bookshelves of doom

iPulp.

Via David Lubar's blog, I discovered the iPulp Fiction Library, a website that is attempting to bring back the dime novel (for free!) and that is specifically targeting boys ages 10-up.

It's worth a look* -- and you might want to sign up for their email reminders.  Later this year, they're publishing an original story by Kathleen Duey**, author of Skin Hunger.  There's no way I'll miss that!

*I warn you, though, the advertisements are pretty obnoxious.  They follow you!  Yecch.

**I hope it didn't cut into her sequel-writing time.  When, oh when, will it appear?

Eeeep!

There's a new Howl book coming out next month!

I might faint.

I'm never going to get anything done again.

I just discovered that I can watch old episodes of 90210 on the CBS website.

I'm in big, big trouble.

[Later:  Yep.  David Silver is still unbelievably dorky.  And Brandon's hair is the WORST.]

In case you haven't seen it yet...

...the longlist for the Guardian Children's Prize is up.

And I have read, yep, none of them.

Sigh.  I need to get into the groove, man.

(I really hope that song is in your head now.  'Cause it's in mine, and I hate being miserable alone.)

Little Brother -- Cory Doctorow

Due to Marcus' tech knowledge, he has no problems whatsoever circumventing the security at school, so he and three of his friends happen to be skipping school when there is a terrorist bombing in San Francisco.  They're in the wrong place at the wrong time and are picked up by the Department of Homeland Security.  After days of interrogation, three of them are released into a different city.  It's still San Francisco, but it's run by the DHS. 

Suddenly, asking for a lawyer, demanding your right to privacy and just simple disagreement have become near proof of terrorist sympathies.  Marcus knows that it would be safer in the short term for him to keep his head down, do what he is told and avoid trouble.  But what about in the long run? 

DO NOT MISS THIS BOOK.

This is the one.  If you're going to read one teen novel this year, it should be Little Brother.  (I realize that it is only May, and I guess it's possible that something else will come along, but as of right now, this is the one.)  Yes, it's about hacking, rebellion, terrorism, super-smart kids and super-cool technology, but it's also about loving your country, your city, your home, and being angry about how it is being run.  Little Brother understands that dissent does not equal a lack of patriotism.  More than any of that, I loved how Cory Doctorow's love of knowledge, of learning and of just finding out about Neat Stuff comes through on every page.  Marcus is interested in EVERYTHING.

I loved Marcus' voice, my non-techie brain found his explanations of techie stuff readable and interesting, I found the book completely impossible to put down and just fun fun fun fun fun.  Highly, highly recommended, especially to fans of Scott Westerfeld's So Yesterday.

I've seen a few complaints over at (where else?) Amazon: that the villains in this book are two-dimensional and that Marcus doesn't talk like a seventeen-year-old.  I'll deal with these in reverse order.  Marcus doesn't talk like an average seventeen-year-old, no.  But he isn't an average seventeen-year-old.  He's super-bright, super-passionate and super-invested in what he's doing.  If you've ever talked to a super-bright, super-passionate seventeen-year-old, I don't think that Marcus will seem so impossible.  While I do think it's probably true that he serves to some extent as a mouthpiece for the author, I gave him a pass because from the first page, Marcus was real to me. 

As for the villains...  The Big Bad -- Severe Haircut Lady -- yes, was two-dimensional.  But you have to remember that this book is from Marcus' perspective.  Of COURSE she's two-dimensional.  Marcus' father disagrees with the teen rebellion, and he provides a regular-guy-who-gets-all-of-his-information-from-the-nightly-news perspective on the events -- he isn't evil, but he doesn't see the loss of some of his freedoms as a frightening thing the way that Marcus does.  I think people are very sensitive about it because it hits so close to home.  If it were set in a different country, I don't think we'd be seeing the same complaints.

That's my take on the complaints, anyway.  Make up your own mind -- the book is available for free online.

Moving interlude.

This past weekend was the Big One, moving-wise.  Pretty much the only thing left in our living room is the vacuum and this guy, who is staring at me and starting to freak me out.

Anyway.  To understand the following conversation, you need to know that I was wearing a turtleneck sweater with the neck unfolded up over my nose (I was tired, give me a break) and a bucket hat.

Josh:  You look like one of that lady's illustrations from those books about the girl investigator.

Me:  ??? 

Josh:  You know, so-and-so the something...

Me:  Kiki Strike?  Sammy Keyes?  It can't be Nancy Drew...

Josh:  No, no, no.  You LOVE them.  You have them all and you cut all of the pictures out of an extra copy because you like them so much.

Me:  Harriet the Spy?  You think I look like a Louise Fitzhugh illustration!?  Oh my God, I'm going to wear these clothes EVERY DAY!!

Maybe you had to be there.  It was a really fantastic end to a very long, very busy, very good weekend.

Oh.

Robert Asprin died.

Even though I haven't picked one up one of his books in ages, I'll miss him -- the MythAdventures books are one of the very few positive memories I have of my seventh grade year.

