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Shakespeare's characters can often appear far-removed from our modern day world of YouTube, Beyoncé and grime. Yet they were certainly no less interested in music than we are now, with music considered to be at the heart of Shakespeare’s artistic vision. Of course our offerings have come a long way since Shakespeare's day, but we think it is a shame that they never had a chance to hear the musical delights of Katy Perry or Slipknot.

The post What music would Shakespeare’s characters listen to? appeared first on OUPblog.

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Hey everyone! It’s Clara Kensie again, with a new Question of the Week! Pretty much the only thing writers love as much as writing is talking about writing. So each week here at Adventures in YA Publishing, I post a question for you to answer. The questions cover all topics important to writers: craft, career, writers’ life, reading and books. Together we’ll become better writers by sharing tips and discussing our habits and practices.

My answer: I can write in silence, but I almost always have my earbuds in while I write. I use music to block out the world around me so I can focus on my manuscript. However, I am a singer, and if I know the lyrics, I will sing along. Therefore while I’m writing, I must listen to music without lyrics, or lyrics I don’t know. I often listen to the Sigur Ros station on my tablet's Pandora app. Sigur Ros is an ambient post-rock band from Reykjavik, Iceland. I love their music but I don’t understand the lyrics, so it’s perfect writing music for me. I also listen to the symphonic and classical music Pandora stations, as well as the Doctor Who station (I know, how awesome is that?), which plays movie and television scores. Scores are lyric-less, and they often have a sweeping, epic feel to them—perfect for writing romantic scenes—or they have a pulsing, urgent tone, perfect for writing action scenes.
I like the idea of making a playlist for each manuscript—a set of songs that match the tone of your story to put you in the right frame of mind to write it—but I’m reluctant to make one myself. Why? Because it would take me days, probably weeks, to select the perfect songs. And that’s time I’d rather spend writing!
YOUR TURN: Do you listen to music while you write? What do you listen to? Do you make playlists, and if so, how do you chose your songs? Or, do you prefer to write in silence?

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The world premiere of the play What The Moon Saw, or "I Only Appear To Be Dead" by Stephanie Fleischmann is less than a month away. The play sees Hans Christian Andersen experiencing his stories in a post-9/11 world. The main pieces featured are The Little Mermaid, The Steadfast Tin Soldier, The Little Match Girl, The Snow Queen, and, of course, What the Moon Saw.

Though the production is not a musical, it does have original music. Please note that the songs listed below are not in the show, but rather tend to be the songs that play in my head when I'm rehearsing my lines or approaching the theatre.

Moon by Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová
Sad Stephen's Song by Duncan Sheik
I'm in Love by Maria Mena
Wedding Dress by Matt Nathanson
It's Only a Paper Moon written by Harold Arlen, E. Y. Harburg, and Billy Rose (Any number of artists have sung this, so pick your favorite version!)
All I Wanna Do by Sheryl Crow (inspired by the poem Fun by Wyn Cooper)
All I Wanna Do cover by Amy Studt
Why Should the Fire Die? by Nickel Creek
You'd Ought To Be Satisfied Now by Jonatha Brooke (words by Woody Guthrie, music by Jonatha Brooke)
Moonchild by Cibo Matto
Moon by David Poe

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Over at readergirlz, we asked folks to suggest songs about compassion for our December playlist. Here's what we came up with:

Sally by Jonatha Brooke
Serena by Duncan Sheik
Bridge Over Troubled Water by Simon & Garfunkel
One by U2
Fix You by Coldplay
Explode by The Cardigans
Love a Diamond by Tonic
When You Come Back Down by Nickel Creek

If you want to take a listen, visit the readergirlz blog after December 1st. (I'm posting this a few days early at my blog.)

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My friend Amy created this playlist for the book Fallen by Lauren Kate - not to be confused with Fallen by Thomas E. Sniegoski. Thanks, Amy!

Girl - The Beatles
Fallen - Sarah McLachlan
Over My Head (Cable Car) - The Fray
Invisible Ink - Aimee Mann
Stand My Ground - Within Temptation
Black Roses Red - Alana Grace
Bring Me to Life - Evanescence
Jasey Ray - All Time Low (acoustic version)
Both Hands - Ani DiFranco
The Scientist - Coldplay
My Immortal - Evanescence
My Never - Blue October
Orange Sky - Alexi Murdoch
Your Guardian Angel - The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus
Viva La Vida - Coldplay
Utopia - Within Temptation
Never Say Never - The Fray
How to Say Goodbye - Paul Tiernan
Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel) - Billy Joel
Out Loud - Dispatch

Check out other book-related playlists posted at Bildungsroman.

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My absolute favorite character building exercise was creating a playlist for my main character. It's good way to get into her head and differentiate her voice from my voice (which can sneak in more than I like to admit). I have to remember that my MC is a contemporary 17 year old, which means she was born in 1993. Smells Like Teen Spirit is an oldie to her. So I've had to push myself and discover

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Last week, during my interview with Lauren Myracle, she came up with this playlist for her newest book, Peace, Love, & Baby Ducks.

"Sunshine and Summertime" by Faith Hill
"Midnight Train to Georgia" by Gladys Knight
"You're All Grown Up Now" by SoulFood
"Trouble" by Cat Stevens
"Detours" by Sheryl Crow
"The Good Times Are Killing Me" by Modest Mouse
"Prayer Without Words" by Mary Gauthier
"Good-Bye Little Rock and Roller" by Marshall Chapman
"Such Great Heights" by Iron & Wine
"Where Is the Love" by Allen Toussaint and Elvis Costello
"Sleeping Diagonally" by Iron & Wine
"I'll Stand by You" by The Pretenders
"Rubber Duckie" by Ernie from Sesame Street
"Bridge Over Troubled Water" by Simon & Garfunkel
"Anyway" by Martina McBride
"What a Wonderful World" by Louis Armstrong

When our interview was first posted, Lauren and I challenged readers to list the artists on this playlist. Thanks to everyone who participated! One random commenter, Jenna, was selected to receive a signed copy of Peace, Love, & Baby Ducks.

