Colleen Houck's Blog, page 4

Dawn Ius Redirect

Welcome to the 17th YA Scavenger Hunt!

 

 

This is the redirect post for Dawn Ius.

 

Who is hosting…

TAYLOR FENNER

 

About TAYLOR:

Taylor Fenner grew up in a small town in Wisconsin. She’s a strong believer in ghosts and the paranormal, which led to her interest in writing paranormal romance. Since then she has branched out into Urban Fantasy and now High Fantasy and Fairy Tale Retelling.

An admitted workaholic, when not working on a novel Taylor spends most of her time blogging about books, taking photos for her bookstagram account, binge watching the latest seasons of her favorite shows, and listening to music that’s sure to ruin her hearing eventually.

The book she is showcasing is…

 

ABOUT THE BOOK 

A Scorned Queen, A Cursed Prince, A Girl begging for love and adventure…

History Channel’s Vikings meets Norse Folklore and Mythology in this High Fantasy retelling of the Norwegian Fairy Tale, East O’ The Sun and West O’ The Moon.

Eighteen-year-old Helga “Hel” Daalgaard has accepted that the only love and adventure in her future live within the pages of the books her father brings for her from his travels. She’s content helping around the home she shares with her parents and eight siblings; it may be a dull life but it’s all she’s ever known… until a polar bear arrives at their tiny cottage and offers up a strange proposal.

After spurning his young stepmother’s advances, Prince Dyre is cursed to spend his days in the body of a polar bear. To break the curse he must find a woman to fall in love with him and stay with him for a year – but the woman of his choosing can never learn that he is truly a man or Dyre will be forced into a future even worse than spending his days as a polar bear. He thinks Hel could be the one to break the curse, but if Hel ever finds out what brought them together he may lose her forever.

Nobody ever crossed Viveka, Queen of Aldavellir, and lived to tell about it. Dyre is the only man alive that has turned her down but she’ll have him whether he likes it or not. She’ll make it impossible for the girl he’s chosen to last long enough to break the curse. After all, queens don’t have to play fair.

CurseBreaker is perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas and Erin Summerill!

*SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2017 OZMA AWARD FOR FANTASY FICTION*

BONUS MATERIAL ALERT!

Here you’ll find some character/story aesthetics that go with my book!

This one is for Dyre.

This one is for Hel.

This one goes with the general mythology.

Here we’ve got supporting characters and creatures.

And this one is for Viveka!

This last one is for the worldbuilding of my book!

 

That was awesome, right?!
You can buy her book HERE!
 Check out more on her Website, Twitter, Goodreads, or Facebook page.

And don’t forget to enter the contest for a chance to win a ton of signed books by me and many more! Just check out all these books on team PINK,

To enter, you need to write down my favorite number

 

and find all the other numbers on TEAM PINK. Add them up, and you’ll have the secret code to enter for the grand prize!

To continue the hunt, check out the next author on the Pink Team Ann Aguirre!

Announcing the Fall 2018 YASH Teams!

It’s been a busy week my friends but YASH still demands my attention. As such, here are your fall, 2018 teams! Which team are you the most excited about? Let me know in the comments below.

Don’t forget that the YA Scavenger Hunt begins October 2nd and ends on the 7th. Never joined the hunt before? It’s easy. You can start on my website or on the YA Scavenger Hunt website the day of the hunt and then you hop from blog to blog completing one team at a time adding up secret numbers as you go. When you’ve finished one entire team, you enter the total of all the numbers you found for that team on the rafflecopter on the YASH website to try for the grand prize which is one book from every author on that team. You can stop there or try for every team on the hunt. There are loads of giveaways since most authors do their own as well so mark your calendars. The hunt begins soon!

TEAM BLUE

AMALIE HOWARD–AMBER R. DUELL–BRENDA DRAKE–COURTNEY BRANDT–DARLENE P. CAMPOS–DOROTHY DREYER–EMIL SHER–EVA POHLER–FONDA LEE–GINA CIOCCA–GINGER SCOTT–J. KELLER FORD–JESSIKA FLECK–KRISTIN SMITH–L. E. DELANO–MICHELLE BACON–ROXANNE LAMBIE–SL BEAUMONT–TIANA SMITH–TOBIE EASTON

 

