Lap-Band..not dance

I've been doing a little research on Lap-Band surgery this week, and am considering doing it. Having no health insurance, this is a huge financial commitment for my family--but then again so is being obese without having health insurance.(I'm not insulting myself--technically, I am medically obese. It's just a word.)

So, I'm putting out to our blog readers. What's the word on your street? Have you had it? Thought about it? Decided against it? If you exercised four times a week and were on Weight Watchers for three months but only lost nine pounds, would you do it? If twelve pounds was the most you EVER lost on ANY eating plan, would you consider it?

ETA: the BITE ME! winner from Monday's contest is Maria D! Congrats Maria! Mel has your email and will contact you today!

Rediscovering Some Faves

The Fictionistas were commenting yesterday about how our blog tends to be a mixture of fluff and substance (which, in turn, prompted Chrissy to joke that we should introduce a 7th 'Nista named Fluffy Substance, but I digress).

Fluff and substance...personally, I think it's a good combo. You don't want too much substance or you run the risk of boring your readers. But you don't want too much fluff or you become completely irrelevant.

Anyway, it looks like we're well on our way to a week all about YA books, which surprisingly, might just be a first for us here. Kinda funny, when we're ostensibly a blog about YA boooks. :)

I could ruin the trend and blog about the crappy week I'm having, but I don't want to be a buzzkill. So since the three 'Nistas who've blogged this week have all started on a theme, I'm going to continue.

There's a book that was released last week from Avon A (not exactly a YA publisher, but still) called "Shelf Discovery: The Teen Classics We Never Stopped Reading." The primary author is Lizzie Skurnick, who used to write the "Fine Lines" column for Jezebel.com in which she reread and reviewed her fave books from her own girlhood. The book consists of Skurnick's Jezebel essays, along with a few reviews by such best-selling fiction giants as Meg Cabot, Laura Lippman, Cecily von Zeigesar, and Jennifer Wiener.

"Shelf Discovery" is based on a simple premise...revisiting your fave books from your childhood and teen years and then exploring what made it so. As one would assume in any list of '70/'80s vintage MG/YA, there's a ton of Judy Blume in here. But there are also some classics from the 19th and early 20th centuries as well.

Check out the list of books reviewed:
"A Wrinkle in Time" by Madeleine L'Engle
"From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler" by E.L. Konigsburg
"Starring Sally J. Freedman as Herself" by Judy Blume
"Harriet the Spy" by Louise Fitzhugh
"Farmer Boy" by Laura Ingalls Wilder
"Danny, the Champion of the World" by Roald Dahl
"Ludell" by Brenda Scott Wilkinson
"The Great Brain" by John D. Fitzgerald and Mercer Mayer
"Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret" by Judy Blume
"Sister of the Bride" by Beverly Cleary
"Blubber" by Judy Blume
"The Cat Ate My Gymsuit" by Paula Danziger
"A Ring of Endless Light" by Madeleine L'Engle
"Tiger Eyes" by Judy Blume
"The Long Secret" by Louise Fitzhugh
"Then Again, Maybe I Won't" by Judy Blume
"And You Give Me a Pain, Elaine" by Stella Pevsner
"To Take a Dare" by Crescent Dragonwagon
"The Westing Game" by Ellen Raskins
"Daughters of Eve" by Lois Duncan
"The Grounding of Group 6" by Julian F. Thompson
"Summer of Fear" by Lois Duncan
"I am the Cheese" by Robert Cornier
"The Arm of the Starfish" by Madeleine L'Engle
"Secret Lives" by Berthe Amoss
"Jacob Have I Loved" by Katherine Paterson
"Summer of My German Soldier" by Bette Green
"The Pigman" by Paul Zindel
"Bridge to Terabithia" by Katherine Paterson
"Tell Me if Lovers are Losers" by Cynthia Voigt
"A Day No Pigs Would Die" by Robert Newton Peck
"Beat the Turtle Drum" by Constance C. Greene
"The Gift of the Pirate Queen" by Patricia Reilly Giff
"Deenie" by Judy Blume
"Don't Hurt Laurie!" by Willo Davis Roberts and Ruth Sanderson
"Are You in the House Alone?" by Richard Peck
"Go Ask Alice" by Anonymous
"It's Not the End of the World" by Judy Blume
"Island of the Blue Dolphins" by Scott O'Dell
"Little House on the Prairie" by Laura Ingalls Wilder
"The Witch of Blackbird Pond" by Elizabeth George Speare
"Homecoming" by Cynthia Voigt
"The Endless Steppe: A Girl in Exile" by Esther Hautzig
"Julie of the Wolves" by Jean Craighead Geroge
"Understood Betsy" by Doroth Canfield
"Ghosts I Have Been" by Richard Peck
"A Gift of Magic" by Lois Duncan
"The Girl with the Silver Eyes" by Willo Davis Roberts
"Stranger with My Face" by Lois Duncan
"Hangin' Out with Cici" by Francine Pascal
"Jane-Emily" by Patrica Clapp
"Down a Dark Hall" by Lois Duncan
"Forever" by Judy Blume
"Happy Endings Are All Alike" by Sandra Soppettone
"Fifteen" by Beverly Cleary
"My Darling, My Hamburger" by Paul Zindel
"In Summer Light" by Zibby O'Neal
"The Moon by Night" by Madeleine L'Engle
"To All My Fans, With Love, From Sylvie" by Ellen Conford
"An Old-Fashioned Girl" by Louisa May Alcott
"The Wolves of Willoughby Chase" by Joan Aiken
"The Secret Garden" by Frances Hodgson Burnett
"Cheaper by the Dozen" by Frank B. Gilbreth and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
"Belles on Their Toes" Frank B. Gilbreth and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
"A Little Princess" by Frances Hodgson Burnett
"All of a Kind Family" by Sydney Taylor
"My Sweet Audrina" by V. C. Andrews
"The Clan of the Cave Bear" by Jean M. Auel
"Wifey" by Judy Blume
"Flowers in the Attic" by V.C. Andrews
"Domestic Arrangements" by Norma Klein

