Pitch Slam!

Hey there! So I recently decided to jump back into the concert circuit with my Contemporary YA, Defensive Gun. I love contests and hadn't done one in a while and when I saw the deets for Pitch Slam I knew I had to enter. The aforementioned deets can be found here. Wish me luck!

Also, I'm hoping to get a book review or 2 up in the next week or so. I'd gone a while without reading because of lack of time and also because all the books I wanted to read weren't available yet at my library. So when they were available I dove right in and read like 3 or 4 books in a couple of weeks! Now to decide which to review...

Thanks for stopping by!

Contests

I wanted to inform my fellow YA writers out there of some contests that might be of interest. I heard about these from following other writers/authors blogs and from twitter. Here we go:

Query Kombat is a March-madness-style tournament that pits writers' query + first 250 words up against each other in brackets. The "winner" of a bracket is determined by the hosts: SC Write, Michelle4laughs, and Writer's Outworld. Agents will be browsing the semi-finals and mentoring kombatants and requesting material. Even though there will only be one winner, this is a great opportunity to get your manuscript out there, get some feedback, and hopefully score an agent! The submission window opened on Monday and closes on Friday (or when they receive 225 entries). As of right now, I don't think they have received those 225 so there's still time to enter. Good Luck!

#pitmad: This is a Twitter pitch party. On May 28th from 8am to 8pm EDT agents will be browsing this twitter hashtag and telling pitchers what they're interested in. All you have to do is pitch your manuscript using the pitmad hashtag. Make it good because you can't go over 140 characters. If an agent in interested they will either favorite your tweet pitch or @ you. Here's a link to author Brenda Drake's blog for more info: http://brenleedrake.blogspot.com/

Adventures in YA & Children's Publishing:  This blog has a "First 5 pages" workshop they hold the first Saturday of every month. Agents will mentor you on your work and site browsers can comment/critique as well. Click on the "Contests and Workshops" tab to find out more.

Miss Snark's First Victim: Miss Snark, AKA Authoress, holds several critiques and contests throughout the year. Click on the "Crits and Contests" link to learn more. Many writer's have found agents through her website.



Well, there you have it. This isn't a comprehensive list so as I find out more, I will let you know. Feel free to suggest any you know about in the comments section below.

The Fallen Stars Trailer Reveal and Swag Pack Giveaway

Happy Friday! As promised here is the exclusive trailer for Stephanie Keyes new book, The Fallen Stars.

The Fallen Stars from Stephanie Keyes on Vimeo

Once again, here's the Goodreads link for the book synopsis: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17293205-the-fallen-stars

And here's the Goodreads link for the first book in The Star Child Series, The Star Child: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13139452-the-star-child

I thought I'd also include an author bio:

Stephanie Keyes has been addicted to Fantasy since she discovered T.H. White as a child and started drumming up incredible journeys in her head. Today, she's still doing the same thing, except now she gets to share those ideas with readers!

When she's not writing, Stephanie is also a graphic designer, international speaker, teacher, musician, avid reader, and Mom to two little boys who constantly keep her on her toes. In addition, she's best friend to her incredible husband of eleven years.

Mrs. Keyes holds an undergraduate degree in Business and Management Information Systems from Robert Morris University and a M.Ed. from Duquesne University. She is a member of the Society For Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), as well as a featured author in the global group of writers, Love a Happy Ending.com.

Keyes is the author of the YA Fantasy series, The Star Child, which currently includes The Star Child (September 2012) and The Fallen Stars (April 2013), both released by Inkspell Publishing. She is currently hard at work on the third book in the trilogy, The Star Catcher.

Author links:
Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter


And finally, Stephanie is giving away a cool swag pack to one lucky winner today. Here's the link for the contest:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thanks for stopping by! I thought the trailer was gorgeous and I can't wait to read the book. Leave me a comment below and tell me what you think. 

Personal update and Friday teaser

Between being a mom, running a house, and blogging, I haven't been working on my book as much as I'd like. I feel like it's finished but I'm scared about taking that next step. I keep thinking that maybe I should read and edit it one more time or dig deeper on the internet for more ways to improve my story and craft. Some days I feel like what I've put together is great and other days I'm not so sure. Hopefully, this is a common feeling among writers at the same stage as I am. I keep waiting for some magical moment when I feel like: this is it. My book is ready and so am I. Maybe I need to quit waiting and just submit. The worst that can happen is rejection and that's part of the business. Almost all writers go through it. So I am setting a goal. By the end of April I will have submitted to at least one of my top five agents. Baby steps, folks. Maybe once I get the first one out of the way the others won't be so scary. Now for my Friday teaser...

I'm taking part in the exciting trailer reveal for the YA paranormal romance The Fallen Stars by Stephanie Keyes. It's book two in The Star Child series. I haven't read the first one, The Star Child, but since I love all things fairy, I am definitely going to check them out. 

Here's the Goodreads synopsis for The Star Child: (http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13139452-the-star-child)

The world is about to be cloaked in darkness. Only one can stop the night. Kellen St. James has spent his entire life being overlooked as an unwanted, ordinary, slightly geeky kid. That is until a beautiful girl, one who has haunted his dreams for the past eleven years of his life, shows up spinning tales of a prophecy. Not just any old prophecy either, but one in which Kellen plays a key role. Suddenly, Kellen finds himself on the run through a Celtic underworld of faeries and demons, angels and gods, not to mention a really ticked off pack of hellhounds, all in order to save the world from darkness. But will they make it in time?

And here's the Goodreads synopsis for The Fallen Stars: (http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17293205-the-fallen-stars)

Kellen St. James was just your average seventeen-year-old prodigy, until he eighty-sixed the Lord of Faerie and proposed to the Celtic Goddess, Calienta. But then everything in Kellen’s life gets turned upside-down when he and Cali end up on the run from a seriously irritated group of faeries. The worst part? They have zero idea why they’re being hunted.

Suddenly, Kellen is stuck in the middle of another prophecy that foresees him turning away from Calienta and embracing the dark. He’ll be forced to take sides in a struggle to claim his birthright, while discovering secrets about his father’s past. Meanwhile, his passion for Cali grows stronger, even as the prophecy threatens to tear them apart.

In the end, will Kellen and Cali survive the fates? When the ultimate power is within reach, which side will he choose?


Well, what do you think? Are you as excited as I am? I can't wait to get my hands on these books and review them for you. The Fallen Stars is due for publication on April 12th. Check back here on this Friday, March 22nd, to see the trailer. There will also be chance for you to win a swag pack from Stephanie. She's giving one away during the reveal.

That's all for today. Feel free to comment below. And as always, thanks for stopping by!