Friday, November 6, 2009

Author Interview and Giveaway: Lauren Bjorkman discusses My Invented Life

Today I have a very fun interview with Lauren Bjorkman,
the debut author of MY INVENTED LIFE which I reviewed recently. Don't miss the last question - it had both Daniel and me ROTFL.

If a drama teacher were to pick another play to put on that showcased sisters Roz and Eva’s talent in equal measure, what do you think she’d pick?
WICKED. Roz would do anything to play Elphaba, the girl who becomes the Wicked Witch of the West. And Eva would enjoy playing Glinda.

Who are those cute fun girls on the cover?
I think of them as the sisters in my story. A few people have told me they thought the cover was racy, so I'm guessing they think the girls are lesbians. One guy asked me if the girls on the cover would be at my launch party! That made me laugh.

In other interviews you’ve mentioned that Eyeliner Andie is your favorite character in My Invented Life and that you’d like to write a novel with her as a main character. Pitch me an Eyeliner Andie dystopian novel.
Cautions and warnings:

Before I start, let it be known that I suck at pitches. More than suck. My nine year-old son can pitch better than me, and I’m not talking about baseball. Also, as someone who wrote a so-called gaytopian novel, dystopian might be a bit outside of my range.

Okay, you’ve been warned.

Eyeliner Andie’s parents die in mall shooting, so she’s sent away to live with her grandparents in Laramie Wyoming. Andie goes androgynous and tries to put on a production of the Laramie Project, a play about a true life event where two homophobic teens tied a gay college student to a fence, beat him, and left him to die. Unbeknownst to Andie, the son of one of the original perpetrators goes to her school.

(Told you so.)

Hmmm...well that might be more in the thriller category, but we'll take it! So, you’re very well travelled, so well that you’ve even been to my dream destination of Bhutan. Can you tell us a travel anecdote from your trip and try not to make me too envious?
So cool that you want to go to Bhutan. Some people think it’s a new scent for men by Christian Dior instead of a small Himalayan kingdom.


When we arrived in the capital of Bhutan, we tried to hitch hike to the village where our friends worked. After sitting by the side of the road for an hour, we discovered there were no private cars in Bhutan. So we rented one. It turned out that it was cheaper to rent a car with a driver than without one. That’s how we met the charismatic Karma Dorje, twenty-four, fluent in eight languages, charming, an excellent guide, and gifted alcoholic. Every night he insisted that we go to a bar together and drink heinous home-brewed alcoholic beverages in unnatural colors. We were his “table friends,” he said. And every night I went to bed with a hideous headache.

Oh, and there was the time when we were at someone’s house that Karma knew, and I had to drink fermented yak butter tea with a dead fly floating on top to be polite.

Still jealous? You should be. I loved every minute of my trip there minus the fly incident and the headaches.

Your cats invite my cats to dinner. What do they serve?
Zorro and Rabbit would usually prepare wounded mole as an appetizer, followed by un-stuffed wild bird in feather sauce for the main course. But after I showed them a picture of Emmy, they changed the menu to meet her obviously refined sensibilities—salmon sashimi with a sesame wasabi glaze, followed by warm goat’s milk sweetened with attar of roses.

LOL! You have Emmy totally pegged :) Thanks Lauren!

Find out more about Lauren and MY INVENTED LIFE at her website.

Lauren is also offering one lucky reader a signed copy of MY INVENTED LIFE. To enter, just leave a comment about the interview or tell me what your cats would serve my cats for dinner (if you have cats). As always, 1 extra entry will be given for posting the link to the contest on your blog (sidebar is fine) or social media site. Just leave your link in an extra comment for it to count.

This contest is open INTERNATIONALLY and will run until November 27th at 11:59 PM CST.

66 comments:

jpetroroy said...

I'd say they'd serve anything I'm eating that night--that's all they're usually interested in :)

jpetroroy (at) gmail (dot) com

Melanie said...

To be honest, the first time I saw the cover, I thought that it was portraying a lesbian relationship as well. Oops.

The Bhutan sounds like a lot of fun! I've always thought that would be an interesting place to visit. Yum, dead flies!

Jess said...

Great interview! I think the Eyeliner Andie in Laramie thriller sounds pretty intriguing, actually. I just saw a production of the Laramie Project: Ten Years Later, and it's such an important story.

Donna Gambale said...

I absolutely love the cover of My Invented Life. I never thought lesbian, though! It completely captures the personality of the book... at least from the descriptions I've read. Which is why I'd love to win! My Invented Life's on my TBR, but winning a copy would definitely make me get to it faster. Thanks for the interview and giveaway!

+1 sidebar link on First Novels Club blog

firstnovelsclub [at] gmail [dot] com

Anonymous said...
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brizmus said...

