LUCKY IS READING GIVEAWAY HOP

Happy Friday Everyone! I hope you have a great weekend planned.

I want to mention to any of you who are also writers that I have a query critique contest with Agent Alex Slater right now and one coming up soon with agent Kristin Nelson. The winner is picked by random org and this is a great opportunity to get some feedback on those hard to get right query critique letters. And you might even get a request for more pages. Details are at the top of the blog. And check regularly because I plan to have more through June and then again in the Fall.

Today I’m thrilled to be part of the Lucky Is Reading Giveaway Hop sponsored by Stuck in Books. I always love this giveaway hop. I’ve got lots of newly released YA books that I've read or want to read. Several I just reserved at the library. And if you’re reading a different book in the series listed or want a different book by one of the authors listed, I’m glad to get you that book instead as long as it doesn't cost more than the book I've chosen.

Don’t see a book you like? You can win a $10.00 Amazon Gift Card instead. I hope you'll all enter to win a book or gift card for yourself or as a gift for someone.

So here are your choices. Click on the title to read a blurb from Goodreads.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

AN EMBER IN THE ASHES (Pre-order)
THE CONSPIRACY OF US
A WICKED THING
ALL FALL DOWN
FAIREST
RED QUEEN
SALT & STONE
SHADOW STUDY
THE DARKEST PART OF THE FOREST
THE GLASS ARROW
THE ORPHAN QUEEN
THE SIN EATER'S DAUGHTER
THIS SHATTERED WORLD

If you haven't found a book you want, you can win a $10 Amazon Gift Card.

To enter, all you need to do is be a follower (just click the follow button if you’re not a follower) and leave a comment through March 21st telling me the book you want to win or if you want to win the Gift Card instead. I’ll announce the winner on March 23rd. If your e-mail is not on your Google Profile, you must leave it in the comments.

If you mention this contest on Twitter, Facebook, or your blog, mention this in the comments and I'll give you an extra entry. You must be 13 or older to enter. International entries are welcome as long as The Book Depository ships to you for free.

Here's what's coming up:

On Monday, I'm interviewing debut author N.A. Traver and giving away DUPLICITY, her YA cyber thriller.

The following Monday I have a guest post by debut author Stacey Lee and agent Kristin Nelson with  a query critique giveaway by Kristin Nelson and an ARC giveaway of UNDER A PAINTED SKY, Stacey's YA historical fiction novel.

Wednesday that week I have a giveaway of FLUNKED FAIRY TALE REFORM SCHOOL, a MG fantasy.

And the Monday after that I have an interview with debut author Erin Entrada Kelly and a giveaway of BLACKBIRD FLY, her multicultural contemporary MG  novel.

Hope to see you on Monday!

And here's all the other blogs participating in this Giveaway Hop:

AN EMBER IN THE ASHES BOOK TRAILER REVEALED

Happy Thursday Everyone!

I have a surprise. EW revealed the book trailer for AN EMBER IN THE ASHES yesterday. It's so exciting! And I can't wait for the release of AN EMBER IN THE ASHES on April 28, 2015.

Here's a blurb from Goodreads:

Set in a terrifyingly brutal Rome-like world, An Ember in the Ashes is an epic fantasy debut about an orphan fighting for her family and a soldier fighting for his freedom. It’s a story that’s literally burning to be told.

LAIA is a Scholar living under the iron-fisted rule of the Martial Empire. When her brother is arrested for treason, Laia goes undercover as a slave at the empire’s greatest military academy in exchange for assistance from rebel Scholars who claim that they will help to save her brother from execution.

ELIAS is the academy’s finest soldier—and secretly, its most unwilling. Elias is considering deserting the military, but before he can, he’s ordered to participate in a ruthless contest to choose the next Martial emperor.

When Laia and Elias’s paths cross at the academy, they find that their destinies are more intertwined than either could have imagined and that their choices will change the future of the empire itself.

Hope to see you tomorrow for my Lucky is Reading Giveaway Hop!

AGENT ALEX SLATER INTERVIEW AND QUERY CRITIQUE GIVEAWAY

Happy Wednesday Everyone!

Today I’m thrilled to have Alex Slater here. He’s been working in foreign rights at Trident Media Group and has been promoted to a literary agent. He’s building his children’s, middle grade, and young adult author list.

Hi Alex! Thanks so much for joining us.

1. Tell us about yourself and how you became an agent.

I attended the University of Connecticut and after graduating I landed an internship at a boutique literary agency in New York. I was there for 2 years before making it to Trident, where I started as a literary assistant, and then moved into the foreign rights department as an agent. I’ve been building my own list domestically since the summer of last year.

2. Sounds like you have built up great experience working in the literary agent field. Let’s start out by talking about foreign rights. What authors have you represented and what did your work entail? Is it any different than representing them with US publishers?

At Trident I had the privilege of representing some of the world’s biggest authors overseas. Helping to expand their business on an international scale was thrilling, and I did so by selling rights for both their backlist and frontlist titles. Some of those authors include Louis Sachar, L.J. Smith, and R.J. Palacio. I worked very closely with their agents to submit their properties, and then I would negotiate, close, and follow through on book deals. The agents nurture and grow the author’s work and business domestically, and as a sales agent, I would keep that influence growing into new territories.

