Frankie Diane Mallis

Kid Lit Drink Night Friday!

2012-01-26T06:43:00.000-08:00

What are all of you doing this weekend?

If you live near anywhere near New York City (and you're 21 or over), you should definitely be going to this:

(Image used from the official Kid Lit announcement, found here.)

Kid Lit Drink Night: SCBWI Edition!

When: Friday, January 27th, 8pm.

Where: Public House (www.publichousenyc.com) on East 41st Street between Lexington and Third Avenue.

Who: All the cool people! Seriously, this is the hot spot for editors, agents, authors, SCBWI-goers, and generally interesting book people.

Oh and ME! I'll be hanging out and so will the entire First Novels Club.

Let me know if you'll be there too!

BIG NEWS at The First Novels Club

2012-01-21T08:06:00.000-08:00

Wheeee! One of my critique partners and bffs has BIG NEWS that she was finally able to announce at The First Novels Club.

I'm so excited to celebrate with her! Which we will once I'm over this horrendous cold that's left me in bed for days AND we shovel out of the snow we finally got! YAY! In the meantime, go check out the news and congratulate her!

Drool Over Banana Bread

2012-01-11T00:00:00.000-08:00

This is all I have for you today. A picture of some chocolate chip banana bread I baked today. If you came over I'd serve you a slice. But for now, enjoy the picture. And yep, this is vegan and gluten free. The recipe is from the Babycakes baking book.

Did you guys make anything cool this week?

CRACKED Launch Party

2012-01-08T21:28:00.000-08:00

Saturday night I got to celebrate the release of CRACKED by my friend K.M. Walton at her launch party and WOW was that a launch party.

The bookstore had to give out numbers for the book signing line and just to give you a small idea of how epic the night was, I was number 101!

And because these events are best shown with pictures and some possibly awkward (ok TOTALLY awkward) vlogs, I'll be showing you the CRACKED Launch Party in picture and video.

Waiting in line with my bff since 2nd grade, Atiya and Joanne, the awesome indie bookseller!

Christine Danek, Simon Larter, Jessica Corra, ME, Ilene Wong, Amy Garvey, Donna Gambale, Sara DeSabato

Kelly Lyman, Jessica Corra, Christine Danek, Simon Larter

The CRACKED cake, so cool, it had a 3D cup with candy pills.

Many of the usual suspects: Lillie, Kelly, Christine, Ilene, Donna and Jenna.

K.M. Walton signing like a champ!

The insane crowd!

Donna Gambale, The Woman Of The Hour, Me, Sara DeSabato

Donna Gambale with CRACKED and her raffle prize!

Following the launch party many of us headed over to The Social Lounge for a little after party. But before that all happened, I shot a lot of videos. Some were (ahem) shot sideways and anyone familiar with me or my blog will know that I cannot edit these things, so...I'll spare you the sidewayisms, and leave you with the upright ones.

Enjoy!

Video 1: Pretending I'm the host of a red carpet show interviewing guests. But the question of the night wasn't "What are you wearing" but rather, "What are you READING?" And yes, the Bar Guide is my microphone.

Video 2: A totally normal moment that just happens to include me filming Amy Garvey (COLD KISS) who is also filming me while Kelly Lyman and Christine Danek film me and each other...

Video 3: Clean up on aisle Camping, Canoeing and Other Outdoor Books You'll Enjoy...

I hope you enjoyed our shenanigans. See how much fun these launch parties are? Especially when they happen near Philly?

K.M. Walton, you ROCKED the house! So proud of you.

How was everyone else's weekend?

What I Made Wednesday

2012-01-04T06:51:00.000-08:00

Some of you may know that last November I cut gluten from my diet. Not one hundred percent...there have been a few experiments where I try it again to see if I feel differently (I do) and a few holiday mishaps where I didn't realize every ingredient (whoops) and a few cases where I just wanted to be polite (as a vegan I spend A LOT of time not accepting food, but there were a few times recently, I just felt like, oh well...).

Anyway, I've been feeling so much better. I was starting to get a lot of headaches and my skin has been a bit of a mess for awhile. The removal of gluten has really helped me there. And so, I've been baking and cooking A LOT. Being gluten-free (not eating any wheat) doesn't mean I can't enjoy normal foods...it just means, I need to make them myself to ensure the right ingredients for me are used.

And I'm having a blast. So I thought I'd share.

Vegan Gluten-Free French Toast

I used this recipe from PETA's website. To make it GF, I simply used GF rice-bread, and when the recipe called for flour, I used GF flour. This is probably my favorite right now. I didn't know for a long time I could still have french toast without eggs. And it's so simple and fast to make. I topped it with strawberries and agave nectar.

Vegan Gluten-Free Pancakes

These came from a pancake mix called Pamela's Gluten Free Pancake and Baking Mix. The recipe on the side of the bag called for an egg, which I just skipped. But to help make the pancakes a little more fluffy, I added applesauce to the mix, cooked, and then topped with berries.

Vegan Gluten Free Latkes

I found these when I wanted latkes for Hannukah and I'm so glad I did. I will probably make these a few more times this year. The only downfall is they take SO much time (not because their GF or vegan, but because that's the nature of the beast with latkes unless you buy a store mix). This recipe came from Alicia's Silverstone's fabulous website The Kind Life. Again to GF the recipe, I swapped out the flour for GF flour.

Ok, I hope you enjoyed. Now I must decide which recipe to try today....

No Kiss Recap and Cracked!

2012-01-03T03:00:00.000-08:00

Thank you to everyone who participated in the 3rd Annual No Kiss Blogfest yesterday. I think this was the best one yet and I can't wait to see everyone again and all the tense almost kisses you'll dream up again next January. I had so much fun reading posts yesterday and reading everyone's comments. I hope you all had fun! (And if I somehow missed your post, please let me know so I can come and read).

And now...today is a VERY special day! My friend K.M. Walton's debut novel CRACKED is now in stores. To celebrate this awesome occasion, I give you A Very CRACKED Adventure.

Once Upon a Time, in a Barnes and Noble not too far away....

Donna and I were sneaking up on CRACKED! We wanted to surprise him.

Oh no! CRACKED spotted Donna! Busted!

But it was okay because CRACKED and its twin brother CRACKED were so happy to see her!

AAAAAAHHHH! TWINSIES!!!!

So then CRACKED was like, "Frankie! Donna! Calm down! I'm going to meet EVERYBODY SEES THE ANTS in the cafe for some coffee and have a chat."

After coffee, CRACKED decided to go chill with his favorite local books.

Then CRACKED decided to go read some magazines and catch up on current events since he'd been living in his
shipping box for awhile.

But I had to stop that, so I could read CRACKED myself.

Donna read CRACKED too.

And after much chagrin, CRACKED agreed to let Edward look in his pages.

And Jacob...

CRACKED went over to the Nook and had one question for him. "How on earth do I fit in there?" Nook would not reply.

CRACKED tried to hang out with some bananagrams. But they were making him hungry.

And after all that excitement, CRACKED lounged on a couch for a bit.

His coffee caught up with him and he raced to the bathroom.

But there was one little problem...No Merchandise allowed inside. Luckily in that moment CRACKED remembered he was a book and he didn't have bodily functions.

Instead, CRACKED read a bedtime story.

And went to sleep.

The End!

HAPPY RELEASE DAY to CRACKED and K.M. WALTON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The NO KISS Blogfest!

2012-01-02T00:00:00.000-08:00

It's here!!!!

I hope you all have a blast checking out the No Kisses from everyone participating! Please try and visit as many blogs as you can today. Trust me, it's fun!

For a full list of participants, go HERE! Also, if you're just joining us and want to sign up, go HERE! Ok, so it's the same link twice. But seriously, anyone can participate at any time they want to today.

Enjoy this steamy, tension-filled day! Let the No Kissing begin!

My 2012 No Kiss

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a girl shouldn't be caught alone with James London. It is a fact, only idiots are unaware of, that a girl shouldn't be caught alone with James London when she is supposed to be in detention. And it is just a matter of plain common sense when that girl is me, and she is knowingly risking not only her spot in the Summer Scottish Studies Program (skipping detention=expulsion), but she is also surely kissing goodbye her chance at getting a college recommendation letter from a top professor at Oxford University.

Who also happens to be the headmaster at SSSP. AND James London's father.

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.

Not that I really wanted to go to Oxford, or dreamed of it my entire life. I mean, what kind of esteemed member of academia names their son James London? It sounds like he's a 60's rock star. Or porn star. Watching him walk through the woods by the school, I suppose the connotations do fit. James London could be a rock star, or a porn star. Eventually. Maybe already, if what every other girl in the program says is true.

No, I need to focus. I need to stop being an idiot and stop following him to Arthur's Peak and return to detention and apologize to Headmaster London if he discovers my whereabouts and pray pray pray I can still study English at Oxford.

But then James turns and looks at me again and his eyes are just so blue, blue, blue, that I'm lost and I'm not turning around, I'm still following him and we're going even deeper into the woods.

He reaches into his back pocket, and pushes up the back of his t-shirt to do so, giving me a nice clear view of his jeans and their backside, which only reinforces my porn star thoughts and dissolves my ability to think clear.

Then my brain snaps into focus. "What are you doing!"

He leans against a tree, pulls a lighter from his pocket and lifts it to the cigarette now balanced on his lip. He does all of this with his blue eyes burning into me, never leaving me. And somehow he never falters, like he has absolutely perfected the art of smoking a cigarette while leaning against a tree.

"I guess then you don't smoke," James says to me, a mischeifvous glint in his eye. "You don't go to parties. You don't sneak out on weekends. And before today you never served detention. Do you ever have fun?"

I stand back, part hurt at his accusation, and part confused that he actually paid enough attention to know these things. "I have fun," I say. Just not the kind of fun you like to have.

"You looked like you needed some," he says. "Come here."

"I don't smoke."

"I didn't offer you my cigarette. I said come here."

I shouldn't go. I KNOW I shouldn't go. There's still time. Time for me to go back to the school, slip into detention, maybe even revise my alternative Macbeth ending one more time. But like two cowardly traitors, my feet propel me forward.

And I can smell him. And he smells amazing. And I can see the little bit of green in his eyes, and the mint on his breath, and a beauty mark I never noticed below his ear. But I can also smell the pre-cigarette smell and step back.

He grabs my hand. "Why did you come out here with me?"

I don't know what to say. I don't know what to admit.

I came because he asked me to. I came because he's beautiful. I came because before now, no beautiful boy has ever talked to me before.

"Detention got boring," I finally say.

He laughs. "You didn't seem bored. You were working on your Macbeth ending, right?"

I nod, barely breathing.

He knew I was writing a new ending to Macbeth? For him to know that, he'd actually have to be paying attention to me.

He smiles. A wonderful, beautiful, glorious smile that makes me melt. Like he knows I know he was paying attention and he wants me to know and somehow after all this time, after a lifetime of keeping my head in the books I may have actually gotten the guy.

He draws me close with his free hand. His arm is around me and his other hand is now returning the lighter to his pocket.

"You're not going to smoke that?" I ask, looking toward his mouth.

"Eventually," he says.

"When?"

He pulls it from his mouth. "I don't know."

What are we doing? More importantly, what am I doing? Why am I standing here, body pressed up against James Freaking I Could Be A Future Porn Star London, who will probably die of lung cancer when I should be writing abot Macbeth?

"When will you know?" I ask, and realize my voice has gone hoarse. And I can feel his hands on my back and they are so warm despite this cold Scottish summer I've been having. In more ways than one.

He leans closer to me, his lips just barely brushing against mine, sending tingles all across my limbs. "Soon," he says.

And all I can hear is the blood rushing through my ears and then...the footsteps and cracking of sticks behind us.

"James!"

We spring apart and there is Headmaster London in all his Oxford glory, and James has somehow managed in that one split second to light his cigarette and I have lost all chances at my future at Oxford...and then...

"Sorry, Dad," he says, between puffs. "Did you need something?"

And then James is covering for me and telling his Dad he made me follow him and he's believing it and I'm so happy I could scream because I can still go to Oxford...if I get in...and I almost kissed a boy who looks like a porn star and has the name of one, and then back in detention, James passes me a note.

Soon?

Happy NO KISS New Year!

2012-01-01T07:50:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!!! I hope everyone had a blast celebrating last night, toasting with friends, watching the ball drop, and wondering WHAT happened to Beyonce's baby... Seriously, guys. Is it just me or was her stomach completely flat last night when she sang. I couldn't believe she didn't end her song by ripping off her skirt to show off flat abs, and Jay-Z popping out of the side stage with their baby. It would have been the perfect book end to her pregnancy reveal. I think she may need a new publicist...

Moving on...

Tomorrow is the BEST Blogfest of the year! The best because it's the steamiest, and most fun and tension filled fest. And also because I invented it. And I tend to like things I invent. I'm human...

So, to get you all ready for tomorrow's 3rd Annual NO KISS Blogfest (of which you can still sign up!), I thought I'd repost my NO KISS from last year. Hope you enjoy (again, or for the first time).

2011's NO KISS:

“Look,” I said. “Are we going to do this or not?”

His blue eyes bored into mine and maybe it was the cheesy Christmas lights Stacey had hung around the room for her party, or maybe it was because this was the first time I’d ever stood this close to Jackson, but I noticed he had a little green in his eyes. Just a little.

“Um, yeah, yeah," he said. "Definitely, we’re doing this.”

“Well, then come on. Kiss me.”

He bit his lip. “Hang on, Kristy. It’s not that simple.”

“Simple? Do we need to rehash the facts again?” I placed my hands on my hips, my fingers sprawling over the itchy sequins sewn onto my tube dress.

“No.” He groaned.

“Well then what’s the problem? It’s not like you’ve never kissed anyone before.” Like Stacey. A lot. Especially in the far corner of the school where the lockers made a convenient hiding spot from teachers. And I wasn’t even going to hypothesize that he didn’t find me attractive. Maybe I was no Stacey to him, but I was certainly up there in the top 5% (at least) of the hottest girls in school. Jenna once worked the math.

“It’s just…” Jackson started, glancing around the room. “We’re in the middle of everyone. People are already staring.”

“Which is perfect!”

