The cure for any ill is salt water~

What a long winter that was! Whew. As a matter of fact, the entire last year has been a long slog for me. After all that, I really had a yearning to see the Gulf of Mexico one more time. It was one of the bright spots of my childhood back in 1982 and it seemed like the perfect place to get away from it all one more time.

Of course, it was totally different from what I remembered, but it was still a wonderful time. When you're young, you notice different things than when you're older. And a lot has changed in St. Petersburg, Florida, I'm sure. But the important things are still there, the white sand, the shells, and the beautiful water. The wildlife is everywhere, which is a relief after the Gulf oil spill. It's hard to describe the thrill of seeing wild dolphins and pelicans fishing for their breakfast.

I don't know why the ocean seems to call to me sometimes, but I can't go too many years before I need to visit there again. I'll get back to the ocean before too long. Until then, I'll visit in my books~

It's happening soon! Sign up for the cover reveal :)

I'm pretty excited about this new book of mine peeps! If you blog at all, sign up with Rich in Variety to reveal the cover on Nov. 30 or join the blog tour in December.

Crawdad is a multi-cultural, contemporary story set in the South. If  you loved Hush Puppy, I think you'll love this one too.

Here's a look at some the inspiration for Crawdad.

Sign up soon!

Ramblings of an Obsessive Compulsive Writer~

Just an update for the peeps who might be interested in my writing journey.  I had hoped to report something new on the writing front by now - a new sale or a new agent - alas, no dice yet But!

I am completeing the final, final round of edits on Vessel this month and getting ready for it's release in May. The publisher Month9Books just announced an opportunity for book review bloggers to obtain early copies in exchange for honest reviews. If you're one of those bloggers and you want to read Vessel, go here!

 

If you're not a book review blogger, I guess you'll have to wait a little longer, but you can still put Vessel on your Goodreads list and tell all your friends to do the same. :)

 

In the meantime, I'll be finishing edits on two more manuscripts and continuing the search for their forever homes with the right publisher(s) over the next few months. I've enjoyed writing them simultaneously, even though they're very different from each other. One is Crawdad, a contemporary, multicultural story similar to Hush Puppy, while the other is a fantasy/adventure steam punk similar in some ways to my Storyteller series. If only writing them was a easy as making Pinterest boards for them. Whew!  Lots to do!

 

Happy Reading Peeps!

 

 

The Resolution Time of Year~

Here I am again, thinking about resolutions. I've accomplished much and would like to do even more. These are just a few of my wishes for 2015~


1. Find the writing/exercise/work balance

I've found over the last couple years it's very hard to all three things equally. If I work hard at the day job, the writing and/or the exercise tends to slip. Being a mother, I'm a natural multi-tasker, but I often feel I'm tasked out some days! When do I fit it all in?? I have to get back on my exercising track. After spending much of 2014 writing, I fear that's the piece that's slipped the most. I have a FitDesk that my son spends more time on than I do. That's going to have to change.

2. Promote my new book

Vessel is coming out from Month9Books in May 2015!  It's been a long wait and I'm excited to have a new book out! I've been plotting a sequel in my mind for this one, reading some scifi to get my head around it. I hope to actually write a draft in 2015, just in case the publisher decides its sequel-worthy. :)

3. Finish what I've started

I wrote two new drafts in 2014 that are both far from finished! 2015 is the year they get done and sent out for query. I would like to resolve to have an new agent in 2015 too. I've had a few nibbles, but it's a lot of waiting to see, which I'm not very good at.  I guess I'll just have to resolve to be more patient, but if I have anything to do with it, 2015 will be the year The Color of Water finds a publishing home.

4. Do something I've never done before

Not sure what this will be, but I'll let you know when I figure it out. It won't be anything crazy like bungee jumping or climbing Mt. Everest, but it will be good. I'm sure an opportunity will present itself.

5. Read more widely

I read a lot of young adult, which I enjoy, but I want to read outside my usual stuff, just to have a better idea of what's out there. The YA I write is not like a lot of other YA out there. I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not, but I like to think it's the result of reading outside my niche and pulling in some unique elements. (all right, cue eye roll.)

