Marta Acosta's Blog, page 5

Visit Me at Reel Girl!

I'm a guest at Reel Girl, where Margot Magowan quizzes me about The She-Hulk Diaries and gender issues in the media.

I don’t care one way or the other about the term chick lit. It was used as a way to market humor written by women. It was twisted into an insult, which isn’t uncommon for anything that is female-dominated. I like funny women so I’m absolutely going to pick up funny books written by women.

Yes, I have opinions! Drop by and comment.Margot does the same thing that I do: obsessively count female representation in the media. When you count, you notice how disproportionate it is. Yes, I have issues from being the only girl in the family. I told one of my best friends, who's the oldest in a family of girls, that I always wanted an older sister. She said, "No, you don't. They just boss you around and tell you you're wrong all the time."

I think galleys will be out for She-Hulk this coming week. Woo-hoo! I hope to get a few to share in contests.

 

THE SHE-HULK DIARIES - My New Novel!

I''m very happy to announce that The She-Hulk Diaries , my next novel, will be published by Hyperion on June 18, 2013. You can read more about the book in Publishers Weekly.

NYT bestselling author and comic book legend Peter David offered an early endorsement, saying:

Marta Acosta's "SHE-HULK DIARIES" is an absolute delight. Those who are unfamiliar with Bruce Banner's wayward cousin are in for a treat as they read about Jennifer Walters and her first hand dilemmas trying to navigate her new attorney's job, an old flame, and the ongoing festivities/adventures/partying life of her gamma-irradiated female Hulk side. Whether you like She-Hulk straight up, comedic, or a combination of both, SHE-HULK DIARIES is the She-Hulk endeavor for you.

In the midst of my good news, I was saddened to learn that Peter has had a stroke. I've never met Peter, but I hope he has recovers soon. Here are some ways to help him out, the most significant one being to buy his books on Amazon, using this link, or at Barnes & Noble, using this link. ComicMix has set up a page to buy his ebooks.

Lately, I've been acting as my nephew's secretary, typing...

Lately, I've been acting as my nephew's secretary, typing his stories as he dictates. He's eight, and the stories are full of action, danger, aliens, outlaws, and time-travel. One of the characters in the story he wrote today is a criminal named Rotten Cookie. I asked him if he wanted to be a writer when he grows up. He said, "That's crazy. Writers don't make any money."

I've been obsessed with typographic book covers, and I love the design above by Jessica Tapolcai and Elizabeth Bradley for a Penguin edition of Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre. I think the design reflects Jane's own character -- look beyond the governess's severe and plain exterior and you'll discover a rich, intricate inner life.

I recently contributed a piece to the International Association of Reading on gender disparities in book awards and critical recognition:

One could get angry and rail about the disingenuous claims by men that the disparity of critical recognition is due to women’s lack of skill and also how very yucky girls are. I love a good tirade and have a special fondness for spitting-mad outrage and bickering, particularly when it includes irrelevant personal swipes. (Is it really a coincidence that kerfuffle rhymes with truffle?) As much fun as that is, fuming about the literary glass ceiling distracts us from one of the marvels happening now in the world of books.

While I was working on this, my youngest brother was crawling around the attic doing an electrical repair for me. He yelled down to ask what I was writing, and I told him, "It's an opinion piece about how terrible men are."

He said, "Oh, you libbers," and I offered to make him breakfast.

I finally had the chance to meet Patricia Fructuoso, my Audible audiobooks narrator, when she visited Berkeley. She's stunning, bright, and so nice that I immediately wanted to listen to her voice-over work again.


I have been waiting and waiting for the official announcement of my next novel so that I can share the title and fab cover art. It's a return to comedy.. I think galleys will be out next week. I'll try to wrangle a few to give away in contests.

 

Free E-Read - Your Chance to read THE SHADOW GIRL OF BIRCH GROVE

Happy New Year! I will spend the next six months writing 2012 on all my correspondence. I haven't made any resolutions, because the only one I've ever followed is: never buy cut flowers again. That was fairly easy, because I can always find something blooming in my garden. Even now, my antique tea roses are about to open.

