Day 6 with Lauren Baratz-Logsted

This competition is now closed!




My next guest is the one and only Lauren Baratz-Logsted who is a complete writing machine! She is also an incredibly generous author who never fails to help out newbie and vetern authors alike with her wise words. In fact, as Randy Jackson would say, Lauren is the bomb (please picture me doing some cool Randy hand actions at this stage and perhaps saying the word 'dog' a few times, because seriously, that's just the way I roll).

The other thing about Lauren is that she defies genres! She has written women's fiction, literary fiction, young adult, mid grade and her latest release which is a collaboration with her husband and her gorgeous daughter Jackie is the Sisters Eight books (which I still can't get off my own little angel since she squirrelled them off me the minute I opened the package!). Anyway, enough from me and over to Lauren:

Congratulations, Amanda, on the release of ZOMBIE QUEEN OF NEWBURY HIGH!

My characters have never done anything quite so wide-ranging as Mia's love spell with the, um, zombie side effects, but my characters have done some pretty dumb/weird/ridiculous things. (Keep in mind, I'm the woman who launched her writing career with the adult novel THE THIN PINK LINE, a dark comedy about a woman who fakes an entire pregnancy - so yeah, I know dumb/weird/ridiculous.)

If I had to pick one of the stranger extreme things that one of the characters in my novels for teens do it'd have to be Lacey Underhill in the tween novel ME, IN BETWEEN. Lacey is a generously well-breasted twelve-year-old - size 36C, to be exact - who feels conflicted about her assets. She really doesn't appreciate the boys in her class calling her Lacey Underwire or, when she takes up cheerleading, Lacey Pom-Poms.

When she meets older boy Chad Wilcox while playing her favorite pinball machine at the mall - Chad's old enough to drive - Lacey decides it's not so bad looking more mature than her years, so she plays that up. But then her childhood best friend Sam moves back to town and, longing for the simpler days they shared together, Lacey binds her breasts like a geisha so Sam won't be able to tell how much she's changed. Cleavage-boasting shirts here, tape-bound breasts there - it's enough to make a girl crazy!

So, no zombies here but...pretty drastically insane!If you want a chance to win a signed copy of ME, IN BETWEEN, leave a comment below. Amanda will choose a winner, let me know, and then I'll mail the book to you. And if you want to read more about my own life and work, please visit http://www.laurenbaratzlogsted.com/ and http://www.sisterseight.com/.

Finally, most important of all: Congratulations again, Amanda, on ZOMBIE QUEEN OF NEWBURY HIGH!

Thanks Lauren - isn't she just the best? And I actually just finished reading Me, In Between and I can assure you that whoever wins it will be very, very lucky, so what are you waiting for? Get commenting already! And don't forget, it's not too late to leave a comment for Sara Hantz, Stephanie Keuhnert and Vanessa Barneveld. Retweet this button on every post blogger

Day 6 with Sara Hantz

This competition is now closed!




Yesterday you met one of my critique partners Pat Posner, and today it's time to meet another one of the poor, poor people who have to read through my zombie infested manuscripts. That's right, it's time to let Sara Hantz come out and play.

Sara is not only my cp but she also happens to live twenty minutes down the road from me and in New Zealand the phone companies very kindly give us local calls for free. Which much means that Sara's husband spends his whole life saying 'is that Amanda on the phone?'. And yes, sadly, most of the time it is me since between living in the same time zone and getting free calls, Sara has to put up with all my ridiculous concerns.

Thankfully she has a PhD in dealing with Ridiculous Concerns so it all works out nicely. Another thing she has, is an amazing book called The Second Virginity of Suzy Green, which, if you haven't read yet, then I absolutely insist that you put it on your list right this minute because it is fabulous. Anyway one of the questions I told my guest bloggers they could discuss was the dumb things that either they or their characters have done for love and while we still haven't managed to find anyone who has turned their entire senior year into zombies, I think Sara's heroine Suzy still manages to do something pretty crazy. Check it out and don't forget to comment at the end to go in with a chance of winning a copy of Sara's book.


Hi, Suzy Green here from The Second Virginity of Suzy Green by Sara Hantz. I’m so excited that Amanda has asked me to take part in the blog party for the launch of her latest book Zombie Queen of Newbury High – which is a truly fabulous book and laugh outloud funny!

Amanda wants to know the dumbest thing I’ve ever done for love. Well…… there’s dumb and there’s dumb and I’m pretty sure my experience falls into the latter.

When I started my new school, determined to be Miss Perfect Student I totally fell for this hottie who was gorgeous, played in the football team and was awesome. The only snag, he was involved in this Virginity Club. I know, a Virginity Club! So I did what any girl in my position would, I joined. Even though technically I wasn’t qualified. But when love is involved compromises have to be made.

Anyway, it turns out this guy, who was called Guy, wasn’t the guy I thought (ok.. enough with the guy jokes) and the guy (oops) I mean boy I was really in love with (Ryan) knew me for who I really was (and definitely knew I wasn’t a virgin as he was The One) and didn’t expect me to be any different.

So, not only was I dumb for joining the Virginity Club when I shouldn’t have, I wasn’t even in love! Still, it all turned out ok in the end. Ryan and I are still together and totally in love.

Thanks Sara (and Suzy) for sharing that. Like I said, not quite zombie levels of dumbness but I think it comes close! Anyway, since we've already had a few posts where you've all very bravely confessed what dumb things you've done, what I want to know if you've ever lied in the name of love??????

Also, it's not to late to leave comments for Stephanie Keuhnert and Vanessa Barneveld Retweet this button on every post blogger

Winner from my pimp the blog party contest

In case this is your first visit to my blog and you're wondering why there is so many blood stains and entrails lying around the place it's because you've stumbled onto my zombie blog party in order to celebrate the release of my upcoming young adult book ZOMBIE QUEEN OF NEWBURY HIGH (which is out next Thursday and available for pre-order now. You know, if you want to!). Anyway, I've since discovered that inviting zombies to come and share the celebrations isn't always such a clever idea.

For a start they sort of stink and their manners are pretty much non-existant. Oh, and another thing is that they have a bad habit of eating all my guests which is definitely not something I approve of. On the plus side they are more than a little amusing to watch dance and don't get me started on how they limbo - I bet that weird one with no hair won't try leaving his arm up again since it fell off like it had gone through a meat slicer. But anyway I digress, my point is that we've still got five more days of zombie goodness to get through. That means more authors, more zombie talk and most importantly more prizes.

And speaking of prizes let me dilly dally no longer because it's time to announce the winner of my pimp the blog party contest. But first can I just say that I've been overwhelmed at the amount of superior pimpage that has been going on! Anyway, the person who has won a copy of ZOMBIE QUEEN OF NEWBURY HIGH and their very own zombie survival kit is: Ashley Madden aka nightdweller20

Congratulations!!!! If you could send me an email along with your postal details that would be great. Oh, and please put Zombie Blog Party Winner in the subject line just so I see it.

I had planned to announce the winners of Day 4 as well but I'm still waiting to hear back from some of the authors (perhaps they're having a little zombie nap from all that power eating?). Anyway, as soon as I have them I'll let you know!

And finally, don't forget there is still time to leave comments for Stephanie Keuhnert and Vanessa Barneveld by scrolling down!!!! Retweet this button on every post blogger

Day 5 with Vanessa Barneveld

My first guest today is the lovely Vanessa Barneveld who goes under the stylish disguise of Authorness. In fact, you will soon learn that everything about Vanessa is stylish and while I like her a lot, it's not a good thing to stand next to her since not only is she petite and gorgeous she dresses exactly like Audrey Hepburn and despite what she says below about looking like a zombie, I can assure you that it's just not possible!

Anyway, Vanessa is a fellow Australian and though we didn't know each back in the day, we actually both grew up in Brisbane ( but fear not - we both escaped!). She is also a fabulous young adult author who has a great agent and a slew of competition wins tucked (stylishly) into her belt and I just KNOW that it won't be long before she sells her first book and then we'll all be racing over to join her blog party!!!!

Another fact about Vanessa is that her critique partner is the too cool for school Stephanie Keuhnert (who is also my next guest. See what I did there? Clever, eh!)

Anyway, enough from me and over to Vanessa!

Sympathy for the Zombie


Matted hair, crusty skin, rank breath, impaired social skills—gosh, I could be describing myself when I get up in the morning. But, no, I’m talking about zombies. When you think about it, they don’t have an easy time of things. For one, they’re mostly dead. Re-animated corpses. Yet they walk, they talk, they...attack.

Why would anyone want to become a zombie if all one has to look forward is incurably bad personal hygiene? Well, in Amanda’s ZOMBIE QUEEN OF NEWBURY HIGH, the kids don’t exactly aspire to zombie-ism. They’re infected by a virus. It isn’t their fault. And I kind of feel bad for them, even if they are conspiring to put heroine Mia at the top of their healthy-eating pyramid.