TEAM GOLD

A.M. ROSE–ADDIE THORLEY–ANNIE SULLIVAN–COLLEEN HOUCK–COLLEEN OAKES–EMILY SKUTSKIE–HEATHER MCKENZIE–JACOB DEVLIN–K.M. ROBINSON–KAT ROSS–KATHY MACMILLAN–L.H. NICOLE–LEAH & KATE ROOPER–LISA MANTERFIELD–MARGO KELLY–ROSALYN EVES–SARA FUJIMURA–SHAILA PATEL–SHONNA SLAYTON–TERA LYNN CHILDS

TEAM GREEN

ALICE REEDS–BETSY CORNWELL–GINA DAMICO–H. M. GOODEN–JESSICA BRODY–JOSHUA DAVID BELLIN–JULIE REECE–KATE BRAUNING–KATIE FRENCH–KELLY DEVOS–LM PRESTON–MEG KASSEL–MELANIE HOOYENGA–MELISSA CHAMBERS–MICHELE BARROW-BELISLE–MICHELLE REYNOSO–MINDY MCGINNIS–NATASHA SINEL–PATRICIA B. TIGHE–SHANNON KLARE

 

TEAM ORANGE

ABIGAIL JOHNSON–CASSANDRA MORGAN–CECILY WOLFE–CORINNE O’FLYNN–DANA MELE–GK DEROSA–J. ANDERSEN–JENNIFER DIGIOVANNI–JULIA EMBER–JULIE MOFFETT–KATY UPPERMAN–LIVIA BLACKBURNE–LORI M. LEE–LYDIA KANG–LYSSA CHIAVARI–MARSHA BLACK–PAIGE LAVOIE–T. RAE MITCHELL–T.L. SHIVELY–TORI RIGBY

 

TEAM PINK

AMY MCNULTY–ANN AGUIRRE–CHAD R. ODOM–CHEYANNE YOUNG–DAWN IUS–DAX VARLEY–JAMIE BLAKE–JOLENE PERRY–KENZIE HART–KRISTI HELVIG–MAGGIE ANN MARTIN–MARTINA BOONE–MAY FREIGHTER–OLIVIA WILDENSTEIN–PATTY BLOUNT–PINTIP DUNN–SCARLETT KOI–STACIE RAMEY–TAYLOR FENNER–YVONNE CARDER

 

TEAM PURPLE

A.G. HOWARD–C. J. REDWINE–CARLY ANNE WEST–CHANDA STAFFORD–CHELSEA PITCHER–CHRISTY SLOAT–DEBBIE MANBER KUPFER–ERIC LINDSTROM–JC WELKER–JESSICA RUDDICK–JULIA DAY–JULIE ESHBAUGH–KRISTY CENTENO–MACKENZIE FLOHR–MADELINE DYER–MELINDA R. CORDELL–OLIVIA HINEBAUGH–S.A. LARSEN–SHANNON A THOMPSON–STEVIE RAE CAUSEY

 

TEAM RED

ABBY J. REED–AMY FELLNER DOMINY–AUSTIN ASLAN–BRENDAN REICHS–CAITLIN SANGSTER–CHRISTINA JUNE–CM MCCOY–ERIN CASHMAN–F.M. BOUGHAN–JENNIFER BRODY–JM SULLIVAN–LISA MAXWELL–MARGOT HARRISON–MARY AMATO–MARY CROCKETT–PAULA STOKES–SARA B. LARSON–SUZANNE VAN ROOYEN–WENDY HIGGINS–YVONNE VENTRESCA

The A, B, C’s of The Lantern’s Ember

Here are the A, B, C’s of The Lantern’s Ember.

 

A-Apple, Autumn, Aether, Attraction, Aunt

B-Blood, Bridge, Broom, Beast, Banshee, Boogyman

C-Captain, Crossroad, Cat, Corset, Cauldron, Clockwork, Costume, Candy

D-Deverell, Delia, Doctor, Devil, Danger

E-Ember, Eternal, Enchant

F-Finney, Frank, Fangs, Flask, Fish

G-Graydon, Ghost, Goggles, Goblin

H-Heart, Harvest, Hollow, Haunt

I-Invisible, Ingredients, Incantation, Insanity

J-Jack, Jar, Jealousy, Jack O’ Lantern

K-Kiss, Kitten, Knobs

L-Lantern, Leaves, Laboratory, Levitation

M-Mortal, Monster, Moonlight, Magic, Mad Scientist

N-Necklace, Newcomer, Niece, Notebook, Nets

O-Otherworld, Owl, Obsidian, Outsider

P-Power, Pumpkin, Potion, Pirate

Q-Questions, Quarrel, Quest

R-Rune, Railroad, Relationship, Rescue, Romance

S-Soul, Skyship, Spell, Secret, Submersible, Skeleton, Spiders

T-Tea, Troll, Timepiece, Township, Travel

U-Uncertainty, Upheaval, Understanding

V-Vampire, Villain, Vapor, Vein

W-Witch, Witchlight, Werewolf, Watch

X-Jinx, Equinox, Buxom, Hexed

Y-Yegor, Youth, Yelling

Z-Zone, Zephyr, Zap, Zombie

Let’s Talk The Lantern’s Ember Cover!

