Rick Yancey Q&A!

Hey YAthenaeum readers, sorry for the lack of week-in reviews these past couple of weeks. The majority of our team consists of high school seniors,and we're neck deep in college applications at the moment. We'll return to our regularly scheduled posts once we meet all our deadlines. In the meantime, please enjoy this Q&A with YA author, Rick Yancey.

A few weeks ago, we got a chance to sit and talk with Rick Yancey, author of The Monstrumologist. Here were his answers to our ever so random questions.

Who pwns everything?
Russell Crowe

If someone suddenly threw a wad of twenty thousand dollars at you, how would you respond?
Give it to the Jekyll Island Turtle Foundation.


If 'they' decided to make a movie of your life, which actress would you want to play you?
Who's the hottest actor out there? Keanu Reeves


What's the most random question you can think of? Answer it.

What is my favorite painting of all time?
I can't choose between Starry Night and The Scream.


Can you do the Time Warp again?
Well, like now? (He then proceeded to dance with us)

When writing some authors plan every detail and others just dive into the book, so are you an outliner or a diver (or a mix)?
I used to outline, but then I'd get to 100 pages and throw it all out. So I don't do detailed outlines, but I know the direction I'm going in.

*Another* Another Faust Contest

Today we bring you a guest contest from Dina and Daniel Nayeri, authors of Another Faust. There's plenty of goodies to be won, so we encourage everyone to enter! So without further ado, here is their post:

Hi everyone. Dina and I are about to kick off a month-long tour for our book, Another Faust, and we want to do it by announcing a contest! We are looking for the most promising writers out there (that’s YOU). And then we want to showcase their work, so that all of the Internet can bask in their awesome writing might (and, you know, give them prizes).

HERE’S HOW IT GOES.

We want you to write your own short story, re-imagining of the Faustian Bargain. (For inspiration, check out Bedazzled, Simpsons “Tree House of Horrors IV,” and The Little Mermaid). It can be about anything you like (but let’s keep it PG-13, and under 3,000 words), and it’s open to everyone.

All you have to do is send your entry to dviergutz@gmail.com before January 31.

Rules and details can be found here.

Make sure to read them so you don’t get DQed

And the winner gets all kinds of sweetness:

• A signed copy of Another Faust
• A handwritten deleted scene
• A featured article & interview on our site
• An author’s galley of the sequel Another Pan

Though we’ll feature the top five on our site for comments, the judging WON’T happen by popular vote (so basically, we don't care which contestant has the most friends). Dina and I will personally read them.

So, spread the word! Tweet, retweet, forward, thread, spread, embed this post.

Good luck!

D&D

Scott Westerfeld!

You've read Uglies, Pretties, maybe even Specials. Now enter a whole "new" world...

Meet bestselling author Scott Westerfeld reading and showing images from his “steampunk masterpiece”, Leviathan!

Sunday, October 25, 6pm
(Teen Reads Forum will begin at 5pm)
Books & Books
265 Aragon Avenue
Coral Gables, Florida

"This book will transport you back to the unruly period we know as World War I, specifically the year 1914. In this epic tale, the battle is instead brewing between the Clankers (a group of people that instill faith in machinery to advance mankind) and the Darwinists (people of the belief that the evolution of living creatures into helpful tools will benefit society).

Found in the middle of this war of philosophies is Prince Aleksandar, a young boy deemed for greatness and the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, recently betrayed by those closest to him. And Deryn Sharp, a female commoner who wants nothing more than to fly in the British Air Service, but has to disguise herself as a boy to do so. Constantly hiding her secret proves to be a very difficult task.

The meeting of Alek and Deryn is most unexpected… and will change their lives forever.

This astounding alternate history series will have you torn between loving Scott Westerfeld's compelling narrative and Keith Thompson’s exquisite, detailed illustrations. And unable to stop reading or talking about it."


Before this event starts, we'd like you to join us for our Teen Reads Forum. Starting an hour before Scott's event we plan to ask you all, "What do you want to read?" In honor of national Teen Reads Week, we are asking the most important question: What is it that teens really want to read? Publishers, librarians, teachers and booksellers have struggled with this question, but for some reason, just asking them what they want to read hasn't been considered. Teen Reads Forum is a chance for teens to get in on the action and discuss exactly what it is that interests them. What makes them want to pick a book off the shelf? Is it a beautiful cover, something they heard from a friend, or even a movie-tie in of the novel. We won’t know until someone speaks up. How about you? Scott Westerfeld will join the conversation, too.

This event will be broadcasted live through our BlogTV, so if you can't attend, feel free to join the conversation there.

Hope to see you all then!

-The YAthenaeum Team

How to Dress-Up Like a Book Character

(If a movie hasn't been made to speed up the creative process)

So Halloween is just around the corner, and if you still haven't picked out your costume, here are some easy steps to dress up like your favorite book character.

