Awesome Authors: Terra Elan McVoy

Today's Awesome Author is Terra Elan McVoy, who wrote the upcoming debut novel Pure and is also the manager of Little Shop of Stories, an independent bookstore in Decatur, GA. She was born in Tallahassee, FL and is currently in pursuit of the perfect cupcake recipe.

Blogs are a central part of the Bradford Novels universe. What's the difference between a blog and a diary?
Well a diary is usually very private. Often it has a lock and you hide it under your bed. Maybe you have some kind of trap rigged up so you can tell if someone else has read it. But a blog? That is for everyone! Even your grandma could look you up and read it!

Spencer Grace Kelly, the main character in GoldenGirl, is named after her distant relative, the Princess of Monaco. What's your favorite Grace Kelly movie, and why?
Rear Window is my favorite because she's so lovely and calm and suave in it. Plus—duh—the outfits.

GoldenGirl is full of scandals and exposed secrets. What was the biggest scandal at your high school? Did your classmates discover any of your deep, dark secrets?
A really big scandal that happened at my high school centered around my biology teacher. We were doing our standard section on the birds and the bees, and he gave us an assignment that required us to catalog all the available contraceptives at a drugstore. Some parents complained. Our teacher was asked to apologize for giving the offending assignment but he wouldn't, and as a consequence he left the school and went to teach elsewhere. We were all very upset by this and had t-shirts made and contacted the news and staged a walk-out and were in the local paper and everything. This had nothing to do with any of my deep, dark secrets though, which fortunately I kept to myself!

What's the worst thing you ever did to a friend? Are you still friends with her or him?
I think probably the worst thing I ever did was to not ever forgive one friend of mine for something bad she did to me. I am still not speaking to her.

What are your most recent books? What new projects are you working on now?
My first novel, Pure, is due out in April of this year. I am working on putting together a second novel as we speak!

Awesome Authors: kc dyer

Today we're very lucky to have Awesome Author kc dyer with us!
Here's a short author bio, in her own words: kc dyer is a professional liar, prevaricator, and provocateur. Her published work includes: SEEDS OF TIME (2002), SECRET OF LIGHT (2003), SHADES OF RED (2005), MS.ZEPHYR'S NOTEBOOK (2007), and A WALK THROUGH A WINDOW (2009). More in the works!
She can be found blogging at leftwriter and Darby Speaks, or hanging about her website at kcdyer.com. Facebook fanpage can (not so surprisingly) be found at kc dyer. (Darby has a fan-page, too, right HERE.) She tweets @kcdyer on Twitter. You can email her at contact@kcdyer.com.

Blogs are a central part of the Bradford Novels universe. If you have a blog, why did you start blogging, and how did you come up with the name for your blog?
I've been blogging for almost three years—started in 2006. For me, it's a great way to stay connected with the people who read my books and the people in my writing world—friends, other writers and industry folks—who may not live where I do geographically.
My blog is called leftwriter. I called it that because I like to look at things from both sides, and while I blog a lot about my writing, I also blog a bit about the writing world and everything connected to it.
I blog a LOT. I run the blog for the Surrey International Writers' Conference, and I contribute to other blogs all the time. I'm a regular contributor to the Children's Writers & Illustrators of BC (CWILLBC) blog. And, just recently, I've started a new blog for the main character in my new book. The book is called A Walk Through a Window, and the character's name is Darby Christopher. I thought it would be fun to let her out into the world a little before her book arrives in March, so she's got a blog, too!

What's your favorite thing about blogging?
I think my favourite thing about blogging is the connection I can have with people all around the world. I get hits on my blog from all over the world and I have a lot of fun connecting with other readers and writers on the 'Net.

What's the difference between a blog and a diary?
For some people, not much. They put their lives online for the world to see, and for them this can be a really cathartic experience. For me? Not so much. Occasionally I'll run a 'Dog Blog' post on my blog, and I talk a bit about every day things, but in general all the personal stuff is off limits. I try to be really respectful of my kids' lives and try to stay away from posting about them online. (Besides—they are bigger than I am now. I'm not crazy!)