I have been looking forward to sharing this book with all of you for a long time. The first thing you need to know about The Lantern’s Ember is…

This is the book I never knew I always wanted to write!

Halloween is my favorite holiday. I love the classic monsters and the harvest theme and this book gives you all of that. What you don’t know is that this book is also my first try at writing steampunk. The idea of steampunk has always fascinated me but I wasn’t sure I knew enough about it to write a whole world surrounding the technology. In most cases with steampunk books, you hear about a mysterious element called aether. In my Otherworld, aether is synonymous with witchlight or witch power which fuels all the cool contraptions.

For those of you who wonder how Halloween and Steampunk go together, think Edward Scissorhands or pretty much any Tim Burton movie.

So, what’s going on with The Lantern’s Ember cover?

My original idea for the cover was to have it be my hero, Jack, sitting atop his bridge overlooking a leaf strewn path with a sleepy little town in the distance. I wanted it to be very obvious that it was a Halloween book.

When I first saw the cover my publisher created, I didn’t like it. I thought it looked more like Pirates of the Caribbean than Halloween. Don’t get me wrong. I love pirates. In fact, I have pirates in The Lantern’s Ember. Over time, the cover grew on me and now I’m quite attached to it. The tone matches the artwork of my other books very well and I think it’s interesting where the tiger books were all about the eyes and the Reawakened series was about the eyes, in this one there’s an absence of eyes, or, if you prefer, there’s a steampunk set of false eyes. Either way, there’s a lot more going on in this cover than meets the eye.

Word Clouds

Word Clouds

 

I’ve had a lot of fun playing with word clouds recently on a website called Tagul. I’ve been able to download my entire book into a program that looks for the most common words in the manuscript and then creates a word cloud for it. This just proves there is an app for pretty much everything.

It’s pretty cool to see what words rise to the forefront. I’ve kept these clouds pretty much intact and just threw out hyphenated words that don’t make sense and then moved the title of the book to the highest setting so you’d see that first.

 

Tiger’s Curse

I chose a tiger paw for this word cloud shape for obvious reasons. What’s interesting to me about this one is the fact that the gada ranked so high and that Phet is almost up there with Kelsey. Incidentally, the gada is the only weapon in the tiger series I’ve been able to find in the cloud. Black is bigger than white though Ren is more used than Kishan. Hair has been a word I’ve used a lot in the tiger series as well. This is the only one where I can find Fanindra and fruit which is interesting.

 

 

Tiger’s Quest

Even though I chose a tree shape for this word cloud I had to change the colors to match the book. I think an orange would have matched a bit better but the black is easier to see. I was shocked to see that Li is so much bigger than Artie. Artie has a weight to his character that I feel each time I read about him but I guess I didn’t showcase him as much as I thought. Bird is big in this one which makes sense and even though I didn’t add Tiger’s Quest on this one, tiger is still prominent. Date is bigger than black or white in this book and I like that love is an important word.

 

Tiger’s Voyage

For this one I used a water drop since water is a main feature of the book. There are a lot of words given equal amounts of weight here but what stands out to me are the words ship, boat, Wes, and water. Dragon is right up there which is appropriate and then there’s hand. I must do a lot of hand holding or touching in my books for the word hand to be so big. Again I added black just so you could see the words better. Oh and I noticed the word golden is easier to find than green or blue or red. The golden dragon is my favorite.

 

Tiger’s Destiny

I chose a flame to represent this book but the shape makes it harder to read all the words. Mr. is easy to find but I don’t see Kadam which is strange. Durga and Lokesh are both prominent and for some reason Li is back in there. Not sure why unless it just needed a short word to fill in. Kiss has been a word that pops up in each cloud which is appropriate. I can’t find Phoenix or Rakshasa. They must be too small for me to see. The green flames don’t seem natural but I wanted to match the colors of the book. 

 

 

Tiger’s Dream

I finally figured out I can add an image of my own so this time you get to see a tiger. Ana is the most used word in the manuscript which might give you a hint about the book. Of course, you see tiger, Kelsey, and Ren but a big one is the word man. This also makes a lot of sense when you read the book. Hand is huge here. I’m not sure why. Maybe it’s due to the many hands of the goddess. I like blowing up these images and looking at all the tiny words. You’ll get a lot of spoilers that way. 

