Holly Cupala's Blog, page 11

A Novel Gift! Readergirlz and First Book to donate 125,000 books!

BREAKING NEWS! First Book is giving away more than 125,000 brand-new books to low-income teen readers.

They're great books, too, donated by generous publishers. Among the three dozen choices are P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast's HOUSE OF NIGHT series and Alyson Noël's SHADOWLAND.

We need your help getting the word out about the A Novel Gift campaign. Right now! Right now! As in, now!

Let's get organizations serving these teens registered with First Book so they can be matched with inventory during the holidays.

Here's what we need you to do:

Post to Facebook and tweet your beak off about these books using the hashtag #novelgift.

Here's a tinyurl link to their registration page: http://tinyurl.com/2a5mwpj.

Or you can link to this blog post: http://readergirlz.blogspot.com/2010/11/novel-gift-over-125000-free-books-to.html

Then, get in touch with every group you can think of that works with young adults–schools, after-school programs, church youth groups, community centers, etc.—and let them know that these books are available now.

The five-minute online registration these groups can use is here:
http://booksforkids.firstbook.org/register/.

First Book is also eager to answer questions, either by email to help@firstbook.org, or by phone at 866-READ-NOW or 866-732-3669.

If you participate, drop us a note at readergirlz@gmail.com to be included in our blog roll of thanks to run December 31.

Be a part of A Novel Gift! OK, go! And thanks, sincerely, from First Book and the readergirlz teams.

YA Bloggers Want...A True Love Story: The Mod Podge Bookshelf

It's kind of amazing, but we're at the final posting for What YA Bloggers Want...thanks to everyone who contributed and followed along on this lovely YA journey!

Our final post today comes from Gabrielle Carolina from The Mod Podge Bookshelf. Her wishes are simple: a true love story.

Welcome, Gabrielle Carolina!

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What Do YA Bloggers Want? A true love story.

I know that this is a subject most readers have a vested opinion in. Some believe true love can't happen when the characters are only in high school. Some argue that the paranormal genre is the only place to find high enough stakes to make passion believable. Some don't believe in love at all.

No matter how you feel about love, a book should fulfill all the desires of the heart. That is why I want to read a True Love story. When I read a majority of YA books I have this thought, "If the author continued on about 100 pages or so, we would witness the couples break-up."

I believe in true-love and in soulmates and I believe you have to fight for it, no matter the genre.
These are the books I love, that feature couples who love each other like no other could:

If You Come Softly by Jacqueline Woodson
Enthusiasm by Polly Shulman
The Sky Is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson
Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles
Firelight by Sophie Jordan
The Clearing by Heather Davis
Delirium by Lauren Oliver


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In the immortal (and slightly paraphrased) words of the Dread Pirate Roberts: "Do you think true love happens every day?" Ok, that's completely out of context, but what do you think, readers? Do you long for YA books with true love? What makes it ring true?

Today's post is the last chance to win the grand prize--comment until Friday, and I'll announce the winner next week! Here's the prize video (note that some titles are no longer available):

Tell Me a Secret event at Teen Book Scene!

Kari at Teen Book Scene emailed me out of the blue about organizing a Tell Me a Secret event, and wow, was she not kidding!

She and other amazing book bloggers have put together an incredible tour, including character interviews, secret scenes, crazy videos, and cool handmade prizes and books. (Thank you, Kari!)

Today, Mrs. DeRaps is interviewing a character, and giving away a set of handmade Tell Me a Secret magnets (made by me!). Here's a shot of them:

Wait until you see some of the other giveaways. (Hint: I have paint and glue and paper scraps all over me now...)

