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Book Addict 24-7 Welcomes: Tellulah Darling+Giveaway!

Welcome to Interview Fridays! 

This week’s interview is with the incredibly funny and talented Tellulah Darling, author of the recent hit My Ex From Hell. She shares some of her mythological and writing wisdom in her exciting interview! 

Remember to check out Tellulah’s links throughout her interview. 

Another fun tidbit:

Enter her international giveaway for a chance to win a signed copy of her novel, My Ex From Hell! 

Enjoy!

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Author Bio 

“Tellulah Darling

noun

1. YA Novelist
2. Alter ego of former screenwriter and instructor
3. Sassy minx

Geeks out over: cool tech.
Squees for: great storytelling.
Delights in: fabulous conversation.
Writes about: where love meets comedy. Awkwardness ensues.”

Find Tellulah on the web: 

Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter | Website 

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Most Recent Work 

Release Date: April 1, 2013

Genres: Young adult, mythology, adventure, romance, action, mystery, boarding school

“Sixteen-year-old Sophie Bloom wishes she’d been taught the following:

a) Bad boy’s presence (TrOuBlE) + teen girl’s brain (DraMa) = TrAuMa (Highly unstable and very volatile.)
b) The Genus Greekulum Godissimus is notable for three traits: 1) awesome abilities, 2) grudges, and 3) hook-ups, break-ups, and in-fighting that puts cable to shame.

Prior to the Halloween dance, Sophie figures her worst problems involve adolescent theatrics, bitchy yoga girls, and being on probation at her boarding school for mouthy behaviour. Then she meets bad boy Kai and gets the kiss that rocks her world.

Literally.

This breath stealing lip lock reawakens Sophie’s true identity: Persephone, Goddess of Spring. She’s key to saving humanity in the war between the Underworld and Olympus, target numero uno of Hades and Zeus, and totally screwed.

Plus there’s also the little issue that Sophie’s last memory as Persephone was just before someone tried to murder her.

Big picture: master her powers, get her memories back, defeat Persephone’s would be assassin, and save the world. Also, sneak into the Underworld to retrieve stolen property, battle the minions of Hades and Zeus, outwit psycho nymphs, slay a dragon, rescue a classmate, keep from getting her butt expelled from the one place designed to keep her safe …

… and stop kissing Kai, Prince of the Underworld.

My Ex From Hell is a romantic comedy/Greek mythology smackdown. Romeo and Juliet had it easy.”

Check out My Ex From Hell on the web: 

Goodreads | My Review

Buy My Ex From Hell on the web: 

Amazon | Kindle | Barnes & Noble | Chapters 

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Giveaway 

1 signed copy of My Ex From Hell

THIS IS AN INTERNATIONAL CONTEST  

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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1.  One of my favourite aspects of your novel, My Ex From Hell, is the humorous dialogue and internal observations. Can you offer any advice to fellow writers on how to create realistic dialogue like yours? 

“Be born with a skewed view of life. J 

I’ve always used humor to cope and get through situations–happy, sad, stressful, whatever. 

And I try to channel how I’d deal with the situations I force my characters into, into my dialogue. Bring yourself into your writing and you’ll sound authentic.”

2.  My Ex From Hell is also very original! How did you come up with such an original idea? Also, do you recall when the idea entered your mind?

“Thank you! 

There’s always been something about taking fairy tales and myths and twisting them through a new lens that appeals to me. 

The idea actually came about while I was Executive Story Editor/Writer on this wonderful kids show called Zixx: Level 3. There was a lot of original mythology built into that show, and the showrunner and I were riffing off classic mythologies we’d love to play with, specifically Greek ones. 

Persephone just really resonated for me. I knew I wanted to write it as a romantic comedy and not have Hades be the love interest. My personal twist. That became the jumping off point.”

3.  Other than the myth explored in your novel, what other myths would you love to write about in future novels? Why? 

“One day I’ll tackle Psyche and Cupid. 

