ALA's Best Fiction for Young Adults and Quick Picks Lists

Every year, committees of librarians read hundreds of titles to try and come up with various lists that ultimately help librarians make purchasing decisions. There are literally thousands of young adult books published each year, and there is no way every library can purchase every book published. It would be nice, wouldn't it? But that's simply not the case, and so, the lists that the ALA provides every year is an incredible resource for YA librarians.

There are a number of these lists, but today I'm going to talk about two of them: The Best Fiction for Young Adults (BFYA) list and the Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers list.

At the Annual Librarian Association conference, they always have a session where the committee gets teen feedback about books on the list of BFYA nominees. On Saturday, I noticed people tweeting teens' comments from that session, and it's always fascinating to hear what they have to say, so I followed the hashtag for a while. Then I clicked over to the link of nominees and once again, like almost every other year, I'm not on the nominee list. And although it stings a little bit each time, I'm sort of used to it by now. 

Two of my books, I Heart You, You Haunt Me and The Day Before, did make the Quick Picks list, designed to help librarians find books that can be great for reluctant readers, which is a wonderful thing.  

In the past couple of weeks, I've seen some bloggers post their "Best of 2013 So Far" lists or "Summer Reading" lists, talking about their favorite reads this year, and I think that's awesome and fun and a great way to mention titles again that came out a while ago. Getting the word out about books you love to readers of your blog and other bloggers is a wonderful thing, and I know all of us authors appreciate that a LOT! 

Pretty tulips for you!

Many bloggers make it a point to post their reviews not just on their blogs, but on goodreads, Amazon, B&N, etc. This is extra work that doesn't necessarily get the blogger anything, but it helps the author a lot, and again, authors appreciate it SO much. 

But please consider there is one more thing that can really, really help an author, and that is to suggest the books you love for the BFYA lists and the Quick Picks list. Anyone can suggest a title. Not just librarians - ANYONE (except for the author, agent or editor of the book).

As I look over the list of nominees, I'm happy to see some titles I've read and loved this year, like Just One Day by Gayle Forman, The Archived by Victoria Schwab, The Lucy Variations by Sara Zarr, Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys, Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor, etc.

But I'm also disappointed that I don't see some of my favorites of 2013 (in no particular order). Golden by Jessi Kirby. Going Vintage, by Lindsey Leavitt. The Book of Broken Hearts by Sarah Ockler (which I'm only halfway through, but still, I'm loving it). The Program by Suzanne Young.  The Reece Malcolm List by Amy Spalding. Let The Sky Fall by Shannon Messenger. (If you are wishing I listed your book here, please know: I'm sorry, I have SO many more sitting here in a TBR list, but it's hard to read as much because I've been on deadline a lot the past few months).

You might be wondering why I don't suggest some of these titles for the list myself. Well, because I have to admit that some of these people are my friends, and I'm guessing the committee doesn't really want the selection process to become a - you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours kind of thing, where authors nominate titles for each other. And although I may have picked up the book because a friend wrote it, I can honestly say in the end, I loved the book regardless of that fact.

Anyway, which books I've loved is not really the point here. Have YOU read a book this year that you loved? Do you enjoy supporting that author, so he/she will be able to continue to write and sell more books in the future? Library sales are important sales for YA authors! 

If you are a teacher, a librarian, a blogger, or a reader, and you've read and loved a book this year (that was published in 2013) and think it deserves to belong on library shelves all across the country, please, take a few minutes and tell the BFYA committee about it.

Click HERE to see the list of BFYA nominees so far (because the year is only half over, and more titles will be added).

Click HERE to find the form you can fill out to suggest a book for the Best Fiction for YA list.

Click HERE to see the list of Quick Picks nominees so far (again, the year is only half over and more titles will be added).

Click HERE to find the form you can fill out to suggest a book for the Quick Pick list.

Both of the forms say that suggesting a title does not guarantee the book will automatically become a nomination, but I'm guessing that the more people who suggest a title, the more it makes the committee sit up and take notice.

Again, thanks for all you do to support YA authors!

From my mail

Every few months, I like to stop and take a minute to say thank you to my readers for your e-mails and letters. I try hard to reply to each and every one individually, but I think it can be fun to give a shout out to some of the awesome notes here as well.

