Tiny Treasury

It’s the Friday Fifteen! Today’s guest is author Cecil Castellucci.

Cecil’s first novel, Boy Proof, debuted in 2005, and won a number of accolades including the ALA (American Library Association) Best Books for Young Adults; ALA Recommended Books for Reluctant Young Adult Readers, Quick Pick; New York Public Library Books for the Teen Age and Book Sense Children’s Picks List Selection.

And now, onto the Fifteen!

1. Where are you now?
In Los Angeles, on my couch watching Star Trek the Next Generation: Season 1

2. What were your favorite books as a kid?
Just the tip of the iceberg:

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
The Tripod Trilogy by John Christopher
The Headless Cupid by Zilpha Keatly Snyder
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L’Engle
The Wizard of Oz by Frank L. Baum

3. What are you reading now?
Flora Segunda by Ysabeau Wilce

4. Do you have kids?
Not yet. But I hope to one day!

5. What projects are you working on now?
I have a picture book called Grandma’s Gloves coming out on Candlewick as soon as the art is done. And then I’m working on an early chapter book / easy reader, for young kids, with Candlewick as well. Also I’m tinkering away at a new YA novel.

6. What is your biggest writing or illustrating luxury?
Fountain Pens. Long stretches in cafes. Dreaming while looking out of windows.

7. Coffee or tea?
Both! I swear! I love them equally!

8. Name five artists on your iPod (or mp3 player).
Coco Rosie
Joanna Newsom
Dead Kennedys
Edith Piaf
Sam Cook

9. What would I be surprised to know about you?
While living on the street for six weeks waiting for Star Wars Episode I tickets, I slept next to a murderer on the lam. Is that too scary? How about, my first job, when I was 15, was as a girl friday for a nobel prize winning neuroscientist.

10. What college did you attend (in what subject)?
I went to NYU first for film production, then ran out of money to finish, so I went to Paris, France for a year and then finished my degree in Film Production at Concordia University in Montreal.

11. If you weren’t working with kids’ books, what would your dream job be?
Astronaut or earth bound space voyager (like at JPL)

12. What’s the best thing on TV right now?
Uh… I don’t have broadcast or cable TV in my house. So, I can’t say what’s great on TV right now, like this week, because I watch TV on DVD’s.

13. How did you get your “big break” into the field?
The first story I published was in the LA Times Kids Reading Room. It was a story called Moon Picnic. Also, I joined SCBWI and went to a working writers retreat where I met my agent and my publisher, Candlewick Press. Go, SCBWI!!!

14. Which celeb would you want most to meet?
Dead: Luis Bunuel
Alive: Dolly Parton

15. Who is the best book character EVER?
Too tough a question!
I’ll say Anne of Green Gables, since I didn’t put that up in my fave books for kids.

–

Thanks, Cecil (and thanks to Tracy at Candlewick Press for making the intro)! Be sure and check out Cecil’s latest book, Beige:

You can keep with Cecil on her blog.

Cecil Castellucci, Beige, Boy Proof, Candlewick Press

We’ve been having a couple of interesting conversations on some of the message boards about the issue of authors and ownership. Those conversations inspired this week’s War of Words Wednesday.

Authors are often paid to produce material which becomes the property of the employer. In a recent case, a series of columns penned by John Grogan is being published by the Philadelphia Inquirer without Grogan’s consent or participation. So today’s question is:

Who was in the right in this debate: Grogan or the Inquirer?

And as a follow-up question:

Do you think that writers give up the right to protect/edit/promote work if the work was produced for a specific purpose (for example, a column or a blog)? If a writer is paid to produce a piece of work, should the person or company who paid for the work be allowed to alter, delete or promote it without permission from the writer?

author, blogger, permission, copyright, protect, promote

Simon & Schuster Books has announced that they have signed Steven Hawking to pen a new kids’ book.

Hawking’s book, George’s Secret Key to the Universe, will be a fictional work about the origins of the universe. He is co-writing the book along with daughter, Lucy, who has authored Plume and Run for Your Life. The book will be will be illustrated by Garry Parsons who has illustrated, among other works, The Trouble at the Dinosaur Cafe. A fall release is expected.

Steven Hawking, Lucy Hawking, Garry Parsons, George’s Secret Key to the Universe, Plume, Run for Your Life, The Trouble at the Dinosaur Cafe

It’s the Friday Fifteen!

Today’s guest is Troy CLE, who wrote the heavily anticipated The Marvelous Effect. I first met Troy when he was kind enough to help me out with a post or two about his book. The post summarizing the release of The Marvelous Effect remains the most popular post on my site to date, garnering more than one million hits in two days - and almost a quarter of a million hits in one hour. In terms of popularity, I’d say that Troy is making a name for himself!