Imagine the psychological damage zombies must suffer when hysterical humans insist on running away from them. A typical zombie is stiff-gaited and roams around with arms held straight out in front, mumbling about brains. Has anyone stopped to think they just might want a hug or an intellectually stimulating conversation?

Like people, zombies aren’t all good or all bad. They do have redeeming qualities. Don’t believe me? If it weren’t for the existence of zombies—at least in our imaginations—we wouldn’t have classic horror movies such as Night of the Comet. In this ’80s masterpiece, two Valley Girls shop till their teased hairstyles drop after a comet lands in Los Angeles and turns everyone else into zombies. My film connoisseur friend Robby has seen this flick 1,756 times (or thereabouts), so it must be pretty good. Who knows? Maybe we’ll see Amanda’s zombies on the big screen one day.

Night of the Comet

Thank you to my fellow Australian, the wonderful Amanda Ashby, for inviting me to her monster blog bash. (Congrats, Amanda!!!) We finally met in person last year in San Francisco and I daresay my severely jetlagged countenance reminded her of zombies. I hope you all rush out and buy ZOMBIE QUEEN OF NEWBURY HIGH

But first, please post an answer to this: Who do you suspect is a zombie and why? You can give the suspect an alias if you’re afraid they’ll come after you. Remember, in my opinion, being a zombie isn’t necessarily a bad thing. One lucky random commenter will receive a luscious packet of Tim Tam chocolate biscuits (cookies, if you will), all the way from the Southern Hemisphere. This stuff is guaranteed to re-animate you when you’re feeling half-dead.

Woot. First up let me explain to you that it takes a Very Strong person to part with their Tim Tams so Vanessa's gift is extremely generous and in fact, I think even the most hardened zombie would have a tough time choosing between brains and Tim Tams because they are so filled with chunky goodness (and chocolate. Lots of and lots of chocolate). I can't wait to hear all your answers and secret zombie identities (between you and me I'm starting to suspect Madonna might be a zombie. Or is that just botox? It's getting harder to tell.)

Also, don't forget there is still time to scroll down and leave comments for Tera, Liza and Pat!

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Day 5 with Stephanie Keuhnert

I'm sorry, but they just don't come any cooler than Stephanie Keuhnert and in fact if she had a c in her name I would say that she put the c in cool, but anyway, you get my drift.

Not only is she my fellow Teen Fiction Cafe buddy and the the author of I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone and the upcoming Ballads of Suburbia but she has been getting all kinds of hard core critical praise for her writing. And let me tell you that critical praise is no easy thing to get! Where as, somehow I think if I tried to write a book with music in it, it would end up being about a girl who stays in her room and talks to her Spice Girl wallpaper (and who probably thought that Posh Spice was her invisible friend). Which, in turns proves that I am the opposite of cool!!!

But anyway, this isn't about me, it's about Stephanie who has been kind enough to come and play with us today and she's offered to giveaway a signed copy of her debut book I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone. So read on!

Zombie Wanna Be...Kind Of

When the question “What do you want to happen with your body after you die?” comes up in conversation (which happens more often than you’d think, perhaps because I’m a bartender and tend to be part of a lot of weird conversations), I always answer immediately, “I want to be cremated.”

There are two reasons for this response. One, I don’t want to be buried alive. (I think I have this fear because I watch too many soap operas where people are always coming back from the dead.) Two, zombies. I absolutely don’t want to have to come back as a zombie and possibly traumatize my brother or best friend. Not to mention, brains are totally not vegan.

My feelings about zombies are conflicted. I’d imagine many of us feel that way. I’m incredibly fascinated by zombies (the original Night of the Living Dead, which my dad showed me when I was about 12, is one of my all time fave movies and I was so stoked when I got to visit the cemetery in Pennsylvania where it was filmed), but frightened at the same time. I live in a town with so many cemeteries that the dead outnumber the living 5 to 1. If there was a zombie attack, I’d be totally screwed.

Even though I don’t want to become a zombie for real, I decided to be one for Halloween last year. It was by far my best costume since I was an ice princess in 2000. The reason I got all into it was because I’d spent the past two years feeling like a zombie. I worked an office job. In a cube. With glaring florescent lights overhead. I mindlessly replied to email, scheduled meetings, and took notes at those meetings. I had to wear hideously boring business clothes and refrain from dying my hair odd colors. I was so happy when my first book, I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone, came out, and I had an excuse to quit that job and go back to bartending like I had in grad school. (Of course my excuse wasn’t that I suddenly had more money. I just wanted to work part time so I could have more writing time.) Honestly, I think I’d rather eat brains than go back to another office job. I decided to dress up as an office zombie so I would always remember that.




I think I actually make a pretty cute zombie (and so does my fiancé Scott, and note that we are trying to attack my friend and former co-worker from the office job, Kathy, which seems fitting somehow..), but the whole brains not being vegan thing still bugs me, so I still plan to be cremated and I really hope there isn’t a zombie uprising in my town. And yet I’m dying to read Zombie Queen of Newbury High.

What about you? Do you have a love/fear thing with zombies too?


See, even when she is a zombie, Stephanie is insanely cool! And actually I can't begin to tell you how impressed I was when she sent me her guest post AND a zombie photo. Now, that's what I call rock and roll!!! Anyway, Stephanie has kindly said that one lucky commenter will win a signed copy of her debut book I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone, so what are you waiting for?

Also, there's still time to leave comments for Vanessa Barneveld, Tera Lynn Childs, Liza Conrad and Pat Posner. Retweet this button on every post blogger

Winners from Day 3

If I've told those zombies once, I've told them a thousand times, no braaaaains before bedtime because it just gives them nightmares. But do they listen? No, of course not, so now I've got a houseful of freaked out zombies on my hands. I ask you, what can you do?

Actually, I know exactly what I can do. I can announce the winners for day 3!!!!

The winner of Alyson Noel's Evermore is Steph Su

The winner of Carol Snow's Switched is Biblauragraphy

Congratulations to both and...no, zombie, put that person down. You've had far too much food for one day...er, sorry about that interruption. I told you they were acting all kinds of crazy!!! Anyway, if you could both send me your postal details in an email to and put ZOMBIE BLOG WINNER in the subject line then I'll send them onto Carol and Alyson and they'll get your books in the post.

And don't forget there is still time to leave comments for Tera Lynn Childs, Liza Conrad and Pat Posner. Retweet this button on every post blogger

I'm baaaack

Could there be anymore zombie goodness? Why yes, I do believe there could! Anyway, the wonderful Tina Ferraro and Kelly Parra have a copy of Zombie Queen of Newbury High up for grabs over at their YA Fresh blog. Well? What are you waiting for?

And don't forget there is still one more day to pimp my blog party. All you've got to do is give me a shout out somewhere (or everywhere, I really don't mind which) and then send me an email to and you will go into the draw to win a copy of Zombie Queen of Newbury High plus an adorable (and very handy) Zombie Survival Kit.

Also, I'd just like to say a continued thanks to you all for making this party so much fun. You know, between you and me I was a little concerned that no one would turn up and that the zombies would get mad.

And not that I'm afraid of them or anything, it's just because it's a party I really wanted to wear my favorite pair of red heels and there's just no way I can run from mad zombies when I'm in those suckers (which reminds me, rule number one when you're being chased down by zombies. Sensible footwear! Rule number two. Don't stop running.)

But enough zombie survival tips from me! There is still time to scroll down and leave comments for Tera, Liza, Pat, Carol and Alyson and don't forget to come back later to find out who the next lot of winners are!!!! Retweet this button on every post blogger

Day 4 with Tera Lynn Childs

This contest is now closed and the winner is Shelly Quade!



Next up we have Tera Lynn Childs who truly puts the fabulous in fabulous.

I was lucky enough to meet up with her at San Fransisco last year and can I just say that Tera is a force of nature and once you meet her, you don't forget her in a hurry. She is also a ridiculously great writer. I'm just finishing up Oh. My. Gods now which is the story of what happens when Phoebe finds herself going to school on a Greek Island which is inhabited by descendants of the Gods. And let me just say it's amazing - oh, I'm not the only one who thinks so since it's also been optioned for a film starring Ashley Tisdale so you've all got to join me in willing for the movie to get made because how awesome would that be to see our Phoebe up on the big screen?

As well as Oh. My. Gods, Tera has a second book about Phoebe called Goddess Bootcamp coming out in June and Forgive my Fins coming out sometime in 2010. See, I told you she was a force of nature!!!!!! But that's not all. She has also very kindly agreed to join me here today to talk zombies and up for grabs is a signed hardback edition of Oh. My. Gods!!!!

