Cover Stories: Torn by Stephanie Guerra

Stephanie Guerra's 2012 debut novel has a cover that really tells a story, especially when you look at the entire jacket. Here's Stephanie (our fabulous Seattle Host!) to talk about the process: 

"I love the cover of Torn, because by some amazing coincidence, the model looks like the friend on whom Stella, my narrator, is based (see the picture of 'Stella' and me in high school, below right). I also like the model because I can see both Latina and Eastern European characteristics in her face, and Stella is biracial Mexican and Croatian..."

Read Stephanie's full Cover Story at melissacwalker.com (and see many other considered options!).

rgz Seattle HOST: Stephanie Guerra on the WA State Book Awards

Hi girlz! A few weeks ago I attended the Washington State Book Awards Ceremony at Richard Hugo House in Seattle. I’m delighted to announce that Katherine Schlick Noe’s Something to Hold won in the middle grade/young adult category—and was also named a Notable Social Studies Trade Book. I covered her launch party here, and it was a joy to see her book get the attention it deserves.

Something to Hold is historical fiction based on Katherine’s experience growing up on the Warm Springs Indian Reservation. It’s a warm, provocative, poetic look at a time and place that many of us could never imagine except through stories like Katherine’s. Below, she answers a few questions about writing from real life:

What was it like living on an Indian reservation?

For as long as I can remember, other non-Indians have asked this question.   It’s always been hard to explain.   Like all of the foundational, complex questions of our lives, there are many answers.   They finally began to solidify when I started to write Something to Hold.

This work of fiction is inspired by my memories of living on the Warm Springs Indian Reservation in central Oregon in the 1960’s.  Like Kitty’s dad, mine was a forester with the Bureau of Indian Affairs.  He and my mother left Iowa in 1950 to take a job on the Colville Indian Reservation in north-central Washington state.  They didn’t know then that they would spend the rest of their lives working with and living among Indian people.  My brothers and I were born on the Colville Reservation, and we moved every four years, living near Washington, DC and on the Warm Springs and Yakama Reservations.

The years at Warm Springs were pivotal for me, as they are for all children between the ages of seven and eleven.  Something to Hold is grounded in universals.  We all long to find a place to belong, to make friends, to feel connected and rooted.  The book also explores a unique perspective of a non-Indian outsider’s growing awareness of prejudice, including her own.

My writing began with one memory: In the fifth grade at Warm Springs, a classmate I both feared and admired refused to read out loud, and our white teacher took her out into the hall, shook her, and left her there.  Reading out loud, one paragraph at a time, was a normal practice in every school I had attended.  I hated it – so boring to listen to other bored kids read something boring – but I would never have refused.  I couldn’t understand why my classmate would defy this teacher, who allowed no disobedience of any kind, in this way.  That event had a profound impact on me and is one reason that I eventually became a teacher.  No child should be humiliated that way.

That event is also what moved me to write about living at Warm Springs. Having wrestled with the memory for over 30 years, I did what we encourage young writers to do -- started listing all that I could remember about it. Then I began to tell the story. I was writing in order to make sense for myself, to understand why she would dare to do something I would never have had the nerve to consider. But, of course, I couldn’t remember everything, and that’s when the fiction took over.

As Something to Hold took shape, I had a chance to meet my classmate again.  Both of us now grown, we visited over our class photo, talking about how life had turned out.  It was clear that hers had been filled with hardship, so different from my own.  When I asked her about the event that had affected me so deeply, she looked me in the eye and said, “It never happened.”  I knew in that moment that this was not my story to tell. So I took that episode apart, changed the details but kept intact the power and fear and strength of will – all of the emotions that were so influential for me -- and gave them to my two antagonists, Raymond and Jewel.  In the chapter “The Capital of Vermont,” Raymond and Jewel stand up to their teacher and triumph over humiliation.  And Kitty learns something powerful about speaking out for justice. 

Many of the events in Something to Hold are based in truth.  The only way I could begin was to build Kitty’s story around my memories:  a Bible-quoting teacher, the death of a child, a boy who fell through the ceiling of my classroom while working in the school attic, how razor blades horribly derailed an art project.   I created a series of episodes tethered loosely to reality – and then slowly wove in the characters.

