Showing posts with label Super Middle Grade Monday. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Super Middle Grade Monday. Show all posts

Monday, December 28, 2015

Super Middle Grade Mondays: 2015 MG Wrap Up with Giveaway #SuperMGMondays

MGMondays-Bannernew
 
Welcome to this week’s Super Middle Grade Mondays presented by Tantrum Books/Month9books!
We hope you are having an amazing holiday season.
Today, we are wrapping up the new year and featuring the 2015 MG reads from Tantrum Books/Month9Books.
Ring in the new year with one of these titles!
Be sure to enter the giveaway found at the end of the post!
 
Joshua-Cover
Stay away from the window, don’t go outside when it’s storming and whatever you do, do not touch the orb.
Twelve-year-old Joshua Cooper’s grandpa has always warned him about the dangers of lightning. But Joshua never put much stock in his grandpa’s rumblings as anything more than the ravings of an old man with a vast imagination. Then one night, when Joshua and his best friend are home alone during a frightful storm, Joshua learns his grandpa was right. A bolt of lightning strikes his house and whisks away his best friend—possibly forever.
To get him back, Joshua must travel the Lightning Road to a dark place that steals children for energy. But getting back home and saving his friend won’t be easy, as Joshua must face the terrifying Child Collector and fend off ferocious and unnatural beasts intent on destroying him.
In this world, Joshua possesses powers he never knew he had, and soon, Joshua’s mission becomes more than a search for his friend. He means to send all the stolen children home—and doing so becomes the battle of his life.
add to goodreads
 
About-the-Author2
Donna Galanti
Donna is the author of the Joshua and The Lightning Road series and the Element Trilogy. She is a contributing editor to International Thriller Writers the Big Thrill magazine and blogs at www.project-middle-grade-mayhem.blogs..., a cooperative of published middle grade authors. Visit her at www.donnagalanti.com and www.ElementTrilogy.com. Donna wanted to be a writer ever since she wrote a murder mystery screenplay at seven and acted it out with the neighborhood kids. She attended an English school housed in a magical castle, where her wild imagination was held back only by her itchy uniform (bowler hat and tie included!). There she fell in love with the worlds of C.S. Lewis and Roald Dahl, and wrote her first fantasy about Dodo birds, wizards, and a flying ship (and has been writing fantasy ever since). She’s lived in other exotic locations, including her family-owned campground in New Hampshire and in Hawaii where she served as a U.S. Navy photographer. She now lives with her family and two crazy cats in an old farmhouse and dreams of returning one day to a castle.
Author Links: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads
 
Strange-Country-Day-Cover
Alexander Graham Ptuiac, the son of an inventor, wants to play for the school’s football team. During tryouts, and under the watchful eye of the team’s coach, he suddenly manifests mysterious superhuman powers. Alexander makes the team, but not before the some ill-intended adults take notice, putting his life in danger.
Alex struggles to suppress and control his strange new abilities, worried about exposing his secret and being kicked off the football team. Then he befriends Dex, a diminutive classmate who can somehow jump as high as ten feet in the air. Seems Alex isn’t the only one at school with a secret.
As the school year unfolds, Alex will find himself the target of bullies, holding hands with his first crush and discovering the shocking truth about himself and his parents.
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About-the-Author2
Charles Curtis
Charles Curtis is a writer and journalist based in New York City. He has reported and written for publications including NJ.com (where he is currently the site’s sports buzz reporter), The Daily, ESPN.com, ESPN the Magazine, Bleacher Report, TV Guide and Entertainment Weekly. Charles has covered the NFL, MLB, NHL, NBA, golf, tennis and NASCAR. He has also written about television, film and pop culture.
In addition, Curtis has also written, produced and was featured in videos for ESPN.com and The Daily. He has made radio appearances on stations including 92.9 The Ticket in Bangor, Maine, WLIE 540 AM in Long Island and on morning shows across Canada via the CBC. He can be reached on Twitter: @charlescurtis82.
Connect with the Author: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
 
