Here’s what Brodi has to say about getting ready for a dance her sophomore year:

Mama always told me, “Brodi, honey, if you wanna catch yourself a great man, you gotta make a great entrance.” Just kidding. She never said anything like that. But that’s what this picture makes me think.

Here, my friend Cherie (in the black) and I are practicing our graceful “walk down the stairs” and nothing says class at these moments like a chandelier with plastic garland hanging off of it.  As for my hair, lemme explain.

In my day:

1. You could never have enough bangs.
2. If your bangs could move of their own volition, you didn’t put enough hairspray on them.
3. Puffy sleeves were in. I swear!

Up close, you can see the detail on my Victorian Frock. I can imagine my mom seeing it in the store, and thinking to herself, “With that neck so high and tight, and that hem that hits her ankles, it’s practically it’s own chastity belt. No boy will want her after this.”

In case you’re curious, yes, I did peg my hems. I could peg anything in those days.

Frankly, Brodi, I’m glad our moms didn’t shop together. However, I think we shared the same hairspray fairy back then. And, despite all this, you are still cute as a button. Thanks so much for participating this Sunday! (I will see you on the Scrabble board, lady.)

Next week I’m featuring Mike Mullin, debut author of a contemporary YA book, Ashfall. Don’t miss it! It’s incredible. And remember, if you are a YA author and want to do a guest post here at Sparks and Butterflies (And how could you not?), please contact me at jody.mugele(at)gmail.com. It’s more fun than church.

This was not my best reading year. I read two less books than last year and didn’t fall in love with my list of books-read like I have in years past though there were some amazing standouts. Part of that may be because I saved a few that thought would be outstanding to read over my holiday break and then proceeded to watch movies and play Rock Band. I did some writing, too and to be honest, it was a really nice break. And part of the reason I think I didn’t fall in love as much was because I was reading authors’ second books, which sadly just don’t generally dazzle like their firsts. Anyway, here are my stats for reading this past year. And here’s for hoping that this is the year I sell my first book!

Books By the Numbers

Total books read in 2011: 26
Total books read that were considered YA: 22
Books by female authors: 19
Books by male authors: 7
Author’s first book: 8
Author’s first book, debuting 2010: 2
Books I read because I liked Author’s previous work: 9
Authors I found that I will read future books: 3
Books I started, but didn’t finish: 2

Books By the Substance

Favorite Character: Blake, Flash Burnout, by L.K. Madigan
Funniest Book: Flash Burnout, by L.K. Madigan
Tear Jerker-est: None this year had me crying, but I did read Gayle Foreman’s Where She Went, the sequel to If I Stay, a book that had me balling for days in 2009! And the sequel was a satisfying read.
The one I didn’t expect to Love, but WOW did I!: Nothing, by Janne Teller
Best Suspense: Drought, by Pam Bachorz
Best Romance: Boy Meets Boy, by David Levithan and The Big Crunch, by Pete Hautman
Best Book Cover: Girl (paperback), by Blake Nelson
Best Title: Gender Blender, by Blake Nelson
Book with the most heart: Flash Burnout, by L.K. Madigan
Most unique writing style: Girl, by Blake Nelson

Non-Contemporary YA Books I Read:

Middle Grade: Gender Blender, by Blake Nelson and Nothing by Janne Teller
Fantasy/Sci Fi: The Wolves of Mercy Falls, by Maggie Stiefvater (entire 3-book series), Drought, by Pam Bachorz, A Curse as Dark as Gold, by Elizabeth C. Bunce, and Please Ignore Vera Dietz, by A.S. King (included because it has a ghost).
Adult Fiction: The Help, by Kathryn Stockett (though it read a lot like a YA book – fast paced and young characters)
Non-fiction: Second Sight, by Cheryl Klein

My Top Picks for 2011

1. Flash Burnout, by L.K. Madigan
2. Girl, by Blake Nelson
3. Nothing, by Janne Teller
4. Boy Meets Boy, by David Levithan
5. The Big Crunch, by Pete Hautman

What about you all?  Anyone want to share some of their stats?

Goal One: For me, write a query letter.
Reward: Lunch

Goal Two: For me, finish characterization for new book’s main character, working title: DOLLY.
Reward: Cookies.

Goal Three: For me, list all actions scenes needed for this character to get through the book.
Reward: Glass of wine.

Goal Four: Take second pass at query letter.
Reward: Go to Young Adult movie with group.

Not usually being a goal-setter, I was really pleased with how this worked out. Really I think it’s more that I respond to peer pressure and don’t like being left out, so I was motivated to finish my goals. And I did!

