DREADED AUTHOR QUESTION: Are You Self-Publishing?

  
By Isabo Kelly

This is such a timely question I was actually asked this by a non-writer at a family function recently. This person didn’t know a thing about the industry, but she’d heard about the upswing in electronic self-publishing, heard my upcoming book would be available electronically, and innocently asked if I intended to self-publish.

Naturally, with all the stories of huge successes, successful authors choosing to self-publish over taking a large advance from traditional publishers, and the plethora of tablets and e-readers flooding the market, even the average reader has heard of self-publishing ebooks.

Not so many years ago, this question carried negative connotations. Even when the self-published book was brilliant and successful, the common wisdom held that if your book had to be self-published, it wasn’t good enough. Not true then any more than it is now. Unfortunately, there are still some of those assumptions floating around.

But the revolution made possible by ebook self-publishing has made this avenue of getting books to readers not only a viable option but also considered by some to be a “better” and “more profitable” way to publish.

So what’s an author to do when asked this question? Especially by people who don’t actually understand what the question really means?

It’s a complicated issue. There is a financial investment involved if you want to self-publish well. There’s a lot of marketing involved with making sure people know your book is out there. There’s a lot of time and energy that goes into the process. There’s a lot of freedom and control over the final book. The percentage earned per book is a lot higher than via traditional publishers, but the market share for ebooks versus mass market paperback is still smaller. Not everyone who throws an ebook up on Kindle is an instant success, this isn’t a get rich quick scheme, and if the book isn’t well edited, readers will let everyone who sees the book know in their reviews.

But do you go into detail explaining this to the strangers who asked if you’re going this route? With all the sensational stories, how do you tell people the process isn’t quite right for you? Or you haven’t decided if you will try it yet? Or you’ve already self-published and the book is only doing okay? Or you’ve done it already and you’ve been wildly successful? All these things are possible. And there’s a lot of discussion about the details among writers—we care about all these things.

Does the average reader? Not in near as much depth of detail as the average writer. Giving a non-writer the basic answer—“I have”; “I’m gonna try it at some point”; “It’s not really for me and I’ll stick to more traditional routes”—will probably suffice to get them to leave you alone on the subject.

Still, being asked this question makes you think. If you’re answer is, “No, I don’t think it’s for me,” are you missing out on something? If you’re answer is, “Actually, I have self-published” but you can’t say “And it’s made me rich!”, have you done something wrong? Is your book that bad?

I’ve met several very successful self-published authors (as I’m sure a lot of you have), and I’ve talked to authors who haven’t done particularly well self-publishing and are keen to return to more traditional routes. I’ve also talked with many authors who just don’t want to self-publish, and yet others who want their feet in both doors—self-publishing and traditional. Only an individual author will ever be able to say if the process is right for them or not. Fortunately, there are a lot of resources out there to understand what goes into self-publishing a book and what you can reasonably expect, allowing you to say with a comfortable level of knowledge that the process is for you or is not.

In the end, all the sensational stories won’t make self-publishing the path for you if it’s not. If it is, knowing the nuts and bolts can only aid you in your journey. And when someone asks you this question, be honest. It’s a wonderful opportunity for writers. It can only be a good thing that we now have all these options. But self-publishing isn’t for everyone. And forcing yourself to try it or feeling like you might be missing out if you don’t want to try it, is a waste of energy. If it makes your pulse race and you love having that kind of control over your book, go for it!

It’s a whole new world, the industry is changing, we’re going to get this question a lot from people who don’t realize it’s not a get rich quick scheme or even as easy as it sounds. Stay calm when they press you on the issue. Your truth is the only one that counts for your career.♥

Isabo Kelly hasn’t self-published yet but she is one of those authors “considering” the option. In the meantime, she’s happy to let her publishers do all the business work while she writes books. Her newest fantasy romance, BRIGHTARROW BURNING, will be released from Samhain Publishing on October 4, 2011. For more on Isabo and her books (and if she ever decides to self-publish!) visit her at http://www.isabokelly.com/.

Bring On The Heat

by F. Solomon


When I joined RWANYC, one of the coolest things that I did ironically enough was bring the heat.

No, not the kind that we are currently enjoying outside, but the HOT issue in August. This is the third year of our HOT issue, and it already promises seduction and testosterone! Whoo! And yet there is more--if you are up to it. There is a small window that you can slip into and turn up the heat even more.

