Congratulations, Siobhan Vivian!

We give a celebratory shout out to Siobhan Vivian and her love Nick! As she said, "We got hitched!" This is the BEST wedding video ever. Take a look.

 Congratulations, Siobhan! We heart you!

Rock the Drop: Photo Op!

So, I just Rocked the Drop! I dropped Ellen, Maureen, Siobhan, and Samantha. They are all awaiting to be found and loved at Pierce College.

It's hard for me to drop! Does that happen to anyone else? I have to use an accomplice. Is it because I am shy? It was easier to drop books I didn't author, I noticed.

Another year, another drop. Cheers!

Not That Kind of Girl: Passing Judgment

Siobhan Vivian's Not That Kind of Girl is our featured title this week, and in her guest post on Monday, she wrote the following:

"One thing I really wanted to impress upon my readers is that making a 'mistake' doesn’t mean that you are a bad person and are not deserving of respect. I think we, as a culture, are so quick to judge. We expect girls to be perfect, to never make mistakes, to always be smart and rational and make the right decisions. I’m sorry, but that’s just not possible!"

Have you ever been quick to judge someone else? A friend, an acquaintance, or even maybe a celebrity or someone in the public eye?

Featured Title: NOT THAT KIND OF GIRL, by Siobhan Vivian

Hey readergirlz: 
It's April, which means we're talking Self-respect on the blog! 
Today we're celebrating Siobhan Vivian's third novel, Not That Kind of Girl, about which Booklist says, 
“It’s rare to see second- and third-wave feminism square off in YA literature so successfully; don’t miss this round.” I heartily concur! I loved how the characters in the novel all grapple with their own notions of feminism and girl power, and how Natalie, the protagonist, reconciles her own conflicted views of sexuality. 

Welcome, Siobhan! 

First off, I am so honored that Not That Kind of Girl has been chosen for Self-Respect month at Readergirlz! Thank you thank you thank you!

With Not That Kind of Girl, the idea of self-respect was always in the forefront of my mind. And I was really interested in exploring the link between self-respect and the way other people judge you. Can you respect yourself when others don’t? It’s a really interesting question, especially when you throw sex in the mix, because everyone has an opinion on what you should and shouldn’t do. Ultimately though, the way you handle yourself is a personal choice, and only you will know what’s a right decision for you.

My personal goal in writing this book was to respect all girls…from the ones who take cell-phone pictures of themselves and send them to boys to the girls who want to stay virgins until they are married. I also wanted to explore the idea that bad choices and mistakes don’t always equal a lack of self-respect.

I think it scares some people to look at sex as a learning process, where you will inevitably make mistakes and (hopefully) learn from them. The things you do, and don’t do, will help you better understand yourself and make you a wiser girl in relationships moving forward.

One thing I really wanted to impress upon my readers is that making a “mistake” doesn’t mean that you are a bad person and are not deserving of respect. I think we, as a culture, are so quick to judge. We expect girls to be perfect, to never make mistakes, to always be smart and rational and make the right decisions. I’m sorry, but that’s just not possible!

The only person you are accountable to is yourself. The only opinion that matters is your own. That’s not to say that you shouldn’t reflect on the decisions you make, and allow other people to influence you, but at the end of the day, if you are okay with the kind of person you are, that’s what matters most. 

Thank you so much, Siobhan, for your thoughtful post and your incredibly thoughtful, nuanced book! 

Tell us, readergirlz - what does self-respect mean to you? 

Cover Stories: Not That Kind of Girl by Siobhan Vivian

Siobhan Vivian's Not That Kind of Girl is full of heart and hurt and love and kissing and feminism and awesome relationships. It's the perfect, perfect fall read. You will cheer and swoon. I can't say enough good stuff.

Now, here's Siobhan with the story behind that hot cover:

"I started out pitching my editor, David Levithan, the idea of two girls standing next to each other, each wearing a private school uniform. One girl would be very buttoned-up and proper, while the other would trick out her uniform to make it look as sexy as possible. But David said that Girl-In-Uniform covers hadn't worked so well for them in the past, so he wanted to go in another direction.

