Meet Jennifer Banash - Our Guest Author!

Our guest author, Jennifer Banash, is finally here and I'm thrilled to present her to you.

First of all, she comes from my state and the city where I was born. Secondly, because I have read her book, Simply Irresistible, which is the third in the series and is probably the best YA novel I've read this year.:)

Here is a little bit about her before we start the interview:

Bio for Jennifer Banash

Jennifer Banash attended high school on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and currently divides her time between Paris and Southern California—where she lives with her beagle, Sigmund, and her vast designer shoe collection.

She is the author of The Elite novels, published by Berkley Jam, and the novel Hollywoodland: An American Fairy Tale.
She is the author of the Young Adult series THE ELITE, which is published by Berkley Jam. THE ELITE, the first book in the series, was published June 08. The sequel IN TOO DEEP, is in stores now! The third installment, SIMPLY IRRESISTIBLE, is now in stores and all online bookstores too. Email her at theeliteseries@gmail.com, and for review copies, please email her publicist Caitlin Brown at caitlin.brown@us.pengingroup.com.

Jennifer, welcome to Barbara's Meanderings and I am so happy that you could take the time out of your very busy schedule to visit with us. We'll begin our interview now.

Barbara: The Elite novels take place on Manhattan’s upper east side. How much of the characters’ lives are like your own life when you grew up there?

Jennifer: I knew some people whose lives were very much in the same ballpark as Mad, Phoebe, Sophie, and Drew. The Upper East Side is a strange place to attend high school, to say the least. Glamorous and exciting, for sure, but strange because your sense of reality is suspended when you're living in an environment like that, where money is no object, and rules are optional.

Barbara: I was only able to read the last book in the series, Simply Irresistible. When you wrote the first book did you have a series in mind or did this evolve as you kept writing the book?

Jennifer: The books were planned as a series from the very beginning, so I had an idea of where I wanted the story to ultimately end up from the first book to the third.

Barbara: Did you base the character of Casey McCloy on someone you knew? Or is she a combination of people and their characteristics?

Jennifer: Actually, she's not really based on anyone I know! She came straight from the quagmire of my brain. Her grandmother, Nanna, is 100% based on my own grandmother, who cracks me up on a daily basis.

Barbara: The character of Madison Macallister is the kind of person who is a typical “mean girl”. Did you ever know anyone like her?

Jennifer: Yes, I do. Madison is actually based on a number of people I've known over the years. She's a mean girl, but hopefully the reader can see why--she has a pretty tough home life.

Barbara: I see you use the present tense. So you are still friends with people like her. I've found in my own experience that everyone mellows over time. :) What I liked about her character was how much compassion I felt for her as the story continued.

Barbara: Most writers have someone who influenced them to either start or continue to write. Who was that person for you?

Jennifer: I'm weird, I guess, because I didn't have that "person." I just started writing on my own, because I had to. I think I would've gone nuts without that outlet in my life.


Barbara: What was the time frame from when you wrote your first novel to when it was published?

Jennifer: I wrote my first novel in 1999, and it was never published. It did help me get an agent though! My second novel, Hollywoodland, was finished in 2004, and published in 2006. The Elite was conceived in 2007, and published in 2008.


Barbara: Would you please share your writing process with our readers?

Jennifer: Ummm . . . basically I mess around on the Internet for about an hour, and then I sit in a chair and type until pages come out :) I have a rule that while I'm actively working on a book, I have to write 5 pages a day--no exceptions.


Barbara: What would a typical day be like for you?

Jennifer: If its summer, wake up, check all the gossip columns online, eat some toast. Write for 3 or 4 hours, then go to the beach. If its during the school year, I work all day teaching English at a private school, and only get my writing done at night, or on the weekends.

Barbara: Will there be a fourth book in the Elite series? Are you currently working on another book? When will it be published?

Jennifer: Not sure. If Simply Irresistible sells well enough, then yes. I'm working on a book loosely based on my days as a club kid in the 1980's in NYC called White Lines. My agent is sending out the proposal in September, so hopefully it will sell shortly after that, but in this economy, who knows?

Barbara: How important do you think it is for an author to have an agent? How did you find your agent?

Jennifer: VERY important. I didn't have an agent when I sold The Elite series, and brokered the deal myself, which is NOT advisable! I just switched agents and signed with Lisa Grubka at Foundry Literary & Media, and she's amazing.

Barbara: How do you feel about eBooks and the Kindle? Where do you think publishing will be in ten years?

Jennifer: Not sure how I feel about them. I love the feel of having an actual book in my hand, and turning pages, but I'm also secretly drawn to Kindle, and entertain the idea of breaking down and buying one every month or so.

