As the author of five YA novels, I’m curious how many people out there actually read. According to a 2015 Pew Research Center survey, 72% of American adults read a book last year. That’s a huge decline from a similar study implemented in 1978 when 9 out of 10 American adults claimed to have read…
Tyler Dunsmore, a thirteen-year old boy from Providence, Rhode Island is best friends with Dirk, a powerful wizard from a distant star. Tyler first met Dirk in Brian Wu and Scott Spotson’s first My Wizard Buddy novel. In Target: Earth, number three in the My Wizard Buddy Series, Tyler is kidnapped by the Genzi, evil…
We all know Lois Lane as a feisty star reporter for the Daily Planet and Superman’s girlfriend. But what was she like as a teenager? Gwenda Bond asked that question and created the Lois Lane series that begins with Fallout. Lois Lane is 16 years old and new to East Metropolis High School. She has promised…
According to Anita Valle in the second book of the Dark Fairy Tale Queen Series, Sneaky Snow White, Snow White was no angel. Though we’d like to think of her as an innocent young woman fleeing for a life threatened by an evil queen, Valle goes beyond the veil of legend and reveals a darker…
Maya Smock, an aspiring author, grew up in an orphanage and foster homes. Used and abused, she entered adulthood early taking a job at a Las Vegas bookstore by day and writing her novel, “The Master Race,” at night. When Maya’s book was finished she met a literary agent at a Las Vegas convention….
Life II Have a few regrets? Wish you could make some changes in your life? Think back to one event in your timeline you remember with clarity. Now, step back into yourself during that specific event and live your life again with all of your present day knowledge. That is the premise of Scott Spotson’s…
Andrea, a high school student, and her middle school brother, Bobby, were pried from comfy Florida living and tearfully moved to Stevensville, Idaho, a small town country community. Mom Shelly Taylor was a successful associate at a Tampa advertising agency, so she didn’t like the move either. Dad Steve Taylor had a job offer in…
A cryptid is a parahuman with a few animal-like traits. Shay, a high school senior is oblivious to the fact that she is one. Yes, she can see and communicate with ghosts and she has jet-black hair as deep and rich as a black cat. But, does that make her one? Hugh, a college freshman,…
Summer 2016 is right around the corner. What better way to enjoy a day at the beach than to bring a good book to soak up the sun? Here are 12 YA books on the SCBWI “Summer Reading List” by California writers. With each book you’ll find its category, author, brief description, and link to…
Jeanne Bannon is the author of The Beautiful Monster Series. She says, “I’ve always loved to read about vampires, especially the Vampire Lestat books by Anne Rice. Another of my favorites is Salem’s Lot by Stephen King. My aim for Beautiful Monster was to remain true to the folklore and genre. I didn’t want to…