Epic Books in 2011

Happy 2011! We're now one year closer to the Apocalypse. If 2011 turns out to be an incredibly dull year, we always have the end-of-the-world to entertain us (for a little while, at least. then it just gets scary :O )

Now things I'm actually looking

forward to are.....

1.

Shiver and Linger were both stunning.... let's hope Forever lives up to them!

2.

One: the cover is jaw dropping

Two: the premise is equally jaw dropping

Three: debut author!

3.

Sequel to If I Stay, one of the most beautiful, moving, and heart breaking books I've ever read.

4.

Sequel to the Body Finder, which was one of the most refreshing paranormal books I've read in a really, really long time

5.

Another gorgeous cover and premise from a debut author!

6.

Third in the series, one of my fav fluffy summer reads!

7.

I have been waiting for this book FOREVER and it's nearly here... another debut author as well!

2011 looks like an epic year for YA books... what are you guys looking forward too?

Bad Blogger Award...

...goes to me.

I am SO sorry I've been absent for the past two months, but those two months have possibly been the craziest of my life. I increased my course load at school, I started crew and didn't get back home til 7:45 each night, so my blog had to take a backseat.

But I'm baack!

With the holiday break, I'm starting to catch up on my reading and the ARCs that lovely authors and publishers have continued to send me, even though I haven't been very consistent in my posts recently.

These books include:

So. Reviews will becoming for those soon, as well as a review for DELIRIUM by Lauren Oliver in January.

Stay tuned!

Most Popular Posts in the Existence of this Blog

Top 9 of my posts that have received a combo of the most page views, comments, blah blah you get the point. (Why 9 posts, not 10 may you ask? I was just in the mood.)

In not really an exact order:

1. Review of the DUFF by Kody Keplinger

2. Cover Comparison: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

3. Linger Blog Tour Part 2 and 3: Review//Interview

4. Review of Take Me There by Carolee Dean

5. Interview with Gayle Forman

6. Teaser Tuesday: My current WIP, Damaged

7. Review: A Matched Made in High School by Kristin Walker

8. Review: The Tension of Opposites by Kristina McBride

9. In My Mailbox (8)

Cover Comparison Thursday: Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Cover Comparison Thursday is a weekly meme hosted by me to showcase international covers of a certain book, and share opinions on each.

Thai

French

Italian

Polish

Spanish

Personally, I think all these covers are stunning. Kami and Margaret definitely lucked out. I would pick up each and every one of these off a book shelf, but I think my favorite would have to be the French, partially because it's the most simple, and I LOVE simple, dramatic covers.

What's your favorite?

Linger Blog Tour Part 2 and 3: Review//Interview//WINNER

And the WINNER of the LINGER giveaway is......

MY NAME IS PATRICIA!!

Please email me (blackdiamond508 AT aol DOT com) with your mailing address within the next 48 hours.

Thanks to everyone who participate in my first contest!

Part 2 and 3 of the Maggie Stiefvater's book, Linger, is an interview and review.

Here's the link to my review of Linger: http://bclement412.blogspot.com/2010/05/review-linger-by-maggie-stiefvater.html

And here is my interview with Maggie about Linger:

1. Why did you decide to have 4 alternating narrators in Linger?

Because two just wasn’t hard enough! No, actually, it was because I really wanted to have two characters to play off Sam and Grace and their relationship. In order to really dig into the angst back story, I had to get inside their heads.

2. Who is your favorite character from Linger, and why?

You can’t really pick favorite characters for the same reason you can’t pick favorite children: they’ll come and kill you in the night. But I have to say I really enjoyed writing Cole’s narrative arc. He changes really dramatically and that is fun and challenging for a writer.

3. What element(s) of Linger do you wish could be part of your own life?

The chicken parmesan Grace and Rachel made. Everything else would send me to therapy. Oh, well, I guess I’d like to hear Sam’s music from this book. I have a couple of tunes I’ve written for his songs, but I think they’d sound better if he sang them.

4. Do you ever dream about your characters/stories? If so, do those dreams ever become part of the actual book?

I dream about my characters and stories all the time. Dreams are often the genesis of my short stories and while I usually can’t use them exactly as they happen, they often have kernels of great stuff that I couldn’t think of while awake. I can always tell when I’m really deep into a rough draft because I’ll start dreaming scenes from the book. Yay, subconscious. I think a lot of authors take inspiration from their dreams.

