Jeri Smith-Ready

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• posted by Jeri @ 9:36 AM
• 0 comments

Girlfriends' Cyber Circuit Tour - Kay Cassidy & THE CINDERELLA SOCIETY

Today on the Girlfriends' Cyber Circuit is the debut author of a very highly anticipated book, The Cinderella Society. I present to you...Kay Cassidy!

*applause, Kay bows gracefully and waves to adoring fans*

But before my interview with Kay, let's learn a little about her novel, shall we?

What's a girl to do when the glass slipper fits, but she doesn't want to wear it anymore?

Sixteen year old Jess Parker has always been an outsider. So when she receives an invitation to join The Cinderella Society, a secret society of the most popular girls in school, it's like something out of a fairy tale. Swept up by the Cindys' magical world of makeovers, and catching the eye of her Prince Charming, Jess feels like she's finally found her chance to fit in.

Then the Wickeds--led by Jess's arch-enemy--begin targeting innocent girls in their war against the Cindys, and Jess discovers there's more to being a Cindy than reinventing yourself on the outside. She has unknowingly become part of a centuries-old battle of good vs. evil, and now the Cindys in charge need Jess for a mission that could change everything. Overwhelmed, Jess wonders if The Cinderella Society made a mistake in choosing her.

Is it a coincidence her new boyfriend doesn't want to be seen with her in public? And is this glamorous, secret life even what she wants, or will she risk her own happy ending to live up to the expectations of her new sisters?


A brief excerpt to whet your appetite:



I opened the card, my hands trembling in dread and the faint remnants of what I used to call hope, as a tiny silver high-heel pin bounced into my hand.

I juggled the pin for a second, barely managing to keep it from falling, and flipped open the note with my other hand. The words inside were not a message but an invitation that sent shivers down my spine:

Your presence is requested at The Grind.
Tonight, 7 p.m.
Wear the pin.
Discretion MANDATORY.


Kay Cassidy is the author of teen fiction she wishes was based on her real life. She is the founder of the national Great Scavenger Hunt Contest(tm) reading program for kids and teens and the host of the inspirational Living Your Five(tm) web project. In her free time, she enjoys yoga, movies, music, and reading. Lots and lots of reading. She hopes her debut YA novel, THE CINDERELLA SOCIETY (April 13, Egmont), will help girls embrace their inner Cindy.


And now, Kay was kind enough to take the time to answer my silly questions:

1. If you could inhabit the life of any of your characters, enter their world and deal with it as that person, which one would you choose?

Probably Cammie from Ally Carter's Gallagher Girls series. The spy school world is completely amazing to me – how cool would that be??

2. On the flip side, which of your characters would you most like to bring to life in our world (as a friend or a little bit more ;-) ?

As much as I adore Jess and Ryan in The Cinderella Society, I would actually want to bring Heather to life. I just want to give her a big hug and tell her everything is going to be okay.

3. What's the weirdest tidbit of research you've ever incorporated into a book?

I can't think of a weird tidbit, but I did incorporate some mind-blowing stats about girls and body image. The statistics broke my heart.

4. What's your earliest memory?

I'm not sure if this is my earliest memory, but one of my most vivid early memories is of sliding down a curving staircase. My brother, cousin and I would sit inside pillowcases (on the pillows) and race down the stairs, our butts thumping on every step as we went. The foyer was marble which made for great sliding when you finally reached the bottom. We would do this for as long as we could get away with until one of the adults finally made us stop. :-)

5. Which author, living or dead, would you most love to collaborate with?

Probably J. K. Rowling. And really, it wouldn't even be collaboration I was after. I would just love to chat with her about the world of Harry Potter and how it looks in her mind.

Thanks to Kay for stopping by, and congrats on the debut!

Now everyone, go out and find your inner Cindy!

Labels: GCC, reading

• posted by Jeri @ 11:42 PM
• 0 comments

Book Trailer for SHADE

I'm very excited to present my first ever book trailer, created by the amazing folks at Simon Pulse and Circle of Seven Productions:




What do you think? I'm not normally a huge fan of trailers (I don't even like music videos anymore because they often skew my perception of the songs, a perception that tends to be personal and sometimes, er, quirky), but I really like this one. Then again, it is possible that I am ever so slightly biased.

