You know, I didn't expect that last entry to provoke as much response as it did from those near and dear to my heart. My mom sent me an email, telling me that next time I have a hole in my straw, I should just turn my straw upside down, and by the way, she loves and misses me. My older brother created a livejournal account for the specific purpose of commenting on my entry, and now, he and my roommate are duking it out over whether or not I'm actually lazy. Craziness!

Other than that, there's not too much to report on here. I went to an awesome panel in NYC put on by Women in Children's Media, which was moderated by the creative director at The N, who gave me a super big hug and told me how much she loves The Squad. I also got to meet the editor of the Gossip Girl/Clique/A-List books, and we talked for a bit about the books and it was a lot of fun, because our tastes turned out to be very similar. And then the coolest thing EVER happened on the subway ride home. You know that fantasy every author has about being on a subway, train, or plane, and seeing someone you don't know reading one of your books? Well, that didn't happen, but close.

I was on the 6, going uptown (and you can see just how much of a city girl I'm not, because saying that sentence makes me feel very accomplished indeed), and I saw a twenty-something girl reading a magazine. The magazine was open to the last page, and out of the corner of my eye, I saw a flash of pink and a familiar set of binoculars, and I realized that there was a picture of the first SQUAD book in the magazine! I then had to very smoothly figure out WHAT magazine this was, so I could get a copy, so I got up and changed seats and managed to crane my head in what I'm sure was a very conspicuous manner to see the cover, which featured Blake Lively from Gossip Girl. And then I finally made out the magazine name, and as soon as I got off the subway, I went to buy my very own copy of NYLON, which as best I can tell, is a fashion magazine. THE SQUAD is on a page about shiny accessories, along with sunglasses by Alexander McQueen, a $680 gold cell phone, a six THOUSAND dollar bag, some shoes, some black shiny leggings, and a bunch of makeup. My best guess is that they decided they needed a splash of color on the page, and someone was like "what about this hot pink book I happen to have a copy of?" But still!! I feel very, very cool. I think this is the closest I've ever come (and probably ever will come) to being fashionable myself.

And that's it for me. What's up with you guys?

After I posted the novel meme a few entries ago, I got some questions about how I find time to write as much as I do. After much thought, I've (only somewhat facetiously) decided that the answer is that I'm fundamentally lazy, and this results in a net increase in my writing productivity. This may seem counterintuitive, but laziness can do a lot for you, so long as the things you're lazy about aren't related directly to whatever it is you want to accomplish.

For example, the other day, I was working at a local sandwich shop, and I realized that there was something wrong with my straw. Rather than inspect my straw (because that would take time and effort, and I am lazy), I continued to drink out of it and just periodically changed my drinking methods. At some point, it became clear that there was a hole in the straw about an inch from the top. At first, I just drank with my finger covering the hole, but then the hole got bigger. At this point, I *could* have gone up to the counter to get a new straw, but that probably would have taken at least a minute and a half, maybe even TWO minutes, and it would have required getting up (which I obviously was not going to do), so instead, I decided that the better course of action would just be to put the straw so far into my mouth that any liquid that escaped through the huge hole still ended up in my mouth. And I probably looked ridiculous, and yeah, it was a little uncomfortable, but you know, that's a minute and a half that I spent working instead of straw-fetching. Though in retrospect, it just now occurred to me that I could have taken the lid off my drink and not worried about the straw at all. The common sense, 'tis obviously not my strong point.

Another thing I'm really lazy about (which is going to sound really, profoundly strange)- going to the bathroom. In undergrad, when the bathroom was located way down the hallway, I'd always procrastinate about going until I really, really had to go, and then I'd sprint down the hallway full-speed. I bet I saved at least five minutes a day (if not more!) through sheer I-don't-want-to-walk-all-the-way-down-the-hallwayness alone.

Also, cooking. My roommate and I cook dinner together once a week, but besides that, I tend to be a "eat it only if it can be made in under three minutes" kind of girl. I'm also kind of scared of ovens, but that's totally beside the point.

Let's see... what else... 95% of the time, I'm WAY too lazy to be one of those girls who spends any amount of time on makeup. Lip gloss is doable, because I can apply it while walking if doing so strikes my fancy. I also choose to let my hair dry naturally and wear it curly instead of blow drying it straight (which is HOURS of saved time right there). On most days, it takes me approximately ten minutes to get ready in the morning, which means I get to sleep later than I otherwise would, and that means that I can stay up later at night, and that's when I get things done.

I've heard it said that you can also get extra time out of your day by cutting down on the amount of time spent on LOLcats, Go Fug Yourself, or the Blue Boards, but I vastly prefer my method of time-crunching. Even if I do sometimes end up drinking out of truly dysfunctional straws.

For today's GCC tour, I'm featuring E. Lockhart, and her fabulous new book, The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks. I can honestly say that I love E's work, and that I had very high expectations for this book when it showed up in my mailbox in ARC form. I can also say that the book didn't just surpass my expectations- it blew them out of the water. I've blogged before about how one theme that makes it way into my own writing a lot has to do with being underestimated, because of the way you look or the things you like to do or just because you're a girl. And if any one book has ever completely captured that theme for me as a reader, it's this one. I know it's still early in 2008, but I'm already going to go on record and say that I think Frankie is a real contender for the Printz. The folks at Publisher's Weekly, Kirkus, SLJ, and Booklist seem to agree, seeing as how the book got starred reviews from all four.

