Shhhhh….

….we are sleeping.

I know the blog has been quite quiet the last couple weeks. That doesn’t mean I love my wonderful readers any less; I adore each one of you. :)

Someday soon I will explain why it has been so darn boring over in my corner of the interwebs. Until then: don’t miss me too much. I promise I will be back in full force soon.

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Two For Tuesday: contests galore

Oi! It’s Tuesday night and I almost forgot to put up my blog post. Oops. I suppose I should fix that.

For today’s two for Tuesday, I have an announcement about 2 pretty amazing contests. Either would be awesome to win, so go sign up!

1. Kick-off contest

One lucky winner will win a dozen (that’s right – 12!) YA books. There are hardcovers and ARCs, spanning all genres. The contest ends Friday, so be sure to enter right away.

2. LINGER and MATCHED ARC giveaway

Two of the most anticipated YA books of the year – how exciting?! Linger, of course, is the sequel to Shiver (which is just fabulous – read it if you haven’t). Matched is the big publisher debut from Ally Condie, who has published many titles with smaller publishers. Matched has been drawing quite a lot of attention since Penguin dropped 7 figures on it at auction. People are calling it “the dystopic Twilight“.

This contest ends June 16th, so hurry your way over to sign up.

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Road Trip Wednesday…er, Thursday

Okay, so I didn’t post yesterday. But YA Highway’s Road Trip Wednesday topic for this week is a really good one, so I am going to go ahead and post a response a day late.

How do you know when a project will work out, and when it won’t?

Have you ever been in love? I have, but if you were to ask me what love feels like, I wouldn’t be able to express that to you. One would think that, as a writer, I would be well equipped to paint a word picture of love. And I can to a certain extent. My writing can lead a reader to believe that two characters are in love; on a good day, my writing may even stir up some emotions in a reader.

But I still can’t tell you what love feels like. Yet I know I love my husband. Weird how that works, isn’t it?

For me, writing is much the same way. When I get a shiny new idea and start toying with it, I usually know pretty quickly (within a few thousand words) whether it is an idea I will pursue or not. There is no solid way for me to know why an idea is or isn’t right, but I can always just tell.

Now, this is not to say that if a project gets rough,  I just abandon it. If that were the case, I would never finish anything. Every project gets tough at one time or another, but deep down I can still feel that it is one worth writing, so I push through.

Alright…how was that for a non-answer?

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Two For Tuesday: Follow-up

1. Thank you!

Thank you all for participating in Beach Scene Blogfest. I am having such a fun time reading over the entries. I haven’t gotten to everyone yet, as the last few days have been unexpectedly hectic, but I expect to finish reading entries tonight or tomorrow.

2. Prize!!

I decided sometime last week what the participation prize will be. You ready?

…drumroll…

Full manuscript critique!!

The crit will cover both a general overview of characters, plot, pacing, etc. and an more specific line edit.

If I draw your name and you don’t have a manuscript ready for critique, or you just don’t want to send that baby over, just let me know – we can work out an alternative prize. I am easy like that. ;)

Okay, drawing a name now…

- – - – - – - – - – - – - – -

And our winner is:

Abby Stevens!!!

The drawing was totally random, but I am very excited Abby won because:

1) Abby has been reading and commenting on my blog for a while now. I like when people I know (in the sense that we have actually conversed online before) win things.

2) I won Abby’s very first blog contest. This is kinda fun turnaround.

3) When I first suggested maybe making a manuscript critique a prize, Abby commented that she thought it was a great idea. :)

So, Abby: get in touch and we will figure things out!

- – - – - – - – - – - – - – -

And thus concludes another episode of Two For Tuesday. Tune in next time: same bad time, same bad channel.

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Beachy Funness

So funny story: I set the beach scene blogfest thinking I would certainly have a nice beach scene by now. After all, my current project takes place at a lake resort with a beach. A beach scene is inevitable.

But…so far there is no beachiness in So97. So I sat down this morning and took about 15 minutes to pound out a scene specifically for this. It uses the characters from So97 and at some point might make it into the actual manuscript (I am sure some seriously edited variation of it will), but for now it is just a free-standing scene.

Enjoy!

“We’re almost there.” Weston looked over his shoulder at me, his grin like a little kid’s. I had never seen him like this before; normally he was all business and propriety.

I stepped over another log – probably the 5th in as many minutes – and checked my watch: 11:15. “Um, where is there exactly? We have a ride in half an hour and we still need to saddle up.”

Weston laughed. Really? Mister We-have-to-make-this-place-more-professional laughed at me wanting to be on time? I will never understand some people. He hopped onto another log, nestled between two bushes, and turned to face me.

“Relax, Sam. The Worthingtons cancelled. We are free for the afternoon. Thus,” he held his hand out to me, “a picnic. I found this little place when I was surveying the grounds last week and thought it would be perfect.”

I took his hand and followed him over the log. Past the bushes, it was like entering a different world; in one stride, we put the forest behind us.

