Happy Book Birthdays! June is coming up Gymnastics.

There's a weird sort of hive mind in the world of publishing and today's post is evidence. Three great books about gymnastics are having their book birthdays today. So if you are a reader who dreams about round-off back handsprings or if you regularly land on a balance beam that is four inches wide today is your day too. 

Happy #bookbirthday to Karlin Gray author of NADIA: THE GIRL WHO COULDN'T SIT STILL (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt).

From Goodreads:

Nadia Comaneci was a feisty and fearless little girl who went from climbing trees in the forests of Romania to swinging into history at the 1976 Olympic Games, where she received an unprecedented seven perfect scores in gymnastics. But as readers will see in this first-ever illustrated picture book about Nadia’s journey to Olympic gold, the road from small-town girl to world-class athlete was full of many imperfect moments. Expert illustrations that capture the energy and fluidity of Nadia's exuberant gymnastic routines and referential back matter round out this inspirational story of determination and overcoming adversity. A perfect 10.

Happy #bookbirthday to Caela Carter author of TUMBLING (Viking Books for Young Readers).

From Goodreads:

Grace lives and breathes gymnastics—but no matter how hard she pushes herself, she can never be perfect enough.

Leigh, Grace’s best friend, has it all: a gymnastics career, a normal high-school life…and a secret that could ruin everything.
Camille wants to please her mom, wants to please her boyfriend, and most of all, wants to walk away.
Wilhelmina was denied her Olympic dream four years ago, and she won’t let anything stop her again. No matter what.
Monica is terrified. Nobody believes in her—and why should they?
By the end of the two days of the U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Trials, some of these girls will be stars. Some will be going home with nothing. And all will have their lives changed forever.

Happy #bookbirthday to Shawn Johnson and A.L. Sonnichsen authors of THE FLIP SIDE (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers).

From Goodreads:

From gold medalist and reality TV star Shawn Johnson comes a debut YA novel inspired by her own experiences as an elite teenage gymnast—just in time for the Summer 2016 Olympic games.

Charlie Ryland has a secret.
She may seem like your average high school sophomore—but she’s just really good at pretending.
Because outside of school Charlie spends all her waking hours training to become one of the best gymnasts in the world. And it’s not easy flying under the radar when you’re aiming for Olympic gold…especially when an irresistible guy comes along and threatens to throw your whole world off balance.
Inspired by her own experiences as a fifteen-year-old Olympic gymnast, gold medalist Shawn Johnson writes a delightfully entertaining novel about chasing big dreams and falling in love, all while trying to keep it real.

A longer review will follow this week!

As we journey on the Road to Rio this year, I predict that you'll see a lot more books with female athletes. Let's hope that publishers go beyond the well-known sports of soccer, swimming, and gymnastics. I'd love to see a rowing book (ahem, wish it were mine), fencing, or canoeing (see other little known Olympic sports here.)

Sporty Book Birthday! GIRL AGAINST THE UNIVERSE by Paula Stokes

Today is the book birthday for GIRL AGAINST THE UNIVERSE, the wonderful new young adult novel by Paula Stokes from Harper Teen. (Advanced Reader Copy provided by the author.) It’s never too late to catch up on your Paula Stokes reading. We have an interview with her about her 2014 release THE ART OF LAINEY or you can check out Paula’s Facebook, Twitter or Website.

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 So why do I say this book is wonderful? It’s layered. With GIRL AGAINST THE UNIVERSE, Paula Stokes gives us a sporty girl book featuring tennis, a romance based on friendship, and a deeply serious look at mental illness.

Maguire has been through a lot in her young life. In her early teens her father, uncle and brother were killed in a car accident while she walked away without a scratch. Later, a roller coaster careened off the tracks and again she was fine in the midst of suffering. But when her candle set the neighbor’s home on fire things became all to clear for Maguire. She was bad luck, cursed. Her very presence was sure to injure others. At least that’s what she believes. In order to control her world she does safety checks, avoids public transportation, won’t drive with others and hides away from others. It’s not until she meets a wonderful behavioral therapist that things start to change for her.