5. When you were writing the Shiver, did you have an idea of what was to come in Linger?

Not at first, but as I dug deeper into Grace’s backstory, little pieces began to fall into place. I’m afraid I’m a rather loosy-goosy plotter -- I come up with final scenes and a few key scenes along the way and then I just go from there.

6. Can you share anything at all about the third and final book in the series, Forever?

No. But nice try :)

Cover Comparison Thursday: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak /// plus a brief blogging vacation

Cover Comparison Thursday is a weekly meme hosted by me to showcase international covers of a certain book, and share opinions on each.

<-- US Version

This cover is both simple and intriguing at the same time. I love the dominoes, and the eerie font. I would definitely pick this book up.

Score: 8/10

UK version 1 -->

This cover is pretty boring. I'm all for simplicity, but not for simple covers looking like they're geared towards 90 year olds

Score: 4/10

<-- UK version 2

In my opinion, this cover isn't really eye-catching. It's a little dull and not the least bit interesting. At least it has more color than the other UK version

Score: 5/10

Japanese version -->

While I'm happy not to see this cover looking as though it belongs on a comic book, I do not like the color scheme. The browns against the orange background remind me of a rotting pumpkin, or dog barf.

Score: 3/10

For me, the US version is an overwhelming favorite. If you participate this week, leave the link in the comments and I'll be sure to stop by your blog.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now, for part 2 of this post. I'm going to take a blogging vacation. My summer is getting hectic with babysitting, friends, golf, rowing, vacations, etc, and I'm afraid to say I'm going to have to put the blog in the backseat for a bit. Cover Comparison Thursdays will continue, even if I'm not able to post one of the weeks, and I will still comment on others comparisons.

A note to publishers/authors: I will continue reading and reviewing the ARCs you have sent, and the reviews WILL be posted. It just might take a bit longer than usual.

Versatile Blogger Award

i was lucky enough to receive this lovely award from three even lovelier ladies: -k at the lovely critic's blog and cara at from my head reviews and bri at words and the world!

1) thank and link back to the person who gave you this award

2) share seven things about yourself

3) pass this along to fifteen bloggers... well i'm narrowing it down to five bloggers because there are a certain five blogs i especially want to put in the spotlight.

so without further ado, seven facts about myself:

1. i am really easy to get on a sugar high. donuts are the most dangerous for me-- when i get up at 4am for horse shows i always stop at krispy kreme and chow down on the sugary, flaky, doughy goodness, and within minutes i'm a giggly, hysterical mess.

2. cloudy/rainy days are my favorite kind of days. i can just curl up on the couch with a good book and a cozy blanket and read for hours.

3. i have insomnia. it started with my concussion. i went from being the deepest sleeper in my family (thunderstorms had no impact on my semi-coma) to about three hours of sleep. i have constant exhaustion, but still can't sleep. c'est la vie.

4. when i do sleep, i have the strangest dreams. seriously, they're insane. last night i had one i was pregnant and the hormones caused by the pregnancy caused me to scream at this girl i absolute hate in front of the entire school. by the way i'm 15, which makes the pregnancy even stranger.

5. i am guilty of being a knuckle-cracker. awful, unattractive habit. but it feels good on my joints.

6. my dream car is a small, light blue pick up truck. or a red truck. either/or.

7. at this very moment i am simultaneously watching so you think you can dance from wednesday night. billy just preformed.

i pass this award along to:

1. erinjade @ butters last meal

2. bee @ dreamcatchers lair

3. nomes @ inkcrush

4. rachele alpine @ frecklehead

5. meera @ meeroar

Blog Button

Soooo I finally figured out how to make a blog button. I would love love love it if someone used the code below to post it on the sidebar of their blog (and I'd post your button on my blog) but it's not necessary!

" />" />"/> <center><a href="http://s777.photobucket.com/albums/yy55/bclement412/?action=view&current=book-Jeannette-Woitzik_thumb-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i777.photobucket.com/albums/yy55/bclement412/book-Jeannette-Woitzik_thumb-1.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket" /></a>" />"/></center>

Two Awards

Today is a good day. Why? Because I received my very first award, from Jon Paul over at Where Sky Meets Ground blog.






So I think I'm supposed say ten things that brighten my day:


1. Writing! One of those amazing days where you just crank out pages and pages of pure awesomeness.

2. Ben & Jerry's Coffee Heath Bar Crunch ice cream. Heaven. On. Earth.

3. Snow days. Who doesn't love not having school?

4. My horse, Willie, and my three labradors, Squire, Esa, and Bodie. Because they're hilarious. And adorable. And one of the sweetest little thing you'll ever see.

