So Many Boys...

According to my counter, there are less than 45 days until So Many Boys, the second book in The Naughty List series, is released! Yay! (And feel free to grab the widget) I'm so excited, and I haven't even seen a finished copy yet. It's going to be such a big deal for me!




There were no ARC's for So Many Boys, so no early reviews either! It's like... top secret or something. It's like we're all honorary SOS members! :-)

Anyway, I worked up a shorter synopsis to hopefully get you excited about the book (and not spoil the first one if you haven't read it yet). So Many Boys goes to a different place than The Naughty List. Let's just say that in this one... the claws come out.

So Many Boys picks up a few months after The Naughty List ends--and the squad has a catastrophe on their hands. Someone is pretending to be the Society of Smitten Kittens and using it for vindictive purposes!

Can Tessa and the squad find this copykitten before their reputations are completely ruined?

And what happens when a new guy shows up on Tessa's radar?

So Many Boys... so little time.

How I'm feeling today...

It's complicated.

How are YOU feeling??


(Thanks for the stickers, WWA SCBWI!)

Girlfriends' Cyber Circuit: Starring KAY CASSIDY!

I'm so excited to bring you the latest girlfriend Kay Cassidy and her debut book, THE CINDERELLA SOCIETY! Big things are happening for this book! Let's hear more!

AUTHOR BIO:

Kay Cassidy is the author of teen fiction she wishes was based on her real life. She is the founder of the national Great Scavenger Hunt Contest^TM reading program for kids and teens and the host of the inspirational Living Your Five^TM web project. In her free time, she enjoys yoga, movies, music, and reading. Lots and lots of reading. She hopes her debut YA novel, THE CINDERELLA SOCIETY (April 13, 2010 - Egmont), will help girls embrace their inner Cindy.

OFFICIAL BOOK BLURB:

What's a girl to do when the glass slipper fits, but she doesn't want to wear it anymore?

Sixteen year old Jess Parker has always been an outsider. So when she receives an invitation to join The Cinderella Society, a secret society of the most popular girls in school, it's like something out of a fairy tale. Swept up by the Cindys' magical world of makeovers, and catching the eye of her Prince Charming, Jess feels like she's finally found her chance to fit in.

Then the Wickeds--led by Jess's arch-enemy--begin targeting innocent girls in their war against the Cindys, and Jess discovers there's more to being a Cindy than reinventing yourself on the outside. She has unknowingly become part of a centuries-old battle of good vs. evil, and now the Cindys in charge need Jess for a mission that could change everything.

Overwhelmed, Jess wonders if The Cinderella Society made a mistake in choosing her. Is it a coincidence her new boyfriend doesn't want to be seen with her in public? And is this glamorous, secret life even what she wants, or will she risk her own happy ending to live up to the expectations of her new sisters?

BOOK TEASER:

I opened the card, my hands trembling in dread and the faint remnants of what I used to call hope, as a tiny silver high-heel pin bounced into my hand.

I juggled the pin for a second, barely managing to keep it from falling, and flipped open the note with my other hand. The words inside were not a message but an invitation that sent shivers down my spine:

Your presence is requested at The Grind.

Tonight, 7 p.m.

Wear the pin.

Discretion MANDATORY.

Q&A:

1. Okay, first question. If this were high school, which senior superlative in the yearbook would you score?

Most Likely to Organize Your Sock Drawer

2. What is one thing you wish you would have done when you were younger? For me, it’s that I never studied abroad. How about you?

I wish I would've lived in the moment more. I was always thinking about the next thing: the next goal, the next step, the next… whatever. I didn't take time to savor the now. I look back on that and want to kick myself (and then want to kick myself again because I still fall into that trap!).

3. Now here’s the self-promotion part: Can you please tell us all about your book? We have some book shopping to do!

The Cinderella Society is about an outsider who gets tapped to join a secret society of good populars dedicated to defeating the mean girls of the world. It's about girl empowerment: getting comfortable in your own skin and being true to who you are. It also deals with the effects of girl bullies and what unconditional friendship really means.

4. So, say your book just got picked up for a movie (congratulations!) Who’s playing your MC?

She's a bit old for it now, but Danielle Panabaker would've made a brilliant Jess when Danielle was a teen.

