
Next up was Louise Spiegler who spoke about her new book, The Jewel and the Key. She grew up doing theater productions in school and her book centers on a girl who can travel through time through a downtown theater. She also told a funny story about how her parents told her that perhaps theater wasn't her calling. In retrospect, she said, they were right because it led her to become both a teacher and a writer, which she loves.
Many of my Goodreads friends rave on about Jessica Martinez's debut novel, Virtuosity, which is the story of a violin prodigy, so I was really excited to hear what she had to say. Later on in the event, she admitted that she never set out to write a YA book, it was just a publisher and/or marketing choice. Martinez is a talented musician herself and told several funny stories about her inspirations for the book. She said, "I love music but I can think of so many reasons why a girl might want to throw her violin off a balcony. So I wrote about those reasons." I'm not a musician at all but I can certainly understand the sentiment of feeling frustrated about something I love. She also told a hilarious story about an instance during her high school years (I presume) when her violin teacher asked if she wanted to play his violin. She shrugged and said she guessed so and after playing the instrument, she remarked that she'd love to someday own an instrument with such a deep sound. He told her she could, if she had 4 MILLION DOLLARS. She was floored and said she couldn't believe he'd been so blase about it. What if she'd tripped?

The last author to speak was Stasia Ward Kehoe, whose verse work Audition was recently released by Viking. I think I might listen to too many audiobooks because I actually wrote down in my notes, "I'd love to listen to this woman read me an audiobook." How creepy is that? (Note to Ms. Kehoe: If your book turns into an audiobook, READ IT YOURSELF!) The plotline of her book deals with a small town dancer who gets a scholarship to a big city dancing school. Big fish to small fish. I'm not usually interested in books written in verse but I don't know if I can resist. (plus it sounds a bit like Center Stage which is a total guilty pleasure of mine)
New books on my radar, lots of interesting information, and a fun afternoon all around. See if they're coming anywhere near you on their tour! (There are several other authors that hop on and off the tour)