"Then, when I was riding the subway, I saw the poster for the Neil LaBute play, REASONS TO BE PRETTY (right). I loved the vulnerability of that girl, and felt it very much in sync with my main character, Natalie. But I knew I couldn't have a naked girl on the cover, and I wasn't sure if the image would work as well with her in her underwear. Also, it maybe gave off the sense of someone being violated, which was not something I wanted my cover to convey..."

Read the rest of Siobhan's Cover Story, and enter to win a copy of the book, at melissacwalker.com.

Cover Stories: Same Difference by Siobhan Vivian

Miss Erin recently reviewed Siobhan Vivian's two novels, and today, Siobhan shares the Cover Story behind her spring release, Same Difference:

"I was extremely anxious about the cover for SAME DIFFERENCE when my editor called me into his office for a meeting to brainstorm possible directions. At the time, I was just about to finish up the first draft of the book, and the story still wasn't clicking together the way I wanted it to. If my editor had asked me any questions about theme or whatever, I probably would have had a complete meltdown.

"But part of me hoped that if we did come up with something amazing for a cover, it could act like a lighthouse, and I could follow that beam of light through the fog and arrive safely on the shores. To me, covers and titles can help in that way. They can bring clarity, focus.

"Anyhow, my editor pitched me a couple of concepts. These are the two I remember: 1) A photograph of a girl, painting her self-portrait. You wouldn't see her actual face, only the portrait. 2) A photograph of a girl from the waist down, carrying her art portfolio which would be covered in a bunch of random stickers.

"On the surface, these felt like okay solutions. After all, SAME DIFFERENCE was a book about a girl who goes to a summer art program--which was also the stock answer I'd been giving to people who asked what my new book was about. But I wasn't completely sold either. Their ideas seemed so art-heavy. And I wondered if that kind of approach would alienate readers who didn't find that kind of experience interesting.

"It challenged me to dig to the heart of my story. And I quickly realized that even though SAME DIFFERENCE had art in it, art it wasn't the crux of the story. The meat and bones were Emily's journey as she tried to figure herself out. A girl stuck between two worlds, two friends.

"Hmmm... I ran home and went onto the stock photo sites and started doing some research. I typed in TEEN and GIRL and REFLECTION. A couple interesting pictures came up. But when I saw the one that would turn out to be my cover.

"First off, the girl was PERFECT. I mean, she was beautiful...but she also still looked like a normal girl. (This has always been so important in my covers! Real girls only!) And I loved the reflection, and watching her step out of the glass and leave a version of herself behind. Totally a slam dunk, IMHO! I sent the photo to my editor, who shared it with the design team. Everyone agreed it was perfect.

"Finding that cover definitely gave me the clarity to push through the rest of my first draft with confidence. Once I found out who Emily really was, there was no looking back!"

"And... I got a FaceBook message from the model! She lives in South Africa and a friend found my book and recognized her. She was so excited, and I was too! Here she is, and her name is Marcelle."

"Also, someone had commented on my LJ a long time ago that they

thought she looked familiar from another cover,

Busted: Confessions of an Accidental Player by Antony John. I couldn't tell for sure, but sent her the link.

Turns out it IS her...and her brother. So she went from ZERO to a cover star of two YA books in a matter of minutes!"

How cool is that? Love meeting-the-model stories. And, I love how Siobhan had to dig deeper into her story to find the right cover. Nice!

What do you guys think?

Rgz Street Team: Miss Erin Reviews A Little Friendly Advice and Same Difference, by Siobhan Vivian

The rgz Street Team is a group of teens who bring YA reviews to our blog, led by Postergirl Miss Erin. Find out more.

Today, Miss Erin reviews A Little Friendly Advice and Same Difference by Siobhan Vivian!

A Little Friendly Advice begins on the eve of Ruby's 16th birthday. Her mom's given her a present, all of her friends have arrived, and she's gearing up for a fun night. That is, until her dad--who she hasn't seen since he left her and her mom, years ago--shows up at the apartment. Pretty soon it feels like all the relationships in her life are unraveling, and Ruby doesn't know who to turn to or what to do.