5. Homemade chocolate chip cookies. When someone else makes them, because I am such a lousy cook that everything I bake turns out to be a huge pile of nastiness.

6. Comments. Comments are FUN to read. And FUN to give. Just sayin ;)

7. The Olympics. I have practically been glued to the Winter Games this year.

8. When USA or one of those small countries that only has one athlete wins a medal at the Olympics.

9. Going to the movies with my friends, and getting on an extreme sugar high from the overpriced movie theater candy.

10. Reading a good book that is impossible to put down.


Now I will pass on this award to only 3 people, because shortly I will be giving more people with a different award:

1. M.J. over at The Musings of A Teenage Oxymoron

2. Kyrie at Tea and Biscuits

3. Mikey at Room to Improve





Award number two, thanks to Shadow Bee at the Dreamcatcher's Lair






I am passing this award along to these awesome peeps, because some of them are new bloggers, some are old bloggers, but all of them are pure awesome bloggers.


1. Tilt at Infinite Butterflies

2. Alex at Writers Cove

3. Mae at Maenad Writes

4. Horserider at Writers Chasm

5. Dystophil at Fabrica Scribendi

Interview with Kristina McBride

Happy Wednesday! Here's an interview with YA author Kristina McBride, whose debut novel The Tension Of Opposites comes out May 25th, 2010.


Summary:

Up / Down
Hot / Cold
Free / Noelle


It’s been two years since Noelle disappeared. Two years since her bike was discovered, sprawled on a sidewalk. Two years of silence, of worry, of fear.

For those two long years, her best friend Tessa has waited, living her own life in a state of suspended animation. Because how can she allow herself to enjoy a normal high school life if Noelle can’t? How dare she have other friends, go to dances, date boys, without knowing what happened to the girl she thought she would share everything with?

And then one day, someone calls Noelle’s house. She’s alive.

A haunting psychological thriller taken straight from the headlines, The Tension of Opposites is a striking debut that explores the emotional aftermath of a kidnapping on the victim, and on the people she left behind.


Interview:

Q: What was your querying process like?

A: Crazy long and painful. I’ll make it quick. Manuscript 1: Over 100 rejections – only one partial requested (Um, what was I thinking?). No offers for representation in 2006. Manuscript 2: roughly 50 rejections – 5 partials & 2 fulls requested. No offers for representation in 2007. Manuscript 3 – From my first batch of 20 queries, I had roughly 10 requests for partials and fulls. I was pleased and excited to accept representation from Alyssa Eisner Henkin with Trident Media Group in May of 2008.


Q: On your website, it says you were nearly kidnapped. Can you tell us about that? How much did that influence The Tension of Opposites? What else sparked the idea for The Tension of Opposites?

A: One day when I was very young, my mother and I returned home to find a man in our garage. He took her inside, leaving me in the car in the driveway, and while he ransacked our house, he lost the keys to the stolen car he had parked in our garage. He put all the stolen items in the car I was still sitting in, and almost drove away with me. So, “kidnapping” is a strong term since he wasn’t after me, specifically, but he would have taken me if my mother hadn’t pleaded with him. Because of that day, that story from my childhood, I have always feared being kidnapped. Which is why I was so drawn to the story of a young man who Oprah interviewed several years ago. He had recently been returned to his family after spending four years with his kidnapper. I was captivated, and soon after watching that show, Tessa started speaking to me.


Q: Many of us aspiring authors have dreamed about the Call, for both the offer of representation and the book deal. What was yours like?

A: The Call when I was offered representation was very professional and businesslike. I was terrible nervous! But it was good! Very, very good! I connected with Alyssa immediately and knew she would be perfect to help me launch my career.

The Call when I learned of my first offer was much different. It was a horribly hot summer day, and I had just returned from a family trip to the pool. When the phone rang, I didn’t even hear it. Why? I was in the bathroom scrubbing two sticky children, who were screaming and writhing like I was giving them a bath in acid. It wasn’t until later that I saw the blinking light on the answering machine.

“Great,” I thought. “What next?”

All I wanted was to sit back and relax, but I hit the play button. When I heard the voice of my agent, I knew it would be something big because she had NEVER called me without scheduling. I shrieked with delight and ran to tell my husband the good news. We celebrated later by taking the kids out for ice cream. Which made them sticky all over again. But I didn’t care one bit!


Q: Are any of your characters based off people you know?

A: While there are little traits in my characters that you might find in my friends (my BFF in high school always wanted a yellow Jeep) or family (my Grandpa Lou loved taking photographs and owned an old-school Nikon), none of the characters are based on anyone in particular.