3. That's so awesome that you got to work with these authors and it sounds like a great way to work with authors in general.  Not all authors are able to sell their books internationally. Are there certain genres that are easier to sell internationally? And do you have any advice to published authors regarding expanding into the foreign markets?

Indeed, some American genres are more quickly accepted overseas than others, but that also depends from country to country. Generally speaking, the erotica boom at home was also very popular in most countries abroad, however countries like France have had erotic literature in their canon for years, so publishers there were less anxious to follow suit. It’s hard to pinpoint why certain stories travel better than others, but my advice to published writers would be to recognize first the importance of growing your business internationally. It takes dedication and persistence sell translation rights, and neglecting them is an unfortunate misstep in your business.

4. I have a lot of followers who are self-published and/or published by smaller presses. Do you have any advice for them if they’re interested in trying to sell their books in other countries?

My biggest piece of advice would be to continue building your writing to a point where an agent would be attracted to participating in your business. If self-publishing is your only interest, it’s very difficult, and expensive, to have your work translated, have meta-data prepared, craft appropriate country-specific artwork, and release a work all on your own. Agencies like Trident have the connections and expertise to manage all that for writers, and self-publishing platforms overseas are still a very fluid and evolving part of the marketplace.

5. That's so interesting about self-publishing being in such a transition oversees. Sounds like an opportunity that self-published authors should try to explore through an agent. So you’re building your domestic list now. What are you looking for as an agent? Any genres you are looking for and/or prefer?

I am interested to continue working in the middle grade and young adult markets, as I was doing in the foreign arena. I’m looking for strong, voice-driven fiction, and stories that demand that I continue turning the pages. I tend to lean towards more dark, offbeat themes and characters, while also finding fresh air in contemporary coming of age stories. I’m fond of telling writers to send me “Coen Brothers-esque” fiction, as I feel their wide range of stories connect with bigger-than-life characters and dialogue. At the moment, I would love to see more historical magical realism and stories that involve Dead Poets Society type of worlds.

6. Are there any genres you don’t want to represent or don’t think you can sell right now?

I would not be the right agent to represent high fantasy or paranormal romance. Personally I think anything can sell if it connects with enough hearts, but obviously we’re seeing a downtrend in vampires and dystopias. Or at least, I like to tell myself we are.

7. I'm sad there isn't a market for more dystopias now because I still enjoy reading them. Are you open to representing authors who have self-published or been published by smaller presses? What advice do you have for them if they want to try to find an agent to represent them?

I’m interested in representing authors who have built a foundation of self-published work and who wish to continue to grow with new and unseen material. It will be difficult for authors to find an agent who wants to take out previously published work, unless it’s sold into very high quantities. I love small presses, and have clients who have published with them. If these authors want an agent I would recommend they highlight their past success if it’s relevant, and continue to build their appeal with readers, especially by publishing stories in journals.

8. So good to hear you're open to self-published and small press authors. Share a bit about what you’re looking for in your clients and whether you’re an editorial agent.

I am an editorial agent and as such I look for clients who are open-minded and willing to work as a team. I seek talented writers who respect my time and their time, and who understand this is a slow industry, and the best things are worth waiting for. I like communication lines to be clear and easy, and for either one of us to feel the safety and trust all successful relationships demand.

9. Do you have any specific dislikes in query letters or the first pages submitted to you? And what’s your response time to queries and requests for more pages of a manuscript?

I like to get back to queries and solicited manuscripts in about 3-4 weeks, but sometimes that’s a lot easier said than done. In the queries, I dislike it if I am addressed as, “Ms. Slater,” simply because it shows immediately just how much research the author did on me. I also do not like queries that begin with background information about the writer. I want to know about the story from the first sentence, and if I’m hooked, then I’ll scroll down and read your bio. With fiction, story is always most important.

10. With all the changes in publishing—self-publishing, hybrid authors, more small publishers—do you see the role of agents changing at all? Why?

I see the role of agents growing more and more each year. Writers need the space, time, and independence to do what we all count on them to do: create. There would be no industry without those “luxuries” for our writers. Therefore, an experienced, trustworthy, and likeminded agent will continue to be a necessity to manage the creator’s career and to ensure that the art continues. To be a guide, editor, and pep talker. There will be more and more changes to come to publishing in the years ahead, and having an agent to steer you through the jungle will be essential.

11. That's great you see the agent role expanding in these changing times. Any other advice you’d like to share that we haven’t covered?

Just to write, every day.

Thanks for sharing all your advice, Alex. You can find Alex at:

http://www.tridentmediagroup.com/agents/alexander-slater

https://twitter.com/abuckslater

Alex generously offered a query critique for a giveaway. To enter, all you need to do is be a follower (just click the follow button if you’re not a follower) and leave a comment through March 21st. I’ll announce the winner on March 23rd. If you're not interested in a critique, that's okay and just let me know in the comments. If your e-mail is not on your Google Profile, please leave it in the comments.

If you mention this contest on Twitter, Facebook, or your blog, mention this in the comments and I'll give you an extra entry. International entries are welcome.

Here's what's coming up:

On Friday I'm participating in the Lucky is Reading Giveaway Hop. I'll have lots of great new releases for you and an Amazon gift card if you don't like my choices.

Next Monday, I'm interviewing debut author N.A. Traver and giving away DUPLICITY, her YA cyber thriller.

