Last Friday I was privileged to be included in a luncheon hosted by Scholastic Books and the New England Booksellers Association for YA writing sensations and all around awesome-women Libba Bray, Meg Cabot, and Maggie Stiefvater. The ladies were in town to visit the Wellesley Booksmith and to promote This is Teen, Scholastic's integrated teen community initiative, which works to unite teen
My new proposal is finally done and handed over to my super agent, so to celebrate, I allowed myself a giant weekend of reading for pleasure.
After having it gaze longingly at me from the to-be-read pile,
The Sweet Far Thing finally made it into my hands.
For me, if I'm going to read an 800+ page book, I need solid blocks of reading time. That's why, this book, which I purchased in hardcover when it first came out (a long while ago!) has been languishing. Also, it's the third book of a trilogy, so it's hard for me to let the series go. Maybe that accounts for the delay, too...
As I hoped, it was an awesome read and a great wrap up to Libba Bray's Gemma Doyle series. I highly recommend it.
So, I'm curious --
How many of you will wait to start a bigger book like I did? Do you save books for a big reading weekend, or do you nibble away over weeks and weeks? What is next in your stack for a pleasure reading weekend?
Hugs,
Heather
www.heatherdavisbooks.com
Wherever You Go - Harcourt November 2011
The Clearing - HMH
Never Cry Werewolf - HarperTeen
Going BovineLibba Bray
young adult
Bray knows her characters. The medley of sixteen year old underachiever/loser guy to talking garden gnome cast she creates is a fun romp to read through. Which is good because this is a looooooooooooong book. Very long. 480 pages long.
I know. I know. I sound like a griping teenager. The target audience. I wonder if the story has enough to keep them reading. I had a hard time remaining engaged.
While I enjoyed the imagination, the characters, the dialogue, the constantly changing setting, it was, ultimately, the leap of faith I was unable to take. At about the end of the first third of the book, when Cameron has already been hospitalized and is degenerating quickly - he's suffering from Creutzfeldt-Jacob (mad cow) disease, which is incurable and deadly. He sees an angel. Not just any angel. A punker angel. Okay, I'm still with you. The weird angel has appeared before in the distance. This might work. A punker angel named Dulcie.
Lost me.
We, as readers, sign a contract to take the leap of faith. To believe in the parameters of the story. Cameron's reality. It seems to incredible to be real. Sure enough, we come to discover in a
100 Years of Solitude sort of way toward the very end (and there are hints throughout that this might indeed be the case) that Cameron's been hallucinating/dreaming the last two weeks of his life. In other words, everything, including Dulcie, is a figment of his imagination. Yet his imagined life is far more alive and real than the 16 years of his life he more or less drifted through.
It's a great ending. Gabriel Garcia Marquez genius type of ending. But will the reader get there? We aren't in Latin American mysticism but modern day Texas. Realistic setting makes the leap hard. Dulcie makes the leap even harder. Granted, we're not supposed to take the leap in the end, we realize. It was a fantastical leap to begin with. One Cameron dreamed up. But because we do not know that right away, and because the fantastical keeps getting further and further out there, it's really hard to stay engaged, leaving the reader wondering, huh? What's the point? And, um, is it coming soon?
I hate not liking a book. I hate finding stuff wrong with the writing. There is no pleasure in it for me, especially with a book so close to greatness. Ultimately, it feels as though this piece lacked a stronger editorial pen. The right external input could have turned unbelievable into fantastical genius marvelous. We authors need editors. We really really do. No matter what stage of writing we are at. And we should never forget that. Because when we do, we are doomed to repeat our own mistakes without correction over and over and over again.
Read
Going Bovine for its characters. For its Garcia Marquez crafty twist on reality. But also to notice where the editorial pen would have helped. Could have tightened, condensed and lifted such promise to the next level of greatness.
For other great reads, hop over to our fearless leader's blog -
Barrie Summy Blog.
Happy reading!
A few years ago, during fellowship hour at my church, a friend and her daughter began describing their most recent literary adventure. They'd driven to New York, they said, to see John Green read. The line to get in was at least a block long. When the crowd finally fully compacted, when it contained its excitement and hushed, John Green wasn't just the funny, smart, wonderful, warm writer my friend and her daughter thought he would be. He was infinitely better than that.
