BookEnds agents Jessica Faust and Kim Lionettia are holding a Twitter pitch contest: follow Jessica and Kim on Twitter, wait for their signal, and then pitch your novel in 140 characters or less. Those with the best pitches will receive critiques of their synopses and first three chapters. The contest will be held multiple times all week long.
Writer Cynthea Liu is holding an online auction to benefit Tulakes Elementary School. Bid on items like a five-page critique from agent Jennifer Mattson or a critique from author Jay Asher.
The estate of a author Adrian Jacobs is suing Bloomsbury for plagiarism. Both Jacobs’ book WILLY THE WIZARD: LIVID LAND and Bloomsbury’s HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE feature wizards competing in tournaments. As Writer Beware points out, the Willy the Wizard website seemed to be crafted especially for the lawsuit, with dozens of excerpts showing similarities between Willy’s and Harry’s world. Bloomsbury says the case has no basis.
How does a publisher get an author involved in the marketing process? With the dreaded Author Questionnaire–a list of grueling questions like “What search terms would readers use at Amazon.com to find your book?” Get a peek of a questionnaire here.
Agent Emily Masters is looking for “inventive and creative picture books and middle grade and YA fiction (from realistic to fantasy and everything in between).” She’s also very interested in poetry. Read an interview with her on Cynthia Leitich Smith’s livejournal.
In defense of adults reading YA: Lauren Baratz-Logsted’s online essay “Betwixt and Between: YA in an Adult World” discusses the “freshness” of the YA genre–something you might use to explain your reading habits to those who aren’t browsing the teen shelves.
If you know a teen who likes to write science fiction and fantasy stories, consider enrolling them in Shared Worlds, a camp held at Wofford College, where students “create entire worlds, complete with history, economy, language and culture” and then write stories, make art, and design video games based on their created world.
Need a fun summer read? Enter to win an ARC of RAMPANT by Diana Peterfruend and spend your summer slaying some evil unicorns. Or go here for your chance to win an ARC of SHIVER by Maggie Stiefvater (love and werewolves!) or an ARC of ICE by Sarah Beth Durst (love and polar bears!).
Finally, check out this remix video “Buffy vs Edward” for some vampire romance fun.
Parker Peevyhouse prefers Buffy over Bella–must be the dry humor.
Chris Eboch
Greg R. Fishbone
Nick
lindajoysingleton
Parker Peevyhouse
Joni Sensel
Okay, my day just brightened x10 from the words “Slay-er. Look it up!”
Definitely Buffy over Bella: MAN, way better lines, way, WAY better hair…
I know, I totally chuckled at Buffy’s dialog.
Parker, Buffy gets my vote! A heroine who was never a push-over even in her darkest, most despairing moments and with a wit-sharp tongue. The video is a hoot!
My favorite scene from the series was in “Once More With Feeling” when she frees a handsome young man tied to a tree and he says, “What can I do to repay you?” and she shrugs and says, “Whatever…”
That Joss Whedon sure knows how to mix horror with humor!
thanks for linking to my contest.
Oooh, the kid’s camp sounds awesome! I would have loved to have gone to something like that!