Jenna, please contact me ASAP so you may claim your prize! I emailed you this afternoon.

Read the entire interview with Lauren Myracle.

Pull up my other book-related playlists.

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In the novel You Are Here by Jennifer E. Smith, two teenagers - neighbors, but not exactly friends - take an impulsive road trip. Here's my playlist for their journey.

She Runs Away by Duncan Sheik
And I Will Follow by Lauren Kennedy
You Were Here by Sarah Harmer
At Your Side by The Corrs
Landmine by Jonatha Brooke
Amsterdam by Guster
Teardrop by Massive Attack
Hey Girl by Garrison Starr
Come Around by Marc Broussard
Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters as covered by Mandy Moore
Hello Goodbye by The Beatles
Go Your Own Way by Fleetwood Mac*

* I'm not exactly a Fleetwood Mac fan, but as I reviewed my favorite quotes from the book, I got that song stuck in my head. Drat.

I really enjoyed the book and plan to write a review soon. Keep your eyes peeled.

Read my interview with Jennifer E. Smith.

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Last year, Robin Wasserman held a contest related to her book series Seven Deadly Sins. Entrants were to create soundtracks based on the seven sins. I came up with the following playlist:

Lust: Don't Stand So Close to Me by The Police
Gluttony: Fatso by The Story
Greed: I Want It Now by Veruca Salt (from the musical film Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory)
Sloth: Sleep All Day by Jason Mraz
Wrath: Pain by Jimmy Eat World
Envy: Jessie's Girl by Rick Springfield
Pride: Soldier's Daughter by Tonic

Hidden Track: In the Absence of Sun by Duncan Sheik (representing the overall series)

Read my interview with Robin Wasserman.

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By request, a playlist for This Lullaby by Sarah Dessen:

If I Am by 9 Days
Shoes by Stretch Princess
Out of Order by Duncan Sheik
Indifference by Jessica Riddle
This Side by Nickel Creek
Truthfully by Lisa Loeb
I Want To Hold Your Hand by The Beatles
I've Got You Babe by Sonny and Cher
Your House by Jimmy Eat World
Lullaby by Jonatha Brooke

Check out Author Spotlight: Sarah Dessen, with a complete list of her works and my reviews of her novels.

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Last fall, I got to know Liz Gallagher when she gave me the opportunity to design her website.

Next week, Liz will officially become a published author when her debut novel The Opposite of Invisible hits the shelves on January 8th. I'm so happy for her. The book is delightful, and I just know it is going to find its way into a lot of hearts.

Liz and I both like to talk - to others or to ourselves - so here we are, talking to each other, and letting you listen in!

Your book begins with the line:
"Some girls have journals. I talk to my poster."
How about you?

I talk to myself! There's a pretty constant dialogue going on in my head, between me and . . . some other version of me. My conscience? Maybe, but it's more like a best friend in my brain.

When I was younger (and this is embarrassing to admit), I'd pretend to talk to Oprah. That's actually an idea I'm trying to work into the character I'm writing now; I think characters who are as internal as mine tend to be need some sort of outlet for their toughts/emotions/plans.

I've always been bad about keeping journals; I'd start them and then totally slack off. I have one from when I was about eight years old, though. It has entries like, "Today I have gum!" and "The Cosby Show is on tonight!" Scintillating stuff.

The poster is real, though. And the details about where it came from are, too: I got it on a trip to the Picasso museum in Barcelona.

From the very start of the book, it is apparent that Alice and Jewel have a strong, long-time friendship. Did you draw from any of your own experiences while crafting these characters?

I write a lot of boy-girl friendships, and I'm not sure why. I certainly never had a boy best friend. I do have some awesome friendships that go back to kindergarten (and elementary and middle school, and some that are much younger but no less important!), and I thought a lot about how I acted and wanted to act when I was in 8th and 9th grade to write the friendship scenes between Alice and Jewel, like when they shop at the junk store. I would've loved doing stuff like that, and drinking lattes in the rain. I was definitely more an observer than a doer. Still am.

You set your novel in your own Seattle neighborhood. Have you ever caught a glimpse of someone who resembles one of your characters?

That would freak me out. No, but most of the landmarks are real. I live just half a block from the Troll. I do know some people who are about Alice and Jewel's age, and I think they're pretty true to Seattle teenagers. The Seattle teenagers I know seem very aware culturally and have a lot of independence. And cool hair.

Alice is an introvert whose art helps her come out of her shell, just a little, just enough. Do you share any of her artistic skills?

I wish I did, but I am not a visual artist at all. When I worked with preschool-aged kids (which I did for five years), I loved drawing with them. A new set of markers or pastels is a beautiful thing.

Who are your favorite artists?

Pretty much all of the artists in the book! I love Picasso, and even have a tattoo of one of his drawings. I'm not so into cubism, but I love Picasso's simple drawings and paintings, and his posters.

In college, I went through a phase of being very interested in Duchamp and Dada artists -- actually, I'm still kind of in that phase. I also love Matisse, for color and shape. Van Gogh's famous paintings, sunflowers and Starry Night, will always be some of my favorites. Dali's museum in Figures, Spain, is one of the coolest places I've ever been. Any ideas for my next tattoo?

