GOOD ENOUGH by Paula Yoo (HarperTeen paperback edition May 8, 2012)

Hi! Just a quick blog to remind everyone that I’m speaking on an author panel entitled, “Fact to Fiction,” this Saturday May 12th at 2 PM at the Japanese American National Museum’s author panel for their annual Asian Pacific American Heritage Month celebration!

MAY is the annual ASIAN-PACIFIC AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH. This month features nation-wide festivals and events celebrating the contributions of Asian-Pacific Americans to our country. (For more info on that, go here: http://asianpacificheritage.gov/) I will be one of the panel speakers at the Japanese American National Museum‘s family festival, “Target Free Family Saturday: Celebrate Asian Pacific Heritage” on Saturday May 12, 2012. The festival is all day from 11 AM to 4 PM.

The panel I’m speaking on is called, “Fact to Fiction: API Authors Panel.” It will be held at 2 PM.

The panel description: “Join a remarkable panel of novelists featuring New York Times bestselling author Jamie Ford (Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet), Kristina McMorris (Bridge of Scarlet Leaves), Margaret Dilloway (How to Be an American Housewife), and Paula Yoo (Good Enough). Topics will include the influence of Asian American history on today’s literature, weaving true and personal accounts into fiction, and cultural education through storytelling.”

To find out more about the other awesome authors on our panel, please visit their websites here:

JAMIE FORD (Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet): http://www.jamieford.com/

KRISTINA MCMORRIS (Bridge of Scarlet Leaves): http://www.kristinamcmorris.com/

MARGARET DILLOWAY (How to Be An American Housewife): http://margaretdilloway.com/

For more info on the event, please visit the Japanese American National Museum website here: http://www.janm.org/

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Hope to see you there! The rest of my May will be busy with the usual writing deadlines. I’ll be back to more regular blogging this summer, starting in June. You can always check out the YOO INK section of my main homepage to see the latest headlines/news updates. You can also follow me on Twitter: @paulayoo

Until the next blog, remember… HAPPY WRITING! WRITE LIKE YOU MEAN IT!

GOOD ENOUGH by Paula Yoo (HarperTeen paperback edition May 8, 2012)

I am proud to announce that my YA novel GOOD ENOUGH (HarperCollins 2008) has just been released in paperback by HarperTeen. The paperback release date is TODAY! (May 8, 2012)

GOOD ENOUGH was also chosen as one of the books for the New York Public Libraries SUMMER READING 2012 list! For more info on this program, go here: http://www.summerreading.org/index.html

The entire summer reading list for 2012 is here (just click on the Teens link): http://www.summerreading.org/content.html

(Keep reading after the break to find out more about the GOOD ENOUGH paperback release, as well as other updates and breaking news…)

Other GOOD ENOUGH awards/nominations include the following:

• 2009 Honor Book of the Youth Literature of the Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature (APAAL) for its excellence in the literary quality and the promotion of Asia/Pacific Americans and their heritages
• 2009 Cooperative Children’s Book Center Choice
• 2009 Most Humorous YA Novel List by the New York Public Library Stuff for the Teen Age
• 2009-10 Young Adult Book Award nominee by the South Carolina Association of School Librarians (SCASL)
• 2010-11 Missouri Gateway Readers Award nominee
• 2011-12 Nebraska Golden Sower Award nominee

I received the complimentary author’s copies box of my paperback edition yesterday in the mail. I was so excited!

The box of GOOD ENOUGH paperbacks arrived!

I was also excited because this edition also includes an author photo taken by my friend Rob See. Yippee!

My first author photo on a novel! (Photo credit: Rob See)

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In other news, May is the annual ASIAN-PACIFIC AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH. This month features nation-wide festivals and events celebrating the contributions of Asian-Pacific Americans to our country. (For more info on that, go here: http://asianpacificheritage.gov/) I will be one of the panel speakers at the Japanese American National Museum‘s family festival, “Target Free Family Saturday: Celebrate Asian Pacific Heritage” on Saturday May 12, 2012. The festival is all day from 11 AM to 4 PM.

The panel I’m speaking on is called, “Fact to Fiction: API Authors Panel.” It will be held at 2 PM.

The panel description: “Join a remarkable panel of novelists featuring New York Times bestselling author Jamie Ford (Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet), Kristina McMorris (Bridge of Scarlet Leaves), Margaret Dilloway (How to Be an American Housewife), and Paula Yoo (Good Enough). Topics will include the influence of Asian American history on today’s literature, weaving true and personal accounts into fiction, and cultural education through storytelling.”

