During the month of March, Simon and Schuster is giving away twenty sets of Deb Caletti’s books to celebrate the release of her new one: The Six Rules of Maybe.

The prize pack includes:

• The Secret Life of Prince Charming
• The Fortunes of Indigo Skye
• The Nature of Jade, Wild Roses
• Honey, Baby, Sweetheart
• The Queen of Everything

Visit the Simon and Schuster website for all the details and to enter the contest.

Good luck!

It’s a ghastly day in northeast Indiana, where Geek Girl Darcy makes her haunted home. It’s cold. It’s rainy. It’s windy. The perfect day to curl up with a ghostly good story. And, lucky me (!), I’ve got two of them.

Give Up the Ghost by Megan Crewe

Cass McKenna much prefers ghosts over “breathers.” Ghosts are uncomplicated and dependable, and they know the dirt on everybody…and Cass loves dirt. She’s on a mission to expose the dirty secrets of the poseurs in her school. But when the vice president of the student council discovers her secret, Cass’s whole scheme hangs in the balance. Tim wants her to help him contact his recently deceased mother, and Cass reluctantly agrees. As Cass becomes increasingly entwined in Tim’s life, she’s surprised to realize he’s not so bad-and he needs help more desperately than anyone else suspects. Maybe it’s time to give the living another chance…

Shadowed Summer by Saundra Mitchell

Iris is ready for another hot, routine summer in her small Louisiana town, hanging around the Red Stripe grocery with her best friend, Collette, and traipsing through the cemetery telling each other spooky stories and pretending to cast spells. Except this summer, Iris doesn’t have to make up a story. This summer, one falls right in her lap.Years ago, before Iris was born, a local boy named Elijah Landry disappeared. All that remained of him were whispers and hushed gossip in the church pews. Until this summer. A ghost begins to haunt Iris, and she’s certain it’s the ghost of Elijah. What really happened to him? And why, of all people, has he chosen Iris to come back to?

I’d love to share my ghostly good fortune — so the Geek Girls will be giving away both books! The only catch is… you’ll have to wait until I read them first. (Don’t worry, I promise to not to leave too many Cheetos stains behind.)

And if you can’t wait to get your fear on, why not kick it old skool ghoul by reading one of these scary tales: The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving or The Tell Tale Heart by Edgar Allen Poe? Both of them (and hundreds of other creeptastic classics) are available online at HorrorMasters.com.

But wait, how do you win our spooktacular prize? Just leave a comment below with the title of your own favorite (new or old ghoul) ghost story, and on November 1st (The Day of the Dead) we’ll bring the Random-nator back to life and choose one fiendishly fortunate friend for the win.

Are you a teen librarian at a school or public library? Would you like to add 46 books to your collection … for free? Here’s your chance.

To celebrate Teens Read Week, the YA and MG authors of Debut 2009 are giving away a 46 book set of their debut novels to ONE lucky library, anywhere in the world! From October 18th until December 31st, 2009 we’ll be taking entries from librarians only- public and school libraries are eligible.

Visit the 2009 Debutantes for all the details. And yes, the collection does include a copy of The Geek Girl’s Guide to Cheerleading.

Today on the blog we have a very special guest, author of Oh. My. Gods. and Goddess Boot Camp, Tera Lynn Childs.

Full of win! As some of you already know, we like to give away books when we have a guest YA author, so if you comment on this post, you’re entered in the drawing for Tera’s new release Goddess Boot Camp.

Just leave a comment, that’s all you have to do. (Plus, you can still enter even if you’ve entered our BFF launch contest.)

Contest deadline: Leave a comment between now and Sunday, June 21st. We’ll post the winner on Monday, June 22nd. Good luck!

And now, take it away, Tera!

Goddess Boot Camp:

Phoebe recently discovered she’s a descendant of Nike (the goddess, not the shoe), and now she’s finding out that supernatural powers come with a crazy learning curve. Her new stepfather, headmaster of the Academy for descendants of Greek gods, has enrolled her in Dynamotheos Development Camp-aka Goddess Boot Camp-with a bunch of ten-year-olds for the summer.