Tiger’s Promise

 I am exceptionally proud of Tiger’s Promise. If you haven’t read it because it’s a novella you need to ignore that and check it out anyway. Right now I’m writing a novella for the Reawakened series and if you skip that one you’re not going to understand the end of the series. Because it is a smaller book, the words are more easily found. I like that Rajaram is so big as is the word family. This is the first time Dhiren comes up instead of Ren. No black or white here since the princes aren’t tigers yet. Veil is a big theme in this book since Yesubai trains herself to veil her emotions and her father likes to hide her beauty behind veils. I like the words home, girl, and mother. Then you’ll see flower and garden and beautiful. Yesubai loves flowers. Prince is large and wish being a word I emphasized is pretty cool since this book has a lot to do with wishes.

 

Reawakened

For this one I chose a pyramid for the shape and added the word Reawakened so you’d know the title. Right away I noticed dark and light which is a theme I play with a lot in this book. Asten and Amon are pretty equal which surprises me. Ahmose is slightly smaller but that’s to be expected since he doesn’t appear until halfway through. Power shows up a lot which is different from the tiger series. I think Lily is about equal to Kelsey in mentions. This book, like the tiger books, are in first person, so Lily and Kelsey are the narrators which means their names aren’t used as often. I never realized before that Hassan and Kadam sound very similar. Interesting. And there’s hair again. Apparently, I have a thing for hair. 

 

Recreated

 For Recreated I chose a star to symbolize the book. You’ll notice that Asten features as prominently as Amon in this book. Heart and Eye are also very important. Arm and Head are coming up more frequently than Hand this time so not as much hand holding as I usually do. You’ll also notice Tia is very large. Tia is a new character you’ll be meeting in Recreated. Power is back and Feel is usually a big word for me. If you look really closely, you might find Horus in there somewhere. Nephthys and Isis make an appearance as well. Amun-Ra and Ma’at were kicked out due to punctuation, it seems but they are important in this book as well. Also there a character called the Devourer. The program only kept devour so you might see that but not her name. 

 REALIGNED

For the Realigned word cloud, I chose a tree since Osiris is the god of all growing things and the first kiss he shared with Isis was in a gazebo in his garden. You’ll see my characters prominent on the tree. Other important words are power, star, want and mortal. You’ll have to read the book to figure out why. Can you find the word sister? That’s a big one in this book as is heart.

REUNITED

With Reunited, I chose the shape of the full moon. This book belongs to the moon god, Ahmose but you can still spot Asten and Amon. Tia is much more of a prominent voice here than Lily or Ashleigh which is interesting. I really like the word ONE being so prominent. It’s a good representation of the book’s theme. What else can you find in here that hints of what will happen in the story?

THE LANTERN’S EMBER

For The Lantern’s Ember I chose a witch’s cauldron for the shape which makes sense once you read the book. This book is all about Halloween creatures. Frank is on the top rim. You can guess which Halloween monster he represents. Ember is my heroine who just so happens to be a witch. Jack is the Headless Horseman, only he has a head. We also have two vampires, Delia and Dev. Power is always a big theme in my books. Love is in the mix but it’s much smaller for some reason. Can you find Jack’s pumpkin? I wouldn’t be surprised if he was hanging out with Finney. 

Check back and I’ll add more books as we get ready to publish them!

The Lantern’s Ember Countdown to Publication

Hello Readers!

If you’re looking for details on all things The Lantern’s Ember, you’ve come to the right place. This post holds all the info you’ll need to locate everything happening around the publication of the book including all the blog posts, the character fact sheets, the blog tour, the tour dates, the contests, and more! We’ve planned a full month of fun things to keep you excited as you get ready to read.

Some of you have asked about an art contest and though we aren’t doing anything official you know I love and I mean LOVE the art you’ve submitted in the past. In fact, I have an entire pinterest board dedicated just to fan art so please do keep tweeting me pictures, I still send surprises to my artists from time to time so keep sending me your pictures, etc. I’d love to see some art for The Lantern’s Ember!

The contest rules and rafflecopter will be found below. Good luck!

THE LANTERN’S EMBER CALENDAR OF EVENTS

AUG 21-CONTEST OPENS, REVEAL OFFICIAL BOOK TRAILER!

