born: March 26, 1955 in long beach, ca. I was adopted at birth by an older couple. Albert C. Wagner was 72 years old at the time; Valerie was 42 years old. To put it in perspective, he was born in 1883 and she was born in 1912.
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Grew up: In Palm Springs, CA, in a neighborhood with movie stars and entertainment icons, including Elvis Presley, Bob Hope, Kirk Douglas and Arnold Palmer. we were, however, the “rich poor”. My father made his money in the steel industry in World War II. I remember the day that he really won the million from him. As a poor immigrant kid who was definitely a self-made man with a sixth grade education, he couldn’t have been more proud.
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I learned: from my father the value of hard work and honesty. From my mother, I learned a love of language and reading. she inhaled literature and read to me every day since she was a baby until I finally told her to stop. she also made me read chapter books before kindergarten.
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found: my birth mother, toni chandler, in the year 2000. an interesting side note is that she has written poetry all her life. I have a half sister, Fran, who I hooked up with a few years ago. she lives with my mom in michigan, and we keep in regular contact. i tried to contact my biological father when my son, jason, was born. he refused to acknowledge me or even that he had had a relationship with toni. however, together they were roller skating champions in high school. (if you’re wondering, I’m clumsy on skates).
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I moved: to the Santa Ynez Valley, near Santa Barbara, my summer of 8th grade. high school is relatively small and my parents thought it would be a healthier environment. The valley is a “horse” place and in fact I owned horses of my own until I moved to the Tahoe area in 1985. I showed, jumped, rode gymkhana and barrel racing.
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at school: I was a straight student for most of school. With an excellent private school education through the eighth grade, it was fairly easy to keep those grades through the end of high school, despite a certain renegade attitude (70s rebel and all!). I was the type who could read a chapter of a book and pass a test, even without the necessary class discussion for some.
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I started writing: since I knew how to put words on paper. I’ve always been writing something (especially poetry) ever since, though I didn’t start writing for money until around 1992.
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published: my first poem, a brilliant haiku (I’m pretty sure there were trees and spring in it), when I was nine. My English teachers always encouraged me to write, and I won almost every creative writing contest I entered throughout high school.
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graduated: santa ynez valley union high school in 1973. studied journalism in college (crafton hills college and ucsb), but dropped out to marry and raise a family.
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children: I had my first child, Jason, when I was only 21 years old. He was born in 1976. Crystal followed him two years later.
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divorced: when crystal was still a baby in diapers. my ex moved to albuquerque. I will not reveal names. you should be allowed a sense of privacy.
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rebound relationship: I met the father of my daughter kelly on the rebound. he was very much a not-nice man. the relationship was physically abusive and lasted much longer than it should have. When I finally found the courage to make an escape, he kidnapped Kelly against court orders and hid her for nearly three years. finally, her own grandmother helped us get it back. that’s a long story, too long to tell here. you can find a fictional version in the you i never knew.
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I had my own business: During this time, I was the owner of Valley Video, a video store before video became big. sold out in 1984.
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“forever love”: found me during this time. i met john hopkins and we moved to the tahoe area in 1985. wanting to make sure everything would work out, i insisted that we wait until october 19, 1991 to get married. we have survived good, bad, amazing and horrible things and come out stronger. he is still, and always, my best friend.
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for the last time: we moved to northern nevada, in a rural valley between reno and carson city, in 1990. we thought the move might be temporary, but we just love it here. If you search my online photo albums, you’ll find examples of why. It’s a different kind of beauty than Washington green, but the palette here (gold, auburn, sage, and deep Sierra blue) is unmatched.
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during this time: I decided to try writing for a living. I started working as a freelance in newspaper and magazine articles. From there I moved on to children’s nonfiction, publishing twenty titles before selling my first novel. I was always trying different things: picture books, first chapter books, etc., and I wrote a whole adult novel that didn’t sell at the time. [I have resurrected him; we’ll see what happens with that in the future.] I also taught creativity part-time as an artist-in-residence; I owned my own little publishing house, which made a children’s newspaper; and was an instructor at the children’s literature institute. And I did all of those things simultaneously, looking for where I belonged as a writer.
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the true story: behind crank took place between the years 1995 and 1971. “hunter”, also known as orion, was born in 1996. we took guardianship of him when he was just a baby and adopted him when he was not yet four years old . years. he is the light of our life (as well as the greatest pain!) and a true gift. he knows the whole story, of course, but he considers us his parents and we consider him our son.