Spencer Grace Kelly, the main character in GoldenGirl, is named after her distant relative, the Princess of Monaco. What's your favorite Grace Kelly movie, and why?
Hmmm. I think either To Catch A Thief with Cary Grant or Rear Window with Jimmy Stewart. I love those adventure stories (and the leading men . . . )

What are your most recent books?
My most recent novel is Ms. Zephyr's Notebook. It was published in 2006, and the story of Cleo and Logan is told inside the pages of a teacher's notebook. Here's the blurb from my website:
When Logan Kemp hurls himself into a rugby scrum one fall morning, he has no idea that by afternoon he'll be fighting for his life. Worse, Logan learns the only other patient on his ward is a troubled girl named Cleo who may not just be hospitalized for a broken wrist. When all he wants is his regular life back, the thought of Cleo throwing away her own leaves Logan determined to change her mind.
Cleopatra Jones wants to design the perfect life; a teenage rugby player and a few well-meaning health professionals are not going to stand in her way. But Cleo soon finds that life—and even death—can interfere with the best-laid plans.
Burdened with prejudice and pain, these teens reinforce the walls that have kept them safe in their own worlds. But the secrets in a teacher's tattered notebook show them how the word sustenance can have more than one meaning. And facing the biggest challenge of their lives, Logan and Cleo discover something about the powerful forces of redemption and forgiveness.

My new book is coming out in March this year. It's called A Walk Through a Window, and it's a ghost story and a time travel story all wrapped up in one. Here's the blurb:
If you had a chance to step through a window to the past, would you take it?
A Walk Through a Window is the story of Darby, a young girl forced to spend the summer with grandparents she doesn't know in a place she feels she can never belong. But when a boy down the street extends a hand, it is more than friendship he offers. Together they discover a magical stone window frame that transports them to the very centre of the dramas of our past: the Underground Railroad; the coffin ships of the Irish Potato Famine; and even the Inuit as they crossed the Bering Land Bridge into North America.
Over the course of the long, very strange summer, Darby is forced to question part of own her life. And as tragedy threatens her family, that magical walk through a window offers Darby new insight into the people she has always taken for granted—and changes forever her perception of her country.

What new projects are you working on now?
Right now I'm working on two new books—the sequel to Darby's story is in the works, and I am working on a new series that's a kind of steam-punk time travel fantasy. I always like to keep things interesting!

Awesome Authors: Julie Linker

Spencer's a big fan of tiaras, so I'm sure she'd approve of our guest today, author Julie Linker. Julie's first two books BOTH have tiaras on the cover, so she's obviously made of awesome.

Here's a short author bio, in her words: Julie Linker is the incredibly witty, charming, and fashionable author of the young adult novels, Disenchanted Princess and the recently released Crowned. To experience her awesomeness for yourself and read her blog, go to julielinker.com.

*The above bio may or may not contain a few slight exaggerations. However, the names of the books and the website are true.*

What's your favorite thing about blogging? I probably shouldn’t admit this, but I’m not all that in love with blogging. Well, that’s not exactly true—I like blogging, but I always feel guilty when I’m doing it because I feel like I should be writing for “real.” You know, on a book. That being said, my favorite thing about blogging is definitely reading the comments people post. So people, read my blog and post something!!