I believe it. Like Libba Bray, John Green emanates a good Bigness, not just of talent, but of spirit. Travels to his
web site yield a glimpse of a guy whose humor, occasional gentle self-mockery, and unabashed love for World Cup Soccer have remained intact, through the tsunami of his success. If you had a chance to visit readergirlz during their
John Green month, you'd find the man waving with both hands, talking up playlists, and jiving his way through his infamous tweets (he hates the term social media, apparently, but he's textbook good at it). If you've read any of his books, or even just the acknowledgments in his books, or maybe the extras in his books, you get the aforementioned good Bigness.
This morning I've been reading the book that launched Green's career,
Looking for Alaska, because it is a good thing, I think, to go back to the beginning with authors, to remember what was first for them, the platform that they built from. Everything is right about this book—the tone, the relationships, the slow build of tension and mystery (slow, or fast, depending on how you take to the chapter "titles' which are all variations of "fifty-eight days before" or "one-day after").
Alaska has the intelligence of
A Separate Peace and the wit of a Salinger. It has something only this former hospital chaplain might have written about The Meaning of it All.
Green's work will, I'm certain, be around for a long time. He is an author who makes me proud to be counted among the YA writers of right now. Because Green's work is first-rate no matter what genre label you give it, and that's what YA books must be, first and foremost—well-written, thoughtful, funny if the author can swing it, capable of leaving readers psychically richer than they were.
I have had, as I mentioned yesterday, the gift of time. I've been watching and listening to other authors in part of that time, and yesterday I sat and listened to this
utterly remarkable talk by Libba Bray on the occasion of her Printz Award win (for
Going Bovine). I had met her, but only briefly, at ALA, and been utterly charmed. But one must listen to this entire talk to get a full sense of who Libba Bray is—gracious and wickedly funny, spontaneous and utterly prepared, entirely human and extra-stellar, a writer and a performer.
This is speaking at its best and joy at its utmost.
Going Bovine Libba Bray
I wasn't expecting to like this one. I wasn't a huge fan of
A Great and Terrible Beauty, which is the other Bray I've read. Some people I know loved
Going Bovine, and some didn't. Most of the criticisms were things where I thought "ok, that's also stuff that bugs me in a book." So, I figured this one wasn't for me. And then it won the Printz, so I felt obligated to read it.
And! Yay! I was pleasantly surprised. I enjoyed it!
For those who don't know, Cam is an apathetic teen who gets mad cow disease. He embarks on a road trip with his friend Gonzo and a yard gnome who's really a Norse God. Along the way he's helped by a punk rock angel. Cam is not the most likable of characters, but that doesn't mean he's not believable as a character. He's selfish before he finds out he's dying, and when he gets sick, he doesn't see it as an experience to turn his life around. Instead, he gets pissed off. Which, while not likable and not what we tend to see in books, is frankly, the same thing I would do.
I didn't like Cam in the beginning, but I loved his voice, so I didn't mind that I didn't like him. I really liked Cam by the end.
I most loved the happiness cult and what the snow globe company does to protect people. (Yeah, that's vague, but I don't want to spoil it.)
This draws a lot of inspiration from
Don Quixote, which I haven't read (but I have read a few plot summaries, and seen the
Animaniacs version). Bray's not shy about the
Don Quixote connections (Cam's reading it for school) and c'mon! The angel is named Dulcie!
My one complaint is that much of the tension comes from wondering if Cam's adventures real or a hallucination brought on by his brain's disintegration. The truth is too obvious too early. I wanted her to stretch that out further. While I knew what was what, I didn't want my feelings to be confirmed that early...
The other was the end, which I'll talk about
here, because MAJOR SPOILAGE.
But overall? A really great book that's really enjoyable on the surface, but underneath lurks an homage to great literature and lots of other little things that make it secretly amazing.
Book Provided by... my local library
Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.
A couple shots of the Autograph Party winding down.
