Monster lovers, it’s officially the best and creepiest Tuesday of the year. It’s Papertoy Monster Day! Last year, there were all sorts of invasions as the papertoy monsters clawed their way into our tortured hearts and our libraries full of the macabre. How are the monsters celebrating this year?

Pharaoh Thoth Amon selects a giant cake as his unsuspecting party snack....er, date.

Scorpion Robot prefers to party in a too-large, seasonally-inappropriate hat.

And Wingy Wingy takes a joy ride on a private jet with her new fiend.

............

……What? Why the intense stares, little monsters? Oh! Presents? Fine.

How about two Valentine’s Day Papertoy Monsters: “Be Mine” Cupid and Monster Mutant Cupid?

Or the Super Bowl Papertoy Monsters, the SuperBowl Ghouls?

Maybe a creepy little bloodsucker, Li’l Vamp?

Or one of three Papertoy Monsters masks?

Want to join in on the Papertoy Monsters conversation? Check us out on twitter (@PapertoyMonster) or Facebook.

Until next year, my fiendish friends, keep on partying like true party monsters.

Pitchapalooza, the annual event that allows anyone with a brilliant book idea to pitch a panel of publishing industry experts, is, in a word, a success. No, not just a success, but a HUGE success.  Not only have Arielle Eckstut and David Henry Sterry, aka The Book Doctors and authors of The Essential Guide to Getting Your Book Published, met some incredible people and heard some incredible stories, they have also helped the authors of a few truly outstanding projects find the right agent for their book.

And now, the very first Pitchapalooza winners have been featured in the New York Times. Ayesha Mattu and Nura Maznavi’s book, Love, InshAllah: The Secret Love Lives of Muslim American Women, is a collection of true stories about American Muslim women’s experiences with dating, love, and sex. An inspired idea and pitch that has become an inspirational anthology, this is a book that Arielle and David are proud to have helped launch.

For further reading and viewing, check out the links below.

New York Times article on Love, InshAllah

New York Times article on Pitchapalooza

Pitchapalooza trailer

Pitchapalooza on NBC

It’s Monday morning—woof. Instead of worrying about the week ahead, watch this video of a boxer puppy meeting some cows! It’s sure to melt your heart (and your anxieties).

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msbSys9Z27I[/youtube]

For more charming stories of unusual animal pairings, pick up a copy of Unlikely Friendships by Jennifer S. Holland.

photo by Flickr user HerryLawford

Patricia Schultz, author of 1000 Places to See Before You Die, continues her whirlwind tour with another guest post:

I love big cities, so I knew good-lookin’ Sydney would win me over. Established in 1788 as a British outpost, today it’s a beautiful and vibrant modern city that is the NYC and London of Australia. An international center for commerce, art, fashion, culture and tourism, it is understandably rated one of the most liveable cities in the world–in great part due to the 4 million spirited and fun-loving Sydneysiders who call it home. The iconic Opera House always has a world-class performance going on, or you can follow in Oprah’s footsteps and sign up for the Bridge Climb up and over the “coathanger” (it celebrated its 75th birthday in 2007) for breathtaking views of the stunning harbor, the city’s playground. Jump on one of the countless ferries that ply its waters and head out to Manly for a beachfront stroll to watch the surfers; make sure to stop for a bite at Hugo’s at the wharf before heading back.

Tips:

• The Bridge Climb is especially magical at twilight.
• The Bridge Climb is expensive, but you can get a glimpse of the excitement merely by walking across the pedestrian walkway for free!
• With great views of the Opera House and harbor, the nearby newly renovated Park Hyatt is the city’s #1 hotel; it’s also a fun spot to linger for a cappuccino or a late afternoon cocktail.

For more recommendations from Patricia Schultz, check out 1000 Places to See Before You Die and 1000places.com!

For cartoonists, getting published in The New Yorker is quite an achievement, but even the tried-and-true among them aren’t immune to rejection.  They loved you last week, but this week you’re “too lowbrow”?  It stings.  Matthew Diffee, who managed to sneak into The New Yorker between rejections, compiles the cast-aside submissions of well-known cartoonists in The Best of the Rejection Collection: 293 Cartoons that Were Too Dumb, Too Dark, or Too Naughty for The New Yorker.  Join him and several other rejectees as they celebrate the book and the agony of defeat on Thursday, January 12th at Manhattan’s Strand Books.

In this digital age, we book lovers know there’s nothing quite like a physical book. The way it smells, its weight in your hand, the feel of turning a page, its ability to come alive at night…?

Toronto’s Type Books has made a charming stop-motion video of a world where books wake up after dark. The video reminds us that books have personalities — some sweet, some mischievous. And you won’t know until you scoop one up and take it home.

I caught a glimpse of Algonquin’s Exley. Can you spot any of your favorites?

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKVcQnyEIT8[/youtube]

photo by Flickr user Ian @ ThePaperboy.com

When we last left 1000 Places to See Before You Die author Patricia Schultz, she was offering tips on traveling to Rio de Janeiro. Now she joins us again for a sojourn to PNG.

