Pay It Forward Author Interviews - Kiki Hamilton

If you've been here already this week, you know the drill. But you new people, listen up! This week is an Official Week of Awesomeness, because I'm participating in Pay It Forward Week! This little baby is the brainchild of Elana Johnson, she of the awesomesauce e-book, and LiLa Roecker, my future partners in the Midwest Writing and Armwrestling Awesomeness Tour. The concept is simple: all this week, 15 of us pre-pubbed author types are interviewing fellow debuts about Issues of Importance. I'm talking things like "Do you ever feel like giving up?" and "Do you like M&Ms?" That's right, baby, these are things that will help YOU in your writing.

Today's interview is with my lovely agent-sister and critique group member, Kiki Hamilton! Kiki's uber awesome book, The Faerie Ring, will be published with Tor Books in Spring 2011. I've already read it, neiner neiner neiner. Um... anyway, you will love Kiki. For one thing, she's always had a great sense of humor about the fact that there's a girl in my manuscript named Kiki, and my MC makes fun of the name. I felt like a total tool when she joined the crit group, let me tell you.

On with the interviewey awesomeness!

1. Tell us about your book. (And somebody fan me with a palm frond too. I AM royalty, after all.)
My YA novel is called THE FAERIE RING and will be published by Tor Books / Macmillan in Spring 2011.

London 1871

Orphaned and living in an abandoned clockmaker's shop adjoining Charing Cross railway station, sixteen year-old Tiki picks the pockets of passing travelers to survive. Her efforts support not only herself, but her 'family' of orphans, including fragile five year-old Clara.

When Tiki steals the Queen's ring, she thinks she's solved their problems. That is until Rieker, a tough from the west side, shows up in Charing Cross and informs her that the ring is really a reservoir that holds an age-old truce between the world of faerie and man. Unless guarded, faeries will search for the ring and destroy it, as well as anyone who has knowledge of the ring's location...

2. Can you tell us a little bit about your road to publication (finding an agent)?
THE FAERIE RING was not my first book. I had written (what is now called) THE GETHEAS STONE and queried Kate Schafer Testerman. While she read that, I wrote THE FAERIE RING. Kate came back and asked for revisions, which I was happy to do. I completely re-wrote TGS and mentioned to Kate I had a second book as well. She said send it along and she signed me for both books. We ended up going out on submission with THE FAERIE RING first and after several close calls I am thrilled to say we sold it to Susan Chang of Tor Books last August. (We will be going out with TGS this spring.)

3. Was there ever a time you felt like giving up? Why didn't you?
Sure, there were times when getting published seemed an unreachable dream. I very clearly remember receiving a letter from a gal I had paid to critique one of my first versions of THE GETHEAS STONE. It was three years ago almost to this day. I read that letter and realized I didn’t have a clue how to write! Seriously. So I took some online writing classes and really dug into the craft and so far, things are working out okay, but still lots to learn!

Why didn’t I give up? Because I love to write. Because there are stories in my head I want to tell. Because when I write, it’s almost like reading… I meet characters I love, with stories that intrigue me and I’m always wondering…what’s going to happen next?

*****

Thanks, dahlink, for always humoring me. You = awesome.

Visit Kiki on the web at:
http://www.kikihamilton.com
http://www.kikihamilton.blogspot.com

And you should totally check out the other interviewers this week. MORE questions! MORE awesomeness! MORE royal 'we'! How can you resist? Well, you can't.

Elana Johnson
LiLa Roecker
Beth Revis
Leah Clifford
Victoria Schwab
Kirsten Hubbard
Kim Harrington
Suzette Saxton/Bethany Wiggins
Amy HolderTiffany Schmidt
Susan Adrian
Dawn Metcalf
Kathy McCullough
Gretchen McNeil

Pay It Forward Author Interviews - Amy Holder

Have you heard? This week is an Official Week of Awesomeness, because I'm participating in Pay It Forward Week! This little baby is the brainchild of Elana Johnson, she of the awesomesauce e-book, and LiLa Roecker, my future partners in the Midwest Writing and Armwrestling Awesomeness Tour. The concept is simple: all this week, 15 of us pre-pubbed author types are interviewing fellow debuts about Issues of Importance. I'm talking things like "Do you ever feel like giving up?" and "Do you like M&Ms?" That's right, baby, these are things that will help YOU in your writing.

