Sydney Salter's Blog, page 13

Contest Winners!

Congratulations!!!!


Bethany C you've won FANGTASTIC by Lucienne Diver (please email me your address).



Felicia! You won a copy of UNRAVELING ISOBEL by Eileen Cook! 

YAY!!!!

On The Go with Lucienne Driver

Please welcome Lucienne Driver, author of the Vamped series. The next installment is here! You can win a copy, if you leave a comment.


You have beengiven your Dream Vacation. Where are you going & what are you doing?


My family and I visited mainland Greece last year, and it was amazing, but too short. In my dream vacation, we'd spend more time, at least two weeks, touring around the Greek isles and Crete. I've always wanted to see Knossos. I was an anthropology and writing double-major in college, and I think the only other place on earth I want to visit quite as much is Egypt, particularly the Valley of the Kings.


What if you could travel to a different time period? 


I'm pretty happy in modern times. Like my heroine, I have to admit to being a fan of my creature comforts. However, I think it would be amazing to travel to the height of the various civilizations as an observer... Mayan, Egyptian, Ottoman, Greek and Roman, Imperial China...


Are you a planner or seat-of-the pants traveler?


I'm a planner. I like to leave time in each day for those side trips or surprises that are often the best part of any visit, but there's always so much I want to see or do that I plan very carefully to make sure we don't miss out on a thing! For instance on that week-long trip to Greece we managed to hit Athens, the Corinth Canal, Epidaurus, Olympus, Mycenae, Delphi, Meteora, Thermopylae Pass, and Cape Sounion (for the Temple of Poseidon). I so want to go back for Delos, Santorini, Rhodes, Crete...


What's the worst thing that's happened to you on vacation?


As an adult, I've had pretty amazing vacation karma. But as kids, my sister and I nearly got swept away by the undertow on a black sand beach in Hawaii. We weren't even up to our knees in the water, but the current was so strong that we were carried away in no time. My father had to dash in and save us both. I'll never forget it. And I'll never underestimate the forces of nature. 


About the Book
What do you wear to face down a cadre of killer kids? 
Gina Covello would rather be working on her manicure than missions for the Feds' paranormal unit to which she's been recruited.  That changes when a group of killer kids takes out a family in the sunshine state and disappearances begin to plague the lifestylers who only play at the kind of existence our fanged fashionista leads.  She and her crew are sent undercover into the vampire clubs…which turn out to be run by real vampires.  While Gina's BFF Marcy hangs with the steampunk-styled Burgess Brigade that seems to have spawned the killer kids, Gina herself is supposed to get in good with the fanged fiends behind the scenes, even to the point of playing double-agent, offering to hand over her powerful boyfriend Bobby.  Her playacting threatens to become a bit too real when she discovers things about her spy handlers that make her wonder whether she's truly on the right side of the battle between Feds and fangs.
"As ever, Gina'sfeisty, funny narration carries the day. Gina never fails to please, as shestrides down the runway of afterlife with just the right mix of humor, make-upadvice, youthful lust that never crosses the line and a kung-fu style all herown. This one doesn't miss a beat." —Kirkus Reviews

About The Author
Lucienne Diver is the author of the popular Vamped series of young adult novels (think Clueless meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer).  School Library Journal calls the first book, "a lighthearted, action-packed, vampire romance story following in the vein of Julie Kenner's "Good Ghouls" (Berkley), Marlene Perez's "Dead" (Harcourt), and Rachel Caine's "The Morganville Vampires" (Signet) series." VOYA has suggested that the books "will attract even reluctant readers."
Her short stories have been included in the Strip-Mauled and Fangs for the Mammaries anthologies edited by Esther Friesner (Baen Books), and one of her essays appears in the anthology Dear Bully: 70 Authors Tell Their Stories (HarperTeen). 


To win a copy of the book, please leave a comment. See Lucienne's website  for more contests! 