What's the difference between a blog and a diary? For me, the main difference between a blog and a diary is that the whole world can read my blog, but I would be MORTIFIED if even a single person read my diary. In fact, I’m really bad about shredding my diaries, which is a big no-no for a writer because you can get good writing material from them. But I’m too paranoid! Not because I’m living a secret scandalous life or anything but because I usually only write in my diary when I’m mad or upset. So every entry is like “You won’t believe what so-and-so said to me today. She’s so mean. And her hair is hideous.” Or, if something bad has happened and I’m sad, there will be a whole bunch of entries like “Life is pointless. Nothing makes sense. I can’t take this anymore.” (Because I’m very melodramatic in my diary.) But the deal is—I don’t really *mean* any of those things. I’m just scribbling them down in the heat of passion. It’s not an accurate reflection of my true feelings, which is why I wouldn’t want anyone to see it.
A blog, on the other hand, is something you want other people to read. You write a blog entry knowing and hoping people are going to read it. I actually think about what I’m writing in my blog because I don’t want to a) hurt anyone’s feelings; or b) sound like (too big of) a dork/moron.
So, Blog=public. Diary=private.

Spencer Grace Kelly, the main character in GoldenGirl, is named after her distant relative, the Princess of Monaco. What’s your favorite Grace Kelly movie, and why? This is a hard question! I love Rear Window, but I also love To Catch a Thief. Cary Grant, the French Riviera, scads of diamonds—who can resist that? But Rear Window has Jimmy Stewart, lots of spying, and a dead wife buried in the yard. And Grace Kelly wears fabulous outfits in both of them. As in, they’re so gorgeous they make me want to cry. Especially the white gown in Thief. You know the one I’m talking about.
Sigh. I wish they still made movies like that.

GoldenGirl is full of scandals and exposed secrets. What was the biggest scandal at your high school? Did your classmates discover any of your deep, dark secrets? Now I’m depressed. Because I’m racking my brain and I can’t come up with a single scandalous story from my high school. Sure, there were a few unplanned pregnancies and a couple of people who got busted for drugs, but as far as a big, juicy scandal . . . yeah, I’ve got nothing. And none of my classmates discovered any of my deep, dark secrets because I didn’t have any. In high school, I was—how can I put this delicately? A dork. A very sheltered, very innocent dork.

What’s the worst thing you ever did to a friend? Are you still friends with her or him?
My BFF and I went away to college together, along with a guy from our high school who was our really good friend. He was really great and we liked him a lot, but once we got on campus he started being really clingy. Siamese-twin clingy. It was smothering. And it was starting to interfere with our dating lives because everybody assumed he was either mine or my BFF’s boyfriend. We tried to talk to him about it, but he just didn’t get it. So, we ditched him. And not in a nice way. I still feel bad about it. Ashamed. We found him on the internet a few years ago and thought about contacting him and apologizing, but we didn’t have the guts. Maybe someday we’ll do it.

What are your most recent books? What new projects are you working on now?
My first book, Disenchanted Princess, was released in July ’07 and my second book, Crowned, just came out in November. Crowned is about two rival beauty queens, so if you like pageants, you should check it out! Currently, I’m working on another YA, but it doesn’t have a title yet. It involves the the war in Iraq and is a bit more “serious” than my previous two books.

Awesome Authors: Niki Burnham

Niki Burnham certainly is an Awesome Author. She is the RITA-Award winning author of twelve books, including Sticky Fingers, Goddess Games, and the Royally Jacked series. She is also a frequent blogger. You can read excerpts of her books, visit her bulletin board, and check out her blog at www.nikiburnham.com.

Blogs are a central part of the Bradford Novels universe. If you have a blog, why did you start blogging, and how did you come up with the name for your blog? I blog in two different places. Once a month, I post to the Simon Pulse Romantic Comedies blog. There, I mostly write about the process of writing (or, last month, about the tech guy at Apple who casually informed me that my hard drive was fried. Ouch!)
Then, I post roughly weekly to my own blog, The Go-Ahead, which is on my website and copied to MySpace and LiveJournal. The Go-Ahead is more for fun. I blog about television, Academy Awards fashion, writing, and a myriad of other topics, including baseball. (Picture me in a crowded room: "My name is Niki, and I am addicted to baseball. I understand that it's a sickness. . . . ")
I chose the title of the blog, The Go-Ahead, because I like the positive, optimistic connotations of the phrase. In baseball, a go-ahead run is one that—if the game is tied or your team is losing—puts your team in the lead. In writing, getting a "go-ahead" from your editor means that the publishing house loves the story you've submitted and wants to go to contract.

