{Blog Tour} Forever Geek (Geek Girl #6) by Holly Smale

Forever Geek (Geek Girl #6) 
by Holly Smale
Release Date: March 9th, 2017

Publishers: HarperCollins
Genre: YA, Contemporary Romance

Pages: 400
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / The Book Depo 

 

My name is Harriet Manners and I’ll be a geek forever…

Harriet Manners knows almost every fact there is.

Modelling isn’t a sure-fire route to popularity. Neither is making endless lists. The people you love don’t expect you to transform into someone else. Statistically, you are more likely to not meet your Australian ex-boyfriend in Australia than bump into him there.

So on the trip of a lifetime Down Under Harriet’s to-do lists are gone and it’s Nat’s time to shine! Yet with nearly-not-quite-boyfriend Jasper back home, Harriet’s completely unprepared to see supermodel ex Nick. Is the fashion world about to turn ugly for GEEK GIRL?

It’s time for Harriet to face the future. Time to work out where her heart lies. To learn how to let go…

Holly Smale’s Soundtrack to the Geek Girl series 

Music is enormously important to me, and fundamental to my imagination: I can’t write at all without it. But I did tend to pick similar tracks while I was working on Geek Girl, which meant a lot of instrumental, Icelandic artists and piano or violin. Anything that I both loved and also felt like Harriet: optimistic, delicate and thoughtful, with a few fun and uplifting tracks thrown in for good measure. Although frankly I hadn’t realised until I made this list quite how many animals, insects and birds were involved. Perhaps Harriet’s impact on my subconscious was even stronger than I thought! 

When I was writing the final third of Forever Geek I played Jonsi, We Bought a Zoo, on loop, so it’s kind of secretly woven silently into the book. It’s amazing how powerful that connection is now for me. I can’t hear it without feeling both incredibly proud and incredibly sad at the same time: it feels like it sums up Harriet’s entire journey through Geek Girl, in one track, so whenever I miss her I’ll just need to play it really loudly. 

Dissolve Me - Alt-J

The Planets (Jupiter) - Holst

Fireflies - Owl City

Carried Away - Passion Pit

Nuvole Bianche - Ludovico Einaudi

The Lark Ascending - Ralph Vaughan Williams

Hoppipolla - Sigur Ros

Metamorphosis II - Philip Glass

Arrival of the birds - London Metropolitan Orchestra

Where’s My Love - Syml

We Bought a Zoo - Jonsi

AUTHOR BIO:  

Holly is the Number One bestselling, multi-award winning author of the GEEK GIRL series. She fell in love with writing at five years old, when she realised that books didn't grow on trees like apples. 
A passion for travel, adventure and wearing no shoes has since led her all over the world: she has visited 27 countries, spent two years working as an English teacher in Japan, volunteered in Nepal, been bartered for in Jamaica and had a number of ear-plugs stolen in Australia, Indonesia and India. 
Holly has a BA in English Literature, an MA in Shakespeare, and currently lives in London or at @holsmale. 

{Review} Forever Geek (Geek Girl #6) by Holly Smale

Posted by Donna
Release Date: March 9th, 2017
Finished Date: March 10th, 2017

Publishers: HarperCollins 
Genre: YA, Contemporary
Source: For Review
Format: Hardcover 

Pages: 400
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / The Book Depo 

 

My name is Harriet Manners and I’ll be a geek forever…

The FINAL book in the bestselling, award-winning GEEK GIRL series is here!

Harriet Manners knows almost every fact there is.

Modelling isn’t a sure-fire route to popularity. Neither is making endless lists.
The people you love don’t expect you to transform into someone else.
Statistically you are more likely to not meet your Australian ex-boyfriend in Australia than bump into him there.

So on the trip of a lifetime Down Under Harriet’s to-do lists are gone and it’s Nat’s time to shine! Yet with nearly-not-quite-boyfriend Jasper back home, Harriet’s completely unprepared to see supermodel ex Nick. Is the fashion world about to turn ugly for GEEK GIRL?

It’s time for Harriet to face the future. Time to work out where her heart lies. To learn how to let go…

The Review: It’s over! Forever Geek is the final book in Holly Smale’s geektastic and loveable Geek Girl series and I for one am so sad this is the end for Harriet and the gang but I’m also very happy with how the series ended. It was just perfect! 

