Summer Hiatus

Hi guys -

Well today is "D day" and my kids are now officially out for summer.

I wanted to let you all know that I will probably be MIA for most of June and July unless I might pop in for a Bookanista post every now and then.

I have limited camps and fun vacations set up and am looking forward to chilling out and spending time with my kids. Any time I do scrape up this summer, I should probably be writing on my projects.

I wish each of you the best of luck in your writing journey over the next couple of months.

I hope you will still be here when I get back in late August. YOu all will be what I miss most about not being online. :)

Keep writing and happy summer days!

Matt Blackstone on his journey through A Scary Scene in a Scary Movie

Matt Blackstone's A SCARY SCENE IN A SCARY MOVIE is about Rene, an outcastteen with obsessive-compulsive disorder, a very real and frightening condition (especially for teens, as it’s in those teenage years that symptoms first manifest). Even though we don't all have OCD, we do have our quirks, habits, and hangups. The book was just released this month.

Rene, an obsessive-compulsive high school student hell-bent on becoming a superhero, smells his hands and wears a Batman cape when he’s nervous, which is six to eight hours per day, depending on whether it’s a weekend or weekday. On a weekday, he witnesses his English teacher smash his head into the blackboard. Rene is convinced that he is responsible for this and all other tragedies. If he picks up a face-down coin, moves a muscle during a time of thirteen (7:42 is bad luck because 7+4+2=13), or washes himself in the wrong order, Rene or someone close to him will get left back in school, break a bone, fall into a coma, contract a deadly virus, and/or die a slow and painful death like someone in a scary scene in scary movie. Or worse.

Rene’s new and only friend tutors him in the art of playing it cool, but it’s not as easy as he makes it sound. Can Rene ever be safe—he doesn’t like to talk when not surrounded by security details like locks or walls or people he trusts—when the most horrifying place is in his head?

A SCARY SCENE IN A SCARY MOVIE started with grade change. Having taught 10^th graders for four years, I switched to 9^th for the first time in 2009. Immediately, I noticed how panicky they were. How awkward and goofy and nervous and charming. They were obsessed with grades, obsessed with their reputation, and—well—they were obsessed with skipping lunch.

They were terrified of upperclassman and hated the hot cafeteria, so they avoided the lunchroom like the plague. They begged—begged—teachers to let them in their room during lunch. So, during those lunch periods, I got to know them even better. I learned how stressed and jumpy and routinized they were. And how some just used me for my room. They had no intention of talking, but constantly organized things on their desks.

From there, I chose a name, Rene, and ascribed him some of the characteristics of my freshman. But since Rene was the narrator, I needed to believe the “I.” I needed to give Rene some of my superstitions, some of my own quirkness, some of my own plain ole weirdness:

I’m an avid sports fan. Born in a suburb near Philadelphia, I’m hopelessly in love the Phillies, Eagles, Flyers, and Sixers. I have a long and sordid history of bizarre behavior when it comes to rooting for my team on TV. If my team falls behind, I change seats on the couch. Or change my snack from tortilla chips to pretzels. Or switch from water to juice. Or change t-shirts. Or lay down on the floor, as long as there’s a rug there (gotta draw the line somewhere).

Luckily for me (and my wife), I’ve gotten better. The years have mellowed out my sports craze. But every now and then, usually in the playoffs, when the game gets tight, I play the mental game: the seat, the chips, the t-shirt . . . it all becomes a factor. If only the Phillies would appreciate all the work that goes into their playoff victories!!!

Outside of the sports world, I’m a huge fan of blue Precise V7 pens, I usually park in the same spot at school, and I’m a sucker for the same breakfast: an “everything” bagel with butter. If I had a particularly good writing day, I like to eat the same snack I had the day before. Except when I run out of that snack. I may be superstitious, but I'm also lazy—a lucky snack definitely isn't worth leaving the house for.

The good news—and what separates these idiosyncrasies (or, yes, compulsive tendencies) from the disorder—is that my life will go on if I can’t find my favorite pen or a friend won’t get up from their seat or the bagel store is closed, and if someone takes my parking spot, I don’t hike up the stairs to hunt down the driver and demand that he immediately move his car or else I’ll crack him with a knuckle sandwich.