The following Monday I have a guest post by debut author Stacey Lee and agent Kristin Nelson with  a query critique giveaway by Kristin Nelson and an ARC giveaway of UNDER A PAINTED SKY, Stacey's YA historical fiction novel.

Wednesday that week I have a giveaway of FLUNKED FAIRY TALE REFORM SCHOOL, a MG fantasy.

And the Monday after that I have an interview with debut author Erin Entrada Kelly and a giveaway of BLACKBIRD FLY, her multicultural contemporary MG  novel.

Hope to see you on Friday!

VICTORIA AVEYARD INTERVIEW AND AND I HAVE NEWS

Happy Monday Everyone! First, I have great news. No, it's not agent or book publishing news. But just as good. I have a job! And it involves writing. I'll be writing attorney webpages, library articles, blog posts, etc. for a web marketing firm. It doesn't pay great but I can work at home and control my schedule. As I get into the job, I'll decide whether to do it full-time or combine it with another part-time job. I'm excited and very relieved to have a new job. And amazed that it involves writing. Sometimes life takes you where you don't expect.

It's going to take me a bit to get up to speed with all the writing I need to do and meeting my writing deadlines. So I hope you understand if I'm not stopping by your blog quite as much as usual.

And I have a winner to announce:

The winner of A WICKED THING is Valentina!

Congrats! E-mail me your address so I can send yo your book. Please e-mail me by the end of Wednesday or I'll have to pick another winner.

Today I’m thrilled to have debut author Victoria Aveyard here to share about her YA fantasy/dystopian RED QUEEN that released on February 10th. I loved the mix of fantasy and dystopian and the conflicts between the Reds and the Silvers in the world Victoria created. And Mare is such a fantastic character trying to sort out who she is, not being quite Red or Silver. And there were twists in the plot I didn’t see coming. Always love those.

Here’s a blurb from Goodreads:

The poverty stricken Reds are commoners, living under the rule of the Silvers, elite warriors with god-like powers.

To Mare Barrow, a 17-year-old Red girl from The Stilts, it looks like nothing will ever change.

Mare finds herself working in the Silver Palace, at the centre of those she hates the most. She quickly discovers that, despite her red blood, she possesses a deadly power of her own. One that threatens to destroy Silver control.

But power is a dangerous game. And in this world divided by blood, who will win?

Hi Victoria! Thanks so much for joining us.

1. Tell us about yourself and how you became a writer.

“Becoming a writer” was never a conscious decision for me. My parents are huge readers and movie lovers, so I’ve had stories around me for as long as I can remember. Beyond that, I’ve been telling stories, in backyard games or with poorly spelled crayon words, since I physically could, and the compulsion never went away. I wrote all through childhood, middle school, and in high school, I figured out I could turn my love of stories into a college major and hopefully a career. When I was accepted into the University of Southern California’s screenwriting program, I knew I had to go. While there, I wrote a mess of screenplays, my first finished works, and by the end of my senior year, I realized I had matured enough as a writer that I might be able to finally finish a novel as well.

2. I bet learning how to write screen plays really helped when you wrote your novel. Where did you get the idea for your story?

After I decided to start brainstorming ideas for a novel, RED QUEEN really kicked off when I pictured a teenage girl who could control lightning. It really entranced me, and I constructed a world, story, and characters around servicing this visual and making it possible.

3. I’ve read that you love world building. And I loved the world you created with the Reds and the Silvers. And all the powers the Silvers possess. Share about your world building process.

My worldbuilding process on RED QUEEN was actual the least amount of work I’ve ever done for any attempted novel. It’s no coincidence then, that this was the first I’ve finished. I had to rein myself in and maintain a spark of inspiration, rather than use it all up worldbuilding. But I do have about ten pages of hard building, detailing the different abilities, houses, locations, characters, and backstory. There are some maps as well, my favorite part of the worldbuilding process. As for more intensive novels (I’ve got another fantasy series on the backburner), that one has whole journals and folders of work. So it really depends on the project, and how much energy I need to keep up for the story itself.

4. Wow! You definitely put a lot into your world building. I’ve also read that you’re a combination of plotter and punster. And that this is the first manuscript you completed. Wow! What’s your plotting process like?

I always go into a manuscript, or screenplay, knowing my first and third act down cold. The second

usually comes together in the work, and I usually end up going off my outline pretty soon into the murky area. My outlines are usually 5 to 6 pages long, and I force myself to write them, even though I know I won’t stick to them. I can’t religiously write to an outline or beat sheet – I think it takes a little magic away, if I know where every road leads. I’m a sucker for structure, though. I almost always use 3 act, 8 sequence.

5. I like to know the general idea of those acts too. I can’t quite decide the genre of your book. It has a fantasy and a dystopian feel. What genre do you think it is? And what advice do you have for other authors about mashing together more than one genre into a story? It’s something I always enjoy reading, but am not sure how to tackle.

I think this is a fantasy with dystopian flavor. The dystopian angle is, at this point, window dressing. It’s a setting, but not the story, in my opinion. But I won’t presume to dictate what anyone else takes from the work. As long as you’re entertained, you can call it a Western for all I care. As for genre mashing, I’m a huge cheerleader. It’s hard to do, but so much fun, and such a treat to experience. I’m indulgent, more is more with me, so I usually end up melding genres in my work. I guess my advice would be to take from your genres, but not to try to honor both too closely. That’s nearly impossible. Find the tropes you love, twist them, make them work for you.

