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2010

Delaware Today's June 2010 issue had a feature on several local authors, including Ben Yagoda, who taught a winter session study abroad course in British journalism I took my junior year in college. I really love the photo they used for my profile; it was taken by Jared Castaldi at one of my favorite local spots, Cupcake Heaven, who supplied the mini-cupcakes for last summer's Sweet Lifei> launch party. (Bonus: myprop cupcake was super yum!)

2009

In October 2009, Patricia Talorico, Deputy Features Editor and kick-ass food writer at The News Journal, wrote a lovely profile on The Sweet Life and its ties to Delaware. It meant a lot to me, because A) Patty was someone I'd worked with briefly, when I was filling in for a features writer out on maternity leave the summer before I left for grad school; B) she'd always been super nice; C) I named a character in the book after her; and D) she did the piece old-school, in a face-to-face interview instead of over the phone or via e-mail. It was one of the most painless interviews I'd ever done. [NOTE: The article is now archived and no longer available for free. But, if you want to purchase a copy, you can do so here.]

Superstar librarians Cindy Dobrez and Lynn Rutan review The Sweet Life of Stella Madison on "Bookends," their shared Booklist blog (June 2009), in which Lynn writes, "This really is a sweet book and a perfect summer read. Many of the chapters start out with the most mouth-watering menus and all the food descriptions made me ready to head to the kitchen. There is some real substance to this book, though, especially in the portrayal of a young woman trying to understand her very real attraction to two boys at the same time."

2008

Blog post from December 2008, in which I go public about my gastric bypass surgery after joining the "Century Club" (a.k.a. losing 100 pounds).

Brief piece in the August 2008 issue of Delaware Today magazine about Lifetime's adaptation of True Confessions of a Hollywood Starlet, which begins, "Lara Zeises is, like, so totally freaking out." Thus proving once again that mainstream media has little regard for young adult authors (though my beloved Entertainment Weekly still wears the crown on that offence).

The New York Daily News review, in which David Hinkley dubs the movie "unrealistic but fun."

Here's a super-fun interview I did with YA author Paula Chase Hyman on her blog in July 2008, to promote the paperback release of More Confessions of a Hollywood Starlet, as well as the premiere of Starlet on Lifetime.

2006

Interview with children's book author Debbi Michiko Florence, January 2006, in which I discuss things like the origins of Anyone But You and how, as a published author, "your ego takes a beating on a near-daily basis."

2005

A November 2005 interview with YA and Kid Books Central, in which I reveal my desire to take Herman Melville to task for "Bartleby the Scrivener": "I'd say, 'What's up with Bartelby, yo? I mean, come ON. I understand you wanted to write about non-conformity and all, but seriously? If my boss asks me to do something, and I say, 'I'd prefer not to,' and continue to say that any time anyone asks me to do something, I should HOPE they'd fire my ass. Does that make me a fascist? I don't even care. Bad story, Herman. BAD STORY.'"

My "Guys I'd Kill to Make Out With" Boyfriend List on E. Lockhart's blog, November 2005. Selections include: Warrick from CSI, Corey Haim circa 1987, and Breckin Meyer (long story).

Interview with author/webgoddess Cynthia Leitich Smith, July 2005, in which I talk about things like conducting research for fiction and dealing with the "sexy parts" when writing for teens.

2004

"Is Sex Sizzling in YA? And Why Does It Matter?", an article by Kelly Milner Halls, originally published on SmartWriters.com, August 2004, in which I say things like, "Trying to protect teens from sex is futile. Educating them - not just about STDs and condoms, but also about the emotional side to sex - probably makes for better birth control than scared-straight Lifetime movies like FIFTEEN AND PREGNANT." (Little did I know I was inadvertently biting the hand that would come to feed me four years later...)

"Controversial Fiction for Young Adults: Telling It Like It Is," an article by Mark Haverstock, originally published in the June 2004 issue of Children's Writer newsletter, in which I'm quoted about my philosophy to dealing with "edgy" (then a buzzword) material in YA fiction. Notice a trend in 2004? Sadly, this is the year I published the decidedly non-edgy Contents Under Pressure, which just goes to show you I'm either slightly ahead of my time, or slightly lagging behind it. (The following year, I offered up Anyone But You, which was slammed for being "too graphic" in terms of language/sexual content.)

2002

"20-somethings in YA Fiction," an article from the November 2002 issue of the now-defunct KLIATT that I co-wrote with Laurie Faria Stolarz, Tea Benduhn, and Kim Ablon Whitney (though for some reason, this version on TheFreeLibrary.com omits Kim's section).

1997

Thanks to the LA Times and the World Wide Web, I can now find archives of articles I wrote while interning at the Baltimore Sun, the summer after I graduated college. Some of my features were released to wire services, which is how they ended up being published in papers like the LA Times to begin with:

- "Shop Till You Get the Drop"

- "One Sketch Artist Who Doesn't Toy Around"

AUTHOR BIO

Lara M. Zeises is the author of Bringing Up the Bones, a Delacorte Press Prize Honor Book (2001); Contents Under Pressure, a Delaware Blue Hen Teen Book Award winner and an IRA-CBC Young Adults' Choice (2006); and Anyone But You, a YALSA Popular Paperbacks selection (2008). Her latest novel, The Sweet Life of Stella Madison was published in July 2009.

Lara has also published two novels under the pseudonym Lola Douglas: True Confessions of a Hollywood Starlet, which was adapted into a Lifetime movie starring multi-platinum recording artist Joanna "JoJo" Levesque and Golden Globe winner Valerie Bertinelli, and its sequel, More Confessions of a Hollywood Starlet.

In addition to writing, Lara teaches part-time at her alma mater, the University of Delaware, where she received her BA in English-Journalism. Lara is the recipient of a 2005 Emerging Artist Fellowship in Literature-Fiction from the Delaware Division of the Arts and holds an MFA in creative writing from Emerson College. She also facilitates creative writing workshops for both teens and adults.

In her spare time (what's that?), Lara enjoys playing Iron Chef in her own kitchen, especially when the secret ingredient is bacon. She worships at the altar of Alton Brown but credits her mother with turning her into an avid home cook and bona fide foodie.

Lara lives in Delaware, where she grew up, but you can visit her online at www.zeisgeist.com, www.facebook.com/lara.zeises, or zeisgeist.livejournal.com.

BRIEF AUTHOR BIO

Lara M. Zeises is the author of Bringing Up the Bones, a Delacorte Press Prize Honor Book; Contents Under Pressure, a Delaware Blue Hen Teen Book Award winner and an IRA-CBC Young Adults' Choice; Anyone But You; and, most recently, The Sweet Life of Stella Madison. She holds an MFA in creative writing from Emerson College.

Besides writing, Lara teaches part time at the University of Delaware, where she earned her BA in English-Journalism, and facilitates creative writing workshops for teens and adults.

REALLY BRIEF AUTHOR BIO

Lara M. Zeises is the author of six books for teenagers, including Contents Under Pressure and The Sweet Life of Stella Madison, as well as True Confessions of a Hollywood Starlet , which was made into a Lifetime movie, and its sequel (both published under the pseudonym Lola Douglas). She lives in Delaware, but you can visit her online at www.zeisgeist.com.