Had a great time at the signing at Books & Company at The Greene in Dayton, Ohio. I got to meet some of the members of the Centerville High School Colorguard–so full of personality! One of them won the makeover from Sephora and plans to save it for homecoming night, so Centerville guys, get your courage up and go ahead and ask for that date! I asked her to send me pictures, so I hope she will.
I got to tell the Centerville girls all about my awesome cousin Meg, who just joined the colorguard team this year at another Ohio HS.
Thanks, ladies, for coming to the event and introducing yourselves! Hope you enjoy the Lip Smackers and BRAND-NEW EMILY! And best of luck with your performances this football season!
How excited was I to see that Nashville Scene magazine titled their article about my July 27 signing, “Rue the Day”?! Gotta love it. Also, I love when reviewers use words such as “wackiness” when writing about my plot, so big thanks to Emily Bartlett Hines for the nice review.
While we’re on the subject of reviews, a shout-out to Flamingnet.com for giving Brand-New Emily a perfect 10 out of 10, and their TOP CHOICE award. I’m most impressed with the fact that this review website was started by a high school student and now uses student reviewers from all over the country. Way to get out there and be industrious! I would’ve started a website when I was in high school, except that the Internet didn’t exist, and I was too busy making my hair really, really big.
The counselor in Brand-New Emily is pretty much clueless, huh? I purposely made that character lame because doing so moved my plot forward. But in real life, school counselors are way smarter than the fictional Mrs. Moore.
Bullying has gotten a lot more vicious since I was in middle school, and the rise of technology has made it easier for bullies to do their work. But there are ways to protect yourself, even if you don’t have a celebrity publicist at your disposal. Continue reading ‘Bullied? Here’s What To Do About It.’
Shortly after I completed the last edit of Brand-New Emily, I discovered a hilarious take on the Hollywood machine: The A-List Playbook by Leslie Gornstein. Leslie is an online columnist for the E! network and has a show on satellite radio where she answers questions about celebrities. I recently interviewed Leslie to find out everything you need to know about how the entertainment industry works and how you, like Emily, can apply that knowledge to your own life.
Ginger: How are middle school and high school like Hollywood?
Leslie: The main similarity is the way rumors work in Hollywood and the way rumors work in middle school. When something is repeated enough, it becomes reality. Continue reading ‘How Accurate Is BRAND-NEW EMILY?’
Everyone at Wright Middle School knows you should not make an enemy of the uber-clique that fourteen-year-old Emily Wood calls The Daisies. But that’s exactly what she has done, and now she’s paying the price…until Emily stumbles onto some top-secret gossip about a teen heartthrob and finds herself in the good graces of an influential New York PR firm. Now–with an ace publicist in her corner–make way for Brand Em: She’s got style, she’s got attitude, and her troubles at school are a thing of the past! But no product can stay hot forever, and it isn’t long before Emily discovers the limits of brand loyalty.
