rgz

readergirlz is a literacy and social media project for teens, awarded the National Book Foundation's Innovations in Reading Prize. The rgz blog serves as a depot for news and YA reviews from industry professionals and teens. As volunteers return full force to their own YA writing, the organization continues to hold one initiative a year to impact teen literacy. All are welcome to "like" us on Facebook!

Friday, November 22, 2013

rgz Newsflash: J.J. Abrams and Operation Teen Book Drop

Rock the Drop, 2013

Okay, how cool that J.J. Abrams' fascinating new novel S sprang from a book he found years ago. It was left in a public place with the intention of being found, read, and passed along. Did you catch him on Colbert? Listen in for a laugh, and just imagine who might find your next Operation Teen Book Drop donation, and how might they be moved to act, give, or create...

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/showtracker/la-et-st-stephen-colbert-gets-abramsesque-on-jj-abrams-20131122,0,1210323.story#axzz2lP8o3uHB


Photo from Collider.com

LorieAnncard2010small.jpg image by readergirlz

Monday, November 4, 2013

Attention Filmmakers and Readers: Make a Snowblind Trailer!

Attention filmmakers (and readers!)

Want to show the world what you can do AND spread the love of a good book? St. Martin's Press and Talenthouse are accepting 1-minute trailers for Christopher Golden's upcoming book SNOWBLIND. All of the submitted videos will be seen by some pretty cool folks - legitimate directors, writers, producers - and one will be selected to be the book's official trailer.

If you are interested, you should enter.

If you know other filmmakers - be they amateur or professional, adults or teens or kids - please let them know about this incredible opportunity.

Trust me. I've read the book, and it's amazing. With edge-of-your-seat tension and jaw-dropping twists, Christopher Golden's Snowblind blizzard is going to blow you away!

So what are you waiting for? Spread the word, gather a production team, and make that mini-movie!

Here's the official press release and all of the pertinent information. Good luck!

St. Martin's Press and Talenthouse invite amateur filmmakers to produce a short horror book trailer for SNOWBLIND, the highly anticipated novel by New York Times bestselling author Christopher Golden. The winning trailer will be heavily promoted and used as part of an integrated marketing and advertising campaign for the book and will also receive a consultation with one or more of the judges to discuss their work.

Helping St. Martin's Press judge the entries are:

FRANK DARABONT (Director, Writer, Producer) - The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile, The Walking Dead, Mob City, among others.

DAVID S. GOYER (Writer, Director, Producer) - Man of Steel, The Dark Knight Trilogy, Blade, Da Vinci's Demons, among others.

DON MURPHY (Producer) - Transformers 1-4, Real Steel, Natural Born Killers, Vampire Academy, among others.

STEPHEN SUSCO (Writer, Producer) - The Grudge 1 and 2, Texas Chainsaw 3D, Red, High School, among others.

CHRISTOPHER GOLDEN (Author, Editor) - Of Saints and Shadows, Baltimore, Tin Men, The New Dead, among others.


For more information on how to enter:
http://www.talenthouse.com/create-a-video-for-snowblind

SNOWBLIND trailer competition guidelines

Video should be a maximum length of 1 minute.

The end shot of the trailer must provide the publication information for the book, including title, book image provided, and the publication information:

SNOWBLIND
On Sale
January 21, 2014
Wherever Books Are Sold

Choose one of the three options listed below:
1) Create a scene from pages 28 - 30 featuring Cherie, her dog, and the iceman. (See the book excerpt linked below.)
2) Create a scene from pages 48 - 51 featuring Isaac looking out the window at the ice men dancing in the snow in his yard, with Jake not believing him. (See the book excerpt linked below.)
3) Entrants are invited to create their own scenes or images inspired by a provided sample from Snowblind. These original trailers should capture the tone of the novel. For example:
- A woman sitting on her bed with the covers drawn up, hugging her knees, staring in terror at the window with the wind rattling the glass, snow piling up against it or pelting it.
- A woman smoking a cigarette outside a bar at night with the snow falling. She hears a sound, turns, looks terrified.
- An anchor reads the news about the blizzard and what happened twelve years ago and then the power goes out and you hear the whistling of the wind as snow whips across the screen, perhaps suggesting the image of evil features looking in.

The presence of the snowstorm/blizzard may suggest digital effects but they are not required.

Entrants may devise their own approach to representing the ominous presence of the storm and the fear of the townspeople.

Judges will consider many factors, including imagination and ingenuity.

Submit by: January 6th, 2014


Direct links to all of the necessary ingredients:
SNOWBLIND Novel Excerpt
About the book
St Martin's PRESS Logo
3D Book Shot SNOWBLIND
Judging Panel Official Bios

Get Snowblind:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
BAM
Indiebound


Sunday, November 3, 2013

rgz Newsflash: Charlotte Church and the Demoralization of Women in the Music Industry

Did you all see this article from Charlotte Church on Digital Music News from her lecture? What do you think? Any crossover to YA? Literature in general?

charlottechurchface

LorieAnncard2010small.jpg image by readergirlz