Thursday, April 29, 2010

Author Eating Frenzy

I'm in New York right now, getting ready for the Ultimate Author Smackdown, er, Showdown. Yep. It's gonna be me against the guys. But more on that later. Photobucket First, this . . . Chicago was a blast! I'll be posting photos of the famous authors I met/stalked on the convention floor, and of the presentations. But on this blog I wanted to talk about something very important to authors. Food!!! Met up with my good friend Jordan Sonnenblick and we stuffed our faces and discussed world politics, geometry and how to fix the economy --or maybe we talked books . . . Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket On another night there was the most fantastic Scholastic Family Dinner. Author-type attendees included Ann M. Martin (did you know there's a new Babysitters Club series - a prequel!), Deborah Wiles (we were both Thurber House Writers-in-Residence), Barbara Kerley and this mystery person . . . Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket (Kat Falls was there, too. But she ran too fast for me to get her photo.) Oh! Oh! Here's they mystery author who was trying to hide in the shadows. It's Blue Balliet!!! Photobucket (Peeps loves her and immediately began telling her some secrets.) The totally scrumptious dinner was held at the Signature Room on the 95th Floor . . . Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket And check out this expertly photographed, National-Geographic-quality, time lapse photography of the view . . . Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket And if that view wasn't fab enough, look what was brought in as eye-candy. Yes! It's the dudes from Scholastic Book Fairs, President Alan Boyko, Ed Masessa, Senior Manager (and author) and VP of sales, Bill Barrett . . . Photobucket Other Scholastic-ites were there and it was so fun to nosh and mingle . . . Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket (If you look carefully at the last photo, you can see Kat sitting next to my editor, Arthur Levine.) Later, Suzanne Murphy, veep and publisher of trade publishing and marketing, did this TOTALLY AWESOME THING . . . Suzanne introduced the authors in REVERSE ALPHABETICAL ORDER!!!! (Finally, for once in my life, I got to be first!!!) Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket Ah, what a night! On another evening, it was time to think about studying for Scholastic's Ultimate Author Showdown. I mean, kids have come up with author-stumping-book-questions!!! However, Gordon told me that he wasn't going to study . . . Photobucket So, I thought, if Gordon's not going to study, then neither am I. And instead I went out to eat with Andrea Beaty and Emily Ecton . . . Photobucket Photobucket However, as we got to eating, I started thinking about the gameshow again, and how I don't want to humiliate myself in front of the zillions of people watching it LIVE on the web. (But I didn't want to study either.) Oh man, this is going to be sooooo embarrassing. Like the time I was on Jeopardy! and lost on a literature question!!! What? Oh, wait. That's right. It wasn't me . . . it was Linda Sue Park who was on Jeopardy! . . . Photobucket Photobucket Still, it coulda been me. So then BING!!! I thought to myself, "Myself, Emily is also the producer of one of your favorite NPR shows -- Wait, Wait . . . Don't Tell Me! Ask her for tips!!!!" Yes, Peepy and I have even been to the show when George Takei was guest . . . Emily and Andrea immediately got to thinking up brilliant strategy for me (I asked Andrea to help cause she's way smart and writes scholarly tomes like her newest, Attack of the Fluffy Bunnies, illustrated by Dan Santat who is illustrating my Bobby Ellis-Chan series) . . . Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket Their advice? "Have fun!" Be sure to watch us on the web on Friday, or if you're in the NY area (or even if you're not) come to the Scholastic Store on Saturday at 3 p.m. to meet the authors and watch us do the show live with a kid from the audience as our teammate!!! Photobucket Oh! And hey, guess who the readergirlz author for May is going to be? Here's a hint . . . Photobucket Disclaimer: No proofreader were harmed (or even used) in the creation of this blog. Lisa Yee

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Sunday, April 25, 2010

Visiting Versailles with Cartoon Guys

I'm in Chicago at this very nanosecond. However, right before I left for Chicago, I had dinner with a bunch of dudes in various stages of arrested development. (I mean that as a compliment.) We met at Versailles. The last time I had been to Versailles, was on a trip to Miami, when Peepy tried to get a book deal with agent Ginger Knowlton . . . Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket However, this was a completely different Versailles . . . in Los Angeles. We rode on over with Dan Santat . . . . . Photobucket And dined with Bob Boyle, creator of Wow! Wow! Wubbzy! . . . Photobucket And a duo of evil Dans (Dan Yaccarino, author/illustrator and creator of the Oswald series on Nick, Jr. and Dan Santat, who illustrates my Bobby Ellis-Chan series, and who created the Disney show, The Replacements) . . . Photobucket And Tom Warburton creator of Cartoon Network's Codename: Kids Next Door . . . Photobucket Photobucket And author/illustrator Andy Rash (consoling Peepy) . . . Photobucket (Andy and Dan Y. are developing Andy' Agent A to Z as an animated series.) It was great fun and we discussed important matters, like wondering if zombies poop. Soon the paparazzi appeared! Okay, okay, so we paparazzied ourselves . . . Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket (If you look carefully, you can spot illustrator/cartoonist Joe Rocco) I think someone was watching me the whole time, and felt I needed help . . . Photobucket Because after our paparazzi-fest, a woman walked directly over to me and handed me her card . . . Photobucket Should I call her? I think I'll need a psychic life coach for when I compete in the Ultimate Author Showdown!!! Photobucket Anyone can watch, all you need to do is register here (and you don't have to be a school)! Kids are coming up with the bookish questions and are encouraged to "Stump the Authors!" Last week, when Hubby watched last year's show on the Scholastic site and heard the questions, he said to me, "I'm not sure if you want me to be honest with you or not, but you're doomed." Um. Excuse me? No one asked for honesty, here! So, then I asked Teen if she was going to watch the live gameshow she said, "I don't need to. I see you live everyday." My only hope is that the other guys don't have a psychic life coach . . . Photobucket You'll watch and cheer me on, won't you? I'm told I'll get a lifeline! Next Blog: Peepy's grand limo experience. Lisa Yee

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