(via Ed Champion) 

Summer Blast Blog Tour, Day 5:SDQ Interview with Meg Burden

Meg Burden is the author of Northlander, which was so super-fantastic that it made the 2007 Cybils SF/Fantasy shortlist.  She went to college at age fourteen (which would make for a great teen novel if she ever feels like leaving the Borderlands) and lives in Nebraska (which would also make for a great teen novel -- when was the last time you read a book set in Nebraska?).  Anyway, she's awesome.  And so is her book.  You should read it.

But read this first: 

The first thing on my mind, naturally, is the sequel to Northlander. (Sequel? Companion?) Will Ellin be our narrator again, or will the book be from a different character's perspective? What else can you tell us about it? (Most importantly, when will we get to read it?)

The second Tales of the Borderlands book is indeed a sequel, and it takes place shortly after Northlander ends. The working title is THE KING COMMANDS, and it's told from two points of view: Ellin's again, in first person, and then Finn's, in third person.

As I see it, the happily ever after at the end of Northlander was really only a beginning, or a resolution of the immediate crisis. People don't change overnight, and racism certainly doesn't disappear overnight. More than anything, TKC is my attempt to continue the events of Northlander logically and realistically—to show that actions and decisions have consequences.

There's also some romance in TKC, which is a lot of fun to write.

When will you get to read it? Um...I'm still writing it, actually. To be honest, I've really struggled with this one. I've had a plan for it since I wrote Northlander (and didn't know if it would sell, let alone if it would be the first in a series), but the writing itself...yikes. I've heard that it's not uncommon for writers to freeze up and doubt themselves and freak out after they sell their first book, worrying that the next one won't possibly be any good, and I've definitely had issues with that kind of stuff. But I'm persevering, and I hope to be done with the manuscript within a month.

On your blog recently, you mentioned that you have mixed feelings about writing Northlander in first person present tense -- care to elaborate? You also mentioned that it was sort of a dare to begin with...

Sort of a dare/personal challenge. Several years ago, I was enrolled in the Institute of Children's Literature writing course, and for my second assignment, I was supposed to write a short story. At that point, with the exception of the first assignment (which was a 700 word story for beginning readers), I hadn't written original fiction in ages—just fanfic, and almost all of my fanfiction stories were in third person past tense. That was definitely my comfort zone. So, with my husband egging me on, I decided to challenge myself and write Assignment Two in first person present (which I thought would be painfully, horribly awkward for me), just to see if I could do it. And, for whatever reason, it came very naturally.

When I decided to expand that short story (which is now the first two chapters of Northlander) into a novel, I waffled back and forth a lot about the tense and point of view. I knew first person present would be limiting, but I wanted the sense of immediacy it gives. I wanted the reader's perceptions to change along with Ellin's, since her changing beliefs are so very important to the story.

But. When I started outlining THE KING COMMANDS, I started to regret not using third person for Northlander. TKC is going to be a bigger book, not just the length but the complexity of the plot, and I realized that I desperately needed to tell things that Ellin doesn't know or see. I considered just flat-out switching to third person for the whole thing, then decided that would be too jarring if one read them back-to-back. And the lack of continuity would drive me nuts. So, I flailed for a bit and finally just decided to add another point of view character.

And I have a whole rant about how I've seen people say online that first person is the mark of a beginning writer and that present tense (especially first person present) is gimmicky and trendy, but I think I'll save that for my blog. Suffice it to say that I disagree, but hearing people say it still stings.

And now the standard prompts!

Book(s) Currently Reading:

Claudia and the Great Search, which is #33 of the Baby-Sitters Club series.  I started re-collecting the BSC books a few years ago (after being obsessed as a kid), and they're what I read when I need to de-stress. I'm also privileged to be beta-reading Wayfarer as my friend R.J. Anderson is writing it--it's the sequel to her MG fantasy Knife, the Hunter, which will be out from Harper Collins next summer. Amazing, lovely, fantabulous books! And I recently finished Ysabel by Guy Gavriel Kay which, like everything of his, is breathtaking.

Music Currently in Rotation:

Right now, I'm obsessed with this band, Eisley, and their songs have been playing practically nonstop on my iPod as writing music for TKC. Thanks to my mom, I've also been into Tears for Fears lately.

Last Movie Viewed:

I don't remember! I wish I could say Iron Man, but my husband and I keep meaning to go and haven't yet.

Literary Crush (fictional or real):

I'm a fangirl! Narrowing my list down is next to impossible! To name a few crushes I've had over the years: Matt Murdock/Daredevil and Foggy Nelson, Aragorn, Peter Pevensie, Dave from Guy Gavriel Kay's Fionavar Tapestry, Professor Lupin, Adaon from the Prydain Chronicles...

As for a real literary crush, I have to say Patricia McKillip. The Riddle Master Trilogy made me want to be a writer. I want to be her when I grow up. Or Susan Cooper. Or C.S. Lewis.