Q: Can you tell us about the extensive revisions you made with your agent, Alyssa Eisner Henkin? Was there ever a time you felt like giving up?

A: Oh, dear. I worked on revisions with Alyssa for nearly a year. I knew I was in for it from our very first call when she warned me that my manuscript needed a “major overhaul”, and greatly appreciate her patience and guidance. That said, it was HARD. I allowed myself specific evenings to wallow in self-pity and eats loads of chocolate, but I never once felt like giving up. To be painfully specific, I submitted four drafts, changed the title three times, and six months into revisions, dropped everything but five chapters to basically start over. Ouch. That hurts to admit ☺


Q: Does music help you write? Do you have a special playlist for The Tension of Opposites?

A: Music (or any background noise) throws me off when I’m writing. I prefer complete silence, which is rare in my house. If I had to pick one song that comes to mind when I think of my novel, I’d say it’s Don’t Follow by Alice in Chains. It’s Noelle’s song, all the way.


Q: What are you working on now?

A: The second book in my two-book deal with Egmont USA. That’s all I can say for now.


Q: What some of your favorite YA books you’ve read recently?

A: I was fortunate enough to get my hands on an ARC of Three Rivers Rising by Jame Richards http://www.jamerichards.com/Books.html Amazing.


Q: Why write for young adults? Is it the audience you always planned on writing for?

A: My first manuscript was an adult suspense/thriller. It obviously didn’t go over too well (see my query issues above). Two of the main characters in that manuscript were teens, and after completing it, I realized that the scenes with them flowed better than any of the other scenes, and the dialogue seemed to come to me without much effort. They were the most fun to write, and to read and revise. I was a high school English teacher for eight years, and I really connect with the young adult age group. Basically, I just think it’s fun to read and write about teens. Teens face so many struggles, and it’s interesting to play around with plotlines that surround those types of issues.


Links:

Website: http://www.kristinamcbride.com

Blog: http://kristinamcbride.livejournal.com/

Twitter: http://twitter.com/McBrideKristina

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6889070-the-tension-of-opposites

Valentine's Day

Happy Valentines Day everyone! Last night, at 3:30 AM, I was lying in bed, staring at the ceiling, and thinking about this post. (Yay for insomnia!) And I was thinking about what I wanted to put in it. At first, the listing obvious cutest YA couples came to mind, but then I thought, "No. I want to make this post about love in my life." So I am here to share the loves of my life:


1. Books.

I don't think "love" is a big enough word to sum up how I feel about books. I've been reading them since... well, forever. I read Harry Potter-- and understood everything but the "snogging"-- in first grade. Books and reading have always come naturally to me. I know I'm too young to be thinking about my funeral, but my ideal place to be buried would be in Barnes and Noble, because THAT PLACE IS AWESOME. It houses my first love, so to me, it's a sacred place.


2. Music.

Ah. I can't really say how many times I've relied on music, either to get me through a hard time in life or to help crank out a scene for my WIP. Sure, I am musically challenged, can't sing a note, play an instrument, or read sheet music, but I can still appreciate and love music.


3. My Dogs

These 3 little labs don't have a mean bone in their body. They snuggly heaps of flub and fuzz, and they are as loyal as can be. Just look at their faces-- how can you not love them?



4. My Horse

Another sweetheart who has always been there when I needed someone. He seems to understand things, sometimes better than I do. And look, I taught him how to give hugs!



5. The Twifties

Seriously, you guys are amazing. The first people I've ever known that understand my love for writing. Shout out to: Glo, Ink, Kyrie, Arya, Shady, Zoom, Choco, Kody, GeekPride, Hap, Phantom, Elusive, Rachel, KC, Static, Kidd, Because, Forest, Jade, Proof, Cash, Midnight, Sarahbear, Snow, Mae, HorseRider, Elysium, Para, Margo, Peachie, Hap, Tilt, Sumayyah, Ciera, Becky, Alex, BookGirl, Dystophil, Deltay, BW, Maddi

I know I forgot someone. Sorry in advance to that person ;)


----

There are more things in life I love, like family and friends (duh) but those don't need explaining. Have a great Valentine's Day! You don't need a boyfriend/girlfriend/wife/husband/etc to enjoy it.


On a parting note: Does Taylor Swift know how Romeo and Juliet ends?

Link to Madeline-Rose's Interview with Me!

Hey guys! The fabulous Madeline-Rose has posted an interview with me at her blog.

My first interview!

Squee!