LA SCBWI 2009-quickie interviews

Today I wanted to interview some first time conference-goers. And I found some adorable, fantastic YA writers! Both Heather L. Hansen and Amanda K. Morgan will be at this year’s LA SCBWI conference. Say Hi if you see them!

Heather L. Hansen

Amanda K. Morgan

So, this is your first time at the LA SCBWI Conference. What are you looking forward to most?

Heather: You mean besides hanging out with you, networking at the bar and partying till dawn?
Wait. There is going to be some actual work being done, right?
I’m looking forward to meeting new people. It’s my favorite part of going to conferences!

Amanda: I'm really looking forward to meeting all the great people that will be there! And the workshops sound fantastic.

As far as investments go, do you think LA is worth the cash?

Heather: Hard to tell since I haven’t attended yet. ;)

I will say this, there hasn’t been a conference yet where I haven’t learned something invaluable. Even if what I learned was that it’s probably not a good idea to drink five cups of coffee before an hour long keynote speech. Kidding. Sort of.

So, yes, if you’re serious about your career, I think that conferences in general are worth the cash.

Amanda: Absolutely! I love SCBWI. Of course, this is all easier for me since I'm press and I'll be there to do interviews as well as learn!

What is your current writing status?

Heather: I’m represented by Mark McVeigh of The McVeigh Agency. He’s super awesome and has a hot sense of style.

Amanda: Seeking representation. :) In the meantime, I write biographies/press releases for bands and educational articles.

What is the dream scenario from the conference?

Heather: I want to have lots of fun. If I leave with a smile on my face and lots of fun stories, that’s worth it for me.

Amanda: Besides meeting a really cool agent/editor who falls instantly in love with my work? Actually, I'm just looking forward to meeting all the great writers, agents, and editors, and getting some excellent interviews!

Poolside Gala--are you dressing up or down? I NEED to know!

Heather: This question is the bane of my current existence. The current outfit I have is dressy. However… we shall see after this weekend. I have shopping to do. That may change.

Amanda: I'm somewhere in the middle. I'm wearing a dress, but it's a cute little plaid thing with ruffles down the front.

And what do you really think you’ll take from the conference?

Heather: Hopefully lots of new friends!

Amanda: Anything and everything! I'm hoping to learn tons and get some great interviews!

Thanks, Heather and Amanda! We’ll follow up with you two after the conference. And good luck having that fun time... it's not to hard to achieve at such a fanTAStic conference! Can't wait to see you. :-)

To learn more about Heather L. Hansen visit her here.

To learn more about Amanda K. Morgan, visit her here.

6 days...

Seven days and counting...

Only seven days until I'll arrive at the LA SCBWI 2009 conference! I'm so excited!!! Just a few things to get you ready--even if you won't be able to attend this year (which makes me cry just a little) you can follow along with all the excitement on the SCBWI Conference Blog! Me along with a fabulous team of the best bloggers will be live tweeting and blogging all the important stuff! Workshops, panels, lobby gossip, fashion disasters... (I'm totally kidding about the last two, but you know me, I'll jazz it up somehow).

Up on the SCBWI Conference Blog already, we have two amazing interviews with Ellen Hopkins (LOVE HER!) and Charles Flowers. You can also find all of Team Blog's info. Click to follow the blog so you can keep up to date!

I might just put up a post directing you to that blog while I'm in LA, because really, I'm not sure I'll have time to post twice... hm. Let me think about it. What if I get some fabulous Barbie photos??? Shoot. It just hit me. I should have dressed as a Barbie for the poolside gala. Dang it! Why do I always think of these things too late!!!

Sigh. Well, if you'll be in LA, please leave a comment with a link to your blog. I'd love to see you there!

Seven days...

More Barbies And The New Cut!

My daughter pretty much takes the camera whenever she wants. Usually it's pictures of the dogs. Or the dog's toes. Or the pieces of plastic that used to be her Ken doll's hand before the dog chewed it. Lately, she's been producing these awesome Barbie soap operas. I promise you, I have nothing to do with this!

I found these today after taking the camera from her to take pictures of my new hair. Ah, the hair. Those of you that follow me on Twitter know that I got a bad haircut the other day. I was DEVASTATED!!!!! I'm going to another person next week to fix it, but for now, it's just a source of constant tears. I'm not usually this shallow, but I'm going to be live blogging next week! I was the next Joan Rivers!!!!!

Anyway, here's the end scene from Sophie's Soap Opera--and I think I'm going to let her shoot my book trailer! And then at the end, some sad hair shots. Have a great day!

And yes, I actually cried. Don't make fun of me.

Now I feel a little better

Well, I had sort of a bad day. I won't complain, because truly, it could be worse. But there were some awesome things that helped. And they are all courtesy of Sophia.

First, when I went to upload a video from my camera, I found some pictures she'd taken by herself. Honestly, I was blown away. Check these out: (And they are in order!!!!)

Oh, snap! He's moved on already?

I don't know, something tells me that when she grows up, Sophie is going to love my books. :-)

We Interrupt Your Regularly Scheduled Blogpost

Hey all! I will be offline for two days, but no worries, I'll be back soon! Deadlines are a lot harder to make with all the fun times to be had online!!!

So if you have my number and have anything to tell me, call me. Otherwise, I might check my email once or twice so no worries there either. When I get back I'll try to have some fun stories and pictures!

Have a nice rest of the weekend!