There are elements of it in My Date From Hell (the follow up to Ex) but I’d like to explore it properly. At the core of it is trust, which is really at the core of all relationships.”

4.  What are some of your favourite young adult adaptations of mythological stories? 

“I actually have only recently begun to read YA mythology stories because I didn’t want to be influenced while I was writing Ex. It’s probably more MG, but the Percy Jackson series is phenomenal. 

More than myths, though,  I really enjoy fairy tale adaptations when reading YA. So along those lines, Cinder blew me away. I also love the Russian fairy tale influence inShadow and Bone–another excellent read. And Tithe–I remember when I read that, my daughter was little and my brain was bleeding from the saccharine fairy stories she was making me read to her. 

So it was such a breath of fresh air!” 

5.  You’ve also written another novel, Sam Cruz’s Infallible Guide to Getting Girls, which has a superb book trailer—can you tell us more about it? How did writing My Ex From Hell differ from writing your first novel (save for the different genres)?

“I’m glad you enjoyed the trailer because I had so much fun making it! 

I’m always going to have a soft spot in my heart for Sam Cruz, because much of my own teen life was obsessed with figuring out what could make friends see each other in a new way and realize they are supposed to be more. (Cue Taylor Swift’s You Belong With Me…) 

It was a book that pushed buttons for some readers because it’s all about teens having sex. I’m all for empowered teens when it comes to positive sexuality, and that said, I’m also not advocating kids run out and do it. I thought long and hard about Sam’s and Ally’s journeys. And what became really clear for me is this is a story about two people who already have intimacy in every way except sexually. So sex became the mechanism by which they could find their ultimate emotional satisfaction, which is love.  

I’m really protective of Sam and Ally, more so than any of my other characters. Maybe because they’re my first babies.

The joy of writing Sam was that I wrote it purely for fun. I just wanted a break from screenwriting. There was no decision to publish, or put it out into the world in any form. So I had time and freedom and zero expectations by me or of me. 

I felt more pressure once it came time to put out My Ex From Hell because crazily enough, I had wonderful readers who wanted more stories of mine and I didn’t want to disappoint them.”

6.  What attracted you to the mythology genre? How did it feel to re-create a myth for your novel?

“You can’t beat gods for bad behaviour. 

Mythology is primal, and helps make sense of our world and is just so rich in conflict, passion, and backstabbing. What’s not to love?

I’ve had a blast playing with the Persephone novel. What’s been really interesting is seeing how deep other people’s love of mythology runs. I’ve had readers accuse me of making the gods behave in ways that are out of character, or get upset that I messed with the purity of the myth. 

As much as I want everyone to love my work, I think its so wonderful that these ancient, fictional tales still inspire such passion in people!”

7.  What do you think of the growing popularity of mythology in the young adult literary world? 

“I think it’s a natural fit. 

For me, adolescence is a time of giant hopes, giant dreams, giant emotions, and giant conflicts. It makes a lot of sense to take that experience and explore it through mythology. 

And apparently, it makes a lot of sense to a lot of other YA authors as well.”

8.  Do you think there are cliches that authors need to avoid when adapting a classical story? If so, can you name a few? 

“The danger with stories that are classics is that there are reasons they have survived to this point. 

So if we as authors, are going to tackle them, it better be with a lot of humility and definite personal vision for them. Maybe that’s why I like playing with myths, rather than doing more direct retellings of them. I’m not going to make the original better. But hopefully, I can allow readers to have some fun with a kind of sideways version of it.

Probably the cliché that drives me nuts–not just in mythological retellings–but because those stories deal with grand passions, maybe its more evident–is the insta-love factor that tends to pop up. I realize that gods in original myths did get instantly obsessed with humans, but I like love stories in which the lovers really have to earn their happy ending. Not just because of external conflict but because they have to figure out that they are right for each other. 

I’ve always enjoyed stories where the first impression is not necessary a good one, and then go from there.” 

