Merry Wanderer of the Night [Search results for author interview] 

Fairy Tale Fortnight is officially over! This is our final post, one last time to speak while you are all listening, and we wanted to take this opportunity to express our thanks. It's a bit bittersweet actually. It will be nice for us to have our days back in our control, rather than being consumed with magic and wishes, witches and trolls, but at the same time, we're sure going to miss it. It's been a huge part of these last couple months. We have had such an awesome turn out! There were so very many awesome people who expressed interest and made Fairy Tale Fortnight a part of their April.

This event has been a crazy awesome experience for me! I have had a blast spending so much time in this world of fairy tales and meeting, or getting to know better, so many awesome people! Whether it's my fairy tale soul twin (I'm looking at you, Bonnie) or my Fairy Tale Sister who seems to share my Fairy Tale brain wave length (cue Twilight Zone theme song, and enter Misty!) or bringing my Twitter friends into the Fairy Tale Fun (hello to Enna, Farah, Jayme, Lynn Marie, and Laura) But everyone who participated has made this event great! It really meant a lot that so many people were able to come together and share a love of fairy tales. I hope you all enjoyed this event as much as I did.

in my blog to fill out our survey for the event, and tell us what you thought!

And for all of you who participated, and all of you who read the posts and shared some fairy tale love, Misty and Ashley have one thing to say to you:

THANK YOU!!!

Thank you for joining us, for reading the posts, for writing your own posts, tweeting and spreading the word, putting our button on your sites, talking about it with your friends. Thanks to the authors who took time out of their busy schedules to answer emails and interview questions, write up guest posts and offer giveaway prizes, and generally make these two bloggers shake and shimmy squee. (be glad you couldn't see/hear it... it wasn't pretty) You are all wonderful people, truly amazing and this event would not have been this amazing without you. Again, thank you. Thank you, thank you, and we hope to see you all again next year.

What's that you say?! Next year? Yup! Fairy Tale Fortnight will return again next year. Tell all your friends.

Here is an alphabetical list of all the wonderful participants.
For links to each participants contribution, in my blog to be taken to the schedule

Alanna (giveaway [2], guest post [2]) Alex Flinn (author interview) Ammy Belle (guest post [2]) Andrea (photo guest post) Angelique (video clip) Bonnie (guest post, sent authors to us) Carolyn Turgeon (author interview, giveaway) Cindy Pon (author interview) CSI Librarian (guest post [2]) Curlypow (guest post) Danya (guest post) Diane Zahler (author interview, giveaway) Donna Jo Napoli (author interview, giveaway, video clip) Edie (giveaway) Elie (fill-in game) Elizabeth C. Bunce (author interview, giveaway) Emily (guest post [2]) Enna Isilee (giveaway, guest post [2]) Erika (guest post, video clip) Farrah (video clip) Heather Dixon (guest post) Her Royal Orangeness (guest post) Jaclyn Dolamore (author interview, giveaway, guest post, video clip) Janette Rallison (author interview, giveaway) Jayme (guest post, video clip) Jen (video clip) Jennifer (giveaway, guest post) Jessica Day George (author interview, giveaway, guest post, video hello) JG (fill-in game, giveaway) Khadija (fill-in game) Kristen (giveaway, guest post [2]) Kristen C (giveaway, guest post) Laura (guest post) Liz (video clip) Lynn Marie (video clip) Marissa Meyer (author interview, guest post) Maureen McGowan (fill-in game) Meghan Nuttall Sayres (giveaway) Mel U (guest post [2]) Mette Ivie Harrison (author interview, giveaway, guest post) Midnyte Reader (guest post) Miss Eliza (guest post) Nancy Werlin (giveaway) NoraBell (video clip) One A Day YA (video clip) Sara (guest post, video clip) (and her daughter) Katelin (video clip) Sarah Porter (author interview) Sierra (giveaway [2], guest post [2]) Sheila D (giveaway, guest post) Susan Fletcher (giveaway) Tia Nevitt (author interview) Titania (giveaway, guest post [2]) Tricia (guest post) Velvet (giveaway) Zoë Marriot (author interview, giveaway, guest post, video clip)

Matt Royal is a lawyer in FL who always seems to get into trouble of some sort. His ex-wife, Laura, contacts him. Her stepdaughter, Peggy, is missing and she needs his help to track her down. Since she's a legal adult, the police don't seem concerned. Matt tracks Peggy down to a private island in the Keys, Blood Island. The island, and a number of "questionable" businesses in the area, are all owned by the same Bahamian corporation. Matt soon discovers a hidden world of at-risk teens, drugs, cults, and prostitution. Just as Matt saves Peggy, he uncovers a terrorist plan to destroy several churches in large cities. BLOOD ISLAND is action packed from page one and keeps you hooked til the end. This is my first taste of Griffin's work and I hope to read more of his work in the near future!

H. Terrell Griffin is giving away a signed copy of his book, Blood Island, to one lucky tour visitor. Go to Terry’s book tour page, http://h-terrell-griffin.omnimystery.com/, and enter your name, e-mail address, and this PIN, 5796, for your chance to win. Entries will be accepted until 12:00 Noon (PT) tomorrow (Wednesday). No purchase is required to enter or to win. The winner (first name only) will be announced on Terry’s book tour page next week.

About the Author

H. Terrell Griffin is the author of Blood Island, the third mystery in the Matt Royal series.

Born in Waycross, Georgia, H. Terrell Griffin moved to Sanford, Florida, at the age of twelve. Upon graduation from high school, he enlisted in the U.S. Army. After three years of active duty, he began his studies at Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, where he earned degrees in history and law.

A board-certified trial lawyer, Griffin practiced law in Orlando for 38 years. In addition to Blood Island, Griffin is the author of Murder Key and Longboat Blues.

He and his wife Jean divide their time between Longboat Key and Maitland, Florida. His website is HTerrellGriffin.com.

Tuesday, December 02, 2008

• In Reference to Murder: Author Interview

Wednesday, December 03, 2008

• Reader's Respite: Book Review
• Lesa's Book Critiques: Author Guest Post

Thursday, December 04, 2008

• The Friendly Book Nook: Author Guest Post

Friday, December 05, 2008

• Murder by 4: Author Interview
• Mystery Reader Discussion: Book Review
• Wendi's Book Corner: Author Guest Post

Saturday, December 06, 2008

• Allie's Musings: Author Interview
• Bookish Ruth: Book Review

Hey everyone! Joining us today is author Daniel Coleman. If you remember back to yesterday, I just reviewed Coleman's novel, Jabberwocky. (click the link to read my review) It was a great story, one I felt definitely did the poem justice, and I'm really happy to have him here on the blog today for an interview! So, here's Daniel! BIO:
When he’s not firefighting, Daniel Coleman spends his free time jumping genres in fiction. In 2006 he discovered small-town living and isn’t looking back. Jabberwocky, a novella, is available now. Hatter comes out June 10th. If you’ve got a few hours to kill he’d be happy to discuss PEZ, ice cream, or Scrabble.
The Interview:
What made you decide to become a writer?
This may seem scripted, but I started writing novels so I could tell the story behind the Jabberwocky poem.