Although I haven't read all of the books on this list (and don't even recognize some of them!), a few are my all-time faves.

If you were asked to contribute an essay, what book from your childhood or teen years would you write about? Alternatively, if a second edition is released thirty years from now, which of today's YA books would you include?

Breakin The Law in YA Novels

I just finished reading Sweethearts by Sara Zarr, a brilliant YA novel that has these wonderful, compelling characters and a dark, magnetic storyline. I was so hooked. Have you read this novel? If not, go run to the bookstore and get it right now. Then, come back here. I'll wait. haha

Anyway, in Sweethearts, there was an element of stealing, which played into the heroine's persona, her view on life, her struggles, etc.

Even though I've read a lot of YA, I haven't run across stealing, or other crimes being broken, in books a lot. The biggest one I see is drinking--in Amanda Marrone's Uninvited, alcoholism is a rampant problem. And in Jennifer Echols' Going Too Far, there's lots of lawbreaking, which is pretty much the purpose of the story. LOL. But then again, it's not like my friends and I got the old "five-finger discount" or went to wild drinking parties when we were in high school, so I wasn't exactly looking for it. I was very much a goody-two-shoes and would never have dreamed of shoplifting or getting drunk.

In fact, the only memory I have of stealing was when I was, like, 5 years old--I think I'd stolen a pencil, or a small piece of candy or something. My mom saw what I did and marched me back in the store to give it back and apologize to the clerk. I was mortified when I realized what I'd done was wrong and that I was in big trouble.

Have you read any YA books that have stealing (or some other crime) as part of the plot? Does it bother you to read about teens committing crimes, or do you consider that to be part of the realism of YA? When you were a teen, did you ever, um, "liberate" anything? haha.

Pants On Fire

What's your first impression of this cover? Mine - the eyes draw you in, the title pretty blatantly tells you what the book is about to some degree and I feel like the heroine is well-represented. Were your impressions similar to that?

How would you feel if you found out the heroine of this book is actually a black girl with super short hair who is actually mistaken for a boy? (Hence the title.)

There's a small uproar on the net about this cover vs. the actual contents of the book and what it all means. Do black models make it harder to sell books? Would you buy a book that featured a model of a different race than you? Does the cover even matter?