BTW, were you aware that LiLa is supposed to put up an interview with moi today?!? Go! Visit! Bask in my geekness! Read the inevitable zombie reference!

Today's interview is with the lovely, talented Amy Holder, and I'm not just calling her lovely and talented because we're twins. Seriously, the resemblance is INSANE. We have all the important things in common, like our love for pickles. Not bread and butter, DILL. And Halloween. And other things you're not allowed to know about yet.

Trust me. I'd tell you if I could. But it's verboten for the moment.

Anyway! Amy's made of awesome! Don't believe me? Well, she's got an awesome cover! And read THIS!

1. Tell us about your book. (Notice how I'm royalty now? I'm not "me," I'm "us." I'm waving at you right now. Hand hand elbow elbow style, even. OoOoH!)
THE LIPSTICK LAWS will be published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt in the spring of 2011.

After April Bowers is befriended by queen bee Britney Taylor, she finds that popularity and Britney's friendship come with a price. How much is April willing to pay without losing herself in the process?

2. Can you tell us a little about your road to publication? (And by "us," this time I mean me and all my loyal subjects.)
I was very lucky to be picked up by the first and only publisher I submitted THE LIPSTICK LAWS to. Before you start booing at me, I should add that I tried to get published in both the picture book and middle-grade book markets for several years prior, resulting in lots of rejection letters. The quick sale of my first young adult novel was due partly to luck, studying the market, and honing my writing skills after a lot of practice. Also, I think changing the genre and age group I was writing for helped me get out of the dreaded rejection rut.

3. Was there ever a time you felt like giving up? Why didn't you?
Surprisingly, I never considered giving up an ultimate option. Sure, I may have said it through gritted teeth once or twice, but never truly meant it. Before beginning my journey, I prepared myself for blood, sweat, tears and rejections... so it wasn't a surprise or deterrence when all but bloodshed (thank goodness) happened. That's not to say that I didn't get frustrated, doubt my abilities, or question whether or not I'd ever make it in the publishing industry. I definitely did all of the above, as do most writers at some point. However, the nice thing about writing is you can still be a writer without being a published author. My goal was to get published, but my passion was to write... and I knew that even if there was a chance that I'd never reach my goal, I could still fulfill my passion as a hobby. I believe a true writer writes regardless of the outcome; getting published is icing on the cake. Rejections along the way make that icing taste even sweeter in the end.

*****

Thanks, sunshine! Sending you hugs and pickles.

Still cannot believe she was accepted by the first publisher she submitted to. I mean, now that I know her, I believe it, but I couldn't before. Anyway, visit Amy on the web at:

http://www.amyholder.com
htt.//amyholderbooks.blogspot.com

And you should totally check out the other interviewers this week. MORE questions! MORE awesomeness! MORE royal 'we'! How can you resist? Well, you can't.

Elana Johnson
LiLa Roecker
Beth Revis
Leah Clifford
Victoria Schwab
Kirsten Hubbard
Kim Harrington
Suzette Saxton/Bethany Wiggins
Amy Holder
Tiffany Schmidt
Susan Adrian
Dawn Metcalf
Kathy McCullough
Gretchen McNeil

Pay It Forward Author Interviews - Kody Keplinger

This week is an Official Week of Awesomeness, because I'm participating in Pay It Forward Week! This little baby is the brainchild of Elana Johnson, she of the awesomesauce e-book, and LiLa Roecker, my future partners in the Midwest Writing and Armwrestling Awesomeness Tour. The concept is simple: all this week, 15 of us pre-pubbed author types are interviewing fellow debuts about Issues of Importance. I'm talking things like "Do you ever feel like giving up?" and "Do you like M&Ms?" That's right, baby, these are things that will help YOU in your writing.

