The Writer Who Went Too Faaaaaaaaaaa... *thud*

That's the topic of the month over at the MTV Books Blog. Please drop by, browse the posts, and share your thoughts!

Going Too Far has been nominated by the Young Adult Library Services Association as a Best Book for Young Adults! Thanks to YALSA and to the very plugged-in fashionista_35, without whom I would never know anything. Congratulations to carriejones, rclementmoore, and the rest of the nominees!

Speaking of rclementmoore, Rosemary was in Birmingham recently speaking at a Southern Magic meeting and signing her books at Little Professor. Awww, look how Little Professor gave her roses to match her book covers.



I can't wait for Rosemary's book set in Alabama, The Splendor Falls, which will be published in September. And if you ever get a chance to hear Rosemary speak, please do--she is as smart and hilarious in person as she is in her books.

And speaking of smart and hilarious...Erin Downing's single title debut, Kiss It, will be published in summer 2010, and I got a chance to read it! Mark it on your calendar. This naughty YA was one of the best novels I've read in a long time. In the meantime, be sure to pick up a copy of her latest romantic comedy, Drive Me Crazy, and check out her account of her road to publication at Reviewer X.

LOVESTRUCK SUMMER
by Melissa Walker

LOVESTRUCK SUMMER is the story of Quinn, an indie rock girl who came out to Austin, Texas for a music internship. She also plans to spend long, lazy days in the sun at outdoor concerts--and to meet a hot musician or two. Instead, she’s stuck rooming with her sorority brainwashed cousin, who now willingly goes by the name “Party Penny.” Their personalities clash, big time.

But Sebastian, a gorgeous DJ, definitely makes up for it. Sebastian has it all: looks, charm, and great taste in music. So why can’t Quinn keep her mind off Penny’s friend cute, All-American Russ and his Texas twang?

Sebastian is the kind of guy Quinn wants, but is Russ the guy Quinn needs? One thing’s certain: Quinn’s in for a summer she’ll never forget!

Jenn: In my book The Ex Games, Hayden has to overcome her fear of heights to make it as a professional snowboarder. What are your characters afraid of, and how do they conquer their fears?

Melissa: In Lovestruck Summer, Quinn is afraid of being stereotyped, but she ends up stereotyping everyone around her as a defense. A cute guy with a warm smile helps her open up... eventually.

Jenn: What has been your greatest fear as a writer, and how have you dealt with it?

Melissa: That I'm no good. Still dealing and crossing my fingers!

Jenn: In The Ex Games, Hayden goes head-to-head with her ex-boyfriend in a snowboarding challenge. Are you involved in any sports? How do you think being a woman has affected you as an athlete?

Melissa: I played tennis in high school, and now I do yoga. I've never really been a "team sport" girl, maybe because I'm afraid I won't be very good, and I don't want to disappoint others. Yoga's fun because I'm always better than the men in class, and I'll admit that's satisfying.

Jenn: For good or ill, I design my own web site. Who designed yours? What’s your favorite part of your web site that you wish more people would visit?

Melissa: My friend Paul made mine--he's great! I really love the blog best, because it's fun to put posts out and see how people respond. I love the readers I have, and of course I'd be glad to have more!

Jenn: What’s your favorite gizmo advertising your book?

Melissa: Great question! Not a gizmo, but a contest: For a chance to win Lovestruck Summer, plus 3 other great beach reads, you can go to iheartdaily.com/Harper2009.html.

Several bloggers have posted interviews with me and are giving away copies of my books. To register to win, all you have to do is make a comment!

To win copies of Going Too Far and The Boys Next Door, comment at the Bare Ass Cottage.

To win copies of Going Too Far, The Boys Next Door, and Major Crush, comment at Fantastic Book Reviews.

Thanks to the bloggers for hosting me, and good luck to everyone who enters!

I’m at a crossroads in my writing, and as always when I arrive here, I’m reading how-to-write-a-book books. My critique partner Cathy loves these books even more than I do. My critique partner Vicki never touches the stuff. How about you? What are some of your faves? For good or ill, has a writing book ever changed your direction at the crossroads? Come discuss at the MTV Books Blog.

Do you look for seasonal books--a summer novel to read in summer, a Christmas novel to read at Christmas--or are you just jonesing for the next great story? Come discuss at the Simon Pulse Romantic Comedies Blog.