I will repeat that bit- this book got FOUR starred reviews. And in addition to being a critical darling, it's a book I really loved, and honestly, that doesn't happen that much for me- most of the time, the books I love the most aren't the ones that got the review love, and the books that get heavy review love don't always really resonate with me. So I think it says something that all four of the major reviewers agree with each other- and that I agree with them. This book is beautifully written, funny, charming, and packs a heck of a punch. So without further ado, I'm very, very proud to be hosting E Lockhart's GCC tour for THE DISREPUTABLE HISTORY OF FRANKIE LANDAU-BANKS.


The Book

Frankie Landau-Banks at age 14:
Debate Club.
Her father's "bunny rabbit."
A mildly geeky girl attending a highly competitive boarding school.

Frankie Landau-Banks at age 15:
A knockout figure.
A sharp tongue.
A chip on her shoulder.
And a gorgeous new senior boyfriend: the supremely goofy, word-obsessed Matthew Livingston.

Frankie Laundau-Banks.
No longer the kind of girl to take "no" for an answer.
Especially when "no" means she's excluded from her boyfriend's all-male secret society.
Not when her ex boyfriend shows up in the strangest of places.
Not when she knows she's smarter than any of them.
When she knows Matthew's lying to her.
And when there are so many, many pranks to be done.

Frankie Landau-Banks, at age 16:
Possibly a criminal mastermind.

This is the story of how she got that way.

What People Are Saying

"Big ideas are an essential part of the fun in this sparkling tour de force.... Lockhart (Dramarama; The Boyfriend List) dexterously juggles a number of smart and tantalizing themes—class and privilege, feminism and romance, wordplay and thought, friendship and loyalty—and combines the pacing of a mystery with writing that realizes settings and characters, large and small, with an artist’s sure hand....An exuberant, mischievous story, it scores its points memorably and lastingly."
-- Publishers Weekly

The interview

In addition to being a book fanatic, I'm a big TV and movie person,
and when I write, I tend to see my books as either movies or
television shows. Is it easier for you to see your current book as a
movie or a TV show? Explain.

Wow. I always see my books as just books. I think the way both structure and voice are handled in film and TV is just so radically different from novels! That said, I think The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks is definitely more film than TV show, because (unlike some of my other books, which area all about setting and character, better for the long-form of a series) this one has a serious plot. Betrayal! Adventures in steam tunnels! Secrets! Pranks!

Also, there has never been a really good secret society movie. No, The Skulls doesn't count!

If you had to cast your book with real-life actors, who would play
 the main characters?



Jen! You are catching me out. The truth is, I watch no current TV and my Netflix cue recently featured the following: That Touch of Mink with Doris Day and Cary Grant; The Little Foxes with Bette Davis; and The Music Man.

The Disreputable History is set in an elite boarding school on the East Coast. The heroine, Frankie, is a 15 year old with a sharp tongue, a criminal mind, and distinct and very attractive look that makes her stand out -- so she doesn't look like Kristin Bell, Hayden Panetteirre, or any of those other cute blondes who play teenagers and whom I have trouble distinguishing from one another. (No, I don't watch TV, but I do read GoFugYourself.com!)

Maybe Laura Prepon from That 70s Show?

Now let's play the "meets" game. If you had to describe your book
as *something* meets *something else* (ie my editor referred to my
first book as "mean girls meets charmed"), how would you describe it?
Movies, tv shows, books, or anything else you fancy is fair game!

Dead Poets Society meets Veronica Mars.

***

You can read an excerpt of the book here, or order it online here. And for those of you in Georgia, Florida, Illinois, southern and Northern California, and Connecticut, be on the look out, because E. Lockhart will be touring in May with Sarah Mlynowski and Lauren Myracle, for their new co-written book, HOW TO BE BAD.

My fellow Girlfriends' Cyber Circuit member, Carrie Jones, is a master at titles. Seriously! Her first book was called TIPS ON HAVING A GAY (EX) BOYFRIEND, and she's followed it up with LOVE (AND OTHER USES FOR DUCT TAPE). Allow me to repeat that last one for you- Love (And Other Uses For Duct Tape). Is that not just pure awesomeness distilled into title form?

I've met Carrie before, and she's super sweet and fun, so I'm thrilled to be hosting her tour. And in honor of her new book, I thought I'd share a use of duct tape with which I've had first hand experience. Unfortunately. Anyone who reads my blog and doesn't read GCC entries for some reason is really going to be missing out on this one, because we're talking MAJOR embarassment. And how often do you guys really get to hear about hilariously traumatizing pieces of my adolescence?

