More Author Signings! And the Zero Draft

This week has been filled with author signings!

Tuesday, my local B&N hosted an author event with the lovely ladies that wrote these books:

   

They each read pages from their work, and had us rolling with their witty answers to questions. I had a lovely chat with local author Sophie Jordan, and also met Courtney Allison Moulton who is quite hilarious. All four of them are promoting their trilogies and it was interesting to hear how difficult the third book is/was for them to write. As readers we take for granted that the last book in a series will tie up all the loose ends, but I for one rarely think about how difficult it might have been for the author to tie them. I find myself thankful there are no series ideas in my head as of right now!

Last night, I ventured into Houston to Blue Willow Bookshop for the Ally Carter event. She's promoting the second book in her Heist Society series, Uncommon Criminals. I flew through Heist Society, and I'm positive it's sequel will prove to be just as fun. 

 

Houston is so fortunate to have a rockin' indie bookstore like Blue Willow. They always put on such fab events, authors come back year after year. I was able to meet Ally Carter last year, and last night when I approached her table to get UC signed, she looked at me and said, "We've met before!" Open mouthed and red faced like the fangirl I am at these things, I said, "A YEAR AGO!" Seriously. Incredible.  

Ally is a pro at these events. She answers questions quick as a whip, keeping things upbeat and hilarious.  As far as writing advice I soaked up from her, there were several things I'd like to share. 

• She doesn't outline in the traditional way. Her initial draft is called the ZERO draft because it's unworthy of being called a first! It's the bare bare bones that she works out from beginning to end, making sure she knows everything that's going to happen. From there, she starts back at the beginning and revises, adding in all the pretties, then it becomes the first draft. 
• She reminds us not to get frustrated with our zeros and firsts. And especially don't compare them to a finished work!! You know that favorite book of yours? It's far far far from what their first draft was. Fear not! Keep going!

Author events are also a great time to meet up with fellow bloggers and other local authors! I enjoyed chatting and having dinner with the ladies behind the blogs Stephanie, a History, Cari's Book Blogs, Windowpane Memiors, Between the Covers, I Read Banned Books, and local author of Dreaming Anastasia and Haunted, Joy Preble. Also finally met Sarah from Sarah's Books and Life!

Birthday Contest!

How would you like to win a signed copy of Ally Carter's newest release, Heist Society?

It's already a New York Times Best Seller!

I had the opportunity to meet Miss Carter last Thursday, which you can read all about on this post. It was a joy to hear her speak, and I encourage everyone interested to check her website for her schedule.

Since today, Tuesday, February 23, is indeed MY BIRTHDAY, I thought it was only fitting to host a CONTEST for my lovely followers!! (Better to give than to receive, right?!)

Now, this is a Young Adult book, so I'm sure some of you are saying, "Well DARN IT, I don't read young adult chick's books... That's sissy stuff!" (Am I right DL?) You shouldn't feel left out! Not on Kristin's birthday! (Gasp!) So I will also be giving away a $10 Amazon e-mail gift card.

Up for Grabs:

1 signed hardback of Heist Society by Ally Carter

OR

$10 Amazon e-mail Gift Card

Rules:

Must be a follower

To Enter:

Leave a comment specifying if you are entering for the book (US only) or the gift card

Extra Entries:

+1 for guessing my correct age on this birthday!

+1 for blog shout out or sidebar (show me the link)

+1 for finishing this sentence:
Eyes closed tightly, I blew out the candles on the cake, and wished...

Contest ends at midnight this Sunday, February 28th.

Winners announced Monday, March 1st!

Buona Fortuna!

It's Friday! And the Ally Carter Book Signing!! (Molto Fantastico!)

Went to Ally Carter's signing last night here in Houston. She was delightful! Hilarious, inspiring, friendly! Everything you'd want an author to be when you go to an event.

There were quite a few young girls there (understandably), and my friend and I were amazed at the questions they asked. They were so insightful! Why wasn't I that smart when I was in junior high?! Must get a time machine programmed to 1997 and tell myself, "you ARE cool", and "you should really think about reading more". Maybe I would have started writing more seriously sooner. But what's done is done and everything happens because it's supposed to! So no "shoulda coulda woulda" from me!

A few points of interest from the evening, Ally mentioned how securing the Gallagher Girls series with the publisher was like them asking, "What's your favorite type of food?" "Pizza." "Well congratulations you get to eat pizza every night for the rest of your life!" And at first it's fantastic, but then you start to feel that you want to taste something else. That's where Heist Society came in to play. Inspired from a line she heard in an audio book she was listening to in her car. Something about a cat burglar. Then she knew she had to write a book about a burglar named Kat.

Her inspiration for the Gallagher Girls happened while she was half heartedly watching an episode of Alias (obsessed with that show! Miss it terribly!) with the TV on mute. She looked up from what she was doing just at the right moment that made her think, "Does that girl go to a boarding school for spies?" She unmuted and discovered she was very wrong, but the idea stuck.

Another interesting tidbit; a girl asked why we never see the girl's entire face on the cover of the Gallagher Girls books. She's a SPY that's why! And they originally wanted the first model to do all the covers, but she can't model again until her grades are up (hilarious!), and they've actually had a different model on each of the 4 covers done so far. The second book is a photoshopped face of the first girl on a different girl's body. HA! Marketing... which is also the reason the uniforms are a different color on each cover, so the reader could easily see which one was new.