6. That's great advice. Your road to publication is really unique. You pitched this for a movie first and it sounds like it’s optioned. And you didn’t really query and landed one of my dream agents Suzie Townsend. Tell us all about your road to publication and what’s going on with the movie option.

RED QUEEN was never pitched as a movie. I imagined it as a novel, pitched it as a novel, and wrote it as a novel. I was, however, in contact with an LA-based management company, and I worked in the entertainment industry beforehand, so I basically came through the process backwards. I started on the film side and ended up on the lit side, and now go back and forth. After finishing the original RQ manuscript, my management contact sent it along to a friend in publishing, who gave it to his colleague who happened to be Suzie Townsend. From there, the road turns traditional. We edited, she signed me, we went on submission, and HarperCollins bought the manuscript. After that, the film side went to work and we’re currently optioned by Universal Pictures. A screenplay is in development, written by the dream that is Gennifer Hutchinson, and now that the book is officially published, we can start moving forward.

7. That's an amazing road to publication story. So your book was published about a month ago. And I saw on your website that you did a number of book signings. What was that like and what advise do you have for the rest of us on book signings and marketing a debut book in general?

I’m probably not the person to ask about marketing a debut since HarperTeen really took the wheel on that one, and did a smashing job. Most of my marketing work is on Twitter, and that is shaky at best, since I mostly just talk about television, football, and waiting for Star Wars VII. I do some self-promotion, but try and fail to keep it from being overwhelming. But the book tour was so much fun, of course. We were exhausted by the end, but every stop was worth it just to meet readers and be able to chat with them. I’m not one to get mushy or emotional, but it was really rewarding to see readers face to face.

8. Awesome how your publisher did so much of the marketing for you. What are you working on now?

Book 2 in the RED QUEEN series is about to go to copy edits, and I’ve kicked off outlining book 3. There’s the aforementioned fantasy series still kicking around, and I’m also a working screenwriter, so I’ve always got a mind open for my next screenplay. Oh, and House of Cards Season 3 is out this week, so I’ll be working on that too.

Thanks for sharing all your advice, Victoria. You can find Victoria at:

Website
Twitter
Facebook

Here's what's coming up:

On Wednesday I have an interview with agent Alex Slater at Trident Media Group with a query critique giveaway. And he has great advice for self-published and small press authors too!

On Friday I'm participating in the Lucky is Reading Giveaway Hop. I'll have lots of great new releases for you and an Amazon gift card if you don't like my choices.

Next Monday, I'm interviewing debut author N.A. Traver and giving away DUPLICITY, her YA cyber thriller.

The following Monday I have a guest post by debut author Stacey Lee and agent Kristin Nelson with  a query critique giveaway by Kristin Nelson and an ARC giveaway of UNDER A PAINTED SKY, Stacey's YA historical fiction novel.

Wednesday that week I have a giveaway of FLUNKED FAIRY TALE REFORM SCHOOL, a MG fantasy.

And the Monday after that I have an interview with debut author Erin Entrada Kelly and a giveaway of BLACKBIRD FLY, her multicultural contemporary MG  novel.

Hope to see you on Wednesday!

ALISON DECAMP GUEST POST AND MY NEAR-DEATH ADVENTURES GIVEAWAY

Happy Wednesday Everyone! Today I'm thrilled to have debut author and fellow Michigan SCBWI member Alison DeCamp here to share about marketing middle grade books and her new MG historical fiction MY NEAR-DEATH ADVENTURES. It sounds really good and has been described as somewhat like Diary of a Wimpy Kid. It sounds really good and I know many of you will be excited for this. Details of the giveaway are at the end of the post.

Here's a blurb from Goodreads:

It is 1895. Stan is on a mission to find his long-lost father in the logging camps of Michigan. And he's embellishing all of it in his stupendous scrapbook.

There are many things that 11-year-old Stanley Slater would like to have in life, most of all, a father. But what if Stan's missing dad isn't "dearly departed" after all? Who better to find this absent hero/cowboy/outlaw than manly Stan himself? Unfortunately, Stan's fending off his impossible cousin Geri, evil Granny, and Mama's suitors like Cold-Blooded Killer Stinky Pete. If only he could join the River Drive, the most perilous adventure of all, where even a fellow's peavey is at risk.

It's a wild ride for Stan as he finds out about true manliness. But at least Stan has his scrapbook, full of 200 black-and-white 19th-century advertisements and photos, "augmented" with his commentary and doodles.

Stan's tale will leave readers in stitches, but not the kind that require medical attention.

So here's Alison!

Hey! Look at me!

Oh, middle grade. We’re like the pesky little sibling of YA, aren’t we? Jumping up and down over in the corner. Not quite cool enough or old enough to hang with the big kids. While YA is out there all over the place, we’re still at home with mom and dad, still needing them to drive us someplace or cut up our apples because we’re not yet allowed to use the sharp knives.

I suspect that’s one of the many reasons we choose to write for this age group—it’s still safe. It’s still innocent. But when it comes to marketing we’re up for a bit more of a challenge. Our target audience is largely reliant on recommendations from librarians, teachers and parents, so when we market we have to appeal to eight-to-twelve year olds (plus or minus a couple years) as well as the adults in their lives. So what does that mean?

WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?