Embarrassing as that is, hopefully it’ll help her get control of her powers in time to pass the test of the gods, continue training hard enough to qualify for the Pythian Games (the only sporting event bigger than the Olympics), and enjoy her godly boyfriend, Griffin, all while avoiding getting smoted for accidental misuse of powers!

It’s another fast-paced myth-inspired heroine’s quest that’s sure to bring out the goddess in anyone.

Tera’s interview:

1. We Geek Girls have no interest in labels and stereotypes but, by god(s), we do have an interest in History. Historically speaking, if you had to put a label on your high school self, what would it have been?

I call myself a “Middle Grounder” because I straddled a bunch of labels. I wasn’t popular, but I wasn’t unpopular, either. I was in honors/AP classes and in sports. I made academic all-American in swimming. I had friends who were geeks, jocks, homecoming queens, cheerleaders, dancers, artists, student council, band, orchestra, French club, science club, loners … basically, you name it and I got along with them. How’s that for defying labels?

2. In your opinion, which Greek god would have made the best boyfriend?

On the one hand, I would say Hephaestus, because he’s the geeky outsider who would probably be thankful just to have a girlfriend, but I’ve never been one for desperation. Zeus is out because he’s not exactly the faithful type. Poseidon has a bit of a temper and Ares is the bad boy who only occasionally (like in the case of his descendant Griffin, Phoebe’s boyfriend) has a heart of gold. Apollo is a little too artsy and melodramatic for my taste.

I guess I would have to say Hades. He’s the lost soul/loner type who doesn’t care what society thinks about him. But when the girl for him comes along he will do whatever it takes (hopefully he’s past his kidnapping phase) to win her affections.

3. While stalkingresearching you for this interview, we found some interesting tidbits ala TLC, like, we know you collect yarn but don’t knit, are a fan of grilled cheese, and spent several summers at basketball camp. Any other surprises we should know about you?

Uh, er, um…. Should I feel violated? Let’s see, surprises, huh? Well, my first three years of school were in French. We lived in Montreal, Canada, and I attended the French side of a wonderful school named F.A.C.E. (Fine Arts Core Education). They put a lot of focus on integrating the arts into every subject, like drawing animals to learn our numbers in math.

In my kindergarten class, there were students from seventeen different nationalities. We had to learn French in the first six weeks of school and if we got caught speaking our native language after that then we got fined a quarter. We were five and, since nothing is impossible at that age, we did it.

Well, we learn in Goddess Boot Camp a little more about how the super powers are distributed, but if I could have any at all … I would choose autoportation (the ability to move oneself to a different location through nonphysical means). I love to travel. I want to visit … everywhere!

With autoportation I could save a bundle on airfare. (Of course, if I’m visiting places I’ve never been, there would always be the chance that I’d zap myself into a lamppost or a stranger’s house, but I might be willing to take that risk.) And if I could be the descendant of any god, I would choose Hera. That goddess knows how to keep it together!

4. If  you found out you were descended from a Greek god, which one would you hope it would be, and what super power would you possess?

Well, we learn in Goddess Boot Camp a little more about how the super powers are distributed, but if I could have any at all … I would choose autoportation (the ability to move oneself to a different location through nonphysical means). I love to travel. I want to visit … everywhere! With autoportation I could save a bundle on airfare. (Of course, if I’m visiting places I’ve never been, there would always be the chance that I’d zap myself into a lamppost or a stranger’s house, but I might be willing to take that risk.)

And if I could be the descendant of any god, I would choose Hera. That goddess knows how to keep it together!

5. What is the one interview question you wish someone would ask you?

Is there a question I haven’t been asked? Well, at a Melissa Marr signing last year a girl asked her if she had an emergency plan for the 2012 doomsday. I’m a freak-out perfect storm of obsessive planning and imagining the worst, so disaster prep is like a birthday party for me. Every year during hurricane season I print out the NHC (National Hurricane Center) preparedness checklist and gather my supplies, make my exit plan, keep my car full of gas.

