BBAW: What Book Blogging Means to Me

I've been pretty absent during BBAW because this week has been packed with barely a minute to breathe, let alone blog.  But I did want to at least write a few paragraphs during Book Blogger Appreciation Week about what blogging and book bloggers have meant to me.

First, book blogging has encouraged me to read more and more widely.  I've always had eclectic taste in books, but fellow bloggers have encouraged and challenged me to read books I never would have picked up on my own. (Nerds Heart YA is a great example of this.)  Though Presenting Lenore is known for being a YA book blog, pre-book blogging I mostly read literary fiction and classics.

Second, book blogging YA was the basis for my writing a YA novel and delving into the world of publishing.  So much about the way the writing and deal came about is due to book blogging.  Reading and analyzing hundreds of YA novels was a stellar education, and the relationships I developed as a result of blogging have been so important in my journey to publication.

The people I've met are the best part of book blogging.  So many authors, agent, editors, marketing and publicity people, booksellers and of course fellow book bloggers.  Some have come to me (Liviania, Beth S., Linda Gerber) and others* have invited me into their homes or met me out somewhere in their city or nearby: Michelle, Swapna, Jennifer L., Deborah and Diana Peterfreund in DC, Jamie in Princeton, Steph Su in Philadelphia, Nicole B., Chelsy, Lauren Oliver, Leila Sales,  Bennett Madison, AS King, and tons more in NYC, Jenny and Sarah (FYA) and PJ Hoover in Austin, TX, Gail, Erica and a bunch of Apocalypsies in the Boston area, Trish, Pam, Laura and more in the San Francisco bay area, Amy in LA,  Gennifer Albin in Kansas City, Melissa in Wichita, and tons and tons of authors and bloggers at my three years of BEA and two years of BBC. (Yes, Kathy, that includes you - though I hope to get to SC one of these days).  It's so rewarding and fun to be able to meet up with others in our virtual community in real life - all over the world.

Thank you!

*It's late at night as I write this, so if I've somehow totally failed to mention our meeting, please remind me and forgive me.

Mara Madness Tour & Review of The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

So let me set the scene for you.  It's pre-BEA in NYC this past May and I'm moderating a panel at the Teen Author Carnival featuring debut authors.  Michelle Hodkin is on the panel.  She reads an excerpt from MARA DYER.  I'm captivated from word one.  The voice! The language! The serious hotness of Noah Shaw!!

I immediately knew, out of all the books I picked up at BEA, I was going to read MARA DYER first.

Right after BEA, Daniel and I went to Argentina, and I read MARA DYER on the ferry ride over to Uruguay.  This book rocked my world.  It's atmospheric, thrilling, believable despite the paranormal happenings, and it features my favorite YA boy of the year: Noah Shaw. (He's up there with Peeta on my all time list, so you know that means something.)

There's a murky scene near the end featuring alligators that caused a bit of twitter uproar a while back that we like to call #gatorgate - and in honor of #gatorgate, I wore my MARA DYER t-shirt to the Nuremburg Zoo and got this photo with a gator. (Actually a caiman ... but shhh don't tell!)

I am so, so excited about getting a copy of the MARA DYER hardcover and rereading the book so I can hang out with Mara (NOAH) again.  If you want a chance at winning a free *signed* hardcover, why not join the Mara Madness scavenger hunt? Each blog on the tour (21 stops) has a clue. The clues will be letters that spell out an important line from the book. Even if you haven't read the book you should be able to piece it together! The last day to solve the clue and enter for cool prizes is Sept 30th.

You can find the full tour schedule here. That way you can get all the clues. Once you have the line from the book figured out you can go here to enter the giveaway. And here is my clue:

Good news!

Lots of good news to share today.

First of all, I am so thankful to everyone who voted for Presenting Lenore for Book Blogger Appreciation Week's Best Author Interviews award.  How thrilling to win this two years in a row! I do have an interview set up with Laini Taylor at the end of the month, but perhaps I should think about doing some more?  Again - thank you! I'm so glad you all enjoy my chats with authors.