What's your favorite thing about blogging? It gives me a chance to have some back-and-forth with readers. I don't get a lot of comments on my blog, but I get a TON of e-mail about it from teens. It's usually along the lines of, "I totally agree with you about Kylie Minogue's outfit! I didn't want to put the comment on the blog, though, because I also have a question about something in one of your books. . . ." So that's cool. (Particularly when they agree with me about Kylie's outfits.)

What's the difference between a blog and a diary? I think of a diary as more of a log . . . a notation of things that happened to you over the course of a day, and how you felt about them. It's something you write for yourself. A blog, on the other hand, is more conversational. You know someone's reading it!

Spencer Grace Kelly, the main character in GoldenGirl, is named after her distant relative, the Princess of Monaco. What’s your favorite Grace Kelly movie, and why? Do the newsreels of her wedding count? I loved how both she and Prince Rainier looked nervous and happy at the same time.
As to films, while I loved both Rear Window and To Catch A Thief, my fave would have to be Dial M for Murder. None of the characters were completely good or completely bad. I like that ambiguity.

GoldenGirl is full of scandals and exposed secrets. What was the biggest scandal at your high school? There really weren't any huge scandals. Or maybe I just didn't know about them!

Did your classmates discover any of your deep, dark secrets? This is one of the upsides of being an Army brat. The longest I attended any school was three years, and all my friends moved from place to place, too. So if anyone had deep, dark secrets, it was tough to discover them. There wasn't enough time!
Not that I had any deep, dark secrets, of course.

What are your most recent books? Goddess Games is currently out in paperback. It's the story of three very different girls who are forced to room together while working at a mountain resort over the summer. Of course, each of them harbors secrets (and they want to keep it that way!)

What new projects are you working on now? I have several projects in the works, but I'm one of those superstitious writers who doesn't want to talk about a project until it's in the can. Is that so wrong? (I know, I know. More secrets!)

Awesome Authors: Lisa McMann

We are sooooo lucky to have Lisa McMann with us today! She is the author of the New York Times bestseller WAKE. Its upcoming sequel, FADE, arrives in February 2009 and the third book in the series, GONE, is slated for spring 2010. WAKE is a YALSA BBYA nominee and a Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adults. You can find Lisa on Myspace, Facebook, Goodreads, Shelfari, Twitter, and http://lisamcmann.com.

Blogs are a central part of the Bradford Novels universe. If you have a blog, why did you start blogging, and how did you come up with the name for your blog?
I started blogging several years ago as a way to tell funny stories about my family and general observations about life and writing. I had a small following of online friends and I used a pseudonym. A few years ago, I put that blog to rest and went "professional" with my blog. I called it Five Point Five, because I had a formula that said something like, if you write 5.5 words a minute for 5.5 hours a day, you'll end up with a 70,000-word novel in 5.5 weeks. Something like that, anyway. Now, my blog is simply my name, or WAKE, or something—I keep changing it.

What's your favorite thing about blogging?
I totally love the new button options after each post where people can check a "reaction" button. I usually have a "Cabe is so hott!!" option, and that one always gets the most votes, no matter what the post is about.

What's the difference between a blog and a diary?
A blog is so, like, OUT THERE. Public. I would never blog about my secrets. A diary is private. Sometimes a diary is just what's written in your thoughts.

GoldenGirl is full of scandals and exposed secrets. What was the biggest scandal at your high school? Did your classmates discover any of your deep, dark secrets?
I went to a private, Christian high school. People sent their kids there because they thought that would keep them away from drugs and stuff. SO not the case. There were major parties always going on. I didn't really go, though. I was sort of nerdy. And I was pretty private. I just collected everybody else's secrets so I could write them into stories. Muahahaha.

