Houston Teen Book Con 2014

Rose and I went to the Houston Teen Book Con recently, and had a fun time! What’s awesome about this convention is all the authors that attend and the panels. Check out this author line up!

The con starts with a keynote speech, then 4 panel slots (6 choices for the panels), then a closing speech followed by book signing. I did really well. I’m super proud of myself and I stuck to my no buying books thing. OK, I bought one paperback from the keynote speaker. The keynote was Laurie Halse Anderson, and I bought her book Speak. But Rose bought a ton of books. She must not be under a book buying ban haha!

Okay so the keynote speaker, Laurie Halse Anderson, had some interesting things to say about her teenage years. She spent a lot of time at the library, especially when she “forgot” to go to class. She told us she read a lot of SF/F and wouldn’t really have read the kinds of books she writes when she was in high school. “Books were keeping me alive” she told us, which I think is a very powerful message. She said that if you have scars and you learn how to use them, they will make you stronger. She also mentioned that she should write a thank you card to people who ban her books, since they increase her book sales. She also had this cool quote up on her presentation:

First Panel

The first Panel we attended was The Road To Happiness with Elizabeth Eulberg, Jenny Han, Emery Lord, Sarah Mlynowski, Lauren Myracle, and Len Vlahos. Some of the questions asked in this panel were inspirations for their books. Len Vlahos said his inspiration was taken from when the author’s band broke up, using friendship and music in a book. Lauren Myracle wanted her book to be authentic about 17-year-olds and wanted avoid jump cuts but instead wanted to write a sex scene. Sarah Mlynowski was inspired by a creepy building, a tall one with no windows. She made up stories about what goes on in there. Another author (who’s name I apparently didn’t write down) was inspired by a song “cooler than me”. This author was hurting when she wrote her book, and wanted to work out how it was going to be okay. Jenny Han’s idea came from her own habit of writing letters to get closure. YA is really about you becoming you, she said.

They were asked for tips for aspiring authors, and they had the following tips to share:

• Read a lot and write the story you want to tell.
• Develop your own voice.
• Read out of your comfort zone. You’ll know when something is good.
• Let yourself be bad at it (writing) at first.
• Break your writing into pieces – you can’t write a novel in one day.
• Finish the damn thing! (*cough* Rose *cough*) <—-Har har Julie! (yes I read this!)
• The world has hurt us all and we all write from that.
• A journalist reports facts, while a novelist reports on the human condition. So pay attention.

The panel was asked to provide some life advice for high school students:

• Be yourself.
• Others are feeling what you are feeling too. Reach out to others.
• If a door opens for you, go through it. Or open it yourself.
• Sign up for what interests you, find your people.
• Sign up for activities that scare you. Say yes.
• It is up to you to make the life you want.
• Turn outward rather than inward.
• Try to be nicer to your parents.
• You’re enough!
• You will never look this great, so enjoy your body.
• Be kind to each other, we’re all in this journey together.

Second Panel

The second panel we attended was called Spaced Out with authors Cecil Castellucci, Bree Despain, Shannon Hale, Rachel Hawkins, and Laini Taylor.

I do believe Laini Taylor was the headliner of this panel, at least in the fans’ eyes. She was asked a lot of questions about her Daughter of Smoke and Bone series. She talked about her idea of the war – that there is no good or bad side, and that both sides do what they think is right based on how they were raised. There are two sides to every story.

Shannon Hale talked about how she loves to be surprised and writes the books she wants to read. Rachel Hawkins likes to read books that are different than the types of books she writes.

The panel was asked about how they named characters. Some people said they look up baby names. Some said they knew they wanted a specific sound. Some wanted some kind of meaning and resonance. There’s apparently also a site called Fantasy Name Generator that is helpful.

This panel was also asked for tips for aspiring authors (I think we’re seeing a theme with the audience). They said to:

• Read everything.
• Write and practice. It has to be bad first to be good.
• It is OK to let something go because you can always put it in somewhere else in the story.
• Develop a habit of finishing things.
• Don’t have a plan B if you want to have a creative career.
• You have to work on it every day.

Third Panel

The third panel we attended was called Wanted: Dead or Alive. The authors were Ann Brashares, Matt de la Pena, Victoria Schwab, Marcus Sedgwick, and Tess Sharpe.

Ann Brashares, Matt de la Pena, Victoria Schwab, Marcus Sedgwick, and Tess Sharpe.

The authors on this panel were asked to talk about how they keep their character from sounding the same. Tess Sharpe has a theater background and so she focuses on how dialogue sets characters apart. Marcus Sedgwick’s books are driven by plot so he has to work more on characterization. He visualizes his characters first. Victoria Schwab builds the world first and then tries to figure out who lives there. Matt de la Pena has to reinvent each new person and think of their psychology.   Ann Brashares has trouble working on more than one character at a time. She’s always in one person’s POV for the entire scene she’s writing.

They were asked how they feel about ebooks. Tess Sharpe said ebooks make literature more accessible to some, but harder for others (if they are poor for example). Marcus Sedgwick wants greatest accessibility of his books. Ebooks also get higher % of royalties. Victoria Schwab named her kindle Judas. Several authors said that people retain more when they read print books. Matt de la Pena noted that you can’t throw an eReader across the room if a book upsets you. Ann Brashares said this about print books – you have a geographic orientation of a favorite paragraph on a page in your memory. Ebooks feel slippery.

When asked where is their favorite place to write, Tess Sharpe said she goes to a waterfall to start a book. Marcus Sedgwick likes to write in his shed in the garden. He said it is nice to have a special place. Victoria Schwab, the rebel that she is, likes to write wherever she’s not supposed to. She tends to work things out when she is away. Matt de la Pena goes to the Brooklyn writer’s space. Ann Brashares said her desk that is against a wall in her bedroom. She had another child that had taken her writing room away from her.

The panel was also asked to discuss writer’s block. Here are the tips and thoughts shared:

• Ask yourself why are you stuck? Are you bored? Scared?
• Maybe it is stage fright.
• Find the root of the problem or skip ahead to a more exciting part of the book.
• Recharge with writing prompts.
• Read other people’s work.
• Give yourself permission to write anything. The only way past it is through it.

One last tidbit to share, Tess Sharpe likes to get into her characters by going to a new town and dressing up and acting like the character she is wring. How cool/quirky is that!?

Fourth and final Panel

This last panel we went to was called Crash! Bang! Action! with authors Melissa de la Cruz, Brendan Kiely, Jason Reynolds, Victoria Scott, and John Corey Whaley.

Melissa de la Cruz, Brendan Kiely, Jason Reynolds, Victoria Scott, John Corey Whaley

This panel was asked about developing characters as well, and something that John Corey Whaley said stuck out. He said he takes little pieces of people he knows and his characters are like a completed puzzle.

This panel was also asked about writer’s block, and here are some new things that were said:

• Shut down the inner hater.
• Tell yourself: it will be terrible and that is OK.

When asked about collaborating with other authors, the panel mentioned trusting the process, but also having a lot of trust in your co-author.

Some tips that were shared are:

• Find one thing you think looks beautiful every day, then twist it.
• Ask yourself, what do they want?

The closing speaker was Matt de la Pena and he talked about how he was labeled as a non-reader as a child. He didn’t pass second grade because of that definition. Then he not only became a reader, but an accomplished author as well. His takeaway message in his speech was his take on life: “you are what you do when nobody is watching”.

So that’s our recap of the Houston Teen Book Con, 2014. Did any of our local followers attend the event? Who were you most excited to see?

 

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