School Library Journal» Summerteen

SLJ SummerTeen: Classic Twists

Shelley Diaz — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 19:03:07 +0000

Teens no longer have to moan when they’re assigned Shakespeare and Dickens, thanks in part to a group of YA authors who’ve revamped and modernized works by such classic authors, making them far more accessible to students than ever before.

Gareth Hinds, Marissa Meyer, and Sean Michael Wilson were among the speakers participating on the “Classic Twists” panel during SLJ’s SummerTeen virtual conference on August 9, sharing their views on writing adaptations for young adults.

Hinds, a 2011 participant in SLJ’s Battle of the Books, uses graphic novels to retell classics such as Beowulf (2007) and The Odyssey (2010, both Candlewick), as well as adaptations of Shakespeare’s plays. “Gods were the ancient Greeks’ superheroes,” says Hinds. “What better way to read about them than through the comic book medium?” His versions of the classics allow “the page to be a stage that characters walk around on.” During his presentation, Hinds shared a sneak peek of his next project: an adaptation of Romeo & Juliet with a multiracial cast.

Meyer shared the experience of her long road to finally getting published and how her fascination for anime and the popular ‘90s Japanese TV show, Sailor Moon, inspired her to write fanfiction that would later plant the seed for her debut, Cinder (Feiwel & Friends, 2012). The first book in her the “Lunar Chronicles” sci-fi/romance updates the classic rags-to-riches tale of Cinderella and is set in the future. Complete with spaceships and hover cars, the novel reinterprets the classic tale with a mechanic and cyborg as the main character.

Influenced by Jane Yolen’s and Anna Sheehan’s fairy tale reworkings, Meyer will follow up with Scarlet, based on Little Red Riding Hood, which is coming out in 2013. It will be followed by Crest, about Rapunzel, and Winter, about Snow White. Meyer says the theme of good conquering evil is one that attracts teens, and she sees a resurgence of teen interest in fairy tales as seen in the films Snow White and the Huntsman and Once Upon a Time.

Based in Scotland, but speaking from Japan, Wilson spoke about his range of graphic novels, from manga to American/British style comics, some bilingual and others in English and later translated to Japanese. Wilson’s “Classical Comics” series offers readers titles such as A Christmas Carol and Wuthering Heights in unabridged and “Quick Text” editions. His texts stay true to the originals and have been designed to be used in classrooms as a companion to the original text. Wilson has also adapted well-known Japanese stories, including The 47 Ronin, which follows the fate of former samurais wanting revenge for their master’s death. His dream adaptation? Franz Kafka’s short stories.

Although the three authors have distinct styles and approaches to their books, they did have one thing in common: they were all active storytellers long before they published their first books. Meyer spent years as a managing editor and then as a Seattle-based proofreader, while Hinds drew the characters and backgrounds for video games. Wilson stated simply: “Before becoming a writer, I was a reader.”

SLJ SummerTeen Interviews

SLJ SummerTeen: Who Will Mend This Broken Heart?

Mahnaz Dar — Fri, 10 Aug 2012 20:33:51 +0000

Why can’t teens get enough of romance novels? Because they fill readers with much needed hope and guidance, say a group of YA authors speaking on the August 9 SLJ online event SummerTeen panel, “Who Will Mend This Broken Heart?”

Kate Kacvinsky focuses on realistic love stories, where relationships have rocky, uncertain beginnings. The protagonists of her latest novel, First Comes Love (Houghton Harcourt, 2012), don’t fall in love at first sight—in fact, they don’t even like each other. However, Kacvinsky wants readers to see that surviving tough, challenging times is what makes romances so rich and rewarding.

Lurlene McDaniel, a RITA Award winner and author of several IRA-CBC Children’s Choice Award books, is no stranger to romance, but her upcoming book, Year of Luminous Love (Random, 2013), the first in a new series, explores different kinds of love, such as parental love, affection, and the highest form of love: transcendent love. While her books deal with tough subjects, such as romance in the face of sickness and death, she believes that they resonate with teens because of the encouraging message that love can triumph over anything—even death.

Earl Sewell, the author of the “Keysha and Friends” (Kimani TRU) books, says many of his fans turn to his novels for advice in navigating the strange new territory of first love. In addition to relationship drama, he also addresses current themes that readers can relate to, such as social media or the Internet. His latest, Back to Me (Kimani TRU, 2012), explores the dangers of sexting when the naked photo a girl sends to her boyfriend goes viral.

Miranda Kenneally, author of Catching Jordan (2011) and Stealing Parker (2012) and co-editor of Dear Teen Me (Zest, 2012), says her books give young readers hope for the future. Her upcoming Things I Can’t Forget (2012, all Sourcebooks/Fire, 2013) deals with a Christian girl who finds love even after committing what she believes to be the worst sin imaginable–helping her best friend get an abortion.

While the panelists address dark and difficult themes in their work, they all expressed the need to give fans a positive message, with McDaniel concluding that, “Hope is what we’ve got down here.”

Other SLJ SummerTeen Interviews:

SLJ’s SummerTeen: The Rockin’ Women of YA

Mahnaz Dar — Fri, 10 Aug 2012 20:09:33 +0000

Maggie Stiefvater, A.S. King, and other YA authors came together August 9 to talk about possible sequels to their novels, the role of social media in their lives, and their different approaches to writing series.

Speaking on “The Rockin’ Women of YA” session during SLJ’s SummerTeen online event, the panelists—which also included Nina LaCour and Jackie Morse Kessler—emphasized the need to write from a universal, rather than a male or female, perspective.

LaCour, the author of Hold Still (Dutton, 2009) and The Disenchantments (Dutton, 2012), says she initially found adapting a masculine point of view daunting but concluded that, “Even though some experiences are probably uniquely boy experiences…really it’s all about the human experience.” King, who was a tomboy growing up, says she prefers using male protagonists. And Stiefvater explains that she particularly likes the fact that her book covers appeal to both male and female readers.

Both Stiefvater and Kessler contrasted their approaches to writing series. Kessler says her “Riders of the Apocalypse” series, which concludes next spring, was an accident. There were no plans to write a sequel to the first book, Hunger (Houghton/Graphia, 2010), but Kessler says her editor asked her to write additional books focusing on the other three Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Stiefvater, on the other hand, intricately plans the plot points of her series well in advance. Despite her love of the world she created in The Scorpio Races (Scholastic, 2011), she has no plans for a sequel because, she says, the story is complete.

LaCour and Stiefvater say they’re actively involved in creating their own book trailers. King and Kessler say they’ve had to slow down on promoting their work because of their heavy workload. Although social media has made marketing easier for the authors, King cautions against overdoing it, stating that, “The Internet is not a billboard.”

Several authors say they’re also branching out beyond YA, with King co-writing an adult novel, LaCour returning to an adult novel she started in graduate school, and both King and Kessler exploring options for younger readers.

