Congratulations to Niki Burnham on the publication of Goddess Games (Simon & Schuster, 2007)! From the promo copy: “Seneca, the daughter of an Oscar-winning actress, Drew, an athletic Army brat, and Claire, a struggling born-again Christian, are each facing challenges in their personal lives. When they’re thrown together as roommates, all they see are their differences. But fate–and a nasty boss named Marla–brought them together for a reason, and they soon discover that what they need may not be what they originally thought. In fact, a summer working at the spa may be just what it takes for Seneca, Drew, and Claire to each discover her own inner goddess.” Read an excerpt. Read a Cynsations interview with Niki.

Kid Lit(erary): a book review site by author Laurel Snyder, featuring short reviews and general rants concerning children’s books both classic and contemporary. Author’s books include Inside the Slidy Diner (Tricycle, 2008), Up and Down the Scratchy Mountains OR The Search for a Suitable Princess (Random House, 2008), and Any Which Wall (Random House, 2009), as well as several books of adult poetry and nonfiction.

Orphaned Manuscripts from Darcy Pattison’s Revision Notes. Note: Darcy is offering consistently wonderful, thoughtful posts of interest to every working writer. Definitely bookmark her blog! Also check out her author site.

papertigers offers a bounty of wonderful new articles and interivews. Don’t miss the interviews with authors Cynthia Kadohata and Rose Kent as well as More Stories About Our American Experience, Please by Ken Mochizuki and The Extra Adjective: How I Came To Terms With Being a Multicultural Author by Grace Lin and much more! See also Cynsations interviews with Cynthia, Rose, and Grace.

YA Fresh: “Kelly Parra, author of Graffiti Girl (MTV Books, 2007) and Tina Ferraro, author of Top Ten Uses for an Unworn Prom Dress (Delacorte, 2007) team up to chat about YA books, authors, and all that’s fresh!” Another one to bookmark!

More Personally

It was my pleasure to visit with students at O. Henry Middle School in Austin on May 18. Thank you to librarian Sara Stevenson and to my wonderful audiences.

DATE CHANGE: In celebration of Texas Writers’ Month, I’ll be speaking with a number of distinguished authors, including Tim Tingle, on the May program of the Writers’ League of Texas from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. May 23 at the University of Texas Club. The evening includes a free appetizer buffet and a cash bar. Attendance is free and open to the public. See more information.