First of all, realize that middle grade buzz is a slow burn. My editor has used this exact phrase. My agent has echoed it. Word of mouth is integral and creating this buzz might just be some magical formula no one has yet put out there on the Internet. In the meantime, however, you can get the word out several ways.

Send postcards. indiebound.org is a good resource for contact information. I work in a bookstore part-time (to support my habit) and we receive a lot of mail. Design your postcard so that the side with the address (the side that will most likely be seen first by the bookseller) is interesting and eye catching and includes your publisher’s logo—make it look official and important. Just like anything in the publishing world, do your homework—make sure the store ownership hasn’t changed, the store is still open, and they carry middle-grade books. If you have a bookstore in your area, connect with them. By “connect” I mean, start shopping there. Create a relationship. Then, when it’s your time for a book launch, event or signing, your bookstore will be your strongest advocate.

Check out Saundra Mitchell’s post ingeniously titled the “I Have a Life Marketing Plan.”

http://www.saundramitchell.com/blog/the-i-have-a-life-marketing-plan/, but add schools to her list. Schools are integral to marketing middle grade. Target school librarians, teachers, administrators, PTA or other parent organizations. Addresses can be found with a simple Google search. If you’re available for school visits or bookstore events, be sure to add that to your note.

Anywhere from two weeks to two months prior to your book launch, host a Goodreads giveaway. Goodreads will recommend taking a month for your giveaway, but the real interest is on the first and last days, so a shorter (one or two week) giveaway is fine. This serves to add numbers to your want-to-read list. I don’t guarantee it will add up to book sales, but psychologically it’s nice to see interest in your book.

If you're at all computer savvy, create a book trailer. They work well when selling your book to teachers and students. I wouldn’t shell out money to have someone else do it, however, simply because I don’t know that the benefit outweighs the cost. I made mine with iMovie. I have lots of images in my book which made this easier, but finding pictures to go along with your story can be fun and a welcome distraction when you’re on deadline and really should be writing (not that I’ve ever done this). Mine can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEc-Amkmme8.

Creating a teacher’s guide, discussion questions, or games is also a way to appeal to teachers. There are people you can hire to do this for you. My web designer, Sierra Fong (www.sierrafong.com), makes swag and came up with the idea to include trading cards. They turned out better than I could have imagined. One side is an image from the book while the other has discussion questions and publishing information.

Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Tumblr, Pinterest, Flickr, Vine — is your head exploding yet? Social media, and the feeling you have to belong and be present on all of it, is mind boggling. I’m on many of these sites, but some of them have the ability to make me feel like I’m sitting in the corner at a party and no one really even knows I’m there. Also, for middle grade authors this is not necessarily where we connect with our readers. It can be an effective way to connect with teachers and librarians, but choose your poison. If you love Twitter, go for it. If Facebook is your boo, post away! Can’t help but take pictures with your camera every five minutes? Instagram is for you! Just don’t feel like you have to do it all.

Finally, join a group of fellow writers. SCBWI is a no-brainer, but also consider debut groups. I’m a member of the Fearless Fifteeners and the Class of 2K15. There is so much uncertainty in this business, it’s nice to have people to go through the process with you.

Remember, this is not brain surgery. We’re not curing cancer. We are opening up worlds, fostering imagination, and connecting with readers with that magic thread of words. We may never get to the Big Kids’ table, but I’m okay with that. The little kids’ table is more fun, anyway.

Thanks for all your advice, Alison. You can find Alison at:
 

Twitter https://twitter.com/AliYooper

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/alisondecampauthor?ref_type=bookmark

Pinterest https://www.pinterest.com/adecampauthor/

Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8268938.Alison_DeCamp

Alison generously offered a copy of MY NEAR-DEATH ADVENTURES for a giveaway. To enter, all you need to do is be a follower (just click the follow button if you’re not a follower) and leave a comment through March 14th. I’ll announce the winner on March 16th. If your e-mail is not on your Google Profile, please leave it in the comments.

If you mention this contest on Twitter, Facebook, or your blog, mention this in the comments and I'll give you an extra entry. International entries are welcome.

Here's what's coming up:

On Monday I have an interview with debut author Victoria Aveyard and a giveaway of RED QUEEN, her YA fantasy/dystopian.

And next  Wednesday I have an interview with agent Alex Slater at Trident Media Group with a query critique giveaway. And he has great advice for self-published and small press authors too!

Friday next week I'm participating in the Lucky is Reading Giveaway Hop. I'll have lots of great new releases for you and an Amazon gift card if you don't like my choices.

The following Monday, I'm interviewing debut author N.A. Traver and giving away DUPLICITY, her YA cyber thriller.

Hope to see you on Monday!

KAREN BAO GUEST POST AND DOVE ARISING GIVEAWAY

Happy Monday Everyone!

First, if any of you got a weird e-mail from me asking for money, I'm sorry. My yahoo e-mail account got hacked for the second time this year. Hopefully I fixed it.

I have a few winners to announce.

The winner of MARK OF THE THIEF is Emily Moore!

And the winner of VILLAIN KEEPER is Bish Denham!

Congrats! E-mail me your address so I can send you your books. Please e-mail me by the end of Wednesday or I'll have to pick another winner.

Today I'm thrilled to have debut author Karen Bao here to share what influenced her to write her YA science fiction DOVE ARISING. It sounds really good and I love science fiction so it's on my TBR list. Details of the giveaway will be at the end of the post.