Barbara: Who is your favorite character in the Elite series and why?

Jennifer: Probably Madison. She's just so much fun to write! And everyone wants to be the diva-bitch for one day in their lives . . . or longer!

Barbara: With the popularity of shows like “Gossip Girl” and the new “NYCPrep” your book adds more to the story of these privileged kids. Have you had any interest from movies or TV?

Jennifer: Yes, there have been some people interested in buying the rights to the series, but we'll just have to see what happens! Stay tuned for more info . . .

Barbara: Please let our readers know what events are planned for publicizing Simply Irresistible.

Jennifer: I'm doing a TV tour, and will hit Chicago and Saint Louis next. I'm also appearing at a book festival in Bar Harbor Maine with Carrie Jones, on the weekend of Spetember 12th.

Jennifer, thank you so much for spending some time here talking about your books and your writing. I know I have a lot more questions and I hope that if any readers have questions they will add a comment. I would love to give away a free book to the lucky winner. You can be a winner if you leave a comment. Anyone who comments has a chance to win.

By the way, our last winner, the writer of the blog: aphorisms.com has not responded yet. If he doesn't respond by this week I will do another drawing. So if you want to win a free book for the last guest author's interview leave a comment or question for Penny Ehrenkranz and do it soon so you can win the free eBook.:) I also wanted everyone to know that the drawing is done very scientifically.:) I write your names on small pieces of paper, fold them up and then put them in a container. After shaking them I let my daughter, who couldn't care less who wins, pick the winner.

I'm hoping to see a lot of comments and questions here, and since Jennifer is such a celebrated author I may be giving away two copies free. You never know.:)

Until the next time, thank you to my new readers and of course to the readers who continue to read my meanderings.:) Next post I will be reviewing Simply Irresistible, by Jennifer Banash. If you can't wait, I believe it is available everywhere. With reviews in Seventeen, this book is going to go far. ( Just a taste of my review.:)) Also please go to Jennifer Banash's website to read more about her and her writing. You can get a preview with her new video about Simply Irresistible.

Bunny Ears on a Car?

Guest Author Simon Rose is here tomorrow.

Check out this video and learn more about this fascinating science fiction/fantasy children's author.

Real life has been overtaking me in the last couple of days, but I've been getting ready for our first author interview tomorrow with Simon Rose. I hope that all of my readers who are also writers will drop by to chat with Simon. He will be interviewed by me and then he will answer your questions throughout the day. All you need to do is come by and read the interview. Then leave your comment and Simon will answer it.

So the other day my daughter and I were on our way to get our coffee when we pulled up next to the strangest looking car I'd ever seen! I had to look twice and then check again to be sure. But, yes, those strange pieces of material sticking up out of the backseat windows were bunny ears!!! Yes, it's true. Someone put bunny ears on a car!!! I was in shock so I didn't have my phone out to take the picture, but we caught up with the car on the entrance to the highway. Here it is. You have to imagine the part facing the road has pink on it. The car is white.:) When I saw it I started laughing and this is probably the most ridiculous example of holiday decoration I have ever seen on the road. Bunny ears on a car!!!! With everything that is going on today in the economy it's kind of hysterical that someone took the time to fit out their car for these appendages and either made them or bought them and attached them to the ear holders.:) This has to give you a laugh and you will want to share this so your friends can get a laugh. Trust me. The image of this is going to stay with you and if things get you down just picture this car driving along with bunny ears.:) It should at least put a smile on your face or crack through the despair that sometimes hits when you try to please too many people and fail. At least it does for me.:)

Choosing the Right Critique Group

I haven't been dwelling on writing topics too much, but yesterday I got my copy of Writer's Digest in my email and browsed through it as I usually do. Sometimes this publication has great ideas for writers and sometimes it talks too much about topics that are of no interest to me.:) This time I found a great article for writers on how to choose a critique group. The article isn't talking about online groups. This is a whole other discussion. The writer of this article talks about choosing an in person Critique Group Club.

