An excerpt from my email:
I started reading your book late Monday night (or, rather, early Tuesday morning!) By the end of the first chapter I was completely hooked, and it almost cost me a grade. I am the world's biggest procrastinator, and so it should come as no surprise that I had a paper due by 11:59 Tuesday evening that I had yet to start writing. It should have been easy. I should have woken up early that morning and written my 6-10 pages before evening. Instead, I woke up and stared at the cursor blinking on my pristine word document, my mind contemplating not the USA PATRIOT Act and its affect on libraries, but Edward Cullen. Noon came, I'd yet to write a single word (besides the title page, of course) and decided PBJ was the order of the day. Well, everyone knows you can't type and eat a sandwich at the same time so I picked up Twilight. BIG MISTAKE! I ended up being so drawn into the book that every hour or so when I'd try to put it down and write my blasted paper, I'd end up back with the book five minutes later. I ended up skimming through the entire book that day because I simply had to know what happened and didn't, for the sake of my paper, have time to read it all the way through. At six o'clock I managed to finish skimming, and get down to work, turning in eight pages and a gazillion citations by 11:45 that night. Just made it, and since I have serious doubts that my professor actually reads any of our papers, I'm not all that worried about my grade.And she replied! First I got a form email, but a week later I got a second email, actually written in response to my story. It was thrilling. It still is, even though I've since left Twilight behind.
So, yes. I frequently visit author sites, either to gather information before a book club or to learn more after discovering a book or series I love. My favorite author websites are the ones that also have blogs written by the authors. I find blogs fascinating because they give a peak into what another person's life is like. It's a glimpse of secret thoughts, realizations, upcoming news, and proof that even the most famous people can have humdrum days.
One of my favorite author websites and blogs is that of Meg Cabot. Her blog is hilarious! I've been reading her blog for a few years now, and I'm constantly amused at what she writes about. I have even emailed her a time or two when she has done giveaways of advanced reader copies of her books. (And I've received the books, too!)
For this post, I decided to look up Carrie Ryan, the author of the YA books The Forest of Hands & Teeth and it's companion novel, The Dead-Tossed Waves. Guys, I LOVE these books. They are beautiful, haunting, memorable, angsty, action-packed, and completely original. They made me cry. Imagine how ecstatic I was when I saw on her blog that the third book is coming out next spring and that three short stories set in that universe are coming out at various times this year. This is FANTASTIC news! And I never would have known those short stories existed had I not read Carrie Ryan's blog.
2) Do I think an American Idol-esque contest for book publication is a worthwhile idea? No. In fact, I think it's pretty dumb. In my opinion, the general public does not always get things right. I mean, Chris Daughtry came in 6th place on AI and now practically every song on his albums plays on the radio. Jennifer Hudson, who didn't make it to the end of AI won an Oscar for a role in a movie-musical. And Taylor Hicks, who won the fifth season of AI has completely faded into obscurity. See how easily the American public can get things wrong?
What I would like to know is, how many people actually know this contest exists? How many votes do they get each week? It's hardly a popularity contest if no one knows about it.
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