He shook his head. “Wouldn’t you rather, you know, go someplace private. If we went to Stacey’s room that would really—”

“No.” I snapped. “Kissing your girlfriend’s best friend in her bedroom at her own party would add a nice little eff you to this whole situation. But if we do it in there, no one will see and no one will report it back to her and that’s the whole point of this.” Though people probably would see us go in there and our mission would be achieved. But honestly, I wasn’t in the mood for the sort of rumors that might start. Kissing my best friend’s boyfriend in public—at her party—was enough.

“I just don’t know if I want to do this anymore.”

My mouth fell open. “You’re backing out? Jackson! This was your idea!”

“I know. But…I don’t know. I just, I don’t think I want to do this. Like this.” He sounded pained.

“Are you going to forgive her?” I asked, my voice sounding maybe a little louder and more hysterical then the situation warranted. But I was losing patience. We had a deal!

He shook his head. “Of course not. It’s just that since we started planning revenge on Stacey and Ada—”

“Don’t say his name!”

“Fine! But, just listen to what I’m trying to tell you. Please, Kristy.”

Somehow we’d moved closer together. Our hands both resting on the edge of the dining room table were nearly touching. The paper tablecloth, rumpled beneath our fingers, was the only barrier between them. His lip twitched and I realized I was close enough to see just the tiniest hint of stubble he’d missed shaving that morning on his chin.

“Kristy?” he asked, his voice low.

I pulled my eyes up toward his. We were even closer. Was this it? Was it finally going to happen?

His lips parted and I nervously checked the room. Yes. People were definitely watching. Even Stacey, gossiping in the corner with Jenna had a suspicious eye on us. Good, you cheating, backstabbing, boyfriend kissing slut! Watch me with your boyfriend and see how you like it!

I turned back to Jackson and moved my fingers over the table cloth. Our hands touched. His skin was warm.

“Ready?” I breathed.

He bit his lip and swallowed. “Yeah.” He leaned in. I tilted my head up. Our lips were barely a breath apart.

There was an audible gasp from someone watching us, someone who knew what a scandal this kiss would be.

I squeezed Jackson’s fingers on the table as his other hand moved through my hair, pushing it behind my ear and smoothing it against my neck. Something tightened inside me as his cologne filled my senses. And then he was close. Too close.

His lips were by my ear. Which meant they were NOT on my lips and we were NOT about to kiss. What the…

“I want to kiss you, Kristy,” he whispered.

“Then do it.” I sucked in a breath, my eye darting now to the keg where Adam stood refilling his cup.

Jackson pulled away from me, a sad smile on his face. His eyes looked even greener than before. “That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you. I want to kiss you. You.”

And he was gone, walking away from me and heading for the door.

My heart pounded in my chest as every member of the junior class stared my way, and Stacey gave me a death glare.

My fingers flew to my lips, untouched, but tingling now in a way they never had with Adam.
I want to kiss you. You.

I gasped. This was no longer about revenge. Jackson had meant it.

The End!

Ok, happy writing everybody! Don't forget to sign up, and please blog and tweet if you do! I'll see you and your NO KISSes tomorrow!

NO KISS Blogfest is Almost Here!

2011-12-30T06:51:00.000-08:00

Hey Guys!

The year is almost over and that means we're just days away from the No Kiss Blogfest! Whee! I'm so excited!

Just wanted to send you all a quick reminder! Wish I could have posted more leading up to this, but my beloved, G key-less, screen-less, original cord-less laptop died just before Christmas, so my online time has been incredibly scarce!

Anyway, don't forget to post about NO KISS Blogfest, coming Jan 2, 2012! And if you still haven't signed up yet... WHAT are you waiting for? DO IT! Trust me. It makes you cool;)

Catch you guys on Jan 2nd!

Have You Signed Up For the No Kiss Blogfest Yet?

2011-12-20T08:33:00.000-08:00

No? Well then what are you waiting for? This is one of the best (and steamiest) blogfests around and it's a kick butt way to start the new year.

Sign up by clicking HERE!

Philly Lit Night Is THIS Sunday!

2011-12-04T16:28:00.000-08:00

Attention all Philly area writers, bloggers and blog-stalkers! Sorry non-Philly people, every time we announce this and realize you can't come because geography is an obstacle we have a sad. BUT, then we have a happy when we realize all the amazing people who are coming. And hope one day you out of towners will come visit us!

Anyway, this Sunday, December 11, 2011 is Philly Lit Night--the most amazing night of December...after Hannukah...after Christmas....after New Years Eve...after...well, look it's the BEST night this coming week!

And if for some crazy reason you didn't get the email invite--let me or Simon know and we will totally email invite you. Trust me. We like it.

SO here are the details:

Date: Sunday, December 11, 2011
Time: 4PM
Location: Rittenhouse Square Barnes and Noble, 18th and Walnut
(head to the 3rd floor and follow the noise)

And...

After we force you all to make awkward chit-chat with us, and we may or may not scare customers away by discussing the Magnetic Kama Sutra or the fact that I'm staring down anyone that sits too close...we'll head to the Irish Pub!

And...it gets better!

Since the holidays are near and we're all a fan of presents, we're having a book exchange! Bring a book you enjoyed and think someone else will enjoy, and then you'll get a book to enjoy too! WIN! WIN!

Books make the best presents!

Especially when paired with awkward conversation:-)

P.S. Sign up for the NO KISS Blogfest on January 2nd, 2012! Come on! All the cool kids are doing it!

3rd Annual NO KISS Blogfest!

2011-12-01T06:11:00.000-08:00

GUYS! It's December 1st! Do you know what that means? It's time to start preparing for the most important day of the year! Christmas? No! New Years? No! The day after New Years? YESSSS! Because Jan 2nd, 2012 (OMG 2012) will be the 3rd Annual NO KISS Blogfest! YAY!!!!!!

The 3rd Annual NO KISS Blogfest!

What: The No Kiss Blogfest! This is when you get to write a scene or post one from your favorite books, movies, or tv shows that show the almost kiss-- the rising, crushing, excruciating, longing, tension that comes when two characters get oh-so-close to kissing that you can just feel it, want it, NEED it....and then...they don't!

So far nearly 200 bloggers have participated! And reading every single entry was a blast! I can't wait to do it again and hopefully read more!

We interupt this post for an interupted kiss...

Jacob and Bella are the epitome of the No Kiss!

Ok, here are the details!

No Kiss Blogfest Jan 2, 2012!

Things You Should Do To Prepare For The Ultimate Non-Kissage Festivities!

1) Sometime between now and Jan 2, 2012 write a post about the No Kiss Blogfest to let everyone know you are participating and that they should too. Why? Because it's awesome!

2) Sign up for the No Kiss Blogfest by filling in the Mr. Linky below. Because Mr. Linky is awesome.

3)Tweet about No Kiss Blogfest, using the hash tag: #nokissblogfest because #hashtagsareawesome

4) After you've recovered from New Years Eve, write a blog sharing your Almost Kiss, No Kiss Blogfest entry (either one from your WIP, one you just wrote, one from a book, movie or tv show, or even a really hot almost-kiss picture)and post on January 2, 2012!!! Because reading your posts are awesome!

Yay! I'm so excited!!! Are you?

Add yourself to the Mr. Linky, and get ready for No Kiss Blogfest 2012! See you all on January 2nd!

This Is Teen

2011-11-30T10:15:00.000-08:00

Last night I hung out with my critique partners at the First Novels Club and our other amazing friends, Jenna and Lillie, plus the staff at Children's Book World in Haverford, PA. Most importantly we all hung out together for This Is Teen, one of the cool brainchild's of Scholastic that brings awesome YA authors together to talk and hang out with us.

That meant we got to chill with Jeff Hirsch, Coe Booth, and Elizabeth Eulberg. All of whom were awesomesauce. And I took a lot of pictures.

Me and FNC Sara

Jenna and Lillie

First Novels Club: Sara, Janine, Donna, Me

Elizabeth Eulberg, Jeff Hirsch, Coe Booth

Fashionizing

Then at the end of the night, I was asked to read a few arcs for the store.

You guys...I feel like the future of civilization is my hands.

I Saw Breaking Dawn...and I Liked It!

2011-11-27T10:47:00.000-08:00

The unthinkable has happened. I went to see Breaking Dawn over the weekend and...I liked it.

I know...I know. I don't know what is wrong with me. I have never been a fan of these movies. I have trouble sitting for two hours and watching people blink and stare. I also find it boring when people fail to speak in full sentences and neglect consonants, using instead a lot of breathy vowel noises. Possibly this means I have ADD. I don't know.

But then I saw Breaking Dawn...and...I don't know what happened but I enjoyed myself immensely. I LAUGHED a lot, and actually believed Edward and Bella were in love for like 5 minutes. But more importantly, I was never bored. And pretty much that was all it took to put me on the side of Pro-BD.

And soooo, I wrote you a song about my experience.

To the tune of this:

"I Saw BD"

This was never the way I planned,
Not my intention.
Went to the movies, ticket in hand,
Lost my discretion.
It's not what I'm used to
Just wanna see Breaking Dawn
I'm curious about part 2
To see vamps get it on.

I saw BD and I liked it,
Pregnant Bella needs chapstick.
I saw BD just to see it,
I hope that HP* don't mind it.
It seemed so wrong,
It looked so right,
Don't mean I imprinted tonight
I saw BD and I liked it... (WTF?)
I liked it!

No, I don't remember the book,
It's blocked from my mind.
I took an experimental look,
Just human nature.
It's not what,
I meant to do,
Not what's considered good,
Now my head's so confused
And I'd go twice if I could.

I saw BD and I liked it,

I don't understand when wolves speak.

I saw BD just to see it,

I hope that HP don't mind it.

It seemed so wrong,

It looked so right,

Don't mean I imprinted tonight

I saw BD and I liked it... (WTF?)

I liked it!

The movie was so magical,

Beds broke, Edward yelled, and blood drunk by all,

Bad contacts, lame lines, wedding snuggle.

Too campy to deny it

Ain't no big deal, it's innocent.

I saw BD and I liked it,

I'm repressing that birth scene,

I saw BD just to see it,

I hope that HP don't mind it.

It seemed so wrong,

It looked so right,

Don't mean I imprinted tonight

I saw BD and I liked it... (WTF?)

I liked it!

Yep. And now...I'm going to crawl under a rock. And hide.

Until the DVD comes out.

*DUH...Harry Potter!

Nano Write Dropout

2011-11-21T17:39:00.000-08:00

Forget the dunce cap. Just give me a pink wig and call me ~~Frankie~~ Frenchie. In honor of my dropping out of Nanowrimo this year...I wrote you a song. You're welcome.

And it's to the tune of this!

Your story sad to tell,A writer ne'er do well,Most mixed up non-delinquent on the blog!Your future's so unclear now,What's left of your career now?Can't even get a trade in on your twitter!
Angels: (La lalala lalala lalala...)
Nano Write Dropout,No 50,000 day for you.Nano write dropout,Missed your midpoint and flunked chapter two!Well at least you could have taken time, to plot and writeyour scenes up,After spending all that time to make your profile and put your picture up!
Writer get moving (Writer get movin),Why keep your feeble hopes alive?What are you proving (What are you provin)?You've got the dream but not the drive.
If you try to up your word count, you'll just be breaking all the rules.Turn off the internet now and try writing something cool!
Nano Write Dropout! (Nano Write Dropout)Hanging around on FacebookNano Write Dropout (Nano Write Dropout)At least try finishing a book!

And...that's all I got. Did you ever notice that song is LOOOONG?
Anyway, it's ALMOST Thanksgiving--wheee! And for those in Nano still going strong, I'm cheering for you!

Convo Between Me and my Word Count

2011-11-11T07:32:00.000-08:00

Nano Word Count: Ummmm, Frankie...you haven't really updated me in a few days.

Frankie: Yeah, soooo?

Nano Word Count: Well, it's kind of embarrassing.

Frankie: You're a word count. What could you possibly find embarrassing?

Nano Word Count: All of the other word counts are growing. A lot. Every day. Sometimes multiple times in a day.

Frankie: So, you're not every other word count. You're your own word count. You're unique.

Nano Word Count: I don't want to be unique, I want to be like everyone else!

Frankie: Trust me, being like everyone else is so not the point of life.

Nano Word Count: Except it's the point of MY life. I exist so that I can increase and one day grow to 50,000! And right now, it's like you're keeping me from puberty!

Frankie: Word counts go through puberty?

Nano Word Count: Yes! All the other word counts are teasing me. They keep showing off how they have five digits and laughing at me for only having four.

Frankie: Ignore them. There's nothing wrong with having four digits.

Nano Word Count: YES there is! Four digits is acceptable for like the first few days, but it's NOVEMBER 11th! You are supposed to be in FIVE DIGITS BY NOW!

Frankie: Hey, don't yell at me! This isn't my fault.

Nano Word Count: YES it is! This is all your fault. If you'd just write more and update me...

Frankie: Well, maybe my novel isn't going so well, and I needed time to regroup.

Nano Word Count: TIME TO REGROUP? TIME TO REGROUP! It's Nanowrimo. You don't have time to regroup!

Frankie: Ok, if you're going to be a punk, maybe I don't want to up your word count.

Nano Word Count: You better increase my word count! Or else...

Frankie: Or else what?

Nano Word Count: Or else I'm going to tell EVERYONE that your personified me to look like we could have an actual conversation but you're actually just talking to yourself. Boo-yah!

Frankie: ....

Nano Word Count: ...

Frankie: Don't ever say Boo-yah again.

Nano Word Count: Update me please?????????

Frankie: I'll take it into consideration.

Children's Book World Author Fest!

2011-11-07T03:00:00.000-08:00

Friday night, I made the trip to Haverford, PA to hang out at one of my favorite indie children's book stores! Children's Book World! Basically, they jam-packed the store (which for its size can hold a surprising amount of people) with over 30 local children's writers and illustrators.

And me!

And other people too:-)

And because the night was mostly a blur of meeting people, reconnecting with old friends, and oohing and ahhing over books, I'll just show you pictures.

Plus it's the Monday after Daylight Savings Time. So who wants to read a long blog post?

...

Who wants to see pictures?

Yeah...thought so.

Beth Kephart who graciously posed for me because I liked her outfit!