Maguire’s concrete desire drives the plot and keeps the reader squarely in Maguire’s court. “I want to see where my dad grew up, see my grandma again, meet all my relatives” (Stokes, 28.) The problem? Grandma is in Ireland and Maguire is sure if she’s on that plane, it’ll go down and no one will survive. The reader realizes that the task is large but she is rooting for Maguire every step of the way.

The reader isn’t the only one rooting for Maguire. Stokes has surrounded Maguire with other characters who challenge and support her. The romantic lead is tennis star, Jordy who also sees Dr. Leeds. The friendship between Maguire and Jordy grows believably over time and while there are plenty of references to Jordy’s hotness, I was pleased to see that Stokes allows these teens with issues to take it slowly—and uses humor to build their relationship. Maguire and Jordy have an easy banter that doesn’t feel forced or overly scripted.

The other thing that evolves slowly is Maguire and Jordy’s individual mental health treatment successes. There are no silver bullets when it comes to dealing with mental health issues and early on in the book, when Maguire is ready to be "fixed," Dr. Leeds explains that that isn’t how therapy works.

“You’re not a toaster, Maguire. You’re not here to be fixed…The first thing you need to realize is that mental health is fluid. It’s not like you have an infection and a doctor gives you antibiotics and then you’re cured. No matter what the two of us accomplish together, you’re still going to have good days and bad days…”(Stokes, 27.)

Maguire’s good days come through hard work. She creates a series of goals to work through her PTSD and OCD issues. The goals are presented in a list-form that is seamlessly integrated so it doesn’t stop the flow of the story. (Way to go designers!)    

I did have a few concerns: the friends in her new high school sometimes feel like they stepped off a teen movie set, and there was one point when I jotted down that a scene could have been slowed down to unpack the emotional impact for Maguire.

The most important note I made was, “I don’t want to stop reading!” and if you’re anything like me—GIRL AGAINST THE UNIVERSE, will be on your shelf of sporty girl favorites. 

Reading fiction heightens your awareness and is a catalyst for connections. At the same time I read GIRL AGAINST THE UNIVERSE (April 2016), the magazine Women’s Health published a fabulous article, “Which One of these Women Has Mental Illness,” about the stigmas and realities of living with mental illnesses and the National Center for Health Statistics released their report on suicide. Suicide rates in this country have consistently and constantly increased. A slow rising line that symbolizes the mountain that seems insurmountable for so many who take their own lives. If you are living with any type of mental illness including anxiety, or depression, or if you know someone who is, please get help.

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline – 1‑800‑273‑TALK (8255)

SAMHSA Treatment Referral Helpline –1‑877‑SAMHSA7 (1‑877‑726‑4727)

Would you like the review copy ARC and book mark both signed by the author? List one of your goals in the comments!
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The Wonderful World of Coaching

Junior Rowers help with boatyard clean up.

This spring I started coaching, and I have loved every minute of it. I rowed in high school and then picked up the sport again as an adult. I became a "captain" for our small community club with which came safety responsibilities. Later, I took on the task of program coordinator. For the last two years I've been scheduling coaches to teach adult classes for the club. At the same time I've been writing and revising (and revising, and revising) a Young Adult novel about a rower and her coach. The research for the novel allowed me to delve deeper into coaching theories. The more I learned the more I wanted to coach. 

I developed a spring junior rowing curriculum and piloted the program for 25 girls this year. Many of the girls were hooked and we continued to row throughout the summer. After one of their first long power pieces I called through the megaphone, "How you doing? Getting blisters?" 

The rower in two seat waved with a bright smile. "I've got two! It's like Christmas over here!"

With school starting I expected academics and other more traditional sports to take precedence but these girls wouldn't quit. (An crucial quality for a rower.) 

