Blog Tour - Derailed (The Obscured Series #3) by C.M. Boers + Writing Guest Post

Derailed (The Obscured Series #3) by C.M. Boers

Genre: YA Paranormal Fantasy

Release Date: August 2016

Summary:

Abby Martin has normal problems for a teenage girl—her dad lives in another state, her mom’s boyfriend is moving in, and school and work are stressful. But these are the least of her concerns when she begins receiving threatening notes and a black SUV stalks her at night. As the web of danger tightens around her, panic sets in. With the help of her boyfriend, Eli, and best friend, Casey, she must find out who is obsessed with her before her nightmares come true.

Complicating her life further, Eli and Casey are both acting strangely. Who can she trust? And will she figure out what’s going on before she ends up dead?

Encounter Derailed, the heart-pounding third novel in C.M. Boers’ Obscured series. 

Obscured (The Obscured Series #1) by C.M. Boers

Genre: YA Paranormal Fantasy

Release Date: August 29th 2014

Summary:

Abby Martin thought she was an ordinary girl about to start high school. But when her mom announces that they’re moving to Arizona, vivid nightmares start plaguing Abby’s nights. As she settles into her new school and a cute guy named Pete catches her eye, she hopes that life might somehow get back to normal. To Abby’s horror, “normal” becomes a thing of the past as she’s swept up into a world of immortal protectors wielding supernatural gifts. When Abby realizes she’s a pawn in a centuries-old feud, she must figure out who she can trust before she’s caught in the crossfire.

Prepare yourself for heart-pounding suspense in the world of Obscured, where nothing is as it seems and danger lurks in unexpected places.

Divulge (The Obscured Series #2) by C.M. Boers

Genre: YA Paranormal Fantasy

Release Date: August 1st 2015

Summary:

After Abby Martin’s friend is kidnapped by an immortal protector with an ancient grudge, Abby and her boyfriend Eli must follow the trail from Arizona to Colorado to stage a rescue before it’s too late. As growing danger encroaches on Abby and Eli from every side, she must confront the reality that her recurring nightmares are coming true. In the process, she discovers that she possesses a supernatural gift—one that she must learn to control before those around her start to die.

To make matters worse, her relationship with Eli is put to the ultimate test when tragedy strikes. Can they rekindle their love, or will the walls between them prove impossible to breach?

Experience romance, suspense, and twists you’ll never see coming in Divulge, the second novel in C.M. Boers’ Obscured series. 

About the Author:

I am a wife and mother of three. I grew up in the sunshine state of Arizona with a love of reading and an ambition to write. But I never took my writing seriously until after the birth of my first child. After that I took up writing more seriously in my spare time and I haven't stopped since. 

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Four things I love about my favorite book: 

I have lots of favorite books of course, but one series in particular stands out to me when I think of my four favorite things about them. 

The Doorknob Society by M. J. Fletcher

1. I love that the main character is a girl who thrown into a new world and she owns it! She completely takes charge and ends up being such a great role model. 

2. I love that this series was written by a man. A little background on this Author is that he wrote this book because there weren't many female heros for his daughter to look up to, and he completely nails captivating a girl's emotions in his writing. 

3. I love that with such a strong female heroine there is enough action and adventure that it totally could be entertaining to both girls and boys! 

4. I love the whole world he has created, where doorknobs and skeleton keys don't just open normal doorways. It's so imaginative and unique. 

Guest Post:

Pantser or planner? Which is your crafting process of a novel? 

The first book in my series was completely unplanned and came out as I wrote. The second was a bit more planned here and there as far as me writing ideas for scenes and such. The third I wrote and outline for things to happen in each chapter, out of order, but in that chapter.

 I find that no matter what you do, the story takes shape how it was meant too, and I think the outlines can help as long as you don't get discouraged if something doesn't play out the same way you have imagined it would. Those characters are tricky little devils sometimes. :)

Blog Tour - The Sound of Us by Julie Hammerle - Teasers + How to write a good plot

The Sound of Us by Julie Hammerle

Release Date: June 7th 2016

Entangled Teen

Summary:

Kiki Nichols might not survive music camp.

