My (Extremely Simple) Writing Process

By Nora

Writing is fun. It lets you escape into your own world, with your own characters, and your own fictional problems. It lets you use your imagination and discover what kind of intricate little images your brain can create. In my case, these images are usually morbid and about death or destruction (my friend suggested checking into a mental institution). But, nowadays, it seems like that's common. Though I am, sadly, not a published author (yet), I am here to introduce you to my writing process.

1. I don't map anything out. Call me crazy, but I feel that planning the whole story out at once is useless to me. Though it may work for some people, I just find that it does not work for me. I usually discover my best ideas while I'm writing.
2. Sometimes I start with a small scrap of a piece. When I'm bored and don't really have any ideas, I'll just write a beginning, or I'll come up with an amazing character or setting or plot, that I just start with what I have. For example, the piece I'm writing right now started from just a simple plot idea (a story about a person who can communicate with the dead).
3. Find a place to sit, relax, and write. Sometimes get a glass of water or sugary drink, like lemonade, to refresh you as you write. If I can't find a quiet place away from my family or friends, I'll plug in headphones and listen to an instrumental music track or create a playlist that fits the mood of the piece I'm writing.

So that's pretty much it. I enjoy posting my writing on figment.com so other people can critique and read my work. I enter contests and communicate with fellow teen writers on there, as well. I highly suggest checking it out.

***

Also, this Thursday, April 18, is Operation Teen Book Drop 2013. Hide a book somewhere in your town or library! For more details, click here.

-Nora

UnEnchanted

By Kristen

I honestly thought that this was a really cute book and I loved it a lot! I like the idea a lot and how it has to do with fairy tales (because when I was younger, I loved fairy tales and I still do which might be a bit sad) and the grim reaper (is that supposed to be capitalized or not? *Unsure*)

I need inspiration to finish this post.  My dad bought it for me on my tablet and the second book too, Fairest and I sure hope there's a third because I want to know what happens with Mina and if she and Brody ever get back together because in the first book, like, they were together under a fairy tale and in the end their relationship just stops but Brody still has some sort of memory of her but not really if that made any sense...Sorry for spoiling that part ^.^ and then there's Jared and there's a whole other story behind him.....................................................He's the one that tells her about her ancestry about the whole fairy tales chasing the Grime (Really Grim) family (and I'm pretty sure that's the name)

Her mother tried protecting her from the fairy tales and there's something having to do wiht a mirror (but I can't remember if that was in UnEnchanted or Fairest. Sooooo I think I'll stop there.  I really think that you should read this and I know you'll love it!

-Kristen

Abandon

By Kristen


Before I start, I would like to explain why there wasn't a post on Sunday or Tuesday.  Let's just say that Nora was being dumb :P She said "Oh yeah but I didn't have time on Sunday" and I told her "Well ya know what I'm not posting till you do." And then she said she was going to post yesterday but "Oh yeah I was packing for Florida, I didn't have time" Excuses, EXCUSES, excuses. So she's sitting in a car bored and all and I told her, "Fine, I'll post today and tomorrow and next week you will have to post THREE TIMES due to her day being Sunday, last Sunday and it's her turn to do Tuesday.  I'm mad at her.  It's her fault!

Sorry for my rant, but I had to get it out there!


 In one of the first chapters, it said that the main character, Pierce, took the written drivers' test forty something times and failed.  All forty something.  I laughed.  I loved this book so much and I'm waiting to finish a ton of other books first before I can read the second book :| You see, there are at least 10 books that I have to finish beofre the end of the school year, June 25, because ya know, they're not mine...

But back to the point: Abandon is a very good book and I've read so many books in between and I can barely remember what happened.  She died and came back.  Then, she met John (Haha! My brother's name spelled differently!) but I won't give away who he was because it would spoil like the whole book and then there's something with her grandmother... And *sigh* I want to go to the library...





Well, That's a wrap! World Book Night on the 23rd this month is at our school! Nora and I are student readers reading two different titles.  If you are in the area of Foxboro, you should come to our World Book Night starting at 6 pm at the Foxborough Regional Charter School.  This would be the second annual Book Night held at FRCS!

-Kristen

Fever

By Kristen

I've been sitting here for the past 20 minutes trying to think of a book I've read.  And I am still thinking.

--15 Minutes Later--

I'm going to look on Goodreads now...


I finally decided! Doing Fever from the Chemical Garden Trilogy :)

So this is kind of hard for me to remember...I read it what, last month?  Well there's Rhine and Gabriel and Rhine and Vaghn and Linden and Cecily and Grace and Lilac and Maddy and Rhine and Gabriel and KNHSDFJKLGHJKLSDJSDHGJKSDG so many names...

About three quaters through the book I was depressed and sad and crap and NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO WHY DID VAUGHN JKGNFSDJKGHJKSGIGSDFJK stupid June Beans and crap... I really should be editing the video for my spanish project right now and I'm just coming up with excuses so I don't have to talk about this book and be depressed all over again..........