Super-Freak-Cover
Thirteen-year-old Caroline is a freak. Her parents have uprooted her to a town full of Supernaturals. You’d think she’d be thrilled. But, with someone without a magical bone in her body, this daughter of tree sprites feels like even more of an outcast than she has ever before.
To make matters worse, her new home is cursed. But when Caroline takes to investigating the mysterious and strange happenings of Harridan House, her BFF goes missing. Seems someone doesn’t want Caroline sticking her non-magical nose where it most certainly does not belong. Determined to prove herself, Caroline uncovers a plot to destroy her new hometown.
Undeterred, Caroline can’t give up. But what’s a human without magical powers to do? Caroline better figure it out fast, before she loses everything she has ever loved and the whispers she’s heard all her life prove true: Caroline is a useless superfreak.
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About-the-Author2
Vanessa Barger was born in West Virginia, and through several moves ended up spending the majority of her life in Virginia Beach, Virginia. She is a graduate of George Mason University and Old Dominion University, and has degrees in Graphic Design, a minor in Medieval and Renaissance Literature, and a Masters in Technology Education. She has had articles published in Altered Arts Magazine, has had some artwork displayed in galleries in Ohio and online, and currently teaches engineering, practical physics, drafting and other technological things to high school students in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia. She is a member of the SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators), the Virginia Writer’s Club, and the Hampton Roads Writers. When not writing or teaching, she’s a bookaholic, movie fanatic, and loves to travel. She is married to a fabulous man, and has one cat, who believes Vanessa lives only to open cat food cans, and can often be found baking when she should be editing.
Connect with the Author: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest |YouTube
 
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Complete the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win!
 
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Monday, December 14, 2015

Super Middle Grade Mondays: Author Spotlight – Jennie K. Brown with Giveaway #SuperMGMondays

MGMondays-Bannernew
 
Welcome to this week’s Super Middle Grade Mondays presented by Tantrum Books/Month9books!
Today, we get up close and personal with
Jennie K. Brown
author of Poppy Mayberry, The Monday a 2016 title coming from Tantrum Books!
Be sure to enter the giveaway found at the end of the post!
 
Jennie-K.-Brown-300x300
Jennie K. Brown is a high school English teacher by day, freelance magazine writer by night, and middlegrade/young adult author by late-night and weekend. When she isn’t teaching or writing, Jennie can be found reading a good book, traveling, or spending time with her awesome husband, amazing son and super-spoiled yorkie.In 2010, the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) named Jennie the Pennsylvania English teacher of excellence, and she currently serves as President of the Pennsylvania Council for Teachers of English and Language Arts (PCTELA). She is also an active member of SCBWI, NCTE and ALAN.
Connect with the Author: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Instagram
 
Inspiration with Jennie K. Brown
 
Many people have asked me where I got the big idea about having magical powers based on the day of the week you’re born for my MG novel POPPY MAYBERRY, THE MONDAY. So, I’ve written a bit about my inspiration below!
The idea actually came to me when I was stopped at a red light in my hometown. I glanced up at the Starbucks on the corner across the street to see a young girl tossing a ball into the air. From the angle I watched, it looked as if the girl was controlling the ball with her mind. At pretty much the same time I asked myself, What day of the week is it? (I have a tendency to lose track of the days over the summer!) And then I put those thoughts together – What if a person had certain powers depending on the day of the week? Or what if a person had a special power specific to the day of the week in which they were born? And that’s where I got the concept for Poppy’s town of Nova. Then I took that a step further and gave certain powers to certain days of the week. If you check out this link, you can see what day of the week you were born and the power behind that day!
Monday – telekinetic powers (controlling things with your mind) Tuesday – teleportation Wednesday – energy/electricity manipulation Thursday – mind reading (So cool!) Friday – invisibility (disappearing!) Saturday and Sunday – powerless L (This is funny, because I was actually born on a Saturday myself!)
In POPPY MAYBERRY, THE MONDAY, the main character (Poppy Mayberry) is struggling with her telekinetic Monday power. Because of this she is sent to a remedial summer camp for the powerless - Power Academy – where she gets teamed up with her archrival, a mind reading Thursday, and a few other weekday hopefuls to combat the awful headmistress Clothes-too-tight Larriby and her equally awful sidekick. The novel is set to release in April 2016 with a sequel in December! Find out more and Jennie and her writing inspiration on her website jenniekbrown.com
:) Jennie
 
