Thank you for all the entries in the 5-Word First Love Contest to win a signed copy of Cheryl Renee Herbsman’s novel “Breathing.” They were all amazing!
And here’s the winning entry!
Caitlin @ Roaming Tales:
Kisses in rain like champagne
I love that entry — it’s sweet and romantic and poetic because it rhymes! And I can picture it and feel it and taste it! Yay Caitlin!
Hi friends and readers! I’m giving away another signed book and this time it’s Cheryl Renee Herbsman’s very lovely story of first love, “Breathing.” Watch the video here on my blog for the details and the enter to win in the comments! I’ll pick a winner by March 8.
Hello! I’m participating in a “”blogsplash” today for Fiona Robyn’s novel “Thaw.” And that means I’ll be posting the first chapter here! Fiona will be blogging the entire novel over the next few months so if you like it you can read it for free in its entirety on her site, or you can buy it at The Book Depository.
These hands are ninety-three years old. They belong to Charlotte Marie Bradley Miller. She was so frail that her grand-daughter had to carry her onto the set to take this photo. It’s a close-up. Her emaciated arms emerge from the top corners of the photo and the background is black, maybe velvet, as if we’re being protected from seeing the strings. One wrist rests on the other, and her fingers hang loose, close together, a pair of folded wings. And you can see her insides.
The bones of her knuckles bulge out of the skin, which sags like plastic that has melted in the sun and is dripping off her, wrinkling and folding. Her veins look as though they’re stuck to the outside of her hands. They’re a colour that’s difficult to describe: blue, but also silver, green; her blood runs through them, close to the surface. The book says she died shortly after they took this picture. Did she even get to see it? Maybe it was the last beautiful thing she left in the world.
I’m trying to decide whether or not I want to carry on living. I’m giving myself three months of this journal to decide. You might think that sounds melodramatic, but I don’t think I’m alone in wondering whether it’s all worth it. I’ve seen the look in people’s eyes. Stiff suits travelling to work, morning after morning, on the cramped and humid tube. Tarted-up girls and gangs of boys reeking of aftershave, reeling on the pavements on a Friday night, trying to mop up the dreariness of their week with one desperate, fake-happy night. I’ve heard the weary grief in my dad’s voice.
So where do I start with all this? What do you want to know about me? I’m Ruth White, thirty-two years old, going on a hundred. I live alone with no boyfriend and no cat in a tiny flat in central London. In fact, I had a non-relationship with a man at work, Dan, for seven years. I’m sitting in my bedroom-cum-living room right now, looking up every so often at the thin rain slanting across a flat grey sky. I work in a city hospital lab as a microbiologist. My dad is an accountant and lives with his sensible second wife Julie, in a sensible second home. Mother finished dying when I was fourteen, three years after her first diagnosis. What else? What else is there?
Charlotte Marie Bradley Miller. I looked at her hands for twelve minutes. It was odd describing what I was seeing in words. Usually the picture just sits inside my head and I swish it around like tasting wine. I have huge books all over my flat; books you have to take in both hands to lift. I’ve had the photo habit for years. Mother bought me my first book, black and white landscapes by Ansel Adams. When she got really ill, I used to take it to bed with me and look at it for hours, concentrating on the huge trees, the still water, the never-ending skies. I suppose it helped me think about something other than what was happening. I learned to focus on one photo at a time rather than flicking from scene to scene in search of something to hold me. If I concentrate, then everything stands still. Although I use them to escape the world, I also think they bring me closer to it. I’ve still got that book. When I take it out, I handle the pages as though they might flake into dust.
Mother used to write a journal. When I was small, I sat by her bed in the early mornings on a hard chair and looked at her face as her pen spat out sentences in short bursts. I imagined what she might have been writing about; princesses dressed in star-patterned silk, talking horses, adventures with pirates. More likely she was writing about what she was going to cook for dinner and how irritating Dad’s snoring was.
I’ve always wanted to write my own journal, and this is my chance. Maybe my last chance. The idea is that every night for three months, I’ll take one of these heavy sheets of pure white paper, rough under my fingertips, and fill it up on both sides. If my suicide note is nearly a hundred pages long, then no-one can accuse me of not thinking it through. No-one can say; ‘It makes no sense; she was a polite, cheerful girl, had everything to live for’, before adding that I did keep myself to myself. It’ll all be here. I’m using a silver fountain pen with purple ink. A bit flamboyant for me, I know. I need these idiosyncratic rituals; they hold things in place. Like the way I make tea, squeezing the tea-bag three times, the exact amount of milk, seven stirs. My writing is small and neat; I’m striping the paper. I’m near the bottom of the page now. Only ninety-one more days to go before I’m allowed to make my decision. That’s it for today. It’s begun.