This image guided me: A basket maker begins with a tangle of warps and wefts, a mess of strings held in her hand. Carefully, intentionally, and sometimes magically, she weaves them together into something beautiful, powerful, and enduring – just as a writer weaves with words. 

My goal was to create a tapestry of characters that manage to find their own way and also to help each other live with courage and hope – especially when it’s a struggle to do so.  I hope young readers will identify with Kitty, Raymond, Jewel, and Pinky and the ways in which they reach across a chasm of difference to connect with one another.   I have my classmate to thank for getting me started.

Visit Katherine at her website: http://katherineschlicknoe.com

Thanks, Stephanie, for the update, and the fantastic interview!

rgz Seattle HOST: Interview with Amy Ackley!

Our Seattle HOST, Stephanie Guerra, is here with a stellar interview! 

Hi girlz! I attended the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award ceremony in June, and had the pleasure of meeting the 2010 winner, Amy Ackley, author of Sign Language. Amy spoke eloquently about her passion and persistence, and thanked Amazon for giving her a chance to break into a very tough industry.

Did you always want to be a writer?

Growing up, I was that introverted kid that always felt like I was on the outside looking in at life.  I found the world complex and fascinating, and was always looking at a situation and thinking, “What if?”  On long car rides, I would watch out the window as farmhouses and small towns passed by, and imagined I was a girl living in that farm, who had a best friend that went to that church, and they spent hours together playing hide-and-seek in those cornfields … my active imagination ensured that I was never bored or lonely.

I loved to read and write, and, to me, English classes were my reward for getting through math.  My father was a high school English teacher and writer who tried to get his work published to no avail.  He’d send in a story to a magazine, get a rejection letter, and scrap that story to write another.  His only fault may have been his lack of tenacity, or self-confidence.  Early on, this is what prevented me from pursuing a writing career - the fear of not being good enough, and not “making it” as a writer.  That, and the belief that all authors were rich people that lived on the East Coast, or writers with connections in the publishing world. 

I was living on my own at 16.  I worked three jobs while finishing high school, and supported myself by working full time at a courthouse while attending college at night.  When it came time to choose a career, pursuing writing seemed about as practical as becoming a sunscreen salesperson at the North Pole.  I’d eaten enough Ramen Noodles to last me a lifetime, so I decided to pursue a career that would afford me stability and a decent income.  I finished undergraduate and graduate degrees in Human Resources and landed a job as a labor relations specialist with one of the Big 3 automakers.

Yet the desire to write never faded.  It only grew stronger.  When my first daughter was born, I took a leave of absence from work, and to keep my brain from turning to mush I decided to try what I’d always wanted to do: write a novel.

I wrote that first book, and it was terrible.  This writing thing wasn’t as easy as it looked.  I studied the craft, read everything I could get my hands on, and started on another book.  And another.  When I lost two friends to cancer, both of whom had left young children behind, I decided to write about my own experience losing my dad to kidney cancer when I was a teen.  It began as a memoir, but in time the characters took on lives of their own.  SIGN LANGUAGE was born.

I sent an early version of SIGN LANGUAGE to several agents, and after getting many rejections, finally found an agent that wanted to represent me.  She helped me revise the manuscript to make it stronger, and sent it in to a few publishers.  All rejected it, and the agent told me she didn’t think it was going anywhere, so we parted ways.  I wasn’t about to give up on the book, though.  I took the feedback I’d received from the editors at the publishing houses and used it to improve the manuscript.  I then set it aside until I learned that the sponsors of the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award were adding a Young Adult Fiction category for 2010.  I dusted the old manuscript off, sent it in, and, long story short, it won the contest and SIGN LANGUAGE was published by Viking Juvenile in August 2011.

I now have an agent for a second young adult book, and am working on a third.  I won’t let the fear of striking out keep me from pursuing my writing dreams.  And I’ve gotten my kids used to eating Ramen Noodles, just in case.

How much of your writing is based on your own experience as a child or teenager?

SIGN LANGUAGE, while fiction, is very much drawn from my own experiences.  I lost my dad to cancer when I was 13.  Losing a parent at such a young age – at any age – is something you never get over, but learn to get through.

