Author Rosalind Wiseman Brings Youth Editors Into YA KidLit Process

Feb. 8, 2010 I bought a copy of the new YA novel by renowned author Rosalind Wiseman of Queen Bees & Wannabes bestseller fame, called “Boys, Girls & Other Hazardous Materials” ...As soon as it hit my home front, my daughter and her ‘BFF’ clamored to snag it from me, lured in by the cover visual alone. Mean Girls writer and co-star Tina Fey had a snarky testimonial on … [Read more...]

“I’m Not A Prude, But…”

Oct. 23, 2009 How many times have you heard that preface to a conversation about pop culture lately? Tweens? Teens? Okay, I promised NOT to do a Halloween Horrors bit on girls' costumes and tramp vamp cues (been there, done that) BUT the irony in the timing of this post from Australia titled, "Musical Tarts are Infecting Our Children" that referenced us here at Shaping … [Read more...]

Text Monster: Teen Tips On Digital Dating Obsessions

April 28, 2009 "Whatcha doin’? Who you with? Text me! Text me back!" When does 'caring' become controlling textual harrassment? What happens when the ‘connectivity’ that takes the form of digital grunts, ‘sup?’ ‘hey,’ ‘lol’ gets annoying even to kids themselves? “That’s not cool” is a fun Ad Council riff using sock puppets, tin can art, comedic fruit and graphic mixed … [Read more...]

Oscars, Obama, Twitter Glam & Jonas Brothers? New Media Moments

Feb. 24, 2009 I’ve been asking tweens/teens whether they watched the Oscars on Sunday to get a feel for the youth zeitgeist when it comes to the Academy Awards show as an entertainment draw in itself. After all, the inauguration became a Web 2.0 livestream CNN/Facebook happening, and the interactive tradition continues today with Obama's Address to Congress (live 9pm ET) … [Read more...]

What’s On Tweens’ Minds? Meet Denise Restauri of AllyKatzz

I figure the Obama girls are going to be a huge focal point in the months ahead (gawd help those darlings) and self-ascribed tween “experts” will be crawling out of the media morass elbowing each other for air time and talk show gigs, so why not check in on the conversations transpiring on tween-talk hubs themselves? Since my tween has just turned teen, and … [Read more...]