other Matters Odd and Magical. Cynthia makes her home in Austin, Texas with her sometimes co-author husband and four bossy cats.

Thanks, Cyn!

Your turn--have YOU ever seen a ghost?

Sponsored by YALSA, this year's theme is Read Beyond Reality @ your library, which encourages teens to read something out of this world, just for the fun of it.

Here are a few "beyond reality" musings from YA Author E. Lockhart:

October 18-24 is Teen Read Week!

Sponsored by YALSA, this year's theme is Read Beyond Reality @ your library, which encourages teens to read something out of this world, just for the fun of it.






Here at the Cafe we are helping to celebrate Teen Read Week by having a different YA author each day sharing some "Beyond Reality" experiences! Find out the strangest things they have ever seen! If they have ever seen a ghost! What "beyond reality" character they want to take out for dinner! We will want to hear YOUR answers to these far out questions too

Look for the first author tomorrow!
(hint: the author's initials are E.L.)

READ ON!

Jo Knowles' newest YA novel sensitively and tenderly explores the repercussions of teen pregnancy among four friends.

In a starred review, Publishers Weekly said "Absorbing from first page to last, this sensitively written novel explores how a teenager's crisis rocks her life as well as the lives of others. "

We're delighted to welcome Jo Knowles to the YA Authors Cafe!

Melissa W: Tell us about your book, Jumping Off Swings.

I always do a lousy job at describing my books, so here’s my publisher’s description:

“Ellie remembers how the boys kissed her. Touched her. How they begged for more. And when she gave it to them, she felt loved. For awhile anyway. So when Josh, an eager virgin with a troubled home life, leads her from a party to the backseat of his van, Ellie follows. But their "one-time thing" is far from perfect: Ellie gets pregnant. Josh reacts with shame and heartbreak, while their confidantes, Caleb and Corinne, deal with their own complex swirl of emotions. No matter what Ellie chooses, all four teenagers will be forced to grow up a little faster as a result. Told alternately from each character’s point of view, this deeply insightful novel explores the aftershocks of the biggest decision of one fragile girl’s life — and the realities of leaving innocence behind.”

I know that’s totally cheating and I am sorry. But really that’s much better than I would’ve done. :-)

Melissa W: Summaries are tough! I always say if I could tell the story in a hundred words, I wouldn't have taken up two hundred pages!Do you remember writing the first words? Are they still the same?

The words aren’t the same but the scene is quite close. In early drafts, Ellie’s chapters were all written in free verse. I decided to change that form when it became too restricting for what I wanted to say and needed to accomplish with her chapters.

Melissa W: What is the hardest part of writing for you?

I think it’s different for every book. But with the last two manuscripts (PEARL, which is coming out with Henry Holt in 2011, and my current work-in-progress), it was getting that first draft DONE and then realizing one of the reasons it was so hard to finish was that I’d chosen the wrong tense to write it in. For both novels, I scrapped the entire manuscript and started from scratch. This actually happened with LESSONS FROM A DEAD GIRL too. I’m hoping it’s not my “process” because WOW, that is a very inefficient way to write! However, I will say that it helps me to rethink the story, to get closer to it somehow, to hear it in a new voice. And that has been extremely helpful.

Melissa W: What are you working on now?

My next novel is called PEARL and it’s set to come out in Spring ’11 with Henry Holt. It’s about a girl who lives with her mom and grandfather and what happens when her grandfather dies and family secrets are unleashed. There’s also a lot about friendship, mother-daughter relationships, love and row-boat rides in a smelly river.

Melissa W: Have you ever wanted to quit writing? Why?

I don’t think it was a questions of wanting to quit, but rather a question of whether I should quit. Just before I sold my first book, LESSONS FROM A DEAD GIRL, I was reaching the point of lots of close calls but no offers. I’d been with my agent for a while and kept thinking any day now he was going to drop me and I wouldn’t blame him. I think at some point, you just start to think, Well, I know I came close but I guess I just don’t have what it takes. But let me tell all you writers out there that this is the WORST thing to think because if you are having close calls, it means you are SO CLOSE to getting THE call. The only sure way to fail is to give up. So just stick it out. Keep writing. Keep getting better. Keep getting your best work out there. Sometimes, you just have to wait for the stars to align exactly right. Seriously. There is a lot of luck involved in this crazy business. But there is also a lot of heart and bravery and believing in yourself and the characters you love. Don’t give up on them and don’t give up on yourself.