This time around we see Harriet take on a new modelling job – or so she thinks – but this time she’s going to Australia. The timing is a little off seems as Harriet has just started a little romance with Jasper but they’re not quite at the boyfriend-girlfriend stage just yet. So Harriet jets off with her Gran and best friend and tries not to think about whose country she’s actually travelling to – her ex Lion Boy. But as well all know Harriet, her trips/modelling jobs are never simple and easy and soon Harriet finds herself trying to take charge of her own live but can she make the right choices? 

I’m so glad I started this series. It was always a series I wasn’t sure if I was going to like because although it’s YA, Harriet is quiet a young character but once I started it’s been impossible to forget her. She’s such a loveable character – one with so many interesting, quirky and strange facts. She’s literally like a walking encyclopaedia that knows so much stuff that no other person her age would know. Tell a lie – I’m 31 and I don’t even know half the stuff she knows, so as a reader it’s really interesting to see what facts she’ll tell us. 

As the series has progress Harriet has grown up, she’s made mistakes and learned from them and even in Forever Geek she’s constantly learning new things about herself and how to be a better person. I love that. We’ve seen her change through-out each book and apart of myself is sad to now part ways with her and with all the secondary characters too. Now I’m a romance girl through and through and one of the reason’s I fell in love with Harriett’s story was because of her relationship with Nick aka Lion Boy and it’s the one thing I wanted to see wrapped up in this book. And Holly Smale didn’t disappoint. I don’t want to say too much but I loved the way it ended. It was just what I wanted.

In all, Forever Geek is the perfect end to a series that I’m sad to leave behind. But I’m hoping the author will re-visit Harriett in the near future. 

Thank you to HarperCollins for giving me the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review. 

{Review} Head Over Heels (Geek Girl #5) by Holly Smale

Posted by Donna
Release Date: April 7th, 2016
Finished Date: April 6th, 2016

Publishers: HarperCollins Children's Books
Genre: YA, Contemporary
Source: For Review
Format: Paperback

Pages: 416
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / The Book Depo
 

“My name is Harriet Manners, and I will always be a geek.”

The fifth book in the bestselling, award-winning GEEK GIRL series.

Harriet Manners knows almost every fact there is.

She knows duck-billed platypuses don’t have stomachs.
She knows that fourteen squirrels were once detained as spies.
She knows only one flag in the world features a building.

And for once, Harriet knows exactly how her life should go. She’s got it ALL planned out. So when love is in the air, Harriet is determined to Make Things Happen!
If only everyone else would stick to the script…

Has GEEK GIRL overstepped the mark, and is following the rules going to break hearts all over again?

The Review: I’ve been trying to write this review on Head Over Heels since I first read it in April but for some reason I’ve really struggled to find the words. I’ve sat down a few times and I’m still mixed with different feelings. Even now as I write this review I’m still not 100% sure on how I feel so bear with me. I adore Harriet. I adore the series and I’m always so eager to get the next book and start it straight away and Head Over Heels was no different. However, I couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed when I finished it because this really did feel like a filler book. I honestly thought after so many disastrous mistakes on Harriet’s part that she would have learnt her lesson by now and yes, in some ways she does but she still goes about things the wrong way and ends up in a mess all over again – even if her intentions were for the right reasons. Despite that though I do believe by the end of this story Harriet has grown up a little. She’s now embracing her modelling career instead of trying to hide away from it and I did like that she was trying to help a very close friend.

Now, you all know how much of a sucker I am for romance. It’s the main reason I read books. I can’t live without it and as much as this book had romance in it, I didn’t enjoy it one bit! And I’m totally blaming Holly Smale for this one. I just knew when I read All that Glitters that Jasper was going to become a future love interest for Harriet and as much as Jasper is a really nice character I simply didn’t want their romance to happen. And yes that is because of Nick. I know many of you guys are Team Nick so I’m hoping we can all agree that this presence was completely and utterly missed him throughout this book and it just wasn’t the same without him. Am I right? I think so. I understand that sometimes a character has to take certain steps in a story and Harriet’s life is full of drama so why not add more of it into the mix with her love life but Holly Smale made Nick such a huge part of her life and made him so lovable that for me it was hard to move on and enjoy Harriet’s story especially when you know deep down that she is still struggling with their break up. And then, THAT ENDING! I was lost for words when I read that last line. Maybe all hope isn’t lost just yet but I hope Holly doesn’t intend to torment us and give us hope and take it all away again. I guess time will tell when the release of book 6 comes around.

