May 22, 2006



 



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5/3/06
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The Be More Chill movie script is 90% completed! Auteur Steve Pink, whose directorial debut, Accepted, bows in theaters this August, is putting the finishing touches on the thing and it's looking extra-special fantastic. See Accepted this summer (Lewis Black, Ann Cusack) to support Steve and start prepping--a Be More Chill movie could be coming as soon as 2007.
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2/5/06
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Be on the lookout for Steve Pink's movie Accepted, in theaters soon. Steve is the screenwriting and directing force behind the Be More Chill movie, which is currently in development. We are close to finishing the screenplay and will be finished by April. We are experimenting with one major change to the book. Steve felt constrained by the age of the characters--it turns out that a lot of the book is R-rated and getting a studio to place it in high school is pretty difficult (the nipple ring scene, etc.). To put the humor where we want to be, we are making Jeremy in his early 20s instead of in high school. Don't kill me, it works. Same story, only now the squip is a little more serious--it persuades Jeremy to max out his credit cards, doublecross his coworkers and have lots of sex. The results are sparkling and I can't wait to get them on a screen for you! Steve and I are contributing scenes to the final product now.
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09-01-2005
In Holland, Be More Chill has released by The House of Books as "De chill Pil."
No Amsterdam book tour is planned, but I'm headed over there for a wedding in 2006.
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April 21, 2005
[click cover for Amazon]
I wrote a short story for this anthology, which focuses on quick tales that appeal to guys and has contributors from Gary Paulsen to Steven King. It was put together by a gentleman named Jon Scieszka, a leading light in the YA literary community and a resident of Park Slope Brooklyn.
My contribution centers around a fire escape that I climbed, in 2nd grade, with my friends, using an extension cord.
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May 25, 2004
[click cover for Amazon]
I was proud to contribute to the anthology Sixteen, edited by Megan McCafferty ( Sloppy Firsts, Second Helpings). The book is a collection of stories, each about turning sixteen; mine features a 16-year-old loser from the Wild Wild Girls Gone Wild West named Rutford who spends his birthday in a whorehouse. Yay!
"Though marketed as an adult title, this collection includes stories by authors generally considered to be writing for YAs, such as Sonya Sones and Jacqueline Woodson, as well as a smattering of adult authors like Steve Almond. The pieces are mostly set squarely in the 16-year-old brain, rather than taking the point of view of an adult looking back fondly on adolescence. Some of the authors, like Sarah Dessen, write somewhat more explicitly here than in their YA titles. Others use the format readers have grown used to–for example, Sones's free verse works as well in the short-story format as in novels. Ned Vizzini's tale is set in an Old West brothel and revisits the theme of parents who just don't understand...."
–Jamie Watson, School Library Journal
"I just wanted to let you know, that I haven't read your other books(I'm sorry, I plan to though!) but I did read your short story in Sixteen, 'Rutford Becomes a Man' and I LOVED it! I read it twice already, and every time I find myself laughing. I love Rutford's perception and his comments. It is a completely unique setting, and honestly I hate reading about the 'Wild West' usually, but this time I was amused. Rutford is a dynamic character and was so easy to visualize in my brain, the story stuck with me for some time and I've been telling all my friends about it."
-- Sara (CA), 7/14/04

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02-01-2006
I contributed the essay "The Driver" to this collection on jealousy.
Booklist:
"Imagine! Six short stories, four essays, one quiz, and one poem--an entire book focused on jealous--and it works! Jealousy of the rich and privileged; jealousy of a boyfriend's new car; jealousy of another's talent, beauty, boyfriend, or goodness: emotions we have all encountered are verbalized in this well-chosen collection."
VOYA:
"A delicious collection."
Kirkus Reviews:
"The pieces are well-written and entertaining, and the collection is cohesively crafted."
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© Ned Vizzini 2000-2006
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send in your own |



 



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Rowell
of RI
says: My favorite part of Be More Chill, is when Mr. Reyes speaks in his falsetto voice "Maaaaaa!", when I try to imagine it, I can't help laughing. This is my favorite book. No Doubt. Im going to try Jimmy Heere's squip moves on some of the ladies.. :) "Maaaa!"
Rowell's myspace
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Violet
of NY
says: my favorite part of the book was... oh, let's see... THE WHOLE THING, aka my LIFE! I live in Park Slope, took the Stuy Test, attend Pure Energy Martial Arts (Tessa Gordon's still there), and have done numerous other things that you describe in Teen Angst?Naah...
Never have i identified more with a boook than with this one. I read books for escape, but it's like escaping right back into... you guessed it, My Life!
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RYAN
of CO
says: THe part with chloe and jeremy heere i wish it went on for longer adn that stupid brock didnt come in
I LOVE THE SCSTASY AND SEX
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Rocio
of CA
says: i loved the part about the prep for the Stuy Test [Teen Angst? Naaah...] since i can totally relate, even if i didn't do half as well on my own, similar, test :P
Rocio's myspace
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Kathleen
of United Kingdom
says: I didnt have a favorite part of this book, it was all amazing, i know that I am going to read this book over and over.
Kathleen's website
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Matthew
of New Zealand
says: My favourite aspect of both Be More Chill and Teen Angst? Naaah is that the parents (particularly the dads) are portrayed as decent people who are even funny and understanding, rather than as the hysterical losers/ screw up parents that are so ubiquitous in books aimed at young adults.
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Janine
of CA
says: I would say my favourite part would be the whole Aunt Linda
conversation. I mean, I can totally relate. My family acts the same
way. And its the plot revealer... where he's just really honest (...and kinda harsh) about how he sees himself. It's the point where the book
really takes a surrealist turn.
That's my two cents... and more.
Janine's blog Janine's myspace
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Brian
of NC
says: My favorite part of Teen Angst? Naaah... had to be the chapter about Nintendo. I, too, was raised by Nintendo. I have also had the video gaming dreams, the infinitesimally numb ass, and the thumb blisters. Mario was my babysitter until the age of thirteen or so, and look at how I turned out!!! And they say crack is dangerous...anyone know the number to Nintendo rehab?
Brian's myspace
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Robin
of CA
says: i liked the part when he was about to get laid but he messes up with the nipple ring and ruins it.
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Ryn
of CA
says: God, it's hard to pick just one. In Teen Angst: Probably the part about playing Magic all night. In Be More Chill: The whole forking book. It's just hysterical. :)
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Want to send in your favorite part? |
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Have you read the forbiiiiiden chapter of Be More Chill? Here's the link.
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