As I've coached them, the TV, movie, and yes, YA plot of the mean, conniving, and ultra competitive teen girl has been squashed.  My rowers are kind and supportive. I give them space to help make choices and they rise to the occasion every time. Yesterday we had three people show up for four or two spaces. I had them chose who would row when and they came up with fair solution.

Perhaps the kindness I've witnessed in my rowers stems from the fact that we are not a competitive crew. At this point my focus has been on teaching the technical and safety aspects of the sport. There was never any try out, no seat race, no first and second boats. I believe deeply that coaches can build self-esteem in their young rowers by waiting to race them until such time that the rowers will experience success. By success, I do not mean that they win a race. Instead, I mean that at the end of a race a rower should be able to feel that they have given all they can for themselves and their crew. A crew that is unstable in their technique or safety is often too filled with anxiety to enjoy the competition. This anxiety can lead to anger and to rowers blaming their coxswain or each other at the end of a bad row.

On the water yesterday, there was wind and little waves licked the hull of the double. My rowers were learning the basics of sculling (two oars) for the first time. Despite the tippy boat and the disequilibrium that comes with a new learning situation, all I saw were smiles and concentration. 

Back on shore we reviewed the schedule for the next practice which would be a week later and after school, but they wanted more. They wanted to row before school too. "How about 5am they asked?" My jaw dropped. I'm an early bird but five is not my favorite hour.  We settled on 5:30 and I know that I'll happily get out of bed to coach them.

The author in three seat.

Battle of the Sexes: Equality and relationships

My kids have discovered The 70's Show and are binge watching the program on Netflix. In the "The Battle of the Sexists" episode, next door neighbors and love interests Donna and Eric play a series of basketball and air hockey games. Eric loses to Donna and feels emasculated. His male friends don't make the situation any better with their teasing. Through the course of the show, Donna tries losing on purpose to make Eric feel more manly but can't really stomach her own fakery. In the end, they finally agree not to keep score when they play against each other.

So it is still the same for girls?

Many women will agree that their daughters have a much more level playing field in sports, and education (see last week's post on the book LET ME PLAY) but what about in hetero love and relationships. Is there still a series of male/female game playing that encourages girls to be less than they are? Do they lose on purpose in athletics, dumb down in class, deny their own sexual desire all because they don't want to drive the boy away?

From my adult experiences, I would guess, yes. What do you think? And if you agree, is this only a hetero experience or does it carry over into homosexual relationships as well? Are there YA books you've read that show this dynamic?

Let me know what you think in the comments!

Revision Strategies and Sporty Girl Books

This week, I'm going to tell you a little about what goes on behind the scenes in making a Sporty Girl Book. Writing is often a marathon, but I'm in the sprint portion of the revision for my YA work in progress about rowing. This portion of the journey requires a "head in the boat" mentality– keep my eye on the prize, nose to the grindstone, make revising my first priority, work hard no excuses.

The first 75 pages of this novel started as my creative thesis for my MFA degree at Vermont College of Fine Arts (January-June 2011). After graduation I completed a draft, and did a revision that I sent to an initial group of agents (Spring 2012). These agents each had something to say about the work which led me to a third full revision (Winter 2012-2013). A PEN New England Children's Book Discovery Award (Spring 2013) win led me to my fabulous agent, another revision and submissions to wonderful editors (read: declines and feedback-- Fall 2013). The revision that I'm working on now (Summer 2014) is based on an in-depth editorial letter received Spring of 2014.

This morning's post on Pub(lishing)Crawl from Janice Hardy, Dealing with Multiple Drafts, outlines a lot of what I'm doing.

Sometime last month I got completely overwhelmed with all of the threads, plots, time and character changes. I couldn't hold the requirements of the revision and the novel in it's many incarnations in my head any longer. I read through the novel again and created a sticky note for each scene. As I went through I wrote "cut" on some stickies and created some that had a general summary of a new scene I needed to write that said "new."