Cara Haycak started her writing career at Columbia University’s graduate writing program and received an MFA in 1995.

Her first YA novel, Red Palms was awarded a Work-in-Progress grant from the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators in 2000, and was published in 2004 by Random House Children’s Books/Wendy Lamb Books.

Dutton Children’s Books will publish her second novel for young adults, Living on Impulse, on August 20, 2009. She lives in Los Angeles, with her husband and young son.

Booklist calls Living on Impulse ". . . stirring, smart, and affirming read."

And Publisher’s Weekly says, "Haycak creates a realistic portrait of a teenage girl whose life is spiraling out of control . . . With painstaking yet gratifying care, Haycak eventually starts Mia along the path of self-realization and forgiveness."


Please join me in welcoming Cara Haycak to the YA Authors Cafe!
　
　
　
Mary: Tell us about your newest book, Living on Impulse.

Cara: It’s about a 15-year-old girl named Mia, a high-school sophomore growing up in a college town in upstate New York, who has a bit of trouble controlling her impulses. When she gets caught shoplifting, her mother gives her an ultimatum—get a job and pay off your debts or else you’ll be out your own.

Mia takes an unusual route. She winds up accepting a job in the university’s entomology department…breeding flies.

On a deeper level, this a story about metamorphosis…Mia’s. She’s completely transformed as we read about her, and in a way that one might not expect. It’s not beauty or perfection that inspires her, but its opposite—an ugly white worm, a horribly dysfunctional family—it’s the harsher realities which show her how fragile yet tremendous the world can be.

And the idea of a cocooning is central to the story, too. Mia is forced to enter a cocoon of her own as everything familiar is torn away in the first half of the book: Her friends desert her, her family breaks down, even her sense of self is shaken to the core. And so, in order to emerge as an adult she must build a new life in the dark and by herself, using truth and passion—and most importantly, her instinct for risky impulses—as her guiding forces.

Mary: Do you remember writing the first words? 　Are they still the same?

Cara: This book started as a short story that was published in Cicada Magazine, many years ago. That story opens with a scene of Mia shoplifting, and so does the book. The only difference between them is a change of tense…in the book, the opening paragraphs are written in the present tense.

"In early April, Mia hits the department store downtown on the Commons…"

Mary: Was there any part that you struggled with or avoided writing?

Cara: You bet. I wanted this girl to be a troubled and troublesome character. I wanted her acting out in ways that weren’t so pretty. She’s not always nice, she’s not always thoughtful, and she definitely makes some big mistakes.

But I didn’t want her to be an unlikeable character. I found out this is hard to do. I didn’t want teens to write her off, or think she wasn’t worth their time.

Sometimes I could walk this fine line by editing a bit to temper her behavior. Sometimes I could pump up the volume on the thing that triggers her to act out, so the reader can understand why she’s reacting badly. Sometimes I just let her be angry, and do what she’s got to do.

Ultimately, I’m hoping that teens will relate to her because of her dark side.
　
Mary: Tell us something about you that no one knows.

Cara: Since the heart of the story takes place in the entomology lab of the local university, where Mia works breeding flies, it seems important to mention that I did this same job between my junior and senior years of college at Cornells.

Like Mia, I was unsure of what I wanted to do when I graduated. I thought about studying law, which meant I had to take the LSATs, but I’m a terrible test taker. So I decided to stay at school for the summer, do the Stanley Kaplan course and test before the fall semester buried me in other studies.

I worked hard and the night before the exam, I decided to prepare a healthy and delicious dinner. I bought fresh scallops, grilled them, and immediately got food poisoning. I spent the whole night on the floor of the bathroom.