It’s still a little far off for even me to be planning for an apocalypse that’s three years away, but rest assured that I’ll have a plan when the time comes. And I’ll probably be with my family … as far from a major metropolitan area a we can get. With an emergency radio and plenty of water and non-perishable food.

Thanks, Tera!

Remember, leave a comment to be entered in the drawing to win a copy of Goddess Boot Camp!

So, I rushed over to Random.org this morning for some assistance in picking a winner for the copy of Giving Up The V by Serena Robar.

And … we have a winner! Congratulations to:

Jessica!

Jessica, we’ll be contacting you soon via email. But if we get lost in the ether, you can leave a comment here or email us at geekgirlx2 @ gmail.com (remove spaces).

This week we welcome fellow Simon Pulse author Serena Robarto the site. This is an extra fun visit because tucked behind the last chapter of The Geek Girl’s Guide to Cheerleading is the first chapter of Serena’s book, Giving Up The V. And, we’re tucked in behind the last chapter of her book.

Win!

Leave a comment on this entry to be entered in a drawing for a copy of Giving Up The V. Enter by Thursday, June 11. We’ll announce the winner on Friday. You can still enter even if you’ve already entered our BFF giveaway.

Giving Up The V:

What’s So Wrong With Waiting?

Spencer Davis just turned sixteen. But unlike most hormonal teenagers who seem obsessed with sex — like her entire crew of friends — Spencer just doesn’t get it. She’d rather wait for the right guy and the right moment. But that moment may be arriving sooner than she’d thought.

Enter Benjamin Hopkins, a new transfer student who seems to have his eyes on our V-card-carrying heroine. He’s gorgeous, funny, suave, athletic, and capable of making Spencer’s knees wobble with a single glance. Spencer has never felt this way about anyone before, but is Ben truly V-worthy?

Interview with Serena:

1. There’s nothing the Geek Girls abhor more than stereotyping, but curiosity is our biggest weakness. If you were forced to put a label on your high school self, what would it have been?

It’s funny because if you would have asked me this question when I was in high school, I think the answer might have been different. I might have been a jock since I played Volleyball and Softball.

Or I might have been a Spirit since I was a cheerleader and on the drill team but I was also a Brain since I graduated in the top 10% of my class. Now this all sounds pretty good on paper, right? You did all of that?

Now for the confession. Only 200 students in the entire high school. You could be in every sport and on every squad because there were never enough people to cut anyone. I wasn’t particularly good at sports, but I got to play Varsity my junior and senior year because of my age, not because of my skill set.

My school didn’t offer AP classes so I took the basics and if you did your homework at all, making good grades wasn’t too difficult. I had no idea everyone didn’t belong to every club, sport, etc in their school until I went to college and met people who had 1000+ in their graduating class alone. So, I was a little bit of everything-like a jack of all trades in the school clique crowd.

2. We’ve heard about your run ins with the Uvula Lapper and the Spandex King. Any other dating disasters you care to dish about?

Hmm, there is a new Super Secret Author Confessions in the back of Giving Up the V that may give you a little more insight into my teen years but let me give the Geek Girl’s an exclusive here.

How about how my first love broke my heart? We’d been an item for a year and a half. I took him to my cousin’s wedding. There was drinking involved. A lot of drinking (and a moral buried in this story. Let’s see if you can figure it out, dear reader).

I played a rousing round of Quarters (drinking game). He did not play. What he did do was an awful lot of slow dancing with my best friend on the dance floor (between chicken dances and such). Even took her outside for a stroll around the reception hall. Then a stroll outside the reception hall. To my car or more specifically the BACKSEAT of my car. You get my drift.

To top it off, they ‘talked’ in the parking lot where my entire family could walk outside and watch. Which they did. And they were kind enough to bring it to my attention. Talk about humiliating.

So there you go. Did you figure out the moral? Was it about drinking, unfaithful boyfriends or treacherous best friends? There are a plethora of choices. I’ll let you decide.

3. Your previous books (Braced 2 Bite, Fangs 4 Freaks and Dating 4 Demons) all had a paranormal element. The Geek Girls haven’t had a chance to read Giving Up the V yet (we’re not so patiently waiting *tapping feet*), but we suspect the V in this book doesn’t stand for Vampire. Why did you make the switch to realistic fiction and is this new direction permanent?