Here is the full event listing:

Monday, November 29:
Hattie at DeRaps Read (Character Interview: Nik)
Tuesday, November 30:
Katryna at Books Are Dreams (Book Post: Holly's Favorites)
Wednesday, December 1:
Jessica at Total Bookaholic (Character Interview: Miranda)
Thursday, December 2:
Eleni at La Femme Readers (Audio Book Excerpt/Feature)
Friday, December 3:
Brandi at Blkosiner's Book Blog (Character Interview: Rand's Mom)
Saturday, December 4:
Courtney at Stiletto Story Time (Review)
Sunday, December 5:
Kari at A Good Addiction (Book Post: Rand's Favorites)

Monday, December 6:
Kate at I Just Wanna Sit Here and Read (Character Interview: Kamran)
Tuesday, December 7:
Enna at Squeaky Books (Book Trailer Guest Post)
Wednesday, December 8:
Danielle at There's A Book (Character Interview: Rand's Dad)
Thursday, December 9: Sandy at Pirate Penguin Reads (Book Post: Xanda's Favorites)
Friday, December 10:
Sarah at Sarah's Random Musings (Character Interview: Delaney)
Saturday, December 11:
Corrine at Lost for Words (Review)
Sunday, December 12:
Angela at Reading Angel (Secret Scene)
Thanks so much to all of you! Readers, I hope you'll check it out and enter to win some cool TMAS prizes, some of them handmade by me!

Ya Bloggers Want...Books that Connect Readers: Miss Erin

***Quick Update: the Tell Me a Secret event at Teen Book Scene starts today! Character interviews, cool handmade prizes, and more!***
Today's guest, Miss Erin, is a subject all her own: a dancer, an artist, a singer, an actor, a writer, a poet, a reader, a dreamer. I admire her for every one of these things and fully expect to one day see her face in a film (
Welcome, Miss Erin, to What YA Bloggers Want!

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I once read something an author (I'm forgetting who, specifically) said, that books are never fully realized until they land in the hands of a reader. And I think it's true: a writer can pen beautiful words and fascinating stories, but it's not until the mind of a reader enters the equation that they come alive, that the real magic happens, that it becomes something new and all its own. And no one reader ever has the same experience with the same book, which is even more magical! One book can let a kid living in a small town know they're not alone, or open someone's mind to a point of view they might have never even considered. Books can create empathy, plant ideas in minds, open eyes, heal, change, inspire. Books, or simply words, for that matter--and the ability to connect--are some of the most amazing gifts we humans have. And the unfathomable impact words can have will never cease to astound me.




A (very) few of my favorite YA books:
The Pigman by Paul Zindel
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
The Year of Secret Assignments by Jaclyn Moriarty
Story of a Girl by Sara Zarr
Looking for Alaska by John Green

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Thank you, Miss Erin! I'm happy to be in a world connected to you.

Readers, do you look for connections in YA books? In the characters? In the YA lit community? What do you think is special about YA books that brings people together?

It's not too late to comment on What YA Bloggers Want series to enter the grand prize drawing this week! (US only, sorry!) We have one more post tomorrow, and then books, books, books!

Q&A: What would you like to know?

I'm thinking of doing a little Q&A series on the blog, about writing, Tell Me a Secret, publishing, the next book (Don't Breathe a Word), etc. What would you like to know?

Put your questions in the comments and I will try to blog about them in December! Thanks!

Story Secrets: ENCHANTED IVY by Sarah Beth Durst + Giveaway!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

I'm very happy to be hosting Sarah Beth Durst to hail the arrival of her fourth amazing YA fantasy novel, ENCHANTED IVY (and you may remember that she was my very first Story Secrets post last January for ICE).

Sarah Beth and I go way back...all the way back to the SCBWI Conference in New York the year before I signed with my agent and sold Tell Me a Secret. She had just come out with her first book, Into the Wild, and I was almost finished writing the first draft of mine. It didn't take long to become fast friends!

Sarah Beth, welcome back to Story Secrets!

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Enchanted Ivy is about getting into college. You know, taking the campus tour, talking to the gargoyles, flirting with the were-tigers, riding the dragons... Essentially, it's about magic at Princeton. (read a first chapter excerpt here)

Holly Cupala: Hi, Sarah Beth! Tell us about Enchanted Ivy.