Summer is here, it is hot as...who says you have to go away to have a fling? Although I am going away, but it will be too late for this issue if I am inspired! So you all have to help me, turn my e-mail on fire. Send me or Maria--who is keeping the summer pretty hot herself--your erotic musings, fiction or poetry. It can be primal or loving, whatever your fancy, just make it hot. And if you have never written anything erotic, step outside--literally--you will want to come back into your cool surroundings and heat up the screen with something for us.

Plus, I have a secret to reveal that is kinda hot!  You'll have to wait for it!

YA THAT SIZZLES

   
Recorded by Catherine Greenfeder



The speakers for this workshop were multi-published YA authors Tera Lynn Childs, Kimberly Derting, and Sophie Jordan. Books by the authors speaking include Firelight and Vanish by Sophie Jordan, Forgive My Fins by Terri Lynn Childs, The Body Finder and Desires of the Dead by Kimberly Derting. Here is a summary based on notes taken during this highly informative workshop at the RWA National Conference earlier this month.


Characterization

How old should the protagonists be? Between twelve to eighteen years of age is fine, past that gets into adult fiction. So, seniors in high school are okay to use.  Make sure to give the characters quirks so that they’re three dimensional.


Where do you start the book?

“All books open with your main character on the threshold of change.”


How hot can you make a YA?

“It’s not taboo to have graphic sex, but you have to keep in mind that the teen’s life experience is different from ours as adult writers.”

Off-page sex is not described but talked about. One of the authors didn’t feel the need to add detailed description on the sex, so she kept if off the page.

Sophie Jordan feels the sex has to be subtle because she has readers who have followed her from a younger age. Keep in mind that parents are buying the books. Her books are for twelve year olds and up.

High school versus the middle school readers are a different reader. Obviously! Sex, drugs, alcohol, and profanity are other subjects used in some of the books.


Does the adult voice intrude on the YA voice?

You have to shut off your adult voice, and put yourself into the view of the teen. Think back to your own experience as a teenager. The writer needs to ask what it felt like when I was a teenage girl of my protagonist’s age. Also, remember back and remember one of those fantasies you had. Teens still fantasize about those things, and it can be worked into your book.


Use Real Life Experiences for Teens

Being at a party where teens engage in use of drugs, alcohol, or sex is a real life experience. It’s real to the readers. However, you as the writer, have to be aware of who’s purchasing the books. Teens, of course, buy books, but so do adults. Therefore, gate keepers on subject matter are parents, teachers, and librarians; they can control the purchase of YA books; this gets into the issue of censorship. That’s not to discount the more edgy YA books gaining popularity.


Point of view

Writing first person P.O.V. versus third person P.O.V. is a matter of taste and is not a problem if you do what feels comfortable for you.

I Am Number Four crosses both girl and boy readership.


Dialogue/Teen Speak and Fashion

Don’t date your dialogue – teen lingo changes; avoid reference to pop culture which can change later on.

There’s a fine line between YA and trendy; use fashion that will still be in style because trends change. This includes music trends.


Common Issues

Dead parents, neglectful parents, and parents who are very busy with their jobs are found in a lot of YA.


Have e-book readers affected sales for YA?

Most definitely, e-books are increasing sales for YA. ###




Catherine Greenfeder is the author of two published e-books, Angels Among Us, and Wildflowers; and is currently hard at work on a YA paranormal set in New Jersey.

CREATING CHARACTERS THROUGH TAROT CARDS: KING OF SWORDS

  
By Karen Cino



KING OF SWORDS

The King of Swords is a unique character. He represents the astrological air signs: Libra, Aquarius and Gemini. The Hero that is also known as the Bad Boy.

The King represents a man over the age of 35. You can usually find him in high power jobs, such as a lawyer, government official, advisor or president of a company. He is a man of power, stern and not to be reckoned with.

There is no excitement with the King of Swords as he has all his emotions blocked, not letting them affect his judgment. Most people see him as arrogant and controlling, having no conscience.

Romantically, the King is blunt, sometimes to the point of indifference. You have to give him breathing room because no matter how much you try to get any sort of emotion out of him, he will put up the walls and block you out. He can be a loving partner, however, he is quick to cut off his emotions and use his independence as his reward of intimacy. Getting close to the King on an intimate level can be a struggle. If you can make it carefully through his barriers he can be a good partner.