She’s put her TV-loving, nerdy self aside for one summer to prove she’s got what it takes: she can be cool enough to make friends, she can earn that music scholarship, and she can get into Krause University’s music program.

Except camp has rigid conduct rules—which means her thrilling late-night jam session with the hot drummer can’t happen again, even though they love all the same TV shows, and fifteen minutes making music with him meant more than every aria she’s ever sung.

But when someone starts snitching on rule breakers and getting them kicked out, music camp turns into survival of the fittest. If Kiki’s going to get that scholarship, her chance to make true friends—and her chance with the drummer guy—might cost her the future she wants more than anything.

Buy Links:

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About the Author:

Julie Hammerle is the author of The Sound of Us, which will be published by Entangled Teen in the summer of 2016. Before settling down to write "for real," she studied opera, taught Latin, and held her real estate license for one hot minute. 

Currently, she writes about TV on her blog Hammervision, ropes people into conversations about Game of Thrones, and makes excuses to avoid the gym. 

Her favorite YA-centric TV shows include 90210 (original spice), Felicity, and Freaks and Geeks. Her iPod reads like a 1997 Lilith Fair set list. She lives in Chicago with her husband, two kids, and a dog. They named the dog Indiana. 

Author Links:

How to write a good plot

Plotting is one of my favorite parts of the writing process. I love trying to figure out the problem of what comes next. It’s like doing a gigantic puzzle.

That said, I’d be nothing without my tools. 

I always start by consulting my favorite writing books. I start with K.M. Weiland’s Outlining Your Novel, and supplement it with a few other books, like Save the Cat and The Virgin’s Promise.

Once I get to the point where I’m starting to think seriously about structure, I pull out my white board and some Post-Its. I map out the story in four lines, each line ending with a plot point (Plot Point 1, Midpoint, Plot Point 2, Ending). This helps me see visually how the story moves and where I might get in trouble.

After I get the story mapped out in Post-It form, I write a scene-by-scene summary—basically telling the story to myself. Doing this really helps me brainstorm and usually highlights plot holes. I’m also able to make notes about what needs to be foreshadowed where, when characters should be introduced, that kind of thing. Often, if this stage is detailed enough, I’ll start writing from here--usually because I’m too excited to wait any longer, and also because sometimes you just have to start writing the thing in order to find the holes.

I’d love to say that plotting is an exact science for me, but it’s not. It’s a lot of trial and error, a lot of notes and comments and deleted scenes, and a lot of long, therapeutic walks. 

Blog Tour - The Society by Jodie Andrefski - Teasers, Writing Tips, Giveaway

The Society by Jodie Andrefski

Release Date: May 3rd 2016

Entangled Teen

Summary:

Welcome to Trinity Academy’s best-kept secret.

The Society.

You’ve been handpicked by the elite of the elite to become a member. But first you’ll have to prove your worth by making it through Hell Week.

Do you have what it takes?

It’s time to find out.

Samantha Evans knows she’d never get an invite to rush the Society—not after her dad went to jail for insider trading. But after years of relentless bullying at the hands of the Society’s queen bee, Jessica, she’s ready to take down Jessica and the Society one peg at a time from the inside out.

All it’ll take is a bit of computer hacking, a few fake invitations, some eager rushees…and Sam will get her revenge.

Let the games begin.

Buy Links:

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About the Author:

Jodie Andrefski has been passionate about reading ever since she was a little girl, when she used to climb trees to escape with a favorite book. She now lives and writes in a small town in Pennsylvania with her teenage daughter. Though still an avid reader, she now prefers a comfy chair over the crook of a tree. 

An unapologetic coffee fiend, she's even happier if her java comes with pie. Jodie often draws on her background in education and mental health counseling to bring real world experience to her writing. She is a firm believer in the magic of a first kiss, and insists that you should never, ever give up on your dreams. 

