Readergirlz have arrived!

After I finished up the readergirlz website, I sat down with the authors - albeit virtually - and picked their brains. Feel free to link to and/or post this interview at your own blog or website and help us spread both the word of readergirlz and the love of reading!

If readergirlz were The Baby-Sitters Club, the first book would be called Justina's Great Idea. Tell us about that light bulb going off in your brain, then how the project got its wings - and its name.

Justina: If that were the title, then the subtitle would be: And How She Got Dia, Janet, and Lorie Ann to Lose Sleep for 4 Months!

When I was out on my book tour last spring, I tried to visit urban areas that couldn't afford to host an author. I can't tell you how upset I was by the experience - all these incredibly insightful kids with dismal libraries and schools who'd never met an author before.

So I approached the three aforementioned now sleep-deprived YA authors - Dia Calhoun, Janet Lee Carey, and Lorie Ann Grover - to start readergirlz as a way to connect books to teen girls.

( Read more... )

Again, feel free to link to and/or post this Q&A and the press release at your own blog or website!

See all posts related to readergirlz at Bildungsroman.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
INSPIRING TODAY'S GIRLS TO BE TOMORROW'S HISTORY
YOUNG ADULT AUTHORS CREATE AN ONLINE BOOK SALON FOR GUTSY GIRLS

SEATTLE, March 1 – In honor of Women's History Month, four young adult authors are launching readergirlz, a new online book salon celebrating gutsy girls in life and literature.

Starting on March 1, readergirlz founders Dia Calhoun, Janet Lee Carey, Lorie Ann Grover, and Justina Chen Headley will unveil a monthly book selection, featuring young adult novels with gutsy female characters.

More than just a book club, readergirlz aims to encourage teen girls to read and reach out with community service projects related to each featured novel. As well, readergirlz will host MySpace discussions with each book's author, include author interviews, and provide book party ideas, including playlists, menus, and decorations. All content will be available through the readergirlz website (www.readergirlz.com), MySpace (www.myspace.com/readergirlz and groups.myspace.com/readergirlz), and LiveJournal (readergirlz.livejournal.com).

"We want girls to be the best women they can be,' explains Headley. The inspiration for readergirlz came from Headley's book tour last spring where she made a special effort to visit urban communities that couldn't otherwise bring in authors. She recruited three critically-acclaimed novelists—Calhoun, Carey, and Grover—to start readergirlz as a way to talk to teens about reading and writing. ( Read more... )

Contact: Justina Chen Headley at justina@justinachenheadley.com

Would you like to receive the readergirlz newsletter in email? Sign up below!

Related Posts: Read the Bildungsroman Q&A with the readergirlz divas, and find out how I'm involved in readergirlz!

I am a readergirl! Are you?

March is Women's History Month, making it the perfect time to celebrate books with strong female characters. The new literacy project Readergirlz encourages young women worldwide to do the same.

Readers of all ages and both genders (yes, we have readerboyz!) are joining readergirlz to read and discuss books -- but readergirlz is even more than that. Readergirlz also promotes community service, awareness, and tolerance. It gives readers tips on how to found book groups in their own schools and communities, in addition to the readergirlz resources: MySpace, MySpace Groups), and LiveJournal.

I had the extreme pleasure of working with the readergirlz authors on the readergirlz official website.

Want to help spread the word? Tell your kids, your friends, your customers, your students. Link to the website. Post the press release. Check out our fun Q&A, which you may also feel free to link to and/or post at your own blog or website!

February 2007: 40 books read

Picture Books
Wolves by Emily Gravett
Los Gatos Black on Halloween by Marisa Montes
A Name on the Quilt: A Story of Rememberance by Jeannie Atkins

Fantastic Fantasy
Sir Thursday by Garth Nix - fourth in The Keys to the Kingdom series
No Place for Magic by E.D. Baker - fourth in The Frog Princess series

Realistic Juvenile Fiction
That Girl Lucy Moon by Amy Timberlake
Runaround by Helen Hemphill

Realistic Teen Fiction
Diva by Alex Flinn

Short Story
Eve Goes First by Sarah D. Bunting from the anthology You're The Best

Poet of the Month
F. Scott Fitzgerald

Notable Advanced Reads
Reaching for Sun by Tracie Zimmer - verse novel, for ages 10 and up, coming out in March
Bloom by Elizabeth Scott - dramatic teen fiction, for ages 14 and up, coming out in April

Featured Articles and Random Tidbits
Shelving Meme
The Eighth of Seven Impossible Interviews
By Request: To Read. . .
Attention: Middle School Authors
Readergirlz Press Release
Readergirlz: I Love Literature and Literacy!
The Cybils: Winners

New and Updated Booklists
Best Books of February 2007
2007 Books to Read
Fairy Nice
Funny Fiction for Kids
Coming-of-Age Novels aka Bildungsromans
Imprint: Flux
Class of 2k7
Shakespeare Spinoffs
Teen Mystery and Horror
Terrific Teen Series and Sequences
Clean Reads for Early Teens
Hey There, Sports Fan
Chain Mail and Chain Letters
Dystopia
Verse Novels
But I Don't Want to Be Famous!
Tough Issues for Teens
Strong Women
Suggested Sets
Funny Fantasies
Sassy Sidekicks of Children's Literature

Author Spotlights
Rachel Cohn
Wendy Mass
Deb Caletti
Megan Shull

New Book Reviews
The Girlfriend Project by Robin Friedman
Reaching for Sun by Tracie Vaughn Zimmer
Zibby Payne and the Wonderful, Terrible Tomboy Experiment by Alison Bell
Before, After, and Somebody In Between by Jeannine Garsee
So Not the Drama by Paula Chase
Goy Crazy by Melissa Schorr
Cupcake by Rachel Cohn
Runaround by Helen Hemphill

New Author Interviews
Justina Chen Headley, Lorie Ann Grover, Dia Calhoun, and Janet Lee Carey (Readergirlz)
Robin Friedman
Tracie Vaughn Zimmer
Terie Garrison (The DragonSpawn Cycle)
Lisa Graff (The Thing about Georgie)
Alison Bell (Zibby Payne and the Terrible, Wonderful Tomboy Experiment)
Jeannine Garsee (Before, After, and Somebody In Between)
Deb Caletti (The Nature of Jade)
Wendy Mass (Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life)
Paula Chase (So Not the Drama)
Melissa Schorr (Goy Crazy)