GCC presents Denise Jaden

Argh. I think everyone should start calling me the laptop killer since I've managed to destroy yet another one and it was only 14 months old. I'm hoping that clever Mr. Computer Man will be able to fix it but in the meantime it's going to be very patchy (oh and did I mention that I have to do the final pass on Fairy? Somehow I think my husband and I will be battling for his computer!!!!)

Anyway, in happier news, today I'm touring Denise Jaden and her debut book, Losing Faith!

When Brie's sister, Faith, dies suddenly, Brie's world falls apart. As she goes through the bizarre and devastating process of mourning the sister she never understood and barely even liked, everything in her life seems to spiral farther and farther off course. Her parents are a mess, her friends don't know how to treat her, and her perfect boyfriend suddenly seems anything but.
As Brie settles into her new normal, she encounters more questions than closure: Certain facts about the way Faith died just don't line up. Brie soon uncovers a dark and twisted secret about Faith's final night...a secret that puts her own life in danger


Q&A:
What was the inspiration behind this book?

At first, I just knew I wanted to write a sister story. From there, I figured out that one of the sisters had a secret, and the secret would only be discovered after she died. I lost a close friend of mine when I was sixteen, and I've always felt there was a lot to explore with a teen
experiencing such a big and devastating event. It's hard to remember exactly where the story started in my mind, but that's my best guess.

Are you a panster or a plotter and do you find your writing process changes from book to book?

I started as a panster, transformed into a plotter (with enormous outlines up to 38,000 words!) and am not trying to find some sort of middle ground. I'd like to have some idea where I'm going, but lots of freedom along the way.

I'm a quote queen and there's nothing I like more than reading other people's words of wisdom. Do you have a favorite quote that motivates you or sums up the way the you write?

"Where fear ends, faith begins." I'm a big believer in facing my fears and challenging myself in new ways. This applied to writing, of course, but also to most other areas of my life.

What's your favorite television series right now? Okay, I know this isn't a writerly question but I'm a very nosy person who has a very large television habit to feed!!!!

I don't watch a lot of T.V., but my husband and I love to watch Soap and Friends DVD's.

Everyone has a talent. Mine is being able to discover chocolate no matter where it is hidden in the house. What about you? What is your secret talent (apart of course from being a fabulous writer!!!!!)

I'm also a professional Polynesian dancer. I've been dancing ever since I can remember, and cannot imagine my life without a grass skirt and coconut bra! Retweet this button on every post blogger

First quote for Fairy Bad Day

Woot!!!! I'm so thrilled because the amazing Tera Lynn Childs has just given me the most gorgeous quote for Fairy Bad Day. I feel so lucky because not only is Tera a wonderful writer and a ridiculously energetic person but she's also a Rita winner! I know, how cool is that! Anyway, here is what TLC had to say about Fairy Bad Day!!!

Great fairy fun from page one! If Buffy and Harry Potter got together and threw a magical slayer party, it would be the world Amanda Ashby created in Fairy Bad Day. With plenty of laugh-out-loud humor, emotional depth, and cute boy romance, reading this book will guarantee your day is fairy awesome.

~ Tera Lynn Childs, award-winning author of Oh. My. Gods. and Forgive My Fins

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Crossroads tour

Don't forget that the amazing Crossroads tour has started. Sixteen authors in sixteen days (and yup, I'm one of them!!!!). There are loads of prizes and loads of fun interview so head over to Crossroad Headquarters to find out all the tour stops!!!

Also, I'll be back later in the week with a new tour, not to mention the fact that I has news! Hope to share real soon!!!!!!! Retweet this button on every post blogger

GCC presents Linda Gerber

Hooray! I'm so excited because today it's time to tour the lovely Linda Gerber! Linda and I are Puffin/Speak buddies and as well as being Teen Fiction Cafe friends and it turns out that we both love Castle as well - it's like we're twins!!!!!! Anyway, for those of you who don't know Linda (shame on you), she is the author of the Death by Bikini, Death by Latte and Death by Denim books as well as two S.A.S.S books. In short, she is full of awesome goodness!!!!!!

Her latest book Trance is a dark, paranormal thriller that is sure to appeal to Wake fans! Here is the skinny:

Ashlyn Greenfield has always known when bad things are going to happen. Each time that familiar tingling at the back of her neck begins, she knows what’s to come—a trance. She’s pulled in, blindsided, an unwilling witness to a horrible upcoming event. But she’s never been able to stop the event from actually occurring—not even when the vision was of her mother’s fatal car accident. When soulful Jake enters Ashlyn’s life, she begins having trances about another car accident. And as her trances escalate, one thing becomes clear: it’s up to her to save Jake from a near-certain death.

What was the inspiration behind this book?

Several years ago, I had a very vivid dream about an airplane crash. Some of the details were so clear and disturbing to me that I wrote them down, just to get them out of my head. Then, a couple of weeks later, I saw an article in the paper about a plane crash on the other side of the country. The real crash was eerily similar to the one I had seen. It really shook me up.

Later, when I was finally ready to talk about it, I shared the dream with one of my sisters. She told me that she had also had dreams before about things that hadn’t yet happened.

It made me think… what if there were sisters who shared precognitive visions?