Anyway, here's my duct tape story. When I was a senior in high school, I took an AP Physics C class that was just me and four of my guy friends. I got a lot of flack for being female (they loved to jokingly tell me to "go bake them pies"), but we all got along pretty well. One day, we had a bunch of duct tape left over from a physics project, and two of the guys (who also happened to be two of my closest friends) decided that the best use for spare duct tape was NOT love, but rather, tying people to chairs. And by "people," I mean me. I'm talking wrists bound, feet bound, torso taped to chair, strip of tape over my mouth so that even though I was cracking up AND yelling at them, all that was coming out was little muffled sounds. And then a class period ends, and one of my female friends walks into the room, and I think "finally! some back up!" And she says, "Did you guys just duct tape Jennifer to a chair?" The boys gave her their best innocent looks, and said something along the lines of "Maybe." And then my friend replies (and I quote), "Cool! Let's stick her in the guy's bathroom." I am so not even joking about this.

So they hoisted me over their shoulders and carried me, chair and all, into the boys bathroom, whereupon they took pictures for "posterity." And then they left. And I was like DUDE! I CAN'T BELIEVE THEY JUST LEFT ME DUCT TAPE TO A CHAIR IN THE BOYS' BATHROOM. MUST ESCAPE AND DESTROY ALL! Luckily, I am very stealthy, and due to my experience reading Nancy Drew as a child, I knew that when one's wrists are being bound with duct tape, it's a good idea to flex them. That way, once your captors are gone, you can relax your wrists and wriggle them out of the binding. This is how books equip you for life, people. Anyway, I managed to get my arms free, and then I freed my mouth and torso. My feet were trickier, so I just settled for leaving them bound together and hopping toward the door. At which point (maybe a minute or so after they'd left me in there), my friends came to let me out, because apparently, they weren't THAT evil. I think they were sort of surprised by my ability to escape on my own. I slugged them in the stomach and shoulder respectiely (hard), and the incident went on to become a thing of legend. And also, somehow, the picture ended up in the yearbook, even though I have no idea how they got it in there, seeing as how I was the freaking EDITOR, and I had to approve the pages myself. Such is the downfall of having stealthy friends.

Ahem. See, I told you it was a mortifying story.

Anyway, without further ado, the Girlfriends Cyber Circuit welcomes Carrie Jones, with her new YA novel, LOVE (AND OTHER USES FOR DUCT TAPE). I'm pretty sure that the use outlined above is not included in the book. :)

THE BOOK

“People keep changing who they are and defining themselves by their own choices, and that’s cool most of the time, but not all the time. No, it’s not cool all the time at all."

On the heels of her stunning debut , TIPS ON HAVING A GAY (EX) BOYFRIEND, YA author Carrie Jones continues the story of Belle Philbrick, navigating through what remains of her senior year towards a future that may hold more surprises than she could have imagined. Love is in the air: Belle’s mom has a new boyfriend, her best friend Em and Em’s boyfriend Shawn can’t keep their hands off each other, and Belle’s ex, Dylan, is content with his new guy, Bob. As for Belle and her new (straight) boyfriend, Tom? Nada. Zip. Zilch. To all appearances, they’re the perfect couple. But Belle knows a thing or two about appearances...

In her quirky, heartwarming style, Jones pays homage to the power of friendship and forgiveness in a culture where forgiveness seems a forgotten virtue.

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING

“The story is honest, earthy and appealing. Jones knows about Maine, being a native, and she knows about writing.” - Kliatt, on LOVE

"Provocative…The author’s poetic prose ably captures her heroine’s emotional upheavals.” -Publishings Weekly, on TIPS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Carrie Jones likes Skinny Cow fudgicles and potatoes. She does not know how to spell fudgicles. This has not prevented her from writing books. She lives with her cute family in Maine. She has a large, skinny white dog and a fat cat. Both like fudgicles. Only the cat likes potatoes. This may be a reason for the kitty's weight problem (Shh... don't tell). Carrie has always liked cowboy hats but has never owned one. This is a very wrong thing. She graduated from Vermont College's MFA program for writing. She has edited newspapers and poetry journals and has won awards from the Maine Press Association and also been awarded the Martin Dibner Fellowship as well as a Maine Literary Award. She is still not sure why.

I have a feeling that this is one of those weeks where I've gone forever without blogging, and then suddenly, I blog a lot! There's just so much to blog about- my roommate's new bangs (I think they're SO cute, which is kind of shocking, given how anti-bang I usually am), Project Starburst (which some of you have already attempted!), fake phone conversations with celebrities (just as soon as I decide who I want to have my phone conversations with, seeing as how Ally has already claimed Clooney as her own), how sad I am about Michael Johns getting kicked off idol (very), and not one, not two, but THREE GCC tours, wherein I interview lovely ladies like the very fabulous E. Lockhart.

But first, a meme.

***

I picked this one up from melissa_writing. It's simple- you just list the novels you've written (in part or in whole). For the sake of keeping things relatively simple, I've narrowed my list down to books that lasted at least thirty thousand words- there are WAY too many that got put on hold before that point!

Without further ado, in chronological order...

2001

ACE #1 : Completed. The very first project I ever finished, this was a middle grade about an average girl who discovers she was genetically engineered to be the optimal spy.

