Friday 5 Questions at IRA!

Today I am very excited to be the guest at the International Reading Association's "Engage/Teacher to Teacher blog! We talk about reality TV, "Dark" YA, and a bunch of other stuff.

Here are the questions:

1. Your third YA novel, PEARL, came out last month. Tell us a little bit about the book. What was your inspiration?

2. JUMPING OFF SWINGS—your follow up to the critically acclaimed LESSONS FROM A DEAD GIRL—was recently named to IRA's 2011 Young Adult Choices list (one in a long line of honors the book has received). Considering the book's subject matter—accidental pregnancy—we have to ask: what do you make of pop culture's current treatment of so-called "teen moms"?

3. All three of your novels deal with serious issues that leave characters with no easy solutions. Why do you think it is important for young adults to be exposed to the reality of these situations, whether they have experienced them or not?

4. You've talked about writing the first drafts your novels in the "wrong" tense, scrapping them entirely, and starting from scratch. What have you learned from this?

5. In the not-so-distant past, you taught writing. Can you share a great ice breaker activity our teachers can use in the coming school year?

For the answers, you can go HERE

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Thanks for reading! :-)

Have a great weekend!