The King of Swords is the perfect person to work out solutions quickly and cut to the chase in chaotic situations and provides the solution needed to move forward. Most of the time, he is truthful and can be relied on to handle situations fairly and honorably.

Like the other Kings, he has both positive and negative traits. His negative characteristics could be quite severe at times making him to be a phenomenal antagonist. As an antagonist, he frowns on people that don’t live up to his expectations. He sets the tone of a situation and expects everyone to follow in his footsteps.

Positive

Moral/ethical leader, lives by the highest principles, works against dishonesty, impartial, applies reason and logic, rational, wise, authoritative, good communicator and practical.

Negative traits

Bullying, scheming. Impersonal, calculating, vengeful, can be violent and cruel, emotional issues, uncaring and extremely over emotional in an out of control way. ♥



Karen Cino is President of RWA/NYC. She writes women’s fiction and is currently working on a fiction book with Staten Island locales.
  

DOT YOUR I’S AND CROSS YOUR T’S, AND MIND YOUR P’S AND Q’S

  
by Margaret Birth

This blog entry is on a subject that shouldn’t even need mentioning—but evidently it does, because I’ve seen so many manuscripts that don’t measure up in this basic area. The best way to summarize it is to say that you must make sure to: Dot your “i”’s and cross your “t”’s, and mind your “p”’s and “q”’s. If you haven’t guessed it yet, I’m talking about professional presentation of your manuscript.

It never ceases to amaze me how many authors submit manuscripts that are dog-eared; part-typewritten photocopies, part-typewritten carbon copies (!!!), part-computer printed copies; missing page numbers; and full of typos. Every time I see a manuscript like this, I want to take the author by the shoulders and shake her (or him).

Some writers may think that a messy manuscript is endearing, a sign of disorganized genius, the on-paper equivalent of Albert Einstein’s unfortunate hairdo. But I’m here to tell them (and you): Don’t do it! A messy manuscript does not look like disorganized genius; it looks like disorganized idiocy.

Herewith, a few pointers to make your manuscript look as fantastic as your story must have sounded in that query letter (You did already introduce yourself to the agent or editor in a query letter, didn’t you?):

Make sure the pages of your manuscript are clean and neatly aligned. Keep the food-stained, or dog-eared previous copies for scrap paper if you want to be that environmentally friendly (I do), but please don’t let a sloppy stack of paper be your introduction to an editor or agent. Otherwise, how will they get the impression that you’ll do a careful, thoughtful job for them if they accept your story or take you on as a client?

Use one font (something sedate, like Courier or Times New Roman) and type size (12- or 14-point, please) consistently throughout, and use black ink on clean, white, 20-lb. paper. Not only is it irritating to have to read carbon copies mixed in with photocopies, but it’s also irritating to have to read hot-pink fourteen-point Allegro, black bold-face twelve-point Sans Serif and black ten-point Courier all on one page of deckled gray paper. Think I’m kidding when I say that I’ve seen this before? I’m not. It was blinding to read.

Double-check that your manuscript contains all of its pages, and that they’re all facing in the same direction. Few things are more frustrating to a manuscript reader, agent, or editor than to be reading a story—especially one that shows promise—and then discover that there’s no page 213 but two copies of page 252! The reader has no choice, then, but to stop, leaf through the entire manuscript in search of the missing page(s), and fume at the lost time and story parts.

And finally… Proofread! Don’t rely on your computer’s spell-checker. It won’t catch correctly-spelled homonyms (“to/too/two”) or spelling errors which are words, themselves (“of” versus “off”), nor will it catch punctuation or grammar goofs. Pay close attention to capitalization and punctuation (no “’that stinks.’ He said.”), and to proper usage (“lie” versus “lay”).

Just follow these guidelines, and your manuscript should look like a million bucks! Now, about the size of that advance....♥



Margaret Birth is a Christian writer who has been widely published in short fiction, short nonfiction, and poetry, both in the U.S. and abroad; in addition to working as a freelance writer, she's spent over a decade freelancing for multiple publishers as a manuscript reader, proofreader, and copy editor.

TSTL - A WRITER'S LIFE

    
By Dee Davis


Author’s Note: I wrote this article originally for the Austin Romance Writer’s Newsletter in response to a review I’d read that talked about a heroine being TSTL. I couldn’t help but relate it to a romance writer.

