Why It's Okay To Want (And Some Laini Taylor Gushing)

So. Laini Taylor. Lots of people have been telling me--no, no, INSISTING--that I read her books. All of them. Immediately. 

Well. This week, I finished her short story anthology, LIPS TOUCH: THREE TIMES. Holy amazeballs, Batman. Holy. Amazeballs.

First off, there's the (glorious) cover.

The eyes! The flames! THE LIPSTICK THAT MATCHES THE FLAMES!

Then there are the actual stories.

Goblin Fruit
In Victorian times, goblin men had only to offer young girls sumptuous fruits to tempt them to sell their souls. But what does it take to tempt today's savvy girls?

Spicy Little Curses
A demon and the ambassador to Hell tussle over the soul of a beautiful English girl in India. Matters become complicated when she falls in love and decides to test her curse.

Hatchling
Six days before Esme's fourteenth birthday, her left eye turns from brown to blue. She little suspects what the change heralds, but her small safe life begins to unravel at once. What does the beautiful, fanged man want with her, and how is her fate connected to a mysterious race of demons?

Awesome, no? Well, I enjoyed all three stories, but my absolute FAVE was "Goblin Fruit." Like the talented Laini Taylor, I'm quite fond of Christina Rossetti's "Goblin Market." I even chose to study it for my comprehensive exams in my M.A. program. Everything about "Goblin Fruit" rocked my world: the mythology, the dynamic between main character Kizzy and her friends, her BADASS grandma, the tempting suitor.

Which is why I've decided to highlight something particularly awesome about this story.

You see, there's a paragraph on page 41 that knocked me sideways with its brilliance. It deals with the many, many things Kizzy daydreams of having and doing. The paragraph is immediately followed by a single sentence:

I couldn't help but stop reading to stare at the wall in front of me. Not only was the writing gorgeous, it was also speaking of true things. Of things we can all relate to, whether or not we've been seduced by a goblin disguised as a pretty face. Publishing offers aspiring authors many things. But before we can attain any of them, we're left with the insatiable yearning. Some people advise against thinking of landing film deals and hitting the NYT Bestseller List and touring the world and having monuments built in your name. I say there's nothing wrong with wanting. It's okay to want.

The problem comes when we turn a blind eye to what's within our reach--writing--and only see what we would love to have. Or even worse, when we only see how others obtained what we want first. This helps no one. You should want as many things as you can, but you must fight for them. And even if you fight for the things you want, that doesn't guarantee you'll get them. That's why you should always put writing first. Regardless of what happens, you'll have put in the work toward your dreams instead of just dreaming all the time. You tried. Others might not make it past the first page, but you will. You want. That's the first step to having and doing.

Now go out there and write, folks.

Also, if you haven't already, please devour Laini Taylor's LIPS TOUCH: THREE TIMES. I insist.

How To Procrastinate Revisions Without Feeling Guilty: The Vampire Academy Edition

So. Revisions. I loooooove them, but man. I love procrastinating, too. Luckily, I haven't been *too* wild with my procrastinating. I've been pretty strict about finishing this round of revisions faster than the previous one, so yeah. I have goals. They will be met. But I will also waste a little time. :) 

So. I'm sure you've heard there's a film adaptation of Vampire Academy on its way. It's called Vampire Academy: Blood Sisters. I am BEYOND STOKED for it, folks. Beyond. Stoked. Imagine my delight when Richelle Mead herself went to London and visited the set. 

So. Here is my guide to procrastinating revisions without feeling guilty: the Vampire Academy edition.

1) Twitter.

You check through your Newsfeed and find this little gem:

First impression: WOW. #vamovie
— Richelle Mead (@RichelleMead) July 5, 2013

And then...

Just met @KozlovskyD: so nice, perfect gentleman, even more handsome than his pictures. Kissed my hand. You can all start freaking out now.
— Richelle Mead (@RichelleMead) July 5, 2013

AND THEN...

She is charming...she is captivating...I met Richelle Mead. It was a remarkable moment of the day. I'm very glad, you are in London...
— Данила Козловский (@KozlovskyD) July 6, 2013

2) Blog posts.

Naturally, you're expecting a longer version of those Tweets. Richelle goes ahead and gives you TWO blog posts. The following is an excerpt from Richelle's first blog post about her set visit:

Everyone's been asking: how does it feel seeing my book brought to life? In a word: amazing. I'm just blown away at how much thoughtfulness and detail goes into this process. You guys seriously can't imagine how much work and manpower a movie requires. The actors work so hard, and then there's a huge unseen crew who's working just as hard every step of the way on tasks you would never even guess. I may have originally conceived these scenes, but they're the ones who have to visualize every single detail--from those amazing guardian jackets to the class assignments on the student's desks. Nothing is left to chance. Director Mark Waters was so in his zone making sure everything was perfect that I felt bad when he came and said hi to me--but of course he did because he's a super nice guy, and I'm so thrilled at the work he's doing. I've been telling people for years: I make books, not movies. Movies are these guys' specialty and it shows. They've visualized the scenes for the screen in ways I never could have, and if you're picturing incredible things for this movie...well, they're going to be even more incredible than what you're imagining.