This is a picture a reader named Zainab sent to me a couple of years ago, and I wanted to point out that her creativity around an all-girl band was the inspiration for one of the story lines in my upcoming novel, Frosting and Friendship. So thank you, Zainab!

Here are some snippets from letters and e-mails I've received from readers recently:

"Sometimes I have problems with my friends in school, but your books inspired me to talk it out and say sorry." ~ Chelsea, soon-to-be 5th grader

"When I was looking for a book at Barnes & Noble, your book caught my eye, and once I started to read it, I felt as if I was there. My most favorite book is It's Raining Cupcakes." ~ Jessica

"My best friends and I liked Sprinkles and Secrets so much, we did a video book report on it. We had a lot of fun doing it. I wish I could send the disc to you but I can't, it's way too fragile for the mail." ~ Elly

"I enjoyed It's Raining Cupcakes because it taught me that you can do anything you set your heart to. My mom and I made the Grandma's Applesauce Cupcakes and they were delicious." ~ Brooke, 5th grader

"I have read all of your books at least three times and I own all of them. They are really fun to read. Your books are just amazing. My favorite one is your newest one Falling For You. My second favorite is The Day Before; that one made me cry." ~ Emily, 13

"Your book [Falling for You] had me in tears because I realized that I wasn't the only one who had been in a situation like that. Even though it's fiction, it made me really connect with Rae." ~ Rebecca

"I just wanted to let you know that I love your books.

The way you write,

the way you describe,

the way you understand how teens feel,

I just love it.

I have just finished Falling For You and it had me crying at the end. I'm already looking forward to your next book." ~ Xiu

~*~

Please note: In August, I will be sending out fun postcards I ordered specifically for the release of Frosting and Friendship. If you would like to receive one of these postcards with a little note from me and signed by me, I just need your address. Please send it to: lisaschroederbooks(at)gmail(dot)com. Make sure your parents are okay with giving me your address. Thanks!

If I were Queen of YA covers

Jeri Smith-Ready revealed the cover for her new contemporary YA novel coming out in 2014. I commented on twitter that I love it. (You can read a synopsis of the book here)

If I were Queen of YA Covers, I would say, let's have more artistic covers like this, please!!

I was browsing a great web site, yalit.com, which gives an easy-to-read list of upcoming YA releases, and although I hardly found any artistic covers in my quick scan, I did find some that feel different to me than the usual fare, and I'm curious if others like these that are different, or is it just me?

I need to get back to revisions, so I don't have time to link to indiebound so you can learn what these books are about, but do look them up if you're curious. Mostly I just felt like crowning myself Queen of YA Covers for a day, or you know, five minutes, where I say - more creative and different covers, please!

A side note: There is a series my 16 YO son loves, but I don't think he ever would have read them if he wasn't able to take the covers off so he could take them to school. The covers feature a teen boy and girl (though they look older) and he really hated the covers. A lot. I feel like so many of the covers are marketed toward girls, and if we want boys to pick up books and read them regardless of whether a male or female tells the story, publishing really needs to try and do a better job with covers.

All right. Carry on. I have other royal duties to attend to, haha.

Good thoughts for Stormy please

My poor dog.

On a walk a few weeks ago, she stuck her head into a bush, not realizing the cat inside that bush would not take kindlyto her peeking there. The cat hissed and clawed at Stormy, and I'm pretty sure scratched her eyeball, which has resulted in an ulcer in her eye.

We've been to the vet three times so far w/ two different antibiotics and today a little procedure done to hopefully get the blood cells to react and go to the area and fight to get rid of the ulcer. It's supposed to get worse before it gets better, and it could very well not get better, which means we will have to see an eye specialist next.

For the next week, she continues to wear the cone of shame and I continue to give her drops four times a day as equally spaced over twenty four hours out as I can manage. It really has not been fun, especially for her.

If you can send good thoughts that the treatment today helps heal the ulcer on her cornea so we don't have to go to the specialist, I would really appreciate it. And Stormy too, of course.