Now, onto the Fifteen!

1. Where are you now?
On the New York train to East Orange

2. What were your favorite books as a kid?
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing
Superfudge

3. What are you reading now?
Wish I had time to read. I am deep in writing book 1.5

4. Do you have kids?
Yeah- Marvelous World

5. What projects are you working on now?
Marvelous World Movie
Promoting this book is a full time project

6. What is your biggest writing or illustrating luxury?
Apple Pro Book

7. Coffee or tea?
Lemonade Passion Fruit Iced tea

8. Name five artists on your iPod (or mp3 player).
Linkin Park
Fall Out Boy
50 Cent
John Mayer
Lil’ Wayne

9. What would I be surprised to know about you?
I was a Classically trained pianist

10. What college did you attend (in what subject)?
BA American Literature and English-NYU
MS Digital Design- NYU

11. If you weren’t working with kids’ books, what would your dream job be?
Visual Effects Artist

12. What’s the best thing on TV right now?
Come On! I have to choose between 24 and Entourage?

13. How did you get your “big break” into the field?
I faked being my own publicist.

14. Which celeb would you want most to meet?
Charlie Murphy

15. Who is the best book character EVER?
Don’t I have to say Louis Proof?

You can check out Troy’s web sites here:
http://www.marvelousworld.net
http://www.myspace.com/troycle
http://www.myspace.com/themarvelouseffect

And oh yeah, The Marvelous Effect is in stores now. Pick one up today!

Thanks Troy!

As a follow-up to my post about the Philadelphia Inquirer’s plans to publish a collection of John Grogan’s articles, I contact Grogan’s agent, Laurie Abkemeier of DeFiore and Company. Ms. Abkemier referred me to her previous statement about the matter.

She also offered the following:

The bottom line is that John Grogan was always willing to be involved in a publication of his columns if given the creative control that is standard for an author. The Inquirer was not willing to budge on that issue as they consider themselves the “author” of the collection.

John Grogan, Laurie Abkemeier, DeFiore and Company, Marley

There’s no doubt that books that trend close to Harry Potter are doing well these days.

A few weeks ago, I posted about The Marvelous Effect, which has been referred to as “the black Harry Potter.”

And now, previously unknown Roderick Gordon and Brian Williams hope to generate that same kind of magic with their book, Tunnels. What is so amazing about Tunnels is that, like The Marvelous Effect, it was initially self-published.

Tunnels has something more important in common with Harry Potter, though: the eye of Chicken House publisher Barry Cunningham. Cunningham heard about the authors and signed them up for a series of fantasy tales (see guys, I didn’t say sci-fi, I’m learning) about fourteen year-old Will Burrows. The two have already received six figure advances.

Cunningham was the agent who signed J.K. Rowling for her Harry Potter series. Rowling has now sold more than 325 million copies of the series worldwide and became a billionaire - and that’s before the last book of the series has been released.

The question is, really, can Cunningham do it again?

Harry Potter, Barry Cunningham, J.K. Rowling, Chicken House, Tunnels, Brian Williams, Roderick Gordon

I received word today that John Grogan will be at a book signing just a few minutes away from my home in West Chester, PA, to promote his new book, Marley, A Dog Like No Other. My guess is that he won’t be stopping by his old offices at the Philadelphia Inquirer to say hello.

The Inquirer has struck a deal with Vanguard Press, to release a series of articles penned by Grogan as a book entitled Bad Dogs Have More Fun. Sounds great, right? Well, not exactly. Grogan wasn’t involved with the deal and he didn’t receive any advanced notice about the book. He reportedly had no involvement in the selection of the pieces or editing and, as a result, refuses to have any involvement in the promotion of the book.

As such, Grogan’s agent, Laurie Abkemeier of DeFiore and Company, today sent a letter to sales reps at Grogan’s current publisher, HarperCollins, expressing Grogan’s displeasure and explaining he will not be promoting or supporting the title in any way.

However, the new owner of the Inquirer, Brian Tierney, dismisses claims that leaving Grogan out of the process was purposeful and still hopes to have Grogan’s participation. In fact, he has even offered Grogan compensation in exchange for promoting the book. That makes sense, as clearly the book will have more success with Grogan’s stamp of approval.

However, Tierney, who, along with other investors including Bruce Toll of Toll Brothers, purchased the Inquirer last year for $562 million, doesn’t seem worried. He has stated, “[w]hile we’re excited about this book, it’s not as if it’s going to be a significant revenue stream.” And Tierney seems to know revenue. He is currently contemplating the purchase of Dow Jones & Company, which owns the Wall Street Journal.