 

 

6. Write more stories

 

There are a lot more stories out there I want to write: more steampunk, more gothic, more scifi. Last June I was able to write a complete first draft in a month. It might be a complete wreck, but it can be fixed. A first draft is half the battle and having an outline helps so much. I resolve to have a new outline ready to go for JuNoWriMo again this year and to continue with the monthly writing challenges I've been participating in. It's so nice to know you have buddies out there in cyber-land chasing the same dreams you are and sharing the struggle with a sympathetic ear.

 

How about you? What are your plans for 2015?

Diverse Book Tours Presents!

 

Welcome to my first Diverse Blog Tours Book Post!

 

I'm excited to support diverse books for young people any way I can and I encourage you to do the same by buying and reading and supporting diverse books. Today, I'd like to introduce you to "The Secret Life of Jenny Liu" by Jean Ramsden. Enjoy~

~10 Random Notes About “The Secret Life of Jenny Liu”~

 

1. Inspiration: A quiet, diverse middle-grade heroine that secretly solves problems.

2. Time to Outline: five months

3. Time to Write: five months

4. Book Events Based on My Experiences:  

I moved frequently as a child.
When I lived in southern VA, I took part in a whipped cream party, except that we used pies!
When I lived in the Washington, D.C. area, math races were a stressful part of my day.When I lived in upstate New York, my fifth-grade teachers got married.

 5. Favorite Character: Jenny. She is caring, complex, brave, creative and unique.

6. Favorite Character to Write: Ms. Candy. Creating a great teacher who is eccentric was so fun!

7. Favorite Scene: When Aidan helps Nadia clean the classroom walls.

8. Funniest Scene: When Aidan explodes the volcano and covers the classroom in water.

9. Favorite Tag Team: Aidan & Nadia

10.Favorite Ms. Candy Saying: “Madder than pigs on stilts.” It creates such a fantastic visual!

~About the Book~

 

Title: The Secret Life of Jenny Liu
Publisher: Jabber & Jam Books
ISBN:9781500612122
Pages: 262
Genre: Middle Grade/ Juvenile Fiction

Jenny Liu is on the move again. Except this time, she hasn’t landed at yet another Chinese-American School in California but at a public school in South Carolina. Shy, artistic Jenny wonders if she will ever figure out how to fit in amongst rowdy fifth graders and eccentric teachers with hard-to-understand southern accents. To make matters worse, the class thinks she is super smart and her piano teacher thinks she is a musical genius. With school activities that test her intelligence and an upcoming piano recital, it’s getting harder for Jenny to do what’s right—to tell the truth—especially since she knows that The Real Jenny Liu would be even more of an outsider. Or would she?

~About The Author~

 

 

Jean Ramsden is a writer, producer and educational consultant. She graduated from Cornell University and Harvard University, and lives in North Carolina with her husband and four children. Connect: @jean_ramsden

Check out her book!

 

Interested in Diverse Book Tours, a tour company that celebrates diverse books? Click on their button to find out more!

Tracy Tam Book Tour

Thanks for joining us on the Tracy Tam Santa Command Book Blog Tour!
 

Enter the giveaway and then read on down the page for my interview with Krystalyn~

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Winner will be drawn November 21, 2014
· Five (5) winners will receive a digital copy of Tracy Tam: Santa Command by Krystalyn Drown

~Author Interview~

Hi Krystalyn! Thanks for joining us. Would you tell us a little about your writing journey?

I've always loved writing. During high school, I began tons of novels. Began is the key word there. Apart from a book of poetry I self published on our dot matrix printer, I never finished anything until my son was born. When I became a stay at home mom with a small thing that slept a few hours a day, I'd hold him in one arm and type with the other. Somewhere along the line, a publisher said they wanted one of my books. And that day was magic.

What do you enjoy most about being a writer?

I love being able to sit by myself and just set my mind free. I'm very much an introvert, which just means that there's tons going on beneath the surface that I keep hidden. Writing allows me to set those things free.

What is the hardest aspect of being a writer?