When were things happening? The editor was concerned about the lack of time markers in the form of regular calendar events that could be subtly added as the year went on. I also needed to be more explicit about what the rowing calendar looked like as not a lot of readers will come to this book with the knowledge about crew. Across the top, I wrote the months in the school year.

The colors of the stickies represented subplots and their important actors and vaguely symbolized place. I realized about halfway through that my original use of light orange for "scenes with the best friend subplot" slowly went away on the chart. But did that character really go away or were there just other players who were more center stage? Turns out that as with many books, the threads started to weave together in a natural way. Good to know. 

At the far left end of this behemoth are the numbers 1-10. As I did the original placement of the stickies, I made an arbitrary decision on the tension rating for the scene. Did an especially steamy or romantic scene really mean more protag/antag, dramatic or plot tension? Hmm... I think I had been confusing the two. I had to be careful.

My biggest issue was the tension leading to the climax. There was a dip at the end between the emotional climax and the plot climax of the book that caused a "spike" feel for the reader. Why was it there? Why weren't the stickies looking more like that gentle slope up plot mountain? Did they have to? Did my book have a different structure and was that okay? (The panorama doesn't show the end but the pic directly above does.)

I needed chocolate. And time... lot's of time.

I use Scrivener and love it. If you do too, you know that what I'm doing is not that different from Scrivener's capabilities, but for me the tactile sticking and moving of scenes both on the timeline and up or down on the tension axis has been helpful. As I change, cut, and add, I'm making those adjustments on my plot chart and will probably end up with a differently shaped story by the end.

Here's another unexpected side-effect of the plot chart: unrolling it before I get to work has become an important part of the preparation for my work sessions. A ceremony of sorts that let's my mind and body know that it is time to work.

If you have any questions for me, leave them in the comments! Until then it's nose to the grindstone, head in the boat, blinders on. :)

Author Interview: Christina Fernandez-Morrow on Boxing and Mixed Martial Arts

When your father is Puerto Rican boxer José “Cheo” Fernandez, you learn to box. Christina Fernandez-Morrow threw punches and learned how to dodge the training pads her father swung her way. She learned along side her brothers and their friends in their Chicago neighborhood but it was Christina and her sister who outlasted all the boys.

In her currently unnamed Young Adult novel, the main character Zulima Diaz, Zuli, lives in a rough area of Chicago with her mother. It’s clear that Zuli does much of the caretaking. Zuli makes grocery lists, and makes decisions about which one or two items they might afford that week. While she eats mayonnaise sandwiches, she cleans up her mother’s messes from the night before– messes that include drug paraphernalia and sexual encounters.

Zuli is angry about her situation. She fights in school and has been suspended more than once. Is it synchronicity when Zuli keeps seeing the same poster – an open call for a mixed martial arts reality show– throughout the city? If she were to win, the prize money and scholarship possibilities would give Zuli a future she never thought she could achieve. Zuli gets onto the show and trains for the grueling and often violent mix of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, wrestling, and other unarmed combat sports.

Christina’s own boxing training lay dormant for many years while she pursued a college degree. Even though she liked creative writing, she knew that a business degree meant financial stability and as the oldest in her family she was the role model for her younger siblings. After college she married and started a family. She worked in corporate marketing for her day job and often helped other Latina writers market their work. She was thrilled that someone was writing about the Latina experience in the US. Along the way, she wrote the Iowa Latina Lifestyle section for Examiner.com. When she took writing classes, she wrote about teen characters. She made photo books for her foster children that included their creative writing. Her husband saw her as a writer, but that’s not how she saw her self. She was a business major and business majors went on to get MBA’s. However, when she entered a five-minute fiction writing contest, and her winning entry was published in Juice Magazine, she applied to Vermont College of Fine Arts.

In 2012, Christina’s husband died unexpectedly and his funeral coincided with her acceptance to VCFA. Would she go? Could she leave her daughter to further her writing career? She had to. Her husband had been the one person who saw her passion and calling.