Other SLJ SummerTeen Interviews:

SLJ SummerTeen 2012: Keynote Speaker Caroline Cooney

Debra Lau Whelan — Thu, 09 Aug 2012 20:37:59 +0000

Caroline Cooney fans will be pleased to know that the YA author has finished her fifth “Janie” book—a short story called Janie Face to Face.

“I can’t tell you how astonishing it is to me that I have written five books about this girl and this boy, about their families and their friends, who do not exist in real life, but are so large in my heart and my history,” says Cooney, the keynote speaker at Thursday’s SLJ SummerTeen, a daylong online event featuring the hottest names in YA lit. “The fifth book poured out, as if I had known all along what really happened to Janie Johnson and [her boyfriend] Reeve Shields.”

The best thing about her series, about a young girl who sees her picture on a milk carton and tries to uncover the truth behind her kidnapping, is that reluctant readers who enjoy her work are always looking for the next book in the series, which include The Face on the Milk Carton, Whatever Happened to Janie?, The Voice on the Radio, and What Janie Found.

The latest installment is “full of suspense and threat, but I’m in that ever dwindling group of YA writers in whose books the good guys win,” says Cooney. “So you don’t know the details, but you do know that romance will triumph, Janie will honor all four of her parents, and the kidnapper will get hers. “

Cooney personally knows what it’s like to deal with a reluctant reader. Her son, Harold, couldn’t learn how to read for years. That’s why the YA author is so pleased that many of her books have ended up on reluctant readers lists.

“I love reluctant readers, since I know how they’re behaving at home, dreading the act of reading, postponing it, hoping it will somehow go away,” says Cooney. “I love to hear from a kid who writes to me in wild excitement, because she actually enjoyed a book.”

Cooney went on to praise librarians for putting students in touch with good books.

“There’s so much competition, and for many kids, like Harold, reading is not a joy; it’s a chore” says Cooney, whose books have received an IRA–CBC Children’s Choice Award and have landed on ALA’s Best Book for Young Adults lists. “And you librarian are the one who is picking out a book that this unwilling reader may actually decide to finish and may even go on to read another book. Your jobs are crucial.”

What’s up next for this writer? Cooney says she’s busy conducting extensive research for a historical fiction novel about the children who sailed on the Mayflower.
“I’m writing about kids who really and truly did have a hard time,” says Cooney, who was inspired by the topic after reading Make Haste from Babylon by British scholar Nick Bunker. “I was fascinated by the Pilgrims,” Cooney goes on to say. “I became fascinated by the children who would eventually sail on the Mayflower. We know about the Founding Fathers and in the last few decades, we’ve begun to learn about the Founding Mothers. Now I’m going to write about the Founding Children.”

Cooney’s just returned from England, where she visited the villages where the various families lived and followed their escape routes. Now she’s heading out to Plymouth, MA, to work on the American side of the story.

“I don’t have a title for this book, and I’m open to suggestions, because this is one of the world’s greatest adventure stories,” Cooney says. But don’t bother suggesting Children of the Mayflower, she adds, explaining it sounds too much like a textbook.

Other SLJ SummerTeen Interviews:

SLJ’s SummerTeen Speaker: Maggie Stiefvater

SLJ — Fri, 03 Aug 2012 17:41:56 +0000

Photo: Robert Severi

Waitress, calligraphy instructor, and technical editor are just some of the jobs Maggie Stiefvater had before becoming a writer. Now the New York Times bestselling author is busy working on the sequel to The Raven Boys, the first in a four-book series.

Stiefvater’s Linger, the second book in the “Shiver” trilogy, debuted at #1 on the New York Times Bestseller list, and there are more than 1.8 million copies of the series in print. The Scorpio Races, Stiefvater’s latest novel, received five starred reviews and was named a 2012 Michael L. Printz Honor Book by the American Library Association.

Stiefvater, who lives in Virginia with her husband, two small kids, dogs, and one criminally insane cat, is an avid reader, an award-winning colored pencil artist, and plays several musical instruments, including the Celtic harp, the piano, and the bagpipes. Follow her on Twitter @mstiefvater.

Stiefvater is a is a guest speaker at SLJ‘s August 9 online event, SummerTeen: A Celebration of Young Adult Books. If you’ve signed up for SummerTeen, make sure to gather your teens to hear Stiefvater speak on the “Rockin’ Women of YA” panel from 3:45 p.m.–4:45 p.m. Registration is still open.

What do you like best about writing for a YA audience?

MS: I really love the idea that I might be the author who introduces a teen reader to the incredible world of folklore and mythology. I still remember novels from my childhood—The Dark is Rising, Fire and Hemlock, The Black Cauldron—that introduced me to myth, and they literally changed my way of looking at the world.

How did you end up writing fantasy novels?

MS: Oh, there was never a time when that was in question for me. Well, I take that back. I had a brief stint as a 16-year-old where all I wrote were IRA political thrillers, but we all have those phases, right? Right? I got a piece of advice when I was young—”Write the book you wish you could find on the shelf but can’t”—and what I love to read is fantasy set in the real world.

What’s one of the most moving things you’ve heard said about your books?

MS: I think I would have to say one of the most stunning letters I’ve received in the past year was from a teen who had just lost her father. She said that reading Shiver had made her think about the nature of love and loss and realize how purely her father had loved her and her mother, and that she could believe that that love carried on after he was gone, and she didn’t have to be afraid anymore—she could be a hero. Letters like that don’t ever leave you.

How valuable are librarians about getting the word out about your work?

MS: This is a trick question, isn’t it? Because of course they are invaluable—I have countless emails from readers saying that a librarian had been the one to put my novel in their hand. Word of mouth is beyond reproach. Isn’t that how we all love to find a book?

Do you ever worry about your books being censored or challenged?

MS: No. I write the story.

What are you working on now?

MS: I’m working on the sequel to The Raven Boys (September 18), which is the first in a four-book series. It’s about a wealthy private school boy searching for the body of an ancient Welsh king and the daughter of a psychic who has been told that if she kisses her true love, he’ll die. It’s mythology and boys behaving badly and fast cars and magic—so, the book that I wish I could find on the shelf but can’t.

Other SLJ SummerTeen Interviews:

SLJ SummerTeen Speaker: Marissa Meyer

SLJ — Thu, 02 Aug 2012 20:52:11 +0000

Marissa Meyer’s debut YA novel, Cinder, came out on January 3, 2012 and is the first in her “The Lunar Chronicles,” a four-book series with future volumes focusing on Snow White, Little Red Riding Hood, and Rapunzel.

Born and raised in Tacoma, WA, she Meyer was initially inspired to write Cinder after participating in a 2008 writing contest where she wrote a story focusing on a futuristic Puss in Boots.

Meyers attended Pacific Lutheran University, where she received a degree in creative writing. Before writing Cinder, she worked as a book editor for five years and would write Sailor Moon fanfics under the pen name of Alicia Blade.

