Canadian Book Week

To celebrate Canadian book week, we're featuring our Canadian authors and illustrators.

TAKE 2--

Next up is our award-winning, Canadian graphic artist, Val Cox...

Val is responsible for the cool and edgy designs in two of our paranormal books, Freaksville and Under My Skin. Watch for more of Val's work in upcoming books.

Here are a few of Val's designs:

"Sharing Enthusiasm"

Author Judith Graves

We love seeing things about our authors in print. Especially when it's a rave review. This one was published in The Southern Gazette on January 18, 2011. The author, Leonard Quilty, who is also a teacher, attended Judith Graves' library talk in Okotoks, Alberta, last weekend. Here's some of what he had to say:

"Ms. Graves gave a very interesting talk about writing in general, and what it takes to be a published author. Other than the useful information she shared, what impressed me the most about this young author was the unabashed gleam in her eyes as she was talking about the joys of reading and writing.

"It was obvious to me she had found her niche in life – her magnificent obsession. What a blessing it is to get to that point in your life when you’ve latched onto something so powerful it literally resonates in your being, so much so you just want to share it with others hoping your enthusiasm will inspire them to go out and do the same."

It's wonderful to know that our Leap authors radiate joy. And thanks to Mr. Quilty for brightening our day too.

Celebration of Authors

 The Young Alberta Book Society and the Children’s Literature Roundtable are partnering once again to present the Celebration of Authors. Meet Judith Graves who’ll present her books and chat with librarians, teachers, and readers in general.

When	Thursday, November 4, 2010
Where	Alberta, Canda (map)   You'll also get to hear more about Judith Graves' next book in the series, Second Skin, coming out in 2011. Cool cover, eh??

Skype Visits Anyone?

If you aren't sure how to use Skype for author visits, author Judith Graves will demonstrate this free technology that allows schools and libraries to host inexpensive author visits via the Internet.

See her presentation at:

 October 4, 2010: Parkland Regional Library School PD Day (Lacombe, Alberta, Canada). Session on Skype Author Visits and making the most of author related videoconferencing in a library setting.

If you aren't able to attend this session, contact Judith about a presentation for your organization. And remember, all our Leap Books authors are available for Skype visits. Contact Cathleen Cartwright, Public Relations Assistant, at cathleencartwright@leapbks

Meet Judith Graves Tonight

DON'T FORGET: You can see author Judith Graves tonight!

September 14th: Backstage with A YA Writer (Cold Lake Public Library, Alberta, Canada, 6 pm): Sponsored by the Cold Lake Public Library and the Writer’s Guild of Alberta.

“Get a glimpse at what it is to be a young adult author and the steps to get there.”

Talk of the Town

If you weren't in Cold Lake, Alberta, this weekend, you missed out on some great fun. Yep, that's author Judith Graves at the mic, ready to sing about her book characters, accompanied by the all-girl band, Shenanigans.

A singer/songwriter, Graves is multi-talented, which she had an opportunity to demonstrate not only through song, but during her book reading. You can catch some of the fun here or at Graves' Wolfy Chicks blog:

Up to Some Shenanigans

So the countdown goes on...

Judith Graves' launch party begins in 3 more days.

In addition to great food, a chance to meet this exciting debut author in person, and to hear her reading from Under My Skin, you'll get to hear awesome tunage by Shenanigans, an all-girl band. Some of the band members used to be part of Judith's former band.

Yes, this multi-talented author is also a singer/songwriter. And she'll be joining the band for a song or two. If you want a sneak peek at Judith's abilities, check out her vlog below. She's written a song about her book characters.

You won't want to miss any of her Shenanigans this weekend. So head to Cold Lake, AB, or join us for some live footage of the event via her vlog posts. And check out the Wolfy Chicks blog for some awesome coverage of the event.

Under My Skin Launch Buzz

Although we've experienced production delays for Under My Skin (UMS), author Judith Graves is hard at work prepping for her launch party now rescheduled for April 24, 2010.