-Suz

Beat the heat... and the deadline

My deadline for my book 2 revision is almost here, and so is a heat wave!!!! Dude, my air conditioning is clinging to life, and it doesn't work in my bedroom. *dies. But do you know where the weather is nice? On the coast. But in order for me to go there, I'd have to blow off writing for the day and I just can't do that!

So how about some suggestions? How can I beat the heat (at home) so that I can kick this deadline in the rear?

Operation: Supermodel- Update!

So of course I'm only joking about the supermodel part, but I have been trying to get in shape before the LA Conference. Winter was not kind to me. We've had a tough year, but in February, I decided to get past it, and get in shape!

So, with ten days to go.... I've lost just over 11 pounds since February!!!! I only have four more to lose and I can't believe I lost that much weight! I mean, it wasn't easy. I've had to skip more than a few helpings of cheesy fries. But I've been working out like crazy. I have a pic--which my husband took and it makes me look REALLY short. (I'm 5'3) But yeah! I've almost hit my goal!!!!!!! And I'm getting fries the SECOND I get to LA. :-)

Sweet or Salty?

I read a lot of books, and I write a lot of them too. Some are fun and cute like The Naughty List, and some are darker and more serious. I'd say my writing library is about half and half.

I was wondering today, which do I prefer? I was thinking about when The Naughty List comes out, all the fun I could have with promotions. Visits with balloons and candy necklaces (cuz I love candy), funny contests. With my other books, I would be doing different kinds of promoting all together. And I'm totally excited about doing different things. I love variety (and fear commitment).

Well, what I decided is that I love both! But I think I prefer to read the fun stuff. Now this is just me personally. I love to laugh. I love to write funny, random things that crack me and my friends up. And as many of you know, I love to use the LOL keys.

Which do you like best? Sweet or Salty? Of course, books have both. Even The Naughty List has its touching moments. But in general, do you like your books to be serious, funny, both? And what are some of your faves? Tell me!

Oh, and by the way. The Naughty List was mentioned in PW's Spring 2010 Sneak Previews! I was so happy and excited!!!!! Also, check out Lauren Oliver, author of Before I Fall. She's on it too! Congrats, Lauren!

My Last Interview

Not like, forever. But my last interview until after the conference. When I'm there, I'll be turning the tables and asking my own questions. Heh heh. Be afraid unsuspecting writers. I have Naughty questions. (not really)

Anyways, here's the interveiw I did over at As The Plot Thickens. Check it out and comment if you'd like!

Have a great week!!!!!!

-Suz

GET READY FOR LA!

With only a few weeks to go, I wanted to remind you that I'll be in LA live-blogging for SCBWI with an awesome team! I'll be posting throughout the day and tweeting, so make sure you subscribe so you won't miss a moment!

Where can you find the conference excitement as it happens?? HERE on the official blog. Also, you can follow the team on twitter! All the links will be posted below.

And remember, if you see me, come say hi! I'd love to meet you and possibly even interview you about your conference experience!!!

-Suz

Conference Blog: http://scbwiconference.blogspot.com/

To follow Alice Pope on Twitter, click here.
To follow Jaime Temairik on Twitter, click here.
To follow Jolie Stekly on Twitter, click here.
To follow Paula Yoo on Twitter, click here.
To follow Suzanne Young on Twitter, click here.
To follow Lee Wind, click here.

You can also follow SCBWI by clicking here, where you'll find tweets linking to all the SCBWI Conference Blog posts.

I'm so lucky!

Casey McCormick writes one of my favorite blogs, Literary Rambles. So when she asked to interview me, I was stoked!

If you get a chance, check it out! She's great at coming up with completely fresh and interesting questions! Oh, and peek at her regular feature Agent Spotlight. It's the PERFECT way to learn more about popular agents.

Thanks, Casey!!! Find the interview here!

Back to work

ing out! I only have a few more weeks until the LA Conference and Project Supermodel has fallen apart. But have no fear, now that my family is gone, I plan to dedicate the next few weeks to my tranformation. Well, that and revising book 2. But you know, that's not a big deal, right? haha.

Anyway, I'm back to work and hope to get you a title and cover for book 2 soon!!!!

Suz

The Saddest Day of the Year

I won't post pictures because I'll be a blubbery mess, but today my family heads back to NY. Since I left NY in 98, I only get to see my family once a year. They fly out to Oregon and spend a week or two with me. And it's always awesome.

But today is the day they leave. And no matter how many years we do this, it breaks my heart each time.

Goodbye, Mom. I'll count the days until next year. :-(

Sand in the City!

We went to downtown Portland today because they were having a sand castle building competition--in the middle of the city!!!

Here are some of my favorite pics:

UP!

Let's Talk Cool

We went to the movies tonight. But not at just any theatre. We went to the Mission theatre. It is so awesome and best yet, they have a bar menu!!!!!!

Since we'd seen Harry Potter earlier in the day, we thought we'd spice up the night. We watched Drag Me To Hell. haha. Now, Evil Dead 2 is like, my favorite horror movie ever. This is very similiar and with the people around me drunk and happy, it made it that much more fun!!!

Here's the pics!!!

Happy Friday!

And coming soon, a post about the LA Conference!!!!!!

Beachy

CANNON BEACH:



Joey playing ninja with a shovel



The sis helping Sophie build a castle

Me posing with the Goonies' rock!!!

Mom

Vacation so far...

A day at the zoo...

The insect zoo

Sophie sees the scorpion

Sis with the kids