A few weeks ago Lisa Mantchev, author of Eyes Like Stars, decided to host a contest to help people dress up as her characters for Halloween. I had never given it much thought, but designing the costumes the YAthenaeum Team members wear at book signings is a big part of what I do, so I decided to make this How-To post to help anyone who is first stepping into the realm of costuming without visuals.

So first of all, yes, while not everyone may like them, movie adaptations of books can help a lot when planning out a design. So if you're planning to dress up as Arwen from The Lord of the Rings or Lady Amalthea from The Last Unicorn the movies are definitely the best place to start.

I will be using Beatrice "Bertie" Shakespeare Smith from Eyes Like Stars as my model.


So now on to the first part: Designing the Costume

• First thing to do is skim the book and look for any pages that may describe the character you are going to dress up as, mark these pages.
  
• Physical details are usually given, but their attire is not always described in detail. Try to take the setting of the book as a way to figure out the outfit.
• Start sketching, draw, throw in as many designs as possible, you can pick and choose later.
• After you have several designs, pick what you like from each and combine them to make the perfect outfit.

Like I said, I will use Bertie as my example. Bertie is said to have fiery blue hair and lives in a theater. So the hair part comes natural, but when designing her clothes, I imagined her to have strange outfits that would derive from several different plays and times. So I threw in layered skirts, corsets, billowy shirts, and anything sparkly that made me think of the theater. And for the sake of authenticity, why not have her carry around a copy of The Complete Works of the Stage? Bertie costume does not include seductively stalking air spirit.

Now on to: Making the Costume

• Many find this to be the scariest part if they've never been exposed to a sewing machine. Best part is, for some, you don't even need to pick up a needle.
  
• Many costume parts can just be found at a mall, a corner shop, or a thrift store.
• Write down everything you need for your costume and give yourself a budget.
  
• Don't forget, you can pin and sew things you have at home to make a great costume!
  
• Go out to town, and if you find things that are PERFECT for a reasonable price, buy them.
• If any part is left that you couldn't find at a store or was out of your price range, the internet has great tutorials for just about anything.
• When it comes to costumes, ThreadBanger is a place you can always turn to.
• Search for sites with How-To-Sew tutorials.
• Be creative! If you can't figure something out, just improvise!

The Bertie I designed has an outfit that consists of an underbust corset, a cropped vest, a poofy-sleeved blouse, an asymmetrical layered skirt, a glittery boa, ankle boots, and of course a blue wig.

• So naturally, my first item to find was the corset. Now I'll be honest, corsets are not cheap, and good ones are hard to come by. These can be easily found on the internet, but the one I liked best for my design was from Etsy. (There is a tutorial on TB on how to make a corset)
  
• I found a skirt and blouse that fit what I needed at The Pyramid Collection.
• Feather boas were really cheap on Party Feathers
• I found a wig on eBay that was the perfect color, a little long, but that's why we have scissors.
• The copy of The Complete Works of the Stage can be any large, bound notebook with the name written.
  

Now, with my selection I was restricted to the contents of the internet, but there are plenty of other places to find what you need.


And now the last part: Strut Your Stuff

• Once you have pieced your costume together you are ready to go out and party, knock on doors for candy, and have a good time.

Here are some of my favorite How-To Sites
ThreadBanger
Instructables
wikiHow

Now you are ready to venture into the world as a new person!

Hope this was helpful, if you have any ideas or suggestions please post them below in comments! Oh and post pictures if you dress up as any characters!

-Lorena

This(ese) Week(s) in YA- October 10(and 17), 2009

Random:

• You can help put The Hair of Zoe Fleefenbacher Goes to School by Laurie Halse Anderson in Cheerios boxes. To find out how go to Laurie's post here.
• You can read Sarah Rees Breenan's account of how her tour with Scott Westerfeld is going on her blog here.
• Meg Cabot posted the cover for the fourth Allie Finkle's Rules for Girls book as well as the redesigned covers of the past books in the series on her blog here.
• The National Book Award finalists are up. You can find the list here.
• Lisa Mantchev is holding an Eyes Like Stars contest. Go to her blog here for more information.
• Melissa Marr posted an excerpt of Radiant Shadows, the fourth Wicked Lovely book coming out next year, on her blog here.
• Saundra Mitchell is posting a ghost story every month in honor of Trick or Treat 2009. She's also holding a giveaway for a huge treat (think cauldron of goodies huge). You can find out more information including how to enter on her post here.
• Diana Peterfreund is giving away signed copies of Graceling and Fire by Kristin Cashore. You can find out more on her blog here.
• Janni Lee Simner posted the cover for Thief Eyes on her blog here.
• Michelle Zink is holding a contest for lots of Halloween/horror-filled swag. You can find out more on her blog here.

