November 22, 2011

Top Ten Tuesday: You're Invited to Dinner

As always, this feature is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

These are the ladies and gents that I would most definitely want to break bread with during Thanksgiving. It'd make for some fun dinner conversation, that's for sure!

Meg Cabot
I'm a big fan of Meg Cabot and her books. She was the first author I ever followed on Twitter and one of the first authors I ever got to meet in person (during the This is Teen event at the Scholastic Store in Soho, NY).  She's genuinely funny, got a great writing voice and I think she's an amazing writer. Reading her blog makes me feel like we'd get along quite well if we ever had the opportunity to have a conversation.

Maggie Stiefvater
Maggie's book "Shiver" caught my attention immediately and led to my fascination with books about wolves.  I also got to meet her in real life (at the same event where I met Meg) and, to my great joy, she was amazingly engaging and also very funny.  She's silly and quirky and I love her descriptive turns of phrase in her novels.  Based on our brief meeting, I know for certain we'd get along very well in real life.

Libba Bray
The first I ever heard of Libba, I'm ashamed to admit, was also because of the event I met Meg & Maggie at. It pains me that I didn't know of her sooner - but now that I do and have read two of her novels, I love her.  Her sense of humor comes across very well in her books (especially Beauty Queens) and I thought she seemed quite friendly at the signing.  She was really sweet too.

Christopher Paolini
I apparently have a habit of including authors on this list that I've already met in real life - and Christopher Paolini just happens to be the first male author on this list.  I love his Inheritance cycle, for one thing.  And, in real life, he's got an infectious, enthusiastic and extremely kind personality.  I'm inspired by his story and I would love to hear all about his adventures in writing.

Sarah MacLean
I love all of Sarah MacLean's novels (and I devoured all of them this year).  Her stories are filled with sweet nothings and lots of romance and fun escapades and I can't seem to put one down once I've started. I'd love to hear about how she got started in historical romances and where she draws inspiration and plot out a future trip to England or pretend we could time travel into the past.

J.K. Rowling
It is impossible for me to make a list of authors to invite to dinner without including this incredible woman. She was the writer who shaped most of my adolescence and allowed me to enter the wonderful magical world of wizards, witches, Muggles & Hogwarts.  Her seven book series is unforgettable and will always mean something to me.  I'd love to show her how thankful I am for that and discuss anything and everything Harry Potter with her.

Rick Riordan
I love all of Rick Riordan's books because he brings mythology and present society into a very tidy marriage in all of them.  It was when reading his books that I took a step back and thought, I wish I had come up with this idea.  It's the sheer simplicity and entertainment factor of his series that get to me -- and I would love to discuss these books with him in detail.

Nicholas Sparks
I have to include Nicholas Sparks in this list, if only because I'm a fan of his novels.  Yes, they have very sad stories most of the time. Yes, they tend to have one person or another suffering from a fatal disease/condition. But I love them and they still manage to bring out an emotional response like no other in me.  My favorite, above all, is The Last Song.  It would be a pleasure to meet the man behind the novels.

Michelle Madow
I recently read and reviewed Michelle's novel Remembrance, which was a story I instantly enjoyed.  I love that it was based on an idea that came from seeing Taylor Swift's video for Love Story (which means she's a fellow T.Swift fan!).  During all of our interaction via Twitter and email, Michelle's been incredibly kind, engaging, friendly and enthusiastic - and I would love to be able to meet her in real life!

Julia Quinn
I just have to include Julia because I loved all of her historical romance novels as well, especially the Bridgerton series. I think it would be fascinating to talk to her about that particular era, since I've no doubt she's done a lot of research, as well as discussing her characters and how she came up with them. I'm going to have to give her props for getting me extremely hooked on historical romances too.

Tamora Pierce
She's got to be on this list. Her books are amazing and I'll be ever grateful to Macky for introducing them to me. I would love to get her thoughts on writing, discuss Tortall and her characters and just have a good time hanging out with one of the most amazing authors I have ever known.

Special Mentions: Garth Nix, C.S. Lewis, Jane Austen, & Sarah Dessen

Yes, I am well aware I chose 11 authors instead of 10.  But who can blame me? There are so many amazing authors out there and this doesn't even complete my list of the ones I'd love to invite to Thanksgiving dinner. 