My super chic and newly hair chopped, CP, Janine from First Novels Club

3/4 of the First Novels Club, Janine, Sara, and me

Spotted: April Lindner (JANE), Eileen Spinelli!!! and K.M. Walton (CRACKED)

Joanne Fritz, awesome blogger, writer, book reviewer and AMAZING indie bookseller!

Spotted: A LOT of people! And in the back...Judy Schachner (SKIPPYJON JONES)

Giving A.S. King the paparazzi treatment

A.S. King realizing she's getting the paparazzi treatment. How cute is she?

Josh Berk...totally cool with my paparazzi ways

Me with Judy Schachner whose books I LOVE reading to my library kids!

And there you go! I hope you enjoyed!

P.S. How freaking awesome was the extra hour of sleep we all got Sunday morning? And then who was sad when it got super dark early and realized...Winter is coming...

Hanging out with Amy Garvey

2011-11-02T03:00:00.000-07:00

Can you recognize these writers behind our big COLD KISSed lips?
K.M Walton (CRACKED), Amy Garvey (COLD KISS), Joanne Fritz, Christine Danek, Illene Wong, ME!

So last night, considering it was the first day of Nanowrimo and we all know I never EVER procrastinate and LOVE to get a head start ~~I sat home alone and wrote 3,000 words~~ I drove out to West Chester to hang out with my writer friends and see Amy Garvey, the awesome author of COLD KISS at Chester County Book and Music.

We all had the best time hanging out and talking after Amy answered questions and signed books.

In fact we had so much fun, we all stayed until the very bitter end.

Really. Like the store manager was kicking us out and even Joanne's bookstore powers couldn't keep us inside.

So naturally we all just continued talking outside. In the cold. And then I came home and wrote this blog post.

This means I have a lot of nanoing to do!

Current Word Count=1322

Current Music: The Tudors Season 1 Soundtrack

So Uncool, Jessica Simpson!

2011-11-01T03:00:00.000-07:00

Dear Jessica Simpson,

Yes, you in the mummy costume. I have some beef with you. And because I'm a vegan, it's the fake kind. But beef nonetheless. I know now that you've wanted to be my friend for a few years. Don't deny it! You know it's true. And because I've rejected your phone calls and poorly spelled text messages, you've just decided to one up me instead.

First of all, you're marrying a vegan. And we ALL know that I want to marry a vegan.

Second, you convinced him to give you a ruby engagement ring. A RUBY engagement ring? I want a ruby engagement ring.

Third, you once married Nick Lackey. I once wanted to marry Nick Lachey, but got over THAT idea in a hot minute. Almost as fast as Kim K got divorced. But irregardless--you STILL married him! Just like I wanted to.

Um wait....when you look like this, I think I've changed my mind...

Jessica, you are basically stealing my LIFE! My fake life... If I was blonde and a singer and country and worth a few million and didn't know the difference between chicken and fish...which, because I'm vegan, sometimes I don't...

But yesterday, you pulled the least coolest stunt of all time to get my attention.

Announcing your pregnancy the same day my friend Kelly Lyman announced hers!

I cannot believe you did that! And for the record, we can all check times now on blog postings and twitter and I have proof that Kelly announced her pregnancy HOURS before you did Jessica. HOURS! You hear me? How many hours you say? I don't know. That would require me clicking on too many internet links at the moment and I'm too ~~lazy~~ angry for that.

Just know it was before you tweeted and EVERYONE knows and everyone knows that YOU, Jessica Simpson clearly read my friend Kelly's post and then decided to announce you were preggers too. Because seriously, Jessica, this was NO surprise!

Way to be subtle...

Why of ALL days would you pick today when the whole world knew for months? Because of Kelly!

I rest my case!

Also... My wedding invitation is STILL lost in the mail! And I AM having the vegan platter, kthnx!

Sincerely,

Your Not-Friend

P.S. I bought a pair of your shoes at DSW and quite enjoy them.

P.P.S. Congrats to everyone with baby news;)

Nanowrimo

2011-10-31T10:02:00.000-07:00

Yes! Finally! After two years in a row of wanting to participate in Nano but not being able to for various reasons, this year I'm taking the plunge.

Not that this year is super different. I don't actually have time. But...I've been wanting to write this novel and it intimidates me. So I figured Nanowrimo was the best way for me to tackle this. And whatever I have to do to do this, I'm in. I'm making the time.

And...I'm pantsing the whole thing.

*bites nails*

So there you have it. Who else is participating this year? And how scared should I be?

P.S. Come and be my friend.

Hanging out with Lauren Oliver

2011-10-26T08:32:00.000-07:00

So last night Lauren Oliver stopped in Philly at Children's Book World to talk about her new middle grade novel LIESL AND PO. I love hearing Lauren speak about her writing. One of the things that always stands out to me is her view of story-lines, character arcs and deciding on projects. She doesn't confine herself to a genre, or even an age group--switching from YA to MG, and she said she's working on an adult novel... What draws her to story, or rather compels her to write each story is a journey her character needs to go on, one that is usually personal to her as well so she has an opportunity to grow with each character. I LOVE that!

Lauren Oliver (BEFORE I FALL, DELIRIUM, LIESL & PO) and K.M. Walton (CRACKED)

I really believe stories have a huge potential for healing and growth and have often found myself writing questions that not only do my characters need answers to, but that I need answers to as well.

3/4 of the First Novels Club and Lauren Oliver (Donna, Lauren, Sara, Me)

And the other awesome part of last night was hanging out with my some of favorite Philly writers and bloggers--we're really building such an amazing community here--I'm kind of in love with us. During the signing I hung out with Jamie who I adore from Perpetual Page Turner who also has a recap of last night posted, as well as Sara and Donna from the First Novels Club (SQUEEZE-LOVE), Jenna and Lillie (the greatest pair of sisters who write and blog), and I got to meet blogger Vi!

Me, Sara, Jenna, Donna, Lauren, Jamie, Lillie

Afterwards, Donna, Sara and I stayed looooong after Children's Book World closed to chat with our friend K.M. Walton (CRACKED, 1/12). We may have frozen a few of our outer limbs in the process, but the conversation was SO fun!

Creative Writing with Harry, Ron, and Hermione

2011-10-24T07:41:00.000-07:00

I wanted to share a writing exercise that I ~~tortured~~ gave my students today. It's all about rewriting for revision.

I admit, I used to be one of those people who would write something and then go back and revise those written words and revise THOSE written words and then THOOOOSE written words.

And the thing is, when you keep reworking the same words over and over and over again, you tend to get this:

A HOT MESS

It took me a lot of frustration and time and a lot of mentoring from other writers to let go of this habit and just throw out my mess and start fresh.

With a blank sheet of paper.

And that is scary!

But that's why I create these exercises. To make them a little less frightening and easier to do.

So here's how this one works.

Step 1: I had my students watch this clip from the Deathly Hallows. (sorry, no embedding allowed)

Step 2: I then asked them to write the scene, choosing to tell it from Harry, Ron, or Hermione's perspective, using either 1st or 3rd person limited, or an omniscient narrator.

Step 3: They had a chance to clear their minds with a different writing exercise--write about your outfit. I wanted something simple and easy.

Step 4: Put ALL the writings away in a place you can't see.

Repeat Steps 1-4: With some variations...

Step 1: Watch the clip

Step 2: Write the scene using a NEW perspective. If you wrote as Hermione, pick Ron this time, etc...

Step 3: Cleanse! This time I made them walk around the room.

Step 4: Put ALL the writings away in a place you can't see.

Repeat Steps 1-4 (original)

After a third viewing of the clip, they then had to write the scene from the original perspective, hopefully this time with new insights, details, feelings, and most importantly New and Fresh WORDS.

And there you have it. So if there's ever a scene you're struggling with, it may be time to try the scene from scratch (trust me, I know this hurts, but it's worth it), and this may make doing so feel less severe.

Enjoy!

P.S. If any of you try this, I'd LOVE to hear how it goes, or even see what you came up with--you can paste into the comments.

Happy Monday!

Friday Five (or more) Dirty Dancing Edition!

2011-10-13T21:01:00.000-07:00

1. I've been taking salsa lessons with Donna Gambale, aka my writing wifey and they are SO much fun!

2. Except there is one guy in our class who is a leetle bit creepy with the eyes and the hands and... Well, he's not our favorite when we are dancing with partners.

3. But the goods news is if they EVER need to recreate this scene from Dirty Dancing, I can totes do it!

4. Is Hungry Eyes not the best dance sequence in a movie EVER? I mean seriously. Find me a better dance sequence.

5. No really. Find me one, because if there is something better than that--which I don't believe there is, but IF there is I'd be all over it.

6. I especially appreciate now how they are just doing the same step over and over again.

7. I used to think this sequence was very complicated.

8. But it's not.

9. True story.

10. Is there anything more fun than dancing? Because I find it SOOOOOO fun!

11. Also, I wear clothes.

12. Just saying.

13. What fun things are you doing this weekend?

Kick A** 2011 Debut Author Spotlight

2011-10-10T05:00:00.000-07:00

Today is Kick A** Debut Author Spotlight Day! And this awesome day is the brain child of the fabulous Christina Lee! So head over there to see who else is participating and all the awesome debuts getting some well deserved attention today.

But right now you're on my blog.

This makes you SO cool! And I'm here to talk about....

UNEARTHLY by Cynthia Hand! Here's the description:

In the beginning, there's a boy standing in the trees . . . .

Clara Gardner has recently learned that she's part angel. Having angel blood run through her veins not only makes her smarter, stronger, and faster than humans (a word, she realizes, that no longer applies to her), but it means she has a purpose, something she was put on this earth to do. Figuring out what that is, though, isn't easy.

Her visions of a raging forest fire and an alluring stranger lead her to a new school in a new town. When she meets Christian, who turns out to be the boy of her dreams (literally), everything seems to fall into place—and out of place at the same time. Because there's another guy, Tucker, who appeals to Clara's less angelic side.

As Clara tries to find her way in a world she no longer understands, she encounters unseen dangers and choices she never thought she'd have to make—between honesty and deceit, love and duty, good and evil. When the fire from her vision finally ignites, will Clara be ready to face her destiny?

Sigh...

This was one of my favorite debuts this year and it's one of those books that stays with you. I absolutely fell in love with Clara as the main character. Though she is part angel, she had a lot of concerns that I would have related to instantly in high school and can still relate to even now.

Also the love story... This one is GOOD! There is a bit of a triangle but it is done RIGHT. And the love story that develops is so powerful and sweet and just realistic--which I love. I'm a sucker for epic life changing romances that shake the world--but I love them even harder when the romance feels real and is full of small moments.

If you want a fresh take on angel myths, a sweet love story, and an ending that will leave your mind reeling and in desperate need of book 2, then this is the story for you! Has anyone else read Unearthly? What was your favorite debut this year?

I Need Rehab...For a Book

2011-10-05T20:07:00.000-07:00

So this week I read Laini Taylor's Daughter of Smoke and Bone. And all I have to say is can somebody please send me to rehab?

Seriously! I am in LOVE with this book. Like obsessed. Like I want to carry it around with me all day everyday and peek inside and listen to the audio (yes I have both versions) and hug it and squeeze it and ask it to have my babies. I can't get the story out of my head. I even dreamed about this book the night I finished reading. And even rereading certain sections that made me cry the first time, made me cry again.

Laini, I think I love you.

So am I the only one who felt like I needed rehab after finishing a book so amazing, I forgot how to return to normal life?

Anyone coming to rehab with me?

Tell The Truth Tuesday

2011-10-03T21:17:00.000-07:00

Ye Gods, I've sucked at blogging lately. To which I say, I'm so so so sorry! You look really pretty today (or handsome if you prefer). I've been doing things. Lots of things and I won't make any promises about WHEN things will get back to normal, but rest assured, at some undisclosed time in the foreseeable future, they will!

But in the meantime, here's my truth for today.

This is going to make me sound like the biggest goody-two-shoes of all time, but whatever.

I can't stand it when people don't follow the rules! And I don't mean big rules, like driving 40 miles per hour in a 25 mile per hour speed zone. Unless you're driving behind me and I'm lost in which case I will probably drive even slower just to spite you.

And not rules like "no white pants after Labor Day." Say what? I never understood. But really it's more of a guideline than a rule. Am I right?

See, I mean, SIMPLE rules. Like when you're going to the Express Check-Out line at Whole Foods and it says "NO SHOPPING CARTS" but people continually bring their shopping carts.

Seriously! What is that? I'm a frequent Whole Foods shopper--love the fresh food, and I'm constantly on the go, so I'm there a lot but only for small purchases so their super express lane is like a big shiny rainbow to me.

Until people show up and start trying to push their carts down a row that was specifically designed for No Carts.

NO CARTS! There is a big fat sign and everything.

Or there used to be.

Yes. So many people were incapable of reading the sign and following the No Cart rule, that they took the sign away from me (not that I was possessive of it or anything) and now carts are technically allowed. Well, they're tolerated.

But I know the truth.

So there you go. What goody-two-shoe truth are you harboring beneath your white pants?

Philly Lit Night: West Chester Crawl

2011-09-24T05:58:00.000-07:00

Guess what you guys! It's a Saturday! And it's been a whole two months since the last time Simon C. Larter and I ~~forced~~ asked a bunch of Philly writers to hang out with us. So you know what that means!?!?!??

It's Philly Lit Night ~~Tonight~~ Today!

And this time we're back in the suburbs and heading to the mythical, magical land of WEST CHESTER.

OOOOH!

AAAAH!

Anyway, in case you were wavering about whether or not to come (obviously you should come--WHY are you wavering? COME! COME!) or if you didn't know (WHAT!?!? Get on our email list!) or you forgot...(ok, this I can forgive) then here are all the details you'll need to come and have the best rainy Saturday of your life!

Until the next one.

When: TODAY (9/24/11)

Time: 3:30 PM until....whenever....

Where: Meet us at Starbucks, 2 W. Gay Street, West Chester, PA. And then after we're caffeinated and making slightly less awkward small talk, we'll go across the street to the Iron Hill Brewery.

Why: Because I like you!

If you get confused or can't find us (you will, just follow the noise) you can always send me or Simon a message or twitter DM and we'll find you! We are very skilled at finding people trying to find us.