5. If you could take one literary character to prom, who would it be, and why?

Hmm… probably one of the Weasley twins from Harry Potter. That would be a memorable night for sure!

6. And finally, since all of the other questions were so serious… What do you hope teens take away from your book?

I hope they take away that the most important things you can do are get comfortable in your own skin and be true to who you are. In the long run, those are the things that will help you successfully battle the crazy yaya stuff life can throw your way.

WOW, Kay! Thank you so much for stopping by! And everyone, pick up a copy of The Cinderella Society today! :-)

SCBWI LA 2010 - Countdown to Awesome!

It's finally time to REGISTER!!! SCBWI's annual summer conference in LA is happening and you're all invited! I'll be joining TEAM BLOG again, live blogging/tweeting/videoing from the conference floor. But this time, I want YOU to join me!

This is my third year at the LA Conference, but I have to say, it's time to start fresh! This is the year! 2010 for the win!! So will you join me for the dopest, chillest, most fantastic conference ever?

So register now and I'll keep a bar stool handy for ya! For your entertainment, just a few pics from years past:

2009

2008

See you there!

Cirque du SOAWESOME!

Uh, oh. My husband, Jesse, wrote a blog post. lol Enjoy!



Hi there, I’m honored to do a guest post on my wife’s blog. You may have seen me in a few photos here, and thought, “Who is this guy? Is he a serial killer?” I assure you that I am not. I take medication. In fact, Suzanne has been my better half for the past 10 years.

Many people out there may have wondered, “What’s it like to be married to a published author?” Let me tell you, it’s pretty cool.

For one, I get to be part of the creative process. Often while Sue is drafting, she will have me read a passage and ask for my input. I get to offer such pearls of wisdom like, “ You should add something here. I’m not sure what, but something.”

When she is editing and hits a roadblock, I drop nuggets like, “Why don’t you make them skinny and pale?”

I also get to offer support. Often while revising for an editor, Sue may hit a snag trying to tie all the story points together and will look to me for support. I look her in the eye and say, “Yeah, babe. I have no idea how you’ll make this work, but I’m sure you’ll figure it out.”

So, getting to add such valuable input to her stories make me feel good. Almost like I’m published too. But from watching Sue go through the writing process, I can honestly say, there is no way I could do it. I like my sanity.

On to the Cirque du Soleil. We got a chance to see a show here in Portland over the weekend. I have been a fan for quite some time. It’s very popular now with shows all through the states, shows in Vegas, a Beatles show. But it wasn’t always that way. I remember watching it on TV ten years ago and a friend walked in. He watched it for about a minute, taking in the strange music, the costumes, and the person dressed up like a dog. Then he shot me a look like he was seriously reevaluating our friendship.

So I was asking myself, has Cirque du Soleil jumped the shark? It was my mission to take an objective look at it and not get caught up in the partially nude female performer with the 8 hula-hoops swinging from all parts of her body (This really happened).

I must say, I sat through the first half of the show and was taken to a different place in my mind. Everything was working, the story, the music, and the performers. During the intermission I was really looking forward to the second half of the show. Anticipation was high because as we walked back there was a huge seesaw-like cage on the stage and it totally looked like someone could get hurt. Yes!

The lights went down, the music started, and then it happened. This overpowering smell surrounded me. It was so strong that I knew what it was. There was nothing I could do but wait it out. I looked at Sue, and could see she was going through the same thing. I spent the whole second half of the show waiting for the smell to leave (it did not) and then wondering who it was that did this. What evil bastard would fart during Cirque du Soleil?

So to sum up the experience, the first half was pure magic, the second half was Cirque du Funk.

Thanks, all! Oh, and buy The Naughty List!

Going Gollum

Gollum--that's what I call myself when I'm in revisions. The crazy eyes, hunched back, random mumblings. And right now I am so Gollum that I have to unplug. Sorry! There are few things I dislike more than internet deprivation. I would rather sit through a boring speech (please, no) or ride a roller coaster (total chickenshit)or worse yet... outline a book. But this is the only way. I must go dark.