What are your most recent books? What new projects are you working on now?
The WAKE trilogy. Book 2, FADE, comes out this month (Feb) and continues the story of Janie and Cabe. I just finished writing GONE (Book 3), and that is in the editing stages—it is scheduled for spring 2010. I'm not yet sure what my next project will be, but I have a few ideas and I'll be announcing that on my blog as soon as I am able.

Awesome Authors: Nina Malkin

Nina Malkin, author of the upcoming YA book Swoon, which goes on sale in May 2009, has agreed to be our guest at the Bradford Novels blog today. I can't wait to read her new book, 'cause if this interview is any indication, it should have a very unique, entertaining voice.

Here's a short author bio, in her words:
I’m Nina Malkin. I tell stories. I’ve had a few novels published, and also a non-fiction book about the cats in my backyard (uh-huh, really). I’ve also written a lot for magazines, specializing in relationships and pop culture.

Blogs are a central part of the Bradford Novels universe. If you have a blog, why did you start blogging, and how did you come up with the name for your blog?


First, kudos to Micol on GoldenGirl and the whole brilliant blog-as-book concept. I could never come up with such a thing—I’m not a very techy person. I’ve never sent someone a message using my thumbs (though I have found another finger quite effective all by itself). I don’t own a cell phone, and have never actually read a blog, much less written one. That’s got to change, since there will be a blog on my website, ninamalkin.com, when it launches in May. No surprise that I’m calling it BLARGHHH! or maybe BLAHG. I’m sure there are many incredibly interesting blogs out there, blogs blogged by fascinating bloggers. Unlike bloggers, though, writers are boring. A blog on the minutiae of a writer’s day would be like: “Stared at computer. Chased cat. Scratched butt. Stared at computer again. Typed, typed, typed, typed . . . ”

Spencer Grace Kelly, the main character in GoldenGirl, is named after her distant relative, the Princess of Monaco. What’s your favorite Grace Kelly movie, and why?
 
The Hitchcock classics are all pretty cool: Rear Window, Dial M for Murder, To Catch a Thief. Lots of twists and turns, you’re never sure what the deal is till the very end. Grace Kelly was staggeringly beautiful if you like that blond goddess perfection thing. To Catch a Thief isn’t my favorite Hitchcock movie (that would be either Spellbound or Strangers on a Train) but it’s my favorite for Grace Kelly because of the amazing clothes she wears.

GoldenGirl is full of scandals and exposed secrets. What was the biggest scandal at your high school?
My high school didn’t have scandals. It had metal detectors. It was, I believe, the first high school in New York City with metal detectors built right in. So we weren’t really that worried about each other’s deep, dark secrets. We were more interested in not getting stabbed.

What’s the worst thing you ever did to a friend? Are you still friends with her or him?

I freaked on her. It came out in conversation that we had different beliefs about a sexual politics issue, and to me it was like finding out that your friend is a Nazi. I handled it rather poorly—I yelled at her and told her she made me sick. I insisted she drive me home, and we never spoke after that. This is a regret, because we’re all entitled to our own opinions. By the time I accepted that I’d overreacted and behaved badly it was too late.

What are your most recent books?
Swoon is out in May. It’s about love and lust, possession and obsession, vengeance and betrayal, desire and deception and bliss . . . a girl, a guy, another girl, a ghost, a golem . . . y’know, the usual.

What new projects are you working on now?
A novel about sisters. That, and bargello (which is a craft, not a dessert).

Awesome Authors: Eileen Cook

Today we're talking with debut YA author Eileen Cook. Apparently she loves dreaming up scandals and watching old movies, so she'd fit right in with Spencer and her crowd.

Author bio, in her words: Eileen Cook spent most of her teen years wishing she were someone else or somewhere else, which is great training for a writer. Eileen’s first book, a romantic comedy, Unpredictable was released in February 2008. Her next book, a young adult novel, What Would Emma Do?, was released December 2008.
You can read more about Eileen, her books, and the things that strike her as funny at www.eileencook.com. Eileen lives in Vancouver with her husband and two dogs and no longer wishes to be anyone or anywhere else.