Shade comes out May 4, two weeks from tomorrow. *heart attack* To quote from the book, "Get the defibrillator!"

Labels: YA series

• posted by Jeri @ 9:03 AM
• 3 comments

SHADE launch party & how YOU can get autographed copies

I'm excited to report two, highly related SHADE-y developments.

My first solo signing of Shade will be Sunday, May 2, 3-5pm, at Constellation Books, a lovely independent bookstore not far from chez Jeri (BTW, that's pronounced "shay jher-EEE") in Reisterstown, MD, pictured here.


I don't know who the guy in the vest is. Presumably a public safety official of some sort. But no worries--it's a lovely neighborhood in a lovely town. If you're familiar with Reisterstown but not with Constellation Books, it's across from Java Mamma's and on the same side of the street as the Cow, which, according to its Facebook fan page, rocks.

Anyway, there will be a reading, Q&A, and most important, baked goods (a redundant phrase if there ever was one) from Starry Night Bakery, the coffee house where I spend every Wednesday with my local writer friends. I promise to read a G-rated selection from Shade, and Constellation has a fabulous children's section, so bring the whole family!

So what's in it for the rest of you, who can't make it to Reisterstown? If you order your copy of Shade from Constellation Books, at any time before or after the launch party, I will sign it for you. If you order it before the launch party, obviously, I will sign it that day and it will be shipped out the following day--the day before the official release date.

Let's review why you should order Shade (or any of my books) from Constellation:

• You'll be supporting a wonderful independent bookstore. Y'all know the importance of that.
• You'll get an autographed book, personalized if you like.
• You might even get it sooner than if you ordered from an online bookseller, who probably won't be shipping until May 4.

It's not just win-win, it's full of win!

To get your signed copy of Shade, either call the bookstore at 410-833-5151, or place your order online, and when you get to the order page, note in the comments if you want it personalized. Otherwise it'll just be a plain old autographed first printing, suitable for future eBay transactions.

I'm off to spend a three-day weekend finishing the rough draft of Shift. Wish me luck! No, wait, I have plenty of that. Wish me caffeine and discipline!

Labels: appearances, YA series

• posted by Jeri @ 7:16 PM
• 3 comments

WVMP goes international!

Fantabulous news! I'm now free to announce that in the last two months, my amazing agency (Curtis Brown, Ltd.) has sold the French, Spanish, and German rights to Wicked Game, which was first published in May 2008. Its sequel, Bad to the Bone (originally published May 2009) will also be translated into French and German.

I'm tickled beyond belief at these first foreign sales for this series. I can't wait to see the new titles and covers, and how some of the (very colloquially American English) lines in these books will be translated.

Lines like:


or


Good luck with that, foreign publishers!

Anyway, here are the details:

Bragelonne will be publishing Wicked Game and Bad to the Bone in French, within 18 and 24 months, respectively (hopefully sooner).

Versatil will be publishing Wicked Game in Spanish (not sure of dates yet), with an option on Bad to the Bone.

Lübbe will publish Wicked Game and Bad to the Bone in German, within 24 and 30 months, respectively.

I will be sure to share covers as soon as I see them. Yay, Ciara! Go show "Old Europe" a good time!

Labels: vampire series

• posted by Jeri @ 7:37 PM
• 7 comments

Tidbit Tuesday #6 - Guest blog, giveaways & new releases

I'm back! Okay, I didn't actually go anywhere, but I'm trying like crazy to finish a rough draft of Shift ASAP so my critique partners have time to read it and give me feedback in the next month so that I can rewrite it and give my editor a second draft instead of a crappy first draft ("crappy first draft" is a redundant phrase).

To demonstrate the importance of that process, I'm writing a series of guest blog posts at TeenReads.com, where you can get a behind-the-scenes peek at the creation of Shade. The first installment went up last week, called "Putting the Shade in Shade."