Instead of being stereotypical wholly nasty types, the would-be antagonists in the story are drawn in gray. Was it difficult to make them likable? Likewise, was it difficult to give faults to your main characters?

Oh, yeah. Making Simon and Vanessa not just big ol' manipulative meanies was the biggest challenge for me in writing the book. But I like to write about people who seem real, and no one person is all good or all bad. Just ask the kids who write in to the magazine Highlights for Children (where I worked for a year): they're always saying that Goofus and Gallant don't seem real and that Goofus should do something nice. Those kids are onto something big. Giving faults to main characters isn't as difficult for me -- I know when I start thinking about a new main character that she or he needs to have faults so that he or she has something to strive for; if there were no faults, there would be no story.

At your website (which I was happy to create), you list some books you wish you'd written. You included Bringing Up the Bones by Lara Zeises, which I also love, and which is also a boy-girl friendship. Do you recommend any other similar titles?

Ron Koertge is someone who writes about boys and girls a lot, with overtones of romance but more of a grounding in friendship. STONER AND SPAZ is one of his that works like that. Also Carrie Jones' TIPS ON HAVING A GAY EX-BOYFRIEND, though in that one it's pretty immediately obvious why they're just friends. Still a great read!

I adore Say Goodnight, Gracie by Julie Reece Deaver, but it's tragic.

I'll have to check out Say Goodnight, Gracie.

What are your ten favorite books of all time?

[This is] difficult!

When I like an author, I really like an author:
Stargirl (Jerry Spinelli)
Love, Stargirl (Jerry Spinelli)
Feed (MT Anderson)
Burger Wuss (MT Anderson)
Octavian Nothing (MT Anderson)

Blasts from the past:
The Big Orange Splot (Daniel Pinkwater)
Miss Nelson is Missing (Harry G. Allard and James Marshall)

And, a theme:
How the Grinch Stole Christmas (Dr. Seuss)
The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (Barbara Robinson)
Holidays on Ice (David Sedaris)

Thank you, Miz Liz! Thank you! Great questions. That was fun, and just about fulfilled my fantasy of talking to Oprah.

Read my review of The Opposite of Invisible.

Visit LizGallagher.com

See what Liz has to say at her LiveJournal.

Attend Liz's upcoming signings:

Saturday, January 12th
Chester County Book Company
975 Paoli Pike (West Goshen Center)
West Chester, PA
@ 1:00 PM

Saturday, January 19th
THE OPPOSITE OF INVISIBLE release party!
All for Kids Books & Music
2900 NE Blakeley St
Seattle, WA
2:00 PM -- 5:00 PM
with live music by Rachel Harrington

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There are plenty of books - and movies too, for that matter - which focus on athletes training for the big game or competition, only to have accidents! injuries! obstacles! interfere in act three. Luckily, they tend to pull through and win the championship or gold medal, and everyone lives happily ever after. Right?

Thankfully, GIRL OVERBOARD by Justina Chen Headley is more thoughtful and less predictable than those stories. Instead of striving for the win, GIRL OVERBOARD encourages readers to strive for their personal truths.

For Syrah Cheng, recovering from a snowboarding accident and overcoming self-doubt is just as difficult as climbing back up that mountain. Syrah is the daughter of a self-made billionaire whose face is splashed on the covers of magazines and newspapers. Her mother is dutiful and strict, and her older half-siblings, with lives and careers of their own, are distant.

Syrah doesn't want to just be thought of as somebody's daughter - she wants to make a name for herself in her own way. While nursing her injured knee, Syrah begins visiting kids in the hospital whose injuries and illnesses are more life-threatening than hers.

When she was snowboarding, Syrah felt free and powerful. She now finds solace in scribbling in her manga journal, but it can't compare to actually hitting the slopes - or to confessing something that happened to her last year that she hasn't told a soul.

As the story continues, she learns something unexpected about her family which make her look at her parents differently, and she attempts to bond with her older brother and sister with varying levels of success. Finally, she thinks of a way to give back to the community while bringing attention to an important cause. A charity snowboarding event brings her back to the place where she has to confront what happened to her, both physically and emotionally.

GIRL OVERBOARD is an engrossing story not only about overcoming personal injuries, but accepting your family and yourself. Readers will hopefully walk away with the urge to give back to their own communities and to try something new that they've always wanted to do!

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Ready? Okay!

Janette Rallison's novels for teens are, in a word, fun. They tend to be fueled by comedy, romance, and drama both at school and home. They also have undeniably catchy titles. Who could resist a book called Fame, Glory, and Other Things on My To Do List, or one entitled All's Fair in Love, War, and High School?

All's Fair came out in 2003. The sequel, Revenge of the Cheerleaders, will hit the shelves this October. The Cheerleaders appeared at my workplace a few months early, singing in preparation for their debut. You see, Revenge is all about a high school singing competition - like American Idol, but exclusively for teens - and Chelsea and her friends want to make sure it's a clean competition, even if Rick, her little sister's rude rocker boyfriend, tries to trip them up. If you liked Janette Rallison's previous novels, if you can quote the movie Clueless, or if you enjoy lighthearted dramedies, then Revenge of the Cheerleaders will make you grin and giggle.

While discussing the book, Janette and I came up with this playlist. I've combined the songs mentioned in the book -- including those used in the High School Idol competition, of course! -- with a few cheerleading staples, a few pop anthems, a few angsty tracks, and some of Janette's current favorites.

