It's both a blessing and a curse that the world is filled with so many books. Walk into any bookstore and you'll find yourself overwhelmed with the vast selection. The popular books, much like the popular kids in high school, are the ones that get noticed, go on lots of book dates and get talked about. There are other, completely fantastic books that go relatively unnoticed. As time goes on, as years pass, those other books are too often forgotten.

Every few weeks I'll feature a lost book here on my blog. The sort of book I keep extras of to push onto unsuspecting friends and neighbors. The sort of book that didn't get the fanfare it deserved, may not be as well known, and is quite often lost on overcrowded bookshelves.

First up is May Bird And The Ever After by Jodi Lynn Anderson.

When 10-year-old May Bird stumbles through a portal hidden in the swamp, she finds herself in the Ever After, a strange world filled with ghosts. May is quickly followed through the portal by her one friend - her sour-faced, hairless cat, Somber Kitty. In this strange new world, the living are forbidden and cats are public enemy number one. May needs to get home fast, before the bogey man catches her and Evil Bo Cleevil, the despotic tyrant who runs the Ever After,  uses his power to turn her to nothing.

This is one of my favorite series in the history of ever. It's a middle grade reader with fantastic world building, lots of humor, adventure and unforgettable characters. May is a strong, gutsy little girl who stands up for what she believes. Somber Kitty is the original Grumpy Cat, written long before GC was a tiny kitten. In fact, I think GC may owe Somber Kitty some royalties.

Anderson manages to make Somber Kitty a central character to the story, imbuing him with personality and life, and never once resorting to the talking animal trope which is common in Middle Grade fiction. This is an animal companion done right.

Joining May & Somber Kitty on their adventure is a bumbling house ghost named Pumpkin. He's a well-meaning pudding head who sucks his fingers when he's nervous and thinks of May as his best friend, even if she's only just realized he exists.

There is so much to cheer on in this book. May rescues herself, no boys needed. The world building is phenomenal. There are so many lush little details, gorgeous descriptions, blocks of text that make me want to sink into this book and never come out. I laughed at the idea of Soul Cakes, the primary food used in the Ever After, and the Egyptian ghosts who hunt Somber Kitty, determined to capture this living creature and anoint him as their god, and then entomb him in a pyramid as Egyptians will do.

Every little thing in the Ever After has it's own unique, funny name and they're all so perfect. The locations. The characters. I become incoherent trying to describe it all. Let us simply say that if you love a good adventure and you can still find your inner-child, I think you'll love this book.

The publisher has recently released the first book in the series again with a new cover so you should be able to find this book at your local bookstore or library. Pick it up and give it a try. You just may fall in love with characters as much as I have. Fair warning, this is a trilogy and you will want to read the other two books, both of which are just as wonderful.

Find it on GoodReads >>

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Every now and then I get the urge to dash off a quick flash fiction story (1000 words or less). Here's one of my favorites.

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The Fox Thief

Nanami twisted her black hair into a thick bun and Mai’s gnarled fingers secured the coil with a jeweled hair stick.

“You must move like the cherry blossom as it falls, light and floating,” Mai said. All three of her fox tails twitched.

Nanami ignored her mother’s quiet agitation and reached for the lacquered pot on the table in front of her. She dipped a finger inside and swept the crimson color across her lips before adding a single spot to each cheek. Her skin was already pale as the rice paper covering the windows of their home.

“You must not linger, a single kiss and no more.”

“I will be swift as the fox, silent as the spirit, gone with the whisper of the night breeze,” Nanami repeated again.

Mai turned away but Nanami caught the glint of tears in her mother’s eyes.

“I will make you proud, Mai-san. My lantern will burn bright as the north star when I return.”

“I do not doubt you, daughter-of-my-heart. It is only that the world is so very different.”

Nanami smiled and tweaked the curve of her mother’s ear where the furred skin disappeared into the sweep of her long silver hair. Her mother was beautiful in all forms, fox or human, but Nanami loved her best in this half-state. One day, many seasons from now, Nanami would be able to maintain a half-state as well.

Outside a firecracker popped in the distance and Mai’s ear twitched away from Nanami.

“I will honor our people and bring no shame to our house,” Nanami said. “It is only a night festival and a very small one.”
“The world is so different,” Mai repeated.

