Write On

I would like you know

2009-04-11T17:15:00.000-07:00

I would like you to know that the other day I got all the way to work before realizing I had split my pants right up the back.

I was saved by dashing out the door to Old Navy, except I bought jeans that I are so high-waisted I could tuck them into my bra. Not the best look for anyone who isn't an 80 year old man. Not that they wear bras, but you know what I mean.

The whole thing reminded me of another super embarrassing thing that happened to me when I got my first job out of college. I had this really cute skirt that was a *little* short, so I bought a pair of tights to wear with it. Except I got the wrong size tights. They were too short. So I got to work and was talking to my boss and suddenly realized that my tights had shimmied down and the crotch was well below the hem of my skirt.

It was awesome(ly embarrassing).

Really, I'm not sure if I should be allowed to dress myself.

Oh my gosh, I'm officially a sissy

2009-04-01T17:50:00.001-07:00

When did TV shows get too scary for me? I mean, I used to hiding behind my hands during movies, but I seriously jumped out of my skin watching a commercial for CSI Miami. Or maybe it was CSI New York. CSI Duluth? I can't be sure because I closed my eyes to keep from screaming. All I know is I think there may have been a deranged clown involved.

I would be the *worst* horror writer ever. The books would be just long enough for me to get scared, and then I'd write a happy ending involving malted milk ball ice cream and unicorns.

Teen authors - EXPOSED!

2009-03-28T17:34:00.000-07:00

Last weekend was the Biggest Teen Author Signing EVER at the amazing Books of Wonder bookstore here in New York City. There were sooo many authors there - almost 40! - and tons of teens and parents and grown up teen author fans. It was crazy crowded, but crazy fun.

I ate a yummy lunch before hand with authors Coe Booth (who wrote the books Tyrell and Kendra), Sara Darer Littman (who wrote the book Purge), and Megan McCafferty (who's book Perfect Fifths comes out oh so soon - but not soon enough!) We ate cookies (cookies are EXTREMELY important to teen authors!) and talked about the new books we're all working on. Being a writer can get lonely, that's why getting together with other writers is so important. It reminds you that you're not alone in this, and that other people are battling through characters and plot just like you are.

Here is a link with a ton of pictures from the signing. If you've ever been curious as to what you're favorite teen authors would look like after being nearly trampled by rabid fans (erm, what I mean is after being asked for autographs by extremely well-behaved teens waiting in orderly lines), take a look!

I'm going to try and update this blog much more often, even though it's still a bit under the radar. So if you're reading this, please comment! Let me know I'm not just shouting into the dark :)

xoxo

AMV

Teen Author Book Festival in NYC!

2009-03-13T17:24:00.000-07:00

It's the first ever NYC Teen Author Festival, and it's going to be AMAZING!

I'll be signing at the Books of Wonder event on March 22nd, and I hope to be in audience at a bunch of the others.

You should come!

Here's the schedule of events:

Juvenalia Smackdown

Monday, 3/16, 4-6pm, Tompkins Square Park branch of the NYPL, 331 E. 10th Street
Join Holly Black, Alaya Johnson, Justine Larbalestier, David Levithan, Diana Peterfruend, Scott Westerfeld as they read some of their (ahem) less accomplished work from their middle school and high school years. Hosted by Libba Bray.

I Have Seen the Future…and It Sounds Like This

Wednesday, 3/18, Mulberry Street Branch of the NYPL
Teen authors are notoriously stingy about reading from their works-in-progress. But for Guest of Honor Joe Monti, authors
Libba Bray, Rachel Cohn, Eireann Corrigan, Justine Larbalestier, Barry Lyga, and Scott Westerfeld are willing to share a little bit from their future books. Hosted by David Levithan.