Secondly, I am finally allowed to announce more good LEVEL TWO news: Rights have been picked up for Australia and New Zealand by Allen & Unwin!!  The team there is amazing and I can't wait to share LEVEL TWO with all of you down under.  As far as I know, this will be happening end of 2012, but I'll let you know if anything changes.

Return of Cat Tuesday (42)

Earlier this month, the shelves in one of our IKEA bookshelves collapsed.  Daniel reinforced them with corner supports, and the cats made sure they were sturdy:

LEVEL TWO sells Turkish rights

Way back when I was in Argentina in June, I got some exciting news: Dogan Egmont wanted to buy Turkish rights to LEVEL TWO!

Now that all the papers are signed and boxes checked, I can finally announce the news.  I don't have word yet on exactly when it will come out, but I'll let you know when I do.

I looked up a way to say something cool in Turkish to end this post, but it seems pretty complicated and I don't want to mangle it.  So, I'll offer my standard: Yay!

Return of Cat Tuesday (41)

The cats are back! Did you miss them?

Looks like Emmy wants to make sure we don't leave her behind ...

BBAW 2011

Book Blogger Appreciation Week (BBAW) is coming up Sept 12-16!  As usual, I will be traveling that week and won't get to participate as much as I'd like to.

I am, however, thrilled to share that Presenting Lenore was shortlisted again this year for a BBAW award in the category Best Author Interviews!

In case you're interested, I submitted the following interviews for judging:
Anastasia Hopcus discusses SHADOW HILLS
Megan McCafferty discusses BUMPED
CJ Redwine previews DEFIANCE

Also on the shortlist are:
Relz Reviewz
Stacked
There’s a Book
Unabridged Chick


I also appreciate those who nominated me in the category Best YA Book Blog.  After much consideration, I decided to decline my nomination in that category as I am now in that fuzzy place between book blogger and published author.

But the shortlist makes me all kinds of happy:

Young Adult Book Blog
Forever Young Adult
Galleysmith
I Swim for Oceans
Pure Imagination
The Book Vixen

Congrats to everyone on their nominations!

Dystopian August Wrap-Up

It's arrived - the last post of Dystopian August.  4 1/2 weeks of dystopian and post-apocalyptic content including 24 book reviews, 29 author interviews, 20 separate giveaways, and more.  I hope you enjoyed it as much I did!

Of the 24 books I reviewed, 2 got 5 Zombie Chickens and are new favorites:
LEGEND by Marie Lu (coming Nov 2011)
HOUSE OF THE SCORPION by Nancy Farmer.

1 book just narrowly missed a 5 rating because it had the most trauma-inducing cliffhanger since THE KNIFE OF NEVER LETTING GO, and that was Ilsa Bick's ASHES.

Highly recommended books with 4 Zombie Chickens were:
BLOOD RED ROAD by Moira Young
ALL THESE THINGS WE'VE DONE by Gabrielle Zevin
A LONG, LONG SLEEP by Anna Sheehan
THE PLEDGE by Kimberly Derting (Coming Nov 2011)
PRIZED by Caragh O'Brien (Coming Nov 2011)
THE FOX INHERITANCE by Mary E. Pearson
WHEN SHE WOKE by Hillary Jordan (Coming Oct 2011)
INCARNATE by Jodi Meadows (Coming Jan 2012)

Miss something? Check out my weekly recaps!

Click for a recap of week one!
Click for a recap of week two!
Click for a recap of week three!
Click for a recap of week four!

Here's a quick recap of week 5:

Veronica Rossi previews UNDER THE NEVER SKY(HarperCollins/January 3, 2012)

Lenore Appelhans previews LEVEL TWO (Simon & Schuster BFYR/Fall 2012)

Review of WHEN SHE WOKE by Hillary Jordan (4 Zombie Chickens/Highly Recommended)

Review of INCARNATE by Jodi Meadows (4 Zombie Chickens/Highly Recommended)

Preview of 2012 Dystopian Sequels

WINNERS!

