Teen Panel - Part One

Today's giveaway is a lot of boy's books:

• Guys Read by Jon Scieszka (Harper, ARC 10/10)
• The Magnificent 12 (Harper, ARC 9/10)
• Kick (Harper, ARC, 2/11)
• 13th Reality by James Dashner (signed HB)
• Vordak (Egmont, ARC 8/10)

Just comment on the post to be entered in drawing.

Teens

• Age: 15; State: NY
• Age: 18; State: Ohio; Chelsea
• Age: 18; Michigan; Tirza

How many books do you read a month?

• Usually about 1-2, depending on the month and how much work there is to get done.

• It varies, depending on that pesky "life" thing. I'll usually always read at least 5 books a month, when I'm busy writing or vegitating in front of the TV, (because, holycrap am I addicted to Friday Night Lights / Buffy / Vampire Diaries / Merlin / everything) but it can get up to 15 if I'm hermiting.

• Right now, I'm averaging about 12-15 per month.

Who pays for your books?

• I've been blessed with the commodity of friends who are (some, at least) avid readers, so I normally just borrow books. However, when I want to buy a book, it's normally my own money that I use.

• I usually pay myself, unless I can sucker my mom into it. She always used to pay for my books - she's a saint - but my addiction is costly and I've taken to IABs (Impulse Amazon Buy's) lately. Bookstores are very dangerous for this reason, because restraint isn't usually in my vocabulary. I'm all about impulse. When I'm in a Borders, my vocabulary usually consists of "!!!!!" and "!!!" and "!!!!", respectively.

• The vast majority of my books are review copies I receive, though I do buy books out of my own pocket with money earned from my job. My parents very rarely buy me books anymore!

How much is price a factor in your book-buying decisions? Do you prefer hardback or paperback? Do you ever buy both?

• Price is sometimes a factor. If the book is sort of expensive and I'm on a tight budget (which I find to be somewhat often), I'll look for the paperback edition. Personally, I prefer paperbacks because they're lighter and cheaper, but a hardcover would be nice from time to time.

• Price is definitely a factor. I have a "no-hardcover-rule", but I break it a lot. I try and buy only paperbacks, since they're generally $10 cheaper, but if it's a book I'm dying to read, I can't help myself. Because of my addiction (which results in tons of unread books), by the time I eventually read the hardcover anyway, it'd be out in paperback. So, PBs unless I can't restrain myself.

• Well, it certainly affects it to a certain extent. I do buy hardcovers, but usually only at reduced prices and only if it's a book I really want. Occasionally I will wait for a book to come out in paperback as well, but it just depends on how much I want to read it.

What would you like to see more of in teen fiction? What hasn’t been done yet?

• For me, there's not enough books in teen fiction with extensive travels. I like reading about different places and the characters' travels through strange lands- whether they're real places or completely fictional!

• Contemporary! I love paranormal (it's generally what I write myself, so I feel totally hypocritcal saying this), but I'd love to see more contemporary. I just finished The Sky is Everywhere and it was so refreshing and beautiful and real, it makes me hesitant to reach for my dystopian. But I know if I read contemporary after contemporary, I'd be DYING for a fantasy. I also love historical fiction, so it'd be awesome to see more of that. I'll refrain from the whole "what hasn't been done yet" thing, because if I ever think of something that's NEVER been done, I'll be writing it. :) But honestly, it's hard to create an incredibly unique idea. When one comes along, it's priceless, but there's usually always something slightly similar. But no two books are the same, so even if you take a simple idea (like boy meets girl), and add a different voice or a splash of this or that, it can't be replicated. But then there are books like HUNGER by Jackie Morse Kessler that seem to come out of nowhere and strike me as a completely original idea. I think if more YA authors look back into lore and history, and really dive deep into it, they can find something ancient and add a splash of color and have something "new".

• Time travel! I read Marianne Curley's Guardians of Time series when I was in middle school, and fell in love. Since then, I've been looking for more good time travel reads. I think that it's slowly catching on, what with the release of The Time Traveler's Wife movie, and Heather Davis's new book The Clearing also has time travel in it. I've also heard whispers of time travel books coming out from debut authors in the next couple of years, and I am excited! I am also always a big fan of historical fiction that teaches you a bit about the history of a certain place, especially if it is set in a different country. Romance, adventure, a history lesson...the nerd in me loves it!
  

Stay tuned for Part 2.....