I actually have quite a bit of experience with in person critique groups. I've been in a couple for poetry ones and one for writing. A couple of months ago a new friend of mine on Facebook told me he had one with an opening when I asked if there were any in Westchester. So I was invited to join this group for an introductory session. I brought the first three chapters of my novel which had not come back from the publisher yet. The writers who contributed to the discussion and shared their work before me seemed serious and several were published authors. We all got along great and I was feeling very comfortable and thinking I had found a new group when the last member to arrive walked in the door. He hadn't been there for the whole night, but when he walked in the group deferred to him. We were in the middle of discussing my chapters and I was very anxious to hear what people would say. The comments were going fairly well and most people were tactful, which concerned me. When people are tactful it means they didn't particularly like what you wrote. Then this guy who hadn't heard my reading wanted to read it and comment upon them. When he finished his comments were harsh and condescending. I wasn't treated like I had written anything worthy at all. He picked my work apart and I felt uncomfortable. What had been a convivial, but wary situation turned into an I-must-go-home-and -put - my -head- under -the -pillow feeling. And this guy didn't even share his writing claiming he was in the middle or some other story. The meeting ended shortly afterward and I had a feeling this wasn't the group for me. A few days later my new friend on Facebook sent me an email saying that they weren't expanding the group after all and were going to stay with the original members. I didn't care, although rejection is always hard to take. I would rather have said to him that I didn't want to be part of the group. I'll never know if it was the published women author who didn't like my writing or that they felt as a group that I didn't fit in. Whatever it was, this wasn't a great experience. She was a picture book writer and had shared a story about talking animals. She didn't know much about young adult at all.

For someone like me, who almost never gets that kind of response from people it disturbed me. My friend recommended that I search for another critique group here in Westchester. I am a member of two online groups and one, YA-authors, though it has very little activity now, was a big, big help to me. My current group, KidsMuse, is filled with great writers who understand what the author of this article has said. That there is a kernel of good in every piece of writing and that you have to be able to see that and help the writer move forward. Currently I am sharing my second novel with the group, but they did help me a great deal on my first, which unfortunately was rejected. That's another thing I have to do. I have the name of an agent and should be sending out a sample to him soon.:)

American Idol Country Night

I'm going to end with my comments on last night's American Idol. Like most of the media I had mixed feelings about Adam's interpretation of "Ring of Fire". I read one account that said that it reminded them of Jim Morrison of "The Doors". In some strange way, Adam might have been channeling Jim Morrison last night. His oufit and the psychedelic way he sang that song with the sitars in the background were very like his performance. But on the other hand, Adam brought a 21st century feel to it with his vocals. Morrison sang full out all the time, but Adam did not sing out full. Instead he seemed almost to be holding back as if tortured. Johnny

Cash, who enjoyed different versions of his songs, might have enjoyed seeing this interpretation. Whatever it was, at least he stayed on tune for the whole song and it wasn't boring.:)

The other surprise was the emergence of Anoop and the quality of his voice. He was excellent and so was Matt. Though people think Michael might go this week, I'm not sure. It could be Scott, because that would make three piano players on the show. The other one who might go is Lil Rounds, because though she is awesome sometimes, she has shown that she doesn't have variety. I don't want her to go, but she didn't do that song justice last night. Alexis seemed like Dolly Parton, but only about a half of her.:) She doesn't have the sparkle and the voice of Dolly. She tried hard, but she should have picked another song. Later last night my daughter and I watched the Top 100 Countdown for Country Music Videos on CMT and it was obvious that Carrie Underwood's song would have been much better for Alexis. The judges said that, but until I saw the video I thought that Alexis might pull through. Now, I'm not so sure. I also liked Kris, but have a feeling that he won't be there much longer. He may make it through this round, though. Danny did his usual best and so did Scott, though their inspirational songs are getting to me. But the lowlight of the evening was Megan. She had the flu, but her singing was like a form of throat singing. There is a tribe in Mongolia that does this and if you've ever heard this form of singing it sounds a little like what she did last night. Her outfit too was very torch singer and not at all country to me. I'm not thrilled with her usually so if you like her at least she had the guts to perform with the flu. Also looked pretty good, but that explains the non-expression in her eyes.:) Yes, I guess that is a little catty.:)

Why do I watch American Idol? It's a phenomenon that no one has analyzed yet, but I think it's because I enjoy seeing talented people who have not had the breaks rise to the top. I suppose it's survival of the fittest played out in a TV show setting. It's like when the Romans watched the gladiators fighting in the arena and bet on the one that would be killed. What is the difference between not voting for someone on American Idol and them being taken off the show and betting on the gladiator that will be alive at the end? Certainly there is no bloodshed on American Idol, but people are eliminated. My husband once told me that he loves when there are a lot of people and then they go down to only one. It may be that fascination that keeps us watching AI. Or maybe people enjoy watching other people look miserable. Or on the other hand, it's fun to watch the winners be happy. I'm pretty sure we don't watch it for the talent. Or could it be the interaction of the contestants with the judges or the judges bizarre behavior, especially Paula's, could be the reason.:) What was up with Paula smelling Simon's arm last night? Or was she snorting something off of that arm?LOL

Until the next time, I am hoping all of you will be joining us tomorrow for my first Guest Author interview with Simon Rose. He will be here in the afternoon to answer your questions so please come and bring friends.:) Thank you to all my readers and the wonderful comments you leave that help brighten up my day and warm my heart.