Upcoming Event: YA Panel at Porter Square Books on July 17th!

March 4, 2015Leave a comment

Summer might seem like a long time away, especially for those of us in the Boston area who are still surviving the coldest/snowiest winter ever. Fortunately, I’m looking forward to a July 17, when I’ll be on a YA panel with several other 2014/2015 debut authors! The details:

Young Adult Author Panel Discussion
Friday, July 17th, 7pm
Porter Square Books
Porter Square Shopping Center, 25 White Street, Cambridge, MA 02140
Join YA authors Susan Adrian, Jen Brooks, Annie Cardi, MarcyKate Connolly, Trisha Leaver, Rachel Shane for a panel discussion, moderated by YA author Mackenzie Lee, as they talk about reading, writing, and the debut experience.

Porter Square Books is where I had the launch party for The Chance You Won’t Return and I’m so excited to be back there with a bunch of other lovely debut authors. Mark your calendars!

Upcoming Event: YA Panel at the Blue Bunny on March 14th!

February 5, 2015Leave a comment

Two cool things about living in Massachusetts: lots of awesome bookstores and a great community of YA and children’s writers and readers. These two things come together next month, when I join some favorite local YA authors for a panel at the Blue Bunny Bookstore in Dedham, MA. The details:

Young Adult Author Panel Discussion and Book Signing
Saturday March 14th, 3 p.m.
The Blue Bunny Books & Toys
577 High St, Dedham, Massachusetts 02026
Join YA authors Cara Bertrand, Kim Harrington, Annie Cardi, AC Gaughen, and Gina Damico for a panel discussion, Q&A, and some tasty treats.

I’m so excited to be part of such a great group. Plus, it’s March 14th, aka 3/14, aka Pi Day, so there may even be celebratory pie. What more could you want?

And since it’s an event at the Blue Bunny, that’s an excuse to share a bunny gif, right?

Hope to see you all next month!

Listening to Your Characters, Shaved Heads, and Hamster Divination: the 2014 Boston Teen Author Festival

September 30, 2014Leave a comment

The raffle table, filled with bookish goodness.

Saturday was the Boston Teen Author Festival and it was a huge success! I’m so glad I got to be part of this event. The BTAF staff did such a wonderful job bringing everything together, running thoughtful and fun panels, and sharing enthusiasm about YA. Also major thanks to the Cambridge Public Library staff and the team from Porter Square Books for their hard work at the event and bringing books to so many readers. A few highlights from the day:

Getting to hear my fellow authors’ most useless talents, including reciting all the states in alphabetical order, making some seriously weird faces, and telling the future via hamsters.
Hearing about how MT Anderson worked in the image of a shaved male head into his novel at the last minute.
Learning about how authors use their current concerns about technology and the future to create chilling and emotionally grounded sci-fi worlds.
Being on a panel with amazing authors Francisco X. Stork, Emily Franklin, Stewart Lewis, Huntley Fitzpatrick, and Erin Dionne.
Talking with aforementioned amazing authors about how essential it is to create a complete web of relationships for your main character, not just romantic ones.
Emily Franklin saying that she knows she’s really getting into a story when she starts telling people, “So it turns out…” Love that phrase for the moment of discovery!
Signing books for awesome readers (seriously never gets old).
My mom befriending half the authors and attendees.
A mug full of chocolate minis from the BTAF staff, aka everything I love in one place.
Getting to see and talk to so many wonderful teen readers. You guys warm my heart!

Buttons and mugs, my favorite forms of swag.

Thank you again to everyone who made this event possible, and to everyone who came out and spent the day with us at the Cambridge Public Library.

Is it time for the 2015 Boston Teen Author Festival yet?

Boston Teen Author Festival: Panels Announced!

September 12, 2014Leave a comment

It’s less than two weeks to the Boston Teen Author Festival and I’m so excited!

Doors open at 10:45, and we’ll be having four amazing panels. The info has just been announced! I’ll be part of Platonic in Love: Writing strong non-romantic relationships. One of my biggest pet peeves is that YA is all about insta-love, and I’m so glad to have the opportunity to talk about other kinds of love and relationships and friendships in YA with some seriously amazing authors.

Check out the poster below for all the panel/author goodness:

And click through to the Boston Teen Author Festival website for all necessary info. Hope to see you on September 27th!