Pet Peeves:

Really unnecessary quotation marks, like when you see a sign advertising a "sale" on "cheese." I mean, is it on sale for real, or is it the same price it always is? And, the scarier question, is it cheese or not? Another thing that gets me is when people write "breath" when they mean to use "breathe." It's so common to see Star Wars fanfics in which Darth Vader "can't breath," and my reaction is, "Of course he can't, BECAUSE IT'S A NOUN."

Current Obsessions:

Writing (and freaking out about) TKC. Friday Night Lights. Working in my garden. And, as always, my cats. Lately, I've been doodling a comic about my Sphynx cat, in which she travels to Earth from her home planet and impersonates a few things (a snake, a baby, a rotisserie chicken, etc.) before realizing that she most closely resembles the species Earthlings call a "cat."

Guilty Pleasures:

Starbucks dark chocolate espresso truffles. LUSH soaps and skincare products.  (Not that washing my face is a guilty pleasure, but their stuff smells so good that it feels like one!)  American Idol. My eighties nostalgia obsessions are also guilty pleasures--in addition to my BSC books, I've got a bunch of Sweet Valley High books and a collection of Rainbow Brite dolls. I'm such a nerd.

Irrational Fears:

That I will never find a literary agent is a big one, though I'm not sure that's irrational. I'm terrified of sharks and other Big Underwater Things, to the point that I can't even play--or watch--underwater levels of video games. I'm also freaked out by big inanimate things, like models of mammoths and dinosaurs in museums.

Favorite Piece of Trivia:

Siamese cats are born entirely white. Their coloration is heat-sensitive, and they get darker color only on their "points"--ears, nose, tail, and paws--because those are the coolest areas of the body.

____________________________________________________________

Other SBBT interviews today:

Varian Johnson at Finding Wonderland
Jincy Willett at Shaken & Stirred
John Grandits at Writing & Ruminating
Gary D. Schmidt at Miss Erin
Javaka Steptoe at Seven Impossible Things
Mary Hooper at Interactive Reader

And, of course, check out the master list at Chasing Ray to make sure you haven't missed anything this week!

Newsflash: Jessica Walter to appear on the new 90210.

After watching that promo, though, I don't know if even the mighty Lucille Bluth can save it.  It just doesn't look like it has any charm.  Sad.

Yes, yes, I'm immature.

But c'mon!

How could I NOT link to this?

(via the SBs)

Tribute or plagiarism?

You decide.

I dunno.  A tribute should include some mention of what is being honored, no?  But it sounds more like an error in judgment than a genuine attempt to rip Kirby off.

I think the advertisements for the Dina Lohan show that are splashed all over Gawker are much more frightening and offensive.  Yecch.

(via Gawker)

Summer Blast Blog Tour Links:Days Three and Four

Wednesday:

Delia Sherman at Chasing Ray
Polly Dunbar at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast
Tera Lynn Childs at Bildungsroman
Siena Cherson Siegel at Miss Erin
Barry Lyga at A Chair, a Fireplace, and a Tea Cozy
Ingrid Law at A Fuse #8 Production

Today:

Elisha Cooper at Chasing Ray
Dar Williams at A Fuse #8 Production 
Jennifer Bradbury at Bildungsroman
E. Lockhart at The YA YA YAs
Mary Hooper at Miss Erin
Charles R. Smith at Writing and Ruminating
Mary Pearson at A Chair, A Fireplace and a Tea Cozy

Yet another JKR story. Sort of.

Wow.  She's not even really a part of this "controversy", and it STILL makes me wish that we could get through a month (I'd even settle for a week!) without seeing her in the news...

Sigh.  Ah, well, I linked to it anyway.

Secret Society Girl: An Ivy League Novel -- Diana Peterfreund

As the editor of Eli University's Literary Magazine, junior Amy Haskel expects to be tapped into Quill & Ink, the "literary" secret society.  So when she discovers that it's Rose & Grave that has taken an interest -- Rose & Grave, representative of money and power, the elite of the elite, Rose & Grave, that might possibly run the country (and maybe even a few others) -- well, that she is surprised is a vast understatement.

Though she has no idea why they'd want her, she accepts (because how could she not!?).  She finds that her decision might not make her life easier -- it might actually destroy it.

This book almost got me hit by a car.  I have a habit of reading while I walk to work, and usually I'm able to keep an eye on the road as well as my book.  Not so much with Secret Society Girl.  I was hooked, hooked, hooked, hooked, hooked.  It isn't deep or particularly literary (you may have guessed that from the cover), but it's compulsively readable and completely entertaining.  The characters are likable* and bright and I've already ordered the second book in the series.

Although it was published and marketed as a grown-up book, it'd be a great pick for older teen chick-lit readers -- especially those who enjoy their chick-lit with a dash of intrigue.

*Except Brandon.  Was I supposed to like her goo-goo-eyed co-editor?  Because he might have been steady and so on, but he was also pretty boring.

Buffy on NPR.

Totally made my morning.

(via The Caffeinated Librarian)