I missed the test, of course. And I never became a lawyer. But I did get to write about the fly lab, so I know that all the things we go through (the negative as well as the positive) are useful experiences. Especially, if what we really want to do is make art. It’s a choice that ultimately seems right for the character, Mia, too.

Mary: What is the hardest part of writing for you?

Cara: First draft. It kills me. I may know exactly what I want to write, and I’ll have the outline sitting there next to me, but getting it on paper feels like I’m literally pulling the gray matter of my brain out between my ears.

Mary: I can totally relate to that! I think I’ve lost a bit of gray matter that way myself! How did you become a writer?

Cara: I chose an obvious way, and went to graduate school for an MFA in Creative Writing (Columbia University, 1995).

But I think storytelling intrigued me starting with watching Bugs Bunny cartoons when I was a kid growing up in the 1960’s. I loved all the Looney Tunes, but Bugs, in particular, blew me away. He was funny and irreverent, but he also had this amazing ability to control events as they were happening. You know, if the hunter has his shotgun aimed down your rabbit hole…well, then you just pull on it, and stretch it, then send it out a new rabbit hole and aim it back at his butt.

I really liked how Bugs was able to create the world he inhabited…and that he could make it work the way he wanted it to. That seemed to be a superpower.

And when writing is going well, I get to experience some of that. I think that’s the thrill for me.

Mary: I loved Bugs Bunny for all those reasons! He never lost his cool. What were you like as a teen?

Cara: See answer above, referencing Bugs Bunny. Rebel Rebel.

Mary: What's on your nightstand right now?

Cara: A lovely YA novel called If I Stay, by Gayle Forman. I never want it to end. A girl lying in coma narrates it, but it’s not dreary or a downer. It’s the most life-affirming book, about our relationships to the people we love and how they make life worth living, and how sometimes those relationships can tear you apart. It’s going to be made into a film directed by Catherine Hardwick (Twilight). Gosh, I should be her agent, I’m talking it up so much. But this book has me by the throat.

I just finished reading Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver. I adored it. She is an inspiration for me…She can write about things in a way that is so detailed and knowledgeable, and yet it’s so accessible because she writes characters that you fall in love with. And boy, she really lets you get to know the place she’s writing about, as well.

I’m just starting Haruki Murakami’s, Kafka at the Shore. His books are so out there. I love that feeling I get reading his work…that anything could happen.

Mary: What do you do to "unblock" writer's block?

Cara: Ignore it. Does that sound trite? I mean to say that if I’ve got a project going, instead of letting inertia take hold, I force myself to sit down and write. It helps to have an outline, because then you have an assignment: "Today is the day I write the scene in which the girl argues with her mother about money," etc.

Sometimes it goes very slow. But I always work where other people are working. A café, a library. That way I don’t feel so isolated.

In between projects, I can get very very….not blocked, but dry. Like, there’s nothing left but a dribble of brackish water way way down in the well. So I read, and that becomes the first step toward writing, because at least I’m doing something with words that have been put together with much tender care. Or I may get an idea for how to handle something that’s been percolating in my mind about a new story.

But just as often I start to feel a bit competitive or challenged. Like the gauntlet has been thrown down… "Top this sentence, why don’t you?" Or, it might be a gentler prod… "Do you think you could write a book this good? Wanna try?"

Thanks so much for including me on YA Authors Café!

Mary: Thank you so much, Cara! I loved hearing about your book, process, and the rebellious cartoons of your life! Congratulations on the imminent release of Living on Impulse!

Readers, now it’s your turn. Ask a question! Leave a comment. Cara will pop back in for one week to respond. You’re up!

A new book is born!

THE COMEBACK by Marlene Perez

Congratulations, Marlene! And to celebrate, we are asking all of you out there to be brave and fess up--have you ever been dumped? Answer the questions at the bottom of the post. Yes, misery does love company.

