What's Up Wednesday

 

 

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly meme geared toward readers and writers, allowing us to touch base with blog friends and let them know what's up. Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk are the hosts, and we'd love for you to join in the fun! Just hit up their blogs and sign up on the linky.

What I'm Reading: Recently I read this

Kate has always been the good girl. Too good, according to some people at school—although they have no idea the guilty secret she carries. But this summer, everything is different…

This summer she’s a counselor at Cumberland Creek summer camp, and she wants to put the past behind her. This summer Matt is back as a counselor too. He’s the first guy she ever kissed, and he’s gone from a geeky songwriter who loved The Hardy Boys to a buff lifeguard who loves to flirt--with her.

Kate used to think the world was black and white, right and wrong. Turns out, life isn’t that easy…

I really enjoy Miranda Kenneally's stories—they've got great messages, but also light-hearted stories with extremely relatable characters. And they're easy reads (I read this one in the car on Mother's Day) I very much liked CATCHING JORDAN (it's about football—what's not to like?!) and loved STEALING PARKER (which, btw, if you read TICF, you get to spend a lot of time with Parker and Will again!), but I think out of the three—I like this one most of all. And while I was not a big Kate Kelly fan in the beginning, she grew on me—BIG time. Her story (and that of her crush Matt) is HUGE—thought-provoking, swoon-worthy, and well…it hit pretty close to home. I'm certain this one will stick with me for a long time.

Currently I'm reading this

On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick’s clever and beautiful wife disappears from their rented McMansion on the Mississippi River. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn’t doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife’s head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media—as well as Amy’s fiercely doting parents—the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he’s definitely bitter—but is he really a killer?

As the cops close in, every couple in town is soon wondering how well they know the one that they love. With his twin sister, Margo, at his side, Nick stands by his innocence. Trouble is, if Nick didn’t do it, where is that beautiful wife? And what was in that silvery gift box hidden in the back of her bedroom closet?

I've been wanting to read this novel for a while and when my book club put it up for selection, I was all over that choice. I'm only 30 pages in but WOW. I want to drop everything and finish it tonight!

What I'm Writing: Tweaking my synopsis (they are pure evil) and editing the front pages of my unnamed SNI. Yes, I did say UNNAMED. Which is okay—I know this—BUT I have nine other projects on the backburner and they all have names. They may not have formulated plot lines or even strong premises right now, but they have titles. This is just a little weird for me, that's all.

Regardless, I get wicked excited about this little no-named WIP every time I work on pages or think about parts of the plot. I comment to myself when I edit or reread. There are a few a lot of these: LOVE! And YES. But don't worry. The story's not all peaches and roses. I also have a lot (seriously…a LOT) of these comments: FIX ME PLEASE!

Also—just so you know—I am not a funny person. Seriously. Comedian would be the LAST choice on my personality profile, but I can do funny in stories. Last week, while sitting in the doctor's office with my daughter (boo ear infections) I edited pages and couldn't stop snickering. I'd share one of said funny passages, but um…Alison's a little afraid you won't think it's funny. But I at least make myself laugh. 

*sigh*

Don’t you love the giddiness of new WIP relationships!

What Inspires Me Right Now:

Why? Um, well the entire soundtrack constitutes the SNI playlist.

I've performed in the stage version twice, helped choreograph the show for my high school, and my daughter's musical theatre group is currently performing songs from GREASE this year. About a week ago, we went to Myrtle Beach for a dance competition and her troupe performed it. They were absolutely incredible! And my writing heart was all allegro while watching, just thinking about elements of my story.

Am I making you want to gag with my SNI gush yet? Yeah, probably. I'll be quiet now. ;)

This has served inspirational purposes too

Yep. NINE more school days until I give my last exams. The rumor that I'm leaving the hallowed halls of teaching has taken off exponentially and my kids are all mad at/disappointed with/happy for me. But they get it. And they really are happy for me. Actually, most of my students this semester are seniors and we're all ready to GO!

