Melissa C. Walker's Blog, page 46

Photo Friday: Stoop Sales, Peach Cake and Goodbye, Erin!

Last weekend we had a goodbye party for my friend Erin, who's moving back to San Diego (hence the I heart NY shirt). There were lots of photos, and Erin captioned them. I think this one is the only one that's suitable for blog viewing: [image error] Then we had a stoop sale! This is Anne (as Santa with a foot bath) and Erin (with vase I finally got rid of!). Super fun, and we each made like $100. Not bad for clearing out old stuff! [image error] Finally, I made Peach Cake this week. I've been working hard at Seventeen , so...

If You Like Sarah Dessen...

How cool is it that the lovely and amazing Ms. Dessen recommended Violet on the Runway , officially, to readers? I feel like I just won a major award. Check out all these fantastic books by Gayle Forman, Elizabeth Scott, John Green, Laurie Halse Anderson and Susane Colasanti -- I've actually read all of these titles, and I can assure you that Sarah D. has good taste! (In books and TV and hometowns, naturally.)

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Happy Thursday!

Win-It Wednesday: Tell Me a Secret by Holly Cupala

The winner of last week's contest for Kaimira: The Sky Village is... Adrienne F! Send me your address, A. (And thanks to everyone who said hi!) This week, the lovely hardcover of Holly Cupala's Tell Me a Secret can be yours if you... tell me a secret. Come on, you saw that one coming. My secret is the first in this video of authors sharing secrets. So what's yours? I'll choose one commenter below to win this book!PS-We're discussing this book at readergirlz, and Holly is having a big trailer r...

Tell Me a Secret Trailer!

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The lovely Holly Cupala is the featured author at readergirlz this month. Go check out the discussions and Tell Me a Secret love!

The trailer for her book is a work of art in itself. Check it out, and share it for a shot at winning tons of prizes (info here).



(Kind of the best book trailer I've seen in a while!)

Happy Tuesday!

Cover Stories: Zen and Xander Undone by Amy Kathleen Ryan

[image error] Amy Kathleen Ryan's Zen and Xander Undone got a starred review in Kirkus (that's tough!). They said "...touching, urgent and involving. Zen's frank narration--full of longing and hard-won insight--draws readers in and won't let go." --Kirkus Reviews, starred. Cool! The book also has a dramatic Cover Story that involves a big bookstore. Here's Amy to tell it:"When I was writing Zen and Xander Undone (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt 2010), I had a very clear image in my mind of what I wanted the cove...

Authors Telling Secrets

Holly Cupala's Tell Me a Secret blog tour has been all over the map, and it's winding down this week with a huge Trailer Release Party (tomorrow!). Today, she invited some authors to share secrets with her in this totally fun video (my secret comes early!):



Happy Sunday!

Photo Friday: From Dave's Phone

I found a bunch of random pics on Dave's phone this week, so I thought I'd share:First, Katie asked for a kitten update. Winnie still hides a lot, but Swayze is always helping me write: [image error] Second, I did a reading at Books of Wonder and sat beside the amazing Cory Doctorow. He made little origami paper cranes as people read. Cute. [image error] Third, when we went to DC, Dave snapped this photo of me, trying to be all "red carpet pose" when I was at the Smithsonian gardens. Silly. [image error] Fourth, we also went to Innisfre...

Cover Stories: 6 at Unabashedly Bookish

Just a heads up on a few Cover Stories that have been published over at Unabashedly Bookish for Barnes and Noble. Overexposed by Susan Shapiro"Right before we went to press--crisis! Somebody decided the beloved spiky black film dress I'd xeroxed and shown everybody in the world was suddenly too edgy and creepy. They changed it to a typical little black dress I didn't like and added a cutesy wootsy pink sash on the white dress which made it look less like a wedding dress. I hated it!" Read...

Win-It Wednesday: Kaimira: The Sky Village by Monk and Nigel Ashland (signed!)

The winner of Radiance by Alyson Noel is... Alison! Thanks to all of you guys for the great playlist suggestions -- I am set for summer. Send me your address, A. [image error] This week, I'm giving away a signed copy of Kaimira: The Sky Village by Monk & Nigel Ashland (just Monk signed it when I met him at a conference). This is a gorgeous hardcover and what looks to be an epic novel. VOYA says, "With strong characters of both genders, terrifyingly unpredictable villains, frightening futuristic settings, an...

Cover Stories: Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey

[image error] Beth Fantaskey's covers look almost like they're underwater to me--they're shadowy and muted in an enticing way. I invited her to share the stories of her two novels, and here she is!"When I wrote Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side , I had no ideas for the cover. I couldn't even imagine selling a book to a publisher! But as we started discussing art, I got a very firm idea in mind. I really wanted to use an image from the first chapter, where the vampire prince, Lucius, stands in the ...