Another No-Fee Skype

Thank you so very much, Todd.

It is difficult to hold the attention of that class beyond a few minutes – trust me, I know that as well as anyone – and you had their rapt attention for thirty-five straight minutes.  I'm not sure that I'll be able to break that record by June.

You might find it interesting that you defied their stereotypical notions of how an author would act.  They just informed me that they thought an author would be stuffy, boring, and reserved.  Instead, they found you to be funny, engaging, and energetic.  You've charmed them!  (No easy task.)

I completely agree with them, but I would also like to add gracious, generous, and sincere.  Thanks again.  You have given all of us an unforgettable learning experience.

Tony

Yesterday's School Visit

Todd,

What a joy to have you in our school today !  Our students rarely have this kind of experience!  As I walked around the building at the end of the day there was so much positive energy!  Your visit will be remembered for a very long time!  Thanks you for your passion and energy.

Sincerely,   Joann Spera and the entire staff of Emerson School

A Heartfelt Letter About Con-fidence

Mr. Strasser: Hello, my name is Isabel, and I am a 17-year old just about to graduate from high school. My reason for e-mailing you is simply to thank you for writing your book, Confidence. I don't quite remember how old I was when I bought your book, but I think I must have been in elementary school, maybe 4th or 5th grade. I bought it at my school book fair, I do remember that much. Every time I read Confidence, I become enraptured with Lauren's story and her reliance on Celeste, and I can completely relate to Lauren and her struggles trying to fit in. I had trouble in middle school, just like she did, with feeling like an outsider and feeling I could never be part of the DYWYWM crowd. And not only did I have that in common with Lauren, but we were also both figure skaters! So I would laugh at her and Rob's "triple axel double toe loop" joke, because I got it. So what I'm really trying to say is, I still read your book Confidence to this day. It has become my "comfort book," if you understand my meaning -- that book you always turn to when you're feeling sad, or emotional, or when you just want a good read that you are familiar with, and is great every time -- that's Confidence for me. I love this book, and the characters, and the story. It's a story that nearly all girls can identify with, and just so honest and true. It has become a very important part of my life, I believe I will continue to read it all through my days. I'm about to go off to college soon, and I'm most definitely going to take it with me. I'll need it. So I just wanted to tell you that your book made a difference. Sincerely, Isabel

Feedback from today's NO-FEE Skype session

Hi IT WAS GREAT! The kids really enjoyed it. It was so different from a regular lesson. You should have been a teacher - you have the touch!I want to thank you very much! I hope you don't get too many calls from once the word goes out! Anyway you were wonderful and the kids were very impressed. Thanks again! Karen

Nice Article/Interview in The Patch

http://bedford.patch.com/articles/local-pages-a-killer-thriller-magical-non-fiction

Todd Strasser's 'Kill You Last'

For the past 35 years Larchmont resident Todd Strasser has made an art form of getting into the mind-set of the teens for whom he writes. As a best-selling author, with 140 published novels to his credit, Strasser has done it again; his teen thriller, Kill You Last, has been nominated for the prestigious 2012 Edgar Allan Poe Award for Young Adult literature.

Kill You Last’s heroine, Shelby Sloan, is a carefree, over-privileged teen living in the affluent town of Soundview, NY. Then her father’s sudden alleged involvement in the disappearance of teenage girls leaves her family in crisis. Shelby puts her pampered persona aside and dives into the case with her own brand of high-tech teenage sleuthing.

Strasser has created a deliciously paranoid world of suspense, unpredictable plot twists and teen angst. He will learn if his novel wins the Edgar Award on April 26, at the Edgar Awards Banquet in New York City. 

Here, Todd Strasser gives us the inside scoop on his novel:

Patch: Receiving a Poe nomination is quite a distinction. Did you know that Kill You Last was special while you were writing it?

Todd Strasser: I honestly didn’t know it was going to be any different than any of my other books. I’m not sure you ever know. You do the best you can; sometimes the results are below your hopes and sometimes they exceed your hopes.

Patch: Does Shelby rank as one of your favorite characters?

TS: My favorite character is usually whoever I am inhabiting at the current moment.

Patch: Speaking of inhabiting characters, how were you able to perfectly personify a texting-savvy, angst-ridden, teenage girl?

TS: I had an 18-year-old daughter and a son (now 28 and 24). When I was working on the first draft of this thrillogy I was talking to one of my kids about the e-mail exchange in the book. My kids said, “Dad, kids don’t e-mail, they text. E-mailing is so uncool!” A big part of it is staying in touch with my kids.

Patch: Kill You Last is set in Soundview, NY. Is this a real town?

TS: Soundview is the fictional town that I’ve been writing about for many years that is based on the Larchmont area.

Patch: What’s next for you?

TS: I’m actually working on my first fictionalized memoir—a coming-of-age story about growing up in the early 1960s during the Cuban Missile Crisis. I was 12 when the crisis happened, and my father decided to build a bomb shelter. This caused a lot of interesting concerns for me; I was always worried about what would happen if our neighbors wanted to get in our bomb shelter, or how would I get home to the shelter in time if I was at school?

RAVES ABOUT A CLASS SKYPE

Dear Todd,

Thank you so much for taking time out of your day to speak with our 8th grade students.  I cannot tell you how much they enjoyed themselves.  They were engaged and interested in the things you had to say (they found your story about reading in 4th grade particularly inspiring).

For the students to speak with an author who knows the ins-and-outs of writing, both as something pleasurable and as work, really gives them insight.  One of my students had to walk through the library to get lunch immediately following your Skype with us, and she stopped to give the librarian the list of book titles she took down when you shared them with us, exclaiming to the librarian, "We really need to get these.  They sound good, and we got to speak with the author.  I want to read them all!"  What a gift, inspiring thirteen- and fourteen-year-olds to want to read more for fun!

Our computer teacher who stopped by to set up the Skype for me remained for your entire discussion because she thought it was so wonderful.  And I have to say, I completely agree.

I cannot thank you enough for allowing the students a unique opportunity to ask questions, and to hear candid answers, not to mention my gratitude for your ability to garner enthusiasm for the writing process.

Sincerely, Emily Justesen


NOTE FROM TODD:  I've been doing these Skypes for no fee, and intend to continue. They usually last about 1/2 an hour.

VERY NICE SLJ REVIEW FOR KILL YOU LAST

"High school senior Shelby Sloan’s father is the chief suspect and only link in an investigation of three missing girls who booked him and his staff to shoot their modeling portfolios…. Convinced that he is not a killer… Shelby begins her own investigation. The deeper she digs, the darker the secrets become, revealing the sketchy pasts of her father and his staff. All of the titles in this cyberthriller trilogy stand alone, and readers who pick up one are likely to enjoy the others. However, Strasser steps up his pacing and story line for Shelby's story. The large list of suspects and number of secrets revealed will keep readers engaged in the rapidly unfolding plot. "

(Abbreviated version of review)