I’ll post more info on the event in a special blog to be posted on Friday May 11th, so come on back for that! Until then, for more info, please visit the Japanese American National Museum website here: http://www.janm.org/

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As you know, I’ve been busy from May 1-7, 2012 hosting my annual National Picture Book Writing Week, AKA “NAPIBOWRIWEE.” It’s a fun event where I encourage both newbies and veteran authors to write 7 picture books in 7 days so we end up with rough FINISHED drafts that we can revise later in the year. It’s my way of battling procrastination! If you missed NAPIBOWRIWEE this year, you can relive the event from my daily blogs that were posted here: http://paulayoo.com/napi

Now that NaPiBoWriWee 2012 has wrapped, I’ll be back to posting regular blogs at this site (http://paulayoo.com/blog) so keep checking out my YOO INK headlines on my main page for future blog schedules and other updates.

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"Where the Wild Things Are" by Maurice Sendak

Finally, May 8, 2012 is also a sad day because I just found out beloved and influential children’s book author MAURICE SENDAK passed away today. The news story is here: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/09/books/maurice-sendak-childrens-author-dies-at-83.html

From The New York Times article, “Maurice Sendak, Author of Splendid Nightmares, Dies at 83″ by Margalit Fox:

“Maurice Sendak, widely considered the most important children’s book artist of the 20th century, who wrenched the picture book out of the safe, sanitized world of the nursery and plunged it into the dark, terrifying and hauntingly beautiful recesses of the human psyche, died on Tuesday in Danbury, Conn. He was 83 and lived in Ridgefield, Conn.

“Roundly praised, intermittently censored and occasionally eaten, Mr. Sendak’s books were essential ingredients of childhood for the generation born after 1960 or thereabouts, and in turn for their children. He was known in particular for more than a dozen picture books he wrote and illustrated himself, most famously ‘Where the Wild Things Are,’ which was simultaneously genre-breaking and career-making when it was published by Harper & Row in 1963.”

A friend posted this brief clip of an interview between Terry Gross and Maurice Sendak on Facebook today. I thought I’d share it with you:

TERRY GROSS: “Can you share some of your favorite comments from readers that you’ve gotten over the years?”

MAURICE SENDAK: “Oh, there’s so many. Can I give you just one that I really like? It was from a little boy. He sent me a charming card with a little drawing. I loved it. I answer all my children’s letters – sometimes very hastily – but this one I lingered over. I sent him a postcard and I drew a picture of a Wild Thing on it. I wrote, ‘Dear Jim, I loved your card.’ Then I got a letter back from his mother and she said, ‘Jim loved your card so much he ate it.’ That to me was one of the highest compliments I’ve ever received. He didn’t care that it was an original drawing or anything. He saw it, he loved it, he ate it.”

RIP Maurice Sendak. You will be greatly missed in the children’s book world.

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Stay tuned for more blogs in the future. Until the next blog, remember… HAPPY WRITING! WRITE LIKE YOU MEAN IT!

National Picture Book Writing Week ("NaPiBoWriWee") is this May 1-7, 2012!

PLEASE NOTE: This is my last blog posting for now at the regular blog site (http://paulayoo.com/blog)

From today until May 7, 2012, I will be posting daily blogs at the official NaPiBoWriWee site: http://paulayoo.com/napi

I will return to this regular blog on May 8, 2012, which also marks the debut of the paperback edition of my YA novel GOOD ENOUGH (HarperCollins 2008/hardcover; 2012/paperback). http://paulayoo.com/books-good.html

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So… what is NAPIBOWRIWEE?

“NAPIBOWRIWEE” is the nickname for an event called “National Picture Book Writing Week.” I started this event in 2009 to promote my latest picture book, SHINING STAR: THE ANNA MAY WONG STORY (Lee & Low ’09). My brainstorm was to challenge myself and others to write 7 picture books in 7 days. It was my attempt to stop procrastinating on all these fun ideas and outlines I had for various picture books that I never seemed to find the time to sit down and write a first draft. I was inspired of course by the famous NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month: http://www.nanowrimo.org/)

To my surprise, the event took off like hotcakes! People from all over the country and even internationally (France, Japan, Hong Kong, and even Egypt!) participated in the event. I featured fun Q&A blogs with published picture book authors and illustrators and even hosted book contest drawings and other prizes for our participants.

2012 marks the fourth year I have hosted NaPiBoWriWee. It’s been fun and I’ve enjoyed meeting many participants in real life at various SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators) events.

