Women Who Rock Wednesday: Suzanne Young!

Welcome to Women Who Rock Wednesday! I still think more people need to check out last week's Women Who Rock, The Maybenauts because I am so loving their music right now, so I'm leaving that contest open for another week. Go read the interview and enter to win their tunes here!

This week I'm excited to feature one of my Girlfriends Cyber Circuit sisters! Suzanne Young has a new book out called The Naughty List. Let's learn all about it, shall we?

As if being a purrfect cheerleader isn’t enough responsibility! Tessa Crimson’s the sweet and spunky leader of the SOS (Society of Smitten Kittens), a cheer squad–turned–spy society dedicated to bringing dastardly boyfriends to justice, one cheater at a time. Boyfriend-busting wouldn’t be so bad . . . except that so far, every suspect on the Naughty List has been proven 100% guilty!

When Tessa’s own boyfriend shows up on the List, she turns her sleuthing skills on him. Is Aiden just as naughty as all the rest, or will Tessa’s sneaky ways end in catastrophe?

The Naughty List. Is your boyfriend on it?

Follow the squad at www.thecheaterreport.blogspot.com

Look out for series: The Naughty List-2/4/10, So Many Boys-6/10/10, A Good Boy is Hard to Find-10/2010

And now let's meet Suzanne:

Suzanne Young is a brilliant scientist. Not really. But she is a former middle school teacher turned zookeeper (mother). When Suzanne's not fending off zombie squirrels or narrating her daughter's Barbie soap operas, she can be found camping on the Oregon coast or writing obsessively.

Suzanne is the author of The Naughty List series coming February 4th, 2010 from Razorbill/Penguin. The Naughty List is about a group of cheerleaders who investigate cheating boyfriends. Which Suzanne never did. Or at least, not that you can prove.

Learn more at www.suzanne-young.blogspot.com

Now the Women Who Rock Weds interview!

Q: Please tell us what your new book is about and what inspired you to write it.

Suzanne: The Naughty List is about a group of cheerleaders who investigate cheating boyfriends. First, I expected it just to be light fun. But as I explored some of the emotions, I ended up with a book about trust in relationships. And lots of really perky sayings.

Q: If there was a soundtrack for your book what are five songs that would be on it and how do they relate the story?

Suzanne: Just a Girl-No Doubt
Fidelity-Regina Spektor
Boys with Girlfriends-Meiko
Underneath it All-No Doubt
This Year’s Love-David Gray

Q: Who were some of your inspirations to become a writer or the inspirations that keep you writing?

Suzanne: My grandmother inspired me to be who I am. She gave me permission to follow any dream I had—even the ones that seemed impossible or downright crazy. And when she was passed away, she became the reason I went on. I’m always striving to make her proud. All of my books are dedicated to her.

Q: Even though music plays in so heavily into my storytelling, I rarely can actually listen to it while I'm writing. Can you? How does music fit into your writing
process?

Suzanne: You know, I used to listen to music while drafting. But now, I listen in the car to get me thinking. But when I write, I’ve become someone that needs silence. Not sure how I got so boring!

Q: What is next for you? What are you working on now?

Suzanne: I’m finishing up book 3 in the series: A Good Boy is Hard to Find. I’ve also been working on a special book that I’m keeping under wraps right now. I hope to have more news
on it soon.

Q: I have two questions that I always ask my Women Who Rock, the first is a two-parter. What was the first album you bought and the first concert you attended? Be honest, we don't judge, we like to see the roots of our women who rock!

Suzanne: Haha. Okay, I’ll be honest. My first album was DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince—He’s the DJ, I’m the Rapper. And the first concert was Cinderella. Yes, the hair band Cinderella.

Q: Tell us about your biggest rock star moment, perhaps it's a moment of real success in your career, a time when you met someone super cool and had that Wayne's World "I'm not worthy" moment, or just a time where you felt like you got the rock star treatment. I get a huge variety of answers for the questions, so it's pretty much whatever "rock star
moment" means to you!

Suzanne: In the grand scheme of things, this may seem really small, but it was amazing for me. I was at a book signing for a very successful author. While I was sitting in the audience, a girl sat next to me. We smiled. Then my friend came over and I gave her an ARC of my book that I’d
just received. The stranger gasped. She said, “Oh my God. Is that your book? Are you Suzanne Young?” I just about died. She said she’d been waiting to read my book and had seen it all over the internet and followed my blog. She knew my book!!! So I gave her an early copy and a very special shout out on my blog. I don’t think I ever felt cooler.

I have to say that is really cool and totally my kind of rock star moment. Also Suzanne just sent me some late breaking news... perhaps the top secret project she was talking about? She just sold more books!

Suzanne Young's A NEED SO BEAUTIFUL, in which a 17-year-old discovers that by performing the good deeds that her body compels her to, she will disappear into the Light and be
forgotten, but by fighting "the Need," her fate could be even more dire, to Donna Brayat Balzer and Bray, in a two-book deal, in a pre-empt, by Jim McCarthyat Dystel & Goderich Literary Management.

Pretty cool! But for now let's focus on The Naughty List. You definitely want to read it, right? Well, you are in luck! Suzanne is giving away a copy to one lucky commentor in...

Today's Contest:

All you have to do to enter is comment. Please leave an email address so I can track you down if you win and get your mailing address.

Want additional entries? +1 for every tweet or link posted or blogged about to this interview with Suzanne or spreading the word about The Naughty List!

Check back to see if you won this contest or the Maybenauts contest next week when my guest will be Carrie Jones, New York Times Bestselling Author of Need and Captivate!