I also loved her second post, but WHOA. That bit I just posted above? It makes me feel all sorts of giddy. :D


3) Repeat steps #1 and #2.

That guiltless part I spoke of in my title? Well, it's freakin' Vampire Academy. Why would I feel guilty about procrastinating with FREAKIN' VAMPIRE ACADEMY?????? So go ahead and re-read as many Tweets and blog posts as you can. Whenever you want. Because obviously.


Happy Monday. :)

Interview: Leigh Ann Kopans, Author of ONE!!!

Today is an exciting day, folks. Why?

Because Leigh Ann Kopans.

She released her debut YA novel, ONE, on Tuesday. I've been dying to read this baby for a while, and now that it's out, I can breathe fresh air once more. *jumps up and down*

Here's le summary:

When having two powers makes you a Super and having none makes you a Normal, having only one makes you a sad half-superpowered freak.

It makes you a One.

Sixteen-year-old Merrin Grey would love to be able to fly – too bad all she can do is hover.

If she could just land an internship at the Biotech Hub, she might finally figure out how to fix herself. She busts her butt in AP Chem and salivates over the Hub’s research on the manifestation of superpowers, all in hopes of boosting her chances.

Then she meets Elias VanDyne, another One, and all her carefully crafted plans fly out the window. Literally. When the two of them touch, their Ones combine to make them fly, and when they’re not soaring over the Nebraska cornfields, they’re busy falling for each other.

Merrin's mad chemistry skills land her a spot on the Hub's internship short list, but as she gets closer to the life she always wanted, she discovers that the Hub’s purpose is more sinister than it has always seemed. Now it’s up to her to decide if it's more important to fly solo, or to save everything - and everyone - she loves.

Amazeballs, right??? So. In honor of ONE's release, I'm sharing with y'all an interview with its awesome author! Here's a little bit more about Leigh Ann:

Raised on comic books and classic novels, Leigh Ann developed an early love of science fiction and literature. After earning degrees in Sociology and Hebrew, she went on to become a rabbi at The Ohio State University. Surrounded by college students, she found her niche writing science fiction and romance for teens.

Leigh Ann, her husband, and four children live in Columbus, Ohio, which sadly lacks superheroes but does have the best football and fabulous ice cream.

And here is le interview:

1) Confession: I LOVE superheroes. Because obviously. I know you're a Marvel fan (as am I, but I can never forsake my beloved Batman), so if you could invite any superhero to dinner, be it from graphic novels or TV shows or movies, who would it be? What would you love to talk about with her/him?

I LOVE SUPERHEROES TOO!!!! Eeeeee!

So, my favorite superheroes are Jean Grey and the Wasp (which is why the main characters of ONE get their last names from them), BUT if I could have anyone over to dinner it would be Mystique, who’s a shape shifter. First of all, JLaw. (Duh.) And second of all, I’d love to talk to her about all the different people she’d been and how she was the same and different each time – how she felt, and how she was treated. And I’d like to know what it feels like, and how it affected her, to be able to change her appearance whenever, and to whatever, she wanted.

2) Speaking of superheroes, ONE is the story of Merrin, a girl who sort of has a superpower, but not really. Which came first: Merrin or the sort-of-superhero premise? Was the brainstorming process fast-paced or a slow burn?

The sort-of-superhero premise had been around for YEARS, ever since I was a little girl watching X-men cartoons on Saturday mornings.  Those shows focused on the people who had seriously awesome powers, and I wondered what it would be like for someone who had one component of a power, but not enough to make them do anything truly impressive. Especially because there was such a heavy theme of social stratification in shows like X-men, I wondered where half-superpowered people would fall, and whether they would fit in anywhere.

I actually wrote chapter 8 of the book first – the scene where Merrin and Elias discover how their Ones affect each other. The rest of the book sort of unfurled pretty quickly from there, with few snags.

3) Whether it's the ability to full-on fly or an internship at the Hub, Merrin is quite the pro at longing for things that are a bit out of reach. But even when things do start happening for her, Merrin has to deal with her wishes not being as awesomesauce as she imagined. Was there ever a time when writing ONE made you feel the same way? Did Merrin's voice prove to be different than how you originally set out to write it? 