What's your favorite thing about blogging? I love having a regular connection with readers that provides that immediate feedback. Writing books from the start of an idea to bookshelf is a looooong process. Blogging lets me fill that gap. Plus, I come across all kinds of odds and ends (like a hamster powered paper shredder) that I feel the need to share with others. I see it as a form of public service.

What's the difference between a blog and a diary?
My mom can see the blog. For that matter so can the rest of the world, so I try to keep any deep dark abiding dark secrets in my diary alone.

Spencer Grace Kelly, the main character in GoldenGirl, is named after her distant relative, the Princess of Monaco. What’s your favorite Grace Kelly movie, and why? I LOVE classic movies. I have a near un-natural relationship with the Turner Movie Channel. Some of my favorites are the Thin Man series. As for Grace Kelly, I love Dial M for Murder and Rear Window. Oh, and High Society. In fact, I pretty much liked all of them.

GoldenGirl is full of scandals and exposed secrets. What was the biggest scandal at your high school? Did your classmates discover any of your deep, dark secrets? My deep dark secret was that almost all of my scandals occurred in my imagination. In my mind, I had a very exciting life full of passionate romance, daring adventure, and ill advised risk taking. In real life I was far more boring. I was a part of a group that played a lot of pranks. We used to steal school mascots and that type of thing, but alas no scandals. However, there is always time, so who knows what I might get up to now.

What are your most recent books? What new projects are you working on now? My current book is What Would Emma Do? It explores what can happen if you kiss your best friend's boyfriend. (I told you I was full of scandals in my imagination.) I am currently working on another YA project (still untitled). It is a story of betrayal, the art of revenge, and classic movies. I had a ton of fun coming up with the various revenge plans. It turns out that I have a deep and abiding evil side. Who knew?

Awesome Authors: Amanda Marrone

Amanda Marrone grew up on Long Island and now lives in Connecticut with her family and talking dog Griffin. You can learn more about her and hear Griffin say “hello” here: www.amandamarrone.com.

Blogs are a central part of the Bradford Novels universe. If you have a blog, why did you start blogging, and how did you come up with the name for your blog? I started blogging after taking an online YA writer’s class that used LiveJournal as its virtual classroom. The instructor, author Lauren Barhnholdt, was a big blogger and I found a lot of other writers there. We were all sharing our writing journeys and successes as well as pictures of our kids and pets. I came up with my blog name after watching a really cheesy reality show called The Surreal Life. Being a mom and wife can be a bit unreal sometimes, so I came up with The Surreal Wife.

What's your favorite thing about blogging?
Meeting other writers and hearing from people who’ve read my books. It also gives me a great place to brag about my dog, Griffin, oh, and sometimes my kids, too.

What's the difference between a blog and a diary? A blog is a place to put yourself out there for the world to see, and a diary is a place to reflect on things privately. I’ve only kept one diary that was used as a sounding board when I had just turned seventeen and spent eight weeks in France as an au pair. I still have it and rereading it makes me cringe! I was horribly homesick, and it’s filled with all sorts of moaning about missing my boyfriend back in the states, doodles, song lyrics, and endless pages about how I was going to be a changed person when I got home. Yeah, that didn’t happen.

Spencer Grace Kelly, the main character in GoldenGirl, is named after her distant relative, the Princess of Monaco. What’s your favorite Grace Kelly movie, and why? It’s been a long time since I’ve seen this, but I loved High Society. I’m a huge musical fan, and Grace Kelly is just stunning in this one. I loved the telling moment when her finance gushes about putting her on a pedestal and you can see the wind being sucked out of her, because she she’s looking for an equal partner not an admirer.

GoldenGirl is full of scandals and exposed secrets. What was the biggest scandal at your high school? Did your classmates discover any of your deep, dark secrets?
There was one deep, dark secret that luckily only a few people found out about, but I sure wish no one had!