Which authors would you invite to Thanksgiving dinner and why?

23 Comments:

  1. Christopher Paolini, Meg Cabot, Libba Bray, and of course, J.K. Rowling are the best! (: As soon as I finish The Night Circus, I'm starting Terrier by Tamora Pierce, so hopefully I'll like it as much as you did! (:

    ReplyDelete
  2. Daisy, you are always going to be invited to my dinner parties, haha.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I think you're awesome! And I bet we'd get along splendidly :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Definitely try Tamora Pierce; she's one of my favorite authors of all time :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Sarah MacLean's books are awesome. I've read all the ones she has out and I can't wait for the next one :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Awesome! I love meeting people as passionate a booklover as I am!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I think having funny people or people with a great sense of humor is a MUST at any dinner party. Means there's always going to be someone entertaining :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Love the personal touch with the photos up there! Great selection :)
    BTW, I can relate w/your profile blurb.. my mom said I was reading since I was 3.. and really, haven't put a book down since! lol

    Thanks for stopping by!

    Michele | Top 10 Tuesday

    ReplyDelete
  9. Great list! Maggie Stiefvater and Libba Bray would be awesome.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Great list of authors to invite!

    Amanda

    ReplyDelete
  11. Oooh, Rick Riordan! I almost added him to my list! And Tamora Pierce, too--I love her so much. I love all the historical fiction authors you've got on here. I'm checking them out right now! (I've heard great things about Sarah MacLean's books.)

    ReplyDelete
  12. Awesome group of authors! I love that you have pics with a bunch of them! This would be an exciting Thanksgiving :) Thanks for stopping by!

    Anna @ Literary Exploration

    ReplyDelete
  13. Ooooohh I really like your list!! :) I haven't read anything by some of those authors but I keep hearing great things (Tamora Pierce, Meg Cabot, and Libba Bray).

    New follower :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. I don't think I could have Nicholas Sparks at my thanksgiving table because it'd be non-stop, bittersweet tears for me. His books make me cry...

    Thanks for visiting my top ten.

    ReplyDelete
  15. My favorites would be Nora Roberts, Jane Austen, JK Rowlings, Stephen King and Tolkien.

    Here's My Post

    ReplyDelete
  16. Hip Hip Hooray for JK! I haven't read any Nicholas Sparks in a long time. Maybe I'll have to try again soon. :)

    ReplyDelete
  17. Yay for the Sarah MacLean love!! :D I so love her Love By Numbers series and still need to read The Season... Because it sounds AWESOME as well!
    Can you squeeze me in on your dinner? I'm thinking with your selection of authors it'll be amazing!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Great list. I need to read my 1st Sara MacLean book.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Thank you for including me among that list of INCREDIBLE authors!!!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Rowling would certainly be on my list. And Harlan Coben and Susan Elizabeth Phillips for sure. Fun list.

    ReplyDelete
  21. We don't have Thanksgiving here, but I'd certainly go for a dinner party. J.K. Rowling could bring some cauldron cakes for coffee after dinner - I always wondered what those are. :-) Tamora Pierce, definitely - since I heard her at Reading Matters talking about how there don't seem to be any bathrooms in Middle-Earth. . And Cassandra Clare - I haven't read much of her stuff yet, but I heard her speak at a reading conference and she's very, very funny. Michael Pryor, author of the steampunk Laws of Magic series - his books are a hoot. If we're allowed dead guests brought by time machine, I'll have Jane Austen. Kerry Greenwood, who can actually cook, so I might invite her to help design the menu and give me some of her recipes. A very funny lady. Jenny Pausacker, a children's/YA writer who writes fan fiction for fun. Jasper Fforde, author of the Thursday next series. John Flanagan, author Ranger's Apprentice and I'd make him have honey in his coffee like his characters. ;-) Hmm, I seem to be going for funny people and why not? So give me Terry Pratchett to round it off.

    ReplyDelete
  22. SO many that are on my "unlimited" list. One of the few weeks I wished I had MORE slots than 10!

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for leaving a comment! I love seeing what you have to say, and will try to reply (here or on Twitter) as soon as I can :)