From Movie Fan to Zombie Fighter

First off, let me say that I am not a horror movie kind of person. It's not that I don't like being scared—which I actually do, on occasion—but the fact that they just don't scare me. I find books way more terrifying because my imagination scares me way more than any big screen blood and gore ever could. (Like the time I read And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie and had to get up halfway through to make sure all my doors and windows were locked.)

All that being said, though, zombie movies are the one exception to my rule. I love 'em, I watch 'em, and they scare the living bajeezus out of me.

The first zombie movie I ever saw was Dawn of the Dead. I saw it in the theater with my cousin and her (then) thirteen-year-old daughter. I have never been so terrified in my life. Until I saw 28 Days Later, but at least that had a hopeful ending, and of course the sequel 28 Weeks Later. And I don't know if I Am Legend counts as a zombie movie (what were those things?) but it has to rank as my scariest movie ever. I still haven't seen Land of the Dead, but my zombie-aficionado friend insists that it's awesomely scary. (Plus, Simon Baker.)

Anyway, the point is that I am both a zombie fan and a zombie fearer. The rational side of my brain insists that zombies are just fictional creatures, that I'm not going to wake up one day and find brain-eating drones pounding on my door. But the fraidy-cat side of my brain... well, that's another story. I'm not (very) ashamed to admit that I've checked out some websites to brush up on my zombie-fighting skills. There are a surprising number of them. And if you, like me, have that niggling doubt at the back of your mind that zombies probably aren't real, but what if... then you might want to check these out, too.

How Zombies Work
Zombie Survival & Defense Wiki
Zombies Central
Zombies – This is from the Science Channel, which has to mean it's legit, right? Eeek!

Hey, a girl's got to arm herself for the post-apocalyptic zombie hordes, right?

Hugs,TLC

So don't forget to comment and go in with a chance to win a copy of Tera's amazing debut book! Also, don't forget to scroll down and leave comments for Liza Conrad, Pat Posner, Carol Snow and Alyson Noel! Retweet this button on every post blogger

Day 4 with Liza Conrad

Hooray! My next guest is the extremely talented Liza Conrad who also writes as Erica Orlaff! Liza is one of my Teen Fiction Cafe buddies and she also wrote one of my favorite Red Dress Ink books ever - Spanish Disco - which I read long before I ever met her. Some of her young adult books include, Rock My World, High School Bites and The Poker Diaries. So anyway, I've long known that I could easily hang out with Liza (if it weren't for that pesky Pacific Ocean in the way) and after I read her guest post, my feelings were confirmed since we seem we like all the same movies and as for her thoughts on Exorcist, all I can say is 'exactly!'


She has also agreed to give away a copy of Rock My World - the story of seventeen year old Livy, who has grown up as the daughter of an ex-groupie mom and a rock and roll father. Cool!

Me, Zombie Movies, and the Chickens (Men) in My Life

I love a good zombie movie. 28 Days Later had me shrieking and hiding my eyes. I Am Legend--okay, not even a very GOOD zombie movie--and I was watching it for the THIRD time at 2:00 a.m.

But do I really believe in an upcoming zombie apocalypse? Not so much. So for me, zombie movies are tons of fun, unlike, say The Exorcist. Because we ALL know THAT could REALLY happen.

Not so much the men in my life. My father, my guy, and even my guy friends all seem to have a weakness for zombie flicks--as in zombie flicks scare the pants off them. So much so that if I call one of my guy pals and imitate the strange hissing sound of the creatures in 28 Days Later, I can be pretty sure he will be crying under his desk in less than 10 seconds.


What is it they fear? Being zombie food? Unstoppable creatures of enormous strength and unrelenting blood thirst? I'm not sure, but here are my votes for the top-five zombie flicks ever.

1. 28 Days Later. This movie is worth it for the empty London street scenes alone.

2. Evil Dead Trilogy. I'm a Sam Raimi fangirl geek. What can I say? Oh. I can say two words: Bruce Campbell.

3. Sean of the Dead. Zombies with some humor thrown in to give you a break from the screams. Sean discovers that though he is a slacker, he has one special skillset: Killing zombies.

4. Dawn of the Dead---the REMAKE with Sarah Polley. Look, I know George Romero is a zombie god. But the remake is actually pretty darn scary and has WAY better production values.

5. Serenity. Okay, this is kind of a cheat. I love Joss Whedon's Serenity flick, and technically . . . the Reavers are zombies of a sort. So, heck, I'm calling it a zombie flick. Just see it!

So how about you? Fearless in the face of zombies? Or do you hide your eyes?

I'm a hide my eyes kind of girl myself but I can't wait to hear what everyone else is and don't forget there is a copy of Liza's Rock My World up for grabs.

Also, it's not too late to leave comments for Pat Posner, Carol Snow and Alyson Noel!

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Day 4 with Pat Posner

This contest is now closed and the winner is Authorness



Day 4? How is that even possible? I guess time flies when you are being chased by flesh-munching zombies. Anyway, my next guest is one of my wonderful critique partners, Pat Posner. Pat lives in the UK up on a hill surrounded by sheep and birds and when she's not feeding them all, she's busy writing children's books. Oh, and, despite the fact she has no knowledge of zombies or dead girls or any of the other ridiculous stories that I keep sending her, she also reads pretty much every word I write and catches all of my many, many bloopers along the way. In short, without Pat, my copy editor would HATE me!!!!!!!!

But enough from me, here is Pat to talk about one of the dumb things her heroine did in the name of love:

A few years ago (before she went all erotic and I went back to writing children’s books) one of my CPs - Christina Phillips you know who you are – and I decided we’d co-write a rom-com. We called it ‘The Trouble With Harry’ and we had so much fun when the heroine, Leonie, agreed to carry out a task to help her best friends, Callum and Sadie. This task involved Leonie getting Harry, the guy she’d first fallen for as a young teenager, to pretend that she and he were Sadie and Callum, a married couple with a baby, and entertain Abe Cuthbert (a prospective investor in Sadie and Callum’s business venture) for a few days.

Although Leonie agreed to the task because she loved Sadie, Callum and her godson, baby Ben, she is, of course, still in love with Harry and suffers ‘in the name of love’ many times before the HEA.

Here’s part of a scene where Leonie is trying to persuade Harry to agree to the plan.

‘There’ll be caterers coming to provide delicious food in the renovated stable block where Abe’s to stay, so all we’ll have to do is entertain him and show him around.’

‘Whilst pretending to be Sadie and Callum.’ Harry spoke grimly as he turned round. ‘And there’s baby Ben, too. What do we do about a baby? Borrow one?’

‘Sadie and Callum purposely never mentioned Ben. They thought Abe might not want to get tied up with anyone who had family commitments. So, it’ll be all right as long as we remember to call each other by their names.’

‘Sadie and Callum, or Mr and Mrs Whitfield?’

Leonie glared at him. ‘Don’t be ridiculous. Sadie and Callum, of course.’

‘Oh, of course.’ Harry nodded. ‘Tell me, Leonie, you have realised we’ll also have to act is if we’re married? As in married to each other.’

Leonie stared at him. She’d been so worried about her adorable godson, and trying to reassure a distraught Sadie that of course she and Harry would help out however they could, that it hadn’t quite hit her she and Harry would have to pretend to be married. Not until he had flung the fact at her in that accusatory tone, as if he thought it a fate even worse than travelling by economy air.

Irrationally peeved by the scandalised look on his face, she retorted, ‘Well of course I realise that. But I don’t see why it should cause us any problems.’ At least, she was sure it wouldn’t cause him any problems. She couldn’t say the same for herself if the ridiculous way her stomach was behaving was anything to go by.

Sadly, ‘The Trouble With Harry’ remains unpublished, but it’s been a pleasure looking back on those days of making a heroine suffer for love.

It’s been an even greater pleasure to talk about it here on the day we celebrate the release of Amanda’s brilliant book: Zombie Queen of Newbury High.

So, congratulations, Amanda, and may all your stars be five gold ones!

Thanks so much Pat. And while we haven't all had to pretend to be married to a guy that we were secretly crushing on, I'm sure we've all been in a situation where we've had to spend time with our crush WITHOUT letting them know how we feel.

So my question is, what's the most embarrassing thing you've ever had to do in front of your crush? Just leave a comment and you will go in with a chance to win a fabulous Zombie Survival Kit which has everything that you'll need to survive a zombie Apocalypse. And perhaps a few things you didn't need as well!!

And don't forget that there is still time to scroll down and leave comments for Carol Snow, Alyson Noel. Retweet this button on every post blogger

Winners from Day 2

Another day gone and that means we've got two more winners to announce!!!! But first a quick thank you to everyone for all your fabulous comments!

The winner of the Tina Ferraro's contest is Michelle Kuo

The winner of Book Chic's contest is: Bunny B

Mega congrats to the pair of you! If you could both email you your postal details to Tina and I will get those prizes out to you!