Revenge of the Cheerleaders Playlist
Because I'm Awesome by The Dollyrots
The opening cheer sequence from Bring It On
I Want to be a Rock Star by Nickelback
Mickey by Toni Basil
Dirty Little Secret by The All-American Rejects
Walk Away by Kelly Clarkson
On Her Mind by Duncan Sheik
Prodigal Daughter by Jonatha Brooke
Chelsea by Stefy
Be True to Your School by The Beach Boys
The Shoop Shoop Song (It's in His Kiss) by Cher
Bonus track: The Shoop Shoop Song (It's in His Kiss) by Betty Everett

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Catch up on what has happened so far this June at Bildungsroman:

Special Events and Group Projects
The 48 Hour Book Challenge 2007
Scholar's Blog Book Group
Free Monkey World Tour, Day One: Girl Meets Monkey
Free Monkey World Tour, Day Two: Take Your Monkey to Work Day
Keep tabs on the traveling trooper at free_monkey, where his happy hosts are posting his adventures.

New and Updated Booklists
Series Spotlight: Nancy Drew
Fairy Nice
Peter Pan and Friends
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
Books to Read
Tough Issues for Teens
Class of 2k7
Quick Reads and Short Stories
Best Books of May 2007

Other Bits of Interest
Associated Content
Playlist for Readergirlz
Readergirlz Community Challenge: Go Eco: Lifestyle Changes
Readergirlz Chat, Podcast, and Line Up
Why Do You Read? (also available at http://yaauthorscafe.blogspot.com/2007/06/open-discussion-why-do-you-read.html" target="new">YA AU

New Author Interviews
Janet Lee Carey
Alex Richards
Kristen Tracy
Sarah Beth Durst
Sameera "Sparrow" Righton via Mitali Perkins

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At the readergirlz forum, Justina put forth a question that someone had recently asked the authors: "If readergirlz were a movie (no specific book), what might be on the soundtrack?" I answered with the following playlist.

The Sound of Your Voice:
a readergirlz soundtrack

Just a Little Girl by Amy Studt
On Her Mind by Duncan Sheik
For Wowser by Jessica Riddle
Fall Away by Velvet Chain
Sharada by Skye Sweetnam
Since U Been Gone by Kelly Clarkson
Teachin' Myself To Dream by Katy Rose
Free to Be a Woman by Jennifer Love Hewitt
Who We Are by Hope Partlow
Rinse by Vanessa Carlton
(There's Gotta Be) More to Life by Lucy Woodward
All Will Be Forgotten by Holly Brook
Futures by Jimmy Eat World

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ACT ONE: Musical Theatre

As a musical theatre girl, DRAMARAMA struck many chords with me. What inspired you to write this story? Are you a singer, a dancer, and/or an actress?

I sing on key, but that doesn't mean anyone would want to hear it.

I trained as a dancer and as an actress, beginning around age 10. I am -- or was -- a reasonably good dancer, with solid ballet training, though I don't have the right feet or long legs, so I knew it would never be a career. I acted well enough to get into summer drama camp (3 years), but not to get good parts once I was there.

I did star in a show at Seattle Children's Theater when I was 15, which was a great experience, but I was never cut out for the stage. And yet, I love the theater! So much!

It was really hard to accept my limitations, and that's very much what DRAMARAMA is about. Those summers at camp were highly charged -- it was this wonderful world of classes and shows and fabulous people, combined with tremendous self-doubt and disappointment.

If you were in GUYS AND DOLLS, you'd portray...

I'd want to be Adelaide, which is obviously the best (the only!) part. But I wouldn't get it, because my dance skills far outweigh my vocals. And I'd be a Hot Box Girl. I was a Kit Kat Club girl in Cabaret in college. We were really really trashy and it was a blast.

If you were in A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM, you'd portray...

I am best suited, I think, to Hippolyta. I am a bit of a know-it all and I think I'd make a good amazon.

But when I was actually IN Midsummer, I was, like Sadye, cast as Peter Quince. One funny thing is that when YA novelist Cecil Castelluci read Dramarama, she emailed me and said "Oh my dear! I was Mustardseed! And I wanted to be Hermia!" So we had had very similar and sad Midsummer experiences, and then grew up to do the same job.

I have yet to be in AMSND, but I was in Taming of the Shrew. Of course, since the two leads are pretty-gorgeous and feisty-gorgeous, I was cast as Tranio. All of my costumes were for an adult man, while I am a child-sized girl.

But I digress.

Both Sadye and Roo love timeless films. Which classic film stars do you find dazzling?

I have a big love for Judy Garland. She always seems on the verge of a total collapse, and yet she finds joy, somehow. It is just a trancendental combination that I am for in my writing.

For me, it's Gene Kelly all the way. I'm a tapper and a choreographer, so I would have loved to have worked with him.

I love Gene Kelly, too. That "I Got Rhythm" in An American in Paris -- I can watch it over and over and over.

My favorite non-musical classic stars are Cary Grant and Barbara Stanwyck, though each did appear in films related to music and musicals - Night and Day, Ball of Fire... Oh! And I love Katharine Hepburn. Though I would rather not hear her sing.

Bringing Up Baby is one of my favorite films. Katharine and Cary! Oh! And somewhat reluctantly, I find I love Ann Miller. She was so bonkers! And homely! And sexy! And a seriously great tapper. Case in point: "Too Darn Hot" in Kiss Me Kate.

Very true. I like On the Town. Again, GENE.

Which Broadway legends or modern marvels would you love to see live on stage? I would have loved to have been in the audience during the initial Chicago production of The Last Five Years starring Norbert Leo Butz and Lauren Kennedy, and seen the original staging of The Secret Garden with Daisy Eagan.

I saw Norbert Leo Butz in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and he was totally electrifying. I'd have liked to see him in Cabaret.

(Little Willow sends Emily a link to a video of Norbert performing Willkommen, the opening number for Cabaret.)