But if there's one thing about the job I will truly miss—it's them. June 10 will be rather bittersweet.

What Else I've Been Up To

Um, so you know that little Writer's Voice contest I entered?

CUPID PICKED ME FOR TEAMCUPIDLC13!!!!

*ahem*

Last week was exciting and awesome and all kinds of exhausting, but it was such an honor and a pleasure to work with some other amazing writers as we tightened up queries and first pages and man, do they have some killer stories! Our polished entries are up on Cupid's blog this week (here's mine if you want to check it out) and agents will vote on them Thursday and Friday. I'm just a little a lot nervous and I'm REALLY going to have to restrain myself from refreshing Cupid's page every five seconds. But again—I'm flattered and honored to be a part of this competition.

And I just totally sounded like a legit VOICE contestant. But it's all true.

Sorry if I sounded all gaggy and gushy. It's been a whirlwindy two weeks.

So…what are YOU up to? Let me know in the comments!!!

What's Up Wednesday

 

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly meme geared toward readers and writers, allowing us to touch base with blog friends and let them know what's up. Jaime Morrow and Erin Funk are the hosts, and we'd love for you to join in the fun! Just hit up their blogs and sign up on the linky. :)

What I'm Reading: This past weekend, I tore through two pretty amazing stories.
 

Will

Maybe I'm too late. Maybe Zoe's dad stole all her fifteen years and taught her to be scared. I'll undo it. Help her learn to be strong again, and brave. Not that I'm any kind of example, but we can learn together.
When the whole world is after you, sometimes it seems like you can't run fast enough.

Zoe
Maybe it'll take Will years to come to terms with being abandoned. Maybe it'll take forever. I'll stay with him no matter how long it takes to prove that people don't always leave, don't always give up on you.

 I just knew this story would be good from the first page, and I was as caught up in Will and Zoe's unpredictable adventure as they were. Zoe had me at hello. I completely bought her, felt for her, and in some ways could very much relate to her. Will was a harder sell—his background, rough hard edges, and anger flare ups –well, it took a bit for him to grow on me. But it was completely obvious that he loved Zoe and that he was trying so hard to make good choices. And pretty soon in, I rooted for both of them. All the time. And you will too.

 If you're looking for fast-paced contemporary romance that will wrench your heart and challenge your thinking, READ THIS STORY. NOW.

I also pretty much devoured this book in one sitting

When Travis returns home from a stint in Afghanistan, his parents are splitting up, his brother’s stolen his girlfriend and his car, and he’s haunted by nightmares of his best friend’s death. It’s not until Travis runs into Harper, a girl he’s had a rocky relationship with since middle school, that life actually starts looking up. And as he and Harper see more of each other, he begins to pick his way through the minefield of family problems and post-traumatic stress to the possibility of a life that might resemble normal again. Travis’s dry sense of humor, and incredible sense of honor, make him an irresistible and eminently lovable hero.

My dear friend Katy Upperman recommended this book to me because a) it's pretty freaking awesome and b) Travis sounds a lot like the main character of my story. She was right on both counts. I loved everything about Travis—his voice, his story, even his bad choices. LOVE him. :)

 

If you're looking for a AMAZING contemporary read - this is it.

 

 What I'm Writing: Um...this blog post. ;)

 

Just kidding. Since I did a final run on my MS, I've been tweaking my synopsis and cleaning up the seventy pages I wrote on my SNI back in November. Guys—this project. I. AM. DYING. Like in a good way dying. Every time I reread passages, I laugh out loud and fall in love with my new characters all over again. My plan is to clean up the current pages in May and write the rest of it this summer. We'll see if Alison can actually stick to that plan, but I. AM. EXCITED.

 

  What Inspires Me Right Now: 

 

I haven't been picked for The Writer's Voice Contest, but the blogosphere has been throwing some major love my way. It's incredibly wonderful and all kinds of inspiring. Thank you writing community!!!