And to sweeten the misery, three random posters will receive a free signed copy of The Comeback! (Isn't the cover gorgeous?) Here is a little snip of what it's about:

Sophie Donnelly is one half of the most popular and powerful couple in school, until new girl Angie Vogel shows up and compromises everything. Angie steals Sophie's starring role in the school play, and, worse, her super-popular boyfriend. Sophie has been quickly dispatched to social Siberia, but not for long--she'll do anything it takes to make a triumphant comeback.


The Book Muncher says: "There's something undeniably endearing about her character despite her all-consuming and sometimes desperate desire to be the top of the social food chain. It's probably because all of us have felt some degree of Sophie's jealousy before."

You got that right!

So here are your questions:

1. Have you ever been dumped?
2. What did you do?
3. How long did it take you to get over it?
4. Looking back now, was it for the best?

Brave Bonus question:

5. Have you ever been the dumper? Did you feel bad?

Let's hear it!

BRENT HARTINGER is the author of many books for teenagers, including Geography Club, The Last Chance Texaco, Grand & Humble, and Project Sweet Life. Brent's book honors include being named a Book Sense 76 Pick (four times) and the winner of the Scandiuzzi Children’s Book Award, the Lambda Literary Award, and the Judy Blume Grant for Best Young Adult Novel.

Also a playwright and a screenwriter, Brent has several scripts under option and in the process of studio or network development, including a film version of his novel, Geography Club.

Brent teaches writing on the faculty at Vermont College in the MFA program in Writing for Children and Young Adults. He lives in Seattle with Michael Jensen, his partner since 1992.

Brent writes regularly on gay entertainment for AfterElton.com, and founded and now edits a fantasy-themed website, TheTorchOnline.com. Visit Brent's author website at www.brenthartinger.com.

Reviews for Project Sweet Life:

"A hilarious story filled with mishaps, close calls, and outrageous adventures....the novel will be especially appealing to middle school boys."
-- School Library Journal

"The boys’ friendship, lightly and expertly depicted, drives the book, while their smartly plotted moneymaking schemes are creative, highjinks-filled, and hilariously almost effective."
-- Horn Book Review

"Marked by sly wit and a certain old-fashioned jauntiness, this tale of three chums on a quest for indolence strikes many a wish-fulfillment fancy...Hartinger blends urban legend with the actual history of Tacoma’s routing of its Chinese community (author’s note included) to craft an irresistible setting (who wouldn’t want to explore lost tunnels under a city in search of treasure?), humorous episodes tinged with mild danger, and a light-hearted mystery"
-- BCCB

Marlene P:What was your inspiration for this story?

Brent: Project Sweet Life is about three 15 year-old boys who are told by their dads to get jobs -- "because work builds character!" But they've always been told that age 16, not age 15, is the year that you're required to get that first "summer job," so they were all counting on having one last summer of job-less freedom to share together. They don't feel they're dads' demand is fair.

So, seeking to preserve one last golden "job-less" summer, they invent "fake" jobs to satisfy their dads, and then embark on a series of "get-rich-quick" schemes in order to make the money they should be making from working. But getting rich quick is more difficult than they think!

The inspiration? Well, it was very, very much the way my friends and I felt when we were teenagers: we took "summer freedom" very seriously. As we got older, we worked, of course, but the way we saw it, we'd worked hard all year long, and we'd work hard for the rest of our lives, so there was nothing wrong with taking some time off in the summer and enjoying ourselves. We were only going to be young once! Work hard and play hard.

Ironically, just as in the book, I'm convinced that playing hard, at least the way we did, builds far more "character" than if we'd worked at KFC all summer.

Marlene P: Do you remember writing the first words? Are they still the same?

Brent: What an interesting question!

I had to check this. This first words are:

"Dave," my dad said at dinner, "it's time you got yourself a summer job."

And yup, they were the words right from the beginning. I have a tendency to jump right into things, and you can see that the book's central problem is right there at the start.

Marlene P: What kind of research did you have to do for this story?

Brent: Interestingly, the very first inspiration for the book, even before I knew the story, was a true story I'd heard as I child: how my hometown of Tacoma, Washington, rounded up all its Chinese residents back in the 19th century, burned down Chinatown, and forced all the residents out of town and on a train down to Oregon. It was an historical event that ended up being called the "Tacoma Method" for a city's dealing with its immigrant population, and even today, over a hundred years later, Tacoma has a very small Chinese American population (not surprisingly).