In all, as you can see I had very mixed feelings about Head Over Heels but for me it felt like a filler book and it was definitely my least favourite so hence my three star rating, but I’m hoping book 6 will make up for it as long as Harriet makes the right choices!

Thank you to HarperCollins for giving me the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review. 

{Review + Christmas Special} All Wrapped Up (Geek Girl #1.5) by Holly Smale

Posted by Donna
Release Date: November 5th, 2015
Finished Date: December 6th, 2015

Publishers: HarperCollins Children's Books
Genre: YA, Contemporary
Source: For Review
Format: Hardcover

Pages: 220
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / Book Depo 

 

All I want for Christmas is… a new GEEK GIRL story!

Harriet Manners knows a lot about Christmas.

She knows that every year Santa climbs down 91.8 million chimneys.

She knows that Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer was almost definitely a girl.

She knows that the first artificial Christmas trees were made out of goose feathers.

But this Christmas is extra special for Harriet, because four days ago she had her First Ever Kiss.

Now she just needs to work out what's supposed to happen next…

A romantic festive treat from the internationally bestselling award-winning author of the GEEK GIRL series. Also includes a BONUS previously unpublished GEEK GIRL short story TEAM GEEK!

The Review: All Wrapped Up is the perfect holiday novella to get you in the festive mood and it's also an added bonus for all of the Geek Girl fans!

Could we love Harriet and Nick any more? Well this special novella gives some special insight to the their first ever date along with their first kiss. I did wonder why we missed it in between Geek Girl ending and Model Misfit starting but this was a fab way to flash back in time, but also if you're all up to date with the series and are Team Lion Boy then this could be a little bit heart-breaking too. 

All Wrapped Up has a little bit of everything for the festive holidays and it's full of swoon-worthy moments and not only that, it felt real. Harriet's personality shone throughout this novella more than ever and it just made me love her even more. If you're a fan of this beautiful couple then it's definitely a must-read this year.

Thank you to HarperCollins for giving me the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review. 

 

 THE GEEK GIRL GUIDE TO CHRISTMAS
by Harriet Manners  
 

The word mistletoe comes from the Old English word mistletan, which means poo twig, because it spreads itself through seeds in bird droppings that land on tree branches
 

The biggest Christmas tree in the world is in Rio de Janeiro – it is 278 feet tall, and floats on the Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon
 

In the Ukraine, Christmas trees are decorated with spider’s webs
 

In Scandinavia, they leave porridge out for Santa instead of cookies
 

The First Ever Christmas stamp was issued in 1962 and featured a wreath and two candles
 

The First Ever Christmas card was sold in 1843 and depicted a family drinking wine
 

The First Ever Christmas song sung in space was Jingle Bells
 

Ice skating is the oldest human-powered means of transportation on earth, invented 3,000 years ago in Finland where skates were made from animal bones and leather
 

The most romantic Christmas fact ever - in 1913, a couple were fined fifteen dollars for kissing in the streets of New York City on Christmas Day
 
All the gifts in the Twelve Days of Christmas would equal 364 separate presents 
 

The World’s biggest stocking is 106 feet and nine inches long and holds a thousand presents 
 

Approximately three billion Christmas cards are sent every year in the US alone
 

The average age of a Christmas tree is fifteen years old 
 

For more Festive Geek Girl facts, check out All Wrapped Up by Holly Smale, published by HarperCollins Children’s £9.99,  out now

Displaying Geek Girl Xmas facts.pdf.

{Review} All that Glitters (Geek Girl #4) by Holly Smale

Posted by Donna
Release Date: February 26th, 2015
Finished Date: December 6th, 2015

Publishers: HarperCollins Children's Books
Genre: YA, Contemporary
Source: For Review
Format: Paperback 

Pages: 400
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / Book Depo 

 

“My name is Harriet Manners, and I have always been a geek.”

The fourth book in the award-winning GEEK GIRL series.

Harriet Manners knows many things.

She knows that toilet roll was invented by the Chinese in 600 AD.

She knows that a comet’s tail always points away from the sun.

And she knows that the average healthy heart beats 70 times per minute. Even when it’s broken.

