Road Trip Wednesday is a “Blog Carnival”, where YA Highway‘s contributors post a weekly writing or reading-related question and answer it in on our own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.

You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #37: What’s your favorite reading memory?

My favorite reading memories involve being read to. I’m currently reading Mem Fox’s READING MAGIC: WHY READING ALOUD TO OUR CHILDREN WILL CHANGE THEIR LIVES FOREVER for my ACL class. I have to write a documented essay on the importance of reading and thought how appropriate this was for this week’s RTW.

Mrs Yates.

5th grade.

Huffaker Elementary School

Reno, NV.

She was a little heavy-set, short in height, with hair dyed a light reddish tinge. She always wore too much make-up (rougey cheeks, vampire-white foundation, caked-on mascara, bright red lipstick) and ate tuna fish sandwiches or sardines. My best memory of this woman was when she read to us. By the end of the day, her lipstick had worn off to the point where all that was left was the lip liner. LOL. For some reason that fascinated me and occasionally I would watch her lips move. She would take off her shoes and walk up and the down aisles. I would close my eyes and let my senses take over:

The swish of her pantyhose.

The faint scent of her “old lady” perfume.

The jangle of her bracelets.

The rhythmic turning of the pages (she used to lick her finger before turning them).

The hypnotic up and down cadence of her voice.

I don’t remember any of the books she read to us, but she was amazing at reading them aloud.

Another read-aloud memory:

Mrs. Hornbaker

7th grade

Cocopah Middle School

Scottsdale, AZ

Short in stature, short gray hair, somewhat mannish (now that I think back on it, she was probably gay), blue eyes that bulged a bit, round cheeks that sounded like she was holding something in them every time she spoke. She too used to walk up and down the aisles as she introduced us to S.E. Hinton’s THE OUTSIDERS.

I’m addicted to books now. Totally. Addicted. If I had a stack of books, I could read all damn day. I have, in fact, done that at one time or another. This is, in part, thanks to my parents. But I also have to give credit to teachers like Mrs. Yates and Mrs. Hornbaker who made it even more enjoyable on a different level.

Technorati Tags: Road Trip Wednesday, YA Highway, Mem Fox, READING MAGIC: WHY READING ALOUD TO OUR CHILDREN WILL CHANGE THEIR LIVES FOREVER, Huffaker Elementary School, Reno, NV, Cocopah Middle School, Scottsdale, AZ, S.E. Hinton, THE OUTSIDERS

Road Trip Wednesday is a “Blog Carnival”, where YA Highway‘s contributors post a weekly writing or reading-related question and answer it in on our own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.

You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #36: What would your ideal writing desk look like? Right down to the perfect pen or laptop.

I’m going to take Kristin’s lead and say that my ideal writing zone is not just my desk, but the place where I write. Right now, my office is too cluttered and crowded. I write in their under duress.

I guess it’s a good thing I’m not claustrophobic because I would freak out every time I go in there. Even when it’s cleaned up, it still looks crowded. My ideal writing zone would look something like this:

In the three-story townhouse we rent, my writing loft sits on the third floor next to the half bath. Light floods the room from three windows covered with organic daisy-patterned curtains. My desk made of natural wood stands sentry between two windows and supports the HP All-in-One desktop. Mid-size drawers lovingly protect mechanical pencils, spiral notebooks, and other writing essentials, while a hidden cabinet keeps my printer from view; a comfy black office chair made of recycled material cushions the body of a creative being. A blue chair and matching ottoman squats in one corner waiting for its contemplative use, and a floor-to-ceiling natural wood bookshelf spanning a whole wall–maintains a writer’s addiction: books.

Blinding white walls are saved from being bland by the splashes of colorful removable stickers containing writing words of wisdom, a 5X11 picture of Sean Connery as James Bond, a few plaques (both funny and inspirational) and some movie posters.

In this idyllic writing zone, my creative Mojo (aka Muse) is allowed free reign because it’s been blessed by my intuitive BF and feng shui’d six ways from Sunday.

*sigh* Like Robin Thicke says “it’s my dream world.”

Technorati Tags: Road Trip Wednesday, YA Highway, Sean Connery, James Bond, Robin Thicke

Road Trip Wednesday is a “Blog Carnival”, where YA Highway‘s contributors post a weekly writing or reading-related question and answer it in on our own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.

You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #35: What was your favorite book for the month of June?