To celebrate the New Year, for a limited time, I'm offering a free read of The Shadow Girl of Birch Grove at its original home on Scribd, where you can read it or download it in your preferred format.  When my agents were unable to sell my YA gothic, I posted it as a free read; it quickly became Scribd's number one YA novel. Many thanks go to Amanda of Love Vampires, who liked the story so much that she surprised me with wonderful cover art.

Please do not embed this free read on any other sites.It is an exclusive to Scribd.
The Shadow Girl's success at Scribd led to Tor Teen' s interest. I worked with Susan Chang, my fantastic editor, to revise and develop the story, which was recently published as Dark Companion.

Working with a skilled editor is such a joy. Susan understood that I was writing a contemporary gothic and that I wanted to use classic tropes to tell the story of Jane Williams, a broken young woman who begins to heal herself. She coached me through plot structure and character motivation. She gave wonderful suggestions for chapter headings that celebrated gothic literature. The finished novel has entirely new chapters, scenes, and characters. There are different plot points and...more scenes with Mary Violet, Jane's lovely and hilarious poetry-spouting friend.

I hope you'll take this chance to meet the world of Birch Grove Academy and then want to go on to read Dark Companion!

Free e-read of The Shadow Girl of Birch Grove!
Find out more about Dark Companion at Tor Teen!
 

New Cover Art & Diversity in Speculative Fiction

Simon & Schuster surprised me recently by telling me that my Pocket and Gallery books, including my frothy social satire, Nancy's Theory of Style, will have new cover art for the digital editions. I really like this initial artwork for Nancy, which slyly mocks my character's persnickety personality.

The American Library Association's Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) has formally announced the nominees for 2012's Best Fiction for Young Adults, and Dark Companion, my gothic tale, is included.  Jane Williams, my protagonist, is not always easy to like. She's not a bright and shiny "heroine," but a damaged girl from the foster care system who makes some terrible decisions. I'm really happy when readers understand Jane's motives. Liz Burns at the School Library Journal wrote:

I was so frustrated with Jane, but then I remembered who Jane was. A child without parents; without any memory of her dead mother; raised in some of the worst situations possible. OF COURSE she is going to have her own needs, her own dark desires, that those raised in a healthy family would not have. Like I said, Jane was brought to Birch Grove. Part of the reason is not just that she is an orphan with no relatives; it’s that she has the types of needs that can be used or manipulated by others. Who would think that the desire for family, for friends, for belonging, could be twisted and manipulated?

Classic Gothics, including Jane Eyre, are straight-forward about social class, money, and power. As a child, I was fascinated by Jane Eyre's fury at the injustice of her world. I never forgot the way Mr. Rochester tricked, manipulated, and antagonized his impoverished employee.

In our current society, social class and race/ethnicity are inextricably tangled. Educator and author J.A. Blackman and I have been having an ongoing discussion about diversity in speculative fiction as part of her "Minority Report" feature.

Although the publishing world is in culturally rich Manhattan, publishers, editors, and agents are not a diverse group. Those who go into publishing as a career must have an education and the financial stability to survive in such a poorly paid profession in such an expensive city. You’ve got to consider not only the connection between race/ethnicity and social class, but also the fact that an educated person of color might be encouraged to pursue a more stable career, or a career where she feels as if she can advance and have her voice heard.

You can find the links for our entire discussion at J.A. website.

AudioFile Magazine is featuring my Casa Dracula audiobooks, narrated by beautiful, hilarious, and talented actress Patricia Fructuoso , in their current issue. Patricia and I hope to have the audiobook of Nancy's Theory of Style completed soon. I'll miss working with her!

