A Novel Gift: rgz and First Book Partner!

BREAKING NEWS! readergirlz and First Book are partnering to give away more than 125,000 brand-new books to low-income teen readers.

They’re great books, too, donated by generous publishers. Among the three dozen choices are P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast’s HOUSE OF NIGHT series and Alyson Noël’s SHADOWLAND.

We need your help getting the word out about the A Novel Gift campaign. Right now! Right now! As in, now!

Let's get organizations serving these teens registered with First Book so they can be matched with inventory during the holidays.

Here’s what we need you to do:

Post to Facebook and tweet your beak off about these books using the hashtag #novelgift.

Here’s a tinyurl link to their registration page:http://tinyurl.com/2a5mwpj.

Or you can link to this blog post:http://readergirlz.blogspot.com/2010/11/novel-gift-over-125000-free-books-to.html

Then, get in touch with every group you can think of that works with young adults–schools, after-school programs, church youth groups, community centers, etc.—and let them know that these books are available now. 

The five-minute online registration these groups can use is here:
http://booksforkids.firstbook.org/register/.

First Book is also eager to answer questions, either by email to help@firstbook.org, or by phone at 866-READ-NOW or 866-732-3669.

If you participate, drop us a note at readergirlz@gmail.com to be included in our blog roll of thanks to run December 31.

Be a part of A Novel Gift! OK, go! And thanks, sincerely, from First Book and the readergirlz teams.

Today I'm Sad

Today I'm Sad by Lorie Ann Grover on Polyvore.com

Photo Friday: Finding Beauty

Finding Beauty by Lorie Ann Grover on Polyvore.com

Do You Fear?

Do You Fear? by Lorie Ann Grover on Polyvore.com

Smelling Books

Smelling Books by Lorie Ann Grover on Polyvore.com

Poetry Friday: Be Warned

I heart my Polyvore, but I felt the haiku urge today. Here goes:

Be Warned

You see me through a

slick and colorful bubble.

I am no Glinda. 

Lorie Ann Grover, 2010

Say It Again: Lack of Regard for YA

"The lack of regard for YA fiction in the mainstream isn't an altogether bad thing. There's something to be said for living in a disreputable, ghettoized bohemia."
Cory Doctorow

Questions from Readers: Time Management

In case anyone else, besides the inquiring journalist, is remotely interested in my personal time management, I've added this info to my Questions from Readers Blog Page. It's just the way I roll. If it's any help to you...yay!

Here are my answers for the curious.

I do not write during the same hours every day. I write according to project deadlines or creative interest. Whatever is shouting the loudest receives my attention for the amount of time available. Still having one child at home, when I write fluctuates around her ever changing schedule. I used to homeschool two daughters, and then writing was tucked into all the spare bits of time.

My schedule is always too fluid to maintain specific, consistent writing hours. The needs of readergirlz fluctuates, and the nonprofit can take much of my time. Also, I need time to play and refill the well. Having strict writing time feels too constrained. That said, almost all my free time is given over to writing and reading. That can be anywhere from 7 am to 11 pm.

I start the day with a mental list of what I'll probably achieve. I keep an open hand with my expectations, however.

I personally might have a 40 hour work week for project managing readergirlz. That is the case in transitions or during special literacy projects. Writing then falls into the other available hours. If readergirlz is sustaining from the other 30 volunteers, I might devote 2 hours to it, readertotz, social media sites, and my own blog. I might write or draw for 6 hours, and then maybe read for 2 hours.

I do take writing retreats several times a year where I work on my novels exclusively, for 8-10 hours a day, for 4-6 days. I do not have internet access at those times.  

Regarding tracking, if they are online projects, I leave the email exchanges in my inbox until the project is complete. I use my journal for tracking creative projects I need to develop or refine. These are generated from chatting with my agent. When projects are completed and sent to my agent, I record them in an Excel file. Longer term online projects and future novel ideas I keep in Window's One Note documents.

That is the story of that. 

Our House

Our House by Lorie Ann Grover on Polyvore.com

Photo Friday: Observe Life

Observe Life by Lorie Ann Grover on Polyvore.com

Say It Again: Ellie and Birthdays

Lorie Ann: When is your birthday?
Ellie, age 5: I don't know. It's like seventy yards away.

Vale of Memory

Vale of Memory by Lorie Ann Grover on Polyvore.com

"Dance becomes physical free verse."

I received a request for an interview from a teen in the Netherlands. Rachel van Eck wanted to examine On Pointe for her IB Diploma Extended Essay. She asked me engaging questions which you can read in my former post. She has now completed the work, and I am honored she looked so closely at my novel. I was given permission to share a few excerpts here.

Rachel begins the work with this question: 

‘How does the author Lorie Ann Grover portray dance movements in the novel ‘On Pointe’ through the characters by means of style and structure?’ The process of this research was done by stylistically analyzing the novel to find how the movements were being portrayed and if they really did make the reader picture and feel the movements being described. Lorie Ann Grover did this with her special way of writing this novel.

Rachel goes on to show how literary devices convey breath, pacing, sound, and movement. It was fun to see these specific examples as many were intuitive during the writing.

Here is an example of an excerpt from On Pointe and Rachel's analysis:

We piqué turn across the floor.

Snapping our heads,

We spot

one speck

on the wall

we are moving toward.

The room blurs,

but the spot

is in focus.

Everyone moves

across the floor

toward their spot.

Just like the ‘Grand Battements’ this spinning movement is shown by the short sentences. This phrase emphasizes the spotting of the swift, repeated spinning movement. Not only does this passage mention spotting very often in just a small time, it is made up of short sentences. This indicates the movement that when the character is looking at the spot, one bit of the sentence is thought of, and then the character does another spin, with having the sentence cut off as a result, but when she’s back to her spotting she has time to think of another part of the sentence, and so it continues.

Rachel's paper concludes with this passage:

Dance movements might be hard to describe with just single words, however, through the use of free verse, anaphora, dance terminology, figurative language, sound techniques, diction, and imagery, this can be elaborated to the point that the reader is able to picture, feel, or even hear what the movements are like. Lorie Ann Grover does this “so that a reader unfamiliar with ballet could still gain an impression/feeling of that particular movement.” (Grover),,,,as if it is choreography on paper....In this novel Dance becomes physical free verse.

Thank you, Rachel! I greatly appreciate your analytical thoughts, kind words, and time. Here's to your own dance and writing. Brava!

Photo Friday: I am a Woman Who Runs With Wolves

I'm reading Clarissa Pinkola Estes' classic Women Who Run With the Wolves, Myths and Stories of the Wild Woman Archetype. It's an excellent source that challenges you to care for your inner self, to nurture that creative spirit. Not a follower of Jungian psychology, I can still glean insights and lessons from the piece. It's also fueling my work in progress. So here's my image to depict the content of Women Who Run With the Wolves. Happy Photo Friday!

We are All Odd

We are All Odd by Lorie Ann Grover on Polyvore.com

You are My Beautiful

You are My Beautiful by Lorie Ann Grover on Polyvore.com