Our own TEAM BLOGGER Suzanne Young sold out her new NAUGHTY LIST at the bookstore
Jim Benton signing it up sans platypus and blender family
Jacqueline Woodson talking to Florida RA Linda Rodgriguez Bernfeld and friend
Libba Bray signing for the peeps. Libba has on the cutest jacket which you can get
here!
Our Dear Genius Jane Yolen and her fans
Gotham Group's Eddie Gamarra has worked with Libba Bray, Holly Black, Mo Willems and other great authors.
This conference, he says, is so astounding to him--he cannot fathom a gathering in Los Angeles where producers and others in the industry get up on a panel and tell writers how to break in. "It just wouldn't happen."
Eddie works as a manager. Managers, he says, think in terms of ideas and what they can do with them. They can sell both film and TV rights. They are a creator-driven company and like to work with creative people who are multi-hyphenates: writer-llustrators, actor-writer, etc.
Gotham works with screenwriters, directors, animators, publishers, comic book publishers, and they co-agent with book agents.
--POSTED BY ALICE
"Trying to please other people with your story is madness."
"There is no sure thing except the magic of writing what matters to you and you alone."
"What's hot and selling today may not be tomorrow. The only thing you can do is listen to your pages and see what they want to tell you."
Four pieces of brilliant advice from Libba:
1. Be a giraffe.
2. Find the cracks that let in the light.
3. Just say no to the hot pterodactyl boyfriend.
4. "First you jump off the cliff, then you build the wings." (Ray Bradbury quote)
"There is nothing without the leap of faith."
"Honor your work with your honesty."
"I challenge you all to join me in the year of writing dangerously."
Libba Bray (Super
Vixen and Super Author) takes the stage. Within 5 seconds, NO joke, has people cracking up.
Oh, yes...there's the Super
Vixen. She strikes poses for the BIG screen.
Libba: "So, know anyone who's won an award lately?"
Yes,
Libba--just days ago--won the
Printz Award for GOING BOVINE, and yes, she has that
Printz glow.
Libba told Lin Oliver she wanted to talk about punctuation.
"I love the smell of semicolons in the morning."
On writing: "There are few other jobs in which you are so exposed..."
--POSTED BY JOLIE STEKLY
It’s been a landmark week for Austin children’s writers. Three of our gang scored top honors -- a Caldecott Honor, a Sibert Honor and a Newbery Honor — from the American Library Association.
Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly
Our Austin, Texas chapter of the Society of Children’s Book Writers (SCBWI) is a little dazed after last weekend’s 2010 award announcements. Austin’ s Jacqueline Kelly received a Newbery Honor for her YA novel The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate about a girl growing up at the turn of the 19th century. The picture book poem All the World penned by Liz Garton Scanlon of Austin and illustrated by Marla Frazee was named one of the two Caldecott Honor books. (Frazee’s second Caldecott Honor.)
"All the World" by Liz Garton Scanlon, illustrated by Marla Frazee
And The Day-Glo Brothers written by Chris Barton of Austin and illustrated with retro lines and Day-Glo colors by Tony Persiani won a Sibert Honor for children’s nonfiction. (From the ALA – “The Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal is awarded annually to the author(s) and illustrator(s) of the most distinguished informational book published in English during the preceding year.”)
Our SCBWI chapter claims all three of these writers and we’ll claim Frazee, too. So that makes four.
All four, as it just so happens had been scheduled to present at the Austin SCBWI regional 2010 conference “Destination Publication” next weekend (January 30) with an already honors heavy line-up of authors, editors and agents. Marla is giving the keynote address along with Newbery Honor author Kirby Larson (Hatti Big Sky)
Another Texan, Libba Bray won the Michael L. Printz Award
SCBWI Winter Conference faculty member Libba Bray received the 2010 Michael L. Printz Award for excellence in literature written for young adults for her book Going Bovine!
Libba will kick of the conference with a keynote address called WRITING AS AN EXTREME SPORT.
You can still register for the Winter Conference where you can experience the wit and wisdom of award-winning author Libba Bray in person. Click here for the conference registration page.
So busy lately… school visits and parties and book festivals – it’s all out of my comfort zone and therefore hugely, crazy exhausting. But the more I get out, the more I like it, and the more I like it, the more acclimated I get to actually talking to other grown-ups. Dare I say it: it’s fun!