Why Jabberwocky? What made you want to turn this poem into a story?
I learned the poem in college and fell in love with the imagery and heroism. If this monster was so horrible, how could a boy kill it? And what’s the significance of the Tumtum tree? And why was the hero so uffish while he stood there leaning against it? Of course, in any decent hero story there’s got to be a girl involved. Who is she and how does she fit in? For more than a decade the questions percolated in my mind before I came up with the story for Jabberwocky.

If you weren't a writer, what would be your dream job?
I’m the luckiest guy alive because my two dream jobs are writer and Fireman, and I get paid to do both! I’m a Firefighter/Paramedic with the biggest department in Utah. While firefighting involves real life-and-death situations, writing gives me a chance to escape and decide on the outcome for myself. I see people on the worst day of their lives, and I do my best to channel that emotion when I write.

Do you have another project currently in the works? If so, can you share anything about it with us?
I’ve written another novel set in the same world as Jabberwocky. It’s inspired by the Mad Hatter and tells his backstory—how he ended up going mad and why he’s such an influential character in Wonderland. For those who’ve read Jabberwocky, you’ll recognize Chism; he’s one of the main characters in Hatter. It will be available through Amazon on June 10th! The first two chapters are available on my website: www.dcolemanbooks.com.

If you had only one thing to say to your readers, what would it be?
I realize it takes a tremendous amount of trust to try a new author. Your time is valuable and your reading time is invaluable, so I try to make every word worthwhile while building to a surprisingly satisfying climax. But it’s a very small investment to read some sample chapters or download a sample and give it a try.
You heard him folks! Stop by and read a few sample chapters! Also, I think it bears mentioning the right now, you can purchase your own copy as an ebook on Amazon or Smashwords for only. 99! (Link) Jabberwocky Or, you can purchase the paperback for only $4.99! Jabberwocky How great is that?! I definitely recommend checking this book out! And Daniel, thanks again for joining us today! I loved reading your story, loved the interview, and I look forward to reading more from you in the future!

Having recently been told that I'm odd because I'm not terribly interested in author interviews I've started to ponder whether there are two types of readers...those who stick to the books versus those who like to know more about the author's background, thoughts, motivations and writing process.

So, what about you?

• Do you seek out interviews with authors of books you've enjoyed? Why or why not?
• Do you interview authors on your blog? If yes what did you gain from the interview process? If no is it because you don't want to or because you haven't felt able to ask an author yet?
• Do you subscribe to the blogs of authors you like? Which ones? All the authors you like or only certain ones?
• Do you track down author websites or look for biographical information about them elsewhere? Would you skip reading a book if you couldn't find out anything about its author?
• Have you hosted an author on a blog tour? Was it someone whose books you already read or did it introduce you to a new author?

I'll be talking about being odd at Reactions to Reading

Suey came up with a fantastic topic this week:

Many of us have had an opportunity to interview an author, mostly through email, but perhaps even on the phone or in person. In fact, many of you have become experts at author interviews. So this week, let's pretend that we can get in contact with one of our favorite characters and interview them. What would you ask Mr. Darcy if you could send him an email. What would his answers be like? What would you say if you could just call up Liesel or Rudy from The Book Thief and ask them anything? How would they answer your questions? What if you could invite Jo March or Anne Shirley to lunch, what would the conversation be like?

This has been a slow geek week, but don't forget you can answer this at any time! Personally, I had a blast. So don't be shy...call up a character and invite them over for coffee. Or lunch. Or heck, have a dinner party and invite a whole book over.

Children's characters turned out to be popular interview subjects. In fact some of them (like Pigeon) practically forced themselves on the interviewer (in this case, pussreboots). Others, like the Gruffalo, were a bit shy. We're hoping Farm Lane Books can finagle a second, in-depth interview.

Meanwhile, over in the mystery section, Kerrie was lucky enough to interview the ever-so-gracious (but slightly green) Monsieur Poirot, while Margot spent some time knitting and chatting with Miss Marple. J.C. Montgomery tried to crack the enigmatic Raven. And gautami tripathy happened upon Mr. Paul Drake in India, of all places! Rumor has it he might be moving...

A couple of bloggers were adventurous and travelled to meet with their subjects. Between the Covers travelled very far indeed to interview Ned Henry, while Gavin journeyed to Shiraz to talk to Sheherazade.

To represent the classics, Jo talked with a reflective Tess and Rebecca pulled a James Lipton with Owen Meany.

And Erika Lynn went a different route and linked to Sue Grafton's interviews with her own character, Kinsey Millhone.

Then there was the group of intrepid bloggers who went above and beyond. Bookworm interviewed the vampire Lestat (or does he prefer the capitalized The Vampire Lestat?) and Ariel faced Death (who actually looks like a nice Goth girl). Even Cthulhu generously consented to an interview. The brave blogger at It's Dark in the Dark (Cthulhu must've felt right at home) faced the evil one and came out unscathed. We think.

Congratulations to all of this week's geeks for their impressive round-up of interviewees!

Today I have Leslie Dubois joining me, author of the new novel, The Queen Bee of Bridgeton. She's joined us for an interview today, but the interview is a bit different than normal. Rather than answering the questions on her own, all of her answers are direct quotes from the books! It makes for some interesting responses and has definitely made me want to move this book a little higher up the tbr pile! ___________________________________________________

Why dance?

“For me, dancing is like an elegant stream of life-giving water. It nourishes my soul. Without it, I’d shrivel up and die.”

What can we expect to see from you next? Farther in the future?

“In a few days, I’m gonna be a fat flower expert.”

Which character in Queen Bee do you most relate to, or find comes more heavily from your own experiences? Why that character?

“Because I didn’t know the slang or the words to the latest rap song apparently I wasn’t black enough.”

Do you have any writing rituals or superstitions? Things you must do or have in order to write?

“I went to my room and turned on Mozart’s Symphony number 25 in G minor in order to drown out the ghetto symphony of gunshots and sirens.”

What do you do to relax, or de-stress?

“First of all, I’ve played basketball my entire life. It’s the only think that keeps me from going completely insane.”

What are some of your favorite books? Both recent reads and long-time favorites.

“Why couldn’t I be dancing with the Russian Ballet instead?”

___________________________________________________
Thank you so much for joining us today Leslie! I love the quotes even if some of them make me more curious than before.:) Readers, if you would like to win a copy of this book for yourself — Just leave me and Leslie a comment letting us know what interests you about the book, the answers here, or why we should send you a copy. US/Canada only. Ends Monday, May 23 Include email with comment.

Today I have an interview with up and coming author Alexandra Bracken. Her novel, Brightly Woven, debuts March 23. The short description of the novel from her website is, "Sydelle Mirabil is living proof that, with a single drop of rain, a life can be changed forever. Tucked away in the farthest reaches of the kingdom, her dusty village has suffered under the weight of a strangely persistent drought. That is, of course, until a wizard wanders into town and brings the rain with him." I haven't read her novel yet, though I plan to, so many of you might be wondering why I chose to interview her. Bracken is unique in that she was working on publishing her novel while she was still in college. She signed with an agent on her 21st birthday and after spending her senior year revising the novel her dream is finally coming true next week. How did she do it you might ask, and I think the work diligence pretty much sums up Bracken's story. I won't just leave it at that though, as follows you can read her answers to my questions about how she balanced school and writing and what path (or paths) she took to get there.