Also, I'm still waiting to hear from Bridget 3420 who was the winner of Stephanie Hale's Spring Break Up.

And don't forget there is still time to be in with a chance to win Carol Snow's Switch and Alyson Noel's Evermore. All you need to do is scroll down and leave a comment. Oh yes, it's all about the easy here!!!!!! Retweet this button on every post blogger

A word from your sponsor

Wow! It's so amazing to wake up each morning NZ time and see how busy you guys have been with the hilarious comments! I can't begin to tell you how fabulous you all are. Actually, I can tell you - you're all FABULOUS - well, apart from you in the corner, who, if you don't step away from that drooling zombie you will be less on the fabulous and more on the snack side of things.

Anyway, thank you, thank you, thank you for showing my guest authors so much love. Hidden Author Secret Number One is that we're very needy sort of people so we really do adore hearing how much people want to read our books!!!!!

And now, because I'm a sharing sort of girl, here are a couple more reviews of Zombie Queen of Newbury High. This first one is from BittenbyBooks and I actually thought I posted it last week but obviously I've been hanging out with the zombies for too long because I didn't. Even cooler, Lori the reviewer popped over to say hi - yay!!!!!

Also, I've just seen this guest review over at Mysterious Galaxy which makes me very happy (see above comments about needy authors!!!).

But enough about me (for now!!). There is still time to scroll down and leave comments for Carol Snow, Alyson Noel, Book Chic and Tina Ferraro! And there is also still time to get pimping about this blog party! All you need to do is shout it out and then email me and let me know about it. Then I'll enter you to win a copy of ZOMBIE QUEEN OF NEWBURY HIGH plus a very cute Zombie Survival Kit. Too easy!!!!

And in case you want a sneak peek of who is still to come - check out my trailer:

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Day 3 with Carol Snow

This contest is now closed

What? You still want more zombie goodness? Do you know you guys are insatiable, but then, since we're hanging out with zombies, being insatiable is probably a good thing, right? And an even better thing is that I have plenty more great authors and prizes to give away - not to mention zombie nibbles. Actually, Vanessa B (who will be posting herself later this week) asked me if it was hard to get fresh eyeballs this time of year and I have to confess that I've resorted to using the frozen variety, but shhhhh, don't let the zombies hear me say that or they might go crazy and nobody wants to see a crazy zombie. In fact the last time I had to deal with a crazy one was when I tried to slip in some broccoli to the brain burgers I was making. Let's just say I won't be trying that little trick again anytime soon.

But I digress. My next guest is the too cool for school, Carol Snow. Carol is the author of three wonderful women's fiction novels called Been There, Done That, Getting Warmer and Here Today Gone To Maui as well as a young adult book called Switch, which I'm dying to read since I'm a big fan of body switching!!!!


Anyway, I first met Carol on myspace where she very kindly took me in hand and answered just about every dumb newbie author question ever invented (and quite a few that I came up with all on my own). In short, as well as being a fantastic writer she is a saint. Oh, and she's also very funny as you're about to discover!!!!




Night of the Living Debtor
By Carol Snow

So we’re knee-deep in this recession thing. In the past six months, I’ve witnessed the closing of two Linen ‘n Things, two Circuit City stores, one Old Navy and a Pier One Imports. (I live in Orange County, California. We have a lot of strip malls.) The Britney Spears Circus Tour is coming to town, and I can’t find anyone to go with me because no one wants to shell out a hundred bucks for a ticket. (That is the reason, right?)

Seemingly overnight, our tastes and priorities have changed. Starbucks is out. Why spend three bucks on a cup of coffee when you can make it at home? Hummers are out – thank God. Conspicuous consumption – actually pretty much any consumption – is considered bad taste . . . just in time for the cinematic release of Confessions of a Shopaholic. Sucks for them.

But do you know what’s in? Zombie movies. Seriously: I’m not just saying that to make Amanda feel good. According to KCPW, a public radio station in Los Angeles, “It seems the latest craze in Hollywood is movies about zombies.” And if zombie movies are hot right now, you’ve got to figure zombie books are warming up, too. Even Jane Austen has been zombified in an upcoming release from Quirk Books, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. You think I’m making that up? Look it up. (But save your zombie book funds for Zombie Queen of Newbury High. You won’t regret it.)

Some people over at the science fiction website io9.com crunched some numbers and came up with a chart: “[E]ven correcting for the fact that there are more movies being made today, you can see that there are distinctive spikes in zombie popularity - and they always seem to fall slightly after a huge political or social event has caused mass fear, chaos, or suffering.”



I’ve never been very good at reading charts, but I’m going to assume that this proves what they say it does. (You have to wonder, though: if more smart people spent time, say, curing diseases rather than charting zombie movies, wouldn’t the world be in better shape?)

The people at io9.com are quick to point out that correlation does not mean causality. But what is it about bad times that might drive filmmakers to produce – and filmgoers to crave – zombie movies? Here’s my theory: we’re not afraid of the zombies. Rather, we relate to them. After so many shiny years filled with shopping binges and exotic adventures, we’re all kind of wandering around in a daze, blinking at the grim headlines and the store closings, trying to digest the news of layoffs and pay cuts, and longing for vacations we can no longer afford.

When times are this grim, what can make us feel better? Immersing ourselves in a good zombie story. Because we know it’s just fiction, right? Then again, a venti mocha latte from Starbucks wouldn’t hurt, either.

Carol

What a great post! And I wholeheartedly agree that people should get stuck into a good zombie story!!!!! Anyway, to help me celebrate Carol has kindly said she will give away a signed copy of Switch to one random commentator and all you need to do is tell us what you're doing to save money?


And don't forget that there is still time to enter Book Chic and Tina Ferraro's competitions. All you need to do is scroll down and a leave a comment. Also, if you want to win a copy of Zombie Queen of Newbury High and a special Zombie Survival Kit, then all you need to do is go out into cyber space and pimp this blog party. Then when you're done pimping just send me an email and let me know where you've spread the love. Too easy!!!! Retweet this button on every post blogger

Day 3 with Alyson Noel

this contest is now closed!











It's just not possible for me to love Alyson Noel more. She is such an amazing writer and such an all around lovely person and to top it off, her new book Evermore hit the New York Times and USA Today bestseller list. Oh, and she also gave me a killer blurb for Zombie as well:

"Zombie Queen of Newbury High is a delightfully fun, fresh, and funny read! Amanda Ashby creates a highly likeable heroine in Mia Everett, who, despite her best intentions, turns her classmates into zombies. And with prom quickly approaching, she must find a way to undo it before, well before she gets eaten! Never again will you look at prom, your classmates, or even zombies in quite the same way!

See - what's there not to love?


Even better she feels just as she ought to on all things Buffy and Angel related (well, she sways more to Spike than Angel, but she's a NYT and USA bestseller so what can you do?). Anyway, to help me celebrate the release of my new book Alyson has kindly decided to share with us one of the dumb things she's done in the name of love. Over to you, Alyson:

While I’ve never gone so far as to cast a love spell on anyone like Mia Everett does in Amanda’s awesome new book, ZOMBIE QUEEN OF NEWBURY HIGH (mostly because I failed to think of it!), I once did something so reckless, so terrifying, so completely against my greater instincts—just to impress my husband then boyfriend, (otherwise known as MHTB).

I went zip lining through the cloud forest in Costa Rica.

Big deal, you’re probably thinking. Lot’s of people go zip lining—so what! Right? And while that’s certainly true, I doubt any of those people are as completely terrified of heights as I am. I doubt any of those people suffered an extreme case of vertigo just by watching “The Dark Knight” on an Imax screen. I doubt any of those people had to talk themselves through the movie, practically hyperventilating as they clutched their tub of popcorn, silently repeating: It’s only a movie . . .it’s only a movie . . .it’s Batman on the top of that building, not you!

And I also doubt they did it for love.

It all happened several years ago, when MHTB and I found ourselves in Costa Rica and he mentioned something about swinging from tree to tree Tarzan style (aka zip lining). I just shrugged, assuming he’d soon be distracted by some other Costa Rican adventure and forget all about it.

Only he didn’t.

He was dead set on it. And a few days later when we arrived at zip lining headquarters only to learn it was raining so hard they’d closed for the day—well, relief cannot describe how I felt. I was thrilled. Elated. I was thrumming with excitement—convinced the Gods were all smiling upon me. And for a native Californian who has major issues with the wet stuff, I indulged in my own little happy rain dance.

A dance that ended the second MHTB said, “Let’s stay an extra day in case the weather improves. We don’t want to miss out!”

That night, I prayed for the storm of all storms, only to wake the next morning to the most glorious sunshiny day I’d ever seen. And I knew I had a choice, I could either fess up and back out—refusing to partake in what was clearly an insane activity—or, I could suck it up, face my fears, and pray the cable wasn’t nearly as weak as it seemed.

