Thanks Teri!

We've really enjoyed having her this week, but it's time for us to say goodbye to the wonderful Teri Brown! Be sure to check out her debut book Read My Lips!

Day 5: Real World Launch!

Teri Brown tells us all about her real world launch party (that means real world cake!! Yum!) for Read My Lips at the Washington School for the Deaf:

It’s hard to even express how awesome my launch party was, but because this is a blog I’m going to try. And plus, that’s what writers do— we attempt to describe the indescribable.

I exchanged a volley of emails with an English teacher at the Washington School for the Deaf over the last five or six months. Because my main character is a deaf teen, I wanted to honor the deaf community and have my launch party with them. Since this was the only real world launch party I was going to have, I went all out. I picked up a cake from the fabulous Beaverton Bakery (It had my cover on it!), and bought tons of Starbucks cards and Barnes and Noble cards to give away. I also raffled off my five books.

Teri and Shauna!

After my best, most awesome friend in the world, Ann, set up the table, (it was gorgeous!) and teacher, Shauna Bilyeu introduced me, I was live in front of a group of about 50 deaf teens.

And they rocked.

The Interpreters!

The teachers had set up a computer and projected my book trailer up onto a big screen. I then read a passage of the book, talked about my own high school years and took questions. And did they have some questions! Of course, it always helps to sweeten the deal by promising to chuck chocolate lips at those who asked one. They got a huge laugh at my non-existent throwing arm. I think I actually bounced one off one kid’s chest. The students were so interested in the flying chocolate and asking questions, the teacher had to step in and tell us we only had time for one more. After the raffle, it was time for CAKE!

Teri's name in sign language!

The students couldn’t believe I had thrown the entire party for them. Shauna came up and introduced me to a special girl, the amazing Olivia, who read my book in less than a day and adored it. I had one book left to my name and I gave it to her. Another young man came up and told me he was too embarrassed to admit in front of his friends that he was working on a book. He wanted to know what I did when I had writer’s block. We spoke for several minutes about writing and I told him to get in touch with me via email and I could send him the names of several books that could help. Another girl, Cassandra, came up and, through the Interpreter, told me that only a deaf person can give a hearing person a sign name. She then gave me mine: the t sign combined a sign that meant flicking through the pages of a book. TeriAuthor.

Teri and Cassandra!

The teachers were wonderful, the interpreters were fabulous and there aren’t enough adjectives in the world to tell how welcoming and fantastic those teens were. You know, I’ll probably do future presentations in schools, but I will never forget the time I spent with those kids.

Day 4: Read My Lips Character Interview

Today we’re talking to Patrice, one of the leaders of an exclusive secret high school sorority and Serena, skate chick extraordinaire and Patrice’s nemesis.

Patrice: Oh, she’s not my nemesis, now. We’re friends. Right, Serena?

Serena: Sure, Patrice. Whatever you say.

Patrice: (Flipping her blond hair back.) Of course, we are. Honestly, I get along with most everyone. If I want to.

Serena: (Snort)

Patrice: What? I do!

2k8: Excuse me? Can we get started on the interview now?

Patrice: Go for it, I’m not stopping you.

2k8: Um, thanks? Serena, what’s it like starting a new school in the middle of high school?

Serena: I guess pretty much the same as is it for everyone. I think being deaf just made it that much harder, cause you know, people are weird.

Patrice: No, we liked you right off.

Serena: (rolling eyes) No. Rachel liked me right off. You didn’t even look at me until you found out how well I can read lips.

Patrice: That is so not true! But you have to admit that is an extraordinary talent.

Serena: It is so true! The minute you found out you had me digging up all the school gossip!

Patrice: (Laughing) Well, it was a lot of fun!

2k8: (Jumping in) Patrice, what else did you like about Serena besides her talent for reading lips?

Patrice: Serena is a G. Other than her questionable taste in guys…

Serena: (Interrupting) Leave Miller out of this!

Patrice: … she’s got a lot of guts. She even took me on and that’s no easy task, trust me.

2k8: So what’s the sorority going to look like next year?