Brian Tierney, Bruce Toll, Philadelphia Inquirer, Vanguard Press, Marley, John Grogan, HarperCollins

Lloyd Alexander, a prolific writer of children’s books including the five-book series “The Chronicles of Prydain,” died this week of cancer at the age of 83. Sadly, his wife died just two weeks before.

Alexander knew that he wanted to be a writer from age 15. His parents could not afford to send him to college so he took a number of jobs before joining the US Army. He ended up in Paris while in the Army. There, he met the woman he would eventually marry. Alexander and his wife returned to the Philadelphia suburbs, where they would live the rest of their days.

After a number of years of rejection, Alexander was finally published as a children’s author. The first book of his Prydain series was published in 1964. The last book of the series, The High King, won the Newbery Medal in 1969. Another book in the series, The Black Cauldron, was named a runner-up for the medal in 1966, a status now known as a Newbery Honor Book.

Lloyd Alexander, Prydain, The Black Cauldron, The High King

It’s the Friday Fifteen!

Today’s guest is author Tricia Rayburn. Let’s get to the Fifteen…

1. Where are you now?
Near the beach on the South Fork of Long Island.

2. What were your favorite books as a kid?
Anything with two covers and lots of pages in-between! I especially loved The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, and was seriously addicted to the Baby-Sitters Club, Sweet Valley Twins and Sweet Valley High series.

3. What are you reading now?
King Dork by Frank Portman

4. Do you have kids?
Not yet! But I do have one very mischievous shih tzu.

5. What projects are you working on now?
The sequel to The Melting of Maggie Bean, which should be out next spring.

6. What is your biggest writing or illustrating luxury?
The big, beautiful desk I bought when my book deal was official!

7. Coffee or tea?
Coffee. Lots of it, preferably iced.

8. Name five artists on your iPod (or mp3 player).
Counting Crows, U2, Dixie Chicks, Pete Yorn, Gwen Stefani

9. What would I be surprised to know about you?
I was the worst skipper in my childhood Polish dancing group.

10. What college did you attend (in what subject)?
Middlebury College in Vermont, majored in American Literature.

11. If you weren’t working with kids’ books, what would your dream job be?
Professional singer, ballroom dancer or surfer. Not that I’m qualified — at all — for any of those positions.

12. What’s the best thing on TV right now?
It WAS Gilmore Girls, but now it’s Planet Earth, Grey’s Anatomy and LOST.

13. How did you get your “big break” into the field?
The Melting of Maggie Bean was my MFA thesis, and I sent her into the publishing world as an afterthought, and with no expectations. She’s an actual book now thanks to my amazing agent, Rebecca Sherman of Writers House, and my incredible editor, Jen Klonsky at Simon & Schuster.

14. Which celeb would you want most to meet?
Is it wrong to say Oprah? Cause I really would, even without the whole book club thing. If it IS wrong to say Oprah, then Kate Winslet, Reese Witherspoon or Adam Brody.

15. Who is the best book character EVER?
I’ve started to answer this question ten times, only to delete each attempt. Any character that a reader relates to, cares for and is inspired by, is a character worth knowing.

–

Thanks, Tricia! Tricia’s new book, The Melting of Maggie Bean,is in stores now. And for more info, you can check out her MySpace profile.

Meg Cabot’s new book, Pants on Fire, is helping HarperTeen blaze its way to summer. To celebrate, you can enter on HarperTeen to win a signed copy of Meg Cabot’s Pants on Fire and a $100 gift certificate to Sephora for you and a friend.

Meg Cabot, Pants on Fire, HarperTeen

It’s Tell Me True Tuesday!

A reader wants to know, “Has a Newbery award winner ever won multiple times?”

Okay, my eyes are actually crossed from counting this one… In terms of medals, E.L. Konigsburg (The View from Saturday and From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler), Joseph Krumgold (Onion Stone and And Now Miguel), Lois Lowry (The Giver and Number the Stars), Katherine Paterson (Jacob Have I Loved and Bridge to Terabithia) and Elizabeth George Speare (The Witch of Blackbird Pond and The Bronze Bow) have all been awarded two Newbery Medals.

A number of authors have been the recipient of multiple Newbery honor awards including Russell Freedman, Nancy Farmer, Gary Paulsen, Virginia Hamilton, Padraic Colum, Isaac Bashevis Singer and Laura Ingalls Wilder, each of whom have won at least three honor awards.