Meyer is a is a guest speaker at SLJ‘s August 9 online event, SummerTeen: A Celebration of Young Adult Books. If you’ve signed up for SummerTeen, make sure to gather your teens to hear Meyer speak on the “Classic Twist” panel from 2:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Registration is still open.

How did you end up writing fantasy novels?
MM: I started writing my first novel when I was 16—a fantasy novel about a 16-year-old princess (of course!). That novel was never finished, and I would attempt many more ideas and stories throughout college and into adulthood. I grew up, but my characters never did. When I started seriously looking into publication, I realized that I’d been writing YA all this time.

What do you like best about writing for teens?
MM: There’s a certain freedom that comes with writing YA. Teens are so experimental with their reading—they haven’t yet gotten locked into any specific genre, and when I ask a teen what their favorite books are, they often mention dystopians, paranormals, contemporaries, horrors, and more—all in one breath. This openness also allows for a lot of genre mashing and bending, which gives us writers permission to let our imaginations run wild.

What’s one of the most moving things someone has said about your books?
MM: I received an email from a teen reader who was about to go in for surgery to have metal splints put into her leg. She said that reading about Cinder with her cyborgness had made her feel not so scared and alone, and even made her feel pretty cool. I’m so honored to think my book could have that sort of impact, and I was of course quick to tell her that she is cool. A real-life cyborg!

How valuable are librarians at getting the word out about your work?
MM: There will never be a replacement for a good librarian. They know their genre and they know their readers—they’re in a perfect spot to connect people with the book they’re looking for and didn’t even know about. When a librarian succeeds at getting the right book into the right hands, it can open up a whole new relationship with books for that reader. That’s so special, and as a writer I appreciate what a difference a hand-picked recommendation of my book can make.

Do you ever worry about your books being censored or challenged?
MM: There isn’t much in the “Lunar Chronicles” that I worry about, but I sense some of the stories I have in mind for future projects could have touchier subjects. I like to think that I would have the confidence to write the story that I feel needs to be told, regardless of how it might be received.

Tell us about what you’re working on now?
MM: I’m currently knee-deep in revisions for Cress: Book Three of the Lunar Chronicles.

Other SLJ SummerTeen Interviews:

SLJ’s SummerTeen Speaker: Katie Kacvinsky

SLJ — Thu, 02 Aug 2012 20:07:27 +0000

Katie Kacvinsky can proudly say she’s already achieved her dream: writing for an audience. With three novels under her belt, including the popular “Awaken” series, Kacvinsky now writes fulltime after working in the entertainment industry and as a high school English teacher.

Kacvinsky is a is a guest speaker at SLJ‘s August 9 online event, SummerTeen: A Celebration of Young Adult Books. If you’ve signed up for SummerTeen, make sure to gather your teens to hear Kacvinsky speak on the “Who Will Mend This Broken Heart” panel from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. Registration is still open.

How’d you end up writing romance novels?

KK: I used to teach high school English, and my favorite class to teach was creative writing. You can learn so much about students through their writing; it’s amazing how many walls they will let down. The more I worked with teenagers, the more I realized all of the challenges they face in high school with family, friends, jobs, independence, relationships…there is so much drama. It’s endless writing material.

What’s one of the most moving things you’ve heard about your work?

KK: I had a fan come up to me and thank me for being so honest in First Comes Love. She said her uncle had recently passed away and she was having a hard time dealing with it. She said that my book gave her a different perspective on grieving and it helped her to cope with what happened. When my writing reaches anyone on a personal level, it’s really rewarding.

What do you like best about writing for a YA audience?

KK: I love the enthusiasm from my fans. Teenagers get so hyped up about books, probably more so than any other fan base.

How valuable are librarians at getting the word out about your books?

KK: Librarians are paramount in spreading the word about my books. I owe most of the publicity I have done to librarians, whether it’s setting up a school visit, a library visit, or a teen workshop visit, it’s the enthusiasm of librarians that have helped to spread the word. They are an author’s best friend.

Do you ever worry about being censored or challenged due to the sex and language in your books?

KK: I don’t really worry about it. There is sex and some swearing in First Comes Love, but, you know what, that’s realistic stuff. A lot of authors shy away from writing about sex, so they might infer that it happens, but I couldn’t do that in this book. Besides, my favorite authors are the ones that take risks, who aren’t afraid to be completely honest in their writing.

What are you working on now?

KK: The sequel to First Comes Love. It’s called Second Chance.

Other SLJ SummerTeen Interviews:

SLJ’s SummerTeen Speaker: Julie Kagawa

SLJ — Thu, 02 Aug 2012 19:30:03 +0000

Julie Kagawa had two childhood passions: reading and animals. At the age of nine, Kagawa and her family moved from Sacramento, CA, to Hawaii, where she immersed herself in books—and teachers would often find her hiding novels behind her math textbooks during class.

Kagawa’s passion for writing continued into adulthood, but to pay the rent, she worked in several bookstores. When she was caught on the job reading more than shelving books, Kagawa turned to her other passion—training animals—and worked as a professional dog trainer for several years. Once her first book sold, Kagawa started to write full-time.

A New York Times and internationally bestselling author of “The Iron Fey” series, Kagawa is a is a guest speaker at SLJ‘s August 9 online event, SummerTeen: A Celebration of Young Adult Books. If you’ve signed up for SummerTeen, make sure to gather your teens to hear Kagawa speak on the “Aftermath Lit” panel from 3:45 p.m. to 4:45 p.m. Registration is still open.

How did you end up writing fantasy novels?

JK: I originally wrote a novel I thought was an adult fantasy, but most of my characters were young, so my agent decided it was actually YA. Looking back, almost all my characters in my previous stories have been teens, so I’ve been writing YA for a while now, I just didn’t know it.

What do you like best about writing for a YA audience?

JK: I just really love the genre. I love writing for and about teenagers; they’re incredibly dynamic, both in story and real life They love and hate with such a passion. I also love that I can find a lot of my readers online in social media, which allows me to talk with fans and others who love YA.

What’s one of the most moving things you’ve heard about your work?

JK: It’s always the “your book inspired me to write” compliment that gets me every time. I myself began writing because certain books and authors inspired me, and to know that my books can do the same is the best thing someone can tell me.

How valuable are librarians at getting the word out about your work?

JK: Invaluable. I have nothing but awe and respect for librarians; they are so essential in getting people to read and spreading the word about great books. If they like a book, they will tell people about it, and I know of many people who will read a book or a series just based on their recommendation. They are the unsung heroes of the literary world.

Do you ever worry about being censored?

JK: To me, censoring is far more dangerous than the content of any book, and I believe it is a parent’s responsibility to decide what books their child is ready for, not a group’s decision to ban a book from everyone. To that end, I try to write what feels real—how real teens speak and act and think. I write what the story calls for, and if that somehow gets my book censored or challenged, so be it. It will still find its way into the hands of my audience, regardless of censorship.

What are you working on now?