Correct, V does NOT stand for vampire. Giving Up the V is a contemporary romantic comedy with nary a vampire in sight. I love writing paranormal but the publisher of those books decided they didn’t want to do light paranormal YA anymore.

About that time I came up with the idea for GUTV and thought I would try my hand at it. I switched publishers and was surprised how much fun I had without super natural elements. I’m certainly not leaving paranormals, but I have decided to widen my arena and keep contemporaries in the mix. Just to shake things up a bit.

4. Your website features (among other fun stuff) an etiquette book from the 1800s, Advice to Young Ladies on Their Duties and Conduct in Life. What is the single most important piece of advice a Young Lady of today could use to insure success in their Duties and Conduct?

I think the Golden Rule is a classic for a reason. Treat other’s as you would like to be treated. It’s simple. Elegant and timeless.

5. Finally, what is the interview question you wish someone would ask you?

I like the offbeat questions. There are always a set of question every interviewer will ask because, well, they need to, so the reader understands the basic premise of the book and such. However, it’s fun to get questions that are totally off the wall and fun.

So let’s go with What was your hair like when you were in high school. Hah! Big hair 80′s. Ain’t nothing else like it. Viola.

Remember, leave a comment to win a copy of Giving Up The V.

Plus, check out Serena’s contest:

Giving It Away For Free (the only time Momma would approve)
Serena Robar giving it away for free the entire month of June. That’s right. A book a day, every day in honor of her latest book release Giving Up the V. All you have to do to is sign up for her newsletter and you are entered to win. Enter once and you are in the running to win a book every day in the month of June.

This Friday, June 5th, we’ll have Serena Robar on the blog. Do you have a copy of The Geek Girl’s Guide to Cheerleading? If so, flip to the way back. After the last chapter, you’ll find the first chapter of Serena’s new young adult novel, Giving Up The V.

We’ll have an interview and a book giveway. Even if you’ve entered the BFF contest, you can enter to win Serena’s book. Plus, she’ll be giving away a copy of The Geek Girl’s Guide to Cheerleading on her site.

In fact, you might want to stop over every day this month, since she’ll be giving away a book a day for the entire month of June!

So, Friday, stop by here for a chance at Giving Up the V, and stop over at Serena’s for a chance to win a copy of The Geek Girl’s Guide to Cheerleading.

After consulting Random.org, we have a winner for the signed copy of You Are Here by Jennifer E. Smith.

Congratulations to:

Catsuda!

Catsuda, we’ll be contacting you via email shortly, but if you don’t hear from us, feel free to drop us a note/leave a comment.

For everyone else, we have more guest authors coming up, including Tera Lynn Childs and Serena Robar.

Over at LibraryThing, I posted a member giveaway for two copies of The Geek Girl’s Guide to Cheerleading. Sadly, the member giveaway is a feature I learned about only a few months back. It’s listed under my name as author only because I couldn’t get the listing to work for both Darcy and me. We came out as:

• Darcy Charity, Tahmaseb and Vance
• Darcy and Charity, Tahmaseb, Vance
• Charity Vance, Tahmaseb and Darcy

My incompetence was kind of sad, really.

But if you’re a LibraryThing member (or sign up in the next two weeks) you can enter the giveaway. This one is set for US only, and I know we have some international visitors. Don’t worry–we’ll be doing more giveaways that will be global, bay-bee.

Speaking of book cateloging sites, I’m curious to know if anyone else participates. There’s GoodReads, and Shelfari, and probably a bunch I’m missing. Do you like them? Do you like the cateloging aspect? (I do! I do! I love making lists.) The social networking aspect?

I’m chagrined to admit that I have two friends on Shelfari–and one’s related to me. I’ve been with LibraryThing the longest, so that’s the one I generally use.

So how about it? Do you LibraryThing? Or Shelfari, or GoodReads?