Here's a blurb of DOVE ARISING from Goodreads:

Phaet Theta has lived her whole life in a colony on the Moon. She’s barely spoken since her father died in an accident nine years ago. She cultivates the plants in Greenhouse 22, lets her best friend talk for her, and stays off the government’s radar.

Then her mother is arrested.

The only way to save her younger siblings from the degrading Shelter is by enlisting in the Militia, the faceless army that polices the Lunar bases and protects them from attacks by desperate Earth-dwellers. Training is brutal, but it’s where Phaet forms an uneasy but meaningful alliance with the preternaturally accomplished Wes, a fellow outsider.

Rank high, save her siblings, free her mom: that’s the plan. Until Phaet’s logically ordered world begins to crumble...

Suspenseful, intelligent, and hauntingly prescient, Dove Arising stands on the shoulders of our greatest tales of the future to tell a story that is all too relevant today.

Now here's Karen!

How my childhood inspired me to write Dove Arising:

Looking back, I feel that I’d prepared my whole life to write Dove Arising. I’d always loved science, especially biology, and my scientist parents encouraged me to pursue it as a career – Mom’s a telecommunications engineer, and Dad’s a medicinal chemist. Early on, I realized that human activity endangered the living things that fascinated me, and decided to study and preserve wildlife as a career.

But science wasn’t my only passion. I couldn’t get enough of literature and history in school; reading Victorian novels and studying twentieth-century world history made me actually want to go to class. I learned that my own parents had lived through a pivotal episode in world history: China’s Cultural Revolution, in which Mao Zedong tried to purge capitalist ideas and traditional Chinese thought from the country. The authorities sent my mother’s father, a professor, to a labor camp in the countryside – for ten whole years. Because I grew up in a liberal democracy, I couldn’t wrap my head around it.

My interest in science and my family’s history came together, informing the worldbuilding for Dove Arising. The idea of living on the moon came out of my worrying over Earth’s environmental devastation: I predicted that hundreds of years from now, after decades of government inaction, scientists from all over the world pool their funding to set up lunar colonies. They’re concerned for our species’ survival, and they mean well. But because the Moon’s environment is so hostile, scientific progress is paramount and surveillance necessary for citizens’ safety. It takes only a small scuffle with the remaining nations of Earth for the Lunar government to seize “emergency powers,” take total control, and become truly oppressive.

That’s where my mom’s stories about her childhood came in. The corruption, surveillance, emphasis on

science for progress’ sake, and separation of family members all featured into the Lunar society. Also, smaller things – like when Mom’s school ranked students on monthly exams, and the government made her study chemistry in college – fit right into Dove Arising’s manuscript.

Next, I thought about what a perfect Lunar citizen would look like – and this person became Phaet, the protagonist. She’s a stellar science student. And her quiet personality is a product of her totalitarian society: the less she talks, the less likely it is that she’ll get in trouble. Although quiet people may seem shy or weak, I know that they aren’t; for example, my best friend doesn’t talk much, and truthfully, I don’t either. I wanted to convey that Phaet had inner resolve despite her quiet exterior, and hopefully it worked!

So there you have it: Dove Arising was the product of my interest in science, my mom’s stories about China, and my interactions with introverts. Hope you had fun reading this post, and thanks to Natalie for having me on the blog!

Find me at: 

Website: www.karenbaobooks.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KarenJBao

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/karenbaoauthor

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/karenjbao/

Karen's publisher, Penguin Young Readers, generously offered an ARC of DOVE ARISING for a giveaway. To enter, all you need to do is be a follower (just click the follow button if you’re not a follower) and leave a comment through March 7th. I’ll announce the winner on March 9th. If your e-mail is not on your Google Profile, please leave it in the comments.

If you mention this contest on Twitter, Facebook, or your blog, mention this in the comments and I'll give you an extra entry. This is for US only.

Here's what's coming up:

On Wednesday I have a guest post by debut author Alison DeCamp on marketing middle grade novels and a giveaway of MY NEAR-DEATH ADVENTURES, her MG historical fiction similar to Diary of a Wimpy Kid. 

Next Monday I have an interview with debut author Victoria Aveyard and a giveaway of RED QUEEN, her YA fantasy/dystopian.

And next Wednesday I have an interview with agent Alex Slater at Trident Media Group with a query critique giveaway. And he has great advice for self-published and small press authors too!

Friday next week I'm participating in the Lucky is Reading Giveaway Hop. I'll have lots of great new releases for you and an Amazon gift card if you don't like my choices.

The following Monday, I'm interviewing debut author N.A. Traver and giving away DUPLICITY, her YA cyber thriller.

Hope to see you on Wednesday!

RHIANNON THOMAS INTERVIEW AND A WICKED THING GIVEAWAY

 Happy Monday Everyone! Hope those of you on the East coast are surviving all the snow. And anyone with the bitter cold is surviving that too. Thankfully March will be here soon with hopefully some warmer weather and less snow. It's frigid here but I braved the weather yesterday to go exercise. Otherwise it was a weekend to stay in and warm.

FOLLOWER NEWS

AMAZON

C. Lee McKenzie has released THE GREAT TIME LOCK DISASTER,  a new middle grade novel. Here's a blurb:
There's nothing’s more dangerous than a wizard-in-training. And Pete Riley, has just proven it. He's worked a bad time spell--a very bad time spell.
No YouTube, no smoothies, no Manga. Not ever again. Not unless Pete figures out how to reverse his spell and free Weasel and him from Victorian England.
He has until the next full moon. Only a few days.