The Five-Borough Read

Thursday, 3/19

BROOKLYN: Central Library, Dweck Center, 10 Grand Army Plaza, Brooklyn 10-11am
Gayle Forman, Jenny Han, Leslie Margolis, Abby Sher, Matthue Roth, Robin Wasserman

BRONX: Bronx Library Center, 310 E. Kingsbridge Road, Bronx 4-5pm
Coe Booth, Madeleine George, Paul Griffin, Brian Sloan, Melissa Walker

MANHATTAN: Countee Cullen Branch, 104 W. 136th St 4-5pm
Matt de la Pena, Daphne Grab, Mary Hogan, Bill Konigsburg, Barry Lyga, Carolyn MacCullough

MANHATTAN: Jefferson Market Branch, 425 Avenue of the Americas 4-5pm
David Levithan, Bennett Madison, Laura McLaughlin, Billy Merrell, Marie Rutkoski

MANHATTAN: Webster Branch, 1465 York Avenue 4-5pm
Lisa Ann Sandell, Courtney Sheinmel, Rachel Vail, Cecily Von Ziegesar, Martin Wilson

QUEENS: Far Rockaway Branch, 2002 Cornaga Ave, Queens 4-5pm
Tara Altebrando, Laura Dower, Heather Duffy-Stone, Aimee Friedman, Eliot Schrefer, Siobhan Vivian, Rita Williams-Garcia

STATEN ISLAND: St. George Library Center, 5 Central Avenue 4-5pm
Kate Brian, Judy Goldschmidt, Michael Northrop, Micol Ostow, Lynn Weingarten

Rock Out with TIGER BEAT!

Thursday, 3/19, 6pm at Books of Wonder
By day, Libba Bray, Daniel Ehrenhaft, Barney Miller, and Natalie Standiford are upstanding authors. But by night, they turn into … TIGER BEAT, the first ever YA author rock band. Tonight is their debut public performance … and it’s sure to go down in legend. With opening act The Infinite Playlists (Rachel Cohn and David Levithan reading a litany of musical references, but mercifully not singing).

I Love You, New York: Teen Lit in the City

Friday, 3/20, 6pm, NYPL, 42nd Street, Court Room
Join authors Coe Booth, Paul Griffin, Maureen Johnson, David Levithan, Cecily von Ziegesar, and Rita Williams-Garcia in a spirited reading and discussion about teen novels set in New York City – from the glamour of the gossip girls to the grit of the Bronx projects, from the everyday battles of the high school halls to the extraordinary events of 9/11.

Stuff for the Teen Age Ceremony

Saturday, 3/21, 1pm, NYPL, 42nd Street, Celeste Bartos Forum
This new list only has the best of the best, and includes books, music, movies, and video games. Featuring a keynote by Walter Dean Myers

Teen Authors Celebrate Teen Readers

Sunday, 3/22, NYPL, 42nd Street, Trustees Room, 1pm Over a dozen authors salute teen readers and teen advisory board members from around the city, including Blake Nelson, reading from his upcoming novel Destroy All Cars.

The Biggest Teen Author Signing EVER

Sunday, 3/22, Books of Wonder, 4pm Join over 40 authors for a signing extravaganza as they take over Books of Wonder, sign books, and converse with fans new and old. An incredible event that is sure to go down in book-signing history.

Authors include:
Nora Baskin
Jessica Blank
Judy Blundell
Coe Booth
Elise Broach
Susanne Colasanti
Sarah Darer-Littman
Matt de la Pena
Heather Duffy-Stone
Gayle Forman
Aimee Friedman
Madeleine George
Maureen Johnson
Kristen Kemp
Justine Larbalestier
David Levithan
E. Lockhart
Barry Lyga
Carolyn Mackler
Sarah MacLean
Megan McCafferty
Laura McLaughlin
Neesha Meminger
Billy Merrell
Blake Nelson
Micol Ostow
Matthue Roth
Marie Rutkoski
Lisa Ann Sandell
Courtney Sheinmel
Abby Sher
Brian Sloan
Rachel Vail
David Van Etten
Ned Vizzini
Adrienne Maria Vrettos
Cecily von Ziegesar
Melissa Walker
Robin Wasserman
Scott Westerfeld
Suzanne Weyn
Maryrose Wood
Lizabeth Zindel

It's 11:49 on a Saturday night, what are you doing?