2002

ACE # 2-4: All completed MG. I wrote three more books following the same characters/premise as above. These books were very definitely practice books, but for that, they were invaluable. I learned a lot about writing series just from attempting to do it. And also, as a bonus I'd already cut my teeth on the spy front by the time I wrote The Squad.

2003

Dreamwalker: Completed YA. This was the first book that ever got me positive responses from editors to my queries (though it didn't end up selling). It was about a fifteen year old girl with the power to enter other people's dreams.

Circles: Completed MG about crop circles and sibling rivalry and mystery-solving cousins.

Bound: Completed YA- that got me my agent- we eventually sold it to Random House in 2004, and it was renamed GOLDEN. For those of you who don't know, it's a book about a teenage aura seer dealing with clique dynamics and a sinister math teacher at her new high school.

Crystal Clear: This was a MG companion to Golden, and it focused on Lexie. After I revised Golden, a lot of the story didn't make sense anymore, and I decided that if I ever did write Lexie's story, I wanted it to be YA, which meant waiting for Lexie to get to high school. When Random said they wanted a sequel to Golden, I decided to tell Lilah's story first and wrote Platinum as the follow-up instead.

2004

Untitled Completed MG about three cousins, one of whom makes the mistake of taking a boon from a faery. Wackiness ensues.

Destination: Freaky: Completed MG about all kinds of mystical stuff that happens when the MC's dad announces his surprise marriage to a woman she barely knows.

Tattoo. Completed YA (which became my second published book) about four friends who get psychic powers from a set of temporary tattoos.

*Three or so months after I wrote Tattoo, my agent sold Golden.*

2005

Untitled YA: I made it up to 30k before I got distracted by revisions on Golden and Tattoo, and other projects. This one is...ummm... a supernatural story centered on a ballet dancer. Because I like the supernatural, and I was a ballet dancer.

Out Completed YA about astral projection and falling in love with your best friend.

Platinum: The sequel to Golden (published in 2007), written at my publisher's request.

2006

The Squad: Completed. First book in my YA series about cheerleading secret agents (published in 2008).

Moxie: Completed MG about an unconventional girl detective. It's the only book I've ever written in first person present, and far and away my favorite of all of my MG attempts. I still really like this one, and may do something with it some day.

Untitled YA Slasher: I love cheesy horror movies, so on a whim, I wrote a cheesy horror novel, in the vein of "Scream" or "I Know What You Did Last Summer." Just for fun.

Untitled YA: Incomplete at 33k. Hard to summarize except to say that it's got both pirates and models.

The Squad: Killer Spirit: Completed. Second book in the Squad series.

2007

Fate: Completed YA (due out April '09). The sequel to Tattoo.

Chaos Theory, book 1: Completed YA about a girl who discovers the fate of the world is inexorably tied to her ability to ace her freshman science class. First in a four-book series.

2008... and beyond!

Who knows? I'm working on a zillion different projects (some YA, some MG, some adult, some screenplays), plus there are still three more Chaos Theory books to write once I finish with revisions on the first one!

Warning: Excessive Zombie Silliness Ahead

***

I'm having one of those late-nights that I'm pretty sure every college student in the world has more or less simultaneously, as the semester winds to a close and everything that needs to be done DEMANDS to be done all at once. You know the kind. You can't sleep, because there's so much to do, but you can't actually do any of the things that need to be done, because you know you SHOULD be sleeping, and you really-really-really don't want to get sick... And then, before you know it, BOOM, you're a stress zombie. A drooling, in-search-of-brains, decomposing stress zombie. You know, minus the brains and decomposing (mostly).

Like any good stress zombie, I keep oscillating between my bed and my desk, unable to really commit to either sleeping or working. So I settled on blogging instead, and while this doesn't solve either of my immediate problems of (a) needing sleep, and (b) needing to finish the googolplex of things that I would like to cross off my to do list, it DOES give me the opportunity to use words like "googolplex," and I don't think anyone can really argue against the value inherent in that. Blogging also gives me a chance to give you guys plenty of forewarning on the fact that I'm doing a signing at the Borders in Milford, Connecticut, this Saturday, from 2- 4 p.m. If you're nearby, I'd love to see you there. I promise to de-zombify by then.

And now, I'm going to bed. I think. Possibly. Mmmmm...brains...

Hey guys!

I've been getting a lot of emails lately asking if there are going to be more Squad books, so I thought I'd post what I know here. At this point, the answer is a firm "maybe." I always meant for the series to go on after KILLER SPIRIT, and I have plots and titles for several more books (all of which I would love to write), but my publisher is waiting to see how the first two books do before they buy any additional books in the series. That's just how these things go! I should have a firmer answer in another couple of months- and hopefully an update on the TV stuff by then as well. Until then, I can really only say two things for sure:

1. If you want to see more Squad books, then the best thing you could possibly do is tell people about them- get your local bookstores/library to order them, tell your friends about the series, blog about them, post reviews, make quizzes or videos...