A Boy Named Shel by Lisa Rogak

For my ACL course this semester, we have to read an autobiography about a children’s author. The assignment itself isn’t due until July 25th, but I wanted to get a head start so I chose to read about Shel Silverstein. Where the Sidewalk Ends is one of my favorite children’s books and it was given to me by my parents when I was young; I still have it. I actually just finished the autobiography today and am just….blown away. Even though he was most famous for his children’s books, he was first and foremost, a cartoonist (he was a longtime contributor to Playboy). He was also an accomplished singer (although he didn’t have the right voice for it), songwriter (he wrote “A Boy Named Sue” which was first sung by Johnny Cash), playwright (The Lady or The Tiger Show), and screenwriter (collaborated with director David Mamet on the movie THINGS CHANGE in 1998 starring Don Ameche and Joe Montegna). He never married, but fathered two children (his daughter died when she was 11 of a brain aneuerysm).

Last week, I was telling my best friend about all the stuff I’d learned about him so far and she said, “It sounds like you’re having a love affair with this author.” I laugh about it now because she was so right. This man was the ultimate creative being. He dabbled in every creative medium across the board and was very successful at all of them. Shel was a hardcore life observer and everything—and everyone—he came into contact with was inspiration for his work. He would get so in the zone with his creativity that if he wasn’t near a piece of paper to record his ideas, he would find whatever he could at that point in time: his arms, his hands, his clothes, a tablecloth, etc. He’d lived such a full, rich life by the time he passed away of a massive heart attack in May 1999 (he was born in 1930), I was a tad jealous.

He’s the male version of SARK, who’s one of my favorite authors. She has such a presence about her, a positive aura, that every time I left her company, I felt uplifted.

I think I would’ve felt the same had I ever met him.

He was just an amazing, amazing person, who touched so many lives—readers and friends alike. After reading this, I wanted to go out and buy more books that he wrote. As a writer, I liked this quote the best:

“You should never explain the philosophy behind anything you do, it’s not important. If your work is weak and needs to be explained, it isn’t clear enough.”

Technorati Tags: Road Trip Wednesday, YA Highway, A Boy Named Shel, Shel Silverstein, Where the Sidewalk Ends, Playboy, A Boy Named Sue, Johnny Cash, The Lady or The Tiger Show, David Mamet, THINGS CHANGE, Don Ameche, Joe Montegna, SARK

Road Trip Wednesday is a “Blog Carnival”, where YA Highway‘s contributors post a weekly writing or reading-related question and answer it in on our own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.

You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #34: If your favorite fictional characters submitted to FMyLife, what would they write?

When I was 15, I turned my foster parents in to the Feds. And now I work for them. As an informant. I’m 16 yrs old.

Technorati Tags: Road Trip Wednesday, YA Highway, FMyLife

Road Trip Wednesday is a “Blog Carnival”, where YA Highway‘s contributors post a weekly writing or reading-related question and answer it in on our own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.

You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #33: When/why did you start writing?

I started writing in the 7th grade. Me and a friend had just eaten lunch and were bored, so she suggested we write stories. I agreed. I don’t remember if she finished her story or not, but I didn’t want to stop. I wanted to keep going, so I did. By the time I reached high school, I knew my target audience was going to be teens. Back then, I was a bookworm, never rocked the boat at home, and crushed from afar. I lived vicariously through my friends. And boy, were their lives like soap operas. LOL. “You better watch out or you’re going to end up in one of my books” became an ongoing joke between us. And, actually, my best friend did end up in my second book, so I guess I really wasn’t kidding about that. LOL. The cool thing about this writing gig is that for all the people who’ve done you wrong, can now end up in your books as the victim. And all the guys you crushed on from afar, who never even knew you existed, can be the love interest.

Truthfully, I think I was destined to be a writer even before 7th grade. I didn’t have imaginary friends, but I did talk to myself when I was younger. A lot. If I was playing a game with a friend and it required me to be on the phone or something, I would have the best conversations. Seriously. Or if I was playing by myself, I’d have long, drawn out conversations in which I would play both parts. LOL. To this day I still talk to myself, but it’s more of a “figuring things out aloud” type of situation than when I was a child. When it starts that young, I think it’s a sign of creativity. Don’t you think?

Technorati Tags: Road Trip Wednesday, YA Highway

Road Trip Wednesday is a “Blog Carnival”, where YA Highway‘s contributors post a weekly writing or reading-related question and answer it in on our own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.

You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #32: How do you know when project will/won’t work?

When I first started writing, ideas would come so fast. I would stop in the middle of one story and start a new one. As I got older, I really had to discipline myself and say “You need to finish this one first. No more half-stories. ” I’ve since learned to write down my ideas, but I think that’s the answer. I think that as long as a writer has ideas, the idea of project working or not working will never come into play.