Recently I was reading a book review where the reviewer described the heroine as TSTL. Because of this nefarious acronym, she couldn’t recommend the book. I stopped reading, puzzled. TSTL?

Tempting Sultress Takes Life?
Tumultuous Seductress Taming Lions?
Tobacco-stained Slut Tasting Lemons?

Obviously being cut from the same cloth as said heroine, it took me awhile to figure out what the reviewer was referring to. But eventually the old light bulb flashed, and I had a major V-8 moment.

Too Stupid Too Live….

All of which brings me to the question of the day: Is a romance writer TSTL?

Every day it is estimated that 141 million women get out of their beds, make breakfast for spouses and children, hustle books into book bags, and papers into briefcases, children onto buses and panty-hosed bodies into SUV’s and begin another day. Of these women at least 8000 of them consider themselves romance writers. And, among other parts of their day, they will find themselves missing exits, forgetting the dry cleaning, or opting out of a board meeting because they have a story to tell.

These women will put pen to paper, or fingers to keyboard, in the determined hope that what they are writing will somehow become the next bestseller.

Too stupid too live?

Quite possibly. The Romance Writers Association estimates that there are approximately 2000 romances published each year. Of those slots, less than a fifth will go to new authors, the rest going to writers who have already proved their mettle. So even before typing the word ‘prologue’, our woman of the hour has an uphill battle.

And it only gets worse.

Right off the bat she’s got an obstacle. Only a very small percentage of all people saying they’re going to write a book actually ever finish the thing. What seems like a lark -- an absolute cracker idea -- quickly turns into a nightmare when faced with the necessity of a believable beginning, middle and end. The idea that seemed so simple in the imagination suddenly develops serious problems on page 134 with another 266 to go. And characters who seemed charming in chapter one have turned into boring whiners by chapter ten, leaving the writer with no alternative but to kill them off in the most torturous manner possible.

The only problem being that the book was meant to be romantic comedy.

And even if our heroine overcomes all these problems and actually finishes her novel, the problems have only just begun. Our brave little lady will be facing a horde of other writers, tightly plotted and typed manuscripts clutched in their perfectly manicured hands. Each of them fighting for a chance at the only gatekeeper to the gilded cage of literary success -- the agent.

And, truth be told, literary agents are a rare breed indeed, and our intrepid authoress-to-be is about as likely to snare one as she is a pair of Manolo Blahnik shoes at a half price basement sale at Target. But rejection doesn’t throw our writer one bit. After all she is TSTL, and therefore, she pluckily ignores the odds and struggles forward, avoiding both the jabs and thrusts of other writers, and the innuendos and rumors coming down seemingly from the publishers on high.

She takes her historical, western set, time-travel with two separate sub-plots and a hero who successfully dodged all military involvement and sends it out again and again and again and again, until finally the Muses take pity on her and an agent offers representation.

Immediately the nay-sayers warn our heroine that her agent isn’t A-list, that Westerns are dead, and that a hero without a uniform simply will not sell. Being of the TSTL persuasion she smiles sunnily, signs a contract with said agent, and begins her new book, a comic romantic suspense set in Bolivia during the pre-Columbian era.

Time passes and our slightly addled heroine, who is cheerfully papering her bathroom with rejection letters, finishes her second novel and moves onto her third. (A paranormal shape-shifting romance based on BRIDGET JONES' DIARY.) Still no positive word from her agent. But one has to have hope. And fearlessly she forges ahead, ignoring the headlines of various publishing magazines swearing that the romance is dead and unhappy endings will rule.

Occasionally, as she stumbles over unwashed clothes or forgets to pick up her children, she wonders if she’s made a mistake, trading certain success in the world of personal injury law for frozen dinners and carpel tunnel syndrome. Her sex life has disintegrated to a series of post coital interview questions -- as she struggles to capture the magic of it all on paper. And her biggest joy in life is the day the Office Depot circular announces a sale on printer ink.

Still, being TSTL, she plows onward, certain that somehow, someday, she will have the intense pleasure of seeing her name on the New York Times Bestseller List -- right above all six of the latest Nora Roberts books.

And then one day, when she is knee deep in oven grit, the telephone rings. Her agent has news. Wonderful, amazing news. She’s sold the first novel. To a real bona fide New York publisher. She starts to cry and then wheezes hysterically, oven cleaner fumes combining with her joy to create total ecstasy.