This weekend was HUGE, with the Texas Book Festival. I got to meet so many great local (and non-local) authors, learn so many new things from readings and panels, climb a little more out of my shell… it was really energizing.
I’m pleased to report that I didn’t scorch my elbow off or pull hair out of my mouth while I spoke to Libba Bray, like many of us feared. In fact, I stood there, mute, with a huge dorky smile on my face. But she liked my Modest Mouse t-shirt, and she signed my book, so all-in-all the Libba Encounter of Aught Nine was a success.
For such a long time, I’ve been trapped in this house. Years, really. And it’s no one’s fault, just circumstances. Having the chance to do things like meet Libba Bray, or get together with a group of other writers – these are things I haven’t allowed myself to think about for a long time, because it just hasn’t been possible. On top that, I’ve never been a very social person, so initially, being trapped in the house wasn’t a very big deal. But now that my book is out, and the new book is coming out, it’s important for me to be able to leave the house. Not only that, I crave the attention and the insights and the critiques from my writing community. I don’t necessarily want to soldier along alone like I’ve been doing.
It’s funny, because I had this realization last year with my mama community. I didn’t want to ask for help, I didn’t want to accept help. I wanted to hunker down and hide in the house and just push through everything as best our family could. But then I realized that my mama community, my friends – they ARE my family. And to accept help from them wasn’t a sign of weakness or fragility, it was an acceptance of love.
Now that might sound pretty cheesy, but it’s true. And now I’m learning that the same thing can be said for the local writing community. They are here as support and empathy and encouragement – and as friends. It’s not something I should shy away from just because I feel that writing is solitary. The writing process can still be solitary even while you have a community supporting you – and that you support as well.
It’s nice to be around people. Sometimes that obvious statement isn’t so evident when you’re fighting the tsunamis that life keeps throwing at you. Saying that I’ve been treading water is incredibly cliche, but it really is the best metaphor. A wave comes, threatens to drown me and my family, and yet, our heads pop up above the surface.
I know there are more waves. There is a lot still to come this year with Ike-a-saurus. But it is less daunting when I realize I don’t have to face it alone. And as far as the books go, I am just thrilled to be sticking my nose into a community of such creative, supportive, amazing folks.
You guys are like my emotional Spanx. And that is awesome.
Exciting things happening at readergirlz this month! Here's the scoop:
Teen Read Week Tribute!
Do you love Teen Read Week? Let it out at your blog through a post or vlog, then send the link to [email protected]. Put in the subject line: Your name, TRW Tribute. We’ll collect contributions and post them at the rgz blog in a 24 hour time span. Tell us about your recent release, or a book you love dearly, and then give a shout out for Teen Read Week. The tribute will run October 23rd!
******
rgz Read Beyond Reality!
We are ready to Read Beyond Reality with YALSA, rgz! The divas will host nine young-adult authors—eight of whom are nominees for the Teens’ Top Ten—throughout Teen Read Week. The week’s chats will culminate with an online gala celebration, where Sylvia Engdahl, a pioneer in young-adult science fiction, will be hosted and honored for her contributions to the literary landscape. Watch for signed book prizes and swag from iHeartDaily.com!
- Monday, Oct. 19: Beyond Imagination with rgz diva Justina Chen (NORTH OF BEAUTIFUL), Alyson Noël (EVERMORE) and Zoe Marriott (DAUGHTER OF THE FLAMES)
- Tuesday, Oct. 20: Beyond Hardship with rgz diva Lorie Ann Grover (HOLD ME TIGHT), Elizabeth Scott (LIVING DEAD GIRL) and Lynn Weingarten (WHEREVER NINA LIES)
- Wednesday, Oct. 21: Beyond Daily Life with rgz diva Holly Cupala (TELL ME A SECRET), Lisa McMann (WAKE) and Cynthia Leitich Smith (ETERNAL)
- Thursday, Oct. 22: Beyond Our World with rgz diva Melissa Walker (LOVESTRUCK SUMMER), Cassandra Clare (CITY OF ASHES) and Patrick Ness (THE KNIFE OF NEVER LETTING GO)
- Friday, Oct. 23: Into Our Beyond with rgz diva Dia Calhoun (AVIELLE OF RHIA) and pioneering YA sci-fi author Sylvia Engdahl (ENCHANTRESS FROM THE STARS)
It all happens at the rgz blog, Oct. 19-23 at 6 p.m. Pacific/9 p.m. Eastern. Spread the word with the press release, poster, banners, and trailer!