AUG 22-THE LANTERN’S EMBER QUOTE #1

AUG 23-CHARACTER COLLAGE PHOTO

AUG 24-WORD CLOUD BLOG POST ON WEBSITE

AUG 25- CHARACTER FEATURE #1

AUG 27-TOP TEN VIDEO ON YOU TUBE

AUG 28-PREORDER NEWSLETTER WITH TEASER IS EMAILED

AUG 29-PINTEREST BOARD IS MADE PUBLIC

AUG 30-THE LANTERN’S EMBER QUOTE #2

AUG 31-LET’S TALK THE LANTERN’S EMBER COVER BLOG POST ON WEBSITE

SEPT 1-CHARACTER FEATURE #2

SEPT 3-PLAYLIST IS REVEALED ALONG WITH WINNING SONGS

SEPT 4-THE LANTERN’S EMBER QUOTE #3

SEPT 5-CHARACTER FEATURE #3

SEPT 6-THE A,B,C,’S OF THE LANTERN’S EMBER BLOG POST

SEPT 7-THE LANTERN’S EMBER QUOTE #4

SEPT 10-THE LANTERN’S EMBER QUOTE #5

SEPT 11-THE BOOK IS RELEASED!

SEPT 12-CHARACTER FEATURE #4

SEPT 13-CHARACTER FEATURE #5

SEPT 14-THE LANTERN’S EMBER QUOTE #6

SEPT 15-CHARACTER FEATURE #6

SEPT 17-THE LANTERN’S  #7

SEPT 18-CHARACTER FEATURE #7

SEPT 19- CHARACTER FEATURE #8

SEPT 20-CHARACTER FEATURE #9

SEPT 21-CHARACTER FEATURE #10

SEPT 22-LAUNCH PARTY BLOG POST

NOV 30-GOODREADS Q & A

THE LANTERN’S EMBER TOUR

SEPTEMBER 6-8

SALT LAKE COMIC CON

Thursday, September 6

2:00 pm       Room 150G

Books We Are Reading, Books We Love,

Books That Inspired Us.

Friday, September 7

8:00 pm   150G

The  Super-Awesome  Authors  AMA

Saturday, September 8

1:00 pm     255A

Swashbuckling vs Swooning: Authors Discuss How To Balance Action And Romance

7:00 pm    150G

The 6 Keys to Success in Writing

SEPTEMBER 11TH 7PM-BOOK SIGNING AND Q&A

Barnes & Noble University Crossings Plaza

330 East 1300 South

Orem, UT 84058

801-229-1611

SEPTEMBER 12TH 7PM-BOOK SIGNING AND Q&A

Barnes & Noble Jordan Landing

7157 Plaza Center Drive West Jordan, UT 84084

801-282-1324

SEPTEMBER 18TH 7PM-BOOK SIGNING AND Q&A

POWELL’S BOOKS AT CEDAR HILLS CROSSING

3415 SW Cedar Hills Blvd  Beaverton, OR 97005

800-878-7323

Preorder a signed copy from Powell’s now!

SEPTEMBER 21ST 7PM-BOOK SIGNING AND Q&A

THE BOOK BIN

450 Court St NE, Salem, Oregon

503-361-1235

The Lantern’s Ember Instagram Tour

September 11- @bookswrotemystory

September 12- @lifeinlit

September 13- @berrybookpages

September 14- @carafoshizzle

September 15- @readforevermore

September 16- @bookisglee

September 17- @Reverieandink

THE LANTERN’S EMBER BLOG TOUR

BLOG SITES TBA

DRESS UP THE COVER MINI CONTEST!

Since I love the dress up the cover contests as well as dressing up for Halloween, let’s do a dress up the cover mini contest. How this works is you tweet me a picture of your costume, makeup, hair, and jewelry choices that match the book cover (don’t forget to include the book cover on your image). You can be as creative as you like. Here are some of my favorite examples from book covers of the past.

I can’t wait to see what you all come up with! I have some really cute prizes in mind for this mini contest. This contest will run from August 21st through Sept 3rd!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

There you have it. All things The Lantern’s Ember are herein contained. Check back in if you didn’t find all the details you needed because we are adding them in as we get them. I hope you love this book as much as I do and kick off the holiday season with a bang or at least a really good love spell!

Take care my friends!

Colleen

Russian

Information on my books in Russian.

