A NEW BOOK FOR A NEW YEAR

On January 3, K.M. Walton's CRACKED will be released!!

Here’s the synopsis of CRACKED from Goodreads:

Sometimes there's no easy way out.

Victor hates his life. He has no friends, gets beaten up at school, and his parents are always criticizing him. Tired of feeling miserable, Victor takes a bottle of his mother's sleeping pills—only to wake up in the hospital.

Bull is angry, and takes all of his rage out on Victor. That makes him feel better, at least a little. But it doesn't stop Bull's grandfather from getting drunk and hitting him. So Bull tries to defend himself with a loaded gun.

When Victor and Bull end up as roommates in the same psych ward, there's no way to escape each other or their problems. Which means things are going to get worse—much worse—before they get better

 (picture of K. M. Walton, author of Cracked)

I read the opening chapters of CRACKED (as can you, at K.M. Walton’s website) and was immediately drawn in by the voices of these two main characters. I can’t wait to read the rest of the story on Tuesday! I asked Kate a few questions about CRACKED …here is what she had to say:

Tracy: Was the first draft of this book in two voices, or is this something that developed along the way?

Kate: While attending one of the SCBWI Winter Conferences, one of the speakers talked about how interesting books are from alternating perspectives. It struck a chord with me. I went back to my hotel room and made a T-chart—one side said “Bully”and the other side said “Victim” and I began bullet pointing a list of character and plot points. Cracked was born!

Tracy:  Did you know all along how the story would end?

Kate: No, I’m a pantser through and through. I never know the endings of my books. I typically start writing with nearly formed characters and some major plot points and see where the characters take it.

Tracy: What inspired you to write this story?

Kate: Anti-bullying was the core principal of my teaching career. I believed it was my job, as the adult, to discuss and address bullying – every single time it reared its hideous head. I wanted my students to see each other for the human beings they were, not the labels or assumptions they attached to each other. CRACKED was a natural write for me because of my passion for the subject.

Tracy: Do we find out what city/state this story takes place in?

Kate: It’s my home town, West Chester , PA. I made up the name of the high school and the hospital – but they’re actually real places.

Tracy: Can you tell us about the inclusion of Cracked in No Name Calling Week?

Kate: I was blown-away-excited when Cracked was chosen to be a part of No Name Calling Week. NNCW is an annual week of educational activities aimed at ending name-calling of all kinds and providing schools with the tools and inspiration to launch an on-going dialogue about ways to eliminate bullying in their communities. The week was inspired by a young adult novel entitled "The Misfits" by popular author, James Howe (nonamecallingweek.org).

For all of the filmmakers out there, Kate is sponsoring a fantastic BOOK TRAILER CONTEST, which you can read about on her website. The deadline is January 17, and the top prize is $500 CASH and a FILM CRITIQUE by some top industry professionals.

In addition, Kate is offering a chance to win a $25 AMAZON GIFT CARD if you e-mail her a picture of Cracked on the shelf of a bookstore. Details here:

Cover love and a CONTEST!

I received the cover art (which I adore!) for my May release, What She Left Behind. I love the way the words hide behind the trees! The cover artist, Jessica Handelman, was kind enough to answer a few questions about this cover and her job.

Tracy: Could you tell us a little about the process you used to create the cover for What She Left Behind?

Jessica: The first step I took in designing What She Left Behind was to read a good chunk of your manuscript. I'd love to read every manuscript that I work on all the way through, but realistically, I get assigned all of my titles for each season at once and I don't have the luxury of time. In order to get moving as quickly as possible on all of the covers, I try to read about half of every book. This helps me get a sense of the voice and the story. After reading, I talked to the editor about my initial thoughts. She filled me in on the rest of the story/the ending. Once I had this information I did a lot of photo-research. I put together a bunch of covers with some rough type in place (we didn't have a final title at the time). Annette [the editor] and I really loved one of my comps but didn't love the exact look of the girl in the photo. I spent a few weeks looking for various stock shots of alternate girls, but none of the ones I found were quite right, nor did they fit well into the layout. From this point, I started my image search all over and put together a second round of new comps. Again, we really liked an image of one girl, but some other people in-house were iffy on the direction, so we scrapped it pretty quickly.