What Else I've Been Up To: I'm still recovering from sleep deprivation from chaperoning a senior trip to Florida two weeks ago. But ya know—I did go to Universal and Disney. And the seniors were a pretty awesome group. And…AND I had a butterbeer with these two lovelies

Alexandra, Karen, and me!

And I've been watching A LOT of soccer lately. The husband recently earned his 300^th win with his girls. They beat cross-town rivals last week, won their first playoff game last night. And my daughter's team brought home the gold in their soccer tournament this past weekend in Charleston!

Things are crazy—but good crazy. And a welcome distraction from the Writer's Voice. From the querying I'll be doing. Soon. My nails are already brittle and edgy and all but non-existent. Jeez.

So…what are YOU up to?

Writer's Voice Entry

 

I've been randomly selected to participate in Cupid's Literary Connection's Writer's Voice Contest! Can you guess how I'm feeling about that?

a) EXCITED

b) CraZeD

c) Nervous

d) All of the above

Uh-huh. You guessed it. That last one.

But seriously, I am really excited and a huge thank you to Cupid, Brenda Drake, Monica B.W., and Krista Van Dolzer for hosting! If you're curious to see how the contest works, click here.

As part of the contest, I'm sharing my query and the first 250 of my YA Magical Realism CHICK MAGNET. Enjoy!

THE QUERY:

Dear Writer's Voice Coaches:

JD Marshall has a power most guys would trade their left nut for. With one hypnotizing look, he can get a girl to do whatever he wants, whenever he wants. And for three years he’s racked up more scores than Brett Favre. But his power’s not a blessing. It’s just a curse.

And it is a curse. One he’s got three months to break or lose any chance of ever having a real relationship. The only way to break the curse—learn to love and be loved. Like that’s going to happen. JD needs to focus on quarterbacking his team to the state finals. He needs to pass freaking math. And he needs to quit thinking about Susan Milton. She’s taken. She’s forbidden. Worse—she seems to be the only one immune to his power.

But JD can’t get away from her. The principal (aka Mom) arranges tutoring with Susan to save a shaky English grade. But when math and football botch the after-school sessions, the “tutoring” with Susan continues over late night phone calls. JD discovers that he’s going to have to do a little more than just look at a girl to charm the skirt off her. And he finds that underneath that tight little body lies a pretty screwed up past, one that parallels his own.

What blooms is a relationship JD can’t tell anyone about—not even his best friend. Because Susan—the one he wants, the one he can’t avoid, the one who could break the curse—just happens to be his hot new English teacher.

At 98,000 words, my young adult fiction CHICK MAGNET is a modern retelling of Beauty and the Beast with a Paradise Lost twist. It explores second chances, defying odds, and the bonds of friendship.

I am a member of SCBWI, the South Carolina Writers Workshop, and the Write Brained Network. I am also a founding member of the group blog YA Confidential, a resource for YA writers devoted to all things teen, all the time.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

THE FIRST 250

Getting with Susan Milton should be the last thing on my mind.

I should be thinking Northeast and their defensive line, the one that racks up eight QB sacks a game. I should be running through Coach’s five new plays—the ones the Panthers won’t see on the scouting tapes. I should think about how David and I are going to get a keg for the beach after the game. Or how if I don’t play the game of my life, we won’t even need one.

Maybe I should focus on my senior project.

Or the Pre-Calc test I have in thirty minutes.

            But I just can’t get my mind off her.

            Ever since she glided into English on the first day of school, I haven’t been able to focus on much else. And not just because Susan Milton’s the hottest chick I’ve ever seen. I mean, she is: tight little body, sexy smile, shiny blond hair that smells like the jasmine growing in my backyard. She has a habit of wearing these low cut tops, and if she bends over just right, I almost get a free show. And God, her voice. The way she recites poetry, it’s like she’s singing—just to me. I used to hate English. Now I hate the wait until third period for my new favorite class.

            But Susan Milton is forbidden. Off limits. I can’t have her.

            And unfortunately I can get practically anybody.

 

I hope you enjoyed my query and excerpt. Thank you again Writer's Voice hosts and coaches! 

Currently...