My first interview is with the lovely and talented Kody Keplinger. She's an 18-year-old debut writer whose book The DUFF (Designated Ugly Fat Friend) is way at the top of my to-read list. And she speaks mad ghetto, yo.

1. Tell us about your book. (You like how I use the royal "us"? Wow I'm kewl.)
THE DUFF (Designated Ugly Fat Friend) will be out September 7, 2010 with LittleBrown/Poppy. It's what my agent referred to as an "anti-romance-romance" about a very cynical girl named Bianca who uses an enemies-with-benefits relationship with Wesley, a notorious man-slut (but a hot one!) who she hates, in order to distract herself from some personal issues - including her struggles with body image. It's kind of a dark-ish romantic comedy with a Juno-esque tone.

2. Can you tell us a little bit about your road to publication (finding an agent)?
I got very lucky. With my first "decent" novel (the first one I queried) I realized early on that it wasn't going to work. I wrote THE DUFF for fun more than anything. I had this story and these characters and I wanted to play with them. I had a blast writing it, and my beta readers loved it, so I decided to query.

I was so stressed at first because I had hardly any responses. I sent out like 20 queries and only got 6 replies. Only 2 were requests. When the first partial request came back as a rejection, I was sure that the agent reading my full would come back and reject it for the same issue - not connecting with my main character, who is, to be honest, pretty cynical and sarcastic and not always nice. But only a few days after I sent off the full, my agent (the fabulous Joanna Volpe) asked to talk. I knew what that probably meant and I was in complete shock. Funnily enough, she said the exact opposite of what I expected about my main character - she said her connection with Bianca was the part that really drew her in. Which just goes to show you how subjective this whole thing can be.

After a short revision, Joanna sold my book at auction after only a couple weeks on submission. I wound up with Poppy, with the best editor EVER working with me on my book. I just got my advanced copies in early March, and I think it's finally setting in that this whole thing is real!

3. Was there ever a time you felt like giving up? Why didn't you?
I never really felt like giving up so much as not trying at all. I was only 17 when I wrote THE DUFF, and I often thought about just not trying. I almost convinced myself that the book was utter teenage spewing crap that no one but me would love. I knew I would get better with age and then try again, but I thought about just waiting.

I decided against this when 3 beta readers came back with glowing reviews and very few suggestions for revision. I really didn't think anyone but ME would love this book, but they all did and they strongly advised me to query. So I did. And I'm glad I decided to get over my fear and just try. It all comes back to that saying. You never know unless you try.

*****

Thanks for that wicked awesome interview, homey. (Man, I am so white.)

Visit Kody on the web at:
http://kodymekellkeplinger.blogspot.com/

You should totally check out the other interviewers this week. MORE questions! MORE awesomeness! MORE royal 'we'! How can you resist? Well, you can't.

Elana Johnson
LiLa Roecker
Beth Revis
Leah Clifford
Victoria Schwab
Kirsten Hubbard
Kim Harrington
Suzette Saxton/Bethany Wiggins
Amy Holder
Tiffany Schmidt
Susan Adrian
Dawn Metcalf
Kathy McCullough
Gretchen McNeil

Things That Make Me Snarf - Re: Your Brains in ASL

This video teaches us a very important lesson, kids: how to say "All we want to do is eat your brains" in sign language. And you know I've been sitting here trying to learn it for real.

Blink! Quick!

I think we've all got our editorial biases, don't we? There are some bits of awkward phrasing and grammatical mistakes that just make me giggle, but misuse a "suddenly" and I go ballistic. According to el dictionario, suddenly means all of a sudden (duh) or without warning. So let's look at this sentence:

Suddenly, Richard blinked.