*Listening to Mirrors <3* Luv that song

NOOOOOOO RHINEEE WHAT ABOUT GABRIEL WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!?!?!??!?!??!??!?!??!!



Breathe* Deep breaths* Calm*

I am dying to read Sever.  READ IT! I said that when I did Wither...

World Book Night is on April 23rd!

-Kristen

NYC Teen Author Festival Haul!

by Nora

As you may have noticed, I recently posted about my experience at the NYC Teen Author Festival. Here's what I came out of:

All books purchased (by my grandmother) at Books of Wonder, NYC.

1. Between You and Me: Marisa Calin
2. Reunited: Hilary Weisman Graham
3. The Art of Wishing: Lindsay Ribar
4. Eleanor & Park: Rainbow Rowell
5. Send Me a Sign: Tiffany Schmidt
6. Intentions: Deborah Heiligman

Not Teen Author Fest Related:

1. Shards and Ashes: Various Authors, including Veronica Roth and Beth Revis
2. Catherine: April Lindner
3. Time Between Us: Tamara Ireland Stone
4. Incarnate: Jodi Meadows

Plus, a snazzy Monument 14 rubber bracelet! (I wish I knew what blood type I am!)

Wither

By Kristen

*CONTAINS SOME SPOILERS**

I love this book. Love the idea and everything about it and all that. There's Jenna and Rhine and Gabriel and Jenna and Vaughn (who is possessed in my opinion) and Cicily (I don't think I spelled her name right) and Rhine and jkghjkaefhgseriotuilhgf this is hard.

I am having difficulty remembering this book.  I read it last summer. Rhine is innocent and she's being held captive in a mansion against her will and along with two others.  And her relationship with Rose *sigh* I liked Rose but she died and then there's Gabriel and Rhine and Gabriel and I'm just taking up space repeating words...To me this is like apocalyptic...? I don't know, everyone dies at 20 or 25 depending on gender and I think it's depressing.  But I love Gabriel's and Rhine's relationship (forbidden relationships are always a good factor in books to me) and they escape; I shouldn't have said that but I wanted to put it out there.




Wither definately made my top ten.  I suggest you read it because nhgjkasngjker it's such a good book.   READ IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

***

World Book Night's coming up soon and I should be halfway done with my book.  Nora and I are two of the student readers :) I'm only on chapter three for what I'm reading and I'm not sure about Nora.

Have a great long weekend! Good Friday tomorrow! Have a great Easter, eat some chocolate, become friemds witht the Easter Bunny, and most of all, have fun with your families!

-Kristen



New York City Teen Author Festival

By Nora

Dear authors from the NYC Teen Author Festival,
Thanks for taking a look at our blog! I really appreciated your interest at the signing. Also, thank you for your patience with my recovering voice, which I had lost on Friday. It was pretty hard to talk. :)

Looking forward to reading your books!

Nora

Last week was the NYC Teen Author Festival, featuring more than 90 authors.
What? 90 authors? That's crazy talk!
Yes. I know.
Unfortunately, I was only able to go on Saturday and Sunday because of school (school's such a buzzkill). That meant that I had to miss Michelle Hodkin, of all people. MICHELLE FREAKIN' HODKIN.

Anyway, Saturday's event was held at the New York Public Library (which is massive, I might add). A line formed outside the door and everything (we were second)! It consisted of four panels and four readings by debut authors.

Panel #1: Defying Description: Tackling the Many Facets of Identity in YA
Featuring: Marissa Calin, Aaron Hartzler, A. S. King, and Jaqueline Woodson
Moderator: David Levithan

This panel was mainly about teenage characters in YA facing difficult decisions about their sexuality and discovering who they truly are. I am extremely excited to read David Levithan's book, Two Boys Kissing (to be released on August 27) and give it to some of my friends.

My Opinion About It: The authors were discussing teens being openly gay, at their age, versus being gay in my time. Apparently, it was very difficult for them. I mean, I understand that it is still quite hard, taking bullying into consideration, however, our school is very relaxed. If you go to our school, you won't see bullying. There are at least two openly gay students in our grade alone (I don't even know the exact number) and they don't get any criticism about it. I'm proud of our school and I feel that everyone is accepted here.

Readings: New Voices Spotlight
Featuring: J. J. Howard, Kimberly Sabatini, Tiffany Schmidt, and Greg Takoudes

New Voices Spotlight was a reading from debut authors. The books included That Time I Joined the Circus, Touching the Surface, Send Me a Sign, and When We Wuz Famous. I am really excited to read Send Me a Sign. It seems like my kind of book.

Panel #3: Under Many Influences: Shaping Identity When You're a Teen Girl
Featuring: Jen Calonita, Deborah Heiligman, Hilary Weisman Graham, Kody Keplinger, Amy Spalding, Katie Sise, and Kathryn Williams
Moderator: Terra Elan McVoy

This panel was about teen girls and shaping their identity through friends, family, music, websites, teachers, and more. They talked about what could change the course of a teen girl's life (including friendship breakups).