Hope to see you there. And if you're not coming (sob) have a great Saturday!

This One Time at PAYA

2011-08-30T18:36:00.000-07:00

Here are a list of true things I've done recently:

1. Killed my pinkie toe, walking in the dark.
2. Bought a lot of books.
3. Read a lot of books.
4. Did NOT lost power during Hurricane Irene
5. Expected I WOULD lose power during Irene
6. Went to PAYA, despite believing I would soon lose power during Irene.
7. Interviewed a bunch of people about what they'd do when they did lose power during Irene.
8. Basically, I obsessed over Irene. And hurt my toe.

But I also went to PAYA (PA library fundraiser and book signing), and I have pictures and a video. Here you go.

Amy Holder (LIPSTICK LAWS) and me

Kelly Lyman and First Novels Club Sara DeSabato

Christine Danek and K.M. Walton (CRACKED)

Amy Holder (LIPSTICK LAWS) and Jessica Corra (AFTER YOU)

The Early Stirrings of Irene

Kelly, Me and Christine

And...the video where I once again prove my mad skills with a video camera and my ability to ask thoughtful questions. And if you know me at all, you know just how MAD my skills are.

I think its safe to say once again that I shouldn't quit my day job to interview people for a living :-)

Team Kilt Winners!

2011-08-11T19:46:00.000-07:00

Sooooooo we didn't beat Jace. But we sure stayed close! And I think considering everything, with the amount of excitement Team Kilt caused, the money it raised for charity, and the dedication we had through this whole tourney, it's kind of hard not to feel like we won anyway.

Which is why I've picked two winners! One to win the arcs! And one to win personalized copies of SHADE and SHIFT! Yay!

Without further ado...

The winner of arcs of EVE, THE FUTURE OF US, LEGEND and a Signed + Doodled in FOREVER is:

VIOLET! (Guys, Violet voted 25 times and harassed all of her co-workers. Now THAT's the Team Kilt spirit! Congrats, Violet!

And the winner of personalized copies of SHADE and SHIFT are....

BWYATT!

Wooohoo! Congrats to all the winners and Zachary Moore for putting up one hell of a fight!

Epic Arc Giveaway for Team Kilt!

2011-08-10T11:14:00.000-07:00

Today is the final round of the YA Sisterhood's YA Crush Tourney! The opponents: Zachary Moore from the SHADE series by Jeri Smith-Ready and Jace Wayland from THE MORTAL INSTRUMENTS series by Cassandra Clare.

Now I love me some Jace Wayland, but I LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE Zachary!

I love Zachary SO much, that I'm prepared to offer you things if you help him win.

Don't ever let it be said that I was past bribery ;)

Oh, helloooooooo!

Zachary is a science geek, and SCOTTISH, wears a kilt to prom, has an ACCENT, is built, plays soccer, and knows how to KISS. Trust me, the kissing scenes Zachary's in during SHADE and SHIFT are some of my all-time favorites.

And I've read A LOT of kissing scenes.

Plus, Zachary is the underdog. No one thought he'd come this far. And now that he's here in the final round, he needs to go home a victor!

So....here's the deal. Go HERE and vote for Zachary right now! If you have more than one computer in your house you can vote more than once! Do it. It's fun!

Once you've voted, leave a comment below to tell me you did. And BAM you're entered! The more times you vote, the more times you can enter. Just let me know (and BE HONEST) how many times you voted.

Tweet this contest and you'll get another point. Cool?

BTW you don't have to follow me to win this, but dude, I am SO fun, so obviously you should :-)

Oh! And here's what you win! 4 ARCS!!!!

1 arc of EVE by Anna Carey
1 arc of LEGEND by Marie Lu
1 arc of THE FUTURE OF US by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler
And...
1 arc of FOREVER by Maggie Stiefvater (signed and doodled in).

And to give you more incentive...

If Zachary wins...I will pick a second winner. What do they win? A copy of Shade and Shift signed personally to them by Jeri Smith-Ready!

Ok! Go vote! TEAM KILT!!!!

Also check here for more Team Kilt giveaways!

Want to know what's under that kilt? Vote for Zachary and find out!

P.S. Yes, this is international!

Friday Five (or more) Awesome Edition!

2011-08-05T03:00:00.000-07:00

1. CONGRATULATIONS to my friend, Jessica Corra who sold her debut to Dial! Check it out!

Jessica Corra's debut AFTER YOU, featuring a seventeen girl who can rewind moments in her life and change the present, but when her twin sister kills herself, she has to face that trying to rewrite the past might be risking her own future pitched as Before I Fall meets The Sky is Everywhere, to Kate Harrison at Dial Children's, by Suzie Townsend at FinePrint Literary Management.

2. CONGRATULATIONS to my other amazing friend (and hair twin), Dawn Metcalf who just sold two books to Harlequin Teen! Look!

Dawn Metcalf's INDELIBLE INK, featuring a heroine who is accidentally marked by a mysterious boy, which places her in the midst of a dangerous, otherworldly plot to end the Age of Man, to Natashya Wilson at Harelquin Teen, in a two-book deal, byMichael Bourret at Dystel & Goderich Literary Management (World).

3. I don't know how many of you are following and voting in the YA Crush Tourney but I am obsessed and 110% on Team Kilt, which means I'm voting for Zachary Moore, one of my all time favorite YA love interests, who is adorable and a science geek, and brave, and SCOTTISH. He was also created by one of my all-time favorite writers, Jeri Smith-Ready. So GO VOTE TEAM KILT! Because amazing things happen when Zachary wins.

4. Did you see my TUMBLR because OMG I can tumbl now! I wear clothes. I take pictures of it.

5. The Naked and The Famous are giving free concerts in Philly and NYC this weekend! Do you even KNOW how excited I am? I AM!

6. Have a great weekend!

Say What?

2011-08-02T03:00:00.000-07:00

In which I respond to songs on the radio.

Because obviously, the writers of the lyrics were asking me a direct question.

O_o

Hey, you never know.

Nicki Minaj--Super Bass

Nicki: Yes I did, yes I did, somebody please tell him (curses) who I is.

Frankie: NO! No I will not tell him who you is are! Come back when you've learned some grammar! Thank you. Bye!

Avril Lavigne--Smile

Avril: Last night I blacked out, I think. What did you, what did you put in my drink? I remember making out and then.... Oh! Oh!

Frankie: Avril! That is called a rufie! Run, don't walk away from this guy, I don't care how long it's been since you smiled! The only time it's acceptable to wake up and NOT remember the night before is when you're sleeping with Edward Cullen.

David Guetta--Where Them Girls At?

David: I see this one, I'm about to go in. Then she said, "I'm here with my friends."

Frankie: If you wanna be my lover, you gotta get with my friends...

Katy Perry--Last Friday Night

Katy: Last Friday night, yeah we danced on tabletops. And we took too many shots, think we kissed but I forgot.

Frankie: Ummm, no, no. No we didn't kiss. But you might want to talk to Avril...

THAT happened!

2011-07-25T03:00:00.000-07:00

Three things for you dear readers on a Monday.

1. Philly Lit Night was on Saturday and it was MADE. OF. WIN. We'll be doing it again in September and possibly we won't cause heat stroke when we do!

Paul Joseph, Simon Larter, Jessica Tudor

Sara T. K. DeSabato, Donna Gambale Kuzma, Me!

2. I saw Friends with Benefits and it WON! Bonus points for flash mobs which are my favorite! Also does anyone else find it amusing that Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis both starred in Black Swan where Natalie was totally paranoid that Mila was out to get her role, and then they both went out to make essentially the same movie (No Strings Attached and Friends with Benefits) and then Mila's was like a bajillion times better? Just saying....

3. OMG! I am on TUMBLR now! And I am hella confused. But I'm there, so if you're there maybe you can say hi. Also, produce a map for me? K, thanks! Also here's the link Frankie's Fashion Files. Yeah, I'm blogging about fashion. I'm out to prove that not all of us writers live in yoga pants!

So there you have it. What happened to you this weekend?

Philly Lit Night: Deluxe Art Edition

2011-07-21T12:30:00.000-07:00

You guys! It's been two whole months since ~~the Philadelphia Literary Society~~ ~~a bunch of people that Simon and I bribe to hang out with us~~ a bunch of awesome people who blog, tweet and write and live in or near Philly hung out.

So you know what that means!!!!!!

Time for another Philly Lit Night. And this time, you, me and Simon are taking over the Art Museum.

Or... the park behind it.

...

Maybe take over is too strong a word.

We're hanging out there.

Anyway--all the usual rules apply. In that there are no rules. But if you're free this Saturday and in or near the Philly area and you're wondering what you could possibly do to sweat as much as possible in the uncomfortable summer heat and have company while you do it, then you should come!

Here are the deets!

Where: The Park Behind The Art Museum (this is its official name on city maps, I'm quite sure)

When: Saturday, July 23, 2011 @ 4pm

What: A picnic/social gathering/sunbathing party/questioning WHY Simon and I thought heat was fun.

Why: Because I like you and it just won't be the same without you there;)

How: There are trains, subways, buses, cars and things called feet that may help you arrive.

And then, after we've sweat a lot and are really uncomfortable, we'll go over to the Bishop's Collar where there's stuff to eat and drink. In air conditioning.

Simon says we'll be there around 7. Personally, I don't think we'll last that long;)

Hope to see as many of you as I can on Saturday!

*huggles*

*UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE*
Sooooo it turns out we're chicken and not even attempting to brave the heat. So head straight for the Bishop's at 4! See you guys there!

What I Did This Week

2011-07-15T02:00:00.000-07:00

Went to Maggie Stiefvater's FOREVER tour stop in Philly

Sat in the sun!

Hung out with the First Novels Club!

A LOT!

Saw a bunch of mummies!

Considered quitting my day job to become paparazzi.

Had dinner with these guys! 1/2 of the First Novels Club and 2/3 of the Merry Sisters of Fate.

And took this picture.

What I did Not Do....

See this :(

But I plan to make up for that ASAP!

How about you guys? What fun things did you do this week?

Mega Arc Winners!

2011-07-11T16:28:00.000-07:00

Ok, guys! I've spent the weekend doing math (and I hate math) but I love you guys (so I do the math, even though I hate it).

And I have the results!

Ready!

Winner #1 of The Mephisto Covenant and Tris & Izzie is:

Sarah Ahiers (Falen)

Winner #2 of After Obsession and Cold Kiss is:

Nicole Zoltack

Winner #3 of Between and Fury is:

Lola Sharp

Congrats everyone! I'll be in touch to get mailing addresses:-)

Books of Wonder Signing Recap

2011-07-07T00:00:00.000-07:00

Guess what you guys? I went to another book signing!

Tuesday night I went to NYC to Books of Wonder to see the lovely Lisa Desrochers, Courtney Allison Moulton and Leah Clifford.

Some of the usual suspects were there--book bloggers and writers I've come to love through many NYC hang outs, and all in all it was a great night--one that may or may not have included me doing an interpretative dance of The Duff for Kody Keplinger....or me becoming a character in a book series that involved stick figures and hungry vegans...

Awkward...

Anyway here are pictures!

Lisa talks about Original Sin which came out that night (7/5/11)

Courtney, Leah and Lisa

Courtney, Leah talking about A Touch Mortal, Lisa

Courtney with Angelfire

Me with Kody (and this time I look dressed!)

Philly book blogger Jenna, getting her books signed.

Rachael! The Book Muncher!

After the signing with Lisa Desrochers

Courtney Allison Moulton (who also has three names like me), ME, Leah Clifford

Hope you enjoyed!

Mega 6 ARC Giveaway!

2011-07-05T00:00:00.000-07:00

Romeo, Romeo. Wherefore art thou Frankie's having another contest?

Ye! Her bookshelves overfloweth. Her TBR pile ever-groweth. And I heard she likes to share.

But to give away 6 arcs! Isn't that too much?

6 arcs? Did you say 6? WHAT! She's giving away TRIS & IZZIE, AFTER OBSESSION, COLD KISS, BETWEEN, FURY, and THE MEPHISTO COVENANT! Juliet! Look at these arcs! Oh! Did my heart love til now? Forswear it, sight. For I ne'er saw true beauty til this night.

You have GOT to be kidding me!

What?

You just fell out of love with me and IN love with a pile of arcs!

I like to read?

If you are really that fickle, Romeo, then fine! Run off with Frankie, read her arcs and have fun in Mantua! It's over! Also, I'm winning those arcs! Not you! They're mine!

I KNEW this wasn't going to work out! I can't believe I died for this crap! That's it! A plague on anyone's house who wins these arcs because I want them!

Guys, chill out! There are going to be 3 winners! You don't have to fight.

I fear it is too late for that. For without Romeo and without those arcs, I shall take a knife and hold it to my br--

Ok....so I'll let you work that out and explain the rules.

CONTEST!
Just in case you missed it...I'm giving away 6 arcs! And I'm picking 3 winners! Each winner gets 2 arcs! Here's what you can win!

Winner #1

Winner #2

Winner #3

Now the rules!

Entering is easy! Head over to the sidebar and click on the follow button to become one of the cool people if you haven't already. WHAT!?!? You've been uncool--no worries. We're fixing that today!

Next, leave a comment below about what you're most looking forward to this summer (books, movies, vacations, etc) and don't forget your email address so I can find you and tell you when you've won!

Want more chances to win? Ok! I award points for tweeting, sidebarring, facebooking, blogging, begging your best friend's sister's best friend to enter. Also blood sacrifices, bribery, flattery... Basically, whatever else you do, let me know and I'll give you more points!

And the best part is: There will be 3 winners! (Yes, I will take international entries)

Yay!

UPDATE: This contest has closed and the winners announced in a separate post. Thanks everyone who entered!

Meet Up With Kimberly Derting at Books of Wonder!

2011-07-04T08:33:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys,

I know I've been quiet lately and that's because my life has been CRAZY! But I have some fun pictures to share with you. Last Thursday I went to NYC to one of my favorite Indie Children's Book Store....BOOKS OF WONDER!!!!! And I went to see... Kimberly Derting (my agent-mate), Laurie Faria Stolarz, Adele Griffin and Lisa Schroeder. SQUEEEE!

I arrived at Books of Wonder about a half hour early which was awesome because I got to catch up with my friends, Faye, Rachael from The Book Muncher, Ashley, and Kody Keplinger.