2. Don't despair! As much as I love The Squad, I'm also really excited about my other upcoming projects- I've got two new books coming out in 2009. FATE is about a high school senior who doubles as the faery version of one of the three Fates- and her struggle to reconcile herself to the fact that the one thing she can't control is her own destiny. It's about growing up and letting your friendships grow with you (and it's also about hot faery boys, the chicness of geeks, and feeling like you're average and completely freakish at the exact same time). SCIENCE, THE APOCALYPSE, AND ME is the first book in a four-book series that's kind of what you'd get if you mixed Heroes with Dawson's Creek, and then added in four older brothers and a high school science class that just might bring about the apocalypse. It's also about boyfriends and best-friends-who-are-boys and mysterious soul mates and a ton of other fun stuff that I love writing about. So even if there AREN'T more Squad books, I hope all of you guys who've been writing me to ask will look forward to these. :)

I'll also look into putting together a list of books that you'd like if you read and liked THE SQUAD. For now, that's the best I can do! Thank you all so much for emailing me to ask- your emails (which you can send to golden_or_non (at) yahoo dot com) always brighten my day.

Details on The Great Starburst Project forthcoming...

-Jen

When I was little, my grandma always kept a bowl of starbursts (and also tootsie roll pops) on her counter. I remember having a distinct preference for the orange starbursts, then the pink, then the red, then the yellow. I also had a distinct preference for tootsie roll pops that had little stars on the label, because someone once told me that those were "winners" and that they entitlted you to a free tootsie roll pop, and even though I never tested that claim, I was always disappointed if I didn't "win." Anyway, back to my very strong and lifelong starburst preferences. Imagine my shock and amazement when today during lab meeting, another grad student said that the different starburst flavors don't actually differ in flavor at all- they just differ in scent. Because scent affects the way we perceive flavor, the fact that the different colored starbursts smell like different flavors makes us perceive them as different, even though the ingredients that contribute directly to taste are exactly the same.

Well, let me just say that this announcement shook my world at its very foundations. I even stopped lab meeting to assess how sure the person was of his starburst blasphemy. He was very, very sure. And since some people in the department actually study the relation of scent to flavor, I think he might be right, AND THAT FREAKS ME OUT. As an orange-starburst-lover, I'm on the verge of an identity crisis.

Before I freak out too much, though, I think that I should probably verify that this isn't just a candy urban legend. And to do that, I need some volunteers from our studio audience to join me in THE GREAT STARBURST PROJECT. I'm still working out the details, but participation in the project will probably just entail plugging your nose (or otherwise disengaging your smelling abilities) and then eating starbursts with your eyes closed and trying to determine what flavor you're eating. There will probably be bonus points for anyone willing to video tape their endeavor. Afterwards, I'll gather the results from all of the participants, and we'll see if there's any truth to this vicious starburst rumor. It'll be like MYTHBUSTERS: CANDY EDITION.

Let me know if you're game. Or if you're not, just leave a comment about something else (candy-related or otherwise), because when no one comments, I kind of feel like the kid in the cafeteria who has no one to sit with...

Here's what's been happening at my house this week.

Scene the First: Mom and the Matrix

Mom (wearing long, black coat): Does this jacket look okay?

Me: It looks great.

Mom: Are you sure? I'm afraid it might be too long. It doesn't make me look like something out of The Matrix, does it?

Me: I really don't think there's too much of a danger of anyone thinking you look like you belong in The Matrix.

Mom: Are you sure? I feel kind of Matrixy.

Me: You know, you're absolutely right. You're a regular Neo. A middle-aged, soccer mom Neo.

Mom: Shut up. (The two of us start cracking up).

*Three hours later*

Dad (to Mom): I like your coat. It makes you look like something out of The Matrix.

Mom (turns to me): I told you! I can too be Matrixy. I'm a take names Matrix Mom.

Scene the Second: On the phone with a friend, talking about St. Patrick's Day

Friend: ... and they REALLY wanted one of us to enter the pub's Riverdancing competition...

Me: Please tell me you did not enter a Riverdance Competition.

Friend (who has never Riverdanced before in her life): I didn't just enter. I won.

Scene the Third: My Dad making fun of my arms, which are both skinny and pale...

Dad: It's an alien! It has tried to assume human form, but failed.

Me: Hey!

Dad (picking arm up and examining it): It appears to be part King Crab...

****

So what's up with you guys?

In the great urban fantasy battle between werewolves and vampires, I used to be a vampire girl. I attribute this largely to the fact that David Boreanaz almost never wore shirts during season 3 of Buffy, and slightly less so to my favoring of Edward over Jacob in Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series. Recently, however, I've been converted. I am now a werewolf girl. If you are NOT in the werewolf camp, I challenge you to read the following books:

Moon Called, Blood Bound, and Iron Kissed by Patricia Briggs

Bitten, Stolen, and Broken by Kelley Armstrong. Heck, read the entire WOMEN OF THE OTHERWORLD series- they're some of my very, very favorite adult urban fantasy books.

Kitty and the Mindight Hour and all of its delightful sequels, by Carrie Vaughn

Stray by Rachel Vincent. The weres in this series aren't wolves, but they're just as intriguing...

