Kimberly Pauley

Book Launch Party: Day 13: Debra Garfinkle

All About D. L. Garfinkle
My guest today is the very talented Debra L. Garfinkle. I loved her first book Storky and she’s done great things since then, like Stuck in the 70’s and The Band books for teens and the children’s series, Supernatural Rubber Chicken (I smile every time I say that). Believe it or not, she was an Economics major and also worked as an attorney for nine yers. Go figure! Today she lives in Orange County with her family where she’s also an award-winning humor columnist for the Aliso Viejo News and the Laguna Niguel News sections of the Orange County Register.

You can learn more about Debra at her official website, www.dlgarfinkle.com.

All About Poultry in Motion…
Poultry in Motion, the third book in the Supernatural Rubber Chicken series, comes out September 9. It features mean girl cliques, insect-loving boys, dogs who lick too much, and of course, an ornery, wish-granting, talking rubber chicken. The series has been compared to Captain Underpants, which Debra thinks is a terrific compliment.
 
The Q&A

Here’s my question for Debra…

Your first book, Storky, has a male protagonist. Was it hard to “write like a boy”?

And her answer…

It really wasn’t. I have two younger brothers and I’ve always had a tomboy side. I am also a big believer in critiques, and the two guys in my critique group and my male editor stopped me from sounding too female.

For my Supernatural Rubber Chicken series, I read all the books out loud to my sons and had them raise their hands when they were bored or didn’t understand something. Having  male kid feedback was really helpful.

And Debra’s question for me…

I love your book Sucks to Be Me. It’s so funny and unique! Did the first publisher who saw it snatch it up, or was it a more arduous process to get published?

And my answer…

Thanks! As for your question…hmmm…well, both, kind of. Mirrorstone was the first publisher to see the book, but the whole process was a little arduous and it did take a while…I started off sending the manuscript out to agents and they all basically told me that they liked it but didn’t think vampires were a good bet (this was before Twilight hit it huge). Then a friend of mine that had written books for Mirrorstone said her editor was looking for paranormal YA and offered to introduce me. They considered it for a good long time before I heard back (I think roughly 9 months? Maybe more, I can’t remember now). So technically it was the first publisher…but it wasn’t an overnight kind of thing.

I’d actually given up on the book and was working on other, non-vampire related stuff. But I’m really glad Mirrorstone picked it up as the staff there are all wonderful, wonderful people. I hope that they’ll be able (& willing!) to publish the sequel (there’ve been some direction changes there back towards their core fantasy stuff, so there’s no guarantee…hey, everyone reading this who loves STBM…feel free to write Mirrorstone and tell ‘em how much you want to see a sequel! I’ve got all kinds of craziness planned for Mina, so I really do hope the sequel sees the light of day.).

The Giveaway

Want to win a copy of Poultry in Motion? All you’ve got to do to win a copy is visit Debra’s website and then email me at kim @ kimberlypauley.com with the subject line “Debra Goes Supernatural!” and tell me…what was your favorite writer’s tip out of the ones she gives on her site? Be sure to enter by September 14th!

And don’t forget to check out all the Sucks to Be Me Book Launch details for more giveaways!

Tags: book, D. L. Garfinkle, Giveaways, kimberly pauley, sucks to be me, Supernatural Rubber Chicken
Posted in Books, Giveaways, Q&A | 3 Comments »

Book Launch Party: Day 2: Marlene Perez

All About Marlene
My guest today is the wonderfully friendly and probably sleep-deprived (she recently had twins!!!) Marlene Perez. Marlene has two awesome books debuting this year: Dead is the New Black (which you can win a copy of…keep reading!) in September and Love in the Corner Pocket (out this summer!). Marlene has also written as Lana Perez (middle grade books…super fun ones, too). She watches waaaayyy too much TV (or so she says) and lives in sunny Southern California. She’s also got a psychotic cat (like me)…I wonder, what percentage of authors do? It seems like a lot. Who needs a well-adjusted dog?

You can learn more about Marlene at her official website or her LiveJournal blog.

All About Dead is the New Black
Dead is the New Black sounds seriously intriguing. It’s told from the point of view of Daisy Giordano, one of a family of psychics who lives in Nightshade, California. Teenage girls are being mysteriously attacked all over town, including at Nightshade High School, where Daisy Giordano is a junior. When Daisy discovers that a vampire may be the culprit, she can’t help but suspect head cheerlead Samantha Devereaux, who returned from summer break with a new “look.” Samantha looks a little…well, dead, and all the popular kids at school are copying her style. Is looking dead just another fashion trend for pretty popular Samantha, or is there something more sinister going on? To find out, Daisy joins the cheerleading squad….

The Q&A

Here’s my question for Marlene…

You have soundtracks for each of your books on your website…so, if you had to do a soundtrack for your life, what would be on it (and I also love Etta James, by the way!)?

And her answer…

Oh, wow, this is a great question, but my answers would probably change on a daily basis. I have to admit that some of my favorite songs ended up in the DEAD IS books. Here’s what the soundtrack of my life would look like today (and I made myself limit it to a lucky thirteen songs.)

