Books for kids, teens, & those who are young at heart

Category: Book Trailer (Page 5 of 7)

Meet LRS author of Launching Sisters to WitchCamp

I’ve got a special treat (or trick) today with LRS, author of the MG fantasy Launching Sisters to WitchCamp (see my 5-star Goodreads review here). One lucky commenter will be chosen at random to receive a free copy of the book, so make sure to say hi in the comments section (this contest in now closed and a winner has been chosen). Welcome, LRS!

Launching Sisters to WitchCamp 200x300(1)A Tale of Psychological Horrors and Reports, and Overgrown Nails

My brothers claim that growing up, I was an award-winning storyteller. They’ve never forgotten the tales I entertained them with about a quarter of a century ago.

Don’t be too impressed, my stories are not memorable for their genius; rather, I fed them psychological horrors. It’s kind of ironic, because though it took me until my thirties to author stories, I did major in psychology.

On a serious note, in a roundabout way, psychology is what led me to this childhood dream. Contrary to other psychotherapy interns, I appreciated writing client assessments. The danger of reports is that they can make the clients appear to be but a sum total of their issues; I embraced the challenge to portray my clients for who they really were as people.

It’s my work on characterization that fired up my dormant passion.  I indulged myself, and set out to write a YA series (which is a work in progress under a different pen name). As I navigate this process, I’m constantly reminded of the extent that my psychological background influences my craft. I’ll let editors do pretty much whatever   they want with my manuscripts, but I’m overprotective of my characters. For example, I’m particular that each and every piece of their dialogue should be true to them.

As a side note, I gave Launching Sisters to WitchCamp’s editor, Katie, a free hand with my characters too, as she “got” them right off the bat. I’m sure many authors can relate to the sense of pleasure / satisfaction when others grasp their characters well. To me, it’s reminiscent of the feeling mental health workers have when they sense another professional understands their client.

Launching Sisters to WitchCamp, was born during a transition period between book one and two in my YA series. I remember exactly where I was standing when the idea behind the story hit me: the bathroom sink with a nail clipper aimed at my daughter’s grotesquely long nails.

She was putting up a resistance that would impress the IRA, and I had to come up with the ultimate motivator in the few seconds I had before she’d bolt.

“If your nails get any longer, the Witches’ Camp will come for you!”

The rest is history.

Oh, and don’t worry that I’ve set out to horrify you in Launching Sisters to WitchCamp. As long as you’re no giant, goblin, or monster, you’re quite safe.

Launching Sisters to WitchCamp blurb: 

Sixth-grader J.J. learns there are no easy breaks in life.

When J.J. discovers the opportunity to send his maddening sisters off to WitchCamp, he has fantasies of a delightful summer. However, J.J. and his friend are soon off on a ride they didn’t anticipate — one that lands them in a chilling mess of witch hunts and creature feasts.

With his creative ideas, J.J. utilizes their risky escapades to escape. But making deals with superhuman creatures just lands them in hotter water.

Now it’s up to J.J. to save them all from certain death by being more imaginative and daring than ever before.

Buy the book at the MuseItUp bookstore, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, iBooks, and other e-book retailers.

lrswithbrothersAbout the Author:

LRS has a master’s degree in psychology. For more than ten years she pretended to be working while she was on the floor enjoying playtime with kids.

She has lived on the eastern and western coasts of the U.S.A, as well as abroad, and currently resides in Canada with her family. Wherever she is, she can’t pass by a toy store without going inside.

When she’s not writing, she can usually be found in her kitchen, where she’s either baking (and sampling) cookies or stirring a pot. (Unfortunately, she has yet to find a magical spoon.)

To learn more about LRS and her book visit her website, Facebook page, or Twitter feed (@LaunchingSister).

And off to the comments for a chance to win a copy of Launching Sisters to WitchCamp!

The Dirt Diary Author Anna Staniszewski on Creating Diverse Characters

Let’s give a big welcome to returning guest blogger Anna Staniszewski, author of the upcoming tween book The Dirt Diary, as she discusses creating a diverse main character. I was very pleased to receive an ARC of this fabulous book and shared my thoughts on it in my 5-star Goodreads review. Welcome, Anna!

The-Dirty-Diary-Cover-w-Blurb-smallWhen I first began writing The Dirt Diary a few years ago, I knew early on that the main character, Rachel, had a white mom and a Korean-American dad. Perhaps this character detail emerged because the story took place in middle school, a time in my own life that I associate with one of my closest friends (then and now) who is Korean. Or perhaps Rachel appeared in my head that way just because that’s who she is.

For several drafts of the novel, however, I struggled with how overt I should make Rachel’s ethnicity. It didn’t play a large part in the story, but it was part of her character. Also, did I, a Polish-born, American-raised author have a right to write about a character who wasn’t like me?