M9B-cover-reveal-3D2
What if your teacher could read your mind just because she was born on a Thursday? Or the kid next to you in class could turn back the clock just because he was a 'Wednesday''? In the quirky town of Nova, all of this is normal, but one thing is not---Poppy Mayberry. As an almost-eleven-year-old Monday, she should be able to pass notes in class or brush her dog, Pickle, without lifting a finger. But her Monday telekinesis still has some kinks, and that plate of spaghetti she's passing may just end up on someone's head. And if that's not hard enough, practically perfect Ellie Preston is out to get her, and Principal Wible wants to send her to remedial summer school to work on her powers! It's enough to make a girl want to disappear...if only she were a Friday.
"Whimsical, imaginative, and fun. Poppy Mayberry is a modern Annie - immediately likable, charming and spunky. Kids will be rooting for this wonderful heroine from page one." --- Robert Beatty, New York Times Bestselling Author of SERAFINA AND THE BLACK CLOAK
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Poppy Mayberry, The Monday by Jennie K. Brown Publication Date: September 2016 Publisher: Month9Books
 
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Friday, December 11, 2015

#MGRewind Week - Day 5: Krystalyn Drown - Guest Post and Giveaway

MG Rewind Week graphic - final
 
Welcome to the final day of #MGRewind week!
Celebrate Middle Grade reads with Tantrum Books/Month9books.
Sharing his memories as an MG reader, we welcome
KRYSTALYN DROWN, author of the
TRACY TAM: SANTA COMMAND.
Be sure to enter the giveaway found at the end of the post!
 
 
Tracy doesn’t believe that Santa can deliver all of those presents in one night with out a little help from science. A flying sleigh can only be powered by jet engines, and Santa’s magical abilities can only be the result of altered DNA. In order to test her theories, she sneaks onto Santa’s sleigh and ends up at Santa Command, the place where a team of humans monitors Santa’s big night. When Tracy attempts to hack into their computers, she accidentally introduces a virus to their system. As a result, three states get knocked out of sync with the rest of the world. Before the night is over, Tracy has to fix time and help Santa finish his deliveries. And she has to do it all with Santa’s magic, which she doesn’t believe exists.
 
add to goodreads
 
Krystalyn Drown
 
Krystalyn
 
I first read BLUBBER by Judy Blume when I was in fifth grade and immediately fell in love with it. Much like Jill, the main character, I fell somewhere in the middle of the class hierarchy. I wasn't a leader. I followed along, mostly because I didn't want to be the kid everyone picked on. Then, somewhere along the way, the dynamics changed. I befriended someone I wasn't supposed to. I was threatened for walking with my new friend at lunch time. I was punched because the class bully thought I was looking at her. Girls who were once my friends walked away from me when I approached them and laughed at me. I remember sobbing in the bathroom while my teacher tried to figure out what was wrong. I never told her. I wasn't a snitch.
Like BLUBBER, my story has a resolution but not a happy ending. Somehow, I struck a balance with some of the other girls. The school year ended. I moved. The class bully never got in trouble.
I have read that book many times over the years, because it was real. It could have been written about me. And I'm willing to bet, it could have been written about a thousand other kids. That's why I love reading middle grade books, and that's why I love writing them.
As for BLUBBER, I still own at least two copies. I read it again just a few months ago. Even though the middle grade years were tough, I love the reminder that I got through them, and that I wasn't alone.
About-the-Author2
Krystalyn Drown
Krystalyn spent thirteen years working at Walt Disney World in a variety of roles: entertainer, talent coordinator, and character captain. Her degree in theatre as well as many, many hours spent in a dance studio, helped with her job there. Her various other day jobs have included working in zoology at Sea World, as an elementary teacher, and currently as a support technician for a website. In the evenings, she does mad writing challenges with her sister, who is also an author. Krystalyn lives near Orlando, Florida with her husband, son, a were cat, and a Yorkie with a Napoleon complex.
Connect with the Author: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest | Instagram |