But she knows nothing about making new friends at Sixth Form. Or why even her old friends seem to be avoiding her. And she knows even less about being a glittering supermodel success. Which she now is – apparently.

Has Harriet’s time to shine like a star finally arrived, or is she about to crash and burn?

The Review: **Possible spoilers from the first three books** 

As soon as I finished Picture Perfect I started All that Glitters straight away. How could I not? With that ending I needed to read more but was it me or was this one just not as good as the other books? I’m still rating it 4 stars though because I still love Harriet but I just didn’t enjoy the plot of this story as much. It might be the fact that I’m still trying to deal with the fact that Harriet and Lion Boy are no more. I’m absolutely devastated. I was still clinging onto hope when I started this book but by the end I was left in ruins and screaming at Harriet for her choices. 

With Harriet starting at Sixth Form we don’t see much of Nat but more surprisingly Toby didn’t have much time either. They’re trying to give Harriet room to branch out and make new friends but if anything it just confuses Harriet and makes her feel lonely. I felt sorry for her. Especially when it seems hard for her to make new friends and with Alexa breathing down her neck but I was pleased for the arrival of India’s character and I’m hoping we will get to see more of her through the series. I wasn’t overly keen on any of the new people Harriet chose to hang around with other than India but then I loved seeing what Harriet got up to because this girl is a walking disaster most of the time but it’s just so lovable and entertaining that you can’t help but love her. Even though we see Harriet struggle with the type of person she should but, once again she realises that she needs to be happy with who she is and the old Harriet is back. 

And do I smell a new potential romance blossoming with new boy Jasper? I don’t know how I feel about this right now. I’m still #TeamLionBoy and I believe that he and Harriet should be together – even though their ending felt pretty final I’m still holding out hope. I’m invested in them too much as this stage to give up. 

I’m excited to see what Head over Heels will bring though. As much as I’m scared that I won’t get the ending I want for Harriett I’m looking forward to reading more and hopefully the series doesn’t end with book five. 

Thank you to HarperCollins Children's Books for giving me the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review. 

{Review} Picture Perfect (Geek Girl #3) by Holly Smale

Posted by Donna
Release Date: June 14th, 2014
Finished Date: December 4th, 2015

Publishers: HarperCollins Children's Books
Genre: YA, Contemporary
Source: For Review
Format: Paperback 

Pages: 400
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / Book Depo 

 

"My name is Harriet Manners, and I'll always be a geek."

It's the hilarious third book in the No.1 bestselling, award winning GEEK GIRL series!

Harriet Manners knows more facts than most. She knows that New York is the most populous city in the United States. She knows that its official motto is "Ever Upward". She knows that 28% of Americans believe we never landed on the moon.

But she knows nothing about modelling in the Big Apple, and how her family will cope with life stateside. Or how to "become a brand", as the models in New York put it. And, even more importantly, what to do when the big romantic gestures aren't coming from your boyfriend...

Does geek girl go too far this time?

The laugh out loud follow-up to award winning GEEK GIRL and MODEL MISFIT will have you in stitches.

The Review: Picture Perfect is book three in Holly Smale’s Geek Girl series and after reading the previous two book within a matter of days, I just knew I couldn’t stop there. I knew I needed to read the remaining books because so far these books have gotten better and better and I was excited to find out what happens next. 

This time around we see Harriett head to New York but it’s not just for modelling. This time it’s because her father had been offered a new job and their family needed the money – especially with a new baby in the family. Harriett has a bit of a rough time during this book. Moving away from her house and everyone she knows really hits her hard and I did feel sorry for her. But then I also felt she made certain situation worse for herself. This book was definitely Harriett’s rebellious stage – she gets grounded and just makes everything worse for herself by sneaking out the house and running away to New York and she takes advice from the wrong people and jeopardises her relationship with Nick with serious consequences. Harriett just did not have a good time during this book. But the good thing was I also found she grew a lot. By her making mistakes she learnt from them and her journey throughout this book was still entertaining but it also pulls on your heart.

With Harriett in the USA for most of the book we don’t see much of our favourite secondary characters like Nat and Toby but we do see Wilbur and Nick with them being at New York Fashion Show. I love Wilbur. He makes Harriet’s story so fun. And Nick. I just love him *sobs* - I’m praying for him to be in the next book. 

In all, Picture Perfect was a pretty great read. I did enjoy Model Misfit more but this was still a fab instalment. I can’t wait to see what comes next! 