How on earth does that make sense!?! Apparently, Richard is an alien that comes from a world where blinking is totally unexpected. Either that, or everyone blinks in slow motion... except Richard, who is the MOST EFFICIENT BLINKER EVER.

Blink, Richard! Blink like the wind!

By the way, I have to interrupt myself to laugh at the fact that if you Google my editor's name, you get the above picture of Richard Simmons. And it's all my fault. Hee.

Anyway, sentences like the sudden blinking above really get me going. So I've been hyperaware of suddenlies in my writing. What grammatical mistakes really drive you bonkers?

Why Editing Is Good

This is why we edit, kids. Because otherwise people make fun of us.

You Make Me Touch Your Hands for Stupid Reasons

Warning that the above link has some PG-13-ish language. But it's so worth it. Laughed so hard I cried.

Anyway, you'll have to excuse me. I need to go edit all the unjustified hand touching out of my manuscript. This makes me think of one manuscript I critiqued way back in the day that was kind of romancey. The hero was constantly storking the heroine's hair. I spent the whole manny in stitches, imagining him looking lovingly into her eyes and throwing birds at her head.

Stroked, dude. Stroked.

Things That Make Me Snarf - Scrubs

This is kind of what plotting a book feels like... only with better music.

Zombie Flowchart? Double awesomesauce!

Thanks to the lovely peeps over at gameinformer.com, here's a chart that will tell you if you survive the zombie apocalypse. The best part about this? I survived the first time I did the chart. Bonus points for you if you can figure out what my answers were.



Not that the bonus points are worth anything, but you've got them. So did you survive? If so, we can join up and compare DeLorean design ideas together.

Good News!

Three bits of good news!

1. My fab critique group-mate, Laura Riker, has sold her book Cybernetic to Disney/Hyperion! Uber woot! Seriously, people, this book is awesome. It has beasts and deception and cool cyborg thingies. (I think I should write the jacket copy, don't you? I also think Laura needs to revive her blog so I can link her.) Anyway, I can't stress how important it is to have a good crit group. And mine (Laura, Kiki, and Ellen) is The. Best. We'll be taking over the world next. No worry. We're the benevolent despot types.

2. The super sweet Beth Revis has sold HER book, Across the Universe, to Razorbill! I haven't read this one, but it deserves special mention because Beth's so nice, and I want to read it so very bad, so I'm preemptively buttering her up. Yeah, I admit it.

3. My brain hasn't exploded. I'm pretty sure this is a good thing.

More Editing Words of Inspiration

I loved all your procrastinators, but special thanks go out to Christy for this:



The geniuses at despair.com came up with this. I think I'd like to put it on my laptop. Because really, with that kind of inspiration, how can you not edit like the wind? Or something else really... edity?

Zombie Snail Disease? Awesomesauce!

There's a zombie snail disease on Spongebob Squarepants. I should be working, but you can guess what I'm doing instead.

What are your favorite funny websites? I need some other procrastinatory material. Actually, I don't, but I'm asking for it anyway.

Two Things

Happy book birthday to Lindsey Leavitt! You should check out the awesome interview I did with her over at the Elevensies. Where else can you read about He-Man, princesses, and Thriller all in one place?

Slayer has gone the extra mile to help me with my revisions. Last night, he attempted to put his shoe in the garbage disposal. It didn't fit.

How are you? No shoes in YOUR disposal, I hope!

Things That Make Me Snarf - Do Not Trust Profile Pictures

This may be a thinly veiled (okay, not at all veiled) commercial, but it's still freaking funny. I think I've friended some of these people on Facebook.



How are you? You look nice today. Yeah, I look like crap, but that's okay. A combo of the flu and edits will do that to you. But I like what you've done with your hair. Would you take my author pic in my place? (See aforementioned crap lookage.)

Inspiration...Carrie-style

I'd like to give you an inspirational quote:

My ear is open like a greedy shark,
To catch the tunings of a voice divine.