But some people do. They don’t use the term “knuckle sandwich” because it’s old and corny and sounds like something only my grandpa would say, but they do stress out and panic if things aren’t just so. And they do this every waking second of the day. Combine this with the fact that teenagers naturally panic, I could only imagine how difficult it must be.

Luckily, I didn’t have to imagine. There are few psychologists in the Blackstone extended family, so a lot of the research was done through phone calls and emails. And lucky for me, Google was invented, so I didn’t have to browse through encyclopedias or medical journals to find info on OCD.

I then made sure to give Rene some of the goofy charm of my 9^th graders and some of my own interests—superheroes, cereal, writing—so that Rene was indeed real for me.

And then I prayed and begged—like my 9^th graders did to me during lunch—that an agent would accept me.

You can find Matt on Twitter or his Website

For other Bookanista posts, check out these posts:

Elana Johnson revels in Ruby Red

LiLa Roecker is nuts for I’m Not Her

Christine Fonseca interviews picture book author Michelle McLean – with giveaway

Beth Revis reveals her reading recommendations

Jessi Kirby discovers Where Things Come Back

Shannon Whitney Messenger swoons for Supernaturally – with giveaway

Shelli Johannes-Wells features “guestanisto” author Matt Blackstone

Carolina Valdez Miller is bedazzled by Between – with giveaway

Shana Silver wonders at The Near Witch

Stasia Ward Kehoe celebrates Selling Hope

RIP Sweet Bridget Zinn

Last week, a fellow blogger, friend, librarian, writer - and to be honest the sweetest and happiest person around - died way too young at age 33.

Bridget found out 2 years ago (March 2009) that she had Stage 4 cancer. Here is more information. This came to a shock to all because Bridget had no risk factors and lived a healthy life. Even in her fight, she remained upbeat and happy. Her courage was amazing and inspiring. She blogged throughout her battle and showed nothing but total grace.

This is devastating to our writing community. Her agent, Michael Stern did a wonderful tribute to her that is so worth seeing.It totally captures her true spirit. Bridget died way too young. Luckily for us, her book, Poison, was acquired by Hyperion and is supposed to be published in 2012. Look for it! I've heard it is funny and amazing.

Here is a note from her hubby, Barrett. They were together since high school and he is doing some special events to celebrate Bridget's life. Because that is exactly what she would want.

Bridget was a writer and a special friend to all librarians. You are welcome to attend the events or if you would like to do anything in her name, he's asking for donations to CBCC. You can also follow the FB page.

RIP Bridget - may you have an eternity of cupcakes, flowers and shoes. You will be missed.

I saw this poem on a blog and it summed up exactly how many are feeling right now.

Funeral Blues

Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone,
Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone,
Silence the pianos and with muffled drum
Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come.

Let aeroplanes circle moaning overhead
Scribbling on the sky the message She Is Dead,
Put crepe bows round the white necks of the public doves,
Let the traffic policemen wear black cotten gloves.

She was our North, our South, our East and West,
Our working week and our Sunday rest,
Our noon, our midnight, our talk, our song;
We thought that love would last forever: We were wrong.

The stars are not wanted now: put out every one;
Pack up the moon and dismantle the sun;
Pour away the ocean and sweep up the wood;
For nothing now can ever come to any good.

Marketing lessons with Terra Elan McVoy (author of The Summer of Firsts and Lasts)

Terra Elan McVoy is the author of three

outstanding books: Pure, After the Kiss, and her new release, The Summer of Firsts and Lasts.

Not only is her writing so flavorful, but her covers are totally delicious.

Today, she stops by to share some marketing lessons she has learned after publishing three books.

Summer of Firsts and Lasts is about t

hree sisters. One life-changing summer.

Calla loves summer because summer means Duncan. They’ve been best friends for years, but Calla has never worked up the nerve to tell him how she really feels. This summer, the summer before college, is Calla’s last chance.

Violet isn’t much of a rule breaker in real life. But this isn’t real life, this is summer, and Violet is determined to make the most of it. Besides, a little sneaking out never hurt anyone. And sneaking out with James is 100% worth the risk … even though James is completely off-limits.

Daisy has never been the sister that boys notice, but when sparks fly with Joel at the first bonfire of summer, it seems so easy and right. So why is being his girlfriend so complicated?

==========================

In a nutshell, - what is your publishing story? How did you get published?