Where did you go to school, when did you graduate, and what did you go?
I went to the College of William and Mary, graduated last Spring, and majored in History and English

Did you start as an English major? What made you decide to become an English major?
When I was applying for schools, I focused on the Virginia area, mostly because I knew I wanted to study Early American History and I would freeze my butt off if I went to school in New England. I had always loved English, but my dad had convinced me to major in History and Government because he wanted me to be a lawyer. BIG mistake. I took one Government class and realized how stupid it was for me NOT to major in English--AKA the subject I really loved.

What were your plans for after graduation? How have those plans been fulfilled or how have they been different than you expected?
Originally, I was going the pre-law route (I'm sure you've all noticed that when you say you're an English major, most people assume that you want to be A) a lawyer or B) a teacher)... but I realized, in the middle of taking the LSAT unfortunately, that being a lawyer would make me MISERABLE, and spent all of the summer between Junior and Senior year moping around without a life plan. My next idea was to work in PR/Communications (which I definitely recommend), but I ended up getting a scholarship to attend the Columbia Publishing Institute and decided to take it. I now work as an editorial assistant in children's publishing. Looking back, it seems like a natural choice since being an author had given me a lot of insight into the business.I'm not sure if it's what I want to be doing forever, but I'm happy to be employed and doing something I enjoy!


What made you decide to take on writing a novel while in college?
I first tried my hand at writing a novel my freshman year--I always say that NaNoWriMo made me very brave, and it's true. I thought I would just give it a go, and ended up getting hooked on the process.

Were you planning to publish this all along?
No... I tried to be very realistic about it and not get my hopes up, but secretly I was hoping I'd be able to sell something before I graduated.


How did you balance school and writing?
I get asked this all the time, and I'm still not sure what the right answer is. I was very disciplined and made a lot of social sacrifices on the weekends. You really do have to find a schedule that works, though. The first three years of college were incredibly reading and writing intensive (I was once assigned 2000 pages of reading a week in my Sophomore year. Not. Fun.), but that helped me write. Knowing that I only had an hour here or two hours there meant that I used that little time for writing and writing alone. When i was working on revisions with my agent, I gave myself a deadline to finish the first round before finals that May. Starting in March, I woke up at 6 AM every day and wrote until I had class at 1 PM, and when I was done with homework at night, I'd be back to revising. I tried getting up at 5 AM and squeezing in an hour of work out time, but... uh... I quickly decided an extra hour of sleep was more important than getting my fitness on.


What advice would you give college students who want to write seriously in college? What advice would you give those who want to publish? What steps should they take?
The advice that I always give to high schoolers and college students that ask me this question is this: While you're in school, focus on being a writer before you focus on being a published author. I really miss the days I had before I was published, when I could write whatever I wanted regardless of how crappy it was and I didn't have to worry about another person's judgment. I can't reinforce this enough, being published in college is like having a full-time job, and one that isn't always fun. It's an incredible amount of stress and pressure to put on yourself, when you're already anxious about exams/papers/what-have-you. Not everyone will have a negative experience, but I would also add that a good portion of my friends thought that I had graduated a semester early because I was so deep in my revision hole that I only surfaced for food and class. School is such a unique and wonderful time, but you don't get to experience it when you're by yourself writing. There are a zillion and a half elements in Brightly Woven that I picked up from the classes I was taking at the time. Be a sponge and absorb as much as possible from your classes and friends. Make sure you're taking advantage of all that college life has to offer, and if you happen to write something that you feel is ready to be seen by the world, go for it! Revise it seriously, submit it to agents, and learn from the feedback you get. Make sure that when you're writing you are happy and excited, because the minute you start feeling stressed out or depressed, it often means that your life has become unbalanced, and you need to step away and refocus.


What advice would you give to English majors about how to make the English major work for them after school?
Okay guys, here's a secret: what matters in the job world isn't necessarily what you majored in, but the internships and work experiences that you have. My current boss didn't hire me because I was an English major (though I'm sure that helped)--she claimed it was because I talked about coordinating our Student Assembly's Thanksgiving airport shuttle rides. So don't discount any work experience you have, regardless of how small or insignificant you think it is. I would also recommend networking with alums in the career field of your choice, and seeking out speciality programs like the Columbia Publishing Course, which often feed you directly into jobs. Besides the fact that companies are always looking for good writers (seriously--critical writing does not tend to be a strength of most business majors), so be sure to always play that up. Plus, you've spent how many years analyzing and forming your own arguments, right? That's another skill you have in the bag.

Alexandra's novel, Brightly Woven, comes out March 23. You can read a longer synopsis if you follow the Brightly Woven link.

Today's Fairy Tale Fortnight interview totally makes my day. Because it is with the author of my number one most anticipated release of 2012 and will be followed by a review of the book! I cannot even begin to describe how happy I am that Alethea, author of the soon to be released Enchanted agreed to be part of Fairy Tale Fortnight! So check out her awesome interview and then enter the giveaway of WIN that she is donating!

What do you make of the resurgence in popularity for fairy tales? (Once Upon a Time, Grimm, Mirror Mirror, Snow White and the Huntsmen, all within a very short time)? Do you see it as a trend that will sort of peter out, or is it just getting started?

J. R. R. Tolkien once said (and fairy tale scholar Jack Zipes agrees) that fairy tales were 100% guaranteed moneymakers. In these times of extreme economic crisis, doesn't it make sense to bet on a Sure Thing? Even Mama wouldn't disagree with that.

I believe this is a trend that started once upon a time in sixteenth-century Italy. We're definitely on the crest of a fairy tale tidal wave right now. I hope that wave continues for a very, very long time... or until we all live happily ever after. Whichever comes first.

What impact do you think fairy tales have on society (especially with the same tales popping up in various forms in every society)?

Over the years, fairy tales as a whole have been both teaching tools and "urban" legends at the same time. They are typically pro-cleverness, anti-laziness, and sometimes even end more realistically than happily. I think the more unadulterated fairy tales that children are read as part of their growing-up process, the more traditional values they will have, and the better off our society would be.

But we live in a world now where children are protected from such terribly, bloody things. Fairy tales are neutered and spoon-fed by Disney, and our children are reading Facebook news links before bedtime. Because THAT seems like the best way to mold our future society. *rolls eyes*

Book in a Tweet: Your fairy tale in 140 characters or less?

Every beloved fairy tale originated with the Woodcutter family. Enchanted is Sunday Woodcutter's story.

Favorite fairy tales: "The Goose Girl" and "Snow White & Rose Red."

Most underrated fairy tale? Every one that hasn't been made into a Disney film: "The Foundling," "Master Maid," "The Seven Swans," "The Little Match Girl," "Tom Thumb"...

Most overrated fairy tale? "Snow White." Every retelling of this tale concentrates so much on the evilness of the queen and not really Snow White herself. (The jury's still out on OUaT, but it's decidedly Regina-centric.) At the end of the Grimm tale, Snow White invites the queen to her wedding and makes her dance in red-hot iron shoes. Doesn't exactly fit the Lily White Mary Sue Princess she's always portrayed as, does it?