Update 6/14/13 - Stormy did have to see the specialist and have another procedure done. But hopefully the worst is over. We go back for a recheck in ten days, so hoping at that point, we'll hear some good news, finally. Thanks for all your good thoughts!

Surprises and unique story elements

I've been thinking a lot about surprises and unique story elements, mostly because I've discovered how much I love it as a reader when something surprises me, in a good way.

I'm reading a contemporary novel for adults right now, Nowhere But Home, and I was enjoying it just fine and then... surprise! Something different. Unique. Something that made me go - wow, I haven't seen that in a book before. Suddenly my desire to get back to this book has increased tenfold. I'm dying to see where this new plot thread goes. I'm SO intrigued by it (I'm not going to tell you what it is, in case you want to read it).

But here's an example that might illustrate what I mean, because I realize "surprises" can mean lots of different things. One of the things I really loved about The Silver Linings Playbook is that I wasn't expecting the dance-thing. At all. It took me completely by surprise, and it kind of turned the story on its head and made it so much more fun.

In my YA novel Falling For You, I added a fun element, a surprise, in the way of secret notes to give the reader a bit of a break from what is a pretty dark story at times. I've read a few other books where secret notes or "clues" (that lead the character places) play a part, and I can specifically remember how much I loved that part of the story.

I really believe readers want to be surprised one way or another, and it is our job, as writers, to figure out how to do that.

One of the things I've started doing when I'm writing a book is to brainstorm "fun" things in my notebook. It's usually a list of random things that make me smile and that I might like to put in a book some day. Not all the things get put in *that* book and sometimes I come across an idea I save for a book all its own.

Another example of this comes via this drawing, which a reader sent to me after she read the first two "Cupcake" books and wanted to give me ideas for the third book.

Along with this picture she drew (which I love by the way), she gave me a description of every girl in the band and what she wore. It made me realize (and remember my hairbrush singing days) that most girls this age love music and probably do imagine from time to time what it would be like to be on stage, singing or playing music. This led me to putting Lily, the main character in Frosting and Friendship, in a band with a few of her friends, since she loves to sing. The girls are new at this band thing, trying to find their way with playing music and writing songs, as they would be at the ages of twelve and thirteen. But I love how this part of the story played out and how it came to be a part of the main plot.

Another way to look at this comes via my friend and NYT bestselling author Laini Taylor. She's said on her blog a few different times that one of her favorite questions to ask while she's writing is this: "What is the coolest way this plot thing might happen?"

Cool. Fun. Unique. 

Keep these words in mind, and find ways to bring the cool, the fun, the unique to your story and surprise the reader. You'll be glad you did. And so will your readers!!

A Hang in There kind of post

The past twelve months have been a bit... strange.

I don't want to go into specifics, but those of you who are published authors will understand when I say that this business is not for wimps.

I hike a lot with my family, and it reminds me of the hikes that have steep hills to climb and as you go along, you wonder if there will be anything up ahead that will make the hard work worth it. You tell yourself to enjoy the here and now, to not focus on what's ahead, but that's easier said than done sometimes, especially when the hill just goes on and on and on. You wonder if it will ever end. You sit down, take a rest, and it's then when it's easy to become discouraged.

You wonder if you should just give up and go home. You start to feel like maybe you don't belong. Like maybe only the best hikers belong here, and you are certainly not one of the best.

There have been a few times over the past twelve months where I've felt pretty discouraged. One disappointment can be hard, but when you have a string of them, it can be especially so. And yes, once or twice, I was so discouraged, I thought about giving up. But I kept telling myself it's always darkest before dawn. And sitting on the couch, feeling sorry for myself, wasn't really going to solve anything.

I also kept telling myself that maybe things happen for a reason and maybe I just needed to trust that everything would work out in the end, if I just hung in there. I've certainly seen it happen before. Right after I quit my full-time job a few years ago, I had a full manuscript rejected along with some proposals, and I seriously began to think I had just made the biggest mistake of my life.

And then, inspired by P!nk's "Glitter in the Air,"  I wrote THE DAY BEFORE. That book saved me. Those characters, Amber and Cade, and their magical day at the beach, became my escape from all of my worries. Every day, when I opened that document, I got to escape to the beach too. I have never loved writing a book as much as I loved writing that one, because it was exactly what I needed at the time.