The emotional pain of his death was overwhelming and, to help with her grief, she turned to writing. After a few semesters, she realized she missed boxing and found a trainer to help get in shape through boxing. The return to training was difficult. Still, the physical pain was easier to handle than the emotional pain of her loss.

“I could put physical pain into words, something I couldn’t do with what I felt inside. Writing about sore muscles, swollen knuckles, bloody noses and broken ribs became therapeutic for me, as was stepping out of my reality and into one that I could control.”

Soon, Zuli’s character came to her. Growing up in Humboldt Park, in Chicago, Christina had known girls like Zuli and families who faced similar challenges. As Christina faced her own training, she was researching Zuli’s.

Five minutes in the caged octagon might not seem like a lot but Zuli had to have amazing endurance. When Christina jumped with a leather rope for 15 minutes she knew what was like to have legs like cinder blocks. She studied videos of MMA training and read memoirs of women fighters. She learned about the fast, often bloody sport that had so few limitations its practitioners felt glory in just getting through. Her character, Zuli, wasn’t the only one who turned to combat sports when things were rough. Many of the real girls and women that Christina learned about were abandoned or neglected. They were scrappy fighters like Zuli whose anger and pain got them into trouble until they got into the cage.

Christina found that many fighters went on to college, that there was a movement to make MMA a college sport, that as a recognized collegiate sport there would be scholarships. She knew then, that MMA was Zuli’s way out of her bad situation and into a better future.

Christina Fernadez-Morrow was saluted as a Next Generation Latina at Latina.com in 2012 and featured in the Des Moines Register's article, 13 People to Watch in 2013.  With a finished manuscript and a newly minted MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts, Christina Fernadez-Morrow is looking for the right agent. She wants to get Zuli’s story into the hands of girls everywhere. Christina’s writing and boxing training makes her specially qualified for the grueling road ahead.

Looking back: October, November, December, January

Welcome to week three of our blogiversary. This we are looking back at our second four months. Comment on any previous posts for more points towards prizes.

October brought us three great sporty book reviews and a look into the connection between fantasy and sporty girl books. Not all of the books scored points with our reviewers. Sporty Girl Books bloggers don't mind a little romance but we want believable sports (and world building), with female protagonists who learn and grow, and plots that surprise and engage. Check out these posts: 

WILD CARDS: a Sporty Book Review

RUSH FOR THE GOLD: A Sporty Book Review

THE ACADEMY: GAME ON by Monica Seles and James LaRosa

Does Fantasy Have a Place in Sporty Girl Books?

In November, our bloggers reported on star lacrosse player Erin Kenedy from Cary, NC. She's dedicated and competitive and one to watch. Everyone in the ballet world is watching Misty Copeland. Read about her Black Girls Rock Award and Debbie Allen's picture book, DANCING IN THE WINGS. Whether or not you're a golfer you'll want to learn about The First Tee organization and their Nine Core Values for young (and young at heart) athletes. I'm a big fan of our Girls in Sports News Roundups and would love to see more of these. How about you?

If I had known then, that December was going to be the start of the winter from... well you know, I would have bought a lot more books, and I would have started with Racing Savannah which, after our posting, went on to get a lot of great press. We interviewed one of the top steeplechase runners of her generation, and a pre-med student at Yale University, Kira Garry.  Later in the month we got more philosophical with an essay on why role models are so important to young female athletes. Finally, we published holiday wishes for our readers. 

January may have been one of my favorite months because we had five (5) great blog posts. BEING SLOANE JACOBS, is a freaky Friday switch between a figure skater and a hockey player-- both named Sloane. Justine Siegal, baseball pioneer, graced us with an interview about the importance of allowing girls to play. Agent, Julia A. Weber talked about why publishing sporty girl books can be life changing for readers. Finally, we posted awesome videos and information about Women to Watch during the Sochi Olympics. Take a look! How did your favorites do?