Wow, that’s a great question! Yeah, I think all writers can identify with the feeling of struggling to make the words on the page communicate the pictures and characters in your head, right? I think especially because I had loved comics and superhero movies so much, I had this grandiose idea for the story I’d be able to tell. It turns out that ONE is just as much a romance as a story of a girl finding her superpowers, and both of those things have equal bearing on her character.

It’s funny that you asked about Merrin’s voice, because that was the element of the story that underwent the most changes in revisions. Merrin still lives in my head as this fundamentally angry, abrasive girl, which is fine – until she starts interacting with other people. My critique partners and editors helped me realize when Merrin’s personality was spilling over too much and ruining character and story arcs. She’s much tempered in the final version.

4) So. Elias VanDyne. *fans self* I love me some good romance in YA. Because obviously. What do you think makes a YA love interest swoonworthy? Which are some of your favorite YA love interests?

I think, for Young Adult love interests, selflessness and sweetness are two of the most swoonworthy things in a boy. Teen boys aren’t really that widely known for their emotional depth or focus on the intricacies of relationships, so when a boy shows that he’s listening to a girl, that he appreciates her for something other than what’s in her pants, and that he wants to be with her because  he genuinely enjoys being around her, that goes a long way. Making her feel all hot and blushy will take him the rest of the way, whether because of the way he looks, the words he says, or the things he does for her. The reader has to get the impression that there couldn’t possibly be a better boy on the whole planet for this girl – like if they’re not together, something will have gone seriously wrong in the world. (Not that that’s ever true, we just want readers to feel like that at that moment in the story.)

5) Every manuscript begs to be written in different ways. What part about writing ONE differed from your previous manuscripts? Was it harder/easier? How did ONE help you grow as a writer?

ONE was easier than the manuscript I’d written before that, my first one, because the characters were really fully formed in my mind – their motivations, their personalities, the way they looked, everything. I’m really a character-driven writer, and ONE was where I really learned that.

About halfway through the second revision of ONE, I discovered the Save the Cat beat sheet, used it for revisions, and it changed my life. Now I do a beat sheet at the beginning of every manuscript, before I even think about writing a word. From there, I make an outline. That’s right – ONE, in a way, changed me from a pantser to a plotter.

That said, I’ll never forget the magical feeling of having that first scene I wrote in ONE pour from my fingers. I’ve got to figure out a way of getting back to writing passionately, out of order, without making me feel like I’m cheating on the outline.

6) I'm a serious sucker for food. Nutella and Twizzlers rule my world. Is there anything you munch on while writing/revising? 

Coffee and chocolate while drafting, and I’m afraid I’m horrible about munchies when revising. I think that revising is such an anxiety-filled process for me, full of worry over whether I’m changing the right things in the right way, and all that staring at the screen and puzzling with idle hands makes me want to eat endlessly. These days, I’m doing that with mostly popcorn, which I tell myself is healthier than other options.

7) Are you working on other projects at the moment? If so, TELL ME EVERYTHING, WOMAN. 

Yes! I already have my February 2014 book finished, which is a YA romance. I’m in the very early stages of  a spinoff for that one, which I’m planning to publish next summer – that will be a New Adult romance, likely. I’m also in the middle of editing Chrome, which is my futuristic sci-fi retelling of the Exodus from Egypt, and I’m in the early stages of rewriting my first ever manuscript, a time travel romance, as a New Adult novel.

(I love that you were so interested. It made me blush.)

Amparo, I’ve admired you and your work for a long time. It was truly an honor to be interviewed on your blog today – thank you so much for inviting me.

Thank YOU for being so freakin' great (as both author and blogger extraordinaire) and answering my questions, Leigh Ann! *bows down* Want to get a copy of ONE?? Find it here:

Amazon Kindle
Paperback (from Amazon)
Special Edition Paperback with comics (from Amazon)
Barnes and Noble Nook
iBookstore
Signed (from Leigh Ann's site)
Createspace

Praise for One

"One balances a fully imagined, super world with deep, well-crafted characters and took me on a heart pounding, heartbreakingly authentic journey I hated to see end."

~Trisha Leigh, author of The Last Year series

“Exciting, edgy, romantic and beautifully written, ONE is a book from an incredible new writing talent that will leave you longing for more!”

     ~Emma Pass, author of Acid (Random House 2013) and the upcoming The Fearless (Random House 2014)

"I opened One and didn't put it down. On the surface it's a fast-paced superhero story combined with all the wonderful and terrible aspects of teenage life, but beneath that is the story of a girl who only wants to be more than she is. It's a fun adventure cloaking a simple but powerful truth of the human condition."