For an amount only slightly higher than her monthly house payment, our long suffering heroine has beaten the odds and sold her book. And being TSTL, she immediately goes out and spends the entire advance on a new computer so that she can begin to create bookmarks and promote herself.

The wise, and unpublished, shake their heads knowingly. She was just lucky they say. One book maybe…but a second book --- Never.

The euphoria still in full effect, our heroine immediately polishes the Bolivian epic and the shape shifting BJD saga and sends them off to her agent. The agent suggests gently that the warthog should be something more stately -- a panther or tiger. And, edits firmly in place, our darling girl sends in her second and third tomes and sits down to await her editorial letter for book one.

The lists and organizations tell her over and over that one book wonders are no oddity and that everything she’s written about is unsaleable. She learns that royalties are a myth and that earning out is unlikely, that print runs are miniscule and that for every author published there are ten more waiting to take her place. She’s told it’s an editor’s world and that she’s living a day-dream if she ever expects to make it in the shark infested publishing pond.

But our word-driven heroine is TSTL, so she prints bookmarks and magnets, buys pens and teabags (the non-military hero is quite the tea drinker), joins chat groups and internet lists, and learns Front Page so that she can create a website.

Six months, and a forth book later, she holds the copy of her first book in her hands. Overwhelmed with it all she attends her debut book signing, selling a total of eight books -- which she deems a success (after all, she read an article that said selling three was a miracle). She slides through reviews with only an occasional bad one.

The nay-sayers maintain that it’s only a fluke, that her print run must be tiny, and that Amazon numbers reflect only the smallest of sales. But being TSTL, she continues work on her current story -- the tale of a virginal knife-wielding man lost in a harem of vampires at Disney World.

And soon word comes from the Almighty Agent on High that she has sold her second book. And this time, it comes with a multi-book contract including both the vampire harem and the shape-shifting panther.

Life is good, and her advance is sufficient for a long vacation in the tropics. But our erstwhile heroine ignores her husband and children yet again and plugs the money back into the franchise, buying a laptop computer and a color printer.  Her first book sells well, and word on the street is that the book has buzz. But her royalty statements sing out the sad truth that the print run was tiny and the book, now out of print, is dead.

Undaunted, because she’s TSTL, our brave girl continues her plan, starting yet another book, this one a cross between Young Frankenstein and Prizzie’s Honor -- the heroine being a wimpy woman with no spine and a harelip.

Her second and third books come out to much success critically, but alas not quite financially. She plugs forward, selling the forth and fifth books along the way. And it is while writing the sixth (an epic romance among Eskimos in Alaska) that our heroine finds herself at the top of the NYT Best Seller List. It seems the nation is mad for virginal knife-wielding heroes.

When the fifth book comes out, one reviewer states that it is after all only a fluke… that our heroine’s latest book has at it’s heart a woman too stupid to live.

Said author, who can relate after all, smiles to herself as she slides into her Jaguar XKR and drives off into the sunset.

Too stupid to live?

Hardly.♥

Dee Davis writes romantic suspense thrillers for Grand Central Publishing. The next book in her popular A-Tac Series, DEEP DISCLOSURE, will be released August 2011. Dee is an award-winning author. She’s won the Booksellers Best, Golden Leaf, Texas Gold and Prism awards, and has been nominated for the National Readers Choice Award, the Holt and two RT Reviewers Choice Awards. To date, she has sold 21 books and four novellas. Visit her at http://www.deedavis.com.

Summer Post for Twombly

by F. Solomon


On a warm summer day, I read that the artist Cy Twombly died. His rendition of the seasons--summer accompanies this post--was a fixture once in the atrium at MoMA. He had recently been very active and has a current exhibition of sculpture at MoMA.

Four years ago, I read another article about a French woman, who was so overcome by one of Twombly's paintings that she kissed it!   Artinfo said she vandalized or even more harshly raped on of Twombly's paintings in the Musee D'Orsay. She said that she was overcome with pure, intense love and when she kissed the white canvas she left a lipstick imprint. The lawyer for the plaintiffs said, "I do not share the same vision of love. For me love requires the consent of both sides."

I definitely think it was an act of pure and intense love--I am a romantic and have felt flushed many times in a museum upon seeing the work of a favorite artist. I can tell you that the other season paintings are quite something at close range, and that a kiss is one of the best tributes to the life and work of Cy Twombly. And as writers, why not go to MoMA and get inspired by a master?