Nanami rested a hand on her mother’s arm before moving to the woven mat that served as their main door. The hut, like so many things, was only temporary, easily broken down and moved from place to place as the Fox People traveled. They needed little and carried less.

A reed staff rested just outside with an empty paper lantern hanging from its end. Nanami plucked the hollow wood free of the ground, setting the lantern swinging, and headed for Kumayaga city.

#

The rural landscape gave way quickly to squat concrete homes and the belching metal cars that clogged every available roadway. Nanami wrinkled her nose at the noxious city smells and the way everything was crowded so close together. Closer in, other people traveled the night streets as well, a steady crowd that swelled as they neared the city center. A thousand tiny lights like captured stars burned in the streets, bobbing in the lanterns hung outside each business and home. Nanami was jostled by little old women in traditional dress with their hair stiff and hard as rock. Teenagers in jeans and t-shirts elbowed past men in business suits and foreign tourists with their wide, round eyes. Everywhere Nanami looked was an unending sea of people.

She clutched her reed staff more tightly and tucked her elbows close against her body, flitting between the people and searching their faces.

Another firecracker burst overhead and the woman beside Nanami leapt to the right, knocking into her. Nanami stumbled, falling backward. Strong hands caught her waist and held her up.

“Careful, it would be easy to be crushed in this crowd.”

Nanami twisted around, looking up at the man who had caught her. “Thank y-“ Her voice faltered as she met his eyes.

Not a man. He was young, a little older than her own years perhaps. And his eyes were the lightest brown she had ever seen. Wide, beautiful. Watching her.

“Hello,” the boy said with a bemused smile. He let go of her waist and she shoved the reed staff hard against the roadway, using it to hold her weight.

“I’m Tabi.” His eye brows quirked and he dipped his head to the side, waiting for her to return his greeting.

Nanami flushed. “Thank you for your assistance.”

The boy laughed. “I have rescued you from certain death, your formality seems out of place.”

The crowd surged, pressing them closer and Nanami gasped, reaching out to grip his arm. All around them the people jostled and moved. It was so loud with the pop and whirr of firecrackers, the roar of a thousand voices, the distant beeps from car horns on the outskirts of town.

She tipped her head back and stared at the boy, at his lips.

It was easy to reach up and kiss him. Her lips brushed his, drinking in his startled breath, his warmth, the tiny piece of his soul that passed from his mouth to hers.

An elbow jabbed into Nanami’s back and someone bumped into her side, breaking them apart. An old man, face wrinkled as a head of cabbage, grumbled under his breath and pushed past the two of them. More people followed and with each one she fell back another step. Farther from the boy.

“Wait,” he called standing on tiptoe, straining against the crowd to reach her. It was impossible and for each step he took she was pulled back three. “What’s your name?” he shouted.

“My name is Nanami,” she whispered, too low for him to hear. “I am the last of the Fox People.”
She touched a finger to her lips, trying to trace the kiss. Her first. In the lantern attached to her staff a tiny spark glinted, painting the rice paper with soft, gold light.

For just a moment, she regretted the small theft. She wanted to plunge back through these people and reach the boy. She wanted to kiss him again but without stealing even the tiniest part of his life, his years. She wanted to kiss him because he had beautiful eyes, the sky was lit with fireworks and she was a girl caught up in the magic of her first kiss.

Nanami’s throat was tight as she let the crowd carry her away.

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Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick

4 stars out of 5

Today is Leonard Peacock's 18th birthday. Today he will go to school, deliver 4 presents to the people he cares about most, and then murder the boy who's been torturing him for years and kill himself.

This book is filled with vivid images and great writing--words that hit like hammers and resonate long after you've moved to the next page. There are so many lines that I want to underline or highlight and read again because they have a kind of awful truth in them. But of course, I'd never deface a book, even for lines that I love.

I love that Quick isn't afraid to write about gritty things. So much of the story is told deep in Leonard's POV with long blocks of exposition. Normally that sort of book is slow and plodding, but this one drags you along and makes you want to keep reading. There's such amazing character voice throughout. I can still hear Leonard talking in my mind, the inflection of his words, his desperation, his hope, his insights and fears. All of them combine to make a unique story that is so hard to read and so beautiful at the same time. Because this book is filled with awful, terrible things. From page one Leonard tells us he's going to kill one of his classmates and then kill himself. But it's as much a book about hope as it is about darkness.

