Ally Malinenko's Blog, page 23

Beatles Friday

Why?

Cause it’s Friday.

And they’re the Beatles.

Enjoy.

And the PAPERBACK book is here! To buy! Squee!

Today’s the day, folks.

For all of you who are ereader-less who wanted to read Lizzy Speare and the Cursed Tomb you can now buy the physical book at Amazon.

I got my copy the other day and I have to admit, it’s pretty darn cool to hold your own novel.

And I wanted to thank everyone who has read it and shared it and tweeted about it – ya’ll the bestest.

Here’s to moving forward! Make art! Play your ukulele!

Cheers.

Vacation’s all I ever wanted

 

Hi! I’m been on vacation for eleven days (count em!) and it’s been fantastic. I did nothing. No kidding. No – Thing. Actually that’s not true – I went to the symphony and heard Tchaikovsky’s Pathetique and Brahms Piano Concerto No. 2 and I went to the MoMA and saw Inventing Abstraction (which I didn’t really like. Sorry to all the abstract fans out there) and The Canyon by Rauschenberg (which was incredible) but other than that I did nothing.

I read on the couch for HOURS at a time.

I slept in.

I watched Star Wars (IV, V and VI because we pretend those first three never happened in this household).

I walked over the Brooklyn Bridge and picnicked in the park by City Hall.

And it was FANTASTIC.

But that’s all ending tomorrow and it’s back to early writing mornings. I might go into shock when the alarm goes off at 5:00 am.

So while I’ve had a lover-ly time off I need to do a bit of updating:

Got some reviews of Lizzy Speare which you can find here and here and here and also here. Needless to say I’m pretty psyched about them.

Was invited over to Lady D for an interview and then over at Alli’s World where I talk about writing advice – not from me obviously but from people much smarter than me.

and finally, I got invited to do a reading at a camp upstate this summer filled with 11 year olds. AAAHHH! I can’t wait and if they don’t eat me alive I’ll have wonderful stories to tell. I’m reading from Lizzy and doing an art project. So strap on your thinking helmets and help me come up with some Shakespearean related art projects that I can do.

And Finally Finally Finally – I proofed the print copy of Lizzy and it’s good to go. That means that all you kids who don’t have an ereader but wanted to read it can do so soon. It should be up on Amazon in a couple of days. I’ll post again when it’s there for real. Again shout out to Sara Gable for the incredible book design. Wait till you see the back, kids. It’s all hand-lettered and gorgeous. I’m so lucky to have talented people to work with.

For now, that is all. Stay tuned for more Ally related madness soon.

How I Almost Sort of Saw Shakespeare’s Grave at Unconventional Librarian

So the very very cool Pam at Unconventional Librarian was nice enough to let me blather on over there about the time I went to Stratford Upon Avon and almost saw the Bard’s grave.

It’s a “funny” story – if by funny you mean heartbreaking and disappointing and wanting to punch out some old English chaps.

It was suggested by my better half that it would be worth the English criminal record to get closer to the final resting place of Shakespeare. As I was once kicked out of the country of Monaco (long story) why not add trespassing in Stratford to my list of European offenses?

I can’t help but wonder if I should have.

Anyway, many many many many thanks to Pam. And as you know when people do nice things we say thank you. With CANDY!

I present to Pam, my Starburst of Thanks.

Interview over at Mrs. Mommy Book Nerd

I’m over at Mrs. Mommy Book Nerd talking about Lizzy Speare and the Cursed Tomb. 

 If you could not be author, what would you do/be?

A. I would be a dinosaur.

That’s a true story. And since I know you’re dying to know, I would be a pterodactyl. Because the only thing cooler than being a dinosaur is being one that can fly.

So many thanks to Emily at Mrs. Mommy Book Nerd for letting me blather on like a fool. And when people do nice things like let us blather on like fools, we say thanks. With candy!

Oh and also – there’s still time to sign up to win a free print/ebook copy of Lizzy at I Am A Reader Not a Writer!

Never Buy a House at Orange Room Review

New Orleans, LA

Many thanks to the fine folks over at Orange Room Review for taking this poem, Never Buy a House.

Sage advice from my very sage, very cool mother.

Guest Post over at Working for the Mandroid

I’m over at Working for the Mandroid talking about why middle grade matters. I always find it strange when I hear about people who didn’t start reading until they were older – starting with either YA or assignment books or adult books. I feel bad – they missed out on one of the best times for reading.

Watching kids read middle grade at the library, how engrossed and absorbed they are reminds me of how powerful middle grade books are. At that moment they exist in a multiverse. One that is made up of the slow fade of library books shelves and the chatter of toddlers into the magic of Camazotz, standing before “It” knowing that the battle for Father and Charles Wallace is still far from over. Or the worlds that meld from the sixth grade lunch room into the halls of Hogwarts, the moving staircases and the knowledge that you’re a wizard. If that child keeps reading, and grows up into a reader it will happen for them again, sure, but never with the power that it did then when they were 10 years old.

It’s that awesome time when you truly believe that if you shut the book, the White Witch will win. Everything hinges on staying in the story.

We’re all Bastian. We’re all part of the Never Ending Story

And I’m a HUGE nerd.

Many thanks to Leslie at Working for the Mandroid (because the world needs more robots). She gets the Starburst of Thanks. They’re delicious AND fruit flavored, folks.

New York City Grocery Stores at The Blue Hour

Shopping in this city is a nightmare.

No joke.

It takes three stores to find the minimum of what you need.

Sometimes it takes three stores, a Bodega, a girl, her boyfriend and his friend with a stick.

Thanks to The Blue Hour for taking this desperate little poem, New York City Grocery Stores

 

Interview at I Am A Reader, Not A Writer.

I’m over at I Am A Reader, Not A Writer today talking about time travel, goals, what book I would live in and as a kid what I wanted to be when I grew up. Hint: It involves large extinct reptiles.

If you could travel in a Time Machine would you go back to the past or into the future?
Definitely the past. And yes, because I’m obsessed with Shakespeare I would go back to the 1500’s in England and risk getting the plague just to sit next to him in a pub.

Many thanks to Kathy for her awesome interview and Giveaway – one signed print edition and an ebook are up for grabs.

Also I hope all my fellow Bardolators got to see the awesomeness that was PBS Shakespeare Uncovered

As always, when people do nice things for us, we say thanks. With candy!

Guest Post at Consuming Worlds

So I’m over….er Jonathan Muse is over at Consuming Worlds talking about what it’s like to be a muse, what Shakespeare was really like and what that wretched Marlowe is up to.

Here’s a snippet:

 I know that you take being a muse very seriously, but have you ever wished to be recognized for the work that you help produce? It can’t be easy watching others get fame and fortune for what you created.

“…Can a great musician be jealous of his cello? Can a cello be jealous of the hands that play upon her? They need each other and without they are only one half of a potential beauty.”

Read the rest here.

And if you’d like to know what Danielle thought about the book Lizzy Speare and the Cursed Tomb go here.

Many thanks to Danielle at Consuming Worlds. We appreciate the invite. You know what comes next - my never-ending desire to express gratitude in the form of the best candy ever created –  The Starbursts of Thanks!