I also got to hang out with Rachel from Bookshelf Lust, Mitali from Alley of Books.

And epicness of epicness, I met Jade from Jade Hears Voices. Jade's from Australia, so I didn't think we'd ever meet, but when I found out she was traveling the US and was going to be in NYC the same day as this event, I told her all about it and was SO happy that she came!

Ok, enough talking. Here are PICTURES!

Adele Griffin, Lisa Schroeder, Laurie Faria Stolarz

Kimberly Derting, Adele Griffin, Lisa Schroeder

Ashley and Me

How adorable is Kody Keplinger?

This picture has famously become known as "I attack Kody Keplinger Naked"

Rachel (Bookshelf Lust), Rachael (Book Muncher), Me!

SO excited to meet Laurie! I love her TOUCH series!

JADE! So happy I caught her in NYC! Also, she makes me feel short! LOVE that!

Squeee! I've been talking to Kimberly online for forever, so I was so excited to meet her in person!

After the signing, Kimberly and I went for a night on the town. Or a night that involved her first taste of falafel, and a random guy asking us to see naked lady wrestling...

But a few hours later, it was time to return to Philly and the real world.

Had a blast! Hope you guys enjoyed the recap!

Friday Five (or more)

2011-06-24T04:00:00.000-07:00

1. Ack, sorry I haven't blogged ALL WEEK LONG OMG!
2. I started my summer job this week.
3. And it involves me waking up EARLY!
4. I don't like waking up early.
5. So a lot of times when I sat down to blog...
6. I actually ended up...
7. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
8. BTW, did you see POTTERMORE?
9. It sounds super cool, and how awesome are J.K.'s boots peeking out from the bottom?
10. Though I have to admit, I was having other fantasies.
11. Like that she'd announce a new series about James Potter and his adventures at Hogwarts.
12. Leading up to the moment when he dies and Harry Aveda Kedavra's in reverse Voldemort by Lily-love!
13. Am I the only one who wants to read this?
14. What about you? What character in the Harry Potter world would you want a series about?
15. Ok I need to go to work! But LOOK! 5 x 3= 15! WOOT!

Have a wonderful weekend!!!

The Hunger Games GAMES!

2011-06-17T03:00:00.000-07:00

Do you want more Hunger Games in your life? Do you wish you could play Games about The Hunger Games? Does the word Games in The Hunger Games make you think of...Games?

Well guess what! Now you can play The Hunger Games Games!

For Free.

Because I like you. And I invented them.

Here are some of your favorite children's games and songs--Hungerfied!*

~~Duck Duck Goose~~ Peeta Peeta Gale!

Now running after someone while everyone else sits in a circle and watches is double the fun! Besides, ducks are SO last season

~~Skip To My Lou~~ Skip To My Rue!

I don't know who Lou is, but The Hunger Games version is SO much more fun!

Rue, Rue, skip to my Rue.
Rue, Rue, skip to my Rue.
Rue, Rue, skip to my Rue.
Skip to my Rue, my darling.

Lost my arrow, what do I do?
Lost my Peeta, what do I do?
Lost my arrow, what do I do?
Skip to my Rue, my darling!

~~Tag You're It~~ Tag, You've Been Reaped!

Outrun your friends and don't get tagged or you'll be reaped! Run fast and may the odds be ever in your favor!

~~Simon Says~~ The Capitol Says

The Capitol Says to do whatever The Capitol Says! And even if The Capitol doesn't say to do something, do it anyway! Or else, TAG--You've Been Reaped!

~~I've Been Working On The Railroad~~ I've Been Hunting In The Forest

I'll be honest. When I was growing up, I was a little girl. This whole business about a rail road and working on it didn't interest me at all. But now...it's SO MUCH FUN!

I've been hunting in the forest, all the live long day.
I've been hunting in the forest, so I'm not hungry all day.
Don't you know the guards are coming?
Gale, leave the squirrel we have to go!
President Snow watched us make out.
Katniss, shoot your bow!

And last but not least...

~~Marco Polo~~ Katniss Peeta!

It's hot, it's summer and it's time to play your most favorite and most inane game ever invented for a swimming pool. Close your eyes and pretend you can't find your friend. One person calls, "Katniss" and the other calls, "Peeta!"

Well, I hope you enjoy playing the Hunger Games Games. They're almost as fun as playing the original! Wait...I mean...

Happy Friday!

*may not be appropriate for actual children

Real Live Conversations

2011-06-16T03:00:00.000-07:00

For the better part of this week, amidst going back to college for reunion and the death of my computer screen (btw I have a NEW one! YAY!) and other things...I've been hanging out with a lot of kids.

And I feel certain that several of our conversations this week are worth blogging about.

If you agree, leave a comment.

If you don't...well, you're wrong! My blog! I'm right!

Usually....

Mostly...

Anyway....

Real Live Conversation #1

Kid: Frankie, can you help me spell something?

Frankie: Sure! What do you want to spell?

Kid: PBS.

Frankie: PBS?

Kid: Yeah, PBS, how do you spell that?

Frankie. Um, P. B. S.

Kid: ...

Frankie: ...

Kid: Ok, thanks!

Frankie: ...

Real Live Conversation #2

Kid : *yawns*

Frankie: You just yawned. I think you're tired.

Kid: I'm not tired!

Frankie: Yes you are.

Kid: *yawns*

Frankie: You just yawned!

Kid: I did not yawn!

Frankie: What do you think? That you're the pigeon? Go to sleep!

Kid: *yawns* I did NOT Yawn!

Who's tired? Not me!

Real Live Conversation #3

Teacher: And this children, is why it doesn't feel nice to be teased.

Kid A: One time, X was mean to me.

Kid B: X once said a mean thing to me.

Kid C: I feel sad when X calls me a mean word.

Frankie: Ok, ok! Everybody raise your hand if you've ever felt like you were personally victimized by Regina George.

Kids A-Z: ...

Teacher: ...

Frankie: *facepalm*

Real Live Conversation #4

Kid: Zombies aren't real, right?

Frankie: Only in dystopians.

Kid: In dippo-whats?

Frankie: Fine, Zombies aren't real.

Kid: I knew it.

Frankie: Yet...

And there you have it! My amusing conversations this week with those whose ages are still in single digits. What about you guys? Any fun convos this week?

Dear Computer Screen

2011-06-15T03:00:00.000-07:00

Oh HAI Computer Screen. How are you?

Wait...can you show me that again, you're kind of...well....WTF I can't see a damn thing.

Oh you're on vacation....

Temporary or permanent?

I see...

Were you planning to let me know you'd just skipped town for eternity?

The proof is right in front of me!?!?

That is SO not funny, Screen! I don't appreciate your comedy at all.

Yes, in this relationship between me and you with you being the inaminate object and me being the person, I am the ONLY one who gets to be funny!

Other inanimate objects go on the road!

Have you ever even SEEN a gnome?

OK! That's it computer screen! I'm taking you into the shop and I am replacing you.

For forever!

Enjoy Tahiti.

We're through!!!!!

So...uh, in case you didn't see, my screen is dead and my laptop is in the shop. So if I owe you an email or something....this is why I'm behind. That and I was pretending to be in college again all weekend at Reunion.

Happy Wednesday!

I Want To Bake You A Cake

2011-06-14T03:00:00.000-07:00

This Video!

Seriously!

That is all.

Bloodlines Winner!!!

2011-06-12T18:56:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys! I hope you all had a fabulous weekend! I just got home from my college reunion at Cornell University. I had a blast. Also, I got sunburn. On ONE shoulder. Not the other. Don't ask.

But I know why you're here..

To see if you won!

Well, good news. If your name is Christine Danek, you won!!

Congrats, Christine!

Thank you so so so much everyone who entered and tweeted and linked. And thank you to everyone who didn't enter but left comments anyway--you guys rock my world.

If you didn't win, don't worry. I still have more contests up my sleeve :-)

I Vlogged Again!

2011-06-07T21:25:00.000-07:00

You guys! I did it! I made another vlog. Outside. Where people could see! And I asked you a question. Or two. Or three. I kind of lost count.

But anyway, I hope you watch and...maybe...like it?

I don't know. But here you go.

My contribution to Wednesday!

Also don't forget, BLOODLINES CONTEST!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A Letter To My Hubcap

2011-06-06T21:10:00.000-07:00

Hey, Hubcap! What on earth are you doing on the road?

Hanging out? You thought you'd just hang out? On the road? WHY?

Ok, that curb came out of nowhere!

Yes, it can happen! Well obviously if you're just laying there instead of sitting on my tire like you should be.

How is this my fault? You're the one who flew off!

No, as your owner I definitely get to decide who's at fault here. This is totally fair.

Because I'm not the idiot lying on the road!!!

Ok you know what, Hubcap, if you want to be like this...

Don't you roll away from me!

That's it. We're going to the shop. And I am replacing you!

For real!

BYE!

Bloodlines Arc Giveaway

2011-06-06T07:12:00.000-07:00

I'm auditioning for the role of Contest Announcer on Frankie's Blog.

Pardon me, but I'm auditioning for the role of Contest Announcer on Frankie Diane's blog.

You think you're going to win this audition just because you used her middle name?

No, I think I'm going to win this audition because I have a British accent. Also, Harry Potter.

Well in case you didn't notice last night at the MTV Movie Awards, I ALWAYS win awards. Also, Edward Cullen.

*rolls eyes* You're also a bit awkward.

Wh--wh--wh--what? I'm n--n--not *blink, blink, blink, blink* awkward.

PLEASE. STOP. BLINKING!

*blink, blink, blink*

You've left me no choice. Petrificus Totalus!

...

Much better! Well now ladies and gentlemen, Frankie Diane's giving away a signed arc of Bloodlines, the first book in Richelle Mead's new series that is a spin off of...Vampire Academy. Wait, this book is about vampires too?

Um, yes?

I. Have. No. Words.

Um, maybe I'm just going to announce this contest myself!

CONTEST!

So....I'm giving away a signed arc of Richelle Mead's Bloodlines and I've read it and it is FANTASTIC! I liked it so much more than I thought I would. Just trust me, Sydney isn't Rose, but you will still love her! Also, this book is for Adrian lovers!

And to win, all you have to do is follow my blog and leave a comment about your favorite scene in the entire Vampire Academy Series.

That's it!

For extra points, tweet, blog, sidebar, facebook, bribe, beg, whatever you want, just tell me and I shall give you more points.

Cool?

Ok, this contest IS international. And it ends Friday, June 10th at 11:59PM.

Good Luck! And thanks for being so awesome!

WINNERS!

2011-06-05T17:09:00.000-07:00

Woot! Results are in for both my mega-epic arc giveaway of FOREVER and DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE as well as my 24 hour tweetstakes to win a Clockwork Prince t-shirt, book mark and chapter excerpt.

And I have the winners! Ready!

The Winner of my Post BEA FOREVER and DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE Arcs Contest is:

CRYSTAL COOK

Congrats, Crystal! I'll be sending you an email!

And, the winner of the tweetstakes is...

@Jenababy13

Congrats, Jena! I'll be in touch with you too.

Thank you thank you thank you everyone who tweeted and blogged and commented and participated in these contests. You're all totally awesome in my book.

And if you didn't win...stick around. I have another contest I'll be announcing this week!

Friday Five

2011-06-03T03:00:00.000-07:00

1. It's Friday! Woot! Woot! Which means, there are only a few hours left to enter my 24 hour tweetstakes to win a chapter excerpt of Cassandra Clare's Clockwork Prince, a book mark AND a t-shirt!

2. And if you're reading this after 2pm and didn't get to enter or *sob* didn't win....you still have time to enter my BEA Giveaway where Im giving away signed arcs of FOREVER and DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE and omg you want to win because I already read Forever and it was all that a bag of chips and the end...the end! AAAH! SOOOOOOO GOOD! BTW...contest ends Saturday night!

3. Also, I guest blogged over at the Guide to Literary Agents Blog on How I Got My Agent, the fantabulous Agent Laura Rennert.

4. Post-BEA has me so spoiled with amazing books to read. I've already torn through Forever, Lola and the Boy Next Door, and Witch Eyes. And I'm currently listening to Angel Burn and reading Bloodlines and I'm ready to explode with so much book happiness in my hands.

5. I want to know what you guys are reading and loving. Tell me in the comments.

6. I hope you all have a great weekend.

7. Yeah, yeah, it's not 5.

8. :-)

24 Hr Tweetstakes for Clockwork Prince

2011-06-02T10:57:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys! It's Thursday! So I'm having a contest.

Not to be confused with my contest to win Signed Arcs of FOREVER and DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE which will go until Saturday Night (June 4th 11:59 EST). CLICK TO ENTER.

But this is today's contest!

To enter all you have to do is tweet! The contest runs from now until June 3rd at 2PM.

Simply retweet "24 hr Tweetstakes! RT to win extended chapter excerpt of Clockwork Prince, CP Bookmark + T-shirt from BEA @cassieclare Ends 2pm 6/3/11" from my twitter account which is @frankiediane.

Just make sure either my twitter is linked or you can link to this blog and leave a comment so I know you tweeted.

And that's it! Easiest contest ever. And then you're one tweet away from winning an extended Chapter Excerpt of Clockwork Prince, a Clockwork Prince Book Mark, and a Clockwork Prince T-shirt.

Chapter Excerpt, Book Mark and Front of the T-shirt (btw it's a medium)

Prize pack, back of the t-shirt

Close Up of T-shirt Back

Book Mark and Chapter Excerpt Booklet

There you go! Tweet away.

Book Fort And More Giveaways

2011-05-30T22:08:00.000-07:00

Want to Win Signed Arcs of FOREVER and DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE: CLICK!

Want to Win a 50 page MS + Query Critique by Me: CLICK!

Ok announcements out of the way....here is today's post. All about forts! Book Forts!

So because I went to BEA with two of my critique partners, we were able to haul home a LOT of books. So many in fact that we thought it would be fun to build a fort out of them.

Because seriously....is there anything better than a fort?

Made of books?

I think not!

As promised, we made a fort. And I sat in it!

And....

We also shot some videos...

You guys know how great I am at vlogging right? As in, I'm NOT...well here are 6 vlogs for you to enjoy detailing our adventures in Book Fort-dom.