What do you think?

who wants a copy of BITE ME! (and other stuff?)

First of all, I'd like to congratulate ALISON the winner from last week's contest! Please contact Rhonda: rhonda@rhondastapleton.com to claim your prize


So y'all know I've written a book, right? And y'all know that it is scheduled to hit the shelves tomorrow, right? So who wants to win a free autographed copy plus some BITE ME! swag, and a $25 Amazon gift certificate? Anyone?

Just in case you've been living under a rock, BITE ME! is the next big vampire novel. (or so I keep saying...you know, just putting it out there for the Universe to take and do something with)

AJ Ashe isn't your typical seventeen-year-old vampire—as if there is such a thing! She's stuck in the middle of a huge fight between her two BFFs. Her ex-boyfriend—whom she's still totally in love with, by the way—is now her stepbrother. A former classmate—who, um, she may or may not have turned into a vampire—is stalking her. And now, apparently, the fate of humankind lies in her little undead hands. What ever happened to the good old days, when all a vampire girl had to worry about was the occasional zit and hiding her taste for blood?

There are 4 different ways you can qualify to win:

1.If you're on Twitter tweet: BITE ME! By @MelissaFrancis hits the shelves this week. I can't wait

2 &3: If you're on Facebook, join my author fan page and my book group page. Click the banner and link below:


Have You Been Bitten?

4: Blog about BITE ME! on your own blog, myspace, or facebook page.


Once you've done your tasks, comment on this blog to let me know how hard you worked for your swag! Just leave me a comment like this:

awesomeblogreader:
I tweeted you under my name @awesomeblogreader
I joined your author page
I joined your book page
I blogged you at awesomebookreader.com

You get one entry for each thing you do, but you only have to leave 1 comment. Now, let's get the word out and get this party started!

ETA: Winner will be announced Friday! Contest closes Thursday, July 30!

Child's Play??

Like so many writers and avid readers, my childhood was filled with books. This week I've been working on a children's book that I promised to my nephew, Liam, who will be in first grade this fall. He, like his aunt before him, was too impatient to wait for the school system to teach him what those mystical symbols on the page were all about. He taught himself to read, and now spends his summer reading absolutely everything with gusto. He's close to a second grade level already, and can sit with a beginning book in his lap without any assistance. He knocked me off my feet about two weeks ago when, while sounding out words on the sports page of the Herald, he struggled for a few moments and then blurted out the word "intercollegiate."

Folks, I know college graduates who can't spell it, much less sound it out from the page.

So I promised him his very own book as a reward, and I'm working on it now. Since I intend to break every rule in the book to create it-- and since I don't know what I'm doing anyhow-- I'll self publish it.

You'd think that writing for children would be simple, since they are, right? The arrogance of that statement is why, I think, so many people find themselves stunned when they answer those crappy ads in magazines shouting "YOU CAN WRITE CHILDREN'S BOOKS." It's actually quite likely you can't. I've always been marginally aware that writing for younger people bears a greater responsibility. But until I sat down to pen something for beginning readers I'd never considered how much it took.

Try it. Write a sentence describing your sneakers. Use only vocabulary, sentence structure, and imagery a child of five to seven years can understand. It's not that simple. Now try to create a story rich enough to make a child who is being reared in technicolor HD magical boob-box-hood within the same parameters.

It makes me genuinely appreciate the absolute genius of Doctor Seuss, Maurice Sendak, and god-love-them, the people involved in Sesame Street.

I clearly remember the very first books I devoured, including Where the Wild Things Are, The Monster at the End of this Book, and everything Seuss. But like my nephew, I was quickly bored with anything that seemed to be addressing me as a child. I quickly moved on to slender, first novels. My teachers were not so much pleased as mortified to find me hunched over The Hobbit and Watership Down by second grade. They were probably right, too. I was intellectually fascinated but the darkness did frighten me, and I was most likely nowhere near emotionally ready.

Anyway, wish me luck on Liam's book. It's harder than I thought it would be, but I suspect I will be prouder of myself than I thought, too. This ain't child's play.

Bestest wedding ever

Because this video makes me absolutely giddy and reminds me why I write about love.

Borders Expands Teen Section

You can read the whole article here but I'm so excited that booksellers are figuring out that Young Adult is different from children's literature.