Sarah Beth Durst: Junior and senior year of high school, I was absolutely obsessed with the whole college application process. I saw college as this huge Life Turning Point (with all capital letters) that would determine the shape of the Rest of My Life, and I was desperate to do everything "right," i.e. choose the right school, write the right essay, etc.

Of course, after all of my neurotic obsessing, I choose my college because I liked the trees and wrote my essay about the trials and tribulations of having curly hair... Regardless, this novel grew out of that overwhelming pre-college experience.


Holly: You've written four gorgeous fantasies now. Any surprise discoveries for this one?

Sarah Beth: Midway through the first draft, I discovered that the novel is, at its heart, a mystery. It's all about unlocking the secrets of Lily's family, the Princeton campus, and the nature of the world.

I love those in-progress kinds of discoveries. You know, the theme that springs out of your subconscious, the minor character that develops into a fascinating fictional friend...


Holly: Now for the fun question...did you travel for research?

Sarah Beth: I went back to my alma mater.

When I started this novel, I didn't think I'd need to research Princeton since I'd lived there for four years, but it turns out that you see a place very differently when you look through a character's eyes. I visited the campus twice while writing the novel and walked every step my character did. In doing so, I discovered all these fabulous, bizarre gargoyles that I never knew existed, like an ape in graduation ropes and a dragon chained an archway -- and they ended up becoming characters in the book!


Holly: What authors would you recommend for new fantasy readers?

Sarah Beth: I'm inspired by the books that I love, such as those by Tamora Pierce, Diana Wynne Jones, Guy Gavriel Kay, Charles de Lint, etc.


Holly: Would you tell us about your writing process?

Sarah Beth: Enchanted Ivy took about a year and 15 drafts. I have been known to write as many as 36 drafts, but this novel really stayed true to my original concept throughout (with the exception of one character who refused to obey my outline -- so I had to put him in a coma).

My process is to address just a few issues with each draft. For instance, in one pass, I might focus on the character's emotions. In another, I might fix the pacing. In another, I'll look at the descriptions. I find that with each pass, I learn more about the story and am able to deepen and layer it on a global level while I fiddle with details at a local level.


Holly: Have your life experiences helped you get to the heart of your story?

Sarah Beth: I often joke that this novel is 100% autobiographical, except for the were-tigers and the dragons and the talking gargoyles... Really, though, Lily isn't me, and her family life is very different from mine. But at its heart, I believe that Enchanted Ivy is emotionally true. I tried very hard to tap into that pre-college experience and all the emotions -- the anxiety and the exhilaration -- that I felt at that time.


Holly: Any secrets you're willing to share?

Sarah Beth: I can share what I believe is the secret to being a writer: sheer pig-headed stubbornness. Seriously, I believe that the most important trait for a writer to possess isn't talent or intelligence or a sense of humor or any of that. It's persistence. Don't give up on your story, and don't give up on yourself.


Holly: What's up next?

Sarah Beth: My next book is about a vampire girl who develops a conscience after she is stabbed through the heart by a unicorn's horn. It's called Drink, Slay, Love, and it will be out fall 2011 from Simon & Schuster. It was incredibly fun to write, and I'm so, so, so excited about it!

Thanks so much for interviewing me!

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That's hilarious. Thank you for stopping by, Sarah Beth!

Ok, readers, so now it's time for...THE GIVEAWAY.

Leave a comment below on one of the following: a) why you're dying to read ENCHANTED IVY; b) the kind of story you might write about a magical college campus, or c) if you were to write a fantasy whose title parodied a well-known book, what would you call it? (big points for creativity!) You have until midnight on Monday to post.