My Vague Plans For The Fort...

Building The Fort With First Novels Club Donna

Me, Donna and Sara IN the Fort!

Our friend, Geoff, from Gay In Public thought we were kidding...

Book Fort Bloopers: AKA Geoff CANNOT Be Trusted!

Katniss Style Protection of the Fort
(warning: the A word)

So there you have it. We said we were going to built a fort, and we did! And if you head over to The First Novels Club where I blog with my three lovely critique partners, you can enter a contest to win more arcs, including an arc of BLOODLINES!

BEA Picture Recap + Signed Arcs Giveaway

2011-05-29T22:29:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys! Here's my recap of BEA week with a giveaway at the bottom. I took far too few pictures, but I did get enough to give you an idea of what my NY week was like. Enjoy!

Monday: Monday was the Teen Author Carnival where I got to hang out with a ton of bloggers and writers and listen to two panels of authors talk about Kick Ass Heroine's and Teen Angst. Basically it was awesome! Also I didn't take a picture but I was super excited to meet Kirsten Hubbard, author of Like Mandarin.

At the Teen Author Carnival

Got to meet Carla from the Crooked Shelf and see Jamie from Broke and Bookish.

With my friends, Philly bloggers/sisters/writers Lillie and Jenna.

With Steph Su

Finally got to meet Blogger Jessica Lawlor at Teen Author Carnival. We're both in Philly but kept missing each other.

Authors on the Kick Ass Heroine's Panel

Goofing with off Lenore who also fed me German Chocolate:-)

After the panels with Gayle Forman.

After the panel Steph Su and I met up with a bunch of awesome bloggers Lindsi, Farrah, Britney, Casey, and Heidi for pizza. And then I was off to Bronxville for the night.

Tuesday: BEA Day 1

This day began with Sara from The First Novels Club waking me up at 5am...5am...like seriously, I didn't know that the am even had a 5 o'clock hour, so we could drive to BEA super early and get signing tickets and register and I could sit in line while she went to the Children's Author Breakfast. But after a Starbucks run I kind of woke up and then the madness began!

A super energetic picture on Day 1 with First Novels Club Sara and Rachael from The Book Muncher

Hanging out with Jeri Smith-Ready made the line waiting a ton of fun. It was even more fun when Dawn Metcalf found us and we decided that our wild dark hair will forever bond the three of us.

My first day of BEA was fabulous! I got books signed by Richelle Mead (SQUEEEE), Jennifer Lynne Barnes, Scott Tracey, Kiki Hamilton and Lisa Desrochers and Taherah Mafi! Hung out with my agent, caught up with a ton of awesome bloggers and writers. And it was awesome!

Also exhausting and afterward we headed back to Bronxville for dinner and passing out!

Wednesday: BEA Day 2

MOAR waking up at 5am and getting to BEA earlier than should've been possible and waiting in line early to get in, but it was SO worth it because I got to see Lauren Oliver (SQUEEESAUCE), and Ally Condie, and Laini Taylor and Sara Shepard....and others I know I'm forgetting. Also I finally got to meet Vania from VLC Productions (SQUEEEE)!

Though I have to say meeting Gerald and Piggie from Mo Willems' books kind of made my day!

At the end of the day, Sara and I hauled our books to our room then met up with First Novels Club Donna and Maggie Stiefvater for some dinner and...

See this show if you're in NYC, it was freaking hilarious!

Thursday: BEA Day 3

Day 3 of BEA has a special place in my heart because it began at...NOT 5am! This time it was just me and Donna braving the crowds, but mostly hanging out. My favorite signing of the day was Kody Keplinger's whose new book Shut Out was super high on my "want" list. Also got to see Melissa Marr again!

Kody! Adorableness!

After lunch with Maggie from Not Your Mother's Book Club! I was SO excited to meet her since we've been talking for over a year and she is made of awesome!

After BEA Day 3, we headed over to the Scholastic Store for the launch of This Is Teen with Maggie Stiefvater, Meg Cabot, and Libba Bray.

Before This Is Teen (Me, Chelsea, Farrah, Lindsi, Casey, Britney)
And it looks like The Story Siren and Lenore are behind us:-)

Totally forgot to take pictures at the event, but here is one of me and Sara with Maggie toward the end of the night:-)

After getting a ton of books signed, we finally, wearily, made our way back home, where I promptly passed out! WHOO!

Are you still with me? Because here comes your part! The part where you win two of my signed arcs!

CONTEST!

Win signed arcs of FOREVER by Maggie Stiefvater and DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE by Laini Taylor!

This contest is International and to enter all you have to do is follow my blog! Yay--easiness!

Ok, so leave a comment below--don't forget to leave me your email address so I can contact you when you win and voila...you're in!

Want more points...feel free to do whatever you want--tweet this, facebook it, blog it, sidebar it, call your friends up and offer bribes, blood, your firstborn.... Just let me know what you did and I'll give you more points for everything.

Ok Guys! Hope you enjoyed the recap and pictures and good luck to those entering the contest!

Update: This contest has closed and the winner has been notified. Thanks everyone who entered.

MOAR Auction: Bigger, Better

2011-05-29T08:37:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys! I hope you're all having a fabulous extended weekend. I'm finally getting settled after the madness and craziness and general total awesomeness that was BEA and I have pictures and stories and arcs to give you.

Also...I built a book fort with Sara and Donna from The First Novels Club.

We could sit in it, you guys! INSIDE!

Pictures and vlog on the way.

BUT...this post is for Alabama.

My auction is still running (a few extra days bc of the weekend) and the prize just got bigger and better, and every little bit helps!

Since the bids went up to $50 I'm now offering a query critique and a critique on 50 pages of your MS.

Go here if you want to bid.

You guys are amazing and a HUGE shout out goes to Courtney Barr for organizing the efforts!

Win a Query + 30 page MS Critique by Me

2011-05-23T05:52:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys, I've joined the All 4 Alabama Relief effort and have donated to the auction to help. Starting at 11AM today you can bid on me and the winner will get a critique of their query letter plus a critique of the first 30 pages of their manuscript.

To give you a little incentive to bid on me...I did A LOT of research on queries and I am frequently asked to critique queries for other people. My own query got me a FULL request from agents 50% of the time and I had my first offer after only 2 weeks and accepted representation with Laura Rennert within 30 days from sending out my first query.

I also may or may not know a thing or two about critiquing manuscripts:-)

Anyway, I highly encourage you to check out the auctions if you haven't done so yet, and bid on something to help out. Though obviously you should bid on mine;)

Go here at 11! The auction will go for 5 days.

Ok guys! Bloggingg may be sparse this week. I'm leaving in a few hours for NYC. Donna has a full list of our plans up at The First Novels Club. And seriously, our week is JAM PACKED. But I promise to fill you all in on the cool stuff after and look out for some BIG upcoming contests, because I'm coming home with a lot!

Master the Art of the Elevator Pitch

2011-05-20T03:00:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Maggie posted THIS VIDEO with editors previewing their most exciting fall titles. Which ok, on it's own its just awesome--you get to hear Cheryl Klein, Arthur Levine and David Levithan + more talk.

But if you listen and watch closely, you'll see that what they are essentially doing is giving you, the viewer an elevator pitch for each of their books.

I know the whole elevator pitch can be a HUGE cause of stress for anyone searching for an agent or attending a pitching session at a conference. Believe me, I know. It's stressful and scary and it sounds like the most. awkward. thing. ever. Even when you're a pro.

But I've listened to a lot of pitches and have been known to force my friends to "do it again" and "again" and "again" until they have their pitch down!

So my biggest tips on this:

1. Let the editor/agent your pitching know:
   A. The identity of your character
   B. The situation that sets their story in motion
   C. The quest they must undertake, or mystery they must solve, or person they must come to love.
2. Keep it under 30 seconds.
3. Be confident. Even if you feel silly, fake it till you make it. Its just 30 seconds, put on your brave face.
4. Smile.

And watch how the editors in this video do it--study their poise and tone.

So hopefully that helps!

Talking to Writers When They're Writing

2011-05-18T03:00:00.000-07:00

Ok, so totally odd question... but what if you were walking into a cafe and spotted your favorite author at their laptop writing. What would you do?

Would you go up to them? Would you interrupt just so you could meet them and maybe get them to sign something?

Or would you stay away? Either because you didn't want to disturb them or because you'd be worried about breaking their flow, and causing them to forget their next thought thereby changing the entire ending to their best selling series and thus destroying an entire fandom's faith in all that is good? Ok, so probably it takes more than that to ruin a fandom, but you get my drift.

And then Voldemort said, "Can't we all just get along."
"Let's hug," Harry chirped in agreement.

I ask because I've been learning lately that I've been recognized or spotted quite a few times by other writer/bloggers in the area at cafes--all who didn't interrupt me at the time, but told me about it later at an event. Beyond the fact that I'm now realizing I need to check my make-up before hunkering down for my public marathon sessions, it just got me wondering. Especially because a lot of people who don't recognize me seem to think it's okay to interrupt and ask what I'm doing.

For the record, if you know me, say hi. If you don't, you're not reading this blog...and you'll probably say hi anyway.

I know if I saw one of my favorite writers writing...one I wasn't friends with....I'd probably be totally intimidated, but dying inside to talk to them and see what they're working on and if they want to bounce an idea around. I always think of Georgina Kincaid in Succubus Blues when she goes to interrupt Seth Mortensen and then goes into awe that she may have influenced a page of his book. I love that!

There's still something kind of magical about the moment a word leaves your mind and finds its way onto paper, isn't there? And seeing it happen for someone else has its own magic too.

So do you watch the magic, or become a part of it?

BEA Excitement

2011-05-17T06:58:00.000-07:00

Eeek! You guys it's in ONE week! I am so freaking excited to go, and by go I mean actually step past the ropes of BEA this year--I can barely stand it (Book Expo America for anyone just joining in).

Many of you might remember last year that I went to NY with Donna from The First Novels Club for my first in person meeting with Agent Laura. But this year Donna, Sara and I are actually going INSIDE. Squeee!

The more I read blogs about BEA and tips, etc. the more excited I get!

Also...I may be making an appearance at the Teen Author Carnival next Monday *fingers crossed*

So WHO is going? Who has been? And please share survival tips!

P.S. Friday night you can catch me at Jeri Smith-Ready's book signing in Delaware.

Philly Lit Night This Saturday: Suburban Edition

2011-05-11T03:57:00.000-07:00

You guys! It's that time again! Time for the bi-monthly explosion of the greatest event ~~on earth~~ ~~in Philly~~ ~~in the suburbs~~ you can do this Saturday if you live in or around the Philly area!!!!

Once again Simon C. Larter and I have combined forces to bring you this event of awesome. And this time...we've secured you FREE Parking!

Or..the fact that we've moved this month's event to the suburbs has...

ANYWAY....

Here are the details you need to know!

We'll be meeting at Barnes and Noble in Willow Grove, PA for lattes, and shenanigans. Possibly getting kicked out of the store, but mostly engaging in fun conversation. Then, we'll be heading down the street to the Kitchen Bar for dinner, drinks and more fun conversation.

Possibly some awkward conversation. But mostly AWESOME conversation!

Who: Me and Simon and YOU!

What: Philly Lit! Philly Area writers, bloggers, authors and publishing peeps hang out! The Greatest Night ~~on earth~~ ~~ever~~ when you have nothing else to do on Saturday.

When/Where: This Saturday, May 14, 2011
4 PM Barnes and Noble, Willow Grove PA
6 PMish Kitchen Bar, Abington PA

How: You come. We entertain. And for any commuters, there will be rides offered between events, and cars to follow for those who have trouble following directions down the road.

Why: Because I like you. Also Simon's cool too. And where else can you discuss all you want to discuss about writing and publishing and your latest manuscript with people who UNDERSTAND you. Also...because you have nothing else to do Saturday.

So who's coming? If we haven't emailed you about the event and you'd like to be emailed, let me or Simon know. Don't worry, Simon only sends out inappropriate emails once in awhile.

Can't wait to see you guys, Saturday!!!!

Friday Five: Things I LOVE Edition

2011-05-06T09:30:00.000-07:00

1. Last night I got to see one of my favorite bands The Naked and the Famous in Philly. I went with my friend Jamie from The Perpetual Page Turner Blog. And it was FANTASTIC. Also with magical parking. I turned onto South Street right in front of the concert venue, and literally, across the street was a big fat parking space. The parking gods were in my favor. I tried to take pictures....but they suck. So here's one of their music videos.

2. Last night I finished SHIFT, the second book in Jeri Smith-Ready's SHADE series and O.M.G. I LOVE this book So So So So much, that I was willing to risk anything to get to the end, including sleep deprivation, my health, the grades of my students, the possible extinction of chocolate...or not. But WOW! I'll have to post a gushing soon because as far as YA Paranormal goes this series is TOP NOTCH and awesome! Also, Jeri wrote one of my favorite kissers (yes, I'm beyond calling him the love interest because his kissing skills are like woah).

I LOVE this book!

3. Because of craziness I never got to blog about meeting Megan McCafferty last week at her Bumped signing in Princeton. Let me just say, that she is ADORABLE in person. She looks just like I'd imagine Jessica Darling as a grown up. Her son was too cute for words and what I'd like to imagine as the offspring of a real life Jessica Darling and Marcu Flutie. Also, Megan is one of the best, most animated and hilarious live readers ever. Seriously, she should do her own audio.

For an actual recap of this event check out Jamie's post, or Steph Su's post on the event!

4. In just a few short weeks I'll be in NYC at BEA with 3/4 of the First Novels Club! YAY! This combines so many things I love I think I will self combust. Conferences! NYC! Traveling with the FNC! Seeing so many of my friends! Making new ones! Hearing amazing writers talk! Going to see shows! Seriously...BEA is going to be top notch this year--I think Top Notch is my new catch phrase.

5. It is WARM outside! WARM! WARM! WARM! I'm in flip flops! I'm so happy. I do LOVE all the seasons, but I am soooooo ready for some warmth.

So that's it. I know...I counted to five...yikes. I hope everyone is having a fabulous Friday with things they love!

Possession Arc Winner!