And even though it went against all of my better instincts, I did it. Not jut because I couldn’t bear for MHTB to think I was wuss, (though that was clearly part of it!), but because I didn’t want to be a wuss. And I’m here to report it was one of the most exhilarating, terrifying, thrilling things I’ve ever done in my life.

And I’ll never, ever, do it again!

Alyson

Now personally I don't think it's dumb, I think it sounds pretty awesome. However, my heroine Mia Everett, who hates heights even more than she hates zombies, thinks that Alyson is the craziest person she's ever heard of and has begged me to never be in the same room as her in case she tries to make Mia go bungee jumping or some such nonsense!!!!!

Anyway, Alyson has kindly said she will donate a signed copy of Evermore for one lucky person so get commenting and good luck!!!!!

Also, don't forget that there is still time to leave comments for both Book Chic and Tina Ferraro - all you need to do is scroll down!!! Retweet this button on every post blogger

Winners from day 1

Boy I don't know about you guys but trying to keep a bunch of zombies happy is hard, hard work and do they appreciate it? No, they do not. It's all 'my fingers are over cooked' this, and 'I'm not eating this foot because it looks gross' that. But thankfully there is one thing that we're all in agreement on. That it's time to announce the winners from Day 1.

So without further ado (and definitely without anymore zombie jokes) the winners are:

For Melissa Walker's gorgeous make up - HAPPY HUGS

For Kay Cassidy's adorable glass slipper - DIANA DANG

For a copy of Stephanie Hale's 'Spring Break Up' - BRIDGET 3420

Mega congratulations guys. If you could send email your postal details and put BLOG PARTY WINNER in the header line I will forward them to the right people!!!!

And if you didn't win then I know how you feel - I mean they were great, great prizes and trust me it took all my will power not to enter the comps myself! But on the plus side you still have one more day to enter Book Chic and Tina Ferraro's competitions and there will be two more FABULOUS guest bloggers tomorrow with two more fabulous prizes. Zombimazing. Okay, that's not really going to take off as a cute saying, is it? Retweet this button on every post blogger

We interupt this program...

First up I just want to say a big massive THANK YOU to everyone who has visited and commented so far. You guys rock great big chunky socks of goodness. Also, if you hadn't come along I might've been forced to set the zombies out to hunt you all down and let's face it, no one wants to see a zombie massacre before breakfast. Well, okay, lots of people probably do but as we've discovered from Stephanie Hale's post there are quite a few of us fainters around so it's best if we keep the bloodshed to a minimum.

And now, the real reason I'm posting is not just to remind you of my own lovely book Zombie Queen of Newbury High which hits the shelves next Thursday (but is available for preorder now!!!!), but also to celebrate the release of Mark Henry's new book, Road Trip of the Living Dead which once again features his fashion obsessed zombie heroine, Amanda Feral.



I like to think of it is a Dawn of the Dead meets Sex in the City and while it concerns me a bit that Mark Henry knows more about fashion and make up than I do, I can ASSURE you that he is a fantastic writer. His books are snarky, sassy and filled with more zombie goodness than any piece of literature has a right to have.

Also, there is still time to enter all the contests that I have going. You can pimp this party in anyway you chose and then just send me an email and I'll put you in the draw to win an arc of Zombie Queen plus a very special Zombie Survival Kit. Also, you can scroll down and leave comments for Book Chic, Tina Ferraro, Stephanie Hale, Kay Cassidy and Melissa Walker to go in with a chance to win their great prizes. I'll be drawing the winners for Stephanie, Kay and Melissa later on so make sure you don't miss out.

And now I must reassume my hostess duties which means trying to stop those two zombies from playing Guitar Hero over in the corner (honestly, do they think it's polite to pull each other's arms off just because they're losing? No, exactly.) Retweet this button on every post blogger

Day 2 with Book Chic

Thanks to everyone who entered! This contest has now finished and the winner is Bunny B!



When I decided to do a blog party to celebrate the release of ZOMBIE QUEEN OF NEWBURY HIGH I knew that as well as inviting some of my favorite authors along, I also wanted to have some of the other friends that I've met along the way which is why I asked the awesomely cool Book Chic to come and play.

Now I'm pretty sure that anyone who writes or reads YA books already knows who Book Chic is but for those of you who have been living in a hole - which by the way is not a very good place to hide from zombies since they might not be able to see you but you can bet your iPod that they can smell you (apparently it's a bit like chicken...). But I digress. BC is a very cool YA book reviewer who I first met on myspace not long after my debut book YOU HAD ME AT HALO came out and I was always grateful for how many shout outs he gave me!!!!

As well as myspace, he also runs another blog where he's lately taken to vlogging as well as going out to bookstores and taking photos of all the new releases on the shelves (which is all kinds of awesome!!!!). Anyway, today he has been kind enough to do a special guest vlog for me where he talks about zombies (sort of - hehehe - you need to check it out to see what I mean because it's so cool!!!)



See - how cool was that? And for the record I absolutely don't regret having BC along to my blog party - in fact I've already booked him in for my next one!!!! Anyway, for today's prize I'm going to put up a copy of my first book YOU HAD ME AT HALO - which is the story about a dead girl who gets kicked out of heaven and sent back to sort out her issues. Unfortunately she gets sent back in a guy's body. While the guy is still in it. Love, death and body sharing. What's there not to like?




So to have a chance to win all you need to do is leave a comment below (oh and I'll look favorably on anyone who tell me what some of the books are in the shelving unit BC is sitting in front of - yeah, I'm nosey like that!!!!)

And don't forget there is still time to scroll down and leave comments for Tina Ferraro, Stephanie Hale, Kay Cassidy and Melissa Walker!! Retweet this button on every post blogger

Day 2 with Tina Ferraro

Thanks to everyone who entered! This contest has now finished and the winner is Michelle Kuo!!

Wow, it's already day 2 of my zombie blog party. How time flies when you're busy making up eyeball canapes and deep fried fingers just to keep the carnivorous guests from getting too chompy.

Anyway, I've very excited to introduce my next guest, the awesome Tina Ferraro. I love me some Tina and if you haven't read her books, then you truly, truly must because they are fantastic - in fact by the time I finished Top Ten Uses For an Unworn Prom Dress I wanted to pack up my bags and move into Tina's world because it's just so cool there!

She's also the author of How to Hook a Hottie and the recently released The ABC's of Kissing Boys - which I got a couple of weeks ago and I can't wait to start (more so after reading Tina's post below because now I'm thinking Tristan=hot!)






Anyway, enough from me and over to Tina (who is daintily trying to ignore all the zombie drool that has somehow managed to get onto the carpets. Honestly, those guys make such a mess).


Thanks to Amanda for allowing me to guest blog today! The topic of “crazy things one of my characters has done for love” was custom-made for me. For recently, my third book, The ABC’s of Kissing Boys, was released, and part of the fun and struggle of creating that book was the careful handling of the hero, Tristan Murphy, and, well, the crazy things he's doing for love...

Tristan, I must tell you, is not your average high school freshman. Already over six feet, he’s quite buff from years of playing water polo, has water cooler blue eyes--and a man-sized crush on the two-grades-ahead Parker Stanhope. Who, we are sorry to say, does not seem to notice that Tristan is alive.

But one day, circumstances occur in which she lowers herself to speak to him. And in that convo, she incidentally discovers that he’s an expert in the one area of schooling where she seriously needs tutoring.

You see, Parker’s in a curious and serious jam. Her soccer teammate-friends got promoted to varsity without her, and the only way she can finagle her way onto varsity involves giving the prom king the kiss of a lifetime at the sports fair kissing booth. Yes, it's far-fetched, but it could work. If she can become an expert on kissing.

Which happens to be what Tristan “studied” at summer camp, wiling away the evenings with the other counselors. He learned about butterfly kisses and steam kisses and caterpillar kisses, and played games like Spin the Bottle and unwrapping Starburst candies in his tongue.

But that just for fun. And with girls he didn’t care much about. This is Parker, the girl of his dreams. Who is giving him this one chance. Who is expecting him to be cool and smooth and in charge...

Man! Can he do it?

The morning of their first lesson, he showers, changes his shirt three times, puts on aftershave (even though he hasn’t had to shave yet this month). Only to find her in an oversized T-shirt and ponytail. Is this all she thinks of him? Tucking under his arm the “playbook” he'd hastily penned, he’s tempted to run for his life. I mean, who is he to teach the beautiful Parker anything?

But she rocks his world by making the first move. A big one, smack on the lips. She says she wanted to cut the tension, to get the first kiss over with so they could relax. Which makes him realize, in astonishment, that she’s nervous, too.

Wow.