Lastly, check out the ENCHANTED IVY trailer:

What YA Bloggers Want...Five Things: Sarah's Random Musings

I'm very pleased to welcome Sarah of Sarah's Random Musings today to tell us what she wants to see in YA. Sarah is not only a prolific blogger and reader, but she is also an aspiring writer. Stop by her blog and give her a cheer!

Sarah lives just over the Puget Sound from me, so I've gotten to see her on many lovely occasions (including the TMAS party!). If you ever wonder if she is as bright and creative and lovely as her blog, I can guarantee you she is.

Welcome, Sarah!

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I had dinner with a few YA authors and we got talking about what we would love to see in YA and that really got me thinking, here are a few things that I would love to see:

1. More Older YA. I am nineteen and applying to college. There are only a handful of books that I can think of that have MCs that seriously want to college or are about after high school. Catalyst by Laurie Halse Anderson, If I Stay by Gayle Forman, Hate List by Jennifer Brown, and Tell Me A Secret by Holly Cupala are some of the books that I can think of.

2. Mysteries. I love a good Mystery, like All Unquiet Things by Anna Jarzab and The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting. Dani Noir by Nova Ren Suma is more middle grade, but a great example. Make something that is Veronica Mars-ish. Also Spies are kick ass too.

3. Time Travel. I can't really think of any YA books that have time travel, but as a Doctor Who fan, I want to see something like this. Spaceships wouldn't be bad either.

4. Sick books! Okay, they are sad and depressing, but they are amazing! Before I Die by Jenny Downham and Forever Changes by Brendan Haplin.

5. Unicorns... and Zombies. I love Unicorns and I will admit that I enjoy zombies sometimes. I would love to see some originality like Diana Peterfreud and Carrie Ryan's book. And there is no such thing as too many unicorn books. My friend Khy, also did a post about this.
So what do you want to see in books?

*****

Thanks, Sarah!

Readers, what are your five things? What do you think of Sarah's? And...the all-important question...Zombies or Unicorns?

Comment for a chance to win book prizes! Big book drop finale next week! (US residences only...sorry!)

(And by the way, this What YA Bloggers Want series is in honor of YALSA's Teen Read Week and National Book Month!).

YA Bloggers Want...Everything that makes YA unique: Lesley Says

Welcome to Lesley of Lesley Says today for What YA Bloggers Want. Lesley has been a faithful reader here, and I really appreciate her dedication to books and readers.

I think what Leslie wants most is for adult readers to discover the wonders of YA. We do, don't we? I hope more adults discover these books, written from the heart and soul.

Give it up for Lesley!

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Perhaps the #1 misconception about Young Adults books is that they are meant for young adults. I know. I was guilty of it. When I was younger, I was happy to head for the YA section in my library but when I got older and was still doing that, I wondered if something was wrong with me.

I began experimenting with more "grown up" books but something was missing - the gorgeous world building, the fragile coming of age characters, the stimulating ideas that could only come from trying to make sense out of a larger, broader world. And like the prodigal daughter, I found myself gravitating towards YA again. I'm glad I did or I would have missed out on Hunger Games, Shiver and Before I Fall. I've now staked my corner in the YA section and made myself comfortable because I plan to be there for a long time.

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Thank you, Lesley!

Readers, have you been like the prodigal daughter , straying to another genre of books and back again to YA? What do you think YA has that other genres don't?

Comment for a chance to win this week's book prizes, plus a chance to win the big prize next week! (US only)

Oooh, an update.

I've been doing some housekeeping around the blog and website...here's what's updated:

My FAQ (with actual Tell Me a Secret Frequently Asked Questions!)
My HarperTeen Site (with new events, pics, and links!)
New! TMAS Discussion Questions, just in case you want to...you know, discuss.

Plus I just added a bunch of goodies to my calendar, at right. Including a TMAS party in Kirkland, WA on December 4th!!!

Fresh info is coming soon about the Tell Me a Secret audiobook: we're already at Chapter 28 on the FREE(!) serialized podcast. Haven't downloaded it yet? Check it out now! (Full version available soon...)