I also enjoy Anthony Rapp immensely, unexpectedly. His memoir is wonderfully written, by the way.

I saw Anthony Rapp in Rent! He was awesome. He is such a thinking woman's cutie.

I would have liked to see Carol Channing in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. I love that Anita Loos book, it's a masterpiece of comic writing, and Channing is one of those performers who seems to me made for THEATER, not for TV, which is the only medium in which I've ever seen her.

I'd have also liked to see the original My Fair Lady, with Julie Andrews and Rex Harrison. I read Dazzler, which is a biography of Moss Hart, who directed that show, and it has amazing backstage gossip and insight.

I hope that Max and Laura do well in the forthcoming Broadway production of Grease.

I just bought tickets to Mary Poppins, which has choreography by Matthew Bourne. He's great.

ACT TWO: Romantic Comedy

The self-doubting, slightly-neurotic, crazy-fun Roo stars in two of your novels, THE BOYFRIEND LIST and THE BOY BOOK. She also pops up in the anthology IT'S NOT LIKE I'M JEALOUS OR ANYTHING. Was LIST conceived as a single title, or as the start of a sequence? Can readers expect to see even more Roo stories?

There will be a third Roo book, which I'll start writing this summer. It's tentatively titled, A REAL LIVE BOYFRIEND. But that could change. The Boyfriend List was conceived as a stand-alone book, but by the time I got a little ways in, I knew I wanted to write a sequel. There was that whole big BOY BOOK just sitting there, unexplored!

Roo has a marsupial nickname and some lovely ceramic frogs. Do you have any offbeat nicknames or collections?

I am fascinated by collections -- it comes out more in FLY ON THE WALL, really, than in the Ruby Oliver books. In FLY, Gretchen collects all kinds of things I'd like to collect, but don't. I have a recipe collection and a collection of 19th-century and early 20th-century children's books. But that's it.

Oh, and rubber stamps. But that one is just lying fallow. I don't add to it, anymore.

I have no offbeat nicknames. But many of my high school friends had great ones. I can't tell them to you, though. Or they might kill me.

Would you ever write a novel from the point of view of one of your established supporting characters?

Good question. It has never occurred to me! I loved The Murder of Bindy MacKenzie by Jaclyn Moriarty,which does just that. But usually, if I love a book, I want to stay with that central character in a sequel, so that's what I've done in my own writing.

Have you considered writing a book for adults in which Roo is fully grown?(The idea struck me while considering Megan McCafferty's novels about Jessica Darling, and how much time she has covered in Jessica's life over the course of four novels.)

I have written for adults, and I probably will again, but the Ruby books are for teenagers. I'd like to write a fourth Roo novel, I think, but I don't have a vision of what it would be, yet. A REAL LIVE BOYFRIEND (or whatever it's called) takes place in the first half of her senior year of high school.

ACT THREE: From Book to Film

Care to name your ten favorite books? Films?

Favorites, no. I never can pick! But I'll name ten adult novels I love (in no particular order) and which I would recommend to YA readers.

Note: Numbers 3, 6, and 8 have mature content of one kind or another -- especially 6.

BOOKS I LOVE THAT ARE WRITTEN FOR ADULTS BUT GREAT FOR TEENAGERS
1) Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, by Anita Loos
2) The Code of the Woosters, by P.G. Wodehouse
3) A Prayer for Owen Meany, by John Irving
4) All Creatures Great and Small, by James Herriott
5) Persuasion, by Jane Austen
6) Geek Love, by Katherine Dunn
7) A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again, by David Foster Wallace
8) Naked by David Sedaris
9) Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte
10) The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by A. Conan Doyle

And here are ten movies I love or loved, though some of them I haven't seen in years and maybe I just love their memory very much and maybe I wouldn't love them the same way if I saw them today.

MOVIES I LOVED ONCE AND MAY STILL
1) Truly, Madly, Deeply
2) Gregory's Girl
3) Desperately Seeking Susan
4) Spiderman (duh, if you've read FLY ON THE WALL)
5) The City of Lost Children
6) Cabaret (duh, if you've read DRAMARAMA)
7) Moulin Rouge
8) Bringing Up Baby
9) His Girl Friday
10) Drowning by Numbers

You have just earned more points from me for having two Cary Grant films on your flick picks.