In other books I’d read about the death of a parent, the parent was referred to in past tense.  These books focused on the teen’s grief after the parent had passed.  I hadn’t come across a book that focused on the effects on the family when a member is dying of a terminal illness.  When writing SIGN LANGUAGE, I wanted readers to really get to know the dying character as a person, to better understand the void he left when he was gone.  When a family member is terminally ill, the grief process – denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance – starts before the actual loss occurs.  I, myself, clung to denial for a long time, as does the main character, Abby, in SIGN LANGUAGE.

Some of the events and details surrounding the father’s illness in SIGN LANGUAGE are taken from my own experience, because it is what I know about cancer and how I recall the reactions of those around me.  The emotions are 100% authentic.  While writing this book, I was able to take myself back to the sad, scared, confused teen I was back when my dad was sick and, looking back through an adult lens, was better able to understand my sometimes erratic behavior after his death.  Losing a family member as a teen is especially difficult, as many of a teen’s peers have never experienced such a loss yet and cannot understand how it changes absolutely everything.  It is my hope that, for some readers, Abby can be that friend that understands. 

The other books I have written and continue to write do not so closely parallel my real life, but there will always be elements of me in the characters.  The most gratifying thing as a writer, for me, is to hear from readers that talk about the characters I write as if they are real people that they can identify with.  To me, that means I have done my job by telling the truth, my truth, in my fiction.  It is so gratifying to learn that others experience the world the way I do. 

Do you have any advice for young writers? 

While I wouldn’t suggest veering as far away from an English degree as I did, having majored in Training and Development in college, I had to write training programs and make hour-long presentations in front of large groups of my peers and professors.  It terrified me, but proved to be extremely beneficial to me as an author.  By forcing myself to gain a level of comfort with public speaking, this introvert was able to break out of her shell, and it has helped me get through, and enjoy, book signings and events.  Get yourself out there in front of others.  Push yourself out of your comfort zone, for that is where the magic happens.  Consider studying communications or marketing in conjunction with writing.  Writing a fantastic book is only half the battle … you have to let people know it exists!

Other advice?  If you’re going the traditional publishing route, try to finish more than one manuscript in a particular genre before submitting to agents or publishers.  Publishers don’t just want to find great books; they want to develop great authors.  Before winning the ABNA award, one editor at a publishing house had asked if I had a second young adult manuscript to submit along with SIGN LANGUAGE.  I didn’t have another YA book that was camera-ready yet, so they weren’t willing to gamble on me.  Having several works to submit proves that you are in it for the long haul.  And the possibility of a multiple-book deal?  You could do worse.

Finally, be persistent.  Keep writing.  Keep submitting.  Remember that every author gets rejected.  Learn to embrace and appreciate criticism.  Getting feedback of others will make your writing even better.

 Are you working on anything now?

I’ve finished a second contemporary YA novel, and am represented by literary agent Jennifer DeChiara.  If all the stars align correctly, I’ll have news about this book to report soon!  In the meantime, I’m working on two other YA manuscripts.

  

How can readers find you?

Website:  http://www.amyackley.com

Twitter:  amyackley73

Facebook page:  Sign Language, Young Adult Fiction

Thanks and congrats, Amy! And thanks, Stephanie!

Rgz Host: Stephanie Reviews Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick

Our Seattle Host, Stephanie Guerra, teaches children’s literature, young adult fiction and a seminar in writing instruction at Seattle University. She also heads a volunteer creative writing program at King County Jail, and researches and speaks about literacy instruction for at-risk and incarcerated young adults. Stephanie lives in Seattle, Washington with her husband and children. Her debut young adult novel, TORN, will be published by Marshall Cavendish in spring.

Stay tuned for Stephanie's reports of Seattle book events! Today, she shares a book review of Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick by Joe Schreiber:

"Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick is not a 'girl' book—it’s definitely aimed a male audience, with the requisite high-adrenaline nonstop action and suave, funny protagonist. I’m reviewing it because I’m always interested in breaking down the barriers between 'girl' and 'guy' books. Sometimes that means finding titles that appeal to both sexes, and sometimes it means finding books that give us a glimpse into the collective psyche of the other side. This book does both—sort of.