A Little Friendly Advice was refreshing in that its focus was on relationships with friends and family, which are two of the biggest factors in a teenager's life. But usually those themes tend to get neglected in a lot of YA books to make room for a focus on problems/issues (which are factors too, but always alongside friend-and-family relationships) and romance. When a boy does show up in Ruby's life, he doesn't suddenly sweep her off her feet and solve all of her problems. That relationship is muddy and unclear, too. Complicated. The book really nailed how, as you grow older, relationships that used to be black and white - with relatives, or with friends - suddenly aren't clear-cut anymore. Suddenly there's angst and grayness.

Read the rest of this review on Miss Erin's blog here.

Same Difference centers around the main character Emily's adventures at a summer art camp in Philadelphia. It's a coming-of-age story in the true sense: throughout the book, Emily undergoes a complete transformation of self, the way she sees the world, and the way she sees the people and world around her.

This book started off a little slow for me, but I'm so glad I stuck with it, because I enjoyed it a lot. Just as with the author's first book, I loved and was grateful for the focus being on the friendship vs. romance. Yeah, there was a romance, but it wasn't the sole defining experience of Emily's time at the art program.

The best thing about Same Difference was all the wonderful themes it explored. For instance, it showed that transitional time of being a teenager; the defining moment when you realize that your world is a slate that you can experiment and draw on, and if you don't like what you are right now, you can erase and start over. But you also realize that even if you want to start completely over, there's stuff you can't simply make go away. You can change yourself, but you can't (as much as you might want to) make the people around you change. Sometimes you can't even make them realize that you've changed.

Read the rest of this review on Miss Erin's blog here.

rgz Street Team: Miss Erin Reviews Same Difference by Siobhan Vivian

The rgz Street Team is a group of teens who bring YA reviews to our blog, led by Postergirl Miss Erin. Find out more.

Today, Miss Erin reviews Same Difference by Siobhan Vivian, which is a postergirlz recommended read this month:

"Same Difference centers around the main character Emily's adventures at a summer art camp in Philadelphia. It's a coming-of-age story in the true sense: throughout the book, Emily undergoes a complete transformation of self, the way she sees the world, and the way she sees the people and world around her.

"This book started off a little slow for me, but I'm so glad I stuck with it, because I enjoyed it a lot. Just as with the author's first book, I loved and was grateful for the focus being on the friendship vs. romance. Yeah, there was a romance, but it wasn't the sole defining experience of Emily's time at the art program.

"The best thing about Same Difference was all the wonderful themes it explored. For instance, it showed that transitional time of being a teenager; the defining moment when you realize that your world is a slate that you can experiment and draw on, and if you don't like what you are right now, you can erase and start over. But you also realize that even if you want to start completely over, there's stuff you can't simply make go away. You can change yourself, but you can't (as much as you might want to) make the people around you change. Sometimes you can't even make them realize that you've changed.

To read the rest of Miss Erin's review, click here.

Art Saves: Siobhan Vivian

Today's Art Saves contribution and guest blog comes from Siobhan Vivian, author of Same Difference, one of this month's recommended reads.


Click image above to view full size in a new window.

For my book, Same Difference, I researched a ton of artists. I knew I wanted to include some of the more famous ones by name, but I was also hoping to be inspired with ideas for how my characters could both experience and make art.

It was during that research when I first became aware of Andy Goldsworthy, who then became a huge influence on my book. There's a really cool documentary on his work called his work called RIVERS AND TIDES. If you are AT ALL interested in art, watch it. You will be captivated!

The best way I can explain Andy Goldsworthy's work is to call him a Nature Graffiti Artist. He painstakingly collects found objects and uses them to make sculptures in their natural surroundings. I'm talking rocks, flowers, twigs, leaves, icicles. Crazy.

And here's the absolute coolest thing -- many of his pieces are temporary. He gives his work back over to nature, to the environment, like a sacrifice. The flowers die, the sticks break, the leaves blow away. And then, it's over. This gives his work a real immediacy, a specialness. If you see it, great. If you miss it...too bad. It's gone. I was really amazed by that kind of artistic process. To invest the time and care it takes to create something and then to not know low long you have with it before it disappears.

It's kind of a nice way to live life. You make something beautiful and accept that it might not be appreciated, it might not last. But that's not what matters. What matters is that you keep making beautiful things.

- Siobhan Vivian

Visit Siobhan's website and journal.
Read Little Willow's interview with Siobhan.