Thank you to HarperCollins for giving me the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review. 

 

{Review} Model Misfit (Geek Girl #2) by Holly Smale

Posted by Donna
Release Date: September 26th, 2013
Finished Date: December 1st, 2015

Publishers: HarperCollins Children's Books
Genre: YA, Contemporary
Source: For Review
Format: Paperback 

Pages: 356
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / Book Depo 

 

“My name is Harriet Manners, and I am still a geek.”

Harriet knows that modelling won’t transform you. She knows that being as uniquely odd as a polar bear isn’t necessarily a bad thing (even in a rainforest). And that the average person eats a ton of food a year, though her pregnant stepmother is doing her best to beat this.

What Harriet doesn’t know is where she’s going to fit in once the new baby arrives.

With summer plans ruined, modelling in Japan seems the perfect chance to get as far away from home as possible. But nothing can prepare Harriet for the craziness of Tokyo, her competitive model flatmates and her errant grandmother’s ‘chaperoning’. Or seeing gorgeous Nick everywhere she goes.

Because, this time, Harriet knows what a broken heart feels like.

Can geek girl find her place on the other side of the world or is Harriet lost for good?

The Review: Our favourite geek is back! Model Misfit is the sequel to Holly Smale debut YA book Geek Girl and what a fantastic follow up it was!

I loved Geek Girl and I definitely wasn't expecting the sequel Model Misfit to be better than it but it certainty was. Model Misfit had more romance drama in it than the first book. I'm a firm believer that romance always make a book better and with Harriett's relationship problems during this book, it  definitely added to the emotional factor of the story. I was deeply hurt for Harriett throughout most of the story - the Nick drama - so when it happened I felt everything along with Harriett. I was devastated for her. She's just one of them characters you can connect to and it doesn't matter that she's fifteen, I almost feel like she's older than she seems. But anyway, adding this emotional drama into the story for me made me enjoy this book all the more. It wasn't just school drama or parent drama it was another layer to Harriett's story and I really enjoyed every minute of it.

I loved that Harriet stayed true to herself through-out all the crazy events that happen in this story. She's not the perfect model. She makes mistakes but I love that about her. She's completely oblivious to the modelling world and I loved seeing what trouble she'd get herself into. And with the story taking place in Japan there is so much more adventure and so many gorgeous scenes and oh, how I wanted to travel to Japan after. And let's not forget that all my favourite characters were back too so it made the story even better. 

In all, Model Misfit definitely has a little bit of everything for ever reader. And this has definitely been my favourite book so far and I can't wait to see what Picture Perfect has in store.

Thank you to HarperCollins Children's Books for giving me the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review. 

 

{Review} Geek Girl (Geek Girl #1) by Holly Smale

Posted by Donna
Release Date: February 28th, 2013
Finished Date: November 20th, 2015

Publishers: HarperCollins Children's Books
Genre: YA, Contemporary
Source: For Review
Format: Paperback 

Pages: 378
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / Book Depo 

 

Harriet Manners knows a lot of things. 

She knows that a cat has 32 muscles in each ear, a "jiffy" lasts 1/100th of a second, and the average person laughs 15 times per day. What she isn't quite so sure about is why nobody at school seems to like her very much. So when she's spotted by a top model agent, Harriet grabs the chance to reinvent herself. Even if it means stealing her Best Friend's dream, incurring the wrath of her arch enemy Alexa, and repeatedly humiliating herself in front of the impossibly handsome supermodel Nick. Even if it means lying to the people she loves. 

As Harriet veers from one couture disaster to the next with the help of her overly enthusiastic father and her uber-geeky stalker, Toby, she begins to realise that the world of fashion doesn't seem to like her any more than the real world did. 

And as her old life starts to fall apart, the question is: will Harriet be able to transform herself before she ruins everything?

The Review: Geek Girl is a highly popular book in the YA book community so the question I ask myself is why didn't I read it sooner? I have no clue but once I started this book it was one of them reads that was just hard to put down. 

Harriett Manners is such a lovable and relatable character and it was a pleasure reading her story. In Geek Girl we see her try to reinvent herself from her geek girl status. She’s sick of being seen as a geek, so when the opportunity arises for her to be a model, Harriett decides to take it because she hopes she can become someone. But will this really make Harriett happy?