"Sixteen-year-old Perry is an aspiring musician and a classic East Coast kid: urbane, witty, and intelligent. During his senior year of high school, his family hosts a Lithuanian exchange student, Gobija Zaksauskas. Contrary to Perry’s hopes, she’s far from a sultry Euro-model with a fetching pout; she’s nondescript, frumpy, and forgettable. When she asks that Perry take her to prom on the night of his band’s first-ever NYC gig, he refuses. But his father lays down the law, and Perry finds himself at his school with a bespectacled girl dressed in traditional peasant garb (think floor-length hand-stitched burlap) on the night when he should be shredding in NYC.

"At prom, a jerk makes a cruel comment about Gobi’s outfit, Perry defends her… and she finishes the job by delivering a world-class azz-whupping? Shortly afterward, she loses the burlap sack and magically transforms into a foxy babe with a rocking body (sadly hidden for so long under her bulky sweaters). Now it comes out that she’s no potato-fed peasant; she’s a 24-year-old secret agent, here to deliver justice to some nasty mob types.

"Oh, the surprises that those bulky-sweater-wearing girls can harbor. What follows is a tear-through-NYC adrenaline ride in which Gobi knocks off several of her targets, fights others, gets blood all over everything, and dances very sexily with Perry, who has been aiding, abetting, and resisting her by turns. I won’t spoil the ending for you, if you haven’t already guessed it.

"Joe Schreiber is a smart, funny guy and I found myself lingering over some of his hilarious, well-crafted, strangely poetic sentences. On a sentence level, the book is masterfully done. On a plot level… well, let’s say Schreiber knows how to dish up what guys like. But I think he’s selling them—and us—short.

"I was a lot more interested in Gobi when she showed up to prom in her peasant garb, which takes major cajones of a different kind than those required to kill people. I wanted to know that girl. Sadly, I lost her as she shrank into a one-dimensional stereotype. I don’t think any author or filmmaker is throwing women a bone by making female characters bad-ass a la Charlie’s Angels. Even toting guns and doing roundhouse kicks, they’re still just sexy things for men to look at. Real women rarely beat up and kill men while dressed like porn stars.

"I did appreciate that Schreiber made his protagonist kind and courteous; he didn’t make fun of Gobi when she was 'ugly,' and he defended her from others doing so. That’s worth something. But the device of librarian-takes-off-glasses-and-shapeless-dress is such a tired male fantasy that it undoes some of the good accomplished by a decent male protagonist.

"I’ll end my rant before it gets tiresome, if it isn’t already so. Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick is a fast, fun ride and worth reading because of the excellent humor and strong word-smithing. But I’m holding out hope that Schreiber will turn his considerable talents to creating real female characters with depth, emotion, and intelligence. I would push the envelope a little further and request that they not always be 'hot,' but I think that would probably be going too far."

rgz Seattle Host: Katherine Schlick Noe

"Hi girlz! Last night I went to a launch party for Katherine Schlick Noe’s debut novel, Something to Hold. I have never seen Secret Garden Bookshop so packed; it was literally wall-to-wall people. It was an emotional moment for me, because Katherine has been a loyal writing partner for years, and it’s wonderful to see her book in final form, and to see all the excitement surrounding her publication.

"Something to Hold is a lovingly told piece of historical fiction about eleven-year-old Kitty, a white girl who spends 1962 on Warm Springs Indian Reservation because of her father’s work as a forest manager. At first, Kitty feels alienated from the Indian kids, and longs for the security of an all-white school. But as she awakens to the richness of Native American culture, and sees firsthand the social injustices toward Native Americans, her feelings shift. When she befriends the girl that she feared the most, the change in Kitty fully takes root. As she learns to stand up for her beliefs, and discovers that 'belonging' is a something she carries in her own heart, she finally transcends her feelings of rootlessness.

"The book is drawn from Katherine’s life experience growing up on Indian reservations, and the voice and setting reflect that intimate knowledge. The language is poetic and evocative, and the imagery rich and varied. Katherine has a gift for conveying deep meaning in small, everyday objects: a piece of fruit, a leather bag. Her details bring time and place alive in a way that is both haunting and moving. While the book is classified as middle-grade, I think it “reads up” very well and should appeal to girls in the 7th –-9thgrades.

