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books

Twitterview: Kirsten Hubbard

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This month’s Twitterview victim — err, participant — is Kirsten Hubbard, author of Like Mandarin and Wanderlove, which comes out March 13. She’s also one of the forces behind YA Highway and she maintains a great blog herself that is worth reading not only if writing interests you, but if you love traveling. To celebrate the release of Wanderlove, she’s created a fun travelogue-esque Tumblr that’s worth checking out (you’ll get your wanderlust satisfaction for the day with those images, I promise). She’s here to talk about the inspirations behind Wanderlove, incorporating her own art into the story, and how she tackles relationships in her writing. There’s also a giveaway of Wanderlove.

Pitch Wanderlove in 140 characters.

Brokenhearted girl discovers self, art & jungle beasties on backpacking trip through Central America – with help from hot dive instructor.
What inspired Wanderlove?
My triplicate obsessions with writing, travel and art.
What should readers walk away with from Wanderlove?
An affliction with Wanderlove. 
Wanderlove makes setting — Central America — an integral part of the story. Like Mandarin made Wyoming sing. Why is setting so important?
Setting makes scenes cinematic. It can step out of the backdrop & interact with characters in surprising ways – & become its own character.
What was your favorite place to write about in Wanderlove?
In particular, I loved bringing Laughingbird Caye to life. It’s where Bria finally finds herself, and she & Rowan find each other.
Wanderlove incorporates some of your own sketches. What was it like adding your art to your text?
Exhilarating, intimidating & time-consuming (I watched the whole Buffy series as I drew). But truly, a childhood dream come true.
Both of your stories avoid “traditional” romance plots, despite the emotions being there for romance to emerge. Care to talk about that?
In romances, I’m all about restraint and slow build. When characters finally kiss, I want readers to cheer.

Who or what do you write for?
I definitely write books I’d love to read, with characters & places I adore, & bits I find funny myself. But also, always, the general You.

What was your most influential read as a teenager?
Watership Down. Still determining how it figured into my books.

You’re a traveler. Where was your favorite destination? Why?
I love so many places, but my heart belongs to Black Rock City, Nevada. A shame it only exists one week per year. 

Who are your top three writing influences?

Vladimir Nabokov. Louis Sachar. Melina Marchetta. Not that I’ll ever write like them. But I strive not to embarrass them.
Who do you believe is breaking ground in YA right now?
John Green, who proves brilliant books can be bestsellers. M.T. Anderson, who is a genius. Melina Marchetta, for obvious reasons.
What’s the best writing advice you ever received?
Give them what they want – not what they expect.
What’s your best writing advice to give?
Write another book. 
What is your writing routine?
Sit, stare, click away, Twitter, Facebook, stare, Gmail, Goodreads, stare, put on pants, walk to coffee shop, maybe get actual work done.
What gets you jazzed to write?
My writing soundtrack.

Do you have a writing soundtrack? Care to share a bit?

Yep! Top songs for WL: “Let Go” ~ Frou Frou, “The Con” ~ Tegan & Sara, “World Sick” ~ Broken Social Scene”, & “Moth’s Wings” ~ Passion Pit.
Favorite ice cream?
Maurecia. It’s very rare.

Twitterview: Matthew Quick

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I am so, so excited to share today’s Twitterview with you — Matthew Quick has stopped by to talk about his phenomenal forthcoming title Boy21, as well as a host of other topics including writing, reading, ice cream, and more. For anyone who has had the emotional connection with Matthew’s stories and characters in the way I have, prepare yourself for this one.

And thanks to the generosity of Little, Brown, I also have a copy of Boy21 to giveaway at the end of the interview (US and Canadian residents only). Without further ado:

Pitch Boy21 in 140 characters.
It’s about the Irish mob, outer space, and basketball. (It’s also about friendship, love, choice, and the power to break a bad cycle.)

What inspired Boy21?
Playing street ball as a kid with brother-like friends. Losing touch with those people, because of the very different choices we made.

What should readers walk away with from Boy21?
I think all good stories help us to be better people. I hope (trust?) readers will find BOY21 to be a worthy story.

The stars play a big role in Boy21. Do you have a favorite constellation? Or maybe one that inspired your story a bit?
Used to look up at stars with a high school friend. Didn’t know the names of constellations back then. Didn’t matter, though. Helped a lot.