On The Go with Eileen Cook

Welcome Eileen Cook! If you'd like to win a copy of Unraveling Isobel, please leave a comment.1. You have been given your DreamVacation. Where are you going & what are you doing?Oooh hard question, so much depends onmy mood.  I love mucking about in Europe poking in old castles, but lyingon a beach with a book is never a bad thing either.2. What if you could travel to adifferent time period?I love history so it would be fun to goback to Tudor England. However, I also love my modern toys. I'd miss my laptopand phone if I went back in time, not to mention indoor plumbing and hotshowers.3. Are you a planner or a seat-of-thepants traveler?I come from a family of travelplanners. When my parents go on vacation they know exactly what they want tosee, when, what time and where they will eat.  It drives them crazybecause my husband and I are much more by the seat of our pants travelers. Ilike to leave things open so I can explore or spend more time in a placewithout feeling rushed. Some of my best travel experiences have been randomaccidents.4. What's the worst thing that's everhappened to you on vacation?I find a lot of bad travel experiencesare funny when they're all over.  I traveled with a friend once and weended up in this complete dive of a hotel. There was a hole in the bathroomthat looked down into the room below. (And yes, they could look up).  Thebed linen had someone else's hair on it and the blanket must have been abathroom mat at one point because it has a rubber backing. The place was nasty,but there was nowhere else to go until the next day.  I slept in myclothes.

About the Book:
Isobel's life is falling apart. Her mom just married some guy she meton the internet only three months before, and is moving them to his sprawling,gothic mansion off the coast of nowhere. Goodbye, best friend. Goodbye, sociallife. Hello, icky new stepfather, crunchy granola town, and unbelievablygood-looking, officially off-limits stepbrother.But on her first night in her new home, Isobel starts to fear that itisn't only her life that's unraveling—her sanity might be giving way too.Because either Isobel is losing her mind, just like her artist father didbefore her, or she's seeing ghosts. Either way, Isobel's fast on her way tobeing the talk of the town for all the wrong reasons.
"This blend of paranormal romance, murder mystery andquirky, coming-of-age narrative offers tasty moments….Cook gives readers afast-paced plot, a likable narrator, and interesting characters." -Kirkus
"Isobel,all snark and sharp edges covering some intense vulnerability as shecontinuously checks in to see if she has crossed into mental illness (as herfather did when she was young), is a compelling narrator."-  Horn Book Magazine
About the Author:
Eileen Cook is a multi-published author with her novelsappearing in six different languages. She spent most of her teen years wishing shewere someone else or somewhere else, which is great training for awriter. 
You can read more about Eileen, her books, and thethings that strike her as funny at www.eileencook.com. Eileen lives in Vancouver with her husband and two dogs and no longer wishes tobe anyone or anywhere else.
Want to win a copy? Leave a comment by Tuesday, January 24th at midnight! 

Contest Winner!

Congratulations to Gabriella Skory! You've won DEADLY LITTLE VOICES!!!!

Guest Blogging

Today I'm blogging about my trouble with "firsts" over at YA Outside The Lines, but I'm hosting Laurie Faria Stolarz here. Her latest installment in the TOUCH series is on bookstore shelves now. Leave a comment to win a copy!

How to bring your psychometric senses tofruition By Camelia Hammond, main character, TOUCH series by Laurie FariaStolarz

1. Make yourself comfortable in a place that feels "sacred"to you. For some it's outside, surrounded by nature; for others it's a favoritechair or surrounded by candles; for me, it's wherever I'm doing pottery.
2. Close your eyes and concentrate on your breath, letting go of any stray ornervous thoughts.
3. Now, take an object in your hand. A good idea is to have someone give yousomething they've owned for a long time, i.e. a favorite bracelet or a set ofkeys.
4. Close your eyes again and concentrate on this object. Be aware of anythoughts or feelings that come about as a result of holding this object. Talkthose ideas through, even if they seem silly or insignificant, but never makeinformation up. Remember, this takes practice and a bit of experimenting.The goal is to begin tuning in to your own inner awareness and your ability ofperception. What often works for me is asking a question aloud, and thensculpting out the answer, using my power of touch in a creative and organicway. Good Luck!For more information, go here: www.lauriestolarz.com
 About Deadly Little Voices:


