Lisa Yee's Blog, page 9

Last blog we were at the LA TIMES Festival of Books, and one of the booths we signed at was Once Upon a Time . . .



So it's only fitting that we visit the bookstore itself. But first, lunch!



Above: Bob Boyle and Dan Santat count the carbs. (The vegetable plate was mine, and Tao Nyeu had chili and a sandwich.)

Then it was indie bookstore time with Maureen Palacious, the owner of Once Upon a Time . . .



While we were there, Dan signed some books. And many of them were even his!



Peepy loved exploring with Bob and Tau . . .



Oh, look! It's Tao's new book . . .



Wait! What's that? Why it's an AMAZING-AND-SILLY-VIDEO created for the Children's Choice Book Awards -- featuring Jarrett Krosoczka vs. Jon Scieszka, two guys whose last names are slightly harder to spell than mine.

Warning: Film contains mayhem, destruction, and wayward authors and illustrators. So, look carefully, I'm in it along with Jeanne Birdsall. Our cameos are short, but the acting is dramatic, hilarious and heartbreaking -- truly, Oscar-worthy.



Here are some exclusive behind-the-scenes shots of the shoot. Behold the expensive trash-can-steady-cam . . .



And finally, here are some shots the paparazzi took of Jeannie and Cagney confer with the director . . .



Next Blog: More independent bookstore fun. This time we visit Mrs. Nelson's Toy and Book Shop where we find out what exactly Tony Di Terlizzi is trying to gell us . . .



Support your local indie bookstores!



===========================

Disclaimer: No proofreaders were harmed (or even used) in the creation of this blog.

Want to check out Lisa's NEW AND IMPROVED website? Simply CLICK HERE.

Interested in having Lisa speak at your school, library or conference? CLICK HERE for more information.

Lisa Yee








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We were THERE last blog, and now here's more of the LA TIMES Festival of Books at the University of Southern California!



This is an iconic building. Why? Because when I was a senior at USC I fell down the stairs inside the building, that's why.



Oops. No digressions! Back to the book festival.

It's always great to see Lauren Myracle, who is alive (despite her AWOL website), and find out what kind of trouble she's gotten herself into. The last time we saw her, at the National Book Festival, this happened . .



Wouldn't you know it? We had to bail Lauren out yet again . . .



After, we headed to the Diesel/Scholastic booth where we ran into National Book Award Winner and newly minted LA TIMES Book Award winner Pete Hautman . . .



BTW, Pete is a genius. Most authors I know get TONS of emails from students asking us to do homework or write book reports. Check out Pete's free book reports . . .



Other authors signing for Scholastic included Libba Bray and Maggie Stievater . . .



After my book signing, the next author showed up -- Lin Oliver!!!



While Lin and I gabbed, Peepy made new friends . . .



Marc Brown was on the Target Stage . . .



And there was a crowd for this author . . .


(Um. It was "Real Housewife" Bethenny Frankel who wrote a novel?)

In the green room we admired the spread and gabbed with Aaron Hartzler, who moderated many of the YA panels, the prolific Cecil Castellucci, and Australian author Tristan Bancks . . .



For our second day at the USC Civic Engagement booth, I read from BOBBY VS. GIRLS (ACCIDENTALLY) . . .



Then a boy who was there to get an autographed copy of STANFORD WONG FLUNKS BIG-TIME (USC gave 100 of my books out for FREE), volunteered to help me. While I read, he acted out a part . . .



It was so wonderful to be back at USC as an author. When I was a student there, I only dreamed about writing books. And now that's what I do!

In addition to books and authors everywhere, there were also films. We saw the new Stan Lee documentary. Here's the trailer.


After, we ended our book fest in a Newbery-esque manner. Mary Casanova and I were waiting for my car . . .


(That photo is not from the book festival. I was so busy talking to Mary, I forgot to take her picture. So the one above is of me with Valerie Tripp, on left, and Mary when we were in the Caribbean last winter.)

Who should we see (also waiting for a car)? Behold! It's this year's Newbery winner, Jack Gantos!



We reminisced about the first time we met eons ago at the Booklist Humor Forum at ALA in New Orleans. Here we are with Mo Willems and Jack's daughter . . .



And now, KidLit Jeopardy! question of the day: What do these three authors have in common?