VAMPED
by Lucienne Diver



Gina Covello's Perks and Pitfalls of Vamp Life

1. Hello?! Eternal youth and beauty!

2. Free. Designer. Clothes.

3. My hot new boyfriend Bobby went from chess dud to vamp stud.

4. No reflection! First order of business: turn my own stylist to stop the downward spiral from chic to eek.

5. Vampire vixen Mellisande has taken an interest in my boyfriend, and is now transforming the entire high school into her own personal vampire army. If anyone's going to start their own undead entourage it should be me.

I guess I'll just have to save everyone from fashion disasters and other fates worse than death.

Jenn: In my book The Ex Games, Hayden has to overcome her fear of heights to make it as a professional snowboarder. What are your characters afraid of, and how do they conquer their fears?

Lucienne: Gina Covello, my heroine from Vamped, is afraid of going through eternal life a total schlub. What good is perpetual youth if she can’t even touch up her hair and make up? And eternity without tanning options…barely worth living. She decides that the only way to go is to turn her stylist, maybe start an entire entourage. Unfortunately, Mellisande, local vampire vixen, has gotten there first, turning Gina’s former classmates into her very own undead army. The only way for Gina to regain her social standing is to save her classmates from fashion and other disasters.

Jenn: What has been your greatest fear as a writer, and how have you dealt with it?

Lucienne: That people will hate my work and decide that I’m some sort of fraud. By the time Vamped hit publication I’d read it so many times that I couldn’t tell anymore if it was any good. I was convinced that it wasn’t. I’m still waiting for someone to call me on it. So, dealing…that’s a work in progress.

Jenn: Boy, do I empathize.

*pause for deep sigh*

Moving on...

In The Ex Games, Hayden goes head-to-head with her ex-boyfriend in a snowboarding challenge. Are you involved in any sports? How do you think being a woman has affected you as an athlete?

Lucienne: I don’t think being a woman has affected my athleticism. Being an asthmatic…now that’s a different thing. I grew up with severe asthma. Probably part of the reason I’m the bookaholic that I am is that I spent so much of the time other kids were running around curled up with a good book. I went through about three a day. Gradually, as I got older, my asthma got better, but thankfully my addiction to books remained.

Jenn: For good or ill, I design my own web site. Who designed yours?

Lucienne: Denise Biondo designed my site. She’s amazing. I threw a bunch of ideas at her of what I might want and she managed to interpret them into my image, but better. That’s how I feel Flux did with the Vamped cover as well. They asked me for suggestions and then came up with something way more fabulous than I could have conceived. I really love the main page of my website (http://www.luciennediver.com).

Jenn: That is a seriously adorable cover AND web site. What’s your favorite part of your web site that you wish more people would visit?

Lucienne: If I had a wish, it would be for more visitors to sign up for my newsletter (http://www.luciennediver.com/newsletter.html).

Jenn: What’s your favorite gizmo advertising your book?

Lucienne: I’m planning to do some YouTube promos and other things for the book, but I really need to get on the ball! Right now the coolest thing out there advertising Vamped is the podcast my publisher did, which you can check out here: http://fluxnow.blogspot.com/2009/04/eye-on-flux-april-2009-edition_29.html

Lucienne, thanks so much for visiting!

Going Too Far is in its third printing, thanks to everyone who bought a copy, told a friend about it, or blogged about it (like Book Club Queen and Good Girls Read Books). I appreciate all of you.

Last Saturday I attended the Heart of Dixie Readers’ Luncheon in Huntsville, Alabama, with hilarious keynote speaker Vicki Lewis Thompson. At the booksigning afterward, I shared a table with Trish Milburne/Tricia Mills



and snagged a copy of Heartbreak River.



Isn’t it gorgeous? It definitely looks like My Kind of Book.

Also in attendance and signing her brand-new first book was my friend Christy Reece, who is very sweet and giggles a lot and sure doesn’t look like she would be the author of a dark romantic suspense novel like this:



But we all need to read it quickly, because the next two books in the series are coming out in May and June, with a brand new series appearing in December, January, and February!

Also hard at work is Marley Gibson, whose first book is available now in her YA Ghosthuntress series.



I’ve read earlier drafts of the first two books in the series, and I can’t wait for the third! As YA paranormals go, these are light, hilarious, and appropriate for younger readers.

And last but not least, here’s my critique partner Victoria Dahl’s cover for her book coming out in July:



If you’ve read her romantic comedy Talk Me Down with heroine Molly, you’ll recognize the heroine of Start Me Up as Molly’s friend, mechanic Lori Love, and the hero as Molly’s absent-minded genius brother Quinn. Also...remember that Molly has a job writing dirty stories? Well, one of her stories will be for sale by Harlequin as an e-book in June. Vicki says all this information is inappropriate for my YA blog, so head over to her site for the details (but only if you are 17 or older OMG).