Continue reading tomorrow here…
Kate Hegarty is the author of an upcoming YA fantasy novel “Mieradome” that’s being published as an e-book on June 1. I asked her to write a post for the BookChick.com on the path to e-book publication since it’s a route that’s becoming increasingly common. In her words…
By Kate Hegarty
It has been one rollercoaster ride to get here, to finally see Mieradome published, but an awesome one at that. It first started with a dream of a young teenage girl looking out of a window towards an oak tree. A sparkling firefly bolts past the back of her ear and into the depths of the tree. Given that my Hegarty family’s coat of arms has the same oak tree that was featured in my dream, it made me think of my own family heritage, and the story of why we, as Hegartys, have those images on our coat of arms, wondering what mysteries lay within those colors and shapes of an oak tree and three birds.
The reason for publishing on my own, as an independent e-book, was that pretty much every agent or publisher that took unsolicited submissions liked my novel’s vibe, but said it, “didn’t quite fit with their current list.’ After looking over my YA fantasy novel Mieradome, I found that it may never ‘fit’ onto a shelf with the stuff that is currently being published. I see my novel like “Dune” by Frank Herbert or the “Stars Wars” story by George Lucas, Mieradome is something that takes the traditional ways of seeing something and twists it around to get you to think and get your own imagination spinning. It merges the human emotional story with the technology around us, and the possibilities of thinking ‘outside the box.’
My hope with this novel is that it gets readers stoked to create your own stories, build the realms of your own fantasy worlds, write your own novel or comic, and hopefully get that published. Even though the world may not always be interested in your work, keep trying because just like my grandmother once told me, “there is always a buyer for any art you create, you just have to work hard to find them.”
You may never think about cheerleaders in the same way after reading Suzanne Young’s debut novel “The Naughty List.” She flips nearly every cheerleader stereotype on its head in her tale of a cheerleading-squad-turned-secret-society-to-catch-cheating-boyfriends. Rather than rely on the overdone image of a cheerleader as a ditsy blonde backbiter, Young paints a refreshing, nuanced and hilarious portrait of Tessa, the head cheerleader and head spy. Tessa takes cheering very seriously, but not because it’s a path to popularity. Because she truly believes in school spirit. And she believes in washing your mouth out with soap too. Rather than swear, she creates her own endearing four-letter phrases like “peanutbutter pickles” or “strawberry smoothies.” The story zips along at a quick pace with each chapter punctuated by a “cheater’s report” full of witty asides on the cheater’s behavior or tacky taste. But the complexity in this breezy tale comes in Tessa herself when she must confront what to do when she’s asked to investigate her own boyfriend’s possibly naughty ways. The Naughty List is a sparkling debut!
Note: This interview is cross-posted from DaisyWhitney.com
Welcome to my first interview for “The Girlfriends’ Cyber Circuit,” a webring of YA novelists. Check these postings for the latest releases!
Suzanne Young’s “The Naughty List” releases Friday, February 4 from Razorbill. It’s the first in a series.
Here’s a blurb on the book:
As if being a purrfect cheerleader isn’t enough responsibility! Tessa Crimson’s the sweet and spunky leader of the SOS (Society of Smitten Kittens), a cheer squad–turned–spy society dedicated to bringing dastardly boyfriends to justice, one cheater at a time. Boyfriend-busting wouldn’t be so bad . . . except that so far, every suspect on the Naughty List has been proven 100% guilty! When Tessa’s own boyfriend shows up on the List, she turns her sleuthing skills on him. Is Aiden just as naughty as all the rest, or will Tessa’s sneaky ways end in catastrophe? The Naughty List. Is your boyfriend on it?
Let’s get to know Suzanne!
Daisy: If you met your 16 year old self, what piece of advice would you give her?
Suzanne: He’s not worth it. I promise.
Daisy: When you tell people you write books for teens, what do you say when they ask, “Oh, like Twilight?”
Suzanne: Hah! Well, I usually hear: “I’ve always wanted to be a writer—I just don’t have the time.” But when people ask, “Like Twilight?” I say, “Yes. Exactly like Twilight. You should buy it.” haha
Daisy: I have created magnificent ass dents in two couches from all the writing time I log. I also have a pair of white fuzzy boot slippers that look like something a yeti might wear if yetis wore boots. What piece of clothing or item in your home would provide the necessary evidence to prove to the authorities that you are a writer if questioned?