Answer: Dubai. Excuse me? Yes, Dubai. Jack spoke at the American School of Dubai last year, Mo spoke there this year, and I will be there next year! Squeeeee!!!!



CLICK HERE for Publishers Weekly photo essay of the LA TIMES Festival of Books!

===========================

Disclaimer: No proofreaders were harmed (or even used) in the creation of this blog.

Want to check out Lisa's NEW AND IMPROVED website? Simply CLICK HERE.

Interested in having Lisa speak at your school, library or conference? CLICK HERE for more information.

Upcoming Events . . .
LitFest Pasadena, May 12
10:30 – 11:20 -- Youth Knows No Bounds: Breaking the Cliques and Clichés of Young Adult Literature
with Cecil Castellucci, Ron Koertge, Blake Nelson, and Lisa Yee
Moderated by Sherri L. Smith

Lisa Yee







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From visiting Kent State to returning to USC.



It began with the drive down freeway. Most people would have been worried about parking, but I wasn't worried because I had these . . .



Yes! Coveted valet parking passes to the LOS ANGELES TIME FESTIVAL OF BOOKS!!!!

This is the second year it's taken place at my alma mater, the University of Southern California . . .



I had five book signings over two days.

Before our (meaning me and my Peep) first one, we met this year's Printz winner, John Corey Whaley author of WHERE THINGS COME BACK . . .



Oh, look! It's D.J. MacHale of PENDRAGON fame . . .


(That's Australian author Tristan Bancks looking on.)

Soon it was time to sign with Dan Santat, illustrator of my BOBBY books, at Once Upon a Time's booth . . .



And look! Priscilla Burris and Brian James were there, too . . .



After, Dan and I wandered around and ran into Betty Birney, who was signing next to uber author John Green . . .



Hey! Hay! Hey! (I spelled one of those words wrong to see if you were paying attention.) What do John, Dan and I have in common?



Here's a hint:



That's right! We are all represented by Jodi Reamer, agent, lawyer, blackbelt. (That's Jodi in the tree.)

Last year, I was on the Target Stage . . .



This year, I was there to cheer on friends. In the Green Room (that's what they call backstage, even though it isn't green), we ran into Tom Angleberger and his publicist Jason Wells arguing over how to cut the paper to make Origami Yodas . . .



Then, who should wander in, but NERDs author Michael Buckley. Sadly, he misbehaved, too . . .



I will add though, that Michael was very nice to Fatima Ptacek, who voices Dora the Explorer! (She was a HUGE fan of his.)



Peepy was still a bit shaken, not knowing if Michael was serious or not, but luckily James Burks was there to console her. Later, Ken Min (left) and Wow! Wow! Wubbzy creator Bob Boyle (right) joined us to watch James onstage . . .



Later, Dan and I also signed at the Diesel/Scholastic booth . . .



While we were there, we contributed to an ongoing story for 826LA, a non-profit writing and tutoring center . . .



Then Peepy and I headed over to the USC Civil Engagement booth. It was near the YA Stage . . .



USC Civil Engagement partners with residents and civic leaders and initiates programs like this year's book drive which brought in over 3,500 books to be distributed among local schools.



Dozens of my books were given out for free to kids attending the book fest . . .



What a wonderful day! Stay tuned for the next blog, where we meet more famous authors at the LA TIMES Festival of Books, including this year's Newbery winner.



Um. That's not the Newbery winner, above. That's Peepy's new friend.

===========================

Disclaimer: No proofreaders were harmed (or even used) in the creation of this blog.

Want to check out Lisa's NEW AND IMPROVED website? Simply CLICK HERE.

Interested in having Lisa speak at your school, library or conference? CLICK HERE for more information.

Upcoming Events . . .
LitFest Pasadena, May 12
10:30 – 11:20 -- Youth Knows No Bounds: Breaking the Cliques and Clichés of Young Adult Literature
with Cecil Castellucci, Ron Koertge, Blake Nelson, and Lisa Yee
Moderated by Sherri L. Smith

Lisa Yee








Subscribe to Lisa Yee's Blog and get her fresh baked blogs e-mailed to you!



Email:




Or you can click this for a RSS feed...