I'll be back after May 1st, although I'll be a lot more pale and twitchy. I'll have some guest posts in the meantime, so I will try and keep you properly entertained.

So... stay strawberry smoothie?

Suz

The Novel Graveyard

This one works pretty well as a novel graveyard book--it was my zombie attempt from a few years ago. This is actually a completed manuscript, but it never made it past a rough draft. You can see other novel graveyard posts HERE.

Again, this is a ROUGH, unedited passage from a book that I never finished/polished. It's called The Rules for Dating a Teenage Zombie, and instead of chapter numbers, each chapter was started with a rule.

Hope you like it!


THE RULES FOR DATING A TEENAGE ZOMBIE
Rule 1: Don’t cross paths with a zombie. Especially if it’s two weeks before prom. That's just tacky.


I looked at the clock as my foot continued to tap on the tile of my kitchen floor. Forty-three minutes. Sawyer was forty-three minutes late. Because he was with her. Victoria. God. My teeth clenched just at the sound of her name.

Okay, yes. She was dead. And technically, Sawyer was only paying his last respects, but still. There was no need to spend an extra forty-three, no, forty-four minutes with your ex-girlfriend’s dead body. I stopped tapping. Jealousy was making me sick.

The phone rang. It was about time. I jumped up, and skidded to a stop in front of the counter.

“You’d better have a really good reason for--”

“Uhhhhhhhhh…”

I curled my lip. What the hell? “Who is this?” I demanded.

There was a cough. “Emmie?”

“Sawyer? What are you doing, you freak? Why are you so late?” Even though I wanted to be a bitch, I was sure he could hear the sense of relief in my voice. Victoria was finally out of our lives.

“I’m hurt,” Sawyer said. His voice was low, breathy.

My heart rate sped up and I furrowed my brow. “Hurt? Are you okay?”

“I don’t know. I think so. It was Victoria, she--”

My insides knotted. “Are you seriously going to still talk about her?” The girl had tried to ruin our lives and he was going to let her keep doing it? Postmortem?

“No, baby,” he said and exhaled. “It’s not that. She--”

“I’m hanging up now.” Tears sprang to my eyes. I was so tired of being harassed by my boyfriend’s ex. Over the last two years, she had one, slashed my tires exactly six different times; two, forged my signature on a school transfer request form; and three, egged my house during my father’s funeral. And I couldn’t even count the number of times she’d shown up at Sawyer’s house, threatening to kill me. Ugh. I was so glad she was dead.

I made the sign of the cross and looked up. Just in case.

“Don’t hang up,” Sawyer said. “I’m coming over. I don’t feel good, Emmie.”

My face softened. Well. If he didn’t feel good, I guess I could be a little nicer. Poor thing. He never was very good at being sick.

“Fine.” I cradled the phone to my ear. “But I don’t want to hear her name even once.”

“I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

“Hurry.”

Sawyer hung up but I stood there, listening to the dial tone before setting the receiver down. Was it possible for me to be jealous of a dead girl? Was that even remotely healthy? The phone rang again.

Where are all the BOYS?

I have an AMAZING (and hilarious) guest post today from friend and author Bryan Bliss. Enjoy!

My wife introduced me to Young Adult fiction. Of course, at first I was like, “Um... yeah. I’m all stocked up on my Sweet Valley High quotient for, like, ever.” I was a serious, literary writer, okay? And there was no way I was ever going to read something about some damn sparkly vampire and his girlfriend. Sorry.

But my wife kept pushing this particular book she was reading. From across the living room, she’d be laughing. Then came the tears. Then it was back to laughter. You know I was thinking: “What? Did the Babysitter’s Club get a new member or something?” When she finished the book, she was at it again.

“You have to read this book. I really think you’re going to like it. Read it, or we’re over.”

So I was all, “Woman, I got all kinds of ladies waiting for this.”

I started reading the book that night.

My initial reaction to Looking for Alaska by John Green was, “Wow, I didn’t know you could say Fuck in young adult literature.” My second? “What a great book.” I tore through it, read An Abundance of Katherines next and started trolling the YA section at the library and book store.

Herein lies the problem.