Remember, you can help us celebrate our blogiversary all month long and enter to win either a sporty girl book we featured this year, a doll and book from Go!Go! Sports, or a copy of the July 2014 The Writer Magazine (that has a Sporty Girl Book blog shout out!). Take a look at the Rafflecopter widget to the right and enter early and often!!!

Retro Review: Girl Overboard by Justina Chen Headley

If you didn't get your fill of Winter Olympics in the last few weeks, here is your chance to get back on the slopes. Whether you are regular, goofy-footed, or *gasp* a two planker (like me BTW) you're going to love GIRL OVERBOARD.

From the LB Teen/Hatchette website:

Everybody thinks Syrah is the golden girl. After all, her father is Ethan Cheng, billionaire, and she has everything any kid could possibly desire, right down to a waterfront mansion, jet plane, and custom-designed snowboards. But most of what glitters in her life is fool's gold. Her half-siblings hate her, her best friend Adrian's girlfriend is ruining their friendship, and her own so-called boyfriend is after her for her father's name. When her broken heart results in a snowboarding accident that exiles her from the mountains--the one place where she feels free and accepted for who she is, not what she has--Syrah must rehab both her busted-up knee, and her broken heart, and learn that she's worth her weight in real gold.

Right now, I'm in the midst of last minute preparations for a class I'm teaching called "Desire in the Middle Grade and Young Adult Novel." Because of that, my lens is very much on how authors allow readers to connect with their main character through a stated or implied desire/goal/want. I'm focussed on how a writer can make showing, not telling, do the heavy lifting in introducing character, setting, conflict, and desire. Chen Headly does this beautifully.

In the first three chapters the author makes it clear that Syrah is a little rich girl. This is a challenge for Syrah but it could easily be a problem for the author. Not a lot of readers will feel that they can connect with Syrah. Did you get a recording studio for your 10th birthday? Probably not.

Here's where the difference between sympathy and empathy comes into play. If a character is sympathetic, it means we like them. If a character is empathetic, it means that we can connect with them. Not all main characters need to be likeable but we need to be able to connect with them in some way. Often, that is through their desires.

Who doesn't want SOME thing?

No one. (she says answering her own question)

And because of that, we empathize. Syrah wants to ride more than anything. An injury has sidelined her and so her yearning for a chance back at the mountain is especially intense.

In addition to her desire, Syrah has a parents who don't get her and a blended family that drives her crazy. Many of us can relate to that too.

The author uses Syrah's father's 70th birthday party and Chinese New Year celebration to showcase the family's wealth and dysfunction: the nanny who helps 15 year-old Syrah dress, her half-sister's yippy purse dog, Syrah's Viewridge Prep perfectly wealthy classmates, and the rubberband of a dress that her mother has lain out for her. All of this is well juxtaposed with Syrah's desire.

Alone in my bedroom, I stare at my pale face. Turning away, I rush over to my bedside table, grab my cell phone and call Age, wherever he is, ready to beg him to come get me. Bring me to the mountain. To hell with my knee. And my parents. 

Her pre-accident snowboarding posters, and ribbons are relegated to her closet. The one place in her "antique-laden" home where she's allowed to keep the things that define her. But her parents have a hold on her and so she uses the skin colored makeup her mother has required so she can be presentable for the party to conceal her true self – something with which all teen readers can empathize.

One tid bit... I do wish that the publisher had been brave enough to use an Asian model on the cover instead of having her facing away from us. 

For more of the snowboarding and GIRL OVERBOARD love take a look at the Author's You Tube Channel here.

Author Interview: Maria Padian and Giveaway of Jersey Tomatoes Are The Best!

In this, the debut month of Sporty Girl Books Blog, the regular contributors are introducing ourselves by way of some of our favorite books and authors in the sporty book world. Maria Padian is the author of three young adult books: BRETT MCCARTHY: WORK IN PROGRESS, JERSEY TOMATOES ARE THE BEST, and the recently released OUT OF NOWHERE.

