Marketing Monday: A Visit from Lola Love!

I am all for go-for-it guides for girls (and not just because of the alliteration). I really do think that if you dream big and believe in yourself, you can create a fabulous life. Okay, Oprah moment over. But I do have a guest today, Lisa Clark, the author of two newly released books, Viva La Diva and It's a Girl Thing, which are all about positivity and girl empowerment. That's her icon at left (adorable, no?) and you can find out more about her books below (don't blame her for odd spellings--she's a Brit!):Tell us a bit about Lola Love and her sassy pink ladies. They're kooky girls, they're fabulous girls, they're girls you would totally want to have round for a soiree! Lola: she's a writer girl, with pink hair and a pink 'tude to match. Bella: a platinum blonde guitar girl who is totally fearless. Sadie: a real fun-time frankie who loves craftin' and playin' the drums. Angel: a fashionista of the highest caliber, she goes to a super-swank boarding school and has an afro as big as a house! What inspired you to create these characters and the Lola Love books? I'm agony aunt for Mizz magazine (a UK mag for teen girls), and I was getting letters from girls about how their role models were Paris and Lindsey, how they hated what they saw when they looked in the mirror and how they weren't enough. That made me pretty sad, so I looked around for books I could recommend and sshh, don't tell anyone, but they were a li'l bit dull and fact-y, so I decided to create a series of go-for-it guides, in a magazine style, with characters that girls would dig and want to know more about, so I did! It's a Girl Thing has lots of upbeat, practical advice for positivity. Was there ever a time in your life when that advice helped you out? The book is filled to the brim with everything you'll ever need to help deal with being a teen girl in the world, and I really wish I knew the power of pink thinking when I was a teen girl, because my teen years were sucky x 100 - if only I'd known that Girlsville can be a total pink-party poppin time of fun and that it's not just all about rollercoaster emotions, icky periods and hair growing in all kinds of crazy places! In Viva La Diva!, Lola's back to encourage girls to dream big. What's some advice you can share from the book? She does! Lola's a big, big dreamer and nothing is impossible in Lola's world, that's why I love hanging with her! I think my favourite advice from the book would be that you if you have a dream, you've got to take action to make it happen - so, if you wanna be a pop star, then go get singing lessons and practice, practice, practice, if you want to be a vet - find out what qualifications you're going to need and get passionate about learning, if you want to be a mag editor, start by making your own zine - don't wait for stardom to come find you, make your life a fabulous adventure right now! Your lovely blog is enormously positive and fun! Why is a happy spirit is so important for girls? Because I know that being a teen girl can be super-tough, but it can also be a lot of fun, if you flick your mood switch to pink and positive! When you do, you realise that the girls in magazines are air-brushed to within an inch of their lives and don't actually look like that in real life, that being YOU-nique with quirks and kooky traits is a positively fabulous thing to be and that life really is what you make it...which is why mine is pink and glitter-filled, because that's what I've decided it will be! And now, the books: How could you not love Lisa (and these cute covers)? She's even blogging for fredflare.com now, which is very cool. I'm way into Lola's message. So, if you care to share: What's your dream, and how are you making it happen?