Thursday, December 10, 2015

#MGRewind Week - Day 4: Steve Bryant - Guest Post and Giveaway

MG Rewind Week graphic - final
 
Welcome to Day 4 of #MGRewind week!
Celebrate Middle Grade reads with Tantrum Books/Month9books.
Sharing his memories as an MG reader, we welcome
STEVE BRYANT, author of the
LUCAS MACKENZIE AND THE LONDON MIDNIGHT GHOST SHOW.
Come back everyday this week where we'll feature another author, and
be sure to enter the giveaway found at the end of the post!
 
Lucas MacKenzie eBook Final
 
Lucas Mackenzie has got the best job of any 10 year old boy. He travels from city-to-city as part of the London Midnight Ghost Show, scaring unsuspecting show-goers year round. Performing comes naturally to Lucas and the rest of the troupe, who’ve been doing it for as long as Lucas can remember.
But there’s something Lucas doesn’t know.
Like the rest of Luca’s friends, he’s dead. And for some reason, Lucas can’t remember his former life, his parents or friends. Did he go to school? Have a dog? Brothers and sisters?
If only he could recall his former life, maybe even reach out to his parents, haunt them.
When a ghost hunter determines to shut the show down, Lucas realizes the life he has might soon be over. And without a connection to his family, he will have nothing. There’s little time and Lucas has much to do. Can he win the love of Columbine, the show’s enchanting fifteen-year-old mystic? Can he outwit the forces of life and death that thwart his efforts to find his family?
Keep the lights on! Lucas Mackenzie’s coming to town.
 
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Steve Bryant
 
One of the side benefits of becoming a published middle grade writer is recalling what it was like to be a middle grade reader. For me, growing up in a small Midwestern town (Cairo, Illinois), it was a case of limited options. Retail book sales were severely limited to the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew series. I loved them nonetheless, little knowing that my favorite author (Franklin W. Dixon) didn’t exist, that his novels were ghost written. The Hardy Boys formed the basis of social reading: we would take turns reading chapters aloud at overnights, along with sharing our comics collections (mine were Batman, my friends’ Tarzan andSuperman). Alas, I never read the Nancy Drews nor enjoyed multiple-gender overnights. My private reading blossomed in the fourth grade when I joined the Science Fiction Book Club, expanding my purchasing boundaries. As I recall, a new hardback would arrive every three weeks or so for about a dollar a volume, along with a fascinating newsletter describing coming works. I favored the short story anthologies (e.g., The Astounding Science Fiction Anthology, ed. by John W. Campbell, Jr.). My favorite novel of the era was Alfred Bester’s The Demolished Man, the first Hugo winner. All those books had uneven, ragged edges, and I still have a sentimental attachment to the style. Our Cairo Public Library supplemented my reading, not only with more science fiction, but with a wider reach: Longfellow’sSong of Hiawatha, Jack London’s arctic tales, James Thurber’s wacky life and hard times. But I was bitten by science fiction and gravitated to the Robert A. Heinlein juveniles such as Time for the Stars and Tunnel in the Sky. When I had exhausted the library’s collection, the lady whose little store provided our school supplies astonished me by stating that she could order any book in print. In the pre-Amazon days this sounded like a miracle, and we put it to the test. For $4.98 she acquired me a copy of Heinlein’s The Star Beast. I have it to this day, and it was the beginning of a lifetime of serious book acquisition. Were you to ask me in those days why I liked Heinlein, I would have said I liked him because I liked science fiction. Years later I realized that it was because Heinlein always pitted boys and girls together against formidable odds, and romance ensued.That’s what I loved. I have always remembered to make romance a key part of any stories I write.
 