Just please do not kiss the art!

RWA READERS FOR LIFE LITERACY AUTOGRAPHING & PHOTOS

  
By Maria Ferrer



493 authors participated in the RWA’s 2011 Readers for Life Literacy Autographing on Tuesday, June 28, at New York’s Marriott Marquis Hotel.

I was happy to see many of RWANYC’s own members signing, like C.H. Admirand, Thea Devine, Anna DePalo, Anne Elizabeth, Shirley Hailstock, Kathleen O’Reilly and Lisa Verge. (If I left anyone out, please forgive me and let me know so I can add you here.) I also ran into a lot of “old” RWANYC members, and it was great to catch up a bit and swap business cards.

I wasn’t able to get into the conference, as they were sold out even before the end of the “early bird special.” But I wanted to be a part of the event so I volunteered to help setup the literacy autographing. I set out books, books and more books; organized some of the chapter baskets/totes for the raffle; put out the RITA finalist banners, etc. At 5:00pm, authors started arriving to find their seats and put their own touches to their seats – pens, bookmarks, posters to name a few. At 5:30pm, the doors opened to the 2000+ romance fans waiting outside, which comprised of RWA members, conference attendees and the general public.

And then organized chaos reigned. Just look at the pictures if you don’t believe me.

And this was not even half the people on line. The first person on line arrived at 9:30am for the 5:30pm event. Is that a Romance Fan or what?!

There were a lot of “wall” flowers, and not just mid-list authors. I saw a few RITA Finalists who didn’t sell a single book. A lot of people were there to see the A list, i.e., Sherrilyn Kenyon, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Meg Cabot, Diana Gabaldon, Nalini Singh, etc.  Nora Roberts was not there this year. I’m sure that was one of the reasons there were not more fans on line.

Some wall flower-authors looked sad. Others took advantage of the evening and passed out their bookmarks, pens and chatted with whoever passed in front of them.

One big lesson I learned from watching the authors is to be prepared with lots of promotional materials. Remember, that writing is a business, and you are your own Publicist. So an author needs to put herself out there and make her materials stand out.

Here are some promotional materials I saw:

--bookmarks -- most authors had these
--candy – chocolate was king!
--pens
--autograph stickers
--postcards or flyers for new or next book
--giveaways, like tshirts, hats and mini book excerpts


Best promotion I saw – this husband’s tshirt: He claims he was the inspiration for pages 274-277!

Best promoter – Caridad Pineiro.  Boy, was she prepared. She had bookmarks, pens, flyers, excerpts, a banner for the table skirt and her laptop to run her book trailer. The video stopped people in their tracks and generated a few sales, and isn’t that the name of the game – to sell?

At the end of the evening, authors were ready to stop writing and start partying; Readers were ready to start reading; and RWA raised $47,000 for literacy.  Next year, RWA’s National Conference will be in Anaheim, CA.  RWA is not returning to New York until 2015, which will be here before you know it. Hopefully, I will be able to get into the conference that year and be one of the authors at the literacy autographing. 

Until then, Happy Writing, Happy Reading.♥



Maria Ferrer writes erotica under the pen name of Del Carmen. Her story, “Ride a Cowboy” is part of the WOMEN IN LUST anthology being released November 2011 from Cleis Press. Visit her at http://www.mydelcarmen.blogspot.com/.

WHAT TEENS WANT TO READ

    
By Catherine Greenfeder

As a middle school teacher of language arts, I’ve read quite a bit of children’s and young adult literature over the years, much of it is considered the classics, but more fall into the category of popular fiction. I need to know what interests the young teen market so that I can provide books which will keep students interested and engaged in reading and promote future literacy. So, along with ongoing discussions with students about their books, I’ve also conducted my own independent surveys of these teen readers who range in age from thirteen to fifteen years old. What I’ve found is not too surprising.