I tweeted it http://twitter.com/brizmus
it's on my sidebar http://brizmusblogsbooks.blogspot.com

My cat, Zedster, or Zeddyface, as I call him, is actually a vegan, like I am. Well, sort-of. I feed him vegan food, but he also loves to hunt in the yard. So I think he would serve up some vegan kibble along with fresh dead bird and squirrel in a bloody, furry, feathery soup. Mieum!

Her experiences in Bhutan sound so crazy!

zedster.tbb(at)gmail(DOT)com

Anonymous said...
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Kelsey said...

Wicked is such a great play! I have cats. Mine would probably eat all the food before they could serve it lol!

kelseythebookscout at gmail dot com

Anonymous said...
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Anonymous said...
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Lauren said...

Cool interview - I *love* the cats question. I initially thought the book's cover was mean to portray two girls in a relationship... but those two girls look really kind of similar, so then I decided they were sisters.

lauren(dot)wavekeeper(at)googlemail(dot)com

Anonymous said...
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Cecelia said...

Rowena (my parents' cat, a seal point siamese) would serve canned tuna mixed with a chipotle mayo. Mostly because that's what I like to put in lunch wraps, but hey! I'd love to be entered for the book - great interview!

celialarsen(at)gmail(dot)com

Anonymous said...
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Brooke Reviews said...

OH NO! I don't have cats, but I do have Chihuahuas which are the size of most cats. They love cheese so that's what they would serve. :D

bacarleton (at)gmail(dot) com

Rebecca said...

My cat would serve bacon, chicken, pumpkin and roast carrot because those are foods that he loves.

everythingtodowithbooks@gmail.com

Jessy said...

I think my cat would serve cheetos and glazed doughnuts. Those seem to be her favorites

findjessyhere at gmail dot com

Anonymous said...
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Sadako said...

Great interview. I liked that there was a reference to Wicked because, well, Wicked rocks! As does anyone who refers to it, Elphaba, or Glinda. (Or as I say, GA-linda.)

dibblyfresh1@gmail.com

Sheere said...

poore Lauren! I were her I wouldn't have drunk it! So disgusting! I hate flies!

Ohh seems you got spam!

sheere.dry@gmail.com

Sheere said...

+1 tweeted
http://twitter.com/Sheeredry/status/5492284876

sheere.dry@gmail.com

Anonymous said...
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Staci said...

This book sounds pretty great and I absolutely LOVED the Q&A!!!

Jenny N. said...

Nice interview. The question about the girls on the cover made me laugh.

jen4777(at)hotmail(dot)com

Jenny N. said...

Tweeted here:
http://twitter.com/Jullysay/status/5497076664

jen4777(at)hotmail(dot)com

Anonymous said...

Fun interview. Love the story pitch part. I'd completely stink at that as well.

foltzsfantasticbooks (at) gmail (dot) com

throuthehaze said...

My cat Bones would probably bring field mice :)

Raelena
throuthehaze at gmail dot com

Mariana S said...

This book looks awesome, I really want to read it. Great interview ;)

+1 sidebar: http://entrelibelulas.blogspot.com/

sarima89(at)gmail.com

Michelle said...

So sorry, I don't have cats - but I loved the comment about the guy wanting to see the two cover models at the launch party! HA! Great interview.

mmillet at gmail dot com

chocowafer said...

I don't have a cat but I loved Lauren's answer for the last question! :)

austenfanblogs[at]gmail[dot]com

chocowafer said...

linked this on my sidebar:
http://fictiondoesitbetter.blogspot.com/

austenfanblogs[at]gmail[dot]com

Anna said...

I have heard many great things about this book and would love to win a copy! The cover is also gorgeous. =) Her travels to Bhutan sound so exciting... though I'm not sure how I'd feel about that dead fly on top of my tea...

+1 posted here: http://www.contestsaroundtheblogginguniverse.blogspot.com

hope.
hopesblog[at]hotmail[dot]com

Unknown said...

Please add me! With the interview you erased the last of the doubts I had about adding the 5,000th book to my wishlist...

dreamworldofabookaholic AT googlemail DOT com

Unknown said...

I added your contest to my sidebar!

dreamworldofabookaholic AT googlemail DOT com

stargirlreads said...

enter me please :) the cover is cool :)

princessashley9@gmail.com

Alessandra said...

My cat would serve tuna fish to Emily and Finn. With lots of yoghurt as dessert :)

Alessandra
outofblue1(at)gmail(dot)com

Anonymous said...

A wonderful interview...cute cover, too.

karen k
kmkuka(at)yahoo(Dot)com

Anonymous said...

I don't have any cats right now but if I did they would serve your cats freshly killed mice!!
I would love to be entered in your draw. Thanks.
wandanamgreb(at)gmail(dot)com

Asylumgirl said...

