7 Things You Don't Know About Melissa Walker

Happy anniversary, readergirlz!
In honor of our seven-year anniversary, we're catching up with rgz divas and featured authors. Kicking off our anniversary series (or shall we say, anniver-series?) of posts is none other than our own Melissa Walker.

7 Things You Don't Know About Me:
1. I have kept a diary every year since third grade.
2. I have been known to sip pickle juice straight from the jar.
3. My dad passed away 10 years ago, but I can still hear his voice when I need advice.
4. I love the idea of collecting sea glass, but I'm lazy about actually doing it when I'm at the beach.
5. I find it delightful when cocktails are served in their proper glasses.
6. I sing show tunes to my two-year-old in hopes that one day she'll be my Broadway companion (my husband isn't into musicals).
7. I still think the world looks magic if someone is blowing bubbles nearby.

We'll be posting updates and tidbits from familiar faces all month long here at the readergirlz blog. Stay tuned and celebrate with us!

Be Positive!

Check out this article by Anya Strzemien at The Huffington Post, which is collecting comments for a good cause. Simply give yourself a compliment! For every comment up to 5,000, the Huffington Post Media Group will donate $1 to Girls Inc. I pointed readergirlz diva Melissa Walker to the article and she immediately posted about it at I Heart Daily. As Melissa said, "How cool is that?"

I told my friend Amber Benson about it as well, and she tweeted: "Say something positive about yourself and help raise some money for Girls Inc - JUST DO IT!"
 Go to the Huffington Post website and leave your comments by April 10th! Then post, tweet, et cetera, and encourage others to do the same.

Enter to Win The Amanda Project Book 2!

The Amanda Project is an interactive book series and website where readers and writers piece together the mystery of high school student Amanda's disappearance by answering questions and discovering clues that affect the direction of future Amanda Project books.

The second book, The Amanda Project Revealed by Amanda Valentino and Peter Silsbee, is out tomorrow, and you can win a copy by entering The Amanda Project Clue Hunt, sponsored by I Heart Daily. (See how to play here.)

It's fun, and it could lead to a book for you! Win-Win.

An Interview with Saved by the Bell Star Elizabeth Berkley

Today I Heart Daily interviews "Saved by the Bell" star and author Elizabeth Berkley about her bestselling book for girls, Ask Elizabeth, and the fans who inspired it. She also has an incredible website for fans where they can connect with her and support each other.

Elizabeth says, "One of the taglines of my workshop is 'How do we help her?' It is not enough to just talk about our feelings -- what do we DO about it is the biggest piece we fill in together."

Check out the full interview!

I Heart Daily Hearts Rock the Drop!

And we heart I Heart Daily. Thanks, guys!

December: Support Our Troops!

Various characters in Tamora Pierce's Trickster duology, this month's featured titles at readergirlz, serve in their country's military and/or intelligence services. Anne from I Heart Daily brought our attention to some great groups that are gathering gifts for our women and men serving overseas, such as Support Our Troops, Operation ShoeBox, and Operation Gratitude.

And hey, even though I Heart Daily was talking about sending Halloween candy overseas, holiday candy this time of year is just as sweet.

Let's give thanks to our heroes!

UPDATE: Alyssa says, "I think there is one that should be added. It's the Let's Say Thanks website. For those who can't afford to send packages, you can send a thank you card to troops for free. You just pick the picture and the message and then the sponsor will print out your card and deliever it to the soilders. It's a great way to spread some joy this holiday too." (Thanks, Alyssa!)

Readergirlz Hero Lindsay Giambattista!

I had to introduce the readergirlz to Lindsay Giambattista, 18, of Fort Lauderdale, FL. She was featured on I Heart Daily last week as the founder of Taylor’s Closet, an organization that allows girls in foster care to come into a "store" and shop for clothes -- free of charge. We talked to Lindsay about how awesome that is.

Read the interview here, and find out how you can make a difference in your community!

I Heart Daily Bloggie Nominee!

I Heart Daily is up for a Bloggie in the category of Best Group Weblog! You can vote for them easily. Voting closes on Monday, February 2, so don't delay! Congrats to Melissa and Anne!

RED Hearts: Teen Writers Rule

RED Hearts, the first-ever national trendspotting service for teens by teens, launched last week on I Heart Daily.

RED Hearts will be published every Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday through February. Readers can subscribe to the I Heart Daily newsletter for regular delivery of these peer-to-peer style and culture recommendations.

Written by a dream team of 58 published teenage RED the Book authors, reporting from New York City to Nevada, Los Angeles to Louisiana, and everywhere in between, RED Hearts provides girls ages 13 and up with recommendations on everything from the original 1960s Agent 99’s “extreme level of awesome” to how you find just the right Bob the Builder-Gossip Girl balance when wearing flannel.

Check out some recent entries, and revel in these girls, who truly rule:

Saskia Boggs, 18, writes about an end-all acne treatment

Jessica Goodman, 19, writes about loving Katy Perry

Zulay Regalado, 20, writes about her new favorite fashion label

New site! I Heart Daily

Hey, readergirlz!

I just wanted to announce my new venture. iheartdaily.com is a free email newsletter and website that delivers one item each day from the world of entertainment, fashion, beauty or news. (And that means we’ll totally cover great YA books, of course!)

Each day, you’ll find out about one thing we think you’ll like. The band you should hear, the girl who’s making a difference in the world, the new lip gloss color that looks good on everyone, the undiscovered author who is writing amazing books. You’ll never hear about stuff we hate, just stuff we heart. We’re nice that way.

Come check out the site and sign up for the newsletter if you like what you see!