This is from one of Keats early poems. If he can go from greedy sharks and semi-scary mixed metaphors to such awesomeness as To Autumn, we certainly can manage to edit our ways to books that don't suck.

Be Keats, people. Be. Keats.

Same Snarf, Different Channel

Just because I'm editing doesn't mean you don't get the funny. Check these out. They are almost as funny as me. Actually, they're funnier, but don't tell me that. We might hurt my feelings.

I bring you meerkat zombies raising the roof! In cake!

I bring you men! That are really babies!

And Trogdor. The Burninator.



Yep. I live you. I mean, LOVE you. See why I need to edit?

WTF Wednesday - Now from the Edit Cave!

I'm not sure who came up with the whole Edit Cave thing. Because really, if I'm going to be galloping through edits, I'd much prefer the Edit Penthouse. Or the Edit Tour Bus. Or the Edit Spa. Heck, even the Edit Haunted House would be an improvement, and in the case of my book, it would be inspirational. It would be even better if it was one of those haunted houses where you get to shoot zombies with paintguns, and the zombies could wear things on their chests like "Chapter 1" and "that bleeping scene that won't cooperate."

I'm all about catharsis. Besides, I think the Writer's Block Haunted House would make a boatload. Which would allow me to afford the Edit Spa. And the world makes sense once again.

I've got a cold, and I'm one of those people who sounds like a MAN, BABY when I've got a cold.

Note the comma. I don't sound like a man-baby. Or a man baby. Just like, "It's time to eat, kids!" and "It's time to eat kids!" are two different things. Fun with commas. Good times.

Anyway, I sound like a guy right now. And I'm editing. How're you?

Things That Make Me Snarf - Trailer for Every Oscar Winning Movie Ever

I'm sorry I haven't been commenting much on your blogs lately. I still love you. I even brought you some great ideas for your next movie/book/limerick/interpretive dance.



And I promise to start, you know, TALKING more as soon as I'm out of the edit cave. Really.

100 Special Thirsty Dead Girls Winners!

I love you. Seriously. You = awesome. You made me laugh. You made me laugh so hard that it was tough to choose a winner of the 100 Special Thirsty Dead Girls contest. Which was a little frustrating, but I still love you. I'm unconditional like that.

First, let me give you three runners up. Because it was so close that I nearly had to get out my Magic 8 Ball to choose a winner. For those of you that missed the contest, the rules are simple. All you had to do was create a funny mashup of kidlit titles. To up the snarf factor, you could add an optional summary of the book if you wanted.

First, we've got the always uber awesome Barry Napier. Did you know that Barry writes scary? His horror collection Debris is available now, if you're into that kind of thing. But he can also do snarfy, as evidenced by this:

Good Night Moon + New Moon = Good Night New Moon
A touching bedtime story about a child that learns to say goodnight to everything it encounters...even the semi-gay sparkly vampire, the horribly overdone werewolf and the woe-is-me post-goth clumsy girl that are hiding in the closet.

Then there's storyqueen, whose Good Knight books are practically plastered to my kid's bedroom walls. She's probably right. This has probably been done before. But it's still freaking funny:

Green Eggs and Ham + Hamlet = Green Eggs and Hamlet
Depressed Denmark Prince poisons his stepfather with random foodstuffs.

And then there's lora96, who apologizes for the filthiness of her entry. The summary MAKES this one. I think it's more funny than filthy:

There's a Wocket in My Pocket + Graceling = There's a Wocket in My Graceling
A girl with two different colored eyes and a preternatural ability to make rhymes is accosted by an amorous Dr. Seuss character who sneaks into her book to pursue their forbidden romance.

Awesomely awesome Larissa and CKHB deserve special mentions for using No Pain in their mashups. Picture me salaaming wildly to you now, girls.

But the winner? The winner made me snort out loud. I probably would have actually snarfed, but I wasn't eating at the time.

Jade, you're a genius. You WIN.