2008-12-12T05:59:00.000-08:00

That was a question I asked recently on the FAQ's for Readers page on my website. The other question (except it wasn't really a question) was asking you to describe a favorite photograph.

I *LOVED* reading everyone's answers, thank you so much to everyone for sending them in! I can't tell you how much it means to me to get email (or even good old fashioned snail mail!) from you guys! It's just the best.

It hardly seems fair for me to ask you all to dish, and then not share myself, so here are my answers:

1. If it's 11:49 on a Saturday night, I am most likely half-asleep on the couch, trying to stay awake to watch SNL with my husband. This means that every ten minutes I sit up mid-snore and mumble "What happened?" or "I love Kristin Wiig" before falling back over. I tell you, the life of a YA writer is non-stop excitement!

2. And as for a favorite picture... it's way too hard to narrow it down, since I'm pretty fricking obsessed with photographs and taking pictures. But one of my favorites is one that I took in high school, of my dad. We were in the garage, and he was wearing his coveralls because he was changing the oil in the car. I remember he stood still and smiled for me while I figured out which F-stop to use. It was nighttime, and I was probably down there in my bare feet, stepping up onto the wooden stairs whenever the cement floor got too cold for me.

Okay, onto a sneak peek of some of the answers sent in:

K said:
1. If by Saturday night, you mean last night, I was driving from a Welcome Home! party to downtown to take a few pictures of the neon signs for an alphabet I've been putting together but unfortunately I forgot it was a Saturday night, and there were way too many people and cars for me to find a place to park and walk around with a camera pointed skyward.

2. There is this picture of my great aunt … that gives me hope that I too may someday be glamorous. She is around 40 in the picture, wearing a pillbox hat, a fancy cubic z necklace, some sort of fantastic mink stole and gloves. She's looking away and smiling at an unspoken joke. Whenever we'd come over to visit, she'd always tell us to come sit down and "bull ship." Saying this would produce that same smile. Whenever we'd leave, she'd stand at the door of our house waving and dabbing her eyes until we we were out of sight.

Z said:
1. its 11.49 PM on a saturday night and “ sometimes, just sometimes, i'm in the
park on the swings making up stories about people i've never met who
go out at night to watch the world blur by real fast.”

2 For the second (non)question, Z described what sounds like an amazing picture: ”my sister and a few of her friends are with me and i am
standing on a small rock in the middle of the cove that disappears
when the tide rises. my hair was long and brassy red then, and it
flies up to cover my face while i fall backward into the green water.
the whole thing is so peaceful you could almost swear i did it on
purpose. i slipped. :)”

And C. said:
1.It's 11:49 PM on a Saturday night, What are you doing?
Well on a saturday nite i dont ever do just one thing. I may be reading, writing, drawing, going thru the internet, who knos. Not me.

Thank you all for writing in!

xoxo
AMV

The Pitch, and Librarians and The Smittens

2008-10-25T17:16:00.001-07:00

[pssst....there's a wicked awesome video at the end of this post!]

So, in my last post I said that I was going to be finishing up some pitches for new books at the adorable coffee shop around the corner from my house. Well, the place closes at 4Pm on Sundays which, I'm sorry, is just ridonkulous. The early closing threw a big hairy monkey wrench into my plans (that's right, I'm blaming a COFFEE SHOP for that fact that my pitches are not pitched. Never mind there are other coffee shops close by, but my heart was set on that one because they have hot chocolate that'll turn your hair blue, in the good way).... all this to say I've yet to send in new book ideas to my editor. But I SWEAR that I'll send them at the end of this week. There. I've said it. Now I HAVE to get them done. Otherwise the internet will come get me for being a liar.

A big old shout-out to the Browning School - I was a guest author at their book fair this weekend, thanks to my friend Sarah who is a librarian there. It was super fun, and not just because they had yummy shrimp dumplings that were so good I considered loading up my pocketbook (not really. well, a little really) with them for the subway right home. I resisted though, which is good because it'd be REALLY embarrassing if I got myself a reputation for stealing snacks at events. "She's a nice girl and all, but have you ever wondered why she always shows up to signings with empty tupperware?"

