Last Chance For a Signed Bookplate + Dresses

This is going to be an economically friendly post about Books & Dresses--two of my favorite things! Last chance for a signed bookplate for your Violet books. If you want to give one as a gift this holiday season, make it extra special with a personalized bookplate! Just email me with your recipient's name and where I should send it. Easy! Also, this seems like as good a chance as any to make an argument for giving books as gifts this year (and for putting them on your wish list too!). Luckily, bookreporter.com already did that for me. So go read their reasons. PS-Another blog to visit today: Style Goodies, where Miss Angel has a fabulous roundup of Forever 21 holiday dresses under $30! (My favorite one is shown above. Yours?) Happy Tuesday!

Cover Stories: Something Happened by Greg Logsted

Greg Logsted is here to tell a Cover Story this week (that's his final cover at left), and I think he's the first guy I've hosted in this way. Yay, Greg!His novel, Something Happened, is about Billy, an 8th grader struggling with the death of his dad. His mom is very distant, and his friends just don't get what he's going through. His new English teacher, though, the young and beautiful Miss Gate, offers friendship... and maybe more. I'm really interested to read this book, which was originally going to be a Middle Grade book but then was bumped up to the older age group--Young Adult. I like that it's from the point of view of a 13-year-old boy, too--that feels new to me. Plus: Scandal! Without further ado, here's Greg: "My first idea for the cover of Something Happened was the cover image from a movie "Romance & Cigarettes" that had a woman lying on her back, holding a cigarette, wearing red heels and, um, suggestive clothing. Because the original title for Something Happened was "Sock Puppets in Love" - which I scrapped because, great as it was, it didn't fit the serious tone of the book - I thought she could have a sock puppet in her hand instead of the cigarette. Well, of course a cover with a cigarette and a woman in suggestive clothing wasn't appropriate for a YA book - even I recognized that! I did share my "Romance & Cigarette" idea when asked my thoughts - for some odd reason, no one went for it. Btw, I do not smoke. "The original cover design (left, full jacket) was cartoon-like with a yellow background and a car driving on a zig-zaggy street - a far cry from the beautiful colors and tight sweater we wound up with for the final cover. Truthfully, the original cover was a lot of fun...for a completely different kind of book (just like the original title). "Because they eventually decided to publish it as a YA rather then a MG, the cover changed. The woman used as a model for the final cover actually works at Simon & Schuster. But she's headless in the picture and no one has ever told me her name, unfortunately. Still, she does look like the kind of woman a teenage boy would find, um, hot. "As for the final cover, I honestly was pleased with it. I love it." I think it's pretty enticing too, and it sounds perfect for the mood of the book. What are your thoughts on the covers? PS-Another blog to visit today: Author Helm Matthews is giving away a copy of Violet on the Runway on his myspace blog. Good luck!

Things to do (and win) on a Sunday

1. flip.com is closing (sad!) so this is your last chance to watch the flipbook I made just before my first book, Violet on the Runway, came out. Here it is, for one more week.2. Come chat with Meg Cabot on the readergirlz forum. I get a thrill every time I ask a question and Meg responds. I'm a dorky fangirl like that. Swing by! (That's Meg--how cute is she?!) 3. There are a couple of chances to win Violet books this week! Here are the contests I know of: * Linda Gerber is giving away a copy of Violet in Private, and also the Japanese edition of Mari Mancusi's Boys That Bite! Go here to enter. * Diana Peterfreund is giving away a signed copy of Violet in Private (she picked it up at the book party this week). Yay! Go here to enter. * Carmen Rodrigues is giving away a copy of Violet by Design (and other books by your favorite authors). Ends 12/9! Go here to enter. * And, just for fun, this contest at Yummy 4 Tummies (it's a baking site!), gives you the chance to win one of four $25 gift cards. Go here to enter. Happy Sunday!

Photo Friday: The NY Times in My Apartment!

