The Year Ahead
Posted by alli on 09-03-2008I'm back from my long journey to Maine, refreshed and so happy to be home. We're planning on bringing a lot of new things to YPulse Books this year and I for one, am very excited.
Because I've spent most of my life in school of some sort, I've always been a fall person. I think of the new year as being September, not January 1st. Well, I'm going back to school again, and I'm feeling very New Year's resolution-y. I'm back librarian-ing at a school here in San Francisco, and I think it will really keep me on my toes as to what is new and exciting in the YA scene. I'm told we've got some awesome rock-star readers so I'm planning on using them as a sounding board and a good source of inspiration and insight. There's nothing better than day-to-day contact with youth to stay in the ever changing teen loop.
Also, this summer I had a lot of time to think about new features I might like to bring to Ypulse Books. I was able to digest our discussion at the Books pre-conference, and I really tried to reach for what I'd like to read about if I were a regular Ypulse Books visitor. Here's what I came up with:
AudioFiles
There are some major audiobook enthusiasts out there, and in light of my new commute, I plan on highlighting whatever audiobook I'm enjoying from month to month. I'm hoping I'll discover some new things about the different ways we process the stories we are "told".
Who Do You Love?
Think Sundance's Iconoclast Series. Think author to author interviews. Authors: which of your peers do you worship and love? Who would you most like to talk to about the process of writing and the love of reading great books. This will be a great way to explore the artist's POV but also build community.
* If you are an author that is interested in interviewing another author please let me know. I might be able to help facilitate contact or simply give you a sense for how I've conducted interviews in the past.
One Single Question
We'll introduce authors and their work and ask them to answer one simple question. This will give authors a chance to tell us who they are in their words and address the common inquiry: Why YA?
"As an artist, what inspires and motivates you most in your role as a writer for Young Adults?"
One question, many answers. I can't wait to see the broad range.
Guest Blogger Series
Like the popular guest blogger feature at Ypulse, we hope to open up the lines of communication in a way that will let other bloggers, folks in the field and our regular readers contribute here, online, at Ypulse Books.
* If you'd like to be a guest blogger, pitch me an idea for a post! From time to time I will be putting ideas out there to which folks can respond.
Note: Another change is that we'll be posting Mondays and Wednesdays from now on. We thought our readers would appreciate starting their week with the latest news and having another hit mid-week. Aren't we all just a little pre-occupied on Fridays anyways?