Anyway, the event was great - I got to sign books for a lot of nice parents (it was a strictly grown-up event) AND I got a tour of the library. I was going to post a picture of Sarah (my librarian friend from Browning) and I, but I can't figure out how to get it out of my new cell phone.

So instead, here is a video from my friend Dave's band, The Smittens, all about librarians.

I'm trying to figure out to tell you how much I love The Smittens without totally spazzing out. But I'm not sure how to do that so I'll just OH MY GOD YOU HAVE TO LISTEN TO THEM BECAUSE THEY'RE BEST AND I LOVE THEM. AND ALSO THEY'RE SO SUPER NICE.

There. just a teensy bit spazzy.

The weather I'm under.

2008-10-11T16:57:00.000-07:00

I'm sick! Sick as a dog. Well, a dog with a cold. And the weather in New York has always messed with me, with the seventy-five degree 'fall' weather, but now it's worse because I can't figure out if it's the fake fall that has me outside in a t-shirt, or a fever.

I can't stop sneezing. And my face hurts. My sinuses may explode. Which would be AWFUL. And gross. And my neighbors might get mad about the noise.

I am willing myself to make a quick recovery, since tomorrow is my day to finish up some pitches for new books that I'm hoping, hoping, hoping might get made into REAL books (as opposed to the books just living in my head). I have my writing place all picked out too. There's this restaurant/coffee shop right on our corner, with a great wooden bar where you can drink hot chocolate and eat pastries. Oh, and write pitches. They opened up a couple years ago, and it was one of the first places I ventured out to with my daughter when she was just a teeny tiny little baby. But since my teeny tiny little baby is a tornado of a toddler, she'll be razzing the neighborhood with her dad while I have some writing time.

If I were to combine all of the pitches I'm writing into one story line, it'd be something like this:

Cursed amnesiac foodie pirate with murderous streak runs away from witchy family to be tween TV star.

Off to eat Chinese food and watch Iron Man, which everyone knows will cure a cold if nothing else will*

xoxo

AMV

*not based on scientific evidence, but on my love for take-out food and action movies.

Burning Questions

2008-10-03T19:57:00.000-07:00

Helloooo Darlings!

I've just watched Ms. Pettigrew Lives for a Day. The outfits were beautiful, and the hair, but the movie was...well, that outfits were beautiful.

In other news, I've updated the Frequently Asked Questions page, plus added a brand new super special page full of extremely important questions I have for you.

Now I am off to watch Paris Hilton choose her new BFF.

xoxo

AMV

Obama + Your Favorite YA Authors = Best Website Ever!

2008-09-22T08:48:00.001-07:00

Are you under 18 and wish you could Ba-rack the Vote this November?

Have I got a website for you!

The ever fabulous Maureen Johnson has created an amazing new social networking site called YA for Obama. It's for YA authors, readers, friends -- anyone of any age who supports Barack Obama and wants to show their support. There are blogs, message boards, videos, pictures, tons of stuff added all the time.

And... the very first featured blog is by Judy Blume!

xoxo
AMV

An open letter to James Franco

2008-09-21T17:24:00.000-07:00

Dear James,

Last night I saw you on Saturday Night Live, and it was with interest that I heard you mention that you are now a student at Columbia, right here in New York City.

I think you should know that it's over between us.

I'm a married lady now. And a mom. And I just think it'd be inappropriate for our relationship to continue.

I know, I know. We've been together since high school.

Remember when we took this picture? Of course I wasn't in it with you, but like you said, somebody has to take the picture, right? Just like someone had to hold your jacket when you moshed, and someone had to loan you money for a tattoo, and walk (adopt) your dog once things started going for you, acting wise.

But then you got wicked rich and tried to kill Spider Man and

became a dude model for Gucci, and ever since then you've kind of felt like a stranger to me. I mean, really, showing your armpit hair for the world to see!

