Book Giveaway Contest UPDATE

In light of a rather spectacular lack of interest in the contest so far, I'm going to suspend choosing winners until Friday (October 2, 2010 for those of you more date-minded folks).  There's still plenty of time to enter!


See yesterday's post for full details, and to enter in the comments.


Rule refresher:

1. To enter, become a follower on the blog, and make a comment on this blog entry. Bonus points if you Tweet or Facebook about it. Just tell me in your comment.

Here's the twist: In the comments, please tell me if you plan to share this banned book with anyone. You could lend to a friend, donate to your library, leave it in the dressing room at a clothing store--the possibilities are endless. Be creative, and be sure to tell me about it.
You can still win, even if you plan to keep the book. Just lend it to a friend, okay?

2. On Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, I will use go through the entries to look for the best ideas (Hey, it's my blog, I get to be the judge.) The top five will go into a randomizer and the winner will be notified.


3. Wednesday's winner gets to choose from the three books available, Thursday's chooses from the remaining two, and Friday's gets whatever is left.


4. Oh, and I'm not rich, so let's restrict winners to the U.S. and Canada, please!




Spread the word and win a book!  


- Liz

Losing My Contest Virginity

In Honor of Banned Books Week (September 25, 2010-October 2, 2010) I am holding my very first blog contest! Are you shivering with anticipation or what?

Let's get down to the nitty-gritty.

I have three (count them, 3!) banned or challenged books to give away this week, but it only takes one entry to win.

The prizes:

SPEAK by Laurie Halse Anderson


Well, we should all know why this one was challenged. If not, please see either of my blog posts (here and here) relating to the recent controversy.

LOOKING FOR ALASKA by John Green


Challenged in 2008 for sexually explicit situations. I've also heard complaints about the teenage characters' use of "bad" language, cigarettes and alcohol.

DEENIE by Judy Blume


Challenged in 2004 and 2005 for passages that deal frankly with masturbation.


(Note: My copy is NOT new. It's got the cover seen to the left and was already old when I obtained it lo those many years ago. Original copyright 1972)


The rules:
1. To enter, become a follower on the blog, and make a comment on this blog entry. Bonus points if you Tweet or Facebook about it. Just tell me in your comment.

Here's the twist: In the comments, please tell me if you plan to share this banned book with anyone. You could lend to a friend, donate to your library, leave it in the dressing room at a clothing store--the possibilities are endless. Be creative, and be sure to tell me about it.

You can still win, even if you plan to keep the book. Just lend it to a friend, okay?

2. On Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, I will use go through the entries to look for the best ideas (Hey, it's my blog, I get to be the judge.) The top five will go into a randomizer and the winner will be notified.


3. Wednesday's winner gets to choose from the three books available, Thursday's chooses from the remaining two, and Friday's gets whatever is left.


4. Oh, and I'm not rich, so let's restrict winners to the U.S. and Canada, please!


Easy, right?

So, tweet it, blog it, Facebook it--spread the word. Books for free. All you need is a mailing address and some creativity.

Have fun. Even if you don't enter, please read a challenged book this week. It's good for the soul.


- Liz

And the People who #speakloudly better than me...

Melanie at Reclusive Bibliophile has taken on the impressive task of collecting all of the responses to the attack on Break.  You'll find her list, full of lovely, talented people who made a lot more sense in their responses than I did.  In particular, I'd draw your attention to Myra McEntire, who brings the pain to Mr. Scroggins as one of his fellow Christians in such a dreamy way she almost makes me want to join her church.


Here's the list.  Read, get loud.


- Liz

#SpeakLoudly for SPEAK

This morning, I woke to find Laurie Halse Anderson posting on Twitter about an attack on her book, SPEAK.  Please go here to read her blog about it.  It's got my blood boiling, so I had to do what I can.

The man in question, Dr. Wesley Scoggins, is a associate professor of management at Missouri State University.  In his letter to the editor, he derides all manner of things, but the thrust of his argument is that public schools should not expose children to inappropriate sexual material.  On it's face, it's not a bad argument, but it's the things he's opposed to that have my hackles up.


He wants Kurt Vonnegut's SLAUGHTERHOUSE FIVE banned as well (and according to the editor's note at the end, it has been), which is a topic I can't even handle right now.  Vonnegut?  VONNEGUT?!  Are you KIDDING me?  But I'll leave that self-evident and focus on Anderson's work.


SPEAK is a beautifully written, honest, often funny, often heartbreaking story of a 15 year-old girl who is universally hated at her high school because she called the cops during an end-of-summer party, thereby ruining everyone's fun.  The narrator, Melinda, take the bulk of the book to reveal that she called the police not because she's a consummate party pooper, but because she was raped at the party.  Melinda is paralyzed with fear and finds herself unable to tell anyone what happened to her.  It takes her an entire year to find the courage while she suffers through depression, withdrawl and social isolation.


SPEAK has helped hundreds, probably thousands, of young women and men find the courage to speak out about their own experiences with sexual assault.  It's an important work that tells teenagers the truth.  It is NOT as, Scoggins suggests, soft-core pornography.


