Book Sites:
Bookdivas: A fantastic site where you can chat with other readers. Bookdivas.com
Ya-Book Swap: A fantastic swapping book site for reviewers.
Teen Reads: A cool site to be updated on different book goings. Teenreads.com
Good Reads: Make your own bookshelf on this fun site.

Authors:

Wendy Toliver is the author of Miss Match which comes out very soon on the 10th of February. She has also written The Secret Life of a Teenage Siren, both of which are young adult romantic comedies. She lives in Eden, Utah with her husband, three little boys, two dogs, cat, crab and occasional mole. And now some interview questions.
Before she turns 16, Sasha Finnegan is moving her dad's SUV down the driveway so she can shoot some hoops. She accidentally runs into a neighbor's car. There's not even a scratch on her dad's truck, but the neighbor's car will need repairs. She works out an agreement with the neighbor to keep the incident under wraps (fearing that if she admitted getting into a wreck, her parents wouldn't let her get her license) and promises to pay for the repairs. But what kind of job can a 15 year-old get to make that kind of money? She decides to start a business using her God-given talent and favorite hobby, matchmaking, to fix high schoolers up with their crushes. However, when an adorable new guy hires Sasha to get him a date with her older, beautiful, popular sister, everything isn't so black-and-white.
What Wendy says:
I've always enjoyed fixing people up, from friends to family members to people I barely met. So I figured other people might enjoy reading a book about a teenager who decides to start a matchmaking business.
I love that I can do what I love (write) while being a stay-at-home mom for my three little boys.

Blog Tips:

· Subscribe to blogs you like. Everyone wants subscribers, so don’t expect people to subscribe if you won’t.
· Post often. I will NEVER subscribe to a blog that only gets posted on every now and then. I don’t care how could you are. I want to be able to read often.

Past Week:

· Teen Troves reviewed Fade, the sequel to Lisa McMann's Wake
"I loved Wake and Fade is an excellent continuation of Janie (and Cabe's) story. It's a fast read and the suspense really draws readers in."
· The Story Siren posted another of her wonderful Books to Pine For features, this one being number twelve. Check it--and all eleven before it--out!
· Medeia from Maelstrom reviewed Carrie Jones's Need "It was pretty much Twilight, but with pixies."
· Jocelyn of Teen Book Review wrote about Sharon Creech's Bloomability, an old favorite that she still finds amazing "...when I was ten, it was enjoyable and inspiring and made me want to see the world. Now, it's still those things but it's also brilliant and meaningful and beautiful in ways I couldn't recognize then."

Newsletter 2 is emailed out Friday! If you wish to receive it VIA email please email me at: princessashley9@gmail.com

Newsletter 1- part 3

Author Visits

Although posted before this was sent, Ashley had an author visit.
On 2/6 http://myfavoriteauthor.blogspot.com/ had author/agent Lucienne Diver about her book, VAMPED that will be released in May 2009.
Blogger: Adele of Persnickety Snark Site: http://persnicketysnark.blogspot.comAuthor: Simmone Howell (Everything Beautiful and Notes from the Teenage Underground) Week long visit
"11th" Blogger: Stephanie of Juiciliciousss Reviews Site: juiciliciousssreviews.blogspot.com Author: Mary Hogan
"between Feb. 8 – 13" Blogger: Krista of Tower of Books Site: towerofbooks.wordpress.com Author: Lisa Schroeder (I Heart You, You Haunt Me, Far From You)
Lexi of anotherpageisused.blogspot.com has Lisa, author of Wake.