(PLEASE NOTE: It takes a LONG TIME to write and edit and revise and perfect a picture book draft. The point of my NaPiBoWriWee event is to encourage people to write FIRST DRAFTS of their picture book ideas. You CANNOT write a publishable perfect picture book in one day, let alone 7 drafts in 7 days, obviously. I am just encouraging people to attempt 7 picture books in 7 days so they can have 7 wonderful rough first drafts to revise later and perfect for submission later. Just wanted to make that clear so everyone is aware that I know that writing a picture book is a labor of love. This event is a fun event to encourage people to stop procrastinating and at least to get some rough drafts finished!)

Starting this week, every Wednesday I will feature a pre-NaPiBoWriWee 2012 blog to get everyone excited for the upcoming event, which will take place May 1-7, 2012. But please note – I have a DIFFERENT blog for NaPiBoWriWee. It’s located at the “NaPiBoWriWee” link you see at the  top of my website’s home page. Just click that “NaPiBoWriWee” link to read this year’s blogs. You can also bookmark that link here: http://paulayoo.com/napi

Our Pre-NaPiBoWriWee Blog Schedule:

Wednesday April 18, 2012 – CRAFT

Please visit http://paulayoo.com/napi to read a blog about picture book writing craft issues to get prepared for our May 1-7 picture book writing marathon!

Wednesday April 25, 2012 – Q&A INTERVIEWS

Please visit http://paulayoo.com/napi for a list of Q&A author/illustrator blog interviews I posted from last year’s 2011 NaPiBoWriWee!

Official NaPiBoWriWee Schedule:

Tuesday May 1st to Monday May 7th, 2012 – NAPIBOWRIWEE

Please visit http://paulayoo.com/napi for DAILY live blogging, prize contest information, special guest author/illustrator Q&As and more information about NaPiBoWriWee. We start writing at MIDNIGHT on TUESDAY MAY 1st and we STOP writing by 11:59 PM on MONDAY MAY 7th.

NaPiBoWriWee Store: You can also visit our store here to purchase your 2012 NaPiBoWriWee souvenir T-shirts, coffee mugs and journals! The new 2012 logos were designed by professional designer SANDY TANAKA. Participants have proudly worn their NaPiBoWriWee T-shirts at SCBWI events and I highly recommend the mugs and journals for your writing week. The journals are especially cute and fun to use to jot down your ideas and drafts in the “old school” way. STORE LINK HERE: http://www.cafepress.com/npbww2012

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Thanks for catching up on my blogs. Remember, I will be ONLY blogging starting next week at the NaPiBoWriWee blog from now through May 7th. Our NaPiBoWriWee event is this May 1-7, 2012. I’ll be blogging here: http://paulayoo.com/napi

For those of you who are participating in this year’s NaPiBoWriWee, please comment on my http://paulayoo.com/napi site (NOT here) about how you plan to prepare for the event. Everyone who comments on my blogs and/or emails me at paula at paulayoo dot com will be automatically included in our prize contest drawing!

Happy Writing! WRITE LIKE YOU MEAN IT!

Welcome to SyFy's EUREKA Season 5.0 2012!

EUREKA! We’re BAAAACK!!!!

The fifth and final season of SyFy’s EUREKA airs tonight, Monday April 16, 2012, at 9 PM/8C on SyFy! I was a writer/producer for Season 4.0, 4.5 and 5.0 of this wonderful show. It was an honor and privilege to work with the awesome cast, crew, producers, and of course, the writers of EUREKA.

EUREKA is about a secret small town of genius scientists who work on classified projects for the government. We don’t have flying cars but boy do a lot of things go, um, awry with the experiments, and it’s up to our hero, Sheriff Jack Carter, to save the day. Carter may be the only one in town without a genius IQ, but his Everyman common sense always wins the day because unlike the geniuses, Carter can see the forest for the trees. It’s a very funny show with a lot of heart. We have appreciated our fan support from Day 1, and it’s been such a fun job. I really miss our EUREKA gang.

As a special treat for our Eureka fans, below is a list of links of blogs I have written over my past two years on the show, featuring fun on-the-set photos from my trips to Vancouver with the cast and crew of EUREKA, as well as blogs about the adventures we’ve had in the writers’ room. I hope you enjoy this trip down memory lane.

And here’s a recent interview with EUREKA co-creator and executive producer Jaime Paglia, who says our final season is a “love letter” to our fans. Awww. http://blastr.com/2012/04/jaime-paglia-on-eurekas-f.php

(Keep reading after the jump for all the blog links!)

Here I am on the set of Cafe Diem in Vancouver/Eureka for the filming of my Eureka/Warehouse 13 crossover episode 405 "Crossing Over"!