Come Find Me at Buttonwood Books Tomorrow Night!

August 12, 2014Leave a comment

Tomorrow I’ll be at Buttonwood Books in Cohasset, MA (just outside of Boston) for a panel and signing with my fellow 2014 debut YA author the lovely Skylar Dorset!

Come for the discussion about YA writing, stay for the signing and smiles.

The details:

YA Author Panel and Signing
August 13, 7pm at Buttonwood Books
747 CJC HWY RTE 3A
Cohasset, MA 02025

The weather is supposed to be kind of gross, but hopefully by 7pm things will have calmed down. And what better way to spend a rainy day than by hitting up a local bookstore?

Upcoming Events: Buttonwood Books and the Boston Teen Author Festival!

July 15, 2014Leave a comment

A couple of new and excellent events to add to the calendar!

On Wednesday, August 13 at 7pm, I’ll be at Buttonwood Books in Cohasset, MA with fellow 2014 debut YA author (and all around delightful person) Skylar Dorset. We’ll be talking about writing, being debut authors, how awesome YA is, and more.

And then on September 27, I’ll be part of the 2014 Boston Teen Author Festival at the Cambridge Public Library. Other authors on this year’s schedule include local favorites like A.C. Gaughen, Sashi Kaufman, Diana Renn, and Erin Dionne; and I might just fangirl myself into a frenzy over fellow Candlewick author M.T. Anderson.

Check out the Appearances and Interviews page for more info, and mark your calendars now!

Wood Sculptures, Books That Make You Cry, and Writing Sympathetic Characters: A YA Panel in Barrington, RI

May 15, 20141 Comment

The Panel!

Last night I was part of my first YA author panel, hosted by the Barrington Bookstore and the Barrington Public Library. Having grown up in Rhode Island, this was a really fun and exciting opportunity for me.

On the panel with me were Tara Sullivan, author of Golden Boy, Katie Cotugno, author of How to Love, Bianca Turetsky, author of The Time-Traveling Fashionista series, and Katie Davis, author of Dancing with the Devil. Our moderator was the wonderful Alyisha Foley, librarian and blogger and kidlit enthusiast. Alyisha had great questions, and I loved hearing my fellow panelists talk about their own experiences writing books for teen readers and about their own young reading experiences.

A few favorite moments from the panel:

All of us agreeing that middle/high school are so freaking hard and basically when you need books the most.
Also agreeing that sometimes spoken communication is hard–long live the text/email!
Talking about what why flawed characters are compelling and real.
Tara Sullivan sharing an ebony wood sculpture. (Made me flash back to all those good Habo and Kweli moments!)
Bianca Turetsky’s shoutout to the Baby-Sitters’ Club.
Getting to sign The Chance You Won’t Return for RI family and friends, including the parents of some of my friends from high school.

Thanks so much to Anika Denise and Barrington Books for organizing such a great panel, to the Barrington Library for letting us use their wonderful space, and to everyone who came out on a Wednesday night to hear us talk about the awesomeness of YA!

Tonight! YA Authors at the Barrington Public Library

May 14, 2014Leave a comment

My first panel event as an author is tonight in my very own home state of RI! I’ll be talking with fellow YA authors about how we became writers, what YA is for us, and more. The details:

Voice. Heart. Connection. An Evening with 5 Extraordinary Authors of YA Fiction
May 14th, 6pm at the Barrington Public Library
184 County Rd
Barrington, RI 02806

Thanks so much to Barrington Books for organizing this event and more as part of Children’s Book Week. If you’re in the RI area, make sure to check out this fantastic local bookstore. And come to the panel at the Barrington Library tonight!

Voice. Heart. Connection. An Evening with 5 Extraordinary Authors of YA Fiction

April 16, 2014Leave a comment

More event news. On May 14th, I’m going to be on a panel with a few of my favorite local writers at the Barrington Public Library in Barrington, RI. The event is organized by another one of my favorite local writers, with Barrington Books, a wonderful bookstore in my home state. Needless to say, I’m psyched.

The details:

Voice. Heart. Connection. An Evening with 5 Extraordinary Authors of YA Fiction
May 14th, 6pm at the Barrington Public Library
184 County Rd
Barrington, RI 02806

Come say hi and listen to me chat with some fantastic YA authors.