Reviews:

Booksaremylove.blogspot.com will have a review for A Girl like Me.
Booksaremylove.blogspot.com will post a review of a Poetry Book.
Booksaremylove.blogspot.com will have a review of Confessions of a Shopaholic.
http://myfavoriteauthor.blogspot.com/ has a review of GLASS HOUSES by Rachel Caine

The UK Book:

Solace of the Road by Siobhan Dowd.
Pub. date: 5th Feb
Format: Hardcover
On Amazon UK: here.
Memories of Mum are the only thing that make Holly Hogan happy. She hates her foster family with their too-nice ways and their false sympathy. And she hates her life, her stupid school and the way everyone is always on at her. Then she finds the wig, and everything changes. Wearing the long, flowing blonde locks she feels transformed. She's not Holly any more, she's Solace: the girl with the slinkster walk and the super-sharp talk. She's older, more confident - the kind of girl who can walk right out of her humdrum life, hitch to Ireland and find her mum. The kind of girl who can face the world head on. So begins a bittersweet, and sometimes hilarious journey as Solace swaggers and Holly tiptoes across England and through memory, discovering her true self, and unlocking the secrets of her past. "Solace of the Road" is a wonderful novel from one of the UK's most talented new writers for teenagers. Holly's story will leave a lasting impression on all who travel with her.
This is the fourth book from UK author Siobhan Dowd, who sadly passed away in 2007. It was left written but un-published, and has garnered excellent press reviews in the UK so far. The cover was enough to peak my interest, and I look forward to reading the last remaining work of a much respected author

The read Carpet:

In the past month, several bloggers have been grappling with audio recording programs to create a segment for The Read Carpet Podcast. The intent was to provide a bi-weekly podcast that encompasses everything YA related from a range of people really passionate about the genre. Eventually we would like to host round table discussions, contests and author interviews.
It's a collaborative project where contributors speak about a certain area of the YA world. We are building a rotating roster of contributors that will have a monthly segment on anything from debut authors, well known texts, the relationship between music and YA, Australian authors and comics.
We are really excited about the possibilities for this podcast. Individuals already involved were people that I knew of from my newbie YA blogging experience. So if you would like to be involved, please contact me asap.
Episodes are available at http://thereadcarpet.podbean.com and you can reach Adele at Persnickety Snark or thereadpodcast@gmail.com
On the 30th of January, The Read Podcast was ready to share.

Blogger Spotlights:

