Bloggers of the Week:
Kelly Parra & Tina Ferraro--YA Fresh


YA Fresh, co-hosted by authors Kelly Parra and Tina Ferraro, is booming right now, Tina says. "Kelly and I are blown away by all the hits we're getting, the new readers, and the interview and review requests. And we are very grateful for the nods we are getting from colleagues such as you (and Meg Cabot, to name two) who have directed readers our way."

It's with good reason that YA Fresh gets so much attention. Kelly and Tina's blog is not just about promoting their own books--they make work of regularly talking up books by other authors; they offer a terrific links lists; and their material is of interest to a range of YA fans, readers and writers alike.

Kelly Parra debuted into young adult fiction with her Latina novel Graffiti Girl, which garnered attention as a double nominee for the Romance Writers of America RITA award, a Latinidad YA top pick, as well as chosen for the California High School Reading Collection and National Book Foundation "BookUpNYC" program. Her latest novel Invisible Touch has hailed fresh praise from bestselling author Lauria Faria Stolarz, and given the Gold Award of Excellence from TeensReadToo. Click here to visit her website.

Tina Ferraro is the author of three YA novels, Top Ten Uses for an Unworn Prom Dress, How to Hook a Hottie (a finalist for the RWA RITA for Best YA Novel of 2008), and The ABC's of Kissing Boys. All three of her books have been optioned for film rights. Her fourth book, When Bad Flings Happen to Good Girls, releases summer of 2010. Click here to visit her website.

When did you start blogging on YA Fresh?

TINA: Kelly started YA Fresh on her own in 2006, when she was working on her first YA novel, Graffiti Girl. She asked me, her critique partner of three years, to join in January of the next year.

Why did you choose to do a partner blog rather than one on your own?

KELLY: I felt Tina could add something fresh and different to the blog, as far content and voice. Plus, we knew we worked really well together, and would have fun...

What do you hope to accomplish with YA Fresh?

We hope to bring entertaining reading content to Young Adult readers (of all ages), and to promote the YA genre in general.

What kind of posts will reader find on your blog?

We aim for fresh, fun and friendly. We do interview, reviews, giveaways, and blogs of pop culture teen interests.

Do you have regular features?

Yes, we have What's Fresh interviews, Caption It! contests, and have just started a random book giveaway to blog visitors.

What's your advice to other authors entering the blogosphere?

Our advice would be to keep it high concept and positive. To invite readers to participate in blog topics. And to keep up fresh content.

My Session and Why I Wish I'd Brought a PC...

I skipped Mark Teague's ballroom session to prepare for my first breakout, Keeping Current on Market Research: Websites, Blogs, Listservs & Networking. I checked my notes, practiced my intro, made sure there was no spinach between my teeth, etc., and went to check out the Westside room where my session took place (which was pretty rocking--big, fancy chandeliers, a stage).

When I viewed the setup, I realized I had no cord to plug my Mac laptop into the projector. The conference coordinator called the blue-shirted AV dude who kinda said that's a shame; there's a Mac store in the Mall. So I was just slightly freaking. Here it is, my first LA conference gig, I'm talking about blogs and websites, and I have no visuals; my week of collecting screen shots all for naught.

Then the audience (bigger than I expected and very patient) came to my rescue. Jennifer Bailey offered her zip drive and SCBWI Florida RA Linda Rodriguez Bernfeld offered her brand spanking new Cadillac of a PC. My heroes! Thank you both again for your help.

So, a bit rattled, I made it through the hour of PowerPoint. And it was fun. I wish we would have had more time for Q&A because I was getting some interesting questions. One writer asked how to get readers to her blog. I talked a lot about professional blogs and networking with writers and editors and agents, but not so much about readers. I suggested connecting with bloggers who are booksellers and librarians, who will in turn reach her readers. Tina Ferraro, half of the blogging duo behind YA Fresh, suggested utilizing MySpace. Her YA readers head to her blog for regularly contest or give-aways when she makes MySpace announcements. And in my informal Thursday night survey, other authors agreed--MySpace is great for connecting with readers; facebook more for connecting with other writers and people in the industry.