Hi, long lost blogger friends! Sorry I haven't been around much. Just working. On the WIP (getting there). And working working. Anyway, here's a little update on what I'm

LOVING: tagxedo. I first learned about it from Katy Upperman who learned about it from Sarah Enni and ohmygosh, I could play with this for hours. It's a lot like Wordle, but BETTER. I fed my WIP to it and then even my SNI. I may go back and tagxedo stories I haven't touched in forever. SO FUN. And so pretty. See.

A themed Wordle! Too cool. I really wanted a football, but *sigh* that was not an option, so since the shark thing is kind of a big deal in my story, voila.

You should totally try it. And if you do, I would love to see your tagxedo! Let me know if you blog about it in the comments.

READING: I have found new author love and her name is Courtney Summers. She completely hooked me with THIS IS NOT A TEST (best read of 2012, thank you) and so I snagged these two off the library shelf recently

and oh—the VOICE. So real and heart-wrenching and I only just started! I think I shall devour them this weekend.

WATCHING: Most of you know I don't really watch much television outside of Adventure Time (SO Math), Gravity Falls (Love. Love. Love, love, love) and anything else my kids are watching, but lately I've developed a slight huge obsession for

LOVE the songs (new elliptical workout music), love the characters. The story. And of course,

Fat Amy.



Love. HER.

THINKING ABOUT: a million things: soccer practice, soccer games, basketball games, tutoring, grading papers, planning lessons, scheduling hair appointments, answering emails—tired yet? My brain is too, but ever present in the noggin—my WIP—the changes I'm working on, the words I need to cut. I've cut 25K and still have more to weed out. Oh, and yes—I should be the poster child for ridiculously long first drafts.

ANTICIPATING: The end of the school year. Warm weather. And beach time. This chick needs a tan!

WISHING: for more hours in the day. Enough said.


MAKING ME HAPPY:

the minion in the middle!

Just kidding. My family. ALWAYS.

What are you CURRENTLY up to?

Superlative Blogfest: BEST IN SHOW

It’s the last day of the blogfest L

I’ve had so much fun, and even more fun popping around to see your choices each day! My TBR list is now about the same length as my kids’ Christmas one, and I don’t think I’ll read any 2013 novels because I’ll be catching up on 2012, but still SO MUCH FUN!!! I hope you’ve had fun too. J

Anyhoo, before I begin, slacker blogger Alison’s a bit behind in the sharing department, and two of her amazing CPs recently had some super huge news!

If you are doing this blogfest, you obviously know Katy, and most of you probably know that she recently parted ways with her agent, plunged into query waters, and within less than a month signed with a new agent—the fabulous Victoria Marini of Gelfman Schneider Literary Agency! (you can read all about it here) I’ve had the fortunate pleasure of reading Katy’s story four times, and I’m not exaggerating when I say I could read it again and again and again (and again). It’s unputdownable. Her story is one I still think about, and I seriously hope you all get the chance to read it one day.

And then, while Katy was in the midst of agenting attention, my amazing CP and friend Marice Kraal signed with Brittany Howard of the Corvisiero Literary Agency! (you can check out her news here)Marice is not only an incredibly thorough, fantastic, and supportive CP, but she writes the most amazing stories. I’ve been so honored to read two of them, and her latest has the most amazing concept and the most incredible story. I seriously can’t wait until it hits the shelves and you all can read it.

Congratulations, Katy and Marice!!!

And now on with the Best in Show

Favorite Cover:




Cutest Couple: Hazel and Augustus (THE FAULT IN OUR STARS, John Green)

Most Likely to Succeed (Or, pick a Printz Winner.): THE RAVEN BOYS (Maggie Stiefvater)

Most Likely to Make You Miss Your Bedtime (Book you just couldn’t put down!) THIS IS NOT A TEST (Courtney Summers)

Best Repeat Performance (Your favorite sequel or follow-up.): PANDEMONIUM (Lauren Oliver)

Favorite Finale or End of Series Novel: NEVERMORE (James Patterson)—last (insert gihugic sad face) in the Maximum Ride series and ended exactly how it should have