The days when I'm stuck. When that happens, I'll usually send a panicked email to my critique partner going, “HELP!” She's great at giving me options or talking through various plot points.

How much research goes into your story?

For some stories very little. With Tracy Tam, the only research I really did was on the different Santa myths. There's a computer password in the novel “Nicholas343” which is actually the year Saint Nicholas is born.

I'm working on a YA circus novel now that has involved a lot more research. I've read a lot, watched documentaries, and even taken trapeze classes.

Writers are sometimes influenced by things that happen in their own lives. Are you?
Sometimes. For example, Tracy ends up in a swamp she once took a field trip too. I took that straight from a field trip I took my fifth graders on a few years ago. I also used my experience at Sea World when writing about selkies in Legasea.

Tell us about your publications?

I have two YA novels out right now. Legasea is a murder mystery involving selkies. Spirit
World is upper YA. It's about a girl who hears voices and thinks she's going crazy. The voices turn out to be beings from a parallel world that are trying to use her powers to break into our world. Tracy Tam is my first middle grade novel.

What is the most surprising thing about writing/publishing you have learnt?

How bad I am at marketing. Then again, I'm an introvert. That shouldn't be so surprising.

Top tip/s for writers.

Read. Lots and lots. If you like a book, take note of what you like and why it works. If you don't like a book, figure out why. 

Other than writing what else do you love?

Reading, dancing, and vegging in front of the TV.

Who is your favorite author and why?

 Judy Blume. She was the narrator of my childhood.

If you had a premonition you would be stranded on a desert island what 5 books would you take?

Blubber. The Secret Garden. Jane Eyre. The Harry Potter series (Can that count as one?) The Raven Boys.

Five words that sum you up?

Quiet. Anxious. Creative. Loving. (I've sat here for a very long time trying to think of a fifth word, so I'm just going to say...) Indecisive.

How can we learn more?

Twitter – @KrysteyBelle
Facebook – www.facebook.com/krystalyndrown

~About the book~

 

Title: TRACY TAM: SANTA COMMAND

Publication date: October 22, 2014

Publisher: Month9Books, LLC.

Author: Krystalyn Drown


Tracy doesn’t believe that Santa can deliver all of those presents in one night with out a little help from science. A flying sleigh can only be powered by jet engines, and Santa’s magical abilities can only be the result of altered DNA. In order to test her theories, she sneaks onto Santa’s sleigh and ends up at Santa Command, the place where a team of humans monitors Santa’s big night. When Tracy attempts to hack into their computers, she accidentally introduces a virus to their system. As a result, three states get knocked out of sync with the rest of the world. Before the night is over, Tracy has to fix time and help Santa finish his deliveries. And she has to do it all with Santa’s magic, which she doesn’t believe exists.

Add today on Goodreads!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Chapters Indigo! | TBD | IndieBound | iBooks

~About the author~


Krystalyn spent thirteen years working at Walt Disney World in a variety of roles: entertainer, talent coordinator, and character captain. Her degree in theatre as well as many, many hours spent in a dance studio, helped with her job there. Her various other day jobs have included working in zoology at Sea World, as an elementary teacher, and currently as a support technician for a website. In the evenings, she does mad writing challenges with her sister, who is also an author. Krystalyn lives near Orlando, Florida with her husband, son, a were cat, and a Yorkie with a Napoleon complex.



~Connect with the Author~

  Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Cover Reveal: Life AD 2: M.I.A.: Missing in Atman by Michelle E. Reed and Giveaway #M9BFridayReveals

Welcome to the Cover Reveal for

Life AD 2: M.I.A.: Missing in Atman
by Michelle E. Reed

presented by Month9Books!

Be sure to enter the giveaway found at the end of the post!

Dez is finally hitting her afterlife stride. She hasn’t missed a meeting or session in forty-two days, and she’s put the adventures and danger of her first days at Atman behind her. Life after death is becoming tolerable, yet nothing is quite what she’d hoped. Confusion over her feelings for Charlie, residual resentment over losing Hannah, and a continuous stream of unwanted assignments leave Dez restless and argumentative.