I particularly loved the "Letters From The Future" idea. What a fantastic way to get teens to focus on thinking about the good things that are waiting for them beyond high school.

Finally, there's a trend in YA books today to promote greater diversity in characters. It's a fantastic movement and an admirable goal. But the consequence of that trend is too many books with token LGBT or differently-abled secondary characters - ones that feel tacked onto the story just so the author can give a nod to having a diverse character. Quick didn't go that route. His characters FIT the story and their sexual orientation is part of their character and not just a convenient story point. This book is diversity done right.

Forgive Me, Leonard  Peacock will appeal to fans of It's Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini and Suicide Notes by Michael Thomas Ford.

Favorite line: "Because you start a revolution one decision at a time, with each breath you take."

Find it on Goodreads >>

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A Language Of Their Own

Over the years, our family has developed our own little collection of unique phrases and terms. Things that come up frequently and would completely baffle the rest of the world. It's part of what binds us together as a family.

Just as in real life, the characters in our stories have their own specific catch phrases, unique sayings and little speaking quirks that set them apart. Or at least they should. Shared language and slang is one tool authors have to create a unique identity for the cultures, families and individuals we bring to life in our books.

A perfect example of that mechanism in action can be seen in James Dashner's The Maze Runner. From the very first chapter we're thrown into a new world filled with language unique to its inhabitants. Words like Clunk, Gladers, Greenie, Griever, and Shuck-face. While Dashner definitely takes his made up language to the extreme, filling The Maze Runner's pages with terms such as the ones above, his writing illustrates the collective culture the Gladers have developed and their unique way of speaking really reinforces that.

It's easy to talk about shared language and distinctive phrases when you're thinking about fantasy, science fiction or dystopian stories. Tolkien's stories would be far less rich and enthralling without their beautiful language and terms unique to the characters like Hobbit and Shire. But every book, regardless of genre, has the opportunity to use language in a unique way to create character and culture.

In our family, from spring through fall, we evaluate each day's potential for awesomeness based on the number of wild rabbits we see in the neighborhood. A rabbit's foot is supposed to be lucky so I figure four feet still attached to a live rabbit must be really lucky. A one bunny day is pretty good. A four bunny day is amazing. Six bunny day? The sheer potential cannot be contained. Most evenings, over dinner, my husband, daughter and son all volunteer what sort of bunny day they had. My son, in particular, delights in shouting out "I had a three bunny day!"

Little details like our bunny rating system tell a lot about our family and our sense of silliness and whimsy. When you're writing your next story pause and think about the language, stories, terms and phrases that are unique to your characters and why. Don't forget what a powerful tool shared language can be in bringing your story to life for the reader and creating distinctive characters that will be remembered long after the last page is turned.

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A Language Of Their Own

Pitch Wars Love-fest

Ten reasons participating in the Pitch Wars contest has been a fantastic idea now matter how things turn out:

1. Meeting new critique partners I hope to swap many, many novels with in the future. *waves*

2. My query has been poked, prodded, polished and twisted on its head thanks to feedback from fellow writers entering the contest.

3. Making lots of awesome new writer friends on Twitter. Writer friends are the best because they're mostly nerds, they're funny and they totally get it when you need a writing pick-me-up or a kick in the ass.

4. First chapter revisions aren't as painful when you have lots of great feedback to incorporate from new writing buddies.

5. Kickboxing butterflies in my tummy. Yes, I KNOW I'm weird, but I actually like that feeling of half anticipation and half panic.

6. Lots of new books to be read thanks to stalking the mentor bios. I'm a book addict. I must feed my addiction. Pitch Wars is an enabler.

7. Distracting Twitter feed is a rolling stream of entertainment distracting me from what I should be doing during the day. That's a pro and a con.

8. Reading fellow contestant bios makes me appreciate how truly diverse and wonderful our writing community is.

9. Animated Gif overload. I never knew there were so many animated gifs in the world. I had a lot of fun picking gifs for my mentee bio.

10. Believing in myself and my writing enough to enter a contest. It's one thing to write a novel, it's another to send it out into the world.

Each and every person who enters Pitch Wars should pause and give themselves a mental hug - you've done something extraordinary. Yes, most of us won't make it into the mentee slots, but we've gained so much just by entering this contest. Thanks to feedback from fellow writers (and potentially the mentors) our writing can only improve.