Before I Fall + Lament + The Lovely Bones + Going Bovine = Before I Lament the Lovely Bovine
Jessikah has just moved to the town of Spoons and she's certain she'll be miserable. Then she discovers a herd of mysterious bovines in the woods that surrounds the town. One in particular--the white-and-black spotted, Willhelm--calls to her, offering a love she never dreamed possible. But is it worth becoming a cow for?

Message me, oh purveyor of lovely bovines, and I shall send you books.e woods that surrounds the town. One in particular--the white-and-

Translation: Email me your address, Jade! You're awesome! (Okay, it's not an exact translation, but you don't expect me to make SENSE, do you?)

And if you didn't win, never fear! Come back for the April giveaway! And have a pickle. Pickles can cure anything.

I'm hungry now.

Editing...

While I attempt to get my brain to stop dribbling out my ears, please enjoy some Whose Line Is It Anyway?

Answers, Covers, and Lawn Flamingos Revisited

First, the obligatory reminder. I'm running the 100 Special Thirsty Dead Girls contest! Make up silly titles and win five YA books of your very own! And if you just need a laugh but aren't into free books, what's wrong with you? I mean... uh... maybe you should go read the entries. They're quite funny.

Another thing of awesomeness! Congratulations to Amy Holder on her uber awesome, lip dominated cover! I'd say that I'd love to have a cover like that, but I write about zombies. A close up of zombie mouth would probably make people run. Screaming. Something like: "Zombie mouth! Zombie mouth!" because it wouldn't make sense to run screaming from my cover wailing, "Lawn flamingos! Lawn flamingos!"

But on with the questions! Last week, I asked for some questions, and you gave me some! You are awesome. I will beat up anyone who doesn't recognize your awesomeness. Just email me, and I'll send the ninjas, which isn't really ME beating them up, but it's close enough.

My anonymous friend Colin (HAH! Not anonymous any more!), who bought me a Snarf shirt, wants to know: "If ever a ninja clan got infected with the zombie virus, would the planet Earth simply explode out of sheer terror?"

My answer? No.

My longer answer: Because that's not scary. It's awesome. We'd actually be able to see ninja parades, because instead of sneaking around in the shadows, they'd be lurching down the street, moaning, "Lawn flamingos! Lawn flamingos!"

Lisa and Laura, who are putting together some serious April awesomeness, asked: "What are the chances that the Jo Bros are actually some kind of zombie robot hybrid?"

My answer? Low.

My longer answer: No, really. The chances are low. I know this because Left and Right, my twin daughters, have teddy bears that play a medley of Jo Bro songs. So clearly, the Jo Bros are teddy bear robot hybrids (TeBeRoHy). Much less cooler than the zombie robot hybrid(ZoRoHy).

And Larissa, awesomely awesome person that she is, wants to know: "How do you maintain your awesomeness?"

You think I'm awesome? REALLY? Hey, everybody? I'm awesome! I have it in WRITING!

As for how I maintain my awesomeness? I have it in writing. So when I'm at a party, wowing everyone with my geektastic zombie knowledge, I can refer people to Larissa's comment to prove that I really am kewl.

Kewl and awesome are close enough, right?

My short answer: Uh...I dunno.

An Entry with a Lot of Links, Some Answers, and a Lot of Third Person

Did you know it's Talk in Third Person Day? Carrie knows it, which is probably obvious given the fact that she just told you. And for some reason, talking in third person has always amused Carrie, which is why there is a character in one of her books that does it.

Whee!

Carrie also wanted to mention that she has a contest going on if you haven't noticed! The 100 Special Thirsty Dead Girls Contest! Even if you're not a contest person, you should totally check out the entries. They are decidedly snarfable. And you have an opportunity to win free books! Snarfability and free books. Does it get any better than that?

Natalie is also having a mucho amusing contest, and you can win a critique or one of her awesomesauce drawings. So apparently, it DOES get better than that. But seriously, thou shouldst check it out. (In Carrie's little universe, it is also Talk Like an Anachronism Day.)