Patrice: Oh, it'll be better than ever! I’m going to…

Serena: Shut up Patrice! Let people read the book!

Patrice: Don’t tell me to shut up!

2k8: And I think that concludes this interview…

Serena: Well, don’t say things you’re not supposed to and I won’t!

Patrice: I never say things I’m not supposed to!

Serena: (Snort)

Day 3: Teri Brown debut author or spunky skater chick?

Tell us Teri--just how much do you have in common with your spunky main character?

In spite of the fact that my main character Serena is deaf and I’m not, I actually have a lot in common with her.

In Read My Lips, Serena moves to a new town and has to try to find a place within the social structure of her new school. While she wasn’t in the mainstream of her old school in the city, she did find a group of skate guys who pretty much let her be herself. There are no skate guys in the new school. In fact it’s pretty much all preps, which makes fitting in that much tougher for her.

I moved a lot when I was a child and trying to start over in a new school is always tough, no matter what age you are. If you feel like fitting in isn’t going to happen, the next best thing is to fly under the radar. And like Serena, I always struggled with being my own, weird, quirky and rebellious self and changing my behavior to fit in.

What was really tough was that I always had hippie type leanings and my high school was full of cowboys. That made it hard for me to fit in. And like my Main character, I always got along with guys way better than girls!

Day 2: The Inside Scoop on Teri Brown

As promised, today we're getting down with Teri Brown, asking her lots of questions about her life as a writer and her new book Read My Lips! Check it out:

So, where do you do most of your writing? What's it look like? (maybe
include a picture if you can get it!)

I actually work in my dining room, only it’s no longer a dining room. We took out the kitchen table and I bought a corner desk. I have all of my stuff (fax, computer, printer, filing cabinet, supplies, etc.) in one area, which I never had before. And I also have this… the best Christmas present I have ever received.

Oooh, a framed cover flat of Read My Lips! Very nice! Can you tell us how the book came about? How did you begin writing it?

My deaf niece told me about an experience she had with someone who tried to speak to her in sign language even though my niece doesn’t sign. I took that experience and fictionalized it. That turned out to be the first scene in the book.

It's amazing the things that spark our imagination. Did anything surprise you or catch you off guard when you were writing your book?

The first YA I wrote (which wasn’t published) was written pretty much straight through. Maybe it was because I was less experienced as a writer, but the process seemed pretty straight forward. When I started on LIPS I was amazed at how much the characters changed and grew as the story progressed. The plot kept changing too, and I had to go back and rewrite a gazillion times. That totally took me by surprise. Now I know that every book is different!

That's so true! Speaking of other books-imagine you have an offer from your dream press to publish your dream book, no matter how insane or unmarketable it might be (though of course it might *not* be). What story do you want to write next/someday and why?

I actually have two dream stories. One is the one I am working on, a paranormal set in Las Vegas. The characters are so alive in this one, I can’t seem to stop thinking about them. This is pretty unusual because I never thought I would write a paranormal. Even though this is a pretty light paranormal, it still has that element.

The other dream book is partly autobiographical which is probably why I keep putting it off. It’s a coming of age story set in Alfalfa, Oregon where I was raised. It’s going to be called Surviving Alfalfa. Great name, huh? I’m pretty much afraid of getting sued, though!

Clearly Teri's survived Alfalfa and then some! Come back tomorrow to find out just how similar Teri and her skater chick main character Serena really are!

Introducing the Amazing Teri Brown!

Summer is here and school may be out, but the Class of 2K8 is still in full swing with lots of amazing releases! Kicking off our summer of fun, we're pleased to present you with Teri Brown and Read My Lips!

Serena just wants to fly under the radar at her new school. But Serena is deaf, and she can read lips really well—even across the busy cafeteria. So when the popular girls discover her talent, there’s no turning back.

From skater chick to cookie-cutter prep, Serena’s identity has done a 180…almost. She still wants to date Miller, the school rebel, and she’s not ready to trade her hoodies for pink tees just yet. But she is rising through the ranks in the school’s most exclusive clique.

