News
An Unnameable Star
This just in! Our very first review for Ellen Booraem's debut novel The Unnameables, and it's a STAR from Kirkus! It'll be in the September 1st issue, so it's not online yet, but here's an excerpt:
Booraem's debut is an ever-surprising, genre-defying page-turner. Realistic characters deal with philosophical problems in vivid, flowing prose that is evocative and often funny. A sort of combination of witch-trial-era Salem and The Giver, this book offers a treat with nearly every page turn.
Interview with the Alyson
There's an enlightening interview with Alyson Noel up at Vale's Corner, with my very favorite quote being:
Did you always want to be an author?Alyson also talks about a number of jobs she's held on her way to being a YA author.
Well, first I wanted to be a mermaid, and then a princess, but after I read my first Judy Blume book, ARE YOU THERE GOD? IT'S ME, MARGARET, I knew I wanted to try to write like that too.
So readers, what other professions have you tried on your journey to being an author? Besides literary agenting and general publishing-ness, I've been a waitress at an Irish music pub, a lady in waiting to the Queen at a renaissance faire, the PA to the general manager of a huge concert venue in London, and the info desk girl at my college student center. Your turn!
A Cruel Summer giveaway!
Good news for those of you who refuse to believe summer is nearly over (Take THAT Toys R Us!) -- Tera Lynn Childs is giving away a copy of Alyson Noel's Cruel Summer in the spirit of the Olympic Games. Not sure what I'm talking about? Read Tara's blog and it will all make sense.
Meanwhile, a nice review from Reading Keeps You Sane for Alyson's Saving Zoe.
The Dog Days of August
Media Bistro's GalleyCat blog, having previously featured a bunch of cats, recently invited its readers to send in pictures of their pups for their annual Dog Days of August photo contest. I'm delighted to have such a strong showing with Jake and Dizzy, the official hounds of kt literary. It's no coincidence they enjoy perusing kt literary titles -- Ellen Booraem's The Unnameables and Josie Bloss' Band Geek Love in particular. Won't you please go vote for them as your favorite pups of the day?
Cruel Summer in SLJ
Woot! Just got word of a wonderful review of Cruel Summer by Alyson Noel in the August issue of School Library Journal. An excerpt:
The protagonist's venting and observations are alternately whiny, wistful, strident, and hilarious. Despite typical teen self-obsession, Colby is likable and ultimately well intentioned. As she deals with her feelings, she blunders her way rather charmingly into a new maturity.Go Colby!
Events!
I left my heart...
In San Francisco, of course. Or, ok, maybe not my heart, but certainly a bit of skin off my toe as my sweet little espadrilles rubbed my foot raw as I climbed up and down a few hills today. I'm in town for the San Francisco South chapter of the SCBWI's Agent's Day, and will be speaking tomorrow with a number of my esteemed colleagues. I polished my editing pen with a look at several sample manuscripts, and I'm looking forward to debuting my very first Powerpoint presentation. Wish me luck!
BEA Recap
Sorry for the sudden drop off in posting last week, but the official opening of BEA came with a flurry of work, and meetings, and hastily made appointments, and free books, and more. Hectic, even if it seemed more sedate than the most recent New York-based BEA. For me, of course, it was a nice, easy flight from Denver to LA, and only one hour adjustment to make -- easy-peasy. For my New York colleagues -- not so much.
I had a very informative, useful fair, though, and am happy to share some of my impressions.
Clutter - Peter Walsh, the organizational guru from TLC's Clean Sweep, was on hand signing copies of his new book Does this Clutter Make My Butt Look Fat? I grabbed a copy and an autograph, and shared my feeling that the fair was all about picking up more clutter -- anathema to his ideals. For my purposes (and to keep to his), I kept my freebies contained in one bag at a time, and only picked up fabric, flat-bottomed totes that could be reused for groceries.
I mostly only picked up YA titles -- although I made exceptions for the sequel to The Eight, a new book called The Gargoyle, and a nifty road atlas of the US -- but there were loads of great ones to grab. I made a beeline to a galley of John Green's Paper Towns and lined up for a signed copies of Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher and Little Brother by Cory Doctorow. Most exciting freebie? Neil Gaiman's new title The Graveyard Book. Neil spoke on Friday morning at a children's breakfast also featuring Jon Scieska, Eoin Colfer, Sherman Alexie, and Judy "f**king" Blume, to quote Alexie. The writers amusingly shared their fangeek moments with each other, and cursed a blue streak appropriate to the "@$$-crack of dawn."
Multi-platform was a big theme, and I attended a presentation on Saturday morning on "Maximizing the Multi-Platform Potential in Children's Publishing", with speakers from HarperCollins, Scholastic, and B*tween Productions. All emphasized that the book cannot be the only avenue for readers to connect to the story, touching on blogs, websites, contests, networking sites, and more. Diane Naughton, HC's Marketing VP, mentioned their "Author Assistant" program, which helps new authors build and host websites -- which reminded me of the question I'd answered on my blog some time ago. Revised answer -- Harper doesn't own all their author blogs, but they're happy to do so if an author doesn't have the time, expertise, or wherewithal to build and host a site of their own. Scholastic's forthcoming series The 39 Clues looks to be the future of multi-platform publishing, (they call it "multidimensionality") with an online game component that allows readers to find 29 of the 39 clues themselves -- only 10 will be revealed in the series.
Also a theme for the weekend? Four-quadrant appeal. Fellow Denver agent Kristin Nelson mentioned this in her blog last week, after her first meetings with film people, and I heard it myself any number of times. This is the new holy grail of film producers -- a cinematic experience that will grab the four major audience demographics: women, men, children, and teens. It's a difficult mix of romance, story, action, broad humor, and the more elusive "it" factor.
Other than that, BEA is a great time to wander the halls, catch up with colleagues, and make early guesses as to what we'll be talking about in six months' time. Oh, and to ogle Alec Baldwin.
Upcoming Conferences and Events
I'm off on Wednesday to Los Angeles for BEA and the Pitch Slam Session at the Writer's Digest Books Writers Conference. If you won't be in LA to pitch me, or just say hi, here's a few more upcoming events where I'll be speaking or meeting with authors. Hope to see you at one of them! And if you're part of an organization that would like to speak with me about attending a conference or workshop, please email me at events@ktliterary.com.
June 20th - Lighthouse Writers Workshop LitFest
August 16th - SCBWI San Francisco/South Agents' Day
September 12th-14th - Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers Colorado Gold Writers Conference
September 26th-27th - 2nd Annual Kidlit Bloggers Conference
October 18th - Heart of Denver meeting
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