MELTING STONES: Week 1

Up and Writing Book Club MELTING STONES, Week 1: Chapters 1-6 (p 1-85) Welcome to Up and Writing's first book club meeting. Let's jump right in, shall we? I'll start the conversation off with a few thoughts: First, I'd just like to say I really enjoyed this book. The first six chapters are enough to let the reader know that this won't be a run-of-the-mill YA fantasy. We've got a teen...

Dark Conflict in YA Books

I've noticed a trend in young adult literature that I don't remember being the case when I was a teen. While browsing popular YA fiction web sites, I keep running across books about the darker "hot topics" of today's culture--teen molestation by older men, self-mutilation, suicide, etc. Is it just me, or were YA books a bit less grim ten years ago? (And yes, it has been ten years since I was in...

Life Imitates Art

This is too weird. I just read EON: DRAGONEYE REBORN by Alison Goodman about a girl posing as a boy to win a competition. Then today I stumbled on this Yahoo story. In Goodman's story, Eon and her master believe she can excel in the Dragoneye competition. But it's closed to girls, so they pass her off as a young boy. As they suspected, she wins the competition.  Throughout the book, others...

Inspiring Book!

I just finished BOOK OF A THOUSAND DAYS by Shannon Hale and it was simply inspiring! Not since THE OTHER BOLEYN GIRL have I read through something so fast, just because I needed to find out what happens next. Great storytelling, fast-paced plot, likable characters, and a love story that doesn't writhe with stereotypes and sugar. This will certainly be the book club's next book after MELTING...

Author Pics

Got a round of pictures taken today for my web site. I needed a head shot to use for my site and as my profile pictures on Facebook, Twitter and other things. Hopefully the site and the picture will be up soon! I never knew taking pictures outdoors could be so complicated. We had trouble from sun, shadows, tombstones, wind, and a twig that wanted to poke my eyes out. For those who weren't here...