The sun glinted off the water, making each ripple glitter. The beach itself was only about twenty feet wide and completely surrounded by bushes, but the sand was pure and golden, like it had been untouched. I looked around, but from the beach I see no boats, no cabins, nobody. It’s like we’re completely alone in the world.

My gaze followed Weston as he crossed the beach and sat on a sun-bleached log. Wait. I recognized that log. I looked around again, and it slowly came back to me.

“Dead-Fish Beach.”

“What?” I looked at Weston, who was looking at me like I was crazy.

“Dead-Fish Beach,” I repeated, more loudly. “When we were little, we would all have competitions to see who could find the most fresh-water clams. One year, Rory and I sneaked off into the woods and found this place. We totally won – there were so many clams out there.”

Weston looked a little crestfallen. Was he trying to show me something new here? I realized then that it must be hard for him trying to fit in with a group of people who practically grew up here. It probably didn’t help that Rory and Karissa treated him like a total outsider. And, okay, so did I.

He cleared his throat. “So, um, why Dead-Fish Beach?” His smile looked forced. Did it really upset him that I had been here before?

“When we first found this place, there was a dead fish on it.”

“Creative.”

“Whatever. We were eight.”

He laughed, and suddenly he was back to normal. Maybe I had been imagining that he was upset. We sat together on the log and ate the lunch he brought – egg-salad sandwiches, chips, watermelon, and (I couldn’t help but notice) two fruit roll-ups for me.

When we finished, Weston gestured toward the water. “I’ve decided we can’t go back until you find me ten clams.”

“What?” He couldn’t be serious.

“Hey, you are the one who was bragging about how many clams are out there. Prove it.” His smile held a hint of a challenge.

“Okay, fine.” I kicked my shoes off and rolled my pant legs up to my knees. I loved wading in the water; if we didn’t have to work, this was a pretty good way to spend my time.

Seven clams later, the wind picked up. My hair blew around my face – why did I grow it long, again? – and stuck to my lip gloss. Seriously, I am talking half a head of hair stuck to my mouth here. And my hands totally covered with mud. After a few attempts of brushing the hair away with my shoulders, I admitted defeat and turned to Weston.

“A little help here?”

He was already taking his shoes off.

He waded out to me, and stood a little closer than necessary. Not that I minded. He swept my hair out of my face, but didn’t take his hand back. He locked eyes with me, that look of hunger I am so familiar with on his face, as he cupped my neck in his hand. His warmth radiated around me, and the old tingling sensation began in the pit of my stomach. I forgot how much I loved that feeling.

I took a step closer to him, letting our bodies touch just barely. The tingling left my stomach and traveled through my whole body; my skin buzzed with goose-bumps. Did he feel it too?

Weston lowered his head to mine. We stood there, forehead-to-forehead, for almost longer than I could stand. Each breath he took caressed my skin, and my body screamed for him. I lifted my head to finally take the kiss I needed so badly.

Our lips brushed slightly, and then it was over. Weston’s hand was no longer on my neck, I couldn’t feel him near me at all. I opened my eyes to see him backing away from me.

“Rory,” is all he said. He was stopping because of Rory? Sure, maybe there was something between Rory and I, but we definitely weren’t together. I was free to kiss anyone I wanted. I opened my mouth to tell West this – to tell him that I wanted to kiss him, but he motioned with his head to a spot behind me.

I turned around to see Rory coming around the bend in a canoe.

Now go read everyone else’s scenes! :) I am going to work on editing this beast.

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Only 2 days!

That’s right–only two more days until:

That gives you a couple days to whip your beachiest beach scene into shape before Saturday! So far we only have 15 people signed up to play along, and I know a lot of people think a blogfest with only 15 entries is an unsuccessful blogfest. But you know what? I always preferred small gatherings to big parties, so I think 15 is perfectly fine. And fun!

Here’s the list so far. Feel free to add your name if you were on the fence before and have decided to join in on the festivities. I think I have figured out what the fabulous prize(s) will be, so be excited. :)

I am excited to read all your fabulous entries on Saturday!

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Road Trip Wednesday: The Eternal Ones

It’s the beginning of another month, which means YA Highway wants to know:

What’s the best book you read in May?

I actually only read a few books last month, so I don’t have as many to sift through as I did last time they asked this question. I read one book for YA book club, beta-read one, reread one, and read one ARC copy.

One really, really sticks out in my mind:

Haven Moore can’t control her visions of a past with a boy called Ethan, and a life in New York that ended in fiery tragedy. In our present, she designs beautiful dresses for her classmates with her best friend Beau. Dressmaking keeps her sane, since she lives with her widowed and heartbroken mother in her tyrannical grandmother’s house in Snope City, a tiny town in Tennessee. Then an impossible group of coincidences conspire to force her to flee to New York, to discover who she is, and who she was.

In New York, Haven meets Iain Morrow and is swept into an epic love affair that feels both deeply fated and terribly dangerous. Iain is suspected of murdering a rock star and Haven wonders, could he have murdered her in a past life? She visits the Ouroboros Society and discovers a murky world of reincarnation that stretches across millennia. Haven must discover the secrets hidden in her past lives, and loves¸ before all is lost and the cycle begins again.