About-the-Author2
Steve Bryant  
Steve Bryant is a new novelist, but a veteran author of books of card tricks. He founded a 40+ page monthly internet magazine for magicians containing news, reviews, magic tricks, humor, and fiction; and he frequently contributes biographical cover articles to the country’s two leading magic journals (his most recent article was about the séance at Hollywood’s Magic Castle).
Connect with the Author: Website | Twitter | Goodreads
 
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Complete the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win!
 

Tuesday, December 8, 2015

#MGRewind Week - Day 2: Scott Craven - Guest Post and Giveaway

MG Rewind Week graphic - final
 
Welcome to Day 2 of #MGRewind week!
Celebrate Middle Grade reads with Tantrum Books/Month9books.
Sharing his memories as an MG reader, we welcome
SCOTT CRAVEN, author of the
DEAD JED SERIES.
Come back everyday this week where we'll feature another author, and
be sure to enter the giveaway found at the end of the post!
 
Dead Jed 1
 
Dead Jed is Shaun of the Dead meets Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Jed's not your typical junior high geek. He is, to use the politically-correct term, cardiovascularly-challenged. And while his parents have attempted to shield him from the implications of being 'different' for as long as they could (Jed was 8 and at a friend's sister's birthday party when he blew his lips off onto the cake in front of everyone, finally prompting the “Big Talk” from his parents and an emergency SuperGlue repair by his dad), 7th grade at Pine Hollow Middle School as a target of Robbie the supreme school bully and his pack of moronic toadies is rapidly becoming unbearable.
From being stuffed in a filled trash can as “dead meat” and into a trophy case as the bully's “prize,” to literally having his hand pulled off in the boys' room (Jed's always losing body parts. Luckily, a good stapler and some duct tape and he's back in the action) and a cigarette put in it and try to frame him for the recent reports of smoking in the school, Jed's had enough and is ready to plan his revenge. Besides, it's awesome what you can do when you're already dead!
 
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Scott Craven
 
When I was 10, two of my best friends were my beanbag chair and my bookshelf. Those chairs (imagine a beanbag large enough to cradle a person) have largely disappeared for various reasons, but I'm sure parents had something to do with it since the chairs had a habit of bleeding little white foam pellets impossible to eradicated. And even bookshelves are shrinking thanks to electronic readers.
Back then, I could spend all afternoon lost in a book, my body slowly losing feeling as it sunk deeper and deeper into the beanbag. I often finished books in a day, and one of my favorite series involved a crime-solving trio of boys (MG books were very sexist back then). It was a knockoff of the more famous Hardy Boys, and I still have each of those 15 volumes. Every now and then I crack them open and enjoy a scent as musty as the prose.
They may not have been the best stories every written, but I loved each one of them. They launched me on a lifetime of reading, which eventually led me to write MG books of my own. Sometimes I will imagine a 10-year-old boy or girl nestled into a favorite chair, cracking open Dead Jed, and losing track of time as well as feeling in their extremities.
About-the-Author2
Scott-Craven

Proud graduate of Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, have one son who will turn 18 in March 2013, now a features writer for The Arizona Republic.
Connect with the Author: Website | Twitter
 
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Complete the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win!
 

Monday, December 7, 2015

#MGRewind Week - Day 1: Donna Galanti - Guest Post and Giveaway

MG Rewind Week graphic - final
 
Welcome to #MGRewind week!
Celebrate Middle Grade reads with Tantrum Books/Month9books.
Sharing her memories as an MG reader, we welcome
DONNA GALANTI, author of
JOSHUA AND THE LIGHTNING ROAD.
Come back everyday this week where we'll feature another author, and
be sure to enter the giveaway found at the end of the post!
 