******
rgz welcomes New York Times Bestseller Libba Bray!
In October we are also psyched to host Libba Bray as our Divas’ Choice. We’ll discuss THE SWEET FAR THING and all things Gemma. Feel free to chat about related topics all month at the rgz blog. rgz LIVE! with Libba will be held on October 28th at 6 p.m. Pacific/9 p.m. Eastern. Join our celebration and enter the realms this month, rgz!
Download our
October Libba Bray bookmark!
******
The Teen Read Week of chats is always one of my most-anticipated weeks of the year. Talking to authors all week long is completely inspiring. Hope to see you all there!
Today's Author Spotlight is on Libba Bray who joins us on the blog tour for her latest novel Going Bovine. A world away from the Gemma Doyle trilogy, Libba introduces us to Cameron, a 16-year-old boy diagnosed with Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, aka... Read the rest of this post
Oh. my. Norse. god.
Libba Bray made a video for Going Bovine.
She wears a cow suit.
In Manhattan.
Go, see. It's at EW's Book Blog, EW's Shelf Life.
© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy
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By:
Lizzy Burns,
on 8/14/2009
Blog:
A Chair, A Fireplace and A Tea Cozy
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Going Bovine
by Libba Bray. Random House. September 2009. Reviewed from ARC supplied by publisher.
The Plot: Sixteen year old Cameron Smith is just another slacker at his Texas high school. Until he gets diagnosed with Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease (aka mad cow disease), starts seeing angels, and ends up on a road trip to DisneyWorld with a dwarf, a yard gnome, and an angel.
The Good: This is so different from Libba Bray's other books -- I love when an author can do multiple things well. I don't see anything in Cameron's voice that reminds me of Gemma Doyle
; the world in Going Bovine so different -- it's a joy to discover just how multi-talented Bray is, because all you can think is "Holy Hannah, what is she going to do next?"
There's some things I think I don't like in books. Then, what happens, is a book comes along that has the things I don't like and I realize it's not that I don't like something -- I don't like it when it isn't done well. Why, I wondered, do I want to go on a road trip with Cameron? And a dwarf? And yard gnome? This is just getting ridiculous. I don't do ridiculous.
But then, I remember, I do. I love The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
. Thursday Next
delights me. Like Douglas Adams and Jasper Fforde, Bray throws out casual one-liners that are just fantastic; the book is so full of wry observances and over-the-top humor that I'm sure I missed half of what was there. This book demands a reread.
And a reread is needed not just for the humor; but also for the layered storytelling. Flat out the back of the book says, "Hope arrives in the winged form of Dulcie, a loopy punk angel/possible hallucination with a bad sugar habit." If I told you the movies this reminded me of, I'd be giving spoilers. Which is why suddenly, instead of writing a long review, I'm coming up short. Because the joy of all 480 pages is not just Cameron's discoveries, but the reader's discoveries. And I'm not going to take that away from you.
Bray addresses serious questions -- about life, and belief, and what it means to live. Why does Cameron need the threat of death to wake him from his life? Do we live to our fullest? Much like Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal
and Dogma
, something that may be viewed as blasphemous actually asks the most serious of questions.
Hey, did I mention there are also Norse gods? Physics? Inuit Rock Stars? Music? New Orleans? All-U-Can-Eat Freedom Pancake Towers? Bowling? Smoothies?
Not only is this going on my favorite books list for this year; but I predict this being on starred/best of year lists. Also, this needs to be crossmarketed to adults, who will eat it up.
Links:
Teaser
My Twitter Review
Jen Hubert's Reading Rants review (which is brilliant)
© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy
By:
Judy Bryan,
on 7/19/2009
Blog:
Judy Bryan
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Awesome! Inspiring! So many books, so many authors, so little time!