JK: At the moment, I am working on the sequel to The Immortal Rules, the second book in the Blood of Eden series, titled The Eternity Cure, and it will be out sometime in early 2013.

Other SLJ SummerTeen Interviews:

SummerTeen: A Celebration of Young Adult Books

SLJ — Thu, 02 Aug 2012 16:26:41 +0000

A School Library Journal online event

EVENT TIME: Thursday, August 9, 2012, 10:30 AM-5:30 PM ET

Join School Library Journal and SLJTeen for SummerTeen: A Celebration of Young Adult Books and take your summer reading to new heights! Be the first to find out about the hottest upcoming titles, and attend panels on romance, science fiction, classics and more with YA’s coolest authors.

SummerTeen will bring together a blockbuster keynote with presentations on topics near and dear to the hearts of youth services and school librarians including the hottest genres and latest formats. Experience the excitement of the virtual exhibit floor with new offerings from publishers and sponsors, new book trailers, prizes and give-aways and much more.

KEYNOTE SPEAKER

Caroline B. Cooney, author, The Face on the Milk Carton

SPEAKERS INCLUDE:

Maggie Stiefvater, author, Scorpio Races
Pete Hautman, author, The Obsidian Blade
A.S. King, author, The Passengers
Karen Thompson Walker, author, Age of Miracles
Andrea J. Buchanan, author, Gift
Terri Clark, author, Hollyweird
Gareth Hinds, author, The Odyssey
Johan Harstad, author, 172 Hours on the Moon
Julie Kagawa, author, Iron Fey series
Lurlene McDaniel, author, Heart to Heart
Marissa Meyer, author, Cinder
Earl Sewell, author, Keysha and Friends series

Can’t make it on August 9? No problem! Register now and you will get an email reminder from School Library Journal post-live event when the event is archived and available for on-demand viewing for 3 months at your convenience!

SLJ SummerTeen Author Interviews

SLJ — Tue, 31 Jul 2012 21:57:18 +0000

We’ve been talking to the great authors who will be part of our SummerTeen virtual event on August 9. Read on if you missed a few or just want to review as you get prepped for this summer author-palooza! Registration is still open.

SLJ’s SummerTeen Speaker: Cecil Castellucci

SLJ — Mon, 30 Jul 2012 15:25:35 +0000

When Cecil Castellucci was in the indie rock band Nerdy Girl, she went by the name of Cecil Seaskull. Now the author of books and graphic novels for young adults has a new release, The Year of the Beasts, and is busy working on The Tin Star, a two-book sci-fi series that takes place on a space station.

Castellucci, whose works include Boy Proof, The Plain Janes, and First Day on Earth, is a guest speaker at SLJ‘s August 9 online event, SummerTeen: A Celebration of Young Adult Books. If you’ve signed up for SummerTeen, make sure to gather your teens to hear Castellucci’s speak on the “Alternate Formats: New Approaches to Teen Fiction” panel from 1: pm.-2:00 p.m. Registration is still open.

What’s one of the most moving things you’ve heard someone say about your work?

CC: Well, with Boy Proof, once I got an email from a girl saying that it was the first present that her mom had ever gotten right. They read it together, and she said that they talked for the first time in two years over breakfast discussing it. That really moved me. With the Plain Janes, a lot of girls write me to tell me that they did art attacks or noticed street art and are now pursuing art in college. I’m all about everybody becoming an artiste of some kind-amateur or professional-so that thrills me to bits.

What do you like best about writing for a YA audience?

CC: I like best that teens like what they like and don’t like what they don’t like. They cut right to it. They don’t like things that don’t ring true. So, for me, as an author it means that there is a no fluff kind of approach. Tell the truth. Tell the story. And either a kid will like it or hate it, because either it’s for them or not. Also, I adore the fact that a lot of times it’s the first time that they are processing sophisticated ideas, and I love how excited they get about that.

How did you end up writing for your specific genre?

CC: I always wanted to write YA, so I was always aiming for here, rather than ending up here. I fell in love with stories as a teen-books, movies, comics-and so that always seemed like the best people to write for.

How valuable are librarians at getting the word out about your work?

CC: Librarians are one of the master keys to getting the word out about books. They know their kids. They know how to read a kid. And because librarians are so knowledgeable, they can get the right book into the right kids’ hands. I know for me, as someone who writes about outsiders, that is very important. My books are the perfect book for a particular kind of teen, and, of course, rip roaring fun for every one else.

Do you ever worry about your work being censored?

CC: I don’t worry about that because worrying about that is the death of art. It is our job as artists to follow the story wherever it wants to go. We must write with no fear.

What are you working on now?

CC: I’m working on a book called The Tin Star. It is book one of my new sci-fi duet (two book series), and it takes place on a space station and has lots of aliens in it.

SLJ’s SummerTeen Speaker: Pete Hautman

SLJ — Thu, 26 Jul 2012 15:21:23 +0000

Pete Hautman is the author of Godless, the 2004 National Book Award-winner in the category of young people’s literature, and most recently LA Times Book Prize winner The Big Crunch, as well as many other books for teens and adults, including Blank Confession, All-In, Rash, No Limit, Invisible, and Mr. Was, which was nominated for an Edgar Award by the Mystery Writers of America.

Hautman, who lives in Minnesota, is a guest speaker at SLJ‘s August 9 online event, SummerTeen: A Celebration of Young Adult Books. If you’ve signed up for SummerTeen, make sure to gather your teens to hear Hautman speak on the “Science in Science Fiction” panel from 2:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m. Registration is still open.

We spoke to Hautman about how he accidentally fell into writing YA, why he thinks librarians are indispensible, and why it’s OK to offend his readers.

How valuable are librarians at getting the word out about your work?

PH: They are the reason I can do the work I do. My books are not what you would call “highly commercial” (to my regret!), and if not for librarians and teachers, very few teens would discover my books. In other words, indispensible.

What’s one of the most moving things a teen has said about your books?

PH: “Until I read your books, I never knew there were other people out there who thought like me.”

How’d you make the transition from writing for adults to writing for teens?

PH: My first several novels were written for adults. I began writing for teens by accident-I wrote a time-travel novel that covered about 70 years in a man’s life-and it turned out that the most interesting part of the book was about things that happened to him when he was a teen. The teen character came to dominate the story, and when I tried to get it published, I was told that I had written a YA novel. “What is why aye?” I said. Once that book (Mr. Was [S & S, 1996]) was published, I started remembering what a magical and revelatory thing it was to read books as a teen. I thought it would be fun to write a few more. Turns out, I’m writing a lot more.

What do you like best about writing for young adults?

PH: The audience. Teens are far more open-minded readers than your average adult. I love writing for readers who, when I take an unexpected left, lean into the turn just to see where it will go.

Do you ever worry about your works being censored or challenged?