YOOREKA EUREKA BLOG LINKS

“CROSSING OVER” (Official “Eureka Unscripted” blog on the filming of my Eureka/Warehouse 13 crossover episode #405)

http://eurekaunscripted.typepad.com/blog/2010/05/on-the-set-episode-405.html

“CLASH OF THE TITANS” (My blog on the filming of Episode #417 written by Eric Tuchman & Paula Yoo)

http://paulayoo.com/blog/?p=733

EUREKA FOOD (My blog on the food I ate while visiting the set of Eureka in Vancouver!)

http://paulayoo.com/blog/?p=587

A PUZZLING SCENARIO (Official “Eureka Unscripted” Blog on jigsaw puzzle prank I played on the writers’ room!)

http://eurekaunscripted.typepad.com/blog/2010/08/a-puzzling-scenario.html

COMIC CON 2010 (Official “Eureka Unscripted” Blog on the Eureka panel/visit to ComicCon 2010)

http://eurekaunscripted.typepad.com/blog/2010/07/post-comic-con.html

COMIC CON 2011 (My blog on our trip to ComicCon 2011)

http://paulayoo.com/blog/?p=644

EUREKA SEASON 4.5 PREMIERE PARTY (My blog on the Eureka party of last season’s premiere!)

http://paulayoo.com/blog/?p=537

EUREKA NOVELS (My blog on the special EUREKA Novels that were published last year)

http://paulayoo.com/blog/?p=561

PURREKA (My silly blog about a future EUREKA series starring my cats! LOL!)

http://paulayoo.com/blog/?p=569

FAREWELL, EUREKA (My blog about the last day of work for the Eureka Writers Room after we wrapped our final episode of the series)

http://paulayoo.com/blog/?p=817

OTHER EUREKA LINKS:

Official SyFy EUREKA Website: http://www.syfy.com/eureka

Official Eureka Writers Unscripted Blog: http://eurekaunscripted.typepad.com/

And don’t forget… our Season 4.5 is available on DVD!

Link here: http://www.nbcuniversalstore.com/eureka-season-45-dvd-widescreen/detail.php?p=365864

EUREKA Season 4.5 from SyFy available now on DVD!

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But this is not the end of Eureka. Please watch our Season 5.0 this spring and summer. I will continue to post occasional behind-the-scenes Eureka blogs for our fans, especially when an episode I wrote with fellow Eureka writer Ed Fowler airs later this year! You won’t want to miss that!

Again, many hugs and grateful thanks for all our EUREKA fans. We couldn’t have done it without you!

Until the next blog, remember… Happy Writing! WRITE LIKE YOU MEAN IT!

Happy Birthday, Oreo! (Adopted April 15, 2008)

A quick blog to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my wonderful cat, Oreo. As many of you know, I think I am beginning to be more well known for my insane love of my cats versus my writing career. My cat Oreo even has his own Twitter page (http://twitter.com/oreothecatyoo) where he posts silly Tweets and pics about his adventures with brother & sister Beethoven & Charlotte. Anyway, this short blog is to wish Oreo a happy “birthday.” Today – April 15, 2008 – marks Oreo’s fourth year of adoption! I heard it’s also known as “Gotcha Day.”

Oreo and his minions! (Beethoven & Charlotte)

Oreo’s Story: In March 2008, a huge but very dirty black and white stray cat started hanging outside the screen window door of my old condo office. I fed him tuna because I did not own pets and that was the closest to cat food that I had in the kitchen. I was writing from home so we ended up bonding. I started going outside to play games with him, like holding up a shoestring so he could playfully paw at it. Then on April 15, 2008, this cat failed to show up one morning for his tuna. I panicked and burst into tears. I walked a mile around our condo, trying to find him. I came home, sobbing, and there he was, waiting for me outside my window door! I opened the screen door and brought him inside the condo. I called a friend who owned a cat cage. We brought him to the vet who fixed him up. The vet estimated that this cat was about 2 or 3 years old and definitely abandoned. I named him Oreo. And he has never left my side since as a healthy indoor cat who now has two siblings, Charlotte and Beethoven. He is about 6 to 7 years old now. Happy Adoption Anniversary/Birthday/Gotcha Day, Oreo. I love you so much!

Please remember to spay/neuter your pets. For more information: http://www.humanesociety.org/

Full disclosure: Okay, so sometimes Oreo needs a little help with his Twitter page (@oreothecatyoo)!

Oreo can't believe what I'm writing!

This One Time With Julia by David Lampson (Razorbill 2012)

Welcome to WRITER WEDNESDAY! Today we announce the lucky winner of our most recent signed galley contest giveaway drawing with Young Adult debut author DAVID LAMPSON (“This One Time With Julia”/Razorbill 2012)!