Books that came out last week:

• Percival, Guardian of the King by Kent North and Susanne Lakin
• We Were Here by Matt de la Pena
• Vanishing Girl: The Boy Sherlock Holmes, His Third Case by Shane Peacock
• Tyranny by Lesley Fairfield
• Solace of the Road by Siobhan Dowd
• Ricky's Adventures by Rick S. Decker
• Mirrorscape by Mike Wilks
• Metamorphosis: Junior Year by Betsy Franco and Tom Franco
• Medina Hill by Trilby Kent
• Little Black Lies by Tish Cohen
• Lily Dale: Discovering by Wendy Corsi Staub
• Legacy by Tom Sniegoski
• Lady Macbeth's Daughter by Lisa Klein
  
• I am a Genius of Unspeakable Evil and I Want to be Your Class President by Josh Lieb
• Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
• The Goodbye Season by Marian Hale
• Girl in the Arena by Lise Haines
• Gifted: Here Today, Gone Tomorrow by Marilyn Kaye
• Finn the half-Great by Theo Caldwell
• Fat Cat by Robin Brande
• Death in the Air (The Boy Sherlock Holmes) by Shane Peacock
• Exposure by Mal Peet
• Dare to Be Scared 4: Thirteen More Tales of Terror by Robert D. San Souci and David Ouimet
• A Brief History of Montmaray by Michelle Cooper
• The Book of Samuel: A Novel by Erik Raschke
• Almost Perfect by Brian Katcher
• Miracle Girls #3: A Little Help from My Friends by Anne Dayton and May Vanderbilt
• Hatter M, Vol. 2: Mad With Wonder by Frank Beddor, Liz Cavalier, and Sami Makkonen
• Gateway by Sharon Shinn
• The Dying Breath: Forensic Mystery by Alane Ferguson
• ArchEnemy: The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor

Books that come out this week:

• October 19- The Other Side of Blue by Valerie O. Patterson
• October 19- The Day of the Pelican by Katherine Paterson
  
• October 19- Age 14 by Geert Spillebeen and Terese Edelstein
• October 19- Sistrsic92 (Meg) (Bloggrls) by Cheryl Dellasega
• October 19- Nothing Like You by Lauren Strasnick
• October 19- Never After by Dan Elconin
• October 19- The Islands of the Blessed by Nancy Farmer and Jon Foster
• October 19- Hold Still by Nina LaCour
• October 19- Dragonfly by Julia Golding
• October 19- Blackbriar by William Sleator
• October 19- Aaliyah (The Divas) by Victoria Christopher Murray
• October 19- The Shadrach Trilogy by Joy Cowley

-The YAthenaeum Team

Dave Barry & Ridley Pearson Tomorrow!

That’s right! Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson are at it again with their new book Peter and the Sword of Mercy!

They’ll be signing tomorrow, October 16th at 6pm in Books & Books.

Books & Books
265 Aragon Avenue
Coral Gables, Florida

“Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson return for another fabulous Books & Books launch party for the newest book in their series: Peter and the Sword of Mercy (Hyperion, $18.99). The year is 1901--it's been twenty-three years since Peter and the Lost Boys returned from Rundoon. Since then, nobody on the island has grown a day older, and the Lost Boys continue their friendship with the Mollusk tribe, and their rivalry with Captain Hook. Meanwhile in London, Molly has married George Darling and is raising three children: Wendy, Michael, and John.
One night a visitor appears at her door: It's James, one of Peter's original Lost Boys. He is now working for Scotland Yard and suspects that the heir to England's throne, Prince Albert Edward, is under the influence of shadow creatures. These shadow creatures are determined to find a secret cache of starstuff which fell to London many centuries ago. The starstuff is hidden in an underground vault which has only one key: the Sword of Mercy, a legendary weapon kept with the Crown Jewels. Molly is determined to help, but when she suddenly goes missing, it is up to her eleven-year-old daughter, Wendy, to keep the starstuff out of the Others' clutches. She has heard her mother's stories of a flying boy named Peter Pan, and he may be her only hope in saving the world from a shadowy doom”

As always, we’ll be there so don’t forget to stop by and say hi!


-The YAthenaeum Team

Kristin Cashore Tomorrow!

Kristin Cashore will be signing books tomorrow, October 11th at 1pm in Books & Books.

Books & Books
265 Aragon Avenue
Coral Gables, Florida

"It is not a peaceful time in the Dells. In King City, the young King Nash is clinging to the throne, while rebel lords in the north and south build armies to unseat him. War is coming. And the mountains and forest are filled with spies and thieves. This is where Fire lives, a girl whose beauty is impossibly irresistible and who can control the minds of everyone around her. Exquisitely romantic, Kristin Cashore’s Fire (Dial, $17.99) is the companion to the highly praised Graceling but has an entirely new cast of characters, save for one person who plays a pivotal role in both books. You don’t need to have read Graceling to love Fire. But if you haven’t, you’ll be dying to read it next."

As always, hope to see you all there. And don't forget to bring your best graceling outfit!

-The YAthenaeum Team