9.  Can you tell us a bit about your publishing experience? 

“It’s been a wild ride. 

Coming from the screenwriting world, there were a lot of skills and experiences that transferred over. Definitely my understanding of crafting story helped, and being comfortable working with editors and various collaborators.There’s far more of an immediate connection with the end story consumer in publishing. Which is exciting and sometimes tough. I never had every single person who ever watched my TV episodes review them. J 

At the same time, this is an incredibly thrilling time to be involved in publishing because it’s in such a state of flux.” 

10.  The sequel to My Ex From Hell comes out in October, 2013! What’s the best thing about writing such a fun and original series? 

“Getting deeper into the hearts and minds of the characters! 

Sam Cruz was a stand-alone and My Ex From Hell is a trilogy with the same characters. I think that I want to next try writing a series that features different characters (with appearances from the past ones) in each book with an overarching battle throughout next. Just to try lots of different permutations and see what I like best.

Thanks so much for having me today, Dayla! It’s been a blast!

td.”

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Thank you for stopping by, Tellulah!

I hope you enjoyed this week’s interview! Check back next week for another awesome interview!

Happy reading!

 

My Opinion:

This is a very interesting topic because it’s very obvious how book covers have become more and more gender specific (or what publishers believe gender roles are), especially with young adult novels.

Maureen Johnson, a successful author, was approached by a fan on Twitter (a male) and their conversation spurred a very interesting thought—what if the books that featured more “girly” covers, were made more gender neutral or masculine? And the other way around for my “masculine” covers.

I love this and I think this also includes racial differences on book covers and the misrepresentation of protagonists on covers who are of mixed races, or minorities. 

I enjoyed this video and I hope you guys do too! (It’s very short) Also, you can also check out a post on Tumblr similar to this video here.

Happy viewing!

Originally from: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/07/coverflip-maureen-johnson_n_3231935.html

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Please reblog so more people can see this, thank you!

Hi Everyone!

This week is super exciting for my blog!

I’m hosting not just one, but TWO giveaways, courtesy of the authors featured above (Top: Evan Fuller, Bottom: Tellulah Darling)! (Did I mention that they were physical books?)

Two lucky winners will win either Evan Fuller’s first two books in his Rittenhouse Saga, both signed and personalized with the winner’s name, or a copy of Tellulah Darling’s My Ex From Hell, signed with the above message!

These two giveaways will run separately, since they are two different authors. 

The giveaway for Evan Fuller’s novels will begin May 15, 2013. 

The giveaway for Tellulah Darling’s novel will begin May 17, 2013 (the day of her interview!) 

Check out Mutt & Stray on Goodreads here. 

Check out My Ex From Hell on Goodreads here.

Here are the rules:

1. Your entries must be legitimate. If the winner chosen has falsified information, I have the right to disqualify him/her.

2. I’m not 100% sure about Evan’s giveaway, but Tellulah is willing to ship her novel internationally!

3. I have the right to choose a different winner if the current winner does not respond within 24 hours of my email notifying him/her. 

4. Be honest. I WILL find out if you have falsified any information.

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Both of these authors are great and I absolutely love their work! I hope to see you guys enter!

Happy reading!

A little reminder: Confessions of a Book Addict is always accepting submissions!»

What you can submit: 

  • Guest reviews
  • Pictures of your book collection
  • A picture of what you’re currently reading
  • Any guest posts regarding books, reading, or writing
  • Any upcoming books you think other readers should check out

Feel free to stop by and submit!

Happy reading!

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I use the Sony Reader Pocket Edition PRS-350

I was recently asked what kind of ereader I use and I wanted to answer that question as best as I could. 

Above are pictures I’ve taken of the box and the multiple little extras I bought to go with my ereader. 

My parents gave me my ereader as a gift for Christmas a couple of years ago, so Sony has advanced a bit when it comes to readers. 