Tiger’s Curse

Tiger’s Quest

Tiger’s Voyage

 

Tiger’s Destiny

 

Tiger’s Promise

 

Reawakened

Recreated-No immediate plans to publish

Reignited-No immediate plans to publish

Reunited-No immediate plans to publish

The Lantern’s Ember-Coming 2019! (This will be at a new publishing house-Eskmo)

 

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The Modern Ink Society- Featuring Brendan Reichs

FEATURING GUEST

Brendan Reichs

The Dark Deep (with Ally Condie)

Welcome to the fifteenth session of

THE MODERN INK SOCIETY!

“Do one thing every day that scares you.”

— Eleanor Roosevelt

Introducing Brendan

Bio:Born and raised in Charlotte, North Carolina, I attended the public school system as a proud Myers Park Eagle, Carmel Cougar and South Meck Sabre. I had many great teachers along the way, to whom I owe eternal thanks.

Then I packed up and headed to Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, NC. When they finally handed me a degree — a B.A. in History, the most practical of all undergraduate studies — I moved to DC, and three fun years later, enrolled at The George Washington University School of Law in Foggy Bottom. Upon graduating from law school, I felt the siren call of home and returned to Charlotte, dragging my Boston-bred fiancé along with me.

After three long years working as a litigation attorney, I abandoned the trade to co-write the Virals series (Virals, Seizure, Code, Exposure, Terminal, and Trace Evidence). This is not a decision I regret. I continue to live in Charlotte with my beautiful wife, mischievous son, and beautiful daughter. We also have a playful pit bull mix named Soldier, and two ferocious cats, Fenway and Wrigley. It’s a full house. No complaints. We’ve completed the fifth and final book in the Virals series, Terminal. I really hope you like it. A Virals short story collection, Trace Evidence, released on February 2, 2016, with a brand new story, SPIKE, set after the events of Terminal. Answers await!

 

 

Here’s a little teaser

When a bullying incident sends twelve-year-old Nico Holland over the edge of a cliff into the icy waters of Still Cove, where no one ever goes, friends Tyler and Ella – and even ‘cool kid’ Opal -rush to his rescue… only to discover an island hidden in the swirling mists below.

Shrouded by dense trees and murky tides, the island appears uninhabited, although the kids can’t quite shake the feeling that something about it is off. Their suspicions grow when they stumble upon an abandoned houseboat with an array of curiosities inside: odd-looking weapons, unnerving portraits, maps to places they’ve never heard of, and a glass jar containing something completely unidentifiable.

As the group delves deeper into the unknown, their discoveries – and their lives -begin to intertwine in weird and creepy ways. Something ancient has awakened… and it knows their wishes and dreams – and their darkest, most terrible secrets. Do they have what it takes to face the shadowy things that lurk within their own hearts?

If I had to choose characters from NEMESIS/GENESIS to represent the 4 seasons I would pick: 

Winter—BLACK SUIT. Because he’s to be this cold hearted killer

Spring—TACK. Because his hope for Min is eternal.

Fall—MIN. She’s trying but is surrounded by things falling apart.

Summer—NOAH. He’s the damage he has and pretending he’s normal and happy.

Speaking of seasons, the one that best suits my personality would be summer. I’m such an extrovert and I feel like summer is an extrovert season.

Out of my characters I’d like to be stuck in an elevator mostly with Tack. I was a smart-mouth jackass at that age, just like him. I think if we were stuck in an elevator together, we definitely wouldn’t be bored waiting to be rescued. We could entertain each other. We might even come up with an idea to save ourselves because we’d start to get on each others nerves….it just might not be the best idea.

Describe you, your books, or characters in 5 words: 

Brendan:

will talk your ear off

hates beets with a passion

Next: The Darkdeep and Chrysalis

GENESIS:

Holy Crap! What just happened?

Darker, crazier, more mind-bending

NEMESIS:

Weird, twisty, bizarre, and frightening

Dying a lot would suck

DARKDEEP:

The Goonies meets Stranger Things

One person who makes your life better: 

My wife, Emily. I couldn’t do what I do without her. She definitely holds down the fort while I’m writing and touring. She is by far the better half.

From where have you recently drawn inspiration?

Most of my inspiration comes from pop culture:

Movies like Highlander, The Matrix, and The Goonies

TV shows like X-Files, Lost, Stranger Things and Scooby Doo

Books like Lord of the Flies and Alice in Wonderland

I love making my own twists on common tropes and creating surprises. I’ve always loved sci-fi, fantasy, conspiracy stories, and thrillers. I love getting the chance to write what I’ve always craved to read. I guess the saying is correct I’m definitely writing what I know.

Flash fiction 7 word story:

Man finds world inside his naval. Snacks.

Describe your writing space.