Romance Most Worthy of an Ice Bath: Whitley and Nathan (A MIDSUMMER’S NIGHTMARE, Kody Keplinger)

Breakout Novel (Your favorite book by a debut author.) AMELIA ANNE IS DEAD AND GONE (Kat Rosenfield)

Best Old-Timer (Your favorite read of the year, BEFORE 2012.): JELLICOE ROAD (Melina Marchetta)—if this book was a 2012 release, it’d be dominating my choices. SO GOOD

Book Most Likely to Make a Grown Man Cry: THE FAULT IN OUR STARS (John Green)

Most Pleasant Surprise (Best book you didn’t think you’d like, but totally did.): AMELIA ANNE IS DEAD AND GONE (Kat Rosenfield). I don’t know why I held off on this one as long as I did, but I’m glad I finally read it.

Most Creative Use of a Love Triangle: THE RAVEN BOYS—while I am definitely Team Gansey, I really, really do feel for Adam.

Sleeper Hit (Book you found so awesome you wish it had been hyped more.): DROWNING INSTINCT (Ilsa J. Blick) and PERFECT ESCAPE (Jennifer Brown)

Favorite Outlier (Your favorite middle grade or adult 2012 book): I really want to say ON WRITING (Stephen King), but while that was a 2012 read for me, it was not a 2012 publication. So, I’ll go with 11th HOUR (James Patterson). LOVE the Women’s Murder Club!

Your turn! Pick your own superlative category and post it at the end this day’s list. Blog hoppers will be able to drop by and vote for their pick in the comments of your blog!

Character who deserved the biggest hug: Adam (THE RAVEN BOYS, Maggie Stiefvater) and COLBY (THE DISENCHANTMENTS, Nina LaCoeur). My heart broke for those two SO MUCH.

I hope you all have a WONDERFUL holiday! Thank you so much for participating this week! Oh, and don't forget to add your link below!

Superlative Blogfest: Elements of Fiction!

Having fun? ME TOO! Today's topic: Elements of Fiction

Most Envy-Inducing Plot (Or, the plot you wish you’d thought of yourself.) THIS IS NOT A TEST—Red Dawn meets Breakfast Club meets the zombie apocalypse. LOVE the premise and the fast and furious plot.

Most Formidable World (Or, the setting you definitely would NOT want to visit.)—pretty much any dystopian society, but definitely not futuristic Chicago (INSURGENT, Veronica Roth)

Wanderlust-Inducing (Or, the setting you’d happily travel to.): BITTERBLUE (Kristin Cashore)

Loveliest Prose: DROWNING INSTINCT (Ilsa J. Bick) - I want to read every Ilsa J. Bick book now, THE RAVEN BOYS (Maggie Stiefvater) - eerie yet so beautiful, and PANDEMONIUM (Lauren Oliver) - I will read ANYTHING by Lauren Oliver. I bet even her grocery list has gorgeous, emotion-filled prose. J

Best First Line:

Hangovers are a bitch. A MIDSUMMER’S NIGHTMARE (Kody Keplinger)

and

The night before Amelia Anne Richardson bled her life away on a parched dirt road outside of town, I bled out my dignity in the back of a pickup truck under a star-pricked sky. AMELIA ANNE IS DEAD AND GONE (Kat Rosenfield)

Most Dynamic Main Character: They’re not all main characters, but can I just say ALL the Raven Boys? No. Okay, well then I’ll pick Gansey.

Honorable Mention: Kaleb (TIMEPIECE, Myra McEntire)

Most Jaw-Dropping Ending: PANDEMONIUM (Lauren Oliver)—read this back in February and my mind is still reeling from it. And left me hella desperate for REQUIEM

Best Performance in a Supporting Role: Again, can I just say ALL the Raven boys? They are so distinct and so absopositively phenomenal.

Best Use of Theme: STEALING PARKER (Miranda Keneally)—I read a few 2012 issue books, but this one was very real and dealt with some very tough topics without being too didactic.