Last year we asked everyone’s fairy tale hero/heroine name; this year, we want to know your fairy tale villain name:

According to the online Fairy Tale Name Generator, I am EVIL STEPMOTHER. Ha! Is that even possible?

Using that name, give us a line from your villainous fairy tale:

"Once Upon a Time, a fairy godmother married a widowed prince with two lovely daughters. While the sun shone she was loving and kind, but when the sun set, she locked herself in the tower room and became THE EVIL STEPMOTHER."

If a genie granted you 3 wishes, what would they be?
1. That the Enchanted series continue on long enough for me to tell the stories of all seven Woodcutter sisters
2. That we all be doomed to a happy life
3. The genie's freedom (I am no fairy tale dummy!)

Best way to read fairy tales?

In bed, to a child. Fairy tales are all the more magical when told.

If one of your books was being turned into a movie and you could cast 1 character, which character would you cast and who would play them?

It's funny you should ask! I am a huge movie buff and a fan of many actors, not the least of which is Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje. I was writing the last half of Enchanted right about the same time they killed the character of Mr. Eko on the TV show Lost. I was furious! So furious, in fact, that I immediately resurrected him in my book... and thus, Jolicoeur was born. I would be tickled pink if someday a production company 1.) turned Enchanted into a film and 2.) cast Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje as Jolicoeur.
P.S.- — I kind of come off like I hate Disney in this, but I really don't. Well, okay..I sort of don't.
PPS — I didn't really get to mention THE WONDERLAND ALPHABET — it would be cool if perhaps you could find a way to sneak it in somehow. Stories like Alice in Wonderland and Peter Pan are very much fairy tales to today's generation, I think.
What a fabulous interview! Seriously! LOVE! And would that I were a genie that I could grant your first wish! I would love to read more of the Woodcutter sister's stories! I absolutely loved the allusions to the various fairy tales! ____________________________________________

Alright! GIVEAWAY TIME!!

Because Alethea is MADE OF WIN she has donated an awesome gift basket full of Enchanted goodness and Fairy Tale win.

She has donated a finished, signed copy of Enchanted to one lucky winner along with other fun swag and surprise gifts.

TO ENTER: Use the Rafflecopter form below. There are extra entries available for commenting on Enchanted related posts on Ashley's blog — Basically Amazing Books, Misty's blog — The Book Rat and Bonnie's blog — A Backward's Story. The Rafflecopter widget is the same on all three blogs. You can enter through any of our blogs, but you must visit and comment on each individual post for the extra entries.

Giveaway is US only. Ends May 7th.

Visit:
Ashley's Blog Misty's Blog Bonnie's Blog

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Click the button to be taken to the
Fairy Tale Fortnight Main Page & Schedule
(button image via)

There have been so many awesome blog posts about Contemporary YA this week! I have loved reading the ones I've discovered, but just know that I had to have missed a bunch. So, if your blog post isn't listed here, please let me know!

Announcement of Contemporary Win!- A whole bunch of bloggers have gotten together to put on a John Green week this January! How awesome is that?! John Green pretty much oozes Contemporary awesomness so a week to spotlight him sounds awesome! Here is a link to one of the blogs hosting sign ups!:) Click me for John Green Week info!!!

Also, I cannot believe that I have so far forgotten to mention this — BUT — November is also Aussie Month over at Carla's blog, The Crooked Shelf. Since it's Aussie authors in general, not everything is Contemporary but there is definitely some Contemp love and seriously, who doesn't love Aussie authors?! There must be something in the water over there because they Rock!
Some of the Contemporary Australian Awesome — An interview with Melina Marchetta! (Whom I absolutely adore!) Reviews of Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley; Everything Beautiful by Simmone Howell; A Straight Line to My Heart by Bill Condon; Good Oil by Laura Buzo;

REVIEW:

Alissa @ The Grammarian — Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver (not entirely Contemp, but mostly)

Candace @ Candace's Book Blog — Going Too Far by Jennifer Echols (and a giveaway!), The Vinyl Princess by Yvonne Prinz, Dreamland Social Club by Tara Atebrando, Girl Wonder by Alexa Martin and Shattered Soul by Jennifer Snyder (also has an author interview and a giveaway!).

Somer @ A Bird's Eye View — Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles

Mandie Baxter — Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta

Allison @ The Allure of Books — Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta

Mary @ Anxirium — Five Flavors of Dumb by Antony John

Jacinda @ The Reading Housewives — Sea by Heidi R. Kling and The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen

The Busy Bibliophile — You Against Me by Jenny Downham

Jennifer @ The Book Barbies — Virtuosity by Jessica Martinez

Racquel @ The Book Barbies — If I Stay by Gayle Forman, Where She Went by Gayle Forman, Ten Things We Did (and Probably Shouldn't Have) by Sarah Mlynowski and Virtuosity by Jessica Martinez.

Magan @ Rather Be Reading — Cracked Up to Be by Courtney Summers and The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chboksy

Krazy Book Lady — Joint Mother/Daughter review of Geek Girl by Cindy C. Bennet

Estelle @ Rather Be Reading — Fringe Girl by Valerie Frankel

Katelyn @ Katelyn's Blog — Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

Amanda @ Book Love 101 — Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

Hannah @ Paperback Treasures — Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Bonnie @ A Backwards Story — Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

Rachel @ Rachel Reads — The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson

Ginger @ Greads! — Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley

Farrah @ I Eat Words — Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley

Amanda @ On a Book Bender — Cut by Patricia McCormick (guest review by Amanda)

Karen @ For What It's Worth — Saving June by Hannah Harrington

A Beautiful Madness — Dancergirl by Carol Tanzman, Uncommon Criminals by Ally Carter (second in a series) and Saving June by Hannah Harrington.

Ashley @ Book Labyrinth — I'm Not Her by Janet Gurtler

Laura @ The Reading Nook — Lie by Caroline Bock

Jamie @ Writers write, right? — The Boys Next Door by Jennifer Echols

Rachel @ Fiktshun — Where You Are by Tammara Webber (second book in series)

Melissa @ I Swim for Oceans — The Shattering by Karen Healy

April @ Good Books & Good Wine — Playground by 50 Cent and Sweethearts by Sara Zarr

Jamie @ The Perpetual Page Turner — Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green & David Levithan

Anna @ Anna Reads — Kiss It by Erin Downing and Virtuosity by Jessica Martinez

Jayme @ The Secret Life of an Avid Reader — Withering Tights by Louise Rennison

Yani @ The Secret Life of an Avid Reader — Double Clutch by Elizabeth Reinhardt

Chey @ The Hollow Cupboards — Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins and Ten Things We Did (and Probably Shouldn't Have) by Sarah Mlynowski

Juhina @ Maji Bookshelf — North of Beautiful by Justina Chen Headley, Dancergirl by Carol Tanzman and Where You Are by Tammara Webber (second book in series)

Farah @ Maji Bookshelf — The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things by Carolyn Mackler and Saving June by Hannah Harrington

Chelsey @ Starry Sky Books — Rhymes with Cupid by Anna Humphrey

Melissa @ This is Your Brain on Books — The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky and Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

Mari @ Escape in a Good Book — All I Ever Wanted by Vikki Wakefield

Nina @ Escape in a Good Book — Dancergirl by Carol Tanzman

Sarah @ Whispering Words — Guitar Girl by Sarra Manning

Cass @ Words on Paper — Audition by Stasia Kehoe

Samual @ Books for All Seasons — Moving Day by Meg Cabot

Lena @ Addicted to Novels — Love and Leftovers by Sarah Tregay and Saving June by Hannah Harrington

Steph @ Steph Su Reads — Saving June by Hannah Harrington

Giselle @ Xpresso Reads — Fury by Shirley Marr

The Book Faery — Deadly Cool by Gemma Halliday

Tee @ Dreaming Dreams — Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins, Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins, Dash and Lily's Book of Dares by David Levithan and Rachel Cohn, and Deadly Cool by Gemma Halliday.