When last we blogged we were at the Virginia Hamilton Conference at Kent State in Ohio. Lest you think we're making it up, here's photographic proof we were there . . .



Yes, apparently the black squirrel is the unofficial mascot of the school, and they are everywhere . . .



During the conference, we had an informal conversation with conference attendees. (Since it was informal, I felt compelled to sit on the stage floor.)





After a lovely lunch we checked out the bookstore . . .





Soon it was time for E.B. Lewis to speak. (E.B. and I are both on the SCBWI Board of Advisors.)



After the conference, we were fed again . . .



This time we got to see and explore the Reinberger Children's Library Center and the magnificent Marantz Collection of more than 21,000 picture books . . .





Imagine my surprise when I turned a corner and happened upon this . . .



Yep. That's right. It's K.T. Horning, director of the CCBC hard at work. Or so she said.

For more about the Virginia Hamilton Conference, check out Christina Getrost's blog for YALSA.

Wheeee -- STANFORD WONG FLUNKS BIG-TIME made Grace Lin's PBS Parents List of favorite Asian American books. To see the full list, CLICK HERE!


(Above: Grace and friends.)

Next Up: What set off Origami Yoda's Tom Angleberger?



===========================

Disclaimer: No proofreaders were harmed (or even used) in the creation of this blog.

Want to check out Lisa's NEW AND IMPROVED website? Simply CLICK HERE.

Interested in having Lisa speak at your school, library or conference? CLICK HERE for more information.

Upcoming Events . . .
LitFest Pasadena, May 12
10:30 – 11:20 -- Youth Knows No Bounds: Breaking the Cliques and Clichés of Young Adult Literature
with Cecil Castellucci, Ron Koertge, Blake Nelson, and Lisa Yee
Moderated by Sherri L. Smith

Lisa Yee








Subscribe to Lisa Yee's Blog and get her fresh baked blogs e-mailed to you!



Email:




Or you can click this for a RSS feed...

After blissfully booking it in Nothampton, MA, I was home long enough to unpack my suitcase and then pack it again.



Where was I headed next? Why, here . . .



I was in Kent, Ohio for the Virginia Hamilton Conference on Multicultural Literature for Youth . . .



Fun Fact: I lived in James Thurber's childhood home in Columbus, Ohio for a month when I was the Thurber House Children's Writer-in-Residence!!!



Oops. Digression noted. Back to the conference! It began on Thursday evening with a food-filled reception . . .


(Above: That's E.B. Lewis sharing dessert with his favorite Peep.)

It was followed by dessert and storytelling, and a speech by the amazing Alma Flor Ada . . .



After our book signing, we got to meet Arnold Adoff, author and husband of Virginia Hamilton . . .



Since there's alway room for more food, middle school teacher Dawn Sullivan, E.B. and I piled into teen services librarian Christina Getrost's car . . .



Then we headed to a famous local hang out -- Ray's . . .



As you might guess, we discussed literature, physics, and whether the man at the next table was Jeff Bridges or Mickey Rourke. Actually, Dawn and E.B. debated this. Christina and I debated over which was better, the regular fries or the sweet potato ones. (The man was neither Mickey nor Jeff, and we were at an impasses over the fries.)


(Photos not to scale.)

The next morning I was driven to the conference by Christina in her Star Wars Millennium Falcon Saturn complete with mini space vehicles hanging from the window . . .



Kent State Dean Stanley T. Wearden welcomed us and I delivered the opening keynote . . .



(I always find it interesting that like birds on a wire, people in auditoriums spread out so they are equidistant from one another. This happens in elevators, too, but never on airplanes. There is always someone sitting next to me.)



Alma was presented with the 14th Annual Virginia Hamilton Literary Award, which she generously offered to share with Peepy. . .



The other recipient of the award was Julius Lester, who was Skyped in for his acceptance speech . . .



Later in the day, I visited the May 4 Memorial honoring the students killed and injured at Kent State by the National Guard on May 4, 1970. Perhaps many of you remember this iconic photo. The photographer was a undergrad and it won him a Pulitzer . . .



During thirteen seconds of carnage and confusion, National Guard members killed four students and injured many others . . .



Two students died in the parking lot and now there are markers where they fell . . .



Here's more of the memorial . . .