So he decides that yeah, he could go through with this. Crazy as it seems, he’ll be her kissing coach, and help her get she wants. And then maybe, just maybe, it’ll lead to what he wants, too: her respect. And maybe more...





Tina has kindly put a signed copy of one of her books up for grabs (the winner can choose which book they want!) and all you need to do is leave a comment on this post . Could we make it any easier? And it's not too late to scroll down and leave comments for Melissa Walker, Kay Cassidy and Stephanie Hale!!

Oh and don't forget that you can also go in with a chance to win a signed copy of ZOMBIE QUEEN OF NEWBURY HIGH plus an adorable Zombie Survival Kit just by pimping this blog party where you want. Once you do it, just drop me an email and I'll enter you!!! Retweet this button on every post blogger

Braaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnnnnnnnnnnns

What? You didn't expect me to miss out on the chance to get a zombie joke in there did you? Anyway, I hope you're all having as much fun as I am. Don't forget that this blog party goes on for ten whole flesh-ripping, brain-chewing days and for every guest blogger I have, there is also going to be a prize, so keep coming back to find out who is up next!

In other news, I'm giving away my last arc of ZOMBIE QUEEN OF NEWBURY HIGH over at sharonlovesbooksandcats where I'm helping her celebrate her birthday by talking about cats. And zombies. Together. Oh, dear...

I'm also talking about my title and cover over at readingkeepsyousane

And finally, Zombie's been getting some love over at Carrie's YA Bookshelf and also over at wonderous reads! Thanks guys!

Oh and there is still plenty of time to go and leave a comment for Melissa Walker, Kay Cassidy and Stephanie Hale. All you need to do is scroll down!!! Retweet this button on every post blogger

Day 1 with Stephanie Hale

Thanks to everyone who entered. This contest has now been drawn and the winner is Bridget 3420

It's still day 1 on my zombie blog party and as you can see those zombies really like to party. I saw one walking around before with his ears off and only half a nose - crazy guy. Of course the fact he was trying to eat me stopped me from chatting with him for too long - but there is no denying that they liven the place up!

Anyway, if this is your first visit, then don't forget to click here and find out what's on the agenda for the next ten days and also how you can go into a special competition to win your very own copy of ZOMBIE QUEEN OF NEWBURY HIGH complete with an essential Zombie Survival Kit. Right, that's all the house work done so let's get moving onto my next guest, the amazing Stephanie Hale!!!




Not only is Stephanie my agent sister she is also the creator (or should I say slave to) one of the best dressed, coolest, cleverest heroines around - a certain Miss Aspen Brooks. And not only does Stephanie have a new Aspen book coming out in March called Spring Break Up, but she also has another book called The Alpha Bet hitting the shelves later this year. Awesome!

Anyway, enough from me and over to Stephanie:

Congrats to Amanda on the release of ZOMBIE QUEEN OF NEWBURY HIGH. Thanks for inviting me to the party. I'll be giving away a copy of my new release, SPRING BREAKUP(coming out March 3), to a lucky winner.

I had a hard time thinking up a blog post on zombies. I couldn't figure out why this topic seemed to give me such a hard time. Then I realized it was because I would make a terrible zombie. I think my first exposure to zombies was probably an episode of Scooby-Doo. Instead of being scared of the mindless killing machines, I just thought they were kind of pathetic. I mean, hello? Eating brains? All those tattered clothes? And don't even get me started on the digging yourself out of your grave and getting all that dirt under your nails? Not this chick.

And then they go through all that and they just like mumble and don't make any sense. And who wants to eat brains? I'm a big fan of ANYTHING deep-fried but that is kind of pushing it. Like why do they need to eat brains anyway? It's not like they are getting any smarter. They just kind of follow each other around looking for more random brains. Hello! If I'm going to go to all the trouble of coming back from the dead, digging myself out of my grave, looking totally raggety (is that a word?) then I'm definitely going to target some specific brains. Like an ex-boyfriend or something. How classic would that be? Zombies do have something going for them though. That whole being kind of invincible unless they get a head wound thing is kind of cool. You can chop their arms off and they just keep coming. I'm not huge on losing limbs but I bet losing an arm would put me in a whole new weight class so there is that.

So maybe they aren't so bad. I mean, it's not really their fault that someone put a spell on them and brought them back from the dead or however that whole thing works. So, would you make a good zombie?

Thanks for inviting to your party, Amanda! ;)

xo,
Stephanie

Thank you, Stephanie and don't forget to leave a comment to go in with a chance to win Stephanie's newest Aspen book! Also, if you haven't yet entered Kay Cassidy or Melissa Walker's contests, then scroll down to do so now. Go on, you know you want to! Retweet this button on every post blogger

Day 1 with Kay Cassidy

Thanks to everyone who entered. This contest has now been drawn and the winner is Diana Dang

It's still on Day 1 and I feel like I've already done a blogging Marathon (of course I'm a light weight which might explain it!!!). Anyway, if this is your first time to my blog, then you might want to click here to see exactly how the party works, but if you're an old hand then relax, have a glass of brain juice (just a hint of Tabasco in it to make it spicy) and perhaps eat a couple of the crumbed fingers that are being passed around on the platter.

Okay, now that you're suitably fed and watered I'd like to introduce my second guest blogger, Kay Cassidy.



I met Kay at the RWA conference in San Fransisco last year (you know, the one that I talked about endlessly for most of the year?). Anyway, not only did Kay leave the conference with a golden heart award but she also ended up selling her book, The Cinderella Society not long after. THE CINDERELLA SOCIETY takes readers behind the veil of a secret society of popular girls where makeover fantasies become reality… until the Cindys must battle the Wickeds for high school supremacy and more. THE CINDERELLA SOCIETY will be a Spring 2010 release from Egmont USA with book two in the series to follow in Spring 2011.

But enough chatting from me - I'm passing the microphone over to Kay!

The lamest thing my heroine, Jess Parker, has ever done for love is to try to be something she's not. Which doesn't seem like that big of a deal at first glance because haven't we all, at one time or another, pretended just a little in hopes that a special someone might notice us?

(NOTE: And by "we" I mean "not me in any way" because I have no idea what doing that would be like. Very much a random example. Moving on…)

The thing about Jess is that she's not just a regular girl. She's been tapped to join The Cinderella Society, a super secret society of the most popular, coolest, most amazing girls at Mt. Sterling High School. And the Cindys aren't just your average populars either. They're gorgeous, brilliant, talented and incredibly nice… the kind of girl every guy wants to date and every girl wants to be friends with. (Except for the Wickeds, who get a little testy when the Cindys interfere with their evil plans for high school domination. But that's another story.)

Here's the kicker: part of what makes The Cinderella Society uber-cool is that every Cindy goes through her very own total life makeover when she joins. So Jess has the chance to completely reinvent herself and become the person she's always wanted to be.

But... she's also watching her first crush turn into her first real romance. That's a little heady, right? When the guy you're totally crushing on suddenly knows you exist AND wants to know more about said existence? It's easy to fall into the trap of trying to be everything he's ever wanted in a girl… even if that's maybe, possibly, just a wee bit not exactly who you really are.

Again, I have no personal knowledge of this. I'm just saying.

The good thing is that you, lovely readers, are SO much smarter than this. That's why I'm giving away a limited edition Cinderella Society glass slipper to one lucky Honorary Cindy in honor of the launch of Amanda's fabulous new book, Zombie Queen of Newbury High. (Only 10 days and counting! SQUEE!!!)




For your chance to win it, here's all you need to do.

1) Repeat the following oath:

"I solemnly swear to never lose sight of who I really am just because of a guy. Even if that guy has rippling muscles, a smile that could melt an igloo, and the heart of Prince Charming. I also solemnly swear to never use a love spell to nab a guy just in case the love spell happens to backfire and turn my friends and teachers into zombies."

2) Comment on the blog saying "Hey! I took the oath!" Feel free to add anything cute or funny or profound after that. The floor's all yours.

That's it. Simple, right? Amanda will choose one lucky commenter at random (there may be a complex mathematical equation involved, I'm not sure) to win the official Cinderella Society glass slipper.

Good luck and happy reading!

from
Kay


Is it wrong of me that I want that slipper as well - especially since I totally took the oath!!!!! Anyway, good luck with your comments and don't forget that it's not too late to leave a comment for Melissa as well if you scroll down to her post!
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Day 1 with Melissa Walker

Thanks to everyone who entered. This contest has now been drawn and the winner is Happy Hugs





Okay so what better way to start this party than with Melissa Walker? Melissa is the author of the Violet series (Violet on the Runway, Violet by Design and Violet in Private) as well as the upcoming Lovestruck Summer. She is also one of the founders of iheartdaily (which I love, not least because they recently had an article saying that Stephen Gerrard is hotter than Beckham - which of course is something I could've told you long ago - come on you reds!!!)