Neil Gaiman (!) and me. The highlight of the weekend was meeting him, getting my copy of The Graveyard Book signed and hearing his Newbery speech in person. Wow.
Me and Tammi Sauer with her new picture book, Chicken Dance. Check out this youtube
![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif)
link www.youtube.com/watch of her publisher (Sterling) having fun with her book. I wish all publishers were like this! Tammi's coming to Wisconsin's SCBWI Fall Retreat in October. We'll be bawkin' n rollin'!
Me, Kashmira Sheth,
gbeaverson , and Ann Bausum. Kashmira, and Ann are in critique groups of mine and Georgia's, though not the same one, if that makes any sense. If not, oh well, it's not important. :) Kashmira received the Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature for her beautiful picture book, Monsoon Afternoon.
This is Ann Bausum and Kashmira Sheth, who both had signings of their awsome books!
The illustrious Richard Peck so graciously signed two books for me, Newbery Honor A Long Way From Chicago and and an arc (advanced reading copy) of his newest, A Season of Gifts!
Mo Willems. Love him!
I couldn't decide which copies of Sarah Dessen's books to get for my daughters (I read them, too!) so I bought six, and she signed every one!
Lisa Albert, a fellow Wisconsin SCBWI-er, whose Enslow biography of Stephenie Meyer just came out!
Me and Georgia with Janet Halfmann, another fellow Wisconsin SCBWI-er, signing her wonderful book, Seven Miles To Freedom.
The SCBWI booth fantastically decked out by the Illinois chapter. That's Esther Hershenhorn on the right, the fabulous Illinois Regional Advisor.
Talk about BONUS! I had my copy of The Calder Game signed by author Blue Balliett and her editor, David Levithan, was there! Squeeee! I loved Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist! (He wrote the boy parts) :)
Georgia, Holly Black and me. I got my copy of Geektastic signed AND got the coveted Geektastic pocket protector. Does that make me a geek? Hell, yeah, and proud of it!
Gennifer Choldenko signed both my copies of Al Capone Does My Shirts and Al Capone Shines My Shoes. Saweet!
You may know her as
thatgirlygirl , Tanya Seale was in my very first critique group when we were greenhorns, waaay before we even knew what SCBWI was!
Jon Scieskza and Lane Smith
Laurie Halse Anderson
Judy Blume. Love her! I grew up with her books.
Georgia, Ingrid Law, me
Libba Bray
Libba Bray sat in the loooooooong line for her signing (before it started) and chatted with fans. How cool is that? Had my copy of A Great And Terrible Beauty signed AND got an arc signed of Going Bovine!
That's the great thing about ALA, you're surrounded by people who love books as much as you do. Publishers give away tons of arcs, I scored bags full! Bags people! Can you say a little piece of heaven? I just wish I could hole up for weeks and read, read, read.
Isn't that a beautiful sight! :)
For now, don't be surprised if you happen to run in to me at one of my son's baseball games and I seem to be engrossed in the player's list. It's hiding a book. :)
Libba Bray, author of The New York Times bestselling Gemma Doyle Trilogy (A Great and Terrible Beauty
, Rebel Angels
, and The Sweet Far Thing), will be hosting a virtual event on There.com, a 3D online virtual world that is free for users, in promotion for the paperback release of THE SWEET FAR THING.
Libba will be doing a reading of THE SWEET FAR THING and chatting with other There.com avatars from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. EST on Tuesday, April 28th.
By:
Alice Pope,
on 3/24/2009
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NYC Teen Author Festival--My First Day...
I arrived in New York on rainy Thursday to catch the last few days of the Teen Author Festival. That afternoon I met my friend Aaron Hartzler (who is the Director, Communications & Design for SCBWI) for a 4 o'clock reading at the 67th branch library featuring Rachel Vail, Courtney Sheinmel, Martin Wilson, Lisa Ann Sandell, and Cecily Von Ziegesar (pictured below in my rather dark photo, L to R, holding up their books).