Lizz @ Dreaming Dreams — Want to Go Private? by Sarah Darer Littman

Annette's Book Spot — Saving June by Hannah Harrington

AUTHOR:

Mary @ Anxirium — Guest post w/ author Jennifer Castle about Being a Contemporary YA Writer

Candace @ Candace's Book Blog interviewed Tara Altebrando.

Krazy Book Lady interviewed Cindy C. Bennett

Avid Reader Yani has a guest post from Elizabeth Reinhardt about dating

Kody Keplinger interviewed Hannah Harrington

Kirsten Hubbard is giving away Wanderlove bookmarks

Hannah Harrington lists her Top Ten Road Trip Songs.

DISCUSSION:

Misty @ The Book Rat talks about her most anticipated Contemporary YA (and it's a linky! You can too!!)

Molly Jo @ Surrounded by Words — Contemporary YA: A Love/Hate Relationship
Danielle @ Alpha Reader talks about her favorite Aussie YA novels.
Samual @ Books for All Seasons talks about favorite YA/MG Contemps about friendship

Romance:
Bonnie @ A Backwards Story
Danya @ A Tapestry of Words

More of the Tough Stuff posts that I missed last week:

Candace @ Candace's Book Blog
Bonnie @ A Backwards Story
Sarah @ The Storybound Girl
Amanda @ The Fiction Fairy

Once again — If I've missed anything, Let me know!!:) I'd love to add your stuff to my link up!

Once again, here is a link up of all the Contemporary happenings I've stumbled across in the past week on blogs other than Shanyn's and my own! There are some seriously awesome things happening around the blogosphere, so click through the list and check it out!

And since it is absolutely impossible for me to really be aware of all that is happening everywhere, if you have seen or posted anything Contemporary related, Let me know! I will either add it to this list, or include it in next week's post!

Awesome Reading Challenge: The Keeping It Real Contemporary YA Reading Challenge hosted by Kat @ I Write, I Read, I Review. And, there will be prizes!:)

REVIEWS:

Sarah @ The Storybound Girl — Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King

Candace @ Candace's Book Blog — Fixing Delilah by Sarah Ockler, Amplified by Tara Kelly, Vintage Veronica by Erica S. Perl, North of Beautiful by Justina Chen Headly

L.L. @ The Story Girl — I am the Messenger by Marcus Zusak

Katelyn @ Katelyn's Blog — The Pull of Gravity by Gae Polisner and My Life Undecided by Jessica Brody

Melina @ Reading Vacation — Past Perfect by Lelia Sales and The Daughters Join the Party by Joanna Philbin (this is the third book in the series.)

Author Jessi Kirby — Virtuosity by Jessica Martinez

Asheley @ Into the Hall of Books — We the Animals by Justin Torres

Samual @ Books for All Seasons — The Unwritten Rule by Elizabeth Scott

Danya @ A Tapestry of Words — Dear Bully by Various

Shannon @ Books Devoured — Looking for Alaska John Green and The Boyfriend List by E. Lockhart

The Busy Bibliophile — Artichoke's Heart by Suzanne Supplee

Anna @ Anna Reads — Bunheads by Sophie Flack

Raquel @ The Book Barbies — Moonglass by Jessi Kirby

Page @ One Book at a Time — Lie by Caroline Bock

Emily @ Red House Books — Reasons to be Happy by Katrina Kittle

Giselle @ Xpresso Reads — dancergirl by Carol M. Tanzman, and Room by Emma Donoghue (probably more Adult than YA, but it is definitely a crossover book).

Somer @ A Bird's Eye View — Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

Liz @ Consumed by Books — The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han

Nicci @ Paper Dreams — Perfect Cover by Jennifer Lynn Barnes and Virtuosity by Jessica Martinez (she also wrote a fun — Five Reasons to Read Virtuosity post!)

Julie @ A Tale of Many Reviews — The Vincent Boys by Abbi Glines

Chris @ Between the Covers — Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins

Ginger @ Greads! — Amplified by Tara Kelly

Carrie @ Stalking the Bookshelves — Saving June by Hannah Harrington and The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen

Rowena @ The Book Scoop — My Life Undecided by Jessica Brody

Mindi @ Books Complete Me — Geek Girl by Cindy C. Bennett

Sarah @ YA Love — How to Save a Life by Sara Zarr

Jennifer @ Novel Thoughts — Saving June by Hannah Harrington

Aubrey @ holes in my brain — How to Save a Life — Sara Zarr

Mary @ Anxirium — Chain Reaction by Simone Elkeles

Lori @ Pure Imagination — Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma

Lisa @ The Garden of Books — Where She Went by Gayle Forman and Looking for Alibrandi by Melina Marchetta

John @ Dreaming in Books — Spoiled by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan

Kelli @ I'd So Rather Be Reading — Going Too Far — Jennifer Echols

Princess Bookie — Past Perfect by Lelia Sales and Pure Red by Danielle Joseph

For the Love of Contemporary — His Eyes by Renee Carter

Tiffany @ Tiffany Reads — The Day Before by Lisa Schroeder and Moonglass by Jessi Kirby

Ashley @ Bookaholics Anonymous — Raw Blue by Kirsty Egar

Hannah @ Paperback Treasures — If I Tell by Janet Gurtler, Calli by Jessica Lee Anderson and Between Here and Forever by Elizabeth Scott.

Bailey @ IB Book Blogging — Past Perfect by Lelia Sales

The Book Faerie — The Day Before by Lisa Schroeder (WARNING — This review DOES contain spoilers)

Jenny @ The Mimosa Stimulus — Amplified by Tara Kelly and Virtuosity by Jessica Martinez

Sophia @ The Book Basement — If I Stay by Gayle Forman, Just Listen by Sarah Dessen and The Duff by Kody Keplinger

Natalie @ Quirky Vintage — Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly (not completely Contemporary, but mostly & amazing, so...)

Karen @ For What It's Worth — Where You Are by Tammara Webber

Lisa @ The Garden of Books — Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott (this is actually a short — What on Earth could I possibly say about this level of intensity — post)

AUTHORS:

The Nerd Girls @ Books to the Sky Interviewed Janet Gurtler! (And there is a giveaway!)