"Witnessing Katherine’s writing of this book has been one of the great lessons in my own writing life. Above all, I’ve learned from her the art of revision (please don’t miss her amazing post on the topic). Something to Hold began as a set of disconnected stories—pearls in their own right—not united by a central plot. It was fascinating to see Katherine weave a rock-solid narrative thread through her disparate shorts, a process which she likens to weaving a basket. It helped me understand both the commitment and flexibility required for effective revision, and also the very different processes that authors embrace as they bring their works to completion."

Our Seattle Host, Stephanie Guerra, teaches children’s literature, young adult fiction and a seminar in writing instruction at Seattle University. She also heads a volunteer creative writing program at King County Jail, and researches and speaks about literacy instruction for at-risk and incarcerated young adults. Stephanie lives in Seattle, Washington with her husband and children. Her debut young adult novel, TORN, will be published by Marshall Cavendish in spring of 2012.

rgz Seattle HOST: Stephanie Guerra and Stages on Pages!

Here's another entry from our Seattle HOST, Stephanie Guerra! Her debut young adult novel, TORN, will be published by Marshall Cavendish in spring of 2012.

A couple of nights ago, I visited Secret Garden Books to see Stages on Pages, a book tour comprised of YA authors who hail from various backgrounds in the performing arts. The tour will stop at cities along both coasts, with changes in the author line-up depending on location. For more information on who will be where and when, go here.

The gathering at Secret Garden opened with a gorgeous violin performance by Jessica Martinez, and moved quickly to author readings. It was a treat to hear the authors (pictured below) read their own work, and I got a good sense of each of their strengths.

Audition by Stasia Ward Kehoe is a stunning novel in verse about Sara, a ballerina struggling with the intense pressures of her art. Kehoe’s writing is lyrical and elegant, with strong images that resonate with emotional truth. This is verse at its most accessible, meant for lovers of poetry and prose alike.

Virtuosity by Jessica Martinez is the story of Carmen, a teenage violin prodigy who falls in love with her greatest competitor. Martinez is a master wordsmith. Her descriptions are simple but evocative, and I felt the depth and complexity of Carmen’s relationship to music in the first few pages of the book.

Amplified by Tara Kelly has got me excited about voice. Kelly has a pitch-perfect ear for dialogue, and she’s nailed the voice of a young female guitarist who pursues a future with a rock band instead of going to college. When she finished the reading, I was convinced I’d heard the living character speak to me.

Second Fiddle by Roseanne Parry is set in Berlin just before the Wall came down. It has a blockbuster plot and a great hook: When thirteen-year-old Jody and her friends witness the attempted murder of a Soviet officer, they save his life and attempt to protect him by disguising him as their music instructor.

Adios Nirvana by Conrad Wesselhoeft is one of those books that grabs you by the throat and gives you a dose of gritty truth. Unflinching and honest, it is the story of a talented boy wrestling with an accomplished twin, his own musical future, and an instructor he’d rather not have. The voice is pure teen male: curses, crudity, and general bravado concealing a good heart and passion for music.

Jewel and the Key by Louise Spiegler is a jewel-box of a book, with lovely descriptions of old-time theater. In this historical fantasy, a time travel device shuttles the heroine between 1917 and the present. In both periods, she is drawn to Seattle’s grand Jewel Theater, where she must come to terms with the realities of war, past and present.

rgz Seattle HOST: The Pen Fatale Tour

Here's another entry from our Seattle HOST, Stephanie Guerra! Her debut young adult novel, TORN, will be published by Marshall Cavendish in spring of 2012.

Hi girlz!

The Pen Fatale tour stopped in Seattle and I enjoyed a fun night at Third Place Books with Mary Pearson (The Fox Inheritance), Gabrielle Zevin (All These Things I’ve Done), Alyson Noel (Dreamland) and Jessica Brody (My Life Undecided).

My camera decided to die just as the ladies started speaking, so I don’t have any pictures to share, but check out these lovely book covers, instead. 