Oh...I really adore listening to authors reading their own work. There's something sort of magical about it. I'd love to have a continuous bedtime rotation of YA authors reading me a few chapters every night before I fall asleep. Courtney Sheinmel told us she got the idea for her book My So-Called Family, featuring a girl whose father was a sperm donor, from a "The Today Show" story. Cecily Von Ziegesar read a scene from an early Gossip Girl title showing us the book version of why Blair Waldorf didn't get into Harvard (no cocktail parties or text messages involved). Rachel Vail's reading from her upcoming book Lucky offered humor and a great character. Lisa Ann Sandell's writing was lyrical and beautiful and I wasn't surprised to hear that her book A Map of the Known World is her first first prose work, her previous books written in verse. As for Llambda Literary Awards finalist Martin Wilson--after the reading teens were fighting over who got to read his book What They Always Tell Us first as he gave his copy to the library.
And that was another wonderful thing about this reading: teens. There were a bunch of them. And they (pretty much all) paid attention and they asked thoughtful questions and they seemed to have a relationship with the YA librarian which was wonderful to see.
After the reading we were off to Books of Wonder for the debut of Tiger Beat, the first-ever all-YA-author band including Libba Bray, Daniel Ehrenhaft, Barney Miller, and Natalie Standiford. Tiger Beat's opening act was David Levithan and Rachel Cohn (rockin a flannel shirt and eye liner) offering readings from their book Naomi and Eli's No Kiss List (in both English and German!) and a reenacted scene from the movie version of Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist.
Then Tiger Beat seriously rocked (they were, like, good) and everyone cheered.
And waved foam Tiger Beat rock'n'roll hands.
Oh--and attached to Books of Wonder: a cupcake place! Aren't they pretty. (The chocolate icing was fantastic.)
Last, here's a reenactment of part of Aaron's conversation with the girl who sold us cupcakes. (I forget her name. I will call her Kara.)
Aaron: Hi Kara. Are you excited about the authors here in the store?
Kara: Oh. I'm not really into young adult books.
Pause.
I'm sixteen.
Aaron: What do you read?
Kara: Neil Gaiman.
Recently several friends have been on the receiving end of some very bad blurb etiquette and they have requested that I set the world straight about how blurbage should actually work. I live to serve.
What is a blurb? It’s the little quotes that typically appear on the back of a book saying how wonderful it is. For instance here is what Libba Bray has to say about How To Ditch Your Fairy:1
Justine Larbalestier has a super-cool writing fairy, and I am vastly jealous! Thoroughly entertaining, totally enchanting, wickedly funny, and 110% doos, How To Ditch Your Fairy had me grinning from page one (when I wasn’t laughing out loud). And as soon as I can figure out how to do it I’m going to ask to swap fairies with Justine.
—Libba Bray, New York Times Bestselling author of A Great and Terrible Beauty
A while back I talked at length about my policy on blurbs. The short version is: Yes, I am happy to look at books and if I love them I will blurb them.2 Turns out that there are other aspects of blurbage that I did not cover. Mostly because I did not know these things happen. But apparently they do.
- Never offer to swap blurbs with an author. “Hey, I have a book coming out. If you blurb it I’ll blurb your book!” This is a terrible idea. I may be a blurb purist but all the authors I know only blurb books that they enjoyed reading. They do not blurb books because that person blurbed their book and they especially don’t do that for someone who has never had a book published before and therefore has no track record. Blurbs are supposed to help to sell books but they’re useless if no one knows who the blurber is.
- If the author who agreed to look at your book does not get back to you DO NOT bug them. There are several reasons for not blurbing a book such as not liking it, not having time to read it, and losing said book. Putting the author in the position of having to explain which reason applies is not fair. No author wants to explain to another why they didn’t like their book well enough to blurb it. Just assume it was lack of time.
- There is nothing wrong with receiving a blurb from a friend unless of course that’s the only reason they’re doing it. I blurbed Cassie Clare’s City of Bones because I could not put it down. I loved it. The reason I know some of the wonderful writers who have blurbed me—Karen Joy Fowler, Samuel R. Delany, Libba Bray, Holly Black—is because I love their writing. They are my friends because of writing. None of them would blurb my books if they weren’t into them. It’s not worth our reputations to blurb books of varying quality. Every author I know has said no to blurbing a book by a friend. It’s awkward, but not as awkward as having your name eternally on the back of a book you don’t love.