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we lived: in the same modest house until last year. instead of moving (we love our 1.25 acres on a hill overlooking washoe lake to the sierra), we added and remodeled the old part of the house. everything they say about remodels/additions is true. the process had dust and some small delays. but it was worth it.
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Family Review: In 2013 we took guardianship of three grandchildren, who were three, four, and nine years old at the time. they remain in our care full time.
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You are reading: What order to read ellen hopkins books
My parents were Republicans (after all, he was a businessman). but I knew from the moment I mocked the election in seventh grade that he was a born democrat. bobby kennedy was my hero. His death, along with MLK’s death and the conflict in Vietnam, shaped my politics.
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and on that subject, i am an active member of the democrat party and served as chairman of the nevada caucus in 2008. what an amazing experience! I am also a progressive activist and outspoken feminist.
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I’m a certified Lutheran and when I’m home, I go to church regularly and even sing [a mediocre contralto] in the choir. however, over the years my beliefs have morphed into a combination of Christian beliefs and spirituality. I believe that the energy that makes “us” never dies and is more than just random electrical impulses in a piece of gray matter.
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One of the things I like most about being at home is gardening. I make vegetables and have created a sweet little oasis in the desert here, with ponds and waterfalls and beautiful beds of perennials.
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I love to cook and often bake homemade bread, cinnamon rolls, etc. I also know how to can fruits and vegetables. however, I often don’t have time to do that anymore.
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Speaking of time, I travel about 100 days a year, visiting schools and libraries, book signings and festivals, writers’ conferences and other events. Check out my events page to see if I can be near you.
ellen hopkins is a poet, freelance writer, and award-winning author of twenty bestselling nonfiction titles, three adult novels, and thirteen verse novels. she has published hundreds of articles on topics ranging from aviation to child abuse to viticulture. Ellen Ella is a regular speaker at schools, book festivals, and writers’ conferences in the United States and now around the world.
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See Also: 12 Data Analytics Books for Beginners: A 2022 Reading List | Coursera
employment:
2002-2003 instructor, children’s literature institute; interim artistic director, bac stage kids; freelance writer; Author; poet
2000-2002 editor, northern nevada family magazine, freelancer, author, poet
1996-1998 novelist, screenwriter, freelance writer and poet
1992-1996 reporter and editor for the tahoe truckee reader
1986-1992 freelance journalist, short story writer and poet
1980-1985 owner, valley video
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education:
santa ynez valley union high school (graduated 1973)
crafton hills college, ucsb
children’s literature institute
writing groups:
1995-1997 lone mountain wncc writers group
group of dissident writers from 1997-1999
1998-present children’s book writers and illustrators society; He served as a regional advisor for the Nevada chapter for ten years and is currently on the board of advisors.
1999-2005 anonymous writers; served on the board, 2005
2001-2002 Chairman of the Board, New Purple Sage Writers
2002-present poets of ash canyon
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awards:
2001 scbwi charlotte’s web award for outstanding contributions to children’s literature by a new author.
2001 professional artist award from the sierra arts foundation.
professional artist award from the sierra arts foundation 2004.
quills award nominee 2005 (crank)
2005 book sense top 10 (crank)
2005 nypl recommended for teens (crank)
2005 psla top ten for teens (crank)
2005 charlotte award (crank)
2005 Anger Young Adult Choices Award (Crank)
2006 kentucky bluegrass award (crank)
ssli 2006 honor book award (crank)
nevada writers hall of fame silver pen award 2006
2006 national book award nominee (burnt)
gateway readers award winner 2006-2007 (crank)
nominated for best young adult book of 2007 (burnt)
2006-2007 taysha reading (burnt)
2008 ala best books for young adults (impulse)
2008 wing top ten for young adults (glass)
georgia peach award 2008 (impulse)
kentucky bluegrass award 2008 (impulse)
2008 kirkus best book for teens (identical)
2008 ala quick picks for reluctant readers (identical)
2009 yalsa top ten for teens (identical)
2009 ala quick picks for reluctant readers (identical)
2009 abe award (crank)
2009 soaring eagle award (crank)
green mountain book award 2009 (crank)
2010 nevada governor arts award
2011 tayshas reading (fallout)
2013 joan f. kaywell award
See Also: 100 Magnificent Childrens Books of 2011
2014 listen audiobook narrator of the year (rumble)
2014 hear childrens/ya editor’s choice (rumble)
nevada writers hall of fame 2015
best selection of book reviews of 2017 (the you I’ve never met)
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Q: In what order do I read your books?
a: glass is the continuation of crank, so it comes after. the others are totally different stories and can be read in any order. if you’re interested, I wrote them in this order: crank, burn, boost, glass, identical, tricks.