I am now the proud owner of a query letter (for my current work) that is very nearly ready to go (if needed) and 33 scenes that need to be written in the new book. Now all I need is about another writing day to characterize the supporting cast and discover the scenes they need to be written. And then draft the book. Which will take about a month of writing days. But, I love that I know exactly where I’m going! Progress feels gooooooooood.

Must also record here that I was pretty disappointed with Young Adult. Boo. I knew the main character was going to suck as a person making YA authors everywhere roll their eyes, or cringe, or generally fart in this movie’s direction, but I was pretty excited about the flick. I figured, well, duh, this character just has to grow up, so that will be funny. But, nah. I don’t know what happened, but pretty much nothing. I think the main character thought she was finally going to grow up, but her actions didn’t really show it.

But, it was still a really great day and I hope that it happens again next year. Maybe we’ll see Mike’s book become a movie! One can hope.

Rackety Boom: My most favorite book from childhood. Not sure why I loved a book about a jalopy so much, but much thanks to my sister for finding it. It. Is. Awesome!

Lafcadio, the Lion who Shot Back: From Josh. The book we read on our first date.

I love being surrounded by these books so much!

And from Jan, I am so happy to have received the PERFECT clock. I’m going through an owl phase with the rest of America, and this clock is so perfect because Friday is my dedicated writing day. (I also dig there are no numbers on the clock.)

Mom put the icing on the cake with a gift certificate to shop for books at the local independent children’s bookstore, Kid’s Ink. My family gets me. I love them so damn much. Merry Christmas!

Of the three voices/characters in this book, I related to Jasper as he slept through the event and found himself alone watching the news after the attacks happened. I had just finished my paper route in Half Moon Bay and had gotten the baby back to sleep when the attacks happened. My neighbor woke me up to watch the news. What’s weird is that baby will be 11 years old in the next couple weeks. She has no memory of that day in 2001, while it is still fresh in my mind.

I got to thinking about what she’ll know of September 11th and it’s probably a collage of images rolled together into series of videos on the Internet and set to some cheesy American pop song, which I guess does reflect some truth of moment. But, I think in this book Levithan does thing I love about contemporary novels best, which is tell a truth with a fiction. I admire the way the teens in this book respond to the event. I love that he chose to have all three characters just close enough to the event that if their lives change it’s because of their doing and not the terrorists.

I loved seeing the reactions to the events from a New York perspective. I think the way he used music and concerts specific to the time (especially U2 – hence the title) was heartfelt and interesting and something everyone relates to, which was the point–community and commonalities and an in-this-together camaraderie.

So, hats off to Levithan for preserving this truth for the young adults in my house and all over, and in the YA writer in me that wants to find these kinds of truths in my works.

As I generally do with series, I waited for all the books to come out so that I could read them all back to back, no waiting. This time I think I wish I would have bought them one at a time. I doubt I would I have finished the series. And I think I would have been more satisfied with having stopped after the first story was over. Shiver was the strongest of the books and I rather like the ideas I had in my head of where the story would go from there. When I read the other books, I felt the characters were left somewhat undone in my head. And I was left with afterthoughts of, “shit, are they going to be happy adults?” For some reason in these books I need a truly happy ending, not an they’re-grown-up-in-a-happy/sad-life-is-hard-but-managable way. Which is probably my problem for having false expectations rather than a problem of the author breaking promises. Shiver ended in that happy way I wanted (still some heartbreak to be had though), so that’s why I should’ve quit there. However, the Wolves of Mercy Falls was a good read as a series and if you’re looking for an alternative to the Twilight Saga or something to do after reading it because you have gotten your fill of Werewolves, than this will satisfy that hunger.

That being said, this book is way more science-based. Which I’ll take over magic any day. I think this was my favorite aspect. It towed a line of Sci-Fi, which worked for me as a someone grounded in my love of contemporary fiction and as person who is rational. I was at times difficult to buy into teenagers discovering the “cure” to werewolfism, especially in the last two book when the primary researcher was a former rock star. The sections introducing Cole into the wolf pack as depressed rock star in the mood to die were difficult, but I did find my way into sympathizing and being interested in his story with Isabel.

I also found the romance between Sam and Grace a little gushy and annoying, which is probably why I bought into the Cole/Isabel story lines. I’m always looking for a good romance within a story and I have two to choose from, I’ll pick teams. So it was fun to go back and forth between the romances, but I would have liked to see more development with Rachel and Olivia. I’m betting that was a bigger part of the story that was cut. Olivia disappears before we really get a chance to know her while Rachel is barely more than a cliche’d supporting character.

Much of the descriptions of characters were drawn from the thoughts of other characters. This bugged me. Grace was always saying or thinking how Sam was pensive and awkward and Sam was always saying or thinking how Grace was not very adept at reading people. And it began to feel like a writing crutch. Most of the writing  however was lyrical and soft and enjoyable. The quoting of German poets didn’t grab me, but it also didn’t frustrate me. I really wonder how young adults reading this would respond to it. I’m guessing adults are patient and willing to read those lines, but I suspect many teens skipped them.