PH: I think about it, but I don’t worry about it. I write what I want to write with the understanding that it won’t be embraced by everyone. In fact, if I ever write a book that offends no one, I will think I have failed. Any good book, in my opinion, should challenge the reader. Why should I be offended when some readers fight back?

What are you working on now?

PH: I am working on the “Klaatu Diskos” time-travel trilogy. The first book, The Obsidian Blade, came out last spring. The second book, The Cydonian Pyramid, is coming next April. The third (untitled) book will be published spring, 2014. That is, assuming I finish it on time!

Other SLJ SummerTeen Interviews:

Karen Healey

SLJ’s SummerTeen Speaker: Karen Healey

SLJ — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 22:14:13 +0000

As a kid, New Zealand-born author Karen Healey wanted to be an astronaut or a dinosaur-hunting cowgirl—but not a writer. Things changed when she was bullied, and she started making up fascinating adventures that “all revolved around me being awesome.”

Now an award-winning YA novelist, Healey wrote Guardian of the Dead (2010) and The Shattering (2011, Little, Brown), both urban fantasies set in New Zealand. Guardian of the Dead won the 2010 Aurealis Award for Best YA Novel and was a finalist for the William C. Morris Award. She’s now working on the forthcoming When We Wake.

Healey is a guest speaker at SLJ‘s August 9 online event, SummerTeen: A Celebration of Young Adult Books. If you’ve signed up for SummerTeen, make sure to gather your teens to hear Healey speak on the “Aftermath Lit” panel from 3:45 p.m.-4:45 p.m. Registration is still open.

Moderator Angela Carstensen, the head librarian at Convent of the Sacred in New York, says she plans to discuss the popularity of dystopian themes with teens beyond The Hunger Games, as well as the crossover from writing for adults to teens.

What’s one of the most touching things you’ve heard from someone about your books?

“Thank you for writing someone like me”.

Including an asexual teenager in Guardian of the Dead wasn’t a particularly momentous decision for me. I just thought, “Well, why not?” I did some research and talked to some asexual friends, and that was pretty much it. But a lot of asexual teenagers and adults found the inclusion of Kevin a huge relief-just the acknowledgement that asexuality existed was really satisfying for many of them.

Some asexual readers were less pleased with his portrayal, and that’s an entirely valid reaction. I’m very sorry that I failed those readers as a writer. But I do treasure those emails and comments from readers who were happy to see someone like them.

How’d you end up writing urban fantasies?

Although my books are classed as urban fantasy (Guardian of the Dead, The Shattering) and near-future dystopia (the forthcoming When We Wake), I am basically a cross-genre nerd, which is another great thing about YA-readers tend to be much more accepting of works where it’s an urban fantasy and a crime thriller and a horror and a romance. I read voraciously across a number of genres, so it’s lovely to be able to pull inspiration from all of them.

What do you like best about being a YA author?

Teenage-and and adult!-YA readers tend to get very involved in their reading. They review, they make fan products, they passionately debate nuance and analyze the text. I love it. To me, discussing a book is just as much fun as reading it, and it’s so great to see so many young people delve into their favorite-and sometimes less favorite-works.

How valuable are librarians at getting the word out about your work?

Librarians are priceless. Librarians have pushed my books into the hands of readers, and asked me to come and speak at their schools, and nominated my work for awards, and written thoughtful, thought-provoking reviews, and invited me to nice lunches-and basically they are just great. Sometimes I get an email saying, “I got your book at the library because I couldn’t buy it, sorry,” and I’m like, “Are you kidding, that’s the best, support your libraries!”

Do you ever worry about your work being censored or challenged?

Not really? Granted, I don’t publish in the U.S. exclusively, where I understand it’s more of a concern. But I think censorship and book challenges are the worst possible ways to respond to content and ideas that you find unpleasant or objectionable. Well, second worst, next to book burnings. I regard the people who employ challenges as bludgeons against librarians, schools, and authors with complete scorn, and if I caught myself thinking, “Well, I’d better not write that because the book banners might not like it”, I’d be ashamed. Why would I want to make those people happy?

What are you working on now?

A sequel to When We Wake, my forthcoming dystopia following the adventures of Tegan Oglietti, who dies in Melbourne 2027 and wakes up 100 years later into a very different world. This is my very first sequel, I’m so proud! There are gunfights, daring escapes, perilous stakes, fraught ethics, and of course, lots of making out.

Currently, the book has the Internet working title, Cheerbaby Goes to State.

After I wrote two books, which had several title changes between the first draft and final publications, I started giving manuscripts Internet working titles for the purpose of talking about them online. The first was Mysterious New Novel, which was the working title for When We Wake, which never had a single title change. But I’m pretty sure this one will!

Other SLJ SummerTeen Interviews:

SLJ’s SummerTeen Speaker: Sean Michael Wilson

SLJ — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 14:03:36 +0000

Scottish comic book writer Sean Michael Wilson has more than a dozen western-style graphic novels and manga-style books released by U.S., U.K. and Japanese publishers (his manga have even been published in the mobile-phone format in Japan). Wilson says he tries to create comic books that are different from the “normal superhero/fantasy brands” and collaborates with a variety of non-comic book organizations, such as charities and museums. His main influences include British and American creators, such as Alan Moore, Grant Morrison, Eddie Campbell.

Currently working on books for the Tokyo publisher Kodansha, SLJ caught up with Wilson, who is a guest speaker at SLJ‘s August 9 online event, SummerTeen: A Celebration of Young Adult Books. If you’ve signed up for SummerTeen, make sure to gather your teens to hear Wilson speak on the “Classic Twists” panel from 2:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m. Registration is still open.

Tell us about the kinds of comics and graphic novels you create?

SMW: I work in three or four genres within the general art form of the comic book or graphic novel. Adaptation of classics and historical work, manga, biography and documentary books are what most of my books have been. I can understand why librarians are more prone to classification, but in my mind I don’t make much distinction between the various types of books I write. The key elements of what leads me to write a specific book are two in all cases: what is interesting for me to create, and what will publishers want/ask me to do? (Unfortunately, those two are not also going in the same direction in this money-dominated system we have at present!)

How does it feel to have such a strong teen fan base?

SMW: Well, my books are not just for the YA audience, but for adults in general. In both types, what we are dealing with are human emotions, social situations and relationships, ideas that engage and motivate people-basically about the human condition. YA books are about the human condition at that particular age.
Of course, one of the basic aims is to increase YA’s interest in reading. We might take it a step further and say what is the point of reading, what advantages does it bring? I’ve been reflecting on [author and media theorist] Neil Postman’s point that reading helps encourage logical thinking, analysis, and a feeling that the world has some pattern, and that our current lives take place within a continuity. He contrasts that to television, which encourages a short-term memory type processing, the visual, the instantaneous, thinking that’s divorced from building patterns of connection. These are perhaps less desirable. So, graphic novels with the mixture of both visuals and text are one good way of bridging between these two ways of thinking.

How valuable are librarians at getting the word out about your work?