By expanding the space that means they'll hopefully be expanding the selections. And more is better for readers and writers. According to the article, they are noticing a lot more crossover of adults reading YA and YA readers reading from the adult side. I know that when I was a teenager, whenever we took our covered wagon to the library, I always chose adult books. There just wasn't the kind of quality for YA that we have now. You can only read so many Sweet Valley High books, yes?

What are your thoughts on the YA genre getting it's own niche?

A Super Happy Funtime Birthday Contest!

It's my 33rd birthday today. YAY ME! I even sat up last night until 12:01, just because. haha

Unfortunately, I woke up this morning to a, um, present left by my dog. *sigh* What's weird is she NEVER does that, so I instantly thought it was a portent of doom. Here's hoping the rest of my day is better. haha

So, what's the worst birthday present YOU ever got?

Leave a comment in this post today (no later than 11:59 PM EST), telling me about the worst birthday present you ever got, for your chance to win a $15 gift card to an online bookstore of your choice (e.g., Amazon, B&N, Borders, etc.)! I'll randomly pick one commenter. Good luck!

Bedtime Stories

My brother is currently visiting me, along with his two kids who are 2 1/2 and 5, so the subject of bedtime stories has come up. Especially when Aunt Kristen had no child appropriate books to offer.

Bad aunt.

We're going to the store today to rectify that, but it got me thinking about my favorite bedtime story of all time: Bears In The Night. My brother and I could recite that book by heart, backwards and forwards as kids. In fact, I don't think that book survived my brother's childhood because it basically fell apart. Just looking at the cover gives me warm fuzzies.

What was your favorite bedtime story?

Bad Beauty Decisions

(FYI, I'm posting instead of Mel today because she doesn't have Internet access)

So, I colored my hair this weekend. The box said it was supposed to be a deep brown. But the hair on my head most certainly looks a lot closer to black. In fact, it's really REALLY reeeeeally dark. My daughter loves it. It's certainly...striking. LOL. Oh well, it'll fade, right? And it's certainly not the worst thing I've ever done in the name of beauty.

I've made several beauty boo-boos in my life, two of which revolve around my rather full eyebrows. Like the time I tried to shave my eyebrows because I couldn't find my tweezers. That was a really dumb idea--please don't try it at home. I had razorburn for a couple of days. Attractive!

Or the time I decided I was going to wax my own brows. I put the stuff on, tried to rip it off, and no hair came off. Instead, I lost several layers of skin, resulting in thick SCABS under my brows. Double attractive!

Dry-shaving my legs right before a date was another dumb thing I did once. YOWCH, the continuous stinging razor burn from this is totally unforgettable. I spent the whole date cringing at how awful my legs felt.

What's the worst beauty decision you've made? Hey, there's bonding in shared pain, right? LOL

And That's The Way He Was

When I was growing up I heard a lot about how television was unhealthy, and how Americans were addicted to the "boob box." But to be fair, my parents came of age in the earliest days of television, and began their adulthood as it took hold of the nation. And with the passing, last night, of the giant Walter Cronkite, I have to say I am astonished less that people are reluctant to turn it off and more that they turn it off at all.

Because Walter Cronkite guided us through some absolutely astonishing moments. If we think about what has happened live, on television in the last 20, 30, 40 years... why would anyone turn the thing off? They shot two presidents before our eyes; shot the people who shot the first one; shot his brother, shot MLK. They landed on the moon; they lost a shuttle; they brought Apollo 13 home safe. War came to our living rooms. Roots came, too, and a generation (my own) of young people watched a mini-series that drove the horror of slavery home hard. Our elections happen live. Our nation grieves in unison. The New York skyline fell and was forever changed-- as were we-- before a nation's stunned gaze.

People in my own age group will remember Mister Cronkite. We were only children, true, but the evening news was always on in every house then. There was Harry Reasoner, David Brinkley, and Walter Cronkite, who was the first national anchorman. He broke the news of JFK's death to my parents. And when a 4 year old in Green Harbor was outraged that she wasn't going to get to see Bullwinkle, he changed her mind about what was important. Some guys named Buzz and Neal landed on the moon. No really... the moon. So Bullwinkle could wait. Even at 4 I got it.