As I mulled this over, I came to two realizations. First, why couldn’t Rachel’s race be part of her character without it affecting the plot? Rachel being biracial was just as much a part of her as being a girl or an only child.  It didn’t guide the story; it just felt like a natural part of her character. And second, I realized that none of the other characters I had written were “like me.” If I stuck to the “like me” criteria then I could only write about characters who had lived in Poland until they were five and then moved to New England. How boring would that be?

So I set out to write Rachel not as a biracial character but as a real character, one whose desires and emotions I could tap into and understand. I realized that my personal experiences did play a part in shaping her character. Not only do I know a thing or two about teen mortification, but having been raised bicultural made it easier for me to imagine how Rachel might feel about being biracial.

Have I made any missteps in depicting a biracial character? Perhaps. And it’s precisely that fear that kept me from acknowledging her ethnicity in early drafts of the book. Ultimately, though, I felt like it would be worse to ignore her true identity than to not try writing it at all.

The Dirt Diary blurb:

Cleaning up after the in-crowd gets Rachel all the best dirt.

Rachel can’t believe she has to give up her Saturdays to scrubbing other people’s toilets. So. Gross. But she kinda, sorta stole $287.22 from her college fund that she’s got to pay back ASAP or her mom will ground her for life. Which is even worse than working for her mother’s new cleaning business. Maybe. After all, becoming a maid is definitely not going to help her already loserish reputation.

But Rachel picks up more than smell socks on the job. As maid to some of the most popular kids in school, Rachel suddenly has all the dirt on the 8th grade in-crowd. Her formerly boring diary is now filled with juicy secrets. And when her crush offers to pay her to spy on his girlfriend, Rachel has to decide if she’s willing to get her hands dirty…

Anna_StaniszewskiAbout the Author:

Born in Poland and raised in the United States, Anna Staniszewski grew up loving stories in both Polish and English. She was named the 2006-2007 Writer-in-Residence at the Boston Public Library and a winner of the 2009 PEN New England Susan P. Bloom Discovery Award. When she’s not writing, Anna spends her time teaching, reading, and challenging unicorns to games of hopscotch. She is the author of My Very UnFairy Tale Life series, published by Sourcebooks Jabberwocky. Look for the first book in Anna’s next tween series, The Dirt Diary, in January 2014, and visit her at www.annastan.com.

Book Blast for The Shadow of the Unicorn by Suzanne de Montigny

I’m very happy to host Suzanne de Montigny’s fabulous middle grade story The Shadow of the Unicorn (see my Goodreads review here)Don’t forget to enter the giveaway for a $25 Amazon gift card or Pay Pal cash! 

Title: The Shadow of the Unicorn: The Legacy (The Shadow of the Unicorn, Book #1)

Author: Suzanne de Montigny

Recommended age: 9+

Summary

A loud, hissing sound filled the air. The unicorns looked up, their eyes filled with horror.

Azaria, a unicorn colt, is intrigued when the young clairvoyant dinosaur, Darius, foresees a terrifying change in the world. When a giant fireball smashes into the earth, the unicorns struggle to survive the hurricanes and starvation that follow. Danger of a more sinister nature threatens when the creatures-that-walk-on-two-legs settle in the valley and their leader, Ishmael, discovers the healing power of the unicorns’ horns. Azaria, now a young stallion, must use his wits to save the herd from complete extinction.

* #1 in the Animals in their World list on Goodreads Listopia *

* #1 in the Christmas Stocking Stuffers list on Goodreads Listopia *

Winner of the 2013 Global E-book Award for Best Fantasy/Alternate History

The Buzz

“Kudos to Ms. de Montigny for writing an original variation on the fantasy epic–unicorns intermingling with dinosaurs! The book’s themes include the humane and environmental concerns that Watership Down and the films of Hayao Miyazaki have in common. If you have a middle grader or are just young at heart, pick up The Shadow Of The Unicorn.” ~ 5 Star Review, Stuart W., Amazon

“The Shadow of the Unicorn is a must-read for all unicorn lovers, but even more so for the ones, like my self, who hadn’t read anything about them yet. It is a thrilling and encouraging story about a young unicorn that has to save his herd after a meteor nearly destroyed their environment and killed the dinosaurs. Suzanne de Montigny created a compelling universe with believable characters and a great adventure story to challenge them with. While the story finishes in this book, I can’t wait to read about the new adventures the unicorns will face..” ~ 5 Star Review, Antje H., Amazon