Geek Girl Darcy has a soft spot in her heart for the Cubs. (Or is it a soft spot in my head? Some years it is hard to tell the difference.) I also get all gooey over excellent YA novels.

Last year, author Jennifer E. Smith provided the perfect combo package: The Comeback Season. ‘OMG and squeee,’ I thought, ‘a book about love and heartache…and baseball. Does it get any better than this?’

It will be hard to top The Comeback Season but Jennifer’s got a new book coming out and I can’t wait to read it. It’s called You Are Here and it’s the story of a girl, a boy, a stray dog, a road trip, and searching for something when you’re not really sure what is missing.

The Geek Girls asked Jennifer for a few answers. And, because we think D-I-Y is pretty cool, we asked her for the questions too!

Win: And … you can enter to win a signed copy of Jennifer’s upcoming release You Are Here. All you have to do is leave a comment this entry. Simple as that!

The Do It Yourself Interview – Jennifer E. Smith Style

What was the inspiration for You Are Here?

I went to college at Colgate, which is a small liberal arts school in upstate New York. The town is nearly as tiny as the university, and I was always fascinated by the professors who live there year round, and whose families become so entwined with the life and rhythms of the college, whether they like it or not.

It’s such a wonderful place, but the school really dominates the town in many ways, and I wondered what it would be like to grow up somewhere like that. In the book, Emma’s family is exceedingly academic, each of them more brilliant than the next, while she sees herself as completely and utterly average. She’s not, of course – but her perception of herself is really dictated by the place she lives, and I wanted to explore what happened when she sort of escaped all that in an effort to find out who she really is, and what kind of potential she actually has.

How do you pick the names of the characters?

I started this book while at graduate school in Scotland. One day, fairly early in the process, I was walking along the beach and saw that two kids had written their names beside one another in the sand: Peter and Emma. And since I had quite literally stumbled across them, it seemed like it was meant to be!

What is your favorite passage from the book?

There’s a scene early on where Peter is sitting outside his house in an empty car, thinking about his mother, who died giving birth to him. It’s one of my favorite parts of the book, because it captures Peter so wholly, that sense of longing that’s really come to shape him:

He looked over at the empty passenger seat, the deep well that had been molded over the years by the unknown driver’s copilot. It made him think of the way he’d often seen mothers driving their kids around town, so cautious and careful, inching forward at intersections, wary of the car seats in back or the children buckled in beside them. And when they came to an abrupt stop – when a dog darted out into the road or a light changed unexpectedly – they never failed to fling an arm out to brace their kids, an instinctive measure of safety and concern for their charges.

Sometimes, when he sat out here in the car, unprotected and exposed, Peter couldn’t help feeling that way, too. Like the weight of some invisible hand was keeping him safe.

Is there a book you wish you’d written yourself?

People often ask what my favorite books are, and there are so many that I could read over and over again. But there’s a difference between books you enjoy, and books you love so deeply that you read with an almost jealous fervor. Those are the ones you wish you had been brilliant enough to write yourself. The latest book to make me feel that way was The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski.

I was just completely bowled over by everything about it, the gentle arc of the story, the patience of the prose, the stunning imagery and heartbreaking characters. Not everybody is quite as enthusiastic as I am (except, of course, for Oprah!), but to me, this book is nearly perfect. I could read it over and over again, and at nearly 600 pages, that’s saying a lot. I can’t imagine how proud I’d feel if I’d written this book myself – I hope David Wroblewski wakes up every morning and gives himself a pat on the back!

What’s on your night stand now?

What I Saw and How I Liedby Judy Blundell, The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banksby E. Lockhart, The Giant’s Houseby Elizabeth McCracken, When Skateboards Will Be Freeby Said Sayrafiezah, and The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster. A bit of a random selection, I’ll admit – but I’m looking forward to each and every one of them!

And the Geek Girls are looking forward to You Are Here, release date: May 19, 2009. (Hey look! We’re twins!)

Enter the drawing: leave a comment:

Don’t forget! Leave a comment and you’ll be entered to win a signed copy of You Are Here. Entry deadline Wednesday, May 13th. We’ll post the winner next Thursday, the 14th.