We interviewed David earlier this month. You can read that original Q&A blog here: http://paulayoo.com/blog/?p=1276  And you can visit his website here: http://www.davidlampson.com/

Meet YA novelist and screenwriter David Lampson!

This month’s winner, picked at random, is… BONNIE!

Bonnie wins a personally autographed copy of David Lampson’s debut YA novel THIS ONE TIME WITH JULIA (Razorbill ’12). Congratulations, Bonnie! We’ll contact you shortly to make arrangements!

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Stay tuned for more Guest Author Q&A blogs and signed book contests at my website later this year. And don’t forget – the fourth annual NATIONAL PICTURE BOOK WRITING WEEK (aka “NaPiBoWriWee”) will happen this May 1-7, 2012 at my official NaPiBoWriWee blog (http://paulayoo.com/napi/). I’ll also make an announcement about our latest NaPiBoWriWee souvenir store items for 2012 featuring a sharp new design!

Until the next blog, remember… HAPPY WRITING! WRITE LIKE YOU MEAN IT!

This One Time With Julia by David Lampson (Razorbill 2012)

Welcome to WRITER WEDNESDAY! Our Writer of the Month for March 2012 is DAVID LAMPSON, whose debut Young Adult novel THIS ONE TIME WITH JULIA (Razorbill 2012) launched this month.

Publishers Weekly wrote a wonderful review of David’s book:

“Lampson’s debut is narrated by an 18-year-old with an Asperger’s-like condition and a tenuous understanding of the world. Following the death of their parents, Joe and his brothers raised themselves. Since his fraternal twin, Alvin, abandoned him for a girl named Julia, Joe has frittered away his inheritance on poker games while cutting his GED prep class, eating nothing but McDonald’s cheeseburgers, and avoiding his pompous older brother, Marcus. When Alvin returns, he arranges to take a sailing trip with Joe, but then vanishes. Beautiful, anxious Julia soon shows up, persuading Joe to join her on a trip to Tennessee, where Joe finds work as pool boy at Julia’s family’s hotel. As Joe acquires new life skills and falls for Julia, her family’s nefarious nature comes to light–as does the truth about Alvin’s disappearance. Refreshingly, Lampson avoids making Joe’s condition the story’s focus, instead highlighting the emotional isolation of multiple individuals and creating a cinematic effect through well-conceived dialogue, mature characterizations, and a noir-tinged atmosphere. A raw and darkly poignant novel about lost souls. Ages 12–up. (Feb.)”

In addition to our Q&A with David, we are also offering a free signed book from him. Please comment on this blog or email me at paula at paulayoo dot com to be included in our special book prize contest drawing. The winner will be announced in a special blog to be posted on Wednesday March 28th! For more info on David, check out his website here: http://www.davidlampson.com/

(Please keep reading after the jump for our Q&A with David!)

Meet YA novelist and screenwriter David Lampson! (Photo credit: Annie Diamond)

Q&A with YA Author & Screenwriter DAVID LAMPSON

David Lampson was born in Northern California and grew up in Boston and Philadelphia. In 2004, David won a scriptwriting reality show called Situation: Comedy on Bravo. And in 2005, an obsessive interest in the tango fueled a five-year move to Argentina. Now David lives and writes in Los Angeles. 

Q: Where is the best place for you to write your books/screenplays?

A: I used to write almost exclusively in McDonalds.  They have nice big tables, and outlets, and it’s very peaceful and anonymous and non-distracting.   And I didn’t feel comfortable working in coffee shops at the time because it was something a writer would do in a movie; I couldn’t take it seriously.  Working in McDonalds seemed more real.  Luckily I don’t have this issue anymore and I’m able to work in coffee shops just fine.  But nowadays I mostly write at home.  I had to stop going to McDonalds because my metabolism can no longer comfortably process the food.

Q: If you weren’t a writer, what would you be?

A: I probably would have been swept up in the dot com bubble and joined a startup.  Or I would have become some kind of scientist, in accordance with most of my genes.   It’s hard to imagine because I was never strongly tempted by any other career, though I’ve certainly had my doubts about the viability of a writing career.  For a while I thought I wanted to be a tango dancer, and I guess I still do.

Q: Tell us something about yourself that most people don’t know.

A: Okay… I aced my SATs.  Now that it’s been seventeen years am I allowed to brag about it?

Q: What was the most unusual job you ever had?