I'm sickened at the thought that his protests will be met with anything but dismissal.  Rape happens.  It happens to Christians, too, Mr. Scoggins.  And it won't go away if we don't talk about it.


Do what you can to fight those who would stop you from reading what you want to read.  If a book offends you, you don't have to read it.  But I don't think it's anyone's right to decide what's available to everyone else.


*Dismounting soapbox.*


Thanks.


- Liz

My Not-So-Secret Shame

Remember this?



Well, that's me watching the replay of the Glee finale last night.


But here's why it's so weird:  I'm not all that invested in the characters on the show.  Don't get me wrong--I enjoy the show.  The characters are not without their charm.  But the reason I watch it is for the singing.


I. Love. Choirs.


And they make me cry.  Almost without fail.


I used to be able to control it.  I used to be in a choir, for God's sake.  A Swing Choir.  Which is a lot like a Show Choir or a Glee Club.  At the time, I would have fought you to the death for saying it was the same.  We wore no sequins!  We sang jazz standards!  We were acapella or accompanied by only one piano!  Our choreography didn't suck!  But, really, it was Show Choir.  And I used to be able to sing all those songs without bawling.


As the years have passed, I have slowly become afflicted with a need to cry whenever I hear beautiful choral music.  In fact, I see my own Swing Choir about once a year at a Christmas performance, and I spend the whole time glassy-eyed and quivery-lipped.  It's pathetic.


I cry in the car all during the Christmas season.  I cry virtually every episode of Glee.  I cannot explain it.


But I do have greater sympathy for that pathetic little Sanjaya fan than I did at the time.


Does Glee make you cry?


- Liz

Open Letters

Dear Friday,


Thursday was not forthcoming with the sleep.  You're going to have to make do with caffeine and sugar.  Starting tonight, we're going on a sleep hygiene diet--promise.


Zzzzzz, 
Me




Dear Fall,


I think you know that you and I haven't exactly been friends in the past.  I hate the cold, and really it's all you have to offer.  Your pollen and mold, while I'm sure delightful in an Earth-renewing kind of way, make my eyes itch and my nose drip.  I appreciate the earlier sunsets a little, because my son is much more willing to go to bed when it's dark, but if we could somehow negotiate for a permanent 8:00pm set time, that would be great.  Also, if you want to put a cap on the cold weather in the 60-something range, I would be willing to reconsider my position on you as an all-around harbinger of suck to come.


With Hope,
Me




Dear WIP,


Let's pick up the pace.  We've done a lot more than this in a lot less time before.  You're just embarrassing me.  I'll bring the chocolate chip cookies and the fingers, you bring the work ethic.


Love,
Me




Dear Zit on my Forehead,


Can we be done now?


Thanks,
Me

Twitter Is...

         

a C.B. radio

a bathroom wall

a confessional

an ad hoc psychiatrist

the hive mind

the lazy man's research tool

a note passed in class

the margins of your notebook

a waiting room

a news channel

a suggestion box

the complaint department

a whisper in the dark

a giggle in Church

the echo off a canyon wall

a booster club

addicting

What did I miss?

- Liz

Weekend Roundup

I spent too long trying to
figure out if the two pics were
the same girl.

I was pleasantly surprised by Rachel Hawkins's Hex Hall.  I'm not an enormous paranormal fan, so I was expecting to find it acceptable, but not much more.  Instead, the voice made me drool with envy.  And the plot, while somewhat predictable, threw me a few twists that made me appreciate Hawkins's skill.  All in all, a big thumbs up and I'm looking forward to Demonglass.

My pathetic blogging efforts continue to be sporadic.  I have a great plan for a blog, but I can't find the video I need on-line, so it's not coming quickly.  Grr.

Bender.  HA!

Yesterday's "Futurama" marathon made me so freakin' happy it was a little pathetic.  Personally, I think it's the funniest cartoon on television--and yes, that includes "The Simpsons," "Family Guy," and "South Park."


My work on Chronic (still hate that title) is starting to pick up a bit.  Working on Chapter 8 right now, of an anticipated 24, so a third of the way done, I guess!  How crazy is that?  It does, however, mean I am just about to enter the dreaded Middle of the Book (cue suspenseful chord progression--duh-duh, DUHN!) so prepare for me to hate everything about it and think I'm a big fat hack.


On the query front, things are quiet.  Unfortunately, no news is not usually good news in the agenting world.  Especially when some of the agents in question are "No response means 'No'" people.  Right now, I've only got one lonely partial out in the world, but you just never know which one is going to be The One, right?  Right?  Hello?  Is this thing on?

J.A. Souders - who will probably want to
kill me for putting her picture here

My friend J.A. Souders is having a big ol' contest over at her blog.  She's giving away all kinds of goodies, from books to manuscript critiques and all you have to do is follow her blog.  Easy, peasy!  So go do it.  


So, how was your weekend?


- Liz