***

I was shocked to discover that I'd changed my loyalties, but these books did it for me. There's something about weres that I find really compelling. Part of it is pack dynamics and psychology (after all, I am working on a PhD in the latter). Part of it is what the pack mentality allows the authors to do and to challenge with strong female characters. And part of it is also probably the fact that I really like dogs, and am not so fond of things, like mosquitoes, that suck my blood.

So what side of the fence are you guys on? I know that over at Fangs, Fur, and Fey, we had quite a debate on the werewolves versus vampires versus fey topic last year- and back then, I was all about the fangs.

Have you ever wondered what would happen if a Tolkien elf escaped Middle Earth, was subsequently raised by hippies, got dreadlocks, and then entered a singing competition judged by Simon Cowell? Well, wonder no more- Jason Castro is your man. Despite the fact that he always looks a little stoned, he's starting to grow on me, but I swear, every time he comes on stage, I start thinking of his elven kin...

Don't believe me?

( Read more... )

In other news, I quite obviously have too much time on my hands.

Spring Break is here, and that means I'm home-sweet-home in Oklahoma for two weeks! People often find it hard to believe that I like Oklahoma more than any other place I've lived, but I totally do. Here are the top five nice things about being home:

5. The weather. Now, Oklahoma weather is the very definition of whack (where else can the weather forecast say "High of 79, low of 31"?), but even when it's almost as cold as Connecticut, it has some distinct advantages. The biggest one is that there is no snirt on the ground. For those of you unfamiliar with the concept, "snirt" is my word for the icky, dirty mess (snow + dirt) that snow turns into after it's been on the ground for a couple of days and gets mixed with sand, and then it turns all gray and nasty. When it snows in Oklahoma, the snow is white, and 99% of the time, it melts before it can turn to snirt. And the past two days, it's been gorgeous outside.

4. My family is here! On Saturday, I went over to my brother and sister-in-law's house, and my entire family played Rock Band on Playstation 3. I suck at the drums, but am okay at singing and playing the guitar- probably due to my practice at Guitar Hero II and Karaoke Revolutions.

3.Ally just moved to town, so now we're practically neighbors, and can hang out and go on adventures.

2. Movie tickets are cheap. Yesterday, we went to see Jumper, and it cost us six dollars apiece (which used to seem expensive to me, given that the entire time I was in high school, tickets were under five dollars, but which is WAY less expensive than the East coast).

1. The food is wonderful. And also, my family is obsessed with feeding me, so there is TONS of food ALL THE TIME.

There are other awesome things, too (like actually having time to read, and taking a visit to the used bookstore and buying them out of books by recently discovered new-to-me-authors), but mainly, I think it's just that no matter how far you travel, or there really is no place like home.

You know, I actually thought Bangs Watch (which has been a staple of this blog since 2005) was over. Celebrities seemed to have stopped flocking en masse to hair salons, demanding that their hair be chopped off into bangs that did not at all flatter their facial shapes. Those celebs who did decide to bang it opted for a more subtle, side-swept bang, and with the exception of Katie Holmes's odd desire to have the exact same haircut as her two-year-old, all was well with the Hollywood Hair world.

But then Bangs Watch Correspondent zeisgeist sent me this. Rachel Bilson (of THE OC fame) has apparently not only given herself a hardy, rather Heidi Klum-esque bang, but also dyed her beautiful brown hair to a much lighter red-brown shade. Why, I ask you- why? Was being super pretty and cute and incredibly endearing and yet natural looking getting old, Rachel? Did you spend a weekend watching the last two seasons of Gilmore Girls and decide to try to turn yourself into an Alexis Bledel clone (seriously, check out the picture on the left- does she or does she not look EXACTLY like a red haired Rory?) Did you get tired of people remembering how awesome you looked in Summer's Wonder Woman outfit and asking you about the big screen Wonder Woman project that Joss Whedon never EVER should have been removed from? Or maybe you just wanted to look totally different so that no one would associate you in any way with Mischa Barton?

The consolation in all this is that even though I don't feel like Rachel has a face that can pull off bangs, at least she waited until bangs weren't THE trendiest thing to do to get them, which makes me feel like she really wanted them, and not like she just did it because everyone else was doing it, and getting bangs seemed like a better choice in the "go along with your peers" column than getting arrested (yes, I'm looking at you, Mischa).

Dear David Archuletta,

How adorable are you? Seriously, can I adopt you? I promise to protect you from Paula, who apparently wants to "squeeze you until your head pops off and then dangle it from her rear view mirror." You're totally the one to beat this year. Also, I think you should date Miley Cyrus. Cool?

-Jen

***

Dear Simon,

I almost always agree with you, but you're totally wrong about crossword puzzles. Crossword puzzles ARE hot. Smart is sexy. I repeat, smart is sexy.

Cheers,

Jen

***

Dear Paula's Coke Cup,

What liquid do you contain? The world wants to know.