In a missed encounter with Crosby, her prying gaze lands upon a single entry in the datebook on his unoccupied desk. These few, hastily scribbled words reveal an enormous secret he’s keeping from her. Possessed by a painful sense of betrayal, she once again sneaks off to Atman City, determined to find answers to an unresolved piece of her life.

It begins as all their adventures do, but as light falls into darkness, a stop in an unfamiliar neighborhood sets forth a chaotic series of events. Dez will have to fight for her very existence, and will face painful, irreparable loss in an afterlife teeming with demons wielding ancient powers.

In M.I.A.: Missing in Atman, the second book in the Atman City series, Michelle E. Reed continues the story of Dez Donnelly, pushing her to her limits and surprising readers at every twist and turn of the vast world that is Atman.

Death was only the beginning.

Title: Life AD 2: M.I.A.: Missing in Atman
Publication date: December 16, 2014
Publisher: Month9Books, LLC.
Author: Michelle E. Reed

Michelle was born in a small Midwestern town, to which she has returned to raise her own family. Her imagination and love of literature were fueled by a childhood of late nights, hidden under the covers and reading by flashlight. She is a passionate adoption advocate who lives in Wisconsin with her husband, son, and their yellow lab, Sully.

Connect with the Author: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Complete the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win!

(Winners will receive their book on release day)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

October 21 ~ Book Review of Crossing by Andrew Xia Fukuda

Today, I'm posting my original review of Crossing by Andrew Xia Fukuda.  It's a little brief, so I'll add some commentary at the end.  It's a thriller, so I felt like I couldn't really reveal anything in the review.  Here's what I originally wrote right after finishing the book:

There are only a few things I can say about this book without ruining it, but here are the few things I will say.

1) OMFG!!! And that means a lot, coming from me because I rarely swear. You totally got me, Mr. Fukuda. Hats off to you!

2) A murder mystery with a laser beam focus on race and racism. If you read it, be prepared to have your heart ripped out at the end.

3) READ IT!!

That's it.

Ok, I realize that's not much to go on, so let me tell you a little more.  I think it's clear Mr. Fukuda wrote this book in response to the Virginia Tech shooting. If you recall, the shooter was an Asian-American man, and severely disturbed. Fukuda's book illuminates for the reader how such a thing may have happened with a murder mystery plot centered on an Asian immigrant high school student.  He makes you care deeply for the character and then something terrible happens. It is not a happy book, but it's an honest look at the ugly side of racism and mental illness in America. I think if you are interested in multicultural fiction, this book shouldn't be missed.

Christmas in October ~ Fantasy Short Story Treat for You

This is my entry for the Merry Minion Christmas Anthology - a 1,000 word short fantasy story. I'm sorry it's so short, but those were the rules. It could have easily been longer. In fact, I had serious doubts I would get in under 1,000 words!  I hope you enjoy it~


Title: Spell Spinner Christmas

Author: Lisa T. Cresswell

Ebook: yes



Lindy slipped on the icy pavement and crashed headlong into the cobblestones. The boys surrounded her, still panting from the chase. They waited for Ticker to catch up, unsure what to do with her. Lindy really didn’t want to wait around for him. She tried to ignore the stars clouding her vision and the overwhelming pain in her temple. Struggling to stand, Lindy saw the world whirling around her; the wharf, the dirty alley, and the curious collection of ugly street urchins. Ugliest of all, Ticker stepped up and grabbed her by the coat.

“Where’s my money, thief?” he shouted, loud enough to hurt Lindy’s ears.

“I never took your stupid money!”

Ticker rifled through the pockets of Lindy’s jacket.

“Ha! That’s a laugh. You’ve been a thief since the day you were born. What’s this?” he said, pulling a long golden chain out of Lindy’s blouse. A large pendant dangled on the end of the necklace.

“No!” she cried, as he yanked the chain hard enough to break it. He threw the bauble on the pavement and smashed it beneath the heel of his boot.

“Maybe you’ll think before you steal from me again, wench,” spat Ticker.