I know I was said I was fine with you being famous and everything, but honestly, it's starting to cramp my style a little bit.

I hope you understand.

xoxo

AMV

The best research project ever AND tell me your favorite yum!

2008-09-14T17:05:00.000-07:00

One of the books I'm working on centers around a couple of teenage foodies living outside of New York City - which means they take frequent forays into the city to eat up.

Of course I could just use my own experiences of living (and eating) in the city for past nine years, but what fun is that? I plan on starting from scratch! It helps that I have a HUGE expense account from my publisher to spend on researching restaurants. Okay, that's not true at all. Which means that these foodies may develop a liking for pizza slices and sushi box lunch specials and maybe they end up just cooking at home a lot because then at least they'll have lunch to bring to work...I mean school the next day.

But really, what fun would that be? So I'm growing a list of all the places I need to check out, and I am ready for some very serious research. All for the sake of the novel, of course. I take research, especially if it involves pasta, cupcakes, and fancy tea houses, very seriously.

I know this blog a bit young to be asking for comments, but I'll give it shot:

What's the best meal you've ever had? In restaurant, at home, whatever? What made it so great?

xoxo

AMV

Take your heebie-jeebies to go - SIGHT in paperback!

2008-09-09T06:21:00.000-07:00

What fits in your backpack, has a big freaky eyeball on it, and will make the hair stand up on your arms?

No, not a static-electricity-charged $1 dollar bill.

SIGHT in paperback - out today!

Get your teen psychic on, portable style!

So excited to take a field trip today to my local indie and pay the book a visit. I hope every one of you hopeful writers gets to experience the goose-bumpily feeling of seeing your book in a bookstore.

xoxo
AMV

Sunday Night Football BOOOOO Friday Night Lights YAAAYY

2008-09-07T17:17:00.000-07:00

When I was growing up, Super Bowl Sunday was an event that meant a special treat -- eating dinner (usually yummy nachos and taco salad) in the living room, in front of the TV. Back then, I never really considered that there were a whole slew of games played before I sat down with my cheese smothered Tostidos.

Oh, such sweet ignorance! My hubby has descended once again into the haze of football season.

Football, aside from the Super Bowl snacks, has never really interested me. I liked playing it during youth group retreats. (because it meant direct contact with b-o-y-s) I like the way the players slap each other's butts. And I like it when the commentators give back-stories on the players, about over obstacles and that sort of thing.

But that actual games? I tune out almost immediately.

And then I discovered Friday Night Lights. Or, more specifically, Tim Riggins. All of the sudden football had a [truck driving, beer drinking, womanizing, bruiser with a sensitive heart] soul.

But now, horror of horror, "real" football season has started and FNL won't start until October 1st!

That's just stupid, if you ask me. I know one (the NFL) has nothing to do with the other (the best butt...I mean show...on TV) but it nerves me none the less.

Counting down the days until October 1st!

xoxo

AMV

tap tap Is this thing on?

2008-09-05T12:35:00.000-07:00

Hello my pretties and welcome to my new blog!

This is where I'll wax philosophic (aka ramble on with no mind for grammar) about writing, books, obsessions (malted milk ball gelato), culture (usually of the pop variety) and other extremely important topics.

More soon, I promise, but since this is a test post to see if this thingamijig really works, I'm keeping in short.

xoxo
AMV

Write On

I would like you know

Oh my gosh, I'm officially a sissy

Teen authors - EXPOSED!

Teen Author Book Festival in NYC!

It's 11:49 on a Saturday night, what are you doing?

The Pitch, and Librarians and The Smittens

The weather I'm under.

Burning Questions

Obama + Your Favorite YA Authors = Best Website Ever!

An open letter to James Franco

The best research project *ever* AND tell me your favorite yum!

Take your heebie-jeebies to go - SIGHT in paperback!

Sunday Night Football BOOOOO Friday Night Lights YAAAYY

*tap* *tap* Is this thing on?

The best research project ever AND tell me your favorite yum!

tap tap Is this thing on?