A: When I first got out of college I saw an ad in the newspaper looking for telephone psychics.  They offered to train you, and I couldn’t resist.  The operation was essentially a boiler-room, 30 pyschics wearing telephone headsets crammed into two trailers deep in the San Fernando Valley.  For my “training” they sat me next to one of the psychics and let me listen for an hour to his end of the conversation.  Then I got a seat, a headset, a pack of tarot cards, and I was on my own.  People would call in asking for Miss Cleo, which was the pseudonym of an L.A.-born playwright posing on television at the time as a Jamaican shaman.  My job was to convince the callers to settle for my psychic abilities, instead of Miss Cleo’s, and then to keep them on the phone as long as possible.  It wasn’t difficult, because most people were calling because they were lonely and just wanted somebody to listen to them.  I tried my best to be helpful, couching my advice in pyschic terminology whenever I could (“I’m seeing that you’ll consider going back to school.”) but I didn’t last long, because it was a sad job and a tough job to feel good about.  I believe this operation has since settled fraud charges out of court.  It was nothing to be proud of.  Also, as an “unusual job” it was a bit of a cheat, since I consciously sought it out for being so unusual.

Q: How did you get involved in screenwriting? Did you write scripts or books first?

A: The two careers have been pretty simultaneous.  After college I moved to Los Angeles with some friends from my college humor magazine.  I wrote some comedy scripts, trying to get into television, but I wasn’t having any luck, and I was getting more and more interested in fiction.  So I gave up on TV and started writing my first novel instead.

A few years later a friend of mine submitted one of those early scripts (we had written it together) to a reality show on Bravo called Situation: Comedy.  They had a big script competition, and then the two finalists got to produce their show for NBC, while being filmed and interviewed constantly about what they were doing.  My friend and I ended up winning this show.  That’s how I got started in TV.  Since then I’ve tried to balance the two careers as best I can.  Most novelists have a second job of some kind, and TV writing works for me because there are long periods of inactivity, which give me time to work on my own projects, and I’m lucky to have an excellent writing partner.

Q: Do you find any differences and/or similarities between how you write screenplays versus novels? What do you get out of each genre?

A: The main difference for me is that I write scripts with a partner, which makes the process a lot less lonely, and usually more fun, and sometimes easier.  The downside with a script is that you have less personal control, since so many other people are involved.  At the same time, collaboration can be stimulating, and the process of filming a script is incredibly exciting.

As for technical differences, screenplays have to be a lot tighter than novels, at least in terms of story.  The plot has to move on every page, almost in every line.  It’s satisfying to solve a script, but it’s a bit more like putting together a puzzle.  All the pieces have to fit.  Fiction gives you a bit more freedom to explore effects that aren’t necessarily directly servicing the story.  And with a novel, the form is wide open.  You don’t need to worry about acts, or production costs, or length.  You can go into people’s heads.  You can tell longer, stranger, and more complicated stories.  Characters can change more.  You can do anything you want.

Q: Is Joe anything like you in real life? How do you relate to your book’s main characters (Joe, Julia, his brother Alvin)?

A: Yes, I do feel some kinship with Joe.  We both tend to miss important things that are going on right in front of our noses.  I’m not quite as out-of-it as he is, but I often feel that I don’t understand my life very well while it’s happening.  Later on it’s easier to put things together: why a relationship worked or didn’t work, why a friendship dissolved, why some project fell apart, why a team came together, etc.  In retrospect so much of life seems obvious and inevitable, but it’s very difficult to see clearly when you’re in the thick of it.   I share Joe’s sense that if he could just pay a little more attention, and think a little harder, then life wouldn’t toss him around so much, and he wouldn’t be so confused all the time.

With Alvin?  Hmm.  We both struggle with authority.  We’re both a little restless.  We both probably like to hear ourselves talk a bit too much.

Q: What drew you to YA novels? What were you like as a teenager?

A: I can’t claim that I specifically set out to write a YA novel.  The story I wanted to tell just happened to fit the requirements: that most of the main characters be under nineteen.  (Joe was actually older in earlier drafts, but I realized he works better as a younger character.)  Beyond this, I tried not to think too much about catering to the YA readership, because when I was an under-nineteen reader (I’d describe my teenage self as a fairly nerdy jock) I didn’t like an author talking down to me, or trying hopelessly to speak the lingo of my generation.  Now that I think about it, my taste at the time was better than it is now, and I probably read more, and I don’t think I’ve gotten any smarter, so I try to keep all this mind when I write for YA readers.

Q: What inspired the idea for your novel? How long did it take to write? Any fun details about the road to your first book’s publication?