What are your most recent books? What new projects are you working on now? My most recent books are Uninvited and Revealers. Right now I’m working on a middle grade series about a twelve year old girl working in a magic repair shop, and I have two new young adult ideas I’m playing around with.

Awesome Authors: Aimee Friedman

We're so happy to have YA author Aimee Friedman as our guest today, especially since she wrote A Novel Idea, part of the Simon Pulse Romantic Comedies line that Micol has also written for. Aimee is the New York Times bestselling author of several books for teens, including South Beach, French Kiss, Hollywood Hills, and The Year My Sister Got Lucky. Born and raised in Queens, New York, Aimee has written stories and novels since she was very young, and today lives and works in Manhattan. Please visit her website.

Blogs are a central part of the Bradford Novels universe. If you have a blog, why did you start blogging, and how did you come up with the name for your blog? I don't have one solo blog, but I would love to start one. I used to blog more regularly on the Simon Pulse Romantic Comedy blog, but I've been negligent with my posts there as of late! The same goes for my Amazon blog, and the blog on my website, www.aimeefriedmanbooks.com. That will be my February resolution: to blog more!
I will say, though, that I am addicted to Facebook, which, with its updates and live feed, is very blog-like in nature.

What's your favorite thing about blogging?
I am a bit of an oversharer with my close friends and family, and there is something cathartic about blogging, about letting the world inside your daily life, lending your foibles and your feelings a kind of grandeur and resonance. Also, as a writer, I find blogging very freeing; there's less of the pressure to "get it right" that I usually feel when I'm sitting down to work on a novel. Something about the informal format and vibe of a blog lends itself to a looser, more relaxed writing style, and experience. Yay for blogging!

What's the difference between a blog and a diary?
I still think of diaries as somehow more private, something to be locked up and tucked into a desk drawer. Writing something by hand, as opposed to typing it on a laptop, creates an intimacy, a secrecy. A diary is something you write for yourself, a blog is something you write with an audience in mind, and a novel may fall somewhere between the two.

Spencer Grace Kelly, the main character in GoldenGirl, is named after her distant relative, the Princess of Monaco. What’s your favorite Grace Kelly movie, and why?
Growing up, my favorite Grace Kelly movie was High Society, because my mom loved it, and would make a point of watching it with me and my sister whenever it was on TV. I loved the sophistication, and the glamorous vibe, and the music! But once I was older, I discovered the amazing Hitchcock films Dial M for Murder and Rear Window, both starring Grace, and both sexy, smart, and stylish mysteries.

GoldenGirl is full of scandals and exposed secrets. What was the biggest scandal at your high school? Did your classmates discover any of your deep, dark secrets?
I attended the Bronx High School of Science, which is a very competitive public school in New York City. So, dorky as it sounds, some of the biggest scandals in school swirled around who was going to what college, SAT scores, and GPAs. I swear! Of course, there were also the who-is-dating-who scandals, the so-and-so-had-a-fight gossip, etc. I tried to keep my secrets pretty close to the vest in high school; sure, my best friends knew who I was crushing on and what my craziest dreams were, but I tended to be pretty private.

What’s the worst thing you ever did to a friend? Are you still friends with her or him?
I like to think of myself as a very loyal and trustworthy friend. My biggest friendship regrets are those friendships that, through laziness and the passage of time and my chronic inability to stay in touch, I have let slip away. Probably my second biggest regret is making prank phone calls to various friends when I was growing up! Prank calls were all the rage back then, before the age of cell phones, caller IDs, IMs, etc. Prank calls: funny in the moment, but not a great idea.

What are your most recent books? What new projects are you working on now?
My latest novel, The Year My Sister Got Lucky, came out last year and will be released in paperback this June. It's a tale of sisters, secrets, betrayal, ballet, and yes, even some IMing! My newest novel, Sea Change, which will be in stores this June, doesn't involve much blogging, but it does involve some serious romance, legend, and lore.