~Francesca Zappia, author of the upcoming Ask Again Later (Greenwillow/HarperCollins 2014)

10 Killer Queries That Worked Part 2

Some of you have read my 10 Killer Queries That Worked post. It features 10 of my absolute fave query letters for manuscripts that ended up being published. Well, since I'm always on the hunt for a new query to drool over, I figured I'd turn the post into a series. 

Welcome to Part 2! :)

Okay. Let's get to it. *cracks knuckles*

Here is another batch of amazeballs queries:

1. Miranda Kenneally's query for CATCHING JORDAN, originally titled SCORE (bonus points: this post features an interview with Miranda's agent, Sara Megibow).
2. MarcyKate Connolly's query for MONSTROUS, which comes out in 2014 from HarperCollins.
3. Megan Sheperd's query for THE MADMAN'S DAUGHTER. 
4. Carrie Ryan's query for THE FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH.
5. Beth Revis's query for ACROSS THE UNIVERSE, originally titled LONG WAY HOME.
6. Francesca Zappia's query for ASK AGAIN LATER, originally titled ALEXITHYMIA. The book comes out in 2014 from HarperCollins. 
7. Stephanie Diaz's query for EXTRACTION, which comes out in 2014 from St. Martin's Press.
8. Claire Legrand's query for THE CAVENDISH HOME FOR BOYS AND GIRLS (bonus points: this post features commentary from Claire's agent, Diana Fox).
9. Kate Karyus Quinn's (my blog chain buddy!!!) query for ANOTHER LITTLE PIECE, which comes out June 11th from HarperTeen.
10. April Tucholke's query for BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA, originally titled THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA (bonus points: this post features commentary by April's agent, Joanna Volpe). The book comes out August 15th from Dial. 

So there you have them! I hope they prove as helpful as the first batch :)

Have you read these query letters before? Which one(s) do you love most? Are there any other query letters you love that aren't on the list?

Sparklepires And Pretty Monsters: On Reinterpretation

Monsters. Myths. Urban legends. Fairy tales. These are some things that have been adapted in a bazillion ways. Storytellers take the original material, then infuse it with a shiny new twist. They could even change genres in order to explore that original material in a different setting with different rules.

Which leads me to this:

AWFUL grammatical errors aside, I am bothered by this, folks. Not because I am a rabid advocate of sparklepire rights (even though I believe they should have their rights both acknowledged and respected). Not because I prefer my monsters pretty and CGI'd all the time. This isn't why I cringe whenever I read or hear someone berating authors for their "lame" and "not scary" versions of once-feared creatures. Hell, I might find some of those new versions lame and not scary, too. 

But I have no problem with lame and not scary. I choose not to engage with these reinterpretations, and my life goes on.

I have a problem with clinging to one version of anything. 

Variety is the spice of life, but it's also what makes literature worth reading. Imagine if all vampires were sparklepires who watched their romantic leads while they slept. Now imagine if all witches were super smart with weird hair and poor social skills. Now imagine if all aliens were blue and had six-packs and flew on pterodactyl-looking creatures. Would you be excited to read books with this version offered to you over and over? Or would you be excited to discover new ways of looking at the same archetype/monster?

I know which boat I'm floating on. Long live reinterpretation, even if I don't like how that reinterpretation plays out in the end. 

What about you? Where do you stand on the reinterpretation spectrum? Are there any reinterpreted monsters/stories you prefer to the original?  

Blog Chain: Tropes, Tropes, Tropes

Blog chain time!! For this round, my buddy Michelle wants to know the following:

What elements in your favorite genre make it your favorite? For instance, if your favorite genre is romance, what elements do you like in a romance story? A tortured hero? A spunky heroine? Steamy love scenes? Sweet romance? If your fave genre is sci-fi, what elements do you love the most (the characters, the science, the possibilities?), etc?

So. Tropes. I like a few of them. Problem is, my favorite genre (to read) is YA contemporary realism. I'm still a huge fantasy fan, but it's the contemporary stories that have my heart. Here is le list of tropes I can get behind:

1. Cliques (because obviously).
2. Mean girls who are more than just mean girls (a la Courtney Summers' books).
3. An underdog protag who beats the odds.
4. The awkwardness of falling in love for the first time ever (personal faves are Stephanie Perkins + Sarah Dessen + John Green).
5. Vivid settings in the everyday world (Kirsten Hubbard wins at this).
6. The bad boy with a heart of gold. This one is easily found in other genres, but to me, the contemp bad boys feel more accessible due to an extra focus on their character development. And extra character development = a happy Amparo.

I'm sure I'm forgetting a lot of tropes, but for now, these are my faves. :) Make sure to check out Cole's post, and stay tuned for Margie's!

What about you? Are there any tropes in your favorite genre that you're head over heels with??

So You Want To Redesign Your Blog: Let Writer Caroline Richmond Help!