My Opinion About It: I really hope I don't go through a friendship breakup! Being a teen girl myself, it was extremely interesting to hear what grown women had to say. Now I know what to look forward to. Sadness. Ha! Probably not, though. Hopefully. Also, you may not remember, but a few weeks ago, I posted that I really want to read Katie Sise's Boyfriend App. When I saw she was one of the panelists, I got really, really excited. You don't even know how excited I was. Unfortunately, she did not give away any ARCs. :(

Panel #4: Born This Way: Nature, Nurture, and Paranormaly
Featuring: Jessica Brody, Gina Damico, Maya Gold, Alexandra Monir, Lindsay Ribar, Jerry Smith-Ready, and Jessica Spotswood
Moderator: Adrienne Maria Vrettos

This panel discussed supernatural fiction and the paranormal. They talked about how teen characters in YA deal with these "powers."

My Opinion About It: I love the paranormal. Honestly, I find it fascinating. Also, I've met a few of these ladies previously. I've met Gina Damico once in Boston, and Jessica Spotswood three times, now. I should probably get to reading her book. XD I met her in Boston (with Gina Damico), on the Breathless Reads tour, and now here.

Panel #5: The Next Big Thing
Featuring: Jocelyn Davies, Leanna Renee Hieber, Barry Lyga, and Mayrose Wood

In which they discussed the Next Big Thing.

Ideas Brought Up: Panda Mermaids, Unicorns, something I forgot (silly me!), and, of course, bondage fiction for kids.

My Opinion About It: *facepalm*
David Levithan's Opinion About It: (I was sitting next to him) *dies of laughter*


Sunday was "Our No-Foolin' Mega-Signing" at Books of Wonder. It was considered "organized chaos" by David Levithan. In fact, it was.
There were so many authors signing, that you had to pick and choose. Sadly, I could not get to everyone. 
Here is the full list of authors present:

Jessica Brody (Unremembered)
Marisa Calin (Between You and Me)
Jen Calonita (The Grass is Always Greener)
Caela Carter (Me, Him, Them, and It)
Crissa Chappell (Narc)
Susane Colasanti (Keep Holding On)
Zoraida Cordova (The Vicious Deep)
Gina Damico (Scorch)
Jocelyn Davies (A Fractured Light)
Sarah Beth Durst (Vessel)
Gayle Forman (Just One Day)
Elizabeth Scott (Miracle)
T. M. Goeglein (Cold Fury)
Hilary Weisman Graham (Reunited) 
Alissa Grosso (Ferocity Summer)
Aaron Hartzler (Rapture Practice)
Deborah Heiligman (Intentions)
Leanna Renee Hieber (The Twisted Tragedy of Miss Natalie Stewart)
J. J. Howard (That Time I Joined the Circus)
Alaya Johnson (The Summer Prince)
Beth Kephart (Small Damages)
Kody Keplinger (A Midsummer’s Nightmare)
A.S. King (Ask the Passengers)
Emmy Laybourne (Monument 14)
David Levithan (Every Day) 
Barry Lyga (Yesterday Again)
Brian Meehl (Suck it Up and Die)
Alexandra Monir (Timekeeper)
Michael Northrop (Rotten)
Diana Peterfreund (For Darkness Shows the Stars)
Lindsay Ribar (The Art of Wishing)
Rainbow Rowell (Eleanor & Park)
Kimberly Sabatini (Touching the Surface)
Tiffany Schmidt (Send Me a Sign)
Victoria Schwab (The Archived)
Jeri Smith-Ready (Shine)
Amy Spalding (The Reece Malcolm List)
Stephanie Strohm (Pilgrims Don’t Wear Pink)
Nova Ren Suma (17 & Gone)
Greg Takoudes (When We Wuz Famous)
Mary Thompson (Wuftoom)
Jess Verdi (My Life After Now)
K.M. Walton (Empty)
Suzanne Weyn (Dr. Frankenstein’s Daughters)
Kathryn Williams (Pizza, Love, and Other Stuff That Made Me Famous) 

Here is the full list of authors I met:

Jessica Brody (Unremembered) 

Marisa Calin (Between You and Me) 
Hilary Weisman Graham (Reunited) 
Emmy Laybourne (Monument 14) 
David Levithan (Every Day) 
Lindsay Ribar (The Art of Wishing) 
Rainbow Rowell (Eleanor & Park) 
Tiffany Schmidt (Send Me a Sign)
Victoria Schwab (The Archived) 

Also, Kimberly Sabatini told me she would mug me for my copy of Eleanor & Park (the store had momentairly sold out), and Tiffany Schmidt told me she would mug me for my ARC of Siege and Storm.
Of course, my response was, "You're an author! You can do whatever you want!"


I'm so smart.

-Nora

Jessica Brody

Marissa Calin

Hilary Weisman Graham

Deborah Heiligman

David Levithan

Victoria Schwab

Tiffany Schmidt

Lindsay Ribar

Emily Laybourne

Rainbow Rowell

(Sorry about the formatting. Blogger is a jerk, sometimes.)