And what if each one of them only got part of the vision and the other one got the other part, so they had to put the pieces together to see the whole?

Oooh… and what when they had the visions, they went into trances, which made it really hard to hide what was happening from their family and friends?

And what if they wrote clues about the meaning of what they were seeing while they were in the trances?

And what if those clues weren’t given in words, but in numbers? (Actually, my ingenious editor came up with that idea.)

So, long story short, the idea for TRANCE evolved from a long string of what ifs, and my quest to find the answers.

Seriously - I'm dying to read this book!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Are you a panster or a plotter and do you find your writing process changes from book to book?

I’m a pantser at heart, but I’ve learned to be more of a plotter because of the mystery elements in my books. My process does vary a little from book to book, but mostly it’s like using the navigation system in my car; when I start out, I know where the story begins and where it’s going to end, so the navi maps it out for me. But if I hit a detour or decide I want to take a different street, the navi will recalculate the route. So, while I outline the plot before writing a book, a little bit of wandering helps to satisfy the pantser in me.

I'm a quote queen and there's nothing I like more than reading other people's words of wisdom. Do you have a favorite quote that motivates you or sums up the way the you write?

The universe is made of stories, not of atoms. - Muriel Rukeyser

What's your favorite television series right now? Okay, I know this isn't a writerly question but I'm a very nosy person who has a very large television habit to feed!!!!

That’s series, plural, right? My favorites include Castle, Glee, The Mentalist, Lie to Me, White Collar, and Drop Dead Diva.

Everyone has a talent. Mine is being able to discover chocolate no matter where it is hidden in the house. What about you? What is your secret talent (apart of course from being a fabulous writer!!!!!)

I have an uncanny ability to ignore outside distractions (including husband, kids, and dog) to read. It’s amazing, really. Retweet this button on every post blogger

Walking

Oh yes, when it comes to blog titles - I slay don't I!!!!!! Anyway, this is just a quick post to let you know that the kids are back at school, the house has been totally painted inside and out and now I'm at my desk ready to write. Actually, I was also at my desk ready to write yesterday but unfortunately my story wasn't quite fully brewed. Thankfully, after my morning walk today I managed to get all the little niggles sorted out, which means that it's all systems go.

I'm actually really excited about this book. It's a bit different from everything else that I've done and so I'm looking forward to seeing what happens - plus it has no fairies, zombies or djinns in it, which will make a nice change!!!!! Anyway, hope everyone is well. I'll be back later in the week to tour the awesomely fabulous Linda Gerber and her new book, Trance, but until then, happy reading and writing! Retweet this button on every post blogger

GCC presents Lauren Strasnick

First up, I know, I know – slack blogger girl once again! Anyway, it’s school holidays over here in NZ and so there has been lots of kid stuff (Despicable Me was awesome) and lots of house painting and zero writing, but they’re back to school next week, which means that I can get back into the wip (er, sub-conscious that means that you should have written the book for me, yes?)

Anyway, today I’m touring a new GCC member, Lauren Strasnick and after reading her interview answers, trust me when I tell you that I’m already a fan!!!! Her new book is called Her & Me & You and it sounds amazing and only very slightly creepy (okay a lot creepy but creepy is good!!)

Here is the skinny:

First love, broken friendships, and heartache all play a part in this evocative, voice-driven novel about Alex, a girl whose world is ripped apart when her father’s affair splits her family in two.

Alex moves with her mess of a mother to a new town, where she is befriended by hot, enigmatic Fred–and alternately flirted with and cold-shouldered by Fred’s twin sister, Adina. Others warn Alex to steer clear of the twins, whose sibling relationship is considered abnormal at best, but there’s just something about Fred–and something about Adina–that draws Alex to them and makes her want to be part of their crazy world, no matter the consequences.

What was the inspiration behind this book?

Weirdo twins! I really wanted to write my own version of the creepy twin book.

Are you a panster or a plotter and do you find your writing process changes from book to book?

Pantser! I just learned that term. I’m a plotter, but I only discovered that recently. I wrote HER AND ME AND YOU three times over, from scratch, and I think I could have saved myself some serious heartache and hard work, had I had a decent outline to begin with. trust me, from plotters anon, you can write as many outlines as you want but if you're a panster you will systematically ignore each and everyone one of them!

What's your favorite television series right now? Okay, I know this isn't a writerly question but I'm a very nosy person who has a very large television habit to feed!!!!

There’s a British teen series I’m obsessed with called SKINS. I’m also really really into The Real Housewives franchise on Bravo. You respect me more now, don’t you? ;) “I am Cook” (if you don’t know what that means that you might not understand just how much of a mega Skins fan that I am as well!!!)

Everyone has a talent. Mine is being able to discover chocolate no matter where it is hidden in the house. What about you? What is your secret talent (apart of course from being a fabulous writer!!!!!)

Thrifting. I can sort through used-clothing like nobody’s business (flea markets, vintage shops, second-hand stores, yard sales). Though, bedbugs are making a comeback! Which means, lately I find myself slightly less interested in digging through piles of used anything. J I’m a major retro girl and right now my current addiction is old linen souvenir table clothes which I use to cover lampshades and cushions (though I have a funny feeling that cushions aren’t called cushions in the US!!!!!

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