Camelia Hammondthought her powers of psychometry gave her only the ability to sense the futurethrough touch. But now she's started to hear voices. Cruel voices. Beratingher, telling her how ugly she is, that she has no talent, and that she'd bebetter off dead. Camelia is terrified for her mental stability, especiallysince her deranged aunt with a suicidal history, has just moved into the house.As if all of that weren't torturing enough, Camelia's ex-boyfriend, Ben, forwhom she still harbors feelings and who has similar psychometric abilities, hasstarted seeing someone else. Even her closest friends, Kimmie and Wes, are unsurehow to handle her erratic behavior.With the line betweenreality and dream consistently blurred, Camelia turns to pottery to get a gripon her emotions. She begins sculpting a figure skater, only to receivefrightening premonitions that someone's in danger. But who is the intendedvictim? And how can Camelia help that person when she's on the brink of losingher own sanity?
More About Laurie:
LaurieFaria Stolarz is the author of DeadlyLittle Secret, Deadly Little Lies,Deadly Little Games, Deadly Little Voices, Project 17, and Bleed, as well as the bestselling Blue is for Nightmares series.  Born and raised in Salem, Massachusetts, Stolarz attendedMerrimack College and received an MFA in creative writing from Emerson Collegein Boston. For more information, please visit her Web site at www.lauriestolarz.com.
Leave a comment to win a copy of Deadly Little Voices! Or if you're new to the series, I'll send you a copy of the first title. Contest ends at midnight on January 15th.

Mayan Calendar

During every school visit I've done for Jungle Crossing, eventually students ask me about the Mayan calendar's prediction that the world will end in 2012. I explain how that's only one calendar of many Mayan calendars & reassure them that the world will continue. But I kind of like this answer better (a friend sent it to me on New Year's Day):

Silly Stuff

Spotted on my way to writing group:




Do porta potties get embarrassed?

Gifts for Writers

Next week my critique group is having our annual holiday breakfast. We always exchange small writerly gifts. And I have no idea what to do this year. Some of my favorite writerly gifts that I've received are:

A framed ornament of my first ever book cover. Both my critique partner & I wrote stories that appeared in Blooming Tree Press' Summer Shorts anthology. I love seeing this on my tree & remembering how hard I've worked at writing for all these years.


A tote bag for all my critique group needs: notebooks, pens, books, and manuscript pages. And it's true: if you're interesting, in any good or bad way, I will put you in my novels! (That means YOU impressively grumpy woman at post office yesterday.)


I place all sorts of knick knacks on my writing desk, mostly so I can play with them when I get stuck. Or haven't quite started yet... I was thrilled to receive this little framed message reminding me simply to WRITE. I loved that the message was composed in kitchen utensils because I also enjoy cooking.


The students at Two Rivers High School, where I've been teaching a class this fall, gave me this cute little journal. Now I always love a cute diary, whining, I mean writing, my way through several volumes each year. But this one is extra special because each student wrote a short message to me. I love peeking at the messages--especially on bad days!


What are you favorite things to give to writer friends or to receive from writing & reading friends?

(I need some ideas to borrow!)

Blogging Elsewhere

I'm excited to have recently joined many of my very favorite authors over at the YA Outside The Lines blog! You can read my very first post about my New Year's goals at: http://yaoutsidethelines.blogspot.com/

Hope you enjoy it!

NaNoWriMo: I did it!

Yay! (Well, really it's more like phew!) I crossed the finish line, writing 50,510 words by the end of the day November 30th (only because the official NaNoWriMo word counter shorted me 400 words--grrr). I've got an empty box of chocolate truffles, ten patches on my book bag, scary household clutter, and 193 pages to show for my efforts.

About those 193 pages... My other three NaNo novels poured out in a lovely organized fashion. Yes, I experienced tough days and needed to do a thorough revision, but at 50,000 words I'd written solid first drafts. Not so much this time. NaNo #4 came out all mixed up. Despite my efforts to outline, organize, and prepare in October, I found myself writing everything out of order in November. My characters kept saying, no, wait, wait. I have to tell you about this first. No, no, no--skip that part and go to this part instead.

It drove me crazy! But I was determined to add that "Winner" patch to my book bag, so I muddled forward (and backward).

I really have no idea what I've concocted with this mass of pages, but I'm proud of myself for soldiering on through my self-doubt and finishing 50,000 words. Now I'm going to clean my house, pay attention to my family, and read polished work for a week or two. And then I'll look at those 193 pages.

I never thought I'd say this, but I can't wait to start revising!