As for me...I’m turning in the first pass of The Ex Games today, hoping for more good news...and reading!

Penguin Books for Young Readers is proud to announce the release of Linda Gerber’s DEATH BY DENIM, the third in the DEATH BY series.

Aphra Connolly is being chased by some very dangerous people. She knows her survival depends upon staying far away from love interest Seth, and listening to her mom’s lectures on the finer points of anonymity and survival. But how is a girl supposed to live under the radar and not think about her boyfriend when she’s in Paris—the most romantic city in the world? When her mom’s contact in Paris is found floating in the Seine with a deadly message stuffed in his mouth, Aphra realizes that she will never be able to stop running unless she confronts the situation head-on. Sneaking away from her mom, Aphra tracks down the criminal mastermind in Italy, only to unwittingly reveal Seth’s location. And her mistake has just put them both in mortal danger. . . .

Jenn: In my book The Ex Games, Hayden has to overcome her fear of heights to make it as a professional snowboarder. What are your characters afraid of, and how do they conquer their fears?

Linda: Aphra’s biggest fear is that she’ll have to keep running forever. She also worries that she’ll never see Seth again. And she’s afraid of letting her mom down. Finally, she decides that the only way to conquer those fears are to meet them head on – which gets her into a lot of trouble.

Jenn: What has been your greatest fear as a writer, and how have you dealt with it?

Linda: I have a lot of non-productive fears that I don’t want to validate by listing them here. Let’s just say a lot of them have to do with self-doubt and worries about things I can’t control. I figure the only way to deal with those kinds of fears is to keep working and not let them hold me back, so that’s what I try to do.

Jenn: In The Ex Games, Hayden goes head-to-head with her ex-boyfriend in a snowboarding challenge. Are you involved in any sports? How do you think being a woman has affected you as an athlete?

Linda: I’m *cough* not much of an athlete these days. But I think yes, absolutely gender affects the opportunities for female athletes. For example, right now, even as you're reading this, women ski jumpers are fighting for the right to compete in their sport in the Olympics. If you can believe this - men are allowed to jump, women are not. The IOC has some really thin reasoning as to why they are being so stubborn on this issue, but none of them really hold water. The fight is heating up this week, as a matter of fact, as the Canadian women’s team has turned to the legal system for help in their country to break this unfair gender barrier. You can follow the fight and get updates (and voice your support!) at wsjusa.com and skijumpingcanada.com.

Jenn: For good or ill, I design my own web site. Who designed yours? What’s your favorite part of your web site that you wish more people would visit?

Linda: My designer is Barb Aeschliman from Jaleroro-webdesigns.com. To be honest, we actually need to update the site – I’m more active keeping my blog up to date! – so, at the moment, there’s not any one part I wish would be frequented more because I cringe that it needs work.

Jenn: What’s your favorite gizmo advertising your book?

Linda: My only gizmo is this fun countdown clock. I really need to learn more about gizmos… and find the time to play with them!



Don't miss Linda's book launch party May 14 - 16 at lindagerber.blogspot.com!

EVERYTHING I NEEDED TO KNOW ABOUT BEING A GIRL
I LEARNED FROM JUDY BLUME
Edited by
Jennifer O’Connell
Contributors include: Megan Cabot, Megan McCafferty, Cara Lockwood,
Melissa Senate, Laura Caldwell, Stacey Ballis, Shanna Swendson and 17 other acclaimed women writers

Whether laughing to tears reading Otherwise Known as Sheila the Great or clamoring for more unmistakable “me too!” moments in Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, girls all over the world have been touched by Judy Blume’s poignant coming-of-age stories. Now, in this anthology of essays, twenty-four notable female authors write straight from the heart about the unforgettable novels that left an indelible mark on their childhoods and still influence them today. Drawing on their own experiences of feeling like a Fourth Grade Nothing before growing up to become Smart Women themselves, these writers pay tribute, through their reflections and most cherished memories, to one of the most beloved authors of all time.

Jennifer O’Connell is the author of ten books, the most recent of which are her two teen novels Local Girls and Rich Boys. She received her BA from Smith College and her MBA from the University of Chicago. Visit her website at www.jenniferoconnell.com.

Jenn E.: In my book The Ex Games, Hayden has to overcome her fear of heights to make it as a professional snowboarder. What are your characters afraid of, and how do they conquer their fears?

Jennifer O.: My characters are afraid of change, afraid of letting people down, afraid of making mistakes. I’m very afraid of snakes, so in my head they’re always afraid of snakes, too.