DARK COMPANION Nominated by ALA for Best Fiction for Young Adults Award!

illustration by Christian Nacorda
 Last week, my editor gave me the wonderful news that Dark Companion has been nominated for the Best Fiction for Young Adults award by the American Library Association's Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). I'm thrilled that this respected group has recognized the serious themes within my young adult gothic. I've always used humor, especially satire, as  commentary. Writing a gothic challenged me to approach issues of inequity, exploitation and abuse, feminism, social contracts, etc., without humor as both a tool and a buffer.

Which is not to say that I could leave humor out of the story altogether, or that I don't enjoy silliness for its own sake, because I totally do. As Nancy Carrington-Chambers says, "Life without silliness is like champagne without bubbles." Patricia Fructuoso, the narrator for my Casa Dracula series, is now recording the audiobook for Nancy's Theory of Style. It is very silly -- but in the good way.

In other news, Simon & Schuster/Gallery is planning to design new covers for the ebook editions of the Casa Dracula novels and Nancy's Theory of Style. Pretty swell, right? Right.

Also, I have a new book coming out in June 2013. I am not at liberty to discuss it yet, but it's sort of fantastic. And awesome. And super funny.

 

My Next Event at Book Passage in Marin & CASA DRACULA Series on Audible!

I'll be talking about and reading from Dark Companion at wonderful Book Passage in Marin County soon and also giving away some promo swag:


Friday, September 28, 7:00 p.m. Book Passage51 Tamal Vista Blvd.Corte Madera, CA 94925
This is a special teen event, but you don't have to be a teen to come and say hello!

Also, I'm delighted that all four books in my Casa Dracula series are now available as adiobooks at Audible, Amazon, and iTunes. It's been wonderful experience working with the team at Audible to create these recordings with producer/narrator Patricia Fructuoso. Patricia has a special talent for voicing all the lunatics and eccentrics in my stories, and now we're working on the audiobook for Nancy's Theory of Style. 

Amazon is having a promotion where you can get a FREE Casa Dracula audiobook when you sign up for Audible membership. You can click on the audio covers above to listen to free samples of my books.

In other good news, Simon & Schuster/Gallery will be creating new covers for the Casa Dracula series and Nancy's Theory of Style, and having a special promotion for them. I'll post and update when that happens and I'm looking forward to seeing the new cover art.

I'm on the Tor Girls Night(Mare) Out Book Tour - Starting August 16!

I've almost got my bags packed and tomorrow I'm flying to LA for the first stop on my book tour with other Tor Teen authors,  Lisa DesRochers, author of the Personal Demons series, and Kendare Blake , author of the Anna series. It's my sixth book, my first tour, and the first time I'll be visiting a few of these states.

If you live near any of these locations, please do come out and say hi.

Here's the schedule:

La Verne, CAThursday, August 16, 2012, 6:00 PM
Mrs. Nelson's Toy and Book Shop
1030 Bonita Avenue
La Verne, CA 91750

Houston, TXFriday, August 17, 2012, 6:30 PM
Murder by the Book
2342 Bissonet Street
Houston, TX 77005

St. Louis, MOSaturday, August 18, 2012, 7:00 PM
Books provided by Pudd'nhead Books
St. Louis County Library
640 South Lindbergh Boulevard
St. Louis, MO 63124

Crestview Hills, KYSunday, August 19, 2012, 6:00 PM
Joseph-Beth Booksellers
2785 Dixie Hwy.
Crestview Hills, KY 41017

Gurnee, ILMonday, August 20, 2012, 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Warren Newport Library
224 North O'Plaine Road
Gurnee, IL 60031

Skokie, ILTuesday, August 21, 2012, 7:00 PM
Books provided by The Book Stall
Skokie Public Library
5215 Oakton Street
Skokie, IL 60077

Beaverton, ORWednesday, August 22, 2012
7:00 PM
Powell's Books
3415 SW Cedar Hills Blvd.
Beaverton, OR 97005

Lake Forest Park, WAThursday, August 23, 2012, 7:00 PM
Third Place Books
17171 Bothell Way NE
Lake Forest Park, WA 98155

Menlo Park, CAFriday, August 24, 2012, 7:00 PM
Kepler's Books
1010 El Camino Real
Menlo Park, CA 94025

Dark Companion Book Trailer & Audiobooks!

