Books For Boys (And Adventurous Girls) part two: 34 – 67
Finding good books for boys can be challenging–without a little help, that is. Compiled with the help of the folks on NESCBWI Yahoo list, here are a few great books to get your boys, girls, and perhaps even yourself, reading. Want to suggest a great boys’ book? Email me, or leave a note in the comments! Download a PDF version of the list here; download a titles only version here; get the whole list here; and get the whole, titles only list, here. Miss the first half of the list? Head over...
Read MoreZahra’s Paradise: Helping Teens Relate to Everyday Iranians?
Regularly updated webcomics with over-arcing storylines have been popular for years. Jorge Cham’s Ph.D was such a hit with the geek set (my grad student husband included) that he’s successfully self-published four collections. Penny Arcade, brain child of “Gabe” and “Tycho” has become review central for all things video game, and hosts an annual conference (PAX). But where Ph.D and Penny Arcade are inspired by real life, Zahra’s Paradise is real life. Amir is a human rights...
Read MoreGuest Post: How to Create a Simple Writer’s Blog over at GLA
Today, I’m guesting over at Chuck Sambuchino’s Guide to Literary Agents. Here’s a snippet of the post: Writing is hard work. First, you have to write the story. Then you have to revise it, workshop it, revise it some more, write a query letter, do query research, then mail your baby out. While many writers think the work ends the moment they sign a contract, pros know otherwise. Being a successful author is an awful lot of work, not the least of which is promotion. A blog is...
Read MoreDystopias: YA Fad, or Here to Stay?
Dystopic fiction is nothing new. According the Oxford English Dictionary, the word was first used (created of his own free will) by philosopher John Stuart Mill in 1868. Mill used the word in a speech to the British House of Commons, denouncing the Irish Land Act (“What is commonly called Utopian is something too good to be practicable; but what they appear to favour is too bad to be practicable.”). Since then, dystopias have become a staple in fiction, cycling through literary,...
Read MoreBooks For Boys (And Adventurous Girls) part one: 1 – 33
Finding good books for boys can be challenging–without a little help, that is. Compiled with the help of the folks on NESCBWI Yahoo list, here are a few great books to get your boys, girls, and perhaps even yourself, reading. Want to suggest a great boys’ book? Email me, or leave a note in the comments! Download a PDF version of the list here; download a titles only version here; get the whole list here; and get the whole, titles only list, here. Looking for just the second half of the...
Read MoreHas The Internet Killed Professional Book Reviews?
Book reviewing is big business–at least, it used to be. Publishers clamored to get their authors reviewed in big name papers (New York Times, anyone? Chicago Tribune?). Authors crowed over a spot in the now defunct Kirkus. Yet new book review blogs pop every day, and several niche review sites, such as Bookslut and Smart Bitches, Trashy Books, have a large core of dedicated readers. Book reviews have been around as long as, well, books. Back when Ancient Egyptians and Phoenicians were...
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