So this time, I reminded myself of Cade and Amber and THE DAY BEFORE, and I told myself what I needed to do was to find a story I cared about. Characters who could help me escape the worry and heartache, and let me be me, in the best way possible.

So I kept writing.

Seven or eight months ago, I felt like this:

Now, I pretty much feel like this:

taken 4/28/13 at Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm

So, in case there is anyone out there right now who is in that dark, discouraging place, I just want to say - hang in there. This business is HARD. The set-backs and disappointments can get inside your head and mess with your confidence in the worst way.

I know. I understand. I have been there, more than once.

Find a story only you can tell. Create characters you can fall in love with. Don't worry about whether others will love the story. That's not the most important thing when things are looking dark - the most important thing is that YOU love the story.

Find a story and let it save you.

Happy National Poetry Month!

It's April, and you know that that means!!

So... is it okay to read verse novels as a way of celebrating National Poetry Month? After all, if we want to get really technical, they aren't *truly* poetry, are they? I would say no, they're not.

But they are definitely poetic (or at least, they should be). And so, I say, verse novels are a fantastic way to celebrate National Poetry Month. And here begins my once-a-year appeal to everyone to give verse novels a try if you've never tried one before.

Some people are scared of verse novels. They worry they'll be hard to understand; that they'll be too poetic. Let me assure you, there is nothing to be afraid of. Now, I can't guarantee you'll like verse novels. Some people don't. They are indeed different. But hard to understand? Not generally.

To prove my point, here is part of a note I received (and I get many like this one each year):

"Today my daughter, who is 14 years old, read your entire novel, I Heart You, You Haunt Me from cover to cover. She could not put it down and even read it through dinner. While this may not seem like a big deal, this was in fact, somewhat of a miracle to me. You see, she does not enjoy reading. She's been dealing with dyslexia from the 2nd grade on. Reading comes with difficulty and takes up a tremendous amount of energy for her. We've tried several styles, different genres, but nothing really lit her fire. Today was the first time she actually told me she was really enjoying reading. We've now ordered more of your books. From our little family on the east coast, I wanted you to know of the miracle that occurred in my living room today. God bless you and thank you."

My wish for National Poetry Month is that more teachers and librarians will realize what a gift verse novels can be for some readers. Please, make a point to read some and know the ones that are appropriate for the age group you're involved with, and don't be afraid to share them with students.

If you need a place to start for title suggestions, here is a list of verse novels, voted on by readers.

To give you a taste of what you might find inside a verse novel, I'll share a couple of excerpts from my own books.


from FAR FROM YOU:

Outside,
the air was cool
and crisp,
the way you want your sheets
when it's blistering
hot.

We walked to the park
and ran through the leaves,
picking them up
and throwing them at each other,
as if they were snowballs.

Instead of loud splats,
we got quiet flutters
of crimson and amber.


from THE DAY BEFORE

Back outside,
we stand
at the edge
of a cliff
and look out
at the endless supply
of blue.

                       It takes my breath away.

Him
and me
and the sky
and the sea.

It's like a dream.
The kind of dream
you wish for again and again,
night after night,
because it was so good
the first time.


There are plenty of ways to use verse novels in classrooms, too. Verse novels are full of imagery, similes, metaphors, alliteration, and more, so there is much to be discussed in the way of poetic devices. Because they're novels too, you can also talk about plot and theme and have some great discussions around the story as well.

As the author of four verse novels, here is what I've learned over the years, through my interactions with probably thousands of students via e-mail, regular mail, author visits, and Skype visits.

* students DO notice and appreciate the poetic devices found in verse novels.
* students love it when a book makes them FEEL something, and verse novels are great at that.
* reluctant readers appreciate the white space on each page, and that there are no hefty chapters to wade through.
* many kids have told me they never read an entire novel by themselves until they read one of my books, and that feeling of success is such a powerful one!
* for many readers, a verse novel can be just the gateway they need to become lifetime readers.

A special thanks to all of my readers, and especially to the teachers and librarians who have shared my verse novels with middle school and high school students over the years!