WINNER: 'Zac and Mia' book giveaway

Aaaaaaaaaand the lucky winner of the Zac & Mia giveaway is ...

LUX 

Congrats! And thanks to all who entered. 

Interview with A.J. Betts, plus 'Zac and Mia' book giveaway!

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I was lucky to receive an ARC of the 2012 Text Prize-winning book, Zac and Mia by A.J. Betts. 

As I (and many Aussie YA fans!) have come to expect; Zac and Mia was another triumph for the prestigious Prize, and it's another book I'll be passing on to many friends and family ... and you! Text has kindly offered one copy of Zac and Mia to give away, so do check out the competition details at the bottom of this post. 

And you can check out more interviews with A.J. Betts tomorrow and right up until August 1st, as she's doing a blog tour for the book - see a list of all her stops here.

In the mean time, I give you the author herself - A.J. Betts discussing 'sick lit', Perth talent and the OHMYGOD moment she won the Text Prize.

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Q: How were you first published – agent or slush pile?  

I sent my first manuscript (ShutterSpeed) directly to Fremantle Press’s slush pile. Luckily, they took me on.

Q: Are you a ‘plotter’ or a ‘pantser’ - that is, do you meticulously plot your novel before writing, or do you ‘fly by the seat of your pants’ and let the story evolve naturally?

Both. I spend a lot of time planning, brainstorming, graphing, scribbling, tabling, etc, but then when I'm writing, I allow the characters and story to take over, if they want to. I’m becoming more trusting in the process, and doing more of the plotting in my head (which sometimes means I’m not paying much attention to the real world…).

Q: How long did it take you to write ‘Zac and Mia’, from first idea to final manuscript?

Almost four-and-a-half years. The idea formed in February of 2009. I worked on the manuscript until May, 2012, then with my publisher, Text, for another year. It’s released on July 24, 2013.

Q: Where do story ideas generally start for you? Do you first think of the character, theme, ending? Or is it just a free-fall?

My novels begin with a moment - a snapshot of someone, somewhere. It’s very sensory. This moment is the precursor to whatever happens next. I have a sense of the story which may unfold, but not many specifics. Character and narrative develop in the first few chapters, by which time I usually know the ending. Theme evolves somewhere along the way.

Q: First up: last year’s Text Prize winner was Perth-born Myke Bartlett. You are the 2012 winner, and you’re Perth-based … is there a YA author conspiracy we should know about? Something in the water, perhaps?

Sheer talent ;-)  It's great to know that Perth writers, although so far from the eastern coast, are being represented nationally. Myke has since moved to Melbourne, so I may need another WA Text winner to keep me company.

Q: At what point did you decide to enter ‘Zac and Mia’ in the prestigious Text Prize?

I decided fourteen months prior, in 2011. I was teaching a creative writing unit at Curtin University and was raving about the Text Prize to my students. They responded: Well if it’s that good, why don't you enter it? And the challenge was on! How could I not? The manuscript was already drafted then, but I knew it needed more work if it was to have a real shot. I'm glad I took that extra year.

Q: And on that note: what was running through your head when it was announced that you’d WON the Text Prize?

Ohmygodohmygodohmygod. I was shopping with my Mum in Cairns when I got the call. I sat in a flower bed and had a little cry. As soon as we got home, I jumped in the pool.

Q: You are a secondary school English teacher. I wonder if you were inspired by the kids you teach while writing ‘Zac and Mia’? – do you pick up on their dialogue and use fragments of their overheard conversations? Have any of your pupils read the book? If so, what was their reaction?

None of my students have read this book...yet. I prefer to keep the manuscript under wraps as I'm working on it. I hope they enjoy it when it’s released, and I hope they can identify with the characters, as they have with my previous novels. I definitely draw on teenagers’ dialogue, more so conversations I overhear, rather than from those teenagers I know. I love eavesdropping.

Q: ‘Zac and Mia’ is a sad, but hopeful story about hope, fear, love, friendship and cancer. Not too long ago there was a media outcry about ‘sicklit’ and the abundance of depressing stories in YA. What do you have to say to those people who think teenagers shouldn’t be reading such doom and gloom?

I think teenagers, like adults, can read what they want, when they want, how they want. I was reading a lot of fantasy - historical and comedic - when I was a teen. If they want doom and gloom, however, Zac and Mia probably isn't for them. It's not a book that will depress readers. Cancer is the catalyst that brings my characters together, but isn’t a main focus of the book. The book doesn’t have melodrama, but it does have heart.

Q: What’s the appeal in writing for young adults? 

I'm writing as younger versions of myself, which is liberating and fun. Also, I probably haven’t grown up a lot...

Q: What are you working on right now, and when can we expect it to hit shelves!?

Right now I'm having a timely break (I'm actually answering these questions while on a cycling tour of France) but I have begun work on a novel set 300 years in the future...near Tasmania. It won't see daylight for a few years, I expect!

Q: Favourite author(s) of all time?

Still my childhood obsessions: Roald Dahl, Robin Klein, Douglas Adams. 

Q: Favourite book(s)? 

Impossible!!

Q: What advice do you have for budding young writers?

Keep reading. Write every day. Write a journal. Remember: not everything is supposed to be published. Maybe 0.5% of my writing makes it to print. Publication is not the only goal. Travel. Live with a curious mind and an open heart. Be vulnerable, but fearless.

•••

I have one copy of Zac and Mia to give away, kindly provided by Text Publishing.