Rest in the arms of the angels, Walter. And thank you for telling us how it was.

Our Golden Girl

Tomorrow night is a big night for our 'Nista, Amanda Brice. She's a finalist in the Golden Heart Award from Romance Writers of America for her unpublished book, CODENAME:DANCER. She'll find out tomorrow evening if she won the much coveted award.

We are so, so proud of Amanda and want to wish her the very best of luck. This is her second year in a row of being a finalist. Every year, there are more than 1000 entries in this contest. It's a huge honor to be a finalist, but I think she's got the stuff to take the whole thing.

So, Amanda, this post is for you. You are an inspiration to us all. Not just for your amazing writing skills, either. You are a great friend. You are a warm and giving woman and you never shy away from a challenge. I'm so glad to call you friend. Good luck tomorrow night--we'll all be sending you warm, fuzzy vibes. I only wish I could be there to watch you walk across that stage.

RWA Nationals

RWA Nationals officially begins today, although there were some events last night, including the Literacy Autographing (picture 500 authors all signing books in a ballroom with thousands of fans) and the Diva Drinks.

Kristen, Mel, and I are all in attendance, wishing desperately that Chrissy, Rhonda, and Gwen could join us.

None of us are signing (not this year at least), but Mel and I are both presenting workshops tomorrow, so if you're attending the conference, please stop by and say hi!

Mel's workshop is entitled "I Sold to New York, Now What?" and she's on a panel with Crystal Jordan, Maria Geraci, Kate Pearce, Lilli Feisty, and Lynn Rae Harris. It's from 9:45-10:45 am on Friday, July 17.

My workshop is entitled "Intellectual Property: How to Protect Your Rights and Avoid Infringing Upon Others." I'm on a panel with fellow attorney Jennifer Williston, and New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts is our moderator! How cool is that?! It's from 11 am to noon on Friday, July 17.

So if you're around, please come say hi! We'd love to meet you!

How long will you give a book?

When I was younger, I would usually read a book completely through, whether I liked it or not. Of course, if I didn't like it, I'd gripe forever about wasting all that time on it. haha

However, I find that over the last few years, I have less patience for a book that doesn't draw me in within, say, the first 3 chapters or so. When that happens, I'll usually put it down and never read it again. I'm not sure if this is a result of being older, or because of being a writer. Or maybe a deadly combo of both. haha

What about you? Will you read a book from start to finish, even if you don't like it that much (or hate it completely)? If not, how far will you read before you close it?

(*Interesting side note: the same applies with my TV and movie-watching habits. If a show or movie doesn't have me hooked within approx. 15 minutes or has wretched pacing or dialogue or something, I find I'm too impatient to sit and watch it all and will usually stop.)

Special Guest: Greg Logsted

Please help me welcome today's guest blogger, Greg Logsted! Greg currently lives in Danbury with his wife and fellow author, Lauren Baratz-Logsted and their daughter Jackie. He is the author of Something Happened, Alibi Junior High and coauthor of The Sisters Eight. Find him online at www.GregLogsted.com and www.twitter.com/GregLogsted.

Thank you, Fictionistas, for having me on your site!

One of the things I really love in books and movies is time travel. I just can’t get enough of it! Last summer I read a really great time-travel novel called REPLAY by Ken Grimwood. It’s about a man who keeps dying when he’s 43 and waking up when he’s 18 to live his life over and over again. It made a fantastic summer vacation even better. Sun, sand and a good book – it’s the simple things in life that give me the most pleasure.

I suspect that my love of time travel is one of the main reasons I love to write YA and MG novels. I’ve had two published, SOMETHING HAPPENED and ALIBI JUNIOR HIGH, and I’ve got others in the pipeline. When I write a YA novel I’m able to shift my whole thought process back to my teenage mindset. It’s a fun semi-time-travel type of routine that’s also quite ironic since I spent the majority of my teenage school years staring out of various classroom windows daydreaming.

About now I bet you’re thinking, “Greg, do you want to write a time-travel novel? And if you could, would you also like to have a real life time-travel adventure of your own?”

These are both great questions. Thanks for asking.