So there are a bunch of questions from last week's questionfest that Carrie failed to answer. And it would be cruel to leave you wondering what color nail polish ninjas wear, so...

The uber awesome, hopefully not sick anymore Carolyn V wants to know: "What color toe nail polish do ninjas wear?"

Carrie has to admit that she was a little frightened to get close to her husband's feet to find this out, because those feet are certified lethal weapons. (Neither, however, looks like Mel Gibson.) But she waited until he was asleep, and she's happy to report that ninjas wear camouflage polish on those piggies. Those are the stealthiest, non-Mel Gibsoney toes Carrie has ever seen. Or not seen...

Liam, aka guy Carrie doesn't know but instantly likes on the strength of his name, asks: "Can I have a dictionary entry for the word 'snarf'?"

Well. Wikipedia says that Snarf is a character from Thundercats and some scientific type substance, but Wikipedia is WRONG. In Carrie's little universe [where it's Talk Like an Anachronism Day too], snarfing is when you laugh so hard that food or drink type stuff comes out your nose. It's very uncomfortable to experience, but quite funny to watch.

So there you go. Carrie will continue with the answers tomorrow. Make sure thou returnest for further enlightenment. Otherwise, you'll miss out on the inside info on zombie ninjas, and that would be tragic indeed.

The 100 Special Thirsty Dead Girls Contest!

Hee. Sorry, just reading the title makes me laugh. Yes, I'm a loser.

Quick recap for you new people: Hi! I think it's so awesome that you're reading my blog. Would you like a zombie penguin? A pickle? I'm all about sharing my favorite things with my readers. Oh, and last year was so good for me, what with selling my first book and all, that I've declared 2010 the Year of Give Backery! Which means that once a month, I give something writerly away. In January, I critiqued 10 pages of a mucho entertaining mannie, and in February, I gave some feedback on an equally awesome query.

This month, I'm entering my edit cave, which means that my time's going to be a little short. But never fear, because the give backery is still a priority in La Brain de Carrie. So without further ado, let me announce March's 100 Special Thirsty Dead Girls Contest!

Woo! Yay! What the heck is that!?!

Let me explain. I'm giving away five YA books this month:

• The Dust of 100 Dogs, by AS King (Pirates!)
  
• Blue Plate Special, by Michelle Kwasney (Emotions!)
  
• Thirst No. 1, by Christopher Pike (Non-sparkly vampires!)
  
• Dead is the New Black, by Marlene Perez (Snarf!)
  
• Wintergirls, by Laurie Halse Anderson (Heart-wrenchery!)

Get the picture?

To win these free books, I want YOU to create a kidlit title mashup and post it in the comments. Take two or more titles from kidlit, and put them together to make something amusing. The entry that makes me laugh the hardest wins 100 Special Thirsty Dead Girls (in book form)!

A couple of ruley things: Entries will be accepted until Saturday, March 6 at midnight EST. Not like I expect you to sit up at night making mashups, but it seemed like an easy time to remember. I'll post the winner on Monday. You can enter as many times as you want, so feel free to come back with multiples. Feel free to use titles from picture books to young adult. You can also use any pre-published titles from the Tenners and the Elevensies! Feel free to add a little summary to explain what your mashup would be about. For example, your entry could look like this:

Hush, Hush + Flush = Flush, Flush
Flush, Flush is the story of the romance between an innocent young girl and the Tidy Bowl Man.

I'd read that, wouldn't you?

Let me know if you have questions! I look forward to reading (and laughing at) your mashups!

Things That Make Me Snarf - Harry Potter Has ADHD

This is for every person who has always wanted to see Harry Potter say, "Pull my finger!" Although I think he acts less like someone with ADHD and more like someone who is on Shiny Happy Pills.



It's March! That means that soon, you too can join Marybeth Poppins (winner of January's 10 page critique) and Mariah Irvin (winner of February's 2 hours of awesome, which she applied to a query critique). Like, REALLY soon.

Dum dum DUM.