In other news, a ten-year old girl read my Kanani stories and was inspired to raise money to help the endangered Hawaiian monk seals. You can read about here HERE.

And here I am talking about Kanani and the monk seals . . .


NEXT BLOG: More conference, more books, some squirrels, and an inside look at this . . .



===========================

Disclaimer: No proofreaders were harmed (or even used) in the creation of this blog.

Want to check out Lisa's NEW AND IMPROVED website? Simply CLICK HERE.

Interested in having Lisa speak at your school, library or conference? CLICK HERE for more information.

Upcoming Events . . .
LitFest Pasadena, May 12
10:30 – 11:20 -- Youth Knows No Bounds: Breaking the Cliques and Clichés of Young Adult Literature
with Cecil Castellucci, Ron Koertge, Blake Nelson, and Lisa Yee
Moderated by Sherri L. Smith

Lisa Yee








Subscribe to Lisa Yee's Blog and get her fresh baked blogs e-mailed to you!



Email:




Or you can click this for a RSS feed...

Of course a place with so many authors and illustrators around would have the most awesome bookstore.

We were still staying in our lovely undisclosed location when we first visited the Montague Bookmill . . .



Set in an gristmill that was built in 1842, this amazing indie bookstore is on the banks of a river and located near Amherst . . .



After THE MOST DELICIOUS SALAD at Lady Killgrew , which is part of the Montague Mill . . .



. . . it was time to explore . . .



Wait! Who's that reading to Peepy? Why it's Susan Shilliday, ex-pat from Los Angeles -- a screenwriter (Legends of the Fall, Thirtysomething, etc.) turned Montague Bookmill owner . . .



Here's more to admire . . .



Ah, what a glorious bookstore!!!



BTW, it was so great that on our last day in the area, we returned to look at books and eat the delish brown rice and veggie salad . . .



Brace yourself for a rocky transition . . .

Whoa, DoSomething.org is an amazing. They are "one of the largest organizations in the US for teens and social change." Recently, DoSomething.org editorial intern Molly Hornan interviewed me on their website. You can read it HERE.



===========================

Disclaimer: No proofreaders were harmed (or even used) in the creation of this blog.

Want to check out Lisa's NEW AND IMPROVED website? Simply CLICK HERE.

Interested in having Lisa speak at your school, library or conference? CLICK HERE for more information.

Upcoming Events . . .
LitFest Pasadena, May 12
10:30 – 11:20 -- Youth Knows No Bounds: Breaking the Cliques and Clichés of Young Adult Literature
with Cecil Castellucci, Ron Koertge, Blake Nelson, and Lisa Yee
Moderated by Sherri L. Smith

Lisa Yee








Subscribe to Lisa Yee's Blog and get her fresh baked blogs e-mailed to you!



Email:




Or you can click this for a RSS feed...

Okay, so after her artistic debut at the R. Michelson Galleries . . .



Peepy and I did lots of other fun authorial stuff in the Northampton, MA area.



"Like what? What did you do?" you ask, or I ask, or we can pretend Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy asked.



Why, here's a small sampling. We worked on a novel at the Mount Holyoke College library and feigned being at Hogwarts, which was probably really distracting when we leapt on the table and shouted, "expecto patronum!"



We explored the library . . .



We ate lunch with Ellen Wittlinger and then ate another lunch with Jarrett Krosoczka (on a different day) . . .





But while we were waiting for Jarrett, we ran into Grace Lin and Little Brown editor Alvina Ling!!!



Then we met more Blue Rose Girls, Anna Alter and Libby Koponen . . .



Later, we went to Emily Dickenson's house, but no one was home . . .



So then we went to Tony DeTerlizzi's house and even though he and his wife Angela hid, we knew they were inside. And finally, so were we . . .


(That's actually stuff from the Spiderwick movie!)



The bathroom was delightful. Um, if you can say that about a bathroom . . .


(Famous artists made their marks, so to speak.)

Then Tony brought out the really cool stuff . . .



Yes! He made a set of Winnie-the-Pooh and friends when he was in college. It seems we are both HUGE Pooh fans! Here's some of my collection . . .



Now, being the kind person I am, I gave this lovely front-back-both-arms-deer-art shirt to Mr. DiTerlizzi . . .



And he gave these to me!!!!!