If that's whetted your appetite for the book, there are a few places around the internet this week where you can win an ARC or the book itself:

1. Facebook fan page - I'll draw a name at 5pm Friday from the members of the page to win a signed final copy of the hardcover book. All you have to do is become a fan! Beyond giving you a chance to win a free book, the fan page is your best bet for hearing the latest on my contests, news, and events.

2. Class of 2k10 April giveaway - Comment to win a signed ARC of Shade, a signed hardcover of Rhonda Hayter's super cute middle-grade debut, The Witchy Worries of Abbie Adams, and much more!

3. Rosemary Clement-Moore's Nothing But Nets giveaway - To celebrate the paperback release of her YA novel Highway to Hell, the always awesome Rosemary is giving away a ton of prizes, including a $100 gift Barnes & Noble certificate, an ARC of her next book, and many other author-donated prizes, including a hardcover copy of Shade. All you have to do to enter is donate to the United Nations Nothing But Nets campaign, to provide low-cost mosquito netting to malaria-vulnerable areas.

I wanted to bring a special book and review to your attention this week. For What It's Worth reviewed Swati Avasthi's Split, which I am currently having the intense pleasure of reading. Swati Avasthi is one of my class of 2k10 classmates, and she coordinated a domestic violence clinic for three years, which was where she got the idea for Split. (You can read more about that on her TeenReads guest blog.)

Anyway, at the end of the review are some startling statistics (even for me, who worked on a domestic violence/sexual assault hotline for a few years). I especially agree with this assessment:

I hate to say this is an “important” book because it brings to mind words like – boring – lecture – preachy, and this book is none of those things, but I do think it is an important story to read. Not much is written about boys who suffer from abuse and the effect that has on their relationships.

If I weren't so tired, I would be able to string together a coherent sentence about Split (which I'm about 3/4 finished). But I'm running on empty, so I'll just throw out words like, "heartbreaking," "brilliant," and "irresistible." I expect it to win a bajillion awards. (EDITED TO ADD: Finished it this morning and wanted to add, "marvelous" and "perfect" to the list.)

Off to sleep now. Tomorrow I'll have a very exciting announcement about the WVMP Radio vampire series!

Labels: blog tour, Contests, current contests, good, reading

• posted by Jeri @ 8:20 PM
• 4 comments

Help fight MS and get a free book!

The last two years I have had the pleasure of participating in the Multiple Sclerosis Society's Walk MS, a 5K walk to raise money to fight this debilitating disease.

In the past, I've offered a chance to win an Advance Review Copy (ARC) of my upcoming book to everyone who donated to my team. Then about six months ago, I read an article that cautioned against requiring contest entrants to make a purchase for the chance to win a prize. It makes it sort of like a raffle, which is sort of like gambling, which is not-so-sort-of prohibited in some states.

So this year, if you donate to my team, you won't get a chance at a free book. You'll get a free book. Period. Just like when I offered free copies of the trade paperback version of Bad to the Bone for people who donated to Doctors Without Borders' Haiti relief efforts. The rules are the same as before:

Rules:

1. Donate at least $15 to my team, then send your mailing address to me at jeri AT jerismithready DOT com (MS Walk's website will send me an e-mail notifying me of your donation). For every $15 you donate, I'll give you one signed book. So if you donate $30, you get two books, and above that, you can do the math.

2. Giveaway will continue while supplies last, or until 8am Eastern time, Saturday, April 10, whichever comes first. Please state your first and second choices from the following list. Requiem for the Devil and Shade are not eligible, since I have no copies.

Wicked Game
Bad to the Bone
Eyes of Crow
Voice of Crow
The Reawakened

3, International readers welcome. However, it costs a bundle to ship a book overseas (at least $10 more than domestic), so if you are outside the US, please be a pal and only do this if you really really intend to read the book or give it to someone who will.

4. Retail value of books: $7.99 (Wicked Game and Bad to the Bone) and $15 (Eyes of Crow, Voice of Crow, and The Reawakened).

5. Please allow 6-8 weeks for delivery.

6. I'll personalize the book to you, unless you request otherwise (if you'd like me to sign it to a friend for a gift or simply put "eBay auction winner" ;-).

Thank you very much in advance for helping this great cause!

Labels: Contests, good

• posted by Jeri @ 8:43 AM
• 3 comments