Taking Care of Business by Bachman Turner Overdrive (because anyone who went to high school with me knows that this is the song everyone did “The Alligator”—it’s a dance– to back in high school. Ask me to demonstrate it sometime.)

Piece of My Heart by Janis Joplin (best.singer.ever.)

Saturday Night by the Bay City Rollers (my FAV group in junior high, what can I say? I loved all that tartan and I’m a sucker for accents.)

We Close Our Eyes by Oingo Boingo (best song ever! Reminds me how short our time is.)

At Last by Etta James (Gorgeous song and it reminds me of my husband. But then again, so does any K.C. and the Sunshine Band song, so there you go.)

Goody Two Shoes by Adam & The Ants (Floppy pirate shirts. And war paint. And a rockin’ good beat.)

Fell in Love with a Boy by Joss Stone (I love her voice)

Love Removal Machine by The Cult (who doesn’t want to dance when this song comes on your I-Pod?)

If It Be Your Will by Leonard Cohen (Leonard Cohen is THE MAN, although the version by Antony is pretty awesome too.)

Sometime Around Midnight by The Airborne Toxic Avengers (I love this song because of the way the lyrics tell such a complete and relatable story.)

Every Day I Write the Book by Elvis Costello (kind of a reminder really.)

Bowie by Flight of the Conchords (this kills two birds with one stone because I love David Bowie and nothing makes me laugh more than the Flight of the Conchords, except maybe The Office.)

Any song from the Once More, with Feeling episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (I’m a huge Buffy fan and probably scared the beejesus out of Joss Whedon on the exhibit floor of Comic-Con one year. I think Buffy informed the work of a lot of the paranormal fiction we’re seeing right now, especially in the vampire/werewolf category.)

And Marlene’s question for me…

How did you decide which vampire conventions to throw out and which to keep? For instance, in SUCKS TO BE YOU, Mina’s father loves garlic.

Or

What’s your favorite beverage? And no fair saying a pint of O negative.

And my answer…

Let’s see, I think I’ll just tackle both. :-) Last one first, since its easy…most of the time I just like a drink of really cold water (no ice). But I do *love* a nice cold glass of real lemonade (ooooh, or strawberry lemonade. yum!). Though I do partake in a nice glass of red wine periodically…(less so now with the baby…geez, I’m a cheap date now!).

As for the vampire conventions…well, I did a lot of research. Some of the ones that it may seem like I “threw out” in the book are actually “true” – in the sense that they follow the original legends and myths more so than they follow the common vampire mythos of today. Like the eye color being blue or green – that’s straight out of real vampire mythology. Some myths didn’t have a real basis in the legends, however, and for those I just went with what seemed funny to me or would work best for the “vampire vision” I had in my head. The garlic in particular…I couldn’t find anything in the ancient myths that really indicated that garlic would repel vampires, so I decided to go the opposite route to most vampire tales.

And BTW, Marlene, I *love* your song choices!

The Giveaway

Now then, the part I’m sure you’ve been waiting for…how to win that hot, hot, hot copy of Dead is the New Black…all you gotta do is go visit Marlene’s website and tell me which of the songs she posted in her soundtrack lists is your fav and why. Pretty easy, huh? Just email your answer to me at kim @ kimberlypauley.com with the subject line “When was black the new black, anyway?” by September 2nd, 2008.

And don’t forget to check out all the book launch par-tay details (including how to win an awesome HUGE prize pack of stuff)!

Tags: authors, book, Giveaways, kimberly pauley, marlene perez, sucks to be me
Posted in Books, Giveaways, Q&A | 7 Comments »

The Official Sucks to Be Me Book Launch Par-tay!

Woot!!!! My book is officially out today!! You have no idea how long a journey this has been. It’s all good though…I’m here! And you’re in luck…the official Sucks to Be Me Book Launch party is goin’ on until September 10th! I’ve got a bunch of awesome guest authors (like Lauren Myracle and Alan Gratz and…geez, lots more of my favs!) and a bunch of prizes to give away. And even better? A whopping big prize pack at the end!

Here’s how it works…every day from now through Sept. 10th I’ll be featuring a different author and an associated giveaway. You can come back each day to enter for that giveaway (and to learn about some of the coolest authors around!!)…you’ll have a whole week to enter for each one. Each blog launch party day that you enter for will also give you an entry for the grand Poo-bah of Prize Packs (sponsored by Mirrorstone, my publisher, and little ‘ol me). And on September 11th will be a final entry day for the grand prize pack. So, what’ll be in the grand prize pack? Nice of you to ask…

• Sucks to Be Me (autographed)
• A Sucks to Be Me t-shirt (your choice of S, M, or L)
• A Sucks to Be Me handmade (by my super talented ultra-cool editor) stuffed bat that is too cute for words (designed by the awesome Emi Tanji)
• Various vampire-themed paraphanelia (glow-in-the-dark fangs, bite mark sticker tattoos, etc.)
• A Practical Guide to Monsters (autographed)
• A Practical Guide to Wizardry (autographed)
• A Practical Guide to Dragons
• A Practical Guide to Dragon Riding
• Time Spies, Secret in the Tower (autographed)
• Time Spies, Message in the Mountain
• Endless Quest, Search for the Pegasus
• Hallowmere, In the Serpent’s Coils (autographed)
• Supernatural Rubber Chicken, Fowl Language
• Supernatural Rubber Chicken, Fine Feathered Four Eyes
• Bronze Dragon Codex
• The Stowaway
• All contained in a super-cool Mirrorstone tote bag!