For the Love of Contemporary spotlighted Sarah Ockler!!!

Candace @ Candace's Book Blog interviewed Anne Pfeffer (and there is an international giveaway!) and she also interviewed Stasia Kehoe!

The Contemps blog spotlighted new author Josie Bloss and her novel Faking Faith.

Sam @ Books for all Seasons interviewed Melissa Kantor!

Liz @ Consumed by Books has a fun This or That Interview with Hannah Harrington!

Hannah @ Paperback Treasures has a guest post from Megan Bostic about the songs that inspired her book!

Melina @ Reading Vacation has a guest post from Joanna Philbin.

Kristi @ The Story Siren has a guest post from Catherine Ryan Hyde (with a giveaway)

DISCUSSION TOPICS

Allison @ The Allure of Books vlogged about her favorite YA Contemporary Books
Mandie Baxter: Why I Love Contemporary
Rowena @ The Book Scoop: Why I Love Contemporary
Author Carol Tanzman: Why I Write Contemporary YA
Bee @ Dreamcatcher's Lair: Her favorite Dark YA books. (Not all are Contemporary, but most of them are!)
Author Abbi Glines: Her 11 favorite Indie Contemporary YA Romances

Tough Stuff in Contemporary YA: (again, many of these were written as guest posts and I am only identifying the author of the post, not the host blog)

Rie @ Mission to Read
Bonnie @ A Backwards Story
Candace @ Candace's Book Blog
Jacinda @ Reading Housewives
Katelyn @ Katelyn's Blog
Cara @ Chasing Words
Mandie Baxter
Nicci @ Paper Dreams
Shannon @ Books Devoured
Ginger @ GReads!

Again — If you have seen or written a post talking about Contemporary YA or reviewing a book, LET ME KNOW!! I'd LOVE to include you in the link up AND I personally read and comment on all of them. (It takes a while, but I'm LOVING It!) So leave me a comment, shoot me an email or send me a tweet and I'll add you to my list!:)

Today, I have Amber Argyle, author of the soon to be released Witch Song visiting us on the blog today! (Look for my review soon) Amber is awesome. Like, seriously. And, I've met her... In real life. (be jealous.) I actually met her in line during a signing in Utah and we started talking without knowing anything about each other (that's what you do when you've been standing in line for over 5 hours...) And guys, she's hilarious. And awesome, and... Dude — she thinks I'm clever!:) So, I'm sure you are tired of listening to me ramble on here, so let's here from Amber!

Have you always wanted to be a writer?

From about 5th grade on. I didn’t actually get the courage to try it for real until 25.

Where did the idea for the song come from?

I’m assuming you mean from using song as the medium for the Witch’s magic. I wanted to twist the idea of witches evil chanting to something beautiful and natural. I’ve always felt that songs are a more powerful means of communication than mere words. The pitch, rhythm, melody, etc can all be manipulated to touch human emotions. In essence, music is powerful. So I tweaked that power to affect plants in a similar but more potent way (making them grow and obey the witch’s will), the seasons (the Witches sing to change the seasons ie from winter to spring), and the wind (to control the weather).
(I always thought controlling the weather would be the best super power. How awesome is that?!)

What was your reaction when you first learned that Witch Song was going to be published?

I was overwhelmed, relieved, elated, excited, worried, basically every strong human emotion mixed together.

Do you feel like the cover fits the story well?

Absolutely. I had tons of say in the cover, including approval for each mock up.
(That is awesome! I absolutely love this cover! It's what initially attracted me to the book! I love that you had so much voice in how it turned out!)

Are there any plans for more in the Witch Song world?

I can neither confirm nor deny... just kidding. I haven’t decided either way. I definitely left it open for more, but I’ve got so many projects calling my name. We’ll see.

Awesome! I really enjoyed Witch Song, and while I do think it ends in a solid place, I definitely wouldn't mind revisiting that world! Thank you so much for answering questions for me today Amber!

This week we are going to continue with the theme started last week and go even further exploring our favorite book characters.

Many of us have had an opportunity to interview an author, mostly through email, but perhaps even on the phone or in person. In fact, many of you have become experts at author interviews. So this week, let's pretend that we can get in contact with one of our favorite characters and interview them. What would you ask Mr. Darcy if you could send him an email. What would his answers be like? What would you say if you could just call up Liesel or Rudy from The Book Thief and ask them anything? How would they answer your questions? What if you could invite Jo March or Anne Shirley to lunch, what would the conversation be like?

So blog about that imagined conversation, or phone discussion, or email exchange. Of course, there may be lots of things we'll have to make up or imagine them saying. But many things we should be able to figure out their answers just from what we know of them in their respective books.

If you need help with what questions to ask them, look around the blogosphere at all the memes we see. Borrow some of those questions. Re-use some of the questions you've asked authors in interviews you've already done. You can really have fun with some questions. For example, ask Elinor from Inkheart what's her favorite book. Ask Heathcliff how he spends his leisure time. Ask Gilbert what he looks for in a girl. Ask Crusoe where he would like to go on his ideal vacation.

You get the idea, right? You can really have some fun with it and get a little silly, or you can be straightforward and serious. But either way, show us how well you know (or maybe don't know) your character and perhaps in the end, we'll all have a whole new perspective about some of our favorite characters! I think that even if we end up with several interviews of the same person, it will be fun to see how differently we each view and perceive them.

Now, have at it and get making those calls and sending those emails to your favorite characters!

Be sure to come back and sign Mr. Linky (that is if I can figure it out since I've never done a Mr. Linky before!) once you've completed your interview, and later let us know about some of the fun interviews you come across on other Weekly Geek blogs.

I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to participate in a live interview this afternoon with George Pelecanos, author of sixteen crime novels, including The Turnaround (2008) and The Way Home (May, 2009).

You can access the interview here. Thanks again to Miriam at Hachette and author George Pelecanos for providing such an amazing opportunity to book bloggers!

And don't forget to enter in my contest to win a copy of The Turnaround. Contest ends on Saturday, April 18th.

And stay tuned for my review of The Turnaround!

I know I usually post Sunday Salons much earlier than this, but I put off today's post for a special reason. If you've been following my Sunday Salon posts for the past few weeks then you know I just got back from a trip to New York City. I wanted to let you all know about my trip to this fabulous city, but I couldn't very well do that without pictures, could I? Which is why I had to wait until I got back to Iowa City to post this.

The two main pilgrimages I made during my trip to NYC were the Strand Bookstore and the New York Public Library. Strand was the first place I went and I managed to spend less than $100 there which was actually pretty amazing. I just kept reminding myself that I had many more places to go to. In case you don't know, Strand Books is famous for its 18 miles of books. That thought scare my parents, but it's actually just a three floor bookstore. Don't get me wrong, it's big, but I mean, it's not that big. I got some amazing deals on books while I was there though. I highly recommend stopping at the Strand if you're ever in NYC.

I was also pretty jazzed to get this awesome bag while I was there. I think I'm going to use it for my used bookstore shopping from now on.