(He doesn't know it yet, though.)

While we were trying to figure out how we could hide Pooh and his pals in my purse, Scott Fischer stopped by and distracted us . . .



Oh, hey! (How's that for a smooth transition?) Here's a recent interview I did over at Author Turf!

Next blog . . .



===========================

Disclaimer: No proofreaders were harmed (or even used) in the creation of this blog.

Want to check out Lisa's NEW AND IMPROVED website? Simply CLICK HERE.

Interested in having Lisa speak at your school, library or conference? CLICK HERE for more information.

Upcoming Events . . .
LitFest Pasadena, May 12
10:30 – 11:20
Youth Knows No Bounds: Breaking the Cliques and Clichés
of Young Adult Literature with Cecil Castellucci, Ron Koertge, Blake Nelson, and Lisa Yee
Moderated by Sherri L. Smith

Lisa Yee








Subscribe to Lisa Yee's Blog and get her fresh baked blogs e-mailed to you!



Email:




Or you can click this for a RSS feed...

Yes, the R. Michelson Galleries is the place to go to see/buy art from the top names in children's literature, like this up and comer . . .



However, there's also other art there, too. We asked, Richard Michelson how he got started with his gallery and his books (he's an award-winning children's book author). Here's what he said . . .



Rich: "When I was young I wanted to be a poet. I wasn't good in school, but I had a high school teacher, Mr. Ketchum, who got me reading, and I fell in love with words."

After graduating, Rich went on to sell posters and art to college students out of the trunk of his car, not because he loved art, but because it was a job. On the side, he continued to work on his poems.



One day, Rich went to an art museum, because he thought that knowing about "real art" would make him a better salesperson. It was there that he finally understood the power of art.



"After that, I wanted to open my own gallery. My boss didn't want me to, so we played ping pong. If I lost, I had to work for him for three more years. If he lost, he'd stake me in my dream to open a gallery."

The boss lost.

The R. Michelson Galleries has grown since those ping pong days. It now inhabits a stately bank building in the heart of downtown Northampton, MA . . .





Rich's writing career has taken off, too. And not only does he write children's books, but just recently he was named


Gallery-wise, Rich represents a who's who in children's picture book art. He also represents other artists, like Kurt Vonnegut. That's right. Kurt Vonnegut . . .



Kurt Vonnegut even drew this for Rich . . .


(It's inscribed to "Richard, Ping Pong Hustler.")

Here's more art . . .





Wait! What's that . . . ? Hey, it's the work of our dear friend Jeanne Birdsall, National Book Award Winner AND photographer . . .


(That's right. Jeanne's photography is even in the Smithsonian!)

Rich also represents another photographer. Perhaps you've heard of him? Leonard Nimoy a.k.a. Mr. Spock. The two are quite close and Rich even got this for me when WARP SPEED, my novel about a Star Trek geek who worships Mr. Spock, came out . . .



So it's no surprise that Leonard Nimoy's photography is represented exclusively by the R. Michelson Gallery . . .



I dunno, though. When I look at the two of them together, I see a resemblance. Do you?


(Photo Credit: Silvia Mautner Photography)

I asked Rich outright, "Are you Leonard Nimoy's long lost son?"



Rich hesitated, then replied. "There is no truth to that rumor. I deny it, right now, right here on your blog."



Hmmm . . . I'm not totally convinced. When I asked him to say it again, this time without smiling, he couldn't do it.




===========================

Disclaimer: No proofreaders were harmed (or even used) in the creation of this blog.

Want to check out Lisa's NEW AND IMPROVED website? Simply CLICK HERE.

Interested in having Lisa speak at your school, library or conference? CLICK HERE for more information.

Upcoming Events . . .



SAT
11:00-12:00 NOON: signing at Scholastic/Diesel booth with Dan Santat
1:00 PM-2:00 PM: signing at Once Upon a Time booth with Dan Santat
4:00-5:00 PM: signing at USC Civil Engagement Booth

SUN
12:15-1:30 PM: signing at USC Civil Engagement Booth
1:30-2:30 PM: signing at Scholastic/Diesel booth


Lisa Yee








Subscribe to Lisa Yee's Blog and get her fresh baked blogs e-mailed to you!



Email:




Or you can click this for a RSS feed...