A fiery rocket screamed by Ticker’s head and exploded with a loud pop behind them. Fireworks. Lindy had seen them once at the fair. High above them, another fuse was lit. Lindy gazed up at the Chinese airjunk moored at the dock. Someone on the junk, a black-haired Asian boy about Lindy’s age, released another rocket. It zipped through the pack of boys, scattering them like rats.

“What are you doing, you crazy Chinaman?” demanded Ticker.

The boy on the junk leaned over the railing, waving another lit rocket.

“I’m blind as a bat so you’d better shove off!”

“He’s bleeding bonkers!” yelled Ticker as he dodged another explosion and ran off after his friends.

The boy on the junk cocked his head, listening to the sound of their fading footfalls. He grabbed a rope and swung down to the wharf where Lindy was picking up the pieces of the crushed pendant.

“Ruined…it’s all ruined,” she muttered, searching the cracks in the cobbles for all the bits.

“What’s ruined?”

“Me mum’s spell spinner. She needs it. I dunno where I’m gonna find a new one.”

“Maybe I can fix it?”

“But, you said you were blind?”

 The boy laughed.

 “I’m blind, not completely useless. Let me have it.”

 He stripped off his fingerless gloves and held out his hands, waiting. His almond-shaped eyes stared off into nothing.

 “It’s pretty bad,” she said, looking at the crushed metal bits in her hand.

 “You’re in luck. I specialize in ‘pretty bad’. C’mon.”

 Lindy poured the remnants into his outstretched hands. He felt each piece carefully, assessing the damage.

 “It’s supposed to go together like this,” said Lindy, showing him how the pieces fit in his hand.

 “That part is certainly broken, but I have something we can use instead. Come aboard and I’ll fix it.”

 “Um,” Lindy hesitated. “We haven’t properly met. I’m Lindy Wainswright from Piccadilly.”

 “Chang Peko from the South China Sea. Call me Peko.”

 “Nobody comes from the sea, except fish and mermaids,” teased Lindy.

 “Don’t tell my uncle that. We’re traders. We’ve traveled all over. Are you coming?” Peko climbed the rope ladder onto the junk, the spinner parts clutched tight in his fist.

 “I’m not sure if I should.”

 “Are you really a thief?”

 “I prefer the term ‘wealth liberator’,” said Lindy as she cleaned the mud off her leggings and straightened her jacket. Peko smiled.

 “Well, come back tomorrow and I’ll have it ready for you.”

 “All right,” said Lindy, already feeling a little remorseful she hadn’t climbed aboard. “See you tomorrow…Peko?”

 “Yes?”

 “Thanks for helping me out, with Ticker and all.”

 “It was my pleasure,” said Peko with a bow.

Lindy hurried home as tiny flakes of snow started to fall. Tomorrow was Christmas. She hoped her mother wouldn’t notice the missing spinner.

The next day Lindy returned to the wharf to see Peko helping several other men loading cargo on the junk. She snuck up behind him and waited until he was alone. She thought she had fooled him, but he spoke first.

“Hello, Lindy. I’ve got your spinner fixed.”

 “How did you know it was me?”

“Your footsteps are hesitant, like a bird about to flee,” he said. “Oh, Merry Christmas.”

Peko had rethreaded the spinner on its chain and now wore it around his neck. He lifted it over his head and handed it to her. She looked it over.

 “It’s perfect,” murmured Lindy in wonder.

 “What’s it for?”

“It makes magic. Want to see?” she said before she caught herself.

 “Yes,” he said, looking toward her without focusing on her face.

 “I brought you something to say ‘thank you’.”

 “What is it?”

 “I nicked it from the Professor,” she said, digging a small box out of her rucksack.

“Lindy, you really shouldn’t ...”

 “I know Peko, but I wanted you to see London just once. I’ll take them back when you’re done.”

 “What are they?” he asked, as she opened the box.

 “Spectacles. Put them on.”

 Lindy handed him a contraption consisting of several lenses on what appeared to be a pair of eye-sized telescopes.

 “Spectacles don’t work for me.”

 “Shh, just do as I say.” Lindy twisted the spinner and let it fly into the air over Peko’s head where it hovered, showering him with a golden light.