SMW: Very important, libraries and librarians are crucial, and getting even more so recently with graphic novels. In fact right now a good example of that is happening. My Wuthering Heights book has been shortlisted in the Stan Lee Excelsior Awards, which is an exciting new
award scheme where readers aged 11-16 choose the winner from eight shortlisted books held in their school library. In the process they, of course, read the eight books, and give some considered opinion on the merits of each—a good way for libraries to encourage reading and analytical thinking. This is organized by the libraries of around 170 schools in the UK.

What’s one of the most moving things you’ve heard about your work?

SMW: I was giving a lecture about my books in a college, and a teacher was there with her 14 year old daughter. She told me that so far she had not let her daughter read comics/graphic novels, as she had thought they would be detrimental to her reading development. But that after
listening to my talk, she had changed her mind and intended to buy my book for herself and her daughter. So, I managed to bring over both an adult reader and a younger reader-success!

Ever worry about your work being censored or challenged?

SMW: Censored no, challenged yes. I don’t think any publishers I’ve worked with so far have said ‘Don’t do that.’ The challenges often come from critics and often rather narrow minded and ill-informed ones at that. I do often get upset when a critic makes some point that seems totally inaccurate to me, and based on not having thought about the book enough or just mouthing off their own prejudices. People tell me I need to be more ‘thick skinned’ about it. But sometimes a point raised can make me reflect on how I write or what I write and lead me to try to do better next time.

What can you tell us about the books you’re working on now?

SMW: I’m working on a 150-page historical manga book with Kodansha, my first Japanese/English bilingual book. It’s exciting to have this bilingual version. Also a documentary-style comic book called ‘Parecomic’, with Seven Stories Press in NY. We’ve almost finished
that one now, a 200-page book with an introduction by Noam Chomsky. I’m also doing some library based use of comics to promote literacy with the ‘Upside Comics’ group in the UK:

Other SLJ SummerTeen Interviews:

SLJ’s SummerTeen Speaker: Barry Lyga

SLJ — Tue, 24 Jul 2012 14:06:00 +0000

Having spent his teen years immersed in comic books, Barry Lyga worked for a decade as marketing manager at Diamond Comic Distributors before publishing his first novel, The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl (Houghton Mifflin) in 2006.

Fanboy and Goth Girl received two starred reviews and made the School Library Journal‘s 2006 Best Books list. Lyga is the author many books in different genres, including, Boy Toy (2007), Hero-Type (2008), Goth Girl Rising (2009) and Mangaman (2011, all Houghton Harcourt), and is currently hard at work on the sequel to his thriller, I Hunt Killers(Little, Brown, 2012).

Lyga, who lives in New York City, is a guest speaker at SLJ‘s August 9 online event, SummerTeen: A Celebration of Young Adult Books. If you’ve signed up for SummerTeen, make sure to gather your teens to hear Lyga speak on the “Alternate Formats: New Approaches to Teen Fiction” panel from 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Registration is still open.

SLJ spoke to Lyga about what how he started writing for teens, his view of librarians, and how his books have possibly saved lives.

What do you like best about writing for teens?

BL: The enthusiasm and passion of the audience. Teens are at an age where a good book—or just the right book at the right time—can still dramatically change their opinions, their visions of themselves and the world, and their futures. Adults are pretty much set. Very few adults radically change their lives in adulthood. But teens are still amorphous, still in progress, so a book can still set them off on an entirely different course. That’s a pretty amazing thing to contemplate. I don’t write books with the intention of changing a teen’s life, but just knowing that it’s possible is phenomenal.

So what’s one of the most moving things someone has said after reading one of your books?

BL: Quite simply, this: “I was going to kill myself, but then I read your book and decided not to.”

How’d you end up writing your first YA novel?

BL: Sheer accident. I had written a couple of adult novels that I didn’t sell and friends kept telling me that all of the characters in them acted like teenagers, even though they were intended to be adults. This made me decide to try my hand at a YA novel. I got about three pages into The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy & Goth Girl when everything just clicked for me and I knew that this was what I was supposed to be writing all along.

How valuable are librarians at getting the word out about your work?

BL: Enormously so! I write for an audience that doesn’t always have a great deal of disposable income, so the ability to read my books for free at the library is a gigantic benefit. And librarians—in my experience—are the best people in the world at performing that invaluable service of noticing what a kid is reading and saying to him/her: “Hey, if you liked that, I bet you’d like this…and this…and this…”

You sometimes write about sensitive topics. Do you ever worry about your books being censored or challenged?

BL: I wouldn’t say I “worry” about it. I think about it sometimes. It crosses my mind. But it never affects the writing itself. It can’t. You can’t write a story while trying to please some invisible, unknowable army of hypocrites who will never, ever be happy with what you write in the first place. There’s just no winning that game. So you write the story you want to see out there in the world, and if someone challenges it or yanks it off a bookshelf, you go and you fight the good fight. But to write a book trying to avoid a challenge or censorship… that’s ceding your authorial voice and your very soul to the forces of, well, blatant idiocy. Who would want to do that?

What are you working on now?

BL: I’m working on the sequel to my thriller, I Hunt Killers. I’m also working on a couple of other things. I always have multiple projects on shuffle—but nothing I can talk about yet.

Other SLJ SummerTeen Interviews:

SLJ’s SummerTeen Speaker: Johan Harstad

SLJ — Fri, 20 Jul 2012 13:39:30 +0000

Johan Harstad’s debut novel, Buzz Aldrin, What Happened to You in All the Confusion?, was originally published in his native Norway in 2005 and successfully made its way to 11 countries before being published in English in June 2011. The book, about a 30-something gardener’s unusual preoccupation with Buzz Aldrin, the second man on the moon, is winner of the 2008 Brage prize in the category of children’s literature and was made into a 2009 TV series starring the Wire’s Chad Coleman.

Harstad, who lives in Oslo, is a guest speaker atSLJ‘s August 9 online event, SummerTeen: A Celebration of Young Adult Books. If you’ve signed up for SummerTeen, make sure to gather your teens to hear Harstad speak on the “The Science in Science Fiction” panel from 2:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Registration is still open.

SLJ spoke to the award-winning author, musician, photographer, and playwright about why he thinks librarians are “guides of literature,” his strong views on artistic freedom, and the progress of his upcoming novel for adults.

How did you end up writing for your genre?

JH: A coincidence, really, I had only written novels, short stories, and plays for adult readers and never thought I’d write a YA novel, or a commercial novel like this. Then I was contacted by a publisher who asked if I felt like giving it a shot. I had just finished a new novel for adults at the time and wanted to do something different for my next project, so the timing was perfect.

I ended up having a lot of fun writing it, not only because all the films and novels of the genre that I watched and read when I was young sort of came back to me, but also because of the freedom and the fact that I was sometimes scared while writing it, which was done mostly at night and in the early hours, looking up from my computer and seeing my own reflection in the window. Contrary to what many people think I’m not a space geek so I had to do a lot of research, which I also enjoyed immensely.