ARTICLE 5 by Kristen Simmons 

Erin L from GA

Mary Pearson prize pack incl. JENNA FOX & FOX INHERITANCE

Kelly R from NS, Canada

CROSSED by Ally Condie

Christina S from PA

Justine W from MA

Mallorie C from MI

Kara M from SC

Susan O from GA

A MILLION SUNS by Beth Revis

Stephanie A from WA

Donna S from MO

Leigh Ann K from OH

Allyson A from FL

Deborah K from VA

WHEN SHE WOKE by Hillary Jordan

Kristi S from CA

Dianne M from FL

Andi M from TX

ESCAPE FROM FURNACE series 1-3

Tiffany D from NH

UNDER THE NEVER SKY by Veronica Rossi

Mary M from CA

Simon & Schuster Prize Packs incl. 7 books!

Christina of Reader of Fictions

Emily of Brave New Shelf

Congrats to all!

Additional resources

Can't get enough dystopian? Check out these other resources:

Is it a dystopia? Fun flow chart at Author Erin Bowman's blog

Author Robison Wells (VARIANT) dystopia blog series

Join the dystopian challenge at Books Ahoy (Running until June 2012)

A brand new blog: The Intergalactic Academy - focusing on YA sci-fi including dystopian

Recap of Dystopian Domination blog event (May 2011) at Amaterasu Reads

Brave New Words - 2012 sci-fi/dystopian debut author group blog

The League of Extraordinary Writers - 2011 sci-fi/dystopian debut author group blog

Redecorating Middle Earth's ultimate list of YA dystopians of the past 50 years

Dystopian Divas blog

Dystopian Desserts blog

Know of any others? Let me know in the comments!

The Future of Dystopian August

Many readers have asked if I will continue my dystopian theme months in February and August.  As of right now, Dystopian February is still on, but I'll have to see where I am writing-wise when the time comes.  I have a ton of dystopian reads I didn't get to this month, so I may even have week-long reprises throughout the year.  Let's see.  I'd also love it of course if you let me know what features you enjoyed and would like to see again.  Thank you to everyone who made this month such a success, especially my author guests, Michelle of Galleysmith for our entertaining book discussions - and everyone who linked up their reviews, posted about DA on your blogs, tweeted, commented and cheered.

Long live the Zombie Chicken!

Or maybe not ...

So I had planned on reading and reviewing at least three more books this week (you should see my still-to-be-read dystopian pile - it's epic!) but ... it turns out I didn't have as much reading time as I had hoped.  I'm heading to the US next week and there's so much I need to accomplish beforehand.

BUT - you still have until the end of today to add your review links for a chance to win one of the two big prize packs.  And there's still a bunch of open contests to enter last minute.

I'll be back tomorrow with the wrap-up.  I'm sad to see Dystopian August end, how about you?

Upcoming Dystopia + Index of Dystopian Preview Author Interviews

There are so many exciting books coming out in 2012/13 and during Dystopian August 2011, we got a sneak peek of 29 of them via preview interviews with their authors.  Just check out this list (click on book name to read preview)!  This is a post you'll want to bookmark for future reference - at the end of this post, I also added Publisher's Marketplace announcements for upcoming books not included in the interview series.

PREVIEW INTERVIEWS

Veronica Rossi previews UNDER THE NEVER SKY (HarperCollins/January 3, 2012)

Megan Crewe previews THE WAY WE FALL (Hyperion/Jan 2012)

Jodi Meadows previews INCARNATE (HarperCollins/January 31, 2012)

Julianna Baggott previews PURE (Grand Central Publishing/Hachette/Feb 8, 2012)

Kristen Simmons previews ARTICLE 5 (Tor/February 14, 2012)

Susanne Winnacker previews THE OTHER LIFE (Usborne/Feb 2012 & Marshall Cavendish/May 2012)

Lissa Price previews STARTERS (Random House/March 13, 2012)

Kate Messner previews EYE OF THE STORM (Walker/March 2012)

Leah Bobet previews ABOVE (Scholastic/April 2012)

Jennifer Bosworth previews STRUCK (FSG/Spring 2012)

John Claude Bemis previews THE PRINCE WHO FELL FROM THE SKY (Random House/Spring 2012)

Heather Anastasiu previews GLITCH (St Martins/Spring 2012)

Jay Kristoff previews STORMDANCER (St. Martins Press/US Tor/UK Spring 2012)