This is just my personal opinion, but I believe that if an idea doesn’t work out initially, it can always be used somewhere else. Or turned into something else. The stories I’d created in the past no longer exist. That’s because I moved around several times and kept them in a folder. Thinking it was school work I didn’t need, I tossed it (I now write in spiral notebooks). I didn’t toss them on purpose. Had I kept them, they would’ve turned into full length stories.

I think projects will always work, it’s just a question of how and when.

Technorati Tags: Road Trip Wednesday, YA Highway

Road Trip Wednesday is a “Blog Carnival”, where YA Highway‘s contributors post a weekly writing or reading-related question and answer it in on our own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.

You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #31: What tattoo would you get to pay homage to a favorite book or celebrate the success of your own?

First of all, the one and only tattoo I’ve got hurt like a sonuvabitch. Not only that, but some major drama went down after I got it. Needless to say, I will never get another tattoo.

Ever.

Again.

However, if I hadn’t been so traumatized by the first one, I’d probably get something to celebrate the success of my series getting a 6-figure deal (if I was going the traditional route, that is). Something funny like “I am writer, read my roar.” LOL.

Technorati Tags: Road Trip Wednesday, YA Highway

Road Trip Wednesday is a “Blog Carnival”, where YA Highway‘s contributors post a weekly writing or reading-related question and answer it in on our own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.

You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #29: If literary characters had Twitter accounts, whose tweets would you follow?

Well now, this is a real easy question.

Georgia Nicolson – Confessions of Georgia Nicolson series by Louise Rennison.

Hands down.

Georgia is hi-larious. I think her British humor would go over very well on Twitter.

Even though I’ve only read the first two books (I plan on reading the rest), I think they’re fabbity-fab.

What’s even better? You really can follow Georgia on Twitter, although it’s been a while since she’s tweeted.

Technorati Tags: Road Trip Wednesday, YA Highway, Confessions of Georgia Nicolson, Louise Rennison, Twitter

Road Trip Wednesday is a “Blog Carnival”, where YA Highway‘s contributors post a weekly writing or reading-related question and answer it in on our own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.

You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #28: What photos inspire your books?

I can honestly say that the only time I use photos for my books is when I’m trying to describe something. I didn’t do this with my first two books, but found the need to do so with the DA series.

This apartment complex inspired Draven’s living quarters. I went there, photographed the outside, and even toured an empty apartment, writing down everything I saw. Everything I saw ended up in the book.

The Portland Square apartment complex on Portland Avenue had been the first complex Ty had shown me my second day here, and I’d fallen in love with the open floorplan at first sight….

….On the street level is the parking garage, a City of Phoenix police sub-station, a small gym, a reasonably priced restaurant, and a sandwich place. A dog park with wrought iron benches sits in the middle of the street, like a median, and spans the whole length of the street, from Central Ave to 3rd Ave…….

…..As I take the elevator to the 4th floor in building C, I can understand why we’ve never run into each other. The complex has 410 units, 4 levels in each, and the three buildings take up three blocks….

Formally known as The Willow House, this coffee/deli shop was the inspiration behind Draven’s favorite hangout, CoolBeans Cafe. It’s under a new name, new management and totally looks different now. But again, I went there, ate, took pictures of each room, and talked to a couple of the employees (who worked there at the time) to get the story about the place.

Located in a cute historic house, CoolBeans Café is a coffee/deli place and a popular hang out for the students at Craycroft. Rader is already waiting in line. After paying for snacks, we walk around the converted house, past the kitchen where Vanessa hands out food, and check out the porch. Then I take him back to one of three non-smoking rooms.

“Do all the rooms have a theme?” he asks as we sit down.

I grin, knowing he’s thinking that because of the room where I like to sit. I refer to it as the Mother Nature Room due to the paintings about saving the environment and Mother Earth. The books on the small bookshelf are about natural healing, saving the environment, and nature.

“They have poetry slams on Thursday nights and open mike nights out on the porch on Mondays. I’ve yet to go to one, but I’d like to sometime,” I say, removing the lid from my strawberry yogurt and stirring it with a spoon.

“Definitely sounds like an experience. The closets are so small, but it’s neat how they made them into display cases for all that stuff.”

“Yeah, I never would’ve thought of doing something like that.”

He points at the walls. “Are the paintings from local artists?”

“Yep. So’s the merchandise. The books are from estate sales.”

“Nice. So, you come here a lot?”