I was interviewed in the NY Times this week about my record collection, which was fun. Of course, the way I describe sitting on the couch with a glass of wine and the lights out makes me sound a little douchebaggy, but I think The Times likes that sort of thing.I really liked talking to the writer, Roy Furchgott. He knows a lot more about records than I do, and that was interesting. A photographer, the awesome Angela Jimenez, also came to take pictures, and she snapped the lead photo, where I have no chin. But my skin looks really good, right? Glowing, even? I'll take what I can get. It was a funny day because the cable guy came at exactly the same time as Angela, so she had to wait around and shoot stills of my records while I showed him how to navigate the basement. But she was really cool and fun to talk to, and we really just sat there chatting and listening to albums like New Order and Bishop Allen. Happy Friday! PS-Something else to know about: Yahoo! Shine's Gifts for the literary fan includes Violet in Private (among lots of great gift ideas). Go find a book that you can give as a gift!

Party Pics!

I had a really fun book party last night at Butter (totally where Blair Waldorf eats) with Gamer Girl author Mari Mancusi, who rules. Here she is signing her book. Isn't she pretty in purple? Also there (with me) were awesome authors Bennett Madison (The Lulu Dark mysteries) and Deborah Gregory (Cheetah Girls series and Catwalk). And Mari and I got to rub elbows with Scott Westerfeld (Uglies) and Diana Peterfreund (Rampant). They came with fellow fabulous authors Justline Larbalestier and Maureen Johnson. And my ELLEgirls were there too! Here's me in the center of Linnea, Mariel, Erin and Marie. Mari put games on the table, so here's Becky, Jeff and Dave getting into Hungry, Hungry Hippos. Thanks to everyone who came and celebrated with us--too many awesome people to name. Also, thanks to Butter, and to Clarins and Lierac for the gift bag contributions. We had a blast! PS-Something else to know about today: Flip cams going to non-profits so they can document the cool stuff they do (great idea!).

Win-It Wednesday: Losers by Matthue Roth

The winner of last week's copy of Meg Cabot's How to be Popular is... BookBegger! Send me your address, BB. And, everyone should come join the chatting with Meg on the readergirlz forum. Now, on to this week's contest. I'm giving away a copy of Matthue Roth's Losers, which I read in an afternoon and just adored! Matthue is a really cool, energetic guy, and his hyperness comes through in the book in the best possible way as he tells the story of Jupiter, a smart/funny/off-beat foreign student who seeks popularity with a high school crowd that doesn't quite understand him. The quirky world Matthue creates is one I wanted to keep spending time in--so much fun. To enter to win this contest, you must buy someone a book for the upcoming holiday season. Seriously, books are the best gifts--how else can you buy someone a whole world for under $10? I'm getting a book for every single person on my list this year, which will mean lots of money saved and happy friends! Comment below about a book you're gifting this year. You can also list your purchases here and help booksellers sell a million books. That will get you an extra entry--just tell me you also commented at When The Going Gets Tough, The Tough Buy Books. I'll choose a winning commenter next Wednesday, and you can have one more book to read and wrap up this winter! Good luck. PS-Something else to know about today, per my friends at The N: This awesome rock you like a Unicorn pin. Unicorns are all around these days!

I Was a Real Life Gossip Girl

When I saw the cover of the November COSMOgirl (RIP), I noticed that my story had a cover line (see lower left corner), which is usually a thrill. But then I realized I was being branded as a Gossip Girl, which I guess I was, but I'm not altogether proud of it. In any case, I let the magazine print a page from my diary, so I'm sharing it here too. Rest assured that I've learned a LOT since high school. I still like to talk (which is probably why I blog so much), but I keep it positive!

Here's the inside story:

And, after the jump, you can see the real entry from my high school diary, scanned in here just for fun. It's the same as in the magazine (except I so did not write "Dear Diary," but you can see my handwriting, if that's of interest.

PS-Something else to know about today: A Long Island school renames itself Barack Obama Elementary. Cool!

Cover Stories: Violet in Private!

First, I want to say that I am bummed about the news of slowing book sales, so I want to ask everyone to buy at least one book as a holiday gift this year (copying editorial ass's inspiration)! That may be a part of Win-It Wednesday... hmm.... You can enter the titles of the books that you buy here and add some good book karma to the world!

Also, I'm going to make my above request even more fun. If you buy one of the Violet books as a gift this year, I'll send you an autographed bookplate signed for the recipient. Just email me and let me know where to send it--and do it soon so it'll arrive in time!