BONUS: Original Dramarama Soundtrack

Emily has created an iTunes playlist for her book, fittingly titled THE DRAMARAMA IMIX. Search for it on iTunes, or create it using this tracklisting:
•It's a Fine Life - Alice Playten & Georgia Brown - Oliver! (Original Broadway Cast)
•Sherry - Jersey Boys - Jersey Boys (Original Broadway Cast Recording)
•Seasons of Love - Cast of Rent (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
•Popular - Kristen Chenoweth - Wicked (Original Broadway Cast Recording)
•Manchester England - Hair (Original Broadway Cast)
•Singin' In the Rain - Gene Kelly Hollywood's Best: The 50's Soundtrack
•Hot Lunch Jam - Irene Cara - Fame (Soundtrack from the Motion Picture)
•Big Spender - Original Broadway Cast - Fosse (E. adds: This song is originally from Sweet Charity)
•Ol' Man River - Paul Robeson - Paul Robeson Sings "Ol' Man River" & Other Favorites (E. adds: This song is originally from Showboat)
•Take Back Your Mink - Guys and Dolls - Guys and Dolls (50th Anniversary Cast Recording)
•All About Ruprecht - David Yazbek, John Lithgow, Norbert Leo Butz & Sara Gettelfinger - Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (Original Broadway Cast Recording)
•All That Jazz - Bebe Neuwirth - Chicago
•Tomorrow - Andrea McArdle - Broadway - The American Musical Box Set (E adds: This song is originally from Annie)
•Cabaret - Liza Minnelli - The Best of Liza Minnelli Pop (E. adds: This song, obviously, is originally from Cabaret)
•Look at Me, I'm Sandra Dee - Stockard Channing - Grease - 25th Anniversary Deluxe Edition (Soundtrack from the Motion Picture) (E. adds: I like this version better than the Broadway cast recording -- so sue me).
•A Bushel and a Peck - Guys and Dolls - Guys and Dolls (50th Anniversary Cast Recording)
•I'll Know - Guys and Dolls - Guys and Dolls (50th Anniversary Cast Recording)
•Fugue for the Tinhorns - Eduard Strauss & New Broadway Cast Recording - Guys and Dolls (1992 Broadway Revival)
•Hymn for a Sunday Evening - Johnny Borden, Marijane Maricle, Paul Lynde & Susan Watson - Bye Bye Birdie! - Original Broadway Cast
•Sit Down, You're Rockin' the Boat - Eduard Strauss & New Broadway Cast Recording - Guys and Dolls (1992 Broadway Revival)
•Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious - Dick Van Dyke & Julie Andrews - Mary Poppins (Soundtrack from the Motion Picture)
•One - A Chorus Line (Original Broadway Cast)
•The Telephone Hour - Sweet Apple Kids - Bye Bye Birdie (Original Broadway Cast Recording)
•Mungojerrie and Rumpelteazer Cats (Selections)
•Sue Me - Eduard Strauss & New Broadway Cast Recording - Guys and Dolls (1992 Broadway Revival)
•Anything You Can Do Ethel Merman Annie Get Your Gun (Original Cast Album)
•Honestly Sincere - Marty Wilde - Bye Bye Birdie (Original Broadway Cast Recording)
•Somewhere That's Green - Ellen Green - Little Shop of Horrors (Broadway Cast Recording)

For more information about E. Lockhart, visit her website and read her blog.

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literaticat needed suggestions for NYMBC's special Goth Prom event with Holly Black and Cassandra Clare, and this playlist was born.

I Want to Kill You by Darling Violetta
Paint It Black cover by Vanessa Carlton
Bury Me With It by Modest Mouse
Little Sugar by Velvet Chain
Pain by Four Star Mary
Coming Up Roses by Curve
Bound in Blood (Insomnia Mix) by Hungry Lucy
Out of This World by Bush
Volcano Girls by Veruca Salt
Flames by VAST
Sleep by Azure Ray

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Sixteen-year-old Eva Ortiz dazzles viewers every week on a hit television sitcom. Her younger sister, Jessica, does not have any acting aspirations, preferring to lead an average life off-camera. When accidents start happening on the set and things start to go missing, Jess decides it's up to her to solve the mysteries.

Such is the life of The Hollywood Sisters. This book series will keep young readers them giggling and guessing. (Learn more about the series at my booklists But I Don't Want to Be Famous! and But I DO Want to Be Famous!) Author Mary Wilcox was able to avoid the paparazzi long enough to answer a few questions here at Bildungsroman.

Jess and Eva have a good relationship, and their differences compliment one another. Do you have any siblings?

Yes, I have a younger sister -- and some of our history is in the books. There is a photo of me rocking a Mickey Mouse guitar while Julie shakes a rice box that I straight-up lifted for the book. More than specific incidents, though, I think what I've taken from my real-life relationship is that sense of my sister always being there in some way -- whether or not we are actually spending lots of time together; whether we even want the other one there! -- and how she is the other person with an inside view of how my family works. That just seems to get more meaningful over time.

I also have a younger brother who was born when I was about Jessica's age. He hasn't shown up in the books...yet. :)

Which character are you the most like, and why?

There is absolutely some of me (or at least my thinking about things) in every character in the book--that's one of the things that can be scary about writing, it's self-revealing! I am closest to my main character Jessica in that she is an observer and someone who likes to puzzle things through--two qualities common in writers.

Though the sitcom and its cast and crew are fictitious, you've had big names guest star on the show, such as Ashton Kutcher, George Clooney, and Scarlett Johansson. Did you have to get any clearance to "characterize" these real-life celebrities?

There's a line in the copyright that the publisher's lawyers put in to specify that the incidents are fictional.

Did you select celebs you personally enjoy, or go for who is currently on the It List?

Most of the celebrities were chosen because they are well-liked. By which I mean, it's all the more awful for Jessica's jinx to be kicking in around people with the nicest reputations, vs. those who the reader might not mind seeing getting pelted with marmalade...or a golf cart!

My sister-in-law is a producer for an entertainment show in L.A. She shares interesting stories--unfortunately, in her experience, the stars are mostly behaving badly (like big babies, in fact!) I have used some of her inside info--but always applied to my outright fictional characters.

The same two girls appear on all of the book covers. Not only do they look like the characters, but they look like real girls, as opposed to stick-thin stereotypical models. How much say, if any, did you have in the covers?

The characters of Eva and Jessica had been living in my head for a long time; then one day I was flipping through Latina magazine and there was a photo of the gorgeous Mia Maestro (from her Alias days). Boom! I thought: "This is what Eva will look like when she grows up."

When my editor let me know that they would be pursuing a photo-real look (v. illustrated) for the covers, she asked if I had any visuals. I sent a jpeg of Mia...and was AMAZED that they found girls who looked just like the ones I had described. They did a photo shoot with the girls, and I think captured a nice dynamic between them.