Major thanks to Brenda Drake and all 75 of this year's mentors. Good luck to everyone entering and to the mentors as they make some really tough decisions!

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Pitch Wars Love-fest

Collaborative Writing As A Learning Device

My daughter has a lot of challenges in her life, both health-wise and school-related. Reading and writing are two of her major trouble areas. Cassidy is Dyslexic and also has something called Irlen Syndrome, which makes it very difficult for her to read. Spelling is a grand mystery that constantly eludes her and proper sentence structure and paragraph construction might as well be foreign languages.

Despite those challenges, Cassidy adores books and is a voracious reader and audio book listener. She's an imaginative writer who comes up with some really advanced ideas for a kid just entering fifth grade. My challenge has been helping her get her practical skills inline with her mental abilities.

In order to improve her writing skills, I insist that Cassidy writes a full page for me once a week. She has all week to do it, but inevitably waits until the last second to frantically put pencil to paper. That single page is an unbearable burden according to my daughter.

Today I proposed a new strategy for the both of us. A grand experiment. Starting tomorrow Cassidy and I are going to undertake a collaborative writing project. I began by writing a story title and a first paragraph. Tomorrow Cass will add her own paragraph. Then I'll add another paragraph and so on, trading back and forth, paragraph by paragraph, as our story grows.

Cassidy is excited at the prospect of sharing her writing time and breaking up the work. The idea of writing a story together really caught her interest. Hopefully this translates into more time together, more willingness to work on her writing skills and a touch of fun for both of us.

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Collaborative Writing As A Learning Device

Pitchwars Mentee Bio - AKA Nerds Of The World, Unite!

Hello there! I'm JC Davis, super nerd and YA writer.

Below are a few reasons I'd make a fabulous PitchWars mentee. Or crit partner. Or writing buddy on Twitter. Take your pick.

I am an unabashed book addict, every time I walk inside a library or bookstore I'm like

My book obsession probably requires a 12-step-program. I read roughly 100 books a year. While other people make sure their cars have first aid kits, jumper cables and such, my emergency kit consists of three of my favorite books just in case I get stuck on the side of the road. All that reading means I’ve got a good grasp on the YA market and what’s currently being published. I also like to think my reading obsession has improved my writing by osmosis.

Other people fangirl celebrities and actors. I fangirl authors. Seriously, at book signings I always look like this:

I own a hedgehog
Our hedgie’s name is Percy Jackson and he’s the perfect de-stressing mechanism whenever I’m facing a deadline, tough revisions or just need a chill out moment. As my mentor you’d benefit from all that hedgehog cuteness as well and I promise to faithfully tweet you hedgehog pictures whenever you need them. The life benefits of cute hedgehog pictures cannot be over stated.

I run a writing critique group with a nerdy name
I started an online critique group for YA & NA writers on Scribophile.com. I hand picked each of the six members, among them one of our PitchWars mentors, the fabulous Dannie Morin, so you can tell I have excellent taste! The group has been around for almost a year with the same members and no drama. The continued success of the group shows that I play well with others. Our name, The YANA project, has several meanings: a combo of the YA & NA genre acronyms, You Are Not Alone to reflect the supportive nature of our group, and it’s a Doctor Who reference. Because I embrace my nerd-hood in all things.

I make pretty, pretty things
In addition to writing and my raging book addiction, I’m also a crafter. I’ve made jewelry, statues, mobiles, art quilts. If you can think of it, chances are I’ve tried my hand at it. Most of my crafts are centered around books. I love trying new techniques.

I embrace my nerdiness in all things
I have a Hogwarts Alumni decal (that I designed and created) on the back of my car and a Harry Potter themed Christmas tree. One major benefit of my day job as a programmer is that I’m able to wear geeky t-shirts including Monty Python, Doctor Who, Percy Jackson, Hunger Games. But the real fun is at Halloween - I adore dressing up in costume and cosplay in general. Basically, I live and breath all things nerdy. Except video games. I completely suck at all video games, they're my Kryptonite.

My Writing
I've completed two novels. The first is locked in a drawer guarded by attack trolls until I can beat it into shape. The second novel is the one I'm submitting for PitchWars. I write on the train during my morning and evening commute and I will work my butt off on revisions.

In addition to my completed novels, I’ve also written six short stories over the years. All but one has been published, or will be published shortly, and the one remaining short story is presently in second round considerations at an eZine.