What do you like best about writing for a YA audience?

JH: Without a doubt the fact that YA readers are still young enough not to have cemented their preference in art. They are still searching for what will reflect them and their interests, and even though they may be the hardest crowd to please, they are still very much on the lookout and somewhat open to the weirdest ideas. For the youngest YA readers, I like the opportunity to do my best to scare them for life.

What’s one of the most moving things a reader has said about your books?

JH: I get my fair share of emails from teens who have read my books, not only my YA novel, but also my other work, and I’m often both extremely thankful and moved by what they write. Being told that you have changed someone’s life is quite powerful thing to hear, it makes you want to work harder, as you remember how your own life was changed by books, films, and music that made you who you are. Also, I’m sometimes surprised and touched to hear that young readers have read my YA novel “172 Hours on The Moon” and wanting to read more, they jumped directly for instance to my 500 page play about the war in Bosnia and the Genocide in Rwanda, which they apparently enjoyed even more.

More than anything, I have to say that what has moved me the most are those few people who have ended up getting tattoos with a sentence or graphic inspired by one of my books because the books mean so much to them. That is very humbling, knowing they will carry it with them for the rest of their lives. My French translator and dear friend also has one, a sentence in my handwriting from a short story collection of mine. The tattoo, running from the side of his torso all the way up to his armpit, says something like “All the time people whom you can love are being born. All the time.” Still, no one has gotten a tattoo based on my YA novel, so the spot to be no.1 is still open…

How valuable are librarians at getting the word out about your work?

JH: Very valuable, indeed. Especially when it comes to the younger reader who’s searching and glad to be pointed in the right direction. I’ve met both public librarians and school librarians who have done a great job in promoting my work, so I’m very grateful to them as a group. In many bookstores around the world the people working there are not as well-read as they once were, but librarians, I think, still read a lot. And therefore they are able to be guides of literature. I remember my high school librarian who probably felt she was fighting a lost war to get kids to read, but she would light up whenever someone asked her for a tip. Then it was always worth it. That one kid. She had read everything, it seemed. And for more than 10 years after I finished high school, she kept promoting my books on a special display in the school library.

Do you ever worry about your books being censored or challenged?

JH: If you’re talking about political censorship or any form of censorship that threatens the release of a book, I’d have to answer theoretically as that has never been an issue. Partly because my writing isn’t particularly controversial, partly because I check my facts thoroughly when writing about potentially controversial subjects and partly because there’s very little you can’t get away with-in Norway at least. What happens to my works when they are being translated to languages I don’t speak by translators I don’t communicate with is a different thing, of course. But I don’t spend energy worrying about things that I have no ability to control. The bottom line is that I write as freely as I possibly can and am always ready to stand up for the text if needed. In general, I strongly believe in importance of artistic freedom to explore whatever feels necessary, as long as it tries to say something about us and who we are. And I have great respect for some of those artists who have put their whole lives on the line to create something that makes us all better. Or tried to, anyway.

What are you working on now?

JH: I’m working on a new novel for adults, which may come out in Norway sometime next year. If all goes well. I don’t really want to say very much about it other than that I’m in the middle of it, which is both the best and the worst place to be. Parts of it will be set in the US during the 90′s. But the characters are Norwegians. Well, most of them. It’s a novel I’ve wanted to write for years, and now I’m finally ready to do it.

Other SLJ SummerTeen Interviews:

Gareth Hinds

Earl Sewell

A.S. King

SLJ’s SummerTeen Speaker: A.S. King

SLJ — Mon, 16 Jul 2012 15:40:23 +0000

It took A.S. King (the A.S. stands for Amy Sarig) 15 years and more than seven novels to finally get published. Now, the YA writer can’t seem to get enough praise for her work—Everybody Sees the Ants, about what it means to want to take one’s life, but rising above it so that living becomes the better option, has received six starred reviews, was a 2012 American Library Association Top 10 Book for Young Adults, and an Andre Norton Award nominee. King also wrote the Edgar Award nominated, 2011 Michael L. Printz Honor Book, Please Ignore Vera Dietz, and ALA Best Books for Young Adults and Cybils Award finalist, The Dust of 100 Dogs.

King is just one of the 21 blockbuster authors scheduled to speak at SLJ‘s August 9 online event, SummerTeen: A Celebration of Young Adult Books. If you’ve signed up for SummerTeen, make sure to gather your students to hear King speak on the “Rockin’ Women of YA” panel from 3:45 p.m.-4:45 p.m. Betsy Bird, a youth materials specialist for the New York Public Library system and an SLJ blogger, will moderate the session.

We spoke to King about why librarians are her heroes, what it’s like writing for teens, and what she’s working on now.

What do you like best about writing for a YA audience?

King: While I’m writing, I don’t think about the age of my audience. That said, I really enjoy visiting readers in their schools, libraries, and communities and talking very frankly about issues that are facing them in everyday life. I especially love widening this conversation to all age groups, especially adults, because so often they are left out of the conversation and end up somewhat out of touch with teenagers.

How did you end up writing for your genre?

King: I have absolutely no idea. My books have been nominated for awards in many categories: mystery, science fiction, fantasy, and contemporary/literary. I guess I don’t really have a specific genre.

What’s one of the most moving things someone has said to you after reading one of your books?

King: In the months that have passed since releasing Everybody Sees the Ants, I have heard more than once from both librarians and teens that the book “changed their life.” That’s pretty awesome.

I [recently went on] Twitter and found this comment: “A book that changed me forever, Everybody Sees the Ants by A.S. King.” That is worth more than heavy chain store backing and all the money in the world.

How valuable are librarians at getting the word out about your work?

King: Librarians are pretty much my heroes in this respect. I am not a commercial author-meaning my books do not get top billing at chain stores and on the big online sites. I seem to fit more into libraries and schools and because of this, librarians and teachers are my closest career allies.

Do you ever worry about your books being censored or challenged?

King: I do not worry about this. It doesn’t affect how I write at all. As a library trustee who has had to field one very small challenge at our branch, I feel very strongly about a board who would limit the reading material of all their patrons based on the complaints of few. So, my only ‘worry’ in the case of a book of mine being challenged would be for the patrons or students in a library where the professional/s entrusted with the job of collection management could be overruled by people who did not have library science experience.

What are you working on now?

King: I am editing my 2013 book, Reality Boy, and I am writing the first draft of my potential 2014 book, co-authoring an adult book, and getting ready to write the first draft of the potential 2015 book by the end of the year.

