Armchair BEA Vlog: Final Day

This is the final video for Armchair BEA and the mayhem that ensued.

I should explain that the This is Teen launch that is mentioned in this video is Scholastic's new initiative to use Facebook to connect authors with readers. The reception beforehand and the signing after was magnificent. It was so delightful to meet and really talk with Maggie, Libba and Meg. I'm referring to them by their first names, because I'm pretty sure that we are good friends now.

Libba told me a fantastic story about how she and Shannon Hale were on a plane together and Shannon tried to ease Libba's fear of flying by singing a John Denver song. Then they sang all the songs they could think of that were sung by artists who had died in a plane crash.

And, after speaking with Meg, I think I have her really excited to do a signing in Salt Lake City. So, for all you Utah folks, I think it's time to let our local indies and libraries know that we are dying to see Meg Cabot!

I hope you have all enjoyed the videos that I have been posting throughout the week. It's been such a pleasure to show you the fun things that have been happening while I'm in New York.

Some cool title here

I'm having a hard time coming up with good titles for my posts this week. Anyway, here's today's vlog. This will be great for those who wanted to see the floor, signing lines, and some authors!

BEA 2011: Day Two

Hey all! It's time for another vlog from today's activities. With a little bit of sleep, I'm as good as new. I picked up a bunch of stuff to giveaway to you all today, so be sure to fill out the form at the end of this post to enter to win it!



Bloggers and Authors in this video:
Heather from Fire and Ice
Nancy from Ravenous ReaderLinda from Optimistic Pessimist
Pixie from Page Turners
Michelle Zink, author of the Prophecy of the Sisters Trilogy

BEA 2011: Day One

As promised: here is the vlog for day one of Armchair BEA. I know I look like I'm not excited or happy to be in New York. I really am, but it is masked by my intense fatigue. (I haven't slept since I went to bed on Friday night). So, pretend there is a huge smile on my face, and ENJOY!

BEA 2011: Preview

Well, it's finally upon us. Book Expo America begins on Tuesday, and I am pumped! (Okay, I'm extremely stressed about packing, laundry, and the hundred other things I have to do before I get on a plane at 1 am)! But, other than that, PUMPED!

For those of you that aren't going to BEA, I hope you'll join up with Armchair BEA. It's really a fantastic way to bring the fun of the biggest book expo to your house.

As I've mentioned before, I'm going to be doing some vlogging from the event throughout the week. My intention is not to make you jealous or upset. Believe me. I had to make some sacrifices to go this year, and the reality is that I may not be able to go again. And, I promise to bring you back stuff. In fact, I'm giving away a prize pack of BEA goodies when I get back that will include at least 3 ARCs. Probably more. Who knows.

For now, watch this video and get excited for next week!

Armchair BEA: BBC Roundtable Writing and Building Content

First of all, thanks to everyone who participated in the Twitter party. It was a huge success! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.

Today I want to talk a little about writing and building content.  This is arguably one of the most important things in blogging. I mean, if you don't have good content, people are not going to come back.

So, how do you keep your content fresh without spending every waking minute devoted to your blog?

Planning

I spend a little time each week determining a schedule of posts. I try to find a good balance between memes, reviews, and other book-related posts. Sometimes that can be hard to do, especially in weeks where I don't read a lot. I try to have at least one book review ready to go for those days when I just don't have the time to craft a new post. But, ultimately, if you are posting at least once a week, you are doing pretty well.

So, I'm going to list a few things that I've learned over the last year about blogging to keep your content fresh.

• Rotate your memes. You don't have to do each meme every week. Try doing In My Mailbox every other week.
• Come up with one thought-provoking post once a week. (Or once a month if you are a less frequent blogger). They get lots of comments and get people thinking.
• Invite bloggers and authors to do guest posts. Guest posts are fantastic because you don't have to write them. Bloggers and authors are usually flattered to be asked to guest post for you.
• Pay special attention to a reader. Did you get an awesome comment from someone? Feature the comment and write a post about it. Find an awesome new blog. Blog about it!
• Look at what other bloggers are writing about and put your own spin on it. A few weeks back people were posting all about how much they loved blogging. Once you follow a lot of blogs you start to notice themes in posting. 

May your content always be fresh and may your readers flow in like milk and honey in the promised land.

Armchair BEA: It's the End of the World as We Know It

It's no secret that I love dystopian fiction.  There is something truly wonderful about a story where all seems lost, and then the reluctant hero emerges. So, here is my dream "dystopian" panel.

Suzanne Collins: The Hunger Games Trilogy
Cory Doctorow: Little Brother
Susan Beth Pfeffer: Life as We Knew It
Lois Lowry: The Giver
Scott Westerfeld: The Uglies Trilogy

What kinds of things would we discuss?

How do you define dystopian fiction?
Why do you think dystopian fiction has become so popular lately?
What are the essential elements of dystopian fiction?

So, what would be your dream panel? Want to take a crack at some of the questions I posed to my panel?

Interview with Melissa from Book Nut

Welcome to Day 2 of the Armchair BEA goodness! Today is interview day, and I have an interview from Melissa from Book Nut. I have been following Melissa's blog for the last year, and I love it! One thing I love most about Melissa is how many books she checks out from the library. It's not all about ARC's and free books for her. Anyway, on to the interview!