Jenn E.: What has been your greatest fear as a writer, and how have you dealt with it?

Jennifer O.: This is probably a tie: 1) not coming up with anything to write about, and 2) writing something that’s terrible. The only option is to keep writing and try not to worry about it.

Jenn E.: In The Ex Games, Hayden goes head-to-head with her ex-boyfriend in a snowboarding challenge. Are you involved in any sports? How do you think being a woman has affected you as an athlete?

Jennifer O.: I play field hockey every Sunday night in an indoor league. I’ve played since high school – that’s more than 20 years of playing field hockey! The women on my team are as competitive as any guy (and the fact that some have gotten thrown out of games for yelling at the ref is proof of that). I don’t know that being a woman has affected me as an athlete, except that I always want to win.

Jenn E.: For good or ill, I design my own web site. Who designed yours? What’s your favorite part of your web site that you wish more people would visit?

Jennifer O.: A sister duo in NYC designed my site. My favorite part is the book trailer for LOCAL GIRLS and RICH BOYS on the home page. I had so much fun making that. Here’s a link to my home page, which has my trailer: www.jennyoconnell.com.

Also be sure to check out Jennifer's story of meeting Judy Blume on the MTV Books Blog!

Thanks to everyone who came out to my booksigning yesterday! It was lots of fun, and I really appreciate that you took the time out of your day to stop by. Special thanks to the Little Professor Book Center for hosting me, and to Polly and Melanie for telling their friends about my book.

New reviews of Going Too Far are up at Not So Closet Geeks, Smart Bitches Trashy Books, About Books, and Look at That Book. I’m grateful to all of you for giving the book a read! There’s also a new interview with me at Reviews of Young Adult Literature in case you just can’t get enough Jennifer-y goodness, and they’re giving away a signed (by me, even!) copy of Going Too Far here.

Well, enough about Going Too Far and Meg’s spring break. Let’s hear about April Henry’s!

TORCHED by April Henry



When Ellie’s parents are busted for possession of marijuana, the FBI gives her a choice: infiltrate the Mother Earth Defenders (MED), a radical environmental group, or her parents will go to jail. At first Ellie is more than willing to entrap the MEDics, but the more time she spends undercover—particularly with Coyote, the green-eyed MEDic that she can’t stop thinking about—the more she starts to believe in their cause. When talk turns to murder, Coyote backs out, but Ellie is willing to risk everything to save her family—even if it means losing Coyote and putting her own life on the line.

April Henry, author of the acclaimed YA thriller Shock Point, pulls an issue straight from the headlines as she deftly explores what happens when good intentions get out of hand. With the environment a hot topic, this blend of explosive action and romance will make Torched a must-read for all suspense lovers.

Jenn: What would be the ideal spring break for some of your characters? The one they'd remember fondly for the rest of their lives?

April: I think Ellie would love to go to Hawaii with her friends and spend her days eating tropical fruit, snorkeling, and lying in the sun. (And if she doesn’t want to go, I hereby offer to take her place!)

Jenn: Do your characters go on any road trips? What are they looking for?

April: In Torched, they go to Central Oregon to make tree sits to try to protect lynx that may have moved back into Oregon. Living in a tree is probably the most bare-bones road-trip ever. You have to go to bathroom in a bucket.

Jenn: Describe your worst spring break ever.

April: Stuck at home with my parents when I was a college sophomore and felt I was way too cool and sophisticated to be with them. Plus it rained the whole time. I had sort of imagined I might be able to work on my tan.

Jenn: Describe your best spring break ever.

April: Two years ago, our family went to Europe during my daughter’s spring break. It was a magical time for us as individuals and for us as a family. The best part were the Cinque Terra, five villages nestled in the cliffs above the Mediterranean. It was gorgeous and glorious and the food was divine. Fresh fish, wonderful pasta, and the slopes were filled with olive and lemon trees.



This is my daughter and me walking down the streets of Vernazza.

Thanks for the interview, April! Read more about April and her books at aprilhenrymysteries.com.

New reviews of Going Too Far are up at Books Are Life and Shalonda’s Blog. Just Your Typical Book Blog wrote an atypical tag-team review, Book Chic wrote a review + interview, and the Parkersburg News and Sentinel posted a review and a separate interview. Thanks to all of you for giving my book a read and sharing what you think!

New stops on the Girlfriends’ Cyber Circuit tour are also up on the blogs of Stacy DeKeyser, Megan Crane, Lucienne Diver, Shanna Swendson, Eileen Cook, and Melissa Walker. Now that the tour is almost over, I can say that the pithy, authoritative answer I’ve given most often to interview questions is “Cadbury Creme Eggs.”