The most important way to describe my writing space is dead silent. It’s the only way I can focus. I have two children, two dogs, and a cat, so my house can definitely get loud, but I like to keep my office like a tomb. I also keep two pretty important essentials in my office. First would be my six-foot by six-foot white board—this is where I map out every part of a book before I start writing. The second would be my law degree. It reminds me of what I would have to fall back on if I don’t focus on writing. Fear is great motivation.

Name your dream movie cast? 

I honestly dont have a dream cast. I know a lot of authors do but, I think if PROJECT NEMESIS was made into a movie I would want unknown actors to play the roles. I want anyone seeing the movie to discover the characters for the first time. I think sometimes  having famous actors in a movie can allow previous roles to impact their current ones. I prefer a blank slate.

How has writing changed for you in the past year?

I recently graduated from Vermont College of Fine Arts with a MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults. Going through this program definitely helped strengthen my skills as a writer. It taught me to address my writing weaknesses and improve, pushing previous boundaries I had avoided before. The program made me a more purposeful and diligent author.

Three other writers who inspire you…

Tad Williams, Soman Chainani, and of course Ally Condie, my co-author for THE DARKDEEP.

With Tad, I always loved epic fantasy and his books were my gateway into the genre. I think what Soman has done with fairy tales is pretty amazing and Ally’s works, like Summerlost, are the best kind of writing for kids.

What are 4 things you love about your favorite book?

If we’re talking about an under-appreciated book, then the four things I love about  Denton Little’s Deathdate are how thought-provoking, engrossing, dark, and just plain funny it is. Check that one out for sure. Otherwise I’ll go with my all-time favorite fantasy book,  The Dragonbone Chair. It’s inspiring, remarkable, epic and one hell of an adventure.

What are our writing goals for next year?

This fall the amazing Ally Condie and I will release our first co-authored book, THE DARKDEEP, on 10/2/18. It’s a new middle grade series that combines elements of Stranger Things and The Goonies and explores what lurk in the dark corners of our imaginations. Then I’ll be releasing the third and final book in my Project Nemesis series, CHRYSALIS, on 3/5/19, which is even wilder than the previous two. I’ll be sending the Fire Lake kids off in style (and horrible trauma, as always). Fun times ahead!

Remember, his new book comes out October 2nd 2018 so check it out! Thanks Brendan!!

FanX

Dear Readers,

I wanted to let those of you who plan to see me in Utah this fall know that the FanX portion of the tour for The Lantern’s Ember is up in the air.

I’ve recently signed an open letter that was presented to the conference organizers just a few days ago regarding how they handled claims of sexual harassment. If you’d like to read more, you can follow any of the authors who drafted the letter on their social media sites.

I am still listed as an attendee, but I am carefully watching how events unfold.

If I do end up backing out of the conference, I will let you all know as soon as possible. Regardless, I am still planning on a book signing in Orem, Utah and one in West Jordan, Utah the week of Sept 9th.

Best Wishes

Colleen

YASH Spring 2018!

Welcome to the 15th YA Scavenger Hunt!

Hello! I am Colleen Houck, your hostess for this leg of the hunt.

About Me

My beverage of choice is Diet Dr. Pepper.

I have 11 Koi fish and 2 dogs.

My must have salad topping is feta cheese.

The last movie I watched was “Wrinkle in Time”.

And my all time favorite love song is “Open Arms” by Journey!

You are currently hunting on TEAM GOLD.

Looking for my exclusive bonus content? You’ll have to keep searching.

Somewhere on this blog hop, I’ve hidden a sneak peak from The Lantern’s Ember! Before you go looking for it, check out the amazing author I’m hosting.

But, first, a few rules.

SCAVENGER HUNT PUZZLE RULES

DIRECTIONS: Below, you’ll notice that I’ve listed my favorite number. Collect the favorite numbers of all the authors on TEAM GOLD, and then add them up (don’t worry, you can use a calculator!)

HINT: THE SECRET NUMBER IS HIGHLIGHTED IN GOLD !

ENTRY FORM: Once you’ve added up all the numbers, make sure you fill out the form here to officially qualify for the grand prize. Only entries that have the correct number will qualify.

RULES: Open internationally, anyone below the age of 18 should have a parent or guardian’s permission to enter. To be eligible for the grand prize, you must submit the completed entry form by SUNDAY, APRIL 8th, at noon Pacific Time. Entries sent without the correct number or without contact information will not be considered.

On this hunt, you not only get access to exclusive content from each participating YA author, you also get a secret number. Add up the numbers, and enter it for a chance to win a major prize–one lucky winner will receive at least one book from each author on my team in the hunt! But play fast. This contest (and all the exclusive bonus material) will only be online until noon PST on Sunday, October 8th!