Well, to answer the first question: yes, I would like to write a time-travel novel and I suspect one day I will. But the second question is a little more difficult. Would I like to really time travel? To go back to my teenage years and see all my old friends? To re-experience what I loved? To change all my mistakes? The answer to this question is…I’m not sure.

Think about it. Let’s say I’m suddenly zapped back into my teenage self. How can I possibly do ANYTHING without looking like a complete moron and head case? I mean I go to school and then what? I’m not going to remember half of my friends’ names, my locker combinations, or my class schedule. I’m not going to even remember the majority of my teachers’ names. (Sorry, guys, there’s only a handful of you that I actually remember. I know you all tried. Hey, if it’s any consolation the only thing I remember from a whole term of economics is three words: “supply and demand.”)

Anyway…there’s no way I could possibly fit in. I would stand so far out that there’d be an excellent chance I’d be locked up in a psych ward within twenty-four hours.

Unless…unless of course I had a plan, and guess what? I think I’ve got one.

So here’s my idea of what you should do if you ever find yourself transferred back through time. First of all DO NOT try to fake it. I repeat, DO NOT try to fake it. Like I said before, you’ll never blend in. Instead, here’s what I think you should do: find yourself a lonely road. Hit yourself on the head with a large rock (not too hard, just enough to leave a bump – AND it should go without saying but I’ll say it anyway, make sure no one actually sees you doing this) then lie on the side of the street all twisted and turned in an abnormally strange angle until someone finds you.

There’s possibilities there, isn’t there? You see what I’m getting at, don’t you? It’s so simple that it just might work.

Anyway…that’s my time-travel thoughts for the day…WHAT’S YOURS? IF YOU COULD TRAVEL BACK IN TIME, WOULD YOU? WHAT WOULD YOU DO?

copping out

Sorry. I'm so busy today finishing edits and preparing for my conference, I'm totally copping out of a real post. BUT if you love Monty Python and Star Trek (or if you just love Monty Python) this will crack you up!



ps: I posted a different one on my personal blog today that's just as funny. Go forth and laugh! I promise to be back next week with real content.

I Got Nothin'

Whenever I am stumped for something to write about I call one of my friends and say "I'm stumped for something to write about." The thing is... I've actually been at this for a while. I started out writing a regular column at a very young age. Recently I celebrated my 25th anniversary as a paid author. Which means, doing the math, I've been slogging away for 25 years.


Good lord, I'm old.

Anyway, one of the great benefits of being a townie-- which is really just code for "too stubborn to leave or too lazy to move--" is that you keep your friends from childhood. So I have the Fictionistas, Romance Divas, the Sceptics' Tank online and around the country. Great people who share a lot of things in common with me. And I have all the college, work, and social circle friends I've found in adulthood-- people I've gathered along the way who have made my life richer and better. But I also have Roxanne, Maria, Petie, Bill, and Timmy. Most of them I've known since junior high school. I've known Petie since pre-school. We've been friends for 40 years.

So I called the gang.

"I've got nothing."

"You always have something," Roxy said.

"I've got nothing."

"What's going on in your life right now," Petie asked me. "Like... right this second?"

I glared at him. "I'm sitting in a coffee shop with you guys cuz I've got nothing."

Petie leaned over and gave me a noisy, sloppy kiss on the cheek. Roxy leaned over from the other side and did the same.

"You've always got us," he said.

And I do. So thanks, guys. I've got a lot more than nothing. I've got a great man, Max blowing snot in my ear, and writer's block. But no matter what else I have or have not got... I got you, babes. Great friends. Always.

In retrospect... that's an awful lot.

Two can keep a secret if one of them is dead.

Recently, a very good friend of mine told me a secret and it was MURDER to keep. I was so happy for her, it was great news--but I couldn't tell anyone. And we have so many friends in common that it was physically painful to not spill. But I did it. I zipped my lip and was a great friend.

Have you ever told a secret to someone who didn't keep it?

Where do you get your ideas?

I guess this question is more for the writers than the readers.

How do you get your ideas for your stories? Are you inspired by something you've recently read or seen on TV? Does something happen in real life that triggers something in your brain? Does it come to you in your dreams?

Spill!