The family is of Latin descent. This is pleasantly a non-issue - as in, this series wasn't necessarily written to discuss cultural identity - and though the girls were born and raised in Los Angeles, the family is proud of their heritage. Eva speaks Spanish at an important moment in the first book. The show travels to Mexico in the second book. How important was it for you to weave in these elements?

This series was first born out of the characters Jessica and Eva. I knew that I wanted the girls, especially Eva, to be attractive; I knew that I wanted their home life to run in some ways counter cultural to "celebrity" values. That is, they are from a close family, they practice their religion, and emphasis is put on how they treat people (vs. how people treat them.) Those elements--combined with some great experiences working with the Latin population when I lived in California--evolved into the girls' developing a Latin heritage.

Storyline-wise, both the Spanish-speaking in book one, and the trip to Mexico in book two, are for Eva a reminder that she is part of a larger culture. Not that it defines, or preoccupies her, but that she's simply part of something larger than herself.

How many books are planned in the series?

Five are signed up, but I'd love to spend even more time with these characters.

What are your top ten books?

Some current & ongoing favorites: A Great & Terrible Beauty; Twilight; Feed; Dairy Queen; Charlotte's Web; Little House on the Prairie; A Confederacy of Dunces; Midnight's Children; The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Universe, and anything Austen.

Visit Jess and Eva (and Mary!) at hollywoodsisters.com

Bonus! At the close of On Location, Eva gives Jess the following playlist:

Songs for Getting Over Boys
You Had Me by Joss Stone
Hole in the Head by The Sugababes
Fighter by Christina Aguilera
I Will Survive by Gloria Gaynor
All I Have by J.Lo (Jennifer Lopez)
How You Remind Me by Nickelback
These Boots are Made for Walkin' by Nancy Sinatra

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Kiba requested a playlist for Prowlers, a quartet of action-packed horror novels by Christopher Golden about shapeshifters.

In Between by Duncan Sheik
Sea of Doubts by Azure Ray
Good Lonely by David Poe
Knowing Too Little Lyrics by Laika
Beyond Reach by Curve
Nothing Wrong by Jimmy Eat World

Important lyrics from the first track -

Saints and sinners, losers, winners
Masters and their slaves
The more you hide one or the other
The earlier your grave
The triumph and the tragedy
The endless bright parade
I know that most of us are innocent
But some should be afraid

- and the last track.

Don't ask why
Don't cry
Don't make a scene

Want to know why I love this series so much and why you should read it? Check out the Monster Mash booklist. A good half of that post is dedicated to Prowlers.

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Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist is a book packed with musical references, from the opening acknowledgements until the reader-generated playlists at the website. However, the book doesn't come with a CD. If it did, it would have to be a two-disc special. Disc one would be filled with Nick's original music, of course. Disc two would act as a soundtrack for the book, with each track representing a chapter, and using various artists, alternating male and female voices as they did in the book. That second disc might sound a little something like this:

Chapter/Track One: Nick: Casual Affair by Tonic
Chapter/Track Two: Norah: Genius or a Fool by Jonatha Brooke
Chapter/Track Three: Nick: Hey There, Little Miss Tease by Ricky Nelson
Chapter/Track Four: Norah: Now I'm Following You (Part II) by Madonna
Chapter/Track Five: Nick: Best I Ever Had (Grey Sky Morning) by Vertical Horizon
Chapter/Track Six: Norah: Ex-Girlfriend by No Doubt
Chapter/Track Seven: Nick: Toxic by Nickel Creek
Chapter/Track Eight: Norah: Let Me Sleep by Laika
Chapter/Track Nine: Nick: If You Don't, Don't by Jimmy Eat World
Chapter/Track Ten: Norah: Step On Me by The Cardigans
Chapter/Track Eleven: Nick: Don't Wait by Dashboard Confessional
Chapter/Track Twelve: Norah: Volcano Girls by Veruca Salt
Chapter/Track Thirteen: Nick: On Her Mind by Duncan Sheik
Chapter/Track Fourteen: Norah: Fast As You Can by Fiona Apple
Chapter/Track Fifteen: Nick: So I Fall Again by Phantom Planet
Chapter/Track Sixteen: Norah: Fade Into You by Mazzy Star
Chapter/Track Seventeen: Nick: Flames by VAST
Chapter/Track Eighteen: Norah: Falling In Love by Lisa Loeb
Chapter/Track Nineteen: Nick: I Want You to Want Me by Cheap Trick
Chapter/Track Twenty: Norah: Kids by Robbie Williams and Kylie Minogue

Dare to Be Infinite: My interview with Rachel Cohn & David Levithan

Not Your Typical Boy Meets Girl Story: My review of Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist

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LOOKING FOR ALASKA: An Acrostic Soundtrack

Tracklisting for the double-disc special edition entry:

Love Won't Last the Afternoon by David Poe
Out of My Head by Fastball
Only You by Harry Connick Jr.
Killing Me Softly With His Song by Roberta Flack
If I Told You by Idina Menzel
No Net Below by Jonatha Brooke
Green Eyed Lady by Velvet Chain

From Me to You by The Beatles
Old Enough To Love by Ricky Nelson
Run by Four Star Mary

A Praise Chorus by Jimmy Eat World
Ladder in My Tights by Amy Studt
Always by Anthony Rapp
She Runs Away by Duncan Sheik
Konstantine by Something Corporate
All Will Be Forgotten by Holly Brook

The less-than-72-minutes single-disc entry:

From Me to You by The Beatles
Out of My Head by Fastball
Run by Four Star Mary

Always by Anthony Rapp
Love Won't Last the Afternoon by David Poe
A Praise Chorus by Jimmy Eat World
She Runs Away by Duncan Sheik
Konstantine by Something Corporate
All Will Be Forgotten by Holly Brook

Selected lyrics:

Love Won't Last the Afternoon by David Poe

And honey, can't you see
How you drove me from your dark room
Into hers?
This little tragedy we have rehearsed
Every morning I wake up there
Feeling worse
But it's ending soon
Love won't last the afternoon

Out of My Head by Fastball

Sometimes I feel
Like I am drunk behind the wheel
The wheel of prosperity
However it may roll

Only You by Harry Connick Jr.