2011-05-04T21:10:00.000-07:00

What do you get when you add finals week at one university to the first week of the semester at another?

Answer?

A long overdue Winners Post!

Whew! So sorry about that guys.

So withour further delay, the winner of the International Arc Contest for Elana Johnson's Possession is...

Jel!

Congrats, Jel. I'll be emailing you for your mailing address.

Thanks everyone for entering, tweeting, facebooking, sidebarring, bribing...you know, for being awesome!

Friday Five (or More): Royal Edition

2011-04-29T07:36:00.000-07:00

1. I got up at 5AM to watch the Royal Wedding!

2. So you know my ability to count to 5 will be SUPER off.

3. I LOVED Kate's Dress! I love Posh and Beckham! I LOVED the look on Wills and Kate's faces whenever they looked at each other and smiled.

4.Oh thank you, thank you, thank you for this, Beatrice! I now know exactly what to be for Halloween this year.

5. What was UP with that lame-o kiss on the balcony.

6. Bonus points for kissing 2xs!

7. Extra bonus points for the beyond affectionate smiles you had before, during and after said kisses.

8. But I personally think after being awake for 5 hours of my normal sleeping time, I deserved some serious smooches.

9. I bet Harry is a really good kisser. Just saying....

10. I can't wait to do this all over again for his wedding!

11. Did you know you still have time to enter my international POSSESSION arc contest?

12. Because you do.

13. Ok. Hope you all have a FAB weekend!

Possession Arc Giveaway (International)

2011-04-25T18:18:00.000-07:00

Guys, what's up with today?

It's Rex Manning Day!

No. That's not it...

What's with today, today?

That was MY question, Lucas!

Marc SUCKS! Right? Right?

NO! You guys are all wrong! There's something else about today. But what...

Frankie's having another contest?

She's ALWAYS having another contest. Is that really it?

Are you SURE it's not Rex Manning Day?

Definitely a contest!

CONTEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSTTTTTTTTTT!!!!

I LOVE contests!! Drinks all around!

So in case you can't tell...I'm having an international contest! You can win an arc of....POSSESSION!

If you've been living under a rock and don't know all about Elana Johnson's awesome debut, here's the summary from GoodReads.

Vi knows the Rule: Girls don't walk with boys, and they never even think about kissing them. But no one makes Vi want to break the Rules more than Zenn...and since the Thinkers have chosen him as Vi's future match, how much trouble can one kiss cause? The Thinkers may have brainwashed the rest of the population, but Vi is determined to think for herself.

But the Thinkers are unusually persuasive, and they're set on convincing Vi to become one of them...starting by brainwashing Zenn. Vi can't leave Zenn in the Thinkers' hands, but she's wary of joining the rebellion, especially since that means teaming up with Jag. Jag is egotistical, charismatic, and dangerous--everything Zenn's not. Vi can't quite trust Jag and can't quite resist him, but she also can't give up on Zenn.

This is a game of control or be controlled. And Vi has no choice but to play.

Contest Rules
1. Follow my blog. Trust me, it's the cool thing to do. +1
2. Leave a comment below. +1 Bonus...tell me your favorite Empire Records quote +2
3. Write your email address in your comment!

And that's it! Feel free to tweet, blog, link, facebook, bribe, beg others to come follow me. Just let me know what you've done and I'll give you extra points. +1,2,3,4....

Contest ends Friday, April 29th at 11:59PM.

Creative Writing Exercise From Me To You

2011-04-21T03:00:00.000-07:00

This week in my writing classes I decided to try an exercise first introduced to me in grad school. It's one of my favorites, because it can really lead you in unexpected directions.

I grabbed a ton of random things from home, laid the objects in a circle in the middle of the classroom and told my students to write a short story incorporating every single object.

The rules:

You cannot have all of the objects in one place--no stories about packing up your things in boxes.

You cannot go to the store and buy all of the items.

Every object must show up as organically as possible.

You can turn anything you want into a simile or metaphor or concept.

Ok here are the objects:

1. Hanger
2. Notepad
3. A copy of Grimm's Fairy Tales
4. Three Quarters
5. Two Batteries
6. A black shawl
7. A candle
8. A golf ball
9. An envelope
10. A flower
11. A badminton racket
12. A box of tissues
13. A guitar magnet (this could be used as a guitar or a magnet)
14. Plastic fork
15. Tape dispenser
16. Gold mardi gras beads
17. A pair of scissors

So there you have it. If anyone tries this out let me know how it goes or feel free to post your object story in the comments. Enjoy!

I Saw Scream 4 And It Was Made of Win!

2011-04-17T21:17:00.000-07:00

If you were like me (a totally normal girl who first saw Scream as a teenager while learning to control her frizzy hair) then you probably credit Scream as one of those movies that defined--or at least was a huge part of your middle school/high school experience. I can't tell you how many times I crowded 15 of my friends onto a couch to watch the slasher flick, or how many times I crammed onto a friend's couch with 15 others to watch it again.

Also there was the time when after a viewing, me and my bff ran into the living room with knives screaming and scaring EVERYONE. Or the time we watched it at night and all the boys started banging on the windows in masks.

Scream was basically one big scream after another for me and my friends. The bigger the scream, the better.

And then they made the sequel.

And it was ok. I've always been a HUGE fan of Kevin Williamson, his meta-scripts and his ability to poke fun at himself and write hilariously self aware characters who know they are playing a role in a movie but just can't help playing the role even though they know what it means and that this isn't really a movie, it's real life, except it's totally a movie :-)

Felicity, don't date Ben! Or...I'll kill you.

But then there was Scream 3. And honestly...I can't remember a thing about it except that Noel from Felicity was one of the killers and it mostly took place on a movie set. Right?

So I had pretty much NO hope for Scream 4 when it was announced. But after hearing a LOT of good things, I decided to go see it with some of my high school friends (the friends who crammed onto my couch and screamed a lot).

And it ROCKED! Seriously, Scream 4 was Kevin Williamson making fun of Kevin Williamson making fun of Kevin Williamson. It was hilarious. And I had the best time breaking down my continually evolving list of suspects with the bff. I don't want to say too much and give anything away to anyone who hasn't seen it--because really, half the fun of a Scream movie is figuring out the baddie and seeing what on earth happens next. But seriously, it was as good as the first. Where Scream was a scary movie making fun of the fact that it was a scary movie, Scream 2 was a sequel making fun of the fact that it was a sequel and Scream 3 was about something...and Noel...Scream 4 was essentially a remake making fun of the fact that it was a remake. And it rocked!

Plus...
Bonus: Adam Brody!

You should all see Scream 4, at least to see my face.

So who else saw it? What were your thoughts? And does anyone want to see it again with me?

Divergent by Veronica Roth Review

2011-04-14T03:00:00.000-07:00

I admit, I was holding onto this one for awhile and it took me a little while to get into, but once I did...WHOA!!!

Goodreads says, "One choice. One choice decides your friends, defines your beliefs, and determines your loyalties . . . forever. Or, one choice can transform you. In Veronica Roth's debut novel, Divergent, a perfect society unfolds into a dystopian world of electrifying decisions, stunning consequences, heartbreaking betrayals, and unexpected romance."

Here are the top 10 reasons I was blown away by Divergent

1. Four! Ok, I had to start here--with the hot boy--and his name is Four. Well his nickname is Four. You have to read to learn his real name, but trust me, you want to! The romance in Divergent was just perfect--not too much, not too little. Just enough to keep you wanting more without overpowering the plot. Trust me, after you read this, you'll be wanting more....of Four!

2. Hard Choices! Tris makes some SERIOUSLY tough decisions. Her choices were often unpredictable and often just barely the lesser of two evils and sometimes not. It really left me wondering what I might do if placed in ANY of the situations she faces.

3. Awesome Action! The main premise for Divergent is on Tris's 16th birthday she has to choose one of 5 factions to belong to--for the rest of her life. Her choice will define everything about her. And she chooses Dauntless--the brave. The moment she makes her choice, the book literally runs away with itself and you have to run behind to keep up. And maybe jump off a building or two in the process...

4. Romance! Ok, so I kind of covered this in number one with Four. But this is Four and I LOVED Four! There is a little bit of a student/mentor thing happening here and let's just say I'm a bit partial to that. It was sooooo well done. Probably my favorite aspect was the respect that existed between these two and the fact that they strengthened each other rather than trying to control or protect. And though Four had the upper hand in a lot of ways, there was a wonderful sense of equality between them.

5. Emotion! Tris really runs the gamut here. She goes through a lot, she sees a lot, she grows a lot. It's incredibly taxing on her and on the reader. But its all handled really well.

6. Insecurities! Ok, this is kind of a weird one, but I love it when a character has little insecurities--non epic insecurities, just normal ones that slow them down, make them real and relatable. Tris was very easy to relate to even if she was doing all kinds of crazy things that I don't think I'd ever do!

7. Kick-Butt Heroine! Nuff said. She kicks butt. Literally. I like that.

8. Un-put-down-ability! Trust me on this, once you pass the choosing ceremony you will not be able to stop reading. The suspense is out of this world!

9. I would have never thought of that! There were so many situations and tests that Veronica put Tris in that just made me pause and go--WOW! Really? The creativity level here is intense. I was seriously impressed with just the ideas presented in the tests. Everything felt so fresh and so original there.

10. Sympathetic Characters! Veronica created a tough world. One where you never really felt like any character was safe, and one where you kind of wanted everyone to be safe, even the liminal characters who you weren't so sure you could trust. There was a lot of gray here, which partly led to Tris's tough choices and the un-put-downable factor.

So there you have it! I didn't want to get overly specific and spoil any of the plot for you guys. But I hope this is enough to convince you.

If You Had A Theme Song

2011-04-13T03:00:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite things to do when I'm starting a new project or visualizing or dreaming about it is creating the playlist. And I love coming up with a theme song for my main character. And a love theme for my romantic couple.

But I always wonder what people's theme songs might be in real life.

You know, like if when you walked into a room, a song just started playing and everyone stopped and stared and heard your theme song playing. Or when you were walking down the street...

So just in case you were wondering...if this could be true, my theme song would be this:

Mostly I think this is one of the most adorable songs ever and I can't help but be in a good mood every time I hear it--especially when it's playing in a store I'm *going* into.

So what about you guys?

What's your theme song?

Do your character's have theme songs?

Where She Won!

2011-04-12T00:00:00.000-07:00

I have fasted for three days. I have been to the ends of the world. And I have spoken to the gods.

Ok.

SO actually I went to randomizer.org.

But thy internet oracle has proclaimed a winner for my Signed Where She Went Contest.

And the ~~gods~~ randomizer has decreed, that we have a winner in one...

Shannon O'Donnell

Congrats!!!!!!

*tosses confetti*

*gets some in eye*

*wishes I hadn't swallowed*

You have an email from me in your inbox and we'll talk deets about getting that book into your hands!

Thank you everyone for participating! I think I have another giveaway coming VERY soon!

Jane Eyre, and Your Highness

2011-04-11T03:00:00.000-07:00

This was an epic weekend. I saw two movies. In the theaters! And guess what! I'm going to quickly review them for you.

Because I like you.

Jane Eyre

Here's how the viewing of Jane Eyre went down.

I was supposed to meet the rest of The First Novels Club at an Italian restaurant for dinner just before the showing. Donna even called to make reservations.

I arrive.

This is not an Italian restaurant. It is a pizza place. There is a receipt folded into a triangle sitting on a table that says reservation. There are 4 plates and 4 wine glasses. And me

Everyone else is stuck in traffic in the apocalypse of Friday rain storms. And then there is me--all alone at the NOT-Italian Restaurant ordering food for people who are not there, looking like I lied about having friends while I sit at the only table this place has ever had reserved in the history of pizza places.

And then we saw Jane Eyre.

Highlights included:

1. Jane Eyre running from moors. In the rain. In the sun. In the wind. Running when she's poor and running when she's rich. And Sara exclaiming (after she has money), "Get a horse!"

2. St. John Rivers trying to claim Jane and marry her, but realizing she's still in love with Rochester. So he starts yelling at her "Say his name! Say it! Say it! Out loud." And everyone knows that the only appropriate response to this is "VAMPIRE."

3. Three old ladies who sat behind us WHISPERING<--capitalized to show what their whispering sounded like. One lady who'd never seen Jane Eyre before/had not read the book or even the sparknotes in highschool had a habit of asking questions 60 seconds before the film would choose to answer her question. Luckily her companion was there first.

Lady 1: Is she going to find out that's his wife?

Lady 2: This is when she finds out that's his wife.

The Movie: I knew this moment would come when you found out this was my wife.

Oh, so in case you can't tell by the chosen highlights...we didn't like Jane too much. It was definitely in need of some sexytimes as well as a new hairdo. I mean Mia's hair was worse than Felicity season 2--and that's saying something. But the scenery was breathtaking. And Rochester was hot! But um...not quite up there with the Pride and Prejudice love.

Moving on..

Your Highness

Here's how the viewing of Your Highness went down.

Me: Let's go see Your Highness...right now!

Sister: Ok. Let me find times on my phone. There's one in 20 minutes at the theater 20 minutes away.

Sister's BF: I'm driving toward the theater right now.

Sister: Wait! We're passing another theater. Let's go there instead.

Me: Check the times, check the times!

Sister: It starts in 3 minutes!

Sister's BF: I'm turning around for that one. Right now.

Me: OMG NO! Go to the other theater. We'll never make it! I am not missing previews!!! Drive faster! FASTER! We need to park, get in line and its in 2 mins! GAH!

We miss previews.

But then there was another showing 20 minutes later. We went to that one instead.

I saw previews.

:-)

My Thoughts...

Ok you guys, I have to admit, I loved this one. It was hilarious--a perfect parody as opposed to some of the more recent parodies where the jokes are so obvious they're just not funny (ie Twilight Sucks). I think what I found the most amusing here was that the character development and plotting and basic wtf-ery (oh you can block magic with a sword? Really?) were no different from any other action/adventure movie I've seen in recent history. Only this one knew it was being ridiculous and had fun with it. Guys, that's really all I want--some fun and some acknowledgement of the fun times. You know how much I love parodies. Plus James Franco is adorable and Natalie Portman was awesome and I want her warrior outfit!

So there you have it. This obviously does not say much about my refined taste in movies. But oh well.

