Archive for July, 2009

July 25, 2009 • 2 Comments

This has got to be the worst winter we’ve known since living in NZ (hopefully my daughter isn’t reading this, because she says all I do is moan about the weather….. that’s so not true…. well….) but today I’m looking out on a fabulous bright blue sky. I can tolerate the cold (sort of…. actually that’s a lie) as long as the sun shines and sky is blue. Just recently it’s been cold AND overcast. Which makes our move to Australia even more on the cards. What I need is sunshine all year round and day time temps not drop below twenty degrees… oh yes and to be close to the beach….you can see why we moved from the UK!

What else is happening….. my brother (who lives in Auckland) is visiting at the moment, which means I’m not getting any writing done, and I’m having to expand my culinary repertoire (which, if you know me, you know isn’t easy).

Only four weeks to the RWNZ conference and Amanda and I have just started to plan our workshop. I’m also MC so I need to get all that sorted…. I can’t leave it to the last minute. I’m also standing in as Secretary so have to get all the AGM stuff ready…. that’s ok…. I have my list (phew!!) and I’ve done it lots of times in the past.

Have a fabulous weekend!

July 18, 2009 • 6 Comments

MySpace Glitters

I’m blogging at the launch party for Stephanie Kuehnert’s new book BALLARDS OF SUBURBIA. So, check it out for a chance to win a copy of The Second Virginity of Suzy Green.

In fact, visit everyday for the next few weeks because there are loads of prizes up for grabs. Stephanie’s having one helluva party over there.

And what else is today about………. oh yes………. it’s my birthday!!! So happy birthday to me. I’m planning a day of doing nothing other than relaxing and eating. We’re not going out but we are getting an Indian takeout…. yum, my favorite. And I did make an apple crumble (my other fav) which I will have with some dairy free chocolate icecream (don’t knock it til you try it).

Oh yes, and I’m sure I’ll be managing to eat some chocolate ginger, and dark chocolate peanut slab (how worrying is it that everything I’m doing is food related???)

Have a great weekend!

July 13, 2009 • Comments

I’m posting on Teen Fiction Cafe about vacations.

July 12, 2009 • Comments

I’m really excited to be touring ALIBI JUNIOR HIGH by Greg Logsted. It’s my kind of book and I can’t wait to read it.

Thirteen-year-old Cody Saron has been home schooled his whole life by his father, an undercover agent for the CIA. Cody has never lived the same life as other kids his age. He never went to a regular school, never lived in one place longer than a few weeks, never had a friend or played on any sports teams. Cody’s a black belt in the arts of Tae Kwon Do and Ju Jitsu. He speaks five languages and has traveled to every corner of the globe. But what Cody isn’t prepared for is . . . junior high.

When the danger surrounding Cody’s dad heats up like never before, Cody is sent to stay with the aunt he’s never known, Jenny Williams, in her small Connecticut suburb. Cody knows how to pick a lock or follow a trail, but he has no idea how to fit in with regular kids, how to handle his first crush, or how to make it through a day of classes. How will he ever fit in?

Reviews:
“Funny and fast paced, this fits right in with the beach-read crowd.”
-Kirkus
“I just finished reading Greg Logsted’s Alibi Junior High in a single sitting. Thankfully the family had other things to do for a while because the author nailed me to the pages with his premise and with the fantastic pacing of this young adult novel. I wasn’t tempted even once to get up and go do something else. Logsted starts his spell on page one, and readers will have to stay with him to see what ultimately happens to Cody Saron, the 13-year-old professional spy.” ~ Mel Odol, INDENVER TIMES

Bio:
Greg Logsted currently lives in Danbury with his wife and fellow author, Lauren Baratz-Logsted and their daughter Jackie. He is the author of Something Happened and coauthor of The Sisters 8 series for young readers. www.greglogsted.com and www.twitter.com/GregLogsted.

July 8, 2009 • 1 Comment

I’m thrilled to be touring Jennifer Banash’s book Simply Irresistible which is the third and last in The Elite book series.