Anyway, Melissa has done a super cool vlog for me to share with you where she talks about a pathetic thing she has done for love (though seriously, Melissa is far too cute and adorable to EVER do anything pathetic). Enjoy!!!!




Isn't Melissa amazing? I can't wait to hear what some of your answers are! And please don't forget to read the next post down to find out all about how the blog party works!!!!!!!!!!!! Retweet this button on every post blogger

Let's get this party started!!

Woot - the time is finally here to crack open the zombies and let them loose. It's going to be so much fun - limbs flying everywhere, unidentified body parts splattered all over the walls, and the horrendous noise of teeth ripping away flesh from the bones as people scream in agony. Oh yeah, it's going to be a carnage that has never been seen before - not even on a big budget Hollywood horror movie. And then when the zombies are done here we can send them out into the big bad world so they can start eating everyone else until life as we know it is no more and only the living-dead will roam the earth just hoping to find one last, lonely morsel of food to eat...

No?

Not a good idea? Okay then, since I'm a people pleaser how about we just invite some fabulous authors along instead! Hehehe - now why did I think you'd like that better? Plus not only do I have some amazingly, awesomely wonderful guests lined up but they come bearing prizes as well which will hopefully lessen the blow of no bloodshed.

So let me fill you in on what's going to happen. Everyday for the next ten days in the lead up to the release of my young adult book Zombie Queen of Newbury High (which you are welcome to go and pre-order) I will be having between two and three guest bloggers.

I've asked each of my guests to either talk about dumb things that they or their characters have done for love (and kudos to them if they can top what Mia Everett did when she tried to do a love spell and ended up turning her entire senior year into zombies instead. Whoops), or the other topic is all things zombie. So prepare yourself for some fun times ahead!!!!!

For every guest post there will be a prize - normally a book but not always and all you need to do is to leave a comment at the bottom of that post to go in with a chance to win. Easy with a big old capital Peasy!!!!!!!

So please don't feel shy - if you want to win every prize then just enter at the bottom of every guest blog post. I will be leaving each post up for two days before I draw a winner (using a trusty random number generator to help me) so remember to keep coming back to A) see if you've won any of the previous prizes and B) to see what other things you can win.

But wait, there's more - and no I'm not talking to steak knives since let's face it - leaving steak knives lying around while all these zombies are lurking is just asking for trouble!!!

No, my other news is that I will also be giving away an extra copy of Zombie Queen of Newbury High as well as an adorable Zombie Survival Kit to one lucky person and all you need to do is go and spread the word about this blog party. You can blog it, twitter it, myspace it - you can even tell the family cat if you want to. Then, once you've done that, just drop me a line and tell me how you pimped me. I'll draw a winner for that one on Friday!

So enough from me and let's get on with the fun (unless of course you really would like to crack open the zombies - I really don't mind!)



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Amanda Ashby's zombie blog party

Let the fun begin - mwhahaha....

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Why I love Alyson Noel

Because she just gave me the coolest blurb for zombie! Check it out:

"Zombie Queen of Newbury High is a delightfully fun, fresh, and funny read! Amanda Ashby creates a highly likeable heroine in Mia Everett, who, despite her best intentions, turns her classmates into zombies. And with prom quickly approaching, she must find a way to undo it before, well before she gets eaten! Never again will you look at prom, your classmates, or even zombies in quite the same way! ~ Alyson Noel, New York Times Bestselling author of Evermore

Dontcha just love that girl!!!!! Retweet this button on every post blogger

zombies are getting closer...

Not long now until my blog party starts which means I really need to get the house tidied up and choose an outfit. Okay, not really, but it's still exciting. I also got a lovely review over at Bitten by Books which I like a lot!!!!!

My mother and her partner are still here and it's Art Deco weekend in Napier which means the whole town steps back in time. We all dressed up and went to lunch today and the real fun starts tomorrow. I'll try my hardest to remember to take some photos!!!!! Not much writing is getting done though I've been busy trying to get a whole heap of blog posts and interviews done before the big day!

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GCC presents Jennifer Banash

Check out the cover of Jennifer Banash's new book, In Too Deep. Isn't it gorgeous? I've been admiring it for months and I totally need to start reading this series! Jennifer's first book is called The Elite and is about what happens when a girl from the Midwest moves to the Upper East Side. Here is the skinny about what happens in book two:

If you don’t belong here— you just don’t belong…

The Bramford building’s newest resident and small-town transplant Casey McCloy is adapting to life in the Big Apple and loving it. She’s got the look, the attitude, and a delish new boyfriend, Drew Van Allen. But she’s starting to have second thoughts as to whether the “New York” Casey is the real Casey. And she’s not so sure she likes herself much anymore. She’s not the only one.

Madison Macallister has always had her Manolo Blahniks firmly planted on the top rung of the social ladder—until that corn-fed cow Casey stole Drew away from her and made her look the fool. So what if Madison wasn’t exactly dating Drew at the time? She wanted him. And everyone knows that Madison gets what she wants, like Drew—and a little revenge.

Awesome, right? Anyway, here is a little heart to heart with Jennifer:

1 How did you first get the idea for your current book?
IN TOO DEEP was largely inspired by reality television--I'm kind of obsessed with it! Since the characters of IN TOO DEEP wind up getting their own reality show (think "The REAL Gossip Girls of NYC), I wanted the PLOT of the book to resemble a reality show as much as possible. So I watched A LOT of reality TV while I was writing ITD. It's a tough job, but someone has to do it . . . :)

2 I often say that everything I know about writing has come from Buffy. Is there any movie/tv show/book/author that you think has helped your writing career?
Any movie by John Hughes from the 80's--but especially The Breakfast Club or Pretty in Pink. Good call! John Hughs rocks!!!!!!!!!

3 What's a normal writing day for you?
Procrastinate until 2 PM reading gossip blogs, and petting my beagle, then get to work and don't stop until I have an entire chapter finished.

4 The best blooper I've ever done as a writer was when I had my heroine hand the hero something. Problem was they were sharing the same body at the time! So to help lessen my embarrassment, I'd love to know what your best writing blooper is and did someone catch it before your book went into print?
Probably changing a character's outfit in the middle of a scene! Fashion is very important to my books, and I often go back and forth on what a character should be wearing at any given time. Thankfully, my editor is really good at catching these kinds of errors, so I'm happy to say none made it into the final books!

5 And now for the big question. Zombies - love them, hate them, couldn't eat a whole one? Enquiring minds want to know
Love em' but why do they have to be so DUMB and SLOW???? I actually much prefer vampires--they are so much sexier!

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Crazy

When my mother and her partner said they were coming over to NZ to see us in February I thought it would be a great idea. Of course I forgot to take into account that my book was coming out at the beginning of March and that I've just started my new weekend job in the teens/childrens' counter at the library and suddenly I seem to have completely run out of time to do anything. Whoops.

Anyway, I've given myself a strict talking to and am trying to get back on track so this is just a friendly reminder that my blog party is still kicking off next Monday and it's going to be Lots of Fun (even if it kills me!!!!!). Here is the super cute trailer to remind you all of who is going to be coming out to play!




I've also been getting in some more reviews - yay. Sharon at sharonlovescats gave me five zombie purrs and apparently I gave her zombie dreams - yay!!!!!

I also got one from Yan at Books by their Cover where whenever she read Chase's name all she could think of was Chase Crawford (and I'm hoping that's a good thing - not that I did it intentionally since I hadn't even heard of Chase Crawford when I first wrote this book).

And finally from Luisa over at Chicklish who is a fellow Buffy fan and all around fabulous person (and you'll be hearing more about Luisa new book very soon!!!!) Retweet this button on every post blogger

GCC presents Wendy Toliver

So today I'm so excited because I'm touring Wendy Toliver and her new book Miss Match. Not only is Wendy a great author - I loved her debut book The Secret Life of a Teenage Siren - but she's also one of my Teen Fiction Cafe buddies as well and in a nutshell she rocks (oh and check out this photo - isn't she gorgeous!!!!!).



So anyway, here is a bit about Miss Match and then an interview with Wendy so you can find out all the gossip!

MISS MATCH

Sasha Finnegan has always had a knack for setting people up, and at sixteen, she's turned her talent into an online business, molding high school crushes into true love. But Sasha finds her toughest match yet when hottie Derek Urban asks her to set him up with Sasha's gorgeous sister, Maddie. It's not that Derek isn't a good catch. In fact, after spending so much time with him, Sasha can't help but think he's perfect -- for her, that is. Can Sasha push her feelings aside for the sake of her business? Or has this miss finally found her match?

1 How did you first get the idea for your current book?

I’ve always loved fixing people up. I still do! (By the way, if anyone out there is interested in meeting my 29 year-old brother who lives in Orlando or my adorable mom who lives in Denver, leave a comment. Haha) Also, my sister and I have a great relationship and though we might not have always seen eye-to-eye growing up, we always came through for each other like Sasha and Maddie do in Miss Match.

