Debut Author Challenge #6: How Lamar's Bad Prank...and a Giveaway!

Reading Song of the Day: "The Joke" by Lifehouse

This installment of our 2011 Debut Author Challenge features our first MG title--as well as the first MG book I've read in a very, very, long time. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Crystal Allen's How Lamar's bad Prank Won a Bubba-Sized Trophy. Please pause on the cuteness of that title.

Here's what Goodreads has to say:

Thirteen-year-old Lamar Washington is the maddest, baddest, most spectacular bowler ever at Striker's Bowling Paradise. But while Lamar's a whiz at rolling strikes, he always strikes out with girls. And Lamar's brother, Xavier the Basketball Savior, is no help. Xavier earns trophy after trophy on the basketball court and soaks up all of Dad's attention, leaving no room in the house for Lamar's problems.

So Lamar starts hustling at the local alley with bad boy Billy Jenks. When one of their schemes goes awry, Lamar ends up ruining his brother's shot at college and wreaking havoc on every relationship in his life. Can Lamar figure out how to mend his broken ties, no matter what the cost?

From debut author Crystal Allen comes an unforgettable, laugh-out-loud story of one boy's struggle to win his family's admiration and get the girl of his dreams, all while playing the sport he loves.

In all honesty, I smiled pretty much the whole time while I read this. So that's why it's easy to come up with:

The Top Four Things You Need to Know about Lamar:

1. It Has Diversity. This is the first novel I've read in forever that featured an African-American narrator. Granted, this is partially my fault, but it was still refreshing to read a different perspective on the whole "coming of age" thing. Plus, Lamar wasn't your stereotypical black teenager. He went to church every Sunday, he did really well in school, and his dad always made sure he looked presentable and not "ghetto." Did I mention this was refreshing?

2. The Voice Was Sooo Authentic. I'll admit it--I fell in love with Lamar. He was that perfect balance between cocky and insecure. Crystal Allen also made sure that the teens sounded like, well, teens. The jargon she used in this novel was what I hear in the halls of my school everyday--but I can still see kids reading this years from now and still understanding the slang.

3. Hilarity Ensued. I haven't laughed this much from a book in a LONG time. I really wasn't expecting to be this amused since I thought the humor might be "beneath" me. But just reading about Lamar's attempt at getting a girlfriend and his proclamation of being the "King of Striker's" had me guffawing pretty much throughout the book.

4. But it Also Had Heart. Sure, it had his laugh out loud moments, but Ms. Allen also made sure to tug at the readers' heart strings. Lamar deals with the death of one of his parents, and just witnessing how his family tries to keep it together had me reaching for the tissue box.

People always want to know how to get reluctant boy readers to pick up a book. My response: let them read Lamar.

If you like...

Books: Holes by Louis Sachar, The Cottonmouth Club by Lance Marcum, Heck: Where the Bad Kids Go by Dale E. Basye...then you'll like Lamar

Movies: Baby Boy, Stand By Me, The Wood...then you'll like Lamar

But wait--there's more! I hearted this book SO MUCH, that we now want to give YOU a copy. Just leave a comment below with your email address by Wednesday, May 18th at midnight, EST. That's it--just leave a comment and email address. We'll announce winners Thursday, May 19th. Good luck! :)

RTW: The Voice

Writing Song of the Day: "Voices" by Disturbed

Road Trip Wednesday is a ‘Blog Carnival,’ where YA Highway's contributors post a weekly writing- or reading-related question that begs to be answered. In the comments, you can hop from destination to destination and get everybody's unique take on the topic.

This Week's Topic:

If you got to choose a celebrity narrator for the audio book of your WIP or your favorite novel, who would it be and why?

Pam's Answer:

Project J is still underway and since that is fresh in my mind, I've thought of the perfect person to record the audio version of this novel. As I mentioned in previous posts, Jonah (the MC) is a self-proclaimed nerd who tries really hard to win the affections of the most popular girl in school--but in the mean time, he falls for someone else that he may not ever be able to have. So, who could be better than Michael Cera (Superbad, Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist) to speak Jonah? His sometimes youthful, and nerdy voice would definitely capture the persona and tone of Jonah.


Quita's Answer:

The Blues, (out to Betas) is my contemporary YA mystery about a boy trying to find out who murdered his best friend and why. It is written in first person, so I would want a male voice who sounds kinda lackluster, yet passionate at the same time. The first person who came to mind? Joseph Gordon Levitt! Yes, I am a class A stalker of this man, but have you seen Mysterious Skin? If not, watch it, NOW! His character in that movie and the way he spoke just reminds me of exactly how Blake would talk and carry himself.