So. I'm fairly obsessed with blog templates, websites, the whole enchilada. I love staring at The Pretty for hours and hours and hours. When it comes to actually designing stuff, I am made of fail (I did design my current blog header, though, so maybe that's not so much a fail? *blinks*). There are TONS of designers in the blogosphere and beyond that do amazeballs work. But I'm here today to talk about one in particular: YA/MG writer and one of my fave blogging buddies, Caroline Richmond!

Caroline was the one who led me down the designing rabbit hole, folks. Not only did she create my blog header for Reel YA, she also gave me pointers on how to make my own headers. AND GUESS WHAT? Now she's offering a few of her blog designs FOR FREE. Yep. You read that right. For free. You can check out her designs here.

So what are you waiting for? Go stalk Caroline and her awesomeness! :)

Now tell me: do you like designing your own blog/website? If not, would you like to learn how?

Blog Chain: My WIP

First blog chain round of 2013!!! *dances* This time around, Katrina asks the following:

Write about your next writing project. What is the genre? Is is one you've written before or is it a new venture? Do you have it all figured out or is it just a germ of an idea? What did you learn from your latest writing project that will make this one even better?

I've talked about my WIP already, but that's more of an origin story post. This one will be a bit more technical. My WIP is a YA epic fantasy. I have changed its title, and now it's called WE ARE THE DARKNESS. Like I said in that previous post, this is a project I steered clear from for three years. I got the idea in 2009, but sat down to write it in 2012. I'm currently working on Draft 2, so I guess it's an old venture. My hope is to have it finished and ready to query later this year. 

*crosses fingers and toes*

Right now, I have an outline that I'm adhering to, but not at all. I have the beats figured out. Those won't change much. What might change are the dots connecting each beat to one another. Even though I have a thorough outline of what's meant to happen, I often ignore it. I just write an outline in order to feel prepared and less freaked out during revisions. Which is RIDICULOUS since I love revisions more than the drafting process. But there you go.

My last WIP was a YA contemporary with a male POV. I absolutely love it, even in its horrendous, embarrassing first draft state. The voice is what gets me every time. I do plan on editing it in the future, but I don't know when. As for what it taught me, that genre is notoriously tough to pull off. How do you make the ordinary extraordinary? What's so compelling about this character and his problem? Does he sound like a real guy? I had so many doubts about myself while writing that book, you guys. SO many doubts. 

But I also had a blast.

And if I could tackle the contemp genre from a dude's perspective, I could tackle anything.

Tacking it successfully is another story, though. We won't get into that. *weeps* 

My previous WIP taught me that taking risks is the only way to go about things. I've come to the point as both person and writer where I crave new things. Especially the kind of new things that FRIGHTEN me. This epic fantasy? Totally crippled me for three years. I kept writing other stuff in order to avoid facing it. I wrote things I'm proud of, but not OMG obsessed with.

Now? Yeah. I'm totes obsessed. 

Thank you to Katrina for the awesome topic! Make sure to check out Cole's take on it, then stay tuned for Margie's tomorrow!

Operation Awesome's New Year's Revisions Conference Is Here!!!

What are you doing here??? 

No, seriously. WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?

The party is over at Operation Awesome, where the New Year's Revisions Conference is in full swing! Now go and soak up all the awesome from our wonderful guests!

Happy Friday! :)

Waiting On Wednesday: SANCTUM by Sarah Fine

For this week's edition of Waiting on Wednesday, I'm picking a book by one of my favorite bloggers! 

SANCTUM by Sarah Fine:

"My plan: Get into the city. Get Nadia. Find a way out. Simple."

A week ago, seventeen-year-old Lela Santos's best friend, Nadia, killed herself. Today, thanks to a farewell ritual gone awry, Lela is standing in paradise, looking upon a vast gated city in the distance – hell. No one willingly walks through the Suicide Gates, into a place smothered in darkness and infested with depraved creatures. But Lela isn't just anyone – she's determined to save her best friend's soul, even if it means sacrificing her eternal afterlife.

As Lela struggles to find Nadia, she's captured by the Guards, enormous, not-quite-human creatures that patrol the dark city's endless streets. Their all-too-human leader, Malachi, is unlike them in every way except one: his deadly efficiency. When he meets Lela, Malachi forms his own plan: get her out of the city, even if it means she must leave Nadia behind. Malachi knows something Lela doesn't – the dark city isn't the worst place Lela could end up, and he will stop at nothing to keep her from that fate.

Release date: October 16th

Seriously, doesn't this book sound AMAZING? *drools* Waiting till October sucks, but in the meantime, check out Sarah's blog for all things YA and psychology. You're welcome :)

Books You Should Read: IMAGINARY GIRLS by Nova Ren Suma

Chloe's older sister, Ruby, is the girl everyone looks to and longs for, who can't be captured or caged. When a night with Ruby's friends goes horribly wrong and Chloe discovers the dead body of her classmate London Hayes left floating in the reservoir, Chloe is sent away from town and away from Ruby.