As I said I really loved Harriett as a character. She was quirky and fun and I loved the random facts that she through-out into the story and I actually found myself wanting to hear more of them. I could totally understand why Harriett wanted to be someone different – don’t we all go through that at some stage in our lives? There’s definitely a lot of pressure on teenagers to be better but I’m glad the end message was the right one – BE WHO YOU WANT TO BE! If you’re a geek, then so be it, there’s nothing wrong with it.

I love the relationships in this book! Harriett’s family were so entertaining – especially her father. He’s such a good guy. He had me laughing-out-loud at some of the things he said. Her step-mother was a little harder to handle because I felt she was always so hard on Harriett and her Dad. But when her step-mum was being nice, I liked her. Things are definitely going to get interesting for the three of them now and I’m excited to see what plays out next. Then we have her best friend Nat who I also liked. We do see their friendship go up and down during this book but you could still see great friendship they have.

Now as for a romance in the story, there isn't much. There are two boys who are present in the story and I liked one more than the one, however, I have a feeling as this series progresses things will change. I do really like Nick though. 

In all, Geek Girl is an entertaining YA story that is so easy to read that you'll easily fly through the pages. And I for one can't wait to read more!

Thank you to HarperCollins Children's Books for giving me the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review. 

 

Blog Tour for Geek Girl by Holly Smale; Guest Post

Geek Girl by Holly Smale
Release Date: February 28th, 2013

Publishers: HarperCollins

Format: Paperback

Pages:  378
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / The Book Depo

Harriet Manners knows a lot of things. 

She knows that a cat has 32 muscles in each ear, a "jiffy" lasts 1/100th of a second, and the average person laughs 15 times per day. What she isn't quite so sure about is why nobody at school seems to like her very much. So when she's spotted by a top model agent, Harriet grabs the chance to reinvent herself. Even if it means stealing her Best Friend's dream, incurring the wrath of her arch enemy Alexa, and repeatedly humiliating herself in front of the impossibly handsome supermodel Nick. Even if it means lying to the people she loves. 

As Harriet veers from one couture disaster to the next with the help of her overly enthusiastic father and her uber-geeky stalker, Toby, she begins to realise that the world of fashion doesn't seem to like her any more than the real world did. 

And as her old life starts to fall apart, the question is: will Harriet be able to transform herself before she ruins everything?

Holly Smale’s Top 10 Writing  Tips

1. Be yourself. It doesn’t matter how much you like somebody else’s writing: it has already been written. Your own voice is all you have to bring to the table.

2. Know all the rules for writing, and then you can break them. Dali could paint a swan before he turned them into elephants.

3. Trust your instincts, but understand they may not always be right. Learn when to stick to your guns and when to admit that other people know better. Also: learn that if they’re a professional, they usually do.

4. Believe in what you’re writing...

5. But not too much. The first sign of a really bad writer is usually a belief that they’re an unrecognised genius.

6. Maverick it. Experiment, have fun, take risks, do something different. Nothing great has ever come from somebody obediently ticking boxes or following the crowd, so try something new and see what happens.

7. Story is good, but character is better. A bad story can live with great characters; bad characters will always kill a great story.

8. Try not to be too sensitive. Your “baby” may well end up sliced, diced, cut and strewn about. Smile and remember how much you love it regardless.

9. Put the story first, not your ego. If your focus is on showing how great your writing is and how intelligent you are, you’ve misunderstood what a novel is. Likewise, if all a passage does is tell the reader how talented you are, cut it. Immediately. It does exactly the opposite.

10. Read, read, read, read, but at some stage stop reading. The only thing that’s going to get a book written is actually sitting down and writing it.

Author Bio & Links:

Clumsy, geeky and incredibly shy, Holly Smale spent her teenage years hiding in the changing room toilets at school, scraping abuse off her belongings. When she was unexpectedly spotted by a top London modelling agency at the age of fifteen, nothing changed at all: she spent the following two years falling over on catwalks, going bright red and breaking things she couldn’t afford to replace. 

By the time Holly had graduated from Bristol University with a BA in English Literature and an MA in Shakespeare she had given up modelling and set herself on the path to becoming a writer.

website: http://thewritegirl.co.uk

"Geek Girl by Holly Smale is out on 28th February, published by HarperCollins Children's Books, £6.99 (PB).  Also available in e-book formats".