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I’m so lucky that Maria lives in my Maine town. We first met on the fields of the local college. We were not playing any sports but walking out dogs. Lucy is my yellow lab and Frisbee is Maria’s Australian Shepherd. For the interview, we met at the Little Dog Café and discussed all things kidlit and sports. Grab a cup of something warm and join us!

Soccer plays a role in Brett McCarthy… and Out of Nowhere. Tennis and ballet are in Jersey Tomatoes Are the Best. Are those sports in your background? What sports are you involved in now?

I’ve played soccer, softball, basketball.  I ski, hike.  Bike.  But the sport I’ve played most consistently, and which I love, is tennis. I started in third grade and play competitively to this day, on a USTA women’s team.  It’s great to still have sports in my life.  Another sport I’ve loved … but lost … is rowing.  I rowed crew back in college, first in Oxford (England) where I learned to row British style – faster hands and a three-part recovery.  I had to relearn when I came back to America, and rowed with a club in Atlanta, Georgia.  It’s a fantasy of mine to return to rowing again … you’re inspiring me, Anna!

How do you use sports as vehicle for character, conflict, and tension in your books.

I don’t usually go about a book thinking that I’m going to make a character an athlete. It’s more that my characters are naturally athletes. I’m drawn to young women who are not afraid to be bold, competitive and aggressive.

In Jersey Tomatoes Are The Best, Henry, a tennis player, is battling personal demons. She struggles to understand the point of competition, to question the expectation that she play tennis, and to win on her own terms. She asks, am I winning the way I want to win, being the athlete I want to be, and am I becoming the kind of person I would admire.

Eva is a committed ballerina, and I never saw her as an athlete but as an artist. Both of them struggle to take ownership of what they have become passionate about [tennis and ballet]. The struggle is between expectations and passion. Do you do something because people expect you to even if you don’t love it? Or, do you do something you love even though you might not be great at it?

Eva, in Jersey Tomatoes Are The Best, is dealing with anorexia. Talk to me about healthy eating and healthy habits for athletes.

You know, I think there is a misunderstanding about eating disorders. I think about this more as a mental health issue than a fitness issue. Anorexia is about dealing with stress and anxiety. Some girls rise above stresses and strains and some succumb to it.

You write the eating disorder as a male voice named Ed inside Eva’s head. How did you come up with that?

I went to see a play where the eating disorder was portrayed as male. The character was smarmy and cruel, dressed in a leather jacket and dark glasses.  He was emotionally abusive.  I tried to write Ed similar to an abusive boyfriend.  Eva is very vulnerable to those negative voices. I think a lot of it has to do with a person’s inner compass. What do we choose to believe about ourselves? So much of sports is about having a mental edge and great athletes are great optimists. I was playing tennis against someone who was better than I was and going at each ball with the thought, “Am I going to get it?” Then the person I was playing with told me to instead think, “When I get there, where am I going to put it?” That mental shift made a huge difference in my game.

Now for the lightning round:

What is your favorite sport to play?

First tennis, but rowing is a close second.

What is your favorite sport to watch?

If tennis is on TV, I’m there. I also live with a bunch of crazy basketball fans so I watch a lot of basketball.

Which athlete would you most want to meet?

Andre Agassi. His book OPEN came out at the same time as Jersey Tomatoes Are The Best and I’m really interested in his story.

I know you have a dog named Frisbee. Is Frisbee a good exercise partner?

Frisbee gets me out of the house on the days that the weather is so wet or cold that I’d normally stay inside. Once we’ve gone for a walk, I always feel so virtuous.

You too can be virtuous by signing up for our rafflecopter give away, which I’ve included in this post. The winner will receive a lovely collection of books including JERSEY TOMATOES ARE THE BEST signed by the sport Maria Padian. I also picked up an awesome pair of cycling tire levers (pink) at the recent women’s ride that I participated in so I’ll throw those in as well.

It is also virtuous to comment below! What do you think: Are eating disorders more about fitness or mental health? How much of your sport is about having a mental edge? I’d love to hear from you. Anna
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