But Ruby will do anything to get her sister back, and when Chloe returns to town two years later, deadly surprises await. As Chloe flirts with the truth that Ruby has hidden deeply away, the fragile line between life and death is redrawn by the complex bonds of sisterhood. With palpable drama and delicious craft, Nova Ren Suma bursts onto the YA scene with the story that everyone will be talking about.

Why You Should Read It:

This book is creepy. And since Halloween is right around the corner, I figured I'd talk about a book that freaked me out. Is it gory? No. Do people get jumped in dark alleys/abandoned houses/asylums? Uh-uh. Is there a serial killer on the loose? *shakes head* I know, I know. You're going, "Then why the eff is it creepy?" 

Folks, Nova Ren Suma is a master storyteller. 

Not only can she create characters that feel real, that you can hear them whispering into your ear as you read, but she's got a gift for The Uncomfortable. Every single word, every turn of phrase, every scene gutted me alive. Like Chloe, I felt exasperated, confused, and outraged at certain... events... that play out during the novel. And even though there were times I wanted to push my way into the pages and yank Chloe away from the weird and uncontrollable, I kept my cool and trusted her. I trusted Suma as an author, too. That trust paid off in a big way. 

Imaginary Girls is about blood. It's about two sisters who don't understand each other, but they totally do. It's also about holding on to what you know, what you love, and what you can't live without. And it's this holding on that freaked. Me. Out. Because the harder you pull on something that's gripped at the other end, the quicker it'll snap in half. 

If you're looking for an eerie dose of magical realism this Halloween, Imaginary Girls is the book for you.

Waiting On Wednesday: Feudal Japan, Scottish Myths, And Forbidden Kissing

Confession: this is my first ever Waiting On Wednesday post! I know, I know. How can that POSSIBLY be with all the books I'm dying to read, right? Well, I'm here today to fix that. 

So. Here are 3 books on my OMG I NEED THIS NOW list:

STORMDANCER by Jay Kristoff

A DYING LAND
The Shima Imperium verges on the brink of environmental collapse; an island nation once rich in tradition and myth, now decimated by clockwork industrialization and the machine-worshipers of the Lotus Guild. The skies are red as blood, the land is choked with toxic pollution, and the great spirit animals that once roamed its wilds have departed forever.

AN IMPOSSIBLE QUEST
The hunters of Shima’s imperial court are charged by their Shōgun to capture a thunder tiger—a legendary creature, half-eagle, half-tiger. But any fool knows the beasts have been extinct for more than a century, and the price of failing the Shōgun is death.

A SIXTEEN YEAR OLD GIRL
Yukiko is a child of the Fox clan, possessed of a talent that if discovered, would see her executed by the Lotus Guild. Accompanying her father on the Shōgun’s hunt, she finds herself stranded: a young woman alone in Shima’s last wilderness, with only a furious, crippled thunder tiger for company. Even though she can hear his thoughts, even though she saved his life, all she knows for certain is he’d rather see her dead than help her.

But together, the pair will form an indomitable friendship, and rise to challenge the might of an empire.

Comes out September 18th!!!

THE RAVEN BOYS by Maggie Stiefvater

“There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark’s Eve,” Neeve said. “Either you’re his true love . . . or you killed him.”

It is freezing in the churchyard, even before the dead arrive.

Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue herself never sees them—not until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks directly to her.

His name is Gansey, and Blue soon discovers that he is a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.

But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can’t entirely explain. He has it all—family money, good looks, devoted friends—but he’s looking for much more than that. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents all the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul who ranges from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher of the four, who notices many things but says very little.

For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love to die. She never thought this would be a problem. But now, as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she’s not so sure anymore.

From Maggie Stiefvater, the bestselling and acclaimed author of the Shiver trilogy and The Scorpio Races, comes a spellbinding new series where the inevitability of death and the nature of love lead us to a place we’ve never been before.

 Comes out September 18th, too!!!

STEALING PARKER by Miranda Kenneally

Parker Shelton pretty much has the perfect life. She’s on her way to becoming valedictorian at Hundred Oaks High, she’s made the all-star softball team, and she has plenty of friends. Then her mother’s scandal rocks their small town and suddenly no one will talk to her.

Now Parker wants a new life.

So she quits softball. Drops twenty pounds. And she figures why kiss one guy when she can kiss three? Or four. Why limit herself to high school boys when the majorly cute new baseball coach seems especially flirty?

But how far is too far before she loses herself completely?

 Comes out October 1st!!!

