Rookie Magazine

a.k.a. my new favorite thing.

I first learned about Rookie Magazine from Stephanie Kuehnert's blog. And I try every weekday to log on and read the selections. There are three selections posted each day, at roughly 3, 7, and 11.

*picture from Rookie Mag welcome letter*

Rookie Magazine, while targeted at teen girls, is fun for any age. I'm 28, and it looks like a lot of the contributors are close to my age. So when they talk about their high school years, it's about the same time I was in high school.

There's fiction, real stories, pictures and photos, playlists, and fantastic art. Definitely check it out and look out for your opportunity to get involved with this online magazine!

Guest Post: Lauren Kreitzer

Hello Literary-Folk!

My name is Laura Kreitzer, and I’m the author of the Timeless Series and the Summer Chronicles. This week I would like to alert everyone on a colossal crisis that’s gone unnoticed in the world: human trafficking. That’s why I’ve asked hundreds of blogs to be involved with spreading the word on this issue that’s become close to my heart.

As an author, and someone whose life is put in the spotlight, I keep most people at a distance. Only a handful of my friends know the whole me and the events from my past. But this week I’d like to share with you a part of myself that the outside world doesn’t see (and a part of me I don’t like to share). I was emotionally abused for five years by someone I thought loved me, my mind beaten into submission. Though the turmoil I went through doesn’t penetrate as deep as someone forced into slavery on the worldwide market for human trafficking, I can sadly relate in some ways: imprisoned, my life dictated down to what I wore, ate, where I went, whom I spoke to, where I worked, when I slept, bending to his every whim. He did not sway, even when I cried through some of the more traumatic things he had me do. I was a slave in my own home. In my desperation for freedom, I held out a gun and asked him to just end my suffering. I was desperate.

I can’t even imagine how many women (and men) in the world are in a similar situation. What’s even worse, I had it mild compared to the children that are sold for labor or sex. Surprisingly, the good ol’ U.S.A. is reported to be the host to two million slaves. Did you know this? Because I certainly did not; not until I was preparing to write my newest novel: Phantom Universe. The main character, Summer Waverly, was stolen as a child and sold as a slave to the captain of a modern-day pirate ship. From a loved child who only knew “time-out” as punishment, to being whipped into silence was something I knew nothing about. So I researched deeply into human trafficking and the psychological effects of torture of various types that one would endure in these circumstances. I felt shaken at my findings and knew I had to tell Summer’s story. (Read a sneak peek here.)

A storm began to brew in my mind; transforming, morphing, twisting, and expanding into this massive, black cloud. I had to bring this tragic atrocity to the forefront. My own emotional experiences, mixed with the research I did on human trafficking, made me feel an intense connection with Summer, and to all women who’ve been through this kind of brutality. The cloud ruptured and rained all over my computer one day. It took one month to write Phantom Universe, the first in the Summer Chronicles. I was so consumed by the story that I wrote nearly nonstop, only breaking for necessary tasks like eating, showering, and occasionally—very occasionally—sleeping.

Though the book I’ve written would be classified as Science Fiction, or as I’d like to call it, Dystopian, the emotions and psychological aspects are not Science Fiction—they're real. Reviewers have said many amazing things about Summer, this character who is so real in my mind and who I cried along with as the words poured from my soul onto my screen.

“I admired Summer's strength and ability to adapt,” says CiCi’s Theories. “I felt tied to her emotions,” Jennifer Murgia, author or Angel Star admits. And Tahlia Newland, author of Lethal Inheritance, remarks, “Summer is strong and smart in mind [. . .]”

Through her overwhelmingly horrendous past, Summer goes on more than just a physical journey in Phantom Universe, she goes on a psychological one as well; growing beyond her mute state to persevere and survive in a new world beyond the whip she’s so frightened of.

Now that the release date is here, I’m excited and terrified to share this story with everyone. I’m emotionally tied in every way to the words I’ve written, because they’re more than words. More than just a story on a page. Beyond the fictional aspects, there’s a real issue that needs to be addressed: human trafficking must be stopped. We shouldn’t sit idly by while this continues to plague us. Our world’s children—our nation’s children—are being affected. It’s time we take action!

