Interview With Ellen Hopkins Crank Trilogy For Teens

Ellen Hopkins is the best-selling author of the enormously popular Crank trilogy of young adult (YA) books. Although she was an established poet, journalist and freelance writer before the success of Crank, Hopkins is now an award-winning YA author with five bestselling novels in verse for teens. Her novels in verse attract many teen readers because of their realistic topics, authentic teen voice, and the appealing poetic format that is easy to read. Ms. Hopkins, a highly sought after speaker and writing mentor, took time out of her busy schedule to grant me an email interview. Read on to learn more about this talented writer including information about the writers and poets who influenced her, the inspiration behind her Crank trilogy, and her stand on censorship.  Ã‚  Q.   What types of books did you like to read as a teen?  Ã‚  A.  Ã‚  There was a total dearth of YA literature when I was a teen. I gravitated toward horror-- Stephen King, Dean Koontz. But I also loved popula r fiction--Mario Puzo, Ken Kesey, James Dickey, John Irving. For sure if I found an author I liked, I read everything by that author I could find.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Q. You write poetry and prose.   Which poets/poems have influenced your writing?  Ã‚  A.   Billy Collins. Sharon Olds. Langston Hughes. T.S. Eliot  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Q.   Most of your books are written in free verse. Why do you choose to write in this style?  Ã‚  A.   My books are completely character driven, and verse as a storytelling format  feels like a characters thoughts. It puts readers right on the page, inside my characters heads.  That makes my stories real, and as a contemporary storyteller, thats my goal.  Plus, I truly love the challenge of making every word count. I have, in fact, become an impatient reader. Too much extraneous language makes me want to close a book.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Q.   Besides your books in verse, what other books have you written?  Ã‚  A.   I started writing as a free lance journalist, and some of the stories I wrote sparked my interest in nonfiction books for children. I published twenty before I moved into fiction. My first adult novel, Triangles, publishes October 2011, but that is also in verse.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Q.   How would you describe yourself as a writer?  Ã‚  A.   Dedicated, focused and passionate about my writing. I am blessed to have a creative career that is relatively lucrative, too. I worked really hard to get here, and will never forget those days, trying to decide where I belonged as a writer and scraping by until I figured it out. Quite simply, I love what I do.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Q.   Why do you like writing for teens?  Ã‚  A.   I very much respect this generation and hope my books speak to the place inside them that makes them want to be the best they can be. Teens are our future. I  want to help them create a brilliant one.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Q.   Many teens read your books. How do you find your â€Å"teen voice† and why do you think you are able to connect with them?  Ã‚  A.   I have a fourteen-year-old son at home, so Im around teens through him and his friends. But I also spend a lot of time talking with them at events, signings, online, etc.  In fact, I hear teen every day.  And I remember being a teen. What it was like to still be a kid, with my inner adult screaming for freedom. Those were challenging years, and that hasnt changed for todays teens.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Q.   You’ve written about some serious topics in regards to teens. If you were to give teens any advice about life, what would it be? What would you say to their parents?  Ã‚  A.   To teens: life will present you with choices. Think carefully before you make them. Most mistakes can be forgiven, but some choices have outcomes that cant be taken back. To parents: Dont underestimate your teens. They are wiser and more sophisticated than you know, even though their emotions are still developi ng. They see/hear/experience things you may not want them to. Talk to them. Arm them with knowledge and help them make the best choices they can.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Q.   The book Crank is a fictionalized story based on your own daughter’s experience with drugs. How did  she influence  you to write Crank?  Ã‚  A.   This was my perfect A kid. No problems at all right up until the time she met the wrong guy, who turned her on to drugs. First, I needed to write the book to gain some understanding. It was a personal need that made me start the book. Through the writing process, I gained much insight and it became clear this was a story many people shared. I wanted readers to understand that addiction happens in good homes, too. If it could happen to my daughter, it could happen to anyones daughter. Or son or mother or brother or whatever.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Q.   Glass and Fallout continue the story you started in Crank.   What influenced you to continue writing Krist ina’s story?  A.   I never planned sequels. But Crank resonated with so many, especially because I made it clear it was inspired by my familys story. They wanted to know what happened to Kristina. What most hoped for was that she quit and became the perfect young mom, but that wasnt what happened. I really wanted readers to understand the power of crystal meth, and hopefully influence them to stay far, far away from it.   For more information on Ellen Hopkins and the book challenges to Crank,   see the next page. Q. When did you find out Crank was being challenged?A. Which time? Its been challenged many times and was, in fact, the 4th most challenged book in 2010. Q. What was the reason given for the challenge?A. Reasons include: drugs, language, sexual contentQ. Were you surprised at the challenges? How did you feel about them?A. Actually, I find them ridiculous. Drugs? Uh, yeah. Its about how drugs take you down. Language? Really? The f-word is in there exactly twice, for specific reasons. Teens cuss. They do. They also have sex, especially when theyre using drugs. Crank is a cautionary tale, and the truth is the book changes lives for the better all the time. Q. How did you respond?A. When I hear about a challenge, its usually from a librarian who is fighting it. I send a file of reader letters thanking me for: 1. Letting them see the destructive path they were on, and encouraging them to change it. 2. Giving them insight into a loved-ones addiction. 3. Making them want to help troubled kids. etc. Q. In the nonfiction essay collection called Flirtin with the Monster, you stated in your introduction that you wanted to write Crank from Kristinas point of view. How difficult of a task was this and what do you feel you learned from it?A. The story was close behind us when I started Crank. It had been a six-year nightmare, fighting for her and with her. She was inside my head already, so writing from her POV [point of view] wasnt difficult. What I learned, and needed to learn, was that once the addiction kicked into high gear, it was the drug we were dealing with, not my daughter. The monster analogy is accurate. We were dealing with a monster in my daughters skin. Q. How do you determine which topics to write about in your books?A. I receive literally hundreds of messages a day from readers, and many are telling me personal stories. If a topic comes up many times, it means to me its worth exploration. I want to write where my readers live. I know, because I hear it from my readers.Q. Why do you think its important to read about the topics you cover in your books?A. These things--addiction, abuse, thoughts of suicide--touch lives every day, including young lives. Understanding the why of them can help change the horrific statistics that some people refuse to believe. Hiding your eyes wont make them go away. Helping people make better choices will. And its hugely important to gain empathy for those whose lives are touched by them. Its hugely important to give them a voice. To let them know they are not alone.Q. How has your life changed since publishing Crank?A. A lot. First of all, I discovered where I belong as a writer. Ive found a widening a udience that loves what I do, and through that Ive gained some small amount of fame and fortune. I never expected that, and it didnt happen overnight. Its a lot of hard work, both on the writing end and on the promotion end. I travel. Meet lots of great people. And while I love that, Ive come to appreciate home even more.Q. What are your plans for future writing projects?A. Ive recently moved onto the adult side of publishing, so Im currently writing two novels a year--one young adult and one adult, also in verse. So I plan to be very, very busy.Ellen Hopkins new novel in verse for teens, Perfect, will be released September 13, 2011.