From left to right we've got the heroic Dante, Emily Bronte, Herman Mellville, Shakespeare, Jane Austen, Homer, and Oscar Wilde. Oh yeah... and I might have gotten something for someone else too. But you'll have to keep reading to find out about that.

The New York Public Library was fabulous and beautiful, although it was quite strange to have my bag searched before entering a library.

I got an awesome children's book at the library amongst a few other things. I actually bought three children's books while I was in New York so you can look forward to those during some upcoming Children's Book Thursdays! And now about that hint I had earlier... I got a Strand bag for one reader. It looks like this:

It doesn't matter to me if you have been to Strand or not, you can fool people if you please! The bag is brown with a green logo, I know it's kind of hard to tell in the picture. All you have to do to win the bag is leave a comment, but if you don't want to win the bag and do leave a comment please let me know. I also ask that everyone who enters the contest is a follower of English Major's Junk Food. You can become a follower by clicking Follow in the upper right hand column of this page. Oh yeah, this is open internationally.

In case you missed some of posts this week here is a quick list: Emma Volume 3, Author Interview with Alexandra Bracken, The Creation of Eve (my favorite book so far in 2010!), and Deep Bookish Questions.

I've been meaning to get this post up for a while now, but as I've mentioned before, I've been insanely busy lately and my real life doesn't seem to want to allow my blogging life to be a *thing*. Ahem...

Anyway — This is going to become a regular feature here each Saturday. (Yes, I am well aware that today is Monday, but bear with me...)

Each Saturday I'm going to put up a linky where ANYONE can link ANY post dealing with Contemporary YA. It can be a review, author interview/guest post, a giveaway, opinion post, anything, as long as it is related to Contemporary YA.

You do NOT have to be a participant in the Just Contemporary Reading Challenge to use this linky. I want everyone to link up their posts! So tell your friends, tweet about it & get linking. I would love to have a huge linky each week with all the awesome Contemporary happenings online.

Feel free to link retroactively too! Please only add each post to one linky, but the post does not have to be written this week to be added.:)

AND — I will guarantee a read and a comment from me to every single person who links up using this linky system. And, I'll tweet about it and do all that I can to spread the word.

Contemporary is a genre that I wish got more love and attention, so let's get linking!!:)

I've been meaning to get this post up for a while now, but as I've mentioned before, I've been insanely busy lately and my real life doesn't seem to want to allow my blogging life to be a *thing*. Ahem...

Anyway — This is going to become a regular feature here each Saturday. (Yes, I am well aware that today is Monday, but bear with me...)

Each Saturday I'm going to put up a linky where ANYONE can link ANY post dealing with Contemporary YA. It can be a review, author interview/guest post, a giveaway, opinion post, anything, as long as it is related to Contemporary YA.

You do NOT have to be a participant in the Just Contemporary Reading Challenge to use this linky. I want everyone to link up their posts! So tell your friends, tweet about it & get linking. I would love to have a huge linky each week with all the awesome Contemporary happenings online.

Feel free to link retroactively too! Please only add each post to one linky, but the post does not have to be written this week to be added.:)

AND — I will guarantee a read and a comment from me to every single person who links up using this linky system. And, I'll tweet about it and do all that I can to spread the word.

Contemporary is a genre that I wish got more love and attention, so let's get linking!!:)

Have you written a post involving Contemporary YA?! Link it up!

You do not have to be a participant in the Just Contemporary Challenge to you this linky! It's for any and every post involving Contemporary YA! Let's spread the love!:)

You can link any Contemporary post (review, giveaway, author interview/guest post etc) but it does have to be Contemporary.

And I know I'm behind, but I do promise a read & a comment to anyone who links up!:)

Help me welcome Susan Niz to the blog today, author of Kara, Lost, a story about a 16 year old who runs away from home. Susan was kind enough to stop by and answer some questions about herself and about her new novel.

Why do you write?

I believe that I was born to write. I notice details and I like to imagine people’s stories, which I think has to do with a fascination with analyzing emotions, reactions, and relationships. Also, I’ve been through so many crazy things that I could keep writing forever. And because my life is stable now, allowing me the opportunity to write.

Have you always wanted to be a writer? If you couldn't write, what would be your 'dream job'?

I have always wanted to be a writer. When I was three or four, I would staple together any kind of scrap paper, scribble a title on the cover, and imagine that it was my own book that I had written. I became a teacher and taught for many years. I found many aspects of teaching to be very fulfilling; teachers can really make a difference for kids.

I would like to be a baker, a musician, an artist, a textile weaver, or design educational children’s toys. I don’t necessarily have the skills for most of those jobs. Ideally, I would get paid to do something where I could collaborate creatively with other people.

The story in Kara, Lost is not a light-hearted book, and Kara's journey sounds like a truly painful one. Why this story? Why did you need to share this story with the world?

I ran away from home when I was sixteen and was homeless for a few months. Kara’s story is fiction, but I told my story through Kara’s voice. I felt driven to get the story out of me, to try to make some sense of it, to share it with other people, and to put it out in the world so that it wasn’t just living in a shameful place inside me. I feel liberated by the process, but it wasn’t clean or easy. Writing my story as fiction allowed me to explore motivations, causes and effects, and emotions in a way that was a little less personal and not tied to ideas of blame.

What does it feel like, knowing that your book is now in print and soon to be read by people all over? Do you ever just stop and think, Wow! I'm a writer?!

Yes, I do sometimes think, “I actually did it.” It’s a process of finding my voice as a published author and enjoying the sense of accomplishment that comes along with sharing my book with others.

What is the hardest part of writing for you? The easiest? Most rewarding?

If someone wants to write a book, they should now that it takes a lot of hard work. The most difficult part was just the consistent effort and commitment of time and focus that it took. The easiest part was the drive to tell the story and the actual story ideas. The most rewarding part is knowing that I followed through with my dream. Now I can ask myself, “What is my next dream? What is my next story?”

If you could share anything with your readers, tell us any one thing, what would it be?

Know your worth and don’t let others keep you down. Be strong. Keep going and find a positive path in life.

Thank you so much for stopping by Susan! It's great to hear more about the motivation behind your book!

Author Bio: Jocelyn Koehler grew up in the wilds of Wisconsin, but now lives in a tiny house in Philadelphia that is filled with books, tea things, and places to read, sleep, and write. She has worked as a librarian, bookseller, editor, archivist, cubicle drone, popcorn popper, and music store clerk. Her books are available through Amazon or through her publisher, Hammer & Birch. Her new book The Way through the Woods, a collection of fairy tales based in the mythical land of the Nine Kingdoms, will be available May 1.

Interview:
What do you make of the resurgence in popularity for fairy tales? (Once Upon a Time, Grimm, Mirror Mirror, Snow White and the Huntsmen, all within a very short time)? Do you see it as a trend that will sort of peter out, or is it just getting started?

There sure have been a lot of movies and TV shows with a fairy tales theme lately. Partly, I think that cynical marketing types do work in cycles. Ten years ago it was all angels, all the time. Then vampires got big. Then zombies stumbled in (I fondly remember a time when not every classic novel had a "zombie" version). So fairy tales might be getting a "what's next?" push. However, I don't believe that fairy tale retellings will vanish next year. Whether it's books, film, or TV, people like these stories, which means that there will always be a market for them.