Earlier this month Phantom Universe hit Barnes and Noble’s top 100 Best Selling list. I’ve decided to donate 10% of my sales from Phantom Universe, until the end of February, to the DNA Foundation.

“DNA hopes to help abolish modern day slavery, deter perpetrators, and free the many innocent and exploited victims. We are committed to forcing sex slavery out of the shadows and into the spotlight.

Freedom is a basic human right and slavery is one of the greatest threats to that freedom. No one has the right to enslave another person.”

—From DNA Foundation’s Website

I ask that you spread the word to everyone you know. Look around on the DNA Foundation website and find a way to get involved in ending human trafficking. Take action today. Everyone has a voice—you have a voice. Will you have the courage to use it?

Speak Up!

I wanted to write a post about SPEAK on Sunday when Twitter exploded with messages about a man named Wesley Scroggins and his wanting to ban SPEAK. (If you haven't heard about this, you can read about it here and check the hastag #SpeakLoudly on twitter). But I wanted to reread it before I wrote the post, since I read it more than a year ago.

The first thing I saw in my platinum edition of SPEAK is a letter from the fabulous author, Laurie Halse Anderson. I love the line about revisiting the “agonies of adolescence” because that is so true. I love young adult fiction, but was not a happy teen. School was torture because I was constantly picked on.

As I flipped to the next page, I got to the message Laurie Halse Anderson wrote in my book at ALA a few months ago. Can anyone guess what she wrote? “Speak up!”

This book really touched me… for a number of reasons. A number of my friends are rape survivors. One friend was attacked by a stranger who grabbed her as she walked down the street in broad daylight. Another girl who was attacked by a friend of hers. It happened a few times before she realized that she could say “no”. A third friend was attacked while she was too inebriated to fight back. And another friend, my best friend at the time, was raped by the guy she was seeing. And believe it or not, I have many other friends who have been in similar situations and one who was sexually abused for ten years by her father and uncle.

Perhaps you don’t know the statistics. According to RAINN 1 in 6 women and 1 in 33 men are attacked. Every 2 minutes a woman is raped in the US. 73% of women know their attackers and 60% of assaults are not reported to the police. And 44% of these women are under the age of 18. I think most of you would agree with me that those are scary statistics. We live in a free country… where it’s a high probability of being raped… The rates have risen from a few years back, and I hope it’s because more women are speaking up. And I hope every one of them understand that it is never anyone’s fault but the rapist.

Found this banner here.

Because this kind of thing happens to so many of us, it’s a very important topic to talk about, which is another reason SPEAK is an important book to read. I really identified with Melinda for a number of reasons. I think a lot of girls would. A lot of teens (and adults) feel alone. They feel they can’t talk about something that needs to be brought to light. Whether or not that something is rape.

My best friend was raped while we were in college. She reacted much like Melinda. She cut herself off from everyone. I didn’t hear from her for months. She didn’t tell her mom or anyone for a long time after. It makes me mad that someone could make her feel that way. She was always outgoing and open. Eventually, she found her voice and spoke up.

I was very pleased to see that SPEAK is being taught in high school. Even if you don’t like the story or the writing, the message needs to be heard. SPEAK tells women and girls that they are not alone. I believe Melinda can help girls find their voice and tell their stories. And for those who have not been sexually assaulted, it might help you understand a friend who has. Also, while Melinda may turn out to be a positive role model for girls, I think guys would definitely benefit from this book. I don’t know that men understand how hurtful and devastating this can be for women. It completely changes us, as anything that traumatic would.

On Sunday night I was telling a friend of mine (who is not in the YA book blog community) about this ridiculousness. She asked if Scroggins wanted to ban rape, too. It seems clear to me Mr. Scroggins didn't actually read the texts himself. It still baffles me that people are trying to ban books in 2010. Trying to stomp on our constitutional rights after all this time. And it baffles me even more that someone is trying to ban SPEAK by calling it “soft porn”. Along with SPEAK, Scroggins wanted to ban SLAUGHTERHOUSE FIVE and TWENTY BOY SUMMER. I ran out and bought TWENTY BOY SUMMER, since wanting to ban a book is as good as a recommendation. If it might be banned, it's probably worth reading. =P

So… speak up! And fight to keep books from being banned.