Suzanne: I wear my pink penguin robe throughout most of the day. Every morning I wave to the crossing guard as I drop my kids off. If I hadn’t already given her a bookmark, she might think I’m strange.
Daisy: When you’re not reading or writing, where can you most likely be found?
Suzanne: Camping!
Daisy: In my first novel “The Mockingbirds,” a group of boarding school students form an underground justice system to right the wrongs of their peers. Looking back on your high school experience, what type of secret society did your school need the most?
Suzanne: They could have definitely used a SOS (the spying cheerleaders group in The Naughty List) to bring dastardly boyfriends to justice.
Daisy: Most people want to know who would play your main character if your novel became a film. But I’m a Broadway geek, so I want to know what you would call the show-stopping number from your novel when it becomes a Broadway musical.
Suzanne: It’s So Strawberry Smoothie: The Musical
Daisy: I’m going to tweet this blog post. So tell me in 140 characters or less, why people should buy your book.
Suzanne: If you’ve ever wanted to know what cheerleaders do after dark—check out The Naughty List. And if you’re curious about what your boyfriend does after dark—then you need the SOS.
Thanks, Suzanne!
I’ve read her book many times! In fact, Suzanne and I are critique partners and I got to scream and shout when she called me about her book deal back in 2008. She returned the favor for me when she was one of the first people I called after I landed my deal! So thrilled for you, Suzanne! Everyone should read her delicious book.
If you’re looking for a quick, escapist, romantic comedy it’s hard to beat “The Ex Games” by Jennifer Echols. It’s the story of hot-headed superstar snowboarder Hayden and her hard-to-resist ex-boyfriend Nick, also a hotshot on the slopes. They’re 17, they’re impetuous and they dare each other to prove their prowess in a battle of the sexes on the slopes. The only catch is Hayden is deathly afraid of jumps because she broke her leg four years ago.
Echols captures the Colorado snow town setting perfectly, but even better than her description of falling white stuff are her depictions of the on-again, off-again Nick and Hayden over winter break. These two teens will make you crazy with the way they make up and break up but the kisses are so good, you’ll keep turning the pages until the very end.
A delightful read!
You know that scene in “Twilight” where Edward and Bella are in the meadow? That scene you read late into the night over and over and your face was flushed and you were glad everyone else in the house was asleep because you had goosebumps on your arms and your skin was kind of tingling in anticipation of a fictional kiss? Well, if you want to recapture that feeling strung out over an entire book, then read JM Warwick’s “Season of Eden.” The book is one long seduction, one tantalizing buildup.
The book tells the story of 18-year-old high school student Eden who crushes hard on her 22-year-old music teacher Mr. Christian. And that’s it. The story is that simple — it’s about love, obsession, sexual tension and desire. But it’s not dirty and it’s not graphic. It’s about forbidden romance, attraction and the bloom of first love. The characters do nothing more than kiss in this story.
If you’re looking for a romance fix, put this on the top of your list.
Thanks to “Just Your Typical Book Blog” where I first learned about this story.
My darling, wonderful, fantabulous writer friend Suzanne Young’s first novel releases in just a few days - February 4 to be exact. And in honor of her book The Naughty List I’ll be wearing The Naughty List tee-shirts in my videos and on This Week in Media for the next month. Don’t worry - I’ll mix it up! After all, I bought The Naughty List tees in pink, white, lavender and yellow! Aren’t they yummy???
make custom gifts at Zazzle
Yes, I usually recommend teen lit or women’s fiction. BUT, I have to give “How to Find a Woman…or Not” a shoutout!
It’s a tongue-in-cheek how-to guide for guys on landing a lady. OK, so why am I (a happily married woman) reading a dating guide for dudes? Because it is FUNNY. It’s one of those books that gives women a glimpse into the strange and funny mind of a man who simply wants to find the perfect woman to cuddle with and enjoy pesto over a red-checkered tableclothed table. In the interests of full disclosure, I will say the author Gary Morgenstein is a good friend of mine.
His book reads like a hilarious lunch outing with a friend when that friend shares all his misadventures from dating. Gary has more than his fair share and he chronicles them to great delight (including the perils of waking up in the middle of the night at the house of a woman who owns a dog).
This is a great gift book for men or women.