What about you--who would you want to be the voice on the audio recording of your WIP or a fave novel?

Oh...and BTW, it's Pam's birthday today!!! *throws streamers and balloons*...hmm, can one throw a balloon?

Come Out of the Dark

Researching Song of the Day: "Into the Light" by Papa Roach

Good Morning, peeps! It's the start of a new week (we have 5 weeks left in this school year- woo hoo!) and we want to start this week off with some light information.

In the recent issue of The Writer magazine (June 2011) there was an article that caught my eye. There are never many articles on YA in The Writer mag, so when I came across the article "9 Inside Tips On Writing for YA" written by Joyce Doyle, a freelance writer, and young adult writer and librarian, I KNEW some of this info needed to be shared with you all.

As mentioned there are 9 tips, but let's focus on one shall we?

This tip is something we've been hearing a lot from teens and adult readers of YA. The tip is: Have fun with it! Yes teens are emotional and full of anger, sorrow, and dismay--but they also have some good times in those 6 or so years of teenage angst. Therefore, we need to focus on lighter issues and "themes" in novels for teens.

Reference this interview from me and Pam's oh-so angsty and emo niece, Tee Tee (courtesy of Paper Hangover). Now consider this--this girl can often be found with her head buried in a book and a black hood hanging over her eyes. That tells you something, right?

And reference this post from Pam. She talks about how she's stepping away from the darker, heavier, dramatic plots for her new WIP. Yes, she has some heavy issues in the novel, but she is focusing on the lighter side of drama. We know that with being a teen comes great dramatics, but even so we as writers can make those dramatics seem a little lighter, don't ya think?

Moral of the story? Let's get some light in here people!

Here are a few light books that you can read to get those juices flowing for your own light and fun new WIP idea :)







Can you think of a book we left off the list? How do you feel about lighter books for teens?

Friday Fives: Best Advice Evah!

Advising Song of the Day: "Suggestions" by System of a Down

Once again, we're joining Pam's awesome blog, Paper Hangover for some Friday Fives fun!





This week, they wanna know:

What are FIVE pieces of useful advice you have received as an aspiring writer? Either in quotes, blog posts, websites or communities.

Great question, right? Here are 5 things we've picked up along the way:


1.) Revise, revise, then revise again: Your first draft will always be different from the final (if there is even a final--several authors have said at conferences that they find things they want to change in their books that are already published) and you have to sometimes "kill your darlings".

2.) Any response is a good response: Even if you get a pass on a partial or full request--at least you got a request in the first place! Someone is reading YOUR writing, right?

3.) If you love to write, then write: NOTHING should get in the way of writing if you are a true writer. That doesn't mean you have to write everyday (funerals, births etc. obviously take precedence), but if you truly want to be a writer, there should be some writing going on--and a lot of it!

4.) This is ALL subjective: This is probably the BEST advice we've received. While one agent/editor may not like your novel--there are maybe two or three out there who do. Yes, sometimes there are things we need to work on with our writing, but overall the business of writing books is based on someone's opinion.

5.) Read, read, and read some more!: You can never read enough novels. This is part of our job as writers. If we want to write a certain genre or for a certain audience then we need to read novels in that genre or area of fiction/non-fiction. This way we can learn from it. It's just like how a doctor should read medical journals. Yes, we did just compare writers to doctors.

What has been some great advice that you have received through your journey as a writer?

Debut Author Challenge #5: Divergent by Veronica Roth

Reading Song of the Day: "Till the World Ends" by Britney Spears

The next installment of our 2011 Debut Author Challenge is yet another book that I've been dying to read. Luckily, I won an ARC of Divergent from the lovely Katy Upperman, so I was able to actually read it before the release. There were three words that ran through my head once I finished: Oh. My. God.

In other words, this book DEFINITELY lives up to the hype I've been reading all over the Interwebz. In fact, I can't wait for more people to read it so that I can gush all about it with them. Really, if I can go into details about how much I love this book, I'll sound like a rambling idiot. I'll just say that it's probably one of the BEST books I've read. Ever.

Here's a snippet of what Goodreads has to say:

In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

And now...

The Top Four Things You Need to Know About Divergent:

1. Tris is a BAMF. I usually prefer male narrators, but Veronica Roth has created a protagonist that's...well, a bad a** you know the rest. I loved witnessing how Beatrice became Tris throughout the course of the novel. She started off as a passive wallflower, observing a world that she was dying to be a part of--but by the end of the novel, let's just say I'd want her to have my back in a fight.