With each new secret she uncovers, Serena feels pressure to find out more. Reading lips has always been her greatest talent, but now Serena just feels like a gigantic snoop….

No secret here, Teri Brown was born to write (it was that or become a fry cook):

Teri Brown turned to writing in a desperate attempt to keep from having to get a paying job at her local McDonalds. Fortunately, she's been successful, and is not only a contributing editor for iParenting Media, but also the author of two nonfiction books. Her magazine credits include Writer’s Digest, Women’s Health and Fitness, Dog Fancy, and Oregon Coast Magazine, among others. Teri lives with her husband and children in a dilapidated 1969 ranch style house in Portland, Oregon.

On why she wrote Read My Lips:

"Years ago, my niece was diagnosed as being profoundly deaf. Once the family had a chance to catch its collective breath, my mother in law went on a crusade that lasted until she passed away four years ago. Not only did she fight for her grandchild’s rights, but she went out on a limb to make things better for all deaf children here in Oregon. She was instrumental in getting the Oregon Newborn hearing screening law passed. She used me as a sounding board quite often and I even drove her to the capital a couple of times. The seed was probably planted during that time and grew to fruition while I worked on other things. "

Come back tomorrow when we'll be getting' down with Teri Brown. Erm...or should we just say interviewing her?

Hurry Up & Wait!

Ask any writer what the worst thing about this industry is and you'll most likely hear...waiting. It seems like an endless loop of hurry-up-and-wait. We hurry to turn things in and then we wait and wait and waaaait some more. Just ask Teri Brown, author of Read My Lips.

My first sale took forever, but I’ll make the first sale story much, much shorter. My first book didn’t sell, much to my agent’s disappointment, (and mine!) but we had high hopes for the second one. In September of 06, we sent it out to a ton of editors. The first rejections were fairly quick, like in the first couple of weeks. Then the waiting began. Over the next eight months, we waited, following up from time to time. A rejection would trickle in here and there until our large list of editors had dwindled. I was working on my next book, but losing heart. Then we got news. A new editor at Simon Pulse, who had recently taken over for the editor we had submitted to back in September, happened to come across my manuscript. She was conversing with my agent on a different book and asked if mine were still available because she was really “enjoying the read.”

Do you want to know how many times I read that sentence? I lost track after like, 100. My agent sent her a quick note telling her it was still available. A few days later the editor wrote back saying she loved it and hoped to have an offer by the next week. It was positive enough that I began doing the happy dance, though part of me couldn’t believe it until the actual offer came in. And there it was. Read My Lips had sold. All it took was eight months, an editor leaving, and a new editor discovering the manuscript. So one thing I’ve learned in this business… never give up!

No doubt about it, sticktoitveness is key! Tomorrow Terri Clark will share her story of dogged determination.

Totally Important Post!

TWO of our 2k8 books have been chosen for the Association of Booksellers for Children's (ABC) New Voices project: The Opposite of Invisible by Liz Gallagher and Magic Thief by Sarah Prineas. To give you an idea of how amazing this news is, only FOURTEEN books are chosen each year! Woot! Woot!

AND Magic Thief is a Top Ten Book Sense Pick for spring/summer 2008!

A BIG FAT THANK YOU and shout out to And Another Book Read for the fabulous review you gave Read My Lips by Teri Brown.

ANOTHER big fat thank you and shout out to Literate Lives for a wonderfully wonderful review of The Gollywhopper Games by Jody Feldman.

AND guess who loves Bewitching Season by Marissa Doyle? The Looking Glass Review!

With all this great 2k8 news, all of Broadway might be cheering!

Then again, it might just be us.

We're a pretty noisy class.

And in class notes....

Now ... for some Totally Important Posts from the Class of 2k8:

Jody Feldman's The Gollywhopper Games has already gone into its second printing!(Not that we're surprised!)

Kristin O'Donnell Tubb got her first review for Autumn Winifred Oliver Does Things Different from Susan Sales Harkins at BookPleasures.com. And it's fantastic!

Teri Brown, author of Read My Lips, got a great review from Little Willow!

Congratulations Classmates!