- Never claim to have a blurb from an author if that is not the case. If the author in question has agreed to look at your book with the possibilty of providing a blurb that DOES NOT mean they are going to blurb you. I looked at several books last year and blurbed none of them. The author has agreed to read your book NOTHING more. If you go around boasting that you have a blurb when you don’t odds are it will get back to the author, who will then be much less inclined to blurb you. This is a very small industry. Word gets around.
This last point leads to a bigger point: Anyone who advises you that lying: claiming blurbs you don’t have, doctoring your publications list, claiming non-existent connections etc. etc. is a good way to get “your foot in the door” is full of it.
Don’t do this. Not ever.
Finding out that someone you have NEVER met is using your name to get ahead is vastly cranky-making. Also in the age of the internet it’s almost impossible to get away with these shenanigans. Google knows when you lie.
I think that about covers it, but if I’ve missed anything do please let me know.
One thing that surprised me right off the bat was how HILARIOUS these two ladies are together. Talk about comedic timing and improvising. I laughed loads listening to them.
At one point Shannon pulled out a l-o-n-g (I wish you could see how far it reached) line of laminated rejection letters. She mentioned this obscure magazine in a small town in Idaho who rejected her. Well, of course the small town was
my town. Holly spoke up and said that two of the audience members (my mom and I) were from said town. Shannon asked us if we'd heard of the magazine, and we shook our heads, Nope!
They closed with a musical number. I was one of the backup dancers. Here I am, laughing really, really hard:
I didn't get in line right away, because I wanted to stay towards the end so I could talk longer. When I did eventually get in line though, I heard my mom talking to two ladies behind me. I turned and saw the book
The Opposite of Invisible, which I haven't read but had heard about through the Class of 2k8. Something that I'd vaguely heard them say made me ask one of the ladies, "Do you know the author of that book?" "I am the author," she replied. So, that was way cool! Here then is Liz Gallagher and me:
I had
A Great and Terrible Beauty signed by Libba. I was able to talk to her for a good bit, which was a blast as she is completely funny, intelligent, and even shared some of her writing process with me.
Here we are. Libba is holding a box of Swedish Fish.
Then I moved on to Shannon Hale. I set my books down on the table in front of her, and told her who I was. She said, "SHUT. UP."
Oh my goodness.
She knew who I was. I mean, yeah,
I interviewed her last fall, but she's so famous I just didn't think. . . .
She turned to Libba and said, "Do you know who this is?!" Upon which Libba offered me the aforementioned box of Swedish Fish, in an attempt to "get on my good side."
Shannon gave me lots of hugs. She said lots of lovely, kind things to me. She is the most wonderful person I have ever met.
She even asked if she could get a picture with me. I said, "Yes please!"
We attempted several pictures before she said, "You know what, I'm gonna pick you up!" So she did.
Here I am with my hero:
I was in complete heaven. I had a blissful blast talking to her.
Afterward, as Shannon finished signing some books, I barged over to where Libba was sitting at a table eating sushi. I asked if I could sit and talk to her, and of course she said yes, sweet and foxy lady that she is.
Jackie joined us, too. Again, Libba was
such fun to talk to, especially when she brought up creating characters and how that's the great thing about acting (she has a theater background!) and writing. I even made her laugh at one point, which was cool since she's so funny. As soon as she was free, Shannon came and joined us:
The evening didn't go at all like I thought it would in my head. It went so much better than my wildest dreams! I didn't think it was possible, but Shannon is a million times more a hero to me now then she already was. And look--
she posted a couple pics of us on her blog!
I have returned from attending two (in a row) Shannon Hale and Libba Bray talks/signings. All I can say is, this was one of the most incredible days of my entire life, and I literally ache with happiness right now. Ache.
Amazing, exciting, thrilling, unexpected, wonderful, lovely, tearful, laughing till my side hurts. I will always remember this day.
I still cannot comprehend how astonishingly marvelous it all was. I am so completely flooded by emotions I can hardly breathe.
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So wonderful to finally meet you!!!
It sure was, Jen--thanks for hooking me up with Nikki! And congratulations again for all your great recent news :)