How to enter:
☼ Become a follower of my blog (if you aren't already)

☼ Leave a comment on this blog post

☼ Include a way to contact you (e-mail addy is fine)

☼ One post per entrant

☼ This is a giveaway for AUSTRALIAN resident’s only!

☼ Contest closes August 15
I will announce the lucky winner on August 17

Aussie YA playlist for the Australia Day Book Giveaway Blog Hop

This is my post for the very special Australia Day Book Giveaway Hop, organized by the incredible Book’d Out and Confessions fromRomaholics.

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A song is a sense of time and place – for me, Elvis Presley’s ‘If I Can Dream’ will be irrevocably linked to driving through Rosebud on a burning summer day with my best friend. Likewise, Crowded Houses's 'Don't Dream It's Over' tastes like salt tears and takes me back to my Year 12 graduation ceremony. 

Songs hold memories and people, and for that reason whenever I read and love a book, I find a special song that encapsulates that story and those characters for me. Sometimes the book and the song are already entwined, like Paul Kelly’s ‘How to Make Gravy’ being the ballad of the Finch-Mackees, for youngest son Joe: “Hello Dom, it's Joe here”. Sometimes I’ve asked authors what songs they listened to while writing, as I did with Laura Buzo who introduced me to the artist Holly Throsby. Other times, it’s my unique reading and interpretation of the book that finds the song and forms its own connection. 

Below is a collection of my favourite Australian young adult novels, and the songs I associate with them. I would love to know if you associate songs with books and characters, and if you want to give me a little listening/reading recommendation, I’d be thrilled!

  Aussie YA playlist

·      The Piper’s Son by Melina Marchetta: listen to Paul Kelly ‘How to Make Gravy’ 

·      On The Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta: listen to ‘Flame Trees’ (original song by Cold Chisel, also a cover song by Sarah Blasko) 

·      Chasing Charlie Duskin by Cath Crowley: listen to Clare Bowditch ‘When The Lights Went Down’ 

·      Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley: listen to ‘Throw Your Arms Around Me’ by Hunters and Collectors 

·      Night Beach by Kirsty Eagar: listen to ‘Overture’ by Patrick Wolf 

·      Beatle Meets Destiny by Gabrielle Williams: listen to ‘I Want to Hold Your Hand’ by The Beatles 

·      Holier Than Thou by Laura Buzo: listen to Holly Throsby feat. Bonnie 'Prince' Billy - 'Would You?' 

·      Friday Brown by Vikki Wakefield: listen to ‘Dark Storm’ by The Jezabels 

·      This is Shyness by Leanne Hall: listen to ‘Howl’ by Florence + The Machine 

·      Six Impossible Things by Fiona Wood: listen to The Six Parts Seven ‘Song of Impossible Things’ 

·      Everything Beautiful by Simmone Howell: listen to ‘With God On Our Side’ by Bob Dylan 

·      Sea Hearts by Margo Lanagan: listen to ‘Alone Apart’ by The Swell Season 

•••

The book I'm offering up for the Australia Day Book Giveaway Hop is Margo Lanagan's epic 'Sea Hearts'. 

Here are the details for how you can win:

How to enter:

☼ Become a follower of my blog (if you aren't already)

☼ Leave a comment on this blog post, with a way to contact you (e-mail addy or Twitter handle is fine)

☼ One post per entrant

☼ This is an INTERNATIONAL give-away

☼ Contest closes midnight on January 28^th 
I will announce the lucky winner on January 30^th

'Alien vs Alien' international give away! One week only!

'Alien vs Alien' is the new, stellar space opera from Gini Koch - the sixth book in her epic 'Katherine "Kitty" Katt' series.

I loved this book so much, and I was very lucky to receive two uncorrected proof copies of the novel! So if you can't stand the hair-pulling wait until 'Alien vs Alien' is released on December 4 - never fear! I'm going to give away my extra copy of the book to one lucky follower.

All you have to do is follow the instructions below, and answer me this question: 

Which two famous aliens would you like to see battle it out?

★

How to enter: 

★ Become a follower of my blog (if you aren't already)

★ Leave a comment on this blog post, answering the question: "Which two famous aliens would you like to see battle it out?"

★ Include a way to contact you (e-mail addy is fine) additionally, you can also leave your twitter handle if you check that more often than your email.

★ One post per entrant

★ This is an international give away - so anyone can enter!

★ Contest closes November 7th - it's a very quick, week-long give away to ensure a copy of the book arrives before the official December 4 release date (otherwise, what's the point?) For this reason, if the first winner I draw doesn't get in contact with me within 24-hours, I will have to re-draw and find a new winner.

★ I will announce the lucky winner on November 9th

Five copies of 'Team Human' to give away!

I would like to give a big THANK YOU to Allen & Unwin who have kindly supplied five copies of new novel 'Team Human' to give away! All you have to do is answer the question below (the same one I put to authors Justine Larbalestier and Sarah Rees Brennan!) : "Where do you stand on vampirism? If you could, would you choose to be turned?"

This contest is restricted to Australian residents only!

Good luck! 

How to enter:

+ Become a follower of my blog (if you aren't already)

+ Leave a comment on this blog post, answering the question: "Where do you stand on vampirism? If you could, would you choose to be turned?"

+ Include a way to contact you (e-mail addy is fine)

+ One post per entrant

+ This is a give away for AUSTRALIAN residents only!

+ Contest closes July 31st
I will announce the lucky winners on August 2nd