You get strange looks being a 30-something, bald dude in the teen section of the library. Moms start pulling their kids away like you’re wearing a trench coat and mumbling to yourself, All the pretty children... hmm.. yeah... Stroking the book covers gently.

Seriously. Being a male YA fan is hard. There are the mocking comments by co-workers: “Hey, Bryan - Are you Team Edward or Team Gay?” There’s the suspect looks from teenagers in the book store when you run up to them and say, “Have you read The Hunger Games? O.M.G! Peeta 4 eva!!!”

That, specifically, has never happened. Really.

As hard as being a YA reader is, sometimes being a YA writer is even more difficult.

I forgot to mention that bit. After reading Looking for Alaska, I re-wrote my book for young adults, found an agent, and am currently making plans for literary domination. Oh, I bought my wife a really nice present too.

The YA field seems - at times - estrogenized. Yeah, I made that word up. It’s how I roll.

Some would disagree, but when I look at the books, the readers, the moms wearing their Twilight shirts, I see one thing: the X chromosome. And there’s nothing wrong with that. I get it. Many boys/men/dudes don’t read. The market is decidedly female.

But ladies, please allow me to clue you in on something very important. Guys never - and I really, really mean never - do any of the following:
- Snap their fingers and do a head bob to make a point.
- Swipe their feathered bangs gently, like the wind.
- Have delicate hands that remind one of porcelain
- Say things like, “Girl, you so crazy!!!” Unless it’s ironic, of course.
- think of a girl and use the word ‘willowy.’

I don’t want to come across as sounding like some cranky asshole (or worse, a misogynist) because I really enjoy many female authors. Recently, I’ve read Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver, How to Say Goodbye in Robot by Natalie Standiford, and (obviously) The Naughty List by Suzanne Young. (Have you ever heard of her? She’s brilliant.)

Of course, there are many female writers who write boy protagonists. L.K. Madigan’s Flash Burnout is a great example of a female author who nailed the (elusive?) boy voice. There are many others.

I think everyone can agree that having more boy readers would be a great thing. To do this, I think we need to write believable boys. Make them more than just dirty and fans of football. Make them inconvenient. Make them more than a simple foil for your snarky female protagonist. And please, never let them wear capri pants.


Bryan is currently represented by the fabulous Michael Bourret, so clearly his world domination is getting close. Be afraid, my friends. Be very afraid. And be sure to visit his blog HERE!

WWA SCBWI Conference Pics!!

It was that time of year again. Time for the SCBWI Western Washington Conference! And it definitely didn't disappoint. It was filled with life-changing experiences, friendships, unimaginable sorrow and struggles of life and death. And it also involved free massages. Check it out!

That's Matt Holm and Peter Brown. Seems Peter only has two speeds, silly and serial killer. Nice!

Oh, my first panel! (or what I like to call, "how to give Michael Bourret a heartattack". Spring Break stories!)

Pretty much the best class field trip EVER!! Especially with some of my favorite people like Michael B., Jordan and Kevin aboard the school bus!

Our winery tour involved stories of Middle Earth and vacuum cleaners.

Willing to bet that this is the funniest group of people alive (Michael Bourret, Kevin Emerson, Kim Baker and Jordan Brown). But not really me. I was mostly the punchline of their jokes. Otherwise known as "the things Suzanne should not talk about in public".

Does your local conference give the faculty a free massage?? Me and publisher Elizabeth Law are now bonded for life.

Wow, that Peter Brown sure knows how to make an entrance.

So let me just say that it was SO HARD TO LEAVE!!! If you ever have a chance to go to the conference here, you really should! I got to hang with some of the most talented, charming, and above all FUNNY people I've ever known. Sigh... I hate the last day of summer camp!!

See you kids next year!

Field Trip!

Today I blogged over at the Guide to Literary Agents Editor's Blog. Check it out if you get a chance! And on Friday we're going on a field trip! The SCBWI Western Washington conference is kicking off and I'll be there with ... well, I don't have bells, but I do have a sweet bracelet. I'll wear that.

More soon!!

Suz

Hoppy Easter!

Low-key times here in rainy Oregon! But... a couple of pictures anyway. Hope everyone had a wonderful, overloaded with chocolate, puke-inducing weekend!