“This story pulled me in with a beautiful portrayal of a time and place where unicorns and dinosaurs live side by side. It moved me forward with unexpected twist and turns (a requirement in any good story). I found it hard to put the book down and was totally engaged in seeing the young characters (unicorns and dinosaurs) survive and grow because of the challenges they faced.” ~ 5 Star Review, NW Harris, Amazon

“I just finished reading The Shadow of the Unicorn. What a story teller Suzanne de Montigny is. She combined unicorns with dinosaurs and spun a tail of magic that kept me turning the pages, not to mention throwing in an evil that came in the form of a human! What an enjoyable story – and here I thought these mystic animals were extinct. I just didn’t know what to look for!” ~ 5 Star Review, Penny E., Amazon

“What a delightfully unique book. Unicorns and dinosaurs facing changing conditions. Darius is a young dinosaur capable of seeing the future. Azaria is a young unicorn who becomes a friend and learns from Darius. Yes, there are humans in this book. They are the villains of the story. Greedy beasts. I think both boys and girls will love this story. Very quick paced and easy to read. A delightful story, and I look forward to more from this author. ~ 5 Star Review, DM Lawrence, Amazon

*Half of all proceeds go to the Third World Eye Care Society, a group of eye specialists who travel to third world countries with thousands of pairs of glasses and perform eye surgery for free.*

About the Author: Suzanne de Montigny

Suzanne de Montigny wrote her first unicorn story at the age of twelve. Several years later, she discovered it in an old box in the basement, thus reigniting her love affair with unicorns. The Shadow of the Unicorn: The Legacy, is her first novel. Suzanne lives in Burnaby, B.C. with the three loves of her life – her husband and two boys.

Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

* $25 Book Blast Giveaway *

Prize: $25 Amazon Gift Card or PayPal cash (winner’s choice)

Contest runs: December 2, 2013 to January 1, 11:59 pm, 2014

Open: Internationally

How to enter: Please enter using the Rafflecopter widget below.

Terms and Conditions: NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. A winner will be randomly drawn through the Rafflecopter widget and will be contacted by email within 48 hours after the giveaway ends. The winner will then have 72 hours to respond. If the winner does not respond within 72 hours, a new draw will take place for a new winner. Odds of winning will vary depending on the number of eligible entries received. This contest is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook. This giveaway is sponsored by the author, Suzanne de Montigny and is hosted and managed by Renee from Mother Daughter Book Reviews. If you have any additional questions – feel free to send and email to Renee(at)MotherDaughterBookReviews(dot)com.
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Writing Middle Grade with Anna Staniszewski

Anna Staniszewski, author of the hilarious My Very UnFairy Tale Life seriesthe most recent of which, called My Sort of Fairy Tale Endingreleases next month, discusses writing middle grade fiction. A topic she is well-versed in. Welcome, Anna!

My-Sort-Of-Fairy-Tale-Ending-CoverHow to Write Middle Grade Fiction in Two Simple Steps

What’s the hardest thing about writing middle grade fiction? Being an adult. Really. Your adult self likes to get in the way when you’re writing for 8-12 year olds. Your adult self is judgmental and bossy. It thinks it knows best. Sometimes it won’t shut up.

Here’s my advice when you’re writing middle grade fiction: Try to quiet the adult part of your brain as much as you can and consider these two questions.

1. How can I be the child protagonist?

2. How can I let the child protagonist be him/herself?

Let’s tackle the first question. How can I be the child protagonist? You can’t, right? Because you’re an adult. Well, I’m not sure that’s true. For one, I think many of us have inner children that we can tap into. (And some of us never quite mature beyond the age of thirteen, anyway.)

I’ve found that middle grade books that don’t quite work feel like they were written by an adult instead of told by a child character. To avoid this trap, try to tap into those feelings of what it was like to be the age you’re writing about. Do some journaling as your younger self, if that helps.

Also, do your research. Try to find a (non-creepy) way to spend time with kids and listen to what they talk about, care about, etc. Trust me. This will help. And remember that you’re not writing about all children; you’re writing about one particular character who happens to be in elementary school or—even worse—middle school.

And now on to the second question. How can you let the child protagonist be herself? For one, you need to spend a lot of time working out this specific character, what she wants, what she needs, etc. But also, try to quiet that adult voice that might be tempted to judge your character’s actions or to medicate her or to call her mother.

Because here’s the thing: Your young character might be smart and resourceful, but chances are she has less world experience than you do. She’s going to make mistakes. Maybe big mistakes. Let her. And don’t worry about what kind of example she’s going to set for other kids. If you try to make an example of her, she’ll feel fake. Let her mess up and learn and BE HUMAN. Then she’ll feel real.

So that’s it. How to write middle grade fiction in two simple steps. Easy, right? Not exactly. But when it all comes together, it really is worth it. Trust me. I’m an adult.