What movies have you seen recently?

Was anyone else bored by Jane? Or did you laugh at Your Highness?

Where She Went Launch Recap + Signed Giveaway!!!!

2011-04-06T16:57:00.000-07:00

Ready to walk in my shoes for a few hours? Here we go. Hope you like boots!

2:30 Throw Janine in my car and head for NJ train station

3:45 Hop on train--spend next hour brainstorming every past tense verb EVER and record it in a notebook. Why? Just...because...

5:00 Arrive in NYC!

5:30 Snacks, bathrooms, head for subway to Brooklyn

5:45 Congratulate self on being totally the bomb at navigating us to Brooklyn all by me onsey.

5:46 Wonder if people still say things like "the bomb"

6:00 Miss our stop

6:01 Realize I may have congratulated myself too soon.... Am not the bomb.

6:10 Get off train, attempt to go back.

6:15 We CANNOT go back, the platform for trains going the other way is closed!

6:30 WTF? Why did we miss our stop and get off at a station that doesn't let you turn around!?!!?!?

6:31 Read sign that explains how to turn around.

6:32 Oooooh

6:40 Back on subway, heading in right direction!

6:45 Get off at the right stop! We are still totally awesome at the subway!

6:50 Arrive at the Bookstore! EEEEH!

6:55 Meet and hug Gayle. Am fed vegan carrot cake. Propose.

6:58 Track down forks for me and fellow blogger-vegan Mitali. Vegans unite! With forks!

7:00 Gayle reads the subway scene. HOLY MOLEY! And she read it amazing! Gayle then reads the "Adam becomes a guy" chapter.

7:15 Q+A Learn that when writing the male POV do not use the word "lovely." Also Gayle didn't listen to any music writing Adam until Adam started to find meaning in it again. So cool!

7:30 Meet Lacey from Sisters in Scribe.

7:40 Catch up with The Book Muncher

8:00 Get books signed by Gayle. Love her even more!

8:30 Return to subway. Decide to make it my bitc--well you know...

9:20 Get back to original subway station perfectly on the first try. Am SO the bomb.

9:30 Exit in the most ridiculous way ever and realize we are above ground and NOT at Pennstation like we should be.

9:50 Grumble, grumble, we're at the station.

10--1:00AM Ride train, cuddle books, fall asleep, get lost in NJ, Janine's birthday at midnight, drive Janine home, sing along to songs on ipod replacing lyrics to make songs about Janine.

2:00AM OMG it's 2 in the morning. OMG it's 2 in the MORNING!

2:01 Am the bomb

2:02 Am asleep

And THERE you have it guys! So besides getting a whole lot of books signed for ourselves, and some other people, but mostly for ourselves, I got one for you!

Which leads us to the...

Contest!

SEE! She signed it! You could win! Then read it! And love it!

Simple. Comment below (and leave your email). Follow my blog. Tell someone else to follow me.* Because I like you. Also I'm giving away a copy of Where She Went signed by Gayle Forman!

Contest Ends Monday, April 11 at 12am! And....this IS international.

* I will give extra entries for everything you do--tweeting, linking, blogging, bribing. Just let me know you did it!

Where I'm Going

2011-04-05T10:52:00.000-07:00

You guys! It's here! Where She Went is out in stores!

You can buy it, borrow it, download it (legally!!!!!), listen to it, read it, hug it, and love it over and over and over again.

And if you're me and Janine....you're going to see Gayle Forman tonight at her launch! That's where I'm going!!!!!

AAAAAAHHHHHH!

To say we are excited is an understatement.

We Are EXCITED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy Release Day, Gayle! We are so happy for you.

Also check out her hilarious blog post today about her crazy schedule leading up to tonight's launch party.

BTW--What she chose to do at 11:30 has me squeeing from inside out.

So stay tuned--we'll be tweeting live from her launch and bringing you a post of recapping goodness!

AND....I'll be picking up some signed things to giveaway here.... ooooh la la!

The Good Author's Guide To Bad Reviews

2011-03-29T03:00:00.000-07:00

There's been a lot of hoopla on the internets lately about writers versus bloggers, good reviews versus bad reviews, authors versus bloggers.

And people, the insanity must stop!

The real problem here is not that authors and bloggers aren't seeing eye to eye, it's that most authors don't understand proper Bad Review Etiquette.

And because I'm such an expert in so many things (see my expertise in vlogging, convincing Marshall's you are NOT a shoplifter, and NOT getting holes in your tires) I'm going to explain and hopefully clear up some confusion.

I present to you:

Frankie's Definitive Guide For Authors Dealing with Bad Reviews
Or...The Good Author's Guide to Bad Reviews

Follow these simple rules and you are guaranteed to have perfect Bad Review Etiquette everytime!

1. If a reviewer doesn't like your book it's totally acceptable to respond to their review. In fact, I encourage it.

Many authors seem to frown on this practice, but what they're forgetting is the written word's power of persuasion. I mean, how else can you convince a reviewer they were supposed to like your book unless you persuade them in their comments section? Honestly, you can't rely on your book alone--these things don't speak for themselves! Especially not since the invention of e-books! You must tell tell the bloggers what to like. Because if you don't, who will?

2. If a reviewer doesn't understand your book, it is your responsibility to set them straight.

Gone are the days when a reader could be expected to see what they wanted in your book, interpret your themes, symbols, messages and find their own meaning. Let's get right past this notion, shall we? Sheesh, I mean isn't reading your 400,000 page book enough? That's a lot of work and now they are supposed to UNDERSTAND it too? Puh-lease! So if you see a blogger with the wrong idea, then by all means, go and correct them. Trust me, they'll thank you for it! With cookies.

3. If a reviewer writes a bad review of your book then you must explain to them why they were wrong to do so.

There is absolutely no reason in the world for a reviewer to not like your book (your book is your baby--everyone likes babies). Not liking a book is SO not cool. So if you happen across a blogger being uncool in your google alerts, then make sure you let them know how wrong they are. Again, bloggers are busy people with busy lives and other concerns besides books and whether or not they actually like them. They often need to be told if they are right or wrong. And if they are wrong and you correct them....they'll thank you! With an amazon review!

4. If a reviewer still maintains that they did not like your book even AFTER you told them that they are SUPPOSED to like your book, then you must spam their comments section until they relent.

This one is pretty self explanatory. You know what they say. If at first you don't succeed, try, try again!

5. If you have spammed their comments section, and they STILL maintain their dislike of your book and have dared tried to argue with you, then its clear there is only one explanation for their behvaior. They are batsh*t insane.

When this situation occurs, there is only one solution. You must call upon 10 of your best writer friends to come and spam the blogger with you. It's tough love baby, but sometimes its the only way to get a reviewer to see the light of day, the error of their ways (and also all those reruns of Vampire Diaries). Also, spamming them with 10 of your friends will help clear their crazy little head. Don't worry about coming across as intimidating or like you're part of some kind of mob or mafia, or author gang. Because again, they will thank you! With their first born child.

So there you have it. Authors please stop not responding to negative reviews. It doesn't help anyone! And bloggers want help! Follow these simple rules and you'll be #WINNING #DUH in no time at all!

And don't forget...for those bloggers who write good reviews of your book--make sure their $100 amazon gift cards are mailed out on time ;)

Now you know the rules. Go out there authors and let everyone know how awesome you are. Bonus points if you tweet about your awesomeness every 2 minutes! Super bonus points if you promote your book every 3.

Most importantly, don't forget--rules were meant to be broken. So be a rebel. And if you ever followed a rule and regretted it....I hope you can laugh about it now.
;)

Three Things on a Thursday

2011-03-24T03:00:00.000-07:00

1. I'm teaching Argument in my English class and I wanted my students to self-debate an issue. First by arguing for one side, and then completely arguing for the other. The idea was to learn how to anticipate what your opponent might say in advance so they could refute the argument before it came.

Well, the topic offered to discuss by one of the students was violence on tv.

And immediately my mind goes to this:

And the whole time we're discussing violence on tv, I have Cher's speech in my head and I'm laughing to myself.

And then I discover THIS!

That not only does my class have NO idea what Cher's Violence in the Media Speech is (Nor do they have it MEMORIZED) but they haven't even SEEN Clueless!

WHAT!!!????!!!!?????!!!??????!!!?????

How!?!?!?!? How!?!?!?!?! How?!?!?!!?

Why!?!?!?!?!?! Why?!?!?!?!?!? Why?!?!!!!!??

I mean, this is coming from the girl who put this on the internet last year:

Am so horrified by this, and possibility I am getting old and out of touch, I can only see one solution.

I must fail them all.

2. The time has come again for me to do something I REALLY REALLY hate.

Laundry!

Multiply this by 100 and you'll have an idea of my situation!

But this evil is absolutely necessary because I must have cleanliness and I must have order (but not as much order as Delores Umbridge because that kind of order is just too much). Also, I must have clothes I can wear. And pack.... Because...

3. At the most Ungodly hour imaginable, I am leaving Friday morning to fly here!

SAN FRANCISCO!

Yay!!!

So there you have it--my Thursday Three!

Also, please please please tell me you guys have Clueless memorized!

Pull Over!

2011-03-22T03:00:00.000-07:00

So at Philly Lit Night this weekend (which was EPIC and awesome and fun and you should all come next time in May) we learned that Simon C. Larter writes when he's driving.

Stay off the road! Simon just had an epiphany!

He even pulled out proof and apparently his writing was semi-readable.

The car is one of my favorite places to get inspiration--usually when I'm driving I don't get ideas--I hear dialogue. Entire conversations will just play out in my head (and they always seem to be crucial turning point convos) as I drive.

I may commit a lot of on the road felonies (cough knee-driving-cough) but I can't write and drive. So when I'm in a place where I'm drafting a new story, I'm prone to suddenly pulling over to the side of the road and frantically grabbing at my notebook.

GUYS! Frankie parked her car again. I think she's having an idea...

So what about you guys?

Who writes and drives? Who gets ideas when they drive? And who is a freak like me and hears voices when they're on the road?

A History of Syke. SYKE! No Really.

2011-03-19T10:48:00.000-07:00

So after my Friday Five post where I decided to use the oh-so-cool and oh-so-outdated term Syke, there was a lot of discussion about its spelling and usage, etc.

So I took it upon myself to investigate the origins and proper spellings of this word that as much as I throw it randomly into my blog is not going to happen.

Stop trying to make Syke happen, Frankie. It's NOT going to happen!

Here is everything you ever and never wanted to know about SYKE!

You're welcome!

1. It is slang
2. It is negating. Thrown at the end of a phrase it means--Not! Kidding! Yeah Right! Joking!
3. There are two possible spellings of the word: Sike and Syke
4. According to Urban Dictionary, both are common misspellings of the word Psych. But used the same way.
5. Sike spelled with an I first appeared in the 70's (so spell it w/ a Y or you'll date yourself... even more)
6. Syke was more commonly used and spelled in the 80's
7. Syke,with a y was at the height of its popularity in the 90's
8. Syke was also the name of this dude who was friends with Tupac Shakur!
9. Syke is currently making a comeback after being used in the popular writers blog Frankie Writes
10. SYKE Urban Dictionary didn't say #9, but it SHOULD!

So there you have it! Your urban education for the day is done!

Friday Five (or more)

2011-03-18T06:46:00.000-07:00

1. Wheeeeeeee birds are chirping outside my window. I am in heaven. I love birds. Birds mean spring. Spring means warm. Warm means flip flops. Flip flops=Happy Happy Frankie

2. I think I said too many things in number 1...

3. Moving on. Sunday is Philly Lit Night with one Simon C. Larter (and me!). Check out Simon's post with all the deets HERE! If you are in the area or near the area or feeling in the mood to come to the area...obviously you should come. Because we like you. And we give hugs. Ok, I give hugs. Simon does this awkward back pat.

4. I am very excited because next weekend I'll be in San Francisco! :-) YAY! Of course this means I have to fly....but I'll be with my sister so I expect it won't be so bad.

5. You will never ever, ever believe this. But I am only listing 5 things today like a totally normal person writing her friday five.

6. SYKE!

7. Ok, ok, kidding. No one says syke anymore...

8. Ummm

9. Have a great weekend.

10. 10 is 5 xs 2

;)

What Would YOU Bury?

2011-03-17T07:23:00.000-07:00

Get ready for another one of my crazy dreams! Last night, my sleepy self landed right in the middle of a Dystopian and if I ever feel the need to write a dystopian novel, it might be semi-related to this.

So...things were normal until I realized I was in a dystopian novel come to life and the government had decided to make everyone completely alike. That meant taking away our individual identities and our stuff. They were slowly erasing everyone's pictures on facebook--we could keep our profiles, but not anything that made us distinct (because this makes sense). They were also taking away all of our things.

I was not happy about this and being kind of a pain to the local government aid who came to assist me in erasing my facebook pics. Having pissed him off, he took me to a dining hall where I was not allowed to sit with my family but another family I didn't know--possiby so I couldn't plan a rebellion? Anyway, I noticed that they'd also started dying people's hair so we all had the same color.

Also in my dystopian novel dream, there was no veganism. So my government aid upon hearing I was hungry offered me doritos which I would NOT eat and he would not bring me plain potato chips without cheese.

I lost my clothes--my original clothes that is.

And so after a very disheartening dinner with no plain chips and not my clothes and no more facebook, I drove home. I knew other government aids were making the rounds to people's homes to remove all of their personal items, but I didn't think they'd gone to my street yet.

Well, as I was driving down the block before mine, I suddenly had an impossible time behind the wheel because there were boxes and bags FILLING the road. I quickly realized that these were people's personal items that the government discarded. I started driving faster but then stopped as I drove over a box that held my old prom dresses.

They'd gotten to my house.

I located my high school diploma, negatives of my baby pictures and one other item that's escaping my memory now. I knew the only way to hold onto these things--proof I existed I suppose and was my own person--was to bury them somewhere the government aids would not find. So with my few items in hand I drove home cursing at another aid walking down the street and plotting where I would bury my personal items to keep them safe until the dystopianness of my world was done.

As soon as I woke up, all I could think about was which items would I try to save and bury?

So tell me, if you could only hold onto a few key pieces of yourself and bury them in a small box, what would you pick? What would you bury?