Book Review: Such a Pretty Girl

I was in Borders the other day - I spend more time there than anywhere else - and SUCH A PRETTY GIRL by Laura Wiess caught my eye. To be honest, the title caught my eye more than the cover. I could guess what it was about by the title alone. I decided to read a chapter or two in the store and next thing I know, I'm a third of the way into the novel. Of course, I couldn't leave it there, so I took it home and finished it that night.

It was amazing... in a horrifying way. Meredith is 15, and her father is getting out of jail six years early. He had gone to jail because he raped a number of kids, including his own daughter. While he was not allowed to live in her home, her mother got him a place as close as possible. And she was not to be left alone with her, but her mother did. Meredith's mother chose to side with her husband, a man who raped her daughter.

It was a heart-breaking, powerful story. The thing about this book that makes it so sad is that there are girls who aren't safe in their own homes, as Meredith wasn't safe. This happens way too often in society. It's a hard story to read, but the writing is amazing, and I highly recommend this one.

You can read a preview of it here.

Synopsis:

They promised Meredith nine years of safety, but only gave her three.
Her father was supposed to be locked up until Meredith turned eighteen. She thought she had time to grow up, get out, and start a new life. But Meredith is only fifteen, and today her father is coming home from prison.
Today her time has run out.

Book Review: Living Dead Girl

Oh. My. Goddess.

There are really no words to describe this book. I started LIVING DEAD GIRL by Elizabeth Scott last night, and finished it today. I didn't want to put it down. My mouth was dry as I read this story, making it difficult to swallow. This is possibly the most intense book I've ever read. It was both wonderful and horrible at the same time. Wonderful because the writing was so real. And horrible because of the situation "Alice" was in.

I didn't cry while I was reading it, but after I put it down I was practically sobbing. I can't wait to read more by this author.

Synopsis:

Once upon a time, I was a little girl who disappeared.

Once upon a time, my name was not Alice.

Once upon a time, I didn't know how luck I was.

When Alice was ten, Ray took her away from her family, her friends -- her life. She learned to give up all power, to endure all pain. She waited for the nightmare to be over.


Now Alice is fifteen and Ray still has her, but he speaks more and more of her death. He does not know it is what he longs for. She does not know he has something more terrifying than death in mind for her.


This is Alice's story. It is one you have never heard, and one you will never, ever forget.

Book Review: Speak

SPEAK was an incredible book. I read it in one day. It had been recomended to me many times, and I'm so glad I read it. It was sad and beautiful and in the end, empowering. This novel was written by Laurie Halse Anderson for young adults when I was still a young adult. It just took me ten years to discover it.

About five years ago, it was turned into a Lifetime movie. The main character, Melinda Sordino, was played by Kristen Stewart, who I think is an amazing actress. It just so happened to come on TV the day after I read the book. They did an amazing job transfering it to video. So much of this book is internal, as Melinda was traumatized and had basically lost her voice. She couldn't speak about what happened to her. I think this book would speak, not just to teens, but to everyone.

Despite this book being about such an ugly topic, it really was beautifully written. Did you know that every two minutes a woman is raped in the US or that 1 in 6 women will be raped? Did you know that 73% of rape victims know their attacker and 60% go unreported? Those are scary statistics. The most wonderful thing about this book is that there are so many girls and women who can relate to what Melinda goes through. But not only that, it could help women speak out, to go to police and report the attack. Melinda is a wonderful character, and she can help many young women. A huge thanks to Laurie Halse Anderson for writing this amazing novel. I can't wait to read more of her work.

Synopsis:

Melinda Sordino busted an end-of-summer party by calling the cops. Now her old friends won’t talk to her, and people she doesn’t even know hate her from a distance. The safest place to be is alone, inside her own head. But even that’s not safe. Because there’s something she’s trying not to think about, something about the night of the party that, if she let it in, would blow her carefully constructed disguise to smithereens. And then she would have to speak the truth. This extraordinary first novel has captured the imaginations of teenagers and adults across the country.