Simply Irresistible (Penguin) brings us a whole new set of adventures now that Casey has had a big city-haute makeover, courtesy of her classmate and neighbor Madison Macallister – part teen icon and part queen diva-bitch. Wearing the right clothes, saying the right things, and meeting the right people, has given Casey the look and the attitude – she’s “in” and loving it! Much to Madison’s dismay, her rival is climbing up the social ladder in a big way and could end up just as popular as Madison now that the two are set to star in their own TV reality show, “De-Luxe.” Yes, showbiz came knocking on two of The Bramford’s most illustrious doors and, as much as Madison thrives on the attention the show brings, she’s not thrilled about having every bit of her life of privilege caught on tape. However, fame comes at a price and Madison is one chick who is willing to pay anything…especially if it means becoming the next reality “it girl.” Casey, on the other hand, is realizing that Reality TV can sometimes beunreal, causing her to wonder if she even knows who she is anymore. With her relationship with Drew, Madison’s ex, currently more off than on, she can’t help wondering if everything i n her life is really just an illusion – and how much longer the illusion can last….

Now for the questions:

What inspired the plot for your book?
Reality TV! I’m absolutely hooked on it (I know, I know), and I knew from the very beginning of the series that I wanted the girls to get their own TV show. In the last novel in the series, IN TOO DEEP, the girls get a call from a MTV-esque music television network, and are offered their own series, a look inside the lives of Manhattan’s REAL Gossip Girls. In SIMPLY IRRESISTIBLE, we get to watch the process as the show is filmed and aired!

Why did you decide to write in this genre?
I did some ghostwriting for a popular YA series, and I just fell in love with the genre. I love how excited readers get over these books, and how much fun they are to write. It’s like getting to be 16 again–without having to have bad hair, or be socially awkward

What is your writing process like?
If I’m actively working on a book, I write 5 pages a day, no excuses. I write for around 4 hrs a day, then call it quits, otherwise I’ll be too burned out to write again the next day.

What are you working on now?
I’m working on a novel called WHITE LINES, about club kids in NYC in the late 1980’s.

What do you do when you’re not writing?
Read, watch mindless reality TV, pet my beagle and take him to the beach, hug my boyfriend

Who do you like to read?
Megan Kelley Hall–can’t wait for the sequel to SISTERS OF MISERY!, Robin Benway, Melissa Walker, Barry Lyga, Anna Godberson, Sarah Dessen, Meg Cabot.

Reviews
“If you love all the drama, scandal, and high-end fashion of Gossip
Girl…you’ll want to check out…The Elite!”–Seventeen.com

“The Elite is Pretty in Pink for the millennium generation.”–Romance
Reviews Today

“An awesome tale of friendship and betrayal with just the right amount
of humor and heart. Seriously irresistible, and impossible to put
down.”-Alexa Young, author of Frenemies and Faketastic

July 6, 2009 • 2 Comments

Conference season is well and truly on us. I can’t believe it was a year ago nearly that Amanda and I went to RWA San Fran. We had the most awesome time ever there, and are sad not to be going to this year’s conference. Never mind, we’re hoping to go next year and if not DEFINITELY to NY in 2011. I’ll be heading over to the UK that year too (for my bi-annual family visit) so hope to tie the two trips in together.

Anyway, we’ve still got the RWNZ conference in August, which is always a fab affair. Amanda and I are doing a workshop (which we really need to prepare) and I’m going to be the MC (ditto on the preparing…. we all need to know where the bathrooms are). This year we’ve got Mary Jo Putney and Melissa Jeglinski attending, as well as a few of our local celebs (for such a small country we have some fabulous pubbed authors).

I’m writing up a storm at the moment (none of this procrastinating lark) thanks to the ‘friendly’ pressure my CPs are putting on me.

That’s about it…. oh yes….. anyone know why I’m getting over 1000 spam emails everyday? The ones that say mail undeliverable. They all have different addys so even adding them to list of junk box senders doesn’t seem to work…. I think I’ll have to call out the computer guy!