My kittens would serve roast chicken with gravy or whatever else comes out of their cans. lol

Deidre

Alice said...

Oh no, I don't have a cat now! But I used to have a few before I got married. I fed them with classic cat food.

Great interview!

I'd love to win a copy of this book. Here's my email:

teh(dot)alice(at)gmail(dot)com

Llehn said...

I'd love to play please!

If I have a cat (which I don't) my cat would serve your cat the finest pate so that she'll be extra affectionate to you and make you happy so that you'll draw me for the winner of this giveaway!

lesly7ch(at)yahoo(dot)com

Beth Kephart said...

This is one of the funniest author interviews I've seen in a very long time. Hats off to you!

Anonymous said...

What a fun interview! I think the girls on the cover look like BFFs. Please enter me in this giveaway.

sidebar link

thebookvixen at gmail.com

Lorin said...

Great interview Lenore! I don't have any cats (The hubs is very allergic) but my neighbors do. The kitties are always stalking the hummingbirds in my front yard but (thank goodness) haven't been able to catch one. I don't think they realize their collars make sneaking up on the birds difficult.

Susan Helene Gottfried said...

Yeah, that is a very good last question!

Liviania said...

My dog probably wouldn't serve your cats anything, but he would happily share his own. So dog kibble, a few bites of chicken, beef, or pork, and a few Cheez-its. That's fine dining.

Mystica said...

Wicked was a great musical! And the cover now that you think of it yes I agree with Melanie!

jayme said...

my cat would serve pieces of my carpet, because she finds it VERY VERY tasty.

and it annoys the crap out of me.

jaymeriley@gmail.com

Anonymous said...

I don't have a cat but if I did it would serve me tacos because that's what i'm having tonight. :)

posted on blog (http://book-mac13.blogspot.com)

bookmac13(at)gmail(dot)com

Meg @ write meg! said...

Fun interview! It's funny some folks find the cover "racy" -- I hadn't gotten that impression, but it's definitely eye-catching. I love the font choice, too, but I'm just a crazy design nerd!

I'd love to read this one! Thanks :)

writing.meg [at] gmail.com

Meg @ write meg! said...

I also Tweeted about it right here! I'm @writemeg :)

Thanks!

I ♥ Book Gossip said...

If I had a cat, she would your your kittes tuna with a side of kitty treats :-)

cindyc725 at gmail dot com

I ♥ Book Gossip said...

+1 Posted on blog

http://juniperrbreeeze.blogspot.com/

cindyc725 at gmail dot com

Unknown said...

Wonderful interview. I have been hearing some amazing things about this book.

For a cat dinner, my kitties would probably serve a nice large field mouse or their newest specialty, rabbit. I think that is their new favorite treat.

+1 added to sidebar
www.theneverendingshelf.com

neverendingshelf@gmail.com

Holly said...

hollytaylor (AT) optusnet (DOT) com (DOT) au

+1 Linked on Sidebar - http://goodgollymisshollybooks.blogspot.com/

You've got some pretty quirky questions there, here is the answer to one of them: My cats would probably serve up whatever they could find so that would mean snakes, rats or any other small critters that are easy to catch.

A Passion For Books said...

Great interview! Been wanting to read this one, sounds cute.

+1 sidebar http://casey62588.blogspot.com

paranormalfanatic@gmail.com

Mariana Dal Chico said...

Great interview!

I would love to read this book!

maryflorido(at)hotmail(dot)com

Tks ;)

The Lovely Reader said...

I love hearing what authors have to say about their book before reading it. Thanks for the interview. I like the cover, and nevr thought of it being a lesbian relationship.

My cats wound serve your cats the oatmeal cookies I'm currently trying to eat, lol.

Great contest!
barbrafl737 (at) yahoo (dot) com

Ashley said...

+1 Posted on my sidebar at http://booksobsession.blogspot.com

booksobsession(at)gmail(dot)com

Ashley said...

Hahaha Lauren is so funny! I loved her answer to that last question about the cats. She went all out with her answer. :)

Please enter me, thanks!
booksobsession(at)gmail(dot)com

Triskaideka said...

good interview :D

had_triskaideka@hotmail.com

Anonymous said...

I'd love to enter this giveaway.
walkermisc@primus.ca

FrankSandy said...

My cats would serve your cats FISH, what else? walkerd?@primus.ca

Reading said...

I don't have a cat, but if I did, he would serve what ever was on sale. Because thats what I would serve him. LOL.

lizzi0915 at aol dot com

Nancye said...

Looks like a great book!

nancyecdavis AT bellsouth DOT net

Lenore Appelhans said...

CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED. Winner has been notified.