Tag Archives: Em & EM

EM & EM: Coming to a TV Set Near You?

So thrilled to finally be able to share this news! A couple of months ago, I received an email from someone by the name of Ramaa Mosley asking about the TV and movie adaptation rights for EM & EM. This was in the middle of my work day, and I sort of assumed it was spam, but I forwarded the email to my agent. Later that afternoon, when I had a break, I decided to Google Ramaa.

OK. So. This was no spammer. I learned that Ramaa is in fact a remarkable woman whose resume includes directing the segment on Amina, an Afghan girl, for the Girl Rising documentary, as well as the 2012 critically acclaimed film The Brass Teapot. She also has helped lead the #BringBackOurGirls social media campaign in the United States to bring attention to the kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls by Boko Haram terrorists in Nigeria.

In addition, Ramaa serves as creative director at @dolescent, a production company dedicated to developing young talent. All of the company’s directors and videographers are ages 14-27. This is where EM & EM comes in. Ramaa told me she had bought the book for her daughter and had read it herself and, if I may quote her email, that she “immediately saw the  tv/film potential.” She wanted to work through @dolescent to turn it into a TV series!

After much flailing fangirling careful consideration, I am beyond excited and truly honored to share that @dolescent has optioned EM & EM.

Now, there are a lot of steps between an option and an actual project, and nothing is guaranteed, but it is sure fun to dream about, and I am beyond thrilled that this is the company that will be trying to make the dream a reality.

Here is the official announcement as posted on the @dolescent Facebook page:

We are Excited to announce that Adolescent has optioned Linda Budzinski’s young adult novel, Em & Em for development as a series.

Em & Em follows sixteen-year-old Emily, who must go into the Witness Protection program and reluctantly start a new life in the Midwest. The newly-named Ember O’Malley finds herself making new friends, taking photos for the high school newspaper, and thinking an awful lot about the paper’s editor, a cute cowboy named Charles. But as her day in court approaches and her secrets start to catch up with her, Em needs to figure out who she really is – Em or Em.

Author Linda Budzinski has written three young adult novels including Em & Em, and has won the Romance Writers of America Young Adult Rosemary Award and Virginia Chapter’s Fool for Love Award for her work. She lives in Northern Virginia with her husband.

Adolescent is a think tank, production company, and digital platform dedicated to the creation of entertainment content created by youth for youth. Development of Em & Em will be overseen by Ramaa Mosley and Hope Farley.

 

“Sold Out!” at BEA16

Had a fantastic time this week at Book Expo America in Chicago! Met lots of amazing librarians, teachers, and bloggers who also happen to love young adult romance! I was there to sign copies of EM & EM, and I have to say, I was slightly terrified that no one would come to the booth to meet me. I mean, there are so many amazing authors in the hall … surely people would have better things to do.

bea16_signingI showed up for my signing with my purple Sharpie and some awesome swag in hand … and I’m happy to say, we had so many folks stop by that we ran out of EM & EM after the first half hour!

bea_crowd Check out this crowd in the hall (no, THAT’S not my line … though that would have been cool!)!

IMG_20160423_214821I brought lots of these fun bookmarks, and they were a big hit. One of the women in line told me I “won BEA” with these. 🙂

 

Awesome Parent/Teen Review of EM & EM!

yourteenmagreviewUPDATE: The reviews are now online on the Your Teen website!

Some exciting news this month: Your Teen for Parents magazine has a parent/teen review of EM & EM in its March/April issue! And even better news: They both loved it!

Here are my favorite lines:

Parent: “I highly recommend this novel to teen girls, though I think it could be important for teen boys as well…. I’m looking forward to reading more from this thoughtful and entertaining new author.”

Teen: “It is full of relatable characters, thrilling plot twists, and enticing storytelling. Emily pulls you into her beautiful yet terrifying world and won’t let you go until the unexpected and mysterious ending.”

I’m hoping the reviews will go up on the Your Teen website  soon so I can add a link and let you read the whole piece. It’s always so much fun to see what other people take away from my stories, and it’s especially great to see a mom/daughter team enjoy the book and explore some of its more serious themes!

Join Me for a Night of Romance!

night_of_romance

Join me and fellow romance novelists Lisa Dyson, Megan Hart, Terri Haynes, and Elisabeth Staab for a Night of Romance, February 12 at 7 p.m. at the Barnes & Noble Potomac Yard in Alexandria, Virginia!

Just in time for Valentine’s, discover your next favorite romance novel. Each of us writes a different genre of romance. Lisa writes contemporary adult, Megan writes erotica, Terri writes African-American Christian, Elisabeth writes New Adult, and I of course will be there with EM & EM representing teen romance. Quite a variety, so it should be interesting!

The event will include Q&A and speed dating with the authors, as well as book sales and signings. Also, we each have been asked to pick our favorite kissing scenes from our novel and do a reading. Oh la la!

There is no cost, and Barnes & Noble is providing refreshments, so if you’re in the area or if you want to treat yourself to a night out in romantic Old Town for Valentine’s weekend, please come by and say hello!

UPDATE: A sixth author has been added! Looking forward to meeting and signing with “sassy romance” author Harper Kincaid as well!