What impact do you think fairy tales have on society (especially with the same tales popping up in various forms in every society)?

No question... the impact is huge. The themes and messages from fairy tales are absolutely everywhere. During March Madness, the sportscasters drool whenever they get to talk about a "Cinderella" team that makes it to the "big dance." I think it's clear that almost everybody wants to live in a fairy tale of some sort, whether they recognize it or not.

Book in a Tweet: Your fairy tale in 140 characters or less?
Cindrelle defies her stepmother to attend a mysterious ball, falling in love with the prince who gives it. But who is he? Can he be trusted?

Favorite fairy tale:
Picking a single favorite is impossible, but I have to admit that Cinderella is right up there. When I started writing my retellings, the first one I completed was Ashes, Ashes, which is based on the traditional (pre-Disney) Cinderella story, complete with the three-night-long ball and the wish-granting hazel tree.

Most underrated fairy tale?
East of the Sun and West of the Moon doesn't get the attention it deserves. Where's that movie? Come on, one of the main characters is a bear.

Most overrated fairy tale?
I won't name names, but it rhymes with "schmilight."

Last year we asked everyone’s fairy tale hero/heroine name; this year, we want to know your fairy tale villain name:
My best friend once drew a picture of me and titled it Baroness von Blissblok. I'd wear all black, of course.

Using that name, give us a line from your villainous fairy tale:
The Baroness von Blissblok appeared in a cloud of swirling grey mist. "Fools! My tea was lukewarm today. I had to put it in the microwave for thirty seconds. As punishment for slightly inconveniencing me, I vow no one shall smile again!"

If a genie granted you 3 wishes, what would they be?
1. the total extinction of centipedes
2. world peace
3. a long and happy life with my beloved (that one's half-granted already)

Best way to read fairy tales? (i.e. location, snacks, etc)
Think of all the things you should accomplish today. Write them down on a piece of paper. Burn the paper. Then grab your book of fairy tales and a fluffy blanket, curl up on your favorite couch or chair, and start reading. If you find yourself getting hungry, enchant a dog to be your servant (ineffective on cats, trust me). Have the dog make you a cup of tea or cocoa hourly, as needed.

If one of your books was being turned into a movie and you could cast 1 character, which character would you cast and who would play them?
I'd cast Tilda Swinton as the evil stepmother in Ashes, Ashes. Nobody does cool, competent scary like her!

Giveaway: Jocelyn has been generous enough to donate five copies of her book, Ashes, Ashes, to giveaway! It's only available as an ebook, which means that this giveaway is also international! Just leave a meaningful comment on this post and tell us what you liked best about the interview, or why you want to read her book! And, make sure you've filled out the giveaway form!

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Today, I have Michael Mullin visiting us for Fairy Tale Fortnight! Michael is a writer who has two fun fractured fairy tales! He's written 8: The Previously Untold Story of the Previously Unknown 8th Dwarf, which is exactly as the title suggests and the story of the 8th dwarf in Snow White's tale and The Plight and Plot of Princess Penny , the story of a girl who gets picked on at school and decides to hire the witch from The Frog Prince to seek revenge. How fun does that sound?!

AND Michael has been generous enough to offer an e copy of each to one lucky winner! AND since they are e-copies, that means it's INTERNATIONAL!:) Details on that at the end of the post! And now — The interview!
______________________________________________

What do you make of the resurgence in popularity for fairy tales? (Once Upon a Time, Grimm, Mirror Mirror, Snow White and the Huntsmen, all within a very short time)? Do you see it as a trend that will sort of peter out, or is it just getting started?

Studio trends are about competition and money. Keeping in mind movies and TV shows are in development for years before the public sees any billboards, it’s not too surprising that similar themes reach the public around the same time. If something is well received, similar projects in development are revised and hurried.

Personally, I hope the trend lasts; it’s a great marketing tool for my eBooks. As long as the executions maintain some level of quality, people will want to read and see retellings. My irrational fear, of course, is that at the moment of my big break, someone decides fairy tale retellings are “so last year”.

What impact do you think fairy tales have on society (especially with the same tales popping up in various forms in every society)?

I think the sanitized versions (Disney and the like) have the most impact, and not much of it is positive. Those princesses are terrible role models for young girls, but that argument has been made often and far better than I ever could.

As far as cross-cultural impact, I defer to Joseph Campbell, who tells us the symbols of myth (including fairy tales) tap into what Jung called the collective unconscious. The trouble is, who’s reading or hearing the originals these days?

Book in a Tweet: Your fairy tale in 140 characters or less?

I have 2 books, so I get 2 tweets, right?

An 8th dwarf named Creepy was banished to the basement for being a misfit loner. Yet he affected the Snow White tale we thought we knew.

A teenage princess hires the witch from The Frog Prince to get revenge on a Mean Girl at school. A troll she meets thinks it’s a bad idea.

Favorite fairy tale:
I’d say The Frog Prince, the early Grimm version in which the transformation comes not from a kiss but from the princess throwing the frog at the wall in disgust. Seems odd behavior to reward, but the symbolic images throughout that story are rich. And I love the King’s no-nonsense attitude about making his daughter keep her promises.

Most underrated fairy tale?
Godfather Death. Surprises me more hasn’t been done with this one. Maybe I’ll do it myself.

Most overrated fairy tale?
Sleeping Beauty. Aside from the ultimate passive heroine, I never liked the idea of the whole kingdom going to sleep to “combat” the spell.

Last year we asked everyone’s fairy tale hero/heroine name; this year, we want to know your fairy tale villain name:
Lincoln La Rogue (Linus, maybe?)

Using that name, give us a line from your villainous fairy tale:
Having been dead for centuries, La Rogue paid no attention to the so-called “life and death” matters with which the townspeople seemed so concerned.

If a genie granted you 3 wishes, what would they be?
I’m assuming I can’t ask for more wishes. (Standard caveat.)

1. Sounds superficial but I’d ask for success. With it comes money and influence that I happen to know I’d use for the greater good – not just on myself.
2. Sounds corny but I’d wish happy lives for my kids.
3. Some oddball superpower, like being able to stop time.

Best way to read fairy tales? (ie location, snacks, etc)
On the living room couch, glass of red wine or scotch in hand.

If one of your books was being turned into a movie and you could cast 1 character, which character would you cast and who would play them?
I think the young woman from the 2010 remake of True Grit would make a good Princess Penny. (Yes, I had to look up her name: Hailee Steinfeld.)
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Thanks so much Michael! I'm totally loving these fairy tale interviews! (Don't tell anyone else, but the FTF interviews are always my favorite!:) )

And now — To win an electronic copy of Michael's books, you need to leave a meaningful comment on this post, something that shows me and Michael that you have read the interview, or are genuinely interested in his books!
You can also get an extra entry by Liking the facebook page for 8 and for Following Michael's Blog. Just let me know in your comment how many of the 3 you did!

AND- make sure you have filled out the main giveaway form so that we can get you your prize! (So, don't be leaving personal info in the comments! Just fill out the form!)

Click the button to be taken to the
Fairy Tale Fortnight Main Page & Schedule
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