Hey all, we have a new blurb, this one from Kelly Jensen. Remember, these are 50-word pitches for a YA NaNoWriMo manuscript. The Acres, by Kelly Jensen Selling the family farm to developers left Sidney’s father wealthier but depressed. When he chooses to face his depression in an unimaginable way, Sidney feels compelled to forgo her dream of attending Northwestern …
NaNoWriMo
Sarah’s turn to blurb
Our next NaNoWriMo blurb is from Sarah Mulhern, who adds, "I'm hoping this forces me to keep writing!" River of Monarchs Brielle loved gardening & raising monarch butterflies with her grandfather. But since his death, she hasn’t looked at the garden. When her parents plan a trip to the monarch bioreserves in Mexico, she refuses. But maybe this trip is …
Children’s Literary Cafe
Organizers Susan, Pam, myself and ex-Cybils organizer Liz are headed into New York City for a big to-do at the NY Public Library. Another ex-Cybilian, Betsy, is our organizer and moderator. Here's the scoop: Pam and other bloggers will discuss the state of children's literature online today including ethics, publisher/blogger relations, transparency, influence (or lack thereof) over published titles, and …
NaNoWriMo
Our first blurb
Congrats to Abby Johnson, who sends in our first NaNoWriMo blurb: Pale as Snow by Abby Johnson Rafe knows where he's heading. Though he dreams of more, he'll marry his betrothed and work in the mines. When a new family arrives in the village, things begin to change. Children are disappearing and the town elders don’t care. Rafe must destroy …
Blurb your NaNoWriMo book!
Hey, anyone out there doing NaNoWriMo? Don't tell me you've no idea what I'm talking about. You're doing it, right? Or you started your magnum opus last year, didn't finish, and are wondering if it's worth dusting off … Okay, that's where I'm at. About 40,000 words in and losing faith. Please tell me you're not as pathetic. Two items …
Introducing Anne Boles Levy, Cybils administrator
Today we meet Anne Boles Levy, co-founder, president-for-life and chief bottle washer at Cybils. Okay, so I don't really have a title that I like, because I don't much like titles. I'm not paying anyone to put up with me, and I have no use for the fooferaw that attends the windier appellations. My job is to think things through …
The Very Angry Book Reviewer
For anyone who has read an Eric Carle book to a toddler (and who hasn't) again and again and freaking gawdammit again, this link is for you. Money quote: Anyone who thinks that writing a good book for a 2-year-old is easier than writing a good book for a 32-year-old is deluded. The children's author has a monumental task. First, …
New FTC rules for bloggers & open thread
Just passing along an article that may or may not affect us here at Cybils. Follow this link to a NYT article on new FTC rules affecting bloggers who get free stuff to review. In a nutshell: you're going to have to disclose your arrangements with your advertiser. That extends to disclosing what free books you get from publishers, as …
Quick facts about opening day
We had 5,288 page views on October 2nd. The first nomination came in from Kate Messner, who nominated "When You Reach Me" by Rebecca Stead. Congrats to Kate and thanks to everyone who's jumping in there with nominations. We're up to 380 books so far. Wow. -Anne
2009 Nominations are now closed
Welcome to the 2009 Cybils awards. Our nominations are closed for this year but there's more fun to come. Our finalists are announced on January 1st, so there's a reason to wake up early on New Year's Day. Read on for the full list of nominations …