Joshua and The Lightning Road
Stay away from the window, don’t go outside when it’s storming and whatever you do, do not touch the orb.
Twelve-year-old Joshua Cooper’s grandpa has always warned him about the dangers of lightning. But Joshua never put much stock in his grandpa’s rumblings as anything more than the ravings of an old man with a vast imagination. Then one night, when Joshua and his best friend are home alone during a frightful storm, Joshua learns his grandpa was right. A bolt of lightning strikes his house and whisks away his best friend—possibly forever.
To get him back, Joshua must travel the Lightning Road to a dark place that steals children for energy. But getting back home and saving his friend won’t be easy, as Joshua must face the terrifying Child Collector and fend off ferocious and unnatural beasts intent on destroying him.
In this world, Joshua possesses powers he never knew he had, and soon, Joshua’s mission becomes more than a search for his friend. He means to send all the stolen children home—and doing so becomes the battle of his life.
add to goodreads
 
Donna Galanti - 1978
 
Donna
 
Every day I dream about getting my first dog! I imagine she is so real that when I come home from school I run to meet her (her name will be Beauty after Black Beauty). But not yet…so while I wait I keep busy roaming the campground we own.
It’s fun to wear my strap-on roller skates and hunt the paths for dead butterflies and shotgun shells (this is New Hampshire after all and they make cool noise makers when you put them in old coffee cans). There are always kids to play with here (awesome for an only child like me!) and swim with at the pool. I especially love to hang out in the recreation hall and play pinball machines and records on the juke box. My favorite song is Escape by Rupert Holmes. I asked my dad what a Pina Colada is and he said it’s a party in a glass for grownups.
Each morning I get to pretend I’m my hero, Laura Ingalls from Little House in the Big Woods, as I pick rotten apples in the orchard to feed our fat hogs. My mom says we’ll be butchering them soon (just like Laura!). My mom wants to make head cheese (ewww!) but I want to blow up the pig’s bladder like a balloon and roast its tail over the fire, just like Laura did. Little House on the Prairie is my favorite show and sometimes I even pretend that Mr. Ingalls is my dad.
After hog feeding time, I get to gather the eggs in the chicken coop. Today I found a double yolk egg without a shell! It was see-through and wobbly just like a Weeble. Although, I think it would fall down if I wobbled it. Tomorrow is dump day. I get to collect the trash with my dad from all the campsites (we even saw a bear last week!). It’s a smelly chore but the best part is that I get to stand up in the back of our rickety 1965 Ford truck and hang onto the wood sides as we cruise to the dump. Wheeee! It’s almost as fun as snowmobiling on the campground trails in winter. If I help my dad out good, he’ll take me fishing on Lake Squam this weekend to use my new tackle box. I caught my first pike there last month (my dad almost crashed the boat up on the rocks just so I could get it)!
Well, time to go practice my after-dinner show for mom and dad. I’m singing and dancing to The Wonderful Thing About Tiggers and On The Good Ship Lollipop. I even made my own sailor and Tigger costumes (I’m a blue fuzzy Tigger in one-piece footed pj’s with my dad’s striped tie for a tail and my mom’s wig). Oh, and there’s a big thunderstorm coming tonight so I plan to sleep on the screened-in porch and watch the lightning all night long!
Being nine is the best. Getting a dog would make it even better.
 
About-the-Author2
 
Donna Galanti
Donna is the author of the Joshua and The Lightning Road series and the Element Trilogy. She is a contributing editor to International Thriller Writers the Big Thrill magazine and blogs at www.project-middle-grade-mayhem.blogs..., a cooperative of published middle grade authors. Visit her at www.donnagalanti.com and www.ElementTrilogy.com. Donna wanted to be a writer ever since she wrote a murder mystery screenplay at seven and acted it out with the neighborhood kids. She attended an English school housed in a magical castle, where her wild imagination was held back only by her itchy uniform (bowler hat and tie included!). There she fell in love with the worlds of C.S. Lewis and Roald Dahl, and wrote her first fantasy about Dodo birds, wizards, and a flying ship (and has been writing fantasy ever since). She’s lived in other exotic locations, including her family-owned campground in New Hampshire and in Hawaii where she served as a U.S. Navy photographer. She now lives with her family and two crazy cats in an old farmhouse and dreams of returning one day to a castle.
Author Links: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads
 
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Complete the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win!
 

Monday, November 30, 2015

Super Middle Grade Mondays: Author Spotlight – Vanessa Barger with Giveaway #SuperMGMondays

MGMondays-Bannernew
 
Welcome to this week’s Super Middle Grade Mondays presented by Tantrum Books/Month9books!
Today, we get up close and personal with
Vanessa Barger
author of Super Freak from Tantrum Books.
Be sure to enter the giveaway found at the end of the post!
    