A: The style of This One Time with Julia was partly a personal reaction to my first (unpublished) novel, which I thought had come out too fancy, a little overwrought.  I felt that the narrator (me) was trying to hard to be articulate all the time.  I thought if I wrote a book where the narrator was inarticulate, and slow, and not even terrible perceptive, then it might force me to explore some new effects.  I messed around a lot until I finally wrote a line (“I felt like playing, but I didn’t have a ball.”) that struck me as a character I could see and hear clearly.  Those were Joe’s first words and they actually survived in the book, in the last chapter.

In Joe I also wanted to explore a character who has not taken responsibility for his own life, choosing instead to let somebody else (Alvin) make all his major decisions for him.  I think we have all done this in some way, at one time or another.  In many ways, this story is about Joe discovering the cost to this way of living, and eventually achieving some degree of independence.

I spent about two years writing the book.  I didn’t find a publisher until almost five years later.  I have an incredibly persistent agent who simply never gave up on it.  This is very unusual, and I consider myself extremely lucky.

Q: If you could give one piece of writing advice for aspiring YA novelists, what would it be? (Also, for aspiring screenwriters?)

A: My advice to any young writer is: write one thousand words a day, no exceptions.  It’s okay to write more, but never less.  They don’t have to perfect, or ever coherent, but there must be at least a thousand of them.  Aside from this quota, try not to be too hard on yourself.  Keep this routine for a few years and things will start to happen.  There are obviously other important things but I think this is the most important.

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Thanks David for the Q&A! For more info, check out his website here: http://www.davidlampson.com/

CONTEST REMINDER: Please remember to comment on this blog or email me at paula at paulayoo dot com in order to be included in our special contest drawing where a winner will be chosen at random to receive a personally autographed book of THIS ONE TIME WITH JULIA from David!

The winner will be announced in a special blog on Wednesday March 28th.

Until the next blog, as always, HAPPY WRITING! WRITE LIKE YOU MEAN IT! 

HARBINGER by Sara Wilson Etienne (Putnam 2012)

Welcome to WRITER WEDNESDAY! Today we announce the lucky winner of our most recent signed galley contest giveaway drawing with Young Adult debut author SARA WILSON ETIENNE (“Harbinger”/Putnam ’11)!

We interviewed Sara earlier this month. You can read that original Q&A blog here: http://paulayoo.com/blog/?p=1258

This month’s winner, picked at random, is… VAL MULLER!

Val wins a personally autographed galley copy of Sara Wilson Etienne’s debut YA novel HARBINGER (Putnam’11). Congratulations, Val! We’ll contact you shortly to make arrangements!

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But wait! There’s more! You STILL have a chance to win in a future contest!

Stay tuned for our March 2012 WRITER OF THE MONTH, DAVID LAMPSON (http://www.davidlampson.com/). His YA debut novel, THIS ONE TIME WITH JULIA (Razorbill 2012), just debuted this month. We’ll be doing a fun Q&A with David and featuring a signed book giveaway contest drawing with him as well. David Lampson’s WRITER WEDNESDAY Q&A blog will be posted on Wednesday March 7, 2012. As always, remember to post a comment on his Q&A blog or email me at paula at paulayoo dot com to be included in the drawing. The winner for the David Lampson signed book contest drawing will be announced on Wednesday March 28, 2012!

Until the next blog, remember… HAPPY WRITING! WRITE LIKE YOU MEAN IT!

The Great Deceivers, a King Crimson Tribute Band!

Welcome to MUSIC MONDAY! Just a brief blog to remind everyone that my band, THE GREAT DECEIVERS (a King Crimson tribute band) has a gig this Saturday February 18th at Paladino’s in Reseda at 8 PM. For more info, go here: https://www.facebook.com/events/242043365878985/ and here: http://www.paladinosclub.com/Calendar.html#0218 We’re playing with a crazy lineup – bands include a Dio tribute band, a Black Sabbath tribute band, and a Motorhead tribute band. Hmmmm. Maybe you should bring some earplugs!

My February has been pretty busy with writing in the batcave. So this month is rather blog-lite. But some quick updates:

– WRITER OF THE MONTH: SARA WILSON ETIENNE: Don’t forget to check out my Q&A with Sara Wilson Etienne, debut YA novelist, whose YA novel HARBINGER was just published by Putnam. We’re featuring a signed galley contest with Sara – please comment on my blog here: http://paulayoo.com/blog/?p=1258 or email me at paula at paulayoo dot com to be included in the drawing. Winner will be announced in a Writer Wednesday blog on Wed. 2/29/12!