2. You can see the action. As Quita wrote about earlier this week, action scenes are pretty much our writing Kryptonite. But in Divergent, you can feel the punches being thrown, see the characters jumping off of trains and buildings--there were even times where I thought I could taste the blood in my mouth after a character was attacked. Yes, Ms. Roth is quite talented--and I can't wait to read this again to take notes.

3. Can you say original? When I was discussing the concept of this book to my coworkers, they couldn't stop buzzing about the originality of it--and I couldn't stop agreeing with them. It's sad to say, but I've never heard of the names of some of these factions--at least, they don't frequent my daily conversations. And to think that when you're 16 you have to choose between joining a new faction, or staying with your family--how cool AND scary is that? We all know dystopian novels are HUGE right now, but if they're as creative and engaging as Divergent, then sign me up.

4. Four. Yes, there is a character named Four in this book--and believe me when I tell you that you'll be swooning over him DAYS after you finish reading. He's not your typical possible love interest. In fact, it's hard to determine who Four really is when we're first introduced to him--and the mystery will just be yet another thing that will keep you turning the pages.

If you like...

Books: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, The Giver by Lois Lowry, The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood...then you'll like Divergent

Movies: Gattaca, V for Vendetta, Battle Royale...then you'll like Divergent

Have you had a chance to read Divergent? What are your thoughts? What faction would YOU choose?

A Few Announcements

Helping Song of the Day: "Help!" by The Beatles

We interrupt your weekly Road Trip Wednesday to bring you some important news:

1. The amazing Kate Hart is joining forces with other writers for Help Write Now. This is a writing auction to assist with storm relief in the South. Several writers, agents, and other publishing industry insiders will be donating their services. Quita and I have also joined a few of our writer buddies for a pretty awesome critique pack. Please stop by and see how you can help.

2. You may have noticed on our sidebar a cute icon for Black Fox Literary Magazine. Quita and I are co-founders and co-editors, along with our sister from another mister, Racquel Henry. Our very first issue will be this summer--woo hoo (if you can't tell, we're uber excited)! We're still looking for submissions and interviews for our website, as well as for the actual magazine. For submissions, click here. If you're a writer (published OR aspiring) that is interested in being interviewed, please email us at cuzwewrite@gmail.com.

2b. Black Fox Lit has also surpassed 100 followers on Twitter, so we're having a contest! We're giving away T-shirts, pens, notebooks, and a print copy of our first issue! Click here for details. Oh, and don't forget follow @blackfox on Twitter. :)

Shwew, lots of news! Speaking of which, we're in dire need of good news--big or small. Anything you have to share?? :)

First, This Happened. And Then This Happened...

Writing Song of the Day: "Action" by Blink 182

We hope everyone had a good weekend. How was our weekend? Quick, tiring, and eventful. We exercised two out of the three days, met the lovely and AH-MAY-ZING Abby Stevens for lunch on the one day we didn't exercise, and worked on revising/editing.

What?

Was there something lacking in that description of our weekend? Details, sensory elements? Well, that's because we kinda suck at writing action.

Yeah, it's hard for us to believe that we suck at anything as well (;P), but alas...we do. We discovered this when we traveled into the world of paranormals for our NaNo novels. We've discussed those WIPs before, mine is about jinns (genies) and Pam's is about fairies. We realized that we can't have a paranormal that's worth anything without at least one action scene. And we found that writing action is a lot harder than it seems.

When our scenes should make the reader feel like this (I Am Number Four RAWKS!):

They often come out like this (if you have not seen My Soul To Take--then don't.) :

So, what can we do to help us write some kickass action sequences? We turn to some writing resources around the Interwebs to answer this question.

The most helpful site is Kidlit.com. This website suggests a couple of ways to write a good action sequence here. To summarize, mainly write out the action sequence and then go back and revise it using the following checklist:

* Make sure your words are clear and precise (that they cannot be perceived in any other matter then what you meant to show).

* Be consistent with the way your characters act and speak-- even if action is occurring, the characters should still behave in the same manner.

* Have varied sentences to ensure that the reader isn't reading a bunch of sentences that start with: he/she ______ (insert past or present tense verb here) the ______ (insert noun here).

* Have brief action sequences even if the story calls for a lot of action. Put other scenes in between the quick action sequences.

* Make sure your scenes are believable. Do not have tied up abrupt endings and/or neat deus ex machinas.

We will definitely use this checklist when we start to revise the NaNo novels this summer as well as some of the links below:

Utah Children's Writers- Writing Action Scenes

Writing Action Scenes

Writing Action Scenes (for Thrillers)

Paperdemon.com-Writing Action Scenes

Tell us, do you have any tricks for action sequences? Do you struggle with action too, or do you have another Achilles' heel (as Kidlit.com puts it) when it comes to writing?