With the last round of comps, I decided to focus less on a girl and more on the mood of the story. Annette and I talked about pushing the cover in a more scary direction. I found an image of the trees on one stock site and a girl running on another and spent an afternoon photoshopping the two together. I put together a few type treatments. Immediately, Annette and I knew that this was the best direction for the cover, but some people in-house felt that the girl I had running looked a little too young. I quickly found a replacement (the girl on your cover) and the rest is history.


Tracy: What kind of background /training does it take to become a cover artist and /or what brought you to this field?

Jessica: In college I studied Visual Communications, with a focus on illustration and graphic design. In order to be a gooddesigner, you must know how to use Photoshop and Indesign. I spend 75% of my day on the computer, using these programs. The other 25% I spend on email/phone corresponding with illustrators and photographers.


Tracy: What is your typical day like?

Jessica: Each day varies depending on the projects I am currently working on. When I am working more on teen novels, I spend a lot of time photoshopping stock photography and/or organizing a photoshoot, going on the photoshoot, and then turning a few shots from the shoot into a cover. When I am working more on middle-grade, I spend more time art directing illustrators and then designing a cover around the art. Typically, my day involves emailing, going to brainstorming and production meetings, and working in photoshop and indesign on the layout of a jacket or cover.

In celebration of cover art, I thought I would share two other covers that I've enjoyed, ask you to share your favorites, and offer you the chance to win a copy of a book with a pretty cover (not that any of us judges books by their covers!)

Pretty cover #1: After reading the story behind the paperback cover of Carolyn Mackler's Tangled at Melissa Walker's blog (http://www.melissacwalker.com/cover-stories-tangled-carolyn-mackler), I have to admit, I was hooked. I mean, who doesn't love butterflies? So I got my very own beautiful copy of Tangled. I loved this story about four teen lives that intersect.

Pretty cover #2: When I saw the cover of Forgive My Fins by Tera Lynn Childs, I was fascinated by the mermaid's blue lips on the cover. I thoroughly enjoyed this fresh and fun take on mermaids.

In the comments, please tell us about a YA book that you think is the total package: and awesome cover AND an amazing story. One randomly selected commenter will WIN a SIGNED COPY of Forgive My Fins by Tera Lynn Childs (U.S. entrants only). Please be sure to include an e-mail address. Contest ends Saturday at noon (eastern time).

Summer Fun!

What’s the next best thing to taking a summer vacation to an exotic locale?

Reading about someone who did, of course!

This week’s post is about one such book (and includes a little contest!)
The book is Maureen Johnson’s 13 Little Blue Envelopes. It features Ginny, who is off on an adventure orchestrated by her deceased non-conformist aunt. Using the instructions found in a series of 13 letters, Ginny travels throughout Europe, living in the moment, learning about her aunt, and falling a little bit in love along the way!

If you’d like to win a copy of this book, you must follow this blog (if you don’t already!) and post a comment by midnight (Eastern Time) Saturday, June 18. From those who comment, I’ll randomly select one person (U.S. entrants only) to mail the book to (sorry, no little blue envelope).

Here are some ideas for your comments inspired by Maureen’s book:

1. Ginny has a cool aunt—do you? What fun things have you done with your aunt?

When I was nine, my own aunt predicted I would someday live in Paris. Sure enough, I did. My aunt also showed up to take me on a wild European adventure (which included nearly being robbed by gypsies on a night train to Prague)

2. Ginny’s aunt used a theme to paint a whole café in Paris. If you had to paint a café, what theme would you use?

I’m going to have to go with elephants, myself.

3. Letters—ah, that lost art form! What letter are you glad you saved or what is one that you wish you had saved?

O.K., I admit I still have that first love letter. (Clears throat). And I got rid of a whole series of letters from my grandmother in which she told her life story.

4. What other Y.A. travel stories have you read and loved?

Be sure not to miss Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins!

5. Yeah, sure, you can pick your own topic too!

Happy summer travels, whether real or imagined!