 “When you help others, your dreams will always come true,” she whispered to Peko. The lenses on the spectacles began moving and rearranging themselves, trying one combination, then another. Suddenly, Peko caught his breath in shock.

 “I can see! I see you!” he gasped.

 Tears leaked from Peko’s eyes behind the spectacles, down his cheeks.

 “C’mon, Peko. Let’s go see London,” said Lindy, taking his hand with a smile. “Merry Christmas.”

October 10 ~ Book Cover Love for Hush Puppy

There's definitely a story behind the cover of Hush Puppy. My publisher, Featherweight Press, was kind enough to give me the opportunity to help choose the cover.  They even asked for my suggestions. Originally, I thought perhaps the cover could show a woodland scene with a fallen tree across a creek, since that plays an important role in the story. Other ideas I had were Jamie's red notebook with doodles and scribbles all over it or a diner scene.  Their cover designer did the best they could with my ideas, but when the proofs came, none of them were really what I wanted.

 

In the meantime, I had come across this photo of a young black woman in deep thought. The image was so starkly beautiful to me, I just fell in love with it. It's just as I imagined Corrine, a simple pure beauty that goes much deeper than the surface. I had to have it.

 

As fate would have it, I have a good friend who's a graphic artist who's made all my self-published covers. He took the photo and made a cover, which we presented to Featherweight Press. Although they have a general policy against accepting self-made covers, they decided to use the image and the rest is history. I couldn't be more pleased.

In other news, Hush Puppy continues to receive kudos. Please visit the Children's Book Review website to see the latest review of my young adult novel~

October 2 Brainstorming

Ack!  I said I'd write a fantasy short story for a Christmas anthology and it's due Nov. 1.  Do you think I've even started??  As of Sept 30 I hadn't even thought about it, but that night I got a few minutes to start brainstorming, but lemme tell ya...thinking about Christmas when you've kinda got Halloween on the brain is a challenge!







But I buckled down and made myself start thinking. I've been wanting to try something steampunk for awhile....could this be the project? But what does steampunk have to do with Christmas? Nothing! Which is why it's perfect. When was the last time you read a steampunk Christmas story?!?! Me neither! It's so crazy, it just might work!


And then I thought...what do you never see in steampunk?? Besides Christmas, I mean?

I thought of a few things, but I won't ruin the surprise.  When I get my story finished, I promise I'll share.  I just wanted to get you thinking about brainstorming new ideas. It's always fun to take the traditional and turn it on its ear.

Of course, this is only a setting. A proper story needs a plot and compelling characters. Since I'm going out on a limb anyway, I think I'll try a little diversity...

How do you come up with new ideas??

Kara Leigh Miller Blog Stop #6 on the Hush Puppy Tour

Today I'm at Kara Leigh Miller's blog talking about my writing process and how I came to be a writer.


I hope you'll come on over and say hi.  Kara's about to launch a new book of her own, so you'll want to check that out~


As you may already know, my young adult novel Hush Puppy involves an interracial relationship.  The main character, Corrine, is a black girl.  This book is my first attempt at writing characters that are "outside my race" if you will.


Since the release of Hush Puppy, I've met several writers of color through the blog tour and on Twitter/Goodreads, who have really encouraged my efforts to at least try to portray characters of diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds.  One blogger asked if I would create a quick guide to "writing multicultural".  I'm sure I'm no expert, but here's what I try to do~


1)      Get out of your comfort zone – don’t tell yourself you can’t do something just because you’ve never tried it. Don’t limit your imagination.

2)      Focus on the same, not the different. Inside, we’re all the same.

3)      Look around you. You already know a lot of people with a variety of experiences you can draw from. If you don’t, go meet some.

4)      Remember respect. Always respect your characters, no matter what their background. Represent them clearly and honestly. Don’t make them into cardboard cutout stereotypes.

5)      Tell a good story. It really doesn’t matter what your characters look like if the story’s no good. No one will care and as writers, we want readers to care more than anything.

I hope this inspires you to give your characters diverse ethnic and racial backgrounds when you write. Enjoy~