The book designs were outstanding including font color inside to match the book covers. These books were wonderful to hold in my hands and are lovely on my shelves.

Conclusion: Didn’t love everything. Didn’t hate anything. Glad I read the series. Would recommend to avid urban fantasy lovers.

I was really into the idea of a girl finding her newer self back at home — belonging — instead of the traditional independence found that you see in YA books all the time. And that was there: Janie learns to dig the idea of a having a Hootenanny in which her mom invites the entire community. She crushes on the unpopular but actually cool guy who hangs with his family. But bottom line: it was too innocent for YA. It felt like it just as much about not growing up too fast as it was “embracing a new you.” I’d give this to my 10 year old to read, not my 13 year old. And I’m not even sure she’d love it.

I LOVE this cover. The chapter titles were very fun and the author used some of my favorite quotes from poets, so it felt strange not love the story. So, we’ll see what else this author does! I think I’d like to hang out with her again.

I haven’t posted recently because I really wanted to have good news to share. But I don’t. And I if I don’t post something soon, Google will drop my rankings into nowhere which is worse having a shitty domain authority. Is my tone today a bit dim? Is this blog really even about being an authority? I think my work life has just bled into my other work life. It’s certainly more alive at the moment even if bleeding is involved.

I know most women have this work- home life balance situation that they teeter with. I have a work-work life balance that fucks with me. I’m competitive; I want to be not just good at my job, but GREAT at my job. I’d like to even be the BEST at my job, but I’m not willing to do that because of time I need to cultivate my writing job. Which to me is a job, just one I’m not paid for. Yet. I’d like to be the BEST YA author I can be, but I won’t be because I like getting paid and providing for my family and having security, and being good at other things. On days where my paid job is going well I think maybe I should step away from writing and really be the best at something in that job. On days where I have writing success, I’m pretty sure I could live without going into the office and strategizing how a client can have an authoritative website. On days (like today) where I’m tired of both jobs, I wonder what the heck I’m doing and if being somewhat satisfied in both jobs is the easy way out. Maybe I should I ditch one. Take a risk and find out if I can be the best at one thing. If I did turn out to be the best at one thing, would I actually be more satisfied? I think I’d regret ditching one or the other. I don’t know if I could un-invest myself.

This is a first-world problem. I know. But over the last two years I’ve finally been able to look up from raising my kids and getting through med school/residency with Josh without going broke and finally think about my career. Most women do this in their twenties. Lucky ducks. Then they attach to a man and have kids. So let me just say I’m glad to have this struggle. It’s cool to think about me. My career. It’s just weird and well, hard, to navigate my own ambition.

On romance: Paul and Noah was charming and gooey, rich with the grand gestures that teens think are necessary, and maybe are necessary. It got pretty Hallmark Card there at the end but I can’t resist a good romantic ending. Sue me.

On character: Paul was sooo self-aware I teetered for a while on whether this was okay with me. But I bought in. Here’s why: The crux of the book is that here is this gay boy whose been accepted by his parents, by his teachers, by his friends, and who even has had boyfriends throughout his young life, and so has normal life problems like, Does Noah like me? What is love? Why is my best friend abandoning me for her boyfriend? And why can’t Tony’s parents accept him for who he is? If such a place exists, and I hope it does, then I can believe this character exists. I can imagine that gay teens need this book. Everyone needs this book–needs to know what kind of world should exist: one where a gay kid has pretty much the same problems as any other.

The minor characters could easily have slipped into caricatures and stereotypes: the new kid, the wounded ex, the tranny, the bitchy friend, the sheltered friend. But they didn’t. They were rounded characters who I cared about to the end.

On setting: Mostly the characters were the setting. We saw the homes of Paul and Noah and Tony. All of them were insights to the people who lived there and nothing more. We saw the school, a typical school physically: there were halls and lockers. But again the people were what made the community. And that was romantic for sure, every kind of gay having a place and a say. Levithan seemed to refuse to go anywhere darker than Paul’s ex cheating on him out of confusion. And the book worked for it.

It was an interesting world to join into and explore with Paul. I definitely want to read more of Levithan’s books.

The descriptions on the back of this book include blurbs from starred reviews. Those words are:

Chilling
Provocative
Shocking
All the marks of a classic

I could leave it at that and it would be accurate.

I could compare this to Lord of the Flies. Also accurate.

Like Battle Royale? This book is for you.

I have never read a middle grade book and thought: Fuck. But that was my response to this book. It is simply a brutal look at finding meaning. A must read.