Other SLJ SummerTeen Interviews:

Gareth Hinds

Earl Sewell

A Guide to SummerTeen

Dodie Ownes — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 14:13:15 +0000

I’m often jealous when I read reports from our contributors about the amazing book events they attend that feature a dazzling array of young adult authors. In fact, part of my motivation in putting together the author-palooza called SummerTeen was to give my fellow teen-lit junkies a chance to indulge themselves in an all-authors, all-the-time experience without having to leave the comfort of their own homes or libraries. I just counted—between our keynote speaker and six panels, SummerTeen will feature 21 authors, speaking about their work, the various genres they write in, and why young adult literature is so important to them. And there might be a few more surprises to come…

And get a load of our moderators: they’re all pros, culled from SLJ‘s blogs and our sister company Junior Library Guild-folks like Betsy Bird, Angela Carstensen, Brigid Alverson, Sophie Brookover, Terri Clark, and Leslie Bermel.

Want to win a free iPad? Register for SummerTeen, visit all of our exhibitors, and pick up something from their booths (virtually, of course!), and you’ll be eligible for our drawing. Want to bring along the kids? They’re totally welcome to attend. Many of our exhibitors will be featuring exclusive webcam chats in their booths with authors, and exhibits open early and close late—10:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. (EDT)—giving you plenty of opportunities to visit.

I hope to see you all on August 9 for the kickoff of SummerTeen!

SLJ’s SummerTeen Speaker: Earl Sewell

SLJ — Tue, 10 Jul 2012 18:02:36 +0000

Earl Sewell is just one of the many blockbuster authors scheduled to speak at SLJ‘s August 9 online event, SummerTeen: A Celebration of Young Adult Books. We caught up with Sewell, whose novels and “Keysha and Friends” series have made him a huge hit with librarians and teens, to talk about his work and writing for a YA audience.

If you’ve signed up for SummerTeen, make sure to gather your students to hear Sewell speak on the “Who Will Mend This Broken Heart” panel from 1:00 p.m.-2:00 p.m. EST.

Moderator Terri Clark, who’s also a librarian and author, says the panel—which also includes Katie Kacvinsky, Miranda Kenneally, and Lurlene McDaniel—will cover a range of romance titles, from realistic and light or realistic and dark to paranormal romcoms.

“The beauty of romance/relationship novels is that they never go out of style,” Clark says. “There is always a desire for R&R stories among teens. Especially love stories. Teens want to experience the first blush of romantic love, whether it’s something they’ve experienced themselves or have only imagined and yearned for.”

SummerTeen takes place August 9 between 10:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. EST and includes an impressive lineup of the hottest names in YA lit—including Barry Lyga, Garth Nix, A.S. King, and Maggie Stiefvater—all talking about a range of topics that school and youth services librarians care about.

Keep an eye out for more of these interviews with SummerTeen authors in the days and weeks ahead.

How did you end up writing about teen relationships and romance?

Sewell: Good question. When I was a teenager, I specifically remember going to both my high school and my community library in search of books with contemporary storylines I could relate to. Unfortunately, not much was available. I made a boyhood promise to myself, that if I became an author, I would write books that kids like me would enjoy. When an opportunity to write in this genre came my way, I immediately knew the type of story I wanted to write. I suppose the answer to the question would be, I always knew I’d write young adult books, and when the opportunity arrived, I was ready.

What do you like best about writing for a YA audience?

Sewell: I love the feedback I receive from teen readers. I constantly get emails from readers expressing how much they love the series and its characters. Readers always want to know when I’ll be finished with the next installment. I can’t seem to write the novels fast enough for them.

What kind of feedback do you get from teens and librarians about your work?

Sewell: I’ve been told on more than one occasion by various librarians that teen patrons love my books-and that they’re always checked out.

How valuable are librarians in getting the word out about your work?

Sewell: As a college student, I worked for the Palatine Public Library [in Illinois] and saw firsthand how much patrons appreciated good recommendations by librarians. Without the support of librarians, teens would not know about my work. I am eternally thankful to all of the librarians who decided to order not only my titles, but other Kimani Tru titles. The fact that my titles are always checked out not only lets a librarian know they’ve made a good purchase choice, but they’re also inspiring young people to read.

What are you working on now?

Sewell: I’m working on the next book in my “Keysha and Friends” series called, Way Too Much Drama.

Other SLJ SummerTeen Interviews:

Gareth Hinds

SLJ’s SummerTeen Speaker: Gareth Hinds

SLJ — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 18:05:16 +0000

SLJ‘s online event, SummerTeen: A Celebration of Young Adult Books, is just one month away, and we’ve asked some of your favorite participating authors a few questions in advance of the August 9 show. First up is Gareth Hinds, whose graphic novels include Beowulf, a retelling of the oldest extant poem in English, and an adaptation of Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice.

SummerTeen, which takes place between 10:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m., includes an impressive lineup of the hottest names in YA lit—including Barry Lyga, Garth Nix, A.S. King, and Maggie Stiefvater—all talking about a range of topics that school and youth services librarians care about.

If you’ve signed up for SummerTeen, make sure to gather your students to hear Hinds speak on the “Classic Twists” panel from 2:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m.

Make sure to keep an eye out for more of these brief interviews in the days and weeks ahead.

What do you like best about writing for a YA audience?

Hinds: I don’t write for one particular audience, I just try to share what I love about the classics, and it turns out that middle and high school students are a great audience for my books, because they can use some help understanding what’s so great about these (rather intimidating) works.

How did you end up writing graphic novels?

Hinds: I came to graphic novels as an illustrator, wanting to tell stories with pictures. I wanted to tell the best possible stories, and I didn’t feel like my original writing was that great, so I decided to start by adapting some of the greatest stories ever written.

What’s one of the most moving things you’ve heard from a reader?

Hinds: This actually came from a teacher, but it was about one of her teen students, a young man who was apparently in a pretty bad place, getting involved with gang violence. She gave him my Beowulf and he really got excited about it, looked up my website. When he found out that I use computers to make some of the art, and that I worked in video games, he got really interested in computer graphics, and turned all his energy to that, and I guess it really pulled him out of that situation. I love my job anyway, but hearing that kind of thing makes me feel like I’m actually contributing something.

Do you ever worry about your being censored or challenged, and how does it affect your work?

Hinds: I don’t really have to worry about the content of canonical literary works being challenged, but I do have to be conscious about how I draw certain things, especially nudity. There are various scenes in The Odyssey, for instance, where I covered up the characters a bit more than Homer probably envisioned, and in the bedroom scene the morning after Romeo and Juliet’s wedding night, I have her wearing a nightgown, which maybe wouldn’t have been my first choice. But I have to ask myself whether these changes actually interfere with the story in any way, and if the answer is no then I make them, so that teachers won’t be afraid to use my books with their students. I want to make their job easier, not harder.

How valuable are librarians at getting the word out about your work?

Hinds: Librarians are fantastic. I have no way to quantify it, but whenever I chat with librarians at a trade show or an event, they are always fun, smart, awesome people, and are always excited about sharing my books.

What are you working on now?

Hinds: Romeo and Juliet will be out next year. At the moment I’m taking a short break from Shakespeare to work on scripts for a couple of original projects.

Read other SLJ SummerTeen interviews:

Earl Sewell