I love hearing authors describe the conception of their stories, and the round-up was particularly fun this time:

Jessica Brody admitted (shame-facedly) that she was watching The Hills when she came up with the idea for My Life Undecided. She became so irritated with The Hills characters for their poor decision making that she thought the audience should be able to vote on their choices. She decided to build a story around the idea, in which her indecisive main character blogs about her life and agrees to make decisions based on an audience vote. Fun premise!  And Brody has actually put it into action, on her website, www.mylifeundecided.com, where members can anonymously post questions for a group vote.

Gabrielle Zevin found the inspiration for her story in 2008, when the economy was taking a nosedive. On a visit to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, a ticket seller told her, “You should give more than the suggested contribution, because we might go under any day now.” This made Gabrielle wonder what the future might look like if the arts and libraries were no longer funded, and if each year things got a little worse instead of a little better. Then she threw in a mob family, and some laws against chocolate, and All These Things I’ve Done was born.

Mary Pearson’s conception story is moving and thought-provoking. When her daughter was diagnosed with a “good” kind of cancer, for which treatment was effective, Mary wondered: what if her daughter had been born fifty years ago, when the treatment didn’t exist? And what kind of medical technologies might be possible fifty years in the future? She began to research, and found that futurists are predicting computers advanced enough to scan and upload human minds, which became the seminal idea for The Fox Inheritance.

Alyson Noel told a story I think many authors can relate to. She found herself so drawn to Riley, a character in her Immortals series, that she had to develop a spin-off series around her. Riley kept popping up in The Immortals wearing crazy outfits, speaking funny lines, and Alyson found herself giving a secondary character more time and attention than she’d expected. She said it was very difficult to remove Riley from the story, and at that point, she knew she’d have to give Riley her own story to tell.

And finally, here’s what you can look forward to from these wonderful authors:

Jessica Brody’s next book, 52 Reasons to Hate My Father, will be coming out next year. She assured us she does not hate her father, like the spoiled heiress in this book, whose father delays her inheritance and insists that she work a different low-wage job each week for a year. She also has a fantasy trilogy in the works.

Alyson Noel will continue the Riley Bloom series, and she gave us some exciting insights into Whisper, in which Riley goes to Ancient Rome and becomes enchanted with the excess and glamour of the time.  Apparently there’s a fight with a Gladiator ghost! Good stuff.

Gabrielle Zevin is working on a sequel to All These Things I’ve Done. It continues the story of the futuristic organized crime family, and it takes place in Mexico, where chocolate is legal. I love that Gabrielle is exploring what it’s like to be a girl in a family/social structure that typically disenfranchises women. As she put it, “When women try to claim any power in the Mob, they get slapped around.” I’m glad somebody is talking back to that.

Mary Pearson is working on the third and final installment in the Fox Trilogy, tentatively titled Fox Forever. She said any more info than that would be a spoiler. Whatever it is, I know we're all looking forward to it.

rgz Seattle HOST: with Alexa Martin and Amber Kizer

Here's a great entry from our Seattle HOST, Stephanie Guerra! Her debut young adult novel, TORN, will be published by Marshall Cavendish in spring of 2012.

 

Hi girlz!

I recently went to see Alexa Martin (Girl Wonder) and Amber Kizer (7 Kinds of Ordinary Catastrophes, Gert Garibaldi’s Rants and Raves: One Butt Cheek at a Time, Meridian, Wildcat Fireflies) promote their new books at Third Place in Seattle. It was a fun, intimate evening, with lots of great information from the authors about their inspirations, vices, and writing processes. Here are some fun facts:

Alexa’s vice is Louisiana style coffee, which is mostly cream and sugar. Amber says hers is “food, and I’m not a vegetarian. Baked goods.”  I loved hearing that! I’m always comforted by women who like caffeine and pastries as much as I do.

Alexa shared a fascinating story about her formative writing experiences. She was diagnosed early with a learning disability, and went through school feeling “less intelligent” than the other kids. Special education helped her achieve success in literacy, and in fact, she began to overcompensate for her disability, producing “very clean copy.” I can attest to that. Her writing is crisp and clear, with her verbs doing most of the work.  When she uses an adjective, it’s the perfect one. What an amazing example for anyone struggling with a learning disability.