Author Links:

Writing Tips:

Writing can be tough. There are times we all feel frustrated, want to give up, look at other people around us and do the inevitable comparisons and come up feeling “less than.” My biggest piece of advice when those feelings come? STOP. Don’t let those voices in your head take over. They’re wrong. Don’t let the self-doubt win. Instead, push through and listen to the other voices---the voices of your story. Tell it. Because you are the only one who can. Did you hear that? Now believe it. The world needs YOU to tell your specific story.  I’ve yet to talk to a writer who didn’t feel doubts tip-toe in at one time or another. But the secret is to keep going. 

WRITE EVERY DAY – Even when you don’t feel like writing. Granted, life can get in the way, and some days are simply busier than others. But setting time aside each day to write helps get you in the habit of putting words on the page each and every day. You can set a specific word count you want to meet, or set a specific time frame—whatever works best for you. The most important thing is that you just WRITE.

DON’T EDIT AS YOU WRITE – Save editing for later. Your first draft isn’t the time for this. While we all want our manuscript to be shiny and beautiful, at this stage it’s important to get the words down. Trust me, you’ll have plenty of time to edit later. 

SHOW THE ACTION – We hear it all the time, “Show don’t tell.” We hear it so often because it is so true. Stay away from using dialogue tags as a cheap way to show action. Read a lot to see how other authors do this successfully.

GET YOURSELF SOME CP’s – A good critique partner and/or beta readers are invaluable. This doesn’t mean find someone who will simply tell you that every word you write is golden. It means finding someone who is brave enough to call you on a messy scene, or one that doesn’t make sense, or one that feels rushed. You want to find several, because remember, writing is subjective. But if you get notes back from three different CPs saying the same thing, you may want to consider what they are saying, even if it is difficult to hear.

LET YOUR MS SIT – If you are feeling frustrated with your work, or out of ideas with the manuscript or just not sure where to go next with your characters, put it in a drawer and walk away from it for a while. Start on something new and fresh and go back to it later. Time away from your work allows you to look at it with fresh eyes and sometimes this can make all the difference. It’s like food in a crock pot, sometimes sitting and cooking makes it all the more delicious.

BE WILLING TO KILL YOUR DARLINGS – We write our words, we become attached, they are like a piece of us. But sometimes in order to make our manuscript stronger, we have to be willing to prune off the parts that are not needed. Listen to your CPs, your editor, that little voice inside your head----it will make your work better---it will make it come alive.

DON’T COMPARE YOURSELF TO OTHER WRITERS - Sometimes this is the most difficult piece of advice to take, but often the most necessary. Every writer follows a different path to publishing. We also don’t know all of the steps a writer takes to get where we see them today. We don’t necessarily know how many rejection letters they received before getting the coveted “CALL.” We don’t know how many messy manuscripts they attempted to write before coming up with the one(s) that you are comparing your own writing to. Just…Don’t. Don’t fall into that hole. Let your own voice shine, keep pushing through…keep following your dream, and don’t give up. It may sound trite, it may sound like a cheesy (but awesome) Journey song, but that doesn’t make it any less true. Don’t Stop Believing. You CAN do it.

Blog Tour - Supernatural Freak by Louisa Klein + Writing Tips

Supernatural Freak by Louisa Klein

Genre: Urban Fantasy/Paranormal

Release Date: January 30th 2013

Summary:

When paranormal expert Robyn Wise is offered an outrageous sum of money to cure a boy who is turning into a dead tree, she's very sceptical. A politician ready to pay that much to make his son stop growing branches instead of hair? Come on! She's more likely to be abducted by aliens. This is a trap. Or much worse. And, of course, it's much worse.

The child is turning into a dark portal, created by a powerful entity determined to absorb Fairyland's power. This means that not only queen Titania and her court are in danger, but the very balance of the magic fluxes.

Robyn'd rather stick a pencil in her own eye but, to learn how to destroy the portal, she has to sneak into the Wizardry Council, a place full of wizards who are hiding something—though it’s certainly not their dislike of her.