Simply put, Papua New Guinea is unreal. Or surreal. Unlike anything I have ever experienced anywhere on the planet. For a country that is wild, untamed, and locked in the Stone Age (albeit a Stone Age where the appearance of a cell phone is not unusual ), its people are unexpectedly warm, welcoming and curious. We traveled there in August 2011 for the 50th anniversary of the Mt. Hagen Sing Sing Festival, but the country is a remarkable destination at any time of year. More than a third of the country’s 5 million people live in dense, rugged rainforest in remote highland villages, and hundreds of tribes travel for days to the festival where they fiercely compete in dance, song, and costume. It’s a heady display of colors and sound proudly put on for the locals and a modest number of international tourists who–if they’re like us–felt as if they had died and gone to National Geographic heaven.
Tips:

• More than 800 languages are spoken throughout the country, but it’s easy to learn a few words of the commonly spoken Pidgin (“Happy noon,” for example. means good afternoon).
• Even if you are not an avid birder, bring your binoculars: Some of the 42s pecies of the Bird of Paradise that live in PNG are found nowhere else.
• You will rarely see an outstretched hand asking for money. You may be tempted to bring practical gifts to the villages (such as the pencils and pens often welcomed elsewhere), but simply interacting and talking with the villagers is most recommended by the local tour guides. Villagers are shy but curious and love, love, love to have their photo taken (and would never dream of asking for remuneration. Something rare indeed!).

For more recommendations from Patricia Schultz, check out 1000 Places to See Before You Die and 1000places.com!

Full disclosure: I didn’t think a Hat calendar would be all that great.

I was so, so, so wrong.

Below are some behind the scenes snaps from our very first 365 Hats Picture-a-Day Calendar photo shoot. Was it a lot of work? Yes. Was it insanely glamorous and high fashion? Double yes. Did it make me wish we lived in an age where hats were an everyday kind of thing? Uh…YEAH. I’m hoping this calendar turns the fashion tide in my favor because today I saw a few chapeaus that are crying to be worn. By me. At work. Every day.

It all starts with a bulletin board and a vision.

Each hat required different hair and make-up. It was amazing to see how something as simple as a change of lip color could transform an entire look.  Below, Gabriella (left) gets a marcel wave while Susie gets prepped for another hat.

We spent a lot of time pairing the hats with the right model: Not everyone can rock a vintage sequined coolie. Jessica (below) managed it pretty much better than anyone. Actually, she looked so amazing in it, she kind of ruined it for those of us who thought they’d found their new “going out” look.

And here’s Natalia in a showstopper of a hat.  Those are feathers. REAL feathers. (Superstar stylists Prissy, left, and Amy work their  magic.)

I know 2012 is only 10 days old, but unless Prince Harry surprises me with tickets to the Oscars, this was by far the most glamorous day of my year.

And if I DO go to the Oscars with Prince Harry, be sure to look for me: I’ll be the one in the sequined coolie.

photo by Flickr user priscillajp

This guest post comes from Patricia Schultz, author of 1000 Places to See Before You Die.

Rio–the very name of the city makes me smile! Aptly named “Cidade Maravilhosa,” the exhilarating Marvelous City is one of the world’s most beautifully situated. From atop Corcovado, under the outstretched arms of the 120-foot-tall Christ the Redeemer statue (who wouldn’t embrace this view?), you can see much of the city’s almost uninterrupted 45-mile strip of white-sand beach (most popular are Ipanema, Copacabana, and Leblon). Cariocas (the residents of Rio) have raised life to a seductive art form–always with a score of samba playing in the background. Don’t even think about coming during hedonistic Carnaval season in February or March if you don’t relish the idea of getting swept up by the world’s largest street party. Ditto for New Year’s Eve, when millions of barefoot revelers dressed in white dance to live samba bands on Copacabana beach under a panoply of fireworks.

Tips:

• The two-stage aerial cable to Pão de Açúcar (Sugar Loaf) is open late: go at dusk and watch the lights flicker on across the waterfront city and see the Christ statue illuminated across the bay.
• Take the old-fashioned tram up to the regentrified, hill-top neighborhood of Santa Teresa for a simple meal in a trendy restaurant, then linger in small music venues. Or head to the historic, charmingly shabby neighborhood of Lapa in central Rio, but remember, it doesn’t really get going until after midnight.
• The grand Copacabana Palace was inspired by the old waterfront hotels of the French Riviera and today hosts Carnaval’s most exclusive ball. Come any day for people watching over a potent but refreshing caipirinha, the national drink.

For more tips from a consummate world traveler, check out 1000 Places to See Before You Die and 1000places.com!

Were you one of the millions out there who were lucky enough to get an e-reader this holiday season?  Or maybe you’ve resolved that 2012 is the year you finally figure out what for Twitter, Facebook, and Skype are all about.  Is This Thing On? A Computer Handbook for Late Bloomers, Technophobes, and the Kicking & Screaming is a guidebook for all things tech, designed for people who might be more comfortable dialing on a rotary phone rather than the iPhone’s touch screen.  And now it’s been revised to include not just computers, e-mail, and web surfing, but the next phase of gadgets: Kindles, Nooks, iPads, smartphones, not to mention the wide world of social networking.  Want to get started?  Follow author Abby Stokes on Twitter, and visit her website here.