My ereader has a touch screen and though it came with a stylus, it broke soon after (but you can use pretty much anything, from a pen to a random stick, to maneuver the screen if you’re having a hard time with just your  finger). 

Pros: 

  1. The battery life—2 years later and my battery is still going strong. I can read about 3 books before I have to charge it. There is also a screensaver that helps you safe battery life!
  2. It is nice and small (hence, pocket reader) and fits snuggly in my hand.
  3. Easily accessorized: The last image is of my reader’s cover. The reader has two inserts on both the top and bottom of the body, so clipping a cover on is simple.
  4. There is a reset button—okay, this may not seem like a huge deal, but it saved me when my reader once froze.
  5. E-ink, so no glare.
  6. Compatible with nearly every ebook type: epub, pdf, .txt, for example.

Cons:

  1. The uploading software is neither the best, nor easiest to navigate. When I was still on a PC, uploading books onto the reader was a much easier task, but since I switched to a Mac, it’s reached the point where I can’t use the software or else it freezes. Instead, I upload books manually via the Finder (on a PC this would be equivalent to the “My Computer” option).
  2. No port for an extra memory card. Definite deal-breaker. When I first received this, not every reader had this option, and unfortunately mine got the short-end of the stick.
  3. The navigation is a little slow. 

Also, it’s important that, if you have an e-ink reader, you find a source of lighting. The one I use is called a Rechargeable Arc Light, which I bought at Chapters here. 

There are A LOT of lighting devices varying in prices, you just need to find the right one for you. 

Would I recommend Sony Readers to you guys?

Yes. I love my reader. 

And okay, Kobo and Kindles are really popular right now, and with the growing popularity of the tablets, Sony Readers may be overlooked, but I’m glad I have a Sony.

Happy reading! 

The Battle to Save Bookstores»

“The New York Times recently ran an article about the lack of bookstore orders across the board, but in particular for lesser-known authors. Though many might see the benefit in that — I mean, why take up shelf space for authors who don’t (yet) have a following? — the catch is this: every author was once considered lesser-known.”

-Penny C. Sansevieri

Read more on huffingtonpost.com

Happy reading!

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What’s happening on my blog right now:

I’m currently hosting my 3,000 Follower Giveaway, so make sure you enter if you live in Canada or the U.S. and want to win some cute prizes+a book!

You can either enter via the Rafflecopter widget on my blog, or you can enter here:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The giveaway ends March 20, 2013!

Interview Fridays: 

If you are a fan of The Reece Malcolm List, or plan to read it in the future (it’s a great book!), then tune in tomorrow night for my weekly interview!

This week I’m hosting: Amy Spalding!

Happy reading and good luck with the giveaway!

ps. You are all AWESOME! 

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Giveaway Announcement: 3,000 Followers Giveaway!

To celebrate my blog’s huge accomplishment, I am going to be hosting a giveaway starting Wednesday, February 20, 2013! I will be choosing ONE winner via the Rafflecopter widget (when it is up on my blog).

What are the prizes? 

As listed above, almost all of the prizes are bookmarks—making this a Bookmark Giveaway. The winner will also choose ONE book of his/her choice (From $35 maximum, because c’mon, I’m a struggling writer, aha.)

So check out the prizes:

  • Super cute animal magnet bookmarks
  • Adorable kitty bubble chat stickies
  • Peanut erasers
  • Penguin bookmarks
  • A sassy mustache bookmark
  • A book of the winner’s choice

This is perhaps one of my biggest giveaways, so I hope lots of you enter for a chance to win!

Now, for the rules:

  1. This contest, while I would love to make it international, is for U.S. And CANADIAN CITIZENS ONLY.
  2. If you enter and are chosen, I will know if you have falsified information—so, beware.
  3. You don’t have to be following me on tumblr to enter (but it would be nice!) 

Also, if you’d like, you can RSVP to the giveaway on my Goodreads event page here. 

If you have any questions, feel free to message me via here or via the email given on my blog!

Good luck and happy reading!

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