Curious about what I'm pitching? Here's a peek at my novel using the dreaded Twitter pitch format!
"Del hasn't believed in God since her little sis died. When "miracles" turn up around town, Del tries to prove Baby Cheesus & co are fake."

Thanks for reading my bio and good luck to everyone participating in PitchWars!

Now go forth and read more contestant bios at Dannie Morin's PitchWars blog hop.

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Pitchwars Mentee Bio - AKA Nerds Of The World, Unite!

A Wish For Nerdy Children

As a parent, I have all sorts of hopes and dreams for my kids. I want them to grow up healthy & happy, to go to college and find careers they love. Their jobs don't have to be prestigious as long as they really like what they're doing. And it doesn't involve a stripper pole or prison. Beyond that, I'm fairly open-minded. However, there's one point I'm adamant about - I must have nerdy kids.

Nerd and Geek are often used as insults by other kids, but as an adult, those terms can become badges of honor. I'm proud of my nerdiness. I embrace my geekhood. I want the same for my children.

To be fair, my children were basically doomed from the start. I've attended six Harry Potter conferences. I'm a YA writer. I make crafty things that involve glue guns, paint and occasional trips to the first aid cabinet. Most of my wardrobe consists of t-shirts relating to 80s cartoons, books, Doctor Who and Monty Python.

My husband is an avid comic book reader, participates a role playing dice game with friends every other Friday and has an entire room dedicated to Star Wars. Most of his wardrobe involves comic-book themed t-shirts. We are unabashed geeks that support each other and refuse to grow up. What chance did our kids have?

There are signs that our wish for nerdy children may pay off. My 10-year-old daughter reads comic books just like her dad, is currently watching season 2 of Doctor Who and has a book obsession to rival my own. My 3-year-old son will take story time over most other activities any day and has more picture books than legos. If you have a little boy, you know they own a LOT of legos. I am cautiously hopeful that my little nerds will grow up proud of their various interests and will remain avid geeks. If not, I may have to disinherit them.

Let other parents dream of future doctors and lawyers, of prom queens and football captains. I'll be happy with two goofy book-loving, comic-book-reading, video-game-playing cultural misfits.

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A Wish For Nerdy Children

Liar & Spy by Rebecca Stead

4 stars out of 5

When Georges' family moves to a new apartment in Brooklyn he sees an intriguing note tacked in the basement - "Spy Meeting Today." Enter Safer, a home-schooled, paranoid, spy-busting boy around Georges' age and Safer's little sister Candy. Plagued by troubles at school and home, Georges eagerly dives into Safer's world of spy hunting, on the lookout for the mysterious Mr. X - a sinister figure always dressed in black who takes a suspicious number of suitcases into and out of his apartment. But while life is just getting interesting it's getting more complicated too. Georges dad lost his job, hence their move, his mom is never home because she has to work extra hours at the hospital, and thanks to the Science Unit of Destiny at school Georges may end up labeled a loser and geek for the rest of his life if things don't change soon.

I really loved Stead's first novel, When You Reach Me, and was looking forward to reading her newest work. Stead has a flair for characterization I can't help but admire. It's easy to picture the cast of characters that fill this book and each is distinct and memorable. She's also a genius at description, bringing a scene to life with vivid, unique detail. I appreciate the language and turns of phrase in Liar & Spy more than anything. The plot, however, was a bit slow for my tastes. I was fully prepared to give this novel a 3 star rating as I enjoyed it but didn't fall in love with it overall. The last few chapters bumped that rating up to a 4 however thanks to an unexpected twist. Stead molded it so seamlessly into the novel that I felt like banging my head against a wall at the reveal and screaming "Of course! How did I miss that?" Always a good thing.

This is a fun, quick read and utterly perfect for middle grade readers who'll be able to relate to Georges struggles. I think it'll have equal appeal with girls and boys. As an adult reader I enjoyed the characterization but other than that didn't find any deep meaning or greater appeal for me in the book. I'm glad I read it, still a fan of Stead's work, but I enjoyed When You Reach Me more.

This book will appeal to fans of the Origami Yoda series by Tom Angleberger and The Schwa Was Here by Neal Shusterman. This is a middle grade reader and you'll find it shelved with the middle grade and YA books.

Find it on Goodreads >>

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