-Jen

Last night, I watched the Barbara Walters pre-Oscar special, and while her interview with Miley Cyrus was adorable (stay sweet, Miley- I'm begging you, stay sweet!) and Ellen Page came across as endearingly real and down-to-earth, what really stayed with me after the special was over was what Harrison Ford said when asked how he wanted people to remember him as an actor. He said he wanted to be remembered as a great collaborator- a good partner, in work and in life. Does anyone else think that's as awesome as I do? Because when I'm dead and gone, I'd like to be the kind of person (and the kind of writer) who is remembered that way, too. What about you guys? How would you want to be remembered? And is anyone else excited about the new Indiana Jones movie?

A new quiz for all of you! Is it sad if I made the quiz, and it STILL tells me I'm not spy material?

Do you have what it takes to be a spy?

When it comes to espionage, you're hopeless, but don't despair! This means that you're a very open person, and the people in your life are almost definitely glad to have you around. You know who you are as a person, and you'd have trouble pretending to be anyone else. You have a firmly developed sense of right and wrong, and are more interested in living life than playing the game.
Take this quiz!








Quizilla |
Join

| Make A Quiz | More Quizzes | Grab Code

This week, I went to Teen Author Night in NYC- basically, once a month, area writers for teens get together and just hang out for a few hours. I've always wanted to go to one, and finally, the stars aligned and I was able to make the trip down to the city for the evening. It was a lot of fun, but before I actually got there and started partaking of the fun, I was terrified. You see, I am spontaneously shy. I am of the opinion that this may actually be worse than being actually shy, because it means that I have no predictive power over whether or not I'm going to be viciously attacked by a bout of shyness at any given moment. I'm usually quite un-shy. Outgoing, even. I don't mind looking silly, and I really like to talk. But sometimes, at seemingly random intervals, I suddenly do a 180, and then CAN'T talk or be outgoing at all. I am, of course, ill-equipped to deal with this, because it doesn't happen on anything approximating a regular basis.

So. Me in NYC (which is a scary image in and of itself, given that Jen + Subway = Highly Questionable), meeting up and hanging out with a ton of other writing folks, all of whom are fabulous. Leetle bit scary. Luckily, everyone was very, very super nice to me, and after the first twenty minutes or so, I rediscovered my ability to make words come out of my mouth. I got to meet a lot of people I know online AND a lot of people who've written books I really like, and I had all kinds of crazy conversations, and fun was had by all. :)

And speaking of fun and other authors, it's time for another GCC entry. This week, I'm proud to host Paula Chase- an old friend of mine from the blue board and the author of the Del Rio Bay Clique series, which started with SO NOT THE DRAMA. Today, Paula is touring with the second book in the series, Don't Get It Twisted.

THE BOOK
In, Don’t Get It Twisted, the sequel to her debut, So Not The Drama, Chase gives readers a peek into the Del Rio Bay clique’s foray into dating, while also dipping her toe into the issue of student athletics and cheating. Using humor and earnest insight, Chase continues the story of Mina Mooney and her mixed bag of friends.

Don’t Get It Twisted [Kensington Books/Dafina for Young Readers] finds Mina scheming to go on a date with her crush, Craig, to The Frenzy, a coveted party thrown by the school’s football team. As she draws her friends into the plans, a newcomer throws an unexpected monkey wrench into her blossoming relationship with Craig.

The same newcomer has JZ sweating his spot on the Varsity basketball team and soon, both Mina and JZ are on the ‘by any means necessary’ road to trouble.

Don’t Get It Twisted is about the consequences and repercussions of the choices we make when we set out to get the things we really want.

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT THE DEL RIO BAY CLIQUE SERIES

“Surprisingly real and deep…well worth reading.” – Teens Read Too

“Excellent for showing friendship that crosses racial and social boundaries.” – YA Books Central

“Don’t Get It Twisted, is another winner.” – Urban Reviews

THE AUTHOR
Author, Paula Chase has written for Girls Life, Sweet 16 and Baltimore Magazine, among others. In addition to her background in corporate communications and public relations, she founded the Committed Black Women, a youth mentoring program for 14-17 year old girls. Her Del Rio Bay Clique series helped launch Kensington Books YA line and joins a burgeoning number of YA books targeted to multi-culti suburbanite teens. Chase calls her brand of teen literature, Hip Lit, a nod to the diversity spawned by the MTV-watching, 106 & Park-ing, pop culture hungry hip hop generation. The author lives in Maryland with her husband and two daughters. Learn more about the series and author at www.paulachasehyman.com

THE INTERVIEW

In addition to being a book fanatic, I'm a big TV and movie person, and when I write, I tend to see my books as either movies or television shows. Is it easier for you to see your current book as a movie or a TV show? Explain.

In a way it is. I guess, because I'm a huge TV fan, I tend to view stories through that sort of lens. Still, it's not something I do consciously. I don't set out thinking about it like that. But when I'm going over the story, doing re-writes, I definitely think about it in terms of where I break the chapters - is that chapter an entire episode or merely part of one and the end is a commercial break? I definitely do that.


If you had to cast your book with real-life actors, who would play the main characters?

Unfortunately, there still aren't a huge number of young African American actors out there that I can point to. My daughter and I tried casting my book once, but we ran across issues because either the actors were too old or just didn't "feel" right to us.


Now let's play the "meets" game. If you had to describe your book as *something* meets *something else* (ie my editor referred to my first book as "mean girls meets charmed"), how would you describe it?
Movies, tv shows, books, or anything else you fancy is fair game!