Judith worked with artist Lauri Ansell, who set the stage for the party by painting larger-than-life images of Eryn, the main character of UMS, and other details from the book. The original art from the books was done by graphic artist Val Cox. Val's cool art can be viewed to the left. Val created images of the UMS characters that enhance the book pages.

Now Lauri has translated some of those images onto the walls of Bean Trees, a coffee house in Alberta, Canada. If you happen to live near Cold Lake, why not take a stroll by to see the artwork, or feel free to drop in at the launch party. The more the merrier. And you'll get to hear Judith sing along with some of her former bandmates, who now perform with all-girl band Shenanigans.

If you aren't in the area, you can still enjoy the fun via Judith's vlog. Almost as good as being there in person. And Judith, your US fans are expecting another vlog on the night of the launch!

Here's the vlog:



You can view the vlog full size at YouTube and find out more about Judith and the launch party at the Wolfy Chicks blog.

Team Freaksville vs. Team Redgrave: The Interviews

 This is Kasey Maxwell from Freaksville (left) blogging with Eryn McCain from Redgrave, Alberta (below).

K:   So hiya, Eryn, word has it you have a little vampire problem up in the vast North, eh?” [Note I added a little Canadian flavour. I really dig accents. British is my fav, but Canada is a colony of England, isn’t it…] Oops, sorry, back to the question at hand—VAMPS.

E:  Yeah, we have some nasty bloodsuckers in Redgrave, but currently me and my hunter crew—well, it's Alec's crew really (that's part of the guy problem I was telling you about)—are fighting off a pack of werewolves. I hear you have some wolfy issues yourself…as in potential love interest avec fur. I sure hope you’re not allergic, like some people I know…

K:   So what does a hunter do exactly? Do you get to wear cool boots? I love boots, I think every girl, whether she’s kicking butt or not, should have a pair of cool boots.

E:  Um...boots. Yeah, I have some s#^*kickers, but I still cling to my Vancouver-purchased Mary Janes. I'm completely against snow. (Although, I really don't get why there's zero white-stuff action for the Olympics...British Columbia usually has the best ski conditions—if you're into that sort of thing.) Anyway, Redgrave's been quite the shock to my system, in more ways than one.

K:   Err, Canada grows their guys on the hot side… *fans self* I want to know who do you really want Wade or Alec? Come on we’re friends here.

 E:  Yeah, they're mildly attractive (understatement of incredible magnitude). But there's the whole, one guy might kill me, I might kill the other guy thing. Sounds like I'm taking it lightly, right? Believe me...I'm not. I'm just the laugh-at-a-funeral type, you know?

K:   I recently discovered that I’m a paranorm and, well, after that Freakfest, I’m learning to deal with my gifts. What’s been challenging to you?

E:  I've always known what I am, part human/part shapeshifter. But I've never had the chance to explore my paranorm side. You're hearing me, yes? At least your father never plied you with drugs to keep your "talents" at bay....screwing with your paranorm metabolism....turning you into something unknown and dangerous. And I'm supposed to care about passing my physics exam? Good lord.

K:  I heard you actually had a run in with a werewolf...seems he had a little pet shopping on his mind. Poor Thumper, it’s bad enough people wear  cute bunnies as fashion statement—note, I wear faux fur, not Thumpers---but now they have to worry about being werewolf chow, too?  So not fair! Anyway, what were you really thinking when you slipped and fell in the bunny blood? BTW, were those jeans thrashed? I hope they weren’t cute, because bloodstains are tough to get out of denim.

 E:  Kasey, Kasey, Kasey. *shakes head sadly* You'd have a tough time in my world. Why do you think I keep my hair up in these functional (yet funky and cute!) ponytails? I get messy. Hunting is a gory job. Sometimes I shower three times a day. I'm not kidding. Yeah, that werewolf was in a for a little dine-and-dash at the pet shop. But I handled the situation….with some help from an unlikely source.