Explain in a few sentences about your blog, how long you've been blogging, and about yourself

I'm a stay at home mom (with aspirations of getting a job here in the next year or so, when my youngest goes to kindergarten). I read.  A lot. (I also garden, play the piano, sometimes dabble in photography, and spend too much time on Facebook.) My blog is pretty much a record of what I read, which is really pretty much anything (except erotica). YA, Middle Grade, adult, non-fiction, fantasy, travel, classics, graphic novels... I've been running it (keeping it? writing it?) for five and a half years. But never, ever, in my wildest dreams, did I think keeping a blog would turn into... this!

Name one book you read in the last month that you loved and why.

(Good thing I have a blog to help out with this...)  I haven't put a review up of this yet (soon!), but I loved Griffin and Sabine: An Extraordinary Correspondence by Nick Bantock. Amazing in its conception: a story told in letters, with absolutely gorgeous artwork. weird, wild, wonderful.

Name a few books that will be coming out in the next 6 months that you would love to get your hands on

Mockingjay, Susan Collins (of course!). Other than that, I'm pretty much at a loss as to what will be published in the next six months. I'm trying not to notice; I'm SO far behind with my stacks, I'm not really accepting anything new right now. (And I keep checking books out from the library. What's with that?! I really think I can read all those??)

You are planning a dinner party and can invite two authors (living or dead) and three fictional characters, who do you choose? And what would you serve?

Mo Willems (he just seems like a very fun person to have over for dinner), John Green (fascinating to talk to), Razzo (from River Secrets; because he would be highly entertaining), Elizabeth Bennett (why not? She could keep up, I think), and Augie Hwong (from My Most Incredible Year). I would probably serve grilled burgers, homemade potato salad or pasta salad, some veggies and white bean and sage dip, with some good soda to wash it down. Homemade ice cream for dessert. (It is summer, after all.) 

If you were at BEA this year what 3 ARCs would you grab, and what 3 authors would you love to meet?

Authors are easy: Mo Willems, Mitali Perkins, and Sarah Pennypacker
ARCs: I don't know. I'd probably shove whatever looked interesting into a bag to take home

Gotta say, I'd definitely show up to Melissa's dinner party! Thanks Melissa for the interview and for your awesome blog!

Armchair BEA: On Signed Books

Oh how I love signed books. Actually, I just love signed anything. I have a special shelf on my bookcase that holds just my signed books. So, I thought I would show you a few of the signed books I currently own, and some of the ones that I would have loved to pick up at BEA.

First there is The Thirteenth Reality by James Dashner. Cute, fun book. And I seem to run into James everywhere. Our conversations go like this:

Me: Hey, you remember me?
James Dashner: Yeah, Emily, right?
Me: Yep, that's me. How's it going?
James Dashner: Good
Me: I liked what you had to say on the panel this afternoon.
James Dashner: Thanks!

Pretty much every time. Here is a picture of James and I at a signing. And.. the signed book:

At the same signing I met Jessica Day George. She signed her book Sun, Moon, Ice and Snow for me.

And, just recently I had the opportunity to get a book signed by Mette Ivie Harrison. It was her newest book, Princess and the Snowbird. (Which I sadly have not yet read). I didn't get a picture with Mette because sometimes I'm totally scatterbrained, and this was one of those times. But, here is the signed book.

But, my most prized book of all time is Goose Girl by Shannon Hale.  I won't go into a whole lot of detail about this signing, because I'm going to do a post about the whole event at a later date. But, here is the book and a picture of me with Shannon Hale and her husband Dean. In case you can't read the book, it says "For Emily- who is my biggest fan, but not in a Kathy Bates way."

And now, the books I would LOVE to have signed at BEA. There were so many that I just decided to highlight three:

Matched by Ally Condie

Not only is this cover awesome, but the book sounds sooo amazing. I love dystopia. Love, love, love it!  Luckily, this author is local to me which means I will definitely get this one signed someday. And, I have exchanged emails with her, and she's really nice. A definite plus.

For the Win by Cory Doctorow

I don't have a real reason behind this one.. It just looks awesome.

Inside Out by Maria V. Snyder

More dystopia. Oh, and it's a book by Maria Snyder. I like all of these things.

So, what signed book do you treasure? What books do you wish you had signed?

In My Mailbox 5/23

Slim pickin's this week folks. Narry a book was to be found in my mailbox. I guess because it's BEA next week, people aren't sending out much stuff. Can't say I blame them! But, I did pick up this beauty at Border's this week:

 The Demon's Lexicon

Ugh, I'm trying so hard not to judge this book by it's cover. I'm sorry, I'm just not a big fan of the puffy lips. But, I've heard the book is simply mahvelous, so I'm going to read it anyway. (And, my cover does not look like that, thankfully).

I also got some SWAG from Bree Despain and Kristin Walker to give away at the Armchair BEA Twitter party this Thursday. Don't forget to follow us with the hashtag #armchairBEA. We're going to have such a blast this week!

In My Mailbox is hosted by The Story Siren