Sarvenaz Tash's Blog, page 21

Books I Love: Scarlet

Behold, my favorite book I've read so far this year:

Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen presupposes that Will Scarlet (a member of Robin Hood's band of Merry Men) is actually a girl posing as a boy. Scarlet knows her way around a knife. She also has a past full of secrets that she won't share with anyone -- not even the charismatic Rob. Unfortunately, when the cruel thief taker Lord Gisbourne goes bounty hunting for Robin and his men, it seems Scarlet's past is out to find her.

I'll be the first to tell y...

Mapmaker ARC Giveaways x 2 (Plus an Interview)!

Well, folks, as release date draws ever nearer, I think you're going to start seeing my mug/book in more places. Sorry about that.

But, hey, along with a brand new interview, there are now two separate contests where you can win The Mapmaker and the Ghost ARCs and signed swag.

And, guess, what...I myself have one ARC left that I'll be giving away starting on Sunday (to commemorate that we are officially one month out from publication...eek!).

You can check out Word Spelunking's ARC giveaway and...

Happy Persian New Year!

Today is the first day of spring. Which also means it's Persian New Year! *confetti*

Here are some quick, fun facts about Norooz.

1. Norooz literally means new day. It falls on the spring equinox every year which means that its exact date and time changes by a little every year. For example, this year, it was this morning at 1:14 AM EDT.

2. One of the traditional things to do at Norooz is set the table with certain symbolic things. These are known as the "Seven Ss"(Haft-seen). They symbolize thi...

On the Radio

This weekend I was a guest on my first-ever live radio show...and I had a great time!

Mostly because host Barry Eva has done almost 500 episodes of his A Book and a Chat show. He was such a great interviewer, had obviously done a ton of research and made me feel very much at ease. A big feat considering I was drawing a blank for days before as to how on earth I could fill an hour-long radio show with anything.

So, without further ado, here is the show where you can hear Barry and me chat about ...

Read the First Three Chapters of MAPMAKER...Right Now!

Why, hello again.

Are you unable to wait until April 24th to find out what this The Mapmaker and the Ghost book I've been endlessly discussing is all about?

Well, you're in luck because Bloomsbury has just put the first three chapters online for free! You can find it here. If you read it, please do let me know what you think!

In other news, the Bloomsbury Kids Facebook page has a new cover model that you can see here. I assure you Goldenrod is very, very humbled!

And to put it mildly, I'm having ...

My First Print Review!

The first print review of The Mapmaker and the Ghost is appearing in Library Media Connection magazine this month. Not only is this the first print review I've ever had, but it's especially important because LMC is targeted toward school librarians and whether or not books are good fits for their curriculum and collection.

So, without further ado, here is their review of The Mapmaker and the Ghost:

"Because her best friend and partner in exploration left her to survive upcoming middle school...

Confessions of a New Book Mommy

I was working from home yesterday when the mailman came and basically rendered me useless for the rest of the day (luckily, it was in the late afternoon).

Because...he brought with him an actual, genuine, hardcover copy of my final book.

Squeeeeeee!I knocked on it and everything. Yup, it's real.

Immediately, like the overprotective mother I am, I made it make friends.


True that it's cavorting with those above its station, but I figure it could pick up a few pointers.

Then I took some pictures of i...

The Voice Behind the Trailer: Rachel F. Hirsch (Or How I Learned That Being an Actress is Shockingly Similar to Being a Writer)

Today I'm so excited to spotlight the #1 reason I love my trailer: Miss Rachel F. Hirsch, the fantastic voice you hear in it.

Rachel is an actress who grew up in Alabama where she practically spent her whole life on a stage (she even got married on one!) before moving to the home of the Great White Way (that's New York City). Throughout our friendship, we have discovered that, even though Rachel wants to belt out songs on stage and I want to hide under my desk most of the time, being an actres...

Making the Trailer: Trial & Error

I won't lie: there were a lot of ups and downs when it came to making The Mapmaker and the Ghost trailer that debuted last week.

Originally, I thought I wasn't going to make a trailer. I really wanted a high production quality, live-action one and I knew I didn't have the resources for that. But about a month ago, thanks to the random creativity of the Internet, I was struck by an idea to try and do a stop-motion one. Stop-motion is a method wherein inanimate objects appear to move (think cla...

'The Mapmaker and the Ghost' Trailer!

It is here...I can finally share it!

So, without further ado...


I had a lot of fun making it and I'll do a series of posts next week on some of the trials and tribulations of that process!

In the meantime, you can read an exclusive interview with me over at Jen Bigheart's blog where I also reveal the voice behind the trailer.

Let me know what you think!