As you probably know, the journey to publication is different for everybody. Mine was a little long and winding, in that I really have been writing for most of my life, and studied it seriously in high school, college, and even in grad school. I didn’t get interested in YA until I was working as an editorial assistant in New York, however (that’s where the idea for Pure came from). Because I was in publishing and new a lot of editors, I talked to them about my idea (about a girl trying to manage both high school and being a person of faith); their responses encouraged me to keep working on the manuscript. When I moved to Atlanta, I stopped working on it for other things, but a year later, an editor remembered my idea and approached me about it. I slaved over the outline and the pitch, and she took it in to acquisitions, and they signed me up! The short version sounds so easy! But really it was almost two decades in the making.

What do you think are the 3 main things that work well in marketing your books?

I’m actually kind of terrible at marketing. Simple word of mouth has been such a huge boon for me, really. So writing the best book I could possibly write has been one “marketing” tactic that I’ve really aimed for; if it’s not good, after all, people won’t pass it along. Having relationships (genuine, organic ones) with other writer friends has also been a big help; meeting other authors, interviewing them on my blog, going to their events—just building a community of good writers around me has been really fun for me. Beyond that, the basics of blogging and tweeting and F’booking and doing events has also been a part!

What is the biggest mistake you made with your marketing?

Like I said, I didn't do much marketing. So THAT for me is the biggest mistake. I think I could have done more to try to help my publisher out in the beginning, and wish I could continue to do more. Coming up with smart ways to do that—things that will be effective and not too much of a time suck—is always really tough.

What is something creative you have done to market your newest book?

To celebrate the release last week of The Summer of Firsts

and Lasts, my friends at Little Shop of Stories threw a truly awesome Camp Extravaganza party for me since my character as actually at

summer camp. We had ice cream (all three flavors on the book cover, or course), camp crafts & games, plus a fantastic talent show that included some of the members

of the girls book group I lead, the local improv troupe, D.U.C.K Improv, plus my friend, Vincenzo Tortorici and my own husband’s

fabulous magic trick! (I read as part of the talent show too.)

It was terribly fun and fabulous (especially having made Camp Callanwolde t-shirts beforehand). All in all, a terrific weekend! You can see pictures of the event at my web site.

What are the 3 main lessons you learned between marketing book 1 and book 3? What do you do differently for this book that you didn't do before?

The main thing is that you really do have to DO it. You have to get out there and get involved in the conversations, let people know who you are and what you’re doing. It’s tricky, for me, to do that and not seem too pushy, but not doing it at all is a big mistake.

The important thing is to find a way that is really authentic to you. Since I love talking to kids about writing I have really tried to reach out more to schools and do more workshops; but for some other writer that might not be as comfortable.

I love talking to bloggers and other writers, and that’s been useful for me, so I try to do more of that. I wasn’t Tweeting before at all, but now I’ve found a way to do it that fits. That’s what the learning process between Pure and The Summer of Firsts and Lasts has been—finding ways to be “out there” that are still comfortable and genuine.

What do you think are the 3 most important things any writer can do to write the best book they can write?

One big important thing is to not be focused on the outcome. Worrying about “will this sell” and all of that really takes away from the writing, which demands a LOT of concentration and time. Reading everything you can possibly read in the same genre –finding what’s already out there and identifying what you like and don’t—is also a huge help. Taking your time also matters a lot: taking time with characters, with developing the world, with examining all your sentences, with revising and revising . . . writing a masterpiece is not short work!

What is your favorite word and why?

What a great question to end with. I love “crepuscular,” because it is just such a fun word to say, but also because it describes that twilight time of day when the sky is half blues and half peaches: warm and cool at the same time. It’s a lovely word—a transitional word—and I just always feel this delightful peace and calm when I say it. It evokes the thing it means, at least to me!

You can follow or learn more about Terra at her blog, twitter or Facebook.

In other news, check out more Bookanista posts today!

Elana Johnson marvels at Moonglass

Christine Fonseca raves about It’s Raining Cupcakes

LiLa Roecker and Carrie Harris have a passion for Possession

Beth Revis admires the audiobook of Anansi Boys

Carolina Valdez Miller is giddy over Moonglass – with giveaway

Megan Miranda swoons over Strings Attached

Shana Silver delves into Divergent

Sarah Frances Hardy gabs about Gossip from the Girls Room

Matt Blackstone is tantalized by Bad Taste in Boys

Stasia Ward Kehoe glories in a guestanista review of The Rendering