Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Have a great summer

It's been quiet around here for a while; been working on a new book.  Tomorrow I'm over in Vancouver for a bit, and then off to visit friends on the Gulf Islands so probably won't post for a while.  Have a great summer, and drop me a line if you read a really good book.  

Later...

Friday, July 9, 2010

Best Books for Kids & Teen in 2010

Hurray.  I just received The Canadian Children's Book Centre's Best Books for Kids & Teens in 2010.  I can't wait to read it.  This is a fabulous resource for anyone stocking bookshelves in schools, libraries or at home.  It includes information about award-winners, interest levels, reading levels, and thematic links like sports or science or history.  It has a section for audio and magazines and even includes resources for teachers and librarians.  It's easy to get too.  All you have to do is be a member of the Canadian Children's Book Centre which supports and promotes Children's Literature in Canada.  The cost is $60 a year, and from my perspective, it's the best deal going.

A heads up for those of you south of the border, or overseas:  Best Books for Kids & Teens only covers Canadian material, so if you what to know what's up in the Canadian publishing scene for kids, this is the place to find it.

Thursday, July 8, 2010

A new day

High Temperature ThermometerImage by Link576 via Flickr
Yesterday was a smokin' hot, record-breaking, wilt-inducing day here in Victoria, BC and the only thing I accomplished was to do a little reading, water the garden, and go for a run.

When I went to bed last night (with the fan on HIGH and every window in the house wide open),  I promised myself that today would be different.  Today I'd get stuff done.



A hanging flower basket on the street in Victo...Image via Wikipedia



And guess what...it is and I have!  It's only 11 and I've already added 3 pages to my new novel, found two new websites with useful background info, tidied the kitchen (accumulated dishes from yesterday's heat hiatus) and watered all of my flower pots AGAIN!  In a few minutes, I'll get back to writing.  This feels so much better.  I love my job!






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Monday, July 5, 2010

Youth Poetry Slam coming up


VANCOUVER, BC - MARCH 10:  A dog and his owner...Image by Getty Images via @daylife

If you happen to be a young poet, or a poetry fan and are in Vancouver, BC near the end of the month, don't miss the Youth Poetry Slam.  It's bound to be fabulous.  Details follow, including a bio of Lara Bozabalian, the guest poet from TO.


Description

Date:
Monday, July 26, 2010
Time:
8:00pm - 10:30pm
Location:
Cafe Deux Soleils
Street:
2096 Commercial Drive
City/Town:
Vancouver, BC
It's time for another Youth Poetry Slam which is open to all poets between 13-22 years old. We have an open mic and a poetry slam competition plus a featured performer.

This month's guest is Lara Bozabalian from Toronto.

Lara Bozabalian has represented Toronto at the Canadian Festival of Spoken Word, the American National Poetry Slam, and the Individual World Poetry Slam Championships. Her poetry has been featured in journals, newspapers and magazines, and was recently released in the full length collection The Cartographer's Skin (Piquant Press, 2010). She is a founding member of the Toronto Poetry Project, and founded and runs Be Heard, a spoken word festival for high school students across southern Ontario

Sign up to read starts at 7pm. The show gets going just after 8pm. This month your host will be Van Slam Team member, Lucia Misch.

$3 for 18 and under $5 for 19 and older.

A poetry slam is a performance poetry competition. Rules include no props, no costumes and no musical accompaniment during the performance. There is also a 3 minute and 10 second time limit. The work performed must have been written by the performer/poet.
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Sunday, July 4, 2010

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Books being optioned into movies


I love starting out my day browsing my favorite blogs to check out what's new in the world of YA.

This morning I came across some news on YA Highway: YA Movie Rights Being Optioned. Now I have to admit that I'm not always a big fan of books that become movies. But two books that I've written about recently are among the list, and I think both would make fabulous movies.  So, congratulations Ally Carter, author of Heist Society and Kody Keplinger, author of The Duff for getting options on your books.  Options don't always mean books will become a movie, but I have my fingers crossed for these two.