Now tell me: are you waiting for these books as well? Any other books you can't wait to snatch up from bookshelves?? 

The Book Of My Dreams: On Finishing The First Draft I Didn't Think I Could Write

The amazeballs Beth Revis once wrote about the Book Of Her Heart. This is the kind of book that speaks to your true self the loudest. It's the one who embodies you the person as well as you the writer. As Beth says:

All books are works of art and take some of ourselves to write, but a "book of your heart" is one that is ripped from your very soul. It's the important one, your baby, the one that you wrote with blood, sweat, and tears; the one that means more to you than any other.

I have a Book Of My Heart. I finished the first draft about a year ago, and I even started revising it, but I stopped. Why? The story's a bit long, but to sum it up: I quit running away from the Book Of My Dreams. 

In 2009, long before the seed for the Book Of My Heart came around, another seed planted itself in my brain. The problem? I didn't think I was good enough to write a novel based on that seed. But it was through and through the Book Of My Dreams--what I was DYING for someone else to write so I could gobble it up in one sitting. This seed had GIRL POWER and BAD PEOPLE and GOOD PEOPLE WITH A LOT OF HEART and MAGIC and PRETTY DUDES WHO AREN'T DOUCHEBAGS. 

So I figured someone else would write it eventually.

Three years later, no one had written the Book Of My Dreams. Of course, a ton of books had similar elements, but exactly the Book Of My Dreams? Nope. I was proud of myself for slicing my soul in half and tackling the Book Of My Heart, though. Really proud. Even better, I felt free enough to think I could write anything. Amazeballs Beth is right: 

If you're a writer who is unpublished, then I hope and pray you will eventually write the book of your heart. It's a wonderful thing, and the closest I've come to touching magic. But I also want you to know something very, very important: the book of your heart is not the apex of your writing. It is not necessarily the best thing you've written, and it's not necessarily your only shot at getting published.

Yesterday, I finished the first draft of the Book Of My Dreams. As I wrote the last scene, I teared up. No, it wasn't a particularly sad scene, but it meant so, so much to me. The whole novel means a lot. Not just because of its content, but also because of its existence. It's a real draft. Horrible and cliched and illogical, but it's real.

I have no idea if the Book Of My Dreams will get published. I do know I'm going to revise it a billion times and query it. I also know it's the best book I've ever written. Is it the most personal? No. Is it the most me? No. But it's close enough, and it's everything I never thought I could do.

I think you owe it to yourself to try it, too.

Now tell me: are you working on the Book Of Your Dreams, or the Book Of Your Heart? If neither, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?????

Guest Post: Amy Lukavics + Why THIRTEEN Should Be A Novel

*originally posted on October 6, 2011 @ Reel YA*

For today's guest post, the wonderful Amy Lukavics is stopping by! She's a YA author with a super awesome blog, and she's also a member of YA Highway. Amy's here to talk about her pick for a movie that should be a YA novel. And let me say, I echo her sentiments 100%. 

Without further ado, I give you Amy!

When Amparo asked me to write about what movie I think should have been a YA novel, the answer came to me instantly:




Thirteen starring Evan Rachel Wood.




This movie came out right when I was the perfect age for it (fifteen). It quickly became one of my personal classics, the kind that you re-watch with your best friend from kindergarten hundreds of times over popcorn and candy and pizza rolls. 

We were fascinated by Evan's character, Tracy Louise Freeland--she was a straight-cut good girl that dealt with the pain of her parent's divorce and the rekindling of her mother's relationship with a drug abuser by cutting and finding a new friendship with a notorious “bad girl” from school, Evie. The transformation and development in Tracy is breathtaking and heartbreaking, and nothing is held back in this super gritty drama, which is what would have made it perfect for a dark, contemporary YA.

There have been speculations and even complaints that parents and family in general remain eerily absent from YA. This movie not only explores Tracy's relationship with her parents but rips it open, forcing the audience to experience the intensity of the frustrations and loss of control that Tracy feels throughout the movie. Her mother is played by Holly Hunter, and while her character tries to make the best out of a bad situation, it's undeniable that the rocky mother-daughter relationship has a direct impact on every decision Tracy makes throughout the movie.

The movie was co-written by Nikki Reed, the girl who plays bad-girl Evie in the film, and she based Tracy's experience on her own at the ages of twelve and thirteen. To this day, it's still one of my favorites, a painful reminder that the agony of a teenage girl can burn with enough intensity to bleed into the lives around her and cause complete chaos within multiple families.

HUGE thanks to Amy for sharing her pick! 

Have you seen Thirteen? If so, what do you like most about it? If not, which other movies do you think would make a great contemporary YA novel? 

Interview: Elana Johnson, Author Of POSSESSION And SURRENDER!