– NAPBIOWRIWEE: Yup, National Picture Book Writing Week is coming up in a few months. I’ll be making some huge announcements about this year’s event next month, so please stay tuned. To find out more about this fun event, go to my blog here: http://paulayoo.com/napi/ and check out this article from last year: http://paulayoo.com/napi/?p=11

Well, time to go back into the writing (and violin) batcave. Until the next blog, remember… HAPPY WRITING! WRITE LIKE YOU MEAN IT!

HARBINGER by Sara Wilson Etienne (Putnam 2012)

Welcome to WRITER WEDNESDAY! Our Writer of the Month for February 2012 is author SARA WILSON ETIENNE, whose debut YA novel HARBINGER (Putnam 2012) launched this month.

In addition to our Q&A with Sara, we are also offering a free signed galley from her. Please comment on this blog or email me at paula at paulayoo dot com to be included in our special galley prize contest drawing. The winner will be announced in a special blog to be posted on Wednesday Feb. 29th! For more info on Sara, check out her website here: http://www.sarawilsonetienne.com/

(Please keep reading after the jump for our Q&A with Sara!)

Meet Sara Wilson Etienne! (Photo credit: Rita Crayon Huang)

Q&A WITH SARA WILSON ETIENNE

Sara Wilson Etienne’s debut YA novel HARBINGER was released this February 2012 from Putnam. The publisher describes the book plot as…

“Girl, Interrupted meets Beautiful Creatures in this fast-paced thriller… When sixteen-year-old Faye arrives at Holbrook Academy, she doesn’t expect to find herself exactly where she needs to be. After years of strange waking visions and nightmares, her only comfort the bones of dead animals, Faye is afraid she’s going crazy. Fast. But her first night at Holbrook, she feels strangely connected to the school and the island it sits on, like she’s come home. She’s even made her first real friends, but odd things keep happening to them. Every morning they wake on the floors of their dorm rooms with their hands stained red. Faye knows she’s the reason, but what does it all mean? The handsome Kel tries to help her unravel the mystery, but Faye is certain she can’t trust him; in fact, he may be trying to kill her – and the rest of the world too. Rich, compelling writing will keep the pages turning in this riveting and tautly told psychological thriller.”

Pretty cool, huh?

And here’s our Q&A with Sara so you can find out more about how HARBINGER came about and a little peek into Sara’s writing process!

Q: Where is the best place for you to write your books?

A: I write in my office, cup of coffee in front of me, scenic view of the alley out back, same music playing over and over. I find that, for me, it’s the familiar that lets me step into the unknown.

Q:  If you weren’t a writer, what would you be?

A: A very bored scientist. Or lawyer. I’m pretty sure there are parallel-universe Sara’s out there doing those things right now. But I doubt they’re very happy.

Q: Tell us something about yourself that most people don’t know.

A: In high school, I was in show choir. Someday if aliens invade and the only way to save the Earth is an epic Broadway musical number, I can sing and dance with 3 inch heels, big hair, and a sequin dress. Yeah. That just happened.

Q: What was the most unusual job you ever had?

A: I scooped gelato in a store with 75 flavors and almost no customers. I tried a lot of different flavor combos. Worst part…I dreamed about scooping ice cream every night for 6 months. Ugggg.

Q: Tell us about your first published book. What inspired the idea? How long did it take to write? Any fun details about the road to your first book’s publication?

A: Well, I wrote the first draft of Harbinger ten years ago. I was inspired by my college campus, with its wonderfully creepy buildings, right on the edge of the ocean. So I created a story there…that first version had a different POV, almost no dialogue, and Faye was pretty much the only character. It took me most of those ten years, working on Harbinger, other books, and magazine pieces to really learn how to write.

I love Harbinger, because it’s a story I’ve lived with for so long and seeing it get a life of its own, out in the real world, has been incredible.

Q: If you could give one piece of writing advice for aspiring YA novelists, what would it be?

A: Butt-in-chair. The only thing that makes someone a writer is writing.

Though…balancing it with the opposite is vital too. Don’t forget to get out of your writing cave sometimes and talk to other people who are doing what you’re doing. SCBWI conferences, critique groups, coffee shops, anything that reminds you that you have a community of peers cheering you on!

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Thanks Sara for the Q&A! For more info, check out her website here: http://www.sarawilsonetienne.com/

CONTEST REMINDER: Please remember to comment on this blog or email me at paula at paulayoo dot com in order to be included in our special contest drawing where a winner will be chosen at random to receive a personally autographed galley of HARBINGER from Sara! The winner will be announced on Wednesday Feb. 29th. 

Until the next blog, as always, HAPPY WRITING! WRITE LIKE YOU MEAN IT!