Zoey 101 meets Love and Basketball. Man it was tough coming up with a hoops movie or TV Show reference. But once I did, I realized I really liked it!

Earlier this week, I went to the library. This in and of itself is not unusual- I've been through several library cards, all of which (except the one I lost) were used until they fell apart. When I'm at home, I go to the public library constantly. What was unusual about this particular library trip was that the library in question was Sterling Memorial Library, home of the infamous "stacks"- which I'd heard of, but never experienced myself. Urban legend didn't quite prepare me for the experience. For example, I did not know that the "stacks" were actually giant rooms full of narrowly-spaced bookshelves, with hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of books; nor did I know that said stacks were actually eight or nine stories tall. Also, very dark. And deserted. This makes sense, I suppose, given that my previous knowledge of the stacks (and a large part of the reason that they are infamous) is that (a) secret societies sometimes conduct interviews there at nighttime, and (b) the stacks are well-known for being the site of...erm... let's just call them "adventurous physical encounters" and leave it at that.

So there I am, wandering through row after row of books, floor after floor, my trusty call-numbers in hand, and every once in a while, I'll step onto an aisle that's pitch black, and half of me is just hoping that the fact that it's the middle of the day will mean that nobody has decided to go "adventuring" in front of the books on evolutionary perspectives on film and literature. With this in mind, I'm scanning the shelves, looking for a book, a process that is somewhat complicated by the fact that it is PITCH BLACK, and I'm wondering why in the world some of the stacks are lit and some aren't. My eyes adjust, finally, and with the help of the "indiglo" button on my watch, I'm able to see the call numbers on some of the books. My books, of course, all tended to be on the bottom row, so there I am, kneeling on the cold tile floor, in the dark, holding my watch up to the shelves and wondering why I didn't bring a flashlight (and also wondering why anybody would want to get it on in the stacks EVER). I successfully locate my book, and then, I repeat the process.

Then, finally, as I was hunting after my tenth book on a new (and yet strangely identical) floor, I run into another human being- a library aide who, in his quest to help me find a book, casually pressed a button on the end of the bookshelf that TURNED ON THE OVERHEAD LIGHT. I manage to restrain myself from saying "Wow! There are lights in here? And all you have to do is push that button that blends into the shelf like a chameleon perfecting his art? Seriously?" Instead, I browsed that shelf and located not only the book I was looking for, but also two more. Now, I have lots of fun academic books to read- I just finished one called "Making Sense of Television," which gives psychological perspectives on the art of the soap opera, and I started one called "Literary Darwinism," which uses evolutionary theory as an approach to literary criticism. All this, because I finally braved the stacks and lived to tell the tale.

Squad update: Thanks for all of your congrats on the deal with The N! I should stress that it’s just an option- there may never actually be a show- but that I’m super excited about the possibility and about the journey there.

Also, if you're feeling lucky, ElleGirl is giving away ten copies of the Squad: http://www.ellegirl.com/win/

Anyone remember last summer when I had good news that I was very excited about, but I couldn't share it yet? I'd be willing to bet you don't, because it probably wasn't that memorable, but I definitely DO remember having the news and not being able to share it, because it was absolute torture on my end! And little did I know that it might take SEVEN MONTHS for the deal to be absolutely, finally, just-signed-on-the-dotted-line official. But now it is. And I can share.

The Squad has been optioned for television by The N (home of Degrassi and Instant Star, the latter of which is one of my personal guilty pleasures). They're working on developing a half-hour TV series, and- perhaps the best news- I get to be involved as a paid consultant to development! They're really interested in staying true to the feel and voice of the books, and they want me to help them do that. I am so beyond over-the-moon completely thrilled!

Whew! Feels good to finally share. :)

1. I went to see DEFINITELY, MAYBE last night for Valentine's Day. It wasn't at all what I had imagined it being (far less Abigail Breslin than I had anticipated), but I liked it. A good study in how to build up multiple potential love interests.

2. While reading the latest book in the PRIVATE series by Kate Brian (super addicting, btw), I could not help but notice that one of the characters used the phrase "obvi." This gives me some confidence that my friends and I (and Delia in FATE) are not the only ones who use the word. Score!

3. I really miss the opening sequence on One Tree Hill. I always enjoyed the theme song, and for all of the shows I watch, I love seeing how the credits change each year. Hence my dismay when I discovered that OTH doesn't have them anymore! I always find it disappointing when shows I like don't have real opening sequences. I do, however, like the Gossip Girl opening, even though it doesn't really show the characters. I attribute my liking to the fact that Kristen Bell is awesomeness incarnate.

4. I celebrated the release of THE SQUAD in the same fashion as PLATINUM- by which I mean that my roommate and I went and ate at Wendy's (which is still a "G-rated" establishment, FYI).

5. Yesterday, during lab meeting, one of the points of discussion was that NPR has two special rules about what can be said on air: the first is that no one can say, at any point or in any way, that Santa Claus is not real, and the second is that the President always has to be referred to as President So-and-So and never by last name alone.