· Katie will be spotlighted at booksaremylove.blogspot.com
· Amanda will be spotlighted at booksaremylove.blogspot.com
Right here in the newsletter we have an amazing Blogger! Everyone who is anyone has visited the Story Siren’s Blog! Stephanie W. interviewed her. Here is what she has to say:
I sort of fell into the whole reviewing thing. I saw some book blogs online (The Page Flipper and Teen Book Review) and I thought.... "hmmm I should/could do that." Like most reviewers, I love to read, obviously. I was always asked "what are you reading now," "what do you think about (insert title here)," "have you read (insert title here)" so I just decided to put my thoughts down, and so my blog was born.
Now when I started reviewing, I had no idea there was something called an ARC, I would have never thought to email an author, and the whole free books thing, who knew?! I started reviewing books I had bought and books I checked out at the library and my blog just sort of grew from there. I never expected to have people besides my friends and family visit. I'm actually a little intimidated about my friends and family knowing about it, so only a few do, I feel more comfortable with people I don't know!!
I just LOVE YA! I think maybe it might have something to do with the fact that there really wasn't many YA novels like there are now, when I was a teen. By the time I was the age to read YA, I was reading adult novels. To further explain my love of YA you can check out this post: http://www.thestorysiren.com/2009/01/truth-about-me-why-i-read-ya.html
My favorite thing about blogging is meeting authors and other book lovers! It fun to find people as enthusiastic as you are about books. I know I drive my family crazy talking about them all the time, they think I'm nuts at this point. And with my blog I've met so many people I know I wouldn't have otherwise, from all over the world. It is such a phenomenal thing!
Really traffic is all about networking and content. When I first started I made a MySpace page for my site. There are a lot of authors you can network with and a lot of readers! I also was active on bookish sites like RandomBuzzers forums, BookDivas forums, it's also a good idea to visit other bloggers and leave relevant comments on their posts. I almost always {visit?} a commenter's site. Try to update regularly too, obviously people aren't going to keep coming back if you haven't updated your content in a month.
I have a lot of blogging tips. Not that I'm an expert but I've picked up a few things along the way. Here is a quote from a guest post I did about tips for book bloggers:
An important aspect is the design of your site. Pick a color scheme that fits your voice! Make sure that your color scheme is easy to read and easy on the eyes. Don't make your font to small either. People won't bother reading your reviews if they can't see them! Try to make a header that portrays your site. It doesn't have to be fancy.
Music or not to music. I know there are a lot of bloggers out there that have music on their site and if you want it I'm all for it. I know that personally I get distracted by music when I try to read so I end up finding the music player right away and turning it off. So, maybe if you have a music player, make it an option to turn it on, instead of turning it off.
Don't Make commenting hard on your readers. There isn't anything more frustrating than having to jump through hoops when you want to leave a comment. I have a lot of comments and I've never had excessive trouble with spammers. Maybe once or twice every 8 months
or so. So, please give us a break and turn that verification crap off!
Get ideas from your neighbors. I know that I was one of the first if not the first blogger to have the "What I'm Reading Now" element with a picture of the book I'm currently reading, and also the "In My Reading Pile" slideshow. And personally I think it's cool that other bloggers started doing it! When I started having my theme element icons in my reviews, I had another fellow blogger ask me if she could use the idea as well, needless to say I was flattered that she liked the idea that much. So, why not ask your blogger neighbor if you can use their cool idea, what have you got to lose!
Try to make your blog stand out! Offer something that no one else has. My stand out element is my weekly Author Tales. Yes, it is a lot of working sometimes tracking down authors, asking if they would be willing and then of course actually getting the author post, but it is also a very critical component to my site!
Having a contest is always a sure way to draw visitors. Most of the time I supply the prizes in my contest, but every once in a while if you are lucky you can get an author to donate a book for a prize!
On writing reviews: There isn't a wrong or right way to write a review. You can try to be professional if you want or you can be more laid back. You just need to find the style that is right for you and not necessarily worry about what other people think. Write something that you would want to read, most of the time that's what your readers would want to read too. You don't have to write an essay to get your point across either, unless of course it takes you an adequate length to get your point across. Write the length that you are comfortable writing. Maybe you'll start out writing short reviews and then once you are more comfortable with your writing, your reviews can grow.
I'm going to stop there before I go overboard. Thanks for having me!
I’d really like to thank the Story Siren for taking the time to be interviewed.

Newsletter 1: Part 2

New Bloggers:

These bloggers either have few followers, few posts or are actually new in time period:

Erica’s Bookshelf: Erica is Ashley’s little sister. Her blog tends to lean more toward younger fiction. Visit her here: http://ericasbookshelf.blogspot.com/

Lost in Lit: She has only posted once so far so I can’t tell you her writing style at the moment. Visit her blog: http://lostinlit.blogspot.com/

Korianne Speaks: Her blog is sort of new but I wanted to get it out more because it’s great! http://koriannespeaks.blogspot.com/

Cool Feature:

I’m sure you’ve seen this great new feature around the blogs. Most people call it “In My Mail Box” although I call it “Weekly Mail Call”. I have to say I have been enjoying it. I get great ideas based on what people have been receiving. Needless to say, My Amazon list is long.