Among their favored picks from close to fifty titles in our class book selection are MY SISTERS KEEPER by Jodi Picoult, CONFESSIONS OF AN ALMOST MOVIE STAR by Mary Kennedy, Robert Cormier’s I AM THE CHEESE, TEEN IDOL by Meg Cabot, ELSEWHERE by Gabrielle Zevin, John Coy’s CRACKBACK, THE MISFITS by James Howe, RAVEN’S GATE and the Alex Rider series by Anthony Horowitz, YOUNG MAN IN VIETNAM by Charles Coe, the Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul series, HATCHET by Gary Paulsen, I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER by Lois Duncan, A WALK TO REMEMBER by Nicholas Sparks, MONSTER by Walter Dean Myers, DANGEROUS GIRLS by R.L. Stine, HOOPS by Walter Dean Myers, TRAVEL TEAM by Mike Lupica, and HEAD GAMES by Keri Mikulsi. There are gender based differences with the girls favoring romance, mystery, and fantasy; the boys preferring action/adventure and sports theme related books. A few suggested non-fiction and historical books including books set during war time. Due to the Twilight series, several girls showed an interest in vampire books and paranormals. Judy Blume books are popular among the girls. A few boys complained of lack of action/adventure books. So, I’ve been trying to meet the growing demand for these books when it comes time to add to our inventory.

As a writer, I am interested in the young adult reader and the market for YA books. I wrote a draft for my first YA novel, a ghost story, during last year’s National Novel Writing Month in November. I shared my goal with some of the students who took up the equivalent of NaNoWriMo with its Young Writers Program. It made me more aware of the challenge of writing for this age group.

What does the YA market consist of? Young adult readers are generally twelve to eighteen years old, but that does not mean that these young people read only YA books. Studies show, and I think mere observation as an educator, that teens read adult novel as well. I’ve had students read books by James Patterson, Stephen King, and Nicholas Sparks which I consider adult novels. I think this helps explain why authors who write both adult and YA such as Nicholas Sparks, Judy Blume, and Meg Cabot are so popular. Even Stephen King and James Patterson have published YA books. Along with author loyalty, younger readers choose books based on recommendation. As part of group discussions, the teenagers recommend books or critique them with each other. Another consideration in choosing books is length. If it’s too long, it might not appeal to the young adult reader. YA novels tend to run between 40,000 to 75,000 words. Although, as expected, the more advanced readers had no qualms about reading a bigger book, but they are more selective about genre and plot elements.

Even in these recessionary times, a time when it seems young people are not reading, there is a strong and growing market for young adult books. According to the American Booksellers Association “young adult readers are a powerful market force in the book industry – teens spend $ 94.7 billion per year, increasing by $ 1 billion each year. Most booksellers have sections devoted to young adults or teen readers, but increasingly the lines between age ranges and target audiences are blurred."

Also, location matters. “In small towns, booksellers often know all the children under 18 buying books, as well as their parents. They may inform the parents about the subject matter in books the kids want to read.”

Teen celebrity books are popular too, including Justin Bieber’s THE LAST SONG. Tie-ins with movies help as well. The movie Soul Surfer encouraged a few students to read the biography about the shark attack which changed the life of teen surfer Bethany Hamilton. Her courage and faith inspired several teenagers and interested them in reading other biographies. Young teens want to read about other teenagers who overcome problems or who deal with tremendous pressures from peers or society. These teens like to read about fictional characters that face real life issues including bullying, gangs, drug abuse, anorexia, illness, suicide, dysfunctional families, and young romance with all its challenges.

Working with adolescents gives me an awareness of trends and preferences. It challenges me to view the literature more critically, and it reminds me of my own choices as a teenager which went beyond the required classics of literature. Of course, like the adolescents themselves, tastes change. Many come in having read the entire Twilight series, Harry Potter books, and the Alex Rider series. By the way, a lot of the teens I’ve worked with love series. They’re loyal to them, and once hooked, read every book in the series.

It saddens me sometimes to have to shelve books because they’re outdated or have lost popularity. On the other hand, old favorites like the Nancy Drew and Hardy Boy series have regained popularity. A recent visit to my local Barnes and Noble reminded me of this. In fact, one of my favorite teen reads, SEVENTEENTH SUMMER by Maureen Daly, published before my time, in 1942, sat on a counter display for recommended summer reading. I picked up a few copies for next year’s students who yearn for a sweet romance with strong teen protagonists and a historical setting.

Now that it’ summer vacation, I’m taking a little respite from reading YA books in order to work on revising my own attempt at writing for this growing, challenging, and changing market. A few of my students asked me when they can read my books. So, I hope to meet their request with a YA book in the near future. I’m also catching up on reading adult books including another favorite from my own teen years, THE PROMISE by Danielle Steele. It’s one of those romance novels which hooked me as a young adult reader and inspired me toward one day writing romance books. Have a good summer!♥

Catherine Greenfeder, vice president of RWANYC, is the published author of two e-books, ANGELS AMONG US, a paranormal romance, and WILDFLOWERS, a historical western romance set along the Oregon Trail.