Criminal Justice Process Ensures Individuals Rights

Introduction A criminal justice process is normally followed to ensure an individual’s rights are not abused. According to Moak and Carlson (3), the criminal justice process aims to ensure that relevant fact-finding is conducted in an effort to establish the truth. The criminal justice procedure needs to be done in accordance or by not being in contrary to an individual’s right as stipulated in the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Eighth and Fourteen amendments of the U.S. Constitution. Moak and Carlson (4) note that a criminal justice process needs to involve intensive cross-examination of both prosecution witness (the arresting officer and any other potential witness) and defense or the accused (Amanda Watson). Siegel (21) indicates that the criminal justice system is divided into three main components. The first component is the police and law enforcement. 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Beowulf As A Hero Essay Example For Students

Beowulf As A Hero Essay Beowulf is the strongest of the Geats greater / and stronger than anyone anywhere in this world ll.110-111. Even though he is famous for his massive strength, Beowulf has other attributes that are noticeable other than his strength. These attributes, arrogance, bravery, and a strong love for his people are what make Beowulf become such a powerful, epic hero. Beowulf is arrogant. He constantly brags about his supreme strength. The strongest man alive lets people know that he is the most powerful person around by saying, no strength is a match for mine l.267. Beowulf does not think that he could ever be destroyed by anything. He obviously never questiones how his fighting ability would be when he was around seventy. Since Beowulf is convinced that God is watching over him, his ego makes him act as if he is invincible, because of the idea that he has a guardian angel. But, as Beowulf gets older, wiser, and fights in more battles he should realize that there was a possibility that he can die. Beowulf also boasts about his many battles, and is proud of himself for winning all of them. One of these triumphs is the battle in the water when he meets up with nine sea monsters which he killeds, and fights with a monster that is digging its jaws into Beowulfs flesh. Beowulf proclaims that I fought that beasts last battle, / left it floating in the sea ll.290-291. This epic tale reads that while Beowulf is in battle with Grendels mother, all he cares was about the fame he would get for defeating her. Unferth thinks that Beowulf was arrogant, by saying, Youre Beowulf, are you the same / Boastful fool who fought a swimming / Match with Brecca ll.239-241. Yes, Beowulf is a boastful fool that loves the attention that his strength gives him. A strong man and an arrogant one, Beowulf is also brave. Even after all of the horror stories that he hears about Grendel, he still fights the cursed beast without any hesitation. When he battles with Grendel, he does it without the things that everyone else would useweapons. This shows that Beowulf is not scared of anything in the world. He also must be brave to fight a sea monster after swimming in the ocean for days. He went straight into battle exhausted, from the strenuous journey across the ocean. The bravery that he possesses, along with an arrogant mentality that no one can defeat him keeps Beowulf from quitting at a time that anyone else would. In addition to being brave, Beowulf thinks of his people all of the time. Even when he was not a member of the clan, he still fought for them. He cares if they are being terrorized or killed, and shows his love by endlessly going into fights, each battle tougher than the one before. Even when he is dying after his battle with the dragon, all that he thinks about is  the treasure that his clan would be able to use to their advantage. The leader of the Geats even thanks God for letting him help his people while he lived. He gives them the bravest leader under him in Wiglaf, which was the best gift for his people, since like Beowulf, Wiglaf was brave. To be a real hero, Beowulf needs to have some kind of personality to make him a man of epic proportions. Beowulf is arrogant, but through all of his arrogance, he still has a kind heart, is brave, and cares for his people. A person who upholds these qualities is truly a hero and a great example for all of mankind to look up to. People in this world should also mold their hearts after a person like Beowulf, because even though he is not perfect, he still strives to be the strongest, and has the biggest heart known to Herot, and the world.