There, she discovers a terrible secret that could help to overthrow Fairyland's enemies for good, but puts her in the midst of an ancient and deadly war, and not as a bystander, but as the main target.

About the Author:

Louisa Klein lives in the UK but was born in Germany and brought up in Southern Europe by a German dad and an Italian and French mum, which made her a little confused at first. She has a degree in Medieval Studies and a postgraduate one in Marketing. She’s been working in publishing on and off since she was 17 and currently is a freelancer and an Urban Fantasy writer. At night she puts on a mask and fights British crime. She gets very little sleep.

Author Links:

WRITING TIPS:

I am a relatively new writer, having only two books under my belt, I’m still learning and need writing tips myself sometimes! Still, there are a couple of things that I’ve learned while writing Supernatural Freak and Supernatural Fog and I’m very happy to share them with you. These are more than tips to me, though, they’re more like mental pillars on which I’ve built my writing.

1) Choose to be a writer only if there’s nothing else in the world that can make you happier. 

The life of a professional writer is rigidly structured and demands a level of dedication no more or less than a ballerina’s. Ask a professional dancer what her life is about and she’ll respond “dance, dance and more dance”.  A writer’s life is the same. It requires so many sacrifices that it really must be the thing that you want the most, the thing that makes you happy more than anything else. Especially at the beginning of our carrier, our mantra is eat, sleep, write, repeat. Every day. For years. 

Forget about having a social life. Forget about dating. If you have a day job, then you’ll have to use your free time to write only. Which means you’ll have to stay indoor during the weekend, when everyone else is out having fun or relaxing. You’ll have to stay up at night to pursue your writing. It’s tough. If you write full time you’ll have deadlines to hit, rounds and rounds of editing, a blog to keep updated. Plus, if you’re an indie writer, like me, you’ll have to carefully save your money to be able to invest into your covers, your promotion, your amazing editor. Again, it’s tough. If you’d rather be with your friends, have sex with your partner, plan a family, then you’re not meant to be a writer. 

There are of course exceptions, but they are exceptions. There are ballerinas who have children and then go back dancing professionally, but they’re one in a million. Everyone else has to choose: it’s either this or that. To me, it’s writing is totally worth every sacrifice I make for it. Every time I get a 5 star review, every time I receive an email telling me that my books helped someone to get through a bad period of their life, I feel exhilarated, happy and fulfilled. What about you?  Are you a writer or just an amateur?  

2) ALWAYS listen to CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM. 

Of course I like compliments, every writer does. Bad reviews are painful, negative feedback from editors and agents feels like having your soul ripped apart, I know. Still, as difficult as it is, LISTEN to the above feedback. READ the negative reviews containing useful, constructive criticism and LEARN. Learn to be a better writer. Learn how to fix a bad scene, or a boring one. Find a consistent, effective voice for your stories. On the other hand IGNORE HATERS AND TROLLS because, you know, they’re just losers craving attention and definitely NOT worth your attention. You have much better things to do, like writing your next novel, which, if you listen to constructive criticism, will be far better than the previous one. 

3) NEVER write for an audience, ALWAYS write for yourself. 

And write about  what you know and what’s important to you. If you write with market in mind, if you write for money, for success, if you write to be liked and popular, then you’re very likely to fail. First, trends come and go in a nowadays fiction and some even stay on for a few months only. So, chasing trends can be extremely counterproductive.  Plus, you’re supposed to be a writer and not a prostitute, so don’t sell yourself for money! On the other hand, If you write about what’s important to you, the odds are other people will care about it too. I wrote two books featuring a kick-ass heroine with a wicked sense of humour and a lot of personal issues because I wanted to show that women are people with flaws and issues and insecurities and not a bunch of living stereotypes. Guess what? It turned out that a LOT of women and even MEN agreed with me and liked Robyn, my MC, A LOT. So, write about what’s important to you!