Now, on to the story behind Violet in Private. I didn't send a ton of inspiration images like I had for Violet by Design (story here), but I did send this one image (left) because I think the position of the model's legs make her look kind of "private" and vulnerable, which is Violet's mood in this book. Plus, I love these vintage book covers and this one is totally seventies in a very good way--check the glasses. Obviously, no one paid attention. Haha. But that's okay. I did really express that I wanted Violet be on a college campus because this book is set largely in that world.

When I saw the original cover design, I was shocked to see Violet's face! I had gotten used to not seeing what she really looked like, though I was acquainted with Molly, the model who poses as Violet on the covers (look forward to an interview with her very soon!). I liked that she had sunglasses, though, which covered her eyes and keep her a bit of a mystery. I loved the deep purple coloring, and I adored her button-down shirt and lush-looking scarf, not to mention the killer heels. Totally honestly, I didn't like the skirt. But I understood that the silhouette was a striking one, and that's what the art department was going for--and is very good at!

Also, this cover obviously has a city background. I know the team at Penguin wanted the books to look very "glam," which people tell me sells well, but I really felt strongly that I wanted Violet to be in a more grounded atmosphere, so I brought that point up with my editor. I also suggested that Violet have a book in her hands.

My editor went back for round two, and was able to get the background changed. They also played with Violet having a book in her hands, but I was told it looked awkward, so they nixed that. Ah well! I was really happy with the background change, especially because this building looks very much like Main Building at Vassar, where Violet lives in the book. Overall, I am really happy with the three covers for the series. What do you guys think? (Don't be shy because it's me! I really want to know if you like the Violet covers--or not.)

Like I said, I'm going to interview Molly, who poses as Violet for these covers, later this month. She is super cool and has lots of interesting stories. Happy Monday!

Another Violet Contest Entry: A Spinoff Book, by Lucile

Lucile did something really creative for the Big Violet Contest last summer--she wrote the first chapter of a novel that was inspired by Violet's story. Now, I'm going to post a the short prologue of e. by Eleanor here. I really like it! (Lucile also drew some fashion designs to go with her story, but unfortunately, I can't get them to show up as jpegs so I can't post them. Sorry!). "Jumbo size of M&Ms? Check. Latest issue of Vogue? Check. Latest issue of NYLON? Check. Pack of cinnamon gum? Check. "'Flight 1694 for New York LaGuardia will begin boarding in five minutes with our First Class and Priority passengers.' "To complete my checklist--and possibly because I'm always slightly paranoid that my plane ticket is going to vanish off the face of the planet somewhere between security and my handing it to the attendant at the gate--I look down at my lap for the ninety seventh time to check for my ticket. "I know what you're thinking: Why don't you put it in your bag? Why don't you put it in your wallet? "Nope. It's been sitting in my lap for the latest thirty four minutes since I got back from my trip to the newsstand and the bathroom and that's where it'll be until I get up to board the plane. "Why? Because if it's in my lap I can continue to read the 'Arriving New York LGA 7:54 PM, Seat 1B, First Class.' None of that is anything I haven't seen before. Not even the First Class bit (back during one of his guilt trips, Dad flew us First Class to Telluride for Christmas a few years ago). No, what has my attention so focused is the combination of the ticket declaring that I, Eleanor Sheridan, am going to New York tonight, and the dress that is visible underneath said ticket. "You see, it is that dress, the very one I am wearing now, that is, in many ways, the reason I am going to New York at all; the reason my lifelong dream of becoming a fashion designer just might be about to come true." So how did Eleanor get on this plane? And how will she prove to her cheerleader sister that being the artsy one has value? Maybe it has something to do with the red-headed woman who spotted her at a barbecue and told her that her dress, an original design, had a little bit of "Galliano, Lipsy, Stella, and a little Religion but from last season" in it. Hopefully Lucile will keep writing and we can find out about Eleanor's adventures in New York! Thanks, Lucile!

Photo Friday: San Diego Thanksgiving

Is there anything better than a family beach walk? Hope everyone had great Thanksgiving weeks!