In Boy21 and Sorta Like a Rockstar, you write the voice of both genders authentically. Do you find one harder/easier/more interesting to write?
All characters–male and female–are hard to figure out. All people are complex. Writing in the female voice feels safer. Better mask.

I always ask this of male Twitterview victims — what’s your take on the notion that guys “don’t read?”
I read! I’m a guy! I read in high school too. And this former English teacher taught many girl non-readers. #GuyReadersRepresent

You wrote a novel for adults before SLARS and Boy21. Why did you shift focus?
My first adult novel has a YA feel. Most of my characters struggle with the inevitability of adulthood. I still struggle too.

Speaking of the Silver Linings Playbook, it’s being made into a film. What’s the experiencing of seeing your story on screen?
Surreal. Amazing. Mostly surreal. (Felt very unsexy standing on the movie set next to People’s Sexiest Man Alive Bradley Cooper.)

While it’s unfair to play favorites, I’m going to make you. Which character among all your books is the one who speaks to you most? Why?
1-3 Is it unfair to say all of them? 2-3 I’d like to do therapy with Dr. Cliff Patel, sip green tea with Private Jackson, and stargaze with Russ and Finley. 3-3 Sometimes I wish Amber Appleton were my daughter.

Who or what do you write for?
For who: My wife. For what: Hoping to be the man she admires.

What was your most influential read as a teenager?
THE OLD MAN AND THE SEA? (Maybe the first book I felt I ‘got’ completely.)

Who are your top three writing influences?
Vonnegut. Hemingway. Camus. (Gao Xingjian, Murakami, so many more.)

Who do you believe is breaking ground in YA right now?
I hope I am! (Sara Zarr and A.S. King are my Little, Brown buddies. I respect their work much.)

What’s the best writing advice you ever received?
Relax. Your best efforts can get in the way. Also, be the leaf in the stream.

What’s your best writing advice to give?
Be authentically you. Figure out who you are and then be that person on the page no matter what anyone says.

What is your writing routine?
It’s ever evolving. Work in progress. (Trying to get back to routine at the moment.) In two words: whatever works.

What gets you jazzed to write?
Whenever I can believe that writing truly makes a difference. That art saves the writer and the reader alike.

Do you have a writing soundtrack? Care to share a bit?
Can only write to instrumental. Paganini’s Violin Concertos, Keith Jarrett’s The Koln Concert, Yusef Lateef’s Eastern Sounds, and many more.

What’s next for you?
Just sold another (very different) (edgy) YA to my editor Alvina Ling at Little, Brown. I’m also writing an adult novel.

Favorite ice cream?
Ginger. (I like old-people ice cream. Pistachio. Coffee. Reminds me of eating dessert with my grandparents.)

Twitterview: Stasia Ward Kehoe

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To kick off 2012’s monthly Twitterview series is Stasia Ward Kehoe, author of Audition. I asked Stasia to drop by to not only talk about her book, but also to talk about performance art books, as she’s the founder of Stages on Pages and is an advocate for these types of books. 

As usual, you can enter to win a copy of Audition at the end of the Twitterview. But more importantly, librarians and teachers should check out the very end — Stasia’s running a fantastic giveaway, where you have a chance to win a day-long in-person visit from her to talk to your library or classroom. I’ve included the link to all the details.

And now, on to Stasia!

Pitch Audition in 140 characters
Maybe Center Stage meets A Tree Grows in Brooklyn???

What inspired Audition?
I write from character and “what-if.” Audition began as a monologue I wrote in a playwriting class about young dancer starting her day.

Audition is written in verse. Why that format?
I tried to capture the cadence and flow of dance and emotional creativity through a lyrical literary form.

What of your own experience in dance did you bring to the story?
I grew up dancing and acting and struggled with issues of talent, independence, choices. No hot dude crisis, though.

You are one of the minds behind Stages on Pages. Tell us about the project.
I founded Stages on Pages to connect performer-writers with each other & readers. It’s a live tour plus website. More stuff soon! www.stagesonpages.com

How was touring with other writers portraying the arts?
Amazing and sometimes super-silly. The similarities between our teen arts experiences are incredible.

This is your debut novel — talk a bit about that experience.
Scary, sobering, and still a bit surreal. Once the book is on shelves, it’s really out of your hands. Boy, that sounds morbid.

Who or what do you write for?
I write for my characters and, let’s face it, all writing is a grasp at immortality. Here’s my favorite page from Audition.


