rgz press release: Melissa Walker Returns to rgz!

For more information contact:
Sara Easterly, Publicist for readergirlz
Sara Easterly & Friends
sara@saraeasterly.com
206-632-8588


MELISSA WALKER RETURNS TO READERGIRLZ
The author of August’s featured novel returns… this time, as a rgz diva.


October 31, 2008 (Seattle, Wash.) – readergirlz (rgz) proudly welcomes Melissa Walker as its newest diva. Melissa, whose novel Violet in Private was featured in the rgz forum in August, was all the rage with participating teen readers. Now Melissa’s countless fans and readergirlz everywhere will hear more from the author as she officially joins rgz with a focus on blogging.

Melissa is the author of the popular and award-winning Violet series (Violet on the Runway, Violet by Design, and Violet in Private) about an unlikely supermodel navigating the ups and downs of the fashion world. Violet on the Runway was a New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age, and was hailed by National Public Radio as a book for teens who hate to read. Her next book, Lovestruck Summer, comes out in May 2009.

“Melissa’s an author we’ve all had a lot of admiration for,” said Dia Calhoun, co-founder of readergirlz, “so it’s a huge thrill for us to have her as part of the team, helping to connect girls to books and the world with technology.”

Melissa lives in Brooklyn and has a BA in English from Vassar College. She has worked as ELLEgirl Features Editor and Seventeen Prom Editor. Visit her blog at www.melissacwalker.com.

About readergirlz
readergirlz is the foremost online book community for teen girls, led by six critically acclaimed YA authors—Dia Calhoun (Avielle of Rhia), Holly Cupala (A Light That Never Goes Out) Lorie Ann Grover (On Pointe), Justina Chen Headley (Girl Overboard), Mitali Perkins (First Daughter: White House Rules), and Melissa Walker (the Violet series). readergirlz is the recipient of a 2007 James Patterson PageTurner Award.

To promote teen literacy and leadership in girls, readergirlz features a different YA novel and corresponding community service project every month. For more information about readergirlz, please visit www.readergirlz.com and www.myspace.com/readergirlz, or contact divas@readergirlz.com.

2008 readergirlz