Are you seeing The Hunger Games this weekend?

Image courtesy Wizarding Life

The Hunger Games comes out this week in the US and around the world, and the books have already been a game changer in the world of YA writing and publishing.

At Ascendio, Hunger Games fans can attend a meet-up – and we may be able to show the film as well – and there’s going to be an amazing panel as part of our Quill Track (included with all registrations):

 Katniss, Bella, and Hermione: Finding the Balance Between Asskicking Prowess and Emotional Realism in the Girls of YA Fiction

Panelists: Veronica Roth, Lindsay Ribar, Beth Revis, Aimee Carter, Michelle Hodkin, Mark Oshiro
Summary: You’ve got Katniss, the champion fighter whose hard life has left her with little room for romantic emotions; and you’ve got Bella, who lives for love but trips over her own shadow and needs supernatural boys to save her.  With literary role models like Hermione in the mix – Hermione, known for both her sensitivity and her asskicking skills – why are there still so many high-profile heroines who tend toward one extreme or the other?  This panel will discuss the benefits and drawbacks of extreme portrayals of these various female protagonists, and what kind of heroines we want next from the YA market.