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q: what happened at the end of burn? will there be a sequel?
a: I left the burn ending ambiguous on purpose, so readers could decide which way pattyn would go. but in my mind, suicide was not an option. revenge was. I never planned a sequel, but I have a story in the back of my mind that could become a sequel. so maybe.
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q: how about a boost sequel? tricks?
a: The funny thing is that I never planned a sequel to any of my books (not even wackos!). but I’ve had a lot of requests for sequels, and they’re always a possibility. but see information on perfect below.
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p: ok so what happened to cody at the end of the tricks?
a: cody is still deciding, as much as he can in his condition, whether to come back or not. but I don’t think she would leave her mother alone, right?
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Q: how is kristina? do you still talk to her?
r: kristina is alive. she mostly stays clean, although she has relapsed. she struggles daily to make ends meet and take care of the two [youngest] of her five children, which she had after leaving prison. that’s prison, after jail time in glass. she has some brain damage and health problems due to using it. we do talk, although she lives 500 miles from me, so we’re not close. my hope for her is that she finds a way to get back to her art.
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p: what does she think about you writing books about her life?
a: first of all, the books are not just about his life. they are about my life and the lives of our family members. the truth is that I started crankshaft as a kind of personal journey, to try to understand what had just happened to six years of my life… and what had happened to my beautiful daughter, not so beautiful anymore. I didn’t start it looking for a publication, much less hoping that the book would become the phenomenon that it is. but the inner story is universal. Addiction, of one kind or another, affects almost everyone. while writing, I understood the importance of history. Now that it’s clean, my daughter also understands its importance.
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q: what’s “hunter” like? Do you know the facts about his life?
a: “hunter”, also known as orion, is a beautiful and bright young man. yes, he knows the facts about his life. For more information, check out my bio page here.
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q: will you ever turn your books into movies?
a: movies don’t depend on me. a film company has to be interested. That said, there is some interest, so it’s always possible!
You are reading: What order to read ellen hopkins books
p: are you writing something now?
a: I’m currently writing perfect, about the drive for perfection no matter what. It’s a companion novel to the impulse, so it happens at the same time, only with Conner’s twin sister, Cara, as one of the main characters. You’ll see what happens with Tony and Vanessa, and how Conner’s family reacts to “the perfect paper plane.” When I finish that book, I’m under contract for more, so the answer is: I’m always writing something and I never plan to stop. writing is my heart.
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q: where do you get the inspiration for your stories? are they all based on real life experiences?
a: kristina’s books are based on my family’s real life experiences. the others are totally fictional, although there are threads of real people/situations in them. inspiration comes from many places. friends. family. in the news. and yes, sometimes from the readers.
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q: will you write my story?
a: Again, readers’ stories often serve as inspiration for characters or story lines in my books. but I don’t want to write someone else’s story for them. someday, they might want to write it themselves. and it would limit my ability to let my characters talk to me and tell me their own stories.
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q: I want to write my own books. How do I start? how do i post?
a: Start here on the page for writers. I do not recommend self-publishing. if a publisher wants money from you, that’s self-publishing. Why don’t you try getting paid to write? And remember writing is a journey. It may take years to get published, but that’s okay. everything you write is a learning experience. and often the perspective gained along the way makes your story more profound.
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mini-frequently asked questions:
favorite color: red!
biggest vice: red wine
pets: two German shepherds, a cat, fish inside and out
favorite music: rock, grunge, some country, big band
favorite band: pink floyd
music when I type: none
favorite tv show: american idol
favorite food: french fries (but I avoid them, or else…!!)
p.o. box 2205 • city of carson nv 89702
ellenhopkins@charter.net
See Also: Full List: Kristin Hannah&039s Best Books Ranked ( PDF) 2022