  

All- American: A Sportswear Tradition ©

   
By Polly Guerin


It’s easy to forget that women did not always climb mountains and ski, and become Olympic heroines. When we look at medieval tapestries we see aristocratic women riding to the hunt but in most cases women were relegated to sedentary roles. Gentle sports emerged in the 19th century. Women came out of the parlour and became active participants swinging a golf club, wielding a croquet mallet or playing tennis. There was no specific clothing for these activities. Though the skirt may have been shortened, you’d simply wear your daytime frock and hat encumbered with corset, bustle or crinoline depending on the era. In the late 19th Century a true liberation came in on wheels.

BICYCLE MADNESS

The bicycle afforded women the freedom to travel alone wearing of course bloomers, those liberating garments that had scandalized society when Mrs. Amelia Bloomer introduced them in 1851. Criticism about the bicycling craze erupted with a New York Times article from 1893 describes the phenomenon as ‘every woman must, does or will mount the iron horse.’ In Paris, women risked arrest wearing trouser-style garments while not in the presence of a bicycle.


THE SPORTING LIFE

Thank goodness those Victorian restrictions have given way to good looking garments that allow women to participate in active sports unencumbered and sleek in new fabrics that afford comfort and speed. The Museum at FIT responds to some of these sport/fashion issues in a new exhibition, SPORTING LIFE, which explores the relationship between active sportswear from the past 150 years and fashion. The exhibit on view through November 5, 2011 features more than 100 garments, accessories and textiles representing 16 sports juxtaposed with sports-inspired, ready-to-wear styles by leading designers.

FASHIONABLE SPORTS

If you’re waxing nostalgic about the good old days imagine what it must have been like to ride a bike. Sporting Life features a circa 1888 woman’s tailored bicycling ensemble, with a divided skirts that was designed for mobility as well as modesty. Clothing for bicycling changed substantially during the 20th century giving way to stretch materials and streamlined design for maximum performance in competitive racing. The earliest tennis garment on view, circa 1903, is a two-piece summer ensemble with shirtwaist style blouse and long skirt. The exhibit also pairs a 1926 silk Chanel dress, with a loose cut and a pleated skirt, with a familiar white cotton tennis dress, circa 1926, to illustrate the relationship between sport and fashion.


IN THE SWIM OF FASHION

Imagine garments for swimming and active sportswear made in heavy wool and how much it must have impeded one’s pleasure of the sport. The exhibition features a wide variety of women’s swimwear, ranging from a modest, two-piece wool suit from the 1850s to the body-revealing styles created by designer Rudi Gernreich during the 1960s. Other garments illustrate how new textile technology, including lastex and spandex contribute to today’s competitive sportswear’s high performance functionality. By the 1980s, spandex could be found not only in specialized sportswear and in exercise and dance clothing, but also in similarly body-conscious fashions.

FASHION DIVERSITY

The exhibition also has sections devoted to golf, skiing hunting, skating, horseback riding, motoring, surfing, dance, football and baseball. Some synthetic materials most often utilized in active sportswear are being using in fashion garments---neoprene, for instance, a fabric commonly used in clothing for surfing and aquatic sports. To illustrate, the exhibit displays a neoprene wetsuit alongside a sporty 1994 Donna Karan dress, also made of neoprene. Christian Lacroix’s 1990 beachwear ensemble is an eye-catcher with coordinated swimsuits, scarf, hat, sunglasses and shoes as is Gucci (Tom Ford) ski jacket, pink polyester/nylon/spandex, circa 1995.


Today companies are consulting with doctors and engineers in their efforts to make performance apparel that has “comfort, lightness, and style.” Meanwhile, runway collections continue to present adaptations of classic sports attire. ♥

The Museum at FIT is located at Seventh Avenue at 27th Street, New York City. Info: 212.217.4558 FREE admission. Closed Sundays, Monday and legal holidays. Tuesday-Friday, noon– 8pm, Saturday, 10-5 pm.


Polly Guerin honed her skills as a fashion authority as professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology. Visit her at www.pollytalk.com. In August she is flying down to Rio di Janeiro to speak at the 11th World Art Deco Conference on the famed Art Deco artist and textile designer, Sonia DeLaunay