Thursday 24 July 2014

At the YALC - by Bryony Pearce


On the weekend of the 12th July I travelled down to London to take part in the inaugural YALC (Young Adult Literature Con) which was joined to Comic Con and took place in the Earls Court arena.
I was to conduct a Creative Writing Workshop entitled ‘Starting to Write’, all about … well it did exactly what it said on the tin.  I was a bit concerned that no-one would sign up, and worried about having an embarrassing signing afterwards, but so excited about the rest of the line up that I went in high spirits, dressed (after Malorie Blackman announced that she was going in costume) as Zoe from Firefly.



The first thing that struck me as I walked around the corner to see Earls Court was the insane queue.  There had to be 50,000 people all trying to get into the arena.  Some had apparently been queuing since 3am.  My jaw dropped.  Luckily I had a special ticket with a little green dot on a lariat and had been told to go in through gate M, so my guests and I headed past the miles of queuing Avengers, Spidermen, Storm troopers, Lannisters, Starks and, oddly, Disney princesses, towards the gate. 
The walk felt like miles and the queue carried on.  I was worried that I wasn’t going to make it in for my workshop.  But then we got to the entrance and there was no queue.  We walked straight in, feeling a bit guilty, but immensely relieved – queuing is one thing I really hate.
And inside what was the first thing I saw – Antony Head doing a signing next to Paul McGann.  I squealed.  My day was made (yes, I’m an enormous Buffy fan).

I had a couple of hours before the YALC officially started so we walked around.  There was a large part of the venue given over to stands where people were signing: everyone from the guy from Airplane, to a ghoul from Ghostbusters, to WWE wresters, to Stan Lee.  I was particularly excited about seeing Summer Glau (Firefly) and was hoping to get a photo with her (as I was in costume and all), but every time I walked past, her ‘stall’ was empty.  Boo.
There were obviously a lot of stands selling merchandise, which were fun to browse, and you could have your photo taken on the iron throne (which I did). 

The main events though, were the talks.  Talks by Stan Lee, by the Doctor Who team, by Game of Thrones actors and, of course, panels in the YALC area by the most YA wonderful authors. 
I made a plan of what I would see (when I wasn't working), then I headed to the main event -  The YALC. 
When I turned up: the first talk with Patrick Ness, Malorie Blackman and Sarah Crossan was about to get going.  Excitedly I sat down and listened (although my ears were ringing a bit – I was in the same room as Patrick Ness!!).
After being impressed by their thoughts on dystopia (its all about fear, about one person changing the world) I legged it to the green room to sign in for my workshop. 
There I found Antony Head and Jamie Bamber relaxing along with various wrestlers, other actors I recognised or half-recognised and a number of writers who luckily seemed as star-struck as me (later I saw Carrie Fisher and Lena Headey, but never did manage to bump into Summer Glau).  My excitement could hardly be contained.  But it had to be, as I had to go and give a workshop to an empty corner of the YALC.

Only it wasn’t - empty that is.  It was full.  I realised as I swiftly set up that I was going to have to yell at the top of my lungs for an hour, as there were no mikes for the workshop authors and there were apparently upwards of 70,000 people in the venue by this point all competing with me along with music, other people giving talks (with mikes) and terrible acoustics.  I have two small children, so I’m used to yelling for an hour straight, but by the end I had quite the sore throat.  Still, I felt that the workshop went well and I didn’t lose any of my audience.  I could have gone on for another hour if I hadn’t been kicked out of the space to make way for the next one!
Then to my signing.  I knew that I was between Jonathan Stroud (I am a HUGE fan of his Bartimaeus books and had recently finished reading the enjoyable Lockwood and Co) and Andy Robb (marvellous author of Geekhood), so I was a bit worried that my signing queue might look a bit sad. 

I was very happy to find an actual queue (and a beer) waiting for me when I sat down.  I chatted with readers and soon-to-be-readers who had just bought my book and had a steady trickle of signings for a couple of hours, which was lovely.  Nothing like Jonathan though, who was non-stop signing with barely enough time for me to catch his eye and say what a fan I was.  And as for Rainbow Rowell’s queue – for a while I thought Stan Lee might be signing books at the other end of the YALC area!
After my signing I had time to go to the other author panels and chat with a couple who were still signing (Sarah Mcintyre signed Oliver and the Seawigs for the kids – she did a lovely illustration for them).  I chatted to Malorie Blackman in the green room (she is so lovely) and even bumped into fellow Edgey author Sara Grant!
By this point, on one of the hottest days of the year, with no air con, crammed into a room with thousands of other people and in a leather outfit with knee boots, I was feeling a bit worse for wear, so sorry Sara if I was a bit dozy!
I popped out to change and returned for the drinks party at which I got to chat with loads of wonderful YA authors, tell Patrick Ness how much I loved the Chaos Walking Trilogy, catch up with old friends, meet some twitter / FB friends and make some new ones.
On the Sunday I geeked out for the day, went to the Game of Thrones talk I’d ear-marked, mooched around looking at cosplay and enjoyed more of the YALC events, chatting to Anthony McGowan after his controversial panel (where he got himself in trouble playing devils advocate) and generally having a great time.
It was a shame to leave, but by Sunday night I was exhausted … and they were closing up anyway. 
So was the YALC an unqualified success?  Well there were a few teething problems mainly caused by the venue itself – for example poor acoustics and a lack of a sound system for the workshops.  Some people wanted to come into the YALC but were trapped outside queuing for five hours!  But the people who did make it in (and there were a great many) were all smiling, despite unbearable heat.  I didn’t hear a single bad word about the event and in fact, an awful lot of complimentary things.  The readers, and they’re the most important after all, enjoyed themselves immensely.  And, hey, so did I.
So thank you, Malorie Blackman, Katherine Woodfine and everyone involved in making the first YALC so completely brilliant.  I hope that it goes from strength to strength year on year and I hope to be there each time.  Even if I have to buy a ticket and queue!
 