One of my recent projects was creating a trailer for Dark Companion. Although no one knows if trailers help promote a book at all, they can be fun to watch, and I wanted one that reflected the theme and mood of my book.  I love the quick thumbnail sketches that illustrator, Christian Nacorda sends me for other projects (see above), so I thought, "I'll ask Christian to illustrate my trailer!"

I'm so glad I did! Talented actress Patricia Fructuoso provides the narration and also edited. The music is by 700P3D and sets the right tense mood. I hope you like it and will share it with others!



Next week I'll post more about the audiobooks of the Casa Dracula series, which are now available on Audible, Amazon, and iTunes. It's so exciting for me to hear my stories read aloud by Patricia, who can bring the funny, sexy, quirky characters to life. You can listen to samples of the books at Audible.

It's always wonderful to see that readers are enjoying my coloring-outside-the-lines writing, and here are a few new reviews of Dark Companion:

Kimberly at Sliced Open Reviews says, "Dark Companion does bloom into the promised Gothic Paranormal, there is also quite a bit of social issues brought up. Social and economic issues in inner cities, the effects of foster care on children and teens, constant changes in foster and group homes, women’s rights, abusive and potentially abusive relationships…I can keep going, but you can see, like WOW? (more)"

Becky at Stories & Sweeties says, "Dark Companion is such a unique, dark, and mesmerizing story with lots of twists and plot surprises, some really hilarious quick-witted dialogue and fantastic characters, but also some really frustrating moments where I absolutely loathed what was happening. I think my opinion of this book changed a million times while reading, but looking back on the story as a whole after I'd turned the last page---all I could think was... 'Wow'. (more)"

Becky LeJeune at No More Grumpy Bookseller says, "Marta Acosta has built a wonderful homage to Bronte in this unique and twisted version of Jane Eyre. Laced with quotes from classic gothic literature and filled with chilling atmosphere, Dark Companion is an all new and original tale contains just enough of the classic for fans to recognize. (more)."

Lydia at The Lost Entwife says, "I think Dark Companion is a book that will appeal to those lovers of gothic and boarding school novels out there, and may just do a little bit to redeem the vampire craze by providing us with a book that was intelligent, interesting, intriguing, and even funny when it needed to be. (more)"

Mary at Forever Young Adult says, "ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT... There are going to be the obvious comparisons to Jane Eyre and the story does follow it a bit with the characters and plot, but this dark Gothic with paranormal twists is updated and modern. (more)"

Enjoy your weekend!

Q&As and Giveaways, Inc. Audiobooks

I'm a guest at Suzanne Johnson's Preternatura blog - woohoo! Suzanne is a fellow Tor writer and her wonderful debut urban fantasy, Royal Street, was released earlier in the year and River Road, Sentinels of New Orleans #2, comes out in November.  Sometimes I grind my teeth in jealousy over the amazing book giveaways she has, but her niceness makes me forgive her every time.

Suzanne asks me questions and I answer all fancy like because that's how I roll, and she's got a contest for Dark Companion.

Michelle of Much Loved Books says my book has "a mixture of secrets, mysteries, friendships and romance and of course hot boys" and also interviews me:

Perfection doesn’t interest me though. People who don’t make mistakes never take chances either. I’m fascinated by our errors in judgment, by ambiguity, by emotional conflict, by opposing motives.

Alice Marvels, a teen fiction book site, has a contest for Dark Companion and a review:

A powerful and darkly entrancing gothic novel that, like its diamond-in-the-rough heroine, takes commonplace elements and turns them into something dazzling.

Lea at YA Book Queen has something wonderful! She's got links for two free audiobooks: the very ghostly Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake, another Tor author, and, The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins! Kendare and I will be on Tor Teen's Girls Night(mare) Out tour, and I'll post about that when the schedule is finalized. I've always wanted to read Collins's classic Gothic, but I thought it would be too spooky. I'm going to listen to it though!