There are SEVEN contests going on simultaneously as well as a bonus contest and you can enter one or all! I am a part of the GOLD TEAM but there is also a RED TEAM,  BLUE TEAM,  PURPLE TEAM, GREEN TEAM, & PINK TEAM! Check out each team for a chance to win SIX different sets of signed books!

If you’d like to find out more about the hunt, see links to all the authors participating, and see the full list of prizes up for grabs, go to the YA Scavenger Hunt page.

Now that all the technical stuff is out of the way, I’ll introduce the author I am hosting on this hunt.

I am super excited to be hosting…

SELENE CASTROVILLA

About SELENE:

 

The book she is showcasing is…

 

ABOUT THE BOOK 

The tables are turned with a vengeance in this tour de force sequel to Melt. Now it’s Dorothy who is fragmented and lost, while Joey keeps the promise he made her to better himself – even though she’s gone. This time the stakes are even higher, as Joey forces himself to move forward while Dorothy is frozen in place. But when he learns of a devastating decision, Joey races to find her before it’s too late. Truth, consequence, repercussion and modern medicine collide as pieces converge in this psychological, thrilling story which begs the question: Can love really conquer all?

BONUS MATERIAL ALERT!

Hi Everyone,

I’m so excited to be sharing an excerpt from Unpunished: Book Three of The Rough Romance Trilogy, which is releasing this fall!

This concludes the treacherous journey of Joey and Dorothy, started in Melt and continued in Signs of Life. (My featured YASH book!)

Happy hunting, and reading!

Selene

Dorothy

I wake up shrieking in the

dark,

trapped inside myself.

Buried alive inside my own

flesh,

my body is my

coffin.

Help! Help! The terror burns through me like I’m tied to a fiery pyre.

Maybe this time I’ll

die.

Maybe this day,

I’ll die.

Please,

let me die.

 

Joey

I wake up in the dark. Black out curtains, blacked-out mind. All this blocking, still no relief. The bright, shining pain, it sears right though. Here comes the sun.

I clamp my eyelids, squeezing every bit of defiance I can muster. I bury my head in the cheap feather pillow, the untrimmed ends stab my face.

Twisted in my sweat sheets, wound up like a tangled yo-yo no one wants, I think of her name. Why does love rip through us so much, isn’t it supposed to heal? Pleas spew from my mouth.

“Come back. Come back, Doll. Please.”

Dorothy

If I can’t hate him,

I need to

unlove him.

Just turn it

off.

Transition my emotions.

They need an operation for that.

 

Joey

I wonder if I’m being punished for being so selfish. For wanting her to stay.

Or maybe I’m unpunished. Maybe that’s the problem.

Pop

I woke up seeing red, big bolts of red zigging through my skull, flashing through my mind, zapping me with pain. I thought: I’m dead. This is hell. And I laughed because it would be so perfect for me to be in hell, I couldn’t argue the placement. But laughing made the red bolts zing harder, and I shut up real fast.  I lay there for awhile, trying to think past the pain, wondering if this was all that I was gonna get for eternity. God, I needed a shot of Jack.  Death was bullshit!

Joey

I guess it’s true that you can block trauma completely from your mind, because it had been gone until that moment. Why couldn’t I keep it gone? What was it about me that insisted to remember? Because faced with this knowledge I had to do something.

Pop

What did they have on me anyway? His word, that I was gonna kill him? He’s the convicted felon, I’m the cop — remember?

Dorothy’s Dad

We killed her.

Oh God did we kill her?

 

Dorothy

The same words

rang over and

over in my

head as I came

back and

opened my eyes.

“No good deed goes unpunished.”

That was awesome, right?!
You can buy her book HERE!
 Check out more on her Website, Twitter, or Facebook page.

And don’t forget to enter the contest for a chance to win a ton of signed books by me and many more! Just check out all these books on team GOLD,

 

To enter, you need to write down my favorite number

101

and find all the other numbers on TEAM GOLD, add them up, and you’ll have the secret code to enter for the grand prize!

Thank you so much for visiting my website! While you’re here don’t forget to enter the Rafflecopter bonus contest I am running exclusively during the YA Scavenger Hunt.

Two lucky winners will receive an advanced readers copy of The Lantern’s Ember and a bonus book! Good luck everyone!

Enter the rafflecopter below for a chance to win,

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

To continue on the hunt, check out author ABIGAIL JOHNSON!