Amber told us about her inspiration for one of the settings in Wildcat Fireflies.Helios is a restaurant she visited many times with her family, and over the years, she formed a bond with the owner. When this woman was fighting cancer, Amber told her that Wildcat Fireflies would be “her” book. The owner then revealed that she’d made a bucket list, and one of her dreams was to leave something lasting. With Amber’s book dedication, she felt she could check off this dream.

It was also inspiring to hear about writing process from these two very different authors. Amber aims to produce ten new pages of work each day, while Alexa works more slowly, piecing together memories and weaving them into her books. I’ve heard these two types of writers termed “gushers” and “bleeders” (sorry if that’s a bit dark) and I’d say these ladies each fit one of the categories. You should have seen Amber’s storyboard, which is an organized miracle of boxes, numbers, and different colored marker. Alexa, on the other hand, prefers to work more organically.

Finally, both ladies shared a “Top Thirteen” book list in honor of Banned Books Week, which I’ve included below. Thanks for reading, and I hope you’ll check out these talented writers, if you haven’t done so already!

Alexa loves:

This Boy’s Life by Tobias Wolff

How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

The Truth about Forever by Sarah Dessen

The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things by Carolyn Mackler

The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak

I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith

For Esme, with Love and Squalor by J.D. Salinger

Forever by Judy Blume

Watership Down by Richard Adams

David Copperfield by Charles Dickens

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

A Solitary Blue by Cynthia Voigt

And Amber’s favorites:

Boy Toy by Barry Lyga

13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher

Before I Die by Jenny Downham

Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison

Black Juice by Margo Lanagan

Generation Dead by Daniel Waters

Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott

Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli

The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick

The Willoughbys by Lois Lowry

Peeps by Scott Westerfeld

The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary Pearson

Izzy Willy Nilly Jackaroo by Cynthia Voigt

rgz HOST: Stephanie Guerra reviews Incredibly Alice

And now an awesome review from our Seattle HOST, Stephanie Guerra! Her debut young adult novel, TORN, will be published by Marshall Cavendish in spring of 2012. 


 

Hi Girlz,

Sometimes I pick up a book in the middle of a series to see how well it stands on its own. Incredibly Alice by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor gets a gold star. I jumped into the series on book 5, which takes place when Alice is seventeen.

Alice is a sweet, steady narrator with a gentle approach to life. She’s “any-girl”; not gorgeous or brilliant or wildly unique, but solid, honest and dependable. She’s the kind of person you’d want for a best friend. The book opens on New Year’s, and takes Alice through the bittersweet last semester of high school.

As her classmates prepare to launch their lives, Alice struggles with feelings of inadequacy. Her long-distance boyfriend, Patrick, is off to a semester abroad in Spain. One of her closest friends has just been accepted to theater school in New York. Another friend is getting married.

Alice wonders: what should she do with her life? Is it wrong to stay close to home for college? Should she be aiming higher, or adventure-seeking like everyone else? What, if anything, meaningful has she done with her years in high school?

Incredibly Alice is a slow, thoughtful novel that tackles the big questions about growing up, leaving high school, and taking that definitive step into adult life. There’s no pitching, heaving drama or bizarre plot twists in this book, but it is thoroughly engaging nonetheless. Reynolds brings alive the drama of small moments, like the excitement of being chosen for a part in a play, or the thrill of a limo ride after prom, or the delightful dance of flirtation with a gorgeous guy.

Two things about the book struck me in particular. First, Reynolds is bold and honest in her approach to the issues girls face today. For instance, one of Alice’s friends is considering labial surgery. It’s a real issue for many girls, who feel they have to compete with porn stars for their boyfriends’ attention. Another of Alice’s friends is pregnant. And yet, Alice herself is a virgin. There’s a nice mix of experience levels in the characters of the books, just as there is in real life.

The other thing that I noticed was an old-fashioned vernacular that crept into the book; terms like “taking in a movie” and “that was a scream!” The result is a charming mix of the quaint with the contemporary. Reynolds has stayed well abreast of issues for teens, and she doesn’t hesitate to allude to edgy topics. But her language has a slight flavor of the fifties, a sound that actually adds to the nostalgia at the heart of Incredibly Alice.

I recommend Incredibly Alice as the perfect read for anyone wrestling with her future after high school, and I can say with confidence that you’re safe to jump into the series at any point and still enjoy a delightful book. ~Stephanie