I've been haunted by the story all my life. Can you imagine? Having your home burned down and being told to just leave? "Go away -- you and your whole community are not wanted here"?

As I got older and became a writer, I knew I wanted to write about it. But I didn't trust myself to write a historical novel or a literary novel -- I'm not a particular fan of either genre as a reader, and I'm a big believer that you should write the kind of book you love.

Anyway, Project Sweet Life is my attempt to write about this chilling historical event. I admit it's a "light," very round-about attempt! But there ends up being a treasure, and a big mystery that the kid attempt to solve, and it involves the expulsion of the Chinese, and the tunnels the Chinese supposedly dug under the city.

I'd like to think there's also a lesson about racism and historical accuracy in there somewhere.

And yes, I did a lot of research! I talked to town historians and read lots of local books. The best part was trying to find evidence of those actual tunnels -- which I sort of did. Do they really exist? I honestly think they do, but I can say no more -- I've been sworn to secrecy!

Marlene P: Which books influenced you most when you were growing up?

Brent: It's funny, because this book was very much inspired by the kinds of books I loved and read over and over again when I was a kid. Which were books like The Mad Scientists' Club, The Great Brain, The Chronicles of Narnia. Basically, stories about kids who go on pretty crazy, often "episodic" adventures, usually involving mysteries, but -- as I sort of mentioned above -- also end up discovering some important things about themselves and the world.

A lot of reviewers have commented on the "old-fashioned" nature of the story (in a good way!), which makes me happy, because that's exactly what I had intended: just a good, old-fashioned, somewhat outrageous, somewhat wacky comedy of errors -- but with contemporary characters and a more contemporary feel.

~~~Cafe Note~~ As a regular part of our interviews, featured authors will pop back in for one week after their interview is posted to answer any other questions blog readers may leave for them. So if you have any questions or comments for Brent, please post them now.

Grand Prize winner:
Bissie


Four (4) First Prize winners :
DVE
Erin
Jen
Summer

Please e-mail me (Marlene) at [email protected] for details on how to collect your prize.

We're having a contest!Please check out the video below and tell us one thing about Scarlett. You can also enter a second time by naming at least two other novels that Maureen Johnson has written. At the end of the week, posters will be chosen at random to receive the prizes!

One (1) Grand Prize winner will receive:
$50 Gift Card to PBteen®
Suite Scarlett paperback book


Four (4) First Prize winners will receive:
Suite Scarlett paperback book

Suite Scarlett Synopsis

When Scarlett Martin turns fifteen she is put in charge of the Empire Suite, one of the rooms in her family’s hotel. Enter Mrs. Amberson, an aging C-list starlet who decides to employ Scarlett. Soon, she is taking dictation, running around New York City, and getting caught up in Mrs. Amberson’s crazy adventures. In the midst of it all, Scarlett falls in love–or so she thinks–and it takes Mrs. Amberson to help her see the light. Now available in paperback!



Don't forget to leave your comments on the YA Authors Cafe blog in order to be eligible to win! And find out more about PBteen at www.pbteen.com and more about Maureen's books at www.thisispoint.com.

Talia fell under a spell . . . . Jack broke the curse.

I was told to beware the accursed spindle, but it was so enchanting, so hypnotic. . . .

I was looking for a little adventure the day I ditched my tour group. But finding a comatose town, with a hot-looking chick asleep in it, was so not what I had in mind.

I awakened in the same place but in another time—to a stranger's soft kiss.

I couldn't help kissing her. Sometimes you just have to kiss someone. I didn't know this would happen.

Now I am in dire trouble because my father, the king, says I have brought ruin upon our country. I have no choice but to run away with this commoner!

Now I'm stuck with a bratty princess and a trunk full of her jewels. . . . The good news: My parents will freak!

Think you have dating issues? Try locking lips with a snoozing stunner who turns out to be 316 years old. Can a kiss transcend all—even time?