Blog Tour - Anomalies by Sadie Turner & Colette Freedman - Writing Tips & Tricks + Giveaway

Anomalies by Sadie Turner & Colette Freedman

Release Date: February 9th 2016

Genre: YA Sci fi

Select Books in NY

Summary:

In the future there is no disease. There is no war. There is no discontent. All citizens are complacent members of the Global Governance. But one summer is about to change everything.

Keeva Tee just turned fifteen. All of her dreams are about to come true. She s about to make the trip to Monarch Camp to be imprinted with her intended life partner. One day they ll have perfect kids and a perfect life. But in her happy, carefree life in the Ocean Community, something weighs on her mind. She hears whispers about anomalies citizens who can t be imprinted. No one knows what happens to them, but they never seem to come back.

When Keeva arrives at Monarch Camp, her worst nightmare becomes a reality she is an anomaly. After imprinting, the people she loves change, and she starts to doubt everything she s ever believed. What if freedom and individuality have been sacrificed for security? And what if the man who solves all the problems is the very man who s created them and what if he isn't a man at all?

When Keeva finds a warning carved under a bunk bed she begins to understand: nonconformity will be punished, dissent is not an option, insurgents will be destroyed.

About the Authors:

SADIE TURNER is a Los Angeles-based producer and writer originally from Brighton, England, who works in business development with several Hollywood entrepreneurs. She has various projects in development, and also teaches yoga. 

Author Links:

COLETTE FREEDMAN is an internationally produced playwright, screenwriter, and novelist who was recently named one of the Dramatist Guild’s “50 to Watch”. Her play Sister Cities (NYTE, 2009) was the hit of the 2008 Edinburgh Fringe and earned five star reviews: It has been produced around the country and internationally, including Paris (Une Ville, Une Soeur) and Rome (Le Quattro Sorelle). She has authored fifteen produced plays including Serial Killer Barbie (Brooklyn Publishers, 2004), First to the Egg (Grand prize shorts urban shorts festival), Bridesmaid # 3 (Louisville finalist 2008), and Ellipses… (Dezart Festival winner 2010), as well as a modern adaptation of Iphigenia in Aulis written in iambic pentameter. She was commissioned to write a modern adaptation of Uncle Vanya which is in preproduction and has co-written, with International bestselling novelist Jackie Collins, the play Jackie Collins Hollywood Lies, which is gearing up for National Tour. In collaboration with The New York Times best selling author Michael Scott, she has just sold the thriller The Thirteen Hallows, to Tor/Macmillan, which comes out Dec 6, 2011. She has just sold the novel The Affair to Kensington and is getting ready to shop her YA series The A+ Girls.

Author Links:

tips and tricks for aspiring authors, how to get back into writing after few years

There are a billion excuses why not to write. That is where most people start. With the excuse.  “I can’t write because x, y, z.” The reality is, anyone can write... it is simply a matter of being disciplined with your time and talent. 

Sitting down at the computer is often the most difficult obstacle to overcome. It’s akin to going to the gym. Once you put on your running shoes and gym clothes, the hard part is over. Same thing with writing.

 People talk about writers’ block, but we don’t believe in it. Maybe you aren’t inspired one day. Maybe you sit down for five hours and write crap...there still may be one kernel of an idea within that crap which is viable. Some days, you sit down and it’s magical. But if you keep sitting down in front of the computer (or standing if you have one of those cool standing desks) then the ideas will flow.

 Ritual is always important. We always start with a hot drink Coffee (Colette) and Tea (Sadie). Sipping from a mug is a way to slowly sooth your senses and get back into your story. The biggest tip we can offer... end in the middle of a thought or sentence, that way the following day you can start right up again and finish your thought. The momentum is already going in your favor. Another tip is read. Read everything you can. We are both avid readers and it is a terrific way to spur the imagination. We try not to read in the genre we are writing at the time, so during Anomalies, neither one of us read any YA lit; instead, we focused on some great spiritual books (Sadie) and zombie books (Colette). And get a comfortable chair. It makes a big difference. 

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