Friday 11 July 2014

Passion, Rebellion & Discovery

EDGE Author Sara Grant
shares why she writes teen books

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times."

Charles Dickens could have been talking about my high school experience.

A page from my senior yearbook.
Gotta love the 80s!
I don’t write teen fiction because I long to return to the ‘glory days’ of my youth. In many ways my teen years were the toughest – a bizarre mix of hope for my future oddly twisted with angst and despair. I was sure I could change the world if it didn’t steamroll me first. I experienced the thrill of a crush and the devastation of rejection. My first love. First kiss. First heartbreak. First failures. First success.

So why do I write teen fiction?

I write for this age range because the teen years are a time of rebellion and discovery. You are figuring it all out, asking big questions and challenging anything and everything.

For me, writing has always been about imagination and exploration. I wrote poetry when I was a teen to uncover what I was thinking and feeling. (I can still quote a few stanzas from my poems titled Tomorrow Never Comes and Unrequited Love. Those may not have been from my happiest days.) Now I write stories with an undercurrent of the issues I want to explore. Just like when I was a teen, I write not because I have the answers but because I’m interested in the questions.


My visit to Haslett (Michigan) High School.
Some of my favourite books are the ones I read as a teenager. Those books helped me discover the world and challenged my thinking. I cherish those first experiences of finding myself and losing myself in a story. One of the pleasures of being a published writer of teen fiction is being on the other side of that reading experience. Teen readers love or hate your book and aren’t afraid to tell you. I enjoy getting emails from teen readers: ‘your book changed my life’, ‘I’m your number one biggest fan’. And there’s the dark side of teen reviews: ‘words cannot express how much I loathed this book’. Wow! At least I’ve inspired passion.

I love writing for teens and I also love working with teen writers. It’s such a privilege to visit schools and libraries. All writers know the thrill of crafting a good story, but I’ve discovered an even bigger high – helping a young writer find his or her voice and discovering the power of storytelling.

Dave Cousins and I at Hemel Hempstead Library.
Whenever I’m asked the question, why do you write for teens? (Or the more dreaded question: Will you ever write grown-up fiction?) I suppose I wonder why -- when there’s so much passion, rebellion and discovery in teen fiction -- why would I write anything else?


For more about Sara and her books, visit her website at www.sara-grant.com or follow her on Twitter @AuthorSaraGrant

Friday 4 July 2014

SHOWING APPRECIATION FOR OUR LIBRARIANS




Young Adult author, Paula Rawsthorne is delighted to read how our librarians make a difference to the lives of young people.







Yesterday a comment appeared on The Edge website and I felt compelled to write about it.  The comment was left by Dominic in response to a Q&A post with school librarian, Ingrid Broomfield.  The original post was part of our ‘Salute to Librarians’ series. Read the post 


 Dominic’s comment


‘I would just like to say thank you for the time you spent at John Port School. As a student who frequented the library during your last few years there you really made that place feel like a second home. You kept my love of reading alive and it is thanks to you that I found two of my favourite authors (Anne McAffrey and David Eddings!). The shared disappointment on the school trip to see Eragon and the surprise at seeing the books I mentioned appear on the shelves are things I still think of every time I walk past the library (I have come back to JP to work as a Teaching Assistant). I hope you are doing well and that you continue to enjoy your work as a librarian and I am sure you are making a difference, because you did with me.
Thank you,
Dominic  





Ingrid (like all our featured librarians) has dedicated years of her life to instilling a passion for reading in young people.  Dominic’s comments are a timely reminder of the impact that a good librarian can have on children and shows how that impact that can last into their adult lives.  It’s a reminder of how invaluable it is to have qualified librarians in our schools, working in libraries that are appealing, welcoming places and that convey the message that books are enjoyable, life enhancing and for everyone!
 

I know that they’ll be many more ex pupils throughout the UK who have their school librarians to thank for finding them the perfect story when they insisted that ‘books are boring’, for offering them a place they felt at ease and for passing on their love of books.  So many writers have strong, fond memories of their school and community libraries (read Savita Kalhan’s ‘A People’s Palace In Every Town’ post )   The access to free books for all and the guidance of a good librarian has helped mould many children into readers (and writers).



 


When librarians have devoted years of their lives to a profession which is increasingly under threat (in schools and in the community) it’s gratifying to read Dominic’s confirmation of how vital their role is in young people’s lives.  (Here’s my  post ‘Taking Issue’ about the importance of school libraries.)


It would be great to take this opportunity to Big Up any librarians out there who’ve made a difference to us at any stage in our lives.


I’d like to get the ball rolling by thanking all the great school librarians I work with when I do author visits.  Their enthusiasm to get students reading is inspiring. 


 If you’d like to thank any librarians please leave a comment below.

Paula Rawsthorne is an award winning author of YA thrillers 'The Truth About Celia Frost' and 'Blood Tracks' (published by Usborne) You can follow her on  FB- @PaulaRawsthorneAuthor and Twitter @PaulaRawsthorne