Vanessa Barger was born in West Virginia, and through several moves ended up spending the majority of her life in Virginia Beach, Virginia. She is a graduate of George Mason University and Old Dominion University, and has degrees in Graphic Design, a minor in Medieval and Renaissance Literature, and a Masters in Technology Education. She has had articles published in Altered Arts Magazine, has had some artwork displayed in galleries in Ohio and online, and currently teaches engineering, practical physics, drafting and other technological things to high school students in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia. She is a member of the SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators), the Virginia Writer’s Club, and the Hampton Roads Writers. When not writing or teaching, she’s a bookaholic, movie fanatic, and loves to travel. She is married to a fabulous man, and has one cat, who believes Vanessa lives only to open cat food cans, and can often be found baking when she should be editing.
Connect with the Author: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest |YouTube
  
interview2
Describe yourself in three words.
Weird Writing Nerd
 
Describe your book in three words.
Geeky Puzzle Solver
 
Tell us about your day job.
In my day job, I’m a high school Technology Education teacher. Which means I do nothing with writing, except run a writer’s club once a month or so. I teach 9-12 graders practical physics (which sounds like an oxymoron, but itsn’t really), engineering, robotics, work skills, 3D modeling, architecture, drafting, and computer stuff. Depending on the year and what classes I have, anyway. I also run a gardening club and we play in the dirt sometimes. J
 
Which writers inspire you?
There are so many! Shakespeare and Austen are always at the top of my list. Tolkien is up there too. In the YA/MG world, I love the way that Lisa Ann Sandell’s words just flow, and I love Rick Riordan’s imagination. And…well, let’s just stop there. I love so many!
 
What is your writing process like?
My writing process is in flux. I am making “office” hours for myself after work, but in a general sense, I keep a writing journal with me all the time. I write notes to myself about things I’m working on or thinking about. When I have enough of an idea that I feel like I can start writing, I try to make sure and sit down and write out the main points. It’s a really basic outline that I go back and add to until its fully fleshed out. But I’m not married to it. If I write and end up somewhere else, I just adapt the outline to work. When I finish a draft, I go through and the first things I do for edits is a search through the document for words I know I use too many (that, just, etc) and then I sit down and try to read it through, looking for mistakes. Once I’ve got it as good as I think it can be, I send it to critters and see what they say. Then I start again!
 
What are you reading right now?
Paper Valentine by Brenna Yovanoff
 
Do you have an author crush?
Neil Gaiman.
 
Quick questions:
Physical books or eBooks?
Physical Books, though I love my ereader too.
Coke or Pepsi?
Coke! Really, root beer, cause I don’t drink caffeine anymore.
Twitter or Facebook?
Both for different things? I like the immediate gratification of Twitter, but I like FB too!
Song you can’t get out of your head right now?
Well, I was doing fine until you asked that. Now Steampunk Revolution by Abney Park is back in my brain. Grrrr.
Sweet or salty?
Sweet.
Coffee or tea?
TEA.
Write on computer or notebook paper?
Blank. Even though I can’t write in a straight line.
   
Super-Freak-Cover
Thirteen-year-old Caroline is a freak. Her parents have uprooted her to a town full of Supernaturals. You’d think she’d be thrilled. But, with someone without a magical bone in her body, this daughter of tree sprites feels like even more of an outcast than she has ever before.
To make matters worse, her new home is cursed. But when Caroline takes to investigating the mysterious and strange happenings of Harridan House, her BFF goes missing. Seems someone doesn’t want Caroline sticking her non-magical nose where it most certainly does not belong. Determined to prove herself, Caroline uncovers a plot to destroy her new hometown.
Undeterred, Caroline can’t give up. But what’s a human without magical powers to do? Caroline better figure it out fast, before she loses everything she has ever loved and the whispers she’s heard all her life prove true: Caroline is a useless superfreak.
add to goodreads
   
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Complete the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win!
 
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