Tick. Tock.

And here's a few links:

WEBSITE   BLOG   FACEBOOK  TWITTER  GOODREADS

And I have a few winners to announce.

The winner of the Favorites Giveaway Hop is Anne who picked the $10 Amazon Gift Card!

And the winner of MONSTROUS is Eisen!

Congrats! E-mail me your address so I can have your book sent to you. Please e-mail me by the end of Wednesday or I'll have to pick another winner.

Today I’m thrilled to have debut author Rhiannon Thomas here to share about A WICKED THING, her YA retelling of Sleeping Beauty, that releases on February 24th. I really enjoyed the twist in this. Princess Aurora wakes up 100 years in the future. And it isn’t happy.

Here’s a blurb from Goodreads:

Rhiannon Thomas's dazzling debut novel is a spellbinding reimagining of Sleeping Beauty and what happens after happily ever after.

One hundred years after falling asleep, Princess Aurora wakes up to the kiss of a handsome prince and a broken kingdom that has been dreaming of her return. All the books say that she should be living happily ever after. But as Aurora understands all too well, the truth is nothing like the fairy tale.

Her family is long dead. Her "true love" is a kind stranger. And her whole life has been planned out by political foes while she slept.

As Aurora struggles to make sense of her new world, she begins to fear that the curse has left its mark on her, a fiery and dangerous thing that might be as wicked as the witch who once ensnared her. With her wedding day drawing near, Aurora must make the ultimate decision on how to save her kingdom: marry the prince or run.

Rhiannon Thomas weaves together vivid scenes of action, romance, and gorgeous gowns to reveal a richly imagined world … and Sleeping Beauty as she’s never been seen before.

Hi Rhiannon! Thanks so much for joining us.

1. Tell us about yourself and how you became a writer.

Thanks so much for having me!

I always get nervous when telling people about myself – I think it’s the shy British girl side of me going “no, no, tell me about YOU.” But here goes.

I’m originally from the north of England, but I moved to America when I was 18 to study English Lit and Japanese at Princeton. After graduation, my visa ran out, so I very reluctantly moved back to England, got a job at a bookstore, and tried to figure out what the hell I wanted to do with my life. I knew I was really good at academics, but the idea of grad school was more “I don’t know what I’m doing!” than an actual dream. So, while trying to figure things out, I turned my academic side into my blog, Feminist Fiction, and I wrote the book that would ultimately become A Wicked Thing.

I wouldn’t recommend graduate -> be sad -> write a book -> luck out and sell it and stop looking for another career path as a life plan, but it worked out for me so far!

2. Glad it worked out for you. And I think other people change careers too, so don't feel back. How did you get the idea for your book and why did you choose to retell Sleeping Beauty’s story. I read that your favorite fairy tale is The Little Mermaid. Why didn’t you pick that one?

A Wicked Thing originally came from a place of being completely fed up with romance tropes. The idea first came to me when Twilight was the hottest thing in the fiction world, and there were a whole bunch of similar novels about people fated to be together, or all-powerful supernatural love-at-first-sight that people couldn’t escape. Maybe I’m just awkward, but if someone appeared in my life and said “oh btw, we’re gonna be in love forever now, it’s FATE,” I’d be pretty weirded out. And these thoughts meshed pretty well with my total love for fairy tales, and especially dark fairy tales. Most fairy tales have some “I’ve known you for five minutes, let’s get married” element, but Sleeping Beauty was the most interesting, to me, when you add in the promise of “true love’s kiss,” and the weirdness of sleeping for a century. The more I thought about it, the more I wanted to know what would happen after Aurora woke up, if things were slightly less fairy tale and slightly more realistic.

And I would love to do a Little Mermaid retelling, but if I did, I think the main focus would be the decision of whether or not she should murder the guy she loves to remain human, which is a very different story. Maybe one day!

3. I'm not a fan of fated, fall in love immediately romances either. Share about the process of writing a retelling of a fairy tale. Did you research much by reading different versions of Sleeping Beauty? And what advice do you have for other authors wanting to write a fairy tale retelling?

I’ll be honest – I didn’t research the history of Sleeping Beauty while writing A Wicked Thing. I was

familiar with a lot of the different versions of it, because I’m a fairy tale nerd and had studied them at university, but I really wanted to base the novel on fairy tale elements that most people would be familiar with. I wanted Aurora to appear to be the classic Sleeping Beauty, and although I tweaked some elements of her story to suit my needs, I wanted the heart of her backstory to match what people first thought of when they thought “Sleeping Beauty.” So no baby twins, no creeptastic stalker princes, no ogre mother-in-law. Just an angry witch, a tower, a spinning wheel, and a hundred year sleep.

As for advice on writing a fairy tale retelling… I think the most important thing is to be constantly interrogating and challenging the story you know. Why would someone act that way, what sort of person would really do this, how would people respond to that situation if they weren’t guided by fairy tale tropes? Retellings become most interesting, to me, when they try to put the humanity back into that fairy tale narrative framework, and explore where that takes you.

4. Those are great questions to ask yourself. Princess Aurora is such a sympathetic character. She wakes up to a less than perfect situation. Share about her character development and the challenges of putting her into the future.