Alexandra Bracken previews BLACK IS THE COLOR (Hyperion/June 2012)

Diana Peterfreund previews FOR DARKNESS SHOWS THE STARS (Balzer & Bray/HarperCollins/Summer 2012)

Kiera Cass previews THE SELECTION (HarperCollins/Summer 2012)

Demitria Lunetta previews IN THE AFTER (HarperTeen/Summer 2012)

Lenore Appelhans previews LEVEL TWO (Simon & Schuster BFYR/Fall 2012)

Antony John previews ELEMENTALS (Penguin/Fall 2012)

Bethany Griffin previews MASQUE OF THE RED DEATH (HarperCollins/2012)

CJ Redwine previews DEFIANCE (HarperCollins/2012)

Catherine Knutsson previews SHADOWS CAST BY STARS (Atheneum/Simon & Schuster/2012)

Kassy Taylor previews ASHES OF TWILIGHT (St. Martins Press/2012)

Sarah Crossan previews BREATHE (HarperCollins/2012)

JA Souders previews RENEGADE (Tor/2012)

Claire Merle previews THE GLIMPSE (Faber & Faber UK/2012)

Suzanne Young previews THE PROGRAM (Simon & Schuster/2013)

Erin Bowman previews THE LAICOS PROJECT (HarperCollins/2013)

Jordana Frankel previews THE WARD (HarperCollins/2013)

OTHER UPCOMING NOVELS

Peter Lerangis's PERFECT, in which a boy is rescued by a rogue gang and joins a battle against agents of a world society where population is out of control and resources are dwindling; the only hope is a cure to the ultimate plague - human perfection. Egmont/Spring 2012

S.D. Crockett’s AFTER THE SNOW, in which a boy born into a world where the oceans have stopped working and is thus covered in ice and snow must leave the wilderness to search for his missing family. Feiwel and Friends/March 2012

Susan Kim and Laurence Klavan's THE YOUNG COUNTRY, a post-apocalyptic Western set in the near future, where disease and pollution dictate that no one lives past their teens. HarperCollins

C. Alexander London's debut PROXY, about two boys from opposite ends of a society where the poor are paid to take punishments for the rich, and the conspiracy which engulfs them both. Penguin

DARK LIFE author Kat Falls's THE FETCH, a dystopian romance trilogy set in a future where the U.S. has been divided by a wall separating the civilized West from the disease-ravaged East - now called the Savage Zone - in which a 16-year-old must leave everyone she loves behind to enter the frightening Savage Zone, where she meets a mysterious boy who's not all that he seems to be. Scholastic/Fall 2012

Sara Grant's HALF LIVES, a dystopian chronicle of the journeys of two unlikely heroes in their race against time to save future generations. Little Brown/Fall 2012

Chris Howard's debut THE TREE CATCHER, a smart futuristic Huck Finn about a teen who builds trees out of scrap metal for rich patrons until a mysterious girl shows him a polaroid of the legendary last trees on earth, and he sets out in a deadly race against time to find them in this upside down old-west, post-apocalyptic, gypsy-rasta world of killers, pirates, poachers, and opportunists.

Claudia Gabel and Cheryl Klam's ELUSION, pitched as an "Inception"-type futuristic thriller series about three teenagers attempting to solve a mystery with serious personal stakes that leads them inside an alternate reality game that transports users to dangerously seductive Utopian world, and ETHERWORLD.

Josin L. McQuein's debut ARCLIGHT, a science fiction/dystiopian thriller, where a parasitic race is driving humanity to the point of extinction, and no one who leaves the last safe enclave ever returns until one teenage girl, a stranger, stumbles out of the Dark. HarperCollins

Bethany Pinnell's STUNG, in which government attempts to save endangered bees by genetic modification causes their sting to induce deadly, flu-like symptoms in humans, and a vaccine created in response changes children into ferocious, killer beasts; the uninfected have built a wall to keep the beasts out, and a girl has awakened on the wrong side.

Karen Thompson’s Walker’s THE AGE OF MIRACLES, in which a girl comes of age during a geological disaster after a massive earthquake knocks Earth off its axis, slowing the passage of time. 2012