What was your most influential read as a teenager?
W. Somerset Maugham. Yeah. I was a weird teen. He wrote great books though, including Theater and Of Human Bondage.


What are your top three writing influences?
Growing up: Agatha Christie, Noel Streatfield, and Maugham. Now, E. Annie Proulx, Emily Dickinson, George Bernard Shaw…I only get 3?

Who do you believe is breaking ground in YA right now?
Justine Larbalestier, Markus Zusak, David Levithan, and Lauren Oliver are all brave, honest, and play with form, which I love.


What’s the best writing advice you ever received?
There’s no substitute for time at the keyboard.

What’s your best writing advice to give?
Write what’s in your heart. Revise, revise, revise. Oh, and the keyboard thing.

What is your writing routine?
Weekdays. 1 hr of business stuff then 4 hrs of writing with a lunch break. Of course, I have 4 kids so few days are that perfect.

What gets you jazzed to write?
It’s not a matter of jazzed. It’s more something I have to do. Chocolate & coffee don’t hurt, though.

Do you have a writing soundtrack? Care to share a bit?
I need silence to write. Otherwise, love show tunes: Stephen Schwartz, Rodgers & Hammerstein, Sondheim. Some brilliant poetry from Company.

What’s next for you?
I’m working on another YA in verse, then on to something scary (but with kissing). I love writing kissing scenes! 

Twitterview: Lynne Kelly (Chained)

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Lynne Kelly, author of Chained, a middle grade novel due out from FSG/Macmillan in May, is the last of our featured authors to stop by for 12 Days of Class of 2k12. She’ll share her Twitterview today and tomorrow, we’ll share her guest post, since hers comes complete with images. You can find Lynne Kelly on her website.
Pitch your book in 140 characters:
Two friends, one a boy, one an elephant, want to escape the circus and return to their homes, even if it means saying goodbye to each other.
Who will this book appeal to?
Readers who love elephants! Also anyone who’d like to read an adventure about a kid trying to find his way back home.
Favorite moment or character in your book:
I really liked writing about one of the secondary characters, Ne Min, because he has an interesting back story.
What’s your writing routine?
It varies a lot, like my work schedule, & starts when I finally convince myself to get off the Internet & write.
What’s your best piece of writing advice?
Find a good critique group you trust and listen to their advice.
What’s been the most surprising part of the publishing journey?
How everything takes so long, when everything else seems to fly by.
What did you do when you learned your book would be published?
Reminded myself that running up and down the halls screaming at work would probably get me escorted out.
What’s the best piece of writing advice you’ve received?
Even if you don’t feel like writing, sit down to do just 15 minutes’ worth; you’ll probably end up doing more. Works for housecleaning too.
What are your top three favorite books?
The Sky Is Everywhere, Looking for Alaska, The Hunger Games
What’s next for you?
A humorous YA mystery that’s close to home, so it requires far less research!

Twitterview: Sarvenaz Tash (The Mapmaker and The Ghost)

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Sarvenaz Tash is the author of the forthcoming The Mapmaker and The Ghost, a middle grade novel due out from Bloomsbury/Walker April 24. You can find her on her website here.

Pitch your book in 140 characters:
Goldenrod is an 11-year-old explorer in for an adventure of a lifetime when she decides to map the forest behind her house.

Who will this book appeal to?
Boys, girls and anyone who likes adventure stories and funny going-ons (and maybe belly button lint).

Favorite moment or character in your book?
There’s a point where “the Ghost” first appears to Goldenrod (my MC) and his dialogue makes me laugh to this day.

What’s your writing routine?
Write a few pages, do some character sketches, outline, write a terrible first draft. Revise, revise, revise.

What’s your best piece of writing advice?
Don’t worry if you feel your first draft is rubbish: ALL first drafts are.

What’s been the most surprising part of the publishing journey?
How much waiting is involved even after your book is accepted for publication!

What did you do when you learned your book would be published?
I went to Barnes & Noble and took a picture of the spot it would occupy on a shelf there.

What’s the best piece of writing advice you’ve received?
From one of my fave screenwriting teachers: the ending needs to be inevitable yet unpredictable. (Very hard to do!)

What are your top three favorite books?
So hard! I’ll say Pride and Prejudice, the Harry Potter books (cheating, I know) and Roald Dahl’s The Witches.

What’s next for you?
Working on a couple more MG books. One is a fantasy adventure and one is a contemporary mystery.