Well, the biggest challenge, from a writing perspective, was that I needed to create two distinct worlds for Aurora – the past that she was familiar with, and the future that she finds herself thrown into – and know how one had turned into the other. This was especially difficult, because Aurora is a very naïve character at first, who has spent her life locked in a tower and has very little firsthand experience of life outside the castle, so she’s not the best source of information.

But I was determined that Aurora wouldn’t be an action princess. I’ve called her my “Sansa Stark” protagonist before, and that’s definitely the tone I wanted for her. She’s very privileged, but also utterly trapped by her situation. She has a lot of naïve ideas about what her life is going to be, and her life experiences up to the start of the novel have made her quite passive and shy. She’s not really sure what she wants, and she definitely doesn’t know how to achieve it. In a way, I wanted the book to be about how Aurora could become a protagonist or a heroine. There are so many Strong Female Characters in fiction, but I really wanted to think about a character who needs to grow into her strength. She has all that potential there, but she doesn’t know how to use it at first. Since I’m a shy and nervous person myself, that felt more realistic to me than a character who wakes up in a terrible future and is immediately in control of the situation.

5. Kristin Nelson, one of my dream agents, is your agent. Share how she became your agent and your road to publication.

Kristin is such an amazing agent, and it was half luck that I got the chance to work with her. Nelson Literary Agency was actually one of the first agencies I queried with the book, but they’re an “only query one agent” agency, and I actually queried Kristin’s second-in-command, Sara Megibow. I think I reasoned that Sara was more actively looking for new debuts, so she was my best bet. A few days after Sara requested the full manuscript, I got an email from Kristin, saying that Sara had passed it on to her, and she wanted to offer representation! I was floored, but so happy. So I guess I’m living proof that agents do share queries within their agencies.

After I signed with Kristin, we worked together to revise the book to make it stronger, and went on submission to publishers about four or five months later. Being on submission felt like endless hell while I was there, but I actually had a really short submission process – HarperTeen expressed interest within about a week, and after that, it was just sorting out the details.

6. Okay, that sounds like a dream get an agent story. You live in England and your book is being published in the U.S. and Canada. Are there any plans to publish it in England? And how are you planning to market your book since you don’t live in the U.S. or Canada?

Sadly no plans to publish in England yet, although I would love if it was published here.

For the US, it’s going to be a lot of online marketing! I’m having a blog tour, thanks to the wonderful Fantastic Flying Book Club, and Epic Reads are just great too. They really know their stuff when it comes to Twitter and Instagram and creating online buzz. I’d love to be able to do an in-person tour, but even getting to one stop in the US would be pretty expensive! Hopefully one day.

7. Online marketing is really good too and it doesn't matter if you live in the country where your book is published. You also blog at feministfiction.com. It sounds really interesting. Tell us a bit about what you blog about.

Thank you! I basically blog about fiction in all forms from a feminist perspective. I’d say the majority of things I write about are TV shows, since they always have new content coming out that’s ripe for discussion, but I also write about novels, movies, video games, and the media’s response to these and to their creators. Sometimes I discuss certain iconic characters, sometimes I talk about the latest online controversy, sometimes I tackle questions of female representation in the media in general… it’s a mix, which definitely makes it more fun for me. In my dream world, it’d be a 100% positive blog, talking about great female representation and wonderful TV shows and books, and I do try to talk about shows that do things right and offer recommendations as much as possible. Buuuut I do find myself critiquing quite a lot. Even good fiction isn’t often kind to its female characters these days.

8. What are you working on now?

As I’m writing this, I literally just finished working on the final revisions for the sequel to A Wicked Thing. Now I’ve got that bundled out of the way, I’m starting on a whole new YA fantasy called Long May She Reign, about a girl scientist who ends up queen after the whole court is assassinated.

Thanks for sharing all your advice, Rhiannon. You can find Rhiannon at:

www.rhiannonkthomas.com

Twitter: @RhiannonKT

Tumblr: rhiannonbooks.tumblr.com

Rhiannon has generously offered a copy of A WICKED THING for a giveaway. To enter, all you need to do is be a follower (just click the follow button if you’re not a follower) and leave a comment through February 28th. I’ll announce the winner on March 2nd. If your e-mail is not on your Google Profile, please leave it in the comments.

If you mention this contest on Twitter, Facebook, or your blog, mention this in the comments and I'll give you an extra entry. International entries are welcome.

Here's what's coming up:

On Monday I have a guest post by debut author Karen Bao and a giveaway of her science fiction YA DOVE ARISING.

Next Wednesday I have a guest post by debut author Alison DeCamp on marketing middle grade novels and a giveaway of MY NEAR-DEATH ADVENTURES, her MG historical fiction similar to Diary of a Wimpy Kid. 

The Monday after that I have an interview with debut author Victoria Aveyard and a giveaway of RED QUEEN, her YA fantasy/dystopian.

And Wednesday that week I have an interview with agent Alex Slater at Trident Media Group with a query critique giveaway. And he has great advice for self-published and small press authors too!


Friday that week I'm participating in the Lucky is Reading Giveaway Hop. I'll have lots of great new releases for you and an Amazon gift card if you don't like my choices.

The following Monday, I'm interviewing debut author N.A. Traver and giving away DUPLICITY, her YA cyber thriller. 

Hope to see you on Monday!