MORE SHEEP

Just got the word from Frances Foster, my editor at FSG, that the sequel to SHEEP will be published in the Spring of 2013. It's tentatively titled Counting Sheep, but I could use some suggestions for sure!

Debby Dahl Edwardson, author of the award-winning Blessings Bead, is as concerned about marketing these days as I am, and you may be as well. Borrowing an idea and some questions from our pal, Darcy Pattison, I asked Debby about marketing her new novel, My Name Is Not Easy. You might want to ask yourself these questions. I am.

Val: What’s your elevator pitch (quick, catchy description of your book & why it should matter to me)?

Deb: Forced to leave their home villages, a group of Alaska Native kids from diverse tribal backgrounds travel hundreds of miles to attend Sacred Heart, a parochial boarding school in the heart of Alaska’s wilderness. Once their separate stories come together, things at Sacred Heart School –and the wider world--- will never be the same.

Val: Who would be your ideal media interviewer and why?

Deb: Scott Simon or Daniel Pinkwater because NPR sells books! (And because I met Scott Simon a 25 years ago when I was a young radio reporter)

Val: If I were that person, what 3 things could you say to me to make me want to get you on my show or featured in my publication or site?

Deb: This is a story that has not been told. Period. It’s a side of the Native American/Alaska Native boarding school experience that you have not heard. It will tear at your heart strings and, ultimately, reaffirm your faith in the human spirit.

Val: Is there an interesting back story to your book and/or your writing career that might be of particular interest to the press?

Deb: My Name is Not Easy is based on the real story of three real brothers—three Inupiaq Eskimo boys who were sent to a parochial boarding school nearly 1000 miles from their home community of Barrow, Alaska. I know the story of these brothers, well, because I married the oldest brother. Barrow is the northernmost community on the North American continent and although I was not born into the Inupiaq culture, I have lived in Barrow (nicknamed “the Top of the World”) for over 30 years.

Val: How good is your online and social media presence, and what could you do to make it better?

Deb: I try to do all the right things: I host a website, a blog, am on Facebook and Twitter. I have email lists of reviewers, book people, writers and friends. I need to be more regular and purposeful about blogging.

BOOKPAGE Interview

Whenever I'm in an indie bookstore I pick up a copy of Bookpage. It's filled with reviews of books in just about every genre. Well, guess what? I'm in the latest issue! And it's a great, really well written review of The Last Best Days Of Summer. Check it out.

http://www.bookpage.com/books-10013269-The+Last+Best+Days+of+Summer

WINNER!

Susan Ruch Roush has won a free copy of The Last Best Days Of Summer for submitting the best question to daybydaywriter on my blog tour.

Thanks, Susan. Hope you enjoy the book!

School Visits in Bakersfield

Thanks to the Kern Reading Association, I just spent a week in five different Bakersfield middle schools. My expectations (hot weather, out-of-control hormone-driven teens) were nicely dashed. True, the week was exhausting--three assemblies a day to a sea of faces, but those faces were dear and, for the most part, paying attention. Having a good powerpoint really makes a difference. That and learning to be a ham, if you are not already one. I was surprised at the number of teens who are still reading picture books--the school libraries had lots of them. So at least they're reading, right? Maybe we writers need to provide more high-interest, informative picture books for this age group. They also like graphic novels, of course, but how many of them would you call informative?

Starred Review from Publishers Weekly

My first starred review in AGES from PW. I'm stoked!

The Last Best Days of Summer
Valerie Hobbs, FSG/Foster, $16.99 (192p) ISBN 978-0-374-34670-6
Like the final stretch of freedom before school begins, there's something quietly magical--and bittersweet--about Hobbs's (Anything but Ordinary) latest novel. Hidden beneath the ordinary anxieties of a 12-year-old starting middle school (Will she be popular? Will her clothes be the right style?), lies a tearjerker that is both insightful and penetrating. When Lucy embarks on her annual trip to her grandmother's lake cabin, she couldn't be more excited to escape her overprotective parents and do all her favorite things (bake cookies, go on canoe adventures). But nothing goes as planned. Eddie, a neighborhood kid, shows up unexpectedly and ruins Lucy's precious alone time with her grandmother, who isn't acting like herself. The portrayals of serious illnesses (Alzheimer's, Down syndrome) are handled with a delicate touch, and Lucy's inner conflicts will readily hit home with readers. Despite her condition, Grams's advice to Lucy is priceless: "Centering? It's that place you go to when you want to know what to do, the best and right thing. It will always be there inside you when you need it." Ages 10–14. (May)

Blog Tour-The Last Best Days of Summer – Val Hobbs

May 3^rd – 7th

Join me each day for a chance to win a t-shirt or one of my autographed books!

Tuesday, May 4th

BOOK TRAILER DEBUT

Tina Nichols Coury

Tales from the Rushmore Kid

http://www.tinanicholscouryblog.com

Wednesday, May 5^th

INTERVIEW ON WRITING WITH VAL

Meredith Resnick

The Writer’s Journey

http://writersinnerjourney.com/

Thursday May 6^th

BOOK REVIEW

Michele Corriel

Playing with Words

http://mcorriel.livejournal.com

Friday May 7^th

INTERVIEW WITH VAL ABOUT THE

CHARACTER WITH SPECIAL NEEDS

Elizabeth Lipp

http://asharmony.blogspot.com

Saturday May 8^th

INTERVIEW WITH BOOK EDITOR

FRANCES FOSTER

Samantha Clark

Day by Day Writers

http://www.Daybydaywriter.wordpress.com