For a complete list of winners, visit the American Library Association’s web site.

It’s Tell Me True Tuesday!

A reader wants to know, “How many books did Carolyn Keene write? And is it true that she also wrote the Hardy Boys books under a different name?”

I’ll answer the second question first. No, Carolyn Keene did not author the Hardy Boys books. I’ll post about those in the future.

The reason that I can say that emphatically is because (and hold onto your hats, you Nancy Drew idealists) Carolyn Keene isn’t a real person. And she’s not just a pseudonym for one person. She is a pseudonym for many people. (more…)

The author of The Marvelous Effect contacted me with the following clarification:

I am so sorry that I did not clarify this. If I did say Marvelous World was Science Fiction I am sorry. I DO NOT CLASSIFY IT AS SCIENCE FICTION! It is fantasy to me. I had no idea anyone would think it was Science Fiction. I just wrote a fantasy story with Science Fiction elements that I did not even know would be thought to me Science Fiction. Marvelous World is fantasy with a few Science Fiction elements that are not the focus of the story at all.

So there! All of you who were offended about the sci-fi thing can put your knives away. But then, I’m still waiting to hear what the difference is…

And thanks, Troy, for keeping me on track!

Troy CLE, Marvelous Effect, Marvelous world, science fiction, fantasy

That’s the question that author Troy CLE initially tried to answer when he created his character, Louis Proof.

But it would be simplistic to paint Louis as simply a black version of the beloved Harry. Louis is a very different character. The brainchild of Troy, Louis loves listening to hip-hop, racing radio-controlled cars, and hanging out with his best friend, Brandon. If he sounds a little normal, maybe it’s because he is meant to be.

Of his character, Troy says, “I couldn’t find any action hero kids who looked like me in popular literature. That’s what sparked me to write this book.” And where is comes from is pretty amazing. The 29 year old New Jersey native grew up and still lives (according to his myspace page) in the urban, gang-infested city of East Orange, NJ. However, Troy didn’t fall victim to the stereotypes. He studied classical piano and acting, and went on to succeed at New York University, including earning degrees in American literature and English, and a masters in digital design.

Despite his successes, Troy couldn’t shake the desire to create something that reflected his roots. The Marvelous World series was inspired by his own vow to create a movie where kids looked and lived like he did. While a big fan of Spielberg’s “The Goonies”, Troy realized that the kids in that movie didn’t look like him. In the Marvelous World series, the 13 year-old kid from New Jersey sounds a little like Troy might have been like as a child.

But that’s where the similarities appear to end. While Louis’ fictional world takes off in a whirlwind of fantasy, science fiction, hip-hop, gaming, race cars and Anime. Troy’s real life world has taken off in a manner that’s a little more mainstream (no comas, no magic portals) but no less fantastic.

Troy’s continuing rise to fame isn’t completely a solo effort. He had a little help from some pretty impressive friends. For starters, the cover art for the first book of the series was created by Daryl Mandryk, formerly of EA Sports and now the lead artist for Disney’s video game company, Propaganda Games. And the book’s back cover was created by Joe DiVelario, who was the visual effects designer for the Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie now infamous’ flick, “Mr. And Mrs. Smith.”

But Troy still couldn’t find a publisher. He didn’t stop trying. David Finn, owner of the public relations firm Ruder Finn, saw potential in Troy’s book and offered a hand. David lent his resources to help Troy self-publish his book and become his own publicist. And the hype began, resulting in deals with Simon and Schuster and Random House.

Since then, the buzz around Troy’s book has exploded. It is, quite likely, the second most anticipated new release of the summer. And oh yeah, Harry Potter isn’t the only book that you can pre-order. Pre-order The Marvelous Effect before its May 22 release date.

To hear a snippet as read by Malcolm Jamal-Warner, click here.

Troy CLE, The Marvelous Effect, Marvelous World, Harry Potter, sci-fi, gaming, Daryl Mandryk, Ruder Finn, Joe DiVelario

Ex-Spice Girl Geri Halliwell is adding a new title to her resume: children’s book author. The former Ginger Spice has announced that she a six-book publishing deal with Macmillan. The series revolves around 9-year-old Ugenia Lavender, who solves mysteries while dealing with everyday school life. Halliwell refers to the book as a little like “Alice in Wonderland meets Raiders of the Lost Ark.”

The first book in the series will be released next May, with one release each month to follow. Halliwell is also recording a theme song for the book which will be included on CD. Her new career gives her time at home to spend with new daughter, Bluebell Madonna.

Geri Halliwell, Spice Girls, MacMillan, Ginger Spice