Contests:

Visit The Story Siren at this link to find out about an incredible deal. A free E-Book and a contest. Wow! http://www.thestorysiren.com/2009/01/free-e-book-rangers-apprentice-ruins-of.html

Sleepless author, Terri Clark is having a First in the Series Contest. Up for grabs are FOUR paranormal novels. Contest ends Feb. 13. http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=64985862&blogID=467109044

This week, Lauren at Shooting Stars Mag interviewed the band Zomo. Along with the interview are TWO Zomo cd's up for grabs. There's nothing better than a new sound/beat to groove to. Contest ends Feb. 7 and it's totally INTERNATIONAL http://shootingstarsmag.blogspot.com/2009/01/zomo-interview-contest.html

Author Sarah MacLean interviewed Stacey Jay in honor of her latest release, You Are So Undead To Me. Along with some crazy questions, and even crazier answers, there's an YASUTMou T-Shirt up for grabs.
http://www.macleanspace.com/2009/01/meet-stacey-jay-and-win-cool-stuff.html

Amanda over at Review A Book is giving away a copy of Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates. And this is a special edition copy with the film cover art. http://reviewabook123.blogspot.com/2009/01/new-contest.html

Mrs. Magoo Reads is also giving away a copy of Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates. The contest is set to end on Feb. 20, but it might change. Better get those entries in ASAP just in case. http://www.mrsmagooreads.com/2009/01/contest-win-copy-of-revolutionary-road.html

Em over at Em's Boolshelf is having her Senstaional Seven Book Contest. One grand prize winner will revcieve SEVEN books while the runner up gets THREE. A winner will be selected on Feb. 12. http://emsbookshelf.blogspot.com/2009/01/winter-book-give-away-contest-2009.html

Lauren over at Shooting Stars Mag is hosting a Harry Potter Week including a "mini contest of sorts." So head on over there through out the week to see what you can find. http://shootingstarsmag.blogspot.com/2009/01/harry-potter-week-catherine-ryan-hyde.html

Yan over at Books By Their Cover has been having a PARTY in honor of Chinese New Year. Everyday there's been a guest author along with a contest, most of them being INTERNATIONAL! The end dates range from Feb. 7 to Feb. 30. http://booksbytheircover.blogspot.com/

At lindagerber.blogspot.com starting Monday, February 9 thru Valentine's Day is LOVE FEST week. YA romance authors Tina Ferraro (THE ABCs of KISSING BOYS), Simone Elkeles (PERFECT CHEMISTRY), Melissa Walker (LOVESTRUCK SUMMER), Wendy Toliver (MISS MATCH), Sasha Watson (VIDALIA IN PARIS) and myself (DEATH BY DENIM) will be fielding questions on Romance and Relationships and giving away signed books and other goodies.
Some goodies (vampire books) will be given away (every week) at: http://myfavoriteauthor.blogspot.com/

Harmony over at Harmony Book Reviews has a HUGE list. All ending February 7.
--Models Don't Eat Chocolate Chip Cookies by Erin Dionne.
--Eon: Dragoneye Reborn by Alison Goodman
--Because I Am Furniture by Thalia Chaltas and a Razorbill T-Shirt
--Willow by Julia Hoban http://harmonybookreviews.wordpress.com/2009/01/31/final-giveaway-willow-by-julia-hoban/

Steph over at Steph Su Reads is giving away a February release of YOUR CHOICE, as long as you're the winner.ends February 12. http://stephsureads.blogspot.com/2009/02/my-first-ever-contest-giveaway-love-for.html

Taylor over at For The Love of Books is giving away Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson ends on February 15. http://fortheloveofbooksblog.blogspot.com/2009/01/my-very-first-contest.html

Laina over at Laina Has Too Much Spare Time is giving away a SIGNED copy of Across The Pong by Storyheart ends February 15. http://lainahastoomuchsparetime.blogspot.com/2009/02/my-first-contest.html

Stephanie from Juiciliciousss Reviews is giving away a copy of The House on Tradd Street by Karen Whiteends February 28. http://juiciliciousssreviews.blogspot.com/2009/01/januaryfebruary-giveaway.html IT'S INTERNATIONAL.

Sophie over at Mrs. Magoo Reads is giving away FOUR Fabulous Novels ends February 28. http://www.mrsmagooreads.com/2009/02/contest-win-four-fabulous-novels.html