She took the time to talk to every single person, and was very personable with the young girls, who were a bit star struck. She took photos, signed ALL the books they brought, asked everyone questions... it was such a joy to see an author signing done this way. I was already a fan of her work, but I'm even more so now a fan of her.

And yes, I did snag an extra signed copy for a GIVEAWAY!! I will probably announce it officially on Monday, or Tuesday (mio compleanno), so shhhhh!

Anyway! Tonight also has fun things in store, because I will get to meet these lovely boys again!!

Can't wait to shake their hands (after I wipe the sweat off of mine), and hopefully sneak a picture in with them since I wasn't able to last time... we'll see. THANKS FOR THE TICKETS DAD! Grazie papa! Sono molto eccitato! (I don't know why I feel the need to teach y'all Italian today! lol.)

Venerdi felice! (Happy Friday!)

Ally Carter - Heist Society - Tonight!

Tonight (and tomorrow night), Ally Carter (The Gallagher Girls series) will be in Houston promoting the first book of her new young adult series, Heist Society. It sounds like a lot of fun! The film rights for this were snatched up VERY quickly, so that's exciting to hear about a new book! Buzz buzz buzz!! I'm anxious to hear what wisdoms Ally has to pass along!

From Goodreads:
When Katarina Bishop was three, her parents took her on a trip to the Louvre...to case it. For her seventh birthday, Katarina and her Uncle Eddie traveled to Austria...to steal the crown jewels. When Kat turned fifteen, she planned a con of her own--scamming her way into the best boarding school in the country, determined to leave the family business behind. Unfortunately, leaving "the life" for a normal life proves harder than she'd expected.

Soon, Kat's friend and former co-conspirator, Hale, appears out of nowhere to bring her back into the world she tried so hard to escape. But he has good reason: a powerful mobster has been robbed of his priceless art collection and wants to retrieve it. Only a master thief could have pulled this job, and Kat's father isn't just on the suspect list, he is the list. Caught between Interpol and a far more deadly enemy, Kat's dad needs her help.

For Kat there is only one solution: track down the paintings and steal them back. So what if it's a spectacularly impossible job? She's got two weeks, a teenage crew, and hopefully just enough talent to pull off the biggest heist in history-or at least her family's (very crooked) history.

Now, would any of you be interested in winning a signed copy of Heist Society in a contest if I get my hands on an extra one? First edition hardback! Let me know (today, please ;)!!

Review of I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have To Kill You - By Ally Carter

I had seen this Gallagher Girls series grow in number in the bookstore, and I always smiled at the quirky titles. When I learned that literary agent Kristin Nelson represented Ally Carter, I knew I had to read at least the first one. I wasn't disappointed.


I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have To Kill You
(Gallagher Girls #1)
by Ally Carter

Description from Goodreads:
The Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women is a fairly typical all-girls school—that is, if every school teaches advanced martial arts in PE, chemistry always consists of the latest in chemical warfare, and everyone breaks CIA codes for extra credit in computer class. So in truth, while the Gallagher Academy might say it's a school for geniuses what they really mean is spies. But what happens when a Gallagher Girl falls for a boy who doesn't have a code name?
Cammie Morgan may be fluent in fourteen languages and capable of killing a man in seven different ways (three of which involve a piece of uncooked spaghetti), but the Gallagher Academy hasn't prepared her for what to do when she meets an ordinary boy who thinks she's an ordinary girl. Sure, she can tap his phone, hack into his computer, and track him through a mall without him ever being the wiser, but can she have a regular relationship with a regular boy who can never know the truth about her? Cammie may be an elite spy in training, but in her sophomore year, she's doing something riskier than ever—she's falling in love.

My Thoughts:
Cam is likable, brilliant, can blend in like a "chameleon", and she's a spy in training. The writing seems to be for the younger side of young adult, but it's a really cute story. All the spy-type stuff was well researched and incorportated, and helped keep the reader interested in what was going to happen next. It was a clean, quick read, laugh-out-loud funny at times. I found myself getting sucked into Cam's secret romance with Josh, who believes every quick lie she tells him about herself - basically, her lies are the whole foundation of their relationship. You keep reading, wondering not IF he will find out the truth, but WHEN, and how big the bomb will be? Here's a little sample of the writing style:

[ "We have come to a time when—" But before she could finish, the doors flew open and not even three years of training at spy school prepared me for what I saw. Before I say any more, I should probably remind you that I GO TO A GIRLS' SCHOOL—that's all girls, all the time, with a few ear-drop-needing, plastic-surgery-getting male faculty members thrown in for good measure. But when we turned around we saw a man walking in our midst who would have made James Bond feel insecure. Indiana Jones would have looked like a momma's boy compared to the man in the leather jacket with two-days' growth of beard who walked to where my mother stood and then—horror of horrors—winked at her. ]

The one criticism I have, is the overuse of parentheses. Every few paragraphs seemed to have parantheses with a disclaimer or explantaion, and it got a little redundant - I skipped a lot of them, even though some were hilarious. After a point, it just became more to read.

If you're looking for a cute, girly, easy-to-read YA, this could be it. I plan to continue the series... just because the characters are that likable.

3/5 - Liked it