My Sort of Fairy Tale Ending blurb:

Happily ever after? Yeah, right. Jenny’s search for her parents leads her to Fairy Land, a rundown amusement park filled with creepily happy fairies and disgruntled leprechauns. Despite the fairies’ kindness, she knows they are keeping her parents from her. If only they would stop being so happy all the time-it’s starting to weird her out! With the help of a fairy-boy and some rebellious leprechauns, Jenny finds a way to rescue her parents, but at the expense of putting all magical worlds in danger. Now Jenny must decide how far she is willing to go to put her family back together.

Anna_StaniszewskiAbout the Author:

Born in Poland and raised in the United States, Anna Staniszewski grew up loving stories in both Polish and English. She was named the 2006-2007 Writer-in-Residence at the Boston Public Library and a winner of the 2009 PEN New England Susan P. Bloom Discovery Award. Currently, Anna lives outside of Boston with her husband and their black Labrador, Emma.

When she’s not writing, Anna spends her time teaching, reading, and challenging unicorns to games of hopscotch. She is the author of My Very UnFairy Tale Life and its sequels, My Epic Fairy Tale Fail and My Sort Of Fairy Tale Ending, all published by Sourcebooks Jabberwocky. Look for the first book in Anna’s next tween series, The Dirt Diary, in January 2014, and visit her at www.annastan.com.

Quest of the Hart by Mary Waibel

Please welcome fellow Muse author Mary Waibel as she interviews Prince Devlin from her YA fantasy Quest of the HartBased on the interview, this book feels like it’s going to be action-packed. Mary is giving away a copy of the book while on her blog tour. Use the rafflecopter below to enter!

Cover Quest of the Hart 300dpiMe: Welcome, Prince Devlin.

Devlin: Please, call me Devlin.

(He smiles, his silver eyes shining like coins, and I barely hold back a sigh.)

Me: Oh, well, thank you so much, Devlin, for taking time away from your duties to chat. I’m sure you have so much to do, with your wedding just a week away. And speaking of your wedding, I have a few questions about Princess Kaylee.

D: I’ll answer what I can, but I only have a few minutes. Kaylee and I are going for a ride soon.

Me: I’ll be as quick as I can, then. So, how did you and Kaylee meet?

D: We have an arranged marriage. In fact, until a few days ago, I’d never seen her. But, now that I have, I can say she’s wonderful. Kind, caring, smart, funny. Did I mention beautiful?

(Princess Arabella saunters in during his descriptions and groans.)

Arabella: Please, isn’t there anywhere I can go in this castle where it isn’t Kaylee this and Kaylee that? I thought it was bad when it was Devlin this and Devlin that. Things will be different before the day is out, though, I promise you that.

D: What do you mean?

A: Nothing. Aren’t you supposed to be out riding with Kaylee?

D: Oh, yes. I’m late. It was very nice meeting you. I hope you enjoy the wedding.

(Devlin leaves, and Arabella smirks.)

A: Not if I have anything to say about it.

(She slinks from the room.)

Me: Well, I guess we’ll just have to read Quest of the Hart to see what that was all about!

Quest of the Hart blurb:

A reverse Sleeping Beauty tale where the princess goes on the quest to save the prince.

Princess Kaylee has never had to fight for anything. Her entire life has been arranged, even her marriage. But when Prince Devlin falls under an enchantment, she finds she is willing to do anything to save him, even if it means fighting a dragon.

Devlin’s own sister, Princess Arabella, is behind the deadly plot. She wants the throne and will use any means necessary to gain it. Her perfect plan unravels, leaving Devlin caught in a magical sleep that is slowly spreading through the kingdom of Breniera. All Arabella needs to finish her spell and claim the crown is a drop of Kaylee’s blood, but obtaining the single drop is proving more difficult than expected.

To save her betrothed, Kaylee embarks on a quest to find an ancient sword and gather a drop of dragon’s blood, while trying to stay out of Arabella’s traps. But Arabella’s traps aren’t the only danger. Time is everything. For once the last inhabitant of the kingdom falls asleep, the spell will be sealed, and not even true love’s kiss will break it.

Quest of the Hart can be purchased at the MuseItUp bookstore.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5SvEAbFQtE

Author Photo- Mary WaibelAbout the Author:

Mary lives with her husband, son and two cats. When she isn’t twisting fairytales, she enjoys reading, playing games, watching hockey, and camping. Her debut novel, Quest of the Hart, will be available from MuseItUp Publishing April 19, 2013. The Lost Princess, a companion novel, will be available from MuseItUp Publishing in August 2013. You can find Mary Waibel at:

http://marywaibel.blogspot.com

https://www.facebook.com/authormarywaibel

@mewtweety14 (twitter)

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