Extra Entries!

You want even more entries for this incredibly awesome prize pack?? Okay…here’s what you can do…if you’ve read my book (and hey, starting today anyone can!), post a review online and send me an email at kim @ kimberlypauley.com telling me where you posted it (um, one caveat, of course…if you hated it (which I seriously hope you don’t!) you can tell me…but please don’t tell the world. ). You can post up to 5 reviews somewhere (your blog, for instance, or Amazon or Barnes & Noble or Powell’s, etc.) to get up to 5 extra entries.

If you haven’t read it yet but still want an extra entry, either a) post about the online book launch and link to this site on your blog (or somewhere) and tell me where you posted it (those who’ve read it can also get one more extra entry this way…just point me to the post) or b) tell a friend about my book and email me with your story about how you did. How easy is that??

The grand prize contest closes on September 21st, so be sure to get all your entries (extra or otherwise) in before then!

For your convenience, I’ll be updating links to all of the book launch entries here as the party goes on:

Day 1: Aug. 26: Cynthia Leitich Smith 
(win Tantalize (signed) + a t-shirt + stickers!) WINNER: Poodle649 (Vanessa)

Day 2: Aug. 27: Marlene Perez 
(win Dead is the New Black) WINNER: Lauren Rusiloski

Day 3: Aug. 28: Lauren Myracle 
(win Bliss) WINNER: Diana Heriford

Day 4: Aug. 29: Tanya Lee Stone 
(win A Bad Boy Can Be Good for a Girl (signed) ) WINNER: Laura Koenig

Day 5: Aug. 30: Lauren Mechling 
(win Dream Girl) WINNER: Moriah David

Day 6: Aug. 31: Alan Gratz
(win Something Rotten (signed)) WINNER: Nancy Sanchez

Day 7: Sept. 1: Alyson Noël
(win Cruel Summer) WINNER: Allie Jones

Day 8: Sept. 2: Cecil Castelluci
(win Boy Proof) WINNER: Lucy Dason

Day 9: Sept. 3: Kristin O’Donnell Tubb
(win Autumn Winifred Oliver Does Things Different) WINNER: James Nichols

Day 10: Sept. 4: Tiffany Trent
(win Hallowmere: Queen of the Masquerade (signed)) WINNER: Diana Dang

Day 11: Sept. 5: Lara M. Zeises
(win Anyone But You) WINNER: paradoxrevealed

Day 12: Sept. 6: E. Rose Sabin
(win A School for Sorcery (signed)) WINNER: Tami (black roze)

Day 13: Sept. 7: D. L. Garfinkle
(win Supernatural Rubber Chicken: Poultry in Motion) WINNER: Elizabeth Mays

Day 14: Sept. 8: Dan Ehrenhaft
(win a surprise prize) WINNER: Carrie Harris

Day 15: Sept. 9: Kathy Erskine
(win Quaking (signed) + cool stickers and stuff) WINNER: Amy Smith

Day 16: Sept. 10: Niki Burnham
(win Goddess Games (signed)) WINNER: Bunny B

Day 17: Sept. 11: Grand Prize Contest
(extra entries must also be rec’d by the end date)! enter by Sept. 21st

And remember, tell all your friends!

Tags: authors, book, book launch, Giveaways, kimberly pauley, sucks to be me
Posted in Books, Giveaways | 67 Comments »

Sticker shock!

Isn’t this cool? Here’s a sneak peek at the stickers that my publisher will be giving away at conventions (like the ALA one, which I’ll be attending) for Sucks to Be Me. Sweet, huh?

Tags: book, promotion, stickers, sucks to be me
Posted in Books | 12 Comments »

The Max is here!

I’m pleased to announce the arrival of the newest Pauley — Royce Maxwell (Max) Pauley. He arrived, as per schedule, on March 10th at 2:20 PM (though I’d been working on his arrival since the night before) and weighed in at 5 lbs. 14 ounces and a nice healthy 19 1/2 inches long. Isn’t he a cute peanut?

He’s doing well now, though he’s definitely keeping me busy! For anyone interested in more cute baby pictures than you can shake a stick at, check out our family blog, The Pauleys Go to Chicago.

In other book related news, my publisher sent me some additional ARCs, so I have more to give away in the ARC contest! So be sure to send in your entry!

Tags: ARC contest, baby, book, Max Pauley
Posted in Giveaways, Personal | 2 Comments »