Only you can make this world seem right
Only you can make the darkness bright

Killing Me Softly With His Song by Roberta Flack

I heard he sang a good song
I heard he had a style
And so I came to see him
To listen for a while
And there he was, this young boy
A stranger to my eyes

If I Told You by Idina Menzel

If I told you that I lie sometimes
If I told you that I'd run away
If I told you who I was before
Would you follow me

No Net Below by Jonatha Brooke

It's the longest goodbye
I'll feel the air, make the catch
But I won't swing back
My timing is clear
And I'll never fear
I'll swing 'til there's no net below
Yeah, I'll swing 'til there's no net below

Green Eyed Lady by Velvet Chain

Green eyed lady feels life I never see
Setting suns and lonely lovers free

From Me to You by The Beatles

If there's anything that you want
If there's anything I can do
Just call on me and I'll send it along
With love from me to you

Old Enough To Love by Ricky Nelson

Stronger than the winds that blow, brighter than the sun
Greater than the stars that glow, you're my only one
Holding you, holding you close now at last I know
Yes, I'm old enough to love

Run by Four Star Mary

If I could wake up
And see another day
If I could fake all
The lies I'd never said
How would I know you
If I had turned away
What that would show you

A Praise Chorus by Jimmy Eat World

Are you gonna live your life wonderin'
Standing in the back, lookin' around?
Are you gonna waste your time thinkin'
How you've grown up or how you missed out?

Ladder in My Tights by Amy Studt

The world is so much better when you find you don't fit
There's a ladder in your tights and
Who gives a HA! if, whoops, you ain't shiny and perfect?

Always by Anthony Rapp

Flying away
Wish I could say you would be there tomorrow and always
Just have to go
Wish I could know you would always remember me now and always

She Runs Away by Duncan Sheik

You may not see the end of it
But luckily she comes around
It isn't what she talks about
It's just the way she is

And then you know there comes a time
You need her more than anything
You may believe yours are the wounds
That only she can heal
Then everything will turn around
And she becomes so serious
What she choose to offer you
Was all that you could have

Konstantine by Something Corporate

And then you bring me home
Afraid to find out that you're alone
And I'm sleeping in your living room
But we don't have much room
To live

All Will Be Forgotten by Holly Brook

All will be forgotten
Every tear you've cried
As soon as you awaken
To what's right in front of your eyes
Standing by your side

The road is long before me now
The memories beg me to stay
But lonely is born from pride, I've found
So I'll reach out

I thought way too much about this.

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HER INNER SONG: A Playlist for Speak

Lemon by Katy Rose (Melinda)

They've clipped my wings again
Tore them apart and then
Left me
No use to fly away to
My yesterday
Of freedom

Rubbed Out by Duncan Sheik (Mr. Freeman's view of Melinda)

She rubs it out
She covers it over
She's harder by far than a war-torn soldier

Made of Gold by Jonatha Brooke (Melinda's parents)

What you want most will allude you
What you want most will allude you
Because everything before it changes
Seems to be made of gold

Rinse by Vanessa Carlton (Rachel)

She'd do anything to sparkle in his eye
She would suffer, she would fight, and compromise

(and)

But everything happens for reasons that she will never
understand
'Til she knows the heart of a woman will never be
found in the arms of a man

Fragile by Maria Mena (Melinda)

I've been walking around all day thinking
I think I have a problem
I think I think too much
I've been taught to hold back my tears and avoid them
But you've made pain into something I could touch

Come Rest Your Head by Tonic (David)

Trust, I know, is not such a dirty word
Trust is something that I have barely heard
Honesty is not so far away
Empty words are all you'll have to say

Pain by Jimmy Eat World (Melinda)

I never thought I'd walk away from you
I did

Just a Little Girl by Amy Studt (Melinda)

'Cause I'm just a little girl you see
But there's a h@!! of a lot more to me
Don't ever underestimate what I can do
Don't ever tell me how I'm meant to be

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I Was a Teenage Popsicle is a futuristic comedy revolving around Floe Ryan. When she gets sick, her parents have her frozen, then get thawed out ten years later. Sadly, her parents are still, uh, chilling out -- and her little sister is now her big sister!

Floe is fun, and she deserves a soundtrack that matches her laid-back California lifestyle and her time in the freezer. When author Bev Katz Rosenbaum held a soundtrack contest, I came up with the following playlist - and I won!

Popsicle Toes by Diana Krall
Summerbreeze by Emiliana Torrini
Bend Time Back 'Round by Paula Abdul
The Future Says Run by Tonic
Frozen by Madonna
Future by Frank Sinatra
Tragic Kingdom by No Doubt

Read my interview with author Bev Katz Rosenbaum.

Read my book review of I Was a Teenage Popsicle.

The sequel, Beyond Cool, will hit stores in the summer of 2007.

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I just realized that I had yet to archive my book-related playlists here, so I'll now post three back-to-back and create a tag for playlists.

Note that my playlists are just that - lists. I won't have downloadable tracks or whatnot. I don't have iTunes or anything of that nature. Sorry!

Yes, I will take requests. If you would like me to write up a playlist related to a book I've read or a favorite character, simply leave a comment below and let me know.

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