***Sooooooo....I have a question for all of you readers. What would you like to know? About the writing process, about Tell Me a Secret, about publishing, about the next book (Don't Breathe a Word, coming Fall 2011!)? About anything?

Post your questions in the comments below, and I will try to blog about them throughout December! Thank you!

Story Secrets: THE MOCKINGBIRDS by Daisy Whitney + giveaway!

Ok, so this is without a doubt one of the hottest reads this fall - welcome to fellow 2010 debut author Daisy Whitney, who is here to chat about THE MOCKINGBIRDS!

I haven't met Daisy in person, but she was part of the TELL ME A SECRET blog tour. We did this crazy fun blog interview together:

Welcome, Daisy!

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THE MOCKINGBIRDS is about an underground, student-run secret society at a prestigious boarding school and a case they try involving date rape.

Holly Cupala: your book weaves intriguing threads while tackling a very serious topic. How did your ideas come together? Daisy Whitney: I've always been intrigued by boarding school and also by the potential teens have to take a stand for what's important. THE MOCKINGBIRDS - an underground student-run justice system - was born from those twin thoughts as a way to look at what it takes to stand up for yourself and for others.

I remember two distinct moments when the story clicked into place. First, I read Courtney Summers' Cracked Up To Be in August 2008 and was blown away. Her novel remains one of my favorites ever and opened my eyes to all that YA could be. Then a few weeks after reading it, I had an "aha" moment about what I wanted to write in the genre. I called my writer friend Suzanne Young of The Naughty List and brainstormed with her for an hour, put a pot of green tea on the stove and at 10 p.m. on Sept. 7, 2008, I started writing the first chapter of the book that would become THE MOCKINGBIRDS.


Holly: I love Suzanne! Courtney's writing is amazing. (In fact we did Story Secrets interviews with Suzanne here and here, and have an upcoming one with Courtney...) So Daisy, do you talk with anyone about your ideas as you are writing, or do you keep them top secret?
Daisy: Besides my agent and my editor, I talk regularly with Courtney Summers, Amanda Morgan, Suzanne Young, C.J. Omololu and my husband.


Holly: We love to hear the story behind stories. So what is the real story behind the novel? Any secrets you might be willing to share?
Daisy: I chose to write date rape because I know the topic well. I was date raped my freshman year of college. It's twenty years later and I am very much healed, but the experience is still a profound one. I successfully pressed charges in my university's disciplinary system and that experience of standing up and speaking out contributed greatly to my own ability to move forward. But speaking out is very challenging and that's why I wanted to show that speaking up for yourself can occur in many different ways. According to RAINN (Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network), 1 in 6 women will be a victim of sexual assault during her lifetime and girls ages 16-19 are 4 times more likely than the general population to be victims of rape, attempted rape, or sexual assault. Also, half of the reported date rapes occur among teenagers, according to the California Coalition Against Sexual Assault. BUT, while adults want to believe a teen would come to them for help, teens are more likely to turn to a peer. According to a study conducted by The Northern Westchester Shelter, with Pace Women's Justice Center, about 83% of 10th graders said they would sooner turn to a friend for help with dating abuse than a teacher, counselor, parent or other caring adult.
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Thank you, Daisy, for writing on such a difficult topic and giving girls who have experienced date rape a voice. The subject has personally touched my life, and I'm sure it has for many others.
AND NOW THE GIVEAWAY:
You want to win an advance copy of THE MOCKINGBIRDS! I want to give one away! So all you have to do to be entered (US addresses only) is to comment on one of the following: a) why you're dying to read this book, b) if you think students have the power to effect change in meaningful ways, or c) what kind of advice you might give to a friend who has been date raped. I personally believe there is much power in friendship, and wish all of you close friends in which you can trust.
Here's a fun video of Daisy talking to Chicago-area teens about THE MOCKINGBIRDS: