Category: Young Adult (Page 24 of 27)

ELIXIR BOUND Book Blitz Schedule

September 8, 2014 / Katie L. Carroll

The ELIXIR BOUND sale and giveaway book blitz is a go! There’s still time to sign up if you have a spot on your blog, just fill out the form. Here are the amazing bloggers who have already signed up and the blitz schedule.

September 14:

Bookaholics-http://leodinzlyandra.blogspot.com

The Storyteller’s Scroll-http://thestorytellersscroll.blogspot.com

Author Eric Price-http://authorericprice.com

Wendy Laharnar-http://wendylaharnar.blogspot.com.au/

MuseIt Young & YA-http://museituptweenyoungadultbooks.blogspot.ca/

September 15:

Write Stuff-meradethhouston.blogspot.com

Jeff Chapman’s Writing-http://jeffchapmanwriter.blogspot.com/

Shelf Full of Books-http://kathrynsshelffullofbooks.blogspot.ca

September 16:

Leona’s Chater-http://leonaschatter.blogspot.com/

Kimberly G. Giarratano-www.kimberlyggiarratano.com/blog

September 17:

Suzanne’s thoughts for the day-http://suzannesthoughtsfortheday.blogspot.com/

S. J. Pajonas-http://www.spajonas.com

The Dragon Blog-www.melissapetreshock.com/the-dragon-blog

September 18:

J.Q. Rose, author-http://www.JQRose.com

Waibel’s World-http://waibelworld.blogspot.com

September 19:

Kelly Hashway-http://kellyhashway.blogspot.com

September 20:

A Thousand Words A Million Books-http://athousandwordsamillionbooks.blogspot.in

September 22:

Strands of Thought-http://kaistrand.blogspot.com/

Kay LaLone I Love Books-www.kaylalone.blogspot.com

Planet Book Lion-Planetbooklion.blogspot.co.uk

September 23:

Penny’s Tales-http://www.pennyestelle.blogspot.com

Palace of Twelve Pillars-www.weigandchris.com

The Poet’s Fire-poetsfire.blogspot.com

September 24:

Heather Fraser Brainerd & David Fraser-http://drivingblindproductions.wordpress.com

September 25:

Jester Harley’s Manuscript Page-http://AnneEJohnson.blogspot.com

September 26:

Erin’s Blog-http://blog.erinrhewbooks.com/

The Story of a Writer-http://beverlystowemcclure.blogspot.com

Carpinello’s Writing Pages-carpinelloswritingpages.blogspot.com

September 27:

Beth Blogs-http://bethovermyer.blogspot.com/

YA Guy-http://theyaguy.blogspot.com/

I hope you get a chance to check out these blogs. See you on the tour!

P.S. I know I said I was going to make an announcement today about the collaborative writing project I’m working on, but I forgot I had this schedule to post today, so stop in tomorrow for the announcement. 🙂

The Inspiration Behind SCAR OF THE BAMBOO LEAF by Sieni A.M.

September 5, 2014 / Katie L. Carroll

With all the great talk going on in kidlit with the #WeNeedDiverseBooks campaign, I was super happy when Sieni A.M. agreed to tackle a diversity topic in her guest post for her new YA contemporary romance SCAR OF THE BAMBOO LEAF. Let’s give her a warm welcome as she shares the inspiration behind the characters and setting. And don’t forget to enter the giveaway!

My mother is from a small village in Samoa and my dad is from Portland, ME. They met when he was a Peace Corp volunteer. I was born and raised in Samoa, moved to New Zealand for university, and am currently living in Israel with my husband and two daughters. My husband is ethnically Persian/Australian/Canadian, so our daughters probably have every continent running through their blood. As a result, diversity is a very normal thing in my life so its influence on my characters reflect that normality. It’s simply what I know.

In Scar of the Bamboo Leaf, Kiva is a blend of Polynesian/Melanesian, raised by her aunt and uncle with little knowledge about her parents, while Ryler is an Arab American dealing with racism post 9/11. They’re two young people trying to navigate through life. They learn and grow and have challenges just like any other teenager…bullying, loneliness, heartbreak. Despite all of that they have dreams and aspirations and goals. Although their diversity is responsible for some of their troubles, it doesn’t overwhelm the story. The messages are universal and relatable.

The setting is in Samoa because it is what I know most intimately about and can describe best in detail–the landscape, oppressive heat, the culture, people. It is also not a place most often set in novels, so it has been a joy to share this little corner of the globe to international readers.

SCAR OF THE BAMBOO LEAF blurb:

“Her heart wept when she realized that the hardest part about loving him was the idea that his love was never meant for her.”

Walking with a pronounced limp all her life has never stopped fifteen-year-old Kiva Mau from doing what she loves. While most girls her age are playing sports and perfecting their traditional Samoan dance, Kiva finds serenity in her sketchbook and volunteering at the run-down art center her extended family owns.

When seventeen-year-old Ryler Cade steps into the art center for the first time, Kiva is drawn to the angry and misguided student sent from abroad to reform his violent ways. Scarred and tattooed, an unlikely friendship is formed when the gentle Kiva shows him kindness and beauty through art.

After a tragic accident leaves Kiva severely disfigured, she struggles to see the beauty she has been brought up to believe. Just when she thinks she’s found her place, Ryler begins to pull away, leaving her heartbroken and confused. The patriarch of the family then takes a turn for the worse and Kiva is forced to give up her dreams to help with familial obligations, until an old family secret surfaces that makes her question everything.

Immersed in the world of traditional art and culture, this is the story of self-sacrifice and discovery, of acceptance and forbearance, of overcoming adversity and finding one’s purpose. Spanning years, it is a story about an intuitive girl and a misunderstood boy and love that becomes real when tested.

Find it on Goodreads and Amazon.

About the Author:

Sieni A.M. is a coffee addict, Instagram enthusiast, world traveler, and avid reader turned writer. She graduated as an English and History high school teacher from the University of Canterbury and is currently living in Australia with her husband and two daughters. “Scar of the Bamboo Leaf” is her second novel.

Website: http://sieniam.blogspot.co.il/

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

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/illumineher/

a Rafflecopter giveaway

T.C. Mckee Author of THE BONE TREATY on Letting Go

August 29, 2014 / Katie L. Carroll

Another great guest blogger stopping by today! T.C. Mckee is celebrating the release of her YA paranormal THE BONE TREATY and is sharing some wisdom on when it’s time to let go…a hard thing for writers–and really anyone–to know how and when to do. Welcome, T.C.!

First off I’d like to thank Katie for having me on her blog today. Guest posts are way new for me, but I’m certainly having fun.

With today’s post, I thought I’d address the subject of letting go. We all have to do it at some point in our lives. It may be a child you’re sending off to college, your favorite pair of jeans that someone shrunk in the dryer, or a job you saw going nowhere. Maybe it’s something simpler like watching your husband vacuum the bedroom and he’s not doing it the way you would. Not. At. All. You’ve just watched him pick up your decorative rug and place it on your bed…let it go. He’s vacuuming. Pretend you never saw the rug—the very one the dog likes to chew his bones on draped across your slumber spot. No. Never happened. After that, just so you can write your next novel or market your new book (see The Bone Treaty below) he moves on to folding the laundry. How nice. What a wonderful man you’ve married. Then your daughter informs you that Dad is placing the freshly laundered, now folded towels on top of the rug that’s still on top of your bed.

Okay, DON’T let that go!!! We all have limits. Stop that man immediately. One can ignore a rug on the bed when it’s on top of a comforter. You can break that down. Rationalize it. You will not actually touch the top of the comforter while you’re snug as a bug…no worries. I’m gonna leave that sentence unfinished. But…no way should anyone be expected to use towels on your wee parts that have been resting on top of the Dog’s rug. NO! Pat that man on his head, snatch those towels and let the novel go for just five minutes. Your wee parts demand an intervention. They deserve it.

Learning when to let go is so important, and knowing when not to let go is equally just as important. I remember writing the first draft of The Bone Treaty and wanting to immediately toss it out to the world. Between you and me I did. Thank God I called it something else back then. It wasn’t ready. Heck, it was hardly ready for a beta reader. The work continued for years after that moment. The first novel is the hardest one. Don’t know why, it just is. But I think after all those years, all those revisions, all those weak moments I placed my head in the oven, it was all for a reason. I learned so much along the way. I discovered that writing really does take a village. Honest criticism is a wonderful thing because you can grow from it. If no one tells you what’s wrong with your work, you can’t possibly fix it. And I learned that I really need a gas stove if I plan to put my head in the oven in the future.

In the end, or the beginning, I learned when to let go of my WIP. It may not be perfect. Are there flaws? Probably. But without a doubt I did the best I could do on this particular project and the time came when I needed to just let it go and move on to my next story. So that’s what I did.

I asked a critique partner once how we were supposed to know when the time was right to move on. What she said was so true. She told me that I needed to let go when I couldn’t hold on anymore. When I no longer daydreamed about the characters. When I no longer thought about them when I should have been trying to sleep. When I no longer wanted to open the WIP it was time to let go.

So I did. I hope this helps another writer who might be wondering when to just let it go.

You can find The Bone Treaty at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MLN4KQE/ref=s9_simh_gw_p351_d0_i1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=1PG1TMHY7ZCK9PPAHXRC&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1688200382&pf_rd_i=507846

You can visit me anytime on my blog: blog at: http://tcmckeewriter.blogspot.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/TC-Mckee/229753570369464

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TCMckee

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8296655.T_C_McKee

I’d love to have you stop by and say hello.

T.C. Mckee is the author of The Bone Treaty; book one in the Seal of Solomon Series. She’s also the acquisitions editor of BookFish Books LLC, a small business owner, Great Dane adorer, coffee addict, and lover of random useless facts. T.C. lives with her family in Virginia.

Meet Alissa T. Hunter Author of the YA Paranormal MALICIOUS

August 22, 2014 / Katie L. Carroll

It’s always great to feature new authors on the blog and it’s especially great when they’re fellow Musers. Let’s give a big welcome to Alissa T. Hunter and her YA paranormal MALICIOUS!

MALICIOUS (A Morning Star Institute Novel Book 1)

YA Paranormal Romance/Dark Fantasy

What if the Devil’s daughter rebelled against their hellion ways of life?

Being the daughter to the Devil has its draw backs, just ask seventeen-year-old Desdemona Starr, aka Dessi, who attends the Morning Star Institute, a private school where teenage Hellions, paranormals like Dessi, can learn and practice their Hell-given crafts. There Dessi’s life takes a dramatic turn towards chaos when she learns she’s part of a prophecy foretelling that she will one day tip the scale of Light or Dark, ultimately creating a war between Heaven and Hell.

Dessi finds herself at the top of the hit list when soul-sucking demons attack the institute in an attempt to end the prophecy. Thankfully, Dessi has two of the strongest teenage shape-shifting-Hellhound-boys on her side. Not to mention finding herself within a love triangle can only complicate matters. Until she chooses her path and the prophecy ends, her internal war between Light and Dark is not over. Danger lurks around the corner with the help of her friends, she’ll be ready!

Find MALICIOUS at

(Goodreads) https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22564583-malicious?ac=1

(Smash words) https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/alisssathunter

(Amazon) http://www.amazon.com/Malicious-Morning-Star-Institute-Novel-ebook/dp/B00LI7VJVS/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1406151083&sr=8-4&keywords=Malicious

(Barnes and Noble) http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/malicious-alissa-t-hunter/1119776837?ean=2940046018332

http://booksonline.directory/addyourbook.php?msage=sucess

http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/malicious-1

About the Author:

Sagittarius Alissa T. Hunter is the author of a Dark-Fantasy series for teens. Originally a Nevada born desert-rat, where she has lived most of her life, now resides in a small town she likes to call “The Heart of Wyoming.” Wherever she goes, she is accompanied by her loving husband and their three small children. When Alissa is not writing, you can find her reading, exercising, shopping, playing the piano, doing mom things, or if you can’t find her there, she’s probably hiding somewhere with a good book in one hand, and a cup of coffee in the other. Self-proclaimed coffee addict, and fitness enthusiast, Alissa considered other careers before writing full-time, and has gone to school for early childhood education, and now holds a business degree because, well, you never know when one of those could be handy. As a lifelong reader, she has always held a fascination with mythology and all things that go bump in the night. But the one thing she expects as a reader, and hopes to deliver in all her writing, is a degree of romance. Alissa firmly believes that the words that touch the heart, are the ones that stay with us…

For more about Alissa:

http://alissathunter.wix.com/alissathunter

https://twitter.com/AlissaTHunterYA

https://www.facebook.com/AlissaT.Hunter

The Monster Within by Kelly Hashway Book Blitz and Giveaway

August 15, 2014 / Katie L. Carroll

Once again I welcome back another great writing buddy of mine. Kelly Hashway is here sharing her awesome YA paranormal The Monster Within (see my 5-star Goodreads review here). Be sure to enter the giveaway!

The moment seventeen-year-old Samantha Thompson crawls out of her grave, her second chance at life begins. She died of cancer with her long-time boyfriend, Ethan, by her side—a completely unfair shot at life. But Ethan found a way to bring her back, like he promised he would. Only Sam came back wrong.

She’s now a monster that drains others’ lives to survive. And after she kills, she’s tortured by visions—glimpses into her victims would-have-been futures had she not killed them. Barely able to live with herself and trying to make things right, Sam ends up a pawn in a vicious game of payback within the local coven of witches.

But when the game reveals what Ethan had to do to save Sam, she must make a choice that will change all their lives forever.

ll Goodreads ll Amazon ll B&N ll

Kelly Hashway grew up reading R.L. Stein’s Fear Street novels and writing stories of her own, so it was no surprise to her family when she majored in English and later obtained a masters degree in English Secondary Education from East Stroudsburg University. After teaching middle school language arts for seven years, Hashway went back to school and focused specifically on writing. She is now the author of three young adult series, one middle grade series, and several picture books. She also writes contemporary romance under the pen name Ashelyn Drake. When she isn’t writing, Hashway works as a freelance editor for small presses as well as for her own list of clients. In her spare time, she enjoys running, traveling, and volunteering with the PTO. Hashway currently resides in Pennsylvania with her husband, daughter, and two pets.

ll Website ll Blog ll Facebook ll Twitter ll Google+ ll Pintrest ll

The car stopped, and Ethan’s hand slipped from mine. I turned to him, blinking against the fluorescent lights of the gas station.

“Sorry,” he said. “I didn’t mean to wake you. I just needed to get some gas and a few things from the convenience store. There’s no food at the cottage. I thought I’d grab some crackers and soda. Stuff like that. I’ll even see if they have black licorice for you. I know you love it.”

I nodded and started for my seat belt.

“No. You stay.” Ethan opened his door and stepped outside. I let my hair fall across my shoulders, trying to warm myself against the night air. “I’ll be right back.”

The trunk opened, and a moment later, Ethan opened my door, handing me one of his sweatshirts. “Here, you look cold.”

I smiled. “Thanks.” He knew me so well. I watched him walk inside the store and heard the soft click of the car locking again. He wasn’t taking any chances with me. I knew he’d protect me from anything. He’d already protected me from death. He was my every- thing now. I would never see my family or friends again. I had to start over. The thought terrified me, but at least I had Ethan by my side.

I hugged the sweatshirt to my body. I was too tired to actually put it on, and, this way I could breathe in Ethan’s scent while I kept warm. I inhaled deeply at first, and then my breaths became shallow, which was weird considering how tired I felt. I yawned. Exhaustion overwhelmed me. Apparently it took a lot of energy to return from the dead.

I leaned my head on the window, hoping the cool glass would keep me awake, but my head spun, making me dizzy. My arms and legs tingled with the sensation of pins and needles. I felt like I had a million spiders crawling all over me. I threw the sweatshirt off me and onto the floor. My arms were bare. No spiders. But the feeling didn’t go away. I panicked. The walls of the car were caving in on me. The air around me was tight, strangling me.

I searched the convenience store windows for Ethan, but all I saw was a guy in a cowboy hat, and a woman taking her little boy to the bathroom. Where was Ethan? The lightheadedness was getting worse—more intense. My breathing was labored. In a panic, I reached for the door handle. It took me a moment to remember it was locked, but when I finally got it open, I stumbled out of the car into the fresh air. I gulped oxygen into my lungs, hoping it would make me feel better, but it didn’t.

I was suffocating. Life was draining out of me. I collapsed to my knees, skinning them against the pavement. Wheezing, I crawled forward, trying to reach the convenience store door. Trying to reach Ethan. I needed help. I didn’t know what was happening to me, but it felt like I was dying…again.