2 I often say that everything I know about writing has come from Buffy. Is there any movie/tv show/book/author that you think has helped your writing career?

Maybe not one in particular, but I’ve been inspired by the whole “chick lit” genre. Having humor and strong, independent, and quirky heroines are two of my favorite qualities in books. Snap! I still remember the first chick lit book I read - it was like a revelation to read books about 'real' people that I could truly relate to!!!

3 What's a normal writing day for you?

Wake up at 7, make breakfast and dress 2 boys for school, eat breakfast over my laptop (answering emails and checking on blogs), going to the gym (helps get creative juices going and keeps me healthy so I don’t have a heart attack while writing), make lunch for 2 boys, put 1 boy down for his nap, write like crazy for two hours, family stuff, maybe write some more if I have a babysitter scheduled, dinner, family time, in bed by 11 so I’m not a ditz the whole next day.

4 The best blooper I've ever done as a writer was when I had my heroine hand the hero something. Problem was they were sharing the same body at the time! So to help lessen my embarrassment, I'd love to know what your best writing blooper is and did someone catch it before your book went into print?

Great question! Maybe it’s just because I’ve only had two books published, and I haven’t even had a chance to read the book version of Miss Match (which just came in the mail today) but the only blooper was really small and my husband caught it before it went to print. It had to do with washing out a coffee pot and then a few paragraphs later, that character pouring herself a cup of coffee.

5 And now for the big question. Zombies - love them, hate them, couldn't eat a whole one? Enquiring minds want to know.

I’ve been taught not to judge people until you’ve had a chance to get to know them, so I think I like them but I have to admit I’m a bit of a Zombie newbie. I doubt I could eat a whole one, but again, I’ve never tried, so it’s a definite possibility. Retweet this button on every post blogger

M.I.A. rocks

This is just a quick blog post because my mother is arriving from Australia today (no, not where the bushfires are - we're from further north, but my heart goes out to everyone who has been affected by this horrible thing). Anyway, because I'm too lazy to blog I thought I'd share some M.I.A with you. If you haven't listened to her music yet then I heartily recommend that you do because she is awesomely awesome. And don't forget to swing by later in the week for another GCC tour with the gorgeous Wendy Toliver and her new book - yay!!

Hope everyone is well and happy. Let me know your news - because I'm nosey like that!

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Round up

So it's Sunday morning and I'm off to work soon but that's okay because Liverpool just beat Portsmouth and I'm in a Very Good Mood!!!!!!!!

I'm also in a good mood because I just got a new job at the local library where I work and soon I'll be doing every weekend in the Teen/Childrens' desk which is more than a little exciting since there isn't much I like better than talking books with people!!!! And speaking of libraries I did an interview with Wellington library (which is the capital of NZ for those who don't know) and I even had to write some haiku to describe my new book! You can check it out here!

I'm starting to get in everyone's blog posts for my upcoming zombie party and I can't begin to tell you how much fun it's going to be! Of course on the downside I'm bad with a capital BAD at organizing anything like this so I'm counting on you all to help me make it work (nothing like being the only guest at a zombie party!!!!!)

And two more bits of news. There are three copies of Zombie up for grabs over at Teensreadtoo.com as well as a ton of other great books. But before you race off, just let me share with you the lovely quote that Kelly Parra gave me (have I mentioned that I love Kelly Parra - double rita nominated genius writer that she is?)

"Zombie Queen of Newbury High is where popularity can turn you undead (with an unsettling appetite) and Prom will be a little dangerous this year. Amanda Ashby moves into the YA world with snapping prose and an entertaining high school mix of teen crushes, popularity drama, and a zombie squad. Zombies beware--you'll love to follow the twists and turns of this fresh and fun novel!" -- Kelly Parra, author of Invisible Touch Retweet this button on every post blogger

Amanda Ashby's zombie blog party

Woot!!! Here it is. My very own trailer to help celebrate my upcoming blog party. Making this thing was easy but trying to upload it onto youtube seven times (let's just say there were a few little errors along the way!) wasn't quite so much fun. But never mind, I'd love to know what you all think!!

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GCC presents Alyson Noel

I've got memes coming out my ears and lots of little bits of news to update you all on but I'm afraid it must be cast aside because today it's all about Alyson Noel. In fact, let's call it Alyson Noel day since it is the official release of Evermore, the first book in her new Immortals series.

Now, before we go any further, I've got a confession to make - you see on paper I shouldn't like Alyson. After all, she's wildly talented (Saving Zoe is one of the best books EVER), she's far too tall, slim and gorgeous looking for my liking, and to make things even worse she is just about the nicest person that ever existed. In fact when I think about it, the only thing she really has going for her is that in the long running Spike/Angel debate, she is, for some strange reason on team Spike.

Which lets me know two things. Obviously she's not quite as clever as she looks and secondly it takes away some of the competition in the race to win the heart of David Boreanaz and for that I'm very grateful (especially when you take into account the whole tall/slim/gorgeous/clever/nice/smart thing that she has going on).

Okay, I joke, I joke! I love Alyson Noel and in fact while we don't agree on our Buffy guys, we are as one when it comes to David Bowie and he seems quite happy with the sharing arrangement we've come up with.

Anyway, enough rambling! Today is all about Evermore, so let's get started:

Sixteen-year-old Ever used to have two parents, a little sister, a dog, and a nice house in Oregon. She used to be a varsity cheerleader and go to school dances. But that was before the horrible accident that claimed the lives of her family.

Now Ever blares the Sex Pistols through her headphones and hides under her hoodie in class. She doesn’t need to listen to hear, or see to know. All she needs is to touch someone to know their entire life story, not to mention always seeing their auras and hearing their thoughts. She’s been branded a freak at her new high school in Laguna Beach as she goes out of her way to avoid human contact, but everything changes when she meets Damen Auguste.

From the moment Ever first looks at Damen, she feels an instant recognition. He is gorgeous, exotic and wealthy, and he holds many secrets. Damen is able to make things appear and disappear, he always seems to know what she’s thinking—and he’s the only one who can silence the noise and the random energy in her head. She doesn’t know who he really is—or what he is. Damen is equal parts light and darkness, and he belongs to an enchanted new world where no one ever dies, and nothing is as it seems…

I know, right. It sounds amazing and I can't wait to read it, but in the meantime, here is Alyson herself to talk a bit more about it.

How did you first get the idea for you current book.

Well, a few years ago I lost three people I loved in five horrible months, and just when the dust began to settle, my husband was diagnosed with leukemia and it felt like my entire world was crashing down. A year later, when he was in full remission, I wrote SAVING ZOE and CRUEL SUMMER, both of which explore the subject of grief and unavoidable change. But when it came time to write my next book, I realized I wasn’t finished exploring those themes though I wanted to do so in a much different way by giving the story a paranormal twist and pushing the boundaries between life and death, and EVERMORE just came pouring out of me. I wrote Halo three weeks after my dad died and I definitely found it a comfort to explore life and death in a way that I could control.

I often say that everything I know about writing has come from Buffy. Is there any movie/tv show/book/author that you think has helped your writing career?

I agree on Buffy’s complete and total brilliance—a lot can be learned from watching that show (and of course there’s the added benefit of Spike!). But since I came to the Buffysphere only last year (pathetically late, I know!), I can’t really credit it as the turning point, that honor belongs to Robert McKee and his wonderful book, STORY—it changed my writing/my life! I had that book for about four years before I finally read it and it really is amazing!

What’s a normal writing day for you?

Well, I wake up around 8:30, turn on my laptop, and sip green tea while I go through my e-mails and blog hop a bit. Then after a few more hours of procrastinating like that, I finally settle in and get to it. Rereading whatever I wrote the day before and editing as I go, then writing new stuff until I’m too tired to continue and/or the good shows come on TV, whichever comes first!

The best blooper I’ve ever done as a writer was when I had my heroine hand the hero something. Problem was they were sharing the same body at the time! So to help lessen my embarrassment, I’d love to know what your best writing blooper is and did someone catch it before your book went into print?

Well, EVERMORE and it’s sequel, BLUE MOON, contains an increasingly complex world of rules and dimensions that sometimes escape me when I’m fully immersed in my writing groove. And while there was one major blooper toward the end of EVERMORE, unfortunately I can’t say what it was since it’s also a major spoiler! Let’s just say I’m really glad I caught it before it went into copy edits!!

And now for the big question. Zombies- love them, hate them, couldn’t eat a whole one? Enquiring minds want to know

Honestly, I’m terrified of zombies. If I saw one, I’d run away as fast as I could, and I do not apologize for that! I'd be running right along beside you!!!!!!

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