Richard Michelson is a poet, a gallery owner, and an author . . .



We sat down with him in Northampton, MA and gabbed over lunch.



Peepy was nervous at first, but after a couple of seconds, she showed Richard the art she created at the Eric Carle Museum.

Needless to say, Rich was impressed . . .



He was so taken with Peepy's work that he offered her a contract and asked that her art be exclusive to his gallery.



Peepy wasn't sure. After all, Rich represents all the big names in children's literature art, and she didn't want to be overshadowed . . .



However, Rich assured her that she would be his number one artist. He even had the perfect place to showcase her work -- even if it meant moving someone else . . .



Peepy didn't want to displace Mo Willems, at first. But then she flashed back to her recent lunch with him . . .


(That's Mo on the right, and not helping the helpless Peep is Tony DiTerlizzi.)

And so, Peepy told Rich to go ahead and throw Mo and his pigeon under the bus . . .






CLICK HERE to see the video on YouTube.


Sorry, Mo. You've been Peeped . . .





Next Up: Not just children's literature art, plus Mr. Spock, I presume?

===========================

Disclaimer: No proofreaders were harmed (or even used) in the creation of this blog.

Want to check out Lisa's NEW AND IMPROVED website? Simply CLICK HERE.

Interested in having Lisa speak at your school, library or conference? CLICK HERE for more information.

Upcoming Events . . .



SAT
11:00-12:00 NOON: signing at Scholastic/Diesel booth with Dan Santat
1:00 PM-2:00 PM: signing at Once Upon a Time booth with Dan Santat
4:00-5:00 PM: signing at USC Civil Engagement Booth

SUN
12:15-1:30 PM: signing at USC Civil Engagement Booth
1:30-2:30 PM: signing at Scholastic/Diesel booth


Lisa Yee








Subscribe to Lisa Yee's Blog and get her fresh baked blogs e-mailed to you!



Email:




Or you can click this for a RSS feed...

After our fun-filled Meltdown, we stayed a good long time in Northampton so we could write. However, there were many delicious distractions, like the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art on the Hampshire College campus . . .





The museum is filled with great children's book art and great children's book artists. While we were visiting, so was Kadir Nelson, along with Sharon Robinson, author and daughter of baseball great, Jackie Robinson . . .





Here's Moi with Kadir at the National Book Festival Library of Congress Gala last year . . .



And CLICK HERE to see photos of Kadir painting Dan Santat faster than I can take a photo.



But back to the Carle. You never know who you'll run into in KitLitLand. Look -- It's big mouth Susannah Richards!!! (I'm not being mean. That's what they call influential booksellers and experts in our industry. Publishers send big mouths early editions of books, etc. so they can help buzz a book.)



It was so cool because Susannah knew I was in town. So she had copies of my books in the trunk of her car for me to sign in case she saw me . . .



Then who should we see, but Diane DeGroat (center left) and author Shelley Rotner, the creators of HOMER . . .







There's art everywhere, even in the restrooms . . .



Later, Peepy ventured into the art room to make a lovely Peep stamp . . .



We're hoping to get our Peepy art into a gallery someday. What do you think?



Oh, and guess what? WARP SPEED has been named to Bank Street's Best Books of the Year list!!!

Hey! Hey! If you happen to be on the Hampshire College campus, or one of the other surrounding colleges, be on the lookout for these totally awesome flyers!!!!













===========================

Disclaimer: No proofreaders were harmed (or even used) in the creation of this blog.

Want to check out Lisa's NEW AND IMPROVED website? SImply CLICK HERE.

Interested in having Lisa speak at your school, library or conference? CLICK HERE for more information.

Upcoming Events . . .



SAT
11:00-12:00 NOON: signing at Scholastic/Diesel booth with Dan Santat
1:00 PM-2:00 PM: signing at Once Upon a Time booth with Dan Santat
4:00-5:00 PM: signing at USC Civil Engagement Booth

SUN
12:15-1:30 PM: signing at USC Civil Engagement Booth
1:30-2:30 PM: signing at Scholastic/Diesel booth


Lisa Yee








Subscribe to Lisa Yee's Blog and get her fresh baked blogs e-mailed to you!



Email:




Or you can click this for a RSS feed...