Additional TMI in interviews from the following Girlfriends on the Cyber Circuit:

Linda Gerber: Wherein I reveal where Meg comes from.

Kelly Parra: Wherein I talk about what I hope readers to gain from reading this novel, as if it were good for you, which it is not. Hooray!

Diana Rodriguez Wallach: Wherein I describe my famous ancestor. Btw, I would have to do more research but she probably didn’t get the guillotine. Rich people could pay to have a swordsman cut their heads off instead because it was sharper and faster. This is the only thing I remember from my tour of the Tower of London when I was 17.

Stephanie Kuehnert: Wherein I discuss the soundtrack for the book. Leave a comment by Wednesday and you’re registered to win a copy!

There’s also a new review of Going Too Far on Addicted to Books. Amy says I made her flunk two tests because she couldn’t put the book down, which makes me very proud and very guilty. :(

Now I'm working on the copyedit for The Ex Games, which will be published on October 6. I'm grateful that my editor told me not to make some of the changes the copyeditor suggested. For instance, my editor does not want me to take out the attack cats. Like me, he has a cat, and he understands they can be very ferocious.

More of me on the Girlfriends' Cyber Circuit!

Amanda Ashby: Wherein I talk about my writing schedule.

Karin Gillespie: Wherein I reveal my business savvy.

Carrie Jones: This is my favorite stop on the tour this time around. Carrie calls me "a total love bunny." I discuss my Muppet problem. An orange sings Carmen. fashionista_35, this one's for you.

Happy birthday to Going Too Far!



If you can't find it in your local bookstore, please ask them to order it for you. Most bookstores will do this at no extra charge and have it for you in a day or two. Or you can always order it online.

Then sign my guestbook and tell me what you think!

New reviews of Going Too Far are up at The Story Siren, The Book Girl, and Pop Culture Junkie. Thanks to all of you for saying such kind things about my novel. And don’t miss the review by Ms. Yingling the Middle School Librarian, in which she seems somewhat appalled and actually uses the word "wastrel."

Currently I’m touring on the Girlfriends’ Cyber Circuit. Visit these YA authors’ blogs and you’ll know way more about me than you intended.

Alyson Noel: Wherein I reveal what novel rocked my world growing up.
Sara Hantz: Wherein I discuss my train wreck writing process.
April Henry: Wherein I reveal the great mystery in my life.
Megan Kelley Hall: Wherein I talk about joining the Published Writers’ Club.
Wendy Toliver: Wherein Wendy makes a link between me and corned beef.

Find out more about Going Too Far, the release on March 17, my book signing on April 3, and my PARADE!!! at the MTV Books Blog.

Just got back from the YMCA, where I picked up the March issue of Lipstick, a free magazine in Birmingham that I always thought was way too cool to survive. I will tell this story as I explained it to my husband, including his appropriate sound effects.

Me: Look, this is the free Birmingham magazine that ran that hilarious story about my writers’ group.

Husband: Uh-huh?

Me: In the front they run an A to Z for the month, and guess who’s R this month?

Lipstick:



R: READ. Going Too Far, a young adult novel by Birmingham author Jennifer Echols, will be released on March 17. None of us in the office could put the advance copy down.

Husband: Ahhhhhhhhh!

Me: But remember, I told you this is their last issue? They closed down.

Husband: Awwwwwwww!

Me: I know. It’s really sad. They were so cool. I hope the editor and the other chicks start some new great project. Probably it would do better commercially if it weren’t quite so awesome.

Husband: That’s got to be weird, seeing your novel in a magazine. I know I feel that way when I see it in a store. I think, “There’s my wife!”

Me: Yeah, I do have that reaction. Not about my wife.

Husband: A lot of these little karma things are happening with this book. Word of mouth. You watch, it’s going to take off.

Small Child: You’re going to be FAY-mous Mama, ma-ma-ma-ma-ma-ma-ma-ma-mommy-o.

Lipstick: N: NATIONAL PANIC DAY.

I've reached the last milestone before Going Too Far is released on March 17: my Big Box 'O Books from Simon & Schuster!



One of these has your name on it. Just promise to review it and send me the web address of your book review blog (echolsjenn at yahoo dot com), and I'll mail you a copy.

In other news, several more review sites have been very kind to the book: Lauren's Crammed Bookshelf, Books by their Cover, Book Loons, Writer's Block Reviews, and Young Adult Romance Reviews. And be sure to check out Nocturnal Reviews, which reviewed the book AND posted a beautiful photo of the heroine, Meg.