*originally posted on September 29, 2011 @ Reel YA*

I'd like to welcome YA author/blogger extraordinaire Elana Johnson to Reel YA! Elana's the author of the YA dystopian, POSSESSION, which is in stores now. The companion novel, SURRENDER, was released this past June by Simon and Schuster. 

Without further ado, here's Elana's quick interview:

Favorite movie genre

I can only have one?! I love movies. Probably romantic comedies the best.

Favorite teen movie

I'm not sure what a teen movie is... Movies with teenagers? How about 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU? I like that one. Oh, and A CINDERELLA STORY with Hilary Duff and Chad Michael Murray. Especially Chad Michael Murray... 

(Oh, Chad Michael Murray... *stares*)

If Violet Schoenfeld could direct her own movie, which genre would she choose and why?

Vi would want to go as radical as possible. Maybe like a steampunk/western/fantasy? Ha! She's all about doing whatever she wants, no matter what. 

(and that's why I love her!)

What's one thing you've learned as a writer from watching teen movies?

Relationships are messy. They're messy in movies, they're messy in real life, they should be messy in books, too. 

(word)

Vi knows the Rule: Girls don't walk with boys, and they never even thinkabout kissing them. But no one makes Vi want to break the Rules more than Zenn...and since the Thinkers have chosen him as Vi's future match, how much trouble can one kiss cause? The Thinkers may have brainwashed the rest of the population, but Vi is determined to think for herself. 

But the Thinkers are unusually persuasive, and they're set on convincing Vi to become one of them...starting by brainwashing Zenn. Vi can't leave Zenn in the Thinkers' hands, but she's wary of joining the rebellion, especially since that means teaming up with Jag. Jag is egotistical, charismatic, and dangerous--everything Zenn's not. Vi can't quite trust Jag and can't quite resist him, but she also can't give up on Zenn.

This is a game of control or be controlled. And Vi has no choice but to play.

Huge thank you to Elana for taking time out of her schedule to answer some Qs! Make sure you pick up your copies of POSSESSION and SURRENDER, which are available now!

Books You Should Read: WANDERLOVE by Kirsten Hubbard

 

It all begins with a stupid question: 

Are you a Global Vagabond? 

No, but 18-year-old Bria Sandoval wants to be. In a quest for independence, her neglected art, and no-strings-attached hookups, she signs up for a guided tour of Central America—the wrong one. Middle-aged tourists with fanny packs are hardly the key to self-rediscovery. When Bria meets Rowan, devoted backpacker and dive instructor, and his outspokenly humanitarian sister Starling, she seizes the chance to ditch her group and join them off the beaten path. 

Bria's a good girl trying to go bad. Rowan's a bad boy trying to stay good. As they travel across a panorama of Mayan villages, remote Belizean islands, and hostels plagued with jungle beasties, they discover what they've got in common: both seek to leave behind the old versions of themselves. And the secret to escaping the past, Rowan’s found, is to keep moving forward. 

But Bria comes to realize she can't run forever, no matter what Rowan says. If she ever wants the courage to fall for someone worthwhile, she has to start looking back. 

Kirsten Hubbard lends her artistry into this ultimate backpacker novel, weaving her drawings into the text. Her career as a travel writer and her experiences as a real-life vagabond backpacking Central America are deeply seeded in this inspiring story.

Why You Should Read It:

With her debut novel, Like Mandarin, Kirsten Hubbard elbowed her way up on my list of Best YA Authors I've Ever Read. Wanderlove has assured me she's going to stay at the top of that list for a very long time. Not only are her characters achingly real and flawed, but her world-building is beyond detailed, and above all, tempting. Even when the going got tough for Bria, I wanted to be her. I wanted to go on the same exotic adventures, eat the same foods, drink in the same landscapes, and hang out with the same backpacker/prankster guy. 

Trust me. You'll love him, too.

Art plays a huge role in Hubbard's sophomore triumph, both for Bria's character development and for the book itself--it contains beautiful drawings straight from Hubbard's own hands. For Bria, art is a painful reminder of everything that went wrong in her life. She can't bear to pick up a pencil and just go for it. I think this will not only resonate with teens struggling with accepting themselves, but with authors as well. Art is a very personal endeavor. Letting others in is scary, but worthwhile in the end. I applaud Hubbard for including her artwork, which I hope YA readers will fawn over just as much as I did. But, of course, I hope they fall in love with Bria and her oh-so-funny-yet-heartbreaking voice. Along with the lush settings, it's what carries the story. 

Oh, and that backpacker/prankster guy? One of the most realistic depictions of a dude I've seen in YA. 

*bows down to Kirsten Hubbard*

Make sure you pick up your copy of Wanderlove, which is on sale now!