What an intriguing concept! I got this book as part of a Traveling ARC Tour, and I am so thrilled that I got to read it early.

When I first started this book, I thought I wasn’t going to like it much, despite the premise. It opens with Haven looking in the mirror, describing her appearance, which instantly turned me off. I mean, not only is that an overdone thing, it just seems like lazy writing.

But…I kept reading. And by the second or third page I learned that there is a very specific reason why Haven is using the old mirror trick – that person she is looking at in the mirror is not the same person she sees in the mirror every day, but rather the one she sees only in her visions and dreams. Suddenly the mirror thing didn’t bother me so much. :)

As Haven’s visions come more frequently, she becomes more and more sure she is seeing memories of a past life. At the same time, her grandmother–and much of her small, bible-thumping Tennessee town–becomes more sure she has been possessed by a demon.

I won’t say much more about the plot, but I will tell you I loved it. While it is a love story, it didn’t cross into that realm where the romance is all that matters. In fact, most of the time I was way more caught up in the action than I was in the love story. Because there is great action, and great pacing to move the reader along through the action. I kept thinking I had the twists and turns figured out, but it turns out I am just not that clever. The Eternal Ones kept me guessing.

With all my raving about the plot, it might be hard for you to believe that it wasn’t my favorite part about The Eternal Ones. What was my favorite part, you ask? The characters! Kirsten Miller did such a great job on her characters. A lot of times when I read a book (especially a YA book), I notice that the main character and the love interest and maybe a secondary character or two are nicely fleshed-out, while the rest of the characters are really one-dimensional and flat. Pretty much they are just a bunch of cardboard cutouts standing in the background of what the main characters are doing.

This is SO not the case with The Eternal Ones. I love the attention Kirsten Miller gave to her characters–even ones we don’t see much in the book. Sure, there were things about Haven that irritated me (really, girl! Do you believe everything anyone tells you?!), but that doesn’t make her any less a real character. Probably I was so irritated by some of her actions because I know people like that–she was real enough to annoy me. It’s like Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix–sure, Harry is a bratty little hormonal teenager in that book….but what 15-year-old boy isn’t?

Wow. I just compared The Eternal Ones to Harry Potter. It must really be good!

The Eternal Ones will be released in August by Razorbill. I highly recommend it. To read a excerpt now (how fun!) check out TheEternalOnes.com.

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Two For Tuesday: or not…

Okay, so I guess it is not an official Two For Tuesday since these things are in no way related, but whatever. It’s my blog so I get to make the rules! :)

1. Bleck.

I have been sick for over a week now. I am on the uphill now, but last week was miserable. Thus the bloggy silence. Sorry, buddies. I didn’t mean to give you withdrawal pain (you know who you are). I am really over this whole being sick thing. If y’all could convince this illness to let me be already, that would be great.

2. No fair!

So, in case you haven’t heard, I am really freakin’ excited for Sisters Red. It releases June 7th. I thought about preordering it on Amazon.com or someplace but then thought to myself, naw…I will support my local shop and get it there. Except now people have had their Amazon preordered copies for weeks now. Also, I have friends all over the country who have spotted it on store shelves already and nabbed copies. My local shop I wanted to support? Still doesn’t have it on the shelves. Sure, they are getting copies (I definitely asked a LONG time ago), but I want mine now!

*sigh* This was a kinda bleak post, wasn’t it? Sorry friends. I will chipper up in time for my next post.

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Holy Awesome Giveaway, Batman!

Today is Wednesday. Normally on Wednesday, I participate in Road Trip Wednesday with the lovely bloggers at YA Highway, but there is no RTW this week.

Why?

Because…to celebrate their first bloggy birthday, they are having an EPIC giveaway.

So ignore my blog, and head over to YA Highway and enter their contest!

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Compassion

I don’t talk about church stuff on my blog much, but I think this story is just too great not to share.

Bubba had to catch a plane yesterday at the same time our church service starts, so we went to an earlier one yesterday. One of the speakers (our church has members of the congregation give talks on Sundays, rather than having a paid preacher) is a judge. He spoke about serving the poor and needy. After he sat down, instead of ending the meeting like we expected, the man presiding over the meeting took a few minutes to share something with us.

He wanted us to know that this judge was not teaching us a principle that he doesn’t practice; he shared this with us:

A couple years ago, a woman appeared in court before this judge. She was charged with a case of animal at large, a minor charge, but nonetheless one she was guilty of. The judge knew the woman had very little money, and was missing work to be in court that day. At the same time, he knew she was guilty and he couldn’t just let her off because she was poor. Being a just judge, he fined her the appropriate amount.

This woman had never been in trouble with the law before, and had already taken care of the issue she was in court for. So, when the judge finished for the day, he went to the bank and withdrew money from his personal account. He found the woman and gave her the money she needed to pay her fine.

This judge’s compassion helped a woman who was desperate and did not have the means to take care of her fine on her own. I found the story to be absolutely amazing; I hope I will remember it and that it will help me to be more compassionate towards others.

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