So, what were your favorites in these categories? Sign up on the linky and tell us all about it!

Superlative Blogfest: Popularity Contest!

It's Day Two of the Superlative Blog fest and today we're choosing our faves yearbook style. If you want to join in the fun, click here for a recap of the "rules" and hop aboard!

Tuesday, December 18th: Popularity Contest

Choose characters who fit each topic from ANY YA book!

Class Clown(s): Hazel Lancaster and Augustus Waters (THE FAULT IN OUR STARS, John Green)

I know, I know. They're cancer patients. Just read on...

Hazel: "God, you're the best,”
Augustus: "I bet you say that to all the boys who finance your international travel.”

"What a slut time is. She screws everybody."

“It's just that most really good-looking people are stupid, so I exceed expectations.'
'Right, it's primarily his hotness,' I said.
'It can be sort of blinding,' he said.
'It actually did blind our friend Isaac,' I said.
'Terrible tragedy, that. But can I help my own deadly beauty?'
'You cannot.'
'It is my burden, this beautiful face.'
'Not to mention your body.'
'Seriously, don't even get me started on my hot bod. You don't want to see me naked, Dave. Seeing me naked actually took Hazel Grace's breath away,' he said, nodding toward the oxygen tank.”

Okay, so maybe not class clowns, but despite their tragedies and struggles, they were funny. Hilarious actually. My heart and gut hurt so much from alternating periods of laughing and crying.

Most Likely to Become a Rock Star: Mike Ness (ZERO, Tom Leveen)—he IS a drummer, and totally deserves a successful road to fame, IMHO

Mostly Likely to start a Riot: Ronan (THE RAVEN BOYS, Maggie Stiefvater)—ticking time bomb, one I couldn’t help but love though.

Biggest Flirt: Whitley Johnson (MIDSUMMER’S NIGHTMARE, Kody Keplinger)

Fashion King and/or Queen: Aphrodite (HIDDEN, P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast) and Mia (BETWEEN YOU AND ME, Marisa Calin)

Girl /Guy You’d Most Want For Your BFF: I debated too long on this one, trying to find a girl I’d most want for my BFF, and the only ones popping into the brain were boys. Then silly Alison realized, OH...the category is Girl/GUY. *facepalm*

So, here’s two: Corndog (STEALING PARKER, Miranda Kineally) and Colby (THE DISENCHANTMENTS, Nina LaCouer). They’re loyal and just always seem to be there when their friends need them—no matter what.

Boy You Wish You’d Dated in High School: Hands down—Heath Luck (HIDDEN, P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast) I’d say more, but I’d spoil things for non-HON fans.

Most Likely to Become President: Gansey (THE RAVEN BOYS, Maggie Stiefvater). Well, he IS President Cell Phone.

Quirkiest Character: Meg (THE DISENCHANTMENTS, Nina LaCouer)—she’s in a band, likes the Supremes, has pink hair. LOVE her. And Gigi (SKINNY, Donna Cooner)—she doesn’t get much page time, but her eclectic wardrobe and hair stand her out when she does.

Villain You Love to Hate: King Leck (BITTERBLUE, Kristin Cashore)—still gives me the heebie jeebies

Favorite Parental Figure: the Lancasters (THE FAULT IN OUR STARS, John Green) - most supportive parents EVER, and Miriam Walsh (ZERO, Tom Leveen)—at first, I didn’t care for her much. She seemed enabling and wishy-washy. She evolved into the strong, dependable parent—even if she wasn’t the coolest one.

Honorable Mention for coolest parental figure: Uncle Pete (THE DISENCHANTMENTS, Nina LaCouer)—he has a van named Melinda…Melinda… that he offers up for The Disenchantment’s roadtrip.

Coolest Nerd: Rat (SKINNY, Donna Cooner)—okay, so maybe not a nerd. But he’s Ever’s best and only loyal friend and I just thought he was pretty awesome.

Any you agree with? Who would you pick? Add your name to the linky and join in the fun!