“Everyday, actually. In the morning for breakfast and sometimes for lunch.”

He nods. “So this place used to be a house?”

“Uh-huh. It’s been a coffee shop for about eleven years. The ladies that run this place, Jules and Van, told me it used to be a real estate office, a pet shop, a knickknack store, and a karate studio.”

Do I sound like a travel brochure or what? Gawd, just shut up and eat your damn yogurt.

The school that Draven goes to, Craycroft School of the Arts, was inspired by the high school my niece graduated from: Metropolitan Arts Institute.

When I first started writing Book One, I took the day off and “shadowed” her. Very fun and very cool (everyone thought I was a new student. Shock abounded when her classmates found out I was her aunt…and a lot older than I what I appeared to be. LOL). The school is in a former office building. There’s no cafeteria–only a break room type of room with two vending machines and a refrigerator–no athletic teams and the former offices are now classrooms. The whole time I was there, I was wishing I had gone to a high school like that.

I’ve never used pictures for my characters. My niece (the girl in the pic) is the inspiration behind the DA series and the character of Draven. Draven’s friends, as well as all the characters from my first two books, are based on everyday people. People I’ve met, maybe people I’ve worked with, or people I saw from just people-watching. When it comes to creating characters, I’ve never been the type to search for pics or tear pics from magazines. It’s always been just people I see and writing down what I see.

So, what about you? Do you use pictures to inspire your stories? Do tell.

Technorati Tags: Road Trip Wednesday, YA Highway, The Willow House, Metropolitan Arts Institute

Road Trip Wednesday is a “Blog Carnival”, where YA Highway‘s contributors post a weekly writing or reading-related question and answer it in on our own blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.

You’re more than welcome to participate! Just answer the question on your own blog, and leave a link to it in their comments.

Topic #25: What’s the best book you’ve read this month?

I’m warning you right now, it’s not YA. LOL

I finished reading Instant Temptation by Jill Shavis about a week or so ago.

T.J. Wilder is the perfect package of breathtaking adventure and raw sex appeal. Even better, he’s about to reconnect with the one woman he’s never been able to forget…

Get Your Pulse Racing

To Harley, the landscape around Wishful, California, is exhilarating, untamed, and more than a little dangerous. The same could be said for T.J. Wilder, who’s invited himself along on her trek to study a rare coyote. Harley’s career is riding on this trip, and she doesn’t need a stubborn, incredibly sexy distraction. But T.J. is a professional guide who knows when to stay back and when to provide invaluable expertise-just like he’s done since they were in high school. And Harley, as usual, is torn between throttling him and giving in to the raw attraction that’s been smoldering all these years.

T.J. knows how proud and capable Harley is, but he’s damned sure not letting her put herself at risk when there are illegal hunters in the area. She needs him, with the same soul-stirring urgency that he’s always craved her. And here, in this beautiful place days from civilization, he’ll finally have a chance to prove it-over and over again…

Jill is one of favorite adult romance authors. She’s in my blog roll over there, so be sure to go on over and check her out. She’s hilarious. I love reading about Frat Boy’s antics and her need for cookies during tough situations. LOL. I have a nice collection of her books on my shelf and read pretty much everything she puts out. What I love about her books, in general, not just this particular one, is that she describes the guys so well.

With this book in particular, readers are whopped up side the head time and again with how GORGEOUS T.J. Wilder is. Even though we see him through Harley’s eyes, the man is drop dead sexy/gorgeous. But it’s Jill’s words, of course, that make him that way. Whenever she described him, the whole package, including whatever he was wearing in a certain scene, I could clearly see him in my mind.

And day-am, was he gorgeous!

While reading this book, there were many times I wanted to be Harley. I found myself looking at the cover from time to time (that’s why it’s gonna take a lot for me to ever buy an eReader), wishing I could see the whole package and not just a head shot.

Because the man is FOINE. I know I keep mentioning that, but truly, on the Taster’s Choice Hotness scale of 1 to 10, he’s a 30.

All of Jill’s books are like this. You “see” her characters so clearly, you could look up and find them in the room with you. They’re that tangible. And me, with my overactive imagination anyway, find that I have to have a Drool Bowl nearby whenever I read her books.

This is the third book in a trilogy about a trio of brothers who run an outdoor adventure business, Wilder Adventures, and I really enjoyed reading about all the brothers.

Because they’re all so freakin’ gorgeous!

You rock, Jill Shalvis!

Technorati Tags: Road Trip Wednesday, YA Highway, Instant Temptation, Jill Shavis, GORGEOUS